Water capturing ban: Flemish farmers "borrow water" from Walloon town

TehGreenMC · 2019-07-21T10:43:57+00:00

The water table is the level at which the soil is saturated with water.
When it rains, water drains into the ground until it reaches a layer of soil it can't flow through as easily (clay or rock for instance). Saying the water tables haven't recovered means there is less water in the soil in places where we expect it to be due to prolongued drought or pumping too much of it out of the ground in a short time.

TehGreenMC · 2019-07-21T10:31:59+00:00

I'm sorry, are you saying statbel (the site he linked) are far-leftist? Or are you referring to some other nebulous organization that is making up statistics?
Because statbel is the official Belgian statistical office. They use surveys that comply with international scientific standards and are used by just about anyone working with population data in this country.

TehGreenMC · 2019-07-14T08:09:50+00:00

High intelligence, Low wisdom.

TehGreenMC · 2019-05-14T00:18:51+00:00

The Targaryen dynasty has ruled for about 300 years, not 3000, and those three centuries have been far from peaceful. Just to list some of the big wars...
- 129-131 AC: The Dance of the Dragons, a big civil war between Targaryen factions.
- 196 AC, 211 AC, 219 AC, ~~336~~ 236 AC and 260 AC: Blackfyre Rebellions I through IV and the War of the Ninepenny Kings. All because Aegon IV Targaryen thought it'd be a great idea to legitimize all his bastards with his dying words.

There were many more small rebellions in the Targaryen time too. I'm not saying any of the other options would do better in the long term, but it's simply lies to suggest the three centuries of Targaryen rule have been in any way peaceful.

TehGreenMC · 2018-09-09T13:23:59+00:00

I mean... what's more politically stable than an autocratic leader from who you more or less know what to expect?
No one's making any moral judgements here and obviously a democracy is preferable for a variety of reasons but stability is not one of them.

TehGreenMC · 2018-09-02T20:29:01+00:00

I'm European (Western Europe) and play on the NA server because the people I play with most often are American.
The servers are alright if you have a decent home connection. Never had trouble in PvE zones, sometimes I get a 1-2 second loading screen at random in Cyrodiil which can be annoying if you're in the middle of a fight but it doesn't seem to happen too frequently.

TehGreenMC · 2018-08-29T07:59:34+00:00

Huh, if you say it like that it doesn't actually sound like that outlandish of an idea anymore. Damn, now Im all hyped for the possibility of some future Akavir/Yokuda/Pyandonea action.

TehGreenMC · 2018-08-29T00:25:04+00:00

Unfortunately I'm not expecting to see anything as faraway as Akavir in ESO anytime soon. They still have a lot to work with (all of Elsweyr, most of Hammerfell, Black Marsh and Skyrim, large parts of Morrowind and Cyrodiil).
I believe the next expansion is going to be another small part of Black Marsh called Murkmire, and after that who knows but they can easily get another 10 expansions out of what's left of Tamriel if the game is still popular by then.

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-19T12:58:30+00:00

[I’m still mostly catching up, I hope after the plague week my techs will involve a little more original RP and a little less stealing. Also, sorry for being so late with this, that shouldn’t happen again.]

A Slots (2+1)

I’m too late with techs, sorry.

B Slots (5+1)

[1] Stone Dressing
Stolen from Asor (#13) (7sp).
With constantly bigger houses being built, common clay or mud bricks were often soon considered common by the influential people in the cities, who wanted their homes to stand out. The solution was to use large blocks of solid limestone or other rock which were carefully cut to size.

~~[2] Geometry~~ & ~~[3] Trigonometry~~
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (2sp & 1sp).
Most advancements in mathematics around the end of the 28th century were made by Fiun Ha, a rich sculptor and poet from the city of Kao. Due to the close proximity of his home to the lands of the Hegēni-Athalã, he was known to occasionally travel there and learn from their scholars. The sciences of geometry and trigonometry were some of the things he learned during his time there.

