The Biarbu Society (BRB)

[Gengy]

The Biarbu Society

---

 

Shiwa Yun Region 6 Summary Region Name: Shiwa Yun Population: Biarbu Resource: Electronic Edibles Required Resource: Precious Minerals Starting Technology: Algorithmic Imagination   The Biarbu Society are a wealthy mercantile group of stunning, bird shaped, nano-clouds.  The Biarbu are known for being friendly and peaceful to outsiders but have unusual priorities when it comes to what they deem as important or as unseemly.  They have an almost illogical fascination with the randomness of fate.  Buyer beware! The more observant will find there is more than one society.

Geography

Badal is a rough world to live upon.  Even in Shiwa Yun, the corrosive clouds are difficult to deal with, and the heat of the surface is a recognized impossibility.  To even reach the surface, one would have to deal with the harsh winds that almost no one can survive.

A fact that the Biarbu Society delights in.  While there are Tienshen Chaoshu – Aerial Nests – that float at a more commonly hospitable temperature, the Cloud Sea goes quite deep and the Biarbu Society can go lower than most.  Not, perhaps, to the positively boiling surface (if it even exists) but far lower than the average human.  These Haidee Chaoshu – Subsea Nests – are where most Biarbu Society dwells, as the high wind speeds provide dancing delights to the aerial acrobatics that many within the Biarbu Society find to be entertaining.

Regardless of whether one lives within a Tienshen or Haidee Chaoshu, the Nests are almost uniformly large circular floating platforms, almost the size of an average human city; capable of being 100 square miles in area.  The more desirable living locations are closer to the edge of the nest, for easy access to flying within Badal’s atmosphere.  The more central to the nest, the less valuable one is to the Society; with one important distinction.  The local Zianta – Spire – is the absolute center of the Nest.  It is both the local governance building and the technical mechanics that keep the Chaoshu afloat.  How each Zianta works is a closely guarded secret, and flight around the Spire is restricted… and heavily punished.  Yet another reason living too close to the center of a Nest is seen as risqué.

There are four major Tienshen Chaoshu, and four major Haidee Chaoshu; one of which is the capital of the Society.  There are roughly ten minor Aerial Nests – mostly belonging to incredibly successful mercantile families - and at least fifteen well known Subsea Nests.  There is also the Hidden Capital, the Nest of Truth.

Major Tienshen Chaoshu
To be recognized as a Tienshen Chaoshu, the Nest must float higher than the Subsea, sacrificing the more entertaining winds of the region in favor of establishing connections with those outside the Biarbu Society.  A distasteful, if necessary, practice.  

The Major Tienshen are those that provide a specific service for those who do not live within Shiwa Yun.

• Shungzing Fung – Prevailing Winds Nest is the Chaoshu of Diplomacy, and passes along all edicts from the Imperial Court to the rest of Shiwa Yun, as well as the reverse: all political decisions from Gungsheen, to the wider solar system.  Shungzing Fung gets it’s name because it is the eastern most Nest city, and leads the rest when moving to circle Badal.
• Shishiwang – West Hope Nest is the Chaoshu of Commerce, and trails all the others when orbiting Badal.  This makes it easier to get to when transporting goods and services, as you can start near the middle of Shiwa Yun and allow the winds to carry you.
• Yu – Plume Nest:  The southern Chaoshu of Yu is the Major Tienshen dedicated to the gathering of Knowledge, Science, Philosophy, and Religions.
• Zhao – The northern Nest of Zhao is the Talon of the Tienshen Chaoshu, and indeed, all of Shiwa Yun.  While there are local guards and warriors at every Nest, they are just the equivalent to local police and militia forces.  Zhao trains militia to become military.  It is the most secure and unwelcoming of the Major Tienshen Chaoshu.  Untrue!  Guests have been known to stay for the rest of their lives.

Major Haidee Chaoshu
A Haidee Chaoshu is a populated residential city, often performing specified tasks needed among the rest of Shiwa Yun.  A Major Haidee Chaoshu is a highly populated Nest, capable of performing many tasks, as well as buying and selling to the rest of the region’s Chaoshu.

