Upheavology: The True Earth Ponies · 5:01am Feb 23rd, 2018
The True Earth Ponies
The True Earth Ponies are a subgroup of Barrier Lands earth ponies primarily located in the Western Barrier Land. They are characterized by their stubborn isolationism, their hatred of unicorns and pegasi, and their unique ability to channel ley energy.
Appearance - most True Earth Ponies resemble any other earth pony: stout, hardy, typically heavy-set, muscular, and larger than unicorns and pegasi. For clothing, True Earth Ponies prefer browns, grays, and dark greens. They often wear mining gear, even when not actually mining. When called to fight, they wear heavy plate barding reinforced with stone plates. Variations and exemptions do occur depending on individual clans.
Clan Basalt True Earth Ponies are nearly hairless and have slightly larger irises and ears than most ponies. Clan Sandstone True Earth Ponies are smaller than even pegasi and unicorns, though they still retain earth pony hardiness.
High-ranking True Earth Pony channelers, often Elders within their respective clans, wear masks when dealing with the outside world. These light gray stone masks are shaped to resemble a pony's general face shape complete with a hollowed out snout to fit snugly into the user's, and even stone ears to go over the actual ears. They are secured to the face through thick leather straps that go around the head. While there are small holes for the nostrils, and a slit for the mouth, the mask has no eye-holes.
The mask serves several functions. While only Elders can wear them publicly, they are given to younger True Earth Ponies to help with practice. They are quite heavy and can only be donned comfortably by applying a bit of ley energy channeling into them. In order to see, more channeling must be applied. Even the blindness caused by a non-channeled mask helps channelers become more attuned to ley lines. The masks thus function similarly to fetlock weights. They are also hard enough, especially while channeling is active, to deflect blows to the head and face. Symbolically, the featureless nature of the stone mask shows that the Elder is acting on behalf of the True Earth Ponies as a whole, rather than as an individual, hence the hiding of the face and why they are worn particularly around strangers.
The most powerful True Earth Ponies, however, forgo the masks. Instead, they shave their fur, from the base of the neck upwards, as well as their manes. Then, they tattoo the exposed skin in mottled earth colors. This symbolically integrates the mask into the pony's face with the colors meant all earth ponies. These are the champions among the True Earth Ponies. They are a very rare lot and are always armed with artifacts.
Settlements - Most True Earth Ponies reside within the deepest parts of the Great Delve known as Deepstone Quarter. Outside of the capital, small settlements exist usually in cave complexes within other mountains, away from other ponies. True Earth Ponies prefer to live underground in burrows. Barring this option, they will construct large stone buildings with very few windows. As typical of earth ponies, they are excellent farmers and prefer to be self-sufficient with food. They specialize in fungi and other flora that require little to no sunlight. True Earth Pony settlements tend to be heavily fortified with multiple crossbow batteries to kill flying invaders and reinforced redoubts and bunkers usually fortified with ley energy to deal with magical assault. They construct their homes to be cramped and dark, knowing full well that pegasi and unicorns are highly uncomfortable in such places. Still, True Earth Ponies can craft specialized gems that glow when activated to provide some illumination to their homes. They also maintain patches of glow moss, a common practice for clans that are friendly to outsiders. Most True Earth Pony settlements don't mind trading with outsiders. They prefer to trade with other earth ponies, but will occasionally trade with unicorns and pegasi, usually by proxy. True Earth Pony stoneware, metalsmithing, and jewelry, are highly prized for their quality.
Equestrian Relations
Royalty - the True Earth Ponies have very little reverence towards Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, going beyond typical Barrier Lands indifference. "What is the Sun and the Moon to a sky of stone?" is a common True Earth Pony saying. Out in public, they disguise this scorn, only because they know it will displease Prince Terrato, to whom they owe a measure of reverence. The True Earth Ponies respect Terrato's mastery of the earth and his general favor towards earth ponies. They do not appreciate his continuation of many of Lexarius's decrees on integration, however, such as the Great Delve remaining a city for all three pony races, and his refusal to force unicorns and pegasi to pay reparations for past slavery. Regardless, the True Earth Ponies do their best to obey the Prince's commands, pay their taxes, and send out their channelers and warriors to fight in the Legion. They continue to provide maintenance for all of the Great Delve as well. In return, Terrato considers them largely a domestic issue and expects Legion officers and elected officials to manage proper relations with them.
