Sensatia Culture

[Kender Bard]

An In-Depth Look At
Sensatia

Temperament and Trending Traits
Although Sensatia itself is a fairly new establishment (founded in 1002), the Minds have been around for quite a while (500 years!) and so has their culture. Living collectively in one spot has begun to alter the values and views of the Minds, but ultimately much of their culture has been carried over to their new home.

Sensatians tend to be secretive and reclusive. Prior to the founding of Sensatia, the Minds lived scattered around the continent in “mind communities” that were nigh inaccessible to anyone who didn’t sport a Mind sign. There was one in almost every major nation. Despite being so far-flung, they all maintained a sense of cohesiveness through telepathy and teleportation, and their aloof nature kept their culture more or less pure from the cultures of the nations they resided in. Coming together in Sensatia posed the problem of exposure and easy access by strangers. To remedy this, a Great Wall of monumental proportions was raised to set the peoples’ fears at ease.

Furthermore, Sensatians strongly value privacy and follow a strict moral code in regards to it. All Sensatians have drilled into them the wrongness of invading another person’s mind, thoughts, and emotions. Though some Sensatians may choose to disregard this, the vast majority are more than happy to keep their minds to themselves. Transgressions against this almost sacred right are dealt with swiftly and harshly. Exile, sign-stripping, and death are possible fates awaiting someone who violates another person’s mind in Sensatia’s borders, though such extreme measures are not always taken and rely strongly on the specifics of the crime.

Most Minds don’t care for martial prowess. Their sign is one of the most powerful to be found and it’s not unusual to find Minds who are extremely strong and capable of defending themselves with their element but hopeless in the face of armed combat. The guards that make up Sensatia are composed primarily of the martially-minded Sensatians. Sensatia also does not boast a standing army for this reason (amongst others.)

There is also a duality to the nature of a Sensatians identity. Minds are quick to stand together in the face of a threat, naturally falling back on a herd-mentality when trouble lurks; safety in numbers. But outside of threatening situations, Sensatians are fiercely independent. The Master must be elected, and when he or she makes decisions that fly in the face of what the populace find acceptable, they have no qualms in voicing complaints and rebelling against unjust or unfair rulings.

Jobs
Sensatia has developed into a nation of service, with an eye towards tourism. Once, an enterprising Mind with the help of his Fire friends created an artificial hot springs that became the most sought-after feature of Sensatia. The other Minds began to create businesses that catered to clients in a similar manner, hoping to leech off the visitors. Massage parlors opened, physical and mental, and then came the scent therapy shops. The business of comforting, soothing, and offering a relaxing trip to visitors boomed and brought a high amount of revenue into Sensatia. Because of this, many Minds looking to make good money have gone into similar venues.

Sensatia boasts two other primary job forces besides service-shops. Given the unique talents of the Minds, the Mind-Healers, healers who focused on ailments of the mind and spirit, became a powerful force in short order once they established the Healatorium, a Mind-equivalent to the House of Healing that Ronduin holds. Mind healing is considered a noble if highly demanding job. The most talented healers are well paid, but even the lowest healer can make a comfortable life in the line of work. The training is a long and intense process, however; more so for any Minds who do not already have an aptitude towards healing, telepathy, or other useful specializations.

The last most popular job would be the scholars. Sensatia holds the second most dense concentration of scholars; Mentis, of course, being the first. It is more than Thuoth being a highly revered patron of the nation—the minds have always tended towards scholarly pursuits. With all the Minds now gathered in a central location, it also enables those who gain Mind signs in other nations to have a place they can go to safely and effectively train and hone their abilities.

With the creation of Senvasa, farmers and hunters now have a place to consider themselves highly prized. These professions also make a handsome living, as most Minds would rather buy their wares local at the lower prices than the more expensive imported goods.

Education
As stated already, the Minds place high value on education. All schooling is mandatory, with segregated schooling available for non-Minds, though there are mixed-sign schools in Sensatia as well. The non-segregated schools are small, privately owned affairs, however, and not terribly popular. Mind children undergo a rigorous schooling life from as young as six years old to no cap in age—some adults to this day continue to study, though almost exclusively under the tutelage of the Thuothians once they reach adulthood.

