Primeval - The Wild and Legendary Chalcolithic

[Magnus Pym]

Reintroducing Primeval

 
Primeval has been a project of mine for quite some time now. Already two previous iterations exist, but it continues to evolve. So, what's Primeval? First and foremost, this fantasy world emphasizes survival and exploration. When imagining Primeval, think ancient times, early civilizations, primitive technology, vast and untamed wilderness, rare and legendary creatures. If there's one word to describe this world, it's Chalcolithic, though with an added touch of fantasy.

Another major theme that gives this setting an air of grandiose is all things legendary; strange creatures, supernatural occurrences, extraordinary abilities and whatnot. They're sometimes more real than the stories that the men of Primeval would have you believe.

Here you won't find large sprawling empires. Instead, what we see are power games between city-states. Furthermore, these settlements that we'll come to know as cities really are more akin to proto-cities - cities with minimal planning or even none. Most humans reside in small and scattered villages.

*Map made by Kaptn'Lath

The Origins of Agia and its Peoples

 
The action takes place on the continent of Agia. It was once part of a supercontinent, but it eventually detached from the main land mass and got isolated. It's an extremely wild place, teeming with a large variety of fauna and flora. It used to be entirely covered by greenery, but its tectonic voyage brought its upper part closer to a dryer place, therefore resulting in the northern half of Agia to have become a desert. That's despite the river Anu not having dried up.

While Agia is a wild place, the human race prospers. Long ago, before the desertification of the northern half of the continent, the natives lived along the river Anu and chased game on its vast grassy plains. Eventually, those that decided not to stay and dry along with the land moved east and south to the Jungle Verde, learning a new way of life among the lush greenery. They left behind an heritage that would inspire the future residents of their homeland. When they reached the jungles south of Mount Amukan, they were knowingly encroaching upon the territory of the Mecatzi, a people with whom they shared a mutual distrust. Those among them who had reached the jungles by the eastern path came upon the lands of the Teyacapan, which also disdained the ways of these foreigners. The arrival of the Ashkan peoples brought about serious geopolitical change in the Jungle Verde, and everything that entails. There are no pure Ashkanians anymore, but they didn't peter out in silence. Some tribes have adopted a few of their practices and beliefs; the Chichan, the Camaxtli and the Cualli tribes mainly. These tribes are descended from old Teyacapan, but have long since become an entirely distinct people - the Atzi. Now they're the dominant power in the Jungle Verde. 
 
Beyond the Muzencab range south of the Jungle Verde lives a people that believes crocodiles merit divine reverence and for whom all lands beyond the Barua Corridor, the main pass that links the Jungle Verde to the deep swampy lands of Baruxor, corrupt the soul. 
 
Not all Ashkanians went into the jungles. Some of them went straight east, toward the Kamtajop Mesa and even beyond in the mountainous Gajani peninsula. There, the natives Jani welcomed them and renamed them the Shekayans. 
 
Long after the Ashkan homeland had transformed into dunes of sand and rocky plateaus, some tribes from the Bagan Valley went to colonize the Madian heights, which are a series of low mountains and hills situated between their home in the northwestern valley and the Anu river. They would one day become the famous Madians, living in the maquis of Madia and lording over the Anuan tribes. 
 
To the west, the sandy plains give way to a savannah - the Saurian Veldt. So called because of the Sauria that roam the area, although most of them don't venture this far from their hole, the Baturapi. The Sadudu and the Diipatusu are famous for their domestication of these beasts.

Over time, we'll learn of other peoples, but the ones I mentioned have already distinguished themselves by contributing to the advancement of the human race on Agia.

All Things Legendary

Whether around a fire at night, or surrounded by a crowd of children during a makeshift class, or before a sacrifice or simply to impress a foreign visitor, the men and women of Agia have many stories to tell. Some of these stories are so incredible it's hard not to dismiss them outright. And since stories are local, for Agia is still wanting in terms of roads, it's easy to pin these tales on wild imagination. But, sometimes unbeknownst even to the storyteller, the most unbelievable elements of their stories might in fact reveal themselves to be true.

