Dorflog 2 - Zealpainted

Running from the chaos of The Crest of Praising, our dwarves set out to make home in the mountains of The Horn of Man (map).

I want this fortress to have the theme of “a bunch of puritan settlers leaving behind the decadence of their old home”. This new settlement shold be big on going back to the roots and all that. So, I let the game generate random names for the group and for the fort they will build and I stopped at the names that fit the theme. The group is “The Armors of Esteem”, and the fort will be “Zealpainted”. For the symbol of the play, I chose it to be this:

The Cavernous Banners - is an image of The Barricaded, the deity of fortresses, depicted as a female dwarf, mountains and Rakust Swordriddle the dwarf. The Barricaded is striking a triumphant pose. Rakust Swordriddle is praying to The Barricaded. The Barricaded is surrounded by the mountains.

Rakust is the first queen of The Anvil of Carnality, the civilization to which this group belongs (check here). The Barricaded is a dwarven goddess of fortresses. There is a religion centered around her worship with a temple in Plaitochre, the ancient capital of The Anvil of Carnality (see here). I thought I should put this goddess and the first queen on their symbol, that really fits with the theme of going back to the roots. The Barricaded has some worshippers, not exclusively dwarves. I found in the archives (legends mode) that there’s a bunch of human and goblin that have written poems glorifying her. Also it’s a coincidence that these two characters are both female, but maybe I’ll play on that and try to steer the fortress in the direction of having mostly female leadership. I don’t have direct control over the fortress though, so we’ll see. A puritan matriarchal society…we’ll see. I made Tirist, one of two female dwarves out the seven, a proficient tactician and assigned her the role of militia commander.

I made all seven dwarves axemen (and women), I’m anticipating some action since the whole region is full of potential enemies. I don’t control the personalities of the dwarves though so we’ll see if they fit my intended theme. Right off the bat, no one worships The Barricaded, and worse, two of them worship a human god and another two worship dwarven gods from another dwarven civilization. This really doesn’t fit my theme, the whole point was to have this be a group of zealots who believe that the worship of foreign gods is the reason why the nation is in the state it is in right now. At least the remaining three dwarves, including the expedition leader and the doctor, worship traditional Anvil of Carnality gods.

Let’s talk about the doctor Udil Bomrekgutid, he’s kinda interesting. Here are some excerpets from his profile

He is a faithful worshiper of Geshud (a god of metals, crafts, creation and rebirth).

He has a great sense of empathy, a deep well of patience, very good focus and a good memory, but he has a meager ability with social relationships and very little linguistic ability.

He dreams of crafting a mastrework someday.

He despairs of anything positive happening in the future and lives without feelings of hope.

He doesn’t often experience strong cravings or urges, and he is troubled by this because he values such powerful forces in life.

So I made him a doctor and a novice geographer and writer…I forgot that he had “limited linguistic ability”. This should be an interesting character. Maybe I should give him a nickname. Udil The Intellectual.

Surprisingly, everyone in this expidtion has some skills in poetry, public speaking, dancing, singing and playing some musical instrument. A very artistic group.

Ok, enough of that, let’s get to the game.

You have arrived. After a journey from the Mountainhomes into the forbidding wilderness beyond, your harsh trek has finally ended. Your party of seven is to make an outpost for the glory of all of Zuntir Sheced (The Anvil of Carnality).

There are almost no supplies left, but with stout labor comes sustenance. Whether by bolt, plow or hook, provide for our dwarves. You are expecting a supply caravan just before winter entombes you, but it is Spring now. Enough time to delve secure lodgings, ere the alligators get hungry. A new chapter of dwarven history begins here at this place, Kizestlogem “Zealpainted”. Strike the earth!