Ringence

[[image:JAPAN-LANDSCAPE-japan-419442_1600_1200.jpg width="400" height="300"]] Kurona's old mansion. It is built on the edge of a mountain.
>>>>
 * 1) ===//G////eneral//===
 * Two words can describe Ringence. Feudal Japan. Everything from the culture, geography, food, to the language is based off of Feudal Era Japan.
 * 1) ===//Climate and Geography//===
 * All there is is forest, which covers the entire region except the places where lakes, rivers, and villages exist, the mountain ranges are all across the coast, one in the NW direction, one in the SW direction, and one in the SE direction, the rivers and lakes web through the land, much like the paths and roads.
 * 1) ===Region //History//===
 * It is relatively accessible, except that most people won't try to take over or what not, because it's in the East, and as we all know, NO ONE SHOULD TRY TO TAKE OVER ANYTHING IN THE EAST, because Madame Cho will not let them. The settlement of Ringence... it just came into being? It is based on War in States Era in Japan, so there is a system of nobility and peasants. There's a type of rule that every village or city has to take care of it's self. The most recent level of weaponry it has is cannons and riffles. There are 109,834,322 people in my country. A village/small town consists of 60 people of average, there are more villages than cities or big towns. Villages are are over 90% in the total of towns or cities. A large village/town consists of 200 people, and there are only around 30 big cities. A city has around 9,000 people and there are 15 major cities, the capital being the largest of 135,243 people, Bandium. All magic is technically legal, but some villages declared that magic was illegal in their territory. The sort of unspoken rule is, "all villages for themselves." In a way, the region is separated into little tiny other countries. The only thing it imports from other countries is soda. For now, that's all there is. Rice is a main crop.
 * 1) ===//General//===
 * While most people believe that all old tales are true, there are still some that sincerely think that myths are myths. Some of the more eccentric people dress like Westerners, but for the most part everyone dresses in the same style. Which is yukatas for both men and women, kimonos for women, etc. Most people hunt, farm or fish for a living. There are other professions, but for the most part, people work as farmers, huntsmen, or fishermen.
 * 1) ===//Customs//===
 * A normal family unit consists of a mother, father, children, and possibly grandparents. In the more well-off families, the uncles, aunts, and cousins will often visit or live with the other family. An extended family is referred to as a branch, and is not often welcomed as part of the "family." Family responsibilities are highly important, but family connections are often left out of the picture. For a woman of noble birth, she is given away to another family at 15. For a woman of mediocre birth, she is given as big a present and celebration as the family can afford, and then given away to a family in the village at 16. For a man of noble birth, he is given a huge feast and is sent on his first hunt at the age of 19. For a man of mediocre birth, he is either sent on his own to either fish or hunt, and is not allowed to come back until he has caught something at 18, whatever is given to the head of the village, is to be his nickname, so most people look for something that suits their preferences. These are the things that happen to children when they come of age. There is not a huge fuss for a birth, and the parents are given the child from the start to spend a few nights with the mother, (before the baby is given to a nurse,) with a few gifts. Nothing more, nothing less. The mother, doctor/midwife are present for a birth, and there are absolutely no males. (The rest, unless asked, is going to be for noble families. A different woman from the mother raises the child until they are 4. Then the mother takes over. They begin to be educated as soon as they can walk, the caretaker trains them, then hired tutors. The child is considered a pre-teen when they are 6, because it is believed that the child needs to be trained early in life. They dress in a yukata until they are 6, then must wear a kimono. The dead are revered. In my character's backstory, a funeral tradition is described. It's called Sky of the Dead. The corpse of someone that died by a murder, suicide, or accident, their corpse, as it was in it's last moment, is elevated into the air, and is left for scavengers to eat. The other situations either lead to buried or cremated. All weapons that Ringence has are available to everyone.
 * 1) ===//Eating//===
 * If the whole family is present, then it is a formal meal. Chopsticks are used for the majority of food, and spoon to drink broth. Everything is placed on the table all at once. Most of the water in Ringence is sanitary. In ordinary houses, the tables are round, in high class families, the tables are square. The place of honor is at the head of the table's left side. The important members of the family are seated at the head of the table. There is a pitch black berry with blood red spots that is edible, but nobody eats. It's real name is Oni Kajitsu. Oni means demon, and Kajitsu means fruit, but in this context it's berry. (In the story, I'll put it as Oni Kajitsu, but in the beginning I'll say what it means in english.) There's an old myth that demons created the berry to steal anyone's-who was foolish enough to eat it-soul. Whether that is true or not I will always know, and the reader will never find out. Beni-shouga, shouga, gari, hashouga, myouga, wasabi, and yuzu are foods that are characteristic of Ringence. Beni-shouga is a red salt-pickeled ginger. And shouga is the more commonly used type of ginger. Which is another type of ginger which is used to accompany sushi most of the time. Hashouga is a young ginger shoot that resembles a spring onion. Myouga is a red bud that is often used for decoration, but is also used in tempura. Wasabi is a root of a plant in the cabbage family, it's like a horseradish, it's also used in sushi and sashimi. Yuzu is a yellow citrus that is only used for it's rind, because the juice has very little flavor.
