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[✓] The Mani of Rivers and Seas


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This lore is an extension of Mani Lore any red lines and regulations that apply to all other Mani also apply to the ones written here. As obvious, interactions and appearances may only be done and played by ST.

Dzalar’onn - Prince of Frogs 

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A gadfly zips through the swampy air above a swampy wetland. Deep within the river grass of a slow moving creek, a tiny croak is heard. Suddenly a tongue whips out from the grass, snatching up the gadfly, disappearing as quick it had struck. Satisfied with his afternoon meal, the bullfrog leaps out the thicket and onto a lilypad, from where he dives into water and swims away. 

 

To many cultures across the continent, the Frog has always been seen as a humble, diminutive creature. Not so to the woodland elves, particularly the ones from tribes who dwell along river arteries. To the lives of the mali’ame in many ways revolves around the precarious balance between worlds. The mortal world, and the otherworld (known also as the Fae Realm). The humble frog lives on both land and sea, and thus is known to represent the crossing between the two, the parallel matching well with the Mali'ames lives.

 

The Mani of Frogs is known as Dzalar’onn, and indeed is the only Mani capable of phasing between the Faerie and Mortal realms at will. (The other Mani travel between the realms but can cross only on nights of the full moon, same as every other fae creature). Dzalar’onn enjoys this special status because he has been appointed by the Aspects as the primary peacekeeper between mortal and Fae, ensuring war does not erupt between the two worlds. In ages past, the Frog Prince has intervened on both sides, preventing the deadly Nightfall Imps from pouring into the mortal realm en masse, and preventing mobs of torch-bearing and iron-wielding humans from attempting to massacre peaceful faeries. 

 

One of Dzalar’onns main abilities is his prowess in shapeshifting. This is an extension of the general fluidity which defines his existence. As one can imagine, a village of Canonist humans might not be quick to accept an ethereal frog as an ambassador of peace. As such, the Frog Prince blends into the local environment, taking the form of human merchants, elvish warriors, and even various other animals and faerie creatures. It is from this phenomenon that the stories of Frogs turning into Princes, a common trope in Human folklore, was born. Some ancient, secret stories also claim that it was the Frog Mani who first taught the druids to shapeshift, but this has not been verified, and the truth of this will likely never be confirmed.

 

Another phenomenon to note is the cult of worship around Dzalar’onn present in Wonkish society. While the reformed wonks who roam the cities of men and elves have mostly left this worship behind, the tribal wonks, isolated in their indigenous swamps, still hold devoutly to the Frog Prince, who they call the Green Princess (sex and gender is fluid among Mani, and whether they are perceived as male or female generally depends on whether or not the culture that worships them associates masculine or feminine traits with that particular animal). However, whether or not Dzalar’onn had an active role in creating the Wonks as they are today is unknown. 

 

Danaay Taluwa - Prince of Salmon

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A great river cuts across an ancient forest, the current is harsh, and splashes against the jagged rocks in explosions of white mist. This a waterway only the most foolish of men or elves would dare try to ply. And yet, a humble pink fin pokes out from beneath the churning waters. A sockeye salmon ardently battles the mighty river as it swims upstream, and soon is joined by more of its kin. A vast school of steely gills plunge desperately against the roaring currents. 

 

The Salmon are the king of the rivers, and for centuries the Wood Elven river seeds have long followed their annual migrations. The Mani Prince of Salmon is known as Danaay Taluwa, and is one of the most ancient mani, appointed by the Aspects to be the guardian of the worlds’ rivers and creeks. When men and elves overfish, pollute, or dam a pristine river, the disease and famine that often follow are attributed to Danaay’s silent wrath. Whereas when they do their utmost to live in harmony with the rivers’ natural flow, Danaay sends her children upstream in abundance so that they may enjoy the bounty of the salmon run.

 

Danaay Taluwa is thus a patron of fishermen, and Wood Elven tribes who’ve made their livings on or by the riverside. He is also a symbol of prosperity and natural cycles, due to the abundance and predictable annual nature of the Salmon runs. Furthermore, just as the Salmon ardently swim upstream and over the most daunting of waterfalls, Danaay is a symbol of perseverance and persistence in the face of great challenges. More amusingly, Danaay and Meracahe, the Prince of Beavers, have an ancient and playful rivalry- seeing as the latter always seeks to dam up the formers’ beloved rivers.

 

Stalashaan - The Prince of Orcas

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The sea is calm in the great bay of Korvassa, and a small pod of harbour seals lounge on an outcropping of rocks a ways away from shore. All is calm, until a funnel of white mist shoots out of the water. As the seals begin to park and panic, an obsidian dorsal fin breaches the water, and is soon joined by four others just like it. The eerie chorus of a whales’ siren song echoes under the waters’ depths, the Orcas have come to hunt. 

 

When the Aspects created the mighty oceans, they birthed many of the Mani spirits that would serve as its aquatic guardians. Most important, however, were the cetacean trinity. This consisted of Sequana, Mani of the Great Baleen Whales, Hamatsa, Mani of Dolphins, and Stalashaan, Mani of the Orcas. Sequana was made the high prince of the oceans, Hamatsa became the gentle side of the seas, and thus a patron to healers. Stalashaan, however, represents the ocean at war. She is the storm and the churning waters, the riptides and the typhoons. Men and elves who betray the harmony of the ocean are subject to Stalashaan’s wrath. 

 

However, Stalashaan is not an entirely vindictive spirit, and provides spirit to those honourable warriors who fight on the sea. Although the wood elven people have never really had a formal navy, there have long been tribes that do battle on the open waters, atop mighty war canoes or speedy catamarans. Sea-warriors oft pray to Stalashaan before battle, because just as the Killer Whale is the apex predator of the oceans, their Spirit Prince is the patron of all warriors of the Sea.

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(( Grr Mali’ame should always be capitalised, grr ))

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31 minutes ago, Luciloo said:

(( Grr Mali’ame should always be capitalised, grr ))


(( it isn’t english grammar )) 

 

Mani are so cool. I want more. Do Mani travel from map to map with us? 

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5 hours ago, BrandNewKitten said:

(( it isn’t english grammar )) 

 

(( No it’s Elven grammar, and Elven grammar always has racial names capitalised. ))

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53 minutes ago, Luciloo said:

 

(( No it’s Elven grammar, and Elven grammar always has racial names capitalised. ))


I checked with some peeps and we are pretty sure that only proper nouns are capitalized. Even the start of sentences are not capitalized. 

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This Lore has been accepted. Moved to Implemented Lore, it will be sorted to it's appropriate category soon. Please note that if this is playable lore, such as a magic or CA, you will need to write a guide for this piece. You will be contacted regarding the guide (or implementation if it isn’t needed) shortly.

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