A Duskwight Discussion

[DreamedReality]

 

edit: Was it mentioned in how to go about naming the clans? : o I haven't had the luxury of time to back read that far today.

 

Many clans, if there is only one family involved (or one dominant family), seem to just be going off the family's last name.

 

Eva's clan name is a french name based on the geographic location of the clan. Because my clan has multiple families, I took a page from her and did the same with my clan's name. *tips hat to Eva*

[Kyatai]

yeah... seems most of us are either taking a cute from the 'French Inspired' by smooshing legit French words together to create an 'image'... or using straight French words/surnames.

 

Either way is cool... just figured making the Clan name fit the Naming Rules for Elezen seemed logical.

[Teardrop]

Here is the link to the Duskwight Clan wiki.

 

It seems that there are several ways that folk are going about naming their Clan, Rosekitten. Some use their own last name, as their family was perhaps the prominent member of the clan. Some might use a different name as the clan name, signifying the dominant family's name, to which their's was a small part of a larger tribe. I think some may even be naming their clan based on the region, or some significant aspect of the clan's activities. Perhaps by seeing what others have done, it will give you an idea of what might be right for you We've got 8 listings...and growing :thumbsup:

[Rosekitten]

Yeah I was kind of figuring on keeping to the french style rule for the names. I've already glanced over the wiki a bit ^^ very informative (Once i have more free time maybe i can read more).

[LeCard]

That's one more clan for Blamung. Clan Voleur.

 

Also, I would like to advertise here that Rogier's mother needs a clan. Here is what I would need as a minimum for her to be in the clan.

• Near Gridania
  
• peaceful hunter/gatherer type clan
  
• not known to have healing magic (relies on potions/medicine)
  

[Myavar]

Brom and Yssen got me thinking about this in Skype earlier, but has anyone given thought to a "Right of Passage" ceremony for Duskwight?

 

I'm hispanic, and as is common I had a quinceanera (nothing super special, but for those that can afford it ... it can get complex), but the basic premise is for a "girl" to celebrate coming of age into a "young lady". There's even a part of the ceremony where one of the parents removes the girl's flats (flat shoes) and slips on her heels (nothing stupid high). 

 

I'm probably not going to RP out anything in game about it, but it'd be something interesting if we worked out a more universal ceremony for a Duskwight child's coming of age where they're recognized as a young adult instead of a child.

[Teardrop]

Brom and Yssen got me thinking about this in Skype earlier, but has anyone given thought to a "Right of Passage" ceremony for Duskwight?

 

I'm hispanic, and as is common I had a quinceanera (nothing super special, but for those that can afford it ... it can get complex), but the basic premise is for a "girl" to celebrate coming of age into a "young lady". There's even a part of the ceremony where one of the parents removes the girl's flats (flat shoes) and slips on her heels (nothing stupid high). 

 

I'm probably not going to RP out anything in game about it, but it'd be something interesting if we worked out a more universal ceremony for a Duskwight child's coming of age where they're recognized as a young adult instead of a child.

 

There are certainly a few people that have some deep ceremonial backgrounds to their Clans...I think Eva has mentioned a few times various things regarding some pretty interesting traditions in either her or Oskar's background.

 

The thought of "universal" traditions and ceremonies are interesting. Of course, even in the instance you cite, with the quinceanera, there are probably relative levels of participation that vary between families, due to perhaps how many generations removed they are from Mexico, regional, maybe financial (?) reasons, etc. If we were to uncover some aspect of Duskwight official lore that pointed to further traditions or cultural ceremonies, it would be interesting to see how us various players might integrate that into our backstory.

 

I read in another thread somewhere that someone pointed to how our (meaning the Duskwight community) dealt with all the different back stories we seemed to have for our clans, the different traditions, etc. Basically, I think the point was we became a pretty tight community despite our vast differences in clan concepts because we just granted that things could be different between us all and still be perfectly valid and acceptable .

