Seven Streams
The Seven Streams is a land of hunters and foragers located in Southern Erek ruled by an ancient silver Dragon named Veymenuz the Radiant.
Feminine Names: Bitsû, Amirda, Emanî, Nipsûn, Ogecha, Pakîtû, Shejlî, Shatîa, Sonipûe, Tishîwîane.
Masculine Names: Batsush, Chasom, Dakû, Ghomatên, Homash, Kamwota, Nochâ, Pamûch, Soachot, Tujan.
Neutral Names: Batzû/Bitzûsh, Dizomî, Hache, Ipzoma, Juavis, Nikawam, Pênavam, Safokû, Voshawi, Zoshaw.
People
Like the rest of Erek, the Seven Streams mostly support a population of Goliaths, Orcs, and Humans. Due to the presence of Dragons , there is also a sizeable minority of Dragonborn. While there are many minority ancestries in the Seven Streams, Shifters and Warforged are notable for being more common than elsewhere.Goliaths, Orcs, and Humans
The three most numerous ancestries in the Seven Streams primarily live as hunters and foragers in the villages and subscribe to a subset of the Giant religion they call Ajemisten. These groups have lived in this region since before The Cataclysm. Individuals of mixed ancestry between all three of these groups are common across Erek.Dragonborn
Dragonborn live primarily in the town of Vejsîsata and typically contribute to life in the villages as craftspeople, priests, and healers. In the Seven Streams, most Dragonborn are the spawn of one of Veymenuz's two daughters, Kasamenys and Yarisurtha. Those from either clan are often silver, but some Kasakindars are born copper and many Yarikindars are blue-scaled to match their mother. Dragonborn of other colors also live in the Seven Streams, but all of zir moved in from elsewhere.Shifters
Ereki society has evolved an unusually positive view of lycanthropy, which is seen as a boon from Gimatûakt, god of hunting. That said, full-blooded lycanthropes and Shifters (their offspring) aren't universally trusted, as many of their kind reject attempts to manage the more destructive effects of their lycanthropy and flee to the wilds, terrorizing the villages from time to time. Shifters who live in the villages are required to make weekly visits to Druids who specialize in helping people work through the physical and psychological effects of lycanthropy, which can be painful.Warforged
Most Warforged in the Seven Streams are rejects or escapees from Jorus Hydale's factory to the south in Veit. While in remote areas, Warforged must always look out for scrap hunters who seek to sell them back to Jorus. However, these scrap hunters are despised by most villagers, and the laws of the land protect Warforged from being seized by them.Others
Most others who live in the Seven Streams are immigrants or their descendants. The most common are Gnomes, Satyrs, Wood Elves, Firbolgs, and Centaurs. Aasimar and Genasi from the The Rime can also be found among the villages, though often they are just passing through.Culture
Unlike in the rest of Erek, where most view Dragons as a menace at best, the people of the Seven Streams region have lived alongside benevolent Dragons for centuries. The result is a society informed by both Veymenuz's strict sense of justice and the freer leanings of the area's traditional culture.Architecture
Like most Ereki, those from this region traditionally build wooden lean-to's dug halfway into the earth and covered with bark or animal skins to keep the warmth in and snow out. Larger buildings are built in a more typical straight-walled style, though they often built with five sides representing each of the five elements in Ereki Spirituality.Disability
Many disabled people choose to live in Vejsîsata where the amenities are more suited to them. Recently, there has been a movement among them to organize self-managed households in the town without the interference of abled caretakers. In the Seven Streams, lycanthropy is sometimes regarded as a disability. Though less ableist than most societies in Vrashyn, disabled people in the Seven Streams are often treated with condescension and are under-represented in the most socially desirable professions of politics, sports, and hunting.Economy
Skills like leatherworking, sewing, and gardening are practiced within the household. The villages also support artisans who manufacture weapons, build larger buildings, and create art and jewelry. Those who work with stone, metal, or magic typically live in larger towns, though alchemists and lighters (people who keep villages magically lit during the 19-hour night) are common in the villages. Barter is common, but coins from the kingdoms to the east are also used, especially by people in Vejsîsata or tradesmen.Family
In the Seven Streams, most live in tri-generational households with one to two core families and perhaps some adopted elders or children. The concept of aunts, uncles, and cousins is foreign here, as most villagers are at least distantly related to their neighbors anyway. With that in mind, it is traditional to find one's romantic or sexual partners in nearby villages. Queer sexualities are as common in Erek as anywhere else and are neither celebrated nor repressed in the Seven Streams.Food
Hunted animals make up most of the diet in the villages, though cold-weather grains and vegetables are also grown in greenhouses. Increasingly, food from across the sea is available to those with coin. Though taverns of a type can be found, alcohol and other drugs are only used sparingly or medicinally in the Seven Streams due to Veymenuz's law against excessive intoxication.Gender
The culture of the Seven Streams is traditionally matriarchal, and women are overrepresented in political decision-making. Though men do most of the hunting, women are tasked with the duty of community defense and, before Veymenuz took over, were war leaders as well. Non-binary people are common in the Seven Streams due to the influence of Dragonborn. They typically use ze/zir/zirs pronouns and call themselves "eggs."Laws
