[{"content":"A collection of brief information covering the major aspects of the game\u0026rsquo;s theme, essentially well-known to any \u0026lsquo;morph that is still holding onto their sense of self and sanity.\nPokemorphs # Pokemorphs are genetically engineering amalgrams of pokemon and human lineage. While their history has long since been covered by the sands of time, they are the dominant intelligent life underground. Standing between 4\u0026rsquo; and 9\u0026rsquo; in height, Pokemorphs are bipedal versions of their base pokemon, with the ability to speak, hands with dextrous fingers and thumbs, and attitude.\nPokemorphs do not breed true - except for Shiny Versions - and so the offspring of two pokemorphs may not match either parent (although this is rare and sometimes leads to rumors of cheating!). Pokemorph evolution has more to do with their state of mind, including family traditions. Everstones are fairly popular as accessories to prevent unwanted changes.\nThey do tend to wear clothing for both modesty and fashion, as well as enjoy many ways of enhancing their self-image including fur dyes, body paint, and tattooes.\nMore information can be found in Pokemorph Details.\nNote Death from unnatural causes isn\u0026rsquo;t unknown to pokemorphs, who have some of the same issues with mortality as ancient humans. Outside of a Mystery Dungeon, it is a part of the natural order of things that heavy injury can lead to a lack of physical function. When reduced to 0HP a pokemorph \u0026lsquo;faints\u0026rsquo;. Additional damage up to half of the maximum HP will result in death. However, pokemorphs do not enter a \u0026ldquo;Bleed Out\u0026rdquo; state, and instead automatically stabilize. Once fainted, a pokemorph must recover naturally on their own, at a rate of 1HP per day, or 5HP per day if cared for in a hospice. Pokemorph healing moves that can remove the FAINTED status can redce this time to a single day, as can the exceedingly rare REVIVE medicine.\nThe Underground # The Underground is the collective name given to the large caves, tunnels, small caves, and the rest of the navigable area deep below the surface. Outside of larger caves that sport moonstones in the ceiling to provide a dim, but appreciated day/night cycle, the caves are dark, lit only via biolumencent mushrooms and the light created by both pokemorphs and their feral bethren. This makes any cave that does not have sunstones in the ceiling a hazard to traverse, and the only types that can do so without bringing their own light are DARK types. Of course, others can still use their sense of hearing or touch to make their way through, if unsteadily.\nMoonstones, when activated by electricity, lose their natural day/night cycle and instead function like a bulb - emitting brighter light when powered and no light when not. This has allowed moonstones to function as bulbs as long as some elecriticy or ELECTRIC type is available to power them.\nRather then leafy green plants, almost all vegetation underground is based on mushrooms, alge and lichens. Mushrooms with heavy, wood-like structures are used in place of natural wood, and mushrooms also take the place of various ingrediants for cooking based on flavor profiles and texture. Generally, mushrooms only need access to dirt and water to grow, nutrients are oddly plentiful in soil created from the undeground\u0026rsquo;s floor layer. Lichen and Alge function as the main source of breathable, clean air, and it isn\u0026rsquo;t unknown for Lichens to be carried around as a good luck charm because of this.\nSunstones are much rarer to find then moonstones that seem to naturally occur in the rooftops of caves and coverns. Sunstones appear to be a dim version of a moonstone at first glance, but when stimulated emit a bright, broad spectrum light and a bit of heat - making them ideal for GRASS types or large flood lights. They are however, much more delicate then moonstones and susceptible to shattering under rough handling so they are normally relagated to fixed locations and quite coveted.\nFeral Pokemon do roam about, away from areas that have been \u0026rsquo;tamed\u0026rsquo; and built up, like wild beasts without their characteristic intelligence that they once had. Whether due to a reversion in their mental state or simply social isolation matters little when one wants to make you dinner. It should be noted that feral pokemon are actually quite a bit more powerful then pokemorphs, who have been diluted somewhat in their ancient merger with humanity. Feral Pokemon can prove to be quite the challenge on a one vs one battle, and since they generally move in packs can be a real danger.\nThe Underground also has a unique resource available - mystery dungeons. These \u0026rsquo;temporary\u0026rsquo; caves can defy time and space, leading to strange miniature worlds that can be used as places to get resources, ancient artifacts, or a heavy beating.\nFood and Technology # Food is mushroom, mostly. Canal City, with it\u0026rsquo;s vast moonstone collection on the ceiling, is one of the very few places where non-mushroom plants can be easily grown, providing a small, but exquisite addition of taste to the noble\u0026rsquo;s dinner tables. Leafy greans, vegetables and fruits are incredibly rare, even in this bread basket of a city state, and the flavors distilled from them can fetch a pretty high price. Plant based seasonings are also rare, but available more often as the risk of losing control of the crop is greatly diminished.\nSomeone, somewhere, has in fact managed to set up a way to form alcohol from Mushrooms.\nIn terms of technology, Canal City is the most advanced in terms of overall development, sporting a roughly 1910\u0026rsquo;s european level of technology including some basic use of electricity, running water through both gravity-fed aquaducts and pumping infrastucture, working sanitation, and there\u0026rsquo;s even the latest advancement of an elevator being shown as a technological marval. Power is produced via hydroelectic and geothermal means, although the latter is mostly imported via long cable from Basalt City.\nScrap Town, while lacking the understanding of what they possess, is a hodgepodge of technological scavenging taken from Mystery Dungeons and the oddly vertical cave system that earned the moniker. While more advanced technology is available, very few understand it, and those that can repair it are fewer still, leading to a lot of broken scrap when something fails to function after a time. This a little more post-modern of the mid-2010s America.\nOil is unavailable, but Mushrooms have been able to bring up the slack for some oil-based materials such as plastic. The dominant fossil fuel entering mainstream use is old fashioned coal.\nMain Settlements # There are three primary settlements in the game, with a number of smaller locations strewn between them.\nCanal City # \u0026ldquo;The Original City\u0026rdquo;, \u0026ldquo;The Bread Basket\u0026rdquo;, \u0026ldquo;The City of Legends\u0026rdquo;. Canal City is called many things depending on who you ask, and is both the oldest current city and the original place where pokemorphs once came to the underground. It is a fairly strict class-based heirachy with nobles at the top determining laws, a mercantil and judicator class that handle city affairs and trading, a working and trade class, and an underclass of dispossessed workers. Canal City is also the main source of water and food for all three main settlements, making money on the sale of these vital goods either above or below board.\nIt is also the largest cave in the underground, with Canal City proper taking up only a fraction of the cave\u0026rsquo;s space - providing amble space for fields for food growing or quite \u0026lsquo;countryside\u0026rsquo;-esque relaxing walks.\nMore information on Canal City can be found in the Canal City Details.\nScrap Town # Scrap Town was where the failed rebellion against the Canal City Nobility ended up, after searching through a suitable place to set up shop in the underground. A much smaller cave in terms of floor acreage, the city makes up for it with extreme verticality. The upper roof is simiarly lined with Sunstones, but the height of the buildings that make up the city prevent even that dim light from reaching the ground level in most places.\nThe entire city is built out of the remains of some ancient building structures, made of concrete and steel, with wires and pipes still embedded in intact walls and more recently, run slap shod as expansions. One of the city\u0026rsquo;s strengths lies in a mysterious but fully independent electrical power supply that allows for artifacts and ancient techology to proliferate widely, even if no one can explain how it works or what to do if it ever breaks.\nSocially, Scrap Town can be best likened to a Pirate City - both individual strength and the size of one\u0026rsquo;s gang provides for safety and security in the heirarchy here, and the only place to try to escape from this would be the underground tunnels where those that cannot compete or are not of worth to the gang leadership live.\nBasalt City # Basalt City started as an offshoot colonization project from Canal City, originally financed by nobles that were looking to expand their influence. What they found, was a large cavern with easy access to underground magma rivers and enough high temperature metals in the walls to harness this heat energy to create geothermal power plants. Since then, Basalt City has slowly grown into it\u0026rsquo;s own independance while still having extremely tight relationships with the Canal City Nobility.\nAs industry has taken root in Canal City, Basalt City found a new use for the magma flows to sequestor pollution, and gets paid a tidy sum from both Canal City and Scrap Town in terms of getting rid of the worst kind of garbage they can\u0026rsquo;t figure out how to handle on their own. This has had a particular effect in concentrating the poisonous polluting effects in the city, making the whole cavern toxic outside of carefully filtered and maintained thoroughfares and buildings.\nThis also makes Basalt City a prime location for cladenstine meetings, as any surprise would have to breach the environmental protection after dealing with passive poison that has accumulated.\nMystery Dungeons # Caves that lead to strange and wonderous labyrinths that defy time and space, Mystery Dungeons are the great frontier for treasure hunters, history seekers, and adventurers from all walks of life. The geometries inside can be very maze like and the entire dungeon may shift around as often as every two weeks. Rare Mystery Dungeons link to bits of the world Before with ancient technology and settings from the time before pokemorphs providing strange insight into history and the chance to score some rare, technologically advanced, artifacts.\nThat being said, Mystery Dungeons are not the same as exploring a new cavern. Just being inside of a Mystery Dungeon saps the energy of those that are within it, causing explorers to go hungrier faster, and to go through their supplies faster. Communication outside of a Mystery Dungeon also isn\u0026rsquo;t possible - what happens inside a Mystery Dungeon stays inside. The only real exception to this is Guild Badges are able to send out an alert signal to The Guild when the person wearing it enters a FAINTED status. Teleportation likewise doesn\u0026rsquo;t work to bridge the barrier of the Mystery Dungeon, although it works within the Dungeon\u0026rsquo;s confines. It is an endless source of debate as to how they function.\nDungens themselves come in three major variaties. A \u0026ldquo;Stable\u0026rdquo; dungeon has a fixed location that it appears in, and even if it closes will re-appear after some times - possibly as a different dungeon but in the same location. A \u0026ldquo;Passing\u0026rdquo; dungeon has a random location that it forms in, lasts until it gets completed or a certain amount of time passes, then simply vanishes. This is the most common kind of Mystery Dungeon. Finally a \u0026ldquo;Static\u0026rdquo; dungeon is a rare find. It lasts longer then a \u0026ldquo;Passing\u0026rdquo; dungeon but the interior doesn\u0026rsquo;t shift - making them a good source of materials while they list. \u0026ldquo;Static\u0026rdquo; dungeons are also unique in that the interior of a Static dungeon is well, static, even if it re-opens elsewhere. Whatever was looted remains looted, any changes remain, but anything built or brought in by pokemorphs is removed as if it didn\u0026rsquo;t exist in the first place.\nFeral Pokemon exist within Mystery Dungeons but they are deranged and violent, and sometimes far strogner then they are in the underground. Some ancient human remains can also be found within, although pokemorph remains are never present.\nMystery Dungeons can be escaped by either backtracking out to the entrance, or by finding the \u0026rsquo;exit\u0026rsquo;, generally after some kind of challenge, which will wrap a passageway back to the entrance directly.\nBoth items and money that is used in the underground can be looted from dunegeons. Stable dungeons \u0026lsquo;refresh\u0026rsquo; loot when their interiors shift. Mystery dungeons can also contain ancient artifacts such as TMs, wands and orbs amongst such things as ancient plants and berries. Generally, any technology removed from a Mystery Dungeon is automatically considered a Human Artifact and falls under the usual taboos for using such.\nNote Mystery Dungeons are one of the few places where, oddly, a pokemorph can\u0026rsquo;t actually die in. Upon hitting a FAINTED status the pokemorph has until the next dungeon shift, or two weeks, to be rescued (if anyone is notifed to look). If they are not rescued from the Mystery Dungeon in that time, they are \u0026rsquo;ejected\u0026rsquo; without their gear or equipment - left naked outside the dungeon entrance wounded and restored to 1 HP. Players can opt to immediately take the 1 HP ejection route if solo adventuring. That is not to say things worse then death cannot happen while FAINTED in a dungeon, but you can\u0026rsquo;t actually be killed there.\nHuman Artifacts # The primary loot from the Mystery Dungeons and one of the key reasons that they have such a draw despite their danger, are Human Artifacts. Ranging from advanced technology to ballpoint pens that never run out of ink, to broken scrap, artifacts all share a futuristic design that is visually recognizeable. In the setting, Artifacts run the gamut of helpful to near apcolyptic in effect, and idenitifiable to items bordering on sci-fi to those that just make no sense. Artifact abilities are generally left up to Staff and Storyteller discretion for anything that might make a major impact - and such artifacts are resistant to being used due to the deeply ingrained taboo against them.\nRecovered artifacts are generally sent to Canal City, who has the only vault capable of containing them safely, and studied carefully in controlled environments through specialists in The Guild, with known \u0026lsquo;safe\u0026rsquo; artifacts moving to Canal City University. The only exception to this is Scrap Town and The Rogues, who have a much more pro-active stance to artifacts.\nStill in general, Human Artifacts are considered to be \u0026ldquo;dark magic\u0026rdquo; that is responsible for why Pokemorphs live underground, and a harbringer of calamity if messed with. The only way to safely utilize them is through careful, controlled sequestering in Canal City where any advancements can be applied to already in use Pokemorph Technology, rather then used directly.\nInterestingly enough, Human Artifacts can be found outside of Mystery Dungeons as well, but often may not be recognized for what they are due to weathering effects and decay due to time. Generally, once something is known to actually be a Human Artifact, even if it didn\u0026rsquo;t seem to be one at first, it becomes taboo to continue to use or own, and shuffled off to the vaults.\nThe Surface # Many legends about the surface exist, many claiming about vast space, plentiful light, and bountiful food. These legends are often told as fairy tales, and many don’t believe it exists, although there is scant evidence it exists.\n","date":"25 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/posts/setting-essentials/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"A guide of essential information to living in the underground.","title":"Setting Essentials","type":"setting"},{"content":"\u0026ldquo;Who are you, really? A brave adventurer, ready to take on the world? An explorer, delving into the caves? Maybe you\u0026rsquo;re just a working stiff, part of the gears of underground society? Sometimes, you don\u0026rsquo;t get to be what you wanted, but a lucky few are just built that way.\u0026rdquo; -Angus Greg, Barkeeper\nCreating a Character # Everyone has to start somewhere, and on Pokemon Below, you start with your Character Generation, or Chargen for short. The chargen command will give you a readout of what has and hasn\u0026rsquo;t been completed to qualify to get your approval to roleplay, and this article will cover the specific parts and how to get more information about it.\nPokemorphs are generally built around a few facets that you need to know about. Species, Nature, IVs, and Moves are all the components of a basic pokemorph. Then, you need to be able to be visible to everyone else as beyond a two-dimensional lump of stats. This is where Description elements come in, which inscludes your Desc, Short Desc, and Full Name. Finally, there\u0026rsquo;s an optional name if you\u0026rsquo;d like to be found by others Player Name and an administrative contact in case the game admin needs to get a hold of you, Player Contact.\nSpecies # A pokemorph species is which pokemon a pokemorph is based on. This provides you a base level of your statistics (or stats), as well as your typing, and what moves you are able to learn. All pokemorphs are considered to be at level 50 in terms of their overall values, just to make things easy to compare.\nIf you\u0026rsquo;re not sure what kind of pokemon you\u0026rsquo;d like to be, there\u0026rsquo;s a randmons command that will give you 5 random selected pokemon to consider.\nNote Pokemon types are important, as each type has strengths and weaknesses. A pokemon using the same TYPE move as their own TYPE gets an additional damage modifier called STAB as well. This is represented by just being especially effective with your own type. You can see a grid with TYPE strengths and weaknesses with montypes.\nNature # A \u0026rsquo;nature\u0026rsquo; provides two things: a general idea of how a character sees the world, as well as a set of small stat adjustments. To set your nature, use the setnature command. This command will also provide you with the full list of 25 natures including what they add to or remove from, stat wise. The \u0026ldquo;Neutral Natures\u0026rdquo; that do not have any effect on your stats are: Bashful, Docile, Hardy, Quirky, and Serious.\nIntrinsic Values # Intrinsic Values, referred to by the initials IVs, are what differentiate any pokemorph from another of the same specie. These are \u0026lsquo;bonus points\u0026rsquo; that can be used to buff your base stats to provide a bonus. All characters start with enough IVs to provide a maximized bonus to three stats, or spread them about however they wish. IVs are provided in sets of 3, so each \u0026lsquo;point\u0026rsquo; you spend on IVs provides a +3 to the base stat, for a maximum bonus of 30 in any one stat. This means that no pokemorph can have maximum IVs. You can see the number of IV tokens you have left with stats, and once they are all spent you won\u0026rsquo;t see how many are remaining.\nUntil your character is approved, you can reset your IV token spending with resetivs. Once you are approved, your IVs are permanent! Additional Stat Bonuses: Effort Values # Effort Values, also known as EVs, are gathered through experience. Experience can be gained by people voting for your excellent roleplaying with vote and can be spent using buyevs. Unlike IVs which are set at chargen, you can only get EVs through roleplaying. Staff can also award experience for participation in plots.\nMoves # Moves are a pokemorphs secret weapon - their link to their primal element, and how they can manifest it in the world. Most moves can be used in general roleplay, but all can be used in combat. Each pokemorph starts with 3 moves that they know, and getting new moves is incredibly difficult, often relying on ancient technology or human artifacts to do so. Pokemorphs can, however, learn a nearly unlimited set of moves as long as they are compatible with their species, but can only ever \u0026rsquo;equip\u0026rsquo; 6 at most. Changing what moves are equipped is generally done through overnight preparation, and isn\u0026rsquo;t something that can be done on the fly, and certainly not under pressure.\nMoves have \u0026ldquo;Power Points\u0026rdquo;, or PP, that indicate how many times they can be used without rest. Some rare tonics may be able to refresh these power points without rest, but in general it\u0026rsquo;s best fo assume that per day, full combat use of the abilities are limited to their PP maximum.\nDue to the exhaustive collection of moves available and the specific side effects and descriptions available, we recommend looking up moves using a 3rd party service such as Bulbapedia to look up moves and pokemon compatibility.\nThe system does not verify if your pokemon species can learn a specific move. These have to be hand checked before approval. Please be on your honor when setting your moves up! You can get a move with learnmove. While unapproved, you can also forgetmove to remove a move from your character. You can also do a lookup of a specific move in game with movelookup.