#sessen

[baylardian-1]

Amelia gets lost in the Delta Quadrant after her starfleet ship is attacked and destroyed. Rather than attempt to return home and face failure and quite frankly more of the same looming expectations that persist in her life, she chooses to remain lost. She ends up working as a dancer in a Kazon club for a time, just trying to lay low and survive, abandoning her Starfleet attire. There she'd meet Culluh's son, Sessen and they end up developing a friendship and she serves as a confidant within his sect, similarly to Seska but Sessen's a lot nicer than his father was lol.

just my silly lil thoughties::: I think a Maje's cabin, while lavish in decor, would have a rather messy and nestlike bed and a lot of their dropped feathers kinda accumulate there. And the way Amelia and Sessen might toss around in bed together she tends to end up with a lot in her hair. :) ummmm and i have the headcanon that because the kazon are feathery and fight amongst themselves, they wear the feathers of their defeated enemies in their messy hair as war trophies. i have sessen wearing one of his father's, and amelia has one of sessen's. and then i imagine theyd both wear one from a rivaling sect's maje that they skillfully defeated together.

[baylardo]

CULLUH GOT DAD CORED IM SCREECHING OOFURURGRGGHHGHH 💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕💕

[celtic-romulan]

So I finally caved and subscribed to The Delta Flyers patreon so I could watch the video versions of the podcast episodes.

I got to the Basics Part 2 episode where they were interviewing Martha Hackett (aka Seska). One of the questions Garrett asked her was whether she knew what Seska’s baby’s name was, if the writers ever named him or not (they didn’t; he was just a no-name). I was kind of hoping Garrett would have named dropped “Sessen” from Star Trek Online, but sadly he didn’t (I can’t remember if the Delta Quadrant missions came out before or after the pandemic). Then he asked what Seska would have named him, given that he would have had some Cardassian-sounding name mixed with a Kazon sounding name, and Martha suggested Seska would probably have put a little bit of Chakotay’s heritage in there as well (aww!!) because of how attached she still was to him. She suggested something like “Gacko”, and my first thought that my stupid animal brain went to was “GOKU!!” 😆

I’ve joked more than once about how the Kazon kind of resemble the Saiyans from DBZ with the outrageous hair, so I laughed way more than I should have when Martha came up with that name.

[spiderverseconceptart]

Miles and Gwen storyboards and animation for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse by Guillermo Martinez and Lauren Sassen

[maliciousalice]

[eucanthos]

Soga Shōhaku (JP, 1730 - 1781)

Sessen Dōji-zu (the snow-covered-mountain child) Offering His Life to an Oni (Ogre), ca. 1764

In Japanese folklore, Sessen Doji was a young boy, abandoned by his parents and raised in the forest by the God of the mountain. One day, an Ogre demanded that he should offer his life in order to save the nearby village. The boy agreed, but then the Ogre was transformed into a beautiful princess and married Sessen Doji, rewarding his altruism.

thnx mirkokosmos

https://www.darkgloomyart.com/blogs/articles/dark-historical-japanese-artworks

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sessen_D%C5%8Dji-zu_by_Soga_Sh%C5%8Dhaku.jpg

https://mirkokosmos.tumblr.com/post/733631955237830656

[abyssus-aeterna]

表現主義の數學的諸次元は多面に亙る。

身體の動きは手放したらざる呟きなり。

接線的創造は釋義に於いて曖昧なる儘。

我は木を通して囁き、緑を通して語る。

[Classical transliteration]

Feugen syugi no sūgaku-teki syo-zigwen fa tamen ni wataru. Karada no ugoki fa te-banasitarazaru tubuyaki nari. Sessen-teki saũzau fa syakugi ni oite aimai naru mama. Ware fa ki wo tofosite sasayaki, midori wo tofosite kataru.

[Modern transliteration]

Hyōgen shugi no sūgaku-teki sho-jigen wa tamen ni wataru. Karada no ugoki wa te-banashitarazaru tsubuyaki nari. Sessen-teki sōzō wa shakugi ni oite aimai naru mama. Ware wa ki wo tōshite sasayaki, midori wo tōshite kataru.

the many sided mathematical dimensions of expressionism:

the movement of the body is the unrelinquished murmurs,

the tangential creation remains so ambiguous in exegesis;

I whisper through the trees & speak though the greenery.

[paeliae-occasionally]

Can you rank the kingdoms on how strong they each are and what they're strongest in? (Even if they're different books or strong in completely different ways)

Ooh! This is fun.

