NationStates Jolt Archive

The Intergalactic Confederacy of Ravenspire (http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/target=display_nation/nation=ravenspire)
and The Ravenspire Star-Cities of Kuraboshi (Deimos) (http://www.nationstates.net/cgi-bin/index.cgi/target=display_nation/nation=kuraboshi)

Civil Rights: Ravenspire: Superb; Kuraboshi: Frightening
Economy: Ravenspire: Frightening; Kuraboshi: Frightening
Political Freedoms: Ravenspire: Outlawed; Kuraboshi: World Benchmark

(see post later in the thread for explanation of these)

Background

The Confederacy of Ravenspire is a young nation, but one built upon thousands of years of tradition. From the clan-centered feudal system that dominated among the Ravenspire peninsula's foxgirls at the time the first human settlers arrived, the society evolved into a collection of city-states similar to that of ancient Greece, a state of affairs that lasted until the late 19th century, when the area came under the control of a colonial power. This invasion united the people of Ravenspire as nothing else had been able to do, and, after over fifty years of intermittent warfare, in the wake of World War II, the inhabitants succeeded in overthrowing the weakened colonial government and establishing a single unified nation. Since then, technological progress has been made in leaps and bounds, and Ravenspire stands today as one of the foremost starfaring powers.

National Flag: A stylized representation of Mount Raven, the highest peak in Ravenspire, which is located almost exactly at the geographical center of the country. Tir Eselyn is located beneath Mount Raven.

Motto: "Sic itur ad astra." (Latin: Thus we progress to the stars.)

National Anthem: "Ad Astra" (comp. Miyabi Kitsuki)

National Colors: Black and Red.

National Animal: The foxgirl, a sentient humanlike species. They elected themselves.

National Flower: The Ravenspire asphodel, a member of the lily family symbolizing death and mourning for the departed. It grows only in a small area of the national forest, and it can be noted by the small, teardrop-shaped red marks on its otherwise-white petals.

National Foods: None, officially. Sashimi, steak, and spaghetti are the most popular foods.

National Sports: None, officially. Judo is the most popular, but many martial arts (both armed and unarmed) enjoy great popularity, as do riflery and archery. Football (soccer, by American terminology), baseball, hockey, basketball, track and field, skiing, ice skating, and a variety of other sports also enjoy followings.

National Drink: None, officially. "Anything with caffeine" is the most popular survey response, while "gin and tonic" is the most popular specific drink cited.

Geography

Location: Northern Lodoss, in the equatorial Atlantic region. Landmass roughly the size of western Europe. Borders Terraus, Xen, and Raevyn, and shares a maritime border with CreepyTeef. Ravenspire also possesses a number of space colonies and installations, including ones on Luna, Deimos, Ceres, Ganymede, Lysithea, Io, Titan, Phoebe, Europa, Callisto, Oberon, Titania, Ariel, Umbriel, Triton, and Despina. The Deimos colony, Kuraboshi, is the largest, and is semi-autonomous.

Climate: Tropical in the north, subtropical in the south. Mild winters at sea level; cool summers in the south, hotter in the north. Much of the interior is at high elevation, and therefore cooler. Moderate humidity and rainfall levels.

Terrain: Roughly 90% of the land area is mountainous, including numerous active and dormant volcanoes. These mountains are typically high and jagged, and the terrain generally rough. Most of the coast is sea cliff; however, a stretch of beach known as the Twilight Coast graces the west coast. The area surrounding this coast is low-lying plains, forest, and hills, and makes up the majority of the remaining 10% of land area.

Elevation extremes:
Highest point: Mt. Raven (8,014 m)
lowest point: Farmad Chasm (-283 m)

Natural resources: Gold, iron, copper, sapphire, lead, diamond, bauxite, coal, uranium, ruby, tin, tungsten, geothermal power.

Land use:
Arable land: 15.7%
Permanent crops: < 1%
Other: 83.9%

Natural hazards: Tropical storms (infrequent, coastal); volcanoes (infrequent, primarily in the isthmus region); earthquakes (relatively frequent)

People

Population: ~3.75 billion (Ravenspire: over 2 billion; Kuraboshi and other colonies: ~1.7 billion)

Languages: English is spoken everywhere. The foxgirls have their own language as well, and some of Ravenspire's humans learn it. Many foreign languages are widely spoken; the average Ravenspire citizen is fluent in three languages. The most common tongue other than the two already cited is Japanese.