\nDescribing your Character # The second half of creating a character is coming up with background information and descriptions for others to see while in game. This is how most other characters will meet their character, and is just as important as their statistic block and moves. Afterall, a generic Meowscarada is hardly eye catching and might be considered a feral, where as a Meowscarada in a top hat and a formal black-tie suit might just be trying to sell you some snake oil, and is probably safe.\nDescription # A description is visible to anyone in the same place in the game as you, and indicates what they would see when \u0026rsquo;looking\u0026rsquo; at you with the look command. This should generally be at least two paragraphs: The first will give an idea of your physical features, and the second would be their current outfit. Keep in mind that generally you can err on the side of detail. A description should be at least 255 characters in length. An example description is below:\nStanding at a fairly short height of 4'8\u0026quot; (142cm) stands this black-furred example a very tired looking sneasel. With short-cropped hair that barely counts as more then just headfur, and that telltale bright red feather attached to their right ear, they might be mistaken for an abnormally large feral sneasal if not for their always tired looking grey eyes and general expression of exhaustion and the lack of permanently on display claws. They\u0026rsquo;re pretty average in build all around, too, nothing to write home about. When not ready for combat, they sport short white claws on the tips of their fingers - when ready for trouble, their larger claws slide out of the backs of their hands. They are currently wearing a fairly prim an neat Guild uniform. It is a muted slate in color and consists of a button down short-sleeves shirt with breast pocket, and matching cargo shorts. A belt is around their waist holding up the shorts as well as a small adventurer\u0026rsquo;s pouch that is also connected to a thigh belt. A simple scarf is around their neck as well, in black color. A patch on their shoulder display a the guild insignia and the rank of \u0026ldquo;C\u0026rdquo;. Their name is on a patch over their breast pocket: \u0026ldquo;Pat\u0026rdquo;.\nYou can set your description by using setdesc \u0026lt;description\u0026gt;. For new lines, use %r or |\\. Tabs can be made with %t or |-. Please note that your description must be all one line when put in!\nFeatures # Features are unique sub-decriptions supported by Pokemorph Below. You can see what features someone has with @feature \u0026lt;name\u0026gt;. You can use this to provide additional detail that you may not want to put in a description if the description is getting too long as it stands. If you are using advanced colors for your description, you can call out a feature name with the yellow ANSI color. Set a feature with @feature me/\u0026lt;feature\u0026gt;=\u0026lt;description\u0026gt;. Please note that the feature can have spaces in it, but try to limit it if possible.\nShort Description # Your short descripton is a brief, 1-3 sentence quick idea of your character, what someone might see at a brief glance. You short desc is shown in the glance command and in other places. Taking our sneasel friend from above, a good short desc might be\u0026hellip;\nA short (4'8\u0026quot;, 142cm) sneasel wearing a slate Guild Uniform with a black scarf. They also have an adventurer\u0026rsquo;s pouch attached to their belt.\nYour short decription is part of your \u0026ldquo;Info\u0026rdquo; which is all set using the setinfo command. In this case, it is setinfo sdesc=\u0026lt;description\u0026gt;.\nFull Name # This is your character\u0026rsquo;s fullname, if different from their \u0026ldquo;Character Name\u0026rdquo; that is displayed in commands. A character named \u0026ldquo;Pat\u0026rdquo; might have the full name of \u0026ldquo;Patrick Lombardi\u0026rdquo; or \u0026ldquo;Patricia Ellingson\u0026rdquo;, as an example. Another \u0026ldquo;Info\u0026rdquo; command, this can be set with setinfo fname=\u0026lt;full name\u0026gt;.\nPlayer Name # Note This is optional, and is provided as a way to publically give contact information to others on the game. You do not need to put in your real name, either, but a \u0026lt;tag\u0026gt;@\u0026lt;service\u0026gt; can work as well, such as Guillemon#8675309@discord or AwesomeBraixen@AOL Messenger.\nYour player name is an out of game contact that is provided to others publically as general information. Another \u0026ldquo;Info\u0026rdquo; command, this can be set with setinfo pname=\u0026lt;player name\u0026gt;.\nPlayer Contact # This field is used for GM/Staff to get a hold of you. Only staff can see this field, and it will only be used in order to reach out to you for things like password resets or administrative information. Another \u0026ldquo;Info\u0026rdquo; command, this can be set with setinfo pcontact=\u0026lt;ooc contact\u0026gt;.\nApproval # Prior to approval, you will not be able to be In Character - and the grid is set to automatically reject your presence if you ever lose approval. To be approved, you need to first verify that all the results from chargen are showing complete and green. Then, page a staffer for approval. If one is not available, most staff will have contact information for an alternate contact in their Player field. Use info \u0026lt;staffname\u0026gt; to see this. You can find available staff with the staff command. Please note that once you are approved chargen commands will be limited so you will not be able to reset your IVs or forget the moves you have selected.\nApproval grants you the ability to be on the In Character grid.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/getting-started/posts/chargen/","section":"Pokemorph Below","summary":"Steps to create a character for Pokemorph Below.","title":"Character Generation","type":"getting-started"},{"content":"\u0026ldquo;By harnessing the electrical current generated by the cheek-based spark pads, it is possible to create a temporary but effective charging system utilizing these coils of copper wire surrounding a steel coil - we can further improve this by smoothing out the natural variances in voltage and amperage through using electrolytic canisters and carbon resistance tracks. While hardly useful near Canal City, it is could allow for use of some vehicles deep within the underground when access to the grid isn\u0026rsquo;t available\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo; -Professor Shen Virtanen, Canal City University\nThe general level of understanding of the world lives between several eras. The original pokemorphs of legend did what they could to bring with them knowledge of the lost world in order to better prepare their decendants for a world of limited space and resources, but that information was brought using ancient human data-storage and retreival artifacts that have long since been lost to time. While they were operational however, information was transcribed into book forms, and both literacy and books themselves have been entrenched within the setting below. As centuries have passed, some scientific knowledge was continually used, and some simply relegated to the dust bins of ancient Noble vaults if not lost completely. As such, the world can seem both surprisingly anachronistic while also having modern touches - what was deemed useful was spread, what was interesting remains available and that which carried with it great risks was squirreled away in case it was ever needed.\nDue to this, the general \u0026lsquo;feel\u0026rsquo; of a large settlement is mostly determined by what they found useful at the time, then built from there. Smaller settlements have a fairly steep drop off in the level of technology they employ - due to both the cost of maintenance and the dedicated resources and supply chains involved.\nAnimal husbandry does exist in the underground, specifically for feral pokemon allowing some to be used as livestock or labour sources, although no purely \u0026lsquo;domesticated\u0026rsquo; breeds exist and keeping feral pokemon around can get very exciting if they are mistreated or decide they are done.\nNote The underground treats a lot of technology as a gift from the ancient ancesters, and as such care and gilding is often used when built. If you need some good examples of the level of decoration involved, a victorian-era steam punk design (only with electricity and cables instead of steam and brass) is a good inspiration to start with.\nSome specific examples are listed below, but details for the three major cities can be found in their specific information files.\nEnergy and Power # Electricity is a fundamentally known force, especially amongst ELECTRIC types. As the key motive force in generating electricity is still magnetic fields and rotational movement, electrical infratstructure is probably the most wide spread technological infrastructure in the underground. Canal City, the original settlement, has hydro-electric generation from the dam that created resevoir lake, carefully maintained and controlled by the noble houses for the city - despite the city having far outgrown the original capacity of this system. Basalt City takes advantage of incredibly heat resistant water pipes to directly heat water with their magma rivers into steam to run their geothermal power plants. The generational capacity of Basalt City has made them a central power plant for several of the smaller nearby settlements as well as selling power to Canal City. Scrap Town has the most unique situation, as they simply have massive substation panels within various parts of the city, all connected to some ancient artifact that has yet to be found - although those that have tried all fell deathly ill before they could figure out the source of the power.\nSmaller towns tend to get by with what they have available. Those created as an offshoot from a larger settlement generally will pay for a mains cable to be routed to a central \u0026ldquo;Power Hub\u0026rdquo; to charge electric devices as well as provide a place to do more power inensive tasks in the case of crafting or metallurgy. Independent towns may take advantage of an undergound river and a water wheel in a smaller scale version of what Canal City has to get some renewable power. If all else fails, Electric Types themselves can provide a small amount of power, although the exhaustion that it can cause tends to leave that to a last resort.\nIn places where electricity isn\u0026rsquo;t available, the fallback is just to utilize pure mechanical power from waterwheels or treadmills. In some cases, coal and steam engines still find their way - although the size of the caves and the buildup of toxic smoke and pollution make these either temporary or emergency at best, and as the air flows through the underground generally such installations are frowned upon without a way to manage the pollution.\nBattery technology is available, with battery life expectancy rated in years and the equivelent density to a LiPO battery, although using using different chemestry. The creation of these energy cells is a Canal City secret, although it is not unheard of that some artifacts can contain even more efficient energy cells inside of them if carefully removed at some risk.\nTransportation # Pokemorphs are a fairly active lot, and as such, walking is the primary mode of transportation. In larger caves, Fly becomes useful to know and FLYING types can let loose. Through major canals and underwater rivers, WATER types can simply swim to their destination, moving at incredible speeds with Surf if they know it. But not all caves are conducive to specialist travel and some distances can be quite long, so there are quite a few other modes of transportation available.\nDue to the nature of the cave network, a lot of transportation is incredibly limited either to already established cities, or through routes that have been carefully dug out and graded. There are few modes of transportation that can handle the extreme environments of a raw cave passageway - especially as it can even deny larger pokemorphs even being able to fit!\nPersonal Travel # The most popular form of transportation is the electric moped. A simple two-wheeled vehicle running on air-inflated tires made out of a specific rubbery mushroom variant, mopods can carry one and up to two average sized pokemorphs for several days worth of travel on a single charge. The second seat can be replaced with a small cargo platform to haul goods to and fro as well. These are located all over and made by multiple craftsman, with the motors and batteries available through Canal City Merchants for others to put their own spin on the design.\nThe electric quad is the larger cousin of the moped, and they are not used within the large cities, but rather for along the outskirt of larger caves or along routes that have already been graded and cleaned. Running on four wheels gives them a bit more stability and the larger frame and motor allows them to also utilize a trailer - a common use for these is for moving goods between established locations where the surroundings allow.\nFor nobility there are also fully enclosed vehicles - although these longer four-wheeled carriages are the exclusive use of the Nobility and not only have climate control systems but carry some of the luxury demanded by nobles where ever they go, while keeping them isolated from those beneath them.\nIn places without access to charging or unable to pay the price for motorized vehicles, the trusty bicycle is still alive and well, as well as tuk tuks (tricycles designed explicitly for carrying passengers).\nCanal City makes extensive use of gondolas and small barges for moving people and goods, but they\u0026rsquo;re quite the exception as most underground rivers are not as calm as the canals.\nLong Range Travel # Mostly limited to Canal City and Basalt City, when walking distance can reach into days, additional transpotation infrastructure is needed for people and goods to make their way around. Electric Rail is the most common solution, sitting somewhere between light rail and freight rail in width, and utilizing specific cars based on the intended purpose. Electric Rail is incredibly fancy and used both for its utility and as show of wealth - since only the largest and wealthiest of cities would need to cover such distances regularly.\nHanging monorails are used for major trade routes between cities, as it keeps the floor clear and the vehicles away from non-flying feral pokemon. The only line of this kind that\u0026rsquo;s well-known is the line from Canal City to Basalt City, operated as a joint venture between noble families in each city.\nCommunications # Radio communication runs into a signficiant issue in the underground due to the density and composition of the strata. While the equivelent of FM radio is used in cities for news and entertainment, the reliability of radio communications at range limits it for actual critical communication capacity. Additionally, the infrastructure to run anything more complex then telegraph along train lines has been lost to the pages of history. The one exception to this is a repeater system that has been set up between Canal City and Basalt City - there are stations that are shared between the two.\nFor the most part, letters and newspapers are the main way to communicate with others. The mail system has formed as an independant guild on it\u0026rsquo;s own, and is one of the few groups that have access to nobility on the regular: delivering letters, packages, and newspapers to whomever requests it for a nominal fee. It is supported by all three major cities and as such, they are some of the most well-protected groups. They are incredibly neutral in all things, and to be a part of the mail guild is to remain apart from all other things. They also run newspapers between cities on request.\nCaution Mail carriers are not to be messed with, as the security force from all cities, big and small, carry a steep punishment. Mail carriers also cannot be playable characters - they\u0026rsquo;re just too apart from everything that happens.\nThere\u0026rsquo;s also one more wrinkle to Communications that has reduced the technological need, and that is PSYCHIC types. Between their natural telepathic abilities and the boost from PSYCHIC they are able to function as communication hubs in their own right, and as long as they\u0026rsquo;ve had a chance to \u0026lsquo;imprint\u0026rsquo; on another psychic type, can also communicate across long ranges. Having a PSYCHIC type in an exploration group or along with a caraval is the equivelent to being added to a mobile, local area chatroom.\nScrap Town does it\u0026rsquo;s own thing, as their city came with a full telecommunications suite, although time has worn it down and some floors within their buildings have lost the infrastructure to support it. They have both audio and video phones, and happily enough, the phones themselves have a label for their number allowing for those high enough in society to reach out with a known list as needed. The leaders of the gangs can even get their hands on portable phones that will work within Scrap Town\u0026rsquo;s influence, although they are still limited like other radios for range and cease to function at all past the outer cave that contains the city.\nNote In reality, Scrap Town isn\u0026rsquo;t the only place with advanced information infrastructure - it\u0026rsquo;s just the main place an average person might run into it. Canal City has a complete intranet infrastucture throughout the noble and upper distracts, although it is used primarily for handling information storage and retrieval, remote monitoring of some of the city\u0026rsquo;s infrastructure, and a method for Nobility to \u0026lsquo;be in the know\u0026rsquo; without ever leaving their villas. Access to this is strictly controlled.\nEntertainment # One of the most popular forms of entertainment is the live show. These can be anything from traveling story teller troops with a small band to back them up, to a dedicated musical group that plays songs on a variety of instruments either in public or at a venue. Stage plays, especially those talking about the legendary first pokemorphs or famous individuals being shown in a heroic light are always crowd pleasers. In addition to live shows, readings, sports competitions, and board games are also quite popular within the underground. Simple, physical games such as tiddleywinks, ring toss, and u-shows (derived from horseshoes) are taught at an early age. Games of fantasy set in mysterical, heroic times bridge the gap between group story telling and games of chance.\nFor nobility, games on tactics and strategy are also common, ranging from Checkers and Chess to full on hex-grid war games.\nGambling is also a form of entertainment, although games of chance with a bet are frowned on in Canal City. There\u0026rsquo;s Basalt City for that.\nWeapons and Armor # For the majority of the population of the underground, nothing can quite beat having a knife and a dagger on them at all times. Melee weapons tend to rule the day given the twisty nature of cave passages, with short swords reserved for those trained to handle them in close quarters. As most pokemorphs have their own built-in methods of both giving and resisting damage, there hasn\u0026rsquo;t been much in terms of advancement in every day carry beyond what can be used without hindering those natural abilities. ELECTRIC types, as an example, tend to favor metallic weapons that can be used as conductors while FIRE types prefer weapons that withstand their high thermal output. In fact, some of the most popular forms of weapon mastery is simply \u0026ldquo;Martial Arts\u0026rdquo; done \u0026ldquo;open hand\u0026rdquo; - FIGHTING types have a natural knack for this, but anyone can learn to move their body in a way conducive to survival.\nNobility often engage in structured duals, and as such, can have training in a number of different sword styles, although fencing and longsword are the two most popular. Nobles also tend to be the most well trained in terms of personal martial arts in general, as part of their noble curriculum.\nArmor is generally consisted of chainmail or plate artfully worked into clothes to provide protection without sacrificing style. Laminated Plates and high tensile-strength materails fill out the armor, although generally armor follows more of a \u0026ldquo;rule of cool\u0026rdquo; then practical niche for most pokemorphs. As simple as this sounds, armor is effective against most forms of non-special attacks, providing either a limit to internal injury or preventing worse case injuries.\nNote It\u0026rsquo;s hard to really quantify how armor works without a full combat system involved. A good rule of thumb is the following: It reduces the effectiveness of physical attacks by 10-15 HP, and reduces the physical harm based on the armor (e.g.: A slice or cut becomes a bruise or a welt when chainmail is in the way, and a peircing hit can likewise be turned into a knock-back with plate). Armor doesn\u0026rsquo;t work against Special Attacks in general, but really, armor provides a \u0026ldquo;Rule of Cool\u0026rdquo; to last a little bit longer then someone without it.\nNow, that isn\u0026rsquo;t to say there isn\u0026rsquo;t other weapons available, only that they are not commonly used for one reason or the other. The underground has semi-automatic pistols, bolt action rifles, shotguns and others weapons common in the 1910s here and there, but the fact that so much of the possible combat will be in exceedingly short range has just made them something only used for large-cavern open combat - and the one time they were used the results were so devestating that even the nobility frowns upon using those particular tools of mass-harm within city limits. Ammunition is stricly controlled, and explosively are mostly constrained to assisting with expanding tunnels and caverns.