The Lore of Kotoll
In this tab you'll find the history, seasons, classes, states, flavor for your characters, companion information, the flora and fauna, and the map.
Where we started
Year Zero:
It all started with the end.
Centuries and centuries ago, when the dust had settled, when life had started once again in the remains of the previous world, the world was taken over again. Vagabonds roamed where people had begun to rebuild their lives, starting over and learning the new land and mutated creatures. Arguments and fights began to the point where the varying groups of wanderers slipped further and further away from one another.
It would take years before they began to rebuild into their once great status as a civilization, a shorter time to forget their previous conflicts. Technology had been recovered, restarted again over the rubble of the previous lives their circumstances had brought. And while it’s nowhere near where it had been before the final days, advancements continue to make breakthroughs.
The vagabonds became continents in this new world. They spread, started their own lives, started their own ways of moving on from making the best of it with one another, into actual hierarchies of power. They believed that at the end of the day, people needed to be ruled over for the most production, to return to the once great lives their families that had survived the Last Days had spoken of.
At this time, those tales had become folklores, history only found when digging deep enough to find the treasure troves. Some of it has been kept hidden away from the general public, some of it revealed.
Eventually, the continents began to speak to one another again, to start trading with one another and working to better themselves as a whole, all while still believing themselves to be the superior of the rest.
Some continents started to believe that more intimately than others, even amongst their own people. Kotoll is the one that’s taken it to heart – with true descendants from the original bloodline of the Kusund family that had made it through the Last Days. This group of people had been bloodthirsty, set in their ways, traditional. They had gathered a few other houses that shared similar views to encourage their departure for their own fresh start, and it’s how this corrupt country was founded.
Eventually, it became split up into six states within the country, each with their own difficulties and connections to one another.
Where we are now
Year 1245:
The story begins with Unk’Kotoll. This is where the Kusund descendants reside, it’s the heart of strength in the country. It’s also the province with the harshest laws, with the iron fist that chokes the land in such a way that the state itself is harsh and unwelcoming, as if the earth itself wasn’t still trying to heal itself.
Ok’Kotoll in and of itself is the heart of the state, a space where there’s the harshest divide between the poor and the rich, where the Aristocrats decided to separate themselves even more from the rest. Tired of living amongst what they perceived to be the weaker of their peers as well as the constant floods they’d perceived as bad omens, the Aristocrats with the help of the Old Families set out to literally build on top of the city they had created centuries before.
Plates were created with reservoirs to sustain the top half where the Aristocracy thrives closer to their Saints, putting them on a pedestal far above the rest of their kind, leaving what is now called the Drench to suffer beneath them. It splits their city in half, a dark divide between the sun and darkness beneath the plates.
It’s where our story starts - years after the Plates were created, with tension rising beneath them in waves not unlike the floods that ravage the Drench. The Drenchers (a slang term for the Proletariats that live within the Drench), rightfully tired of being ruled over by those that are so out of touch with their way of living (as well as literally building over them), want to fight back. The Aristocracy, hating change more than their hatred of the Drenchers, fighting them back to retain their way of life.
Rumor has it a resistance is building beneath the Plates, but will it be enough to topple the topside?
Enough infighting has occurred that the Enforcers and Military from above have enacted a lockdown, trapping visitors from other states within the borders of Ok’kotoll, grounding flights and blocking the main roads out of the state with even more checkpoints and a heavier hand when dealing with what topside views as criminals. It has placed a choke hold on the state, preventing most of the economy from continuing with the exception of a few hush-hush arrivals in the dead of night.
Seasons
Kotoll has three seasons that last 3 months OOC.
Tanul
- The equivalent of spring and the early part of summer.
- This is the prime time where crops are planted, where the continent recovers from the terrible floods of Drenak. It's a time for growth and repair, often portrayed with bright sunny days with a few clouds in the sky. It's considered the most hopeful of the seasons.
Kivan
- The equivalent of most of summer and the first half of autumn.
