ofthenether

[ofthenether]

the concept of a respawn anchor is so funny. in the Overworld, when you're struck and fall, you wake up in your bed, tucked into the covers with a pillow behind your head. "it's okay," the universe says, for it is kind, "you can try again. rest until you're ready."

the respawn anchor drags your dead and burning body through the hellscape you've sent it to and stabs it through with lightning until you're up and feeling considerably worse than how you did at death. the box will spark and hiss and scream at you to feed it again, or you won't be making it back the next time you're pitched into molten lava.

"i am kind," the universe says. "so i provided you with a world that you could've easily chosen to remain in. player, you cannot sleep here. you forfeited your right to a bed by leaving the confines of my great kindness. if all that you seek is within you, you can do without me."

[Player was killed by Intentional Game Design]

[Player was resurrected by themself]

[ofthenether]

From what we know of the End, the islands became islands by losing the magic of the wyverns- "Ender Dragons" as they're colloquially called. The species was overhunted for sport; there weren't many to begin with due to the magic required to birth one, and the ones that made it to adulthood were usually slain by adventurers looking to make a name for themselves.

The last documented specimen, one affectionately named 'Jean', was slain well before our time.

There weren't many sketches done of her in the moment, presumably because she was trying to kill the adventurer. The above sketch is a replica of one of those older pages- they were too fragile to keep anywhere other than a glass box.

Nowadays, there are no true Ender dragons left. The ones fought for sport in the modern day are usually fake; illusions and spells maintained to keep it as authentic as possible.

I was one of the lucky few who got to visit Jean's nest, decades after she was slain. Most portals take the travelers to one of the fakes, with proper portals to explore what remains of the End opening once the decoy is slaughtered. This one, however, opened to her nest.

I've visited many fake sites in my youth, and I must applaud the accuracy; they look near identical to Jean's actual nest.

But.

Someone else was there.

someone i can't.

quite.

remember.

[ofthenether]

For a long time, we had no basis on why the Enderian ships had only a singular elytra. There was no basis for multiple being on one ship, whether on the crew or in storage. Only one. It seemed illogical, as elytra are the preferred method for all "End busters," or those who go through the End to gather supplies from the remaining structures. The elytra allowed easy gliding over the void and rough terrain, something the End was made of entirely.

Until one of them came in, with the inability to remove the elytra at all.

As it turns out, the elytra were seldom used because consistent wearing leads to the wings becoming permanently attached to your back. We're still studying how and why they do this, but it has been spotted in constant fliers. We recommend taking off your elytra when spending extended periods of time on the ground.

The problem comes in when people started appearing with feathery wings, too intricate to be a parasitic pair of insect limbs.

(image id under cut)

(Image Description: A person, presumably Steve, sitting with their back to the camera and their shirt off. Two iridescent insect wings are attached to their back by purple ligaments, and the person is reaching behind them to feel at the wings. It is labelled figure 1.)

[ofthenether]

🐷 pig-rock-riot Follow

i'm fucking tired of everyone ignoring the state of the bastion. it is VISIBLY falling apart and everyone just pretends it's not because nobody wants to admit that the good old days are over. REPAIR THE BASTIONS

🐽 truffleupagus Follow

sorry but this is a bad post. we literally have been repairing the bastions. do you think gilded blackstone just appears there? there is a guy filling in the cracks

🐷 pig-rock-riot Follow

THERE IS A GIANT HOLE IN THE SIDE OF THE BUILDING. IT HAS BEEN THERE FOR THREE MONTHS

👨🏾 steve Follow

i can fill in the hole i have some blocks!

🐷 pig-rock-riot Follow

SNREEK 🗡️

🐽 truffleupagus Follow

SNORT SHRIEEEK 🗡️🩸

🐖 the-baconator Follow

⚔️ HREEK oink oink SREEEK

🥓 gruesome-greg-official Follow

SHREEEEEK SNREEK ONK OINK OINK SHRIEK SNORKKKK 🪓🪓🪓

[ofthenether]

you can have them back when you learn to fucking respect them as the funky lil neutral guys they are

[ofthenether]

Piglin Lore! Potentially will have more parts, we'll see.

(Transcript under the cut)

PLAYER

Can survive the Overworld without help

Pink fur, unnaturally colored mane

Most variable

Can display traits of other types

BRUTE

Largest

Strongest

No clan instinct

Most hostile

COLLARED

Were once nomads

NOMAD

Most common

Travels w/ clan

Traders, hunters

Relies on brutes for structural defence

Scared of undead

Wary of Player piglins and humans

WARPED

Infection

Most others avoid (stinky)

Die easily from open wounds

NETHER BASED undead

ZOMBIFIED

Unnatural

Unresponsive, except for clan instinct

Nomads fear them

Brutes kill them

Piglins blame Humans for their existence

Cause of distrust between most piglins and Player piglins

OVERWORLD undead

Fur Patterns: Influenced by their home biome. Comes in any natural color. Overworld air turns them pink. Warped fungus turns them purple. (listed in order: Basalt Delta, Soulsand Valley, Crimson Forest, Nether Wastes, Warped Forest)

Piglins are primarily carnivores, with fungivore tendencies in times of low food.

Piglins do not display sexual dimorphism, or any gender roles in their society beyond "sows," or the piglins that give birth, or "farrowed."

("What's a man?" "I heard it was a chicken")

CLAN BONDS: Piglins display an instinctual bond to those close to them, their "clan." This connection can be displayed between family, friends, or lovers. Rarely, it can even transcend species barriers, with some piglins bonding to humans.

Piglins consider this bond to be sacred. It was a way of survival in the harsh Nethr environments, and they believe this strong connection to be holy. It's the reason why piglins become hostile when one is attacked. This trait even remains in the undead, despite their lack of cognitive function.

The worst crime a piglin can commit is killing their clan.

Those guilty of this are called "Butchers."

BASTIONS: Brutes are taken in at 5 years old at every "cool" season, or when the lava lakes are receded.

They are taken from their family, and trained to be warriors. To defend their bastions with their lives, and the gold inside.

Brutes are supposed to be a fallback for nomadic clans, in case of a mass attack; either Players, or the Infected.

Clan bonds are heavily discouraged, they are forcibly snapped upon discovery. Bonds are seen as weakness in the bastions. The only connections should be with the entire squadron.

Each Brute has a collar. Enchanted with the Curse of Binding, it will choke the wearer upon wandering too far from their home bastion without permission to persuade runners.

These collars also embed magical commands into the brutes, so the Commander can control their troops.

HIERARCHY: Commander, Advisors, Brutes, Yearlings, Runts

NAMES: Piglin names are primarily nouns. Families will name their children similar items (Netherrack, Netherbrick). Sometimes, names will be from mythologies. This is more commonly seen in bastions, where piglins have no familial connections.

However, there's dangers in this. They will never name themselves after active piglin spirits (they don't believe in "gods.") Names have the power to invoke them, and no one wants to draw their ire.

Clan bond nicknames, however, are designed to do exactly that. They are they piglin trying to summon physical manifestations of their love for another. Usually these nicknames are something sentimental to the piglin and related to their perception to their clan. It is considered the highest honor to be given a bond name.

SPIRITS:

REITIEN - Spirit of Chance, Change, Hunt (Anything Living)

IGNATIA - Spirit of Order, Structure (Blazes, Bastions)

THE ROT - Spirit of Death, Undead (Anything 'Dead')