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===Odessan Subfamily=== | ===Odessan Subfamily=== | ||
The language of the [[Odessa|Odessan]] people, by virtue of its highly traditional societal mores and relatively stable long-term government, is fairly unique among the Prime branch of languages in that it has been relatively unchanged for the past couple of millennia. Even records from the very beginning, in the time of the [[Ubrekti Empire|Ubrekti Empire's]] dominance, are readable to any person literate in Odessan, even if they can be difficult to understand. | |||
===Petaran Subfamily=== | ===Petaran Subfamily=== | ||
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===Ubrekti Subfamily=== | ===Ubrekti Subfamily=== | ||
The languages that derived from that spoken by the Ubrekti Empire are among some of the most influential in the world, and it is the Ubrekti alphabet that is generally used by all save the Ulan subfamilies. Speakers of these languages can often pick up on the vocabulary and structure of words spoken in the others of this group, and simple ideas can often be expressed between them, if the speakers are patient. | The languages that derived from that spoken by the Ubrekti Empire are among some of the most influential in the world, and it is the Ubrekti alphabet that is generally used by all save the Ulan subfamilies. Speakers of these languages can often pick up on the vocabulary and structure of words spoken in the others of this group, and simple ideas can often be expressed between them, if the speakers are patient. | ||
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===Giant subfamily=== | ===Giant subfamily=== | ||
The Giants have their own, very ancient, tongue, usually called Giantish by outsiders. Many Giants, living solely or in small family groups among larger groups of other Servitors, speak it very rarely, instead opting for the more common Goblin or Orcish tongues. The Giantish tongue is a mystery, not just because it is little known, but because it has survived for so long - [[Giant-kin]] tend to be spread out, and mingle with other races, yet Giants, when alone, will communicate with each other in Giantish. Anecdotes have reported that the vocabulary is even consistent among widely separated Giant groups, but due to the lack of interest among the Goodly Races in the language, as well as the sheer rarity of Giant kind, such stories are an unreliable source at best. | |||
===Goblin subfamily=== | ===Goblin subfamily=== | ||
The Goblin language is of uncertain origin--all that is really known about its history is that it is quite old, and several regional dialects exist, some of which are barely comprehensible to the others. It serves as a sort of ''lingua Ubrekti'' for subterranean Servitor races. It has a fairly large, albeit fairly unstandardized, vocabulary, and its main utility stems from its relative ability to convey difficult or abstract concepts, when compared to certain other Servitor languages (notably Kobold). | |||
*Kobold - Kobold is less a language, and more of a pidgin of several regionally related languages (notably Gildenhome Goblin and Dwarvish). Its structure is not suitable for extremely abstract discussion, but its simplicity makes it a common language between Servitor groups when not enough time exists to form a proper linguistic connection (which is most of the time, since Servitors are hardly known for being particularly cooperative). Different regions have wildly different variations, but the language's sheer simplicity allows highly disparate Kobold cultures to communicate in broad strokes, which is usually more than enough to support the majority of Kobold diplomacy (as it is mainly composed of the actions "Fight" and "Do Not Fight"). The simple structure and vocabulary of Kobold make it particularly suited for battlefield use, especially in a group of varying linguistic background. | *Kobold - Kobold is less a language, and more of a pidgin of several regionally related languages (notably Gildenhome Goblin and Dwarvish). Its structure is not suitable for extremely abstract discussion, but its simplicity makes it a common language between Servitor groups when not enough time exists to form a proper linguistic connection (which is most of the time, since Servitors are hardly known for being particularly cooperative). Different regions have wildly different variations, but the language's sheer simplicity allows highly disparate Kobold cultures to communicate in broad strokes, which is usually more than enough to support the majority of Kobold diplomacy (as it is mainly composed of the actions "Fight" and "Do Not Fight"). The simple structure and vocabulary of Kobold make it particularly suited for battlefield use, especially in a group of varying linguistic background. | ||
===Orcish subfamily=== | ===Orcish subfamily=== | ||
Orcs have developed their own tongue, thought to be distantly related to Sidhe, but muddling from surrounding Human and Dwarvish groups (and a lack of living speakers of Sidhe on the Mainland) have kept any such speculations from being verified. Contrary to the rough nature of Orcish appearance, the tongue is melodic, and Orcish chants might be considered some of the more beautiful in the world, if they didn't regularly precede the destruction of the town that heard them. | |||
==Other== | ==Other== | ||
===Druidic=== | ===Druidic=== | ||
Druidic is the magical and mysterious language shared by all [[Druids]] regardless of background. Sometimes confused with being related to Sidhe or the strange Slyvan languages common to Fey creatures due to some mingling of vocabulary, it is a separate language with unique characteristics. The Druids themselves are not known to have made any comment on the matter, but the language seems to have some magical component as it is indecipherable and can not be learned by mundane means. Outside of short-lived magical spells such as ''comprehend languages'' or ''tongues'' only people who have trained as a druid can speak, read, or understand it. | |||
===Extinct Mythological Languages=== | ===Extinct Mythological Languages=== | ||
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===Planar and Outsider=== | ===Planar and Outsider=== | ||
Creatures from outside [[The Veil]] typically speak their own languages, but outside of especially scholarly clerics | Creatures from outside [[The Veil]] typically speak their own languages, but outside of especially scholarly clerics, wizards, or those with strange magical powers few would even know of the existence of these. | ||
*Abyssal - The language of Demons | *Abyssal - The language of Demons | ||
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===Sahuagin=== | ===Sahuagin=== | ||
The legendary language of the utterly alien shark people who live under the seas. It is said that the sounds of Sahuagin language are a frightening combination of ethereal trills mixed with wet flapping and short grunts, punctuated by basso popping noises that can carry quite long distances under water. Sahuagin have not been seen on the mainland for ages and are are considered mythological to many, but they likely still exist, lurking beneath the waters. Many sailors still tell tales of seeing them but few have believable stories of surviving an up-close encounter and many tales of hearing Sahuagin "talking" turn out to be simply seals, whales, or other mundane beasts. | |||
===Ssel'it subfamily=== | ===Ssel'it subfamily=== | ||
Ssel'it, the language of the [[Lizardfolk]], is unique among the languages of the Mainland, largely due to their unique physiology. Much like cursive writing, all its sounds are combined into one sibilant chain of phonemes that is almost impossible for the untrained to distinguish into lexical units. | |||
=Naming= | ==Naming== | ||
Tips from the World Master on good naming themes: | Tips from the World Master on good naming themes: | ||
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* Is it Sidhe? Leave it to the WorldMaster usually. | * Is it Sidhe? Leave it to the WorldMaster usually. | ||
== Tools == | === Tools === | ||
* [http://donjon.bin.sh/name/#german_town Donjon random name generator] - Can generate town names, character names, etc. | * [http://donjon.bin.sh/name/#german_town Donjon random name generator] - Can generate town names, character names, etc. | ||
* [http://www.squid.org/rpg-random-generator Squid RPG Name Generator] - Generate along popular themes | * [http://www.squid.org/rpg-random-generator Squid RPG Name Generator] - Generate along popular themes | ||