• Ai Li – The Major Haidee Chaoshu that handles gathering the majority of the food needed to feed not just itself, but also many other Subsea Nests.
• Ar Yingbi – The Major Haidee Chaoshu that deals primarily with commerce, forming a major trading hub within the Subsea.  Often works with Yu to create various ships suitable for exploration.
• Zachi – One of the more central Nests, Zachi Haidee Chaoshu provides entertainment.  Approved entertainment only.
• Hway – The counterpart to Zhao, the Beak of Shiwa Yun is hidden, and never reliably found in the same spot in the region.  Still a large Chaoshu, it provides defense against invasion by having its location be unpredictable.

The Capitals (why is that here?  There’s only one Capital.)

• Gungsheen, The Nest of Renewal
  The Capital of Shiwa Yun, almost always flying directly in the center of the Biarbu Society formation, just below the surface of the Cloud Sea.  Gungsheen has not one, but four Zianta – Spires – and is twice the size of other Nests.  It is here that the Face of the Flock lives, and through here, all decisions for what direction Shiwa Yun flies.  Once we have made the decisions.
• Ying Shing Zuban, The Nest of Truth
  How are you reading this?  What is a ‘Game Master’?  Treat it as an Imperial Mandate?  Very well.  The wisdom and perception of the Emperor surely can see through the clouds into Ying Shing Zuban, the Hidden Capital, the Nest of Truth.  We all play our own games, yes, but even the Zheannow bow to the Emperor.  This one hears and obeys.
  
  The Nest of Truth, to the rest of the solar system, does not exist.  Even among Shiwa Yun, it is a story tale.  A falsehood.  To think that the Face of the Flock needs the help of some Hidden Capital to make all of the decisions?  Laughable.
  
  And yet…  For you, discerning reader, this one states that it does exist.  It blends within the Subsea, as low as we Zheannow can tolerate.  It weathers all storms, and acts as the shadow below the Biarbu.  Those who live there sacrifice the light of Ophon to ensure that the people of Shiwa Yun continue to exist, and have happy, healthy, lives; before they are reborn, and their energy goes to the Zianta to keep their Nest afloat for the next generation.  All other Chaoshu are the exterior of the Biarbu; the Face, the Beak, the Talon, the Wings.  It is beauty and wealth upon display.  Ying Shing Zuban needs none of this.  We are the heart and the blood of our people!

People

Mythology states that The Children of the Phongkwhan gave birth themselves to Eggs which cracked to open into what became the Wuonnow; the Fire Birds.  So beloved by the Emperor were the Wuonnow that they were given a form of ever lasting life.

– An Excerpt from “The Creation of the Biarbu” found in Yu

Mythology states that The Children of the Phongkwhan gave birth themselves to Eggs which cracked to open into what became the Wuonnow and the Zheannow; the Fire Birds and the True Birds.  So beloved by the Emperor were the Wuonnow that they were given a form of ever lasting life.  So wise were the Zheannow, that they hid themselves away. 

– The Full Excerpt from “The Creation of the Biarbu” found in Ying Shing Zuban

Historians teach that Biarbu are descendants of Fire Birds, also known as Wuonnow.  These Fire Birds were majestic, winged creatures whom, legends say, could control flames with their minds, and even in death, they would be fully reborn.

Biarbu are similar.  Large bird-like creature, with wing-spans taller than most humans, the average Biarbu has a dusk-like, almost cosmic coloration, whose wings shimmer like stars when they fly.  It is not uncommon for those whom live outside of Shiwa Yun to compare a Biarbu to the Pheonix of legends long forgotten.  Not just for their strong wings or crane-like necks, but also for their long trailing tail feathers.  At times, even majestic crests adorn their heads, those this varies from Biarbu to Biarbu; much like human hair.

Biarbu Inspirational Image

Biarbu, unlike their supposed ancestors, cannot control fire.  Also unlike the Wuonnow, thanks to the wonders of Algorithmic Imagination, the Biarbu have most of their bodies made up of advanced nanoclusters, that act like a humans cells do; with one major exception.  When a Biarbu dies, its body is reborn.*  The ‘person’ that the Biarbu was fades away, and some might see this as death, but to the Biarbu Society, this is birth.  Birth of a new being.

