Lore 3: Authority

A recap…

 

100 years ago, humanity fell to a new low.

江湖侠客 (Jianghu heroes) slowly became obsolete. Some were jaded by the hopelessness of the situation, while others were blinded by money, power and greed. 武俠’s code of chivalry soon became forgotten and ultimately, lost.

This 100 years of dark period saw the rise of powerful evil sects who thrived because of the widespread corruption and their unorthodox martial arts. However, 10 years ago, majority of these evil sects were destroyed by an unimaginable force. People celebrated, thinking that this power came from an honourable source and that salvation had finally arrived. They have never been more wrong.

The unknown force swept in and called itself king over a large piece of land that was inhabited by kind and hardworking folks. As the sect never revealed its identity, people referred to it as 绝谷 (juegu) and their new overlord as 绝谷主 (jueguzhu).


 

 

Hierarchy 

In 绝谷 (juegu), nobody can be as powerful as the 绝谷主 (jueguzhu). They are supported by the 5 division leaders, whose skills and powers are bestowed by the 绝谷主 (jueguzhu). The only time they can level up their skills is when the sect leader allows it to happen.

Below is the order of authority:

Sovereign – Sect Leader

Followed by the 5 division leaders in no particular order.

  1. Majordomo (In charge of the running of the entire sect)
  2. Security (Of both the sect leader and the sect)
  3. Science (Poison and medicine research)
  4. Assassination (Of both enemies and betrayers)
  5. Information (Keeps the sect leader updated of the worldly happenings)

Below all of them is the head attendant, who is the only person allowed to be within close proximity of the sect leader. He is highly skilled and only follow the direct orders of the sect leader, making him a very special presence in the sect. His loyalty to the sect leader is steadfast and unmovable, as with the 5 division leaders.


 

 

Structure of authorities

In order to ensure that there are no betrayals, every sect member has to take a poison concocted by the sect leader. The so-called antidote that is given out every month is only a temporary solution and the real antidote formula is unknown even to the Science division.

Each division has around 100 – 150 sect members and are controlled directly by the division leaders.

第二章:The Ritual

Disclaimer:

Their/they is used in place of he/she/his/her/etc because the gender of the sect leader is still unknown

 

After Xiu-Yu came back from her exploration, the both of you were blindfolded once again and led to another location. In the horse carriage, the both of you exchanged the information you had gotten.

Although Xiu-yu had managed to sneak out of the room, she didn’t get to find out a lot of information as the place was heavily surrounded by highly skilled guards. Sheng-En though, was more successful.

From the conversation he had with the servants, he learned five important things:

  1. The entire week, starting from when the sacrifices are brought in, is called the Sacrificial Week
  2. It is the only time lower rank sect members have a chance of catching a glimpse of the leader, but only if they are lucky enough
  3. During this week, the sect leader will convene a meeting with the 5 division leaders
  4. Every sect members have to consume a poison that only the sect leader has the antidote to
  5. The antidotes will be disseminated during the meeting and the sect leader will also help each division leaders to level up their skills

 

Sheng-En also learned that obedient sacrifices get a chance to survive, but that all depends on the whims of the sect leader’s head attendant, one of the few people who are allowed to stay by their side.

However, the both of you don’t get to ponder for long. You have already reached your destination and must now get out of the security of the carriage. As the servants took out your blindfold, the both of you realise that here is where the real ritual will take place.

The both of you are once again cleaned thoroughly before being kept in a wooden box where only one of your arm is exposed. You are then transported to a simple yet elegant room. The first thing you both noticed is the silhouette of a person behind a translucent screen. Other than the fact that they seem to be sitting in a full lotus position, the both of you are unable to determine anything else.

At the raise of their hand, the servants at the side grabbed both of your arms and made a deep cut. Your blood flowed down heavily towards the bronze bucket at the bottom. It is only then that you noticed the bronze buckets and how they are connected to two long tubes that reach behind the screen to where the sect leader is.

For the next few hours, the both of you are left in this position until the figure behind the screen got up and left. By then, you are already nearly drained. In your last moments of consciousness, you see a young teen who had been in the room since you entered, approach you. And you hear the servants address him as “head attendant.”

 

Objective: 

The ritual will take place for two more days before the both of you are no longer needed. You have to gain the liking of the head attendant and convince him to let you stay by his side.

