Agafellian
"The City of Chains, we call it, because it runs on slaves. Not human slaves, mind you, nor dwarf, nor gnome, nor even halfling, those poor oft-oppressed people. No, the slaves in Agafell are the elements themselves, those representations of all that reality is. Pixies flit by as messengers while earth elementals pave and smooth the streets. Even in their military, angels and demons stand reluctantly side-by-side along battlements and walls, ready to unleash literal divine wrath at the command of their mortal masters. Overhead, their famous airships slip by, propelled by bound air and fire. And the people there, they accept it. Scholars to some degree, all of them, but not one willing to give up their history of slavery and entrapment. I hope I'm not visiting on the day the bindings come undone."
-excerpt from the journal of a visitor to Agafell
Naming Traditions
Unisex names
Agafellians, being rooted in many languages, have no common naming conventions with regard to male or female children. Personal names given generally do carry some meaning in a language of the parent's choice, usually connected to some personal metaphor or lesson they hope to impart most strongly to the child.
Family names
Children are not given a family name until their rites of passage into adulthood, receiving the name of an appropriate noble family which offers to adopt them, if the child agrees.
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
Agafellian is a language comprised of multiple other languages, individual language choice in a given moment being used to indicate tone of a conversation or what the speaker thinks of the person they are addressing.
Culture and cultural heritage
It should be noted that no one raised in Agafell could be considered a 'good' person. The city is powered, fed, protected, and driven by an army of enslaved beings, some of which are undeniably sentient. Agafellian children are taught a complex philosophy which can be best summarized as a philosophical version of 'Might Makes Right:' they are harnessing forces present in the universe. That some of those forces can think for themselves and resent being bound and commanded is merely an example of how wondrous the driving influences of Creation are. While few, if any, Agafellians go out of their way to cause duress to their bound servants, equally few hesitate to sacrifice those same servants if it will help an experiment... or if it will make their own day easier.
An odd side effect of this culture is the low opinion Agafellians hold of the slave trade among mortals. While they don't immediately free any enslaved mortals who they encounter, the slave owner's intelligence and appeal does drop to nearly that of their own bound elementals in the Agafellian's opinion. To the Agafellian, it makes no sense to spend years oppressing a potential intellectual peer to create an imperfect servant when proper education and a simple (for them) ritual can summon and bind a creature who can interpret commands and will carry them out without question or training.
Shared customary codes and values
The binding force between all Agafellians is curiosity. Scholars in their blood, one shouldn't indulge an Agafellian companion's curiosity about something they don't yet know unless he has a wealth of time available to devote to determining answers regarding the topic. The most coveted positions in government are not those of power, but those in the Research District of their city, where the bleeding edges of binding and summoning techno-magy are pushed forward with near-reckless abandon.
Average technological level
The techno-magy in constant use all over Agafell is easily equal to other forms of technology and magic elsewhere. Their airships are the basis of their local military strength, as well as their dominance of transportation industries. With bound creatures of all kinds automating many tasks and conveniences, the citizens are free to advance or maintain a variety of professions as their personal interests guide them; all take advantage of this opportunity, ensuring a binding-fueled equivalent to most any kind of commerce one might wish to engage in within the city.
Common Etiquette rules
An Agafellian prefers to show the common courtesy of not interrupting someone who is speaking. It is considered a sign of an undeveloped mind to not be able to consider another person's entire point without needing to assert one's own perspective over it. If they wish to show disrespect, they will leave the conversation physically, walking away while the focus of their dislike is still talking to indicate their opinion isn't worth hearing. Alternatively, an Agafellian wishing to convey insult will wait until someone is finished speaking, then speak as if the target of their ire doesn't exist and has said nothing.
In other circumstances, the language in which an Agafellian is choosing to speak can indicate their mood or opinion toward someone. All Agafellians are fluent in each of the four basic elemental languages, celestial, and abyssal, thanks to their mandatory education at The Academies. When particularly irritated by a conversation or situation, one will usually switch to ingnan or abyssal, with the latter being reserved for especially-heinous cursing when desired. Conversely, Celestial and Auran are used for moments of positivity, with the former being used for particularly overwhelming moments of positive feelings or sensations (Agafellians tend to exclaim in Celestial during passionate moments in bed and at weddings, for instance). For most everyday usage, Terran and Aquan suffice, interspersed with the trade tongue as needed with outsiders.
This shifts in an academic setting; when teaching or collaborating, Agafellians simply use whatever languages are best able to communicate a concept, and expect each other and others to understand the difference in context.
Common Dress code
Agafellians prefer practicality in most things, and fashion is no exception. Most wear a simple loose shirt and pants, though individual styles and materials may vary from season to season, or based on the person's profession. Skirts of any kind are nearly unheard-of, and draw the eye quickly when among the populace of Agafell, though they bear no particular stigma for the wearer. The rare exception to their usual assumptions on colors, shirts, pants, belts and other accessories are colored according to the wearer's tastes.