- The rain and cloud cover disperse to warm up the continent with little reprieve. It’s easy and nice at first, however by the middle of the season to the end, droughts are incredibly common and the chance of fire is high.
- Burn bans often go into effect toward the latter half of the season.
Drenak
- The equivalent of the latter half of autumn and all of winter.
- With the continent having become incredibly dry, the rains move in quickly making way for Kotoll’s flood season. It’s made harsher by the incredibly dry season beforehand, and while it doesn’t snow in most of Kotoll, it’s rare to get a day where it doesn’t at least drizzle.
- Toward the middle of the month, flooding is a common occurrence.
Character Building
This covers information regarding character classes and backgrounds for states.
Classes
Are you a recent arrival, or were you born to riches? Somewhere in between? There's a class for you!
Immigrant
Immigrants come from other countries throughout the world, visiting the unique country of Kotoll. It’s likely common that they arrive via boat or plane, given that Kotoll is nearly 90% surrounded by water with a small inlet north that may allow for some of the Immigrants to arrive through. This is the perfect class for those that don’t quite fit into the world of Kotoll but you still want that character to partake within the world. They have a harder time making a name for themselves within Kotoll, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.
- Immigrants start with +3 Fortune.
☭ Proletariat
Kotollians who belong to the common class. Stepped on, spat on, and generally put upon by the higher ups, the proletariat of Kotoll are a hard sort of people, used to doing what they must to get by. This group is considered the majority, the ones that do all the nitty gritty to keep the country running.
- Proletariat characters start with +3 in any stat.
Specialist
Characters who serve in a military or mercenary capacity (whether focused in spycraft, combat, or survival), are considered specialists. They’re seen as slightly lower class to the Bourgeoisie and the Aristocrats, but slightly higher to the Proletariats and Immigrants of the country.
- Specialists start with +3 Dexterity, Health, or Prowess.
Bourgeoisie
Kotollians who work and live in the upper levels of society, usually as artisans, mages, or medics. Often connected to the nobility, they live comfortable lives compared to their proletariat brethren. You can often work your way up to this background if you have enough money to buy your way in.
- Bourgeoisie start with +2 in any stat.
Aristocrat
The top of the top, Aristocrats are part of the nobility, whether by virtue or birth. Though things have come easier to them than many other Kotollians, they also tend to be softer, not quite as skillful as their hard-working cousins (but they typically have the money to make up for it).
- Aristocrats start with +1 to all skills and bonus currency.
Aristocrat Houses
House Information
The Kusund House is considered to be the Lord’s Clan - it’s the house that was meticulously continued and made from the sole group that pulled away from the ideals of the rest of the world after the Last Days. They’re bloodthirsty, an act first act questions later kind of people, always willing to fight for anything that would keep them on the top of the chain.
As stated earlier, they’re meticulous about continuing their bloodline. They’re the one house that cares the most about it, and when it comes down to the possibility of some relationships being unable to continue it, arrangements are made. They will either adopt children from the same bloodline from the other aristocratic families that live alongside them on their plate, or will opt for ways of surrogacy in order to continue this tradition.
When it comes to careers, the Kusund House are typically always fighters. They focus on military strength and internal enforcer strength, but will find ways of fitting in within other branches. If there’s a fight on the top side, there’s usually a Kusund House among them.
Heads, House Colors, Symbols
- Headed by: Tsili Kusund
- Location: Unk'kotoll.
- House Colors: Gold, maroon, purple.
- House Symbols: A bird with open wings in midflight, with a five pointed star above and below it.
House Information
Bravlet House are one of the few families that had joined the Kusund House in the centuries before, with their main bloodline being the typical military focused individuals that tended to be better at thinking up strategies and plans to win against their enemies. They’re strict but punctual, often engaging in tasks that are regimented and organized.
They, too, are meticulous about their bloodline, but not as intense about it as the Kusund House. In much of the same way, if there is the inability to continue the bloodline, they are likely to adopt or potentially surrogate another to continue the bloodline.
