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Araska Summary
General Info: Most of the citizens are normal civilians, though in the past twenty years enlistment in the marines has become popular among young men and women as the nation strives to prove its worth as a member of the World Government. People from this island tend to have very pale skin due to the lack of sunlight. They're also renowned for their ability to wear shockingly light clothing in their famously frigid climate; while visitors pile on the furs and slip hot water bottles into their shirts, denizens of Araska are content to go outside in normal winter coats and sweaters. More surprisingly, they never seem to suffer frostbite, hypothermia, or even get cold at all. They live in towns of about 100 people each. Each town is led by a vassal who answers to the chieftain of the entire island. The people who live here are generally kind and hospitable, but pirates are not tolerated, especially since Neige Fondante Town was razed by a crew of pirates six months ago. This is an island that strongly supports the marines and the World Government. Perhaps even more fascinating than their resilience to cold, the people of Araska have managed to domesticate polar bears. A small taxi company uses the bears to pull carriages between the towns, and a special breed of pygmy polar bear is a common pet, especially for the elderly.
Appearance: The island is the shape of a snow-ball.
Climate: Being a winter island, Araska is always below 0 in temperature. It is known to have blizzards spur out every now and then.
Notable NPC(s):
Meno - The chieftain of the entire island. A very kind elderly man, though maybe a bit loony. He's determined to have a marine base built on Araska before he dies.
Amina IV - The great-great-granddaughter of Amina, the first chieftain, and the displaced vassal of Neige Fondante Town. Although Amina IV put up a great fight when her district was attacked, she was knocked unconscious before the night was over and woke up in a clinic in La Glace Town. She's middle-aged with graying blonde hair and green eyes.
Federico - The vassal of La Glace Town and an immigrant from Mexigo Island, Fed is a humorless young man with dark hair and gray eyes. He doesn't speak very much, but he's very loyal to Meno and does whatever is asked of him.
Merdle - The vassal of Niege Town, Merdle is a pure-blooded Iglew and very proud of the fact. He can be very xenophobic, especially where people from other Blues are concerned. He's a tall, built middle-aged man with an unusually large jaw, a bald head, and deep-set black eyes.
Emilio - The vassal of Neige Fondue Town and an immigrant all the way from the Mexigo in the South Blue. At first glance, he appears to be a very overweight man-- almost perfectly spherical. Actually, he's thin as a rod; all of the extra bulk comes from the twenty layers of clothing he laboriously dons every morning to keep out the "damnable cold," as he says. He has mousy brown hair, a handlebar mustache, bright blue eyes, and an almost religious compulsion to sell anything and everything people will buy. He's also the owner of the polar bear carriage service, though he's personally frightened of polar bears.
Lunette - The only school teacher on the island. She's very young and pretty with short dark hair and bright green eyes, but she's often very mean to the children she teaches.
Groups: N/A
Vicinity:
Neige Town
The oldest town on the island and also the home of the island's only school. Most families with small children live on the same street as the school, and the schoolmaster herself lives in the one-room classroom. The houses are circular, squat, and built of sturdy red brick imported from Mexigo, with a large fireplace set in the exact center of the main room. The buildings also bear blue and white geometric designs on the roofs and doors, a decorative motif that originated with the Iglew Tribe who settled the island; most residents here are descendants of that tribe. Besides the school, this district is purely residential; usually, there isn't a lot to do or see. The days are filled with bundled up old men toddling back and forth with rods and pails for ice fishing, the second national sport of Araska. The primary national sport of Araska is a nightly event marked by lots of drinking and singing; the legendary freezing contest, where competitors sit stark naked in the snow and ice. The last one remaining wins the grand prize... which is more booze.
