#empires fern berry | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

blimbo-buddy · 2 months

Text

Bug World No Mercy: Naming Systems in the Bug Kingdoms

Before we proceed: I want to note that with all of the names listed, they can also be translated into other languages and it will still suffice as a name for the bug.

For example: If you translate “Leaf” into Spanish, “Hoja”, it will still be a valid name because of the word it was translated from. So without further ado:

Slugs of the Garth/Timberland

Before the Great Division Of Slug Country, the Slugs all had the same naming system.

Their names typically followed things associated with nature, wild-grown fruits, trees, leaves, plants, etc.

When the Slugs of the Garth formed their empire, they took on names associated with things you might find in a garden:

Fruits: Banana, Watermelon, Berry

Vegetables: Cucumber, Spud, Carrot

Nuts: Pistachio, Pecan

Legumes: Chickpea, String Bean

Flowers: Lily, Daffodil, Aster

When the Slugs of the Timberland stayed in the forest, they retained many of their old names, pre-division. These were names that associated with things found in the forest:

Bodies of water: Creek, Lake

Wild-grown fruits: Gumnut, Aronia

Trees: Pine, Birch

Plants: Fern, Ivy

Words relating to the forest: Woodland, Bosky

There are, however, “ grey area” names that arose after the division of Slug Country, as these names related to things that are present in both gardens and in nature:

Strawberry, Nectar, Apple, and Honey are some examples of these names

However, a slug can actually have a quote attached to them, created for themselves and by themselves.

Slugs of a high rank - Such as royalty, scholars, guards, advisors, etc.- are the only ones who can acquire a quote, according to Slug Law

These names can take a while to create, think of it like a thesis

High rank slugs must spend a year outlining, rough drafting, and finalizing their quote

This process also includes a month spent out in the forest to be alone with their thoughts

Trusted scholars are tasked with teaching upcoming high ranks multiple lessons of how to craft the perfect quote for themselves

The name itself must remind the others of that particular slug.

Example: “For what is the weakling slug, if they had moistened the soil into mulch, with the flesh of their enemies.” aka (Queen) Mulch.

These quote titles originated from the beginning of the Slug Country, thousands and thousands of years ago. The two warring sides of the previously known Slug Country have retained these types of names since then.

Cockroach Kingdom

Due to the Cockroach Kingdom's closeness to the humans and their society, they've taken on names that have to do with general products of human society, such as:

Human-made objects: Fork, Knife, Wire, Trash Can

Food/Drinks: Pizza, Soda, Hamburger

Buildings: Apartment, Prison, Greenhouse

The domestication of rats and pigeons by the Cockroach Kingdom is one that dates back thousands of years, theorized to be even before the Great Division of Slug Country. This led to titles pertaining to “Pest Tamers”, as the bugs call it, to be created:

Cockroaches that handle rats are given the title “Rat Tamer” before their name

On the other hand, cockroaches that handle pigeons are given the title “Pigeon Master” before their name

Hammerheads of the Gastropods (Hammerhead Worms)

Hammerhead Worm names generally follow a "4-part rule", going as such: Sir/Madame Gastro- (Given Birth Name) -Pod.

For shortening reasons, one may call a Hammerhead Slug: Sir/Madame (Given Name), Gastro-(Given Name), or (Given Name)-Pod.

Example: Madame Gastro-Grate-Pod,

Or: Madame Grate, Gastro-Grate, Grate-Pod

In Hammerhead Worm society, it is considered incredibly rude and disrespectful to only refer to one by only their Given Birth Name.

These Given Birth Names will typically be based off of:

The Hammerhead’s physical appearance: Mottle, Splotch, Stripe, Brindle

Physical actions: Scrape, Drag, Grate, Clutch, Trek, Smear

Believed to be the second oldest bug kingdom to perfect “Pest Taming”, Hammerhead Worms classify themselves into small categories, based upon the bird that acts as their steed:

Example: Robin Jockey, Finch Jockey

Moth Citadel

Moths are typically named after:

Organic materials that they eat: Cloth, Shirt, Hair, Blanket, Wool, Silk

Dark-themed words: Dim, Dull, Shade, Bleak

Moths also have a secondary part to their name.

Depending on what stage of the moon they were born under, that will serve as their last name.

For example: Blanket Waxing Crescent.

These last names fall under "Moon Families", although not every moth in the same Moon Family is related to each other.

Cicada Burrow

Since Cicada society puts lots of emphasis on a past life that a cicada has had, their names reflect such beliefs.

Cicada names include their current life's name alongside their previous life's name: (Current life’s name); Once-(Previous life’s name)

Cicada names are typically based around:

Types of trees: Redwood, Oak, Sycamore

Noises: Hum, Buzz, Bang

Words relating to plants/roots: Pith, Root, Stem

Nectar/Juices/Saps: Phloem, Mango Nectar, Apple Juice

An example of this would be: Sycamore; Once-Lily Nectar

Note: If a Cicada has just begun their cycle (Meaning that they are the beginning life of a rebirth cycle) then they will have just a singular name

Beetle Dynasty

Due to the dynasty's heavy emphasis on being defensively strong and armory, their names are ones that sound very heavy/strong/sturdy. This includes

Minerals/Gems: Titanium, Talc, Calcite

Trees/Words relating to trees: Lumber, Branch, Redwood

Words relating to rocks: Sedimentary, Boulder, Cobble

Metals: Cobalt, Copper, Steel

Example: Titanium, Sedimentary, Talc, Lumber

Beetles within the nation may also be granted a special title alongside their name. Usually connecting with a specific achievement

Special Title Example: Tungsten the Artificer, Strata the Batslayer

Worm Empire

Due to their entire empire (and association) being within the dirt, Worms take on names that have something to do with the earth

They can be based off of minerals in the dirt: Sulfur, Dolomite

The types of dirt: Peat, Clay

Shades of brown: Umber, Beige

Tools used to dig up the earth: Trowel, Shovel

Words connected to digging and moving around: Wriggle/Wriggling, Tunnel/Tunneling

The leader of the Worm Empire has the title of "Earth Master"

Worms who forage for food are given the title of "Processor"

Example: "Earth Master Excavator" “Processor Bronze”

Butterfly Pavilion

The butterflies take great pride in their appearance and beauty, so it's only fitting that their names reflect that. Many of their names are based on:

Colors: Blue, Amber, Aqua

Positive adjectives: Handsome, Bright, Clever

Flowers: Dahlia, Zinnia, Allium

Words/sounds associated with birds: Whir, Caw, Vane

Bird species: Robin, Hawk, Condor

When born, the caterpillars have their names prefaced with "Beautiful Sprout" and will keep this title until they form into a cocoon.

Upon emerging, the butterfly leaves behind their Beautiful Sprout title

Higher ranking butterflies can gain the title of Weathervane, alongside the number at which they rank at within the group of 10 Weathervanes

They can “rank up” whenever the Weathervane ahead of them retires, dies, or is overthrown

Example: 4th Weathervane Caw

Fly Cluster

Unlike the other bug kingdoms, flies don’t have an actual kingdom due to their nature to roam around and eat things that many bugs wouldn’t even eat as a last resort. However, despite this vagabond-esque culture and lack of a “proper kingdom”, the flies still have a system of names, typically based off of:

Death-related words: Corpse, Carrion, Muerte

Fungus and fungus genus names: Cordyceps, Lion’s Mane, Mucor

Bacteria and viruses: Shigella, Rabies

Words relating to decomposition: Decay, Rot, Spoil

Spider Province

Though spiders have a wide array of naming systems that pertain to their kingdom, often you’ll find specific patterns in their names. Some names have a bit to do with their proximity with humans. You’ll find spiders named after:

Carnivorous plants: Sundew, Butterwort

Words relating to crafting: Concoct, Forge

Words relating to thread spinning: Intertwine, Weave, Spindle

Quiet noises: Mumble, Whisper, Hum, Hush

Clothes: Shirt, Jacket, Sweatshirt, Shoe(s)

Animals: Wolf, Viper, Python (Thanks to @imagination-confusion for this!

Something to note is that all spiders, no matter their age, will have the title of “Mandrel” due to their natural web-spinning capabilities being compared to the likes of that specific weaving tool.

Example: Spindle the Mandrel

Pillbug Domain

This kingdom of small, armored bugs puts lots of emphasis onto their outer exterior. So it’s only natural that their names reflect such cultural importance in one’s outside shell. Pillbugs will typically be named after:

Outer casing and frameworks: Shell, Chassis, Pod, Hull

Words related to spinning/fast movement: Spin, Bowl, Twist, Sweep

Metals: Aluminum, Steel

Trees/Words relating to trees: Redwood, Oak, Palm, Timber

Nuts: Walnut, Cashew, Pistachio

The Pillbug Domain’s high ranking bugs will sport the title of “Lord Pill” or “Lady Pill”.

Example: Lord Pill Swing

Something that you might notice is that many of the names of the Pillbug Domain are similar to the Beetle Dynasty’s names. This is because at some point, the Pillbug Domain was a part of the Beetle Dynasty, however would later on separate from the kingdom due to the Pillbug Lord disagreeing with many of the other leaders.

Dragonfly Lair

Dragonflies have names that they take great pride in, much like butterflies or cockroaches. Unless you are a close familiar, they demand that you refer to them as their full name or don’t refer to them at all. They carry names based on:

Positive adjectives: Courage, Brave, Gentle, Wise, Wisdom, Lionheart

Quick words: Whip, Snap, Zoom, Swift, Curt

Birds: Robin, Hawk, Falcon

In some rare cases, however, a dragonfly may be named after an old ruler from Europe. This is rarely the case, however. But it’s unknown to the bugs - including the Dragonflies themselves- how exactly knowledge of these European rulers became known.

Dragonfly society consists of a sibling monarchy and 2-4 advisors

The monarch dragonflies are born with the title “Eye-snatcher”

The advisor dragonflies are given the title “Lecture-wing”

Example: Eye-snatcher Ambition, Lecture-wing Sparrow

The Mosquito Flock

A kingdom that has functionally become a society that advocates for the death of the individual through hunting the sweet nectar of human blood. The Mosquito Flock carries many names based on:

Blood diseases: Sickle Cell, Anemia

Blood-related words: Ichor, Hemoglobin, Hematic

Drinking-related words: Sip, Guzzle, Swig

Eating-related words: Feast, Consume, Ingest

Words relating to a mosquito being killed: Slap, Swipe, Thwack

Bodies of water or general water-related words: Lake, Ocean, Puddle

Mosquito society has in place a title that all mosquitos must call each other by: Brother, Sister, and Sibling.

This holds a symbolic meaning, as mosquitoes believe they are all united as a “family”, it does not mean that they are all related to each other.

Firefly Faction

Due to the relatively unknown society of the firefly faction, it proved to be difficult to record their types of names for a while. Until now. Typically, a Firefly will be named after:

Fire and heat related words: Flame, Burn

Light related words: Sunshine, Spark, Day

Shine related words: Glimmer, Flicker

Quick motions: Flutter, Blink, Wink

The Ant Colonies

Ant colonies typically do not name their ants, except for some exceptions.

There are head ants in the colony that serve as managers for the different ant ranks, Lieutenant (Head Soldier), Director (Head Worker), and Head Rationer, the latter of which is responsible for what food comes into the colony.

The Head Ant names consist of a First and Last name that:

sounds violent and/or is linked with organs and bones

Example: Lieutenant Snap Neck, Director Rip Molar, and Head Rationer Flesh Maim

In ant colonies, there are also secondary ranks to the main three:

Soldiers: Watcher, Scout

Workers: Constructor, Brood Guard

Rationers: Food Guard, Chef

To each of these ranks, there is typically a single leading ant (Although more than one isn’t uncommon in bigger colonies). These leading secondary ants share the same last name as the head ant of their main rank, and will have their name prefaced with “Lead”:

For example, a Leading Constructor ant who works under an ant named “Director Rip Molar” will be named: Lead Constructor Stab Molar

Meanwhile, the rest of the ants do not have any names given to them, they are typically referred to as their rank, whether they’re Soldiers, Workers, Rationers, or any of the secondary ranks.

