Ashael

 

 

Places of Interest

 

Bahndune Province

The Castle of the Traxen Mage

Evam Rune City

Greater Kormunae

The Iris

Jexlen

The Rynnawood

Thae Sound

Traxen

Traxen Peak

 

 

Calendar Geography History Wildlife Native Non-native People, Humanoid Athaenian Centaurian Dracorian Human Machiran Selkie People, Other Dragon, Gemstone Kholdra Magic Religion

 

Calendar

Since 9,843, the Great Council has contracted with the gryphlians to set up calendars for new worlds. The nature of the calendar varies according to which race intends to assume the majority of the colonizing duties - humans are given a 12 month calendar, gryphlians a 16 month calendar, athaenians a 7 month calendar, ect.

 

 

One solar cycle - the standard measurement of a year across the universe - is 357 days long, divided into roughly 44 8-day weeks.

 

ky Kiadath the Warrior 28 days	ky Tharisp the Worker 30 days	ky Ashnh' the Fish 31 days
ky Kadel the Hunter 28 days	ky Nilruki the Bard 30 Days	ky Indrian the Scholar 31 days
ky Sielan the Priest 28 days	ky Emh'ilia the Unicorn 30 days	ky Kh'isi the Mage 31 days
ky Orliwen the Scribe 28 days	ky Rajz'ni the Messenger 30 days	ky Halh'na the Architect 31 days

 

Important Days

 

15, ky Kiadath - First day of the year. Corresponds with the morning of the winter solstice.

15, ky Kadel - The morning of the spring equinox.

15, ky Sielan - The morning of the summer solstice.

Sah' ni ky Omoban - Day of the Dead

15, ky Orliwen - The morning of the atumnal equinox.

14, ky Kiadath - Last day of the year.

 

Sah'ni ky Omoban, or Day of the Dead, is a sacred day in gryphlian culture, taken completely out of the calendar. Between the last day of ky Emh'ilia and the first of ky Kh'isi is Sah' ni ky Omoban, a day to remember those who have died, and contemplate one's own mortality.

 

Geography

 

 

History

First discovered in 9,976 CE (1783 AD) by gryphlian explorer Lashen Harh'ed, the first colonists arrived on Ashael in the spring of 9,983 (1790).

 

 

 

Wildlife

 

Native

 

Kairon Worms

A parasitic organism, the kairon worm enters its host through the lungs, from breathing its eggs. Heat and moisture cause the eggs to hatch. The laevae attach themselves to the blood-rich tissue of the lungs and can quickly grow to ten or twelve feet in length, which can choke a smaller host to death. In large hosts - cattle, horses, dragons, adult humans - the mature kairon worm will lay its eggs in the bronchial passages, which are then expelled by coughing. Eggs can remain viable for up to twenty years.

 

Phantom Shark

Black as soot, the phantom shark can grow upwards of thirty feet in length and are generally not a threat to humans, preferring to prey upon seals and the large, hot-blooded ransom fish.

 

Marbled Whale

Known as the storytellers of the sea, the marbled or Ashaelian whale

 

Scarlet Dorvian

 

 

 

Non-native

 

Horse

 

Sheep

 

Shival

 

Raven

 

Swallow

 

 

People, Humanoid

 

Athaenian

 

 

Centaurian

 

Hantel - The Hantel centaurs stand between 13.5 and 15 hands high at the whithers (4'6" to 5' at the equine shoulder) and weigh between 1000 and 1500 lbs on average.

 

Inurian - The smallest race of centaurs, the Inurians stand 11 to 13 hands high at the whithers (3'8" to 4'4" at the equine shoulder) and weigh between 600 and 900 lbs on average.

 

Rindenhoch - The largest race of centaurs, the Rindenhoch stand 16 to 18 hands high at the whithers (5'4" to 6' at the equine shoulder) and weigh between 1500 and 2400 lbs on average. Rindenhoch coats are commonly brown, black, bay, chestnut, sorrel, palamino, dun, gray, white or roan, with white stockings and/or white markings on the face. Brown eyes are most common, but individuals with white or gray coats, or large portions of the face marked with white, will often have blue or green eyes.

 

Dracorian

The dragon people are fierce warriors, proud and noble.

 

Human

 

Machiran

These wily and playful shape-shifters resemble a cross between a cat and a fox, with long, lithe bodies, retractable claws, slitted eyes, big ears, pointed muzzles and thick, bushy tails. They can take humanoid form, standing between 4'6" and 5', with shorter muzzles and more hand-like forepaws. Machirans come in black, silver, red, sand and white.

 

Selkie

 

Arth Dalae - These sleek, graceful creatures are the most peaceful of the selkies, and the most beautiful, with huge, liquid black eyes and coats ranging from pure white to old ivory. In human form, they are pale and lithe, with fine, flaxen hair and the same dark, fathomless eyes.

 

Corifae -

 

Lidhan -

 

Thaeddryn -

 

Werefolk

The debate rages within in the Great Council over whether or not werefolk deserve to be treated as their own race of people. The were population is mainly human, but there are werefolk from every known race in the universe.

 

People, Other

 

Dragon, Gemstone

The great serpentine gemstone dragons are named for the color of their scales: Amethyst, Emerald, Onyx, Pearl, Ruby, Sapphire, and Topaz.

 

Kholdra

Only recently recognized as a sentient species, little is known about kholdra culture. These small, furry people resemble six-legged praire dogs - two pair of hind legs for walking, and one one pair of forelegs for speaking. Communicating solely by sign language, kholdra are completely silent, not even posessing vocal chords.

 

 

 

Magic

Only 3% of the human population of Ashael posess magial abilities. In comparison, nearly 12% of swallows posess magic, and 87% of unicorns.

 

Religion

The main gods recognized on Ashael are Maele and Cheyn - immortal brother and sister balancing life and death between them. Maele, the god of life, love and light, created the worlds and the people. His creations were perfect - so perfect that they wanted for nothing, and so did nothing but exist perfectly. Maele's sister, Cheyn, goddess of death, hate and darkness, found her brother troubled by his perfect creations. He had given them life, but they weren't living. Cheyn, in her savage wisdom, placed pain, hunger, thirst, cold, danger and death among the people. No longer perfect, the people cried out to Maele and cursed Cheyn, but they got up off their butts and started doing things, as Maele had intended them to do all along. Though cursed by the people, Cheyn remains at Maele's side, tempering his light with her darkness.

 

 

Also worshipped are Arin, the wolf god, master of the hunt and protector of the hunter, Caraeden, goddess of the wild places and great beasts, Iana, Caraeden's sister and goddess of the moon and protector of unicorns, Kaelea, the god of the sea and Eraevon, the god of the mountains.