La Glace Town
As an extension of Neige Town, La Glace Town is similar in many ways. The circular buildings are all made of red brick; however, the buildings here are much larger than those in Snow Town, often with two or three stories and housing two families each. Since most of the people who live in this town are immigrants or the descendants of immigrants, the flags and decorations of other nations can be seen in windows and on doors. The citizens here can't be seen outside often since they're more sensitive to the cold than native Araskans; however, this means that they're more sympathetic to freezing visitors and are more likely to invite them inside for a hot drink, whereas Neige Towners often laugh off the discomfort of out-of-towners. A lot of the children in this town take the polar bear carriages to the school in Neige Town, but most are home-schooled. Although La Glace Town doesn't have a school of its own, it boasts the island's only clinic. Ice-fishing and the freezing contest have never gained much popularity in La Glace Town; the usual pastimes here are Foosball, normal drinking contests, and poker, all activities that are enjoyed in front of a roaring fire. Like Neige Town, La Glace Town is residential. The people who were driven out of Neige Fondante Town are now taking refuge in La Glace Town.
Neige Fondue Town
When Neige Town, La Glace Town, and Neige Fondante Town were first settled, each district had its own collection of stores and workshops. However, none of the districts had every store that they needed, which opened the door to a lot of crooked activity, like charging a 'foreigner tax' to people from other districts and trying to lure shops away from a rival district. This situation caused such unnecessary strife that the chief decreed that all shops would operate in a completely separate district, and all merchants selling from Neige Town, La Glace Town, or Neige Fondante Town would be banished. As such, Neige Fondue Town is a purely commercial district, although merchants and their families typically live in the same building as their shops. The stores are all circular and red brick in Araska fashion, though instead of national emblems the windows and doors display shop signs. The polar bear carriage service operates out of this district; any trip to any point on the island costs
100. This is also the place to purchase a pygmy polar bear, for 5000 each.
Neige Fondante Town
Formerly a third residential district, Neige Fondante Town was sacked by pirates six months ago. Only burned out ruins remain. The people who used to live here have since taken refuge in town or moved back to their home countries.
Congélateur
The municipal district, trips to Deep Freeze are extremely rare. The area is surrounded by a 12ft high carved ice gate; inside is the chieftain's complex, which includes the chieftain's home (a normal Neige Town style house where meetings between the chieftain and his vassals take place), the huge ceremonial palace which is also carved of ice, and the library, which is the only rectangular building on the island, having been built by an immigrant from some unnamed kingdom. Beneath the complex is an underground ice prison, where the island's worst criminals are kept to freeze to death, guarded by enormous guard polar bears.
General Info: Most of the citizens are normal civilians, though in the past twenty years enlistment in the marines has become popular among young men and women as the nation strives to prove its worth as a member of the World Government. People from this island tend to have very pale skin due to the lack of sunlight. They're also renowned for their ability to wear shockingly light clothing in their famously frigid climate; while visitors pile on the furs and slip hot water bottles into their shirts, denizens of Araska are content to go outside in normal winter coats and sweaters. More surprisingly, they never seem to suffer frostbite, hypothermia, or even get cold at all. They live in towns of about 100 people each. Each town is led by a vassal who answers to the chieftain of the entire island. The people who live here are generally kind and hospitable, but pirates are not tolerated, especially since Neige Fondante Town was razed by a crew of pirates six months ago. This is an island that strongly supports the marines and the World Government. Perhaps even more fascinating than their resilience to cold, the people of Araska have managed to domesticate polar bears. A small taxi company uses the bears to pull carriages between the towns, and a special breed of pygmy polar bear is a common pet, especially for the elderly.
Appearance: The island is the shape of a snow-ball.
Climate: Being a winter island, Araska is always below 0 in temperature. It is known to have blizzards spur out every now and then.
Notable NPC(s):
Meno - The chieftain of the entire island. A very kind elderly man, though maybe a bit loony. He's determined to have a marine base built on Araska before he dies.
Amina IV - The great-great-granddaughter of Amina, the first chieftain, and the displaced vassal of Neige Fondante Town. Although Amina IV put up a great fight when her district was attacked, she was knocked unconscious before the night was over and woke up in a clinic in La Glace Town. She's middle-aged with graying blonde hair and green eyes.
Federico - The vassal of La Glace Town and an immigrant from Mexigo Island, Fed is a humorless young man with dark hair and gray eyes. He doesn't speak very much, but he's very loyal to Meno and does whatever is asked of him.
Merdle - The vassal of Niege Town, Merdle is a pure-blooded Iglew and very proud of the fact. He can be very xenophobic, especially where people from other Blues are concerned. He's a tall, built middle-aged man with an unusually large jaw, a bald head, and deep-set black eyes.