Careers for the Bravlet house are always involving the military. They work hard to ensure they have the greatest minds and strongest people to make sure Kotoll’s borders are secure and safe. They are also the house that produces some of the best military diplomats that often go and interact with the surrounding states as well.
Much unlike the Kusund, however, Bravlet House is also one that acknowledges those from other houses that may be beneficial to their status as well. Known for inviting others to abandon their house and join under their name, provided you prove yourself to be valuable within their ranks.
Heads, House Colors, Symbols
- Headed by: Kosbra of the Bravlet
- Location: Unk'kotoll.
- House Colors: Cream, brown, scarlet red.
- House Symbols: A horizontal longsword with one empty circle above the blade and three filled in circles below it, usually done in a subtle color that matches whatever it's on. If it's meant to stand out, it's usually either the brown or scarlet red of the house colors. If it's in full color, the three lower dots are cream, brown, and scarlet red, in that order, while the sword and upper circle are both in black.
House Information
The most lawful of the houses is the Bratena House. Born and raised around books and training, this house covers all that may be required of those in charge of making sure the state runs as smoothly as they can. Like the Bravlet House, they are organized, but they’re also note takers. This is the house that creates and enacts the law. This is also the house that enacts justice on whether those laws have been broken.
Unlike the Kusund and Bravlet House, this house is much less strict on continuing the whole bloodline. Oftentimes others from other houses are married in, promising the strengthening and wit of their offspring to be the best minds they can be.
Those that come from the Bratena House district are almost always Enforcers, though it isn’t uncommon to have some Bratena House get swept up by the Bravlet House when it comes to what kind of prowess they have in strategic planning.
They do, however, have a strict tradition when it comes to potential pools for succeeding the Arbiter. Trials must be performed and the winners of those get placed into a ‘winning pool’ to be drawn from to perform in another Trial to see who becomes the next Arbiter. Once one has won the initial Trial, they go through more training and obtain ranks and teams of their own in the hopes that being out on the streets would make them able to make wiser choices on crafting laws in the future.
Heads, House Colors, Symbols
- Headed by: Shaju Bratena
- Location: Unk'kotoll.
- House Colors: Greys, navy blue accents, blacks.
- House Symbols: A dagger pointed down in a mixture of grey and black, with a wreath of navy blue behind it pointing upward.
House Information
When it comes to any kind of goods, services, and sales, it’s likely there’s been a Koselik House hand in it. This is the house that’s put together the best way to manufacture, produce, procure, and ship the best of what Kotoll has to offer. They often deal with internal shipping and production between the states, but they’re also known to have connections outside of Kotoll, bringing in exotic wares and goods… For a price, of course.
This house is less likely to care about bloodlines and instead whether the individual makes either a prospective salesperson or a valuable addition to the goods and services they work with. This is one of the aristocratic houses known for marrying outside of their own bloodline quite often.
Koselik House individuals tend to be merchants, salespeople, owners or high ups of manufacturing warehouses, and other positions of that nature.
Heads, House Colors, Symbols
- Headed by: Hedren Koselik
- Location: Stistun.
- House Colors: Light yellow, dark green, occasionally copper.
- House Symbols: A dark green oak leaf with a light yellow key diagonally set within it. Sometimes the oak leaf has copper edges.
House Information
The Tsunkif House, also known as the House of the Occult, is where magic users are found. With Kotoll being an area with a variety of terrain, Undunli makes for a decent spot for magic users to reach into their elements and learn to expand their knowledge. This is the most diverse of the Aristocrat Houses, given that those that are able to wield magic are not from one specific lineage, but only those that tap into it and practice can become masters with it. This leads to the House in particular to offer up hefty sums for children and adults with promising abilities, offering them gold and the Tsunkif name and protections.
These Aristocrats are often given familiars to help with their training, and with the training they are taught to either become crafters or soldiers. Soldiers will often be paired up with groups from the Bratena or Bravlet Houses for positions in either the military or Kotoll’s internal Enforcer units.