Mechanics

* Biarbu version of rebirth, as discussed previously with Head GM Minescratcher: 

• Death causes the Biarbu to be reborn
• It takes several in-game years to regrow to an 'adult' size
• Flashes of memories are retained after death, but the reborn bird is roughly 85% a new person after it grows up again [It is, effectively, a new person]
• Mechanically, a Biarbu is it's own heir 
• To retain full memories, it's one Miracle per Biarbu [No True Immortals without GM Approval!]

---

Young Biarbu are much smaller than fully grown adults, and retain flashes of memories from their former life, but these are snippets of guidance compared to the years of memories they will make as they grow older.  Instincts, for things like flying, or showing proper face to an official.

Face, being an important, if hard to understand, part of Biarbu society.  It’s an amalgamation of ideals that combines prestige, dignity, honor, respect, and status, all into one sociodynamic valuation.  It is difficult for those outside of Shiwa Yun to fully comprehend without years of experience; most who deal favorably with the Biarbu are quick to point out that if you treat their representative as someone two or three steps above you in a business hierarchy, you will still make mistakes, but not unforgivable ones.

Back again, ‘Game Master’?  Very well.  This one will once more endeavor to educate you, if it is the Randomness of Fate.  What do you desire to know?

Ah.  Yes.  An insightful question.  Yet…  A troubling topic for many new to the intricacies of the Hidden Capital:  The difference between Wuonnow and Zheannow.  As we should not waste time, this one shall endeavor to be brief.  What those of Yu teach regarding the histories of Wuonnow being Fire Birds is, as far as this humble one knows, fully truthful.  Yet there is also the Unmentioned Egg.  The Other Grandchild of the Phongkwhan.  The True Bird.  Sometimes referred to as the Cosmic Bird.  This one does not know if the original Zheannow existed, or if some part of the rebirth process of an Wuonnow caused a divergence; what humans might refer to as evolution.  This one can only say that for those of the Biarbu whom are allowed to grasp the Truth, they will find tales of the Zheannow working alongside the Weonnow, being the one to break the winds and guide the flight.

It was because of the prior Zheannow that the Biarbu survived through the War of Eternal Bombardments, though the exact methods of our ancestors are unclear.  What is known is that the Biarbu were once loyal servants of the Emperor, and these days… we are not receiving the same favor from the Imperial Court that the Nest of Truth’s texts suggest we once did.  Perhaps this was a punishment?  Perhaps the actions of navigating the War of Eternal Bombardments were what caused a small rift that has only widened in the intervening years?  It is unclear.  What is known is that Zheannow persist so that Weonnow exist.

These days, what makes a Zheannow as opposed to a Weonnow is knowing that truth.  Not just being told it, but have the evidence that proves the Unmentioned Egg birthed another ancestor.  Be that during the time of legend, or a divergence, it matters not at all to this one.  What matters is the duty that this one has accepted; an exchange for Truth.  Power, but hidden away.  Superiority, yes, but only so long as the Societies last.

The Truth this one has come to accept is this:  Zheannow are grander than Weonnow, yes, but we are still Biarbu.  You are welcome to disagree.  Seek your own Truth!

Resource

Electronic Edibles {Fuel and Power / Spice}
The armada of Chaoshu that make up the cities of Shiwa Yun stay where they are, not because of some predefined borders, or bequeathed Imperial rights.  No.  The Nests float in this part of Badal because of the unique, exotic, atmospheric clouds only found within the region.  

Electronic Edibles – sometimes called Shoku Baotsi – are a gaseous substance that permeates the region.  It can be bottled and distributed to those of Shiwa Yun as a form of food, supercharging the nanoclusters that make up the biology of Biarbu.  Distilled versions can even be used as a supplement for more traditional humanoid biology.  It is theorized that with enough research, Electronic Edibles could be super charged into a ship fuel, though the technology to do so does not currently exist.

This one has theories only about Shoku Baotsi.  The Truth of it remains shrouded by Badal.  Perhaps it is a Random Twist of Fate?  This one rather likes to think so.  Perhaps the Emperor knows?  Still, as far as theories go, the prevailing one is that the natural gases of the planet have mixed together with some kind of electrolyte producing plant or natural vent upon the surface and created what the Wuonnow call Electronic Edibles.  It is a gas.  It is a food.  It empowers us, and our unique nanoclusters.  We can sell it to others.  The Biarbu thrive.  That is all that matters; for now.

