Matahouroa Worldbuilding: Introduction

 “Long ago, mankind lived in Sawaiki, the northernmost island in the  vastness of the sea. It was the Paradise that we’ve lost, and the  Paradise that we will reclaim.”

- Raiti, the Tohunga Ahurewa

Matahouroa  is a plane covered by vast, fathomless oceans. These oceans are dotted  by many islands and archipelagi, forming patterns on the fast waters.  The largest and most notable island system is Hinawahine, the “gray  haired woman”, so named due to the mists that slide across it from the  ocean to the mountain peaks, and it is the center of the plane’s human  civilization. For the sake of brevity, and because the vast global ocean  has many secrets not yet revealed, this is where our story lies.

Hinawahine  was not the plane’s original “center”, so to speak. Long ago, in  temporal fogs so thick as the real ones, legends say that humanity lived  in the northern island of Sawaiki, a place described as an earthly  paradise. With time, however, mankind’s abuse rendered the island a  hostile wasteland, and humanity begged the gods for help. As their  answer, many a gigantic Hōkūleʻa showed up on Sawaiki’s shores, to  deliver the starving and desperate humans from Sawaiki. One, steered by  the shark god Lālākea-kupu, carried the ancestors of Hinawahine's  people. When arriving to their new home, and seeing an opportunity to  start anew, the human survivors built five Moai on Hinawahine’s most  sacred areas, to celebrate their gods as well as to prevent the same  disaster from happening again. Sawaiki is still widely sought and  remembered, however, being considered the soul's final location in the  afterlife.

When all of this happened is not clear, but the  current civilization, a vast Empire that has expended well beyond  Hinawahine, has been going on for about 3000 years, and the Moai have  been influencing Matahouroa for so long that they shaped their sacred  locations into the most massive mana pools on the plane. These sacred  spots are much craved for the benefits of such powerful magical  essences, but the price is more often than not high.

Geography

Hinawahine  is the largest known landmass on the plane, surrounded by smaller  islands often reffered to as its “daughters”. Hinawahine has a slightly  curved shape, with a ragged, inwardly-curved northern shore puncted by  cliffs, a mangrove and delta dominated eastern shoreline and  predominantly sandy beaches on the south and west, and is basically  divided into two main areas: the Lowlands and the Highlands.

The  Lowlands are Hinawahine’s ancient, untamed forests, punctuated by the  occasional savanna. A very large portion of the southern Lowlands is  also occupied by the river Ingikiwai and its mouth, the enormous  Wairepomangu swamps. Several settlements occur along both areas, the  largest being Koronitiwa, in the middle of the Wairepomango, and  Karatakara, where the Ingikiwai approaches the Highlands the most. The  Lowlands as a whole are generally safe, the major settlement areas being  ironically the most dangerous, where conflicts over the land and its  resources are frequent. Two of the Moai are located here, one in the  depths of the Wairepomango and the other at Ingikiwai’s source. The  former is well known and sought after, while the latter remains a secret  well protected by the Pirita Kahuna.

The Highlands are  Hinawahine’s enormous Central Plateau, dominated by extensive montane  prairies and crowned by a circle of high, often furious volcanic  mountains, covered by scrubland. While the Lowlands are tropical or  subtropical, the Highlands are exposed to extreme fluctuations, with hot  summers and frigid winters. Crossed by the pristine, silvery  Kapongatakere river, it is the center of civilization, with the great  city of Hiruhāramānia occupying two thirds of the southern area of the  Plateau; several smaller settlements occur in the plateau’s north,  forming a line. As the center of civilisation, the Central Plateau is  the base of operations for the human Empire, where its head resides.  Like in the Lowlands, two Moai are present in the Highlands, one in the  center of Hiruhāramānia and the other in the highly active volcanic  region in the northwest of the Plateau, both frequently visited and held  with much religious fervor.

