#this is not a pacifist child this is an exhausted young adult by now who has had more ripped away from them than most people have by age 80

[oldestenemy]

Thinking about Duncan Grimwater again.

Thinking about the wizard letting that fight play out.

About letting him win, landing in the commons, and using dungeon recall to go back, showing up behind him.

Thinking about "Did you really think with everything I've been through, that I would go down that easily?"

[kareenvorbarra]

ok i’m reading this very good au fanfic about Vox Machina in the Star Wars universe, and it’s making me think about SW Kima and Allura...if Vox Machina got together during the Empire era and gained renown when the Rebel Alliance was at its height, then Kima and Allura (who were young adventurers about 15 years before VM) must have met sometime during the Clone Wars. 

Allura Vysoren is a young Jedi, who was nearly done with her training when the war began. A skilled warrior who nonetheless preferred academic study to combat, she might have become a scholar or a diplomat, had she not been drawn into the conflict along with the rest of the Order. She attained full knighthood near the end of the war, and was on her way to her first command posting when Order 66 took effect; the clone troopers manning her small transport ship attacked her, but Allura managed to disable the ship and get to an escape pod in time. She went to ground in the Outer Rim, searching desperately for signs of other surviving Jedi, but all she found were reports of their deaths, and the encroaching Imperial presence kept her constantly on the run. 

Kima is a Mandalorian - Clan Vord, House Kryze. Her family have long been members of the Protectors, the traditional guard of the ruler of Mandalore and one of the only military units still operating in Satine’s pacifist regime. Kima’s parents both died when she was a child, protecting the Kryze family during the Civil War. Kima was eager to follow in their footsteps as an adult; though she had a warlike streak and didn’t always agree with the Duchess’ policies, she was loyal to the throne and took her duties as a Protector very seriously. She despised Death Watch for their senseless violence and cruel treatment of those they deemed beneath them, but after Maul took power she sided with Bo-Katan Kryze and her resistance, eventually coming to respect the younger Kryze sister and supporting her as Regent of Mandalore. When the Empire-backed Clan Saxon supplanted Bo-Katan, and the Protectors’ leader Fenn Rau forged an alliance with the Empire, an enraged Kima cut ties with the Protectors and fled her home for good, turning her considerable skill to hunting down criminals - hardly an honorable pursuit for a Mandalorian warrior, but better than serving the Empire.  

Allura and Kima met when Allura, her master, and their troops collaborated with a group of Mandalorian fighter pilots on an important mission for the Republic. Kima Vord was the newest member of Platinum Squadron, a cocky young pilot with quick reflexes and a quicker temper, skilled at both flying and ground combat (where she favored massive blasters that she handled with ease despite her small frame). Jedi Commander Allura Vysoren was kind and level-headed, a serious and disciplined student of the Force with a head for strategy. At first Kima found Allura humorless and infuriatingly calm, and Allura bristled at Kima’s brash overconfidence, but after being separated from their allies and forced to work together to survive a dangerous situation, they gained a new respect for each other’s abilities and quickly became close. They kept in touch for a while once the mission ended, but the war made long-distance communication difficult, and at some point it was too much time and effort for either of them to send messages. 

They meet again by chance in a run-down hotel in the Outer Rim, a few years after the fall of the Republic. Kima’s had some success as a bounty hunter by now - she’s started to make a name for herself, and has more than enough money to support her fairly spartan lifestyle. Allura fares somewhat worse; she takes short-term jobs that pay under the table and avoids anything that might give away her abilities, she changes names and planets every few months. She’s lonely and exhausted and her search for other survivors has proven futile. For a moment Allura’s afraid Kima might turn her in to the Empire (the bounties on anyone with Jedi training are exorbitantly high), but she’s always been good at sensing the intentions of others, and Kima’s always been a terrible liar. Kima, once she gets over her shock at finding find her old friend still alive, is furious that the galaxy has been so cruel to Allura and heartbroken to see her so close to giving up. For her part, Allura’s relieved to have finally found someone she can trust, someone she can talk to and spend time with who already knows who she is. They rent a room in the hotel so they can talk in private, get drunk on terrible liquor, and end up falling asleep in the same bed. The next day Kima asks if Allura will travel with her; Allura doesn’t hesitate before saying yes. 

[kentar-ooc-worldbuilding]

The weapon-castes of Kentar

Kentar could be described as a casted society, but not a particularly restrictive one – nobody is born into their caste, and the castes are somewhat fuzzy at the edges. The detail of the system’s history is for another post, but essentially, the Kentari have always prized their weapons and handed them down for generations. Every weapon has a name, a history, and an associated role. Taking up a particular career path is generally conditional on acquiring a weapon which marks the bearer as a member of a caste.

