Yar Runes

[Catarrh 720]

   In the recent years since Malog, founder and leader of the Yar clan, has been on and off of various pilgrimages, he has developed a series of runes for use by the orcs of his clan. These clan runes generally serve two different functions. Some serve merely as a means of shorthand communication between the Yars who come across them. Others are more spiritual in nature, used almost as a form of non-verbal prayer to be tattooed on skin, carved onto walls, or etched into weapons, armor, and shields in hopes of gaining some manner of favor from one spirit or another.

 

The Wizened Eye <O>

 

 

 

   The presence of the Wizened Eye is the Yar rune of wisdom. It's typically used to denote the home of a wise orc, or as a way to honor spirits of wisdom in hopes of receiving a blessing of inspiration or guidance.

 

The Wide Eye <(O)>

 

 

 

   The Wide Eye represents watchfulness, and is commonly meant to communicate a need for caution or alertness in the general area. It may also serve to ask for said qualities from the spirits.

 

The Blind Eye <X>

 

 

 

   The Blind Eye, commonly carved into the foreheads of slain or captured enemies, is the mark of the fool, and is meant as an insult. It may also be seen on an effigy of said enemies for the same purpose, or in the hopes of calling down a curse of foolishness on such.

 

The Closed Eye <(X)>

 

 

 

   The Closed Eye is the Rune of secrecy or concealment. It usually accompanies some object or information meant to be hidden. For obvious reasons, this is not a rune one would see very often or at all, and never in plain sight, as such would defeat its purpose. Typically, the only ones who'd see the rune are the two or three Yars trying to protect whatever bears the it. It may also be left with the object or information in question to commune with the spirits as if to say "Conceal this thing."

 

The Keen Eye <0>

 

 

 

   The Keen Eye communicates precise aim and sharp eyes. This would typically be seen on the homes of skilled archers and mighty hunters. It's also commonly carved into trees or rocks in the wilderness to mark good hunting grounds. One may also bear this rune on one's person in hopes that some spirit of hunting or marksmanship will be pleased by it.

 

The Sounding Voice >>><<<

 

 

 

   This rune demands the proclamation of a message. It may be inscribed on the cover of a book, or the back of a letter. It may be carved onto the surface of a totem to encourage orcs to bear a spirit's influence across the land. Regardless of where one finds it, the meaning is the same: Spread the word.

 

The Tower |||

 

 

 

   This rune is for strictly mundane purposes, and simply represents a tower. It may mean "Build a tower here," or "Tower ahead." It's little more than simple shorthand, and finds more use as a part in other runes.

 

The Leaning Tower ///

 

 

 

   This rune is somewhat more useful than its upright counterpart. It can sometimes be carved into a weak tower to alert builders of the need to improve defenses, or one may leave it on enemy defenses to designate a weakness to be exploited. More metaphorically, it may serve as an insult or a warning of personal weakness in a person. Yars may also carry this rune into battle as a way of saying "Curse my enemies with weakness!" 

 

The Toppled Tower >>|||

 

 

 

   The Toppled Tower designates any tower that needs to be demolished. Perhaps, for example, a tower has been damaged beyond repair, and must be completely rebuilt. It may also be carved onto war machines by a Yar who wishes to topple an enemy tower in a siege.

 

The Wall |#|

 

 

 

   The Wall, much like the Tower, is a somewhat more mundane rune. In fact, its use is almost identical to that of the Tower rune, except that it represents a wall rather than a tower.

 

The Wavering Wall /#/

 

 

 

   As the Wall rune is to the Tower rune, so is the Wavering Wall to the Leaning Tower.

 

The Breached Wall >>|#|

 

 

 

   This rune typically serves as an order to tear down a wall. Much like the Toppled Tower, the Breached Wall may also commonly be carved onto siege engines.

 

Defenseless X#X

 

 

 

 

   As the name implies, this rune represents a lack of proper defenses. It may be left as a warning, or carved into siege engines and weapons in hopes of invoking a curse on one's enemies.

 

The Tower Shield [#]

 

 

 

 

   This rune is that of the Tower Shield, most commonly carved or painted on the surface of an actual shield to mark it as a shield of high quality, or in hopes of pleasing warrior spirits in battle.