Outside of Hinawahine, there are  many smaller islands, harboring numerous settlements, from cities  covering entire islands to small docks on otherwise wild areas. The most  strategically important of these is Hiriwa,  a fully civilized island that is the center of Hinawahine’s naval force  as well as a massive information bank. It holds the only Moai outside  of the mainland.

Lowlands

Ingikiwai

Matahouroa’as  largest known river, the Ingikiwai is considered to be the Plateau’s  shadow, its source in the westernmost mountain slopes. It runs parallel  to it, bordering the southern slopes and running to the northeast, the  mouth being the Wairepomango swamps. Many rivers on the mountain ranges  bordering the Plateau flow into it, thus at its prime the Ingikiwai is  very wide and deep. Its name comes from its inky black waters, and its  shores are generally filled by extensive, dense forests. Numerous  settlements and associated farmland occur alongside the Ingikiwai, the  great but calm river providing an easy route for commerce and  nourishment. The river itself is also a powerful source of  Green mana, thanks to the Murmuring Moai hidden in its source, and thus the  source of pilgrimage for many a mage. The Moai itself is hidden  zealously by the Pirita Kahuna, whose existence in itself is made as  esoteric as possible, and defended viciously.

Karatakara

Ingikiwai’s  largest settlement, Karataraka spans an entire valley between the river  and the Central Plateau, with a series of smaller settlements  connecting it to Hiruhāramānia, forming a near perfect corridor for  civilisation in otherwise wild lands. Karatakara is a commerce hotspot,  one of the largest in the world, obviously due to its connection to the  center of civilisation and the to Ingikiwai. It is also one of the  largest food production areas in Hinawahine, with a relatively small,  but extremely productive patch of farmland bordering it. This  unfortunately placed it at conflict wth the Patupairehe, which claim the  area as their home, and are growing more vicious as the farmland  expands.

Karatakara is run by an Ariki, a position currently held  by the young woman known as Aherenika. The Ariki is supported by an  extensive council composed of the mercantile elite, generals and a  representative of the Pirita Kahuna. The Pirita Kahuna in themselves  have immense political power, some claiming that they are the true  rulers of Karatakara, though in reality their actual political position  is a rather complex affair. It is in Karatakara where they have their  “official” base, Pounamuhoro, and where they recruit and train new members, though their true headquarters lay deep in Hinawahine’s forests.

Wairepomango

These  immense swamps occupy most of Hinawahine’s northeastern territories,  from the slopes of the Plateau to the sea. They are literally the  darkest place on the island, as its massive trees and ferns form a dense  canopy and the mists are thicker there than in anywhere else. The area  is almost completly aquatic, the ground entirely covered by black water,  sometimes quite deep in some areas. It is the home of the Kawau, as  well as several aquatic monsters that lurk in the shadowy waters, and  thousands upon thousands of shades, the highest concentration in the  known world. In spite of all of this, humans regularly pass through  Wairepomango's channels, and some live permanently in the swamp, easily  making a living by farming the Wairepomango’s fish, shrimps and other  resources. Conflict is common, Kawau or rogues stealing from the  commercial vessels or engaging in power struggles, and the generally  silent monsters and shades stalking either. Most deaths in the  Wairepomango lead to the corpse’s desecration, either becoming part of  the necromantic market, or devoured.

Wairepomango is protected by  the Taniwha known as Pango. Rarely seen, this old beast lurks in the  darkest depths of the swamps, hunting and dominating the monsters that  cruise those waters. Many Kawau and humans dare to make deals with Pango  in exchange for power, at a high cost. Those few that do manage to  satisfy Pango are greatly rewarded, however, and are the most powerful  black mages of the plane.

Koronitiwa

In  the middle of the Wairepomango lies the rotten city, a series of  floating settlements atop a deep, tree-less lagoon. Sustaining itself on  commerce, it is frequently raided by the Kawau, and attacked by aquatic  beasts. Nevertheless, Koronitiwa's relative hospitality, as well as its  resources, ensures its prominence in the trading routes of all over  Matahouroa. It is also the center of necromantic trade, where the  butchered remains of the dead are sold for dark magic rituals. Even  ashes and bones fragments are worth a lot in this trade. While  necromantic trade and necromancy are official illegal, the law turns a  blind eye to Koronitiwa, where enforcement is pointless. Ususally more  legally, Koronitiwa also provides large supply of fish, shellfish and  edible mushrooms, as well as fertiliser for more conventional farming.

