Friday, August 10, 2007

Dhe’nari Bards

08/10/2007

I once gave a brief overview of the Dhe’nari bard here:

“The Dhe’nar bard is the lorekeeper of his people. It is the bard’s job to be the living history of the Dhe’nar, memorizing every last bit of history, genealogy, and mythology of the First Born. Their training lasts longer than that of any other Dhe’nar profession, as they must commit to memory every detail of a culture that has existed for 80,000 years. Utilizing a vast variety of mnemonic devices to retain all this knowledge, the Dhe’nar Lorekeepers claim to be the first of the mortal races to have discovered the magic resident within the spoken word. However, not all Dhe’nari bards become Lorekeepers. Those who seek combat can find themselves valued in the Warrior Caste, and those who prefer to research the nature of their sound magic can find a role with the Warlock caste as well.”

I would like to expand upon this now, as the Lorekeeper I mentioned then is but one role of many.

Though those of other nations choose to collectively refer to those that wield sound magic as entertainers, or “bards”, those of the Dhe’nar rarely share a common title, preferring to be known by their individual roles within their castes. Few, if any, are entertainers, as the Common term implies. Any of them may be a Lorekeeper, a Sonomancer, one of the Discordant, and so on.

It is, of course, their particular approach to magic, their belief in the raw power of sound, that truly unites the Dhe’nari “bards”, while simultaneous setting them apart from their brethren. Specifically, most believe that sound itself is the underlying foundation of all magic, and not only that, but creation itself, and it is through the manipulation of sound that they seek Ascension.

As the theory goes, everything that exists is tied to a certain sound, a certain harmony, known as its resonance. This resonance contains determines the object’s nature, and as something changes, so does its “sound”. Conversely, by changing something’s resonance, the object itself then changes.

These two elements form the basis of Dhe’nari theories of sound magic. The ability to “read” the information in an object’s resonance forms the basis of the “loresinging” ability, while the ability to change the resonance in oneself, another, or one’s surroundings, essentially “rewriting” them, forms the basis of bardic “spells”. Thus their “songs” are truly a method of creating an informational construct, then forcing it on the world by imposing its harmonics over those that existed previously. Once the “bard” ceases to transmit sounds, local reality reasserts itself once more.

Theoretically, one could change the very world, or the stars, or even creation itself, if one had the proper harmonics, and a powerful enough delivery system.

The Sonomancers believe that resonance is the true lynchpin underlying all magics, from those of the Drakes to the lowliest savage hedge wizard. Other orders of magicians tend to dispute this, naturally, though none have, as of yet, disproven it.

Although many different types of Dhe’nari bard exist, beyond the three I mentioned above, one is probably more likely to encounter a Sonomancer (pure sound mages, typically members of the Warlock Caste) or a member of the Discordant (a military order that applies destructive harmonics to its physical combat skills, members of the Warrior Caste).

The Lorekeepers are not often seen outside Sharath, as they have effectively turned themselves into living libraries. By changing their resonance bit by bit over many long years, and reinforcing every piece of information they impose on their minds, they become repositories of vast amounts of Dhe’nari lore, from History to Genealogy (very important in a society that suffered a catastrophic population loss, and wishes to avoid inbreeding) to Research, and so on. The eldest and most advanced Lorekeepers hold the combined knowledge of tens of thousands of years of Dhe’nar culture in their heads, dispensing such information as their people need it. The reasons one may never encounter such individuals outside Sharath are twofold, and may already be obvious to the reader.

For one, the value of such an individual to Dhe’nar society cannot be overstated, and leaving Sharath always comes with risk. And secondly, the most advanced Lorekeepers have sacrificed much for their abilities, and can easily find it difficult to interact on a normal basis with the mundane world.

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Dhe’nar Visual Art and the Tsara

08/01/2007

As is their nature, the Dhe’nar rarely engage in tasks for which there is no clear tangible, practical benefit. So it is with what passes for Dhe’nari art. The concept of “art for art’s sake” is not unknown amongst the First Born, but it is generally regarded as a waste of time. This is not to say that the Dhe’nar do not produce art, but rather that when they do so, there is always more to it than mere aesthetics.

Take, for example, Dhenari painting and sculpting. While a superficial look at the products of such may seem no different than that of other cultures, the Worker Caste, over the millenia, has devised a method of delivering a great deal of information through subtleties in the work. In this way, something such as a wall frieze can deliver a lesson, or even a full treatise, regarding important elements of Dhe’nar society.

An element of this “visual code” is the tsara - a series of hand gestures each of which possesses its own unique meaning based on finger and wrist position. It is rare indeed to find a representation of a humanoid in Dhe’nari art that is not performing a tsara of some sort.

Of course, as Dhe’nar are educated in the meaning of the tsara as part of the extensive training in their youths, many Dhe’nar use the tsara while communing amongst themselves as well. Use of the tsara is not a true “sign language” in that it does not replicate the full range of their spoken tongues. It is, however, useful in delivering discrete social and philosophical concepts, and thus can be used to supplement verbal communication, if so desired.

Examples of a few tsara and their meanings follow.

(This list is by no means comprehensive, and is merely provided as a small sample of possibilities. I was originally going to illustrate the hand positions, but felt that was probably irrelevant for a text based game and so translated them into Act commands instead.):

Agreement - One expresses one’s agreement with another. Often used while the issue one agrees with is being spoken, so that one can express his opinion immediately without having to verbally interrupt.
(XXXX extends the fingers of his right hand and grasps his thumb with his left)

Arkati - One or related to one
(XXXX forms a loose fist)

Ascendant - Used when discussing an Ascendant, in combination with Greeting if actually meeting one
(XXXX touches his ring finger to his thumb)

Ascension - Used when discussing a topic relevant to Ascension
(XXXX touches his index finger to his thumb)

Asceticism - One is eschewing material reward
(XXXX touches his ring finger to his palm while extending the others)

Bond - Signifies a bond with another, be it mental, physical, or spiritual
(XXXX folds his ring and little fingers, while extending the others)

Caste: One signs one’s own caste, never another’s

Temple
(XXXX extends his arm downwards, palm facing inwards)

Warlock
(XXXX extends his arm downwards, palm facing right)

Warrior
(XXXX extends his arm downwards, palm facing left)

Worker
(XXXX extends his arm downwards, palm facing outwards)

Comprehension - One understands the instructions given or the discussion at hand
(XXXX touches his index fingers together)

Disagreement - One expresses one’s disagreement with another. Used in the same manner as Agreement.
(XXXX extends the fingers of his left hand and grasps his thumb with his right)

Family - Signifies a blood relation with another
(XXXX touches his middle finger to his thumb)

Greeting - Less formal than a full bow, typically combined with a nod
(XXXX extends his little and index fingers, folding the others across his palm)

Instruction (request)
(XXXX turns his palm downwards, and folds his thumb across it)

Instruction (offer)
(XXXX turns his palm upwards, and folds his thumb across it)

Knowledge - One has knowledge of a given subject that one wishes to impart
(XXXX crooks his index finger)

Protection (requesting)
(XXXX turns his palm inwards, fingers extended)

Protection (offering)
(XXXX turns his palm outwards, fingers extended)

Warning - One is signaling another to take caution
(XXXX angles his hand upwards, extending his index and little finger)