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 Posted: Sun Jun 25, 2006 12:46 pm
In the world of Third Stream there are a handful of nations, each with their own customs and traditions. The story mostly involves They, Pheonix, Underworld, and the Elemental Union. These four cultures experienced a life-altering change on the solstice, bringing about events which would change the way they looked at their world forever. Here you will find a brief explination of each nation, their coustoms and inhabitants; as well as a brief summary of their recent history. Oh, and an awesome map, drawn by our very own SilentDraconis: 
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Posted: Sun Jun 25, 2006 12:48 pm
Phoenix:
Developed by silentdraconis
Landscape:
Phoenix is a peninsula, bordered on the land ward side by thick high mountains. The land itself is made of wide-open plains, rolling hills and standing groves. The earth is fertile and the seasons temperate, and the land is happily isolated from its neighbors wars while easily managing to command a large portion of their trade.
People and Customs:
-The people tend towards the slender build, pale to olive skinned with eyes that have the barest hint of slant, and tend towards darker shades—brown, green-brown and nearly black are most common, and while blues and jades are not unheard of, they are incredibly rare in this sun-filled land. Their hair also leans in the dark direction, black and brown being predominant against all other shades. However, it is not uncommon to find redheads in service of the temples to the Primal Three, since they are considered to have been touched by the Phoenix—whether this is true or not has never been proved.
-Women are held as equals to men, though most prefer the traditional domains of the female to other options, women may still be found in the army, navy, working as sailors and bankers and farmers. Old Maids are not frowned upon and, while not encouraged, they tend to command some degree of respect.
-The most common occupations for any one in Phoenix are almost all involved with ships, whether it is sailing, building, or loading and unloading. Merchants are handsomely rewarded in their business with other lands, and occasionally send out a rare and adventurous ship to seek new places to trade with. Other trades are abundant towards the interior and Helberg Mountains. Phoenix instruments and tapestries are prized as fine examples of their kind, and Phoenix artisans are talented beyond compare. As a peaceful realm that need only worry about repelling the occasional probe, the natives have turned their efforts to excelling at their work.
Religion and the Primal Three:
-The people of Phoenix worship the Primal Three—a trio of deities who they believe created their world. Temples to the Three can be found across the land, in every city town and hamlet, and some at crossroads as unmanned shrines.
-The three ddeities are as follows:
Residing over Fire, Justice, and the Judging of the dead is the Lady Phoenix.;
Aquael claims dominion over water, healing, and the realms of the dead.
The third of the Primal Three is Leidren, God of stone, determination, and steadfast souls; in the Phoenix's Court, his is the voice that reads the deeds of the Dead, showing both good and wicked in equal light.
-Together, Leidren and Phoenix are the Gods of battle and warriors, one for those who stay calm in face of calamity, and the other for the fiery emotions that sing high in combat. Aquael and Leidren temper the Phoenix, and encourage mercy and calm dealings.
-It is believed that on the Summer Solstice, the holiest day of the year, the Primal Three take that shortest night to rest from their eternal vigilance over humankind. From Sunset to Sunrise they are removed from mortal affairs. (Oddly enough, this night has the greatest number of crimes committed yearly)
-It is common to find redheaded women and girls in service to the temples, as they are believed to have been touched by the Phoenix—whether this is true or false has never been proven. The same goes for males, but it is more common to find a man with red hair occupied outside the temple, than a woman (since the Phoenix is female). If a village has a redhead, she will be at the temple, cities lean towards the more material paths, so young girls may not take to the holy life. It is also easiest to find blue or gray eyed individuals at the Temples for similar reasons. Women in service to the church can marry and retain their station, as may men, unless they wish to become a high-ranked Priest or Priestess.
-The people believe that the Three used to take on human guise to survey their land from a more mortal perspective: the Phoenix would take on the guise of a poor maiden, and seek to try the fairness of mortal hearts. When drawn to wrath, or defense of those who are incapable of defending themselves, her divinity showed in flaming fair (the root of the redhead lore?) and two fiery wings emerging from her back. Aquael, too, took female form, masquerading as anything between a child and a tottering crone, though when she revealed her divinity, all forms became that of an impossibly beautiful woman with cascading falls of water for hair, and sea-blue eyes in dark skin.
Of all the deities, only Leidrin is not known to have taken mortal form, or if he did, he never revealed his divinity in a fit of passion as his sisters did.