\nChecmical Warfare is considered dishonorable, although assasinations through poison still occur despite this.\nMedicine and Treament # Medical attention in the undergound is actually quite advanced, given the number of healing moves available to pokemorphs and a library of care information available. Heavy internal injuries can be treated in hospices by trained medical staff, and the care available at even small towns is enough to keep permanent disability at bay assuming it can be treated quickly enough. Medicines for common colds and flus are available as concentrations of natural apothecary summplements from well-known underground flora.\nCanal City and Scrap Town both also have access to very expensive medicines that were formulated before the arrival of the pokemorphs, including Potions, Cures, and Revives that are frighteningly effective. Due to this, they can command a very high price. These kinds of medicines are generally only available to the upper echolons of the cities, or through The Guild, which acts as the only licensed distribution point - and generally only for their members heading into Mystery Dungeons for artifact retrieval.\n","date":"25 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/posts/technology-level/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"A brief on common technology, weapons, and armor used in the underground.","title":"Technology Levels","type":"setting"},{"content":"The primary factions of the underground are the Canal City Nobility, the Scrap Town Rogues, The Guild, and The Mercenaries. While most pokemorphs are just trying to live their lives as they are, these factions rub against one another and form the main political forces.\nCanal City Nobles # \u0026ldquo;We trace our lineage back to the original settlers of the underground, to heroes whose story forms the basis of our society. We, alone, remain pure to that ideal, and with it\u0026rsquo;s purity, comes our right to rule.\u0026rdquo; -Canal City Stories, State of Address\nThey are better then the rest, and trace their lineage back to the original pokemorphs. Their main drive is control, and safe growth of the population. They believe in peace, but only their peace. It doesn\u0026rsquo;t help matters that not all noble families are as altruistic as they tend to seem from the outside, and some can be downright dismissive of anyone not from the deepest of bloods.\nWhile Nobility for the most part stay in the shadows controlling things from afar, they do occasionally show up for particular events - especially involving The Guild. Some would say that if the Nobles ever left their villas in any force, it would be a dire portent.\nNote Running a noble is a hard sell, due to the general seperatist nature of the ruling faction. \u0026ldquo;Dispossessed\u0026rdquo; Nobles are often disowned and no longer able to partake in the faction, and treated like any other commoner in Canal City - sometimes worse as they generally don\u0026rsquo;t have many social contacts that will vouch for them.\nThe Scrap Town Rogues # \u0026ldquo;They call us \u0026lsquo;rogues\u0026rsquo;, but all we ever were was free! We don\u0026rsquo;t follow people just because they say their blood runs blue! We don\u0026rsquo;t let others tell us how to run our lives! We make our own decisions! And when we disagree, we let the natural order determine who is right, through conflict! That is the essence of freedom, personal power and the will to use it!\u0026rdquo; -Scrap Town Poster\nOriginally a rebellion group agains the Canal City Nobles, \u0026ldquo;The Rogues\u0026rdquo; function as a loose assortment of gangs that run the power structure of Scrap Town. With a \u0026lsquo;might makes right\u0026rsquo; approach to governance, and personal responsibility and codes of ethics being at the forefront, they often times just appear to be a group of disorganized gangs masquerading as poltics. This is far from the truth, as only gang leaders that can learn to work together last for very long.\nThere are a few notable gangs that currently make up the big decision makers in town:\nTeam Dragon # Team Dragon operates out of a nightclub slash gentlemans club where the men and women are pretty, the music is loud, and the booze flows cheaply. A den of sin that can provide for just about anyone\u0026rsquo;s tastes, Team Dragon often times butts heads with The Guild on the simple grounds that they\u0026rsquo;re stuffy do-gooders and Scrap Town is free and doesn\u0026rsquo;t need any of that.\nGang Leader: \u0026ldquo;Boss Dragon\u0026rdquo; Israfel Base of Operations: Israfel\u0026rsquo;s Club Notable Members: Gale The Widowmakers # An all girl\u0026rsquo;s gang started by Cherissa, it has gone from an obnoxious and loud upstart gang to one of the major gangs with frightening speed lately. Many would point to Tenet as being the root cause for this transformation, but the fact remains that everyone knows about them now, and they\u0026rsquo;re just getting more infamous despite an elite and limited membership.\nGang Leader: \u0026ldquo;Eight Eyes\u0026rdquo; Cherissa Base of Operations: Slick \u0026rsquo;n Juicy Noodles \u0026rsquo;n Rice (Restaurant) Notable Members: Cheri, Tenet The Syndicate # Primarily focused on trade and black market deals, The Syndicate handles a lot of imports and exports from Scrap Town of various goods, some illicit and some just sourced from places best not known. Run by Callian, the gang has a good reputation for being fair in their dealings, but ruthless to those that would try and muscle in on their routes.\nGang Leader: \u0026ldquo;The Voice\u0026rdquo; Callian Base of Operations: 3rd Heaven Imports Notable Members: Fiera, Remedy Dragon\u0026rsquo;s Breath Protective Services LLC # While the name is a bit iffy, and some would say that it is some kind of referential joke, DBPS operates exactly as the name says on the tin. Run by Tulvir, they\u0026rsquo;ve taken the age old protection racket and lifted it into something almost respectable - at least within the limits of Scrap Town. The emblem of DBPS can often be seen on high profile bodyguards for exclusive patrons. This has also led a bit to the rumor that whomever is paying the price for those bodyguards has something worth protecting, but that can be the price of fame.\nGang Leader: \u0026ldquo;Fire Starter\u0026rdquo; Tulvir Base of Operations: The Aerie Notable Members: None - they\u0026rsquo;re mostly mooks for rent. The Guild # \u0026ldquo;You don\u0026rsquo;t look like you\u0026rsquo;re around here. Looking for a job? The best place is The Guild if you don\u0026rsquo;t want to line up for factory work or work in the fields. Assuming you can pass their test, they\u0026rsquo;ll provide you room and board, and a pick of various jobs that come up. If you get good enough, you might even get picked for their Dungeon Explorer Teams. Oh yeah, everyone knows about them, the best ones are heros!.\u0026rdquo; -Sycamore Right, Street Vendor\nThe Guild is a combination of jobs program, research laboratory, and training center that has recently been established in Canal City. Sponsored by Noble Houses, the main face of the Guild is a place to put in commissions to get work done. Request a Mission, pay an upfront fee, and someone from The Guild will take care of it. These missions include general labour, guard work, exploration, investigation, and even rescue missions involving Mystery Dungeons. Individuals and Teams within the Guild are free to pick and choose missions to their own interests and strengths, but they are on the hook to meet a monthly quota to keep their Guild Membership.\nOf course, the more in depth a mission request is, or the more dangerous, the more it\u0026rsquo;ll cost.\nInside The Guild isn\u0026rsquo;t too different from it\u0026rsquo;s face. The Guild\u0026rsquo;s main hall is a combination of a bar and restaurant with the Guild Counter at the back, providing a place for people to come and talk with potential teams to take a commission, or just for Guild Members to relax and socialize. Behind the counter lies the Guild Kitchen, Sleeping Barracks, and Training Hall. Upstairs contains private offices for client meetings, and private rooms for the elite of the Guild Members. Underneath the Guild Hall lies the research facility and artifact handling, at least so the rumors go.\nGetting into The Guild is an open application process, with an entrance exam system that some would call \u0026ldquo;tough\u0026rdquo;, but making it through the process guarantees food and shelter, and a path to self improvement, so it isn\u0026rsquo;t uncommon for group exams to be held as an event once a month, despite the low passing rate.\nSocially, The Guild is very popular with the common Pokemorph, as they take jobs from any person who can pay the fee - even if contracting with a private indivudal would be much more expensive normally. The Guild provides some social services as well, including a soup kitchen for those that have no way of providing for themselves during times of need. The fact that you can post a job to The Guild via the Mail System makes them available to just about any settlement in the underground as well. Even the Elite Nobles have a somewhat favorable opinion of The Guild, at least on the surface, as it provides a steady tax income and a convenient way to appeal to those who have good impressions of The Guild by making shows of support.\n\u0026ldquo;We explore the caves, and adventure in Mystery Dungeons. We help the weak, and protect the needy. We follow the ebb and flow of the underground rivers to seek out the great endless cave that we all came from. For the future of Pokemorphs, we are The Guild.\u0026rdquo;\nRanking System # The Guild consists of Ranks, labeled A-G, with a Guild Master and Assistant Guildmaster.\nElite (A): Generally well-storied individuals with \u0026ldquo;Second Names\u0026rdquo; and fan clubs, the Guild Elites do not actually have to take missions. Rather, they report directly to the Guild Master and Assistant Guild Master for Assignments. Often, they will still take missions or accompany other groups simply for the morale boost, and as part of the Guild\u0026rsquo;s public relations activities. Adventurer (B): The True Independant Guild Members, Adventurers can take take any and all missions solo or in a group. They also function as tutors, trainers, and support for the Guild. Being assigned work inside the Guild is often a coveted spot, as it still gives all the benefits of the rank, but without any risk on missions, although these positions are temporary and in rotation. Explorer (C): At this rank, members can operate independantly or in groups, and can freely take any non-mystery dungeon mission solo, or can join a goup for a Mystery Dungeon job. Can assist all other ranks. This is generally the most \u0026ldquo;common\u0026rdquo; rank of guild member seen in the wild, as they are competant enough to handle most jobs. Member (D): The second most common rank seen \u0026ldquo;in the wild\u0026rdquo;, Members can take any non-combat, non-mystery dungeon job in any location. They also commonly volunteer to assist other ranks as they can assist any rank up to B for experience and opportunities to improve their rank further. Junior Member (E): Also someotimes referred to as \u0026ldquo;Trainees\u0026rdquo;, Junior Members can only take non-combat jobs within established cities. In order to get more experience, they often spend much of their time training, or trying to join up with other groups of guild members - generally they can apply to be an attache to an assignment rated for C Rank or below. Probation (F): A special \u0026lsquo;rank\u0026rsquo; used to indicate that the member has failed to live up their responsibilities. F rank often needs to take specific missions as assigned from the Guild Master or Assistant Guild Master and cannot be reinstated without their input. Generally, if a pokemorph enters probation they are given a choice to \u0026rsquo;take a vacation and rethink their purpose\u0026rsquo;, and re-apply later as a Junior Member with a clean slate. Guest (G): A special \u0026lsquo;rank\u0026rsquo; used to indicate a dignitary of visitor under Guild Protection. While they can use Guild Services, they are not able to take missions. Dispossessed: While not an offical \u0026lsquo;rank\u0026rsquo;, those that fail in probation are \u0026ldquo;Black Listed\u0026rdquo; by being entered as a dispossessed. Dispossessed pokemorphs cannot use any Guild services, not receive any benefits. They are not able to put in commissions. Removal from this dishonor requires direct Noble intervention. Leadership # The Guild Master is a symbolic position and there is no expectation of prior Guild Service to retain it. Most Guild Masters have either been retired Justicars or simply appointed by Nobles for their work in management rather then physical acumen. Much of their time is spent promoting the Guild and keeping the wheels moving behind the scenes.\nThe Assistant Guild Master is a position that is appointed by The Guild Master at their pleasure. Generally the Assistant Guild Master will handle the day to day operations of the Guild, and as such generally would have attained at least a rank of B or A before their appointment. At this point, The Guild is their full time job, and they work with the Guild Counter and adventuring parties to ensure that jobs are done on time with minimal injury or fuss, and also support the Guild Counter for complaints or difficult decisions.\nIndependent Mercenaries # \u0026ldquo;You need a job done, quiet like? Or maybe something that you don\u0026rsquo;t want to filter through to some stuffy noble? Or maybe\u0026hellip; your budget just ain\u0026rsquo;t there. Or perhaps\u0026hellip; ya thinking no one gonna return? That\u0026rsquo;s fine. We\u0026rsquo;ll take the job. Pay upfront, though.\u0026rdquo; -Sandy Wrathborne, Leader of the \u0026ldquo;Black Iron Swords\u0026rdquo; Mercenary Group.\nWant all of the adventure, but none of that nonsense of having to support ideals or pay a lot of tax on the loot you find? The Independant Mercenaries have that same mindset, and decided to do something about it. Mercenaries are an independent lot, and can come either as singular mercenaries or a whole Mercenary Group, but in order to compete they\u0026rsquo;ve all established some common ground rules in presentation and self-enforce them.\nMercenaries can work for any faction they deem fit, and loyalty is assumed to be non-existent once a job is complete. Today\u0026rsquo;s paid friend is tomorrow\u0026rsquo;s paid enemy, and that\u0026rsquo;s just a fact of life. The only real rule a Mercenary has to follow is The Contract - once a contract is signed, breaking the contract not just lowers credibility, but it can also invite the ire of other Mercenaries.\nThere\u0026rsquo;s a few reasons some choose to work for whatever side needs them at the moment; some find it the most reliable way to support one\u0026rsquo;s self, or they are simply out of options as they don\u0026rsquo;t fit in the culture of the Rogues or the stiff organization of The Guild. On top of that, Mercenaries can live and work where ever they please as long as public sentiment there doesn\u0026rsquo;t make life unbearable. This does often lead Mercenaries to be wanderers rather then settle down - they follow the work.\nMercenaries are generally rated from ★ to ★★★★★ and their current rating appears on all official correspondance along with their contract completion rate. Generally, having a single star is good enough to trust a mercenary, as it means they\u0026rsquo;ve at least fulfilled a contract. The more stars attached to a mercenary, the more expensive they are to employ and the more demands they can make of the contracts they get. No stars are new entries, and generally cheap and often disposable.\nThe Mercenary Guild is actually a bit of a mystery. It accepts mail for putting out contracts, and acts as a central responder for various registered mercenaries and mercenary groups, but doesn\u0026rsquo;t actually seem to exist. It can hold payment or items in Escrow as part of a contract, all handled via Mail. It also handles the record of successful contracts, general fees, and reputation scores for Mercenaries and Mercenary Groups. Mercenary Guild Informants, which can be contacted for in person meetings for questions, information, or mercencary registration do exist\u0026hellip; but they are all GHOST types.\nBasalt City Nobility # \u0026ldquo;We are the progeny of the ancients, the firsts, and we are our own council. We refuse to bend the knee to others that claim the same legacy, as what we do now is more important to the future then holding fast to some sparkling past.\u0026rdquo; -Francis Silvermore, Silvermore family head.\nAn offshoot of the Canal City nobility, who chafed under remote leadership and went their own way, they are somehow less overbearing but even more uptight then their originating city. Like Canal City, the rulers of Basalt City regale their origin from the initial pokemorphs that came to the underground. However, they are almost never seen within the common areas of Basalt City - instead their agents and family forces serve as the \u0026lsquo;face\u0026rsquo; of the noble families, and only act to enforce the neutrality of their city or prevent damage to the peace.\nNote Like Canal City nobles, Basalt City nobles tend to be a hard sell as a Player Character, due to the immense power they wield. However, 3rd and beyond born, or those not in the direct line of succession, are available. They\u0026rsquo;re tasked with upholding the honor of the nobles, and often at the beck and call of their family, though. Basalt City nobles often favor POISON types, so a noble born without that type would lose their succession status.\n","date":"28 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/posts/factions/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"An in-depth whos who for the major politcal factions.","title":"Underground Factions","type":"setting"},{"content":"\u0026ldquo;Have you ever wondered, my dear explorer, why it is we look so alike and so different to these feral animals that we share the underground with? Some do, but for the most part it isn simply a passing ephemeral question, such as what is one\u0026rsquo;s nature to one\u0026rsquo;s abilities. No one thinks too hard about it. Perhaps\u0026hellip; we are not meant to know, even though we should\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo; -Senior Explorer Hydlein, Guild Researcher\nPokemorphs # Pokemorph. What is a pokemorph? To get to the absolute nuts and bolts, pokemorphs are artificially created creatures that came about through some advanced, long lost technology. A merging of human and pokemon to fulfill some eldritch abombination of a program on the surface. This has also had a surprisingly good effect on making them fairly well adapted to life underground in various ways. Of course, no pokemorph really thinks about this, they simply are who they are.\nAnd that\u0026rsquo;s a bit of the point of some of the modifications.\nGeneral Appearances # Pokemorphs look like pokemon given human traits, bearing similarity to common “Furry”, or anthropormorphic, depictions. Generally speaking, they\u0026rsquo;re somewhere between a werewolf from movies such as Hellsing, and a wolf like Legosi from Beastars, and never quite moving towards the kemonomimi route. If all of this made sense to you, you\u0026rsquo;re in the right place.\nThe details of how a particular pokemon looks like when morphed is mostly up to player imagination, although in general there are specific guidelines as follows:\nPokemorphs height range from 4ft. to 9ft. tall (122cm to 275cm), and generally average about 5ft. 5in. in height (165cm), with natural variance based on the size of the base pokemon being used as a source. Pokemorphs can have traditional \u0026ldquo;hair\u0026rdquo;, that is, longer fur on their head that can be styled like human hair. This is often a sign of economic success to care for it. This also can be used regardless on if the pokemorph has fur, skin, leaves, chitin, or other coverings. Pokemorphs tend to have physical characteristics that match their original species - altough some minor cosmetic changes may be present. Pokemorphs are all considered to be warm blooded and mammilian inside - regardless of their exterior or typing. Except ghosts. We\u0026rsquo;ll get to them. It is unknown if they reproduce asexually, via egg, or live birth at this time. All pokemorphs can breed with other pokemorphs assuming some kind of gender compatibility. It\u0026rsquo;s possible that the offspring will not match either parents, although rare. All pokemorphs can speak language! \u0026ldquo;Common\u0026rdquo; is an English-equivelency language that is the most commonly taught. Genetic Modifications and Quirks # As pokemorphs were created with intent, and not natural evolution, there are specific modifications and quirks that can effect how they are able to exist within the world at large. While they are generally beholden to their primary base colors on their lineage, if their parents were different pokemorphs they may inherit the color scheme from the family member they do not match. The only exception to this are Shiny-styled Pokemorphs, which is a rare mutation that will always match the shiny of the Pokemorph\u0026rsquo;s main type, and tends to be a point of pride to keep that color \u0026lsquo;au natural\u0026rsquo;.\nFor other things, dye, bleach, and tattooing technology exist, including bio-lumenescent dyes and inks, allowing for a rainbow of allowable patterns for the low cost of occasional maintenance.