Intermission: Week 2
Last week I talked a little about the founding of Gair and H’arkenlowe back at the beginning of recorded history (in 1E:1 and 1E:9 respectively). While Nessa was technically the next city to be founded (in 1E:275), I’m instead going to skip ahead a bit to the next city that was founded after that: Lutra.
The above thumbnails depicting Lutra’s expansive coastline aren’t from Beyond the Western Deep, but from an old prequel comic that Rachel and I put on the backburner when it became clear that the main story would be told in webcomic format. The prequel, tentatively called War of the Western Deep, focused a bit more on the races and locations I knew we wouldn’t be covering much in the main BWD story. Specifically the Polcan and the city of Lutra.
For the sake of Beyond the Western Deep, the Lutren capital is pretty much “Sir Not Appearing in this Film”. At least the Polcan can make cameos here and there throughout our heroes’ adventures across the kingdoms!
Lutra was founded in 1E:432, though the Lutren had been living in scattered tribes up and down the western coastline for as long as they could remember. Tribes eventually began to consolidate when they realized there were other races out in the world that might want to take over their land (notably the Tamian, whose tree-dwelling manner did not match well with the Lutren’s seafaring lifestyle). The status quo was maintained for many hundreds of years, and Lutren civilization slowly but surely began to grow.
By the time the second era rolled around, the Lutren and Tamian had been at loggerheads for more generations than most could count. They simply assumed that their races would live separately from one another, never encroaching on one another’s territory. This changed rapidly when the Polcan showed up in 2E:98. Their story will likely be covered in future Western Deep tales, but the important thing to note is that Lutra and Terria, capitals of the Lutren and Tamian races, finally came together to conquer their mutual foe. Sunsgrove was born from that alliance, and the Polcan repelled.
Despite the Polcan remaining a threat, the coasts of Lutra are relatively calm these days. Unlike the Felis, the Lutren do not have any oceanic trade routes established, mostly because the Western Seas are too dangerous to sail and what lies on the other side is a mystery.
Instead, the Lutren harvest their food and their livelihoods directly from the sea – which they revere as God-like and a key element of the Lutren creation myth. Factoring in land alone, Lutra is the smallest of capital cities, but most Lutren are just as at home in the water as they are on land, with house boats and other floating barges serving as housing for those without permanent dwellings in the city itself.
Although, that WOULD be very cool, Var. Question is, which race(s)/kingdom(s) would the Lutren use such war mounts against? They seem perfectly at peace with the Tamian, probably wouldn’t stand a chance against the Canid, are far removed from the plight of the Ermehn, and seem utterly indifferent to the affairs of the Vulpin and Felis. Their only regular foe, the Polcan, are a water-dwelling race, so unless those “gargantuan war mounts” are pinniped or cetaceous in nature (which would be really cool) I’d say they’d be rather useless to the Lutren. Then again … “Saddle up the war walruses, and into the breech!”
Also, points to Alex for his “Holy Grail” reference. We geeks and nerds can never get enough Python allusions, so kudos! Keep this behind-the-scene bonus material coming until Chapter Two!
War walruses! Buy now and we’ll throw in the armoured moustache guards for free!!!
What’s the climate like? It looks a little tropical.
That boxy tree in the very top left corner is mighty suspicious of that boxy rock.
Double post but I thought it necessary in order to advise that you should definitely not nix the headband.
I think the Lutren are my favorite creatures!
I appear to be late to the party, but I’m here nevertheless. :P I like the idea of the rock pillar otters and how the tribes could decorate them or carve faces into them, and the Lutren coastline is quite beautiful. It got me thinking, though– by any chance, are there any Lutren who resemble sea otters instead of river otters, or are they all river-otter based? At any rate, I still love their ottery faces, heh. It’s nice to know that we may have another adventure in the BWD universe after these heroes’ actions are done; the Polcan and Sir Not Appearing In This Film (presumably due to his sister getting bit by a moose) both seem like two interesting topics for exploration.
For once, it’s not the people who don’t expect the Canid Inquisition, it’s the Canid Inquisition who expect nothing. I am oddly proud. Virtual high five for being one of the gruesome twosome?
Aww, we won’t get to see the Lutren capital in the comic? That’s a real shame, since it seems so cool from the descriptions you give of it :( And the Polcan won’t make that much of an appearance either? Shame on both of ye!
Still, it’s really cool to find out more about our seafaring beasties. It’s interesting to know that the Lutren and Tamian haven’t always been friends, but that they allied out of convenience when the Polcan attacked and had been kinda at each others’ throats before that. Just goes to show what a common enemy can do – it’s just a shame beasts can’t learn to get along without having to shed blood to do so.
Anyway, all aspects of Lutren culture seem cool, like the carved stone figures by the coast, the floating barges many of them live on, even the nature surrounding their settlements. This world you’ve created just seems to be getting more and more awesome with each page!