Supplemental Information: Diamond Dogs · 4:55pm Aug 14th, 2013
Here's something I should have thought of before. There's a trope that everyone knows, if not by name then at least by reputation. All there in the manual. The idea is that in some works there are things not mentioned in the actual text, but in supplemental materials like other books/movies/comics/audio recordings and so on. As I have been led to understand this is common in Japan, with anime series relying on a leading OAV to make everything clear. However, you could say that much of this is about who knows what in what context. For example, one would hardly read "The Metamorphosis" without knowing something about Roman myth, or "The Odyssey" without being conversant in Greek myth. Motivations, origins, powers and such for the gods and some heroes are only in outside materials. A more modern example would be J.R.R. Tolkien and his "Lord of the Rings" books. A lot of information was parsed out to the supplements collected as "The Simarillion." Universal origins, descriptions of tribes and so forth. All there in the manual.
Even with a diverse, complex and interconnected story series that can leap around in time and space, within reason, my personal headcanon for Equestria is somewhat deep and developed. There have been mentions made, offhanded comments about nations, factions, families, histories and such. But to get into it would mean sounding a bit stilted as history and deep explanations are shoehorned in. I can no longer post informational things like "So you want to hybridize?" I barely got away with "Pony PSAs and Ad Spots" by using a framing device. But there are no restrictions on blog contents... well, there are but I mean, not on things like this.
So I thought I'd move away from my socialist ramblings (I was having fun and bringing up a lot of points I never see discussed but I think it's time for a break. Also, I'd probably eventually say something dumb, step on the wrong toes and so on.) I'm now going to do a bit of supplementing for various points found in my stories. Right now I can only think of expanding on non-pony nations, or equivalents: The Grand Veldt, The Griffin Kingdom, The Sovereign Prairie, The Aegeman Sea/The United Kingdom of Concrete and The United Colonies, which is where I will start. Though I will try to arrange things in an encyclopedic form I may ramble as I get to describing things. I LOVE worldbuilding.
As for Equestria... I may leave that slightly amorphous because it gives me a bit more freedom in writing though I have a rough "Era History." If I ever gave it a deeper treatment it would be in a story, some kind of tale of Theogony, also looking into the question of Equestrian religious views, which can be anything from atheism to henotheism to dystheism/misotheism depending on who you ask and how.
So, to start...
The United Colonies of Equestrian Diamond Dogs
Demonym: Colonial(s), when referring to particular place of origin or habitation, Equestrian(s) as a descriptor of political identity.
Location: Beneath Equestria, in expansive colonies, though with surface structures. They also have spread into The Crystal Empire. The (extremely happy) marriage of Lord Pure Spring, an Earl, and former Minister Smoked Quartz, now Countess, cemented peaceful relations between the Colonies and the Impreium, meaning they do not see Colony outlets as Equestrian incursions. There are Colonial holdings in Griffin lands, but only territory below a certain depth is regarded as legitimate, and are allowed to be called Colonial territory, spaces above are called Griffin territory. Every outlet has Griffin border guards at all cutoff points.
Political System: By tradition, and for most of their history, the Colonies have been a Representative Republic of ministers in charge of various aspects of life, with a Colonial Congress of elected representatives from all the great and minor Colonies. After the massive political gaffe of criminal interlopers kidnapping a major national figure (Rarity) the Colonial Congress voted unanimously to roll over and present their belly in submission. They had been in the process of opening more and more to scientists and ethnologists, very high-level things, but opted to go for a mass revelation, as well as to surrender to Equestria as a vassal state. The Colonies are now officially sworn to fealty to the Diarchic Principality of Equestria, and are Equestrian territory, with the Colonial Congress being a collective representative of the territory to Canterlot. They function must like the Equestrian nobility, being managers and overseers subservient to the Princesses, though they have term limits and can be replaced by election.