 

The Bent Shield (#)

 

 

 

   While the Tower Shield marks a shield of fine craftsmanship, the Bent Shield may be seen on those of poorer quality. A Yar may also bear this mark on a weapon, in prayerful hopes of shattering the shields of enemy soldiers.

 

The Listener's Ear <<<D

 

 

 

   This rune serves as a call to listen, typically being left in places where one would be encouraged to listen carefully for one reason or another. It may, for example, be seen around bonfires if an older Yar plans to tell a story soon.

 

The Mute X><X

 

 

 

   This rune means simply "shut up." It may serve as a warning in areas where one would be discouraged from drawing unneeded attention to oneself, or in certain sacred sites where silence might be appropriate. Often, one may find the Mute accompanied by the Listener's Ear.

 

The Open Box :[]:

 

 

 

   This rune is left in places where others are encouraged to take freely. Essentially, this rune means "free goods ahead!"

 

The Giver's Box [:]

 

 

 

   While The Open Box offers free goods, the Giver's Box takes donations. This mark serves almost as a prayer of sorts that says to the spirits "send generous givers."

 

The Beast's Eye <(|)>

 

 

 

   This mark indicates the presence of dangerous animals or monsters. Any Yar who finds this rune can be sure of a glorious hunt ahead. A hunter may also bear this rune on his person, in hopes that Freygoth may send some great beast to slay.

 

The Outstretched Arms \o/

 

 

 

   This rune marks the path leading to a place of spiritual significance or ritual. For example, a Yar may follow a series of these runes to find the location of a shrine deep in a forest.

 

The Reveler o/`

 

 

 

   The Reveler indicates an upcoming feast or celebration, and often the location thereof. It may even be used in to praise Betharuz.

 

Light )*(

 

 

 

   This rune simply means light, and has little purpose outside of rituals in which symbols for light would be needed.

 

Darkness )x(

 

 

 

   This is symbol represents darkness. That is all.

 

The Blessing o<

 

 

 

   This rune represents blessing. It may be used by a clan farseer to alert Yars of his willingness to bless his brothers and sisters, or it may be placed on one's home or the home of a friend to represent the desire for blessings in the house in question.

 

The Curse >o

 

 

 

   The Curse is, as one may guess, the opposite of the Blessing. As a farseer may leave the Blessing rune on his home to alert Yars of his services, so may one of the Yar clan's many witchdoctors use this rune to advertise his power to punish the wicked. Futhermore, a Yar may leave this mark on the home of some pink-skin he hates, hoping to invite misfortune.

 

The Skyward Eye <(*)>

 

 

 

   This rune alerts Yars of any particular need to watch the sun, clouds, moon, or stars for signs during times of uncertainty. 

 

The Bounty (^)

 

 

 

   The Bounty marks areas rich in resources, fertile land, or any possible material gain. It's also a way for Yars to wish for themselves or their companions bountiful harvest, rewarding labor, or great plunder in battle. 

 

((Just as a note, these runes aren't inherently magical. They won't grant special powers or anything like that. They're strictly for cultural flavor. So, don't expect to put the Bent Shield rune on your character's axe and start saying "/looc: I have this rune, so your shield breaks." I'm not in the business of inventing superpowers for my clan. They're just a neat little thing I decided to add to Yar culture. Also, they may even be a fun thing for non-Yar characters to try to interpret irp should they come across any, but please no meta. Expect more additions soon.))  

 

 

 

 

 

   ((Currently, the forums are my only way to interact with the server, since my laptop can't run minecraft without an obscene amount of lag, and my desktop broke. So, I'll hopefully be writing quite a bit soon.))

[PraiseTheLord 868]

Truly a masterpiece. And I do not mean that as a Joke, this could REALLY help us in rp :P

[Man of Respect 5471]

The Wall |#|

 

  Hide contents

 

   The Wall, much like the Tower, is a somewhat more mundane rune. In fact, its use is almost identical to that of the Tower rune, except that it represents a wall rather than a tower.

 

Krugald'Rump breathes heavily