Age structure (Human-equivalent):
0-15 years: 18%
16-65 years: 64%
66+ years: 18%

Nationality:
Noun: Ravenspiran, Ravenspire citizen
adjective: Ravenspiric, Ravenspirish, Ravenspiran, Ravenspire

Population by race (as of last census):
46% human (48% Asiatic, 48% Caucasian, 4% mixed)
47% foxperson (Ravenspire variety)
1% catperson (various varieties)
1% modified human
1% tenshi
1% other anthropomorphic (including other varieties of foxperson)
1% other nonanthropomorphic (elf, vampire, dwarf, various)
1% sentient of extrasolar/extradimensional origin
(Figures do not add to 100% because of rounding)

Life Expectancy: 97.3 years (human); unknown (foxgirl); figures not available (others)

Literacy: 100%

Religion:
88% Agnostic/Atheist/Secular Humanist
8% Animist (including Shinto)
7% Buddhist (all schools)
5% Christian (all sects)
~1% Other (Jewish, Raevynite, Hindu, various)
(Figures do not add to 100% because of rounding and because some individuals profess multiple faiths.)

Government

Country name:
Conventional long form: the Intergalactic Confederacy of Ravenspire and the Star-City of Kuraboshi
Conventional short form: Ravenspire
Local long form: the Confederacy of Ravenspire
Local short form: Ravenspire
Abbrevation: Ravenspire

Government type: Egalitarian capitalistic representative democracy guided by a shadow oligarchy and by the force of tradition.

Legal system: The judiciary is subject to the legislative branch; the ministries of Justice and Civil Law have jurisdiction over the running of criminal and civil courts, respectively. Judges are appointed by the ministries, with high court appointments requiring the approval of the Minister of State as well. If the appointment is challenged, the High Council considers the matter. Trials are heard not by juries but by a group of judges. There are few laws, and most of them boil down to forbidding the denial, in whatever fashion, of rights and freedoms to others.

Suffrage: 16 years, universal, under the law. However, some citizens still gain adult status sooner according to an older tradition: anyone capable of supporting himself may be considered adult. All citizens are equal under the law; Ravenspire does not discriminate according to species, skin color, gender, religion, sexual orientation, non-organic sentient status, social standing, or in any other way save the adult/non-adult and sentient/non-sentient distinctions.

Executive branch:

Chief of State: The Beloved Leader of Ravenspire. However, most of the day-to-day work of running the nation falls to the Minister of State, currently Raye Forrester.

Elections: The Beloved Leader has never been challenged for office. The Minister of State is considered a member of the legislature.

Cabinet: None; the legislature, in the form of the High Council, fills that role.

Legislative branch:

The country itself is run by the High Council, which has jurisdiction over all lower councils. The High Council members are the elected ministers of various government departments, including State, Defense, Education, Intelligence, Trade, Justice, and Civil Law. The Chief Diplomat, as leader of the diplomatic corps, also sits on the High Council. The foxgirl population of Ravenspire, who were until just a few years ago considered a sovereign people in and of themselves as well as citizens of Ravenspire, have also traditionally elected a representative to the High Council, but this position is no longer filled, as of the latest election.

Elections: High Council representatives run in nationwide elections at irregular intervals -- once elected, they serve until they resign, they are challenged for the position, or the people pass a vote of no-confidence to recall them. In practice, a member of the High Council can expect to run for election every three to seven years. Once elected, the High Council member may not be challenged (but may be recalled or resign) for two years, and he may run as many times consecutively as he likes. Election dates are called by the Beloved Leader.

Judicial branch:

The ministries of Justice and Civil Law have jurisdiction over the running of criminal and civil courts, respectively.

Political parties: Political parties exist, but mainly as an easy catch-all categorization of a candidate's positions. Many candidates run, and win election, independently, and partisan infighting, while common during elections, is all but unknown in the council chambers themselves. Officials are expected to place the good of the country over the good of their party, and those who do not are almost inevitably removed from office within months.

International organization participation: Lodossian Nations, SATO, WBO, MIDAS-II, Triumvirate of Yut, SEACTO, SFNA

Economy

Ravenspire is a capitalist state. The government tries to keep regulations on business to a minimum; in practice, however, it tends to be more regulated than most other aspects of life. This is somewhat made up for by the fact that many of these regulations are not vigorously enforced. The primary industries are aerospace, entertainment technology, information technology, and publishing. There is also a strong tourist trade concentrated around the Twilight Coast.