Current Relations: Equestria- Relations with Equestria are extremely good. The Colonies have been a model vassal. They pay their taxes fully and on time, obey laws and do all they can to help. Pony/Dog marriages are on the increase, about on par with Pony/Changeling marriages, still only a minority percentage of all marriages, but slightly over other non-pony pairs. The Crystal Empire- A few Dogs live in the Imperial City and outlying areas, and relations are cordial thanks to the previously mentioned pair. Equestrian Dogs hybridize with crystal ponies in the conventional way, while expatriates who chose to become Imperial subjects on marriage are hybridized using the power of the Crystal Heart. The Griffin Kingdom- Relations are cool but peaceful. The Dogs that live there grumble about having to present a passport when going to the surface but that is all. There have been increases in the number of simurgh (Dog/Griffin hybrids) across all clans, not just Booted as predicted by Griffin observers. The Grand Veldt- There are no Colonial outlets. The nature of the ground has largely precluded extensive tunneling, leaving it a poor location. The Sovereign Prairie- As with the Veldt, they do not have much cause to tunnel here. Some Dogs work as guests, hired from Equestrian towns like Appleoosa and Dodge Junction, helping to excavate things like turquoise. The Aegeman Sea- There has been a large separation between Equestrian Dogs and Aegeman Dogs. Relations are normal, as King Minos XXVIII regards the Colonies as nothing more than just another part of his ally, Equestria.
Population Content: In the areas below ground Dogs are the overwhelming majority, though some non-Dogs have taken to living in subterranean areas. This is especially true for Griffin areas, with the ones married to Dogs remaining in the local Colony (as opposed to moving to Equestria) allowing them greater freedom in the Equestrian-like Colony, but with the ability to return to the surface to their preferred local markets and such. Changelings, being comfortable underground, also live well in the underground areas. The above ground portions of the large city areas are inhabited by a more diverse mix, around half Dog and the rest composed of other Equestrians.
City Composition: As a subterranean race the Dogs have elaborate cities of various sizes, from the size of villages, tending to be carved out from solid areas, to gargantuan metropoli, existing in natural caverns, re-shaped and added-to with additional stone and metal. Construction is based on available material, with very little wood and only root and fungus fibers, but abundant amounts of metal, clay, stone, gems and glass. Major cities (the 'Colonies' of the name) have surface outlets, formerly just apertures but with the advent of vassalhood they have become Equestrian-type villages-to-cities constructed in a Diamond Dog style, with some modifications, because they must now think about enclosing space, rather than just carving out stone. (Note: I know. Very Dwemer. It's quasi-intentional. I had the idea before I ever played Skyrim but now if just seems to fit naturally.)
Food: As Dogs are three-sided omnivores (flesh, non-flesh, mineral/metal) there are several production classes. There is limited topside foraging for plants and animals, with most being roots and burrowing animals and insects. Subterranean fungi are farmed as staples, especially luminescent sorts as they are functional as well as tasty. Gems are eaten but some are more preferred than others because their consumption has few or no side-effects, while metal is filling but not especially nutritious, and can also have some side-effects.
Technology: The Colonies, far from being the primitive locality assumed by some ponies who have never met Dogs, were decently advanced, in a certain sense, and produce, in fact, natural prodigies in some subjects. As a consequence of living underground and needing to burrow as a way of life the Dogs, even the least trained, are natural geologists. They are also decent engineers when untrained, and spectacular engineers once trained. Their math focused primarily on squares, with few curves. Trigonometry and Geometry are common mathematical specialties, anything with angles rather than arcs. Gemology is practically a prerequisite for Dogs, particularly Thaumatogemology. Metallurgy and masonry are highly developed, with common usage of all the known refined metals including varieties of steel, titanium and aluminum. As Dogs lack unicorn mana manipulation abilities, they did not develop a direct thaumatic manipulation tradition. Like the buffalo or zebra, however, they have an external mana flow detection and influence capability, focused on mana-infused gems. They are expert engineers with magic gems, and previously used them for all tasks requiring electricity, either as a means of direct energy delivery or for the creation of steam engines. Steam-driven technology was and is very common, for things such a trams between and within Colonies to energy generation and so on.