Other Ponies - the True Earth Ponies make no secret of their general hatred of unicorns and pegasi. Tales of the horrors inflicted by Princess Platinum and Commander Hurricane alike remain as both oral and written tradition among them. They often refer to unicorns as "goats" and pegasi as "birds" to dissociate them from actual ponies, though they are just as fine with the more typical epithets used in the Barrier Lands such as "drill-head" and "feather-back". True Earth ponies usually hate unicorns more than pegasi as it was Princess Platinum and her mining overseers that directly oppressed Rock Maven and the rest of their ancestors, but the murder of Rock Maven by Wind Glance the assassin keeps their hatred of pegasi a very close second.
True Earth Ponies get along decently with other earth ponies, but usually come off as smug and patronizing. True Earth Ponies tend to regard other earth ponies as lost and confused, cut away from their heritage and potential for the sake of coddling goats and birds. They frown greatly upon interracial couplings between earth ponies and other races, and have been known to meddle where they are not wanted. Once in a while, an earth pony would run away from home to join a clan. These runaways are welcomed readily enough though with a great deal of scrutiny. Many do stay and become True Earth Ponies. The reverse has been exceedingly rare. True Earth Ponies are extremely vicious towards what they consider apostates. Many are murdered, especially if they are channelers. Sometimes, they are subjected to rituals that cut away their ley connection. Only Clan Basalt knows of this procedure. Apostates who volunteer first to undergo this are still treated harshly, but otherwise allowed to live.
Non-pony Races - True Earth ponies are still affiliated with Equestria, thus they consider all its enemies their enemies. They tend to be slightly antagonistic towards dragons as they compete for living space and gems.
Other Objects Associated with True Earth Ponies
The Pinion Cloak and the Horn Yoke - these are trophies that each clan possesses to mark how hard they have fought against their oppressors. A pinion cloak is a long, gray piece of cloth secured to the shoulders of an earth pony, usually the clan's leader during important ceremonial functions. The grayness is almost never seen, however, as the cloak is festooned with hundreds of brightly colored feathers, each one treated with a special rock oil that preserves it across the ages. When the clan defeats a pegasus oppressor, usually by killing them, though subduing them has become acceptable, a single pinion is taken from the pegasus to be added to the cloak. A horn yoke is fashioned by weaving many wires together to fashion an enormous harness with hundreds of unicorn horns threaded among them so points face outward. They are also worn by the clan leader for ceremonies.
Most True Earth Pony clans are very proud and very protective of their pinion cloaks and horn yokes. Nearly all have existed since the days of Rock Maven. They are often accused of hunting down innocent ponies just to add to these relics, but they maintain that they only strike in self-defense.
Clan-sake - this is a chunk of stone or a small gem related to a clan's name that True Earth Ponies carry around usually in their pockets or as a necklace. As years pass by, they add small bits of customization such as etchings or gilding. The exchange of Clan-sakes is a common True Earth Pony tradition for marriages.
Channeling Stones -also called channeling slabs, these are flat pieces of slate smoothened to a fine finish and embedded with gemstones known for their affinity with ley lines. Old Earth Pony phrases are inscribed on the stone depending on the channeling stone's specific function. The type of gemstone and which phrases are inscribed depend on the function of the specific channeling stone. The most common type are Sight Channeling stones which aid in finding ley lines, dispelling illusions, and seeking out particular targets of interest to the user.
Channeling stones by themselves hold no great power as their main purpose is to focus and amplify their wielder's innate connection to ley energies. Their affinity with ley energies cause minor shocks when they are touched by non-earth ponies at most. They are often used as training tools and to allow novices to perform advanced techniques.
Ley Energy Channeling
True Earth Ponies are best known for their unique talent for channeling the flowing power within the earth to produce various effects. Even they, however, will admit that all earth ponies have a connection to this power, and that the potential for channeling can lie within earth ponies anywhere. The methods for awakening these gifts and developing them, however, are closely guarded secrets within the True Earth Ponies.