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 2%
industry: 54%
services: 44%

Population below poverty line: 0.9%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.7%

Unemployment rate: 2.2%

Imports - Beef, cultural arts, exotic foods, milk products, oil, paper products, tourists ^_-, wheat, wood products.

Exports - Aerospacecraft and aerospacecraft parts, books, consumer electronics, cultural arts, diamonds, heavy metals, martial arts equipment, motion pictures, personal weaponry, popular music, television programs, and video games.

Currency: Ploink

Currency code: pl

Exchange rates: 1 pl ~= 0.9 Menelmacari credit

Fiscal year: October to October

Military

Ravenspire Spacy

Ravenspire Air Force

Ravenspire Counterintelligence/Counterterrorism (CI/CT)

Ravenspire Navy

Ravenspire National Guard

(OOC: More than you ever wanted to know about Ravenspire foxgirls... and it's still a work in progress. :? )

Excerpt from On the Foxgirls of Ravenspire by Gerald Black
<with commentary by Sakura Kitsuki>

The foxpeople of Ravenspire (whose proper race-designation is technically "foxgirl," though males of the race exist; their original name for themselves translates from their language as, roughly, "The People," and they sometimes refer to themselves as "the kin") appear to be among the oldest, if not the oldest, sentient inhabitants of Lodoss. Their recorded history spans over six thousand years before the first break is encountered; older records are less complete, but fragments at least twice that old have been discovered.

<Sakura: We never spread very far outside of modern-day Ravenspire, though. So there might've been other societies here; we just didn't encounter them. The geography of Ravenspire is a pretty daunting boundary, when you don't have air travel.>

Biological and Psychological Traits:

General appearance: Humanoid, outwardly similar to human in most ways. Differences include a tail (resembling the bushy brush of a fox), ears (also foxlike, and higher on the head), teeth (sharper, and the canines are in some cases elongated), and eyes (see below). The tail and ears are furred; the remainder of the body is not.

Height: Foxgirls normally range between four feet and seven feet in height, with most falling into the span between 5'3" and 5'10" -- slightly taller than the average human female. Foxboys are shorter than the average human male; the majority fall between 5'2" and 5'6".

<Sakura: I think this is a bit out of date; we've gotten a bit taller over the last 50 years, thanks to improvements in nutrition and such. Close enough, though.>

Weight/Build: Foxpeople are naturally predisposed toward lean and athletic body types; it is rare that even a heavy exerciser will "bulk up," and, thanks in part to their metabolisms, even rarer to see an overweight foxperson. A foxgirl's average weight is greater than that of a human female of similar height, primarily because of the presence of the tail. A foxboy's average weight is about equal to that of a human male of similar height, since male foxpeople tend to have slighter builds than male humans.

Eyes: Foxpeople exhibit a wide range of eye colors, including blue, green, grey, brown, hazel, purple, red, gold, and pink. The colors are generally bright, vivid, and clear; rarely does a foxperson possess eyes of a watery or murky hue. A foxperson's eyes are slightly larger than those of a human. Their daytime vision is on par with a human's, though they are less prone to near- or far-sightedness. Their night vision is much better than a human's, however, in anything other than total darkness. If a foxperson's eyes are hazel, golden, or red in color, they appear luminous in the dark; many foxpeople choose to wear special contact lenses to eliminate this effect, as those of other races often find it disturbing. Other eye colors do not show the effect as vividly.

<Sakura: Other races? The red eyes even bother some of us. Not me, of course.>

Ears: The ears of a foxperson are triangular, like a fox's, and are located nearer the top of the head than a human's. Their hearing is much more sensitive than a human's or an elf's, and they can hear into higher registers.

Nose: The nose is human in shape, but a foxperson's sense of smell is much better than a human's. A foxperson is capable of identifying nearby individuals by scent; with training, they can learn to pinpoint an individual's location.