\nPokemorphs generally do not suffer from poor eyesight, and all have at least a little bit of low-light vision. Their hearing also tends to be sharper with wider range for ultra and sub sonics then a human\u0026rsquo;s might be. They may also have other senses as part of their type, such as PSYCHIC, DARK, or otherwise.\nIn general, Pokemorphs tend to be stronger and heartier then their human-side anatomy would suggest. Check the \u0026ldquo;Stat Equivelencies\u0026rdquo; later on.\nPokemorphs are all fully capable omnivores, able to sustain themselves without meat in their diet. Oddly, their digestive systems do seem to be incredibly efficient at pulling nutrition from underground fungus.\nFinally, some changes were made in terms of the support of sexual function of pokemorphs, allowing for all species to be male, female, intersex, or none, including previously sex-locked species. This has also made gender expression more in tune with cultural and personal decisions, with a focus on decoration.\nStat Equivelencies # When it comes to comparing a pokemorph to a human standard, you can simply use their base stat values as an indicator. \u0026ldquo;Human\u0026rdquo; average is around 50 stat points, while a well trained Human may reach as high as 100. Above 100 exceeds what an unmodified human can accomplish, and the farther away from that norm that you go, the more incredible things are.\nHP: General hardiness, resistance to disease, recovery speed. Also helps hold one\u0026rsquo;s breath. ATK: General Strength, lifting and raw power. DEF: Hardiness against injury. This can indicate hard skin, natural armer, or a \u0026lsquo;martial arts\u0026rsquo; like ability to ignore physical damage. SPEC: Control over the special abilities inherent in Pokemorphs. The higher the SPEC stat, the better control over their elemental or TYPE powers are. A 50 may indicate basic control of fire, like your average , where as 100 may indicate being able to shape it or change the colors. SPECDEF: This is a natural \u0026lsquo;field\u0026rsquo; of defense that prevents one pokemorph from directly effecting another with their abilities. This also counts as resistance to more normal forms of elemental damage, such as electricity, fire, or radiation. SPEED: Raw, natural running speed. 50 being capable of a 10-minute mile. Evolution # Pokemorph evolution tends to be tied more to mental state or physical stress then to some arbitrary thing such as a \u0026rsquo;level\u0026rsquo;. Generally, a pokemorph will only evolve if there is a strong desire to, and any pre-requirements are met. Or an incredibly stressful situation triggers their body to undergo a change defensively.\nMost evolution stones can be located with enough digging, and everstones are a popular fashion accessory as an uncontrolled evolution can be frowned upon - not to mention the possibility of needing a whole new wardobe.\nTypes and Their Effects # Pokemorphs have types, like their feral kin. These types provide some additional abilities as well as advantages or disadvantages to living in the underground that can be leveraged for some interesting effects. Not all the types have unique additionas, but this is not a complete list.\nFlying # Flying types have the ability to fly, whether or not they have the FLY move learned. Without the move, it is limited and exhausting, and both hovering and vertical flight are exceedingly difficult. Gliding from a high place tends to be preferred if possible, and these types tend to have some kind of functional wings - whether they look the part of not.\nGround # Ground types can all dig through hardened rock as well as soft earth, whether or not they have the DIG move learned. Without the move, they are limited in speed and cannot dig through all hardness of rock, but it\u0026rsquo;s still very useful when living underground and areas need to be expanded or explored.\nRock # Rock types have a unique trait in the underground - they can etch small, barely detectable patterns in some forms of rock crystals. Specifically with some rare elements and silicon minerals, patterns can be made that can be used to produce some interesting effects when electricity is applied. A small enclave of Rock types have access to the Canal Noble Library and the patterns therein - a coveted and highly protected source for the systems that power everything from the electric mopeds to some of the more anachronistic equipment within the underground.\nFire # Fire types are heat resistant to an incredible degree. They are capable of standing near open lava rivers or entering a burning abode. Some can even swim in Lava! The downside is no one can pull you out from drowning in lava except for another fire type. Same with the lack of air in a burning house\u0026hellip;\nFire types are also commonly known to utilize their fire skills for light as natural-born torches, or being able to regulate the temperature of their output to control the heat used for cooking.\nWater # Water types, when using a water-based move, can actually create perfectly serviceable drinking water nearly on demand. They also tend to be cooler to the touch then other types (outside of ICE type), and are able to breathe underwater like an amphibian.\nThey do not have trouble breathing air.\nGrass # Grass types have adapted somewhat to the darkness of the underground. They are able to use Sunstones or artificial full-spectrum light to be able to go long periods without food, and only needing water to survive. Without Sunstones or full-spectrum light they tend to yellow or show \u0026lsquo;fall colors\u0026rsquo;, which can turn them from a light pink, to a brilliant red, or a sickly brown. A Grass type that has yellowed must eat like any other pokemorph.\nElectric # Electric types, like Fire types, are known as natural sources of light, capable of producing small arcs of blueish energy to substitute for a Fire Types flame. They can use these arcs to light fires, or in a pinch as a spark gap transmitter. They are more resistant to ill effects on the electromagnetic spectrum, including radiation, then most.\nIf Electric Types create too bright a spark, they can dazzle those used to the dark, as it is much harsher then the light put off by fire.\nGhost # \u0026hellip; we don\u0026rsquo;t really want to talk too much about Ghost Types. But, here we go. Ghost Types are technically considered undead, they do not reproduce, but rather \u0026rsquo;evolve\u0026rsquo; from a Pokemorph that refuses to rest. Pure Ghost types have the ability to travel through items outside of Blacksteel and Blacksteel Powder, making them incredibly good at scouting or escape. Being \u0026lsquo;phased\u0026rsquo; like this does mean they are also able to travel through their own equipment or clothing at the same time.\nGhost types can go for a year without food, but still get hunger pains and start to be lethargic due to lack of energy. They can, however, consume \u0026ldquo;Ghostweed\u0026rdquo; which is a pink-white plant rarely found that acts as a superfood for them.. and a stomach-curdling mild poison to others.\nThey do not age naturally and appear at the age they \u0026lsquo;believe\u0026rsquo; they are. Once a ghost type feels that have acheived their goal, they do begin to slowly fade from existance, and leave no body behind.\nPsychic # Probably one of the most wanted types by the whole pokemorph experiment, Pyschic types get several small abilities right out of the box, whether or not they have the PSYCHIC move (although using the move can signifcantly boost their ability). They are capable of mild telekinesis, splitting roughly a quarter of their normal strength across as many objects as they can detect at once. They are also able of performing a psychic \u0026lsquo;ping\u0026rsquo; to sense other minds nearby - although DARK types will not register with this, and the range is fairly limited. Finally, they are capable of understanding spoken language by focusing on the speaker\u0026rsquo;s intent, rather then the words themselves, even if they don\u0026rsquo;t speak the language in question.\nDragon # Dragons are cool. You want more then that? Fine. Dragons are generally resistant to a lot of environmental effects, although not as much as a special type would be. They can withstand a lot of heat, but cannot bathe in lava like a fire type, they can withstand some levels of electricity, but not high voltage or EM Spectrum like an electric type. They are still vulnerable to cold, and often wear multi-layered outfits or stick to warmer areas because of this.\nThey tend to have a more commanding presence then other types, and value their freedom and independence. Because of this, there is an unusually high amount of dragon types that live in more free places such as Scrap Town, and often try to become leaders of their own group.\nIce # Nature\u0026rsquo;s refridgerators, Ice types are capable of lowering the temperature around them to within a few F of 32 (0C) by spending time and focusing on it. They are immune to natural cold, and when frozen solid simply enter a torpor like state, allowing them to hibernate at extreme temperatures if needed. However, they are not fond at all of hot places, and will rapidly begin to overheat and hit levels of heat exhaustion that can physically hurt them above 115F (46C).\nPoison # Some caverns are just naturally full of poisons. Some are unnaturally filled with poisons. To a poison type, this doesn\u0026rsquo;t matter as they are immune to poisons in the world. This includes everything from natural toxins to carcinogenic pollution, to various drugs. This makes them difficult to assasinate via poison, and immune to alcohol.\nThey are still vulnerable to disease and other forms of biological attacks.\nSteel # Steel types are very hard to cut or damage from the outside, making them immune to a lot of poison attacks that do not enter their mouth, nose, ears, eyes or other orifice. They are capable of using their limbs to stop attacks like natural shields, and have an uncanny ability to deflect human-styled weapons if the need arises.\nBug # \u0026ldquo;Grass types hate Bug types. They\u0026rsquo;re icky and gross.\u0026rdquo; -Atalanta\nBug types have reduced food needs, and are able to consume a wider variety of things for sustenance. What some pokemorphs may not be able to digest, a Bug type, might\u0026hellip; although it may cause a social faux pas.\nBug types are also able to climb any surface, as long as it isn\u0026rsquo;t more then 90 degrees from the level naturally. They can go beyond this to overhangs with tool assistance or special training.\nDark # Dark types are immune to Psychic abilities of all types, and simply don\u0026rsquo;t seem to exist to them at all. They are also able to navigate and sense freely in complete darkness without any light, making them incredibly good at navigating tunnels and caves. They tend to have a type-penchant for being mischevious and crafty.\nFairy # Fairy types are less known for their physical aspect, and more about how they make other pokemorphs around them feel. Specifically, Dragons, Fighting, and Dark types all feel a little uneasy in their presence, whereas other types tend to feel a little more at ease. This is especially true about dragon types, however, as they tend to feel uncomfortable in the presence of Fairy types in general, although exposure to specific individuals can lessen this through trust and understanding.\nFighting # Fighting types excel at their body control, and tend to make deliberate, preceise movements. This makes them incredibly gifted when it comes to precision. While not as effective at resisting damage as Steel types are, their body hardening techniques provide a little resistance against most weaponry. They also tend to be a little over the top with their fighting styles, often taking inspiration from Wuxia sources.\nNormal # Normal types are, well, the baseline. Their biggest advantage is an absolutely immunity to Ghost types - to the point where pure ghost types cannot perceive them, and they cannot perceive the Ghosts. Otherwise, Normal types enjoy quite possibly the best that normalacy has to offer - nothing specific to be shoe-horned into, and nothing that acts as a definite bane to their existence.\nLegendary Pokemorphs # Some rare pokemorphs harken back to legendary strains. They are exceedingly rare, and while the concept of a legendary isn\u0026rsquo;t truly understood in the underground it is easy to tell simply due to the incredibly high capabilities of these morphs that something is special.\nUnlike normal pokemorphs, legendary pokemorphs generally occur due to something that happens to them to cause the unusual change to their new form. They may retain some of their old colors, or perhaps a callback to their original form, but they are undoubtedly true to their new species.\n","date":"25 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/posts/pokemorph-details/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"A breakdown of the physical appearance of pokemorphs, special abilities by type, and relating them to their ancient ancestors: humans.","title":"Pokemorph Details","type":"setting"},{"content":"It was a dark and bleary night, and in the darkness, the sneasel\u0026rsquo;s eyes reflected what little light was available. Running her claws through her hair and over her signature red feathers, Nycty sighed a little bit. A small shift from one foot to the other to test the softness of her soles against the ground before moving into a crouch. The gem on her forehead glowing faintly in a light blue as the icy cold of her prepared Ice Punch starts to sink through her claws.\nPokemorphs are more then just human shaped pokemon (although humans \u0026lsquo;\u0026lsquo;being\u0026rsquo;\u0026rsquo; pokemon is somewhat established canon) and as such, come with a slew of differences that can flavor your roleplaying to give that little something extra in your scenes. For the first major example, many pokemon are covered with fur, leaves, features, or scales and as such, may not be able to blush well, if at all. Others might have expressive ears, twitching noses, or tails that can convey emotion. While in general all pokemorphs are treated like warm blooded mammals, there are many different ways to non-verbally communicate available with the addition of such things as wings or extra arms. Take inspiration from animal behaviors in terms of what they use to signify emotions such as calm, distress, or anger to add that extra depth to your character so you aren\u0026rsquo;t just a human in a fuzzy suit!\nLiving with Powers # There are a few major differences between being a human and being a pokemorph that is so pervasive that it can often times be ignored, which is Typing and Intrinsic Powers. To give a brief idea, all pokemorphs (even Normal!) have a Type that helps to connect them to some primal element in the world. This connection can be both supportive and antagonistic, depending on the pokemorph\u0026rsquo;s personality and ties to their type. Then, there are the intrinsic powers that pokemorphs possess, codified and measured by Special Attack and Special Defense statistics, and channeled into useful effects through pokemorph Moves. As this is a basic fact of life, it\u0026rsquo;s important to think about it, as it simply is a bit of ever present flavor\u0026hellip; like cilantro on tacos.\nRoleplaying a Type # While a general list of what special abilities Types give can be found under [pokemorph-details](Pokemorph Details), as well as the effects Types can have on one another over and above Type Advantages and Disadvantages, there is more to be considered from the roleplaying angle. As mentioned previously, a type is a link to a primal element, and as such, can provide comfort to those that are in tune with their Type. On the other hand, those that dislike their Type, or perhaps hate the fact that they are being stereo\u0026hellip; uh, typed, may find that their element brings them a sense of unease. In pure game terms, there isn\u0026rsquo;t an actual, measureable effect, but it can add a simple and effective way to provide additional dimension to your character with how they feel about their own Typing.\nOne major change comes with the Grass type - since the underground is so dim, Grass types tend to have to either find a way to get access to expensive sunstone-powered lamps, or be in perpetual \u0026ldquo;fall colors\u0026rdquo;. Thankfully, the stark colors that being sun-starved cause have become a bit of a personal fashion all it\u0026rsquo;s own.\nMoves - What are they good For? # Pokemorphs when they come of age, have generally managed to exhibit up to three different moves. Moves represent the channeling of a pokemorphs inner connection to the elements as well as their natural phyisical capabilities to cause effects over and above what might be done through sheer muscle and grit alone. Special Moves, in particular, as pure shows of channeled elemental force, where Physical moves often combine elemental acumen with training or talent to break the realm of standard movement.\nIn fact, moves can probably be best through of as an analog to \u0026ldquo;Magic\u0026rdquo;. Powerful psychic pokemon can use the move \u0026lsquo;\u0026lsquo;Psychic\u0026rsquo;\u0026rsquo; to move things with their mind, or speak in telepathy (as long as the target isn\u0026rsquo;t a \u0026lsquo;\u0026lsquo;Dark\u0026rsquo;\u0026rsquo; type). Moves such as Chilling Water or Water Cannon might help you create a cool cup of water on a hot day, or allow you to output enough water to fill a small swimming pool depending on how much you want to use it. Some pokemorphs can fire massive lasers from their eyes, gems, or mouths while other might channel dark force through their claws. Fire types never need a lighter as long as they have some kind of fire element attack, and if you\u0026rsquo;re an electric type, you might be able to power a radio in a pinch. Dittos can transform themselves freely to copy others, making them both wondrous and feared.\nBut what about Normal Type attacks? Even Normal Type is a channeling of that link that pokemorphs have\u0026hellip; to themselves. They are focused inner talent given the ability to express itself into the physical world.\nMoves are not only useful in combat, but they can be used as Power Stunts as roleplaying additions. For example, creating fire that\u0026rsquo;s more powerful or distant then touch range could simply be a partial use of Flamethrower. Sword Dance can be both used to entertain and as a way to augment agility for spectacular movement. Charm, when not used at full power, can simply be a sense of wholesomeness and friendliness. Even using a Move at full power can be used as a Stunt outside of combat - you can be creative to an extent, just remember that there is a limit to how much a pokemorph can exert their inner powers before they get depleted.\nSome of these moves, though, don\u0026rsquo;t work very well outside of the limited scope of combat. Terrain altering moves for example, are naturally limited in scale as to not cause natural disasters when used (and we won\u0026rsquo;t talk about Watersport).\nThere are also some specific Moves that grant bonuses unique to use outside of combat. FLY, DIG, PSYCHIC, STRENGTH are a few examples.\nEquipment # Pokemorph underground\u0026rsquo;s main city, [canal-city](Canal City), is set in an age roughly equivelent to the 1910s, with some advancements in electrical understanding and circuitry aided by the long-held and secretive knowledge coveted by the Nobility. As this is the age of modernity, some many pokemorphs have taken to utilizing tools rather then fully relying on only their internal abilities. This can both lessen the strain on the individual, as well as make things a bit more even across the board.\nClothing is a spattering of period accurate clothing, neo-victorian punk, business suits, and a few offshoots in style here and there. Materials can include mushroom-cotton, wool, and some polyester. Materials like PVC and leather are also available, but much more expensive then the natural fibers - and less available to those without means. Footwear varies from pokemorph to pokemorph, with bare pawed and decorative boots being as equally present as dress shoes. Shoes can fit a variety of foot styles as well, for the more pawed types of pokemorphs.\nFor personal effects and accessories, there is quite a lot available based on the general stores of Canal City, although the farther from a major settlement you get, the more rural to medieval things are. For example, most watches are digital time keepers with a back light - as long as power infrastructure is available (or a handy electric type) they can remain powered near indefinitely. Mechanical watches tend to be rarer and a sign of wealth as the complexity required needs a skilled craftman to create. Books are available - mostly stories, legends, cookbooks and survival guides as most books on scientific materials are simply not available beyond basic primary school education. Briefcases, backpacks, and slingbags are all common to see. Notepads and dayplanners, paper pads, and both pencils and ink pens are widely available.\nBut style probably isn\u0026rsquo;t why you\u0026rsquo;re here, and is better covered in each city\u0026rsquo;s specific locale.\nWeapons # Weapons do exist in the underground, in a variaty of flavors. For the most part, small bladed weapons are common to find including daggers, stillettos, and other varients up to gladius sized. Nobility and the well-to-do that have access to professional training may use more exotic weaponry or larger bladed weapons as the cave systems can be quite a nasty barrier to anything that isn\u0026rsquo;t small and easily manueverable.