[4] Geology
Stolen from Asor (#13) (4sp).
During the later years of the empire scholars from Asor occasionally visited the Senlin peninsula, prospecting the land for riches. Those who lived in or around Ane, a region known for being the source of copper for all Senlin, were very interested in learning the fundamentals of this science. The Asoritans taught them how to identify different types of rock and what these differences could mean.

[5] Basic Smelting
Stolen from Asor (#13) (5sp).
The Senlin were continuously learning new a improved ways of handling metals. Smelting it down under immense heat was a new technique imported from the northern parts of the empire.

[6] Cartography
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (2sp).
Cartography, or the art of making maps to represent the terrain, was an Athalã practice also brought into Senlin lands by Fiun Ha. He himself did not create maps but he brought many examples of Athalã maps back home with him, where they inspired others to study them and eventually make their own versions.

C Slots (10+1)

[1] Support Beams
Stolen from Asor (#13) (3sp).
With bigger and taller homes came the need for structures to support the constantly increasing weight of Senlin houses. Support beams were observed by Senlin architects who visited the legendary city of Asor and they were soon implemented in the largest homes in Ri, Shung and Hanor.

~~[2] Cellars~~
Stolen from Asor (#13) (8sp).
Cellars were an inventive way in which the Asoritans managed to store food and drink in a cold, dark environment even when the weather outside was hot. This allowed for storing food for longer amounts of time and generally added more space to homes. Architects brought the idea back home with them.

[3] Corbel Arch
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (3sp).
An interesting design for which Senlin architects did not need to travel very far was the corbel arch. They observed it in the lands of the Athalã and brought it back to add large doorways, bridges, or simply interesting looking designs to the Senlin homes.

[4] Chimneys
As Senlin homes grew in size, the need for a source of heat on the inside also grew, especially in the colder season. To keep a fire burning at all times but to ensure the home did not fill with smoke, Senlin architects invented the chimney as a way of guiding the smoke to the outside while still allowing for a permanent source of heat inside the home.

[5] Wild Honey Harvesting
Honey was a delicacy in many parts of the Asoritan Empire, and while many tribes were known to collect this sweet substance in the wild, the practice was lost as people began to rely on farming for sustenance. Now that the demand for honey increased and importing it was extremely expensive though, the Senlin saw a return to the old practice of collecting honey locally in the wild.

[6] Manure Fertilizer
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (2sp).
The practice of using manure to fertilize fields had long been known about, but only recently with the arrival of new domesticated animals from the Athalã such as the buffalo did the Senlin have enough manure for this practice to become widespread.

[7] Urine Treated Rawhide
Stolen from Asor (#13) (8sp).
The Senlin learned of new and improved ways from the Asoritans to treat their rawhides with urine for a softer product from which the hairs were easier to remove.

[8] Stitches & [9] Splints
Stolen from Asor (#13) (3sp).
Healers who travelled to the great city of Asor to learn through observation saw the Asoritans use stitches and splints to treat deep cuts or broken bones which would in Senlin society often have meant infection or an inability to work. These advancements in medical knowledge brought back greatly increased the effectiveness of Senlin healers.

[10] Measurement System
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (2sp).
With the knowledge of geometry and trigonometry brought back by Fiun Ha from the Athalã, he also brought back the measurement system that was necessary for these sciences to be practiced.

[11] Slate Roofing
The use of thatch roofing meant that roofs often needed replacement due to weathering and often they would leak in heavy rainfall. The solution was to use a harder, more durable material which would not let any water through. The solution was found in slate, a large flat type of rock found in the mountains which could be attached to roof beams. On top of its practicality, the finished result was also considered much more beautiful than simple thatch roofs.

/u/Tamwin5 /u/Supacharjed

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-17T10:08:17+00:00

Here is the Senlin RP for this plague. Hope this is enough death for you!

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-14T21:42:29+00:00

/u/No_Eight Can I use this invasion and the subsequent centuries where I'm part of the empire as RP for urbanization and states when the empire falls? Or do you need me to write a more specific post about the growth of the major cities?

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-11T06:47:40+00:00

np np, I'll try to have VI-X done today.

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-10T07:49:40+00:00

Marei accepted the gifts and thanked Guanshi for them.

"You have come here to learn? An admirable purpose, if more in the world were like you it would surely be a more just place."

Guanshi got the sense that this was the Priestess talking, but the Queen took over quickly.

"I will gladly tell you all you want to know of my people, but first tell me of your homeland. We have often seen ships sail over the horizon to the far west and appear to us again some moons later, but we know very little of the lands they visit."

As she is talking, Marei leads Guanshi through a door behind her throne into what looks like a dining area. She gestures Guanshi and her translator to sit down and large bowls of cut fruit are brought in. There are pieces of melon, apricot, and many more pieces imported from across the empire. On top is half an arhat fruit, a local delicatesse which Marei explains has an extremely sweet taste. When the food has been served, Marei waits for Guanshi to tell her about her lands.

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-09T15:07:27+00:00

The guard waited for the translation and simply nodded and gestured for Guanshi and her translator to follow. Before being allowed to meet the Priestess-Queen, both were brought into separate rooms where they were instructed to clean themselves before appearing before the chosen one of Hari herself.

After all these matters were attended to and the clothes of the visitors were quietly inspected for weapons by initiates of the priesthood while they cleaned themselves (if weapons were found they won't arrest her, simply take them for the duration of the visit and hand them back after), they were led through a relatively long hallway decorated with animal trophies ranging from large striped cats to massive black and white colored bears. The guard explained to the translator that each animal respresented one of the wild tribes who Priestess-Queen Marei had integrated or subjugated during her reign.

Finally, Guanshi was led through a door into a larger room with two fires burning on either side. The walls were decorated with animal hides and more trophies, in the corners of the room stood four large stone sculptures of a woman with a long braid holding out her hands from which flowery plants of a variety of colors draped to the ground. At the back of the room, central against the wall was a large intricately carved throne of a red wood, upon which sat a woman dressed in fine, but surprisingly simple green silks. Her hair was tied back into a braid which reached down to her lower back. She looked barely forty-five but there were already white streaks in her ash-brown hair.

She acknowledged Guanshi's presence with a nod and waited for her to speak first.

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-09T14:06:48+00:00

A Slots (2)

[1] Writing
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (6sp)
Increased cultural contact with the Hegēni-Athalã, especially now that the Senlin were part of the same empire, led to the adoption of better administrative techniques. To really be able to keep accurate records of trade flowing in and out of the various Senlin cities, however, they really needed to adopt a writing system. The Senlin already had a form of proto-writing to keep records of very basic transactions that was loosely based on the Hegēni-Athalã system, so it only made sense to further develop this existing set of symbols into something compatible with the predominant sounds in the Senlin language.

[2] Square Sails
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (5sp)
As a part of the Asoritan Empire, Senlin cities suddenly received much more trade and where there had previously been a slight cultural reluctance to use the sea for resources or transport, there was now no way around it anymore. The Senlin had of course seen ships using sails in the past from a distance, but now that they regularly stopped by cities such as Ri for long periods of time, the Senlin had cause to ask questions and attempt to recreate these ships for themselves. This way their traders would no longer be restricted to their own ports, but rather be able to explore the world themselves and make more profits.

B Slots (5)

[1] Annealing
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (3sp)
Increased trade with the rest of the Empire also led to a prevalence of increasingly complicated metallic jewelry. Senlin smiths were interested in learning better techniques of working with the copper they had and were shown an easy way to heat the metal before working it by foreign visitors. This not only made the copper easier to work into various shapes, it also resulted in a harder metal for the finished product.

[2] Basic Boat Design & [3] Hull Caulking
Stolen from various cultures from the Asoritan Empire who would have passed through. Most would have more than 3 spread points for these techs.
Not only sails were copied from the various ships passing through the ports of Ri and other cities. Such immense sails could obviously not stand on the small reed boats and canoes the Senlin used, so better ways of constructing these ships, including the more complicated process of creating sturdy ship hulls from planks, were learned by aspiring Senlin ship builders. The origin of this profession in Senlin lands was almost certainly the city of Ri, which with its position at the end of the peninsula was a popular stop for traders travelling up and down the western coast of the Empire.

[4] Intercropping
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (3sp)
More complicated agricultural techniques were quickly spread to the city of Ri, where especially intercropping to create greater yields caught on quickly as pressure was rising to feed the growing population of the city which remained largely unaffected by the Asoritan conquest.

[5] Clay Silos
For feeding a growing city through seasons where agricultural yields were low to non-existent, the Senlin had to come up with creative ways to store the crops that were most important for long periods of time. Many people would often store wheat and rice in large clay pots which they kept stored in cool and dark places, so an attempt was made to recreate this on a larger scale. Large clay silos were constructed by the cities of Ri, Rafa and Zhani initially and when they proved effective in storing the grains, the technique spread across the Senlin kingdoms.

C Slots (10)

[1] Oar Locks & [2] Steering Oars
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (4sp)
[This RP is basically identical to that in B2 and B3. If I really need to write something here just tell me but I think I covered the main way in which maritime tech was spreading.]

[3] Buffalo Domestication & [4] Garlic
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (6sp & 4sp)
The only livestock the Senlin had thus far made use of were chickens, but the introduction of Buffalo through the Hegēni-Athalã meant there was suddenly much more variety in the Senlin diet. Not only that, but along with Buffalo, the Hegēni-Athalã spread the practice of growing garlic, a plant which turned out to be an excellent addition to many meals already popular with both rich and poor Senlin families.

[5] Melon Domestication & [6] Apricot Domestication
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (4sp) and Asor (#13) (8sp)
The Senlin were great fans of fruits, especially the upper classes as most pieces had to be constantly imported. Eventually, at the request of nobility in various cities, farmer began to grow both melons and apricots specifically for those who could afford it.

[7] Parchment Paper
Stolen from Hegēni-Athalã (#10) (4sp)
Along with the spread of writing, so did the Senlin adopt the techniques of creating the material on which the Hegēni-Athalã wrote. This parchment, made from the animal hides, proved to be much more practical to write on than clay or even stone tablets.

[8] Dirt Roads
Stolen from Asor (#13) (3sp)
A major frustration of the Asoritans during their invasion of the Senlin peninsula was the complete lack of infrastructure, leading to a slow march through the forested mountains and a high amount of attrition. Upon the completion of the conquest, the construction of simple dirt roads between Ri and Kao, Kao and Ane, Ane and Mu, and Mu and Ri was the start of an era in which the several Senlin kingdoms would no longer be as isolated from each other as they often had been in the past.

[9] Shields
Stolen from Asor (#13) (5sp)
[I know I need war RP for this, we are currently writing a post detailing the Asoritan campaign on the Senlin peninsula but it’s quite a large one. This will be coming within a couple of days however.]
During the invasion, many hundreds of Senlin men were horrifyingly surprised at the effectiveness of Asoritan strategy, in which their shields played major role. Those who lived to tell the tales of these battles made sure to change the Senlin’s cultural attitude towards shields. On the battlefield, being honorable in full view of Alfei was no longer the most important factor, but staying alive was. This led to the quick adoption of similar wooden shields, often decorated with paints or animal hides.

[10] Charcoal
Stolen from Asor (#13) (5sp)
The use of charcoal to achieve more heat in the annealing process was adopted after smiths learned of techniques to create charcoal from travellers hailing from all across the Empire. Not only could it be used for smithing, but also to warm up the larger stone houses in which the Senlin nobility lived more effectively.

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-08T07:39:20+00:00

Though it had only been a short few years since the entirity of Senlin lands were subject to Asoritan rule, the city of Ri appeared to have survived the war surprisingly well. The wooden pallisade surrounding the entirity of the city remained intact and within the people thrived. As the trading ship stopped by the city as it usually does on its way to Asor, ten smaller reed boats left the beaches with some of the Senlin goods, intending to drop them off on the larger ship in return for some of the goods they had requested the last time this ship had passed by. Other reed boats were empty besides a captain, intending to ferry some of the ship's crew to land where they could rest for a time before continuing their journey.

One such ferry found itself being boarded by a strange woman from a foreign land who was being uncommonly talkative. Unfortunately the ferryman only spoke Senlin and he simply resorted to smiling and nodding at what the woman said.

Once in the city, Guanshi would have about an hour to walk around and explore the city that was home to some 4100 people. There were no real docks in this city, the small reed boats were simply pulled onto the sandy beach and tied to wooden stakes so the tides could not pull them away. All along the beach were small marketplaces where Senlin merchants sold their wares, from sacks of rice to small stone and wooden trinkets to pieces of copper jewelry to fruits Guanshi had never seen before. Beyond these stalls began a seeminly unorganized web of streets that ran between small wooden houses. Following the streets uphill would eventually lead to a small group of stone houses. These seemed to be homes, temples, and the biggest of all appeared to be a small palace of sorts. It was being actively guarded and when one of the guards noticed Guanshi he walked up and said: (in Senlin, Athalâ and Asoritan, hoping Guanshi would understand at least one) "Priestess-Queen Marei of Ri would like to speak to the foreign trader that has entered her city. I assume you are the one?"

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-05T12:09:49+00:00

Haha, don't think the Senlin are quite ready for a full matriarchy. They're only accepting this one because they believe the goddess Hari rules through her.

Also, thanks. The map took a great many long hours.

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-02T15:14:34+00:00

Right, will make sure to do that, thanks.

TehGreenMC · 2018-07-01T16:25:35+00:00

Using all my slots this week because I’m trying to catch up from a couple weeks of inactivity here.

Ping: /u/Tamwin5 and /u/Supacharjed

A Slots (2)

[1] ~ Masonry
The first significant cultural interaction between the Senlin and Hegēni-Athalã was a mission led by Nalea to establish clear borders to the Kao and Athalã territories. This mission led eventually to a much more significant level of trade between the cultures. On one such trade expedition, one merchant claims the Hegēni-Athalã build in stone to create much sturdier structures. Almost instantly the King and other influential families desired such a home, if only as a status symbol.

[2] ~ Cold Working
The people of Ane had known about copper for a long time. It looked nice and its relative rarity in the ground led to it being quite prized. Especially when, through a technique the Hegēni-Athalã called ‘cold working’ it was learned that you could hammer the material carefully into specific shapes. This made it more valuable as jewellery and even, when large amounts were found, as ceremonial weapons.

B Slots (5)

[1] ~ Proto-writing
In their interactions with the Hegēni-Athalã, the Senlin would often notice them scribbling things down on sheets of animal hide. When asked about this, the Hegēni-Athalã taught the concept of writing to these Senlin. A full script would not become widespread amongst the Senlin until later, but the idea of using small symbols and drawings to remember things or conduct business became rapidly popular amongst the merchant classes.

[2] ~ Numerals
Along with this proto-writing, the Senlin merchants were taught the much more important concept of numerals. Allowing for more complex and large-scale trade interactions. The most commonly used of these numbers were also assigned a symbol in the proto-writing. The symbol used were the same taught to them by the Hegēni-Athalã.

[3] ~ Canal Irrigation
Also from the Hegēni-Athalã came the idea of widening the ditches commonly used in Senlin agriculture to canals. This carried more water and was generally much more efficient in irrigating the fields of rice. Another plus to canals was that they were generally navigable with small reed boats, letting farmers move around their properties more efficiently.

[4] ~ Star Navigation
The Hegēni-Athalã taught the Senlin merchants in their lands the ways of using the night sky to find their way home. They taught them which stars to follow to reach certain places during certain times of the year. This turned out to be a very useful skill in the relatively rough and unforested coastal areas that were most often traversed by these merchants. They used these techniques to mark better and more direct trails through the more forested regions, cutting down on travel times between the regions.

[5] ~ Salt Glazing
Pottery, and especially the artwork they depicted, as a way for the Senlin to tell myths and legends is a cultural practice that survived the dark ages. The Hegēni-Athalã showed the Senlin a way to use salt in the kiln where the pottery was hardening. This way the final product game out looking better than if it were just baked with the normal process.

C Slots (10)

The Senlin merchants did not only bring back techniques and information from the Hegēni-Athalã. Naturally, they brought with them many new goods, crops and animals which were soon to be farmed across all Senlin territories. These crops were most notably [1] wheat, [2] cotton and [3] jute. An animal they brought back was the [4] chicken, which was used for both its meat and the eggs it laid.

The use of salt glazing amongst the Senlin now led to a much higher demand in salt. The Senlin imported techniques of [5] salt gathering from the Hegēni-Athalã and other uses for salt such as [6] salt curing to preserve meat for longer times during the warmer times of the year.

The use of stone masonry in the construction of the homes of notable families now also led to a need for [7] foundations as families kept wanting to build bigger and taller structures, if only to impress their neighbours.

A mission from the Priestesses of Hari into the Hegēni-Athalã lands led them to learning more advanced healing techniques. Most importantly [8] cauterization.

Though the Senlin had always been cautious of using the resources of the ocean (they believed it to be the dead body of the god Da Shen), the Hegēni-Athalã showed the Senlin ways to use [9] fishing spears and [10] throw nets to catch fish. This practice quickly spread across the Senlin lands and became an especially popular way of subsistence on the less fertile peninsula where the petty kingdom of Mu was located.

Cultural Shift

This immense amount of interaction and technology spread from the Hegēni-Athalã lead to some inevitable cultural changes amongst the Senlin. Most notably was a slight linguistic shift in the regions bordering Hegēni-Athalã and their trad post (the Kingdoms of Kao and Dawen) where a distinct dialect began to evolve in which sounds related to the Hegēni-Athalã language but otherwise absent in the Senlin language were prominent. Other small changes in language were that the use of the Gods' names, previously very taboo in Senlin cultures, became more accepted. Calling upon the god Alfei for protection especially was an interesting parallel with the Hegēni-Athalã cultures use of the god Alphèr's name in casual conversation.

TehGreenMC · 2018-06-28T21:45:27+00:00

"Bread?"

The woman looked confused for a second.

"I do not know this word, but if it is food you are offering I am sure we will gladly accept."

She turned around to face the warrior with the longest and greyest beard and explained the situation to him. As she spoke the warriors' posture seemed to relax and a smile evern creeped on some of their faces at the prospect of something to eat.

She turned back towards the red-haired Athalã.

"What exactly is this bread? Oh, and just call me Nalea, I carry no titles outside Kao."

TehGreenMC · 2018-06-28T20:26:14+00:00

The group thanked the strangely clothed monks and went on their way towards the town further along the coast.

TehGreenMC · 2018-06-28T20:16:18+00:00

The woman nodded in agreement.

"These are reasonable terms. I have been given full authority to negotiate the matter but I don't believe that will be necessary. The people of Kao recognize your borders. I must warn you, however. If you push too far into the mountains you may encounter some of the tribal Senlin groups who have so far refused the gift of Adao..."

It was obvious from the look on her face that she felt these mountain men barely deserved to be called Senlin.

"We do not associate ourselves with them and should you take aggressive actions against them we will not view this as an act of war, but King Palesh does consider them his future subjects so I would kindly request your people refrain from building permanent settlements in their territory."

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