The  center of Koronitiwa is the location of the Grieving Moai. The statue’s  tears are well sought by mages of all kinds, from necromancers to  healers, but they are well guarded by ravenous spirits of the dead,  which will gladly dismember anyone who comes near the statue, and add  the to their own. Only a few mages can dispell the angry shades, usually  taught by Pango to do so. These few become known as the Ataata Kahuna,  Matahouroa’s dark priests, and by default Koronitiwa’s "righteous  regents". The position of the city’s top dog is widely contested among  these ambitious mages, though not all desire to be so limited.  Currently, the city is ruled by Teone Miritene, Koronitiwa’s unofficial  Ariki, who answers directly to the mysterious Ataata Kahuna known as Pō.

Highlands

Hiruhāramānia

The  great and massive city of Hiruhāramānia is the center of Matahouroa’s  human civilisation, occupying two thirds of the southern area of the  Plateau, from the base of the mountain tops to across the Kapongatakere  river. This massive settlement is fundamentally a single building that  spans several miles, a single platform upon which are built houses and  other installations, nearly all connected to each other. In some areas,  the streets almost resemble roof-less corridors, the houses simply  chambers of a building, and the open spaces roof-less hallways. It is  overall shaped more or less like a small mountain, with the tallest  center being the Palace. The Palace acts both as the military citadel,  the headquarters of the government and the largest temple complex. The  city houses the Empire’s monarchical ruler, the “Prince”, a position  currently held by Whēuriuri. Hiruhāramānia’s priest caste, the Pūhihi  Kahuna, has historically bore immense political power, as has the  military, both forming the government body right beneath the monarch.  Politics in the great city have become submerged in an atmosphere of  perpetual and intense tension, with Whēuriuri favouring the secular body  that is the military, and Raiti displaying extreme distate for the  “Prince”, being the first Tohunga Ahurewa to openly denounce the  monarch’s rule in centuries.

Hiruhāramānia is a city where law is  holy. It is in the topmost chambers of the Palace where the Invoking  Moai is located, in the royal shrine at the center of the Palace. There  is a series of plates in front of the Moai, each bearing the holy laws  supposedly dictated by the gods. They change, in theory in accordance to  divine will, but most often secretly manipulated by Pūhihi Kahuna to  suit their agendas. Traditionally, these laws were enforced by the  military across the Empire, but elsewhere the complex bureaucracy has  ensured that few of these laws see enforcement outside of the Plateau.  And within the walls of Hiruhāramānia, the government has become largely  more pragmatic and secular, laws now extensively discussed before  approval or rejection, instead of simply accepted as divine mandate  without question. While this has increased the standards of living  within the city, the Pūhihi Kahuna perceive this as the signs of  corruption and moral decay.

As the center of the Empire,  Hiruhāramānia is fed by commerce, especially with the hotspot that is  Karatakara being rather close. Farmlands have largely been consumed by  the expanding city, and the other settlements of the Plateau usually can  only provide for themselves, though trade with Hiruhāramānia does occur  during Spring and Autumn months. The standards of living in  Hiruhāramānia are among the highest in the Empire, second only to  Hiriwa, all citizens able to afford food, water and medical care.  Education is a free service, though extensively controlled. No public  libraries exist in Hiruhāramānia, and information trade is painstakingly  monitorised. The government’s basic policy is that of a dictatorship,  where the needs of the average citizen are tended as to be as  confortable as possible, but any disruption to the now precarious  stablity is swiftly acted upon.