Kentari youth become adults when they’re armed. The process depends a lot on the culture they’re from; in very conservative cultures their captain might simply hand them a weapon without consulting them, while in very progressive ones they might leave their ship before they’re armed and specifically seek out a weapon that matches the career path they’re looking for. Some weapons are very prestigious, if they’ve historically had famous bearers, and young people will come from a wide area to compete over them. When someone dies their weapon becomes the property of their ship, and its captain has the final say over when it can be given to a new bearer.

In modern times the weapons are largely ceremonial, and it’s sometimes difficult to see the relationship between the tool and the profession it’s evolved to represent, but they’re still a significant part of Kentari culture. People will often refer to their weapon as their ‘arm’.

This is not an exhaustive list of castes. I may have neglected one, and in any case people make all sorts of specific things for niche new roles. 

Axes. Engineers, architects, shipwrights, mechanics. On land, an axe means something slightly different; axes are for timber work, and by extension they’re seen in other plant-based industries too. 

Harpoons. Oceanographers, surveyors, and almost everyone who works on satellites and sensors. Traditionally, a lookout’s weapon, sometimes wielded from the crow’s nest (and used less to kill, and more to hold a target in place once spotted so that other crew could strike).

Flails. Programmers, mathematicians, data workers, administrators and planners, spreadsheet analysts, some finance roles. AKA atrisu - ‘atrisu’ is a Sahi word which collectively refers to the things English calls flails, morning star maces, and whips. It is a topic of ongoing historical research how atrisu originally became associated with navigators, but well-known that much of early mathematics was invented by atrisu in order to produce logbooks and calculate distances around a sphere.

Warhammers. Craftspeople, carpenters, construction. The association originates on Taienari, with hammers used both for construction and for fighting.

Picks. Miners, most of the fossil fuel industry, petroleum engineering and other mining/energy related engineering. A few are involved in rocketry. Rarely seen outside Taienari.

Swords. Warriors. Guns have been invented on Kentar, but ammunition is expensive and wasteful, so they’re not popular. Modern soldiers carry thoroughly un-traditional weaponry ranging from battery-powered stun harpoons to telescoping magnet-assisted maces, but swords are still an essential symbol as well as a genuinely useful melee tool. Most swords are either the only sword on a small ship, or one of a few swords on a large ship. In a fight, no crew could afford to field a force of only swords; the responsibility of swords is to neutralise enemy swords and to train and organise the rest of the crew. Many aboard peaceful ships feel they’re little more than fitness trainers. A very few (generally small) ships have crews of mostly swords, and are essentially bounty hunters and/or crisis-based mercenaries-for-hire. 

Spears. In ancient times, multiple spear-wielding hunter-gatherers were necessary to support each member of another caste. Spears are still carried by a slight majority of people, and are now generally associated with unskilled labour and non-specialised crewmembers. Spears are generally low-ranked members of a crew. 

Glaives. Chefs, fishers, the food industry, and traditional hunter-gatherers. While originally spears and glaives were one caste, the two began to differentiate when spears came to represent unskilled labour. Modern glaive blades are deliberately large and curved to emphasise the difference. Most glaives still believe they’re respected far less than their considerably specific skills are due. 

Knives. Medics, therapists, child carers, elder carers, nurses, occasionally biologists or field medical researchers. Small weapons usable only in self-defence, knives are the closest Kentari come to unarmed. The status of knives is complicated - they’re not well respected, there’s a stereotype of them as pacifists and as doormats, but they’re very well liked. Few people would feel comfortable having a knife as a boss - imagine taking orders from a dagger - but almost everyone would do as a knife asked. 

Kizhi. Scientists and researchers, especially the theoretical and laboratory kind. ‘Kizhi’ is a Sahi word that covers a variety of throwing weapons, from shurikens to boomerangs, which often come in fantastic shapes. These were invented for a peaceful, modern world; the risk of losing the weapon means they’re never used outside of show-off performances. 

Tridents. Managers, HR professionals, negotiators, teachers. Too showy to be practical weapons, tridents historically symbolised captains, in less democratic times when handpicked individuals were often groomed for the role at an early age. Still very privileged in general. 

Archers. Writers, musicians, journalists, storytellers, performers, filmmakers. Before modern communications technology, archers travelled from ship to ship as guests, bringing news from distant regions. There’s a huge amount of flexibility in modern times, with some travelling in the traditional way and others setting up studios on raft-islands or becoming permanent dedicated entertainers for large ship’s crews. Many still do traditional journeying apprenticeships, though universities are also popular. Most still take journeynames - surnames that reflect the artistic or journalistic tradition they trained in, rather than the ship they settle down on (if any). Ammunition scarcity means bows have always been rare, and the history of the association is complex.