Regular ants can however be referred to and refer to each other as their designated rank (Food Guard, Watcher, etc.)

Drones are typically only referred to as Drones, but ants from the same colony and queen as a drone ant will sometimes refer to him as “Drone Brother”

The Queen Ant will have a violent sounding name, although not one that is formatted like the Head or Leading Ant's

The Queen's name will be prefaced by "Mother" and the name itself may be based off of:

Weapons: Sword, Sling, Crossbow

Torture methods: Keelhauling, Giridrion

Causes of death: Drown, Burn, Blunt Force

Violent words: Maim, Snap, Rip, Gnash

Organs/Bones: Tibia, Tooth, Stomach

An example of this is: "Queen Mother Macerate II" or “Queen Mother Gnash”

The Bees of the Hive

Though hundreds of beehives reside close to each other, all of differing histories, they all generally share the same types of names. Much like the Ant Colonies, Bee Hives have three main ranks: Lieutenant (Head Soldier), Director (Head Worker), and Head Rationer. Alongside that, they have secondary ranks:

Soldiers: Watcher

Workers: Constructor, Brood Guard, Greenskeeper

Rationers: Food Guard, Chef

However, unlike the Ant Colonies, Head/Lead bees don’t have first and last names, only first names. Their names will be based around:

Flowers: Wisteria, Oleander

Jams/preserves: Strawberry Jam, Apricot Preserves

Herbs/Teas: Chamomile, Earl Grey, Mint

Fruits: Apricot, Avocado

Descriptions of their personality: Wonderful, Humble

Regular bees are not actually properly named, instead, they are categorized by their hive's abbreviated name, their rank, and a designated number.

So for example, a drone bee from the Southern Creek Bound hive would be named: SCB-Drone-1033.

The Queen of the hive is given a proper name once she rises to the rank and successfully destroys her competitors. Like the Head and Leading bees, Queens can be named after:

Flowers

Jams/preserves

Herbs/Teas

Fruits

Descriptions of their personality

The queen bee's name is formatted as, "Queen (Name) of the (Hive name abbreviation(if needed)) Dynasty".

A queen's name may be something like: Queen Mango Jam of the SC Dynasty

The Wasp Swarms

Wasps share some of the same name aspects as both the bees and ants. Wasps have three main ranks like the bees and the ants: Workers, Soldiers, and Rationers.

And like with the bee and ant kingdoms, there are lead wasps for each main rank: Lieutenant (Head Soldier), Director (Head Worker), and Head Rationer.

With those ranks comes secondary ranks:

Soldiers: Watcher

Workers: Constructor, Brood Guard, Greenskeeper

Rationers: Food Guard, Chef

Just like ants and bees, leading secondary ranking wasps will have the title of Lead prefacing their names. Like bee society, wasps don’t have both first and last names, only a first name. These names will be based off of:

Quick actions: Dart, Strike, Jab

Fruits: Pear, Plum

Weapons: Machete, Hammer

Example: Lead Brood Guard Jab, Lieutenant Razor

The rest of the wasps don't have proper names: They are named after the sectors that they are hatched in and what rank they fill

Alongside that, wasps will have the name of the queen they were born under as part of their identification

For example: Battle Queen (Name), Sector F Soldier

Regular wasps can, however, be referred to as/refer to others as “(Sector) (Rank) Sister” or simply just “Sister”. While drones will be referred to as “(Sector) (Rank) Drone” or simply just “Drone”

Example: Sector A Sister, Sector E Drone

Just like the Head and Lead wasps, the Queen Wasp(s) will have names based off of:

Quick actions

Fruits

Weapons

Their name will also be prefaced by "Battle"

Example: Battle Queen Prickly Pear III, Battle Queen Mangosteen

#blimbo rambles #bug world no mercy #it's here [passes on]#any questions about any of the names are welcomed I'd be happy to explain some details a bit more

40 notes · View notes

sm0lcatfish · 6 months

Text

=+=

ROUND 1

VIOLET VS AEOR

COD COUNCIL VS SIR STRAWBERRY

EXOR VS LOST EMPIRE HETS

MOTHER WOLF VS THE GENERAL

FERN AND ROSE BERRY VS GANDALF

LORD OF MARS VS BINGO

BUBBLES VS ALINAR

SIR CARLOS VS BUTTER

COHNAL VS THE GOLDEN GOOSE

JEREMY VS ENDERLOT

BUMBLE BUTT VS MUFFIN

TOD VS MAGICAL MIKE

STEPHANIE VS LADY MARCELINE

LORD OF SATURN VS BULLDOZER

BUTTIE VS WORST SPY EVER WOLVES

WOODPECKER VS STAG

=+=

ROUND 2

VIOLET VS SIR STRAWBERRY

LOST EMPIRE HETS VS MOTHER WOLF

GANDALF VS BINGO

BUBBLES VS SIR CARLOS

THE GOLDEN GOOSE VS ENDERLOTL

BUMBLE MUFFIN VS TOD

STEPHANIE VS LORD OF SATURN

WORST SPY EVER WOLVES VS STAG

=+=

ROUND 3

VIOLET VS MOTHER WOLF

BINGDALF VS BUBBLES

THE GOLDEN GOOSE VS BUMBLE MUFFIN

LORD OF SATURN VS WORST SPY EVER WOLVES

=+=

ROUND 4

MOTHER WOLF VS BUBBLES

BUMBLE MUFFIN VS SATURN AND THE SPIES

=+=

FINALE

BUBBLES VS SATURN AND THE SPIES

=+=

feel free to submit propaganda!

#CAT’S S1 NPC BATTLE

22 notes · View notes

lunarsands · 1 year

Text

ALSMP Fanfic: Wherever These Flowers May Grow Ch 3

Characters: goddess!PearlescentMoon, actual!angel!Sausage, starborne!Scott; reintroducing: floran!Scott and introducing: floran!Sausage, with special guest Empires SMP S2 Joel and a cameo by Origins SMP CaptainSparklez

Relationships: MythicalSausage/Scott Smajor

Tags: Canon Divergent, scosage, fluff

Warnings: Character Death (temporary as usual with this series), a tiny bit of angst

(Sequel to Echoing Through To You, When The Skies Cry, Until The Blood Moon Descends, and Then We’ll Rewrite the Stars)

(Also available on Ao3!)

Summary: Pearl sends Sausage and Scott on a mission to help out on another mortal world different from their old one. Scott finds himself returned to an old set of powers; Sausage gets new ones which, as it turns out, he has some trouble controlling. It’s not exactly a honeymoon trip, but they do meet a nice new godling while there.

[ Chapter One ] [ Chapter Two ]

Chapter Three

As with his effect on everything else, Sausage could get six trees to grow at once. In no time at all they had a small forest on the rise, filling the one valley and taking purchase in available soil along the higher elevations before spilling over into the next valley. It was there that they found a cave that had partially collapsed. Old runes were carved into the walls but since they were unable to read any of it, they left everything alone. Scott decided that sleeping up in one of the new trees would be better than using the cave – lest they wake up with the entrance blocked off by the taiga ferns that had sprung up with the trees. They went with a nest of branches since there weren’t any vines available for a hammock this time.

They were a little slow to wake up the next morning due to the cold but got to work after a bit of lounging in the sun. Sausage converted more of the corrupted soil then moved on to increasing the grass on the basalt patches while Scott went around calling up flowers and some sweet berry bushes to coax animals back to the area. He also grew some trees close to the central corruption area in preparation for that night.

When it came around to sunset, they stood outside the temporary tent formed out of roots and surveyed their work. Sausage was pleased. “It looks like a completely different place already! I think we can get this last part taken care of tomorrow and then find someplace new. Um, someplace warmer would be great, too. I’m not getting Heaven’s Reach vibes here, anyway.”

Scott chuckled. “Yeah, I have to agree with that. At least Joel hasn’t been by to dump snow on us.”

“Oh, don’t let him hear you say that! He might think it would be helpful, or something.”

They soon cozied up under a moss blanket after sealing the fourth side of the ad hoc tent to keep out a little more of the cold, snuggled close for extra warmth. Yet, partway through the night, Scott was jarred awake by a shriek from the land. He threw off the blanket and looked around in alarm. Sausage was still fast asleep. Was he unable to hear the plants screaming?

Either way, Scott felt driven to find out. He lowered one side of the tent to crawl out. He gasped loudly and scrambled to his feet for a better look. Pillars of the corrupted soil encircled the tent, curving inward almost like claws. The cold was gone, replaced by the heat of fresh lava flows. He stared around, horrified to see all of their work undone.

Everything around him was screaming in the way of nature being destroyed by an unnatural source. This wasn’t a normal eruption. Someone had done this. But he… didn’t see or hear anyone else. There was the sense of a presence, but… no one was there.

Then a pulse of pale blue energy rippled out from the center, exactly where the tent was. It passed through Scott and he could tell it wasn’t Sausage’s energy. It was cold, though. As it continued outward, the earth became quiet.

This was the magic that had temporarily paused time.

Scott realized he was having some kind of vision. He plucked at one of the flowers in his hair to check; it hurt, so he was awake right now. He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to gain from this knowledge, but felt like he should resign himself to accepting they would have to fix the whole place again.

However, as the magic’s shockwave got further away, it faded out, and then the pillars and lava faded away, too, leaving him with the healed land – and the sight of the corrupted soil previously left from the night before now changing as the blue-green replacement made its way toward the tent.

Scott felt relieved that the plan for Sausage’s power was working as intended. He pushed the vision out of his mind for the moment and returned to sleep.

When he next awoke, he felt like he was being jostled around. Struggling to find full awareness after his disrupted sleep, he at least figured out that he was being carried in Sausage’s arms. The other floran looked slightly distressed. “Saus-? What-?”

“Sorry, things got weird back there.”

“Did you… have the vision, too?”

“What vision? No, um, there’s just…” Sausage stopped and put him down onto his feet, holding onto him to help him remain upright while Scott shook off the vestiges of sleep. “Well, look.” He pointed back toward the tent.

From between the new stand of trees Sausage had retreated to, Scott could see several deer, including a stag with a rather intimidating set of antlers. Most of them were nibbling at the ground. The stag was staring directly at the two florans.

Sausage ducked his head and hissed, “I thought they might try to eat us! That stag was sniffing at you but I got us past him. Why was the tent open? You were out cold even though the sun was up!”

“I think I… had a dream. I must have been sleepwalking, and subconsciously lowered it.”

“I’m pretty sure you’ve never sleepwalked before. I watched over you for an entire winter and you never once woke up during the night. Honestly that was kind of worrying!”

Scott patted his arm. “Well, something weird happened to me last night. But, um, I don’t think we need to worry about them eating us.”

“But we’re part plant! We probably smell tasty!”

“Sausage.”

“What? Wouldn’t they be scared of us, then? Because we’re people, and deer are skittish.”

“Or, they understand we’re a mix of both.” Scott stepped forward, keeping eye contact with the stag. It watched him as he slowly approached until he was close enough to hold a hand up toward it. It lowered its head and sniffed his fingers, then briefly nuzzled his hand. When it raised its head again, turning away, the sunlight glinted off its antlers as if they were gilded with gold.

The illusion faded as it walked away. The two florans watched the herd forage around until they moved away into the next valley.

“Huh,” Sausage marveled quietly. Scott meandered off, collecting pinecones. “So, more trees on the agenda this morning?”

“Might as well extend the forest to give them a bigger territory,” Scott replied with a soft smile.

~*~

“Oh, so now they’re befriending the wildlife?” Adelfa rolled their eyes. Their expression seemed to become even more disgruntled as a series of trees began to pop up far below the clouds.

“Why not?” Joel asked. “It goes hand in hand with plants, right?”

“They shouldn’t get too familiar with anything. It’s not like they’ll be sticking around.”

“I don’t see how that hurts anything. They seem to be doing a pretty good job so far.”

“Well, then take some notes. Go dump a blizzard on them.”

“Why? I don’t think they’re built for the cold, and they can’t exactly set up a fire to keep warm or they’ll turn themselves into kindling.”

“Because I said to.”

Joel squatted and poked a hand through the cloud. He pretended to be feeling around for something. “Hmm, nope, sorry. Wrong atmospheric conditions.”

