Notes from a Ponyfinder Game, Pt 1 · 11:13pm Nov 9th, 2021
Notes from a ponyfinder game run by Ether Echoes, the same game featuring Amarach.
In this case, a description of Pony Rome!
Servants of the Raven Empress
“Cruel birds, ravens, but wise. And creatures should be loved for their wisdom, if they cannot be loved for their kindness.”
They say that the Raven Empress is the last true alicorn. That she was born into the world on the final day of their dominion, lay abandoned in the woods as her tribe fell, and was taken in by a she-wolf, who nursed her to health. They say that she is immortal, not merely proof against the ravages of time, but immune to all harm. They say that she can speak through ravens, see through their eyes, and that her cutie mark depicts a globe, for it is her destiny to rule the whole of the world.
But people say a lot of things. Perhaps some of them are true.
What is a matter of objective fact is that the servants of the Raven Empress have become an increasing presence in Feall Diermad over the last three decades, and their dominion, once a distant curiosity, now feels concerningly close at hoof. Their merchants travel the countryside, their representatives sit at court, and their coinage is used for trade, when previously coin was unknown to the common folk. Something must come of it soon, though it is not clear if it will be for good or ill.
Ravennan Culture
“ONE LANGUAGE. ONE EMPRESS. ONE NATION.”
To the ponies of Feall Diermad, Ravennan culture is strange and often unsettling. There are three primary areas of divergence: religious practices, slavery, and nationalism.
Religiously, the Ravennan’s have many gods, and all revere the Empress as a diety. This would not be so strange, except that they engage in the foreign concept of worship, where they must prostrate themselves before the image of a spirit and offer their souls to it in servitude. The traditions of Feall Diermad hold that this is a goblin practice, and beneath the People, who have the right to exist with the spirit world on equal terms. For this reason “whore” is occasionally used as a slur for the ponies of Ravenna, not for any sexual practice, but for religious observance.
In secular life, Ravenna practices chattel slavery, a practice that is forbidden under the traditional laws of the isles. The pony races are the chosen people of fate, and it is offensive that they be kept as property. After several violent skirmishes that fortunately ended with little loss of life, the people of the isles have accepted that they do not have the right to liberate Ravennan slaves, but the practice continues to inspire derision and contempt where it is observed. The Ravennans, seeking to avoid offending the “locals,” have begun using goblin slaves wherever they can, since goblins have no such protection under local norms.
Finally, the people of the isles struggle with Ravennan concepts of nationalism. It is not strange that a vast nation should be culturally united, but to be of the People is to be united by blood and centuries of tradition. To be of Ravenna is to be united by the whip, and to take pride in one’s servitude. All who serve the Raven Empress must speak the Etrustean language eloquently, offer their soul to her in servitude, and bear the mark of her lash upon their back, as a symbol of their absolute debasement before her. Stranger still, this is true regardless of race or bloodline. Ponies, goblins, dragons, and stranger creatures may all be of the empire, even though nothing unites them except what appears to be willing slavery.
Coinage and Tribute
“Gold? I have no use for that metal. Barbarians trade in gold, Ravennans trade in coins. A coin is valuable because it bears the face of our immortal Empress, and on its back, a raven. Make no mistake, she sees through the eyes of those ravens, as well as she does through eyes of flesh and blood.”
The biggest impact Ravenna has had upon the isles is not knowledge, or slavery, or the threat of invasion, but altering the People’s concept of money. Arguments over if Ravennan coins even are “money” frequently become raucous, and occasionally results in brawls.
This is because, so far as anyone can tell, Ravennan money is literally made of nothing.
Their coins appear to be made of gold, or silver, or bronze, or mother-of-pearl, or any number of other valuable materials, but they cannot be melted down, bent or scratched or defaced in any way. Applying enough force to the coins to damage them causes them to shatter, and thereafter to dissolve away into the thin air. They would be entirely worthless, except that many Ravennan merchants refuse to accept anything else, and such merchants often arrive bearing wondrous items much desired by the People.
Thus, Ravennan coinage is not wealth as the people know it, but a tangible symbol of the power of the Raven Empress. It is little wonder that even the sight of such coins can spur arguments.