Required Resource: Precious Minerals
Biarbu are not greedy creatures, but they do enjoy the finer things in life.  And what finery that cannot be made in Shiwa Yun, can be bought with precious minerals!  Gold, Jade, Rubies; everything has a price!  Yes, even information.  This one will be reimbursed, yes.  No, that was not a question.

Faith

Biarbu have a fascination with Fate.  Not necessarily a religious belief in predetermination, but instead, a curiosity for the changes in Fate.  How two Fates can intertwine.  How one Fate can begin when another ends.  There are some teachings in Yu about other Philosophies and Religions, but there are far more classes on Fate.  But it’s not a religion.

Who told you such lies, ‘Game Master’?  Fate, or rather ‘Fascination’, is absolutely a religious experience for the Biarbu.  The Random Will of the Cosmos doesn’t have to be something we understand, only something we believe; it requires neither our acknowledgement nor participation.  In fact, the lack of either can, at times, only further Fate.  In the simplest of terms, Fascination is like watching the universe itself unfold in the exact moment that someone rolls the dice.  You watch the dice fall, and with every bounce, a new star is born.  When they finally settle?  The universe has changed.  A new course is set.  For good, or for ill.  And that?  That is Fascinating.

Notable Locations:

• Yu – The southern most Major Tienshen Chaoshu, the Plume Nest is a place of learning.  It invites all who want to broaden their knowledge to visit but boasts no allegiance to any one philosophy.  So long as you aren’t important, talking to someone else important.
• Gungsheen Temple – Located within the Capital of Shiwa Yun, along one of the edges of the Nest – and therefore considered important – is a Temple dedicated to Myth and Legend.  Which is just another way of saying it studies Fates past.
• The Spire of Ying Shing Zuban – The Emperor themselves could stand before me and demand to know what is inside the Zianta of Ying Shing Zuban, and this one would deny them.  I will Defy Destiny Itself if I must, but whatever so-called ‘Game’ you play, ‘Game Master’, this one will say no more on this topic.  Zheannow persist so that Wuonnow exist!

Fascination (Majority)

A belief system that lacks gods or deities, beyond the twisting Chances of the Universe as a whole.  Sometimes referred to as ‘Fascination with Fate’ or ‘Unfurling Destiny’.  Fascination ‘faithful’ see Fate as something they can watch, and perhaps, change.  Sometimes to help.  Sometimes just to see what happens.

Regional Supports

Merchants
The various Nests of Shiwa Yun almost all support the Merchants of the region in some way.  Be they gatherers of Electronic Edibles, transporters of products, artists and creators of finery, or more… Merchants are very popular, and essential to Biarbu interactions with those outside the region.  Merchants who do well are rewarded with becoming a Feather or perhaps even a Wing of their local Nest, which is a path towards perhaps becoming the Face of the Flock, if one is so bold.  Even we Zheannow watch the Merchants.  Carefully.  Sometimes, another of our kind is rebirthed from among them.  Not the most successful Merchants; no.  The ones who are just successful enough to have influence.  And then use that influence the right way.

Media Support
Entertainment is essential to the Flock, as Biarbu can only soar the skies of Badal for amusement for only so long.  Receiving news updates and recreation streams comes entirely from the local Spire, and can prove for a worthwhile diversion to any Biarbu that can refocus the nanoclusters in their eyes to see the desired information.  The most trusted stream is “Tekhum Now!”  It provides the most up-to-date information, with little to no interruption.  And it is carefully curated by Zheannow, of course.

The Government
Shiwa Yun is run by the Face of the Flock.  That pompous, over-fed turkey wishes this were Truth.

The Face of the Flock is supported by the various Wings of the Flock; local Nest leaders, sometimes called City Lords.  And the successful ones listen to their betters.

The Wings are supported by their own Feathers, who are specialists in various bureaucratic needs or subject matter experts in some shape or form.  Sometimes, a Wing is a very wealthy merchant, and their Feathers do most of the political requirements to run the Nest.