Adelfa’s face reddened. “How dare you—”

“Hey, you’re the one who decided we wouldn’t bother with the weather anymore. So now I call the shots.” He grinned, proud of himself for standing up to them.

Adelfa then gave him an unamused look. They separated off their portion of the cloud; Joel didn’t bother to watch them leave. He set off a light snow flurry, perhaps in the hopes it would signal the floran pair to move along before Adelfa chose a different way to antagonize them.

~*~

Sausage shivered as something icy landed in the fronds at the top of his vest. He turned, then looked up. “Snow? Oh, no. That’s not good.” He jogged over to where Scott was putting the finishing touches on a patch of light blue flowers. “Hey, umm… Can snow trigger winter mode for florans? I don’t know if this is Joel or is just happening. We probably can’t do anything about it either way, so… What should we do? Hole up somewhere in case we fall asleep, or go somewhere warmer?”

“I’m not feeling a seasonal change, so it’s probably normal mountain weather. I’d say we’re done here, anyway. Let’s head down. I’m sure it will turn into rain on the way.” Scott looked out over the area. Even the blue-green sections were nearly covered up by regular grass now, and the snow accumulation would help, too. He smiled and nodded.

They had to do some climbing here and there on the way down, but with Sausage purposely leaving a trail of greenery it was possible future travelers would find an easier path. Once they were on flatter ground, they found more remnants of the colorful road going the opposite direction away from the mountains. They checked on areas to either side of it, and camped out in a tree along the way, but as the clearly marked part of the road gave way to mere stepping stones in the brush, they began to see evidence of flower fields.

The further they walked, the greater a wistful feeling settled over both of them. There were traces of another volcanic eruption, but here nature had done the work by itself to regrow over it. Even more flowers sprang up with each step Sausage took. He glanced back at one point, then grinned at Scott and took off running. Blossoms of all types popped up as he went. Scott gave a grin of his own and ran after him, consciously asking flowers to grow.

The flowers answered in plenty.

They were laughing by the time they crested a hill, although both stopped when they saw what stood in the middle of the fields: a gigantic, single-stem white lily. Scott’s smile softened. “Well, what does that remind you of? Bit of a sight for sore eyes.”

“See, that’s what I miss about our old home, too! I hope the lilium praegandis is doing all right without us.”

“I’m sure it’s doing fine. …Hopefully it isn’t too lonely, though.”

They made their way over to the lily, noticing how there were fewer regular-sized flowers around it. Actually, they now saw small barren spots, too. Sausage walked over to one of them in case it was another corrupted soil situation. He halted as he started to lower his foot, then raised it, then placed it down completely. “Huh. Something feels… weird.”

“Bad weird or strange weird?”

“Umm… You tell me. What does it feel like to you?”

Scott went over to a different barren spot. He knelt to put his palm down on it, bracing himself for the weirdness Sausage might be talking about. His face brightened. “Sausage, that’s not weird – that’s something trying to talk to us.” He kept his hand pressed to the ground while turning to look around. “I think it’s coming from…” His gaze landed on the giant lily. “…I guess that should have been obvious.”

He walked up to the lily and gently placed both hands against the stem. He drew a sharp breath as his sight blurred. The landscape changed as it came back into focus, revealing that the barren spots were where other, colorful giant flowers used to be. There had been thick clusters of regular flowers on the ground surrounding them all.

His view blurred again, then resolved into the same flowers but now all of them were in shades of gray, including the stalks of the giant ones. Fire crisscrossed the land, burning everything except the giant lily. He saw the flames die down, then could feel the energy flowing out of the lily into the land where it repopulated the regular flowers, but it couldn’t fix where the other giant ones had been.

“Scott? Um… Hello??”

Scott blinked. The vision faded out – and Sausage’s concerned face faded in. “Sorry. Apparently, this world has really zeroed in on the fact I’ve been a floran before and is sharing the land’s memory of the past with me. That’s what happened up in the mountains.” He pointed to the nearest bare patch. “There used to be more giant flowers here, but something drained the spirit out of them, and there was also a fire. This lily is extremely magical, and fixed up what we see now. But…” He put his hand back on the stem. “It needs help to fix the rest.”

“Regrowing giant flowers sounds like something right up my alley.” Sausage turned to begin addressing the problem, but Scott grabbed him by the wrist and held his hand while keeping his other palm against the lily’s stalk.

“Floran field lesson. Can you hear that? Or… feel it, through me?”

“Uh, not really? What am I listening for?”

Scott now pressed Sausage’s hand against the stalk. “Try listening with your other senses. Try to feel the energy without physically acting on it. Or maybe not that last part. I forgot for a second who I was talking to.” Scott made an amused face.

Sausage looked puzzled for a moment – attempting the listening part and not acknowledging the extra comment. Then he held out his other hand and made a grab and pulling motion away from the lily. He uncurled his fingers afterward and stared down at his palm. “Is it… something about tapping into its magic, not ours?”

“Good, you’ve got the gist of it. It wants us to redistribute the magic that grew it.”

“But doing that… it doesn’t feel like there’s enough magic in there to grow other giant flowers!”

“We’re probably only supposed to use it so regular ones grow in these spots. I think the time of giant flowers might be over.”

Sausage gently petted the lily’s stem. “I was hoping we could name you in honor of our lilium, but I guess not…”

Scott patted Sausage’s arm, then the two got to work, drawing out power from the lily and directing it to the barren spots. As clusters of small flowers began to grow, the color slowly drained out of the lily.

~*~

Joel could sense Adelfa’s rage and zipped around the sky if only to find them and tell them to stop ruining his day by projecting emotion in such amounts that he felt it, too – which might have contributed to his anger about it, come to think of it. He didn’t want to feel what they felt. He shouldn’t be feeling what they felt.

He found them stomping back and forth on a cloud over a flower field. Below were two figures – oh. He should have guessed. “What is it now?” he demanded before merging his cloud with theirs.

“They’ve gone too far! They’re supposed to be repairing things, not destroying things!” Adelfa pointed sharply.

Joel opened a hole in the clouds to have a peek. “I only see flowers,” he said flatly.

“That one, you buffoon! That was a primal nature power source! How dare they!”

Now he noticed the single giant flower, and memory stirred. “Oh, that thing. I don’t see why you’re mad about it? We couldn’t get it to heal that land, but maybe it decided to cooperate with them. Maybe they were less pushy than we were.”

“No. Nothing in nature defies me! It was meant to remain as it was!” Adelfa swiped a hand through the air, closing the hole. “Thunderstorm, now! I want some precision lightning strikes to remind them that they don’t ultimately have power here!”

“Hmm, I don’t know. All those nice, new flowers need sunlight to grow stronger. It defeats the purpose if I block off the plants from feeding so soon after they came back.”

“Joel!”

He gave an innocent smile. “Oops, wait, I just remembered I need to go check on that rainstorm over the archipelago! You still want a couple of islands left there, right? Bye!” He quickly split off his own cloud again and hurried away.

It had been so tempting to pull almost the entire cloud out from under Adelfa. All the gods traveled by cloud as a convenience, but that was all they could do with them. He now controlled the skies, and it was time for Adelfa to acquiesce to that.

~*~

Scott and Sausage decided against mourning the giant lily as the last of its color disappeared. It had sacrificed itself to finish healing its lands, which was a dedication they were very familiar with. Once again, they slept the night through up in a tree, and the next morning was spent running around the fields sprouting more flowers. It was a pleasant respite after the extent of work needed in the previous places. For Sausage, it wasn’t the same freedom as flying, but it was exhilarating in its own way. This was fun, where the other stuff had been work. He didn’t mind that of course, but it was nice having something to truly share with Scott again, which they hadn’t quite had since the time when he had figured out a way to fly as a thunderborn and Scott had been an angel.

Flowers – gardens – that was something they had always had together. These fields were a wonderful reminder of that.

Grinning mischievously, Sausage ran toward where Scott was arranging tall peonies and tackled him with a hug, lifting him up to spin him around. He lost his balance, and they both fell over into some tall grass, but they laughed. A quick kiss and a playful tussle later ended up sending them rolling down a hill, but they laughed again as they tumbled out into another patch of tall grass.

Scott was first to his feet and helped Sausage up, then they took stock of this new area. It was more fields, less hilly than the previous area, but lacked all trace of flowers. It had the appearance of purposely flattened ground, albeit completely overgrown.

As they took a better look around, Sausage’s expression went from lingering amusement to vaguely troubled. There were no structures that were immediately visible, but something felt disquiet to him. He pushed through the waist-high grass and sought a source for the feeling.

Scott noticed his sudden distress. “Are you okay? Did you get a vision this time?”

“No, something just feels… off about this place.” Sausage continued to look around. Nothing was standing out to him, but the unease wouldn’t go away. He retreated back toward the hill. “Maybe – uh – maybe you can check this one out, and I’ll, um, go around it to find the next place that needs us to work on it.”

“Okay,” Scott agreed, a little confused. He didn’t feel anything odd at the moment, but didn’t press Sausage for more. He waded into the overgrown grass to hunt around for any damage. He didn’t see any traces of volcanic activity this time, so he waited for a vision to give him clues.

When it did kick in, the scene took his breath away. A giant beanstalk was winding its way into the sky, with small man-made structures perched along it. Nearby was a modest farmhouse and a few outbuildings; it instantly reminded him of Pearl’s realm. His sight blurred, then refocused… and everything was on fire. He then noticed two figures flying around the beanstalk. They seemed to enter one of the structures. A minute later only one of them flew away.

Scott tried to make out some details about the person. However, he didn’t really get a chance before an ominous creak drew his attention back to the beanstalk. It swayed and began to topple toward the farmhouse. He instinctively dived out of the way, but the vision faded before the beanstalk landed. He came up coughing out dirt from his slide across the dry ground. He wondered if the intensity of the land’s memory was what had made Sausage nervous.

“Are you okay?” he heard Sausage call.

“Yeah! Just another vision!” Scott dusted himself off. He assumed they weren’t meant to grow a new beanstalk, but this place might need something to chase away that shadow of the past.

Meanwhile, Sausage walked a very deliberate route around what might as well have been an invisible bubble until he was nearly opposite the hill he and Scott had rolled down. He located the remains of a stone wall and sat upon it, drawing up his legs to prevent too much power from leaking into the ground, although the area was already grown over enough that he doubted he could add more to it. He hugged his knees and vacantly watched as Scott wandered around several meters away.

“Oi,” came Joel’s voice from somewhere above to his left. “Getting lazy, now? Why are you letting him do all the work?”

Sausage glanced over as the godling drifted down on a cloud; it dissipated and his feet touched the earth for once. The former seraph still had to look up at him. “Nah – I decided to have a rest! I can’t take all the glory!”

“Aren’t angels supposed to be all about glory?” Joel asked with a slightly sarcastic tone. He sat down and folded his legs, resting his wrists over his knees. He was at about eye level now with the other up on the wall.

“Well, there’s more to me than just being an angel! I have hobbies and other things I do! Or well, I had more when we were in our previous mortal world. I’m my god’s official architect and one of her seraphs. Actually, I think I’m the only one…” Sausage mulled that over for half a second. “I don’t think I’ve even seen any others before! Maybe on missions out of her realm, but this is the first time I’ve been out in a while, so maybe I might be forgetting. This is more like a vacation, really, even if it is technically work. Between you and me, I’d still kind of prefer being able to fly.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s the best part of being a powerful godly figure, isn’t it?”

“Oh, I’m not godly, myself.”

“But aren’t seraphs like an extension of their god? You have some authority, right? An architect is pretty important, too, as I understand it. I don’t have one of my own yet, we only made me about two weeks ago, so I… well, don’t even have many followers yet. Mortals are still worshipping us in general.”

Sausage cast a questioning look at him, one eyebrow quirked. “Seriously, why do you keep saying ‘we’ sometimes? Is it a royal ‘we’ thing that gods do in this world? I’m not judging if it is, I’ve just never heard a god talk like that before.”

