It's been quite a while since we've used the blog here at Myth! It's been for good reason, though, because we've been hard at work on the map and testing and all the moving parts we have to work on to get this place going exactly the way we want. Things are going well, and that means that we can get back to expanding on some lore to hold people over while they wait!
Today we're going to shed some light on the strange and secretive Treekin. This fantasy inspired race is specific to our setting, something we pulled together from pieces of other stories and myths to make a unique option to round out our menagerie of playable races. They have a special place in our setting, being both the first mortal race and the one that people know the least about! Those who wish to play something both ancient in the world of Myth and new in the world of UO RP could find a home in the forests of Nique Taure. But of course don't let that convince you that's the only place you'll find these beautiful and terrifying plant people.
One can see a lot of Treant and Dryad influences in the Treekin, that's by design of course. Their physical design is supposed to give a lot of room for customization. Just like the plants in the Amazon rainforest are very different from those that try their best to grow on the Swiss Alps, treekin who grow in such varied environments will look wildly different. Players are encouraged to model their character around different plants or natural growths, like mushrooms or ivy or flowers, to give personality to their character's description. They are strange and wonderous, like nature embodied, and while many would take that to make them stoic druids who want nature protected and balanced, there is also the predatory, resourceful side of nature to consider.
In our fiction, the Treekin were the first real mortal race. While not the first race created by the gods, the earlier ones were not what you would see today. Treekin were created by Amil fully formed and realized, for she had the wisdom of the work of all the other Gods to learn from. The concept of "time" was still new, and their mortality did not hinge on it. Many of the greatest ancestors of their race still live to this day.. simply sleeping as trees. And they will forever, until death finds them by disaster or providence. Just like the other early races, though, the Treekin still feel the touch of their god's hand. They have a strong desire to protect their home, hearkening from their initial duty as guardian of Amil's altar against the wilds of a newly formed world. This is why many druids build their groves near sleeping Treekin and give offerings to these protectors. Nothing is quite as terrifying as the forest coming awake around an advancing force and ripping it apart in the night. But that is only what outsiders see, the Treekin themselves are just as varied as humans if you have enough in one place to compare them.
They feel all the same emotions that any sentient race would, though seen through the lens of infinite patience. Wisdom is for the old, so unfortunately this patience doesn't extend to young treekin, who are as impetuous and fool-hearty as anyone else. Most of the Treekin that the outside world see are these free spirits who know that the world out there is in trouble (or is ripe for the taking). Their sense of adventure must also tangle with that before-mentioned desire to protect. In adventuring parties this may certainly mean that the Treekin will be the one keeping people together, or quick to shield the weaker of their number from danger.
Unlike the other races, with the exception perhaps of Orks, we're not sure if most Treekin will be living in cities like Nique Taure or Estvale or if they are going to populate the druid groves in the forests. The lore leaves their childhood raising and so on vague and individualistic for this reason. You can assume that they would live like those around them, finding their place in whatever society they've decided to protect or live with. This can of course cause friction in some places. Imagine, for instance, the rate at which they grow compared to both the elves and humans. Treekin grow to maturity earlier than humans, who are already bizarre man-children to the elves, but live longer than any other race. Playing together as children their own age must be strange. This is the exciting part of having a new addition to the races, the freedom to make a fully realized new character. We can't wait to see what people do with them!
I also want to take a second to welcome Aemon to our map team. He does great work, and along with Valacirca's help our map is going to be amazing! We have a few more blogs to go before the big day is announced but remember that our character application is already up. We're in the home stretch now and look forward to playing with all of you!
*Photo credit Wizards of the Coast*