NW:Languages
About Languages
Languages that are related to each one that is already known costs one rank for basic fluency. For example, if William is fluent in a romance language, it only costs one rank to learn another romance language.
For languages that are dissimilar, an additional amount of ranks will be required for basic fluency. Typically this will be two ranks, with especially difficult, foreign, or lost languages costing more. If William wishes to learn arabic, he will have to spend two ranks to gain basic fluency.
An additional rank is necessary to become an expert at a language. This grants the character complete and utter fluidity. The character copies slang, local dialects and cultural body language with ease. (A character with English at this level may emulate regional American accents, as well as British, Cockney, Irish and other English accents, for example.).
The real world example above are for clarification only. We will not be using real world languages.
Bonus Languages from Intelligence
Bonus languages from Intelligence, if selected prior to play, are learned at the expert level. (This assumes that you grew up speaking these languages.)
What languages are available?
All PCs will share Cyril, the trade language of Cyrilmoore. When building your character you may elect to create cultural languages, alternative trade languages, and the like. You may also create arcane languages.
For example, Tom is playing Nardu, who is a spellcaster of the land who reveres all things nature. He has an Int of +3 and thus has three bonus languages at first level. Tom decides to create a language just for those who practice magic like Nardu and names it Forest tongue, which is know to the spellcasters of Nardu's tradition. Tom also wants Nardu to speak with the fey of the world and gives him Seeliemouth, the language of the good fey. For Nardu's last language, Tom gives him Ridgefolk, the trade language of the barbarians of the North where Nardu spent his youth.
List of Languages
National and Trade Languages
- Cyril—the trade language of Cyrilmoore. (All PCs start with this language for free.)
- Madrani—Madrovian Empire
- Eastern Nomadic (think Turkish)
- Classical Empire (think Greek)
- Hochsprache—"High Speech", the noble tongue of Nordstaterna (something between German, Swedish and Dutch).
- Niedregesprache— "Low Speech", the common tongue of Nordstaterna (similar grammar, but radically different vocabulary from Hochsprache).
Ceremonial & Scholarly Languages
- Durillian—Dead language used by scholars
- High Cyril—used by the clergy and aristocracy of Cyrilmoore.
- Altesprache— "Old Speech", the ceremonial and arcane language of Nordstaterna (think Old German/English).
Cultural and Racial Languages
- Beastongue—a simple language of nature calls used by rangers of the forest to communicate. The written form is simple sigils to mark territory of predators, stashes of supplies, etc.
- Druidic—cult language
- Primineal—a language of elementals