Joel lowered his gaze, eyes sliding to the side. He absently rubbed his knees. “Up until two weeks ago I was part of the nature deity. They separated the part of their essence that controls the weather to make me. Couldn’t be bothered with keeping track of the weather, they said. I’m still… adjusting to having my own identity.” He then muttered, “Not sure why I’m telling you this. You’re one step up from a mortal, how could you relate?”

“I can, though,” Sausage said, having heard him perfectly fine. “I’m pretty much bound to duty. Comes with being a seraph. If PearlescentMoon calls, I have to answer. When I first revived as a seraph, she sent signs for me to come back to the celestial realm but I had no clue what was going on because I forgot who I used to be, so she literally dragged me back there through a portal! And then I had to fly back and forth all over the place doing tasks, and I didn’t really have a choice! But I was preoccupied with what I left behind, so I resented it for a while, but after things worked themselves out, I accepted that it’s what I was meant to be doing.”

“What you left behind, where? What do you mean, revived as? Don’t angels, like… ascend the ranks, or something?”

“The last world we were in had this crazy system of changing people into something different any time they died! I arrived there as a guardian angel, and became a whole bunch of different things, but then I reached the point of fulfilling my duty there, so then I was promoted to seraph rank, and then I was meant to go home.” Without looking, Sausage nodded meaningfully to indicate the field where Scott was. He smiled softly.

“Oh, so you had to leave him behind, I take it. If you were there because you were an angel, what does that make him?”

Sausage scratched his beard in thought, then shrugged. “Y’know, I never thought to ask. I didn’t even find out I was probably called there in the first place to be his guardian angel until after I was back in the celestial realm, looking in on him when I could get a chance. For all the power I had, I couldn’t go back. I had to follow my new duties.”

“Hm.” Joel abruptly stood. “Well, that’s enough chitchat, I think. Speaking of jobs to do, I should go sprinkle some more rain around for you fellas. Don’t you go sitting around here for too long – there’s much more of the world for you to see before you go home again.”

“Ahm—” The question Sausage was about to ask went unspoken as a cloud formed under Joel’s feet, lifting him up into the sky. Sausage tilted his head back to watch him leave. “Aw, come on now! He is rubbing it in, I just know it!” He uttered an exasperated sigh, then lowered his gaze to the field – then he gave a start when he saw what Scott had been up to while he had been obliviously talking to Joel.

The whole place was covered in sunflowers now.

Scott was on his way over. Sausage hopped off the wall, but still couldn’t bring himself to cross the invisible border. “S-Sunflowers?” he questioned. He was still unsure why everything here was making him queasy.

“Yeah… it’s the only flower that will grow here.” Scott shrugged. “I tried for more variety to brighten up the area, but if this is what the land wants, then so be it. Looks a little prettier, at least.”

“Um. Yeah. Yeah, it does look better.”

“What were you and Joel talking about?”

“Oh, you noticed that? I think we were commiserating, actually. Seraph stuff, newborn god stuff—”

“Newborn god?”

“Yeah – apparently, he was part of the main nature god up until… what did he say… two weeks ago? So, like, right before we got here! Something about wanting to put someone else in charge of the weather. I guess gods can just do that! Separate out parts of themselves into someone new!”

“So, like… splitting off a part of their soul?” Scott leaned into Sausage with a slight nudge of his shoulder, eyes turned upward as he tried to drop a poignant hint.

“Hmm, nah, I think it’s just a bit of their power, and then a new soul gets created by default. It would have to be a very powerful and very specific type of god who could make like a copy of their soul into another person!”

Scott chuckled, not bothering to clarify what he meant to the former wither.

[ Chapter Four ]

#alsmp #alsmp fanfic #alsmpshipping #scosage #mythicalsausage #scott smajor #dangthatsalongname #joel smallishbeans #floran!scott #floran!sausage #empires s2 joel #soul liminality 2 #lunar yarns

8 notes · View notes

sleepsart · 2 years

Text

Vague story but in drawings

[ ID 1: A sketch of a wolf in profile. It is crouching low to the ground protectively. It is holding a cloth bag in it's mouth. Hair is sticking out of the bag, implying that there's a baby in it. The wolf has no iris or pupil. End ID 1 ]

[ ID 2: A sketch of an old man holding a baby. The old man is Fern Berry, and he is looking down at the baby in his arms with a concerned expression. He is wearing a shirt with rolled up sleeves and suspenders, as well as a bandanna over his head. He has a long beard and long hair. End ID 2 ]

[ ID 3: A profile sketch of Rose Berry and Shrub. Rose is an old woman with two braids and a mushroom cap hat. She is smiling and tossing Shrub in the air. Shrub is cheering. End ID 3 ]

[ ID 4: A sketch of a younger Shrub Berry. She has her arms out and her mouth is open. She has a small mushroom cap hat. End ID 4 ]

#id #napsart #shrub berry #fern berry #rose berry #shubble fanart #shubbleyt #esmp #empires smp #empires smp fanart #esmp fanart #mcyt

71 notes · View notes

capriciouswriter207 · 2 years

Text

Caesar House: Rose’s Garden

At the next intersection stood Rose’s Garden, the flower shop that Pearl had brought him to after this slight scenic detour. The sign that hung from the building was a simple wooden rectangle and it depicted two beautifully painted roses that crossed each other like daggers. Underneath these roses, in fancy handwriting stood the shop’s name, the stems wrapping around certain letters. The inside wasn’t all that inspiring, either – it was a generic small town flower shop, the interior was nice and Sausage kind of liked the lay-out.

Behind the counter stood a short plump middle-aged man in overalls with the widest grin Sausage had ever seen, and he greeted Pearl and almost flustered Sausage by asking her who the boyfriend was. She stayed calm and collected and when she mentioned the Caesar House, the man – whom Pearl called Fern – asked Sausage if Ms. Jameson, the housekeeper, was treating him right. The conversation quickly turned to business, and Fern called in an employee whom he believed Sausage would like.

A young man named Richard came through the door and Sausage almost did a double take. If he’d been just a little shorter, his hair more ginger, his nose a little more straight, Sausage might have mistaken him for fWhip from a distance. Richard saw the shock on Sausage’s face and immediately assumed he lived at the Caesar House, clarifying almost immediately that he’s a cousin of fWhip and Gem and would rather be called Rick. Only Fern called him Richard, anyway.

Sausage wondered what he was doing here, if he’d lived in the house previously. He wasn’t sure what exactly happened, how he ended up here and what was even going on if Gem and fWhip lived at the House and not with their adult cousin.

The two started to tell the story. Fern spoke more vigorously than Rick, who was only going along with this and spoke up about things he didn’t want to be elaborated, just letting Fern ramble about his side of things.

Carbon monoxide poisoning killed Rick’s entire family; he still had enough strength to carry his cousins out of the building, but everyone else died. He was separated from the twins and somehow ended up with Fern, who’d been fostering kids for a while, ever since his wife died in a tragic accident. He and Rick got along well and eventually, he adopted the teenager. Since Rick didn’t want to lose his last name, they just added ‘Berry’ to the end. Which meant his full name now was Richard Jude Mallory Berry.

Sausage decided to focus on the fact that it meant that there was a chance that Gem and fWhip’s last name was Mallory, which somehow didn’t sound right.

Fern was the one who made the call to move away from New York. He’d been working in the medical field and Rick wasn’t too happy either, so this could be the new start for both them while Fern pursued his dream of owning a flower shop and hopefully support Rick with his dreams, too. apparently, Gem and fWhip came in during their second week in town for a birthday present for Katherine. The reunion was amazing.

Sausage couldn’t help but think it was not coincidental. Rick, strangely enough, agreed with him. whatever happens, happens. Whatever happens was always meant to happen. Fate brought him to the same town where his siblings were living. Fate brought Sausage to the shop to buy a plant and the conversation turned strictly business.

About ten minutes later, Sausage walked out of the shop with Pearl and a newly acquired small, three-inch tall cactus. They walked all the way back to the Caesar House, after which Pearl returned home. Sausage told her they maybe could go out for another walk at another time.

#empires smp #caesar house au #mythicalsausage #pearlescentmoon #fern berry #rick of the grimlands #richard mallory #and he has a plant now #it's a good one #easy to maintain #just the way he liked it #and the introduction of two more side characters #populating the world #i just love my boy rick

9 notes · View notes

gardenergulfie · 3 years

Text

Ok watching the Shrub lore stream because i like knowing lore things before the videos drop so here’s my thoughts all written down

Oh no does Shrub think she’s going crazy? Ya know cause of the nether mishap with fWhip and also she said hearing stuff? Thats not good at all

There’s stuff in the next empires episode that Shelby can’t tell us. She said “there was an incident” i am Anxious

Shelby offhandedly mentioning that the forest wolves can “Come and ge between planes” thats interesting. Would explain Bubble’s whole deal with following Sausage to this world from his Hardcore world and also Spirit Realm shit.

So she’s studying the mushrooms and the nether to figure out What The Fuck Is Up With That. She’s making a corrupted forest area??? Hmmmm Corrupted as in Xornoth shit or Corrupted as in the Crimson Mushrooms. Or both???

SHRUB IS AN ONLY CHILD CONFIRMED!!! I mean we all (mostly) assumed so but its good to know! Also her parents have names now! Her mom is Rose and her dad is Fern! Shrub’s last name is a mystery (but there’s a good chance it will be Berry)

PSPSPSP SHELBY YOU TOTALLY WANNA CONTINUE TEH STORY OF SHRUB IN A SINGLEPLAYER WORLD IN THE TIME BETWEEN EMPIRES S1 AND THE POTENTIAL S2

Ok gnome phrases instead of homeland its gnomeland and gnomes say “Losing their acorns” instead of “Losing their marbles”

ok i think thats everything the rest was mostly building and terraforming but i has to skimm the vod so if there’s important stuff i missed plz tell me!

#mcyt #empires smp #shubble #every time Shelby makes more gnome lore i owe her more and more of my life #ty for having cannical parent names i really appreciate it

41 notes · View notes

violetpunk666 · 3 years

Text

Shubble stream liveblogging part 1 (cause I gotta go to bed but I’m only half way through lol):

New sweater cute <3

LMAO mug’s epic too

Lol upsidown heart necklace also cute

Shrub woken up in the middle of the night cause she was hearing strange voices… weird dreams… 👀

Ngl those voices sound like what sausage heard when he stopped by her place in his episode-

“Oh, something else has happened earlier (that you’ll see in the YouTube video) that I won’t tell you about on stream, but- umm… there is some other stuff going on too, so your gonna wanna make sure you watch the next empires episode, because I… umm… there’s been an incident *nervous giggling* to say the least! There’s been an incident! Ummm… that’s it, that’s all I’ll tell you”

*very intrigued* 👀

““Did I do something bad…?” Not on purpose!”

Sruuuubb- She totally broke the Xornoth crystal and let him out didn’t she?

Or consumed it somehow? Cause I remember people saying that the crystal was edible??? For some reason? Idk I was very confused. but out of all the empires rulers, shrub is the most likely to put something in her mouth -and then accidentally consume- something she isn’t meant to imo

I don’t think it’s gonna be the latter but it’s a possibility? I guess? unless they were joking?

Awww shrub sitting on the edge of some planter boxes, eating carrots and then after a moment offering one to the pig that came up to her 🥰

oop- well, you cant blame him for trying asdfghjkl

Shrub confirmed my gut feeling that e!Scott didn’t tell anyone that he was wearing his brother’s crystal as a necklace-

Shrub blurting out “IT’S FOR YOUR OWN GOOD!” when she’s trying to pretend like she doesn’t know what Scott is talking about lol

LMAO Shelby stole Scott’s sunglasses

LMAO, still tryin!

Oh- looks like the ice in the fairy circle did end up actually melting-

That or shrub found it earlier, before the stream, cleaned it up, and we’ll see it in her next empires video

canonically it’s not uncommon for a gnome to have a New York accent and give off big mobster vibes apparently, and shrub’s father was one of said gnomes

Homeland = Gnomeland

Shrub Berry?? Possibly??