<Sakura: Between scent and hearing, we can take blindfighting to a whole new level. I'm nearly as good in hand-to-hand blindfolded as I am normally.>

Hair/Fur: The hair and fur of a foxperson are usually the same color, though they may be slightly different shades. On occasion, the hair and fur will mismatch; this usually happens with non-red hair and red fur. The most common colors by far are red, silver, and brown; other possible colors include white, golden (a deep amber or honey color, rather than a lighter blonde), pale pink (a form of albinism), black, and pale blue (a rare variation on silver). Black and/or white tufts near the tips of the ears and tail are the norm. Fur color is genetically linked to certain personality tendencies:

* Red: Ranging from deep auburn to bright red to strawberry blonde to flame orange, this group represents the most common (~39%) hair/fur coloration among the foxpeople. Red-haired foxgirls tend to be emotionally wild, passionate, and impulsive.

<Sakura: Of course, this is the best color.>

* Silver: Ranging from true silver to various shades of grey, this grouping is the second most common; silver-haired foxgirls are almost as common as red (~38%). Silver hair tends to denote a more analytical and pragmatic nature.

<Sakura: Lots of administrators come from this group, too. Of course, they can be just as impulsive as the rest of us... just look at Megumi Yumeneko.>

* Brown: Less common by a fair margin than red and silver, but still more common than the other colors (~16%), brown hair is linked to a relatively quiet, intellectual bent. Brown-haired foxgirls tend to be academics; they also make very able administrative assistants of various sorts, but many do not feel themselves suited to leadership roles. It is worth noting that this group experiences vastly disproportionate numbers of vision problems; almost 75% of foxpeople who require corrective lenses or surgery possess brown hair.

<Sakura: Collective low self-esteem. These are the most boring foxgirls you could ever meet.>

* White: Usually a bright, snowy shade rather than a duller white, hair of this natural color is uncommon (~3%). (Many foxpeople "go white" with age, as humans "go grey," but this statistic counts only those who naturally possess that hair color.) It is linked to the traits of drive and focus; some white-haired foxgirls are monomaniacal, though most are simply very dedicated.

<Sakura: The second-best fighter in Ravenspire is a white-haired foxgirl who took an interest in martial arts. She's even beaten me in tournaments once or twice. If she had more leadership potential, she'd probably be the High Council representative while I'm on vacation... but I guess she doesn't have any desire to do so, anyway.>

* Golden: Hair of a golden shade is relatively rare (~2%). It seems to be a recessive related to brown hair, because golden-haired foxgirls tend to exhibit a similar intellectual bent; however, they tend to be drawn toward the creative rather than the academic. Foxgirls with golden hair often display literary, artistic, musical, or dramatic talent.

<Sakura: Reds do, too. The gold-haired ones tend to be Apollonian, though, while reds tend to be more Dionysian.>

* Pink: Albinism (lack of pigment in skin and hair) is not uncommon among foxpeople (~0.6%), and those with the condition have "colorless" hair that appears nearly white (though not the "bright" white of the actual white-haired foxgirls), but with a faint pink (or, sometimes, bluish) tinge. An equal number of foxpeople (~0.6%) express a variant: they possess the pigmentless hair while retaining pigmentation in the skin and sometimes in the eyes. Pink hair is linked to calm, meditation, and an affinity for puzzles and wordplay.

<Sakura: They tend to be the most religious of us. Don't ask me why.>

* Black: Among the rarest naturally-occurring hair colors for foxpeople (~0.5%), this is often jet black, but sometimes a more washed-out, deep-charcoal shade. A foxgirl with black hair is considered personally fortunate, according to superstition, but is also said to bring disaster on others. Black hair is linked with a facility for intellectual pursuits, a fine attention to detail, and a certain ease of interpretation of words, expressions, and body language.

<Sakura: I'm not superstitious, but these can just be scary. Never, ever negotiate the terms of a loan with one. Trust me on this.>

* Blue: The rarest of natural hair colors (~0.3%), pale blue is thought to be a variant descended from the silver coloration. The blue color is close to the shade of a blue spruce. The traits associated with it are a facility with numbers and arithmetic and an eidetic memory. Many blue-haired foxpeople gravitate into computer-related or engineering fields.

<Sakura: I've only met two of these. They both seemed kind of introverted, but they knew their stuff.>

Musculature: As previously mentioned, a foxperson is predisposed toward a lean or athletic build. Their muscles are similar to humans, but become denser and more efficient rather than bulkier. A foxgirl tends to be slightly weaker than a human male, but stronger than a human female of her height; at the upper extremes, however, the difference disappears. A foxboy is generally weaker than a human female of his height.