One course that is mandatory for all Mind children to take in the course of their schooling is ethics and morals. This is an intensive class that teaches children about privacy and individual rights against mental intrusions or abuse of Mind signs. This is a course taught once early on and once again later; the first time to introduce the idea and concepts of morality, and again to reinforce it. The latter class is generally paired with study of Sensatian law, to reinforce the results of breaking the strict ethical laws in place in Sensatia.

Most mind children are encouraged to specialize their talents and a wide variety of classes are offered to assist them in doing so. If a child find that they have a unique gift, one not offered in a group-class setting, most mind schools will go out of their way to locate a mentor to teach the child on a personal level. If none can be found, highly skilled and intelligent mind teachers will work in tandem to help nurture the new, unique gift.

Food
The Sensatians enjoy a wildly varied diet as a result of their massive importing as well as their prime central-Naruta location. In addition to having access to almost every national food export, the farming community of Senvasa brings in a large amount of such produce as corn, carrots, green beans, cabbage, and more. The scattered forests of the midlands allow hunters to fell deer, moose, boar, and other common temperate woodland creatures.

This cultural variety leads to no one particular type of dish being a national favorite. Instead, Sensatians have begun to take a fierce pleasure in the presentation of food. Restaurants and wealthy citizens, or individuals entertaining guests, strive to create dishes that appeal to multiple senses. Food is arranged in the most colorful displays appropriate, making sauces and syrups a must have ingredient for most dishes. Often times, chefs will select ingredients and cooking styles that promise a high aromatic yield. In other cases, such as vegetable dishes, the very sound of a satisfying crunch is what is sought. It is said that the very finest cooks in Sensatia are capable of crafting dinners that are as much an artful, aesthetic experience as they are nourishing meals.

Fashion
Fashion has taken a course of development similar to Sensatia’s cuisine. As a result of the Minds coming from several different wildly different cultures in all the Mind Communities, and the temperate nature of their climate, fashion is all about flare. There is an eye to comfort as well, of course; in the winter months, the Minds who came from colder climes (especially Glaciamens) find that their original clothing styles are incorporated into most budding styles. In the summer, Pyremens and other warmer locations get to display the evolution of their own styles. New clothing ideas are usually encouraged, although the taste of the masses is a fickle thing.

One of the hottest items of clothing that have caught on since its inception is the sontief, a robe-style garment created by a Bestiamens-born tailor. Though it can be made out of a variety of materials, silk seems to be the most agreeable to the style, making it an excellent way of marking wealth and prestige.

There is also no one particular color or color combination that is popular. Black and purple are the patriotic colors, but the Minds have been slow to adopt or encourage the color scheme outside of political offices. Patterns and colors ultimately come down to individual taste, as so many things in Sensatia often do.

Leisure
Sensatians enjoy the fruits of their own service-culture; the hot springs, massages, scent-parlors, some of the finest restaurants, and more. But beyond this, they’ve also developed a wide variety of other diversions to keep themselves occupied. These include a number of sports or competitions that rely on the prowess of one’s sign. The most popular of these are a ball game that can be played in teams that involve the use of telekinesis, as touching the ball with hand or foot is restricted. This sport, named floatball, can incorporate all of the mind abilities with creative enough application, but it is primarily for the telekinetic to enjoy. Telepaths enjoy truth-or-lie games that involve trying to conceal fact and fiction from attempts at prying, though these games are not looked well upon by the authorities as it skirts dangerously close to the ‘grey’ area of Mind ethics.

The Minds also have a great delight and love for street theatre, especially plays or anything resembling a play. Acting troupes can always expect to receive high commissions and tips for their work, especially if they put on plays of history and drama. Puppetry is also a much enjoyed form of entertainment, though more so for children.

Sensatians have heard stories of “mind blocks” in Anarlina, a kind of multi-game competition for Minds. Though the event has not yet been put on in Sensatia, there’s much discussion of how best to adapt the idea for themselves in the future.