Recent History:
To be Completed
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Posted: Sun Jun 25, 2006 12:51 pm
They: (Thy Humans Eternally Yearn)
Developed by SilntAngl5
Landscape:
They is a deasert nation, with a good sized oasis called 'Thyland' which is belived to belong to the goddes Thy, thus discoraging the Theeites from settling there. North of the fire nation.
People and Customs:
Theeites: The remnants of the human race who live in the City of Thee.
-No one remembers what their culture was, there are so few records to go by (whole records that is), and even fewer who can interpret them.There are plenty of fragments, plenty of missing pieces to hazard a guess by. But there's nothing solid, compact, firm enough to stand as the cornerstone for the inhabitants of Thee to regain their former glory. As a result, they muddle in the whims of a forgotten past and mull over what is believed to be and what might have really been. It is the obsession of some, the core of life for others, and still... just a way to exist for more.
-After the summer solstice, the people forgot their past, and things which were once logical and ordinary sliped out of their grasp. The people managed to scrape by, even doing rather well to an extent, but things didn't remain peaceful for long.
-It started when an artifact was found- an insignificant relic of a past that was long ago- that left as much of the truth of what happened in mystery as it is currently kept by those who have power and knowledge of this artifact. The artifact was a diary of a young girl. In it were the truths of a people gone wrong, astray... in the diary was They. Nobody but clerics and high village-government-like beings know the true words of this one such artifact and more. The diary was scorched, beaten up, decaying, but one word was more popular than any other: They.
-Soon They became THEY, a diety who was based off of the common misuse of the old english-language pronoun.
-Then more text were found. THEY soon had a wife: THY, Goddess bride of THEY. A popular saying among the descendants of the human race from an ancient piece of text that was found was "This Shall be THY home." The people of Thee, a City where many have settled, will not settle wherever the ancient text was found. It is the home of THY, Goddess wife of THEY. it is considered sacred ground where none should go... who would want to anger the Gods after all?
Religion:
THEY: Believed to be a God because of the misuse of the word in the old English language. Broken pieces of text and misuse of "they" have sparked a new religion. In reference to the God, THEY should be in all capitals so as not to confuse it with the actual pronoun.
THY: Wife Goddess of THEY due to misunderstanding of fragmented text found where it is said THYmakes her home. The saying, "This Shall be Thy Home" was discvoered among some fragmented artifacts in a region outside of The City Thee and because of that message, people will not settle or travel near there in fear of angering the Gods.
Them: Those who are THEY/THY fanatatics. (As in "You don't want to mess with them.")... they generally make everyone's lives miserable.
Those: People who are discovering the truth about what happened to the human race.
Recent History:
To be Completed
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Posted: Sun Jul 02, 2006 7:10 pm
The Underground
By SilentDraconis
Landscape:
The Underworld is nestled into a complex series of caverns, natural and mined, with a small valley tucked within a cup of impassable mountains. Within the dark caverns of the Underworld are many a rare artifact, preserved from the Fall, and many a strange creation. The valley is a rich and fertile place, plowed for food and sectioned off for herd-beasts. It is the one outward sign of the existence of the Underworld. The homes and communal buildings are carved from the black rock itself, and in the center of the main common is a wall of stone, on which are engraved the core laws of their creed and society.
People and Customs:
-The people tend towards dark skin, but light eyes, with amberish-hazel the most common color found.
-The Underworld took its name for its first and golden rule: Those who enter may never leave. As with the underworld of the spirits, as it is with them. Once within the boundaries, that is it.
-Knowledge is revered: the more you know, the higher you are held in the eyes of society, and the more power you can gain.
-The government is a direct Democracy, one adult, one vote.
-Men and women are truly equal, sharing in labor, tasks and profits, neither held above the other. It is intellect that they revere, no matter what body it's in.
Religion:
They have three gods: Slaine (Aquael), Ceara (Pheonix), and Niallan (Leidren). And while religion is not a mainstay of their society, Niallan is particularly honored before Slaine and Ceara, though all are revered.
Recent History:
To be Completed
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Posted: Sun Jul 02, 2006 7:12 pm
The Elemental Alliance
Developed by Rowen McNeill
The Elemental Alliance is actually made up of four nations: Wind, Water, Earth and Fire. These four nations have allied themselves together based on common intrests and customs (ie: the same Panthion of gods), against any outside nation which may plan to attack. Trade is also kept within the alliance, because with the diversity of the landscapes they are able to be self-sufficient.