This House cares the least for bloodlines. It’s commonplace for them to adopt those with magical prowess and treat them as if they are all of the same family.
Heads, House Colors, Symbols
- Headed by: Ariel Tsunkif
- Location: Undunli.
- House Colors: Bright blue-white, yellow, dark grey.
- House Symbols: A wooden dark grey wand with a yellow snake wrapped around it. Four bright blue-white stars also sit in each corner.
House Information
Considered the most spiritual of the aristocratic houses, the Garsen House is the one most people go to when it comes to advice. They tend to become advisors, often living a life revolving around spiritual and religious texts. In some cases, their word is the final word.
This house often marries out its best to other houses in order to offer guidance and good luck to those houses. At present, this house works uncomfortably close to the Bratena House.
Like the Kusund and the Bravlet Houses, the Garsen House is particular about its pairings for bloodlines and marriage. They’re often married for status or the potential for spiritual heirs.
Heads, House Colors, Symbols
- Headed by: Nagela Garsen
- Location: Garanenz.
- House Colors: Dark purple, lime green, light grey.
- House Symbols: Symbolized mainly by an open book with a moon above it. Which phase of the moon will depend on how high of a ranking you stand within the house.
House Information
he Tinizun House is one of the houses that is standoffish from the other aristocratic houses. This is a House made up of bright thinkers, geared toward architecture from how much lumber they tend to export. They also have a large population that focuses on theater and the arts. Most of the time, this House falls in line with the rest of the Aristocratic Houses when it comes to keeping themselves and the Bourgeoisie’s separate from the Proletariats and Immigrants, but there have been a fair few free thinkers that challenge this view. There have been times where nobles from other houses who don’t fit into the role they were born into, will leave to join this House in order to remain an Aristocrat but without the pressure to fall into line.
Upon occasion, because of how many art and culture curators and architects are located within this House, they will occasionally work with the Koselik House if they have things of note for sale.
This House is less caring on bloodlines, given that it’s somewhat become an amalgamation of other noble houses from those that deem themselves unfit for where they came from. For the most part, anything goes within the Tinizun House.
Heads, House Colors, Symbols
- Headed by: Katsun Tinizun
- Location: Palladol
- House Colors: Lilac accents, dark green, greys.
- House Symbols: A light grey shield with a pen and paint brush colored dark purple crossed on top of it, splattered with droplets of lime green reminiscent of paint.
House Information
The best way to describe the Tsundis House is to describe them as the black sheep of the Aristocratic Houses. Tsundis House can be ruthless when needed, but their values have shifted hard from the traditional values of the Mural Nobles. They are often closest to the Tinizun House because of this reason. Being from a coastal state, it allows for this house to have their way with their choices more often, but they are still untrustworthy to the Bravlet/Kusund/Bratena Houses.
Tsundis House rules by other regulations than the rest of the noble houses, but because their exports with crops and their large fishing and wine communities, it makes it difficult for the other houses to try and get them back in line. It’s been decades since the rest of the houses have tried.
It’s a House where anything goes, this extends to relationships, duties, and bloodlines; where the aristocracy here only seems to care about how you might benefit their city.
Heads, House Colors, Symbols
- Headed by: Dia Tsundis
- Location: Dinalla.
- House Colors: Teal, yellow, silver accents, white.
- House Symbols: A white and yellow octopus with each tentacle gradating into teal.
States within Kotoll
Kotoll is a large country, broken up into six different states that all work together for the benefit of Kotoll as a whole.
Unk'Kotoll
Unk’Kotoll is known as the decision maker state. It focuses mostly on military research, weapon creation, and logistics type of work, and is often the one that becomes the big decision maker among disputes between the states. Some sections of Unk’Kotoll is used for agriculture, but they generally consume more than they produce and rely heavily on imports and trade routes. The main noble professions found in this state relate to any military work, law enforcement, and general legal types of work, making the culture of this state heavily strict and heavy handed.