第一章: Into the unknown

The both of you have successfully sneaked into the sect as the town’s living sacrifices, however, this is only the beginning.

You have reached the sect. As you’ve been blindfolded throughout the entire journey, there was no way you could have seen the route that the sect members had taken. Your fates as living sacrifices still remained unknown as nobody had bothered to talk to you throughout the journey.

Now, they have scrubbed you clean and have given you new clothes to wear. They have also prepared a delicious meal that is rich in red meat. The aroma of beef, pork and everything in between set your stomach rumbling and you are reminded of how hungry you are.

As you start to tuck in, the servants who brought you your meal stood quietly at each side of the table.

Objective: Find out what the 绝谷主 (jueguzhu; sect leader) has done with all the other previous sacrifices, and hence, your impending fate as well. You only have till tomorrow morning as you will be brought away soon.

Lore 2: Valley of Death (VoD) – Fashion and transport

This universe is set in China, Song Dynasty.

Song Dynasty’s costume carried features from the Tang Dynasty. The costumes were simple and natural, reflecting the development tendency of the era.

Women’s costumes mainly included:

Blouses
Jackets
Coats
Skirts
Robes
Short gowns
Long coats

Garments without belt and buckle often had an erect collar and were buttoned down the front, and protective collar was sewn on the outer edge at the neckline. Collar and sleeve edges of clothes were decorated with laces or embroidered patterns while the clothes themselves were decorated with patterns of flowers.

Men

Song-Dynasty-military-men-clothingMilitary

Consist of layers in different length
Worn with tunic and trousers
Boots and caps
Belts hold swords, arrow bags and bows

 

 

Song-Dynasty-scholar-clothingScholar

Simple wrap coat bordered with a band decorated with a knot pattern
A cord holds the apron-like scarf that drapes the front of coat

 

 

 

song-dynasty-commoner-robeCommoner

Robe is brought upwards and tucked in at the waist for ease in walking.
Shortened pants.
Outfit is completed with sandals and a hat made from a piece of cloth.

 

 

Women

song-Dynasty-noble-class-clothesImperial officials’ households

Older women wore high-waisted skirts over a robe and has a flowing shawl-like scarf. Extremely long sleeves on gown makes doing work impossible. Younger girls wore shortened wrap skirts over a long rope, which displayed the popular double-bird motif. Open side seams reveal several under-skirts. Outfit was completed with a massive fan and decorative hair ornaments.

Song-Dynasty-womenUpper-class women

Outfit consisted of a robe, skirt, long scarf, and upturned embroidered shoes.
Scarf falls low on the figure.
Hair is padded to achieve preferred shape and height and decorated with gold and gemstone ornaments.

 

 

Song-dynasty-common-women-clotheseCommoner 

Warp robe and a high-waisted long skirt circled at the waist by a knotted sash.
Single-bun hairstyle is decorated with a simple ribbon.

 

 

 

Song-dynasty-upper-class-womanUpper-class women

Narrow-sleeved wrap top over an underskirt. Long skirt is held at the waist by an embroidered pocket.
Long scarf serves as shawl.
Double-bun hairstyle adorned with jewels and clasps.

 

 

Song-Dynasty-upper-class-women-costumeUpper-class women also wore closely fitted jackets with narrow sleeves. Woman on the left paired a long skirt with a short wrapped skirt while woman on the right displayed a low neckline under her jacket.

Front, sleeves and hems of both jackets are decorated by embroidered floral designs. Embroidered silk hair ornaments are embellished with jewels and gold or silver details.

 

Song-Dynasty-woman-costumeThe neckband of this woman’s wrap top is embroidered with a floral design.
Pocket at the high-waist skirt is also embroidered with colourful silk thread.
Knotted ornamental sash flows downward to flutter with movement.
Pleated fans are add ons.

 

 

 

Transport

People generally travelled around by foot, riding horses and carriages pulled by horses.

On land, goods were carried in backpacks, larger wheelbarrows, wagons and on donkeys and camels. Camels carried goods from Inner Asia or further west across large desserts.

Water transport was cheaper than land transport and goods were carried in vessels, ships and boats.