Mom’s name is Rose, Dad’s Fern

Dad looks like the dad in cloudy with a chance of meatballs (‘cept probably shorter)

Shrub is either having an anxiety spike rn, or the crystal is doing something weird to her… possibly both…

Jeez sausage, didn’t even bother to close shrub’s front door before you left?! Smh /lh

#empires smp #empires shrub #shubble #shubble live stream #empires scott #scott smajor #holly duo #<- technically #live blogging #bubbles ramblings

46 notes · View notes

fallow-foot · 2 years

Note

Fallow did you know that Shrub is the only Empires character with named parents? Fern and Rose are her dad and mom's names! Also her last name might be Berry but thats not confirmed! Just thought this was fun trivia to share. If i already said this/you already saw this, welp!

Yeah you mentioned it last night!!!! That’s really cool!

2 notes · View notes

cynthrey · 9 months

Text

First Page || Prev Page // Next Page

A second chance... a chance for something better

#empires smp #champion of exor au #empires smp s1 #empires scott #empires mythicalsausage #empires shrub #empires xornoth #empires geminitay #empires fern berry #empires rose berry #dangthatsalongname #mythicalsausage #my art #shubbleyt #man thats a looooot of tags XD #dropping hints for something :3c #really like how xornoth's crown turned out #page was kinda a struggle to finish cuz... yeah life has been complicated

82 notes · View notes

inbetweenhours · 1 year

Note

Got any thoughts about Shrub Berry from season one's parents, since they're the only ones with names canonically (Rose Berry and Fern Berry as her mom and dad respectively)

Okay! Wiki says we have a description of Fern as having those cartoony no eye-eyebrows and heavy set so that was good use. Otherwise I had lots of fun with them! Gnomes are cute :3 Honestly had the most fun with baby Shrub she's so cute!! Her lil hat <33 Hope ya like!

[Roseblings, Pix, & Pearl here | Scott, Sausage, & Seablings here | Joel, Joey, & Katherine here]

#shrub berry #shubble #empires smp #empires smp 1 #fern berry #rose berry #hourspost #hoursart #esmpFamilyArt

142 notes · View notes

star-anise · 5 years

Text

I always thought that ~feeling connected to nature~ was some overly precious little-kid thing I was going to outgrow one day. It was like my sensory processing disorder: I knew it felt real to me, but none of the adults around me seemed to get it, so I figured I was just imagining it and I’d eventually stop being able to get away with it.

But when I moved from the place I’d grown up--right where the Canadian Prairies start turning into the Great Boreal Forest, 500km east of the Rockies--to Vancouver, and mountainous coastal rainforest--I felt increasingly unnerved by my inability to name or understand any of the plants around me.

In grade school, I learned maybe the 10 or 20 most common trees around me, and from my family’s time farming, I learned the 10 or 20 most common field crops (I can even tell barley from wheat from rye when I’m passing them in a car) and I took for granted that I could go, “Oh, that picnic will be during poplar fluff season” or “Huh, that looks like the second cutting of hay. I guess it’s so small because of all the hail we got,” or “From the looks of the weather this year, let’s only buy costumes that we can fit ski jackets under.”

And then when I moved to BC, suddenly an overcast sky meant the day woud be warmer, not colder. The trees were all “Conifer?” “Other different conifer??” “Oh my god, children’s picture books didn’t lie,” and “Is that a motherfucking sugar maple?” (Spoiler: It tragically wasn’t.) The crops in the field were “Berry... bush?” “Maybe grape vines?” and “Surely that can’t be marijuana?” (Spoiler: It was hemp.)

A significant element in my feeling at home was just owning up to it and taking a book on local trees out of the library, so I could name copper beech, magnolia, sequoia, and chestnut. My chest felt less tight after I did it. It was absolutely beautiful and I absolutely loved when I could escape the city for the trees, but I know now that a lot of the claustrophobia I felt when living in the Fraser Valley came from being in an apartment tower where my balcony plants always died, from not being able to tell ferns apart, from feeling so rootless and disconnected from the land.

Walking through a garden I’ve tended gives me a similar psychological experience to walking into a room full of friends. I’m part of something; I’m connected; I’m always being surprised by the ways they learn and grow.

There is a bit of vindication, now that there’s a push to make sure kids know more about nature literacy, now that I hear more Indigenous knowledge about how for them, spiritual connection with the land is intrinsically tied into an ethical framework for how to live and use resources and relate to each other. It helps me feel less like a desperately weird kid, and more like the descendant of an empire that did its best to snuff out folk wisdom and local knowledges and sever its people from their land; my ancestors and family were uprooted and moved so many times, it’s not surprising that I didn’t grow up feeling as though I completely belonged here. (I mean, I’m from a settler family; we don’t completely belong here, and our reckoning with that is going to mean changing our relationship with it.)

So now as an adult I’m sure enough about this part of myself (as many others) to think it’s not me that has to change (though I’m not perfect and not everyone needs to be exactly like me). It’s our culture that has to give kids like me more tools to understand this part of ourselves.

#staranise original #god i miss bc #HOAM #the joys of living in edmonton

795 notes · View notes

mellifera38 · 6 years

Text

Mel’s Big Fantasy Place-Name Reference

So I’ve been doing lots of D&D world-building lately and I’ve kind of been putting together lists of words to help inspire new fantasy place names. I figured I’d share. These are helpful for naming towns, regions, landforms, roads, shops, and they’re also probably useful for coming up with surnames. This is LONG. There’s plenty more under the cut including a huge list of “fantasy sounding” word-parts. Enjoy!

Towns & Kingdoms

town, borough, city, hamlet, parish, township, village, villa, domain

kingdom, empire, nation, country, county, city-state, state, province, dominion

Town Name End Words (English flavored)

-ton, -ston, -caster, -dale, -den, -field, -gate, -glen, -ham, -holm, -hurst, -bar, -boro, -by, -cross, -kirk, -meade, -moore, -ville, -wich, -bee, -burg, -cester, -don, -lea, -mer, -rose, -wall, -worth, -berg, -burgh, -chase, -ly, -lin, -mor, -mere, -pool. -port, -stead, -stow, -strath, -side, -way, -berry, -bury, -chester, -haven, -mar, -mont, -ton, -wick, -meet, -heim, -hold, -hall, -point

Buildings & Places

castle, fort, palace, fortress, garrison, lodge, estate, hold, stronghold, tower, watchtower, palace, spire, citadel, bastion, court, manor, house

altar, chapel, abbey, shrine, temple, monastery, cathedral, sanctum, crypt, catacomb, tomb

orchard, arbor, vineyard, farm, farmstead, shire, garden, ranch

plaza, district, quarter, market, courtyard, inn, stables, tavern, blacksmith, forge, mine, mill, quarry, gallows, apothecary, college, bakery, clothier, library, guild house, bath house, pleasure house, brothel, jail, prison, dungeon, cellar, basement, attic, sewer, cistern

lookout, post, tradepost, camp, outpost, hovel, hideaway, lair, nook, watch, roost, respite, retreat, hostel, holdout, redoubt, perch, refuge, haven, alcove, haunt, knell, enclave, station, caravan, exchange, conclave

port, bridge, ferry, harbor, landing, jetty, wharf, berth, footbridge, dam, beacon, lighthouse, marina, dockyard, shipyard

road, street, way, row, lane, trail, corner, crossing, gate, junction, waygate, end, wall, crossroads, barrier, bulwark, blockade, pavilion, avenue, promenade, alley, fork, route

Time & Direction

North, South, East, West, up, down, side, rise, fall, over, under

Winter, Spring, Summer, Autumn, solstice, equanox, vernal, ever, never

dusk, dawn, dawnrise, morning, night, nightfall, evening, sundown, sunbreak, sunset

lunar, solar, sun, moon, star, eclipse

Geographical Terms

Cave, cavern, cenote, precipice, crevasse, crater, maar, chasm, ravine, trench, rift, pit

Cliff, bluff, crag, scarp, outcrop, stack, tor, falls, run, eyrie, aerie

Hill, mountain, volcano, knoll, hillock, downs, barrow, plateau, mesa, butte, pike, peak, mount, summit, horn, knob, pass, ridge, terrace, gap, point, rise, rim, range, view, vista, canyon, hogback, ledge, stair, descent

Valley, gulch, gully, vale, dale, dell, glen, hollow, grotto, gorge, bottoms, basin, knoll, combe

Meadow, grassland, field, pasture, steppe, veld, sward, lea, mead, fell, moor, moorland, heath, croft, paddock, boondock, prairie, acre, strath, heights, mount, belt

Woodlands, woods, forest, bush, bower, arbor, grove, weald, timberland, thicket, bosk, copse, coppice, underbrush, hinterland, park, jungle, rainforest, wilds, frontier, outskirts

Desert, dunes, playa, arroyo, chaparral, karst, salt flats, salt pan, oasis, spring, seep, tar pit, hot springs, fissure, steam vent, geyser, waste, wasteland, badland, brushland, dustbowl, scrubland

Ocean, sea, lake, pond, spring, tarn, mere, sluice, pool, coast, gulf, bay

Lagoon, cay, key, reef, atoll, shoal, tideland, tide flat, swale, cove, sandspit, strand, beach

Snowdrift, snowbank, permafrost, floe, hoar, rime, tundra, fjord, glacier, iceberg

River, stream, creek, brook, tributary, watersmeet, headwater, ford, levee, delta, estuary, firth, strait, narrows, channel, eddy, inlet, rapids, mouth, falls

Wetland, marsh, bog, fen, moor, bayou, glade, swamp, banks, span, wash, march, shallows, mire, morass, quag, quagmire, everglade, slough, lowland, sump, reach

Island, isle, peninsula, isthmus, bight, headland, promontory, cape, pointe, cape

More under the cut including: Color words, Animal/Monster related words, Rocks/Metals/Gems list, Foliage, People groups/types, Weather/Environment/ Elemental words, Man-made Items, Body Parts, Mechanical sounding words, a huge list of both pleasant and unpleasant Atmospheric Descriptors, and a huge list of Fantasy Word-parts.

Color Descriptions

Warm: red, scarlet, crimson, rusty, cerise, carmine, cinnabar, orange, vermillion, ochre, peach, salmon, saffron, yellow, gold, lemon, amber, pink, magenta, maroon, brown, sepia, burgundy, beige, tan, fuchsia, taupe

Cool: green, beryl, jade, evergreen, chartreuse, olive, viridian, celadon, blue, azure, navy, cerulean, turquoise, teal, cyan, cobalt, periwinkle, beryl, purple, violet, indigo, mauve, plum

Neutral: gray, silver, ashy, charcoal, slate, white, pearly, alabaster, ivory, black, ebony, jet

dark, dusky, pale, bleached, blotchy, bold, dappled, lustrous, faded, drab, milky, mottled, opaque, pastel, stained, subtle, ruddy, waxen, tinted, tinged, painted

Animal / Monster-Related Words

Bear, eagle, wolf, serpent, hawk, horse, goat, sheep, bull, raven, crow, dog, stag, rat, boar, lion, hare, owl, crane, goose, swan, otter, frog, toad, moth, bee, wasp, beetle, spider, slug, snail, leech, dragonfly, fish, trout, salmon, bass, crab, shell, dolphin, whale, eel, cod, haddock

Dragon, goblin, giant, wyvern, ghast, siren, lich, hag, ogre, wyrm, kraken

Talon, scale, tusk, hoof, mane, horn, fur, feather, fang, wing, whisker, bristle, paw, tail, beak, claw, web, quill, paw, maw, pelt, haunch, gill, fin,

Hive, honey, nest, burrow, den, hole, wallow

Rocks / Metals / Minerals

Gold, silver, brass, bronze, copper, platinum, iron, steel, tin, mithril, electrum, adamantite, quicksilver, fool’s gold, titanium

Diamond, ruby, emerald, sapphire, topaz, opal, pearl, jade, jasper, onyx, citrine, aquamarine, turquoise, lapiz lazuli, amethyst, quartz, crystal, amber, jewel

Granite, shale, marble, limestone, sandstone, slate, diorite, basalt, rhyolite, obsidian, glass

Earth, stone, clay, sand, silt, salt, mote, lode, vein, ore, ingot, coal, boulder, bedrock, crust, rubble, pebble, gravel, cobble, dust, clod, peat, muck mud, slip, loam, dirt, grit, scree, shard, flint, stalactite/mite