\nThe mushroom-lumber isn\u0026rsquo;t quite as sturdy as ancient woods are, so without additional materials such as spring steel, bows lack a lot of power, limiting them to hobbyist use. Spring Steel and Compound Bows do exist but are incredibly expensive and specialized. Also, as mentioned, of little use in a world that is mostly narrow caves. Mushroom wood can still be used for staves, nunchucks, tonfa and the like, as it can get quite dense.\nSo let\u0026rsquo;s talk about gunpowder.\nYes, gunpowder exists. Explosives can be used for helping open up caves, smooth out walls, and enlarge caverns for habitation. It can also be used for weapons. While most explosives can be used out of the box for what they are not designed for, there is a class of weapons that are designed for harm, and little else. Firearms. The general tech level of the 1910s does include the use of revolvers, repeating pistols (although jamming can be an issue), and long rifles. For the most part, these particular weapons are either ineffective (such as against steel types) or only show their powers at ranges beyond what a pokemorph can effect directly (again, in caves). This has made them hold out weapons or only used as a stylistic choice, especially since at close ranges a bullet is far less impressive then a Firespin. The plus side is that they are limited by ammunition instead of personal energy, and ammunition can be shared.\nThe downsides of firearms include maintenance, accuracy, and of course, ammunition availability. Ammunition is only available through a few highly regulated sources, and even the primers needed to re-use casings can be hard to get a hold of. Canal City and Basalt City are the two cities that can sell ammunition, although of the two only Basalt City will sell to anyone with enough money. The Guild has the ability to issue some for specific missions, but generally tries to avoid it if possible - guns are too easy to rely on and not as effective as a well trained blade in close quarters, let alone natural abilities.\nArmor # Pokemorphs tend to be naturally resistant to getting hurt. Armor can help augment a pokemorph\u0026rsquo;s Defense slightly, but generally follows more of the rule of cool then anything else. Primarily effective against weapons mentioned above, it can only really help against Physical Moves - Special Moves bypass any additional armor completely (although their physical effects may be lessened).\nGenerally armor comes in chain and plate varieties, and used as an enhancement to clothes. The only exception to this is the Defense Force of Canal City, who wears a combination of partial plate and high tensile strength padded clothing to provide additional physical defense when protecting order.\nMoney # Money is poke. Poke is money. Poke is life. Well, not totally. It is considered a universal fiat currency whose value is held steady through an agreement between Canal City and Basalt City - as the two largest economic powers they backstop it as well as handle ensuring the validity of the money. It comes in both coin and bill form, with larger denomination bills being both physically larger and more complex in decoration - the printing process is a well-kept secret and thus far, remains impossible to counterfeit.\nOddly, it can also be found in modern form in Mystery Dungeons. Mystery Dungeons do sometimes have \u0026ldquo;Yenny\u0026rdquo; which is only of use to exotic collectors.\nFor settlements that don\u0026rsquo;t do business with the major cities, barter and trade become more of the law of the land, then poke - although most traveling traders will accept poke as they can always cash in at a larger city, the supply chain of the underground still leaves some to be desired. Digital Currency as we know it in the modern era, simply does not exist.\nSavings and Loan Banks can be found in major cities, and loan sharks can be found just about anywhere for purchasing more then you can afford, and regretting it later.\nHow Feral is \u0026ldquo;Feral\u0026rdquo; # It should be made note that all pokemorphs are anthropomorphic in nature, stand upright, and can speak. Waving, hand motions, and fine motorskills easily separate a pokemorph from their less-gentrified cousins. Even those with long claws or special combat-oriented features can tend to \u0026lsquo;retract\u0026rsquo; them to provide for ease of use.\nFeral pokemon do exist, and they are scary. Feral pokemon have the intelligence of simple animals and are able to much better channel their inner abilities, often times almost double the effectiveness of the average pokemorph. A pack of them is not to be taken lightly, and even the \u0026lsquo;domesticated\u0026rsquo; ones can return to their feral mindset if sufficiently provoked.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/getting-started/posts/roleplaying-a-pokemorph/","section":"Pokemorph Below","summary":"A general guide and tips on roleplaying as more than human.","title":"Roleplaying a Pokemorph","type":"getting-started"},{"content":"\u0026ldquo;Like any good legend, it\u0026rsquo;s rooted in some deep, lost history that we remember through it seeming so apart from today that it seems near fantastical. Imagine, the first pokemorph coming underground, and seeing what little was available from the rock. Then, after tirelessly looking for a strong water supply, finding the cavern that would later become The First City. The legends giving their guidance to those that would become the Noble families. The great construction of the Resevoir Dam and Power System, something that we are hard pressed to do today, done in a mere handful of hours\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo; -Introduction to Legends of the Underground, Canal City Library\nThe History of the Underground # As commonly known, the history of The Underground is mostly through the history of The First City, Canal City, itself. But there is more to The Underground then a single city, and more to the history then simply a whole city springing forth from the ground, fully formed and filled with pokemorphs from all walks of life. Canal City itself is going on five-hundred years of age, so there\u0026rsquo;s many key events that have formed since then.\nThe Beginning: When the Sky Cried # The origin of The Underground is a legend that is so old that hardly anyone remembers it. There once was a place called the surface - a cavern without limit, where a single bright sunstone would travel from edge to edge bringing day and night with its movement. Grass types were all the brightest of green, and the Flying types could soar for hours without their wings getting tired. Food was plentiful, and the technology that existed bordered on the fantastical.\nThen, the top of the surface cavern turned red, and began to cry black tears. The tears would cause sickness, and eat the flesh on contact. The Original Pokemorphs, seeing what was happening, sequestored eggs and ran far from their homes, looking for a place to be safe from the crying surface, eventually wandering through the tunnels lower and lower, and lower still. The caves small, treacherous, and water and supplies were running out, when a great cavern was found, flooded with pure, clear water free of the tears of the surface. This cavern, was the one that was chosen.\nWork was swift, the river was dug back and the great Canal City Dam was built. The water was split evenly across the ground into the three great canals, to allow it to run through the cavern and leave behind the rich, fertile lands to grow food. The canals were further refined into the side canals that make up the rest of the city waterways, and the materials dug out became the basis for the Noble Estates that would be built alongside the new resevoir. The lush land and moonstone ceiling was soon populated by Mushrooms of varying types, to use for building, eating, and decorating.\nAs the First City was Built, the Original Pokemorphs saw that it was good. The eggs that they had brought with them were hatched, and the first of the nobles were brought into the new world.\nThe Loss of Providence # The First City, at it\u0026rsquo;s beginning, were all nobles from noble houses. However, as time went on, some of the nobles began to lose their connection to their own inner power, and in doing so, began to lose their nobility. This was a great adjustment, a long period where some of the noble houses fell, and their blood diluted from a lack of care - they would become the rest of the pokemorphs. Seeing this, the remaining Nobles sequestered themselves away in order to preserve the great knowledge and works that only pure blood could properly decode, working to preseve the pure Type lines.\nThis was known as the loss of Providence.\nIt is also known as when Canal City, as a city, truly began to take shape.\nWhat was gained from the loss of providence was also a freedom from the Noble Calling of preserving what came before - allowing the city to begin to prosper and grow. New buildings were made under the watchful eye of the Nobility - ensuring safety and that the buildings would last as pokemorphs had. Farming began to be taken over by pokemorphs as a regular occupation, and trades began to spring up. The farther away from the Noble influence pokemorphs expanded within Canal City, the more that the underground began to become a home.\nThe Age of Exploration # With pokemorphs now exploring their home, responsible for but no longer shacked by their noble origins, the Canal City Cavern was explored. New caves were found, that lead to other caverns. This was the great Age of Exploration from which much of the maps of The Underground originate. In some caverns, pokemorphs decided to create a new home and be their own people, removed completely from the nobility. In return they received great freedom. In others, unique ores were located that nobles had been asking for information on. When the explorers reported them, they recevied great wealth. In this way did the age of exploration further diversify those that lived in The Underground.\nAs cave exploration became an everyday thing, and pokemorphs began to be comfortable in their exploration, two things happened near simultaneously: The first feral pokemon, and the first mystery dungeon.\nParadise Under Fire # The pokemon hadn\u0026rsquo;t been mentioned prior in the historical record - it was only as explorations went farther and farther did they get found. Ancient strains of proginators of pokemorphs, without the ability to talk or negotiate and often quite territorial, provided the first major conflict in The Underground. They were powerful - more powerful the pokemorphs with the same Moves and Types, and ranged from new nuisances to incredible challenges. The nobles, when told, were able to bring forth from their ancient records equipment to help - armor and small bladed weapons to help augment claws and hide, and traps and snares to capture or delay.\nIt was about the same time that Mystery Dungeons were found - and the first Ancient Artifacts.\nAnd the first artifact that was found, when removed from the Mystery Dungeon, killed it\u0026rsquo;s finder. It took three nobles in special equipment that no one had seen before to safely recover the artifact and sequestor it where it could do no harm. Some small artifacts were fine - but anything truly ancient could not be handled by someone outside of the nobility - as they could be extremely dangerous.\nThe Strain of Power, Basalt City # As centuries rolled by, and Canal City grew, the infrastructure of the Original Pokemorphs began to reach the limits of its design. Electricity was helping keep a lot of the city going, and was used by Nobility in their sequestering and safe keeping of Ancient Artifacts. A cavern lined with Magma Tubes and Magma Rivers seemed like a good alternative, and after a brief discussion, a Noble-led expedition was sent using some of their rare technology to assist.\nThis was the start of the second great city, Basalt City. Officially under the rule of Canal City, but acting as a semi-independant city state on its own, it\u0026rsquo;s original purpose was to take advantage of the great magma to generate more electricity to feed the increasing demand in Canal City. Great cables were made and laid for this effort, and additional passageways were carved out of the connecting caves to allow for a more direct line between the two.\nBetween the two cities was also placed a rare radio repeater, to link information between them.\nThe first Rebellion # The next major act in the history of The Underground, is known in Canal City as \u0026ldquo;The Rebellion\u0026rdquo;, whereas Scrap-Town would call it \u0026ldquo;The Fight for Independance\u0026rdquo;. While the build up isn\u0026rsquo;t something that was written down, the current historical consensus is that the disagreement came about due to the Noble\u0026rsquo;s policy with Ancient Artifacts, when one could have saved someone\u0026rsquo;s life, but was refused to be brought out because it was dangerous. This flared up into a grievances of Nobles not caring for the rest of the people, and enough pokemorphs joined up to protest this that it became a bit of a topic.\nBut the nobles, in either their leniancy or lack of care, didn\u0026rsquo;t respond to any of this.\nRight up until the Mushroom farms were lit on fire.\nThreatening the food source of the underground turned what had been a fairly benign vocal rebellion into one involving force. The Canal City guards were dispatched, and a brief, but rather stark fight ensued. The rebellion\u0026rsquo;s end was swift, adn the dissenters left Canal City under the call of Banishment, to never return. The \u0026ldquo;Rogues\u0026rdquo; as they were later known, dissapeared into a side tunnel and into the shadows of history for some time after that.\nThe Civil War of the Nobles # Peace afterwards was somewhat short lived. The growing dissent that formed the rogues wasn\u0026rsquo;t the only issue cropping up. The nobles had become more isolated from the rest of Canal City, and this was beginning to strain some of the relationships with Canal City\u0026rsquo;s closest neighbor: Basalt City. The two cities, both led by ancient nobles, had been in a somewhat subservient relationship this whole time - Canal City was the Original City, and Basalt City was the offshoot city.\nHowever, Canal City needed Basalt City\u0026rsquo;s power generation facilities, just as much as Basalt City relied on Canal City\u0026rsquo;s food. The nobles of Basalt City though, no longer had a say in the way things were run, or how laws were made. They should be equal, but they were not. Basalt City made this known - but they were not listened to.\nThe war started from an attack within Canal City, and rapidly escalated. Basalt City had the initial advantage, but Canal City pulled out the stops on advanced weaponry that the Nobles had been keeping. In the vast mushroom fields where range was suddenly important, what started with steel-equipped bows moved towards firearms and repeating rifles. For Canal City, it was defensive, but to both sides it ended up a bloody mess where a great amount of the population of both cities was impacted. Small water channels ran red with blood intead of water.\nCanal City initially started to push their advantage and after finally beginning the push to Basalt City, the Basalt City cut power to Canal City.\nWith the week or so of quiet that this act caused, and stock was taken of the lives lost, the two city\u0026rsquo;s nobles had a quiet meeting in a neutral cavern, and it was decided that Basalt City would be provided its independence of law as long as the Power was kept flowing. Canal City would pay for the power with regular, promised food deliveries, and the two sides would end in a treaty of understanding between the two powers.\nThis is also the first, and only, time firearms made a significant impact, and it was decided that such things weren\u0026rsquo;t needed - especially since only the Canal City Cavern was large enough where their range gave them such superiority.\nThe Modern Age # The Modern Age is defined by the three major Cities. Canal City, the First City, remains the breadbasket to the underground and the holder of ancient secrets by the nobility. Basalt City lives symbiotically but independantly as a \u0026ldquo;Free\u0026rdquo; city that has a treaty to exchange power for food, and is otherwise their own master. Scrap Town, made by the Rogues\u0026rsquo; failed rebellion, stands on its own as the only major city free of any Nobility, and masters of their own destiny.\n","date":"5 April 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/posts/history/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"A brief guide to commonly known history about the underground, and some key points that might be remembered.","title":"World History","type":"setting"},{"content":"\u0026ldquo;A city that exists alongside but separate from Canal City, Basalt City lives in mutual symbiosis with it\u0026rsquo;s older cousin. Basalt City contains exceptional power generation facilities, and trades these for a wealth of food. In all other things, it is neutral. Any vice or virtue can be found, purchases, or bartered in Basalt City. Just never, ever, go against the laws in place. The Basalt City Nobles ensure that their rules are always followed. Always.\u0026rdquo; -From \u0026ldquo;A Guide to Basalt City\u0026rdquo;\nBasalt City is the second large city. It champions itself as a Neutral City, and is a place where anyone can get what they want with enough money. The rules are strict, and decorum is enforced but in return there are few other places safer for any kind of dealing - whether between city leaders or amongst the most unsavory. The outskirts of Basalt City are less inviting, and somewhat more of a slum then other cities might be - but the action is all inside.\nBasalt City is also the underground\u0026rsquo;s foremost recycler of waste and pollution - although this has had a side effect of causing pockets of poison to exist nearby. Of course, this doesn\u0026rsquo;t bother anyone going through the official routes, but it further strengthens the city\u0026rsquo;s defenses.\nInspiration: Fallout: New Vegas.\nCity History # Basalt City was founded as part of an expedition in order to secure additional power sources for Canal City. Led by several nobles, including the Silvermore family, the expedition eventually settled on the cavern where it currently lives due to the relatively simple path back to Canal City, the location of a series of underground magma channels, and an abundance of Scheelite that could be refined into the incredibly heat-resistant tungsten metal.\nThe early days of Basalt City were very colonial, with regular shipments of materials and exchange of workers from Canal City to mine, process the scheelite, and work on the immense boiler tubes that would eventually link to the turbines to drive Basalt City\u0026rsquo;s great generators. The southern canal of Canal City was re-routed through a morph-made aquaduct to feed fresh water to the new city as well. The cave system between the two cities was smoothed out to ease travel.\nOnce the great generators were online, Basalt City itself started to grow around them. Maintainance quarters and worker dorms were built, and around those grew the Basalt Outer City. With the main goal of Basalt City underway, it was time for the nobility to turn their sights to improving their living situations - and the Inner City of Basalt City was planned and built using information from the Ancient Noble Libraries.\nThis planned inner city was designed by nobles, for nobles, with most of the population living in the outer city, and for a time, it was good. When Canal City started looking into industrialization, Basalt City found a new use for the magma channels. The haggling of this additional service, however, did not go as well as Basalt City had hoped, and the deal felt a little on the raw side.\nThe relationship between the two cities slowly degraded, even as infrastructure between the two improved. A radio link, and even a suspended train were built between the two cities as the Basalt City nobles found the Canal City nobles to be less and less attentive to their needs - in fact, downright ignoring them as time went on.\nThis came to a head in the Canal City and Basalt City civil war, which saw the two cities go at one another in earnest. For Basalt City, this was a war of independance, so that their Nobility could regain their noble control of the city. For Canal City, this was an attack from a vassal state.\nIn the end, the war ended up with concessions and agreement from both sides - Canal City would provide food and water, Basalt City would provide Electricity and both recycling and garbage services.\nArchitecture # TODO: Get architecture information.\nSocial Life # The social life of Basalt City is two-sided. For most of the common people in Basalt City, the social life is bars, meeting houses, or gambling halls that dot the Outer City. Bar hopping is a very familiar after-hours activity, but for the most part life is simple.\nOnce you get into the Inner City, though\u0026hellip; the whole world is different. The inner city has the usual bars and gambling halls, but they are all fancy, well-to-do establishments that a noble wouldn\u0026rsquo;t feel underserved in attending. Hotels, meeting halls, and vast auction spaces are also available to rent. Those that are not nobles in the inner city either work for the Nobility, or are renting facilities from the Nobility, and if you can pay the cost, there is very little that isn\u0026rsquo;t available to be done here.