Spheres MUX - Rolarii
History/Technology:
Rolarii is a sphere with a rich, eclectic history, fraught with peace and war. In certain periods there were times of plague and famine, but in others health and feasts. It has been ruled in several fashions through several different kinds of nobility. Most prominent are the monarchies with the occasional matriarchy, headed for the most part by the leonine societies, but dictators and fascist leaders have also arisen once or twice in the long, sometimes vaguely-recorded history of the sphere.
The technology of the land is at best adequate, but what cannot be done with paws, simple tools, and levers is helped with the aid of magic. Magic makes stones "lighter", water flow certain ways, and mud to mix with straw more evenly. It is usually in these tasks, menial but necessary, that magic shows its head. Defensive and offensive magic is rarely used; and when used, most often in times of battle. Assassinations and malicious acts are not rarely carried out with such abilities, because any backfire or mistakes made at all could be as potentially dangerous to the caster. Casting the spell itself has no side effects, such as nausea, insanity, or fatigue, however a wise cat knows that all things natural and raw should be given due respect it has earned through the trials of time. Thus, the Rolarii technology is quaint and useful though not fantastic or entertaining, but cats by nature are content to keep it mundane.
The peoples:
Five main species dominate the population. The lions are the most prominent, being the ruling sect or "caste" of the sphere. Their stati range from kings and queens down to dukes and duchesses, knights and ladies. Some, in the stereotypical ways that some nobility tend to represent, enjoy frivolous hunts, great banquets, and astonishingly fancy balls and galas. The domesticats are the complete opposite, living quiet lives in their cities. They hold a certain favor for all of the fine arts, particularly music and painting. Others write and hold plays or create pottery and sculpture. Warriors in this species are uncommon, though not rare. Most often they are simultaneous bards or poets in order to earn a second income in more peaceful areas of the sphere.
The cheetahs are perhaps the richest of all cats, in some ways more so than the lions. Though the citizens of Cizera, the main home of cheetahs, do not employ servants or other things usually associated with wealth, they achieve a great deal of income because of their steel working . They are the only cats in the sphere who have the ability and resources to even create weapons and tools made of such a material. Even the lions covet the stuff, for their own iron weapons pale in comparison to the workmanship and strength of the steel. Tigers, on the other hand, resort to iron weapons most of the time. Their lifestyle is harsher, rougher than the aristocratic and diplomatic ties of other cats. Many tigers, because of their skills in combat and ability to obey commands well, are hired as bodyguards and sometimes mercenaries. Those who are not trained in the arts of fighting sometimes go into agriculture or healing professions instead. Tigers generally live "peasant"-like lives.
Except to themselves, panthers are the most secretive of cats. The other races do not even know where exactly their stronghold is, although strong rumors point to the strange Nasu Jungle underground. They are a dark race with obscure habits; the most magically-gifted of all cats. They study magic, arts, and sciences to extreme extents. Obsessions with any of these topics, among others, are not uncommon. Rarely do they take apprentices of other species, but this is not unheard of, as long as the participant keeps mum about everything he or she hears and sees. The lions are prejudiced against panthers, although not outwardly so as to say such in public. This is because they have reason to believe that panthers smuggle and sell magical, dishonorable weapons on their black markets.
Reproduction:
A courtship between a pair of cats carries on in traditional ways. Sometimes the females have chances to choose their own mates, but just as often it is her parents who "buy" a suitor for her instead. In these instances they visit regularly to get to know each other before their engagements. Once mated, a mother usually bears offspring of two kittens or cubs at a time, sometimes one. When she is not pregnant, she experiences regular heat cycles about once per month (a metaphorical "menstruation"). There is no bleeding however; an egg ovulates during this time, but if not impregnated, disintegrates into the rest of the body when the cycle is through. During this period is when female cats feel the most "attractive" or "sexy", because it makes sense, biologically speaking, that if she is more likely to conceive, she will desire intercourse. Intercourse itself is not necessary for the female to ovulate, unlike non-anthropomorphic cats.
Miscellany:
Fashion on Rolarii mainly consists of clothes vaguely medieval or Elizabethan. Common clothing consists of tunics, breeches, gowns, dresses and skirts, boots, lace up shoes, hats, vests, and anything in between. Some pseudo-medieval clothing is also worn, such as canvas shorts with draping loincloth attachments. Many cats go barefoot, even nobility, for they keep their streets admirably clean and injury is uncommon. There are no horses in Rolarii, but many use zebras for transportation and pulling carts, carriages, and workloads. Most other transportation is carried on foot, alone or in caravans.
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