Sources:

http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/song/econ/commerc.htm

15 Pictures of Traditional Chinese Clothes in Song and Tang Dynasties

Lore: Valley of Death (VoD)

Forewords

This is a world set in the Wuxia universe. In order to aid you in understanding the lore, here are the meanings of some of the terms you will see in this post.

武俠 (wuxia) – (Martial / military / armed) + (honourable / chivalrous / hero)
江湖 (jianghu) – A community of sects and heroes
侠客 (xiake – A martial artist who follows the code of xia
绝谷 (juegu) – Desperate valley or Valley of Death
绝谷主 (jueguzhu) – Owner of the Valley of Death

Now, onwards!


100 years ago, humanity fell to a new low.

江湖侠客 (Jianghu heroes) slowly became obsolete. Some were jaded by the hopelessness of the situation, while others were blinded by money, power and greed. 武俠’s code of chivalry soon became forgotten and ultimately, lost.

This 100 years of dark period saw the rise of powerful evil sects who thrived because of the widespread corruption and their unorthodox martial arts. However, 10 years ago, majority of these evil sects were destroyed by an unimaginable force. People celebrated, thinking that this power came from an honourable source and that salvation had finally arrived. They have never been more wrong.

The unknown force swept in and called itself king over a large piece of land that was inhabited by kind and hardworking folks. As the sect never revealed its identity, people referred to it as 绝谷 (juegu) and their new overlord as 绝谷主 (jueguzhu).

Environment

The area is separated into two parts:

  1. The valley which houses the tall mountain the sect resides in
  2. The large town situated at the bottom of the valley

Unlike its name, the valley is not dreary or dull. In fact, it is populated by many beautiful flowers and plants, and the valley is always in bloom all year round. Its beauty attracted many people to wander in, but none has ever made it out. That is because the flowers and plants that grow there are as deadly as they are beautiful.

In comparison, the town is rundown and falling apart. Diseases linger in the air and poverty is the norm. The rich are filthy rich while the poor are left to die. And the question remains, is the state of this town really due to the sect? Rumours are rife, but after all, they are only rumours.

Current situation 

Not much is known about the sect leader except for the fact that they are practicing a secret martial arts manual that can help them to breakthrough to the highest level. By then, their power would be unrivalled and nothing could stand in their way again.

You are both sent by the alliance of all the remaining orthodox sects to invade the Valley of Death, destroy the manual and kill the sect leader. However, things are not looking good for a smooth start. For one, ordinary people cannot survive the journey up the perilous mountain. Not only that, nobody knows where the secret manual is. Most importantly, nobody knows anything about the sect leader, not even their gender.

But there’s a silver lining after all. Having lived in the town for two months, both of you found out that members of the sect will descend from the mountain to the town every 3rd week of the month. And they have only one mission, to collect the two living sacrifices from the citizens.


 

The both of you are the living sacrifices that will be offered to the sect. You have full control over your character creation, including your back stories, personal motivation for this mission etc. Please include the following:

  1. Name
  2. Appearance
  3. Attribute points (Strength // Agility // Intelligence)
  4. Skills and/or weapons

It is up to you if you want to include your back story.

Project 2: Nursery Rhymes

Final work:

IMG_6689

Exploration:

Research
Research
Artist reference
Artist reference
Artist reference
Artist reference
Artist reference
Artist reference
Artist reference
Artist reference
Layouts
Layouts
Layouts
Layouts

Rhymes used:

Three Blind Mice – “They all ran after the farmer’s wife”

Sing a Song of Sixpence – “Four and twenty black birds, baked in a pie”

Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater – “He put her in a pumpkin shell”

All my compositions were based on the supposed origins of the rhymes. It was pretty mind blowing to me that rhymes sang to kids could have such dark and heavy back stories.

For “Three Blind Mice,” Mary is symbolised as Death. She is differentiated by the diamond encrusted skull and flanked by two churches. It was said that during her reign, many people were killed for their opposing religious belief and whatnot. The 3 blind mice are actually three bishops who conspired against her and hence, was burnt at the stake.

In “Sing a Song of Sixpence,” legend has it that what was baked in the pie wasn’t 24 black birds, but 24 naughty little boys.

“Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater” is very literal. Basically, Peter had a wife who cheated on him with other men. Angered, he killed her and stuffed her in a pumpkin shell, which must have been huge if he was able to do so.