Lent23 - Unathi Writer Application

[Lent23]

Ckey/BYOND Username: Lent23
Position Being Applied For: Unathi Lore Writer
Have you read the Lore Team Rules and Regulations wiki page?: Yes
Past Experiences/Knowledge: Outside of being on the Unathi team for over a year now, I have been narratively creating for over a decade now, be it through roleplaying games like Garry’s Mod or tabletop worldbuilding.
Examples of Past Work: The reworking of the Si'akh religion (which included a lore arc of its own) as well as some editing for the War in Heaven Arc with the Vaurca.
Si'akh
Stoking the Flames Arc
War in Heaven Arc

1. A particular section of Unathi Lore that you think should be expanded upon, alongside your reasons for it. Or what you think should be removed, and expand your reasons for that too:

I want to expand upon the feudal system and how that interacts with the modernity of space exploration. Modern times are here, and those that are enslaved by tradition are historically doomed to stagnate, the threat of radicality ever-looming over static leadership. While the juxtaposition between Unathi honor/religion and the overwhelmingly bleak capitalist hellscape that is the Orion Spur is interesting, I would like to see the Unathi grow in a way that will meaningfully impact the setting - going from a minor power to something that does not inherently have to rely on others in every facet. We have seen Unathi justify the exploitation of their moon by Hephaestus, but I am more interested in how we move forward from that. Looking at the Hegemony, they should look to strengthen themselves individually to ensure that an alliance with them would look mutually beneficial with other states. The divide between youthful Unathi who are willing to compromise centuries-old traditions and the hard-line traditionalist older generation that are unwavering in their reverence of the ways their ancestors acted can be explored through modernization and growth of the species’ various factions and systems. Moghes and Ouerea already have starkly different stances on the individual - imagine how much further that gets augmented with distance from the capital world. Overall, I want to flesh out the distinction of all current factions and planets. We already know how Moghes works, and we know how Moghes compares to Ouerea through Ouerea’s core idea as a more democratic planet comparatively - though one that still lives under the feudal system imposed by the homeworld. Let’s view how other colonies and worlds work under the system while solidifying their core concepts.

Honestly, I don’t think we have enough content to want to remove anything whole-sale. Anything that I would consider removing could just as easily be reworked.

2. Do you have a long-term vision for what direction you want to take Unathi?

There are a few targets I would like to hit:

The Hegemony
Dominian Unathi
The Sparring Sea / Pirates
Unathi Abroad

Let’s start with the big one: The Hegemony. A nation that could be considered up-and-coming. They have solved most of their internal discord and can now look outward. This outward view means two things to me: Making and maintaining their friendships and growing their empire. I expand on this point in question three, but I want to touch on it briefly here: The Izweski-Hephaestus partnership is a good start for the Hegemony, but Hephaestus controls the partnership by a large margin. I would like to lessen the stranglehold that Hephaestus has in order to integrate the Hegemony more with the greater Spur and explore other avenues of friendships with other powers. On the note of the growth of their empire, it is clear that Not’zar’s goal is to consolidate the centralized power of the Hegemony and to grow the level of autonomy for his people. We currently hold about eight planets - nine if you count Tret - that we can explore and expand upon. My vision for the Hegemony in the immediate future involves exploring how The Scarcity affects our known Hegemony systems. Once we have established what we have, the Hegemony can grow from there and explore the expansion of the Hegemony itself. The main idea here is how communication breakdown can breed resentment, especially in a system where the homeworld benefits most from the exploitation of its colonies, followed by the idea that distance can allow individuals to forge their own paths that are not necessarily in-line with what the homeworld would prefer.

Everyone’s favorite non-Hegemony faction: Dominianathi. Their role has shifted from their inception from invaders to primaries to a powerful great house to a tenuous hated-by-most role in Dominia. Their current role is that of malleable-invaders-turned-integrated-population. I view the Dominian Unathi as a shining example of the adaptability of the Unathi species. While the original Unathi were traditionalist pirate raiders, they were able to form a society for themselves that is free of both the inherent violence and unpredictability of piracy as well as the strict feudalism of the Hegemony. While they may be subservient to human overlords and their strange Goddess, they have adapted and grown to a point where they are able to forge their own path, and I see a lot of potential in their theming.

The Sparring Sea is, as you may know, a dangerous and mostly lawless section of space north of Moghes. Of all of the areas, I see the Sparring Sea as the largest potential for growth of the species. It is mostly uncharted within the lore, and it rests in a prime location - one that touches not only the Hegemony, but Dominia and Elyra and borders on the southern claims of the Solarian Alliance. It is home to raiders, pirates, and generally unsavory parties. I want this area to exist as a more tangible conflict zone. I want pirate alliances, Hegemony forays, combat between nations, shaky peace agreements, and attempts to tame what is essentially the wild west.