Trees / Plants / Flowers

Tree, ash, aspen, pine, birch, alder, willow, dogwood, oak, maple, walnut, chestnut, cedar, mahogany, palm, beech, hickory, hemlock, cottonwood, hawthorn, sycamore, poplar, cypress, mangrove, elm, fir, spruce, yew

Branch, bough, bramble, gnarl, burr, tangle, thistle, briar, thorn, moss, bark, shrub, undergrowth, overgrowth, root, vine, bracken, reed, driftwood, coral, fern, berry, bamboo, nectar, petal, leaf, seed, clover, grass, grain, trunk, twig, canopy, cactus, weed, mushroom, fungus

Apple, olive, apricot, elderberry, coconut, sugar, rice, wheat, cotton, flax, barley, hops, onion, carrot, turnip, cabbage, squash, pumpkin, pepper

Flower, rose, lavender, lilac, jasmine, jonquil, marigold, carnelian, carnation, goldenrod, sage, wisteria, dahlia, nightshade, lily, daisy, daffodil, columbine, amaranth, crocus, buttercup, foxglove, iris, holly, hydrangea, orchid, snowdrop, hyacinth, tulip, yarrow, magnolia, honeysuckle, belladonna, lily pad, magnolia

People

Settler, Pilgrim, Pioneer, Merchant, Prospector, Maker, Surveyor, Mason, Overseer, Apprentice, Widow, Sailor, Miner, Blacksmith, Butcher, Baker, Brewer, Barkeep, Ferryman, Hangman, Gambler, Fisherman, Adventurer, Hero, Seeker, Hiker, Traveler, Crone

Mage, Magician, Summoner, Sorcerer, Wizard, Conjurer, Necromancer,

King, Queen, Lord, Count, Baron, Guard, Soldier, Knight, Vindicator, Merchant, Crusader, Imperator, Syndicate, Vanguard, Champion, Warden, Victor, Legionnaire, Master, Archer, Footman, Gladiator, Barbarian, Captain, Commodore,

Beggar, Hunter, Ranger, Deadman, Smuggler, Robber, Swindler, Rebel, Bootlegger, Outlaw, Pirate, Brigand, Ruffian, Highwayman, Cutpurse, Thief, Assassin

God, Goddess, Exarch, Angel, Devil, Demon, Cultist, Prophet, Hermit, Seer

council, clergy, guild, militia, choir

Climate, Environment, & The Elements

Cold, cool, brisk, frosty, chilly, icy, freezing, frozen, frigid, glacial, bitter, biting, bleak, arctic, polar, boreal, wintry, snowy, snow, blizzarding, blizzard, sleeting, sleet, chill, frost, ice, icebound, ice cap, floe, snowblind, frostbite, coldsnap, avalanche, snowflake

Hot, sunny, humid, sweltering, steaming, boiling, sizzling, blistering, scalding, smoking, caldescent, dry, parched, arid, fallow, thirsty, melting, molten, fiery, blazing, burning, charring, glowing, searing, scorching, blasted, sun, fire, heat, flame, wildfire, bonfire, inferno, coal, ash, cinder, ember, flare, pyre, tinder, kindling, aflame, alight, ablaze, lava, magma, slag,

Wet, damp, dank, soggy, sodden, soaked, drenched, dripping, sopping, briny, murky, rain, storm, hail, drizzle, sprinkle, downpour, deluge, squall, water, cloud, fog, mist, dew, puddle, pool, current, whirlpool, deep, depths, tide, waves, whitewater, waterfall, tidal wave, flow, flood, leak, drain

Wind, breeze, gust, billow, gail, draft, waft, zephyr, still, airy, clear, smokey, tempest, tempestuous, windswept, aerial, lofty, torrid, turbulent, nebulous, tradewind, thunder, lightning, spark, cyclone, tornado, whirlwind, hurricane, typhoon

Man-made Item Words

Furnace, forge, anvil, vault, strap, strip, whetstone, brick, sword, blade, axe, dagger, shield, buckler, morningstar, bow, quiver, arrow, polearm, flail, staff, stave, sheath, hilt, hammer, knife, helm, mantle, banner, pauldron, chainmail, mace, dart, cutlass, canon, needle, cowl, belt, buckle, bandana, goggles, hood, boot, heel, spindle, spool, thread, sweater, skirt, bonnet, apron, leather, hide, plate, tunic, vest, satin, silk, wool, velvet, lace, corset, stocking, binding

Plow, scythe, (wheel) barrow, saddle, harrow, brand, collar, whip, leash, lead, bridle, stirrup, wheel, straw, stall, barn, hay, bale, pitchfork, well, log, saw, lumber, sod, thatch, mortar, brick, cement, concrete, pitch, pillar, window, fountain, door, cage, spoke, pole, table, bench, plank, board

Candle, torch, cradle, broom, lamp, lantern, clock, bell, lock, hook, trunk, looking glass, spyglass, bottle, vase, locket, locker, key, handle, rope, knot, sack, pocket, pouch, manacle, chain, stake, coffin, fan. cauldron, kettle, pot, bowl, pestle, oven, ladle, spoon, font, wand, potion, elixir, draught, portal, book, tome, scroll, word, manuscript, letter, message, grimoire, map, ink, quill, pen, cards, dice

Coin, coronet, crown, circlet, scepter, treasure, riches, scales, pie, tart, loaf, biscuit, custard, caramel, pudding, porridge, stew, bread, tea, gravy, gristle, spice, lute, lyre, harp, drum, rouge, powder, perfume, brush

bilge, stern, pier, sail, anchor, mast, dock, deck, flag, ship, boat, canoe, barge, wagon, sled, carriage, buggy, cart

Wine, brandy, whiskey, ale, moonshine, gin, cider, rum, grog, beer, brew, goblet, flagon, flask, cask, tankard, stein, mug, barrel, stock, wort, malt

Body Parts

Head, throat, finger, foot, hand, neck, shoulder, rib, jaw, eye, lips, bosom

Skull, spine, bone, tooth, heart, blood, tears, gut, beard

Mechanical-Sounding Words

cog, fuse, sprocket, wrench, screw, nail, bolt, lever, pulley, spanner, gear, spring, shaft, switch, button, cast, pipe, plug, dial, meter, nozzle, cord, brake, gauge, coil, oil, signal, wire, fluke, staple, clamp, bolt, nut, bulb, patch, pump, cable, socket

torque, force, sonic, spark, fizzle, thermal, beam, laser, steam, buzz, mega, mecha, electro, telsa, power, flicker, charge, current, flow, tinker

Atmospheric Words

Unpleasant, Dangerous, Threatening

(nouns) death, fury, battle, scar, shadow, razor, nightmare, wrath, bone, splinter, peril, war, riptide, strife, reckoning, sorrow, terror, deadwood, nether, venom, grime, rage, void, conquest, pain, folly, revenge, horrid, mirk, shear, fathom, frenzy, corpselight/marshlight, reaper, gloom, doom, torment, torture, spite, grizzled, sludge, refuse, spore, carrion, fear, pyre, funeral, shade, beast, witch, grip, legion, downfall, ruin, plague, woe, bane, horde, acid, fell, grief, corpse, mildew, mold, miter, dirge

(adjectives) dead, jagged, decrepit, fallen, darkened, blackened, dire, grim, feral, wild, broken, desolate, mad, lost, under, stagnant, blistered, derelict, forlorn, unbound, sunken, fallow, shriveled, wayward, bleak, low, weathered, fungal, last, brittle, sleepy, -strewn, dusky, deserted, empty, barren, vacant, forsaken, bare, bereft, stranded, solitary, abandoned, discarded, forgotten, deep, abysmal, bottomless, buried, fathomless,unfathomable, diseased, plagued, virulent, noxious, venomous, toxic, fetid, revolting, putrid, rancid, foul, squalid, sullied, vile, blighted, vicious, ferocious, dangerous, savage, cavernous, vast, yawning, chasmal, echoing, dim, dingy, gloomy, inky, lurid, shaded, shadowy, somber, sunless, tenebrous, unlit, veiled, hellish, accursed, sulfurous, damned, infernal, condemned, doomed, wicked, sinister, dread, unending, spectral, ghostly, haunted, eldritch, unknown, weary, silent, hungry, cloven, acidic

(verb/adverbs): wither (withering / withered), skulk (skulking), whisper, skitter, chitter, sting, slither, writhe, gape, screech, scream, howl, lurk, roil, twist, shift, swarm, spawn, fester, bleed, howl, shudder, shrivel, devour, swirl, maul, trip, smother, weep, shatter, ruin, curse, ravage, hush, rot, drown, sunder, blister, warp, fracture, die, shroud, fall, surge, shiver, roar, thunder, smolder, break, silt, slide, lash, mourn, crush, wail, decay, crumble, erode, decline, reek, lament, taint, corrupt, defile, poison, infect, shun, sigh, sever, crawl, starve, grind, cut, wound, bruise, maim, stab, bludgeon, rust, mutilate, tremble, stumble, fumble, clank, clang

Pleasant, Safe, Neutral

(nouns) spirit, luck, soul, oracle, song, sky, smile, rune, obelisk, cloud, timber, valor, triumph, rest, dream, thrall, might, valiance, glory, mirror, life, hope, oath, serenity, sojourn, god, hearth, crown, throne, crest, guard, rise, ascent, circle, ring, twin, vigil, breath, new, whistle, grasp, snap, fringe, threshold, arch, cleft, bend, home, fruit, wilds, echo, moonlight, sunlight, starlight, splendor, vigilance, honor, memory, fortune, aurora, paradise, caress

(adjectives) gentle, pleasant, prosperous, peaceful, sweet, good, great, mild, grand, topic, lush, wild, abundant, verdant, sylvan, vital, florid, bosky, callow, verdurous, lucious, fertile, spellbound, captivating, mystical, hidden, arcane, clandestine, esoteric, covert, cryptic, runic, otherworldly, touched, still, fair, deep, quiet, bright, sheer, tranquil, ancient, light, far, -wrought, tidal, royal, shaded, swift, true, free, high, vibrant, pure, argent, hibernal, ascendant, halcyon, silken, bountiful, gilded, colossal, massive, stout, elder, -bourne, furrowed, happy, merry, -bound, loud, lit, silk, quiet, bright, luminous, shining, burnished, glossy, brilliant, lambent, lucent, lustrous, radiant, resplendent, vivid, vibrant, illuminated, silvery, limpid, sunlit, divine, sacred, holy, eternal, celestial, spiritual, almighty, anointed, consecrated, exalted, hallowed, sanctified, ambrosial, beatific, blissful, demure, naked, bare, ample, coy, deific, godly, omnipotent, omnipresent, rapturous, sacramental, sacrosanct, blessed, majestic, iridescent, glowing, overgrown, dense, hard, timeless, sly, scatter, everlasting, full, half, first, last

(verb/adverbs) arch (arching / arched), wink (winking), sing, nestle, graze, stroll, roll, flourish, bloom, bud, burgeon, live, dawn, hide, dawn, run, pray, wake, laugh, wake, glimmer, glitter, drift, sleep, tumble, bind, arch, blush, grin, glister, beam, meander, wind, widen, charm, bewitch, enthrall, entrance, enchant, allure, beguile, glitter, shimmer, sparkle twinkle, crest, quiver, slumber, herald, shelter, leap, click, climb, scuttle, dig, barter, chant, hum, chime, kiss, flirt, tempt, tease, play, seduce