- Ruling Houses: Kusund, Bravlet, Bratena
- Ruling House: Tsundis
- Ruling House: Tsunkif
- Ruling House: Koselik
- Ruling House: Tinizun
- Ruling House: Garsen
Dinalla
Known for their gorgeous beaches, Dinalla is the state that focuses on fishing, specific types of agriculture, and fashion. Their culture is relaxed, yet still sophisticated. This state typically remains self sufficient when it comes to producing enough for the state to survive on, but it does dabble in a good number of imports and has a heavy export trade.
Undunli
Undunli is a hardworking state, focused mainly on mining materials the rest of the country uses as well as material for arts and pigments. Their export trade is high, mainly for Garanenz for their electronic goods and Palladol for their high fashion, but also benefits from the other states as well. Because of the hard work in the mines and their dedication, their culture is heavy handed and strict much like Unk’Kotoll, though without as strict repercussions for those that cannot fall in line.
Stistun
Full of open fields with livestock and agriculture, Stistun is a picture perfect vision of hard-working farm life. They produce the most livestock for consumption as well as textiles in the entire country, often exporting out the majority of their goods from their main cities, but it is also common to find nomadic groups within Stistun that often have specific types of livestock they raise. Alongside other textiles, their main export is wool and leather.
Palladol
Palladol is mostly forest covered, with hills and ranges of smaller mountains throughout the state. One of their biggest exports is lumber, but they also have the best architecture minds in the country. Because of the hard work from the lumber mills and forestry, their culture is a mixed bag of strict and high brow culture, focusing in films and theater alongside their main export.
Garanenz
When it comes to most of the power and electronics for the country, you can assume it’s come from Garanenz. This state is the technological hub, full of scientists and mages (especially when it comes to magically inspired technology). Along with their technological advancements, this state is also in charge of transportation technology and often provides the other states with their transportation systems.
Character Flavor
Within this tab, information regarding the culture, tradition, belief system, and slang can be found.
Saints
Bini (Flood Strider, Leech Kid, Swamp Lily)
Bini is a patron saint of the Drench, particularly known as a protector of street kids and those living without roofs. Most stories told about them change their appearance, though they are always considered the same saint no matter how they look.
- Symbolized by: White and greys, opaque full face masks which are often decorated.
Tsungata (Golden God, Ash Mother)
Tsungata is a patron saint of the sun, all of Kotoll know who she is. She is the one that they worship for less harsh drought seasons, believing that to leave her offerings may provide some welcome respite during the seasonal Kivan heatwaves.
- Symbolized by: Gold, Sun ornaments.
Vovonen (The Barrage, Torrential)
Vovonen is a patron saint of the rains. Often worshiped the most during the height of Kivan when rain hasn’t been seen in weeks, it is also the one that is often sought out during Drenak, when the flood waters from the rainfall become too much.
- Symbolized by: Blues and teals, rain and water color designs.
Salenti (Sky Angel, Stratospherica)
Salenti is a patron saint of the Plates, known for granting the nobility their figurative ‘wings’ to rise above the darkness of the Drench to embrace the warmth of his favor. His image is placed in many of the Plate homes, often the face of good luck and strength.
- Symbolized by: Pastels, plush feathered wings.
Tintaren (Tinta, the Great Green Man, the Harvestman)
Tintaren is a patron saint of growth. Mainly worshiped during Tanul, this saint is believed to have a hand in every crop grown in the season. It’s a bad omen when crops suddenly go bad, the populace believing that Tintaren has taken out their anger on them.
- Symbolized by: All shades of green, decorated scarecrows, big green bouquets and wreaths.
Legends
The Lost Mages
Legend tells of a line of mages who had the power to manipulate life itself. Rumor has it that the last few life mages suffered dwindling abilities, disappearing away in a mixture of shame and an attempt to get closer to the elements in an attempt to grow it back to the full power they once had.
The Mugwi
An old Drench myth which suggests that the Mural Nobles have never needed to guard Tunskrall Lake since the patient and ruthless predator of the Mugwi guard it for them.