 

Still, Myavar, there are still things that might bond a people, like quinceanera, that would show up throughout the various Clans. The difficulty comes when you run into someone who did not frequent this discussion, though. Does anyone have any "rites of passage" conceptualized for their particular clans at the moment? Might be fun to break them out and see what people have come up with

 

Good question, Myavar :thumbsup: !

[Kyatai]

I agree!

I have been pondering this very thing (well, traditions and ceremonies, that kinda thing) for my Clan.

Priority, however, has been finishing "War and Pe-" erm, that is Chiané's story/bio...

I'm in the edit/review stages now....

(and the final polish of the end that will *hopefully* lead to RP for those of us that are NOT WoL characters, but are survivors of Bahamut's tantrum)

 

Priorities:

1. Bio *WIP*

2. Clan *WIP*

3. Wiki

4. Moving to T'kyiah

• Bio *done*
  
• Clan *fairly done*
  
• Wiki
  

I have this awful issue with being unable to RP characters til I know their history... and through the history, I learn of culture/traditions.

 

So messy.

Not enough time....

 

Ceremonies I'm considering:

Birth

Naming

Coming of Age

Marriage

Death

[Eva]

I think Eva has mentioned a few times various things regarding some pretty interesting traditions in either her or Oskar's background.

...

Does anyone have any "rites of passage" conceptualized for their particular clans at the moment?  Might be fun to break them out and see what people have come up with

 

I won't speak for Oskars clan(s) since they had some rather unusual traditions of their own, but I can list off a few of the ones that have been referenced either through journal entries or in direct RP from Eva's ancestry:

 

1. Coming of Age - On a duskwight's 17th nameday in the Plunierre Clan, if he (or she) is the eldest son (or daughter), he receives "The Saga of Ages" - a collection of journals dating back through history.  They also receive the privilege of being able to "enscribe" their parents' name upon the wall of Living Stone when they pass.  This cannot be done before the 17th nameday, and it falls to some other family member to "enscribe" the deceased's name upon the wall should they die.  More on this later.  At 17 they are also considered old enough to choose a mate and be regarded by the clan as an adult.  Important to note, any subsequent children upon their 17th nameday receive a gift of blank parchment and generally [but not always] choose to begin their own Saga of Ages, to pass along one day to their own children.

 

2. Symbol of Intent - Historically, Plunierre Clan males choose females for mates, however they may only select a mate who has bestowed upon them a symbol of intent.  This takes the form of a candle as a sign that the female will help bring light to guide the male along the way.  This tradition may be practiced by any Duskwight who has Come of Age.  More recently in the past few generations it has become accepted for a male to offer a candle to a female in order to express his interest.  She may then choose to receive it or reject it.  Thus begins a courtship.

 

3. The Marking - In the Plunierre Clan, there are no engagement rings.  Instead when a couple is ready to begin the journey towards marriage, they start a commitment and an elder from the village (or one of his family) then marks both by tattooing a symbol upon their face.  Traditionally this has been done using blue or green ink, and alerts the rest of the clan that they have chosen a mate and are essentially unavailable.

 

4. Matrimony - Weddings are almost a foregone conclusion after The Marking ceremony, and a date will be set.  Before the entire clan, each duskwight pledges his and her love to one another and swears devotion, then there is much celebration and merriment as would follow most weddings.  Marriage is taken very seriously and while very few from Plunierre Clan stray, it has been known to happen on occasion, and is very much a community ordeal and brings great shame upon those who cannot keep to their oaths.  It may bear note that there is no greater sin in the Plunierre community than breaking a sworn oath, and the term "Oathbreaker" is considered the worst curse there is.*

 

5. Enscribing - The Plunierre clan-lands may be somewhat unique in that an underground river once carved a tunnel through the Living Stone.  From the time they first settled there, it has been custom that when one died, their next of kin (if of age) would enscribe their name upon the wall.  This has gone on for many generations.  The chamber is regarded as a sacred place and only the Elder is allowed there unless someone is enscribing.  No one is told what enscribing entails until that time comes for them.  They are given a small stone shard and a bowl and must prick themselves, then write the name upon the wall in their own blood.  It is considered a great honor to enscribe one's father or mother's name.  Conversely it is considered unfortunate or shameful to have to enscribe a child's or some other family member's name.