Station and position are instead indicated by colored sashes worn over other clothing. For most professions, the sash is a ceremonial piece of dress, worn only when attending rite-of-passage ceremonies and other official events. Government workers are the exception; they are required to wear their indication of station at all times. This extends to current students of The Academies, who are considered to be 'working' at learning and bettering themselves.
Art & Architecture
Physical forms of art are not present in abundance among the people of Agafell; most find more beauty in a formulaic drawing of binding constructs than in a painting. However, their verbal agility has lent itself well over the centuries to a wide variety of lyrical music styles. The Libraries of Lost Tongues have entire sections devoted to every possible kind of music that can conceivably be sung to, and Agafellians determine favored musical pastimes long before their graduation ceremonies from The Academies. There is no such thing as an Agafellian who cannot sing at least adequately.
Common Customs, traditions and rituals
In general, binding principles are categorized, no matter the subject, into three areas. Black Formulas have not only been agreed upon by multiple peers after review, but have also been proven (usually in low-impact testing environments). These are the most common bindings one might see in use at any given time. They are predictable, stable, and effective. White Formulas referred to those binding principles multiple esteemed peers have agreed on, which have not yet been tested definitively.
The entire Agafellian social structure reflects these concepts, assigning darker colors to those things that are predictable in some way, reliable. Outsiders are often confused by the concept, misinterpreting ‘reliable’ or ‘predictable’ for ‘safe.’ A trained attack dog, wearing dark green, could be relied upon to react aggressively to someone other than its handler, for instance.
Researchers in volatile labs, on the other hand, wear uniforms of brighter colors. The Research Sector of the city is a riot of painfully-bright buildings and directional indicators. The colors serve to warn what type of danger might be present, but it is wise in general to stay on one’s toes in the area. Likewise, public workers put out bright warning indicators when working with volatile substances.
Then there are the Gray Formulas. These bindings should work, as agreed by all who had reviewed the concepts. They are classified as Gray when, in spite of all available routes of inquiry, they don’t work. Many of them have failed with catastrophic effects when attempted. None of them are subclassified as Forbidden, as the city is loathe to abandon potential resources; At the same time, few ever attempt to resolve them, preferring to lead long lives as non-corpses.
Birth & Baptismal Rites
Agafellians celebrate births long before the birth itself; with bound angels of lower courts as mid-wives, miscarriages are rare. Rather, in a rite performed on the child while still in the womb, a celebratory gathering of friends and family culminates in a ceremony to modify the child's developing tongue and vocal chords. It is this ceremony which allows Agafellians to fluently speak a wider variety of languages than other humans (or indeed most humanoids).
Coming of Age Rites
On their fifteenth naming-day, an Agafellian demonstrates a method of binding. The method might be something tried and true, or an attempt at an entirely new effect of their own design. Choosing a particularly simple or otherwise unimpressive ritual doesn’t ensure the young adult is always going to be low-ranked in the community, but it is a definite slow start. Various noble families make offers to adopt the children depending on the results of their attempt.
Funerary and Memorial customs
Agafellians are quick to discard attachment to the corpses of deceased, instead keeping their names in the Halls of Remembrance on plaques that extend into the distance of the space-warped buildings' interiors. Corpses are generally used as powerful reagents in binding rituals shortly after the confirmed death of an Agafellian.
Common Taboos
One of the greatest taboos for a citizen of Agafell is to attempt implementation of those binding formulae subclassified as Forbidden. These formulas and procedures, whether Black, White, or Gray, are declared either unsafe or unwise to use for any reason. The main reason they are stored under heavy guard in the Second Library instead of simply destroyed outright is to have the references available in the instance they are needed to counter the efforts of rogue citizens.
Ideals
Beauty Ideals
With regard to 'love (or lust) at first sight,' Agafellians are typically-human in taste: fit bodies and current fashion will provoke a more favorable reaction from most than obvious signs of poor hygiene or obesity.
Courtship Ideals
Courtship with an eye toward long-term commitments is generally a series of up-front conversations when an Agafellian is involved. They prefer to enter a relationship with full understanding and commitment from both parties. When pursuing someone merely for the sake of mutual entertainment and relief, Agafellians are equally forward; other cultures can find their frank offers and responses uncomfortable.
Relationship Ideals
Agafellians are unlikely to settle down, or even form a temporary romantic bond, with someone they consider to be anything less than their equal in terms of intellect. Agreement isn't necessarily preferred, but an Agafellian finds it onerous and painful to lower their method of speech or term usage for the sake of someone else's understanding.
Major organizations
The Emporium is the second-most-sought-after section of government positions by Agafellians. Although there is some local prestige from being a member of the trade organization, the ever-curious Agafellians are more intrigued by the idea of constantly traveling across the world to discover new places, languages, technologies and cultures. The black-and-white-striped sashes of The Emporium are always greeted with offers of hospitality and requests for stories of faraway places within the city.
Encompassed species
Related Organizations
Languages spoken
Related Locations
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