\nTechnology # Basalt City isn\u0026rsquo;t shy about using what technology they have access to. Their metallurgy and material refining technology is some of the best in the underground, able to handle more exotic materials like the tungsten that is used for their water heating systems. While they may not be into industrial levels of good production, their raw material capacity is a sight to behold, even though they themselves don\u0026rsquo;t have many mineral veins around.\nThe outer city\u0026rsquo;s technology is very rural. Power lines are hung overhead and tapped off as needed to provide for lights and appliances, but otherwise most things are limited to electric stoves, maybe a radio to receive the local broadcast, or to run a favorite device.\nInside the inner city, is more often then not more akin to a luxery hotel or in some cases, theme park. Electricity is readily available, and mopeds and even motorized carriages can be seen within the city proper. Climate Control and filtration both deserve specific callouts - both due to the slow toxification around the trash recycling areas, and the intense heat in the nearby magma channels.\nPolitics # Basalt City bills itself as the \u0026ldquo;Neutral City\u0026rdquo; and holds fast to this. It has a treaty with Canal City in order to supply water and food in return for it\u0026rsquo;s vast power generation, but it is otherwise independent.\nIn fact, Basalt City is the destination for anyone, noble or not, for neutral ground to visit. The rules are specific and enforced with draconian fervor, but fair and applied to all. Break them, and you lose access to the services. Follow them, and privacy behind closed doors is almost fully ensured.\nBecause of this, Basalt City enjoys reasonably good political favor with Canal City, Scrap Town, and many smaller settlements nearby. They are well known for \u0026lsquo;sponsoring\u0026rsquo; smaller mining towns in return for a cut of the ore, or mercenaries and Guild Adventurers to pry into Mystery Dungeons to bring them interesting things for the collection.\nIt is a public secret that Basalt City is also the best destination for Black Market and Restricted Good sales, although actually having the information to know when these are happening is best left to those that trust in their wits.\nEducation # Basalt City Nobles are educated to the same level as Canal City Nobles - even those that are not in the line of succession have the option of a full suite of subjects to study and are provided this by their family.\nFor those outside of the nobility, a basic secondary or high school level of education is provided - with a fairly hard slant on skills that would best serve the nobility. Law, Mathematics, Metallurgy, Reading and Writing, and trades are all available for those from the inner city.\nOnce you get to the outer city, there is a base level of education provided, much like Canal City. Education through primary school is provided at no cost to children, as part of a childcare initiative to free up pokemorphs to ply their trades during the day. This also gives a taste of what a young pokemorph could learn, if they can impress a noble well enough to be invited into the inner city.\nSecurity and Military # Basalt City has both a standing Security Force and a small Military Force kept in reserve. The security force\u0026rsquo;s presence is well felt within the Inner City, although they rarely go to the outer city unless someone a noble has their eye on might be in trouble. They wear standard uniforms made for each member, and are authorized at all times to do what they believe is needed at the time, short of outright killing.\nExile is considered the worst punishment to be levied for getting in trouble with the Security Force.\nBasalt City\u0026rsquo;s Military is a well-kept secret in terms of numbers or capabilities. They were able to go toe-to-toe with Canal City without losing, so the rumors of their capabilities are quite high. Since then, the Military is rarely seen or heard from, but there is a feeling that Basalt City never forgot the reason behind the start of the Civil War, and keeps itself ready just in case.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/posts/basalt-city/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"A guide to Basalt City, and independant Noble City know for its magma rivers and power generation.","title":"Basalt City","type":"setting"},{"content":"\u0026ldquo;The origin city, the cradle of pokemorph civilization within the underground. It is here that untold wonders can be found, and terrible secrets are kept at bay where they can do us no harm. Canal City feeds the underground and provides its ample water supply those nearby. The nobles have overseen all of pokemorph kind from their ancestral homes at the resevoir.\u0026rdquo; -From \u0026ldquo;A Guide to Canal City\u0026rdquo;\nCanal City, sometimes referred to as the Origin City, is the center of the below world. Built into the wall of the largest of the known underground Caverns which houses the massive resrvoir, the city itself is built around three of it\u0026rsquo;s namesake: The three large Canals that bring water from the Resevoir Dam\u0026rsquo;s outputs to the fields and other caves beyond.\nOutside of the City are vast mushroom fields that provide much of the food for the underground. Also notable that the ceiling of the Cavern is liberally coated in moonstones, providing a dim but serviceable day/night cycle for the whole cavern.\nThe city proper is a combination of both it\u0026rsquo;s multi-century lifetime and the knowledge and techniques of the nobles. Electricity is available through the city, and most pokemorphs outside of the Exbow district and slums can live a comfortable, if basic, lifestyle.\nInspiration: 1910s Europe/ Venice.\nCity History # Canal City was founded about 500 years ago, by the group of Pokemorphs who left the surface to live underground. This group of Pokemorphs were led by a leader so charismatic that followers were considered cult-like.\nBut he wasn’t popular due to underhanded manipulation: a lot of his beliefs that he shared and promoted were very popular among everybody, especially due to the circumstances that led to the Pokemorphs living underground.\nMany of his beliefs stem from this core concept: all people desire to do good and are inherently good people. However, people are also inherently flawed. Problems are not solved by getting rid of bad people or fighting until the bad people go away, but with great empathy and unity, even if it doesn’t benefit you.\nAlthough many of this very early history has long been forgotten, the tenets have been passed down. The most important is because people are inherently good, charity must be treasured above all else. Not only to be good, but to help others improve their well being so they don’t succumb to their flaws. There’s also many other core philosophies about forgiveness and mercy throughout.\nThese philosophies have led Canal City to prefer exiling Pokemorphs over the years instead of execution, prison, or forced labour. Many of these exiles ended up being the ancestors of many living in Scrap Town, Basalt City, and other towns today.\nOver time, the philosophy as become twisted as Canal City became hierarchial. Nobles are “less flawed” than to commons which justifies they’re power, but flawed enough that commonors are expected to unconditionally forgive any grievances they may have. They also justify their power saying them giving everyone education, food, and employment is charitable, and citizens are expected to work hard in turn to be good.\nThe cultural of charity is still alive and well despite that. The guild’s success mostly comes from successfully appealing to the heartstrings of the right nobels of Canal City, namely by showing how much they’re improving the citizen and their lives. Many join the guild with this selfless spirit they were taught to embrace, some possibly in spite of the noble’s views of kindness. In fact, even the guild itself was inspired by returning to the core roots of these altruistic views.\nThere’s one other tenet that has also been passed down Canal City’s history: an aversion to human artifacts. It is unsure why this came to be, but to this day, Canal City’s central government - an organization that even many nobles aren’t privy too - care very much about upholding this belief.\nArchitecture # The architecture of Canal City is like a modern reimagining of Ancient Venice. Buildings are constructed of sturdy stone with mushwood fascias or metal inlays, and most buildings out to the middle town are both artistic and decorative to show the power and culture of the Nobles within the city. Built around the Canals means that most buildings will have a dock available for the ferries to stop at as a primary mode of transportation, with electric mopeds scurrying about on smaller side streets.\nOpen park-like areas with benches and decorative flora are also available utilizing biolumenscent mushrooms for mood lighting as well as statues and careful rock placement.\nMany activity hub areas have a nearby cafe that has an open seating area both Canal-side and streetside to better serve people coming in, and the general feeling of the architecture is storied and comfortable.\nTowards the edge of the city, when the stone buildings make way for Mushwood buildings, the architecture starts to take on a bit more of a tudor-styled slant, which is an indicator that the less affluent part of the city has been entered.\nSocial Life # Canal City is a city defined by order, defined boundaries, and, unfortunately, classism. The nobles, the most powerful and wealthy of the city, outright live completely segregated from the common citizen by the reservoir. The commercial and civil services make a ring around the reservoir from the east, forming that boundary. Among the citizens, they live in clearly defined districts where wealth gets you closer to the center of the city. The absolute poorest wretches symbolize this divide the worse: forced by circumstance to live in the outskirts of the city with the very infrastructure designed so many don’t even notice their plight. In a city built on charity, the cognitive dissonance of wealth inequality is resolved by simply making the poor invisible.\nDespite that impression, Canal City isn’t snoresville when it comes to actual social life and entertainment. Down Canal is where most of the action happens, famous for its cafes. With the variety of brews of mushroom coffee, they create a nexus where normally segregated classes intermingle and discuss news, philosophy, and even radical ideas. It’s also a common for some to take their drinks and see the public performance arts that often play there. Even deeper in the metaphorical underground is the art scene that even outright values chaos in defiance to the city, constantly seeking the latest in the avant garde.\nThe rest of the city in comparison is a bit more quiet and mundane. The shopping districts themselves have a consumerist atmosphere to them and tend to attract the most tourism. Up Canal is in a way a polar opposite to down canal: A quiet, peaceful waterway overlooking the beautiful cavern farms Canal City supports. A great place to crack open a book, or simply contemplate life.\nTechnology # Canal City is interesting in the fact that it charts the slow change of technology from the Founding of the First City, to the modern era. The noble district, Dam, and the inner ring are all built like venitian buildings out of materials of incredible strength and durability that cannot be duplicated. As the city built up and away from the dam, the materials changed to more current forms of concrete, mushwood, and plaster.\nElectricity is fairly well available to the edge of the middle town, where underground pre-planned conduit converts to above ground hanging wires. Charging locations for electric mopeds are easily found, and electric lights help illuminate the city when the great cavern above goes dim. Electric trains connect the city to the farms outside, and the farming technology makes use of many electric-powered tools to aid in planting and harvesting. While the architecture might say early, decorative venetian, the technology available to those with means can get quite modern in the specific things that Canal City is known for.\nThe largest part of Canal City is of course, their Canals, which provide both available motive power to some buildings through in-line water turbines to a primary method of transportation.\nOf recent note has been the addition of a new factory complex to provide for mass production of complex parts. This is designed to provide even more output of Canal City\u0026rsquo;s available technology to the underground as well provide a pathway to mass produce specific items as needed by the Nobility.\nThe depths of technology available to Canal City aren\u0026rsquo;t fully known, as they claim to hold the great old libraries of the ancients with all their information within the Noble Estates. However, much of this is forbidden knowledge, leading many to postulate what incredible things could eventually be added to the general public.\nPolitics # Politics in Canal City is an oligarchical system: citizens for the most part see it as just another part of life they have no agency in. The main legislature and executive powers are outright a black box that enact new laws in complete shadows, usually in benefit of the nobles. The only concrete good thing that can be said about them is that their original directive is uncorrupted: even the nobles are banned from accessing human technology and they enforce the ban with prejudice.\nThe Justice system, on the other hand, is surprisingly meritocratic and egalitarian. The system is an adversarial system with no jury: while the two parties argue their case, the judge makes the ultimate decision on the interpretation of law. Said judge’s appointment is made within the justice system based on their ability as a lawyer previously, and the tradition is strong enough to repel any attempts of outside bribery or coercion. The nobles can simply hire the best lawyers, but even the poorest can have their day in court if they prove themselves of wit and have the facts on their side.\nEducation # Canal City provides free schooling to all children through primary school. For non-nobles, additional education can be paid for either through tuition costs or work at the University, apprenticeship, or by being vouched for by a wealthy family or Noble.\nNoble children are provided for full secondary education for a specialty as determined by their family. Nobles are also provided the option of private tutors within the Canal City University.\nThe general education level of even the workers in Canal City is fairly high as a general standard. Liteacy is nearly universal and understanding of arithmatic and some advanced math is provided to all. There is even classes available on History and Art available as the cultural capital of the underground.\nSecurity and Military # At one point, Canal City was the only population in the Underworld, and didn’t have to concern itself with defending sovereignty. Therefore, the military that developed in Canal City isn’t fully comparable to a modern military.\nWhat Canal City does have is a security force, which acts as a deterrent to crime and as emergency respondant. This applies to both city security and farmland security - after all, thieving has been common throughout the years due to ever-present food supply issues. Although there is understanding that work in both these areas are distinct, they’re organized as one force.\nWhen Canal City and the rest of the underworld went to war, they expanded the security force rapidly who then acted as soldiers. After all, the war was faught over control of the farms, and farm security was this force’s responsibility.\nAfter the war ended, the security force has shrunk due to peacetime, although remains large due to the enlarged presence of Rogue Morphs. Training in the security force can be militaristic at times, especially as Canal City anticipates the possibility of the future war. But overall, both the “police” and “military” are mixed together under the banner of security.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/posts/canal-city/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"A guide to Canal City, the original pokemorph home and bread basket of the underground.","title":"Canal City","type":"setting"},{"content":"\u0026ldquo;The city of the free. Free to fight for their own rights, Free to stuggle for their own food. You will not be beholden to any nobles, only your own decisions. Whether your flourish or fail, it\u0026rsquo;s all up to you.\u0026rdquo; -From \u0026ldquo;A Guide to Scrap Town\u0026rdquo;\nScrap Town is divisive city even to those that live there. Born of a need to free pokemorphs from the choking yoke of the Elite Nobles that rule Canal City and Basalt City, the founders of Scrap Town stumbled across something right out of legend. Scrap Town\u0026rsquo;s architecture comes from the times before, and the city has it\u0026rsquo;s own independant power source. It is built incredibly dense and very vertical, so much so that the ceiling moonstones can\u0026rsquo;t reach their dim light to the lower levels.\nEven in a city based on freedom, divisions by wealth are ever appearent. The wealthy live higher in the structures in nicer homes, and those that have lost their money and hope live in the stifling below-city infrastructure tunnels. The main difference, though, is mobility. As the whole city is run by warlords of different powers, social movement can be doen through wits, strength, or planning at any time - although the top gangs are fairly static.\nInspiration: 1970s Kowloon/ Umbrella Corporation Underground Labs.\nCity History # Scrap Town is the youngest of the three major settlements, having been formed prior to the Civil War between Canal City and Basalt City, and as such has the shortest history. It was originally discovered by the \u0026ldquo;Exiled\u0026rdquo;, who are now known as the rogues.\nFound is the important part, as the discovery of Scrap Town was actually made through some collapsed cave walls, leading to a large vertical shaft that contained within it the crumbling but still viable infrastructure of a civilization long past. It didn\u0026rsquo;t take long to hollow out parts of the facility and shape them into a true city-like area. The city itself came with power, communications systems, and support systems mostly intact, outside of the wear and tear of centuries unattanded. Sadly, most of this technology is not duplicatable with what knowledge is available, and much of Scrap Town is kept functioning by \u0026lsquo;scrapping\u0026rsquo; some bits to repair others.\nSince it\u0026rsquo;s discovery, it has attracted several generations of freedom-seeking or power-seeking pokemorphs. A fast and free market has developed, and while it lacks the resources of the other two major settlements, it is one of the few locations where Human Artifacts sometimes surface for purchase. As time has passed, the city has stratified into distinct layers - the higher in the city you live, the nicer the building, and the better the amenities, the lower you get, the more squalor and cutthroat things become.\nThe underground tunnels were dug out following some of the ancient utilities of the city above, and are the most recent addition to Scrap Town, and also where those that have lost their hope tend to hide to either spend their time in a haze or wallow in their own situation.\nArchitecture # The architecture of Scrap Town is reminiscent of an upgraded mid-1970s concrete high rise - several of them in fact. Concrete is the primary building material of the ancient city, and where that has failed everything from wood to bits of metal, to attempts to replicate the exceedingly strong material are used to fill in. The buildings are close together and opressively utilitarian on the outside, with bridges that connect at specific levels to provide passage between them. Electricity is easily accessible across all levels, although the data networks have begun to rot away at the lower levels.\nThe inside of the buildings vary by level. The bottom level tends to be somewhat hollowed out due to the passage of time, the concrete superstructure visible and conduits within easy reach. Cheap scrapped wood and thin metal sheets form temporary permanent walls, with store fronts often making use of dungeon-acquired goods to improve their visibility. As electricity is avaiable, lit signage is often used for the fanciest of places.\nAs you move upwards in Scrap Town, bare concrete leads to sheet rock covered, painted walls - outlets start to become part of the wall instead of stuck onto concrete and the conduits become hidden. This middle section ranges from the main offices for smaller gangs - often decorating the walls with graffiti and artwork of their respective gangs, to simple living quarters away from the squalor below. This mostly feels like an aged, uncared for mid-1990\u0026rsquo;s office space.\nThe upper levels include what could be mushwood paneling, but far harder and denser then it should be, and stained in eye catching browns. Recessed lighting and hidden plugs work to provide a high class atmosphere. This is the level where the largest of the gangs, and the most exclusive of clubs operate. Think fancy mid-2010\u0026rsquo;s executive office complex in design.\nThe tunnels underneath Scrap Town are barely lit, filled with dripping pipes, burnt out bulbs, and the destitute. This level feels the most like a dystopian future underground, with the conduit-contained guts of the lower facility on display for long-gone maintenance crews to be able to repair.\nSocial Life # \u0026ldquo;There are only two important things to remember in Scrap Town, kid. Who you know, and who you can fight. If ya got neither, best take the L until you do.\u0026rdquo; -Head rumor.