Quirks – with the Aeg it is sometimes difficult to distinguish between sex and a brawl, but despite the best efforts of some to imitate the Mund they don’t really understand sexual aberration. The Mund might disagree, pointing out that Aeg barbarians consort with nymphs and even trolls, drawing the line only at goblins, while witches and warlocks are rumoured to summon demons for their private indulgence.
Mund
“You have insulted me. Prepare to defend yourself.”
The Mund are close cousins to the Aeg but marginally less gigantic and often pale haired. The general population are hearty and practical but often aggressive. They do not suffer fools gladly and are often somewhat dour and given to rage or in rare cases berserk fury. These characteristics are taken to extremes among the nobility, who are immensely proud and obsessive about status. Those who die in combat feast for eternity, but there are separate halls for heroes and heroines. No living person can be a hero. They trade precious metals and furs, providing considerable wealth.
Primary Drive - Pride
Social – medieval, feudal. Agriculture, hunting. Basic monarchy.
Slavery – anathema.
Technology – steel.
Armament – great sword, war bow, specialised daggers. Developed armour.
Clothing – cloth, some fine. Rarely silk. Elaborate garments.
Religion – ancestor worship.
Erotic Congress – the general population behave much as the Aeg do, especially in remote areas, but with more reserve. Among the nobility sex is both peculiar and alarming. Both men and women are intensely proud and extraordinarily sensitive to humiliation, while virginity is an obsession. Highborn girls live in towers and wear iron girdles beneath immensely elaborate dresses in order to ensure the preservation of their virginity and reveal the absolute minimum of flesh. A highborn man, in order to gain a mate, must scale the tower, break in through a window, force the lock of the girl’s chastity girdle and ravish her. He will meet stern resistance throughout, involving not only nails and teeth but daggers, swords, chamberpots and anything else that comes to hand. Only once her virginity has been taken will she give in, after which their union will be for life. Thus it is assured that only the proudest and strongest reproduce, and that there are few superfluous nobles.
Quirks – the Mund, especially the nobles, are obsessed with flagellation, both erotic and punitive, also nudity. To the spanked naked is the ultimate humiliation to a noble Mund, while even the exposure of a buttock has been known to trigger berserk rage. Lesbian relationships between highborn girls and their maids are normal but a shameful secret.
Hai
“Sit, let us drink and watch the sport in the streets.”
The Hai are related to the Aeg and the Mund but with a touch of southern blood which gives them their golden beauty. They are a cheerful people, enjoying pageants and every sort of display, especially elaborate cruelties and humiliations. Political intrigue is taken for granted at every level of society and loyalty is fluid to say the least. The climate is mild, food easy to come by, wine as easy to make as to drink. The Hai regard the Aeg and Mund as bloodthirsty savages, but they themselves are larger and stronger than most, providing excellent mercenaries if they can be bothered. Hero is a rare and exalted title, gained only by some extraordinary feat or by killing an existing hero in combat.
Primary Drive – Allure
Social – renaissance. Guilds, class mobility. Agriculture. Monarchy.
Slavery – rare.
Technology – steel. Fine glass is a speciality.
Armament – axe, crossbow, swords for nobles, hammers for priests.
Clothing – fine cloth, silk. Light, stylish garments.
Religion – monotheism.
Erotic Congress – the Hai take sex more or less for granted, enjoying each other openly and with few inhibitions. Although not exceptionally lustful, they consider it rude not to satisfy each other in the evening or at a small social gathering between friends. Erotic spectacles are part of every pageant and circus program, while nudity is commonplace. A young couple might well slake their desire for each other in the street without attracting adverse comment, while a maid thrown into a pit of goblins for impudence will come out a trifle crestfallen but still smiling. The Gannite priesthood attempt to stress the submissive role of women but few take any notice, regarding their vindictive displays of restraint and flagellation as just one more entertainment, even if on the receiving end.
Quirks – elaborate and subtle cruelties are a normal part of sex and there are few taboos, which means that to others, especially the Mund, the Hai are unspeakably depraved.
Ythan
“The practical solution is always the best.”
The people of Ythan are heavily interbred with dwarves, and it shows. Squat, hirsute and solid, they lack both grace and beauty. However, they are cosmopolitan and usually tolerant, relatively advanced and the best natural craftsmen among the eight peoples. They trade extensively, most often between nations as their homeland is poor in natural resources, but in order to make up for this they have taken to breeding exotic slaves for the Vendjomois market. Ythan is only just north of the Great Parch and is a dry land irrigated by the great Ephraxis River. Their alchemists are especially skilled and they are notorious for their potions and philtres.
Primary Drive - Craft
Social – a lose republic. Irrigation agriculture.
Slavery – breeding for export.
Technology – basic industrial.
Armament – cross-bow, musket.