 

6. The Blessing of Hands - When a new duskwight arrives from another clan, or when one returns from a long absense, chimes are rung to rally the clan together and the new duskwight passes through an aisle with duskwights along either side who place their hands upon his or her shoulders and back as a symbolic gesture, guiding the individual back home and towards the Elder.

 

 

* As a footnote, the importance upon oaths is one theme that ran common with Oskar's duskwight culture as well and may be an interesting sticking point for other clans

 

 

There are more than just these too, to my mind, but they just haven't come up in-game at all yet.

[Kyatai]

RE: Oaths

 

Very much so in N'Ardenté. Personal Honor is held in high regard, Clan Honor, Honor toward Blood (other Duskwrights).

To lose one's honor or betray the Clan or fail to help another DW in need (deserving via DW standards) is a serious offense and would require effort to 'rectify.'

Sometimes including death.

[Teardrop]

 

*snip*

 

 

See, Myavar...quite a list of wonderfully in-depth traditions, customs, and passages here .

 

I've come to find that when I need that sort of thorough support, all I need to do is invoke Eva's name, and she descends from whatever cloud she'd normally lounging on, all billowy robes, blinding light and feathers, to pass on whatever knowledge or opinion she has on the given topic...and people think Legacy players are scary :angel:

[Myavar]

Thank you guys! It definitely gives me something to think about with developing something for my little Hla'Rahel clan.

 

 

There's only 3 members of it currently, so something overly ceremonial and complex might be odd...

 

 

*produces a cake and sets it on the table* 

 

 

How about this? Anyone that can eat this whole cake, by themselves, has completed the right of passage!

[Teardrop]

How about this? Anyone that can eat this whole cake, by themselves, has completed the right of passage!

 

Duskwight vs. Food! Duskwight vs. Food! :lol:

[Myavar]

I just noticed that the banner on our clan page has a silly in it.. The male Duskwight in the image has two different skin colors from his face to his arm o_O;

 

On a serious thought about the "Right of Passage" I think I'll stick with something small and simple, like the passing on of an heirloom. I'd mentioned a little about it to Meg in a PM, but there's a very important item to Myavar that was passed down from several generations of women in her ancestry.

 

This particular item could easily serve the purpose of a recognition into adulthood, at the least, and would serve the purpose for a single family.

[Eva]

I've come to find that when I need that sort of thorough support, all I need to do is invoke Eva's name, and she descends from whatever cloud she'd normally lounging on, all billowy robes, blinding light and feathers, to pass on whatever knowledge or opinion she has on the given topic...and people think Legacy players are scary :angel:

 

I don't know that angels exist in lore officially (though demons and the hells do, I haven't heard much about heaven(s) and such yet). I've been wondering this for a long time. Incidentally this would not be the first time I've heard of Eva being described as a sort of duskwight angel~

 

 

On a serious thought about the "Right of Passage" I think I'll stick with something small and simple, like the passing on of an heirloom. I'd mentioned a little about it to Meg in a PM, but there's a very important item to Myavar that was passed down from several generations of women in her ancestry.

 

This particular item could easily serve the purpose of a recognition into adulthood, at the least, and would serve the purpose for a single family.

 

It could be possible that the passing of an heirloom from one generation to the next was another overarching tradition of many duskwight subcultures, and Plunierre Clan adapted it after breaking away to where the heirloom was the family journals! I kind of like this notion actually~

[Vlll]

Silly question: Lore states that Duskwight moved and prefer to live in caves, but do Duskwight show preference to any of the city states? Not talking about allignment, I mean actual locations. How "correct" could it be to say, for example "xxxx's clan settled in cave systems below La Noscea".

 

I reread it and it sounds quite confusing, english isn't my first language, sorry and thanks in advance.