There are so many colonies of Unathi on other worlds. Vezdukh, Eridani, Biesel, Gakal’zaal - Any number of minor planets in the Coalition of Colonies. There is so much potential for growth. Most of our “Abroad” page refers to how “There are not many Unathi on X.” So let’s put them there. Let’s find out exactly what communities are doing across these planets. One that I am especially interested in is the Gakal’zaal Guwan, who are in a unique position in that they are willing to allow the Tajara to exploit them in exchange for finding a sense of superiority over those that would consider them lesser by joining the Sinta Volunteer Forces. Smaller splinter groups like the SVF deserve a bit more spotlight than they are afforded.

Overall, these groups have different goals, but my goal for each of them remains the same: Growth (in the amount of lore that we have for them) and Integration (collaboration with other sections of lore oocly / interconnectivity icly). I want to grow the lore that we already have presented while simultaneously integrating them into the wider spur. Good examples of this integration are the Dominianati and Unathi abroad, as they allow us to work with other teams. My ultimate goal is to have at least one project with each of the other teams.

3. Is there anything regarding Unathi lore that you'd really like to remove or heavily rework, but it's so ingrained in the lore to the point where it'd be challenging to do in a way that's satisfactory? 

The relationship that the Hegemony has with Hephaestus is integral to their current identity and is not something that I would like to remove, but evolve. As it stands, Hephaestus has a massive head up on the Hegemony with regards to the balance of power. They are able to exploit every facet of the hegemony through the guilds, and this is something that has come about due to the massive disadvantage that the Unathi have been placed in historically. I am not interested in inherently separating that, but simply balancing out the power dynamic between the two in a certain way. With the scarcity becoming a more important topic these days, the biggest idea that exists as a factor of separation between the two groups is the idea that Hephaestus, while benefiting greatly from the Hegemony, is not able to provide an equal benefit in return. There are a lot of things that the Hegemony needs in order to survive that Phoron is integral for - medical equipment, terraforming machines, communication devices, etc. If Hephaestus is not able to provide this key equipment for the Hegemony, the relationship is going to suffer as a result, and the Hegemony will have to push to grow its own ability to solve the shortcomings of their current benefactor.

4. What direction do you want to take Unathi lore in an IC manner?

The Hegemony has been looking to form alliances outside of what they have now -  they have already begun with the Federation during New Blades Old Wounds. We have an initial alliance that is going to weaken the stranglehold that Hephaestus has on the Hegemony. While they do not want to lose their relationship with Hephaestus, the Hegemony does not want to exist as a vassal of the corporation. There are others that are seeking alliances across the Spur, especially in such a tenuous time such as the scarcity.

The Hegemony also has no significant rival that is endangering them outside of Dominia. The Sparring Sea has such potential just waiting to be utilized. My biggest goal for this area is the formation of a confederation of disparate pirate factions that can act as a true rival to the Hegemony and interact with them in a multitude of ways. A shaky border agreement, internal strife, conversations between different factions within the confederation, there is so much potential with the rise of a new faction. The Unathi that live within the Sparring Sea and beyond are privy to the new ways of life. They are not on Moghes anymore, there is no restrictive system keeping them in line, they are free to forge their own path, and that is one that I want to explore.

Sinta Volunteer Forces, unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains! Together we take Gakal’zaal back! Probably.

5. What do you think are your strongest and weakest attributes in terms of working on a team, and why?

My strongest attribute is my ability to work and compromise with anyone. I will hear out any ideas that are brought to me and I try to expand on things that people bring to me as much as I can. No matter how crazy your concept, if you are passionate about it I will try to include it, provided it fits with the overall vision - and I see it as part of the position to try to fit everything we can. This is a community project, after all.

My weakest attribute is likely that I am willing to get discouraged if the group/person that I am writing with does not give me the same treatment - If you are not willing to hear me out, why are we writing cooperatively?

6. The Unathi writer is a position that comes with two deputy writers under them on the team. It is the writer's job to manage their team, in addition to their duties of moderating the WL. Given that, what skills do you have that you think will assist you in this? On the opposite end, what do you believe is your weakest link regarding management and moderation?

I have worked throughout my life at varying levels of supervisory and management roles. Delegation is second nature to me and I have no problems with it whatsoever. My biggest weakness on a team has historically been my willingness to let my team get away with a little too much - something I have little true worry about with a collaborative project such as our lore - innovation comes from open minds, after all. This being said, while I am willing to compromise on a lot of things, there is a greater story that must be abided, and while we may work together, it is clear that it will be one vision of the species that moves forward ultimately.

With regards to the moderation of the WL, I have no issue contacting people who have misrepresented the species in order to correct them. I like to think I am very approachable and typically available via Discord, and I monitor the forums every day, so I am quick to see what is going on with things like applications.

 

Thank you for reading.
Attached is an image for your consideration.

[dessysalta]

It's been a minute since I gave my two cents on an app, but I figured I'd chime in here again: Lent is a friend of mine I've known since some of my earlier experiences on Aurora and is a big reason I got into unathi lore in general. They've inspired me to make so many things over the years, from the Zandiziite additions to my baby the Hammertail Smiths. From their characters to their developments as a lore dep, what they do speaks to me and I love their direction, their decisions—everything unathi. When they were accepted as lore deputy I knew it was a matter of time before they'd be accepted as a lore writer.

+1. Get in there and do the Hegemon proud you magnificent bastard.