Channeling Disciplines - channeling ley energy can be divided into several disciplines depending on their effects. While the ability to see ley energies and how they affect things is an innate talent all channelers develop, typical channelers tend to be skilled in just one discipline at a time. Groups of True Earth ponies with different disciplines arevable to produce incredible acts of power.
Flow - the use of one's connection to the earth's energies to affect the movement of things upon it. True Earth Ponies can affect how physical bodies interact with the energy flow in order to make them move faster or to restrict their movement. Powerful True Earth Ponies have been known to use this discipline to appear in various locations instantaneously, as if teleporting.
Shape - the use of ley energy to alter objects related to earth such as stone or even metals. It is through this discipline that True Earth Ponies can perform fantastic feats of engineering as well as infusing objects with special properties. As earth ponies are so connected to the earth, the use of this discipline allows channelers to even alter their own bodies, making them more resilient or flexible.
Life-force - the rarest and most dangerous sort of channeling. True Earth Ponies can simply wrench ley energy from the earth and hurl them as deadly blasts of power. This is frowned upon even by most True Earth Ponies and used only when dealing with incredibly hated foes. The earth is damaged by such acts, making future ley channeling in the area difficult and scarring the land so that plants cannot grow there. This discipline can also affect life within the earth and transmute it to healing, as made infamous by Frenzy Heart who was known for healing himself as long as the soil was appropriately blood-soaked. Not all Life-force channeling is dangerous, however, most True Earth Ponies at least know one technique, which is to combat unicorn magic such as instantly breaking telekinetic holds. It is often compared to dispelling effects or anti-magic fields.
True Earth Pony Clans
True Earth Ponies still retain the old organization structures used by earth ponies prior to Lexarius's Golden Age. Despite the name, an earth pony clan is composed of multiple earth pony families first bound together by a common earth pony activity such as farming or mining. As time passed, these clans developed their unique rules and traditions that separated them from even clans with the same activity. When couples marry, discussions as to which clan the pair belong to are long affairs with a great deal of negotiation. Most earth pony clans have since become defunct. An earth pony clan is led by the clan leader, usually voted to the position by the eldest among the clan. On very rare occasions, the clan leaders convene to discuss and vote on matters that involve True Earth Ponies as a whole. While their attitudes towards outsiders and each othee may vary, all True Earth Pony clans retain a good measure of isolationism and grudge towards non-earth ponies.
The current surviving clans within the True Earth Ponies include:
Basalt - Clan Basalt proudly traces its lineage to Magma Dart the Oathmaker himself, who took on the mantle of leadership of the united earth pony clans after Rock Maven died. Of all the clans, Basalt is the most reclusive and belligerent. They reside in the deepest parts of Deepstone Quarter and rely on few channels to communicate with the rest of Equestria, or even other True Earth Ponies. Clan Basalt boasts of the most powerful channelers, as well as access to secret rites such as the one to cut off an earth pony's connection to the earth. They are highly feared and respected as a result, and the will of their clan leader is what usually guides the True Earth Ponies. When other ponies tell tales of smooth-skinned ponies rising up from the darkest depths of the Delve to drag away unicorns and pegasi, it is Clan Basalt that they unknowingly imagine. While rumors abound, no crime has ever been directly tied to the clan. Indeed, most outsiders know next to nothing of Clan Basalt, or are even aware they exist.
Sandstone - small, even by normal pony standards, members of Clan Sandstone are notorious scavengers and tinkers. They scour the junk in the Underbelly for useful materials to repurpose or simply smelt down. They find themselves even in places like the Gemstone Quarter and Stonefang Aeries, gleefully stealing from unicorns and pegasi only to disappear among tunnels too small for others. They also rely on their skill in Flow channeling to access guarded places and to escape. Within the True Earth Ponies, Clan Sandstone members are highly useful spies and informants, often serving as eyes and ears for Clan Basalt.