[Teardrop]

If I understand correctly, there has been some mention somewhere that the schism in the Elezen race had something to do with or about the founding of Gridania, and the subterranean caverns below the Black Shroud were probably their point of origin. That was a long time ago, though, and its safe to say that Duskwights have spread out to wherever adequate subterranean locations could be found.

 

And to sort of be more specific to your question, my own personal Clan would have been located in the region surrounding Ul'dah.

 

We enjoy a great freedom of concept with our Duskwight clans, because the lore is so vague . I'd say you are safe to place your Clan wherever you desire. Look forward to seeing what you come up with, and if you'd like to add your finished work to our Duskwight Clan wiki, you can either input the information yourself, or PM me, and I'll put it in for you . Might as well head over there anyways (if you haven't already) to see what others are doing...might help you decide some things for your own background concept :thumbsup:

[Vlll]

I have a pretty vague background idea for my character. To be honest, I have vague ideas about my character for pretty much anything at the moment, but it's slowly taking form. I'm going to read that wiki link, might give me some ideas, thanks.

[LeCard]

Though they didn't start in Limsa the Voleur clan now calls The La Nocea region home.

[Kyatai]

*goes to crash at Le'Card's*

 

BEACH PARTY!!!

[Twinflame]

I just noticed that the banner on our clan page has a silly in it.. The male Duskwight in the image has two different skin colors from his face to his arm o_O;

 

On a serious thought about the "Right of Passage" I think I'll stick with something small and simple, like the passing on of an heirloom. I'd mentioned a little about it to Meg in a PM, but there's a very important item to Myavar that was passed down from several generations of women in her ancestry.

 

This particular item could easily serve the purpose of a recognition into adulthood, at the least, and would serve the purpose for a single family.

 

I could get behind an heirloom thing. It makes sense. Since Clan Hla'Rahel is broken off of Clan Desfosse, I think it would make sense if we shared a lot of traditions. Luckily, I haven't personally given that too much thought, so I'm an open book!

 

Anyway, I wanted to stop by and show you guys what I'm working on, based off PM conversations with several people in this thread (My PM-count is higher than my post-count lol), because I"m about to be gone for a week and won't be working on it while I'm away. I have yet to get confirmation on all of what's in that pic and obviously most of it is missing explanations. I'm going to attach a snippet of explanation to each connection between clans, but right now, here's some interesting tidbits:

 

Eva and Myavar appear to be distantly related, which makes sense, considering the jokes earlier in the thread! This is, of course, pending Eva's approval.

 

Clan Voleur (Le Card's clan) broke off of Clan Desfosse a single generation after its founding, and was active in the Black Shroud along side Clan Desfosse and Clan Viedeces (Silsix's clan). Voleur, Desfosse and Viedeces each had fairly violent cultures that would have been exposed to one another. Desfosse and Viedeces both worked as professional assassins and had a long-running rivalry. Voleur was forced out of the Black Shroud by non-Duskwight forces about one hundred years ago, and has likely had little to no contact with the Shroud clans since.

 

An exile from Clan N'Ardente entered Clan Desfosse at about that same time. Clan Mauvaix, however, did not influence Clan Desfosse until very recently.

 

What this means is that Desfosse, Voleur, Viedeces and Hla'Rahel have been culturally influenced by one another as well as N'Ardente and Plunierre, but not necessarily the other way around. Clan Mauvaix influenced Clan Desfosse very tangentially, but there is no reverse interaction there presently.

 

Ignore the Miqo'te tribe in the lower left: there is no cultural exhange. That's just me connecting my fiance's character for the sake of my own personal RP.

 

Thiereia is a PC played by Ildur, who I will poke to turn his attention to this thread.

 

The reason I'm bringing this up now is because it involves so many of you, that you should publicly see where you all connect. Since we've begun to discuss culture and what we have in common, seeing the paths of influence will probably be extremely useful. Think about how cool it would be if Myavar and Eva both shared certain traditions, even though they had never met and couldn't ICly trace their lineage to any common point? Stuff like that, I think, is awesome.