Agia is a land of legends, where the incredible doesn't happen everyday, but does indeed happen. How else to explain the eternal blessings of the river Anu? Or the fluorescent flora we find in the deep jungles? And what about the birdmen – a race of men with bird features? The hundreds of stories told by the peoples of Agia have as much chance to be real than they have to be complete lies, and since the transfer of knowledge from one generation to the next is done orally, there is no end in sight for a story that was able to inspire the population and still continues to do so.

Hearing and experiencing these stories is part of what makes Primeval fun. It gives additional weight to my earlier statement that Primeval is first and foremost a world of exploration.

[Magnus Pym]

Let's make this interesting. I hinted at various subjects in my introduction above, which I've compiled in three lists. Some that didn't get any mention were added to the lists, too. I will let the audience tell me what they're most interested in hearing about and then provide you some content on that specifically. Think of it as an interactive world-building experience (Though, probably slow moving, so bear with me).




*An index of interesting subjects to be discovered
 
[spoiler=Areas]  
Madia (The Madian heights, the Crimson Sands and the Anu River)  
The Bagan Valley  
The Golden Bed  
The Kamjatop Mesa  
The Gajani peninsula  
The Saurian Veldt  
The Baturapi  
Mount Amukan (Volcano)  
The Manugayatru  
The Jungle Verde  
The Muzencab range & the Barua Corridor  
Baruxor & the Great Bayou[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Peoples]
The Madians  
The Baganians  
The Ashkanians  
The Atzi (The Chichan, the Camaxtli and the Cualli)  
The Teyacapan  
The Mecatzi  
The Jani  
The Shekayans  
The Anuans  
The Sadudu  
The Diipatusu
The Macapor[/spoiler]
[spoiler=Others]  
Catastrophes, a unusual take on natural disasters and elementals  
Mantra, a native art of the Jani or an invention of the Shekayans?
The birdmen
The Sauria, dinosaurs?[/spoiler]

Conspicuously missing from the list are the gods. I haven't completely made up my mind on them yet. They might be added to the list at some point, but it'S more likely that I'll just write something on them and post it.

[Ghostman]

I will let the audience tell me what they're most interested in hearing about and then provide you some content on that specifically.

I would like to hear more about those strange birdmen. :)

[Magnus Pym]

I had bet with myself that that'd be the first subject someone was going to bring up. Hehe. There you go. There's still some mystery to it, but if you have more specific questions I'll do something about it.

[ic=On the birdmen]The birdmen are mentioned in old Jani legends and recognized as dangerous creatures by most tribes based between the Kamjatop Mesa and the Gajani peninsula. They're notorious tricksters, but even more infamous for their snatching up young women. These creatures have both the traits of men and birds, usually with a human's torso, arms and tights and the rest pretty much bird. From a perspective of someone actually living in these parts at the present time, there have been no recent sightings of the creatures. In fact, the birdmen haven't been seen for decades now. The last we hear of them is from the Xipili about three generations ago when a single of the creatures swooped down upon their village, snatching Mitiela, which was never to be seen again.

Mitiela was shunned by the males of her tribe, supposedly because of her unsavoury appearance. This was a source of serious emotional pain for her, but one day she started telling everyone someone had come for her during one of her getaways in the forest, offering himself as a prospect and saviour, and she said she would soon be gone. Mitiela seemed really happy, contrary to usual, so the people thought she had become crazy, but the next day when the creature swooped down on them and took her, they were bewildered. The angry mob started yelling at the beast as it made for the mountains of the Jani, but it never turned back, nor did Mitiela. The tribesmen, however, had not said their last word. Yet, at least. They gathered up the most courageous men and sent them on an expedition to recover the woman. After months away from home, scaling the mountains of the peaceful Jani, they resolved to return home... empty handed.

This is the most recent story about the birdmen, one among many. Truth is, however, and contrary to popular belief, it's not they, but rather he. The birdmen are in fact a birdman. Pasusu, Chief of the Skies as the Jani call him. And it seems as though only they know that the birdmen are in fact a single creature. Though, meet a man from the mountains today and he can only recite the legend, not give eyewitness account of its appearance or its behaviour.

