Stygian
Powerful and ancient worshipers of the Serpent-god Set, the Stygians are both feared and revered by the other peoples of the world.
According to legend, before the pre-Cataclysmic race of the Lemurians arrived, the land of Stygia was inhabited by a race of giant-kings. The Lemurians bred with the giant-kings and, learning much of their ancient sorcery, became the modern Stygians.
According to legend, before the pre-Cataclysmic race of the Lemurians arrived, the land of Stygia was inhabited by a race of giant-kings. The Lemurians bred with the giant-kings and, learning much of their ancient sorcery, became the modern Stygians.
Appearance
Tall, slender and strongly built, with bronze skin, dark eyes and dark hair. They tend to have high cheekbones and slightly hooked, thin noses.Naming Traditions
Unisex names
Amnun, Bahotep, Ctesphon, Hakketh, Heterka, Hotep, Khafra, Khaza, Kutamun, Menemhet, Menkara, Nehekba, Ramwas, Shuat, Siptah, Thoth-Amon, Thothmekri, Thutmekri, Thutothmes, Tothapis, Tuthamon, Zeriti
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
The Stygian language is derived from ancient Lemurian, and is thus alien to the other inhabitants of the western world.
Culture and cultural heritage
Religion in Stygia is dominated by the worship of Father Set. No other religion is tolerated. Temples to other sects are forbidden, and worship of other gods is considered treason.
Shared customary codes and values
Stygia has a highly bureaucratic urban culture, where nearly everything is settled by the theocratic state. As Stygians tend to hold laws as sacred tenets, that means there is -usually- very little inner conflict in their society.
Stygians law are particularly oppressive for the lower classes.
Stygians law are particularly oppressive for the lower classes.
Common Customs, traditions and rituals
Stygian society is dominated by the priesthood. In Stygia, the priests rule: the temple owns most of the arable land, and the government bureaucracy is filled with priests. This Stygian theocracy is very conservative, with only minimal trade seen as beneficial for Stygia.
The Stygians are divided into castes, based to a great degree on racial type. At the top of the caste structure lie royalty and the most ancient nobles, who claim to be pure-blooded Khari. These people are tall and slender, with black hair and fair skin; however, they have dwindled as a race, and few of this upper caste survive in Stygia. The second cast of Stygia are the aristocracy and middle class, who are dusky-skinned and hawk-faced. It is the core group which most non-Stygians consider to be true Stygians. This aristocracy holds the reigns of power in the temples and the government.
Beneath this aristocracy lies the peasantry, a hybrid stock of Kushite, Shemite, Hyborian and Stygian ancestry. The few foreigners who come to Stygia are also lumped into this lowest class.
The Stygians are divided into castes, based to a great degree on racial type. At the top of the caste structure lie royalty and the most ancient nobles, who claim to be pure-blooded Khari. These people are tall and slender, with black hair and fair skin; however, they have dwindled as a race, and few of this upper caste survive in Stygia. The second cast of Stygia are the aristocracy and middle class, who are dusky-skinned and hawk-faced. It is the core group which most non-Stygians consider to be true Stygians. This aristocracy holds the reigns of power in the temples and the government.
Beneath this aristocracy lies the peasantry, a hybrid stock of Kushite, Shemite, Hyborian and Stygian ancestry. The few foreigners who come to Stygia are also lumped into this lowest class.
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