<Sakura: I can dead-lift over three times my weight... I'm one of those extremes, though. Lots of training, and such.>

Metabolism: A foxperson usually has a higher metabolic rate than a human. Foxgirls tend to have an even higher rate than their male counterparts. Typically, the metabolic rate is about twice as fast; however, some foxpeople have, at the extreme, shown rates as much as ten times as fast as a human's, while others' are "only" as fast as a typical human's.

Resilience: The pain threshold of a foxperson varies, just like that of a human. The physical body of a foxgirl is about as resistant to injury as a human's or elf's; foxboys tend to be more delicate, and less resistant to injury than a human. Both males and females display greater stamina and better recovery time from fatigue than a human; some foxgirls seemingly possess limitless energy. Many foxgirls heal injuries at a faster rate than that of a typical human, but this is not universal, and it is rare for foxboys to possess this trait.

Agility: Foxpeople are invariably more agile and more flexible than humans of similar characteristics. Their manual dexterity is only slightly better on average, but their hand-eye coordination is exceptional, and this often makes them seem more dexterous. Most foxpeople are very quick physically, at least over short distances; some move so quickly as to be a blur.

Reflexes and Reactions: The brain of a foxperson processes information at a much higher rate than any other known sentient organic being. Though this does not necessarily make them more intelligent than a human, nor more capable at raw-logic tasks such as arithmetic, it does mean that they are capable of thinking more thoughts in the same span of time. (This is part of the reason foxgirls are cast as hyperactive.) Combined with their heightened senses, agility, and natural reflexes, this gives them an excellent reaction time. A foxgirl's reaction speed cannot be meaningfully measured in hundredths of a second as a human's can; millionths or even billionths of a second are required. A foxboy's reactions are slightly slower, but still near-instantaneous from a human's perspective.

Intelligence: A foxperson's intelligence is equivalent to a human's. Some foxpeople learn more quickly, because they are capable of thinking more quickly; however, that trait works both ways, and some foxpeople learn more slowly, because, thinking so quickly, they are more prone to distraction. And while foxpeople are faster at deductive and inductive reasoning, they are not necessarily better at it.

<Sakura: More prone to distraction? What the hell is this guy think-- oooh, shiny.>

Reproduction: Foxpeople are known to be sexually compatible with both humans and elves, and may be capable of reproducing with others as well. A suitable scientific explanation for this quality has yet to be found. They breed true: all known offspring of a mixed foxperson/other couple, however, have been female foxpeople. Foxboys seem only to result from a match between a foxboy and a foxgirl, and even then, the chance is low; there is a natural gender imbalance of at least five foxgirls to one foxboy. The actual gender imbalance has worsened to nearly nine-to-one in recent years, as relationships with humans have become more common. There seem to be no differences between a foxgirl who is the offspring of a mixed couple and a foxgirl who is the offspring of a foxboy/foxgirl couple. The gestation period of a foxperson is slightly longer than that of a human, about ten months.

<Sakura: The gender ratio is around eleven to one, now.>

Development: A foxperson's physical development over the first thirteen to eighteen years of life mirrors a human's. At this point, however, signs of physical aging begin to slow; by their 25th to 30th years, most foxpeople have stopped showing any further signs of age. A foxperson is ancient by human standards before appearing middle-aged, and would in theory have to be centuries old or more in order to appear aged. The hair and fur of many foxpeople does, however, turn white as they age; this never happens at younger than 50 years of age, though, and it is not unusual for it not to happen even by 100 years. Foxpeople enjoy longer lifespans compared to humans; just how much longer is not entirely clear, as the foxpeople ascribe little importance to age. The 'biological clock' of a female foxperson triggers later than a human's, generally between the ages of 35 and 45. The drive to reproduce can be quite strong in some cases; in fact, it, along with the low number of male foxpeople relative to the number of females, was the primary cause of inter-clan warfare in the past. The discovery of their compatibility with humans assuaged the situation.

Culture: Despite their notorious individualism, the foxpeople have developed a family/clan system similar to those of ancient China and Japan. These ties are quite strong; the average foxperson identifies first as an individual, second with their clan, and third with their nation or religion.