Clothing – light cloth. Kirtles, robes.
Religion – vague polytheism.
Erotic Congress – sex among the people of Ythan is straightforward and practical, also frequent. They have a strong drive to reproduce, but do not find each other particularly attractive and so use stimulants and musks, which tend to hang in the hot, still air.
Quirks – erotic perversion is known to the people of Ythan, but not understood. Certainly they see no moral difficulties with their breeding programs, most of which involve human half-man crosses.
Makea
“Everything has a value.”
The Makeans are a people unrelated to the others, generally of middling size and seldom well-formed, while their skin is a curious charcoal grey and their hair black. They are a race of pirates and bullies, preferring to plunder than trade although their island is rich in spices, dyes, incense and other precious things. The highest class of Makeans are known as Exquisites, the next level are Elites. They take their pleasures in wrestling and other combat sports, generally between slaves, who include debtors of their own race.
Primary Drive - Greed
Social – structured, militaristic. Fishing, agriculture. Monarchy.
Slavery – commonplace.
Technology – basic industrial.
Armament – musket, cannon. Swords are largely ceremonial.
Clothing – light, colourful silk robes. Cloth and leather for practical wear.
Religion – polytheism.
Erotic Congress – in Makea sex is almost invariably a commercial transaction, although not necessarily for money. To purchase sex is seen as a mark of high status, to sell it the reverse. Slaves are expected to do as they are told and are often trained specifically as concubines. Makeans are inveterate voyeurs and enjoying watching others perform sexual acts, preferably for money as this reinforces to status of the observer.
Quirks – the Makeans take particular pleasure in erotic games, generally designed to force friends or lovers to degrade each other in order to escape some worse fate. These are often public and the subject of extensive betting. They are inveterate sodomites.
Oretes
“I am prepared to negotiate.”
The Oreteans are a sm
all, swarthy people, quick witted but not very physical. Each extended family forms a “house”, from royalty down, and there is constant rivalry and intrigue. Cunning is the highest virtue and betrayal a perfectly respectable means to an end. They bring the same attitude to trading, to war and to justice. Oretaea is a large country and thinly populated. Their caravans and ships travel great distances and their eloquence and flexibility allows them to trade even with the Aeg.
Primary Drive - Guile
Social – agriculture. Flexible, urban. Monarchy by election.
Slavery – institutional.
Technology – basic industrial.
Armament – lance, sword, musket. Light armour.
Clothing – silk, fine cloth. Robes, turbans.
Religion – indifferent.
Erotic Congress – the typical Oretean is not particularly lustful. Sex is considered a private affair, best restricted to the bedchamber, but is frequently employed to gain advantage in their endless intrigues, which in turn makes the people wary and has led to an elaborate, formal system of official brothels. There is a mild nudity taboo, so that subtly revealing clothing is popular.
Quirks – oral sex, and particularly rimming, is used to display status among the Oreteans and therefore considered humiliating for the giver.
Vendjome
“How much for your daughter?”
Closely related to the Oreteans but mutually antagonistic, the Vendjomois are by far the most populous of the eight peoples, occupying rich, fruitful lands. Their economy is supported by a large slave population they consider little different to beasts, which means there are few poor Vendjomois and many very wealthy ones. Trade is extensive, levies and tariffs complicated, public servants and priests everywhere. Physically small and precious of their vitality, the Vendjomois prefer to employ mercenaries to do their fighting, but there is a small, elite officer class. All strangers are automatically slaves unless they have the correct paperwork as traders of mercenaries.
Primary Drive - Wealth
Social – imperial, bureaucratic, rigid. Agricultural. Imperialism.
Slavery – economically essential.
Technology – basic industrial.
Armament – lance, sword, musket. Light armour. Mercenaries.
Clothing – silk. Generally minimal
Religion – fervent polytheism.
Erotic Congress – in Vendjome, sex is something you have with slaves, excepting only when you wish to beget an heir. Wealthy Vendjomois of both sexes keep specialised, highly trained pleasure slaves, while there is great competition for exotics, especially with blonde hair, or better still, red. Hai are particularly prized, Aprinians slightly less so while Mund and Aeg fetch the highest prices, but only from those unaware of the drawbacks.
Quirks – most Vendjomois make little distinction between girls and boys when it comes to sex, and all will take what is available. Some are cruel, but not studiously so, many enjoy deflowering virgins, but more for the rarity value than the sensation.
Aprina
“Your hypothesis is flawed.”
The Aprinians are originally from central Cypraea, a dark skinned people, the men generally slender, the women tending towards the voluptuous. They are more civilised than their neighbours, and wary, particularly of slavers. They keep tight border controls, and what trade they have is with the Hai across the Red Parch. A lush hinterland provides drugs and plenty of food, the northern desert metals and semi-precious stone, but little else. Their lives are easy and their life expectancy long, making them cautious and less hardy than others.