Emilio - The vassal of Neige Fondue Town and an immigrant all the way from the Mexigo in the South Blue. At first glance, he appears to be a very overweight man-- almost perfectly spherical. Actually, he's thin as a rod; all of the extra bulk comes from the twenty layers of clothing he laboriously dons every morning to keep out the "damnable cold," as he says. He has mousy brown hair, a handlebar mustache, bright blue eyes, and an almost religious compulsion to sell anything and everything people will buy. He's also the owner of the polar bear carriage service, though he's personally frightened of polar bears.
Lunette - The only school teacher on the island. She's very young and pretty with short dark hair and bright green eyes, but she's often very mean to the children she teaches.
Groups: N/A
Vicinity:
Neige Town
The oldest town on the island and also the home of the island's only school. Most families with small children live on the same street as the school, and the schoolmaster herself lives in the one-room classroom. The houses are circular, squat, and built of sturdy red brick imported from Mexigo, with a large fireplace set in the exact center of the main room. The buildings also bear blue and white geometric designs on the roofs and doors, a decorative motif that originated with the Iglew Tribe who settled the island; most residents here are descendants of that tribe. Besides the school, this district is purely residential; usually, there isn't a lot to do or see. The days are filled with bundled up old men toddling back and forth with rods and pails for ice fishing, the second national sport of Araska. The primary national sport of Araska is a nightly event marked by lots of drinking and singing; the legendary freezing contest, where competitors sit stark naked in the snow and ice. The last one remaining wins the grand prize... which is more booze.
La Glace Town
As an extension of Neige Town, La Glace Town is similar in many ways. The circular buildings are all made of red brick; however, the buildings here are much larger than those in Snow Town, often with two or three stories and housing two families each. Since most of the people who live in this town are immigrants or the descendants of immigrants, the flags and decorations of other nations can be seen in windows and on doors. The citizens here can't be seen outside often since they're more sensitive to the cold than native Araskans; however, this means that they're more sympathetic to freezing visitors and are more likely to invite them inside for a hot drink, whereas Neige Towners often laugh off the discomfort of out-of-towners. A lot of the children in this town take the polar bear carriages to the school in Neige Town, but most are home-schooled. Although La Glace Town doesn't have a school of its own, it boasts the island's only clinic. Ice-fishing and the freezing contest have never gained much popularity in La Glace Town; the usual pastimes here are Foosball, normal drinking contests, and poker, all activities that are enjoyed in front of a roaring fire. Like Neige Town, La Glace Town is residential. The people who were driven out of Neige Fondante Town are now taking refuge in La Glace Town.
Neige Fondue Town
When Neige Town, La Glace Town, and Neige Fondante Town were first settled, each district had its own collection of stores and workshops. However, none of the districts had every store that they needed, which opened the door to a lot of crooked activity, like charging a 'foreigner tax' to people from other districts and trying to lure shops away from a rival district. This situation caused such unnecessary strife that the chief decreed that all shops would operate in a completely separate district, and all merchants selling from Neige Town, La Glace Town, or Neige Fondante Town would be banished. As such, Neige Fondue Town is a purely commercial district, although merchants and their families typically live in the same building as their shops. The stores are all circular and red brick in Araska fashion, though instead of national emblems the windows and doors display shop signs. The polar bear carriage service operates out of this district; any trip to any point on the island costs
100. This is also the place to purchase a pygmy polar bear, for 5000 each.Neige Fondante Town
Formerly a third residential district, Neige Fondante Town was sacked by pirates six months ago. Only burned out ruins remain. The people who used to live here have since taken refuge in town or moved back to their home countries.
Congélateur
The municipal district, trips to Deep Freeze are extremely rare. The area is surrounded by a 12ft high carved ice gate; inside is the chieftain's complex, which includes the chieftain's home (a normal Neige Town style house where meetings between the chieftain and his vassals take place), the huge ceremonial palace which is also carved of ice, and the library, which is the only rectangular building on the island, having been built by an immigrant from some unnamed kingdom. Beneath the complex is an underground ice prison, where the island's worst criminals are kept to freeze to death, guarded by enormous guard polar bears.