<Sakura: Therefore the order of our introductions. I'm usually "Sakura Kitsuki of Ravenspire," or maybe "Sakura Kitsuki, Agent of Ravenspire." As opposed to the Chinese and Japanese, who put the family name first.>

There are thirteen so-called "Great Clans," each of which contains multiple families, and over a hundred lesser clans, which usually contain only a single family each. The Great Clans are counted as follows:

* Akayami - families Akayami, Akiyama, Kurayami, Yumeno
* Aozora - families Aino, Aozora, Shozora
* Ayukawa - families Aikawa, Ayukawa, Chiyoku, Daidoji
* Hoshino - families Hoshino, Hoshizawa, Kuraboshi
* Ishikawa - families Ishikawa, Koishikawa, Tenkawa
* Kanzaki - families Kanzaki, Sarazaki, Toshiwada
* Kitsuki - families Kitsu, Kitsuki, Kitsune (different characters than fox-spirit), Kitsura
* Morisato - families Maruyama, Morisato, Murasaki, Murakumo, Morigawa
* Natsuda - families Hino, Matsuura, Natsuda, Natsugi
* Shikami - families Irokami, Shikami, Shizura
* Suzuki - families Akizuki, Kizuki, Suzuki
* Tsukikage - families Sawazake, Tsukikage, Tsukino
* Yoshida - families Arada, Kushino, Murada, Sonoda, Yoshida

<Sakura: Traditionally, clans Akayami and Natsuda have served as governors or advisors, while Ayukawa and Kitsuki have provided warriors and generals. The other clans specialize, too, but not to the same extent. Of course, that was hundreds of years ago, and today, there's a broader range of professions among all of the clans.>

The lesser clans are too numerous to mention. Most of them, like all of the Great Clans, follow a Japanese naming convention, though there exist a handful, such as clan Mordain, that do not. The ancient mythology of the foxpeople asserts their descent from the kitsune, Japanese fox-spirits, and implies that to be responsible for the connection; their history simply does not make any effort to explain it.

<Sakura: Mythology? Anyway, I could explain it, actually, but I don't have the time. It's not really that interesting, anyway.>

The personal name of a foxgirl bears mentioning. As noted above, the average foxperson identifies first as an individual. In keeping with this individualism, it is customary for foxpeople to choose their own names, in the following manner. A newborn foxgirl will be given a name by each parent. She will use both names, interchangeably, until at least the beginning of her formal education (usually around age 5-6), and sometimes as late as age 9-10. From that point on, on her birthday each year, she will choose a new name for herself. (Some grow attached to a particular name early, and it is not unusual for a foxgirl to choose the same name multiple years running, or to retain one of her birth names.) Upon reaching the age of majority, she will declare her adult name, which will become her legal name for all purposes. Few foxgirls ever legally change their names after this time; the name they have chosen is the name with which they identify most closely. The naming ceremony is cause for a lavish celebration; in the case of an important member of a great clan, it can go on for days, and encompass whole cities.

<Sakura: My birth names were Yuri and Momoko. I just changed flowers, you could say. Japanese names tend to be the most popular... chalk it up to our culture, I guess. Chinese and Western names aren't exactly rare, either, though.>

The importance the foxpeople place on individuality goes far beyond their names, of course. It is often said that the greatest virtue in foxperson society is passion. By passion, they mean depth of feeling, force of personality, strength of will, drive. This is not synonymous with leadership; they respect those who follow, as long as they have chosen to follow. Free will is a part of the consideration, but the greatest admiration is kept for the free will that is executed with vigor, with certainty, with pride. Sometimes they refer to this trait as "honesty," by which they mean not truthfulness, as the word is often understood, but emotional honesty -- thus, it is possible to speak a lie (literal falsehood) yet speak honestly (with purity of emotion).

In keeping with this concept of honesty, foxpeople possess a strong sense of personal honor. However, their idea of honor varies somewhat from the definition of honor in the human societies which parallel theirs. For instance, a lie is not a breach of honor in their system. A further complication arises when one considers that individuals among the foxpeople often possess varying definitions, so that each follows, in essence, his own separate code. Certain core precepts occur more often than others; the most universal among these are as follows:

* Loyally defend family, clan, friends, and nation -- usually in that order.
* Keep your word, once given, unless doing so would interfere with the above.
* Keep the secrets entrusted to you by the kin, unless doing so would interfere with the above.
* Deal with others as they have dealt with you, unless doing so would interfere with the above.
* Keep the secrets entrusted to you by non-foxpeople, unless doing so would interfere with the above.
* Never strike an unaware opponent, unless not doing so would interfere with the above.