 * 1) ===//Greeting and Meeting//===
 * People bow to show respect. The smaller the bow, the less respect. The deeper the bow, the more respect. Pretty simple stuff. Raising your eyes or not bowing at all is often interpreted as insulting. One introduces themselves first, then asks for a name, the other party replies. If there is a difference in social status or different sex with a group of people that need to be introduced, then each person recites their name regardless. The "higher-ups" can be snarky though. People usually call others by their last name, seeing as how calling someone by their first name suggests intimacy. Though the more... boisterous person would probably jump in and refer to others by their first name right off the bat. People bow to others when they first see them no matter what the circumstances.
 * 1) ===//Gestures//===
 * Noble females talking at all unless spoken to is considered disrespectful. The common folk, female or not, use their hands to talk often, but it really depends on the person. In short, nobility=generally subtle, common=free to do whatever. People usually talk around a meter apart from each other, and they are very aware of the fact of whether someone is "invading their personal space" or not. Some of the common folk would wink and pull down the eyelid that was open with the pointer finger. It's a sign of deep disrespect. One's elders, superiors in rank, teachers, basically everyone else except yourself are the people that you are expected to show respect to.
 * 1) ===//Visits//===
 * If there was a tragedy in the family, everyone would avoid the topic. Small talk is a must in a visit. Only the host can raise the important topics. The guest must follow the host's lead. When a person is invited or welcomed into another's home, then they are a guest. If the person welcomes another into their home, they are a host.
 * (The question will remain on this, for reasons.)What things are considered courteous to offer a guest: food, reading material, personal guards or attendants, music/entertainment, a person of the opposite sex to sleep with?: Food, music/entertainment, and sometimes for the more dishonorable people... the last example in the question. I will avoid highly dishonorable characters.
 * 1) ===//Language//===
 * The languages that Ringence have are only one. And it is Japanese. That's all you really need to know.
 * 1) ===//Ethics and Values//===
 * Everything is basically based on respect. Disrespect is considered the major taboo. The rest in this paragraph is random imformation that goes more into detail. Kisama, Chikusho, Kutabare, and Shinjimae are curse words, which I will not try to use in the story, nor will I ever tell you what they mean. Money is always a given for the most desired material thing. Anything that can be exchanged, represented by money, is wanted by most people besides the ascetic population. Showing any kind of disrespect would be shocking to the society. Turning away from a person, not giving a name when asked, etc. The person who saw someone being rude would either confront the person and tell them off, or they would talk about it and watch. Really depends on the personality though. No one really cares if someone's a legal citizen. However, if you move into a new village, you are considered an outsider, and therefor ignored and scorned. Most villages will welcome travelers. The lower social class you are, the more you are looked down upon the higher class. The reason being, people are snobs. The thing you absolutely can't do is being loud or doing something considered obnoxious. Marriage is only to gain something from another family. Children, men and women alike, are often given away as soon as they come of age. A girl has a duty to her family simply by being born. A girl must marry as soon as she is socially able to. Pale skin, any exotic feature, graceful, quiet, and obedient are qualities for a beautiful girl. To be a beautiful man all they really have to do is be strong in a fight. Qualities for men are sure easy to understand in my region, huh? What is considered a beautiful sculpture really depends on public opinion. Like abstract might be considered interesting by most people one year, but the next the people enjoy realism more. The following heroes of Ringence are the following: (Warning, these are real famous people from the Edo Period. I did not make these people up.) Yagyu Jubei, Miyamoto Musashi, Sasaki Kojiro, Kondo Isami, Hijikato Toshizo, Okita Souji; swordsmen from the edo period. **I WILL ADD MORE HEROES AND VILLAINS LATER.**
 * 1) ===//Religion and the Gods//===
 * There is two religions. One has been around for longer, and the other is invading. Polytama, is the original religion. Tama is the common name for spirit. The people believe that there are all kinds of spirits, demons, gods etc that are to be revered. The second one is called Sekai. Sekai is the Japanese word for world. It is a religion that believes that there is no creator, no god, no being that made the world. People who's religion is Sekai, are called Scientists. (Heh, but it's no joke.) Scientists think that their world was created in a similar way to the "Big Bang." I wonder what Madame Cho thinks about this religion...
 * 1) ===//Government//===
 * The basic style of government is that every village has a head, or leader, and that each village has to mostly fend for themselves. Sometimes a village might band together with another to get rid of a particularly pesky monster. There is no leader that leads Ringence as a whole. There is a group of old guys that have no power what so ever, and all they do is watch things from a distance. They have no importance what-so-ever, they don't even need guards to watch over them and protect them. In short: the people are free to make their own rules, but hardly any exist, and the supposed "rulers" do nothing. Despite the lack of rules and control, there is no chaos. The villages are content to make their own separate set of rules, and carry out problems on their own. The people are quite happy that way.