Traditions
The Swim Test
An old barbaric tradition meant to keep the strongest and best of the bloodlines thriving. When a noble child reaches six years old, they are taken to the Drowning Trails (or the equivalent of in regards to whichever state they come from), and essentially dropped from the side of one of the spanning bridges over the river and told to make it down the river where it evens out. Typically it’s a difficult process and not every child manages to make the trip. Those that do are often rewarded with titles of heirs or more important roles within the family.
Noble Child Gaps/Restrictions
It’s unlikely for noble families to have a lot of children - often focusing on an old fashioned way of two children to start, usually in an attempt to continue the bloodline. Many Aristocratic families wait six years (the time for the Swim Test to arrive) before continuing to have more children, it all depends on how well their first child does in the Swim Test. Bourgeoisie families and other lower noble families depending on tradition will usually cut that wait period in half, choosing to have them every three years.
Slang Dictionary
A work in progress! If you have ideas you want to add, don't hesitate to message admin about your thoughts!
Slang Words
- Blue Bottom – A person on the plate, usually used in a mocking or derogatory way.
- Dew Drop – Term of endearment, mostly for children.
- Flat Top – A Drencher who works so closely with people on the Plates that they start to get haughty and superior to other Drenchers.
- Forcies – Slang for Enforcers.
- Popli – A fried street food consisting of a variety of fillings inside a dense, chewy dough. Most common fillings are sweet lotus root, fish, centi, and various spiced or sauced vegetables.
- Shaved gavel – Unimpressive cock
- Slick/Slick Suit – Derogatory term for upper class Drenchers.
- Squelcher – Drencher synonym.
- Waterlogged – Synonym for stupid.
- Wethead – Drencher synonym.
Slang Phrases
- 'Acting like your shoes aren't muddy.' – A drench term for acting superior or above everyone else.
Bits of Fluff
This section is decided to, well.. all sorts of small lore tidbits that don't quite fit anywhere else.
IDs and travel to the Plates: Typically, everyone has an ID. Real ones are expensive, fake ones are abundant, and of varying quality. Normally you do not need a specific permit to travel up to the Plates, but certain Plates (POINT and DEPOT) need specific permits to enter.
Companions
More than a pet, a companion is an animal with which a Kotollian has forged a special, magic-based bond. An ‘exotic pet license’ is needed to bond with a companion; this license can be purchased with IC Coin or OOC Flair. Cost and quality of a companion is based on three factors: Rarity, Bond Strength, and Training.
- Ordinary: Everyday small animals. Rodents, snakes, birds, cats, bats, anything you would reasonably have as a pet. They cannot be used in combat.
— Cost: ₾400, or 300
- Unique: Exotic animals that would not reasonably serve as pets. Lions, tigers, bears (oh my!). Can be used in combat.
— Cost: ₾650, or 500
- Paragon: Not found in nature, but extant as mythological beings. Dragons, phoenix, unicorn, etc. May have one ability consistent with their mythology.
— Cost: ₾800, or 700
- Divine: A combination of creature and ability created at your discretion! Three-tailed mouse with healing tears? Flying snake that farts acid rainbows? Two-legged spider who tap-dances tunes that make people drowsy? Go nuts!
— Cannot be purchased; only available as rewards for special events.
For native Kotollian creatures, rarity (and ability to become a companion) is denoted in their flora/fauna listing.
- Year 1: Your companion is attuned to your emotions, and you to it. It will not leave your side for too long, and can follow directions better than an average animal might.
- Year 2: The magic of the bond is cemented now. Your companion is capable of speaking mentally to you, and you to it.
- Year 3: By year 3, your bond has become so strong it may leak into other connections you have. Your companion can sense the emotions of those very close to you, and vice versa. It may spend time alongside those you consider family, even accompanying them for a thread at a time.
Flora & Fauna
An expanding list of creatures and plants within Kotoll. In here you'll find a list of regular creatures (think every day flora and fauna that you can find out in the world right now) as well as entries for the fantasy flora and fauna created to fit within Kotoll.