My intentions concerning the birdmen is that they in fact become a group. The snatching up of Mitiela was intended specifically to produce progeny. It has failed, but Pasusu is an immortal creature. He will try again.[/ic]

[Ghostman]

Very folklore-esque. Do the Jani have some special relationship to Pasusu, knowing that much about him? Trying to appease him to maintain good terms maybe?

[Magnus Pym]

They don't know much about him; only what their legend says. As was mentioned in the short description:

...Though, meet a man from the mountains today and he can only recite the legend, not give eyewitness account of its appearance or its behaviour.

...From a perspective of someone actually living in these parts at the present time, there have been no recent sightings of the creatures. In fact, the birdmen haven't been seen for decades now. The last we hear of them is from the Xipili about three generations ago...

Pasusu hasn't appeared for a long time. To complicate matters further, different tribes have different stories about him. Most of them even think it's a group of birdmen, not a single creature. Because the Jani legend is old and there are no living eyewitnesses among them, that's why they don't know more about him than any of the other tribes.

[spoiler]Pasusu's Jani connection is hundreds of years old, when the tribes of the Gajani mountains were finally reunited as the Jani after long years of violent conflict. He's actually part of their creation myth. He had watched them quarrel from the heavens, but eventually decided the bloodshed couldn't continue. He chose a leader, the famous demigod Himuka, to which he'd give the power to end the conflict and maintain the peace thereafter.

Pasusu is intended as a legendary creature, but more precisely, an actual immortal being with great powers. He made his home in a cave atop the highest peak of the Gajani heights, a place that's extremely difficult to reach. The godlike creature, while seen as a leading figure of the ''happy'' union of the Jani, as the legend would have you believe, is also considered as someone capable of cruelty. He was well known to have plucked off from the ground those who opposed Himuka only to drop them to their deaths from heights impossible to survive. He only rarely acted directly in the conflict, though, preferring to bestow powers on Himuka which would make him become a demigod to the eyes of the people he led. As a result, he was himself thought of as a god and acquired the title Chief of the Skies for his ability to fly.

He's full of contradictions, as are the stories about him. He both appears as a saviour, for when Himuka united the Jani, their people lived in peace. However, the way he treated the perceived enemies of Himuka and his infamous snatching of women make him seem outright evil.[/spoiler]

[Magnus Pym]

[ic=Magukor, Megacroc and How A People Are Living A Lie]The old man was leaning on a tree to catch his breath after what had been an exhausting walk with the tribe's youth. From their village to the coast, they had walked for hours through humid marshlands. On their way they had met with friendly tribes who encouraged them on their journey. At first the kids were excited and had given their elderly guide some trouble, but after the first two hours of walk they calmed down. Now they gathered around the man, teasing his old age and showing off their youthful energy. He bade them to make themselves as comfortable as they could, for he had a story to tell them. As they did this, he looked east to the sea and pointed towards the infinite blue distance.

He told them how their ancestors were convinced mountains and jungles had once stood where he pointed, but that Magukor had surged from an ancient sea and crashed upon them, sinking their homeland into the deep and leaving the periphery a swampy mess. The legend was so old, dozens of generations old at least, even the elder seemed like he doubted it. But as the elders before him had once brought him there to tell the tale, so he did that in turn.

One of the kids, Ugur, asked if Megacroc would truly restore their ancestral lands to their ancient splendour. The wrinkled old man let out a hopeful sigh and responded that Megacroc was the only hope they had. He looked at the group and asked who among them could lift the seafloor? After a predictable silence, they all concluded it must be Megacroc. So, he continued, they must continue to observe the proper rituals with diligence in order to appease Megacroc and thus win back their homeland, for themselves and for their kin.[/ic]

[spoiler]Megacroc is the famous giant crocodile revered by the Macapor, a people that lives in the swamps of Baruxor. Megacroc is said to have spoken to Itilcur, a Macaporian hero, as the latter worked to settle his refugee tribe following the Great Tide*. He told him he had seen the devastation of their homeland and could restore it if he was fed enough of what he liked best. Over time, the Macaporians learned of the beasts' tastes. He loves hargiar (Big silver fish), baby crocodiles (weirdly enough) and turtles.