Kapongatakere

The  Plateau’s perpetually pristine, clear-watered river, Kapongatakere  almost perfectly bisects the Highlands, being born in the westernmost  ranges, not that far to the north of the Ingikiwai – which is considered  its “sister river” -, and ending at the easternmost end, falling into  massive, perpetually misty falls. These falls supposedly add to the  mouth of the Ingikiwai, their waters flowing into the Wairepomango,  though the mists are so thick and light-reflecting that nobody can  actually witness the bottom, and indeed many suspect that the water  simply never actually touches the sister river, evaporating into the air  and rising into the skies as clouds. Regardless, Kapongatakere is of  poor use for the commercial trade outside of the Plateau, vessels being  unable to climb the falls, and indeed the only vessels that cross the  river are small boats that simply aid locomotion within the vast alpine  steppes.

Kapongatakere passes through Hiruhāramānia, the city  having expanded to a small area of the river’s north shore, contained  within one of Kapongatakere’s few curves. The river, usually only a few  meters deep, increases in depth immensely here, and it creates massive  underground lakes that occupy most of the city’s area. These lakes,  which provide the necessary water for the inhabittants of Hiruhāramānia,  are infused with minerals that keep it perpetually pristine, clean and  drinkable, and provide it with medicinal qualities. These caverns are  the main home of the river’s Taniwha known as Kiwitea. The guardian of  the Plateau, he once also acted as an oracle for Lālākea-kupu, but this  function has waned as Rāo gained favour among the Pūhihi Kahuna.

Kōmarumaunga

The  tallest mountain in Hinawahine, and the whole of known Matahouroa,  Kōmarumaunga is located on the eastern margins of the Plateau. Rising  miles above even the already extremely tall mountains that sorround it,  it is rightfully known as the “sky mountain”, its peak perpetually  covered in white clouds, and obscured from the lowlands. The peak looks  as if cut, a disc-like, flat mountain top instead of ragged cliffs or  deep craters. Most of it is occupied by a lake of molten gold, which is  basically the tip of a volcanic channel, keeping the mountain always  warm and snow free. Eruptions do occur with some frequency, basically  resulting in the liquid gold flowing down the mountain slopes, covering  it in a crust of precious metal after it cools down. For some reason,  the slopes never have a permanent gold covering, the metal always  falling down towards the valleys and washed away by the Ingikiwai,  deposited in the murky depths of the Wairepomango.

Kōmarumaunga  is most infamous for being the main residence of Matahouroa’s militant  eagle-like Aven, the Pouakai. The mountain’s height and hostile  conditions offer a perfect base for the flying warmongerers, a nigh  impenetrable fortress to which the Pouakai can retreat in failed  excursions. And in recent years, Kōmarumaunga has become a citadel for  an army that grows steadily in number, and more lethal than ever before.

Rinomaunga

Located  to the northwest of the plateau, Rinomaunga is an area of extensive  volcanic activity, the numerous peaks and craters blackened and bare,  excepting for the toughest, fastest growing plants growing from the  crags. Rivers of lava frequently flow, and black clouds almost always  darken the sky. Toxic gases permeate the air, and temperatures oscillate  quickly, ranging from geothermic releases that cast fire on everything,  to frigid winter cold spells. Few animals live here, but people  frequently journey to this hostile land. The richness of the ashes is  too vital to ignore, and most importantly this is a sacred place, where Red mana pools the most in the whole of Hinawahine, drawing elemental mages from the whole of the plane, and planeswalkers as well.

As such, a temple, Tīrarae,  sits well in the center of Rinomanga, a vast crater dug well into the  earth, always lit by the orange glow of lava flows that pass nearby. The  temple is for the most part a series of enormous steel bars, connected  by a large, pyramidal roof, under which lays a geothermic lake of  boiling water,  the island at the middle being where the Chanting Moai  is seated. The temple is the place of residence for the Tahepuia Kahuna,  who alone are capable of some of the finest metallurgy in the Empire,  and thus widely sought and funded in exchange for producing powerful  metallic blades and armour, as well as commissoned art. The Tahepuia  Kahuna are renowed as great artists, many statues and other drafts  laying around littered across Rinomaunga, usually not for long as the  lava reclaims what was from it extracted.