Generic “Fantasy-Sounding” Word Parts

A - D

aaz, ada, adaer, adal, adar, adbar, adir, ae, ael, aer, aern, aeron, aeryeon, agar, agis, aglar, agron, ahar, akan, akyl, al, alam, alan, alaor, ald, alea, ali, alir, allyn, alm, alon, alor, altar, altum, aluar, alys, amar, amaz, ame, ammen, amir, amol, amn, amus, anar, andor, ang, ankh, ar, ara, aram, arc, arg, arian, arkh, arla, arlith, arn, arond, arthus, arum, arvien, ary, asha, ashyr, ask, assur, aster, astra, ath, athor, athra, athryn, atol, au, auga, aum, auroch, aven, az, azar, baal, bae, bael, bak, bal, balor, ban, bar, bara, barr, batol, batar, basir, basha, batyr, bel, belph, belu, ben, beo, bere, berren, berun, besil, bezan, bhaer, bhal, blask, blis, blod, bor, boraz, bos, bran, brath, braun, breon, bri, bry, bul, bur, byl, caer, cal, calan, cara, cassa, cath, cela, cen, cenar, cerul, chalar, cham, chion, cimar, clo, coram, corel, corman, crim, crom, daar, dach, dae, dago, dagol, dahar, dala, dalar, dalin, dam, danas, daneth, dannar, dar, darian, darath, darm, darma, darro, das, dasa, dasha, dath, del, delia, delimm, dellyn, delmar, delo, den, dess, dever, dhaer, dhas, dhaz, dhed, dhin, din, dine, diar, dien, div, djer, dlyn, dol, dolan, doon, dora, doril, doun, dral, dranor, drasil, dren, drian, drien, drin, drov, druar, drud, duald, duatha, duir, dul, dulth, dun, durth, dyra, dyver,

E - H

ea, eber, eden, edluk, egan, eiel, eilean, ejen, elath, eld, eldor, eldra, elith emar, ellesar, eltar, eltaran, elth, eltur, elyth, emen, empra, emril, emvor, ena, endra, enthor, erad, erai, ere, eriel, erith, erl, eron, erre, eryn, esk, esmel, espar, estria, eta, ethel, eval, ezro, ezan, ezune, ezil, fael, faelar, faern, falk, falak, farak, faril, farla, fel, fen, fenris, fer, fet, fin, finar, forel, folgun, ful, fulk, fur, fyra, fallon, gael, gach, gabir, gadath, gal, galar, gana, gar, garth, garon, garok, garne, gath, geir, gelden, geren, geron, ghal, ghallar, ghast, ghel, ghom, ghon, gith, glae, glander, glar, glym, gol, goll, gollo, goloth, gorot, gost, goth, graeve, gran, grimm, grist, grom, grosh, grun, grym, gual, guil, guir, gulth, gulur, gur, gurnth, gwaer, haa, hael, haer, hadar, hadel, hakla, hala, hald, halana, halid, hallar, halon, halrua, halus, halvan, hamar, hanar, hanyl, haor, hara, haren, haresk, harmun, harrokh, harrow, haspur, haza, hazuth, heber, hela, helve, hem, hen, herath, hesper, heth, hethar, hind, hisari, hjaa, hlath, hlond, hluth, hoarth, holtar, horo, hotun, hrag, hrakh, hroth, hull, hyak, hyrza

I - M

iibra, ilth, ilus, ilira, iman, imar, imas, imb, imir, immer, immil, imne, impil, ingdal, innar, ir, iriae, iril, irith, irk, irul, isha, istis, isil, itala, ith, ithal, itka, jada, jae, jaeda, jahaka, jala, jarra, jaro, jath, jenda, jhaamm, jhothm, jinn, jinth, jyn, kado, kah, kal, kalif, kam, kana, kara, karg, kars, karth, kasp, katla, kaul, kazar, kazr, kela, kelem, kerym, keth, keva, kez, kezan, khaer, khal, khama, khaz, khara, khed, khel, khol, khur, kil, kor, korvan, koll, kos, kir, kra, kul, kulda, kund, kyne, lae, laen, lag, lan, lann, lanar, lantar, lapal, lar, laran, lareth, lark, lath, lauth, lav, lavur, lazar, leih, leshyr, leth, lhaza, lhuven, liad, liam, liard, lim, lin, lirn, lisk, listra, lith, liya, llair, llor, lok, lolth, loran, lorkh, lorn, loth, lothen, luen, luir, luk, lund, lur, luth, lyndus, lyra, lyth, maal, madrasm maera, maer, maerim, maes, mag, magra, mahand, mal, malar, mald, maldo, mar, mara, mark, marl, maru, maruk, meir, melish, memnon, mer, metar, methi, mhil, mina, mir, miram, mirk, mista, mith, moander, mok, modir, modan, mon, monn, mor, more, morel, moril, morn, moro, morrow, morth, mort, morum, morven, muar, mul, mydra, myr, myra, myst

N - S

naar, nadyra, naedyr, naga, najar, nal, naal, nalir, nar, naruk, narbond, narlith, narzul, nasaq, nashkel, natar, nath, natha, neir, neth, nether, nhall, nikh, nil, nilith, noan, nolvurm nonthal, norda, noro, novul, nul, nur, nus, nyan, nyth, ober, odra, oghr, okoth, olleth, olodel, omgar, ondath, onthril, ordul, orish, oroch, orgra, orlim, ormath, ornar, orntath, oroch, orth, orva, oryn, orzo, ostel, ostor, ostrav, othea, ovar, ozod, ozul, palan, palad, pae, peldan, pern, perris, perim, pele, pen, phail, phanda, phara, phen, phendra, pila, pinn, pora, puril, pur, pyra, qadim, quar, quel, ques, quil, raah, rael, ran, ranna, rassil, rak, rald, rassa, reddan, reith, relur, ren, rendril, resil, reska, reth, reven, revar, rhy, rhynn, ria, rian, rin, ris, rissian, rona, roch, rorn, rora, rotha, rual, ruar, ruhal, ruil, ruk, runn, rusk, ryn, saa, saar, saal, sabal, samar, samrin, sankh, sar, sarg, sarguth, sarin, sarlan, sel, seld, sember, semkh, sen, sendrin, septa, senta, seros, shaar, shad, shadra, shae, shaen, shaera, shak, shalan, sham, shamath, shan, shana, sharan, shayl, shemar, shere, shor, shul, shyll, shyr, sidur, sil, silvan, sim, sintar, sirem, skar, skell, skur, skyr, sokol, solan, sola, somra, sor, ssin, stel, strill, suldan, sulk, sunda, sur, surkh, suth, syl, sylph, sylune, syndra, syth

T - Z

taak, taar, taer, tah, tak, tala, talag, talar, talas, talath, tammar, tanar, tanil, tar, tara, taran, tarl, tarn, tasha, tath, tavil, telar, teld, telf, telos, tempe, tethy, tezir, thaar, thaer, thal, thalag, thalas, thalan, thalar, thamor, thander, thangol, thar, thay, thazal, theer, theim, thelon, thera, thendi, theril, thiir, thil, thild, thimir, thommar, thon, thoon, thor, thran, thrann, threl, thril, thrul, thryn, thuk, thultan, thume, thun, thy, thyn, thyr, tir, tiras, tirum, tohre, tol, tolar, tolir, tolzrin, tor, tormel, tormir, traal, triel, trith, tsath, tsur, tul, tur, turiver, turth, tymor, tyr, uder, udar, ugoth, uhr, ukh, ukir, uker, usten, ulgarth, ulgoth, ultir, ulur, umar, umath, umber, unara, undro, undu, untha, upir, ur, ursa, ursol, uron, uth, uthen, uz, van, vaar, vaelan, vaer, vaern, val valan, valash, vali, valt, vandan, vanede, vanrak, var, varyth, vassa, vastar, vaunt, vay, vel, velar, velen, velius, vell, velta, ven, veren, vern, vesper, vilar, vilhon, vintor, vir, vira, virdin, volo, volun, von, voon, vor, voro, vos, vosir, vosal, vund, war, wara, whel, wol, wynn, wyr, wyrm, xer, xul, xen, xian, yad, yag, yal, yar, yath, yeon, yhal, yir, yirar, yuir, yul, yur, zail, zala, zalhar, zan, zanda, zar, zalar, zarach, zaru, zash, zashu, zemur, zhent, zim, ziram, zindala, zindar, zoun, zul, zurr, zuth, zuu, zym

A lot of places are named after historical events, battles, and people, so keep that in mind. God/Goddess names tied to your world also work well. Places are also often named after things that the area is known for, like Georgia being known for its peaches.

My brain was fried by the end of this so feel free to add more!

I hope you find this reference helpful and good luck world-building!

-Mel

#worldbuilding #d&d #dnd #writing resources #fantasy #word list #dungeons and dragons

10K notes · View notes

johnabradley · 6 years

Text

Exclusive: Carole Middleton's first interview: 'Life is really normal - most of the time'

‘Two things you need to know. Carole’s very, very nervous, and she doesn’t do sofas,’ the Telegraph’s team on the shoot warned me the night before I went down to Bucklebury in west Berkshire to interview her. ‘When we asked her to perch on one,’ they continued, ‘Carole’s response was, “Who sits around on a sofa?”’

Sure enough, a couple of days after the shoot, when Carole, clutching a soya latte (she’s recently gone vegan/flexitarian) and slightly late, sweeps into the boardroom at the HQ of Party Pieces, the business she set up in 1988, she doesn’t sit down but immediately takes me on a tour of her empire. Just like that. I don’t quite know what I expected – not trumpets, but perhaps some sense of ceremony – but then I don’t think she knew what to expect either. She’s never done an interview before.

The tour goes on so long that at one stage I wonder whether she’s planning to do the entire interview on the hoof as part of a cunning ruse to get it all over and done with before I’ve had time to press record. It does, however, give me time to adjust my retinas to the life-size Carole, inevitably smaller, but also more youthful, than the version the world has become accustomed to. This, lest we forget, is the future British king’s grandmother – arguably the second most famous granny on the globe.

In one sense, empire, as Carole Middleton would be the first to point out, is far too pompous a word for the collection of brick sheds and barns that Party Pieces has, over the years, colonised on a country estate in Berkshire, a 15-minute drive from the Middleton family home. There are a couple of large warehouses with radios blaring pop music and shelves of pre-filled party bags, fancy-dress costumes, table runners, Let’s Be Mermaids garlands, rose-gold team bride plates and much, much more. ‘And this is just a small part of it,’ says Carole.

There are around 7,000 products in total on the Party Pieces website. She’s seen the cactus, llama and fern trends come and, in some cases, go. But there will always be dinosaurs and princesses. The largest part of the business – at least half – remains children’s party accoutrements, but now there are also accessories for baby showers, 30th and 50th birthdays.

The subtext of all this is that Party Pieces is a serious business that was successfully operating a long time before what Carole later refers to as Catherine’s ‘impact’. It’s a private company and they won’t release figures, but during their busiest periods, they dispatch around 4,000 orders a week.

The beamed open-plan office is where most of her 30-strong admin team (none of whom seems given to hat-doffing in her presence) sit. As does Carole. ‘It’s better to be with everyone so you can see what’s going on,’ she notes. ‘They say it’s a bit like a hurricane arriving when I come in.’

The many Americans who order from Party Pieces would be charmed to know that chickens ran through central HQ until the Middletons moved in. But the décor is more Ryman than Soho Farmhouse. The beige carpets are worn, with several threadbare patches, and there are MDF desks and swivel chairs. The walls in the small boardroom are banana yellow.

Carole herself, however, is a vision in a khaki Ralph Lauren blazer and black T-shirt, black skinny M&S trousers (her legs are phenomenal) tucked into Russell & Bromley riding boots, and minimal jewellery – small drop earrings, a couple of gold rings and a thin gold chain with which she constantly toys. It is classic Middleton style, although Carole tells me she far prefers dresses (‘not ones that are tight round the middle though, my shape’s changing’). Maybe it’s the hair. She gets it done locally and it’s shorter and glossier than in recent pictures. The fact that it seems slightly darker emphasises how alike she and her daughter Catherine, the future Queen of England, look. Perhaps it’s the golden tan or the light-touch make-up – the kind where you can’t see the edges. But whereas Catherine and her sister Pippa look much the same on camera as off, Carole, all flashing, watchful hazel eyes and fluttery, girlish nerves is, at 63, far more striking, delicately boned and simultaneously softer-looking in real life than in pictures.

But the voice is what everyone wants to know about. Is it stewardessy (in her early 20s she worked for British Airways)? Elocutioned? Lynda Snell? None of the above. The best description is probably modern posh – not affected, not mockney. If we’re on a scale of BBC presenters, I’d say Mishal Husain. In terms of warmth… maybe Martha Kearney.