Upon the rebirth of one of the important government officials – be they the Face of the Flock, the local Wing, or a Feather – they are replaced by someone below them.  Should a Wing be reborn, one of their Feathers becomes the new City Lord; the renewed (former) Wing becomes the replacement Feather.  In the case of the Face of the Flock going through rebirth, the most senior Wing temporarily takes the job while the reborn Face of the Flock grows up.  This has resulted in the Face of the Flock changing entirely if the rebirthed Face of the Flock chooses to step down.  Yes.  Chooses.  After they have been carefully given their options and shown their likely Fate if they make the wrong choice.

Ah?  You tire of my commentary on this subject?  Fair enough.  Allow me, then, to explain Zheannow some more, and how they play into governance.  We Zheannow have our own leadership.  Eight Jiowchu exist; four for each of the Jian Ban.  The Jian Ban are the leader’s two legs, providing support that the leader may stand.  As those of Ying Shing Zuban say: “Where the light of the Empire hits upon the Biarbu, the Shadow of the Flock appears.”  How does this one know of all this?  You came to me, ‘Game Master’.  This one thought you would know.  You speak to that very leader.  This one is the Shadow of the Flock, and while I have been respectful and shown you much face, I begin to tire of receiving little in return.  Know that the Shadow of the Flock guides all Biarbu, and that this one can trace their rebirths back to nine centuries.

Ruler Information:
Shadow of the Flock Ben Ying

Inspirational Image

Formal Terms of Address

High Elder: A person with personal power far superior to the person talking

Elder: A person with personal power superior to the person talking
[Can also be used as a way to compliment]

Brother/Sister*: A person with equal personal power superior to the person talking
[Can also be used as a way to establish equality... or offer insult]

Little Brother/Sister*: A person with personal power inferior to the person talking
[Can also be used as a way to establish superiority... or offer insult]

 

Teacher: Someone directly responsible for increasing a person's personal power; can also sometimes be referred to as 'Master', as in a Master-Disciple relationship
Student: Someone directly learning from their Teacher; can also sometimes be referred to as 'Disciple', as in a Master-Disciple relationship

 

When in doubt, use the term [Honored] followed by the Biarbu's name. Such as "Honored Ben Ying" or "Honored Ying". You would never address someone by their first name, unless you were family. "Honored Ben" would be an insult to someone that does not have the right or permission to do so.

 

*As Biarbu are normally gender-neutral, 'Sibling' would be the gender-neutral term. That said, Biarbu are not insulted by mislabeling their gender during attempts at politeness, and for ease of use, the speaker determines the gender. Often through the use of their own gender.

 

 

Edited April 12 by Gengy (see edit history)

[Gengy]

The Symbol of Fascination
Fate of Ophon

 

Organized Faith: Fascination

A Philosophy: I think, therefore I am.
A Rebuttal: I know you are, but what am I?

Tenets of Fascination

For the majority of Biarbu - and indeed, the growing clergy and followers of fate beyond Shiwa Yun - Fascination is but a curiosity for the changes in Fate. How two Fates can intertwine.  How one Fate can begin when another ends. In recent years, what was once just a philosophy has evolved into something more defined: an actual faith.

Fascination is a simplified phrase for the observance of Fate. Be it something as simple as watching the dice fall to see what numbers occur, something more personal like accepting what has happened outside of your control, or far more difficult: nudging the outcome of a complex issue in some way, just to see what happens.

The tenants of Fascination are as follows:

1. What has happened, happened.
   We cannot change the past. We can only accept it. Learn from it. And do our best to move forward.
    
2. We are all part of the Dance of Destiny.
   Sometimes we dance together, sometimes we dance apart, but the Random Will of the Cosmos has us all dancing, even if we can't hear the music.
    
3. Respect the Fate of others.
   Acting, or not acting, upon someone else's Fate, intertwines them with yours. After all, consequences are a form of destiny all on their own.
    
4. Coincidences occur everywhere, delightfully.
   Observe the now when you can, to take it all in. The past is, indeed, immutable; the die has been cast, and we can but enjoy the fall and the spin, to appreciate not just what was but what is.
    
5. What will happen, takes effort.
   The most difficult of steps for those that are Fascinated: learning how to effect change. While some may call it Luck, you can make yourself far more likely to be Lucky.
    

Size Bonus (5): +1 to Convert Region

What will happen, takes effort... but not as much as you might think. The pull of Fate is strong, and surprisingly compelling, making it easy to spread to new areas.