<Sakura: A bit archaic, really, and not everyone follows them any more. It's sort of like modern Japanese and bushido -- sure, there's varying degrees of influence on the modern culture, and you even find people who adhere to its rules rigorously, but it's widely considered a historical artifact. You can usually count on at least those first two in the list, though.>

The foxpeople appear rather anarchic at first glance, but their clan system doubles as a government of sorts. The Great Clans function as a sort of parliament; the heads of the various families form a council of sorts, and set policy for the Great Clans, which in turn set policy for the lesser clans. There is an overall leader who directs the general course of this council of clans, who is usually drawn from the families Akayami, Ayukawa, Kitsuki, and Natsuda, and whose title translates roughly to "High Queen" or "Empress," though it is not a hereditary position and the society has not been monarchial in nature for centuries, if not longer. As the translation indicates, this leader is always female. The heads of the families and clans are often female as well, particularly among the Great Clans, though there are occasionally males in these positions. Currently, House Kitsuki of Clan Kitsuki holds the honor.

Each family selects a head according to its own tradition. This usually involves a vote based upon a certain activity. For instance, the Shozora family selects its head by holding a concert, during which each of those interested in the position plays a piece of moderate length on a favored instrument, and the family votes for the best musician. The Kitsuki family holds a martial arts tournament; its head is the one voted the best fighter in terms of skill, grace, and presentation. The Suzuki family requires aspirants to design and model a kimono; its head is the one whose work is deemed most beautiful, most daring, most innovative, or most stylish. The timing of these contests and votes varies; some families elect a head for a specific term, while others serve until they retire or die.

<Sakura: This probably seems like an odd way to choose leaders, but the thing you have to realize is, it dates back thousands of years. There was a time when it was really important for the leader of a family to be an expert in a particular field. It's not like we haven't thought about changing it, either, but here's the kicker: It seems to work at least as well as any other scheme for producing leaders.>

Language: The native language of the foxpeople is Kitsugo. It is similar to Japanese in its grammatical structure and its use of word-representing rather than sound-representing 'letters' in its written form. Its spoken form is very fluid; listeners unfamiliar with the language often hear only a stream of vowel sounds interspersed with the occasional 'l' or 'n' sound. This form evolved in accord with the foxpeople's greater speed of thought; two foxpeople speaking to each other in Kitsugo can communicate at a level much closer to their speed of thought than in human languages, where the pronunciation of consonants slows them down. In fact, even those humans who learn Kitsugo have trouble comprehending a native foxgirl speaker unless she deliberately slows her speech. Most foxpeople also speak English and/or Japanese, and many add a third or fourth language.

Art: The culture of the foxpeople has emphasized the arts -- creative, practical, and martial. As previously mentioned, the head of a Great Clan was traditionally the one considered most skilled in a specific art, and festivals, displays, and competitions are integral parts of foxgirls' traditional holidays. Foxpeople have adapted well to most human arts, but by the time they first encountered humans, they had already developed a variety of artistic styles and forms of their own.

* Creative: Foxgirls excel at dance and acrobatics, and, given their typical level of energy, often are noted for strenuous, fast-paced routines. Their dance form shorilina exemplifies this philosophy; a company of six to eighteen foxgirls performs an intricate routine of nearly constant, often 'bursting,' motion. One of the exceptions, lirirona, is similar to traditional ballet, but it includes a non-dancing narrator who, from an unobtrusive position to one side of the stage, sings, chants, or speaks the story the dancers' motions are interpreting. Their musical tradition includes the use of a large, wooden flute-like instrument called the liuwanori, which produces a sound similar in timbre to that of a clarinet or oboe. On the literary side, their stories and plays often involve romantic or political 'triangles' (the latter being questions of honor and loyalty) in times of war -- both the inter-clan conflicts and the battles against the humans early on. This interest continues in the modern motion picture industry; Ravenspire produces an impressive number of historical dramas with similar themes.

