A triton woman with green hair, blue skin, and wearing a strand of sea shells around her neck strolls through an underwater field of oysters searching for pearls. A male water genasi emerges onto a beach looking up a river valley into a ruined city of giant shells, bone, and petrified coral as part of his coming-of-age pilgrimage. A tortoise jumps from the deck of a ship and swims towards enemy lines brandishing their spear while a storm begins to rage just above the surface of the waves. This is the T’vathian.
Overview
The T’vathian is the main civilization of the undersea Triton surrounding Wilder’s milder waters. No other civilization rivals the T’vathian’s knowledge and control of the seas. This means the T’vathian have great naval power both as an ally and an enemy of other civilizations on Wilder. Their life revolves around the great oceans and the other nations’ relationships to the oceans, and therefore, their economy and culture bustle with rich ties to the salty seas. Though their civilization is untouchable by most, they do not restrict themselves to the oceans. They often come on land for pilgrimages to one of their long lost cities.
Travelers who do manage to visit the T’vathian in their cities under the sea will find welcoming Triton willing to swap stories and trade keepsakes from the overworld and the sea. Travelers are much more likely to encounter them on a pilgrimage or helping naval ships.
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Government: Democracy Military: Navy and Elite Forces Economy: Transportation and Trade Culture: Mild Collectivist Religion: Polytheism
Races of the T’vathian
Races of the T’vathian primarily include the following:
- Triton of Wilder - Tritons make up over half the population of the T’vathian. They have existed in the oceans for millennia, and are the founders of many of the undersea cities. It is certain that without the Triton, much of the deep sea would still be wild and uninhabitable by anything aside from monsters.
- Water/Air Genasi of Wilder - Unlike the Triton who have always lived under the sea, Water Genasi originally were from the overworld and have since moved underwater where they felt most at home. Air Genasi, though not evolutionarily dispositioned to live underwater, have also found some solitude under the waves. The Air Genasi often serve as important ambassadors for the overworld, especially high places where they aren’t as intimidated by heights.
- Tortles of Wilder - Tortles can hold their breath for up to an hour, so some have found ways to live fairly functionally with the T’vathian. They are often traders for the overworld and oceans, and at other times, serve as crew on ships for the T’vathian where Triton and Water Genasi much prefer working underwater.
Government
The T’vathian are a strongly democratic people. There is a Senate of 20 people. In the 4 other Triton civilizations, there are Senates of 20 people for a total of 100 members of a High Senate that meets once every 5 years or if there is a global threat.
Each member of the 20-person senate has an individual job title, and when the High Senate meets, everyone of the same job position sits together. So the regular Senates are 5 groups of 20, and the High Senate is 20 groups of 5.
Military
The T’vathian’s primary military is known as the Stratos Reserve. The Stratos Reserve is composed of three main divisions: a small, land-based military, an elite force of aquatic troops, and a navy.
The land division of the Stratos Reserve primarily consists of Fighters with Paladins as chief officers. These troops, since small in numbers, rely on phalanx tactics to win battles on land.
The Stratos Reserve’s aquatic division consists of elite, underwater soldiers who are able to take down ships from below the surface without the need of a ship of their own. These soldiers rely heavily on the manipulation of the ocean’s winds and waters in order to defeat enemy fleets and less on hand-to-hand combat. Therefore, these troops are made up of a combination of Druids, Rangers, and Fighters.
The Stratos Reserve’s naval division is called the Blue Armada, and consists of some ships. These ships are mostly used in allyships with other nations or in strictly formal affairs like signing treaties. The troops that fight for the Blue Armada consist of Druids, Rangers, and Fighters.
The T’vathian also have a great need for a defensive military to protect the cities and towns underwater from the creatures of the deep. The world beneath the depths is hostile and treacherous, and Aegis is the T’vathian’s military that provides protection from deep-sea threats and dangerous areas of the deep that remain unsettled and wild.
The T’vathian’s military uses conscription to maintain their military: men are initially conscripted, but women can step in place for men conscripted in the military if they are a wife or daughter of the conscripted man. The Stratos Reserve receives a lot of volunteers, so often doesn’t need conscription to fill its ranks. However, Aegis relies heavily on conscription as many are deterred from the unknown dangers of the deep.