Primary Drive – Wisdom
Social – democratic city states. Meritocracy. Agriculture, husbandry, gathering.
Slavery – unacceptable.
Technology – industrial.
Armament – rifles, artillery.
Clothing – little or none. Silk.
Religion – none. Atheist.
Erotic Congress – the Aprinians take a casual attitude to sex and have few taboos. Nudity is the rule rather than the exception and there is no shame in public display. Prostitution is consider a pointless barbarism, although it is not uncommon to offer sex as a courtesy. Other peoples consider the dark skin and abundant endowments of the Aprinians appealing.
Quirks – the Aprinians have a peculiar horror of slavery, which by a curious logic makes it their favourite erotic fantasy, often combined with bondage and spanking, which are seen as purely erotic. Decorative erotic piercings are the norm and a mark of status.
Half-men and beasts
Four distinct types of half-men need to be taken into account.
Dwarves – a burly, solid people fond of mining, metallurgy and mead. They live in cities to the north of Ythan and are occasionally met with elsewhere as mercenaries or traders. Dwarves are tough, surly, practical, avaricious. Dwarves can be hired, at high rates, and make excellent guards although they are ultimately loyal to their own kind. Their technology surpasses even that of the Aprinians, but they keep it firmly to themselves.
Dwarves and true humans breed true and produce fertile offspring but they don’t usually go in for this and are regarded as a distinct species, especially by themselves.
Trolls – huge, lumbering creatures confined to mountainous regions, trolls are too stupid and too aggressive to communicate with and cannot be used for effective labour. They have a strong, distinctive scent and are easy to avoid, while they are vegetarian and will not normally attack humans. Only the most powerful and experienced warrior could hope to survive unarmed combat with a troll, but it is known. Capturing trolls is feasible if never easy, generally done using nets and packs of dogs. The Makeans and others occasionally use them for sport.
Trolls can interbreed with humans and some even consider the Aeg to have troll blood, although it is best not to mention this. Very occasionally trolls are used for erotic entertainment or punishment, but this is considered an outrage except in Ythan, where they are determined that troll/human crosses will make ideal slave labour and shock troops. So far they have had little success, but that doesn’t stop them trying.
Goblins – ugly, green troglodytes about two feet tall. They feed on subterranean animals and detritus, living in extensive systems of burrows in remote woodland. Most peoples shun goblins, but they are cunning are hard to catch. The Makeans use them for entertainment.
There are no female goblins, while the male is equipped with a monstrous green penis out of all proportion to his body. This he employs with a will on any hapless human girl who succumbs to the rich musk he exudes, which is so strong and so powerful that one deep breath will render even the purest high-born lady of Mund helpless with desire. Should this fate befall a girl she will eventually give birth to a dozen or so goblin imps, which is one good reason they wear chastity girdles.
Nymphs – nymphs are exquisitely beautiful but almost brainless things of small size but human proportions. They are shy and generally keep to deep woodland, but they are also curious and quite easily caught. There is extensive trade in nymphs.
Nymph/Human crosses are infertile, but they still play an important part in Ythan breeding programs, the idea being to produce a pleasure slave as beautiful and compliant as a nymph but larger and intelligent enough to follow instructions. Elsewhere, nymphs are occasionally used as erotic companions. Nymphs exude a musk similar to that of goblins but much weaker, which is widely used as an aphrodisiac.
Ogres – are related to trolls, but even larger and carnivorous. They have been hunted almost to extinction, but a few survive in remote mountain areas.
Ogres usually think of their belly first and their sexual appetite second, but you might be really unlucky.
Beasts – horses, dogs, baboons, red and black apes, camels, elephants and ostriches are all mentioned in the books and may be brought int
o the game as needed.
Antagonisms & Alliances
Some peoples get on better than others. Much of this can be deduced from the above, but a few details from the books will help...
Attitude to slavery is important. In Aeg, Mund, and Aprina it is an abomination. In Hai it is acceptable. In Ythan, Makea, Oretes and Vendjome it is taken for granted.
Trade is important. Major routes are between Mund and Hai; Hai, Aprina and Ythan; Ythan and Vendjome; Makea and Vendjome. Any minor route is possible, but geography should be taken into account.
Skirmishes between Aeg and Mund are commonplace, but always small scale. They occasionally intermarry.
Both Aeg and Mund raid Hai.
The Aprinians are defensive.
The Vendjomois and Oreteans are at war more often than not.
Everybody hates the Makeans.
The Wilds
A great deal of land lies outside the control of the eight main peoples...
In the north of Apraya are a few Dwarven cities, more towns and villages inhabited by peoples of mixed blood. The coast is sparsely populated except for Port Ergan, where Hai goods come in.
The Maiden Saga: Role Playing Game Page 2