For the entries made, there will be separated designations to show how common it is to come across these:
- Ordinary - Found consistently and easily.
- Unique - May take a few posts to find.
- Paragon - Incredibly difficult to find, you'd be lucky to find these on your first try. (Please message Admin if you're seeking a paragon creature).
As well as designations to show whether they can be used as companions or shapes for a mage's familiar:
- Companion symbol:
- Familiar symbol:
There will also be locations where they can be found and which season you can find them in.
It is important to note that each of the creatures designated as companions can also be pets bought for your characters. They will not have the bonding capabilities that companions have (speech and the like) but would be like any other ordinary pet.
Unk'Kotoll
- Giant Venomous Toad (Paragon, found in Vollug/The Drench, Drenak) — A large venomous toad species with venomous spurs in each of its feet. They are violently territorial, though usually don’t come close enough to the city to be an issue. Occasionally though, a particularly heavy flood season will entice one into settling nearby.
- Pakroko (Ordinary, found in all areas, all seasons) — Pakroko’s, or simply Kroko’s, are a commonly kept reptile, bred for their fancy tails and unique colourings. They live wild in the Drench in family groups containing up to thirty individuals, and display far more muted colours and patterns.
- Diving Scorpions (Ordinary, found in all areas, Kivan/Drenak) — Diving scorpions are scorpions that lay their eggs in the mud at the end of the dry season and let their offspring develop like tadpoles, (with the occasional rare genetic mutation like salamanders that keep them in this nymph stage their whole life).
- Mole Centipedes (Ordinary, found in The Drench, Drenak/Tanul) — Mole centipedes, large (between 3-15ft on average, largest recorded in the Drench was 53ft and approximately 6ft around) subterranean centipedes that become a problem in the wet season when they surface to escape the water, they’re also a Drench delicacy!
- Batsudi (Ordinary, found in all areas, Kivan) — The Batsudi, a scaled chimp like mammal with a large thick collar of fur and brightly coloured bellies, a common pet in the Drench and Plates due to their socializing skills, easy trainability, and proclivity to violent loyalty.
- Mud Eels (Ordinary, found in all areas, all seasons) — a variety of eel that survives the long dry season by hibernating in dry river beds. Their black meat is slimy and bitter, but their vivid blue eggs are a delicacy. They’re often raised in the same fields as Taniksin Lotus'.
- Taniksin Lotus (Ordinary, found in all areas, all seasons) — An agricultural staple, this lotus has multiple varieties:
- Reed Variety: Grown for their greenery, the reeds are used for sugar, animal feed, and some recipes. It often produces an abundance of seeds as well, which are either dried or fermented.
- Rhizome Variety: Grown for their thick roots which are harvested during the dry season, these are a hearty, starchy root that is found in many dishes.
- Flower Variety: Grown for flowers which are used for inks. It also commonly produces rhizomes high in a psychoactive chemical, which is often either sliced thin and fried or powdered.
- Gumgi (Ordinary, found in all areas, Drenak) — A large single cell algae that blooms in abundance during the floods. Fresh gumgi is an incredibly potent hallucinogenic, but as it dries the potency fades. It's most commonly imbibed once it’s been dried to a raisin like consistency, and produces an exhilarating mood enhancement and energy rush. If left too long it will dry to a powder and lose all potency.
- Hemuskin Algae (Bloodrust Algae) (Paragon, found in both Plates and the Drench, Drenak) — An algae that only blooms when conditions are just right, it has been many years since it’s last been seen. While young it is impossible to notice in water, save for an incredibly minor increase in viscosity. After a few weeks of flood conditions (abundant water, low light) the algae blooms in large, reddish clouds. At all stages of the algae’s lifecycle, it causes Rust rash and other complications, the algae eating into skin and causing scale like lesions in the places it’s been exposed to, internal and external. Generally, at the blooming point of its lifecycle, it’s eaten away by a common scrubit isopod and it’s spores are passed through and returned to the river sediment, where they must dry out fully in order to start its life cycle again.