Settlement Line

A line of settlements dots the east and north of the Plateau, from Hiriwapā at the falls to Maitaikāinga  a few miles to the east of Rinomaunga. These settlements are largely  farming communes, growing plantations of sweet potato and other  vegetables for subsistence and occasional trade. One of these, Mangokāinga,  is also a significant military outpost, both serving as a training  center as well as a defense measure against the perils of the mountains.  Otherwise, most of these small settlements are either ruled by a local  Ariki and/or the Pūhihi Kahuna. Both the strength of the military and  the clergy in the area are rather recent developments in response to  previous continuous independence by these settlements, which had  previously gradually diverged from Hiruhāramānia in terms of culture.  Tensions are high.

Surrounding Islands

Hiriwa

About  a mile to the east of Hinawahine, Hiriwa is one of the most important  islands outside of the Empire’s center. Having been colonised by  humanity about 2500 years ago, it had previously already been  established as the homeland of the Parekareka, which surrendered the  island in exchange for luxury. Since then, Hiriwa has been completly  civilised, its wilderness being entirely consumed by human habitations,  some of which the most sophisticated in the world, sans patches of  sterile grassland. Hiriwa is of immense importance to the Empire for  several reasons: originally the most productive fishing grounds known,  it is currently the headquarters of the navy, producing the most  advanced ships Matahouroa has to offer, stored in well protected bays.  It is also a very powerful center of communications and commerce, always  taking a role in strategising new colonies.

More importantly,  Hiriwa has become the Empire’s research and development center, where  technology is investigated and developed, being the birthplace of  sophisticated weaponry, naval or otherwise. The island is also a massive  information bank, containing Matahouroa’s largest libraries, in theory  without the level of censorship present in Hinawahine. Education is  pratically mandatory and literacy most widespread, and historically it  has been known as a safe haven for philosophers and scientists. This,  combined with the development of a well established wealthy elite, has  earned Hiriwa’s people the reputation of pretension, arrogance and  cowardice elsewhere in the Empire. The general disregard for tradition  has also equated them with ammorality and insencerity, a sentiment that  has evolved to considering terms associated with Hiriwa and its people  as pejoratives and even profanities in certain areas. Nonetheless, some  are the admirers of the island’s progressive tendencies, and certainly  apreciate its valor in naval warfare. Hiruhāramānia itself is ambivalent  on the matter, with “Hiriwa’s caress” being an euphemism for cancer and  other fatal diseases, but widely respected in the military. Karatakara  is the biggest opposer, in part due to competition it terms of commerce  and production as well as due to the constant preaching of the Pirita  Kahuna, who observe similarities between the stories of Sawaiki and the  “nature-disregarding”, militaristic Hiriwa.

Hiriwa is the only  island besides Hinawahine with a Moai, the Scolding Moai, emerging from  the waters in the bay of Tapukokoru. The Moai is tended to and protected  by the Karetai Kahuna, which keep it well enough a secret that even  only a few of the island’s human residents are aware of its location.  The Karetai Kahuna, alongside the Parekareka, are the true rulers of the  island, but entertain a pseudo-aristocratic elite originating from  merchants and the Empire’s long gone nobility, using them as puppet  rulers. This has been suspected by Hinawahine’s authorithies, and the  navy, which operates under direct orders from Hiruhāramānia, most  distrustful of the clergy and the Aven.

Inanga

Located  to the north of Hinawahine proper, Inanga is the largest of the  surrounding islands, extending by about two thirds of the length of  Hinawahine’s northern coastline, and with about a fourth of Hinawahine's  thickness. Punctuated by settlements, Inaga is still dominated by  forests, inhabited by the Hoiho, the Kākāriki, the Pīngao Taika and  local Kahuna that declare themselves to be Pirita Kahuna. A small  volcanic area known as the Kapapuia also harbors it’s own Tahepuia Kahuna group, as well as a large population of Whirotātea.