It is hard to compare because these kingdoms span thousands of years of history and obviously the older ones are less advanced than the modern kingdoms, but I will give it a go.

The pieces I am taking into account here are:

Raw power, Stability, Magic ability

Strongest

Tiel’Drysar - 8 - 10 - 9 -

Emresian empire - 9 - 7 - 10 -

Onkairel/The sand walkers dominance -9 - 8- 8 -

Illeran - 10 - 8 - 7 -

Zaireli Empire - 7 - 9 - 9 -

Sessenics - 8 - 8 - 5 -

Ossena - 6 - 8 - 6 -

Myr - 5 - 9 - 7 -

Altic Kingdoms - 6 - 8 - 6 -

Opyri - 5 - 8 - 6 -

Tollenics - 6 - 6 - 2 -

Kaitere - 5 - 6 - 3 -

Korlan (Haemocrafters) - 6 - 1 - 7

Perias - 5 - 5 - 2 -

Mulai’Kaleppi - 2 - 4 - 6 -

Lower Essir - 4 - 4 - 3

Higher Essir - 3 - 4 - 2

Arinites - 3 - 5 - 1 -

Rhoenna - 2 - 3 - 4-

Isren - 1 - 2 - 5 -

Coelites - 1 - 2 - 2 -

Semlyns (Neysemle ridge) - 1 - 2 - 2 -

Weakest

Ok I have ranked them. Honestly it is not about who would win in a contest of power. I also took into account how long they lasted and how much of their legacy is remembered the modern day.

Thanks for the ask!

[pumilo]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: VINCE CAMUTO SESSEN SANDALS.

[mixcartus]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Vince Camuto Women's Sessen Heeled Multicolor Snake Print Sandals Size 9.

[gmbbulldog]

Monsters Reimagined: Lizardfolk

What's wrong? To be honest, Dapper has already gone over most of it. At their worst, Lizardfolk depictions in D&D typically draw off some nasty stereotypes and lousy ways of thinking. At their best, they tend to feel a bit overplayed and boring with their one-dimensional tropes that defy development. I don't feel qualified to go over their most egregious offending traits in detail, so I'm hoping I manage to dodge most of them in the concepts presented here.

What's worth salvaging? Once you strip out the biological determinism, I think the image of stoic, patient, and complexity skeptical hunter-dominant communities could be very interesting. Drawing on the philosophies of Greek and modern stoic traditions, with splashes of Nahua and Amish ideologies, and some Taiwanese Buddhist monasticism, and maybe a little extra-fantastical sacred cannibalism as a treat, we can envision a culturally deep people that understand what they're missing out on technologically and societally, and just aren't impressed. How do we fix it? Give the lizardfolk some grounding. They aren't born emotionless, it's a widespread cultural practice to moderate and restrain emotion. Much like their apparent disinterest in knowledge is just an illusion caused by their disinterest in implementing technologies that radically change their way of life. Like all cultural practices, they have origins and reasons behind them and will vary in detail and intensity of the practice from settlement to settlement, especially since these settlements are typically isolated from each other. Some of them will extend their ideals of communal goodwill to outsiders passing through, others might assume hostile intentions (potentially because of a history of hostility from outsiders) and either try to avoid outsiders or preemptively dispatch them. Some places will engage in simple trade with other communities and others will be more insular. Some will adapt technology like iron working while others will forsake it over an unwillingness to trade or mine for metal or a belief that it will lead to power imbalances and abusive hierarchies in their communities. Letting them vary makes them feel less stagnant and more like they've taken their own journey across history. Maybe they've had their own turn at the lavish and indulgent, expansive empire and it didn't go so well. And there will always be strange enclaves who went a different route entirely. Maybe they've fallen into the service a dragon, (who's turbulent ego is rather easy to manipulate.) Maybe they've decided to immigrate to the cities of another culture and integrate with them or taken up a new faith.

Maybe don't call them lizardfolk? It's one thing for that to be the broad generalized name that other people call them when they don't know any better, like calling those lands to the south of the Southlands, but a real people wouldn't describe themselves in terms of being like the cross of folk or "people" and lizard "a non-people thing." My lizardfolk call themselves Sessen. In the Forgotten Realms they call themselves Kecualas. Any community that is on good terms with them should respect their chosen name. I'll keep calling them lizardfolk for the sake of the post though.

I would say it's broadly best to avoid making these communities too deliberately oppressive. Least of all because it might encourage your players to try and recreate the events of Footloose in every Lizardfolk village they come across. Rather trying to oppress people for being highly individualistic, it's easy to imagine that they just don't find it compatible with their broader way of life. Folks who don't mesh with their community could easily be asked to seek the life they want elsewhere and sent on their way with what supplies can be spared. This also lets your players be lizardfolk without feeling entirely boxed in to the culture they've come from.