* Practical: Among the practical arts, foxgirls are best known for metalworking and weaving/stitchery. Of the first, the finest example is the historical weaponry found in many Ravenspire museums and, in some cases, still in use: swords of steel and adamant, necklaces of gold or silver set with gems, intricate ornaments of all kinds. Of the second, the noted examples are shadowsilk garments -- a lightweight, smooth, breathable, element-resistant fabric which, in its undyed state, is a deep grey in color -- and the larawalera story-cloaks, long, flowing, colorful garments whose weave contains symbolic knotwork, the pattern of which tells a story, often the story of the life of the individual for whom it was made. Historically, these were often crafted of linen or cotton, but in modern times wool and synthetic blends have become available.

* Martial: Foxgirl society has always esteemed the arts of war, and foxgirls have developed a variety of armed and unarmed combat methods. Many of these are similar to human arts, but six divergent styles have evolved. These include kitsudo, a soft style focused on evading attacks and turning the enemy's force back against him, as well as nerve-strike techniques; mushijutsu, the art of using a whip, rope, or other flexible weapon to best advantage; ro zhen, a hard style focusing on flurries of fast, powerful blows; mi goo gon, the art of improvised weapons; kitsukenjutsu, a style of sword techniques; and lathreya, focusing on joint-locks and incapacitating strikes. These styles remain popular among the foxpeople, though human arts such as judo, karate, aikido, fencing, savate, and others are also widely practiced.

<Sakura: Mushijutsu was a bit of an oddity, historically; a whip isn't a very effective weapon in a lot of combat situations, so it focused mainly on disarms, trips, and chokes, in addition to a few strikes at soft targets. With the development of the monomolecular-filament whips, though, it took on a new life. In order to begin training with a monowhip, a foxgirl has to be a CI/CT veteran and a master of mushijutsu. Otherwise, it's easy to amputate your own limbs or cut yourself in half with your weapon. As you can imagine, only the best agents, like me, qualify to carry one.>

(OOC: Wow, sooner or later you'll be having foxgirls playing in the World Cup!)

(OOC: Wow, sooner or later you'll be having foxgirls playing in the World Cup!)

(OOC: Sooner, seeing as there's been one on my squad since WC 5. As you very well know. 8) )

(OOC: Wow, sooner or later you'll be having foxgirls playing in the World Cup!)

(OOC: Sooner, seeing as there's been one on my squad since WC 5. As you very well know. 8))
OOC: as long as the two teams dont meet, ever, (we hate that idea of playing... *shivers* foxgirls...) we're safe.

(OOC: A team of cows doesn't bother you, but a woman with a fox's tail does? 8) )

Bump.

Bump 'cause I spent way too much time typing not to. 8)

(Messed up my post. Will try again later. :? )

Bump 'till I finish writing a brief history...

Freaking awesome.

I rate this as well written and place it in the category of people with too much free time.

-Nik

You're not kidding. I've sunk way too much time into this over the last year.

And it doesn't look like it's ending.

I'd better write a novel or something, some day. At least get some use out of all this. 8)

An explanation of the dual sets of stats...

(I suppose I'd better make it explicit that this is OOC information only. Most of the population of Ravenspire isn't even aware of it, so chances are nobody in your nation is, no matter how good you think your intelligence agency is. The two or three people active on this forum who do know, know who they are.)

Ravenspire is, as briefly mentioned in that huge first post, a country with two governments. On the surface -- the level most of the citizens and pretty much the entire rest of the world are aware of -- it appears to be an egalitarian, democratic near-utopia with many libertarian ideals. This is the reality reflected by Kuraboshi's stats -- Frightening civil rights, World Benchmark political freedoms.

In actuality, however, the nation is controlled by a shadow government, known as the Parliament of Rooks, which has been alluded to a handful of times IC. The Parliament, of which the mysterious Beloved Leader may or may not be a member, is firmly in control of most political and security matters in Ravenspire. This is the reality reflected by Ravenspire's stats -- Superb civil rights (because the government is willing to secretly sacrifice some freedoms in exchange for security), Outlawed political freedoms (because while people technically have the right to vote, to protest, to organize, and such, as reflected in Kuraboshi's World Benchmark stat, these are ultimately pointless, feel-good exercises -- not only are the results manipulated by the Parliament, but the nominations, the campaigning, the organizational structure of all parties involved, the campaign contributions, and, well, basically everything else).

This is, of course, a setup for a future RP, but it's one that won't happen for a while...

And this is a pretty clever way to bump, huh? 8)

And this is a pretty clever way to bump, huh? 8)

Yup. Kudos. : )

And this is not, but it does prevent deletion.

(Bump in anticipation of addition.)