Family
The dynamic of the family has changed drastically in recent years. In the Mind communities, children were precious; to be protected and cherished at all costs. A negligent parent faced the wrath of his or her whole community, as well as the possible removal of the child for a more suitable family to raise. This was an uncommon occurrence, however.

That sentiment still carries on in Sensatia, but not quite so strictly. With the massive boom in births caused by Master Thelon’s monetary incentives for Mind families, it’s become impossible to monitor the welfare of the collective children as was once possible in the communities. If a child indicates abuse or neglect, however, it warrants an investigation by the guards and often the scorn of neighbors.

Spousal relationships are treated differently, however. Though abuse is not tolerated, it is not expected for a Mind and their spouse to be especially warm or affectionate towards one another. Arranged marriages were the norm in the communities, although individuals were free to marry of their own consent if they desired. Part of this was out of concern of potential inbreeding, though that was mostly solved by Minds traveling between communities to seek potential partners. It was also out of concern for fertility.

Though arranged marriages have fallen out of practice, it still is not expected that spouses must bear a great deal of affection towards their significant other. This is mostly owed to the fact that the Mind family incentive created couples more interested in procreation than a lasting relationship. This expectation is falling by the wayside more and more, however, as Minds marry more freely out of love than any other outside reason.

Religion
Spirituality is not as enforced in Sensatia as it is in some nations. Most individuals do their worship in private, coming to the temple for advice or guidance or for the sense of being looked upon by the Forces. Though the priests of each wing put on sermons on a regular basis, most of the temple is quiet; the priests act in their capacity much as they do in all other nations. Conversion is not common as the priests often do not go out of their way to interact overly much with people who do not actively seek them out. There is a strong emphasis on self-reflection in all of the Force-branches (except for Soahc, where quite the opposite is true. As the Curious are the most influential here, the focus is on prying into the affairs of the others more than the self.)

The statues of the Forces are as follows:

Efil appears as a woman of indistinguishable age, though likely somewhere in mature adulthood, the 30s or 40s. She has in her arms a bundled infant, and the look on her face is one of equal parts wonder as well as love. She cradles the swaddled infant closely against herself, as though protecting and guarding the child against the world itself.

Taed is positioned to be looking at the statue of Thuoth. He is an old man, almost emaciated, with a great tome under one arm, bound in chains, and an hourglass sitting at his feet. The look on his face is one of challenge and but surety as well. He seems to be issuing some kind of warning towards Thuoth, not aggressive, but implacable.

Etaf is shown as a winged woman, her wings widely outspread and cupped slightly forward, her arms stretched invitingly. She sports a third eye in the middle of her forehead. A miniature working of Naruta itself is done beneath her feet, elevating her far above the world and all its mortal concerns.

Thuoth is shown as a young man in his prime, tall and regal, dressed in fine robes with piles of books and scrolls all around him. The necklace actually sports a large-linked golden necklace with a fist-sized amethyst dangling from it, each link made to look like a stylized mind sign. He is returning the statue of Taed’s look with an expression of defiance. He holds in one hand a quill, an open scroll in the other. There is a twin hourglass to Taed’s resting atop one of the books near at hand. Where Taed’s was nearing empty, Thuoth’s is perpetually full, a symbol of eternity.

Worg is depicted as gender-ambiguous individual, perhaps with slight hints of femininity, standing tall and straight with an equally gender-ambiguous Mind kneeling at her feet. One hand rests on the Mind’s head while the other holds a strange and abstract figure that she seems to be twisting with her fingers. Her statue seems very rough by comparison to the others, and there are small items of the trade of art placed like an offering near it; paintbrushes and playbooks, a chisel and a journal of poetry.

Soahc is shown as a young girl with an impish smile on her face as she leans over and whispers into the ear of another gender-ambiguous Mind. Though the look on Soahc’s face is one of delight and amusement, the Mind seems lost, confused, and frightened. The Mind’s eyes are shut tight and its hands placed over its ears, trying to block out Soahc’s voice.