Personally, I think the concept of sacred cannibalism and consuming your fallen foes and allies to partake in their strength and essence is really conceptually interesting in moderation. It can exist. it can be important to them. But it can't be a regular, all the time, go out of their way to do it, practice. If you make it their whole thing, they'll feel as shallow as they ever have. It's too much of an overly consumptive practice to lean on for a sustainable society. The easiest flaw to demonstrate is that you eventually run out of people to eat. I feel like there are a lot blanks to fill in for lizardfolk and my thoughts are pretty scattered about on them, so this is going to be longer and more meandering than I would like, but try to bear with me.

TLDR Lizardfolk have seen the rise and fall of great empires and monumental civilizations and, quite frankly, they're not interested in any of that. Not even impressed. Following an ancient philosophy, they would much rather lead lives that are humble and well reasoned, in balance with and in reverence of the natural world, and free from unnecessary distractions. They remain focused on these virtues through a meditative practice of self-control and patience, striving to quell anger, fear, and other destructive emotions to leave only inner peace and unbiased clarity in thought. The jungle and swamp they are known to call home providing an abundance of natural resources in exchange for fulfilling work while also providing them insulation from the many other cultures who would historically seek to subjugate or take advantage of them. Their community focus leads them to chide excessive individuality and their distaste for complex technology stems largely from a perceived lack of need for it, rather than a fear or lack of understanding of it. On the contrary, understanding the world and its many mechanisms is a virtuous aim in their culture, and they are perfectly willing to study and use technology when it is being used to threaten them. * Why lead a tumultuous life consumed by rampant emotions when you can be fulfilled by a more moderated and internally peaceful life? Why bother with all these grand hierarchies, destined to disappoint and topple to ruin in time? Do these temporary things bring real value to your life? Is that fancy plate armor that took a hundred hands to make going to help you avoid drowning in this swamp? Is your singular life worth that much anyhow? These are the questions the, "lizardfolk" as outsiders call them, ask when they are enticed by merchants, warlords, and missionaries to take part in growing civilizations. * Their beliefs, most commonly referred to as an adherence to "The Flow" are derived from the teachings of revered ancestors. The three most acknowledged are the Black Sun King, who devised the philosophy of reason over emotion and the quest for inner peace, the Great Traveler who spoke of the folly and futility of building empires along with the cycles of nature and the flow of life, and the Gravespeaker who preached on the nature of death and how there is both peace and strength to be found in it for the humble and wise.

Along with the specific tenets of their beliefs, there are general aspects of their culture that form the core of their beliefs. In large part because lizardfolk lack significant sexual dimorphism and child rearing is a communal endeavor, they do not draw gender constructs from these traits. Individual identity is more often defined around one's primary role in the community perhaps as a hunter, or a shaman though most are expected to be capable of pitching in many roles, and even the value of one's individuality always comes second to the value of the clan identity.

Because undeath can arise as a result of semi-natural phenomenon, necromancy is not taboo among most lizardfolk tribes. Some clans regularly use necromancy, such that the most devoted of their ancestors can serve the community after death, but most only do so when times are at their hardest, in lean season, or war, or else they might perturb the natural order too drastically and also risk becoming reliant on a power they may later struggle to control. Necromantic magic is also used in some clans as part of cannibalistic rituals that allow one to borrow strength and potentially even knowledge from the dead, though this is typically only done when it is earned, such as when a warrior bests a foe in righteous battle or a great craftsman bequeaths their skill to their dutiful apprentices.

When a member of the community finds they cannot put aside their passions or curiosity for the larger world, they are given the opportunity to become Travelers. They are marked, and given writ to go forth and seek the life they so greatly desire, and if they should find inner peace or wish to contribute to their clan once more they may return and tell of their journey. If they return with inventions and ideas that may aid the community, a council of elders is formed to decide if it is worth integrating and not too distracting. The title bestows a certain prestige and mystique. Indeed both the Great Traveler and the Gravespeaker are said to have been travelers with extraordinary adventures to speak of, but it is not often so magnanimous. There is a unspoken understanding that a traveler is one who has ultimately failed to subdue the chaos within themselves, likened to a dog tethered to a cart. They may run away until their leash is taut, but they are compelled to where the cart drive them. Further, despite an insistence that they practice the same beliefs as their ancestors, the practice of sending away the individuals who conform the least has left the culture increasingly conservative over the generations, such that new technology and philosophies are rarely adopted and travelers are asked to inevitably asked speak no more of their life apart so as not to distract their peers. And so, between this and the bonds they formed in their wanderings, travelers are usually permanently estranged from their families.