Veymenuz's laws require complete obedience to his family, regulate exports, and ban physical violence without just cause. Major crimes are punished with banishment, while punishments for minor crimes typically include community service and/or temporarily limited food intake. Due to the ban on injuring other community members without cause, most petty disputes are solved through non-violent competition.Leisure
Music, dancing, storytelling, and especially sports are the preferred leisure activities in this region. The most common sport in Erek is Ricochet, whose object is to bounce a ball off of one of a circle of large tree trunks into the basket at the center. Those who live in Vejsîsata, however, have more access to activities like reading and strategy games.Magic
The use of elemental magic is widespread in the Seven Streams, even among those who are not otherwise magic users. This is due to Veymenuz, whose mere presence increases the passive level of magic in his domain. As a result, many in the Seven Streams are able to learn low-level magic that helps them harness the power of fire, ice, wind, stone, or plant life. This wellspring of natural magic makes Druids and Rangers common in the Seven Streams. On the other hand, Wizards are somewhat rare.Names
The name information below is typical for Goliaths, Humans, and Orcs from this region, or those who have adopted their culture. For character building, you are not limited to the names below, or even to Ereki names depending on your character's backstory. However, the Ereki language lacks a few consonants that exist in English, including /l/, /r/, /th/, and /x/. The letter j represents the /y/ sound in this language. Additionally, there are gender-neutral versions of most names that tend to include consonants borrowed from Draconic, like /f/, /v/, and /z/.First Names
Unlike Ereki surnames, first names are their own words and don't have meanings in addition to being names. Some examples of Ereki first names are below:Surnames
Most people in Erek carry family names that describe what their family is known for, usually their trade or a great achievement of one of their ancestors. In the latter case, a potter from the Seven Streams might have the surname Wetclay or Redshard. Last names based on great deeds are not given lightly, requiring a sacred ceremony involving the entire community. To make Ereki surnames understandable, they will be presented in English, though in-universe they would also be in Ereki. Two ancestries have different ways of approaching surnames. Orcs typically don't have surnames, but might have a nickname or a deed-related last name. Dragonborn have their own system for last names based on their birth mother. In the Seven Streams, most are either part of the Yarikinda or Kasakinda clan.Religion
Most people in the Seven Streams subscribe to Ajemisten, the Giant gods, but others subscribe to the Draconic pantheon or are Pupils of Juanthon.Ajemisten
The word Ajemisten can refer to the people and do their pantheon. The Ajemisten gods are associated with one or more of the five elements of wind, fire, ice, stone, and plant, and are believed to physically inhabit all things. Minor deities are thought of as mixtures of those in the tiers above them, and most substances and concepts are assigned at least one of these minor deities. Gimatuakt, for example, is the god of the hunt and is a manifestation of ice, stone, and plant.Draconic
The next most common religion is Draconic, an assorted collection of divinities the Dragonborn brought with them in their Great Migration.Pupils of Juanthon
One of the largest minority religions in the Seven Streams are the "Pupils of Juanthon," a sect of primarily Humans and Orcs who believe that an ancient king will return from across The Rime to save them from a prophesized second Cataclysm. They are viewed with suspicion by most and often keep their beliefs secret for fear of being ostracized.Keepers of the Cadence
The Keepers of the Cadence are an ancient monastic order present across Southern Erek. The group is non-denominational, seeing various local gods as being associated with their mission of keeping time.Geography
Due to their proximity to The Rime, the climate of the Seven Streams is cold and snowy. All but the most cold-resistant plants are grown in greenhouses or with the aid of Druidic magic. This is made even more difficult by the day/night cycle, as there are only about four hours of direct sunlight a day in Erek. Communities rely heavily on magical lighting in order to operate.History
The Seven Streams are believed to have been inhabited by the Ajemisten people since The Cataclysm. Later in their history, Dragons began to play a more active role, culminating with the rise of Veymenuz the Radiant as the local sovereign.Ancient History
While there is no historical record in the area from before The Cataclysm, the Seven Streams have an unusually large number of Machines, implying that the area was more heavily settled in the distant past. Some of these are incorporated into local ceremonies, such as the yearly Nachikîun migration.The Ajemisten
It is believed that the area's current inhabitants, the Ajemisten, have been in the area since shortly after The Cataclysm. According to local legend, the five principal gods of the Ajemisten each chose worthy members of the local ancestries to be saved from the calamity. Tuka, the god of storms, saved a group of Humans. Meanwhile, Pame of Fire saved the Orcs, Gimuk of Stone saved the Warforged, Jat of Frost saved the Goliaths, and Pûam of Hills saved the Elves and Gnomes.
Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
Comments