Language: The Dogs have a native language that is based on tightly-modulated variations on yaps, yips, yowls, howls and other canine vocalizations. Some of it is too high to be heard by the Equestrian ear, and without magical modification of the throat the average Equestrian cannot speak most of it. Some griffins can reach the higher pitches but lack fine enough control to say anything intelligible. Dogs, simply as a matter of practical survival during surface excursions, learn common Equestrian but their training is cursory and imperfect, leading to a stereotyped 'Dog Speech' idea in the minds of Equestrians. It is not wrong, they really sound like that, but they can learn to speak properly.
Names: Names are commonly single words, a gem, a mineral, an ore, a stone type. If needing to distinguish between two Dogs of the same name then the Colony or satellite community of origin is mentioned, followed by their breed, then occupation.
Culture: The Diamond Dog culture is pack-oriented, collectivist though concerned with status. That collective loyalty is what made them a good fit with the Principality. they regard ponies as new members of the pack and are loyal and dedicated to them. Education is in public academies, partially a general educational institution, partially a vocational/technical school. Some Dogs with particular aptitudes are selected for more polished education, moved away from the thaumatogemology and other technical training for political and social things. They also are taught more polished and perfected Equestrian. As illustration, Countess Smoked Quartz, when heard on the radio or television, is polished and perfect in speech, as opposed to Diamond Dog actors like Pyrite, who plays Corundum on 'Tech Supportive' and uses his real speech patterns and capabilities. So the 'Dog Speech' or 'Colonial Speech' is a real phenomenon caused mostly by different focus. (Note: Think of Japanese English speakers, who are required to take courses but never gain a good technical grasp of the language.) There are limited but existent culinary traditions, with most Dog cooking being basic, hearty meals made of a mix of whatever is abundant, including infusions of gems and metal. Much as Changelings claim emotions impart a sort of "sub-taste" to a meal, Dogs taste tremendous variations in gems and metal, meaning most Dog meals are cultural affairs.
Writing: Because of a lack of paper most writing is collected on old Colonial walls as petroglyphs, on steles and similar things, or on polished tablets in archives. Later writing was accomplished on beaten sheets of metal using tools marked with letters or common words. First these were hand-hammered, then machines were made, making it movable type. The metal sheets were similarly archived but were far more common, used as mass communication to spread literacy. Writing and sharing knowledge was always important, as the mathematical and engineering points of everyday life were extremely vital to share.
Traditions
Marriage: Colonial marriage is monogamous, though in the past some leaders had unofficial liaisons with multiple females or males. Marriage was represented with an exchange of rings of some metal of significance to the couple, studded with gems of similar significance. Traditionally mention was made of stability and solidity, as well as lives leading into one another as an ore vein wound through the rock, inextricably linked for all time. Following vassalhood the ceremony has used the Elements of Harmony in connection with particular gems as a representation of love and devotion.
Celebrations: Upon attaining majority (as in the Principality at large, 16 years of age) there are large celebrations within the family of the individual, with the giving of work-related gifts depending on the course of study, such as squares and compasses for a general engineer, thaumatic resistance tools and meters for a thaumatogemological engineer and so on. Because seasons often mean little underground they take little note of them, though they have a celebration known as The Flood, taking place during Winter Wrap-Up. Before the general revelation it was merely coincidental but now is coordinated. When the snow pack is melted the water would flood particular spaces, and announce to the Dogs below that foraging would restart and that there was a reason to leave the Colony. Now it is celebrated in conjunction with Winter Wrap-Up and has taken on a more general spring celebration, as well as a chance to splash around in water.
