MA: Al-Murrah: Desert Dwellers

[Sandman]

I'd shy away from using real world terms like Bedouin and possibly Mamluk.

I would go for pure fire and air as their magic paths. It's a good combination, is vaguely thematic and isn't 'taken'. Yes, they could legitimately have pretty much any magic path, but it's the same for all the nations. Plus, I tend to think nations with focused magic are more fun to play and easier to balance.

[Wizzil]

the words are just arab meanings for terms like Desert Nomad and Slave Soldier respectively, i do not see whats wrong with that, since Ermor and other roman based nations already use terms like Hastatus and Accensus which were originally latin terms for their soldiers.

though if you mean to go for more originality i guess i could help with that i guess

[DrPraetorious]

I agree 100% with wizzil - if the nation is modeled after the historical arab military, it's fine to use arabic terms for the military units.

I could see how someone might have a problem with islamic names for the various types of cleric - but the game has oodles of "bishops" in it, not to mention deacons, a few other religion-specific clerical titles.

[Sandman]

For some reason I had thought that Bedouin had a discrete ethnic meaning, but after checking, it doesn't seem to. So consider that objection shelved.

[Starshine_Monarch]

In response to Wizz, thanks a lot for the ideas, but right now, I'm mainly just focusing on getting the MA nation done first. If this goes well, I'll consider making EA and LA versions later.

I would like you to enlighten me a bit on the role of Dervishes. Everything I've read said that Sufi Dervishes were humble priests rather than fanatic whirling killers. I'd like to know where that idea came from and why. I would also like some info on the mythological creatures you mentioned. Also I'm thinking that instead of FED alchemists, they would be FES instead as I've read that alchemy also includes the study of astrology to a lesser extent.

[Sombre]

Does it matter where the idea came from? It's a modern myth, like the ninja.

[DrPraetorious]

There are several sects of dervishes that perform a whirling dance (or other moving meditation) while carrying swords, probably for symbolic purposes. Maybe some of them would also fight this way but I kinda doubt it.

Anyway, other (completely different?) sufis developed a formidable reputation as highly elite light cavalry, and the two descriptions were somehow merged in the west. Or so I have been told.

Anyway, as Sombre points out, like all mammals, Sufis can be cruel *or* totally awesome.

Given the close links in practice (if not in doctrine) between sufi sects and far-eastern religions, I do think WSN is the right magic for sufi practitioners.

You could legitimately give alchemists almost any combination of magic paths you wanted. If you want to be historical, they viewed themselves as a continuation of greek traditions, so you could give them the same mix of magic as an arcoscephale mystic, or something similar. Fire/air would certainly work.

The choice of death magic reflects a lovecraftian influence - HP Lovecraft loved arabic folklore, although the state of scholarship in the early 20th century was fairly primitive.

Anyway, all that "calling forth from dead saltes" stuff that HPL goes on about has alchemical roots, and it's really cool, so I think alchemists should do that. I'm sure that astrology played a bigger role than necromancy in alchemic practice, but - the purpose of alchemy is to flip and out and kill people.

[Wizzil]

DrPraetorious provides a rather nice discription, though may i add for game purposes they can be like berserkers fighting in a whirlwind like motion.

I'll get on with the mythological creatures:

Djinn: the basic type of otherworldy creature in middle eastern mythology, they can be taken in any direction and have many other "castes", though the basic djinn is usually considered as some sort of air spirit or tied to the air element generally.

Marid: Coastal Djinn, huge in size, usually cruel creatures that torture their prey by asking almost impossible riddles before eating them whole.

Efreet: Generally small djinn, their size may reach that of a human, very fiery in nature and destructive.

Selbouh: not related to the djinn, a sentient froglike creature with big eyes, usually they stalk their pray in rivers, skewering them with spears and dragging them into the bottom of the river to consume them.

Ghul: formerly they were human, but madness has destroyed their minds, they usually dig out graves and eat the corpses within them.

i haven't played much yet of the game to give the units roles, so i'll leave it to the author, seeing how djinns generally vary they can fit in pretty much everything (like for instance Ifreets as skirmisher type of units, firing flaming arrows and fighting with swords enchanted with fire), maybe have them conjured as some sort of national magic that depends on the school of magic you take.

[DrPraetorious]

I made an effort to incorporate Jinn and Efreet into some of dominions3's own unique mythology. Obviously these descriptions will have to be changed if they are not national summons for Abyssia, but I wanted your feedback on the general ideas.

On the stats for Jinn etc.:
* They are made from smokeless fire, so they are ethereal, and immune to fire damage.
* They have the ability to become invisible, maybe shape change, etc. - best compromise, give them glamour. Possibly flight, as well.
* Jinn derives from a term meaning something like "hidden", so give them stealth.
* They live on dust, and their mounts eat bones and dung (or was it the other way around?). Anyway, they don't need supplies.
* They are extremely long lived, at least a thousand years maxage - but not immortal.
* Solomon had an army of them by virtue of his ability to communicate with anything (or am I misreading this?) Anyway, the question of communication suggests that they require magic leadership (and thus are magic beings.)

The Abyssians are the children of Rhuax, the lord of Magma. So, I thought the Jinn should, by extension be the children of Catharsis (lord of smokeless fire) who becomes Anthrax, lord of bane fire, in dominions3's own internal mythology. The "good" jinn hide themselves from humans mainly out of fear and shame, they fight with more or less regular weapons, while the "bad" jinn, ifrit, marids, whatever you call them, followed their father into the underworld, and fight with blasts of banefire.

[Wizzil]

if this is directed at me, just one error, Solomon had the djinns becuase it was granted to him by god, his communication with non-humans came from his father King David (if i recall correctly).

Everything else sounds good and meshes well with the Dominions mythology imo.