The holy crocodile is in fact a normal crocodile propped up by the shawor, a group of chosen elders who oversee ceremonies and pretty much rule the Macaporians, even though they have a chieftain. In truth, the story is a complete sham invented by Itilcur. Knowing that a new and harsh life lay ahead for his people, he sought a way to give them hope. Though, one man can hardly keep such a secret for long without any help.

* The Great tide is the event mentioned in the legend where Magukor rose from the sea to crash on the Macaporian's ancestral homeland.[/spoiler]

[spoiler]Magukor is the name given to a tsunami that engulfed the swamps of Baruxor and beyond. It's widely believed to be an angry god, or at least a god that became angry for some reason. But the truth is a little bit simpler, if perhaps crueller. Magukor existed only for a brief moment, when ancient Macaporian sorcerers lost control of elemental energies. As soon as it crashed, the energies that were unleashed were consumed. Today, the Macaporians and other tribes that live in the swamps call the sea Magukor and still think it to be a divine persona, even though it's really just water.[/spoiler]

[Ghostman]

It's pretty disturbing that sorcery could create a tsunami, even just by accident. In that light it's probably for the best if the truth has been forgotten.

[Magnus Pym]

Well, the real truth has never been known, since the ''sorcerers'' didn't survive the experiment. Nor did anyone in quite a few hundred miles radius. Itilcur's band was an amalgam of survivors from the tribes on the periphery of ancient Macaporian territory. Even he doesn't know what really happened. He just took the opportunity to elevate himself; the whole story is an invention of his to acquire power and unite his people behind a single goal, which he'd set. Basically, he was a smart asshole, or, as his people claims, a hero.

The secrets of the magic that was used to create Magukor have been lost to the Macaporians, or at least has been kept a secret. However, that doesn't mean they can't learn it again. Obviously this isn't going to be easy or predictable (in terms of how that's going to happen), but it's not impossible.

[Ghostman]

How big are the Saurians on their Veldt? Can they be bred in captivity or are the domesticated ones hatched from eggs collected from the wild?

[Magnus Pym]

The Saurians that roam the veldt are usually the smaller ones of their kin. They generally venture out of their territory for want of food, and have increasingly done so throughout the last decade as they deplete the resources of their homeland. For that reason, large Saurians can also be found in the savannah.

The domestication of this beast is a novelty. The Sadudu were the first to achieve this feat, but the Diipatusu soon followed, no doubt after having stolen the secrets from the former. The creatures are mainly used as mounts, but are effective hunters as well. They're discreet, fast runners that can cover long distances before getting exhausted. Also, they can use their powerful claws and teeth to deadly effect. To give you an idea of their effectiveness; they're able to keep up with a horse (though they'd become exhausted before the horse), they'd win a fight against a lion (but against a squad it would lose) and can sneak up to a fox (given he can use cover).

The creatures usually lay their eggs deeper in the forest, so there aren't many to be found in the veldt, though that's not impossible. The reproduction of domesticated Saurian happens in captivity, then. Their masters build a large habitat, surround and cover it in foliage of all kinds and close it until the deed is done, which can be identified as such when the pair starts picking on each other after a long period of calm. During the exercise, the Saurians become hostile and will pick on anything that moves, so they're fed juicy and spiced up meat through a hole in the ceiling. The whole process up to that point is rather easy, but then there's a moment of danger when it's time to free them yet again (their masters will leave the female alone until she lays the eggs). The male will need to return to its handler for its usual purposes. The men will remove the foliage from the door, remove the heavy lock mechanism (often a simple bar like medieval castle gates) and tempt their fate recovering the male. The trick usually is to soothe it with even tastier meat and while it's busy eating simply to pat it and remind it of its bond with its master.

Speaking of bond with a master, the Saurians are surprisingly loyal creatures. They care deeply for their progeny (which they recognize) and for a master (be it human or a larger, more ferocious Saurian). Over time they can be trained to change masters, but that's a difficult process. They don't care much for their female counterparts, except when they wish for progeny.