Landscape:
~Wind: The wind people are slightly nomadic, with small gliders (an occupancy of about 2 or 3) and land/sea ships with sails. Their capitol and temples are located in the mountains between the fire nation and Pheonix.
~Water: The Water nation consists of a chain of islands, not all that far from the nation of Pheonix.
~Earth: The Earth nation is east of the fire nation and north east of the water nation, taking up a relatively small but dencely wooded valley wich is surrounded by a very low but old mountain chain.
~Fire: The Fire nation is a savannah-like area, north of the Water nation and east of Pheonix (on the other side of the mountain range on which the Wind nation has placed it's capitol). There is a dormant volcano just their side of the mountain range. An ocean marks it's easternmost shore, but that is a great distance from the other nations across an area which is scarcely populated.
People and Customs: Most of the people of the Elemental nations have almond shaped eyes and fine, streight hair. This varies, though, because they have been known to intermarry with their neighbors.
~Wind: A fair skinned people, quick to tan or frekle. Eyes are usually very light grey, blue or green, and do not always match. Hair color varies from dark brown to white blond, with a few redheads, though generally at the lighter end of the scale.
They are seldom seen in the fire nation, they sometimes turn up in the Earth nation and Phoenix, and are common in the Water Nation. Those who do not know better mistake them for Water Nation natives, though Wind people are fairer and make more use of sails in their ships.
~Water: The people of this nation tend to have very dark blue, grey or green eyes, comparable to the hughes of the ocean. Dark hair is common, in some cases appearing to be blue-black. Though a naturally fair-skinned people, they tan easily. They are believed to be closely related to the Wind people, since they have very similar coloring and appearance. Most of it's people live on boats, as fishermen, traders, and even pirates (though some prefer the term 'Privateer'). The islands are filled mostly with homes occupied only during the stormy seasons (when the ocean is too choppy) and places where the goods accumulated by the boats are processed.
~Earth: Generally have dark brown hair, and medium green or brown eyes. Skin is usually darker then the other nations. The people live in varying styles, some in trees, some in caves in the mountains, and some in houses along the river which flowes through the center of the vally.
~Fire: Just a little lighter in complexion then the earth people, the fire people have been known to have varying shades of brown hair, with red highligts (and a few redheads amoung them). Eyes are generally hazel or brown. The people visit the volcano quite often, but only members of the religious community live near it.
Religion:
The Three:
~Wind: Their favored god is Tenkai, a wind god who does not have a Phoenix equivalent. Like the other three elemental nations, and Phoenix, they respect Kappa (Aquael), though they also attribute heat to her (most likely due to the frequency of hot springs in the mountains). They do not have a fire god, and the closest thing they have to a god of war is Congo (Leidren), who is instead asked to bring peace through negotiation.
~Water: Most like the wind belief system, they're pantheon includes Tenkai, along with Kappa (Aquael), Rekka (Pheonix), and Congo (Leidren). Kappa is their goddess of choice.
~Earth: Somewhere in between the fire nation and wind/water, Tenkai is only mentioned as a passing entity. Kappa (Aquael), Rekka (Phoenix) and Congo (Leidren) are present; with Congo being the god of choice.
~Fire: More like Pheonix' then any of the others, there is no mention of Tenkai, though Kappa(Aquael), Rekka (Phonix) and Congo (Leidren) still appear. Emphasis is on Rekka, who is even called 'Pheonix' in some more recent texts.
~Tenkai:
~Wind Nation: When taking human form, he reportedly has dark hair, and one dark eye. As a result, children born with dark eyes are sent out of the mountains, or even given to families in the Water nation. This is not seen as abandonment, but instead a way of giving the child a second chance. Amongst other members of the Wind Nation, these children have no chance of leading normal lives. It should be noted, that while two dark eyes happen from time to time, the only recorded instances of children with only one dark eye always co-inside with reports of Tenkai making an appearance. It should be noted that in these cases, the child is always sent to Phoenix.
~Water Nation: The water nation does not worship Tenkai as the Wind nation does, though they appreciate his filling their sails. Knowing that he has one light eye, all light-eyed children are sent to the Wind Nation, and any children with one light eye and one dark eye... well... it's never happened in the water nation, as far as anybody knows. Still,if it did, the child would most likely be sent to Phoenix. The Wind Nation tends to set president with these kind of things.
Recent History:
To be Completed
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