I den här tråden diskuterar jag Gudar och städer till mitt lilla rollspel som jag tänkt köra med Eon IVs regelsystem.
Nedan följer min beskrivning av staden Carthage och dess matron-goddess, Hekate. Allt är på engelska, eftersom sambon min knappt talar svenska i nuläget. Feedback är alltid trevligt, gärna lita mer förslag på olika mirakel och förbannelser som Hekate kan besitta.
Cityname: Carthage
Patron Goddess: Hekate, One Of Three Faces, The Far Reaching, One who is Three.
Location: North-east Tunisia
Current leader: Magistrate Felicita Barca
Political system: Oligarchy where the most wealthy families make up the Council of a Hundred and Four. Another hundred and four seats are in addition to them held by members of the temple, who speak advice from a neutral point of view taken from the spirits of long since ancestors.
Society: It is said that Carthage are in reality two cities, one above ground and one below. For every living, talking and thinking citizen of carthage, there are a dozen more who have passed but who thinks of their relative even in the after-life, to council and guide their life. As such the respect of those who have passed is great, offering rituals by the dinner table for the fish who gave its life for this dinner to visiting the extended catacombs below ground, touching the bones of long-lost matriarchs and wise citizens. In order to fare better with ones lost it is possible to sacrifice one of your children, preferably some year before reaching puberty.
Other than the influence of the dead there's a strong leaning against a strict society with some rights for its citizens. A constitution was written some few hundred years ago, guaranteeing citizens legal rights in several matters, as long as they are a woman who has reached puberty. Men are considered property of their mothers or, if they are married, their wives, but carry protection from the law too. Very few revolts over the last decades indicate however that their system of government gives its citizens just enough rights to not complain and enough control to not dare to speak up.
Economic situation: In Carthage, wealth and trade means everything and the city holds one of the largest trade fleets in all of the Mediterranean. They export clothes of all kinds, from the cheapest linen and wool-clothes to expensively died and finely sown linen togas and dresses, spread from coast to coast on their light, fast ships. As many citizens are skilled craftsmen they also produce and export pottery, perfume and glassware amongst other things. Additionally, the land around Carthage is very fertile, and it produces large quantities of wheat and wine. True, few port-towns can consider themselves a real port town before a Carthagian vessel has docked there to trade.
Military situation: With grand wealth it is easy to maintain a grand army, holding several sacred bands with the bones of dead heroes of war strapped to their shields. Armoured warelephants terrify enemy forces and the large trade-fleet is protected by an even larger war-fleet. If Carthage had a flaw it would be that their forces, especially the land ones, have rarely fought any battles and have not yet been tested on the field of battle as properly as some of the other fringe-nations might have.
History: TBD
Strong relations: TBD
Weak relations: TBD
Religion: Worshipping the Three-Faced Goddess means to have a close relationship to the moon, to the dead and to withcraft. In order to respect these it is common for citizens to put up small shrines in their own homes with some bones, preferably a finger or two, from an important ancestor, in order to pray to it and ask it for guidance. Sometimes the ancestor may reply with a prophetic dream or vision, but if you want more clear answers, it is better to seek out one of the many temples in the city. There a priestess will guide the visitor down into the catacombs and find the bones of whoever they would like to ask and the priestess will act as a translator. It is common to ask ancestors for guidance in many situations, such as advice for marriage, education, investments and other things. Sometimes the ancestors will demand sacrifice of some sorts, often given to the temple, in forms of goods, coins or even lives. Indeed, on the full-moon night on the brightest day of the year, the priestesses of Hekat will flock the streets of Carthage in groups of three, bringing with them two large black dogs and calling out to families with the help of loud barking and bells in order to encourage them to offer a young member of their household for sacrifice. The children will then form a line behind the three, holding onto a white string of silk as to not get lost while returning to the temple. Once there they get to study different scriptures, non-stop, hour after hour, day after day until their bodies can take no more and they faint from exhaustion. They are then in what is considered the highest state of learning and instantly sacrificed by drowning before being mummified and placed in the catacombs below.
Worship directly to Hekate is more unusual amongst common citizens, who prefer to worship their ancestors, but priestess's and those who use withcraft worship the Goddess directly, either through prayer to her or through sacrifice of various objects to nearby catacombs and temples.
Religious structure: Like much else in Carthage there is a strict hiearcy in how things are run and this includes the church. At the very top sits The Three-Faced, an elderly woman who after recieving the title wears a mask with three faces on it, in order to represent Hekate. Below her are a group of ten Elders, chosen by her, who run administration of the various temples and make sure that her decrees are followed. At the lowest tier you find the sisters, who help run day to day business of the various temples, split into two groups, Older sisters and Younger sisters, depending on their experience. The one-hundred and four seats in the Council are all held by elder sisters and as such the temples have a great influence in city politics, both local and forign, and whenever the Magistrate intends to put an idea forth she will need to make sure that the temple are at least amiable to the decree.
