Tinkers

 Pelaria  No Responses »
Oct 112013
 

From the journal of Ardebast Raconteur :

One of the great wonders of Pelarian society is the tinker, a mechanical construct that is capable of simple thought. The secret is in the tinker-core, which only guild tinkerers know how to create.

There are different classes of tinkers. Heavy-labour tinkers, are durable constructs built to perform tasks that are deemed too difficult or dangers for the average fur, like mining or excavation. Companion tinkers are much smaller and often serve as pets for younger furs. Tinkerers are always exploring new avenues for tinker development.

Tinker-cores are responsible for a tinker’s “personality” and have a finite life-span. Once they run down, the tinker “dies”. Guild tinkerers cannot (or choose not to) explain why they cannot simply “recharge” these run down cores. While you could simply replace the tinker-core, the new core’s personality would change. Many is the parent who has tried to fool their child by replacing the tinker-core of their child’s cherished tinker companion, only for the child to reject the tinker for not being the same.

You can find furs in just about every town that can maintain and repair tinkers. Some might even be able to build one from scratch. Even then, they would have to call upon the tinker guild for a tinker-core to give life to their creation. As creating a tinker-core is an involved process, it would be unusual for a guild tinkerer to give or sell a tinker-core to another individual. You could try to salvage a tinker-core from another tinker of course. Assuming you were the owner of the original tinker in the first place, there’s nothing strictly wrong with doing so. Most guild tinkerers however, would be upset to learn that their tinker-cores were being used in an “inferior” tinker model. Seeing as how each tinkerer marks the tinker-cores they make, it’s not like an amateur tinkerer could keep such a thing hidden from those who know where to look.

It should be noted that not every fur is comfortable with tinkers operating in society. Some are radically opposed to the very idea of tinkers, considering them abominations. It is not unknown to find smashed tinkers in neighborhoods known to house these anti-tinker extremists.

Rumors have reached my ears of a recent phenomenon in Bree whereby aging and damaged tinkers wander off on their own never to be seen or heard from again. It sounds to me like a story waiting to be told.

Carja’s Notes:

It really shouldn’t have taken me this long to write about tinkers.

As I was starting this entry, the Tigger song popped into my head. I ALMOST started Ardebast’s entry with, “The wonderful thing about tinkers, is tinkers are wonderful things. Their tops are made out of metal, their insides are made out of springs.” Ultimately, I thought it was a little too over the top, but I thought it was too cute not to share. That’s the great thing about including my notes, right?

The idea for tinkers came about because as I was developing this world where animals became sentient, I thought about what they’d do for pets. Would they domesticate animals from the Wild? I found the idea of a cat keeping another cat as a pet a little twisted and decided against it. Then I thought, “What if they built their own companions?” and thus the idea of tinkers was born. Basically, they were clockwork creations with all kinds of springs and cogs inside to make the tinkers able to move around. From there came the idea of a variety of classes of tinkers built to help Pelarian society.

Originally, the Age of Animus setting was meant to be a low-fantasy setting, with tinkers as the main fantastical element. I’ve since become a little flexible when it comes to the fantastical, having added phantom spirits to the mix.

The tinker-core, which is where the name tinker comes from, was an idea I recycled from an anime RPG campaign I worked on years ago where there was no electricity but gadgets still abounded powered by something called a tinker-core which is an elaborate kind of battery that was created through some fantastical process.

Obviously Ardebast’s journal entry was written before the events in Tales of the Tinkerwood.

The Rota

 Pelaria  No Responses »
Mar 302013
 

From the journal of Ardebast Raconteur:

If you’re given to traveling through Pelaria, sooner or later you’ll come across the Rota.

The Rota are nomads. They travel Pelaria in caravans with the wind as their guide. Each caravan is a family led by a father. The father is wind-seeker, reading the wind currents to determine where the family should go next.

Like the wind, the Rota are viewed as bringers of fortune, both good and bad. Which you will get will only be clear once they’ve already moved on.  Less scrupulous Rota will prey on the superstitious, promising good fortune in exchange for favorable treatment. Honest Rota consider these ne’er-do-wells a blight on the name and are quick to distance themselves from those who bring shame to their way of life.

If you do a good turn for a Rota, you are his friend for life and there is nothing he will not do to repay the favor.  Woe be the Rota who turns his back on a debt. The family will cast him out and he will not be welcome in any other family.

Once a year, the various families will convene in one location, as determined by the winds. This Reunion takes place in late fall. The families take the opportunity to catch up with old friends and to trade for supplies that they’re short on with winter approaching. If you ever are invited to attend one I heartily recommend attending. They’re great fun and there are many stories to be heard. Showing up without an invitation is not recommended however.

One can travel freely with Rota, and I have. But know that traveling with a family does not make one a member of the family. Even marriage with a Rota cannot guarantee that. Good friends of the family are considered kindred however and will always be welcomed with open paws.