Although she hardly ever looks me in the eye, she is very cosy once she gets going: smart and interested. On the shoot, she asked everyone about themselves and dispensed breastfeeding tips to the make-up artist. I don’t think the solicitude towards others is forced, though it does take her a while to warm up (not in terms of temperature, she’s obviously got terrific circulation as there’s a bracing chill in that boardroom). But she does seem like a lot of fun.

You can see why the Middletons remain such a close family (Catherine texted her on the shoot to wish her luck) and why they all, spouses in tow, gravitate towards Granny Middleton. ‘I do love a good party,’ she says later. ‘I’m definitely a night owl and a real chatterbox. My children look at me sometimes…’

Obviously we’re not here to discuss the children, and certainly not their spouses (Pippa is married to James Matthews, a former racing-car driver, hedge-fund manager and heir to the Scottish feudal title Laird of Glen Affric; James, after an on-off relationship with TV presenter Donna Air, is currently single; their oldest daughter, we know about). Carole and her husband Michael have been commendably discreet during the 13 or so years since Catherine began dating the Duke of Cambridge. As Carole says, ‘Over the years, it’s proved wise not to say anything.’

But Party Pieces, her one-stop-solves-all business, has been going for more than 30 years, ‘and I just thought I should celebrate a little’. And it is a good story, part Catherine Cookson, part careers manual for would-be entrepreneurs, as well as being a business that, says Carole, has been flagrantly copied. Her own role model she says, was Laura Tenison, founder of kidswear brand JoJo Maman Bébé, whom she went to watch at a few conferences in the early days of her own company.

Carole Goldsmith, as she was, seems to have had a strong work ethic from the start. Her father Ron was a painter and decorator. Her mother Dorothy, aka The Duchess (because she always looked so impeccable), was a character. ‘Everyone adored my mother,’ she says when I relate how the taxi driver who picked me up from a local train station and drove me to the Party Pieces HQ, told me she’d been a close friend of The Duchess.

Ron and Dorothy moved to Berkshire from west London 10 years after Carole and Michael. Carole’s own closeness to her children and grandchildren is an echo of the relationship she had with her own family, which was ‘small but tight’. Her younger brother, ‘Uncle Gary’ of Maison de Bang Bang fame (at the time of Catherine and William’s wedding, the press had a joyful time detailing Gary Goldsmith’s party reputation), is also an entrepreneur.

Carole spent her first six months in a council flat in Ealing. She initially left school at 16, got a job with the Prudential in Holborn and hated it. ‘It was one of those massive offices with rows and rows of desks.’ So far, so early 1970s. But Carole knew she could achieve more and asked Ron if she could return to school to do her A levels. She got four: art, economics, English literature and geography, which she wanted to teach. ‘But my parents couldn’t afford to put me through college, so I thought I’d see if I could get a bit of money together and fund myself.’

While she’s recounting this, she suddenly remembers she got a job – she can’t remember the year – on the John Lewis A level trainee scheme. This has always been considered the gold standard in retail and was extremely hard to get on to. Carole is bemused by her own memory lapse: ‘Gosh… how did I forget? I can’t even remember when it was. I’ll have to check with Mike.’

This is a woman who clearly spends even less time navel-gazing than she does lounging on sofas. Too busy cooking. She adores cooking. ‘I probably have more cookery books than anything.’ At the moment her favourites are Mary Berry (‘she does use a lot of cream, though’) and Amelia Freer. The combination of the nation’s favourite baker and the fashionable nutritional therapist, who helped singer Sam Smith lose 3½st, seems very Carole.

The John Lewis gig was a dream, particularly her stint in china and glass at Peter Jones, which is where she realised how interested she was in finding out what kind of merchandise sold. But then they told her she had to do a spell on the shop floor as a sales assistant. ‘I thought, blow that. I’m not doing that for six months – it was really boring.’ So she got a secretarial job (she can still do Pitman shorthand) at BEA (before it merged with BOAC to become British Airways in 1974), but didn’t think much of secretarial work, either, so brushed up her French and got a job as ground staff.

‘It’s not like it is now,’ she explains, coming over momentarily a touch Mrs Bennet. ‘You had to be able to speak another language. It was almost like being at university.’ I think from all this we can conclude that Carole Goldsmith was pretty clear she wasn’t going to be fobbed off with also-ran situations.

The newly formed BA had trained too many pilots, so it was redeploying them on the ground and Carole found herself working alongside them as well as other senior staff.

Enter Michael Middleton, six years her senior, ‘rather shy’ but very handsome… A year after they married, she had Catherine; 18 months after that Pippa and then the Middletons moved to Jordan for three years, where Michael worked as a aero manager for an international air station (he was never a pilot). Jordan life sounds comfortable. There was a lot of socialising at the British Embassy, some help at home and the girls were in nursery school. But, says Carole, ‘I wasn’t convinced I wanted to be an expat mum and Mike’s job there was coming to an end.’

By the time they returned to the UK in 1987, Catherine was four and a half, Pippa 18 months younger and Carole, now 32, was pregnant with their third child, James. ‘I thought, “Oooh, bills to pay.” But I also had this strong feeling that I hadn’t achieved anything. I got married at 25, had Catherine at 26…’

Party Pieces launched the same year her son was born, in 1987, with a simple idea about a one-stop place where you could get everything you need for a children’s party. Carole visited the Birmingham Spring Fair, where she sourced some suppliers of paper plates and cups, stuck up a self-designed flyer at Catherine’s local playgroup in Bucklebury, and began stuffing bags from her kitchen table.

Business was steady if unspectacular – this was pre-internet, so responses weren’t always immediate. But then she had the brainwave of advertising with The Red House, a children’s book club she’d subscribed to once her brood began to read: 10,000 flyers to begin with and then 100,000. That’s when Party Pieces really took off.

She moved from her kitchen to a small business unit in nearby Hungerford – Mike built the packing benches. ‘That’s when Michael gave up his job at BA and came in. My mother thought that was big, because at that stage he probably wouldn’t have got employment again, but we could see this was a business that could scale up.’

When I ask about struggles or disasters she more or less shrugs off the notion. ‘We were pretty much the only ones doing this sort of thing when we started. It was really clear almost from the start that this was going to work. I got help from other mums – paperwork and that kind of thing… I think it’s easier to start a business when you’re young. You’re less aware of the pitfalls and maybe you have less of a lifestyle to lose.’

Listening to Carole talk about those early years, what comes across is her resourcefulness and stoicism. She feels they were lucky. ‘Running a business is really very simple: you buy things and sell them for a profit.’ Mike’s decision to quit his job was, she says, their wild card. She is very clear that the business was her idea. ‘And it was a good idea or it wouldn’t have taken off.’ Were there no sleepless nights over the financing? ‘We never took really huge risks. We had to fund our own growth,’ she replies. She doesn’t get stressed, she says, although she was clearly anxious about this interview. Maybe that British Airways training ingrained the necessity of appearing serene while paddling furiously below the surface.

When I ask about juggling a fledgling business with three small children, particularly when working mothers were not as common as they are now, she responds instantly. ‘It was my business, so I could work around the holidays.’ She makes it sound straightforward. She understands the tussle, though, but in the end, she’s a boss. ‘In this office, I see the challenge of working mothers – but if I need them here…’

There was spillage into their home life, ‘Mike and I often talked about work in the evenings or on holiday, but we enjoyed it. I never really felt I was a working mother although I was – and the children didn’t either. They grew up with it.’

The girls were at school till 6pm. That’s a long day: someone who observed them from a distance says Catherine and Pippa were always hard workers at school and encouraged by Carole to hone accomplishments that would serve beyond academia, such as skiing. ‘James would get picked up – very occasionally by someone else – and come back to the office and be here with me,’ continues Carole. ‘I was often finished by 6pm and I didn’t have a long train journey. I think it’s really good to work. It was part of the children’s lives – it still is – and they’d come and help. They did a lot of modelling. Catherine was on the cover of one of the catalogues, blowing out candles. Later on, she did some styling and set up the First Birthday side of the business. Pippa did the blog. I still value their ideas and opinions.’

There was never any doubt in the Middletons’ minds that they would base their family and business in Bucklebury. ‘Do you live in London?’ Carole asks me, looking sympathetic when I nod. Later, when she drives me to the train station, scooping a pile of papers and a plastic cup from the passenger seat of her Range Rover, to save me phoning for possibly non-existent taxis, she shows me the spot she and Michael first fell in love with.

She loves this tiny pocket of remoteness – the fact it’s only an hour from London, that she can take their four spaniels and one golden retriever (James, who lives with them when he’s not in London, shares two of the dogs) for a long walk straight from their house, and the solid, picturesque red-brick architecture. ‘We really fell on our feet moving to this area,’ she says. Their first home was ‘a very sweet semi-detached cottage. We stayed there until Catherine was 13, so the children spent a lot of their youth there.’

There were two more moves – Oak Acre, a detached house where Prince William famously landed his Chinook helicopter in 2008, and the more secluded, seven-bedroomed, Grade II- listed Bucklebury Manor. She’s good at nesting, she says. ‘If you choose your house wisely, you don’t have to do too much. We almost just replicated what we did before. Farrow & Ball Cord and Hay [both shades of beige] – you can’t go wrong.’

In photos, Bucklebury Manor is what estate agents would call impressive, a description that must set Carole all ajangle. She’s on a mission to appear as unaffected and normal as possible. Later, when we’re discussing her love of Christmas trees and how she likes to have as many as possible in the house, including one in the grandchildren’s rooms, ‘so that they can decorate it themselves’, there is one of many long pauses, while she ponders the consequences of a seemingly innocuous exchange. ‘That makes me sound as though I live in a mansion, doesn’t it?’ Erm, you’re the future king’s grandmother, I think. Would a mansion be out of the question?

Maybe she’s right to be cautious. Over the years it has been she, rather than Michael, who has caught the full beam of the Middleton-focused attention, much of which fixes on the idea of her as a pushy arriviste. She stopped reading the stories about herself online over a year ago. I’m surprised it took her so long. ‘Well, I thought it was better to know what people thought. But it doesn’t make any difference. I’m not really sure how I’m perceived now,’ she says. ‘But the thing is… it is really normal – most of the time.’

When I ask her where she most likes to shop, there’s another pained pause. ‘How’s this going to make me sound?’ I half- expect her to confide that her secret vice is Harrods’ personal- shopping department, but only if she can get it closed to the public. But no. Peter Jones is her happy place. ‘The staff are lovely and they all know me.’ She also loves Burford Garden Company in the Cotswolds, where she and Pippa will happily spend the best part of a day.

More Middle England you cannot get. She even loves Michael McIntyre. She could be protesting too far when she later opines that Jigsaw is a bit pricey. She loves Samantha Sung’s shirt dresses and Goat, but likes to shop in the sale. She finds the music in Selfridges a bit overwhelming and she only very occasionally patronises Catherine Walker, but I suspect this is how the Middletons really are.

Carole is known to drive a hard bargain when she negotiates – she’s not a businesswoman for nothing. She seems genuinely concerned that if I take the train back to London from a different station, I’ll have to buy another ticket (all of £22). There are things they spend money on – property, children’s education, holidays – and things they consider to be a waste of money. Fashion is definitely a bit suspect. ‘Do you think it’s important?’ she asks me. When I say it’s a huge UK success story, that first impressions are clearly important and that style, rather than fashion, is worth cultivating, she nods. ‘Now you put it like that, I see what you mean.’

In some ways, there’s a touching naivety about Carole. I don’t think any of the family, with the possible exception of James (and this is based solely on pictures; I’ve never met him) give one iota about being cool. She’d rather be doing other things than clothes shopping. Party Pieces remains a full-time job for her.

‘I don’t see myself stopping [work]. If I did I’d have to have so many projects on. I’d have to redecorate the house. I’d love to travel, but then I’d miss the grandchildren. No,’ she ponders, as if just deciding this, retirement is not on the cards. ‘I’ve got a billion ideas I still want to do.’

#carole middleton #michael middleton #the middletons #kate middleton #duchess of cambridge #prince william #duke of cambridge #pippa middleton #james matthews #james middleton #prince george #princess charlotte #prince louis #arthur matthews

48 notes · View notes