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THE CREATION OF KANDALA
In the Dawn Time, the world was a flat expanse of nothing. There was but one who dwelt upon it, a giant named Old Man. Old Man was immortal, and had no need of food, drink, or sleep. For some time, he entertained himself by drawing in the dirt with his finger, but soon found this an unsatisfying way to pass the time. So, Old Man became lonely. He decided that, to end his loneliness, he would create other creatures to inhabit the land.
Old Man crafted small creatures from clay that looked much like him. With his magic, he animated them, and called them Men. He drew great satisfaction with his new children, and watched them for some time. But they were not immortal like him, and soon began to die from starvation and thirst. "This will not do," Old Man said to himself, "I must make some food and find some water for them."
So Old Man crafted some more creatures from clay. These looked much different from him, and he called them Animals. He then picked up stones from the ground and taught the Men how to craft knives and spears from them, so that they may hunt the Animals for food. He planted seeds in the ground, and they grew into grass for the Animals to eat.
He then sojourned to the ocean and drew some more lines in the sand. they filled with water from the sea, and he channeled it towards where the Men were living. now Men had food and water to survive with.
But despite his efforts, Men still died. eventually their bodies simply wore out and stopped working, or they would get themselves into some kind of accident, or an Animal they were hunting turned to fight and won. At first, Old Man tried to Replace the Men by simply sculpting more, but soon he found this to be far too much work. So he crafted some new creatures, which he called Women, and which looked much like him but not quite. He put the Men and Women together in the same place, collectively naming them Humen. He taught them to love each other and replace the dead Humen themselves.
Content, he sat down in the middle of the land to watched the Humen multiply and prosper. For many years he did not move, and slowly his skin became hard. Birds began to nest on top of his limbs. His hair became long, unkempt, and oddly colored. He slowly transformed into the world's first tree. The world Tree's roots extended through the earth, and at many points jutted back up from it. from these, new trees and other plants began to grow. From the World Tree extended a great forest that covered the continent. Only occasionally would Old Man World Tree take part in the affairs of Humen, and when he did it was always to offer some piece of great wisdom or new craft unto them.
This is the shape of our land, Kandala. Blessed be it by Old Man World Tree, and may its forests always thrive.
THE PEOPLE OF KANDALA
The Cliff-Dwellers
The Cliff-Dwellers are Humen who live on the edge of the Ghost Mountains. Their cities are vast labyrinths of adobe built into the sides of cliffs. They draw water from glacial streams that flow down these cliffs when the snow on top of the mountains melt every summer. They grow herbs and vegetables in narrow gardens on small, flat parts of the cliff faces. The Cliff-Dwellers are an ebony-skinned, tall, lean people well suited for climbing--whether it be the side of a rock wall or a long, twisting flight of stairs. They dress in loosely fitted leather clothes received via trade with the Dust Folk, and the well-to do decorate themselves with a variety of precious stones that wash down in the streams from the mountains. The various city-states of the Cliff-Dwellers are each ruled by a council of elders to manage their own communities.
The Dust Folk
The Dust Folk are the nomadic Humen of the Windless Desert. They are tribal and nomadic in nature, herding their masses of livestock north and south across the desert according to season, always managing to reach the next watering hole before suffering from thirst. These surprisingly small, brown-skinned people are a hard race from a hard land, and masters of the art of survival. They dress in plain cowhide shifts and shelter their feet in sandals made from the wood of the desert's sparse baobab trees. Each Dust Folk tribe is guided by a shamanistic medicine man who communicates the will of the Old Man to his followers.
The Helderus
The Helderus are a race of half-humen living in the Creaking Glades. Possessing the torso and arms of the human but the wings, neck, head, tail, and legs of a heron, a Helderu is equally at home on land, in the air, or on the surface of water. Because they speak through beaks and have long necks, when they use human language their statements are colored by a strange croaking accent. For the same reason, very few humans are able to speak the Helderu language aloud. To avoid damage from floods, Helderus live in towns called waterstilts. These are collections of wooden buildings raised high above the marshes by stilts and connected by rope bridges. The Creaking Glades are the world's best source of alligator leather, many different herbs and spices, and a few precious minerals. As such, Helderus often trade with other peoples living upriver from them.
The Islanders
The Islanders are the native people of the Fuming Islands, a volcanic archipelago east of the Southern Jungle and south of the Creaking Glades. They lead a rather laid-back, tropical lifestyle that relies on fishing in the coral reef surrounding the archipelago. Centuries ago, their tribes were united by a chieftain named Ilmakali--know known as King Ilmakali the First. His descendants have held authority over the region ever since, and the current Queen Malkinala III now rules the nation. Islanders tend to possess great upper body strength from the rigors of sailing and fishing, but are otherwise diminutive. Living in such a warm country, the Islanders do little to cover their amber-skinned bodies, and a dyed silk shift is considered formal attire. Unfortunately, in recent years, the Islanders have gained an unsavory reputation with foreign sea traders. Either poor and desperate or bored of uneventful life in the Islands, Islander pirates are increasingly common.
The Plainsmen
The Plainsmen are the nomadic mastodon-hunters of the High Plains. Everything they own, from their tents to their clothes to their bonemold weaponry, is crafted from some part of the great mastodon herds that roam their country. For their livelihood, they must be able to get their horses to stay calm and ride fast in the face of the Plainsmens' stampeding, massive quarry. As such Plainsmen are, out of necessity, the most skilled riders and archers in Kandala. Warfare amongst the Plainsmen involves the rapid charging of cavalry and horseback archers. Their battles take hours as horsemen whirl in wide circles, pelting one another with arrows and dodging attacks with ease. The tall, brown-skinned, green-eyed Plainsmen tribes are each governed by a warchief whose authority is determined by his lethality in combat.