Corundum - the original Clan Corundum were the founders of the Great Delve and one of the most prosperous and powerful earth pony clans of their time. The clan later splintered into opposing factions when a fight for succession broke out, resulting in Rock Maven's Clan Ruby and Smart Cookie's Clan Sapphire. After the fall of the Old Kingdom, remnants of the once-mighty Clan Sapphire made their way back to the Great Delve to beg for forgiveness and ask for reintegration, which Rock Maven granted despite many protests. Even so, Clan Sapphire remained under constant suspicion and faced a great deal of hostility. With the death of Rock Maven and the separation of the True Earth Ponies from the rest of the earth ponies, Clan Sapphire was pushed to the outskirts of Deepstone Quarter, still respected and feared enough to be accepted as a True Earth Pony clan, but obviously shunned. To improve their image, especially with the decline of Clan Ruby over the decades after Rock Maven's death, Clan Sapphire adopted the name of Clan Corundum. Nevertheless, members of the clan still face the stigma of having descended from Smart Cookie and her monstrous followers. Many Clan Corundum members are sentries and soldiers, due to their location by the entrance to the Deepstone Quarter, meaning that they would be at the frontline should the True Earth Ponies be attacked. Many are also merchants. Their frequent exposure to the outside world makes Clan Corundum the friendliest of the True Earth Ponies, as friendly as a True Earth Pony can be. However, stigma they bear and the troubles they often face, such as the tendency of other ponies to immediately harrass them for any trouble caused by a True Earth Pony regardless of clan, makes them very cautious.
Gneiss - in terms of sheer wealth, Clan Gneiss knows no equal among the True Earth Ponies, or even among earth ponies in general. They boast of the finest jewelers in the Delve and control many gemstone mines. Their products are sold usually through Clan Corundum traders. They are easily recognizable due to their love of jewelry and fine clothes. Clan Gneiss is also well known for its chefs, espousing that proper treatment and consumption of the earth's bounty is an important True Earth Pony tenet.
Quartz - Clan Quartz is the largest of the True Earth Pony clans in terms of sheer numbers. Ironically, it is also known for having the lowest number of channelers. They are well known primarily as smiths, carpenters, and engineers. They are often regarded as the most mundane of the True Earth Ponies. Clan Quartz holds, perhaps, the most neutral True Earth Pony standpoint; the median between Clan Basalt's raw hatred and Clan Corundum's outright flirtations.
Cypress - Clan Cypress is unique among the True Earth Ponies in that it is the only logging clan among them, also for the fact that the majority of the clan is not based in the Delve. Clan Cypress members live in the small settlements around the All-Mountain, plying their trade quietly among other ponies. They have only a small group of representatives within Deepstone Quarter to serve as a liason. They serve as observers of the outside world thanks to their unique position, and relay information back to the delve. Clan Cypress uses heavy wooden masks reinforced with stone plates and metal bands. Their channeling stones too are, in fact, channeling boards.
I wonder what would happen if an elder griffon met with an elder true earth pony.
Hmm... this reminds of dwarves
Ah yes the thing I have been waiting for the most which is Pinkie Pie and the True Earth Ponies. Hopefully we will get to sees something on that front.
I wonder if the True Earthers will attempt to control Pinkie (haha... I almost feel sorry for them if they try) or simply dispose of her because of her as yet materializing channeling abilities... though clearly she's already very adept at Flow and Shape (Pinkie being Pinkie) even if she doesn't really understand why. Maybe she will start to heal the divide, or at least attempt too... Also, Rarity is going to the Delve too and that's bound to cause friction, more so if Spike shows up.
Need MOAR!
4803690
The thing is they wouldn't let Pinkie live cause they are too self-righteous and ego statistical. They would make an attempt on her and then well....first they'd piss off Terrato, then the Mane Six and anybody else who likes her. So...they'd get what's coming to them, after millennia of being semi-purifying fanatics, they'd get separated so hard and so much history destroyed along with their eldest generation that'd never be a threat ever again.
When trying to undo millennia of damage, you don't target the youngest generation, you target their history and their parents. The things that pass down hatred, mistrust, racism, etc.
I am getting a mixture of Skaven and Dwarf from Warhammer vibes to them
The channelers who helped take down The Coldsteel Construct and died when it's breatplate fell on them. What clan were they from?