\nThe social strata of Scrap Town is primarily by gang affilition. In fact, even stores and companies are thought of as \u0026lsquo;gangs\u0026rsquo; of their own, as the dominant unit of cooperation. The tougher the reputation of your gang affiliation, the better your digs, and the less people bother you.\nMost activities can be best thought of as \u0026ldquo;Public Roughhousing\u0026rdquo;, shows of strength and contests of wits are popular past times - from crushing scrap to acrobatic races. For times when physical competitions aren\u0026rsquo;t the go-to, there are several cafes and restaurants located in Scrap Town, as well as the clubs. The higher the facility, the better the service and the more exotic the food can get.\nNightlife is a very big part of Scrap Town\u0026rsquo;s social scene as well, with pop-up clubs taking over empty spaces for a few nights, to the well-established clubs run by the biggest of gangs. The buildings are fairly well insulted to sound, so loud music, flashing lights, and various forms of dance tend to be the go-to for the socialite needing a release.\nSexual encounters are also common within Scrap Town, where it\u0026rsquo;s not rare to find someone getting a bit handsy at a club, or even a partially obscued nook. While it\u0026rsquo;s normally kept out of the public areas (as it can disrupt foot traffic), such flights of intimacy can be more common then not - especially after a big fight or gang change of rank.\nProstitution itself is a very legal, valued career path and protected by most gangs. And a well-known courtesan can have just as much of an elite social status as a gang leader.\nTechnology # Technology is a whip-lash of the ancient buildings, scrap from Mystery Dungeons and taken from the more disrepaired sections, as well as new items \u0026lsquo;acquired\u0026rsquo; from Canal City or Basalt City. As Scrap Town has electricity available almost everywhere, much of their technology is electrically focused - and they have some of the best repair technicians outside of the Noble Families in the underground.\nThis means that at any point in time, you could be finding steam turbines, refridgerant pumps, broken down metal tracks, curragated steel sheets, wire in dozens of colors, and partially broken but hand made wood furniture - all in the same area. Scrapping, reusing, and repairing is something that Scrap Town is very good at, and custom works to the electric mopeds and quaads can get just as in depth as anything else - customized units tend to be preferred as a show of independent style.\nOne interesting thing that Scrap Town has can be found in one of the lab areas of the ancient facility - they have the ability to create neon and oLED lights. While somewhat limited in complexity and color palette, this technology gives a wealth of customization options both for their numerous clubs, vehicles, and even clothing in some cases.\nThat doesn\u0026rsquo;t make them cheap, but they are available. And most notably, a clear indicator of coming from Scrap Town.\nOne mystery of Scrap Town is the Technology behind their nearly endless available electricity. No one has been able to track the circuits back far enough, and those that have tried fell ill and died for their attempt.\nPolitics # Neo-Feudal Anarchist might be the best way to describe the politics of Scrap Town. For the most part, Scrap Town is known to the outside world as a Freedom-Loving Anarchist Paradise. And this is mostly true - one\u0026rsquo;s rules are kept as their own, and challenges can be physical or mental. In this kind of society, one\u0026rsquo;s own trustworthyness and their reputation is their social chutzpah when it comes to working with others.\nOn the other hand, the strongest of the gangs do hold quite a bit of sway. While they don\u0026rsquo;t interfere with much, there are some baseline rules - such as the neutrality and protection of the market areas, the mutual defense of their territory (although that can shift through vigerous discussion), and the general disdain for such things as random acts of violence. Those that are part of these gangs benefit from this umbrella of protection, much like those under a feudal lord.\nIn terms of relationships with the other cities and settlements, Scrap Town holds an animosity towards Canal City that refuses to be quenched, and sending out harassment parties or successfully taking something from a Canal City party is an easy way to gain some reputation. For Basalt City, they respect the city\u0026rsquo;s neutrality, as it as seen as a great resource for meeting people that might otherwise bring a shiv to a polite meeting. Unlike Basalt City and Canal City, though, Scrap Town does not have any relationships with smaller settlements - they have everything they need for their home base, and have little worry about the density of the population within the buildings - and nothing beats the convenience of their electrical supply.\nEducation # The general education level of Scrap Town is all over the place. While reading and writing is fairly well-known, not everyone can. The one thing that everyone from Scrap Town knows, though, is scrapping and the basics of electricity. Math is also a well-regarded skill, and the mathmatic literacy beats language literacy in most categories.\nEducation tends to be done via family or gang units specifically, and that leaves the specifics of what is taught to the individuals doing the teaching. While there are some incredible teachers, they are usually employed by the elite, or spend their time behind the scenes working on maintaining the systems that keep Scrap Town working.\nUnlike Canal City, for example, there really isn\u0026rsquo;t a baseline. Nothing beats an uneducated but strong henchmorph.\nSecurity and Military # The primary security and military force of Scrap Town rests with their gangs - there is no formal Military Force. The gangs, individually, are quite strong however, and the nature of Scrap Town itself makes it more of a defensible fortress then the other two major cities.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/posts/scrap-town/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"A guide to Scrap Town, the major city that lives Free of Nobility, and refuses a ban on the use of artifacts.","title":"Scrap Town","type":"setting"},{"content":"Home to submitted art for public viewing, character portraits, and other visual art set in the Pokemorph Below universe.\n","date":"5 April 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/fan-works/fanart/","section":"Fan-Works","summary":"","title":"Pokemorph Below: Fan Art","type":"fan-works"},{"content":"Home to submitted logs for public viewing, stories set in the Pokemorph Below universe (including any links to outside hosting for them! Support our authors), and other legends and tidbits for perusual.\n","date":"5 April 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/fan-works/fanfiction/","section":"Fan-Works","summary":"","title":"Pokemorph Below: Fanfiction","type":"fan-works"},{"content":"As a text-based roleplaying game, there are two primary methods to connect. The first is using the ancient and wondrous protocol known as \u0026lsquo;\u0026rsquo;telnet\u0026rsquo;\u0026rsquo;. This is supported through most MUSH/ MUCK clients as well as raw command-line telnet. Simply point your client at 45.55.134.56 using port 4000 and follow the instructions provided.\nFor \u0026lsquo;raw telnet\u0026rsquo; you can always fall back to your trust command line.\ntelnet 45.55.134.56 4000 (Evennia)\ntelnet 45.55.134.56 2021 (RhostMUSH)\nYou may now be able to connect via domain name! pkmorph.twosune.net!\nFor a more modern experience, or if you don\u0026rsquo;t have a dedicated client available, you can connect via webclient hosted on the server itself. Navigate to pkmorph.twosune.net:4001 and click on \u0026ldquo;Play in the browser!\u0026rdquo;\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/connect/","section":"Pokemorph Below","summary":"","title":"How to Connect","type":"page"},{"content":"Pokemorph Underground is a post-apocolyptic Sci-Fi roleplaying game set in a future where the surface of the planet has been scorched, and the only remaining population lives deep underground in massive cave complexes, all evolved from the surviving \u0026lsquo;mon on the surface. Starting from Canal City, one of the most water-rich caves and branching out to the rebel stronghold of Scrap Town as well as the Den of Sin Basalt City, life in the underground has to deal not only with the limited resources available, but also the very human elements of greed, lust, and revenge in a world without natural sunlight to sustain them.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/","section":"Pokemorph Below","summary":"","title":"Pokemorph Below","type":"page"},{"content":"If you\u0026rsquo;ve ever played a MUCK, MUSH, MOO, or MUD you\u0026rsquo;ve probably seen a game like Evennia before. But if you haven\u0026rsquo;t, or if you\u0026rsquo;ve never worked with an Evennia based game before, this will be your guide to getting started with Pokemorph Below.\nUnlike the now common Massively Multiple Role Playing Games, like the critically acclaimed Final Fantasy XIV or the venerable World of Warcraft, text-bassed RPGs eschew all graphics to really let creative writing take the front seat in interactions between individual characters. Scenes can be crafted either with game staff playing the role of a Game Master, or between players themselves based on the descriptions in individual areas and the setting of the game. In these games, the server itself functions as a back end to help with understanding character\u0026rsquo;s relative powers, or track their stats and abilities to be able to act as a neutral arbiter to help craft the experience while maintaining fairness and guidance so that everyone can have a good time.\nThe most common things to know beyond character creation are how to pose, say, navigate, and spoof. These will be explained below, and more advanced topics can be found in the article listing following.\nNote If you\u0026rsquo;re familiar with text-based games, and want to skip right ahead to creating a character, you can click here to jump right to the chargen page, or scroll to the bottom for more roleplaying detail articles! Detailed information on roleplaying a pokemorph is available in the article Roleplaying a Pokemorph.\nNavigation # Your character exists within the world in a place. Places are known as \u0026lsquo;Rooms\u0026rsquo; and are a discrete location. Rooms can be considered \u0026ldquo;In Character\u0026rdquo; or IC which are designed for roleplaying, or \u0026ldquo;Out of Character\u0026rdquo; which are locations meant to handle system interactions, or talk player to player without using other commands.\nThe most basic command for Navigation is the \u0026ldquo;Look\u0026rdquo; command, either look or l. By default, this will look at your current location, which is normally going to be a Room. You can also look at other things, such as players, things or objects, and even exits! This can be done with look \u0026lt;object name\u0026gt; or l \u0026lt;object name\u0026gt;. Let\u0026rsquo;s grab an example of looking at a room:\nThe Canal City Guild Hall, with occupants. A room consists of the following parts:\nRoom Name: CC GUild Lobby. This is the name of the location, generally to give a rough idea of what the room is representing. Room Tag: Optional, rooms may be tagged with a Location (Such as a City) or IC/OOC in the upper right Corner. Description: The description sets the stage for any scenes taking place within them. These are generally designed to be descriptive enough to allow for anyone to start roleplay. They can contain specific events if such is happening in that area, or change when something happens to that area In Game, such as a building burning down, or there being a change in the Non-Player Characters around. Player List: This lists the players in the scene, color coded for Player, Admin, or Developer and will often indicate if someone has been idle (has not interacted with the game in a while) or disconnected. Things or Item List: This lists interactable objects within the room. Visible Exits: These are ways to \u0026lsquo;go\u0026rsquo;, to get to other rooms. Rooms are connected into a \u0026ldquo;Grid\u0026rdquo; where you can travel from point of interest to point of interest. You can go \u0026rsquo;thought\u0026rsquo; the exit by typing the exit name (e.g.: \u0026ldquo;Hall\u0026rdquo;) or by using the shortcut listed in []\u0026rsquo;s (e.g.: \u0026ldquo;h\u0026rdquo;). Interacting with Others # Note: For most of these commands, the majority of visible characters will work. However, there are some special characters that do something other then simply display, like % or |. For these characters, you need to \u0026rsquo;escape\u0026rsquo; them for them to show up, usually by adding a % or | in front of them. If your text comes out oddly, this might be the cause! There are also non-visible characters that can perform some advanced features. These will be covered under the \u0026lsquo;spoof\u0026rsquo; section where they are most commonly used. Collaborative storytelling is all about the collaborative part, so once you know how to locate where you are in the world, next is how do you interact? The key commands for this are say, pose, spoof, and the channel system. For these examples, we will assume your character name is \u0026ldquo;Matilda\u0026rdquo;!\nSay # Say is the basic method of interacting. It will take the test you give it, and prepend your character name and \u0026lsquo;says,\u0026rsquo; like the following example:\nsay Beef is great!\nMatilda says, \u0026ldquo;Beef is great!\u0026quot;\nThis is a bit limited, although you can add in addition double quotes to add some action into the result:\nsay Beef is great!\u0026quot; Matilda shuffles her feet, \u0026quot;But I guess salad is good, too!\nMatilda says, \u0026ldquo;Beef is great!\u0026rdquo; Matilda shuffles her feet, \u0026ldquo;But I guess salad is good, too!\u0026quot;\nNotice that the beginning and ending double quotes are added automatically!\nYou can use the shorcut \u0026quot; instead of the word say for this command as well.\nPose # Posing doesn\u0026rsquo;t automatically assume that you\u0026rsquo;re starting out with something being said, instead, it just prepends your name to an action, hence \u0026lsquo;posing\u0026rsquo; being more of something you do, versus something you say. Pose can be used in the following way:\npose shifts idly from one foot to the next.\nMatilda shifts idly from one foor to the next.\nYou can add quotes into this line as well, to add a whole paragraph of action with speech!\npose sighs softly, \u0026quot;You know, I'm not sure this is a good idea.\u0026quot; There's the faint forming of a tear in Matilda's eye when this is said. \u0026quot;It could end like my father did...\u0026quot;\nMatilda sighs softly, \u0026ldquo;You know, I\u0026rsquo;m not sure this is a good idea.\u0026rdquo; There\u0026rsquo;s the faint forming of a tear in Matilda\u0026rsquo;s eye when this is said. \u0026ldquo;It could end like my father did\u0026hellip;\u0026quot;\nNotice that pose does not assume the first or last character being a double quote!\nYou can use the shortcut : instead of the word pose for this command as well.\nTip No-Space Pose: You can actually get rid of that space following your character\u0026rsquo;s name by using ; instead of : in case you wanted to start your sentance with something like \u0026ldquo;Matilda\u0026rsquo;s eyes\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo;. It just becomes ;'s eyes...!\nSpoof # Spoofing is the act of placing text down that isn\u0026rsquo;t inherently attached to your character. This can be useful to start your writing with your character\u0026rsquo;s name in the middle, or if you\u0026rsquo;re running a scene and are including other characters that aren\u0026rsquo;t controlled by other players in it. Spoof will append your character\u0026rsquo;s name at the end of it, to prevent it from being used to \u0026lsquo;assume\u0026rsquo; some other player did something when it wasn\u0026rsquo;t them. You can spoof with the spoof command, like so:\nspoof It was a dark, stormy night while Matilda sat near the window, watching the rain slowly drip towards the sill outside.\nIt was a dark, stormy night while Matilda sat near the window, watching the rain slowly drip towards the sill outside. (Matilda)\nYou can use the shortcut sp instead of the word spoof for this command as well.\nSpecial Formatting # Used primarily with Spoof, but it can actually be snuck into quite a few places such as a description, pose, or even a say command, are special formatting characters. These can add carriage returns, tabs, and extra space when interpreted by the game.\n|/ or %r: Newline or Carriage Return, ends the line and starts a new line immediately afterwards. |- or %t: Tab, adds in a tab space where placed. Most often used for paragraph breaks. |_ or %b: Space, adds a space, most often used at the beginning of a line when less space then a tab is needed and before text that will allow multiple spaces between characters. You can also add color to your text! But this is an advanced topic for later.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/getting-started/","section":"Pokemorph Below","summary":"","title":"Pokemorph Below","type":"getting-started"},{"content":"Far below the surface, a species of evolved pokemon in man\u0026rsquo;s image survive with what little light, food, and water that they can deep within massive underground caverns. The surface is a myth faded into legend of scorched fires and hellish destruction, yet tinged with a bittersweet hope that time could heal all. After centuries of being below, the uneasy truces between different cavern-based city states and their resources is beginning to fray, even as a new hope rises in recently created semi-neutral factions. This is the world for Pokemorph Below.\nThe Original City, Canal City sits with an uneasy truce with the Rebel-made Scrap Town, with years of built up tension from the rebel\u0026rsquo;s sound defeat still broiling below the surface in their ancient wreckage-based home. Meanwhile, Basalt City, originally an offshoot to Canal City and used for its abundant natural geothermal sources and an effective recycling dump yard for polluting waste, is beginning to grow it\u0026rsquo;s own power base in defiance of centuries of edicts from Canal City\u0026rsquo;s nobles.\nSet between these powers is The Guild, the latest faction to be created in Canal City to act as a beacon of hope and help to explorers and city-dwellers alike, and The Mercenaries, billing themselves as \u0026rsquo;true neutral\u0026rsquo; to counter The Guild\u0026rsquo;s relationship to Canal City, and without The Guild\u0026rsquo;s code of ethics.\nThese informational articles will be ordered in the most basic to the most in depth, in order to allow for being able to understand enough to jump in, before digging into the details and mysteries that await.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/setting/","section":"Pokemorph Below Setting","summary":"","title":"Pokemorph Below Setting","type":"setting"},{"content":" Roleplay Log: # The Guild has been growing. What started out as an experiment for peace more than a decade ago has grown to something larger than the nobles government, guildmaster, and citizens could have expected. It grew into an icon of inspiration, encouraging everyone in the underground that there is something larger. Applications have grown over the years, and soon a new building was needed. Some place bigger, with more ammenities, and in a place closer to nobles so their need to feel control is satisfied.\nIt isn\u0026rsquo;t open yet - there\u0026rsquo;s a lot of loose ends of construction outside the actual architecture itself. Just one more month. But enough has completed that furniture can start moving in, especially the offices. And indeed, an electric power moving truck - one of the few vehicles one would actually see around the streets other than those owned by nobility. And there\u0026rsquo;s been a \u0026lsquo;mission\u0026rsquo; to help carry it inside.\nSaid mission was short notice, so it\u0026rsquo;s expected others might show up late. In fact, overall this day is organized very haphazardly. But still, Hybris waits outside the guild hall, tapping ball of their foot into the ground while wearing a small snarl, annoyed they got bounced around onto this duty. (Hybris)\nThere\u0026rsquo;s a creak at the door as Zi let\u0026rsquo;s herself in. She looks about before noting Hybris in the hall and striding over. Her hooves clopping loudly against mushroom wood boards that were freshly laid.\nZi say \u0026ldquo;So, we have a grand opening and we\u0026rsquo;re kicking off with hauling duty? Wonder who dropped ball here.\u0026rdquo;\nMorka has been struggling to gather all the necessary info to start with the group, but at least he\u0026rsquo;s showed up on time to get a run down. He glances at the people in the hall and stays quiet for the moment, hoping to get some more info.\nHybris shrugs their shoulders and rolls their eyes. \u0026ldquo;I think one of them wanted a guild member there to make sure the right furniture goes to the right room. They\u0026rsquo;re apparently too busy with the paper work especially with darn nobles being so finnicky.\u0026rdquo; They tilt their head to the side a bit too. \u0026ldquo;Probably wanted to save on the labour a bit too.\u0026rdquo;\nThey break into a walk, heading for the truck outside. \u0026ldquo;Still, let\u0026rsquo;s not diddy-daddle.\u0026rdquo; As they pass Morka, they lightly knock the back of their hand to Morka\u0026rsquo;s chest, barely look at them. \u0026ldquo;You\u0026rsquo;re coming up with us.