The free Ravennan merchants -- often “pegasi” or “griffons” -- who visit Feall Diermad have a reputation for what might be called scrupulous greed. It is rare for one to outright cheat their customers, and when they do, their fellows are generally supportive of requiring the merchant to provide restitution. But while the wonders they offer are real, they will not for a moment hesitate to gouge their customers for all they’re worth, taking harvests, farms, or even selling children into slavery.
While such merchants are best known for selling luxury items (drugs, fine alcohol, silk and other such items), the majority of their trade is in essentials, particularly high-quality steel tools and alchemical concoctions. A young earth pony who wishes to establish a new farm can, from a Ravennan merchant, acquire good seed stock, a plow, a fine collection of steel implements, and a jar of powder that shall greatly invigorate the soil. More, he can acquire all of these things on credit, and at quite low rates of interest.
The trap is not in the rates of interest, but in the fact that the merchant only accepts payment in coins. To make any of the payments at all, the young talamah must thus continue to be of service to the merchant for many years, growing crops that can be traded for coinage.
Thus is the land enriched, and the banners of the Raven Empress seen to fly above its fields.
Ruber Vulpes Corvum, Representative of Ravenna
“Damnation; I came all the way over here to read you a missive, and then I realize I left it on the table back at home. Oh well. I’ll send Vinctum to go get it. While we wait, wine?”
The official representative of the Raven Empress to the court of Feall Diermad, Ruber is affable, well liked, intelligent, moderately competent, and almost perpetually drunk.
Less an ambassador and more of a neighborhood figure, Ruber has few real responsibilities other than resolving the occasional dispute between the local population and Ravennan merchants. In such instances, he tends to side with the locals, though common knowledge states that a modest bribe helps encourage that outcome. To offer him money would offend him, but to invite him over for dinner and treat him as an honored guest is simply good practice.
Quite personally wealthy, Ruber frequently patronizes local vineyards, and is a welcome sight to merchants. He often has one business scheme or another he’s pursuing, though none have ever made any profit. A ladies stallion, he has a reputation for sleeping around, and is married to a local mare named Alainn. It is no secret that he married her because she got pregnant after a night of passion, but he treats her well and they both seem happy, so it is considered rude to comment upon it.
Despite his debauched manner, he is actually competent to his post. He frequently provides the king’s court with books and fascinating stories they could not acquire elsewhere, and by this means, regularly finds excuses to socialize with the nobility. Under his direction, relations between Ravennan merchants and local farmers are generally good. Debts get collected, and nobody’s legs have to get broken. He is also a spellcaster of some moderate ability, who lends his talents to the population when needed.
The one sticking point in Ruber’s tenancy of his post is that he has a chattel slave, a “pegasus” mare named Vinctum Gan Ainm. This is offensive for a multitide of reasons: Vinctum is of the People and thus should be exempt from slavery, she does most of the actual work (paperwork etc) of his post, and the two are obviously sleeping together despite Ruber being married to another mare.
Ruber is well liked enough that many locals pretend these things are not the case, but when circumstances force the issue into conversation, the mood becomes quite chilly. Vinctum and Alainn are both pregnant at the same time, which has been the subject of considerable unfriendly gossip.
Ruber Vulpes Corvum (“The Voice of the Raven”)
Race: Unicorn
Class: Incanter 2, specialization in non combat magic
Vinctum Gan Ainm (“Found Without Family”)
“We are all slaves to the Empress’s laws. You may pretend it isn’t so if that brings you comfort, but I would appreciate if you didn’t condescend to me while you did it.”
A hard mare by necessity, Vinctum is much the opposite of her relaxed and affable master. She has spent her whole life in one post after another with no protection against savage cruelty but her owner’s whims, and no protection against casual execution but her market value. This has forced her to develop a pragmatic view of interpersonal relations.
Vinctum is not particularly intelligent, but she has an excellent grasp of detail and works diligently, making her a good assistant. Her manner is clipped and brusque when dealing with the ponies of Feall Diermad, though she is polite to Ruber, and sometimes even warm.
The nature of her relationship with Ruber is the subject of considerable court speculation. Naturally, the ponies of Feall Diermad suspect him of pressuring her into an unwanted romantic relationship, particularly given that he is flagrantly cheating on his wife. But Vinctum does nothing to encourage such speculation, and once, in response to a rather direct question about why she was sleeping with him, provided detailed information of her sexual fetishes to the court. While one particular member of the nobility was attempting to get the wine out of his nose, she added that Ruber was “pretty good in bed besides.”