 

I'm actually really nervous about showing this to you guys before it's done. If you want to change anything at all about what I've been working on, let me know, please! All of this is fluid and I would gladly move things around to increase or decrease the extent of certain connections, or to expound more upon a certain clan. Please throw feedback my way, and again, recall that nothing in here is finalized or currently 100% approved by all affected!

 

Also, this is mostly just the tree around Megiddo specifically. There's a lot more going on with Clan Desfosse and lots of places to make more connections with anyone who wants to do so.

[LeCard]

 

 

Anyway, I wanted to stop by and show you guys what I'm working on, based off PM conversations with several people in this thread (My PM-count is higher than my post-count lol), because I"m about to be gone for a week and won't be working on it while I'm away. I have yet to get confirmation on all of what's in that pic and obviously most of it is missing explanations. I'm going to attach a snippet of explanation to each connection between clans, but right now, here's some interesting tidbits:

 

Eva and Myavar appear to be distantly related, which makes sense, considering the jokes earlier in the thread! This is, of course, pending Eva's approval.

 

Clan Voleur (Le Card's clan) broke off of Clan Desfosse a single generation after its founding, and was active in the Black Shroud along side Clan Desfosse and Clan Viedeces (Silsix's clan). Voleur, Desfosse and Viedeces each had fairly violent cultures that would have been exposed to one another. Desfosse and Viedeces both worked as professional assassins and had a long-running rivalry. Voleur was forced out of the Black Shroud by non-Duskwight forces about one hundred years ago, and has likely had little to no contact with the Shroud clans since.

 

An exile from Clan N'Ardente entered Clan Desfosse at about that same time. Clan Mauvaix, however, did not influence Clan Desfosse until very recently.

 

What this means is that Desfosse, Voleur, Viedeces and Hla'Rahel have been culturally influenced by one another as well as N'Ardente and Plunierre, but not necessarily the other way around. Clan Mauvaix influenced Clan Desfosse very tangentially, but there is no reverse interaction there presently.

 

Ignore the Miqo'te tribe in the lower left: there is no cultural exhange. That's just me connecting my fiance's character for the sake of my own personal RP.

 

Thiereia is a PC played by Ildur, who I will poke to turn his attention to this thread.

 

The reason I'm bringing this up now is because it involves so many of you, that you should publicly see where you all connect. Since we've begun to discuss culture and what we have in common, seeing the paths of influence will probably be extremely useful. Think about how cool it would be if Myavar and Eva both shared certain traditions, even though they had never met and couldn't ICly trace their lineage to any common point? Stuff like that, I think, is awesome.

 

I'm actually really nervous about showing this to you guys before it's done. If you want to change anything at all about what I've been working on, let me know, please! All of this is fluid and I would gladly move things around to increase or decrease the extent of certain connections, or to expound more upon a certain clan. Please throw feedback my way, and again, recall that nothing in here is finalized or currently 100% approved by all affected!

 

Also, this is mostly just the tree around Megiddo specifically. There's a lot more going on with Clan Desfosse and lots of places to make more connections with anyone who wants to do so.

Awesome work here. it look really cool and well thought out. Also, I posted a Charater creation built picture of Talmont(Le'cards father) on Rogier's wikki if/when you want to add it.

 

otherwise

[Kyatai]

OMG Meg.... that looks hella-awesome!!!!

Great job! I'm sooo excited!!!

 

Let me know if you need me to make my Clan's people...

(ye gods I need to work on more of my Clan details.... You shame me, Meg, you really do.... )

[Teardrop]

(ye gods I need to work on more of my Clan details.... You shame me, Meg, you really do.... )

 

Stop standing around handing out pie, and you just might find some time to write up your family tree

 

Kidding though...I'm usually part of the welcoming wagon too (only 2 people welcomed me...*sniff* :blush: ).

 

+1 for the work, Twinflame :thumbsup:

[Myavar]

That is an -awesome- family tree! Super +1 to you Meg!

 

We're like a rainbow across that picture! :bouncy: