PUNTH

A
Primer
 Ex libris

.........................

Punth: A Primer

By Solomon VK
 Preface

Punth: A Primer is divided into two parts. The first is the ‘Primer proper’, in the numbered chapters - this
can be player-facing, and large portions of it are from in-universe texts. The second, ‘The Handbook’
starting with ‘Playing in Punth’, is for the eyes of the Game-Master or Referee.

This is a book of a setting, but with a particular mechanic attached to that setting. Punth has been
sketched out rather than minutely detailed so you can put this ‘mechanically-guided setting’ to use as
you wish.

While this is intended to be used with a variety of systems and in a variety of settings, I have employed
The 52 Pages as a game system and some chapters make use of that. The 52 Pages is available for download
from the blog of its creator, Roles, Rules and Rolls.

Punth began life in a medieval-inspired setting of mine called Terrae Vertebrae. I have used elements of
that setting to provide groups of foreigners in Punth, but these are largely concentrated into one chapter
and easily substituted with your own creations. Punth is a land among many, rather than a world of its
own.

Acknowledgements

The debt of the author to The 52 Pages and Roger G-S may be obvious, but will stand repetition.
The images used throughout are provided through the benevolence of the British Library.
Punth: A Primer has been typeset in Athelas.
The map on page 36 was made using Hexographer.
Further details of the author’s artistic and literary inspirations have been provided on pages 39-40, and on
his blog, World-Building and Woolgathering.
The material published in Punth: A Primer is presented under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license.

III
 Contents

Introduction 1

The Primer

Chapter One Foundation and Creed 2

Chapter Two The Entrance into Punth and Marriage 4

Chapter Three Punthite Justice 6

Chapter Four Trade in Punth 8

Chapter Five Arms and the Qryth 10

Chapter Six Occupations in Punth 12

Chapter Seven Religion and Foreign Affairs 14

Chapter Eight Names 16

Chapter Nine Conditions 18

Chapter Ten Goals 20

The Handbook

Playing in Punth 24

Qryth Questions 26

The Qryth: A Class for The 52 Pages 29

Encounter Tables 31

The Northern Reserve 35

An Account of the Foundation of Punth 38

Punth: A Primer: Appendix N 39

IV
 Introduction

Punth! The sun sets. Birds perch on the upper levels of the local ziggurat. Labourers at the communal
dinner, fresh from the field, hear the rhythmic formulation of the Codes sung to the tune of the dulcimer
and the tom-tom.
Punth! At noon, gaze across the irrigation ditches, out into the wilderness, where a great Prince
impales a lion on a twelve cubit spear!
Punth! Square cities by the bending river. Gene-mod oxen pull the ploughs. Sentinels with khaki
fatigues and long spears. Goatherds gather their flocks into elevated shelters for fear of carnivorous
leaping lizards. 
Punth! Sun-baked vaults of a fallen tower! Cracked lands of fallen tyrants and descending conquerers!
Howling eidolons in trackless deserts!
Punth! Aristocratic republic of former sky-sailors! Long paved roads dividing a howling desert.
Psycho-drill schools engaged in mass call-and-repeat lessons in the baking sun. Gendarme patrols,
regular as clockwork. Polychrome pillars and glazed bricks. Long-necked herbivores pulling carts;
six-legged steeds for the Sky Princes. 
Punth! Where all speech is couched in the words of the Codes. Where the scribes records details of
the latest five-year plan on clay tablets beneath the eyes of watchful green four-armed aristo-commisars!
Punth! The land set out before you.

1
 Chapter One
Foundation and Creed

In order to get to grips with Punth, we shall start with a few of Punth’s own accounts of itself, as taken
from the vast set of laws, regulations and sayings that determine all speech in Punth.
Firstly, the Codes’ account of how Punth came to be as it is, the Statement of Being:

1. Let all who hear, attend.

2. In days that are no more, sorcerers had the keeping of the people. Let those days come no more!
3. The wicked man is he that seeks his own power.
4. The sorcerers sought their own power in many lands and drew to them the Sky Princes.
5. By this shall you know the just: intention. By this shall you know the mighty: success.
6. When the mighty are just, their intention will meet with success.
7. In falling, the spiteful seek to confound their victors, but the Sky Princes can ever win through.
8. Yet a people long oppressed will be weak and weaker still when the cruel strike falls.
9. But the Sky Princes extended the arms of might and justice to them.
10. This was all recorded, so that the might and justice of people and princes, but ever renew itself.
11. From the days in which this was written, unto all other days.

Next, the Punthite creed, or Pledge of Allegiance: the Statement of Belonging:

1. Let all who hear, attend.

2. If a man has fallen to the dust, let his neighbour bend to him.
3. If two men fall to the dust together, they must bend to one another.
4. Who must rise first? The mighty. Who shall be raised up? The just.
5. The exile is ashamed of making his new home. The shipwrecked man is not.
6. The might of the scribe is in the pen, the might of the soldier in the sword, the might of the builder
in the rod. What might do the Sky Princes lack?
7. The might of the scribes in our books, the might of the soldier is at our gates, the might of the
builder is in our homes. What might do the people lack?
8. If there is wisdom in our books, who shall gainsay it?
If there strength at our gates, who shall come against us?
If there is peace in our homes, who shall afflict us?
The foolish, the reckless, the malicious.

2
 Ch.1
Foundation

9. When the Sky Princes speak, none else shall speak, for they speak wisdom.
When the Sky Princes command, none else shall, for theirs is might.
When the Sky Princes settle, none else shall, for in their gift is peace.
10. From the days in which this was written, unto all other days.*

*If spoken, “From the day in which this is spoken, unto all other days.”

The Three Peoples of Punth

Apart from travellers and visiting merchants, there are three groups in Punth.
Punthite society is made of humans under the Codes - Punthites - and the Qryth (the Sky Princes),
those towering outsiders who wrought the Codes and rule Punth. The Qryth govern by the Codes, and
the Punthites live by them - and so there is order.
However, there are those that have slipped away from the Codes - perhaps by the words of foreign
missionaries, perhaps by sorcery, perhaps by the working of malign spirits; even perhaps by simple
chance. These have gathered into nomadic bands in the remote desert, trading what little they have,
building their own isolated social structures, hearing the howls of forgotten ghosts in the chill night.
These are the Ka-Punth, in the gaps of Punthite society, discarding its Codes. They have never yet
become a threat, but are still a blight. Yet the Qryth struggle to pursue them, and perhaps do not try so
very hard to do so. The desert folk make for hardy proxies or mercenaries.

A hint of the
cataclysm that brought
the Sky-Princes.

3
 Chapter Two
The Entrance into Punth
and Marriage

After examining how Punth describes itself, let us consider two formal processes one may see in Punth.
These may give you an idea of certain values, methods and mores in Punth.
Firstly, the Codes set up on the borders of Punth:

1. All that pass here must halt. All that halt must read.
2. To those who do not, a mutilation is due. To those that are mutilated, death is due.
3. This is the dwelling of the Sky Princes and all those who co-prosper with them.
4. Such lands are called by some Punth.
5. All men should live in peace, from which comes plenty.
6. Thus, the Sky Princes raised these stones.
7. Thus, the Sky Princes and the Servants of the People will the tend the ways of peace.
8. Those who do not attend to correct teaching shall leave these places by such means as are best.
9. To learn peace is to learn wisdom. To the wise will come plenty.
10. Might and Justice shall be theirs, by which peace shall ever reign.

Next, the Codes’ Statement of Coupling.

1. There must be two for creation, but many for rearing.

2. Two may meet, but the many must grant their abiding.
3. To abide in peace and plenty, there must be might and justice.
4. The two may meet, but the Sky Princes must grant their abiding.
5. But no voice speaks against this. None of the Codes is against this.
6. Therefore joy is the grant of the many, of the Sky Princes.
7. Let those raised in peace and plenty ever heed and honour them!

A few notes on Qryth infrastructure

The Qryth were, in their first days in Punth, possessed of much foresight about the future. They planned
accordingly.
It is a shame they were wrong. Wrong about the society they were building; wrong about their chances
for technological progress.

4
 Ch.2
Entrance, Marriage

The Qryth maintain, in a semi-Medieval Near East, the sort of administrative tools that would better
suit or would be expected of a state in the ‘Western World’ of 21st Century AD Earth. There are border
checks and extensive records of comings and goings. There are roads everywhere, carefully maintained –
a great advantage in war, but a great expense (there is often less in the way of immediate funds to spend
on a campaign). Moreover, they go everywhere - not just between cities or along trade routes. They do not
appear to have come about by a natural process of traffic.
Some seem to head out to dead ends, terminating in desolate valleys or contaminated springs. The first
generation of Qryth extensively scanned Punth; doubtless somewhere beneath the sands is a great bounty
of petroleum or the minerals needed to make DVD Players – but this means nothing in contemporary
Punth. But the Qryth must maintain the great monuments of their ancestors. So long highways to empty
places are sweated over by work gangs, guarded by Sky Princes and Gendarmes.
This is indicative of a lot of Punthite administrative practice. Consider the reforms wrought by the
French Revolution – though the Qryth could rewrite so very much more than the Constitution, the Calendar
and political geography (indeed, they were positively obliged so to do).

The Gendarmes
Nominally, the Qryth are the only military of Punth. One advantage of this is that they are bigger than
anyone else (they struggle with Half-Giants, but Half-Giants don’t like the heat). But ultimately lesser
forces were required - such as sentries, quartermasters, teamsters, police forces. Therefore, a gendarmerie
was created.
The gendarmes are the most visible military and law enforcement presence in Punth. They have some
human commanders, but none above what we could think of as regimental rank. The Sky Princes monitor
them closely.
Among other things, the gendarmes conduct regular border patrols (even along the desolate stretches
of Punth’s deserts). They act as a first line of defence – but a line of defence that is expected to fall back in
good order and get one of the Qryth if attacked by a serious threat. Not that they are absent from Punth’s
campaigns or the order of battle.
They wear strange garments of a mustard-like colour, tight fitting and with several pouches, a little
like modern police uniforms. Armour can be placed over this; it is padded at several spots to help
accommodate this. There are two traceries in red braid on the flanks – roughly where the second set of
Qryth arms would be. The officers sport peaked caps. Urban garrisons tend towards truncheons and
lathis – at least, in most places. Outside the walls, they are armed well, often with pikes and crossbows.
A cavalry contingent is maintained, as are supply trains for the outer garrisons.

5
 Chapter Three
Punthite Justice

Before the Tribunal

A trial in Punth is conducted before a tribunal, which will usually include at least one of the Qryth. It
takes a lot to come to trial - the pettier, breach-of-the-peace offences can be dealt with by a local headman
or Gendarme sergeant by summary beatings or withholding food. A trial in Punth does not involve a jury,
nor does it really involve an advocate or legal adviser (an interpreter or spokesperson may be provided in
the case of juveniles or foreigners.) Commercial or property disputes will probably be settled by a decision
by the highest ranked local state official - who generally have a judicial role as well.
The trial is held in public at one of the ziggurat-citadels. A designated Official Witness (who is in fact
probably working from numerous witness statements) will describe the offence. A few other witnesses
may also be called, especially if they were the ones who were involved in the crime.
The accused may speak - though this is often fruitless, except for those who really know the Punth
Codes. After all this, the judges will render a verdict.
Therefore, consider the following example trial. Aside from those named below, you may assume the
presence of other petitioners, a scribe and sundry guards, Gendarmes, citizens and other spear carriers.

Chief Judge: Let all who hear, attend.

CJ: When the Sky Princes speak, none else shall speak, for they speak wisdom.
CJ: When the Sky Princes command, none else shall, for theirs is might.
CJ: When the Sky Princes settle, none else shall, for in their gift is peace.
CJ: Let justice direct might. Let all who may attend. Let justice be marked and recorded.
Official Witness: If the people are to be fed, work must be divided between them. Therefore, offices
and duties will be given to the just.
OW: All men should live in peace, from which comes plenty.
OW: If there strength at our gates, who shall come against us?
The foolish, the reckless, the malicious.
OW: The foolish will do as the malicious, though justice coupled with might stand
against them.
OW: If a man has fallen in the dust, let his neighbour bend to him.
[OW gestures to AP]
Aggrieved Party: (with a prominent wound to the head)
Who must rise first? The mighty. Who shall be raised up? The just.
Aggrieved Party’s
Partner: All men should live in peace, from which comes plenty.
APP: When the sun is down, work must cease.

6
 Ch.3
Punthite Justice

APP: Let each man be seen at his work.

OW: Let no man take more than is needed. May the fruits of the people stay with the people.
OW: The Sky Princes and the Servants of the People will the tend the ways of peace.
OW: Those who do not attend to correct teaching shall leave these places by such means
as are best.
Associate Judge 1: May the fruits of the people stay with the people. Where there is harm, let it be seen
by the just and amended by the mighty.
[OW proffers a tablet to the tribunal]
OW: That which withers may be replanted.
AP: The blocked channel may be cleared.
AJ1: If a man has fallen to the dust, let his neighbour bend to him.
[CJ gestures to the Accused Man]
CJ: Let all who may attend.
AM: Where there is labour, let there be comfort. Where there is thirst, let there be water.
Where there is wind, let there be a shelter.
AM: Offices and duties will be given to the just.
AM: When the Sky Princes command, none else shall, for theirs is might.
CJ: All voices in time will fall silent. But let the just speak last.
[CJ, AJ1 and AJ2 confer]
AJ2: Folly will lead to weakness; weakness to malice. By our efforts, let us suppress all three.
CJ: If two men fall to the dust together, they must bend to one another.
AJ1: Justice and might are offered to all.
AJ1: The Servants of the People will the tend the ways of peace.
AJ2: The spiteful seek to confound their victors
CJ: Where justice and might are in concord, all are in concord.
[The Judges turn to the court]
CJ: Let all who hear, attend.
CJ: To learn peace is to learn wisdom. To the wise will come plenty.
CJ: The Servants of the People will the tend the ways of peace.
CJ: For the People to prosper, many offices must be filled.
CJ: If the roads are clear, if the roof is sound, all will travel in safety and arrive to comfort.
CJ: Let justice direct might. Let all who may attend. Let justice be marked and recorded.
***
A man who occupies a minor office has come to the court. He has been attacked and robbed. The Official
Witness describes the incident and recommends a spell on a work gang. The wounded man is exhibited and
accuses his attacker. The wounded man’s wife mentions the time of the attack and how she knew the attacker.
A judge asks for details of what was taken or damaged. These are provided.
The accused man defends himself, blaming the wounded man for abusing his position.
The judges confer, and elect to send the accused man to a work gang. This is announced to the court.

7
 Chapter Four
Trade in Punth

At the shops
As befits something very like a planned political economy, there is no formal currency used in Punth. The
equivalent used by a local headman would be the ‘day’s labour’, expressed in the phrase ‘For those who
work in the day, let shelter be prepared for them in the evening.’
Bed and board carries as part of its implication cost of fuel, cost of crockery, cost of blankets, and so
forth. So the ‘day’s labour’ amounts to the cost of a day’s food and water plus the cost of a day’s fuel plus
various minuscule fractions of the cost of a house and household goods. Therefore, the Punthite labourer,
even if his meals are taken communally and he lives in a state dormitory, is issued with discretionary
resources (generally in the form of trade goods) to obtain things he might need.
Now, the choice of household goods is always going to be pretty limited. But having a Punthite hand
over trade goods for household goods is a form of authentication that for instance, a new jug is required.
The Codes actually list the required household goods. It’s a little like a really boring domestic pastiche
of Sei Shonagon’s lists.
A headman or scribe is given a slightly larger set of discretionary resources, because of their need to be
ready for a number of activities - to interpret the Codes or to otherwise lead.
On top of these, a village or civic ward will have be expected to maintain a small surplus capacity to
accommodate work gangs or gendarmes or visiting Qryth - as well as for other unforeseen issues. This
will be in the control of a headman.
Therefore, a rural headman might deal with a visitor who can interpret the Codes like this:

Headman: All men should live in peace, from which comes plenty.
Visitor: Where there is labour, let there be comfort. Where there is thirst, let there be water.
Where there is wind, let there be a shelter.
H: If the people are to be fed, work must be divided between them.
V: The blocked channel may be cleared.
[The Visitor brings out two iron axeheads]
H: May the fruits of the people stay with the people!
V: If a man has fallen in the dust, let his neighbour bend to him.
H: Who must rise first? The mighty.
[The Visitor brings out a handful of nails]
H: For those who work in the day, let shelter be prepared for them in the evening.
V: To the wise will come plenty.

8
 Ch.4
Trade in Punth

Make no mistake; such trades are Black Market-equivalents. A headman or scribe will be unwilling to
make them if there is a significant party of gendarmes in town, or an inspection or one of the Sky-Princes.

Looking further afield

Some trade does exist between Punth and other nations. This is facilitated by a class of scribes, usually
only found in the cities, known as Procurators. They have a better notion of money as it is used in other
lands and a loose familiarity with trading customs. Procurators will maintain a supply of specie or
bullion with which to trade, as well as trade goods or issue plaques (small clay tablets giving the bearer
permission to draw a certain set of resources from Punthite authorities).
Punth imports not only tools, iron and livestock but also a quantity of luxuries - dyes, precious metals,
the like. These are often used to create monuments to the Codes or in maintaining Qryth households. It is
half-known by the Qryth that gold is an effective conductor of electricity.
Antiquities from the time of the Sorcerer-King have been available cheaply in the past, with Punthite
authorities knowing little and caring less about them - despite some having valuable scraps of archaic
spellcraft.
The Procurators are known as being oddly straightforward dealers to the merchants outside Punth.
The transactional cost of getting to Punth, negotiating the borders and learning enough of the Codes
to get by is offset by the fact that trade is so often profitable. However, the Qryth loathe anyone else’s
scrutiny - and they may, if they deem it necessary, seize your goods and your ship in time of emergency.
Punth emergencies do not line up with what other nations may consider an emergency. Merchants are not
known to linger in their ports, not that there is much that might appeal to a holiday-maker in them.

9
 Chapter Five
Arms and the Qryth

As previously established, the military of Punth is split into two: the (human) Gendarmerie, nominally a
territorial force with a law enforcement role, and the Qryth themselves. The Qryth are meant as frontline
soldiers and shock troops, there being nothing like a four-armed green giant to hold the line when needed.
In practice however, Gendarmes may find themselves in the thick of a melee or as part of an expedition-
ary force.
An armed, trained Qryth is not quite the equal of a mounted knight in plate armour. They are slower
than a charging horse, if faster than a human, and if hardy, not near as hardy as steel. And, of course, a
lone Qryth is far more at home on the sands of Punth than any chevalier and generally requires less of a
baggage train. The Qryth in melee favour two-handed blades or tall shields and spears. The crossbow
has some status as a traditional weapon. A Qryth can carry and shoot a heavy crossbow with ease and
marksmanship is prized; thus a Qryth ambush is a terrifying thing. (This leaves aside their more ancient
and exotic weapons).
A Qryth fighter would be known in their own tongue by certain high and ancient names (Astronaut,
Espatier, Star Commander, &c.). Northern, foreign, usage tends to refer to a Qryth Knight, Commander,
Marshall, &c.
While Punthite tactics might be outlined by portions of the Codes, fighters of one kind or the other
have phrases that communicate tactics or commands rapidly.

Advancing: Forge ahead courageously, following the Sky Princes!

Retreating: If victory does not come today, it shall come tomorrow!
Engaging as a group: As one we shall meet the foe!
Engaging as an individual: By each of our efforts, we conquer the malicious!
Attack a certain target or point: Ignorance of correct teaching reveals flaws to be exploited!
Defend a certain target or point: Might is demanded at this spot.
Attack along a broad front: Correct teaching demands broad action!
Defend along a broad front: At the walls, the dutiful will stand.
Prioritise missile combat: The arm of the people is both long and swift!
Prioritise melee combat: The might of the soldier in the sword!

In days that are no more, sorcerers had the keeping of the people. Let those days come no more!
As the title suggests, the Punthite feeling towards magic users is far from positive. They are kept carefully
guarded by special detachments of the Gendarmes. Because magic requires a language (spoken or

10
 Ch.5
Arms & the Qryth

otherwise) that alters the universe, they must learn odds and ends of languages beyond the Codes - the
Codes not having any resonance with the energies of Vertebraean creation.
All this makes magic-users doubly untrustworthy. By custom they are kept chained - either literally
restrained, or ritually adorned with chains that do not hamper movement, but still indicate their status.
Their faces are painted each day with horizontal stripes. An unpainted mage is either an escapee convict
or a special forces operative - and much more likely the former than the latter.
Sorcerers that use their powers for the state are trained to communicate their actions for their
handlers. A phrase roughly matches the school of a spell from the 52 Pages.

Energy: After catastrophe, we shall triumph!

Creation: From the Sky-Princes comes all plenty!
Change: That used for the state will be changed for the state.
Planar: From the beyond came the Sky Princes, ever benevolent.
Knowledge: In the Codes resides the key to all knowledge!
Illusion: The insolent and foolish see not our might.
Mental: A mind is honed by the Codes as a blade on a stone.
Restoration: If a man has fallen in the dust, let his neighbour bend to him.
Abjuration: Bend before the Sky-Princes, who blend might and wisdom!
Nature: Let all things bend to the state’s will.

The above can be applied to clerical magic as well.

11
 Chapter Six
Occupations in Punth

When creating a character using The 52 Pages a player chooses background words, which influence their
skills and abilities. Below is a list of the suggested background words in The 52 Pages, along with a few
more Punth-specific options.
Some classes are compelled to choose one Background word. (Wizards, Prophets, Dwarves, Elves).
This can be avoided by a human-only reskin of those classes; I like Pioneer and Guide for Dwarf and Elf.
Dwarves would loose heat vision and active defence, but move at 12. Elves would have Spells reskinned to
‘Skills’, and possibly restricted to Knowledge and Illusion.

Scholarship
Magic (See Ch. 5)
Religion (See Ch. 7)
History There were days that were, and days that are. Correct Though will distinguish them.
Heraldry In knowing the signs of men, know their hearts. May our symbols be as true as our
hearts!
Monsters As man is surrounded by beasts, so are the Sky-Princes by Star-Beasts.
Great as the Sky-Princes are, so are their beasts.
Etiquette The arms of might and justice are ornamented by proper conduct.
Law Knowledge of the codes is knowledge of the state. Knowledge of the
state is knowledge of the mind.
Medicine To each disease there is a cure. To each cure there is a formula.
Qryth Studies All things are known by the Codes, the source of which is the Sky Princes.

Environment
Underground N/A *
Woodland Many leaves give strength to a tree; many trees make a forest; a forest sustains a great
host.
Plains Between the cities of the plain are the roots of the cities.
Sea To those that return from the engulfing waters, let correct teaching be available.
City From the ziggurats come the Codes. Therefore men gather about them in the cities of
the plain.
Mountain In the heights and the valleys both, you walk with the knowledge of the Codes.

12
 Ch.6
Occupations

Swamp Even where the lands are scattered by water, the state will unite the people.
The Ruins Where the wicked have fallen is no place for men to dwell long.

Profession
Blacksmith All tools pass through the fire. The one who keeps that fire must be peerless.
Jeweller By the cut gem and the untarnished plaque, make prowess known!
Architect The builder’s plan must be as strong as the base of the pillar.
Stoneworker Buildings are the bones of the state.
Alchemist In the potion as in the person, the difference of a single grain may be calamitous.
Mechanic Devices redouble the efforts of a man, as the Codes redouble his focus!
Burglar N/A **
Horse(wo)man The bond between horse and man is strengthens both. Might and Justice
may be found in the reins of a rider!
Healer Health of the body is in the hands of the Physician.
Health of the mind is in the hands of the Code.
Musician The sound of the cymbal and the slughorn may punctuate a recitation of the codes.
Irrigator Where the water flows, there will be life. Therefore a path must be cut
for the water. Therefore tools must be made.
Sorcerer’s handler In days that are no more, sorcerers had the keeping of the people.
Now, the people have the keeping of sorcerers.
Procurator What one land has in abundance, another land lacks. But let no man go
in want for food, or the goods of the house, or the goods of the state.
Scribe A good record is a joy to Correct Thought.

* There are no underground Dwarven cities or Gnome communes in Punth. The underground
background might be applicable for miners (or, perhaps, Punthite soldiers fighting against the Dwarves).
** Burglary is not explicitly described by the codes. See Ch. 3 for more details.

13
 Chapter Seven
Religion and
Foreign Affairs

It is the expressed view of the state of Punth that no god or gods exist. The Qryth, if there was any formal
tradition of worship in their background before the fall, have left it far behind. Religion in neighbouring
states is seen as a result of dishonesty, folly and ignorance. Punthite citizens do not appear to have any
great sense of the divine - however, the Codes are treated with reverence bordering on the spiritual and
the appearance of a Sky-Prince in an isolated village might be treated with a superstitious wonder.

The Codes structure all things, as the beams of a house. All things may be understood as part of the Codes.
“Prophets are Wizards”
Miracles happen, if less regularly than the Church of the Kingdoms to Punth’s North would like. Prophets
(as The 52 Pages labels them) are held by the Codes to be wizards of a faith sufficiently strong to influence
the character of their magic. That choir of angels is merely the result of an aberration of the wizarding
psyche. The same is held, incidentally, for anyone summoning up spirits: the direct, properly taught mage
would just summon a firestorm, rather than producing some puppet ifrit to produce flames.

The inner power serves the state best that when it is simplest.

Ka-Punth
The Ka-Punth are an exception, of course. Never having been under the Codes, they have such scraps of
religious belief as survived the fall and the arrival of the Qryth. Their practices of serving or appeasing
the djinn that reside in the deserts are (often) religious in nature, but the Ka-Punth leader that has treated
with such spirits long enough knows the limits of their powers.

***

Foreign Relations
Given that those states around Punth frequently either hold one specific belief or encourage a number
to reside within them, foreign relations can be fraught. Even if foreign citizens are not actively prevented
from taking part in religious practices, they are deliberately monitored and prevented from proselytising.

Practices from outside the Codes should be monitored as a toothed beast.

Cardinal Directions
To the north, from the coast of the Inner Sea to the Spine of the World, lie the nations belonging to the
Holy Empire, home to both expansionist zealots and amoral merchants. The mountains of the Hydraulic
Dwarves (scrupulously neutral in all conflicts not involving water supplies) lie between.
The Imperial or Northern approach to Punth may be expressed thus:

14
 Ch.7
Religion

South of the great mountains, south of the border provinces of the Empire lies Punth. This is the land of the
unbelievers, the fallen. A great desert, with who knows what lurking beyond. Where ten crusades have faltered.
The tribes of the deep desert co-exist with the Ziggurat-Cities along the river, all under the eye of their alien lords.
Who are these strange folk? From where did they come? What further blasphemies lurk there?
The Codes say this about the North:
The Outsiders from the Lands where the Sun Shines Not have no Code, even as they have no light. That which
they say is unknown, and unknowable; it is this lack of Correct Though that makes them savage.
***
To the east of Punth is the thick mountains of the Spine of the World. A few passes and valleys zigzag
between these, but the bulk of the inhabitants are Dwarves of a distant and traditional type.
***
To the west of Punth, across the Stained Sea, lies the League of Civic Etiquette, joined to the Inner Sea
by the Traitorous Passage. The city-states across from this are sophisticated in their learning and busy
hubs of trade - but suffer periodic bouts of frightfully intricate and subtle internecine violence.
The Western or League approach to Punth may be expressed thus:
The poetry of Punth-across-the-Sea is graceless in the extreme, but it is known by both their nobles, citizens and
thralls alike. This says something, no doubt, for both the quality and quantity of their poets and their pedagogues.
Of particular interest are their antiquities.
The guards swarm thick on the streets and the clerks are keen in their inspections. No wonder, when Imperial
knights, maddened by prayer, have assailed them twelve times. Still, this is a land to be visited, rather than resided in.
The Codes say this about the West:
The Outsiders from across the Sea bear a partial Code, that is as water poured on the ground - it spills through
cracks and pits, forming a shallow pool if at all. Be scrupulous in speaking Correct Though to them.
***
To the south is an expanse of hostile desert that slowly transitions into sparse forests and coastal
mangroves. The kingdoms of the Bronze River, the Potter’s River and the Rawhide River jostle for elbow
room along the river banks, both amongst themselves and in ambitious attempts to gain access to the
other rivers.
The riverine kingdoms of the south approach Punth thus:
Among ourselves, there are many kings that make war upon one another; the one that is the victor one day, will
fall another. There are many enchanters, and those who quarrel curse each other, and you may see the trail of their
spells at twilight.
In this land of Punth, there is one war, and there is one curse. Do not think this better; guard yourself against
their gangling princes and their dull-faced slaves. They are far across the desert, however, and for now may be trad-
ed with - for they cannot be contended with.
The Codes say this about the South:
The Outsiders from beyond the deserts are unfinished works. Among them, several incomplete Codes exist along
their three rivers. In this way, they live and suffer. Make them the gift of Might and Justice and speak to them the
Codes.

15
 Chapter Eight
Names

Excepting the visitors described in Ch. 7, names in Punth are of three sorts.
Those of Punthites
The Punthites, as a result of the codes rarely adopt names. If they need to identify themselves, their
compatriots in their place of residence or work (often the same) will recognise them.
If a Punthite is compelled to travel, they identify themselves by their place of residence or work.
Thus, one may refer to him or herself as Collective 101, Patrol 2442, Station 4077 or Ziggurat 17.
(Collective farms or Patrols will number in the thousands, Factories in the hundreds and Ziggurats in
the tens).
Should further markers be needed, two coloured badges are chosen at random and pinned to the
Punthite’s tunic. Hence: RoadCrew 313 Grey-Mauve, Warehouse 890 Charcoal-Red, Battalion 290 Green-
Green, &c.
Roll 2d20 for the coloured badges:

1. Black 11. Mauve

2. White 12. Pink
3. Grey 13. Beige
4. Red 14. Crimson
5. Orange 15. Teal
6. Yellow 16. Chartreuse
7. Green 17. Amber
8. Blue 18. Khaki
9. Purple 19. Charcoal
10. Brown 20. Ash

Those of the Qryth

The Qryth adopt names combining the world around them and abstract traits. Each Qryth is named
individually at birth; they may later elect to re-name themselves. These names are (roughly) translated
from the Qryth original.
The first part of each Qryth name is a quality of some description. It is generally a virtue, or at least
desirable.
The second part of the name is an element of the periodic table, compound, alloy or material.
Thus, ‘Strong Hydrogen’ would roughly be the equivalent of John Smith or Jane Doe.

16
 Ch.8
Names

‘Strong’, ‘Noble’, ‘Wise’ ‘Dextrous’ or ‘Prudent’ might be used as first names; ‘Hungry’, ‘Perfumed’,
‘Enrobed’, ‘Moist’, ‘Muscular’, ‘Royal’ or ‘Keen-Eyed’ are either too temporary (it is easy to become
un-hungry; one was not born wearing robes or scent), too fleshy or, in the case of ‘Royal’, connected to an
institution. ‘Observant’ would be better than ‘Keen-Eyed’. ‘Pathetic’, ‘Psychotic’ or ‘Lewd’ are technically
correct but unlikely to be used by any well-adjusted Qryth (one might acceptably use ‘Amorous’ or
‘Romantic’ instead of ‘Lewd’ - the Qryth do not lack passion).
The periodic table of elements furnishes last names.
In accordance with the distance and mystery accorded to the Qryth, if an element has a name not
ending in -ium, -on, -en, -ine, &c (IE, Iron, Gold, Copper, Silver, Lead, Mercury, Tin) consider using the
Latin name (Ferrum, Aurum, Cuprum, Argentum, Plumbum, Hydrargyrum, Stannum).
An elemental name is considered more traditional, but this does not necessarily match to high social
standing.
Common compounds such as ‘Salt’ render as Sodium-Chloride. I would suggest only using the simpler
sort of chemical compounds, were one to use them at all.
Only a certain set of alloys and materials should be used in Qryth names. These materials should be
inorganic - no leather or wood. A rule of thumb - if an engineer on Star Trek would commonly encounter
it or recognise it without using an Encyclopaedia, it can be used.
Thus, ‘Steel’, ‘Diamond’, ‘Carbon-Fibre’, ‘Teflon’, ‘Transparent Aluminum’, ‘NeoSilk’ or ‘FauxWood’
would work but ‘Bakelite’, ‘Ivory’, ‘Parchment’, ‘Pewter’, ‘Brick’, ‘Corduroy’ or ‘Worsted’ would not’.
So, Qryth some names might include:
Learned Neon, Swift Lithium, Harmonious Stibium, Righteous Uranium, Ubiquitous Zinc, Just Bromine, Fierce
Copper-Carbonate, Charitable Potassium-Permanganate, Ambitious Electrum, Curious Brass, Benevolent Cordite,
Practical Nylon, Musical Leatherette.....
The Qryth are sufficiently advanced in terms of genealogy and record-keeping to maintain a knowl-
edge of family lineages without the use of surnames. No Qryth will name their child the same thing as
themselves.
Those Punthites that do not spend time with the Qryth think of their names as the equivalents of their
own temporary identifiers.

Those of the Ka-Punth

The Ka-Punth, as they are not aliens or part of alien-dominated society have names closer to the rest of
humanity. Whilst they are more likely to have absorbed names from other cultures than the Punthites or
the Qryth, one may use names from the Ancient Near and Middle East.
Consider opening the Old Testament and leafing through it until you find a name you don’t recognise.
Other sources might include lists of names from the inscriptions of Babylon and Assyria.

17
 Chapter Nine
Conditions

Punth has seasons, weather and various social and physical conditions to communicate, same as any other
land. Now, whilst those in the same community comprehend elements of this implicitly or by non-verbal
cues, the incomer may not (be they Punthite or otherwise). Thus, a list of expressions from the Codes may
be used to communicate these certain set of notions.

Cold Chill as the desert night is the people without a code.

Heat The heat of noon is to be preferred to Incorrect Thought.
Wet As full of water as the Codes are full of merit.
Thirsty A dry interior is like a man with his bones only.
Hungry Neither trees nor men should be hollow.
Exposed, in want of Shelter To be roofless is to be skinless.
Wounded If the body is broken, who may avail?
Poisoned/Stung Foreign substances degrade the body.
Ill Sickness is rife where Incorrect Thought dominates.
Enchanted Just as the body, the mind may be
imprisoned and trammelled.
Short of Supplies Action must persist, whatever the conditions.
Prosperous The wealth of nations is found in a proclaimed code.
Stunned Codeless are those that fall head-first.
Dying The fruits of Correct Thought persist,
though its proponents fall.
Disgraced The Sky Princes cast down only those who offend.
Praiseworthy Dutiful them that strive, twice so them that succeed.
Dirty The dust may soil it, but Correct Thought clears all stains.
Rain The earth is refreshed, thus so are its inhabitants.
Thunder A noise from the heavens, as the knell of the Sky Princes.
Clouds All things but the light of Correct Thought may be hidden.
Sunny Merciless is the gaze of the sorcerer.
Winds The howling of the dunes scours those who do not
follow Correct Thought.

18
 Ch.9
Conditions

Sandstorm A thousand in directed motion will flay a giant.

Migratory animals Watch for the turning of the year,
as the roaming beast does.
Troop movement Make room on the roads, in the houses, in all other efforts,
for the soldiers of the state.
Goods movement Bring the sought commodities to where they are needed;
not all work is creation.
Qryth visit The Sky Princes foot-fall is a wondrous trumpet-blast.
Government bulletin When adjustments to standard policy must be made,
envoys will tell it.
A death A useful life is all the epitaph one needs.
A birth Offspring raised in the code are a social good
surpassing all others.

Flooding of the ruins

of the cursed sorcerers.

19
 Chapter Ten
Goals

The Primer thus far has talked about professions, conditions and tactics: now we talk about Goals. Some
of this will doubtless repeat earlier parts of the Primer, but this Chapter still seems necessary.

Security By the might of the Sky Princes are these lands secured.
Safety Shelter, plenty and benevolence: these sustain
a sheltering, plenteous, benevolent populace.
Find a Community The longing for a home is the longing for
Correct Thought and those who speak it.
Find a work-team To be idle is to decay.
Prestige To be known as a vessel of Correct Thought
allows transmission of Correct Thought.
Accomplishment The application of might and wit is properly praised.
Perpetuate Culture To the offspring of the Codes, let there be taught the Codes.
Expand Culture Where Correct Thought is not, there is only fruitless toil.
This is no proper state for the populace.
Expand Territory Correct Thought has no borders.
Find a new home Neither men nor land should be idle, but idle men
and idle land may be set together and transformed.
Reform By the refiner’s fire, both gold and the populace
may be remade.
Re-invigorate/Repair Water refreshes the spirit; water with earth makes mud;
from mud are shaped bricks; bricks restore the house.
Destroy Might joined with righteousness surpasses
all other things.
Defeat Cast folly into the dust.
To Die Well To die for the populace can be as worthy as to live.
Punish Malice is thwarted in the Servants of the People.
Harmony, Coordination From the scribe, instruction. From the labourer, action.
For the populace, joy.
Prosperity Where bellies are empty, let them be filled.
Where granaries are empty, let them be filled.
Where granaries are ruined, restore them.

20
 Ch.10
Goals

Strength Might is won be devotion and wisdom.

These come from the Codes.
Good of the Qryth The might of the Sky Princes is wondrous and perfusive!
Good of Punth The lands and teachers of correct thought must be sustained.
Justice Who must rise first? The mighty. Who shall be raised up? The just.
Learning Correct thought is the pathway to all abilities that may
be considered natural.

A rocky crag,
deep in the deserts of Punth.

21
Here Ends
The Primer

22
Image of a tower, apparently
seen only at dusk, close to
the Punthite shore of
the Stained Sea.
 Playing in Punth

OR, A Primer for the Primer

There are really two ways to set a game in Punth. To have players create characters from outside Punth (or
they could be Ka-Punth) and have them go in, or to have them create Punthite characters.
Punth was originally conceived as part of a larger world (see Ch. 7) - the Terrae Vertebrae of my blog.
Other than in that Chapter and a few scattered other references, I have tried to make Punth able to be
slotted into another fantastical setting. The Babel-myth elements and Near or Middle Eastern basis makes
it perhaps an odd fit if you were to slap it down right next to, say, fantasy equivalents of Vietnam or the
Tlingit lands - both in terms of culture and environment. However, I would contend that the meat of
Punth is in the Codes and the position of the Qryth: the specifically Babel-like elements could be reduced,
reformed or repositioned, as could the Near Eastern portions.
The question will be, how much of the Primer do you issue to players?
If they create Punthite characters, the only in-character conversation they should do should be in the
Codes. Ch. 5 and Ch. 6 are deliberately linked to the Character creation process of The 52 Pages (and
probably aren’t that far distant from other systems). Ch. 8 will also be needed at this point. Parts of these
could be issued to players at creation. Ch. 9 is most useful for play, and will likely come up as you go
along. Ch. 1’s foundation story and creed and Ch. 2 act as introductions to Punth as the Codes would
describe it. These could be introduced into play early, in a ‘We will all rise and recite the Oath of
Allegiance’ sort of affair.
Here’s the contents of the Primer, with a schedule of how you could issue it to players playing
Punthites.

Ch. 1 Foundation & Creed Soon in the Game

Ch. 2 Entrance into Punth & Marriage When desired
Ch. 3 Punthite Justice When desired
Ch. 4 Trade in Punth Soon in the Game
Ch. 5 Arms and the Qryth Character Creation
Ch. 6 Occupations in Punth Character Creation
Ch. 7 Religion and Foreign Affairs When desired
Ch. 8 Names Character Creation
Ch. 9 Conditions Character Creation
Ch. 10 Goals When desired

Introducing Characters from outside Punth into Punth probably starts with the outside perspective
hooks in Ch. 7.
Having thus whetted the appetite, the possibility of entering Punth can take place. Characters could
enter tutored or untutored. The Codes are (for convenience) meant to be in a regional ‘Common’, if with
a few variations in terms of dialect. Therefore, even the Untutored can read and speak the Codes once
they see or hear them. Characters can communicate in Common (or other mutual languages) and not be
understood by those who only use the Codes.

24
 Playing
in Punth

Tutored here doesn’t necessarily mean anything academic: it could be a sailor who knew Punth, or a
merchant who trades there, or a diplomat or intelligencer briefing you on how to blend in. Ch. 7 (adapted
if necessary) is presumably a must. Other than that, access to a Chapter will depend on the tutor - it is
unlikely that a merchant will be able to teach you all (if any) of Ch. 5.
Untutored, of course, could imply any number of things: an unprepared expedition, a misfiring teleport
spell, a pressgang. What it does mean is that the characters have little knowledge of Punth and none of the
Codes.
Tutored or Untutored, there is still a schedule at which the Chapters of the Primer should reach players:

Ch. 1 Foundation & Creed Soon in the Game

Ch. 2 Entrance into Punth & Marriage On entrance
Ch. 3 Punthite Justice When desired
Ch. 4 Trade in Punth Soon in the Game
Ch. 5 Arms and the Qryth When desired
Ch. 6 Occupations in Punth When desired
Ch. 7 Religion and Foreign Affairs On entrance
Ch. 8 Names Soon in the Game
Ch. 9 Conditions Soon in the Game
Ch. 10 Goals When desired

***
I would like to make clear that the Primer by no means is meant to declare the whole of the Codes -
that would likely be a work at least the size of a thick novel. The Primer is meant to make play in Punth
possible and to introduce the Codes to players. From this position, people at the tabletop can introduce
new Codes; if the GM is doing so, then they may be slipped in however convenient. If players are doing so,
a veto system would be appropriate (‘I’m not sure that’s quite how Code 7.36.79 goes...shall we check with
the scribe?’).
Obviously, no Code is meant to be specifically advantageous for any one group (‘When Three Men, an
Elf and Two Fauns enter the land, the time of the Sky Princes is over!’). Faking a Code would require an
ignorant or young Punthite, as well as the Charisma-related ability (or magic) to effectively sell this new
‘Code’. This would not last long in one of Punth’s cities!
The following list of questions is for GMs using the Primer to decide for themselves:

• How sincere are the Qryth in their role as leaders - do they live by the Codes themselves?
• Can (and do) the Qryth communicate by other means than by the Codes?
• How competent is the rule of the Qryth?
• What is the nature of the Ka-Punth’s revolt against the Qryth?
• If the Qryth were to die off, would the state of Punth maintain itself in roughly
the same fashion?
• If the Qryth were to be contacted by their home planet, would they be welcomed home? Or
have they been so thoroughly culture-warped and gene-twisted that they would never wish to?
• What was the Sorcerer-King trying to accomplish?
• Can Punthites wield magic? Or must they rely on outsiders, willing or otherwise?
• Do the djinn have any genuine power, or are they only unquiet spirits?
• Do the djinn have any collective plan to regain their former power?

25
 Qryth Questions

I shall go over the questions about Punth and the Qryth that might ask for an answer - and haven’t quite
been answered elsewhere.

How do you pronounce Punth and Qryth?

I have it thus: Punth is pronounced to rhyme with Month. Qryth is composed of the ‘Cry’ sound from
‘Cryogenics’ and the latter portion of ‘Knife’.
I suspect that both names might be rendered without the final H, the same as letters of the Hebrew
alphabet are rendered both with and without an H - i.e., Daleth/Dalet, Teth/Tet. This may be indicative of
geography - Northerners say QryTH, Southerners say QryT’.

What surrounds Punth?

To the North: A mountain range; beyond that, southern provinces of the Nirvanite Imperium.
To the East: The mountains of the Spine of the World.
To the West: The Stained Sea; beyond the sea, the League of Civic Etiquette.
To the South: deserts, then three rivers that lead to the sea, trailing quarreling kingdoms.

What’s the terrain and climate of Punth like?

Fertile Crescent-Mesopotamia, with Arabian Empty Quarter regions and a single coastline. Settlement
is centred around the rivers, but the more desert regions have Qryth occupancy and thus distort the
typical model of population (as in the Hexcrawl on page 36).

How is Punth governed?

The Qryth rule resembles an aristocratic republic like Ancient Rome or Carthage, but with the sort of
domination by the Qryth that utterly crushes any democratic influence. There is a ‘tribune of the plebs’
equivalent for human Punthites, but this is not a position of power. An emergency powers role - a Shogun
or a dictator in the Roman Republican mode - can be granted, but has rarely become a cross-generational
feature. Qryth cultural strength restrains it.
All this is without taking into account the Codes and the power they offer. That very clearly puts a new
light on things, whatever the parliamentary practices might be. It becomes much more reminiscent of a
one-party state in the twentieth century. But the Qryth have been at this for centuries. A position in the
Assembly or the Codification Group is politically fraught, but a disgraced Qryth Assembly member is
going to be to be sent off into a distant provinces or to an estate rather than be executed without trial.
Parliament, not Politburo. Oligarchical collectivism? Not quite.

Is there a Punthite religion?

Not really. The Codes are a pragmatic device for working in the world - though they are so all-consuming
that they might be said to have the status of a religion.

26
 Qryth
Questions

Is there a Qryth religion?

Again, not really. As space-farers, the original shipwrecked Qryth had the sort of faith that had become
rather abstract. However, Qryth culture is an obsession: keeping the torch burning, sticking together, rather
than becoming a scattered people, permanent exiles.

...the features of Qryth culture being?

Of course, if the ancestors of the present-day Qryth or their people beyond the stars saw all this, they
would be deeply confused. The most foreign element is the interpretation of the Codes and the leadership
of the Punth: this is part of the life of each Qryth. Magisterial scholarship and jurisprudence dominates
the academies of the Qryth. But this is acknowledged as duty distant from their essential ‘Qryth-ness’.
The Qryth culture in Punth, then, involves learning a great deal of history, learning and living in a
traditional Qryth manner (the greatest of the Qryth tread a fine line doing this: the more they spend in
Reserves or Retreats, the more they embody their culture, the more status they gain - but their own power
and influence may suffer). The crew of the Qryth ship that crashed were adventurous explorer types,
pseudo-military even - hunting and athletics pursuits are typical. This has a distorting influence on Qryth
art, as if a predominant theme of sculpture were Rugby Union and the Venus di Milo wore a scrum cap.

Hang on, Terrae Vertebrae has magic and clerics and so forth - do the Qryth have souls? What happens
to the Punthites after death, given their moral status?
Foreign theologians debate this intently. They have come to the notion that some sort of Purgatory is
provided for the less malevolent of the Punth. The Qryth are damned for their tyranny or complicity in
tyranny. The various Crusades into Punth are a consequence of this.

So, can the Punthites do magic? And the Qryth?

The Punthites can, but it’s an uphill struggle given the thought-dominating status of the codes. The
Qryth are outsiders to this ‘magical biome’; it is a real struggle for them to master even the basics. This is
exacerbated by the lack of a Qryth magical tradition, both pre- and post-shipwreck.

Does Punth trade a great deal?

Not really; it has had to be self-sustaining at many points in history during wars. Even pre-Qryth, it
wasn’t a seafaring state and the deserts and mountains make trade difficult.
Ports exist on the coast, but the economy of Punth, while not as such centrally planned, puts a great
deal of stress on coordination for the purposes of the Qryth; there is no regular trade deal due to Punth’s
status as an outsider on the international stage and those traders that do come to Punth are rarely greeted
warmly. This is due to being outside the Codes, a mercurial commercial policy and Qryth snobbery.
It might be compared to Western merchants travelling to the East Indies in the Sixteenth Century.
While there isn’t so far to travel, there is no established diplomatic link or trade policy in place; who
knows what the local potentate or governor will think of you; the culture shock is acute; and making a
deal, let alone a profit is a shaky proposition at best.

What’s the architecture like, what with ten-foot folk living besides five-foot folk?
All public buildings are Qryth-sized - compulsory under the Codes (besides being useful in places that
function-wise have to accommodate plenty). Some private buildings are regularly sized, but a Punthite of
status will have a Qryth-sized home or reception space.
27
 Qryth
Questions

The prominent feature of Punthite architecture is the ziggurat: a defensible citadel, a reminder of their
history, a court for the Qryth officialdom. Qryth cultural impulses on the part of the shipwrecked crew
preserved smaller things than buildings - just as stranded humans might preserve the Iliad with more
ease than Classical architecture. The oldest and grandest ziggurats were built with advanced technology
and thus are the best examples of Qryth architecture. The original crash site was also heavily fortified -
but the pre-fabricated huts that the spaceship carried have long since gone and the walls alone remain
from those days.

Speaking of advanced technology, what’s left among the Qryth?

The occasional ray-gun and communicator. A few medical devices, with ritualistic instructions and
limits uses (the automatic doctor can reattach legs good as new - but it takes time to set it up, during which
time the patient might bleed out and it can only reattach legs).
The sort of standard of these things is indicative in one of those old machines that has been maintained
to this day. It can make armour from ingots of iron and with plenty of time to charge up the solar panels.
What it really produces are very close fitting pieces of metal, perfectly weighted and shaped for a given
individual, of a very high quality steel. But a team of craftsmen has to attach straps, buckles and pads to
these pieces of metal and make the whole thing workable.

What do they eat?

The Punthites eat what humans eat. Their diet is perhaps limited and functional rather than extensive,
but is not utterly bleak.
The Qryth spent some time doing genetic modification to make local plants edible and nourishing for
them, as well as generally more healthy, bigger &c. They have applied this to a number of beasts as well
(hence the game reserves, though some Qryth-beasts can be reared for food rather than just hunted).
They can no longer make said modifications on any great scale.

Why go to Punth?
Well, an outsider might escape pursuit there. The Codes take little notice of the laws and mores of other
lands. There are advantageous trade deals to be made - the needs of the Punthites vary wildly with the
seasons and the right cargo at the right time is well rewarded. The ruins of the tower and the artefacts it
contained are reason enough to attract some adventurers. Qryth relics and reliable information about the
Qryth themselves would be highly valuable to foreign powers.

28
 The Qryth:
A Class for The 52 Pages

Half as big again as a full-grown man. Hunters; Soldiers; Magistrates; Central Planners. Green four-armed
aristo-commisars, acting out Star Trek cargo-cult legends in colourful stone ziggurats!
Details of their history are found elsewhere; for now, I shall concentrate on physical features. Ten foot
would be moderately tall for a Qryth. They possess two forward facing eyes, but set in what would be the
forehead on a human. Skins tones vary between shades of ochre and green, but rarely approaching the
bright green of grass or the solid dark green of moss. The Qryth are hairless, but have been known to use
animal pelts in (perhaps unconscious) imitation of body hair.
They possess four arms and two legs, the arms being set either side of the torso. The lower, slightly
smaller set of arms is commonly used for fine-detail work or in expressions of intimacy. To greet someone
with the upper arms only is - in fact and in verse - to propose a formal, distant relationship. The musculature
of the limbs is somewhat helical to the viewer.
The Qryth give birth to live young, although they do not suckle them and are, accordingly, breast-less.
Eggs are swapped between Qryth, rather like seahorses. This is a private affair - though it is possible that
Qryth mores have been shaped in this regard by their time in Punth. Likewise, the organs of generation
are generally concealed. Male and Female are adopted as terms of convenience. This has relatively little
bearing on the matter of Qryth behaviour: they are Sky-Princes before all else.
Qryth youths go fairly promptly from parents to creches to isolated boarding schools. Given how few
the Qryth are, their children are gathered together to create a lasting Qryth identity.
One hundred years is a not uncommon age for the Qryth to reach - though having made your century
is grounds for retirement. After the age of sixty (or thereabouts) the Qryth develop a distinct sheen and set
of streaks to their skin, rather like the bark of a hornbeam.
Qryth names are discussed in Chapter Eight of the Primer.
This class should function with a party of adventurers from outside Punth or inside. Rogue Qryth are
exceedingly rare, but this should not stop them from appearing on the tabletop. As much as Qryth do
have a fairly rigid set of social roles, hunting trips, solo journeys and other forms of independent action
are not unknown.
***
Suggested backgrounds and other details: Typically, a Qryth would be expected to be a Soldier,
Magistrate, Tactician, Logistician, Pedagogue or Scholar-Poet. The first four of these will have a fairly
formal rank structure (as before, a Qryth fighter would be known by certain high and ancient names -
Astronaut, Espatier, Star Commander, &c. Vertebraean usage tends to refer to a Qryth Knight,
Commander, Marshall.)
The Qryth have a heavily ritualised, legendary idea of their own history. This extends to the various
remaining gadget relics in their possession.
They tend to be ill-informed about magic and religion (both in terms of fine detail and how they fit into
a wider picture).

So, to the mechanics - using, as before, The 52 Pages.

A player that wishes to roll up a Qryth must have at least 13 STR.

29
 The Qryth
The 52 Pages

THE QRYTH
Size: 2 Move: 15 HP - d8+1+ CON +/-.

Attack Modifiers - +1/+1

Mind Save 5 + WIS +/- Speed Save 7 + DEX +/- Body Save 5 + CON +/-

Knowledge Notice Detail Hear Noise Handiwork Stealth Athletics

noooooo noooooo noooooo noooooo ooooooo noooooo

Must start with Background word: Punth. This encompasses a Desert background, plus the unique traits
of that land. Qryth prefer the warm and suffer in colder climes.

Four Arms: A Qryth can carry more things at once than other people, though this does not translate
to STR 18 encumbrance. They can, however, effectively wield a two-handed weapons and a shield
simultaneously, or reload a Heavy Crossbow in one turn. A Qryth could carry two two-handed weapons,
but would be obliged to use them alternately.

Stealth and Size: The Qryth are used to trying to conceal themselves in the desert, though their size can
work against them. Indoors, naturally, this becomes harder. A Qryth can go on all fours (legs and lower
arms), making them lower but longer. Thus they can go inside human-size dwellings and still use the
upper arms to fight or work - but this is relatively strenuous and going round corners is difficult.
If a Qryth below Lvl 3 has to spend a game turn like this, they take Fatigue Damage.
Some Qryth soldiers, akin to commandos, specialise in this sort of unglamorous work.

Qryth Anatomy: Healers from outside Punth will struggle to assist the Qryth. They can turn a Mortal
wound to a Critical one, but they cannot Speed Recovery.
There is a One in Ten chance that a particular poison (presumed to be effective for humanoids) will
not effect a Qryth.

Languages: A Qryth starts with two Languages: the Codes and the script of Punth.
Any language slots a Qryth player might otherwise possess are ‘banked’ until later levels.
In the event that the Qryth are hiding a secret about how they speak, it is assumed that any Qryth
would be cautious about saying as much. At least a few levels worth of cautious.

Hirelings and Henchmen: Outside Punth, normal rulings apply.

Inside Punth, it is always possible for a Qryth to find Hirelings or Henchmen, CHA notwithstanding.
Social problems may arise from this, but not mechanical ones.

Armour: Outside Punth, all Armour must be made specially for the Qryth. Extra costs will apply.
A Qryth may start with Light or Partial Medium Armour.

Level Advancement: +1 Melee, +1 Missile every Even Level

+1 to all Saves every Odd Level

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 Encounter
Tables

Ten Encounters in the Deep Deserts of Punth

1. Two young Qyrth, out on a hunt of their own. They are liable to be trigger happy and haughty.
2. A caravan of the Ka-Punth, picking their way over a blasted section of twisted rock.
A covered camel bears the fragile spirit-vessel of an ancient sorcerer, and its nervous,
twisted keeper.
3. A ruined tower, from the days of the Sorcerer-King. It is sandblasted and scarred - and
likely long empty, though who knows what might be visible from the top?
4. Scouts from Kapaleron in the north. They are doing their best not to be seen. The Qryth
would pay for news of them; they would pay for news of Punth. Who knows how complete
their maps are - or how deep their ‘discretionary funds’?
5. A djinn of the desert, once perhaps a sorcerer, circling in the heat haze. Below, a Ka-Punth
initiate hopes to commune with it. He has been staked to the ground. The rest of his number
are likely out of sight - and earshot.
6. Across a dry riverbed, a column of Punth gendarmes swarm. They are monitored by a stoic,
muscular Qryth commander.
7. A herd of Qryth behemoth-beasts passed this way - as the hoof marks and fewmets suggest.
They must have broken the bounds of a reserve - who knows what else lurks out here?
8. A skirmish, atop the flat top of a high mesa in the pitiless sun: Ka-Punth tribesmen scurry
to retreat as Punthite gendarmes advance on them.
9. A party of smugglers, lightly laden and watchful. Their packs might have weapons for the
Ka-Punth or trade goods for remote, unsupervised Punthite towns. One veiled figure is in
fact a priest from the north, hoping to carry the evangelical mission to the enslaved of Punth.
10. The sand churns; there is a rush of wind - who shall withstand it? What is it that comes
through the desert?

Shades of the Fallen Tower

The spirits of those sorcerers who ruled Punth before the Qryth still linger in the desert. The strongest are
known to the desert tribes as djinn. Here are several ways in which they might manifest.

1. A spectre in armour, upright but still bearing the marks of their violent demise upon their
person. (“Hamlet’s father”)
2. A man in the imperial finery of the ancient world, with a carefully benevolent expression.
3. A monarch, dressed for a ceremonial hunt. Their most notable feature is a long, well
groomed beard (or crown of hair).
4. The head of a lion sits on a stone pedestal, although no blood shows from the neck stump.
Bones are littered around it. The lion’s head shifts, eyes tracking your motions, and the jaw
moves.

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 Encounter
Tables

5. In a depression in the dunes, something like vegetable oil bubbles and steams - though
the puddle never reduces.
6. Within a small cave, there is an amphora of wine, which is quite fresh to the taste but
unlike any modern vintage. Those who taste will see the spirit of that place.
7. Thirteen large serpents who travel in convoy.
8. Someone is sitting on a rock, in the shade of an old pillar. They turn as you approach,
but do not get up. They cannot rise, for the below the waist they are one with the rock.
9. A tall flame, most clearly visible at sunrise and sunset. At night it is gone entirely.
10. A cleft in the ground, where a vast flame burns constantly. Smoke steadily rises up.
11. An eagle with feathers of gold and lapis lazuli. It does not seem to flap its wings much
when in flight.
12. As a tiger is to a house cat, this vast thing is to an elephant. Though it does not seem to
leave footprints.
13. A floating palanquin with purple curtains. Inside is only a skull, resting crookedly on silk
cushions
14. What’s a goat doing out here?
15. Something gleams against the sun. When you squint, the planes of a tetrahedron seem to
shimmer briefly.
16. A four-armed figure, with the head of a bird. Each hand toys with something that is either
a weapon or an ornament.
17. Blue smoke rises from the platform of a chariot. The chariot is being pulled by winged
jackals with bronze collars.
18. A tall, pillar of open air, about which the clouds cluster.
19. There is a voice on the wind, if you will only attend to it.
20. You, but prettier, better dressed and better groomed.

Gendarme Detachments
1. A civic patrol of five gendarmes, with truncheons, lathis and dirks.
2. A rural patrol of three mounted gendarmes, with lances and bows. Mounted infantry, not
horse soldiers.
3. A detachment of guards for the work gangs. Seven gendarmes; three with whips and clubs;
four with crossbows and short swords. They have a cart of their own with a canvas awning.
4. Judicial duties. A dozen gendarmes fill roles in the Ziggurat’s judgement hall - door guards,
wardens, ceremonial escorts, chasteners. Most carry a round shield and short sword. Each
wears a sash with some relevant portion of the Codes written on it.
5. Border patrol. Eighteen gendarmes, with mounts and pack beasts. Most carry spears or
bows. Their leader has a map of the area; his adjutant a detailed set of records.
6. Mercantile inspectors. Found in any of the regions that permit trade. Six gendarmes with
truncheons or lathis; two armed scribes; three crossbowmen; one inspector.

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 Encounter
Tables

7. Sorcerer’s escort. One sorcerer (of relatively low ability). Three armoured gendarmes.
Two gendarmes with padded truncheons, nets and long spears. One sorcerer’s handler,
with a short sword and extensive records. Four additional gendarmes; one securely built
and boxy sedan chair.
8. Sky Prince’s retinue. Four gendarme veterans with a variety of military weapons (broadswords,
battle-axes, crossbows, medium armour, shields). Two armed scribes. Six additional
gendarmes, with baggage animals. Oh, and somewhere there will be one of the Qryth.
9. Gendarme pioneers. A dozen gendarmes with spears, shields and crossbows. Two
engineers. Six gendarmes with lathis and short swords to guard the work gangs.
Two wagons carry tools and supplies.
10. Gendarme baggage train. Six wagons with draft animals; each wagon has a driver and
guard - the guard with a crossbow. Eight outriders with lances and bows. Four other
gendarmes with swords and shields.

Twenty Groups of Foreigners

1. A trade factor of Lameravis and his assistants carefully ignore the Gendarmes patrolling
outside their warehouse.
2. A survey party of Hydraulic Dwarves chart a water course down from the mountains.
3. Dust gathers as a party of Imperial missionaries process along one of the distant,
beautifully maintained roads. As a contingent of soldiers ride to meet them, a lone figure
to their rear is discreetly doing the real work of mapping routes.
4. An ambassador of the Civic Etiquette is deciding which sort of incense to employ in his
meeting with a Qryth Prince.
5. Two Chieftains from the Potter’s River nervously debate which Punthite minister to visit
first as their escort squat and cast dice.
6. Knights of the The Equestrian Order of the Seventh Aspect whoop as they sabre-rattle in
sight of a fortified ziggurat.
7. A scholar of the Bronze River is investigating some carvings on an ancient shrine outside
the city walls. No-one is sure if she should be there.
8. League fishermen have stepped ashore for fresh water on the Punthite coast.
9. Dwarves of the Spine have erected a blockhouse-cum-habadashery for the Ka-Punth rebels.
Weapons are not openly sold, but they do not need much persuasion to open the armoury.
10. A ship belonging to the White Star Order of St Lemuel has arrived at a Punthite quay,
purporting to be there on behalf of shipwrecked sailors.
11. Craftsmen from the League have resorted to mime in order to instruct Punthite artisans
in their style of sculpture.
12. Travelling herdsman from the Rawhide River adjust their face coverings as they wonder
how best to get back across the border without having to negotiate the Gendarme Outpost.
13. Two noblewomen of the League admire the carvings of a ziggurat from the interior of
their palanquin.

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 Encounter
Tables

14. Dancing Fauns attract admiration from the other outsiders and confusion from the
Punthite citizens nearby.
15. An expatriate of the Civic Etiquette lapses into the Codes as he talks to his pet cat,
surprising the feline.
16. The liturgy used by Imperial Merchants in Punth differs from that used by priests in the
Empire - first in its frequent prayers for their home and loved ones, second in that it is less
explicit about who the enemies of the faithful are, and third in that it is kept at a discreet
volume. All the same, perhaps you can hear a low chanting from one of these houses?
17. Gendarmes are busy trying to settle a dispute between feuding southerners from the
Rawhide River. The quarrel would be tiresome and convoluted, even if they could all
speak the same way.
18. Merchants and Factors of the Empire and the League have decided to pool their wine
stocks. Everyone involves this is a very good idea, and worthy of a drink.
19. The Custodian Knights of St. Castrum have managed to erect a fort near to the wells of
Junction 1477 in the Northern Desert. They would be glad of news, supplies or armour polish.
20. An angry troop leader from the Bronze River insists to the skeptical Gendarmes that
this aggressive chanting and stomping is purely ritual in nature, and not a prelude to unrest.

A Punthite stronghold, recently

assaulted by the Knights of
St Castrum.

34
 The Northern
Reserve

The Reserve
This is a place chosen long ago for its resemblance to the Qryth homeworld and is designated as a place
for their cultural heritage. As such, humans are kept out. Ancient arts and the careful use of magic have
recreated a number of chimera resembling the species of the Qryth homeworld; kept for the pleasure and
education of the Qryth. However, this is no perfect reconstruction of the homeworld, nor of its practices,
nor its mores.
Nevertheless, the Qryth do not wish for the land they rule to be devastated by the beasts they hunt.
Barriers both physical and magical bound the reserve, keeping the beasts in. The Qryth are not fond of
magic or magicians – who must, perforce, often operate outside the Codes. They are kept carefully guarded.
The Reserve lies close to the mountains that divide Punth and Imperial Lands. Its position is far from
the main passes or the Western Seaboard. It has limited strategic value. Other similar reserves exist in the
land of Punth.

Qryth Beasts
The beasts of the Reserve offer a science fiction account of the various ‘Dire’ beasts of fantasy RPGs. If
the scale of giant lizards wavers between Dinosaurs and Dragons, they tend towards Dinosaur (apply this
dictum as necessary towards the more mammalian of the Qryth beasts). Nevertheless, however adapted
the beasts are to Punth, they are in some real sense alien. One should not expect their responses to follow
those that a Ranger or Druid might expect of pack carnivores or herd animals.
Below are mentioned: Qryth pachyderms, Qryth behemoth-beasts, Qryth fanglizards, Qryth drakes,
Qryth kine, Qryth smilodons.

Qryth kine have elected to

bathe in this waterhole.

35
 The Northern
Reserve
00.10 A Camp of Ka-Punth have gathered here.
They have spotted the Dwarven expedition’s fires
at 01.05 and would welcome an introduction and/
or interpretation. They would value the Dwarves
as a trading partnership or an ally against the
Qryth.
01.05 Dwarves from the Dividing Mountains have
come down into Punth, making a periodic
reconnaissance into the hilly hinterlands. Their
presence would not be appreciated by the Qryth.
Their maps are out of date, but would only trust
other Dwarven maps – not that any information
you might offer would be valueless.
02.00 A Dwarven tunnel and the ‘beachhead’ for
the Dwarves in 01.05. It is guarded, but the guards
are few, trusting to secrecy more than numbers.
They are still less than hospitable.
36
02.14 A camp of Ka-Punth, unaware of the Dwarves
and merely hoping to do some business in the town
at 17.13. They would not appreciate the trouble the
Ka-Punth at 00.10 might stir up.
05.08 Outside the reserve on the south-west edge
is a shrine. This is a retreat for the most faithful
servants of the Qryth, so that they can be close to
their masters. They are strictly prohibited from
going within, but are offered sumptuous views of
the reserve. The scribes, functionaries and
lordlings within are devoted to the Qryth; though
might pay heavily to infiltrate the reserve. The site
is well-guarded; the Qryth may visit them if they
deem it fitting. If you could retrieve the shrine’s
copy of the Codes, this would be immensely valuable
in moving among the Punth unseen. Many foreign
powers would deeply appreciate such a copy.

06.06 A Qryth monument. It is used in a few rituals;
one day in twenty it might be visited by a Qryth
elder and two juniors; one day in a hundred it
might be visited by thirty Qryth of various ages.
06.07 The central territory of a pack of monstrous
Qryth fanglizards.
06.09 The central territory of a herd of Qryth
behemoth-beasts.
07.08 A Qryth monument. It is used more frequently
than that in 06.06. Nearly every day at noon, a few
Qryth are seen there. Once a month, it is possible to
see several Qryth holding a vigil over several days
around it, seated on red rock dolmens around the
monument.
08.05 The central territory of a herd of Qryth kine.
08.07 Atop a thick column of rock is the hunting
lodge of the Qryth. It has something of a barbaric
splendour, full of rooms built for non-human
proportions and tastes. It is filled with not only
dwellings and hunting trophies, but also Qryth
records and reading-rooms as well as artwork
by the Qryth for the Qryth – much of it made in
studios at the lodge. It is heavily walled to prevent
the beasts of the reserve attacking but on the north
side a culvert might offer a way in. The three roads
merge into one before entering the main gate.
08.10 Rough ground makes this a fine ingress point
to the reserve.
09.07 A group of Qryth pachyderms make their
home here.
09.10 This is the main access point to the reserve
from across Punth. The gates are guarded and the
garrison that patrols them and much of the reserve
edge resides here. Beside them in 10.10 and 10.11 is
an oasis and herds of cattle that are used to feed the
beasts of the reserve.
10.05 This fort is used to house the apprentice
magicians that maintain the bounds of the reserve.
They are guarded very well and have little fond-
ness for their guards or, necessarily, the Qryth. If
they are removed from their duties (by whatever
means) the magical bounds will dwindle in 1d4
weeks. The Qryth are averse to checking the bounds
themselves; the whole point of the reserve is to
forget their human subjects. However, the lack of
37
The Northern
Reserve
magicians will be discovered in 1d3 weeks. If the
bounds do fail, the beats within will find ways over
or around the walls in at least a week and a half.
10.09 A group of Qryth drakes have their homes
here.
10.10 The oasis here sustains the cattle in 10.11.
10.11 Pens corral the cattle for the reserve here.
The beasts inside prey on one another, but it is
considered preferable that they do not wipe one
anther out and so prey-species are introduced and
patches of vegetation cultivated. If the supply of
cattle or feed was destroyed or stopped, it would
take some weeks before the animal population
began to drop.
11.06 Howling and mewing, here roam a pride of
loping Qryth smilodons.
12.14 A watering hole marks the turn off from the
highway to the reserve. It is a good meeting point
for traders.
17.00 Another Dwarven tunnel emerges here; the
miners would be glad of company.
17.13 A Punth town is here, complete with a
ziggurat - the equivalent, perhaps of an English
Cathedral town. Being so close to the border, it is
well fortified. Being so close to the reserve, there are
plenty of Qryth present. Not necessarily populous,
but important. If you could retrieve the town’s copy
of the Codes, this would be immensely valuable
in moving among the Punth unseen. Many foreign
powers would deeply appreciate such a copy.
18.08 A Punth village is up the river here from 17.13.
It lacks any Qryth presence. The hetman, with
his own unique take on the Codes, maintains a
quiet smuggling trade with the Ka-Punth and the
Dwarves.
 An Account
of the Foundation
of Punth

The following is the ‘most obvious’ set of conclusions for a foreign investigator or Qryth Studies
scholar to come across, with a certain amount of reading between the lines. Naturally, this should be
changed to fit in with the various questions on page 23.

Many centuries ago, the land called Punth was like any other human realm – but it was under, and had
been for many years, the rule of a Sorcerer-King and his cabal. Not content with wielding power over the
bodies of men, he extended his grip to their minds. He held absolute sway over them for decades.
Then the sky fell on his head. Either by the final collapse of his power, or divine intervention, or cosmic
coincidence, a vessel of shining metal sundered his tower, his flesh and his spirit – though the vessel itself
was cracked utterly in so doing. The crew of the vessel called themselves the Qryth; beings of another
world. They are somewhat humanoid, typically ten feet in height, generally having greenish skins and
four arms, stronger than those of men.
These Qryth found themselves stranded, with slim chance of rescue. Fortuitously, they found themselves
in a largely agreeable climate; further, they had just decapitated a potentially hostile power. However, the
trauma to Punth levelled by not just a crashing star-ship but also the shattering of a mind-control network
was acute. The Qryth, out of both benevolence and self-interest wished to rebuild Punth. Being the only
sapient creatures capable of meaningful volition and action in Punth, they naturally took on leadership
roles.
In order to give instruction to the people of Punth, they created the Codes. A vast canon of instruction,
teaching, law and thought. The only means of communication after the arrival for the Qryth would be
in quotation from these Codes. Among the Punth, this is the case still. It would be many years – at least a
generation - before the Qryth met with the folk of other lands and realised their error in the introduction
of the Codes. When they did so, they elected to maintain them for the sake of the psyche of Punth and
their own security on a strange world.
The humans that dwell in Punth are of two sorts then: dwellers in fixed communities, that communi-
cate solely in the Codes. The higher one’s education or status, the more of the code is known. For a city to
be a city, it must have a centre with the entirety of the Codes, alongside a school for their teaching and a
dwelling for a Qryth overlord. The Qryth are not pure tyrants. But to shake the influence of the ‘Sky Princes’
is nigh on-impossible.
The other humans are the nomads, the outcasts. Shaken from the pillars of society by the envoys or
missionaries of other lands, they speak freely. They call themselves the Ka-Punth, the ‘true’ Punth. Such
stories as they have of the fall of the Sorcerer-King are decidedly garbled. It is rumoured that some fraction
of his spirit, or that of one of his disciples, still moves amongst the tribes offering magical knowledge and
inspiring revolt. They accept the de facto dominance of the Qryth – who in their turn do not spend great
quantities of blood and treasure in pursuing them.
As for the Qryth themselves, they might live longer than men, but all the first generation have died
long ago, as have their offspring and children’s offspring. Their energy-throwers, landscape engines and
thinking devices have decayed beyond practical or frequent use. They have detailed records, but these are
rarely illuminating.
The neighbours of Punth are not friendly to the Qryth. This may be due to a garbled account of the
fall of the Sorcerer-King conflating him and the Qryth, or a religious impulse based on free will, or the
alien nature of the Qryth. An understanding of the Codes and the influence they have on the Punth
makes sympathy for them limited.

38
 Punth: A Primer:
Appendix N

Some of the below have been referenced in Chapters of the Primer and other blog posts. Other inspira-
tions have not been hitherto mentioned.

Genesis, Ch. 11 Verses 1-9 will provide you with the story of the Tower of Babel.
The Wisdom literature of the Old Testament, or similar works of the ancient world, are not a specific
inspiration, but are useful reading. The portions of the Codes in the Primer are not written on this model -
Punth is atheistic - but it is still in the DNA of the Primer; see below.
Snow Crash, Neal Stephenson
The discussions of Babel, language and Sumerian culture are more relevant to Punth than corporate
warfare, hacking and the metaverse.
Dune, Frank Herbert
The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe
The chapters of Citadel of the Autarch devoted to the Ascian language are obviously vital, but the image of
a collapsed space-faring civilisation is also arresting. The Azoth of The Book of the Long Sun is of interest as
an artefact of a space-faring civilisation, devestating in its impact.
Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell
The element of Newspeak is perhaps most relevant.
The Primer probably rests more on the interpretation of Nineteen Eighty-Four as an eternal, timeless
parable of totalitarianism than as a grotesque satire of Britain in the late 1940s that has implications for
the totalitarian. The former interpretation is expressed in the casual use of the term ‘Orwellian’; the latter
may be found in the first half of Anthony Burgess’s 1985.
A Princess of Mars and the Barsoom series, Edgar Rice Burroughs
The Qryth draw a great deal from ruined, warlike Barsoom. They could be thought of as a melding of the
Green and White Martians.
The Saga of Recluce, L. E. Modesitt, Jr.
Most notably Fall of Angels, Magi’i of Cyador, Scion of Cyador.
Declare, Tim Powers
The djinn of the desert owe a great deal to Declare. The mix of Biblical and Middle Eastern narratives is
also a notable part of Punth’s DNA.
Stories of Your Life and Others, Ted Chiang
Seeing Like a State, James C. Scott
The central thesis as outlined in several reviews is of more relevance than any given case study in Seeing
like a State.
Reflections on the Revolution in France, Edmund Burke
Red Plenty, Francis Spufford

39
 Appendix
N

Star Trek
I cannot claim to have been thinking of any given part of Star Trek when writing on the origins of the
Qryth, but as an image of space exploration advanced enough to invoke Clarke’s Third Law as well as
vigorous enough to produce the Qryth, it serves nicely.
Warhammer 40,000
It occurs to me that there is something reminiscent of Warhammer 40,000 in the Qryth. Tradition-bound
Orwellian maniacs, stronger than anyone else in that polity, trapped within the structures - physical,
political, cultural - of another, greater age. More OSR aesthetics of ruin, for those who care for them - but
the tragedy and loss, the dislocation and the dark comedy, of 40k’s Imperium of Man has a distinct
likeness to the Qryth. Though they would likely connect with the Tau more than anyone else.
Chariots of the Gods?, Erich Von Daniken
I have not read Chariots of the Gods, but it serves as synecdoche for the whole of the ‘Ancient civilisations
were built by aliens’ school of thought.
Seven Pillars of Wisdom, T. E. Lawrence
More for the atmosphere of the desert than the events of the Arab Revolt.
The Pillow Book, Sei Shonagon

Further commentary and discussion exists at the creator’s blog, World-Building and Woolgathering.

The author is happy for you to assume that his library looks like this.

40
Here Ends
The
Handbook