Both due to their devaluing of emotional bonds and limited individualism, outsiders often think that lizardfolk don't have a concept of friendship or personal kinship, especially outside of their community, but this is untrue. It is their custom to measure bonds not on mere feelings of affection, which may wax and wane over periods of revelry and argument, but on their level of commitment and functionality. Or more practically, how much one is willing to work on another's behalf and how well they accomplish work together. As such, many are surprised when their lizardfolk companions who had shown little love for them go to great lengths to aid them in times of need.

... Going to stop here because after two days of turning this over in my skull and pouring my brain out on the keyboard I do not have the wherewithal to make this any more coherent at the moment. Hope this helps!

Hey friends, I was thinking of taking a crack at doing an oft requested "monsters reimagined" for lizardfolk in the next little while, but I found myself stalled out on creating an alternative pitch for their lore.

The problem is that there's so little to work with in the " Ignorant primordial savage" role that they've been pigeonholed into that I'm having genuine trouble finding inspiration.

As such, I figured I'd encourage you all to write your own favourite take on the lizardfolk in the replies/comments, and we'll see if we can't brainstorm our way to an awnser.

Here's some of my own thoughts to get you started:

Lizardfolk as they are presented primarily exist to fufill the role of stock primitive antagonists, a one step more fantastical version of the jungle dwelling cannibals often encountered like pulp heroes like Indiana Jones/Doc Savage/Conan the Barbarian.

In many ways they are the epitome of the "fill in the blank baddie", with everything from their culture to their religion to their motivations being wholly based on the fact that they're lizardy lizards who like to do lizard things and could never be anything but. This is flat and boring, and needs to change if we have any hope of doing something with them.

The whole "uninterested in knowledge", " think with their stomachs", "don't have emotions, just instinct" is one of d&d's most glaring examples of biological determinism. It assigns lizardfolk the concept of "spear chucking savages" and then works backwards to justify why they remain savage while detouring through 19th century race science talking points.

When dealing with any kind of anthropomorphic reptile we're inevitably going to get into the "lizard people" conspiracy theory milieu, with all the baked in antisemitism. On top of that, we're also open to ancient aliens style conspiracy theories given how often Lizardfolk are typecast as "ruin dwelling primitives descended from civilizations long before recorded history".

[baylardian-1]

Some initial doodles as I've been intending to work with Seska and Culluh's son Sessen a little bit more.

In designing him I'd had to spiral down figuring out how I wanted to portray the Kazon in general which wasn't suuuuuper fun but I'm happy and satisfied where I landed. :) Ummmm I went more HEAVY on the rooster/vulture inspiration for them that was already incorporated into their design choices but I also added turkeys because male turkey tails were giving me the closest vibes to Kazon hair. :) And with that I likeeeee expand the range of Kazon hairstyles to stuff involving dreadlocks and anything that gives off the Literal Bird's Nest vibes. I kept Culluh's as being relatively identical to his show hair because I feel like he pulls it off and looks the most normal with the big mess. Alice also had the galaxy brain idea that Kazon would collect the feathers of slain enemies (Obviously other Kazon) and keep them in their hair as a display of dominance. I also changed their "ridges" to come across as something more similar to rooster crowns, and I think they'd have big turkey-like feathered tails. The sizes of both would equate to a more genetically superior prowess. Sessen as a halfbreed tends to genetically favor his Cardassian mother and as such lacks both large tail feathers and a crown altogether. I'd also had the idea that to go with the ambiguous set up of Basics, Sessen as a newborn doesn't portray too many birdlike elements in his appearance, but as he ages he starts to develop fuzzy baby chick-like plumage.

[baylardo]

screaming crying wailing

[maggiemay63]

Sessen Dōji-zu by Soga Shōhaku (曾我蕭白), Japanese painter of the Edo period ~ ca.1764

[bm-asian-art]

Hanging Scroll: Badger, Sessen, late 19th century, Brooklyn Museum: Asian Art

Size: 38 x 13 in. (96.5 x 33 cm) Medium: Hanging scroll, ink and light color on silk

https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/opencollection/objects/109723

[danepeterson]

Sessen - Mar Vista, home studio.

This is an example of the scanning work I’m starting to do for homies and peeps that are in need. DM me if you require some negs digitized, or to be blown up for printing.