- Scrubit Isopod (Scrubbug, subbug, hitcher beetle, sneakbeet, gillsickle) (Ordinary, found in the Drench, All seasons) — A common isopod that is most often found parasitizing the gills of various marsh fish. Due to the mud eels partially terrestrial existence, they are the most common carrier. Larval isopods can survive only on land, but as they grow older and larger they become more tolerant of water, so long as it is supplemented by some oxygen source, whether that be from gills or pearling plants. They are a necessary predator of hemuskin algae, feeding on their oxygen rich bodies and allowing the algae to reset their life cycle.
- Snap Hound (Unique, The Plates, all seasons) — The preferred pet of Enforcers, these highly trainable and loyal dogs have been bred to be quick, clever, and do well in the swamp. Their large feet are webbed, while long, strong legs and a stocky body allows them to swim with relative ease.
- Tomi Rats (Ordinary, The Drench, Tanul/Drenak) — An opportunistic and aquatic marsupial, this strong swimmer usually grows a foot long from tip to tail and is covered in thick black fur with patchy red guard hairs and a bare tail. They are omnivorous, though prefer meat and insects whenever possible, and are not picky about their sources. They are highly social, and can be tamed easily, though they tend to prefer a large social group.
- Weeping Creepers (Ordinary in the Plates, Unique in The Drench, all seasons) — These carnivorous plants are widely grown by people on the Plates, and are especially popular along the edges. These thick vines cling to the sides of the Plates with a network of tendrils and air roots and grow pitcher flowers, attracting anything small enough to fit in them. During Drenak they often overflow and pour their acidic nectar on the Drench.
- Bizu Bugs (Unique in the Plates, Ordinary in The Drench, all seasons) — Bizu bug swarms are technically a hive mind of one elemental, taking the shape of at least a dozen sparking insects, their bodies fat with electricity. They seem to prefer being over bodies of water or around large power sources, and as such are especially striking around the Plate's cores in the Drench.
- Flying Snakes (Unique, Plates and The Drench, all seasons) — An imported reptile which comes in a few different varieties. The most common variety is a typical scaled snake with bat-like leathery wings, while the most rare type being a fur coated wurm-like snake with feathered wings. Difficult to breed within Unk'Kotoll, this creature is nearly always part of the exotic import trade.
- Miasmoths (Ordinary, The Drench, Kivan) — Seasonal swarms of moths that fill the Drench during Kivan. Their wings are lacy and iridescent, and their fat bodies emit a scent that will always smell like a person's favourite thing.
- Mugwump (Ordinary in the Plates, Unique in The Drench, all seasons) — A paedomorphic form of the larger, more aggressive mugwi, the mugwump is a common pet among people on the Plate and Drench alike. Known for its playful temperament and multiple colours and morphs, the mugwump makes a good companion, and prefers a primarily territorial existence.
- Mugwi (Paragon, Tsunkrall Lake/The Drench, Tanul) — Mugwi represent the few Mugwumps that both survive to adulthood and morph to their full adult form. The mugwi is a patient but ruthless predator, perfectly suited to its aquatic domain.
- Dipund (Paragon in the Plates, Ordinary in the Drench, all seasons) — A large, generally docile beast of burden that's common in the Drench and especially around the Scapes. They have a long jaw, with shovel-like bottom teeth and a prehensile nose, so they can forage in muddy ponds, and strong claws for digging. Generally their faces and legs are covered in short coarse fur while their bodies and thick tails are covered in long wool, often sheared in Kivan and woven into waterproof cloth.
Palladol
- Rindaru — Grown primarily in Palladol, this strange pale orange fruit is unique for having a thick peel over each segment, which grow in long, twisted shapes. This prevents dry spells from ruining the entire fruit, as each section protects itself. It has a sharp citrus taste and is used in a wide variety of dishes, though too much of it can result in a bitter taste.