Goddess' relation to her city: Reaching Hekate herself can be hard at times, especially as she often wanders the deep catacombs below Carthage, murmuring with all three mouths to the various corpses. Sometimes the bodies of the long dead sit up and seemingly whisper back to her before sliding back into their eternal sleep. She rarely talks or interacts with anyone except the Elders or preferably The Three-Faced, and then it is more to give instructions or answer questions. When the Goddess of the Moon appears it is to guide and rule, not give prophecies or speak vaguely. The only time the commoners may get a chance to see her is during the full-moon, when she has taken it upon herself to wander the street of Carthage, accompanied by her two large, black hounds, who bark loudly from time to time. Whatever house they were passing when the dogs barked will be haunted by death before the next fullmoon and their bodies brought to the temples. Ever since Hekate returned these bodies have then been ressurected and brought to work the fields tirelessly, carve sculptures and train with spears for as long as the moon touches them. The dead still speak, but they lack a will of their own, seemingly acting only upon the Goddess's accord. With right Hekate is feared by many and great offerings are made to the temples in the days before the fullmoon.
Goddess appearance: Hekate is three women in one, always connected in thought, word and action. Unable to fully part from each other, or perhaps unwilling, Hekate answers with three voices in unison, making it possibly even more overwhelming when spoken to by the Goddess. Typical symbols that often adorn her are the various shapes of the moon (crescent or full), the dagger, the key and the flames of withcraft. Additionally, Hekate seems to be lacking feet or rather, her dresses are long enough to cover them and for transportation she prefers to float, giving off no sound and sweeping forward like the moon at dusk. Following her are the two black hounds, Mot and Melqart, who are considered tools of her will by barking at those who are soon to be collected.
Domains: Magic, Death, The Moon, Crossroads, Dogs, Ghosts.
Miracles and curses: Being the Goddess of magic naturally allows the followers of Hekate to be blessed with some of the more powerful miracles and curses. These include the ability to levitate, to summon harmful spells against foes, to communicate with animals (in particular with dogs) and far-sight. Naturally her powers over the realm of the dead spread into the miracles too, and the ability to speak with ghosts and spirits is well known. Furthermore the priestesses are able to ressurect the dead, although it changes them into mindless creatures as their spirits are disconnected from their bodies. Most of her magic is more potent during night-time and it is never as powerful as it is under the fullmoon.
Nedan följer min beskrivning av staden Carthage och dess matron-goddess, Hekate. Allt är på engelska, eftersom sambon min knappt talar svenska i nuläget. Feedback är alltid trevligt, gärna lita mer förslag på olika mirakel och förbannelser som Hekate kan besitta.
Cityname: Carthage
Patron Goddess: Hekate, One Of Three Faces, The Far Reaching, One who is Three.
Location: North-east Tunisia
Current leader: Magistrate Felicita Barca
Political system: Oligarchy where the most wealthy families make up the Council of a Hundred and Four. Another hundred and four seats are in addition to them held by members of the temple, who speak advice from a neutral point of view taken from the spirits of long since ancestors.
Society: It is said that Carthage are in reality two cities, one above ground and one below. For every living, talking and thinking citizen of carthage, there are a dozen more who have passed but who thinks of their relative even in the after-life, to council and guide their life. As such the respect of those who have passed is great, offering rituals by the dinner table for the fish who gave its life for this dinner to visiting the extended catacombs below ground, touching the bones of long-lost matriarchs and wise citizens. In order to fare better with ones lost it is possible to sacrifice one of your children, preferably some year before reaching puberty.
Other than the influence of the dead there's a strong leaning against a strict society with some rights for its citizens. A constitution was written some few hundred years ago, guaranteeing citizens legal rights in several matters, as long as they are a woman who has reached puberty. Men are considered property of their mothers or, if they are married, their wives, but carry protection from the law too. Very few revolts over the last decades indicate however that their system of government gives its citizens just enough rights to not complain and enough control to not dare to speak up.
Economic situation: In Carthage, wealth and trade means everything and the city holds one of the largest trade fleets in all of the Mediterranean. They export clothes of all kinds, from the cheapest linen and wool-clothes to expensively died and finely sown linen togas and dresses, spread from coast to coast on their light, fast ships. As many citizens are skilled craftsmen they also produce and export pottery, perfume and glassware amongst other things. Additionally, the land around Carthage is very fertile, and it produces large quantities of wheat and wine. True, few port-towns can consider themselves a real port town before a Carthagian vessel has docked there to trade.