Death: Being underground and frequently digging around the Colonies cannot bury their dead in a traditional sense. They have what they call The Beneath. Each Colony or significant place of habitation is established in reasonable distance of a natural, deep crevasse that meets particular requirements: The opening must be large enough to admit the body of a Dog with space around so they will not catch; even with focused light there should be no way to see the bottom; the sides must not jut out and potentially catch bodies; a stone dropped from the top should not bounce off the sides nor should the sound of impact at the bottom be significant. There is a party before the interment, a cheerful celebration of the life of the dead attended by friends and family, with prescribed periods of silence, reflection and weeping. This lasts for a day. Then the dead are typically dressed in their finest attire, washed, given small trinkets and placed in a reposed posture at the edge of The Beneath. After a few speeches from family and friends, designated parties lift the deceased over the edge of The Beneath and then release them into the depths. There is a following party, with celebrations and more revelry. According to Dog tradition: Death must be a time for laughter and tears, or there was something missing from life. If no one will laugh at memories or mourn the passing then there was little point to having passed through life.
Afterlife: Colonial tradition holds that all living things are formed of two distinct things which combine to become the living being, animating the substance. The vital mind is what becomes suffused with thoughts and identity and which dissipates into the world, such that it never goes away but never is a single collection again. The ephemeral soul is the scaffold to the mind that gives motivation to act in particular ways, a sort of unconscious mover. That is said to return to the earth and become solidified into something. Animal lives are said to become stone and metal, abundant but vital, reflecting their place in the food chain. Sentient ephemeral souls solidify into gems, different souls into different kinds. This is an enrichment and replenishment of the earth which the living being took from in life.
Same-Gender Relations: As a holding of the Crowns there is official support and toleration of same-gender relations. By tradition there was always a very loose allowance for same-gender love, though because there were no easy methods of allowing the same-gendered to have children (as there were in the Principality) it was not as grandly celebrated. There were no laws against marriage between Dogs of the same gender, for instance, but there was nothing particularly pressing in being so united. In the Colonies themselves the term "Stalactite" and "Stalagmite" are used for male couples, typically assigned to whichever one seems to be the stronger, though the names are sometimes given by the pair themselves to reflect whichever holds the greatest strength of personality. For female couples there is the term Bitch Burrowers, a neutral-to-positive term describing living together, though the term has fallen nearly entirely out of favor given the negative connotation of 'Bitch' in the Principality, leaving behind the term "Burrowers." "Colt Cuddler" is used for a male Dog with a male Pony, and "Filly Fooler" for a female Dog with a Female pony.
History: Colonial history is a bit sparse. Historical records were not foremost in the oldest Colonial petroglyphs; those were always given over to technical recordings of math and engineering, though old laws were also dutifully recorded. Because of the long tradition of The Beneath there were no bodies to examine or grave-goods to sift through. One of the earliest reports of anything close comes out of a griffin legend, from the post-Discordian period of the Early Principality, a pre-High-King period before the extermination of the Haast clan, when there were only warring petty kingdoms and noble holdings. Rendered in the modern language, the fragment reads, "In that time a Sky-Ruler {Classical Griffin for a griffin} touched the heart of the earth and raised up the Stone. Sky and Stone traveled away far, but came back, and with them came a simurgh {or cim'urg}, with teeth of stone and talons of diamond and wings of brass. The Stone returned to earth, taking the simurgh down to the depths to be seen no more." 'To travel away far' was a Griffin expression meaning to die, more properly expressing moving to another world. Its use indicates the two unnamed characters left the world and returned. As it was after the foundation of Tartarus and the sealing of the Undergods it likely means the two passed to the realm of The Granter and returned with a hybrid child, a simurgh. 'Wings of brass' describe coloration, meaning the griffon was probably a Golden. The 'heart' used is the word 'chroi' meaning the living heart and emotional seat of love. Likely, an ancient Colonial outlet was found by a Golden Eagle griffin and a Diamond Dog fell in love with the interloper.
Aegeman records were ill-kept in the period during which the Dogs of the Aegeman split from those of Equestria. There aren't even clear indications of which was the place of origin, if either. There is some credence to old Aegeman traditions that the stone itself birthed the Dogs, in a certain sense. All species on the planet were created ex novo from the existing materials by Primal Order, which had been made ex nihilo by Primal Chaos.