\u0026rdquo; Outside the lobby, two movers are carrying our a couch for the lobby room. For sure plenty more furniture inside. (Hybris)\nShe keeps up the pace, following outside with a scowl. \u0026ldquo;It\u0026rsquo;s just like Orientation again huh? Always got to milk that free labor when you can.\u0026rdquo;\nMorka hopes he was in the right spot here, but he gets that impression halfway when Hybris snaps his attention. \u0026ldquo;Hm? Alright.\u0026rdquo; He follows along and listens to the others.\nZi eyes up the movers, trying to see if they look competent\n\u0026ldquo;Yeaahhh\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo; Hybris says, with the strangest sense of sentiment in otherwise heavy ire. \u0026ldquo;They\u0026rsquo;ve been better about keeping that to the new recruits.\u0026rdquo; Hybris steps aside to let the two Vigoroths-morph bring the couch in. For sure, they don\u0026rsquo;t like they\u0026rsquo;ll be dropping it anytime too. \u0026ldquo;You a new guy? Can\u0026rsquo;t remember you around,\u0026rdquo; they say refering to Morka.\nOnce the movers clear, Hybris walks up the ramp. \u0026ldquo;Welp, that\u0026rsquo;s why they have us here,\u0026rdquo; they gesture to an ornate desk. \u0026ldquo;That\u0026rsquo;s one of the deputy Guildmaster\u0026rsquo;s desk. He\u0026rsquo;ll definitly want us to take care of that. Here,\u0026rdquo; he starts handing down a few boxes to Zi and Morka to put aside, clearing room to get to it. (Hybris)\nZi interrupts Hybris, \u0026ldquo;Let\u0026rsquo;s just focus on getting this junk out before we start dissecting the newbie. Chatting is just going to be distracting.\u0026rdquo;\nHybris nods. They focus studiously on moving the furniture, much to their chargin. It\u0026rsquo;s clear they wanted to chat during this to make the labour not feel as bad. But, by the end of the day, they do work hard.\nMorka is about to reply to Hybris, but is cut off and stays silent while they keep moving the furniture. Despite his size, he seems to have a lot of strength in him.\nWith their minds fully focused on the task, they make brisk work of the remaining furniture. There\u0026rsquo;s a bit of a scare with the pinball machine, one of the legs catches on the door to the common room, but its otherwise uneventful.\nEventually, the moving truck is emptied, the trio wave off the Vigoroth workers, and the truck drives off in the direction of the Verdant Corner.\nWith that, the first thing Zi does walking back into the lobby, is collapse onto the couch. Her muscles pounding with soreness from that work-out. Strength was never her strongsuit unfortunately.\nHybris follows suit, collapsing fully on a couch with a big groan, throwing thier claws over their eyes. \u0026ldquo;Let\u0026rsquo;s go team,\u0026rdquo; they say sarcastically - not insultingly, just, glad it\u0026rsquo;s over with. (Hybris)\nZi however isn\u0026rsquo;t shy to throw the disparaging kind of sarcasm herself. \u0026ldquo;We\u0026rsquo;re clearly ready for all the daring adventures ahead: local landscaping and wall painting!\u0026rdquo;\nMorka takes a seat as well, looking not quite as tired as the others, but still content with finishing. He nods at their remarks and briefly scratches his cheek. \u0026ldquo;At least it\u0026rsquo;s done.\u0026rdquo; He pauses and glances around the room. \u0026ldquo;Anyway, sorry, yeah, new here. I\u0026rsquo;ve been meaning to meet with Lail to sort out a few more things. I\u0026rsquo;m still getting familiar with the guild. And the people.\u0026rdquo; He sounds like he\u0026rsquo;s not been disappointed so far.\nHybris keeps a hand over their eyes. \u0026ldquo;Pretty sure that won\u0026rsquo;t be our jobs\u0026hellip; I think\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo;. They do raise an arm right up thumbs up to Morka\u0026rsquo;s statement. \u0026ldquo;He\u0026rsquo;s a nice guy. And welcome. Kick Rogue ass or some shit.\u0026rdquo; The arm flops down. \u0026ldquo;Sorry you\u0026rsquo;re wrapped up in this chaos. Moving to this new guild building has been a bit more chaos on the office guys than anyone thought. I swear we do Mystery Dungeon shit. Yeah, Zi?\u0026rdquo; (Hybris)\n\u0026ldquo;That\u0026rsquo;s the job description, but it wouldn\u0026rsquo;t be the first time I\u0026rsquo;ve had a job with unexpected job responsbilities.\u0026rdquo;\nShe readjusts on the couch to get a look at Morka. \u0026ldquo;You know kid I don\u0026rsquo;t think I caught your name?\u0026rdquo;\n\u0026ldquo;Hybris,\u0026rdquo; Hybris says. They corner of their mouth tugs into a very smug grin. They know what they\u0026rsquo;re doing. (Hybris)\nZi rolls her eyes, physically moving them in a circle for extra dramatic effect.\n\u0026ldquo;The new guy\u0026rdquo; she clarifies\nMorka nods. He figured he\u0026rsquo;d be in for some chaotic things when starting out given how much has been going on in the surrounding region, but he didn\u0026rsquo;t let it discourage him. \u0026ldquo;No problem. There\u0026rsquo;s always room for these kinds of difficulties. Getting them out of the way quickly makes it easier for the rest of it.\u0026rdquo; He looks back at Zi. \u0026ldquo;Morka.\u0026rdquo; He smirks at both of them. Seems like they\u0026rsquo;ll be easy enough to get along with.\n\u0026ldquo;Heeeeeey Morka,\u0026rdquo; Hybris says. They adjust themselves, moving their arms behind their head and glancing over them, getting a good look for the first time despite working with him the entire day. \u0026ldquo;What brings you to the guild?\u0026rdquo; (Hybris)\nMorka seems fairly modest overall. He shuffles a little in the couch seat and lets his tail relax to the side. \u0026ldquo;I\u0026rsquo;ve wandered to a few different places for a while, then heard about the guild. Seems like pretty fair offerings for the work to be done here.\u0026rdquo; He pauses and looks upward for a moment. \u0026ldquo;And, well\u0026hellip;.. I\u0026rsquo;ve always wanted to learn the secrets of the Mystery Dungeons. Someday, maybe.\u0026rdquo; It seems hard to tell if that\u0026rsquo;s the primary motive vs the good survival it provides.\nZi settles back into snuggling against the couch\u0026hellip; Or at least as much as she can, lobby couches are never the most comfortable things. \u0026ldquo;Yeah, the pay\u0026rsquo;s good. It\u0026rsquo;d be enough for me to drop my professorship at the Uni which doesn\u0026rsquo;t even pay the bills alone.\u0026rdquo;\n\u0026ldquo;Pay\u0026rsquo;s good enough,\u0026rdquo; Hbyris says. They shift onto their side. \u0026ldquo;Depends on a lot of factors. But eh, you\u0026rsquo;re risking a lot too.\u0026rdquo; They shuffle a bit more. \u0026ldquo;God, I hope they throw away the lounge stuff they have at the old guild and buy more comfortable ones\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo; (Hybris)\nMorka looks at Zi. \u0026ldquo;Sounds about right. Hopefully that works out for you.\u0026rdquo; He turns to Hybris. They seem a bit concerned, at least up front. \u0026ldquo;True. But\u0026hellip; there are a lot of risks out there. I feel this will give me a purpose. Or at least something to look forward to.\u0026rdquo; He stretches a little bit before his tail seems to expand a little bit to deal with the old couch. \u0026ldquo;Hah. Maybe that\u0026rsquo;ll be an upcoming task for us. Could stack on more pillows or something.\u0026rdquo;\n\u0026ldquo;Been to a Mystery Dungeon yet?\u0026rdquo; Hybris asks. They get an expression that\u0026rsquo;s a bit hard to read. A bit smug and intimidating, but not hostile. \u0026ldquo;Have you found any partners yet?\u0026rdquo; (Hybris)\nMorka is a bit quiet while he thinks back. \u0026ldquo;Twice. I found one when I was 9. I thought it was just another small passage somewhere. You can imagine the panic when I couldn\u0026rsquo;t find my way out.\u0026rdquo; He looks upward once more. \u0026ldquo;The gods were looking out for me that day, I\u0026rsquo;m certain\u0026hellip; It was pretty small and almost nothing but a few small ferals in it, so I was able to crawl out of there after a few hours. Next time I was 16. I was sure I found another, so I went in. I wanted to explore this time, after reading a bit about them. That one was a bit tougher. Not much in there but a few metal scraps, but every bit helps.\u0026rdquo; He does a quick neck stretch. \u0026ldquo;I definitely need some more experience. And a partner.\u0026rdquo; He looks at both of the others with a curious expression, giving the impression that he feels he can learn a lot from them.\nCuriously, Zi\u0026rsquo;s eyes are closed. It seems her exhaustion has beat the aching from the couch as she dozes off.\nThere was a \u0026lsquo;mission\u0026rsquo; to\u0026hellip; Help move furniture into the Guild\u0026rsquo;s new up-and-coming guild. Of course, with how thrown together said mission was, it\u0026rsquo;s possible some people may be late. Or, alternatively, people may show up to just check out the fancy new building - especially with how cramped the old one was.\nIf one were to walk in, it seems like most of the work\u0026rsquo;s already been done. There\u0026rsquo;s no trucks outside and the lobby has people already lounging inside. Zi, who\u0026rsquo;s already asleep, Hybris the H. Zoroark lying on a couch, and Morka the Cyclizar, currently chatting with them. The Cyclizar-morph looks like they must be new, and they\u0026rsquo;re already talking about Mystery Dungeons.\n\u0026ldquo;Wow, that\u0026rsquo;s more experience than the average starry-eyed newcomer. You went all on your own? Wow\u0026hellip; Don\u0026rsquo;t do that. But hey, you\u0026rsquo;re cute, I might join up with you.\u0026rdquo; They make a sly smirk, the compliment more teasing than flirtatious. \u0026ldquo;My own experience with the guild was some psychopath giving me tours when I was younger.\u0026rdquo; (Hybris)\nVictar He walks into the room, and studies the Pokemon inside. He\u0026rsquo;s still dressed in his adventuring gear, his tan jacket, pants, heavy boots and satchel. There\u0026rsquo;s some patchs of dirt and dried blood. Regardless of what he was doing before, there\u0026rsquo;s a smile on his face and a glint in his dark green eyes.\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;Hope I\u0026rsquo;m not late for the festivities.\u0026rdquo;\nMorka nods and smirks back. \u0026ldquo;Ha, yeah, I\u0026rsquo;ve kept that impulse at bay since then. And thanks.\u0026rdquo; He listens to the rest. \u0026ldquo;Oh, wow. I\u0026rsquo;m guessing it\u0026rsquo;s a bit more orderly by now, haha.\u0026rdquo;\nMorka glances toward Victar, and waves. \u0026ldquo;I think most of it\u0026rsquo;s done.\u0026rdquo; He looks around for any remaining items. \u0026ldquo;Unless there\u0026rsquo;s still some to move or unpack.\u0026rdquo;\nMorka seems interested in what is being said. \u0026ldquo;Ooh? Nice. I\u0026rsquo;d like to learn more about them myself. Maybe after getting some good momentum in here.\u0026rdquo;\nZi\u0026rsquo;s eyes flutter back open. she lets out a barely audible gasp. \u0026ldquo;Whoa, dozed off there for a second\u0026hellip; Oh hey Victar!\u0026rdquo; She gives a rare smile as she waves to him.\n\u0026ldquo;The Calamity Quary closer to Basalt City is one of my favourite. Exploding minecarts and anything.\u0026rdquo; After that\u0026rsquo;s said, they swing into standing up. \u0026ldquo;\u0026hellip;Uh hey, this is nice and all, but I\u0026rsquo;ve been procrastinating something I really should stop letting myself get away with it. Sorry to peace out so suddenly but I\u0026rsquo;ll see y\u0026rsquo;all \u0026lsquo;round the old base.\u0026rdquo; They give a gentle wave and start walking out. (Hybris)\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;Oh, well nice to see you. Name\u0026rsquo;s Victar, if I see you around.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar turns back to Zi and grins. \u0026ldquo;Well isn\u0026rsquo;t this a pleasant surprise! How\u0026rsquo;ve you been, Zi?\nMorka waves to Hybris. \u0026ldquo;No problem. Take care.\u0026rdquo; He looks back at the others and just listens for now. Still, he makes a bold mental note to get more info on the place they mentioned.\nZi says \u0026ldquo;Oh, apparently running myself ragged spending my entire night grading essays and then being a manual laborer on a last minute notice.\u0026rdquo; She also finger guns to Hybris. \u0026ldquo;You take care, you hear?\u0026rdquo;\u0026rdquo;\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;Ah, working you like a Stoutland as per usual. This is why I\u0026rsquo;d like to stay out in the field, sure it\u0026rsquo;s more dangerous than a classroom, but adventuring can be a great stress reliever. I ought to steal you for a dungeon dive one of these days.\u0026rdquo;\nZi says \u0026ldquo;You and me both, Victar. You and me both\u0026hellip;\u0026rdquo;\nVictar shrugs. \u0026ldquo;Well, at least now we have some time to unwind. Is there any liquor?\nShe gets a sly grin as she rummages into her jacket. \u0026ldquo;We haven\u0026rsquo;t stocked the wet bar yet, but I managed to smuggle this out of one of the illegal frat parties that was being held at Castillo\u0026rsquo;s.\u0026rdquo; She pulls out a small, unlabelled flask.\nVictar laughs. \u0026ldquo;I can always count on you, Zi.\nMorka watches them and smirks at their antics.\nZi shoves herself off the couch. \u0026ldquo;I\u0026rsquo;ll get the shot glasses, I saw them while we were unloading.\u0026rdquo;\nShe rummages through the cardboard boxes in the corner until she has 2 in hand. \u0026ldquo;Hey Morka you want some? This is the good shit, not the pisswater at the Down Canal pubs.\u0026rdquo;\nMorka leans up and stands from the couch to stretch. He nods at the offer. \u0026ldquo;Sure, thanks.\u0026rdquo;\nZi grabs a third glass and comes back. Laying them out for each of them, she quickly gets to pouring. Both the sight of the liquid and the smell prove it is indeed a variety down under: vodka!\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;You certainly know where to get the good stuff. Anything\u0026rsquo;ll do for me, so this is quite nice.\u0026rdquo;\u0026rdquo;\nMorka takes his glass and nods. \u0026ldquo;Same here. I\u0026rsquo;ve had my share of, uh, varieties, haha.\u0026rdquo; He takes a small sip. \u0026ldquo;Mmh.. nice.\u0026rdquo; He glances at the two. \u0026ldquo;You\u0026rsquo;ve known each other a while?\u0026rdquo;\nZi raises her glass. \u0026ldquo;Fringe benefits working at CCU. Always a treat when those brats those nobles paid to get enrolled bring their parent\u0026rsquo;s stash\u0026hellip; How about a toast first, Morka?\u0026rdquo;\nMorka stops and nods. \u0026ldquo;Ah, sure, sorry.\u0026rdquo; He raises his up as well. \u0026ldquo;Great meeting everyone here.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar raises his glass. \u0026ldquo;To the guild, to new friends, and to still being alive.\u0026rdquo; Clink!\n\u0026ldquo;And to our health. Cheers!\u0026rdquo; Zi says before swigging it in a gulp. It burns as it runs down her throat. The good, clean feeling kind though.\n\u0026ldquo;Now, as for me and Victar\u0026hellip; I\u0026rsquo;m only out of adjunct hell thanks to him getting that one relic that impressed the head of the department. Honestly, he\u0026rsquo;s inspired me to just get in this line of work: maybe I can find the next winner myself and actually get tenure!\u0026rdquo;\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;I bet you will, I\u0026rsquo;ve seen you in action. Though need help, you can just give me a call.\u0026rdquo; With that said, he takes a swig of his own.\u0026rdquo;\n\u0026ldquo;Likewise, and to our persistence to those ends.\u0026rdquo; He consumes his in 2 sips to let it set in. He listens to her side of the story. \u0026ldquo;Wow, nice. If the rumors I sometimes hear of the dungeons are true, then that sounds likely.\u0026rdquo; (Morka)\nVictar smiles. \u0026ldquo;If anyone can take down a dungeon, it\u0026rsquo;s this woman right here.\u0026rdquo;\nwith an air of cockiness, she says \u0026ldquo;Don\u0026rsquo;t worry, once we get this place opened and missions start coming in, I\u0026rsquo;m grabbing the first dungeon request and cashing in that offer!\u0026rdquo; She then puts her glass back in the box and stashes the flask. \u0026ldquo;Now excuse me as I rush back home before I collapse from both exhaustion and inebriation. See you later boys!\u0026rdquo;\nVictar waves back to her and raised his glass again to her as he finishes his drink. \u0026ldquo;You stay safe out there. Till our paths cross again!\nMorka finishes up his shot as well. He nods and waves to her. \u0026ldquo;Yep. Looking forward to working with everyone.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;Likewise. Though since I\u0026rsquo;m still in Basalt, I may only see you every so often. So don\u0026rsquo;t go dying on me before the next time we drink together, you hear?\u0026rdquo;\u0026rdquo;\nZi waves goodbye as she opens the door to the entrance, \u0026ldquo;Don\u0026rsquo;t worry these cardboard boxes won\u0026rsquo;t best me!\u0026rdquo; She offers a warning to Morka though, \u0026ldquo;By the way, do not let the nobility know about the booze. We want MAXIMUM donations and that involves convincing them that our bar\u0026rsquo;s dry!\u0026rdquo; And with that, she shuts the door behind herself.\nMorka nods to Zi and keeps in mind. \u0026ldquo;Make sense. No problem.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar turns to Morka. \u0026ldquo;So, Morka, what\u0026rsquo;s your story?\u0026rdquo;\nMorka looks toward Victar. \u0026ldquo;I\u0026rsquo;ve wandered through some parts around Canal City, but haven\u0026rsquo;t really gone much farther. Yet. Ambitious as it is, I\u0026rsquo;ve always wanted to figure out the dungeons\u0026rsquo; secrets. The guild seemed like a good way to do that while being a good support source.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar nods. \u0026ldquo;Fellow adventurous type, I see. I think we\u0026rsquo;re going to be fast friends.\u0026rdquo;\nMorka glances around and smiles at the remark. \u0026ldquo;Yeah. It seems you know your way around this field, so to speak. I\u0026rsquo;d love to gain some insight. Usual navigation and fighting tricks, of course, but even each mission I\u0026rsquo;m sure needs a specific skill set.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;You\u0026rsquo;ll get there. Guild\u0026rsquo;ll make sure of that.\u0026rdquo;\u0026quot;\nMorka says \u0026ldquo;That\u0026rsquo;s the impression I get here. I do appreciate the support folks seem to provide here.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;The guild\u0026rsquo;s a fine group to belong to, for sure. A bunch of buzzkills sometimes, but nonetheless, fine company.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar says \u0026ldquo;Well, I hate to leave as soon as I get here and have a drink, but I ought to prep for tomorrow\u0026rsquo;s expedition.\u0026rdquo;\u0026quot;\n\u0026ldquo;Yeah. Well, the struggles out there get to everyone, but it\u0026rsquo;ll be good.\u0026rdquo; He nods and notices he should prep for the evening too. \u0026ldquo;No worries. Nice meeting you and the others. Let\u0026rsquo;s all get some good rest. Take care.\u0026rdquo; (Morka)\nVictar nods and smiles. \u0026ldquo;Best of luck out there.\u0026rdquo;\nVictar He gets up and begins to walk out the door. He opens the door, then stops to put a cigar in his mouth. He pulls out a match to light it, and then leaves, exhaling a puff od smoke.\nMorka stretches and walks out as well. He looks into the darkness and feels an intense emotion wave over him. Same one he feels whenever he looks out there.\n","date":"14 December 2023","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/fan-works/fanfiction/posts/20231012_guildorientation/","section":"Fan-Works","summary":"Roleplaying Log","title":"LOG: Guild Orientation","type":"fan-works"},{"content":"The kind of guy that\u0026rsquo;d ask \u0026ldquo;Based? Based on what?\u0026rdquo;. He would\u0026rsquo;ve been a good kid if he didn\u0026rsquo;t grow up in the mean streets of Scrap Town here whis ignorance gets exploited. Loves a scrap and can\u0026rsquo;t be trusted with important information.\nHe\u0026rsquo;s got all he needs: Right and Lefty! ","date":"20 November 2023","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/fan-works/fanart/posts/peseo_01/","section":"Fan-Works","summary":"","title":"Character: Perseo","type":"fan-works"},{"content":"Evennia comes with a built-in Discord bridge, and the Official Team Dragon discord server is the meeting spot for players of Pokemorph Below and the fan community that\u0026rsquo;s sprung up around various Fan Fiction set in it\u0026rsquo;s universe. Access to the Discord can be asked for through Israfel within the game, as no public links are provided at this time.\n","date":"22 March 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/getting-started/posts/discord/","section":"Pokemorph Below","summary":"","title":"Connecting with Discord","type":"getting-started"},{"content":"","date":"5 April 2026","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/fan-works/","section":"Fan-Works","summary":"","title":"Fan-Works","type":"fan-works"},{"content":"","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/authors/","section":"Authors","summary":"","title":"Authors","type":"authors"},{"content":"","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/categories/","section":"Categories","summary":"","title":"Categories","type":"categories"},{"content":"","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/series/","section":"Series","summary":"","title":"Series","type":"series"},{"content":"","externalUrl":null,"permalink":"/tags/","section":"Tags","summary":"","title":"Tags","type":"tags"}]