She obviously morally disapproves of the institution of slavery, and agrees with those who say that the People should be above such things. But bringing such thoughts to her is more likely to infuriate her than anything. As she said to one well wisher, “Free me, buy me, or shut your noise hole. I don’t have any time for idle moralizing.”
Vinctum Gan Ainm (“Found Without Family”)
Race: Pegasus
Class: Expert 3
Gaiste Mar Cruach, Conniving Merchant
“The whole point of money is not needing permission -- not having to win the approval of others. To not be weighed down by inferiors and their petty concerns. Money is freedom.”
While Gaiste is far from the only Ravennan merchant to visit Feall Diermad, she is the only one to take up permanent residence there. This means she frequently acts as a go-between for other Ravennan interests, which, combined with her outgoing and highly eccentric manner, has left her well known.
One of the bat ponies, Gaiste is unmarried, and currently has three children by three different stallions. She is pregnant with a fourth, who is rumored to be the bastard child of the king, a rumor that has some degree of material evidence supporting it. Gaiste says she has no interest in sharing her life with another, and that her children are her alone to raise. This attitude has prompted wild speculation about her personal life, and many stallions claim to have bedded her, though the majority of such claims are untrue.
Hard nosed and shrewd, Gaiste is known for offering generous credit on purchases. Vital farm equipment, magical items, tools, and even luxuries like silk dresses can be purchased from her for minimal interest, or sometimes even no interest. But Gaiste has no benevolent intentions with such offers. Customers who fail to repay her in a prompt manner receive a visit from her two cousins, who explain to them the seriousness of their situation.
Years ago, when first Gaiste moved into the area, the ponies of Feall Diermad thought her both kind and wise, for when such matters of debt arose, she did not have the offender beaten as other merchants might, but worked out an equitable arrangement with the support of the king and other local authorities, that the farm might grow cash crops for her sale, and thus enrich both her and the farmer. Now, the cold artifice behind such a strategy is becoming clear. She defacto owns many farms in the area, being the only buyer of crops they are obligated to plant.
Her reputation several years ago was marred when one local earth pony struck her daughter, and soon after was found dead in a ditch with his throat slit. The matter was brought before the king, but he ruled in Gaiste’s favor for lack of any concrete evidence against her. It was at that point that rumors began to circulate regarding how much time the two of them were spending alone.
With the profits from her trade, Gaiste is building a lavish manor home just outside the city, with enough room for her extended family and several more children. Built in a foreign style, it is either hideous or innovative, depending upon whom one asks.
Gaise Mar Cruach (“Like a Steel Trap”)
Race: Thestral
Class: Conscript 2
Great stuff. I especially love worship being seen as a goblin practice beneath respectable folk. Wonderful example of different cultures being nigh-incomprehensible to one another.
Neat!
This sounds like a blast!
It's like a Robert Browning poem about the Italian Renaissance, but without all the cheap rhymes.
i.pinimg.com/736x/a6/f0/61/a6f061d5455822b2ed8e9bfdb80705ee.jpg
Here's a seahorse, thought a Rarity
Equestrian has no word for "religion". To a pony, that seems like a weird umbrella term for unrelated concepts such as "tradition", "mythology", "fandom", "personality cult" and "transhumanism".
Sounds like Captain State has discovered fiat money. I like to call it Daddy-O Dollars to emphasize its worthlessness.
Ohhh dear, this is sounding like there might be a Commentarii de Bello <properly declenated Ravennan name for Feall Diermad> in the future...
Hm. Why are "pegasi" and "pegasus" in quotes? ...Ah, not the local names?
...Hm. I thought I remembered seeing somewhere information on the various subspecies/tribes/races/whatever they're called here, but I'm not finding it now. Oh well.
"and that her children are her alone to raise"
"and that her children are hers alone to raise"?
And interesting, unsurprisingly; thanks for sharing! :D
Immensely atmospheric stuff.
Do I remember correctly that you, or Cold in Gardez, or someone once posted a map of Feall Diermad?
5605529
CiG! He drew it even. :D
5605529
5605620
Ah, over here, looks like; thanks! I think part of that was what I was thinking of.
The "Coinage and Tribute" part is amazing. Gotta use that someday.
Shame I had issues continuing.