For most of history the Colonies were largely insular, only learning about the world above by observation and infrequent contact that was often quick and forgotten on the pony side. Criminal Dogs, disobeying the laws of the Colonial Congress likely account for some pony disappearances sometimes attributed to older, small-scale Changeling activity, for use as cart-pullers, but there are no means of confirming such. Smaller-scale incursions into pony-owned mines were likely to go unnoticed because of Diamond Dog skill, or blamed on pony poachers. In recent time one Dog was taken into custody for gem poaching on pony land, years before the incident with Rarity. The Dog provided useful information in relative secrecy to Canterlot, while getting a pony education on the land in which he poached.
Other Notes: The breeds of Dog are not explicitly named in Equestrian, just described by notes about jowls, ears and size, save for the Dig Dogs, called that because they are the most specialized at raw digging, able to move a lot of dirt and stone quickly. Breed muzzles can be notable, though mostly blocky, either narrow-blocky or broad-blocky. Coat colors range from white to black, red to violet, with the violet end being rarer than the red end, and white being rarer than black. In essence, all the colors in which gems come, minus opalescence/labradoresence.
"Bitch Burrowers" would be an awesome name for a heavy metal rock band.
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Or a punk band, in the mold of Sex Pistols and Butthole Surfers
Thanks for reading this bit of worldbuilding rambling. Just indulging myself.
Very interesting and informative. Gives me an idea.
Maybe I should make a blogpost about Chevaux L'Honneur instead of a story
Very interesting read. It varies from feeling like a story background to more rpg tone.
I did have a couple pieces I didn't quite follow and was wondering if you could clarify.
There have been increases in the number of simurgh (Dog/Griffin hybrids) across all clans, not just Booted as predicted by Griffin observers. Booted being a specific diamond dog colony? Is it possible to go into more explanation of the choice is names for Diamond Dog colonies and eprhaps the family unit?
Some Dogs work as guests, hired from Equestrian towns like Appleoosa and Dodge Junction, helping to excavate things like turquoise. What do you mean by guests here? Do you mean they're hired labourers or something else?
The above ground portions of the large city areas are inhabited by a more diverse mix, around half Dog and the rest composed of other Equestrians. Is this specifying Dogs in Equestria only? Or does this apply to the dogs in Ageman and Griffon Territories too? By Equestrians do you mean ponies only or are you also including mules, donkeys, zebras, griffons, and various hybrids?
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"Booted" is a griffin clan, the lowest ranked of them all and the one most often apt to emigrate to Equestria or marry out of their species (because a lot of marriage is posturing and status.)
"Guests" as in "Guest Workers." The Prairie is an actual sovereign nation, which means that Dogs (Being Equestrian citizens) need special dispensation to be there for long periods of time.
"Equestrians" means citizens of Equestria, which would, indeed, mean ponies, donkeys, cattle, and Changelings plus naturalized buffalo, griffins and zebras. This applies to Equestria and the Crystal Empire only, where there are large, Dwemer-esque aboveground city spaces. Aegeman Dogs spend a lot of time topside, at least as much as underground, while Colonial outlets are required to be small and strictly functional as a passage in the Kingdom.
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That would make for an interesting read. You could get in plenty of info freely.
Great. I'd love to see more of these!
Nice read, though the semi-impermanence of the blog does sadden me. So You Want to Hybridize was one of the first stories of yours I remember reading, I hate how that style is outlawed now.
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Time marches on, I suppose. The style changes, I mean. At least I have. This in an archive in case I need to move it somewhere.
Are you ever going to think about doing a shipping story with a Female Diamond Dog and a Mare? Or even shake it up more with a Female Diamond Dog and a Female griffon?
Also nice world building.
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Technically I did, though it hasn't been paid off yet. Fireclay in "The Long-Eared Temptress" confesses to an unrequited serious crush on Rose Topaz the Diamond Dog. I may do something during the wedding of Connie and Blueblood.
The griffin and Dog isn't a bad idea. It's very cute, actually.
Wow, you must be a TV Tropes member. But, I might be wrong though.