The Rain Folk
The Southern Jungle is inhabited by Rain Folk: short, black-skinned humen. They dwell in small tribal communities deep in the rainforest, untrusting and suspicious of outsiders. The Rain Folk are hunters of dangerous jungle game, and it is the strongest who are the most respected in their culture. They dress in furs and leathers from the animals they kill, barely just enough to defend the modesty. Other than that, they adorn themselves with many piercings and tattoos. Their small settlements have little need for governing bodies; Rain Folk distribute their food and items amongst themselves according to need. As for crime, it is nearly non-existent: actions that harm the community result in exile to the wilderness jungle. Taking into account the difficult terrain, fierce predators, disease-ridden atmosphere, and other dangers, few would dare risk life alone there.
The Wood Tribes
The Wood Tribes live in the eastern region of Greatwood. They are red-skinned and black-haired, with lean, angular faces. It is within their homeland that the World Tree rests, and its awe-inspiring presence has led to the Wood Tribes becoming a humble, deeply spiritual people. They put much faith in the shamanistic practices of their medicine men and many other old superstitions. For the most part, Wood Tribes communities are small, wooden settlements supported by a community farm in the center and led by a priest. Their national government is a council of priests based in the city of Root, which lies at the base of the World Tree. Woodmen dress in unassuming cotton pants and shirts for males and similarly designed dresses for females, which may or may not be dyed in vibrant colors. Their law is enforced by holy warriors called the Divine Hands, who have more or less unchecked authority to pursue and punish accused criminals and heretics.
The North Rim Tribes
The North Rim Tribes originated in the Utter North, a craggy frozen country across the sea. There they hunted and fished, eking out a meager existence from the frozen wastes. After a series of particularly harsh winters killed off the animal herds they survived on, the North Rim Tribes were forced to leave their homeland. Fifteen years ago, they sailed southward to Greatwood, and there became raiders. The North Rim Tribes pillaged and stole all across northern Greatwood in a series of conflicts known as the Northern Horde Wars. Finally, the Divine Hands set out from the City of Root and drove the invaders out of central Greatwood. The holy warriors, however, lacked the resources to completely defeat the Northern Horde, and northern Greatwood is still inhabited by them. The North Rim Tribes now live in timber-walled villages and the vast farmlands surrounding them. Their economy is based on animal agriculture and the raising of pigs, chickens, and goats. Each tribe is ruled by a hereditary monarchy that claim said to stretch back to the first Men created by Old Man. They cover their thick, fair-skinned bodies in heavy animal furs to keep out the cold of their homeland.
The Sasqui
The Sasqui (singular: sasquatch) live in the forests of the Pinelands, deep in the wilderness far from local Northmen settlements. They are large, ape-like beings with grey skin and auburn fur. They are herbivores who subsist on berries and leaves. Young adults are solitary and roam the world as they please, eventually finding a mate around the age of thirteen and subsequently settling into life in a stationary family group.
The Tavrus
The Tavrus are a race of intelligent bears living in the Green Mountains. They are powerful and asocial hunters. Some Tavrus, seeking more than the bare existence their mountain country offers, depart for human-occupied lands and find work either as mercenaries or as huntsmen who sell meat and furs to settled folk.
The Windijons
The Windijons are tall, furry beast-folk dwelling high in the Ghost Mountains, at the edge of the Known World. They are reserved and silent towards outsiders, and rarely leave their blizzard-swept homeland. Standing nearly seven-feet tall and being completely covered in white hair, they are skilled mountaineers and trackers with hardy constitutions and great stealth. Little is known about their social structure, though it is known that they dwell in caves and are grouped in very tight-nit communities. The large, yellow eyes of a Windijon are perfect for seeing in the dark as well as outside during the day.
Others
This is an incomplete list. If you want to suggest another race or somesuch, feel free to do so. However, this is my fictional continent and it must be approved by me before you use your own race for a character who inhabits it.
THE PLOT
Over the past few years, each winter in Greatwood has become harsher and longer than the last. Crops are failing and hunger is becoming an increasing problem. Many of the Wood Tribes are moving southward, to warmer regions. Many North Rim Tribes wish to do the same, but the Divine Hands--who still fear a repeat of the Northern Horde Wars--are prepared to stop them if they try. Elsewhere in Kandala, the unusual weather persists, with a variety of effects. Only the farthest reaches of the Southern Jungle and the tropical Fuming Islands seem unnaffected.
For whatever reason, you have ended up in Greatwood, specifically the Wood Tribe village of Crane Bend, a trade-center on the great Red Turtle River. It is the dead of winter, and in less than a week the sun will be at its lowest point in the sky all year. The ground is covered in several inches of snow, and the forest all around the village is silent.
CHARACTER SKELETONS
Here is at least what you need to describe about your character. Feel free to add more if you want.
Name:
Gender:
Appearance: (can be a picture or a description. Try not to break any copyright laws, okay?)
Age: (can be in years, or just an approximation like "young adult" or "middle-aged" In most of Kandala, you are considered an adult by the age of fourteen, but this varies between cultures)
Occupation: (how your character gets by in the world of Kandala)
Bio: (At the least, explain how you ended up in Crane Bend. Other than that, be as detailed or vague as you like.)