Economy
The T’vathian rely partially on trade as a source of income. Their largest exports include pearls, shells, and sea creatures the surface people use for cooking. The T’vathian’s place underwater means they often farm such resources agriculturally rather than gather them the way many surface people have to, making them a great supply for resources normally limited to the surface world. Aside from natural resources provided agriculturally, the T’vathian also provide scientific resources to improve water quality, transport water, and harness wind/water energy.
Along with their emphasis on trade, The T’vathian also provide safe transport through their aquatic territories. The ships they create that aren’t needed for T’vathian civilization are used instead to help ferry goods and people across the oceans.
Culture
The T’vathian have survived underwater for millenia, and therefore have developed a strong cultural system that best allows for the survival of T’vathian Civilization. Each of the five T’vathian cultures are deeply rooted in their specific location. The T’vathian of Wilder are rooted in the bay which protects them from many of the harms of the ocean while putting them in a unique position to work with and against those on land. Though the T’vathian of Wilder are prone to wander, They are not nomadic like many other civilizations of Wilder. Instead, they make great, undersea cities. Where most everyone lives. Even some farmland is kept within city limits to better protect them from attacks. Here are some of the cultural aspects of the T’vathian of Wilder.
- The T’vathian think of their flag as representing the shallow waters of the ocean as well as the deeper waters in the ocean, and that the golden anchor rooted in between these two represents the safety of the T’vathian.
- The T’vathian use shells of giant mollusks, crabs, and even dragon turtles to build their houses. Coral dots the city like trees.
- Farming in the T’vathian takes many interesting forms:
- Low-level druids/rangers run pearl farms where they use tiny organisms to help distress mollusks to kickstart the growth of pearls.
- Fisheries exist in T’vathian cities, but these fish are kept under large nets on the seafloor where they can still live and roam free without swimming away.
- T’vathian grow deep-sea plants, too.
- T’vathian cities often create undersea air bubbles as communal places for races like tortles and air genasi to breathe air. These spaces often serve as communal hubs since these would be the only place air genasi could speak underwater.
- T’vathian wear tight fitting clothing under water, but above water, they frequently wear flowing clothes that cover most of the skin to protect from sunburn.
- They like to use pearls, sea shells, and other nautical imagery as accessories to their typical look.
- There isn’t a large hierarchical system in the T’vathian: anyone can rise up the ranks and be higher class. Likewise, those in the higher class are under equal treatment under the law.
- Since there is a large difference in lifespan between the triton and tortles versus the genasi, laws are often applied differently to each of the races.
- The T’vathian are deeply patriotic given that the union of the T’vathian better supports everyone. Unity is why everyone is able to survive and to thrive. You are looked down upon if you aren’t working for the good of the whole.
- Service in the military or in the senate is a high honor.
- Though the T’vathian favor unity, they also encourage people to be individualistic. Everyone’s unique skills and ideas contribute to the function of the whole.
- The T’vathian are super eco friendly as any waste that gets dumped into the water goes to the oceans.
- The T’vathian are experts on the stars as it is the primary source of navigation since from the ocean surface, there are no significant landmarks to help navigate.
Religions
What many don’t know is that the pantheon (Polytheism) of Terra’s empire derived from the gods and goddesses that the T’vathian serves. However, the T’vathian have mostly moved past a need for an organized religion, and has the highest population of nonreligious citizens anywhere in Wilder. Their pantheon, however, are as follows:
| God | Domain | Symbol | Terran Equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eadro | God of the sea and storms | A whirlpool or a hurricane | Sylvanus |
| Klous | God of shadow and chaos | A series of eight, interlocking circles that look like chains | Myrkul |
| Mahi | Goddess of war and tactics | A sword and round shield | Mystra |
| Milil | God of poetry and song | Five-stringed harp | Lathander |
| Selune | Goddess of the moon | A pair of eyes circled by 7 stars | Leira |
| Syman | God of stars and the cosmos | A crown made up of three stars | Savras |
| Torm | God of courage and self-sacrifice | White right gauntlet | Helm |
| Tyr | God of justice | Balanced scales on a warhammer | Kelemvor |