Carja’s Notes:

Okay, I wanted gypsies but I didn’t want to just call them gypsies. I fiddled around on google translate, trying to find the right combination of word and language. The winning combination was “wheel” and Latin. I have a precedent for using Latin so that’s where that came from.

Winter in Pelaria

 Pelaria  No Responses »
Feb 022013
 

From the journal of Ardebast Raconteur:

Pelaria is at its most peaceful in the winter months. The farmers have completed the harvest and huddle in their homes to relax. Most fisherfurs dock their boats and do much the same. Heavy snowfalls can block the roads, keeping furs from travelling very far and making towns more isolated. The rangers narrow their patrol routes to keep closer to their station houses. The Mouse Wing is almost completely shut down as many of their bird steeds migrate south (Verdant is almost a ghost town for much the same reason).

This isolation means that towns must be self-sufficient. Emergencies arise however, forcing furs in one town to brave the elements to reach another town for much-needed supplies.

Even activity in the capital city of Sixtus is noticeably slower in the winter months. There are massive storehouses in the city to provide for any emergency. The Order maintains strict control over these stores for if they were to run out, it would be disastrous for the city, if not the entire continent. A town in need can ask Sixtus for help. Aid from the capital comes at a cost in the form of a special tax for the following year proportional to the amount of aid provided. The tax is calculated fairly, taking into consideration that town’s ability to pay.

The Coven also maintains storehouses for the lean months, although their aid is much more costly. Immediate payment is required.

I try to time my travels to be back in Sixtus before the first snowfall. The winter months provide me with time to rest my weary bones (much wearier now than during my younger years) and assemble the notes taken during my travels throughout the year. Great stories are not written in a day after all. In truth however, this is work that could be done anywhere. The reason I prefer to do so in Sixtus is to have easy access to the great library to research all the little questions I’ve also amassed during the year.

Carja’s Notes:

When you’re building a world, questions arise. I was thinking of creating a roleplaying scenario set during the winter months and naturally the question, “What happens to these furs in winter?” came up. It seemed to me that just travelling from one place to the other would prove difficult, so I’ve reformulated the scenario to start at the onset of winter instead. The results of the roleplaying session, when I finish it and my friends and I get to playing through it, will no doubt make for a story later.

The Coven

 Pelaria  No Responses »
Jan 182012
 

“There is no place that is closed to us,
No riches that are beyond our grasp,
For we are the Coven and your own shadow is our haven.”

– Oath of the Coven

From the journal of Ardebast Raconteur:

The Coven is an organization of thieves, assassins and rogues that operate behind the scenes in Pelaria. They are ruled by the Council of Thirteen who are said to have their paws in every facet of animus life. Their name stems from the fact that original thirteen members were seen by the public as beings that inhabited the shadows of society and accomplished impossible tasks, just like witches.

Not every rogue is a member of the Coven, though almost certainly all have come across them at one time or another. The Coven is content to let others operate independently unless it directly interferes with their business. The fur that crosses them once does not usually live to do so a second time.

Despite their dark reputation, not all members of the Coven are strictly evil. They simply operate by their own code.

Carja’s Notes:

As I was writing The Meeting of Sass and Mouser I decided that I wanted to have some sort of thieves’ guild that operates in Pelaria. I thought “The Coven” was a cool name for such an organization, because it seemed dark and mysterious. Eventually, the Coven developed into much more than just a simple guild of thieves. They’re a major antagonist presence in Pelaria, because hey! Any story could use an antagonist!

The Mouse Wing

 Pelaria  No Responses »
Nov 162011
 

From the journal of Ardebast Raconteur:

The Mouse Wing is an organization of brave mice who fly over Pelaria on the backs of birds. They are mostly  responsible for patrolling the farming community of Sunnyvale. Given their small size, mice can ride on the backs of birds as they fly over land. Normally, these are Wild birds, but one or two Avian have been spotted amongst the Mouse Wing. Though the Avian are Awakened and capable of independent thought, it still falls to their mouse rider to guide them as Avian are too unpredictable to be counted on on their own. Once they spot danger, the mice of the Mouse Wing will report to the nearest ranger station. The rangers will then deploy to handle the situation. Without the Mouse Wing, the rangers would spend almost all their time patrolling and would often be unavailable should a situation arise when they’re not near.

Excerpt from Zoë of the Mouse Wing:

Most of the birds were of the Wild. They had been tamed by the members of the Wing and lived in symbiosis with them. The mice took care of the birds and in exchange, the birds let the mice ride them. Birds naturally like to fly so it was a good deal. Some birds, like Popkin, were enlightened. They called themselves the Avian and they joined the Mouse Wing for the same reasons the mice did…to help their fellows.

Carja’s Notes:

The Mouse Wing came about as I was thinking about the different groups and organizations that might inhabit Pelaria. It’s not difficult to see that it exists as a direct homage to the excellent comic series, Mouse Guard.  Never mind that some birds feed on mice, these are awakened mice we’re talking about.

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