Military situation: With grand wealth it is easy to maintain a grand army, holding several sacred bands with the bones of dead heroes of war strapped to their shields. Armoured warelephants terrify enemy forces and the large trade-fleet is protected by an even larger war-fleet. If Carthage had a flaw it would be that their forces, especially the land ones, have rarely fought any battles and have not yet been tested on the field of battle as properly as some of the other fringe-nations might have.
History: TBD
Strong relations: TBD
Weak relations: TBD
Religion: Worshipping the Three-Faced Goddess means to have a close relationship to the moon, to the dead and to withcraft. In order to respect these it is common for citizens to put up small shrines in their own homes with some bones, preferably a finger or two, from an important ancestor, in order to pray to it and ask it for guidance. Sometimes the ancestor may reply with a prophetic dream or vision, but if you want more clear answers, it is better to seek out one of the many temples in the city. There a priestess will guide the visitor down into the catacombs and find the bones of whoever they would like to ask and the priestess will act as a translator. It is common to ask ancestors for guidance in many situations, such as advice for marriage, education, investments and other things. Sometimes the ancestors will demand sacrifice of some sorts, often given to the temple, in forms of goods, coins or even lives. Indeed, on the full-moon night on the brightest day of the year, the priestesses of Hekat will flock the streets of Carthage in groups of three, bringing with them two large black dogs and calling out to families with the help of loud barking and bells in order to encourage them to offer a young member of their household for sacrifice. The children will then form a line behind the three, holding onto a white string of silk as to not get lost while returning to the temple. Once there they get to study different scriptures, non-stop, hour after hour, day after day until their bodies can take no more and they faint from exhaustion. They are then in what is considered the highest state of learning and instantly sacrificed by drowning before being mummified and placed in the catacombs below.
Worship directly to Hekate is more unusual amongst common citizens, who prefer to worship their ancestors, but priestess's and those who use withcraft worship the Goddess directly, either through prayer to her or through sacrifice of various objects to nearby catacombs and temples.
Religious structure: Like much else in Carthage there is a strict hiearcy in how things are run and this includes the church. At the very top sits The Three-Faced, an elderly woman who after recieving the title wears a mask with three faces on it, in order to represent Hekate. Below her are a group of ten Elders, chosen by her, who run administration of the various temples and make sure that her decrees are followed. At the lowest tier you find the sisters, who help run day to day business of the various temples, split into two groups, Older sisters and Younger sisters, depending on their experience. The one-hundred and four seats in the Council are all held by elder sisters and as such the temples have a great influence in city politics, both local and forign, and whenever the Magistrate intends to put an idea forth she will need to make sure that the temple are at least amiable to the decree.
Goddess' relation to her city: Reaching Hekate herself can be hard at times, especially as she often wanders the deep catacombs below Carthage, murmuring with all three mouths to the various corpses. Sometimes the bodies of the long dead sit up and seemingly whisper back to her before sliding back into their eternal sleep. She rarely talks or interacts with anyone except the Elders or preferably The Three-Faced, and then it is more to give instructions or answer questions. When the Goddess of the Moon appears it is to guide and rule, not give prophecies or speak vaguely. The only time the commoners may get a chance to see her is during the full-moon, when she has taken it upon herself to wander the street of Carthage, accompanied by her two large, black hounds, who bark loudly from time to time. Whatever house they were passing when the dogs barked will be haunted by death before the next fullmoon and their bodies brought to the temples. Ever since Hekate returned these bodies have then been ressurected and brought to work the fields tirelessly, carve sculptures and train with spears for as long as the moon touches them. The dead still speak, but they lack a will of their own, seemingly acting only upon the Goddess's accord. With right Hekate is feared by many and great offerings are made to the temples in the days before the fullmoon.
Goddess appearance: Hekate is three women in one, always connected in thought, word and action. Unable to fully part from each other, or perhaps unwilling, Hekate answers with three voices in unison, making it possibly even more overwhelming when spoken to by the Goddess. Typical symbols that often adorn her are the various shapes of the moon (crescent or full), the dagger, the key and the flames of withcraft. Additionally, Hekate seems to be lacking feet or rather, her dresses are long enough to cover them and for transportation she prefers to float, giving off no sound and sweeping forward like the moon at dusk. Following her are the two black hounds, Mot and Melqart, who are considered tools of her will by barking at those who are soon to be collected.
Domains: Magic, Death, The Moon, Crossroads, Dogs, Ghosts.
Miracles and curses: Being the Goddess of magic naturally allows the followers of Hekate to be blessed with some of the more powerful miracles and curses. These include the ability to levitate, to summon harmful spells against foes, to communicate with animals (in particular with dogs) and far-sight. Naturally her powers over the realm of the dead spread into the miracles too, and the ability to speak with ghosts and spirits is well known. Furthermore the priestesses are able to ressurect the dead, although it changes them into mindless creatures as their spirits are disconnected from their bodies. Most of her magic is more potent during night-time and it is never as powerful as it is under the fullmoon.