[Magnus Pym]

[ic=A Kingdom Of Sand, From Mountain To River]Centuries have left the grassy rolling plains of Ashka desolate; a scenery of sand dunes and rocky plateaus below an infinite blue sky. To be honest, green and soft was merely replaced with earthly and hard, while the seeming infinity of the whole place was maintained, but really sometimes it just seems like what was once alive is now dead. Pack of wild horses do not race ever forward, reaching the ends of what seems like a whole world; the wind doesn't make the grass dance anymore, softly caressing whoever happens to be there. Instead, the wind makes the sand rise like tidal waves and crash with crushing force, revealing nasty creatures that hide within its warm depths. The hospitality of the place, or lack thereof, doesn't make it an appealing location to settle down.
 
Men like to prove others wrong. Sometimes, they simply like to go on an adventure and explore. Other times they're forced to do things they'd rather not do. Whatever the reason was, the Madian heights were soon housing several tribes. They were remaining Ashkanians, either from the ancient grassy plains, the mountain-turned-maquis or the riverbanks, which, blessed as it is by whatever gods, has never run dry. Or they were Bagan peoples, parched and desperate after a long journey through the rocky flats. Initially, there was conflict, but over time these peoples mixed and gave rise to a new culture, the Madians.
 
The Ashkan influence was strong on the Madians. In fact, they had left a rich heritage in the form of shrines and temples. Notably, the Baspal, a ziggurat structure of considerable size just south of the Madian heights, was left there by the ancient Ashkan peoples. The fifteen-story building does not impress solely because of its size, but because of its mystery. Common knowledge has it that it was the ancient Ashkans who built it, but some people are doubtful that a nomadic people would have enough time and resources to spend on such a demanding project. The whole mystery surrounding the structure's origin helps to lend it an aura of divine grandeur, and those that have an interest in keeping the status-quo make sure those in doubt keep their thoughts to themselves.
 
Who, then, has an interest in making sure people think it was the ancient Ashkanians that built the Baspal? The answer is simple; the suteph. The suteph has monarchical powers, but draws his power from the divine in the sense that he is only suteph so long as his people believe him to be the Chosen One¹. Directly benefiting from the suteph are the magurs, the procors and the anugurs. In order, they're the lords of the Madian heights, the lords of the veldt and the lords of the Anu river. Their privileges are bestowed upon them by the suteph and can be taken away as quickly and easily as they were given. Because the suteph is extremely powerful in terms of the resources he commands, his lords are usually eager to advance his agenda in order to maintain their high status and benefits. Thus, religion is an integral part of society.

The lords occupy a bit of a novel position. Quasi-kings themselves, they have serious influence in their territory. They actually were kings in their own right, but after the Madian conquests they've become vassal of a supreme leader, Camobhal, the suteph in Madia. The Madian conquests underwent several phases, some less bloody than others, and from these events the different titles of lordships were created. The magurs are lords in the Madian heights. Some of them used to be sutephs, but as they joined Camobhal, voluntarily or otherwise, he was eventually left as the sole remaining suteph. It made sense, but he needed governors to help him administer his ever-growing territory, so, they were made magurs. The procors are few and curious in that they're of veldt stock; they're tribes of the savanna that aren't under Sadudu domination. Most of them happened to be members of tribes loyal to that in which Camobhal married¹, so they came into the Madian fold willingly, but a few others were eventually subjugated and brought under Madian control. The anugurs are the leaders along the river Anu. Originally of ancient Ashkan stock, most of them have succumbed to the sword during the conquest and have been replaced with individuals of Madian stock, though some pure breed Ashkanians remain.

From their humble beginnings as small warring tribes beset on all sides by vast deserts to an infant kingdom with the potential for much more, the Madians are sure to leave their mark on history.


¹ The Chosen One is the individual that's chosen by Sani, the Sun God, or simply the Sun, to lead men to greater prosperity and enlightenment.
¹ Camobhal's father, Malmur, had his son marry into the Miusu family, which was a bold move considering they were considered savages by the Madians. The reason was to gain access to a steady supply of saurian beasts, so as to give him an advantage over his neighbours.

[/ic]