Lore · §39

Climbers

Added D-361, D-362, D-364 Climbing makes a people of its own across the realms, the way the sea makes sailors. The realm is what they wear; the climb is what has happened to it. Someone of the realm who has never climbed shows none of this:

  1. The height stone at the throat (§38), on a cord, always in sight. It looks like the floor it came from (§6): grey and grimed from the lower Tower, warm ivory from the middle, chalk white from high up. Rank is read across a street by its colour. What the stone is, is not explained (§2).
  2. The pale. Tower dust settles in seams and hems and never washes out: a climber's clothes fade toward ivory-grey from the boots up.
  3. The mended. Home clothes wear through and are patched with what the Tower gives: creature-derived panels (membrane, carapace, lattice, §13), sewn in with rope and leather.
  4. The kit, over the realm's dress and different on every climber, never a uniform: a belt harness, shoulder straps or a chest strap; rope over a shoulder, round the waist or across the chest; a lantern, or a headlamp, a chip of luminous Tower stone in a cup on a band or a helmet (§14).

Tower stone is armour as well as weapon. Worn armour follows §14 (a found fragment, one primary piece, never cut or matched, its architecture readable), and each realm completes it in its own craft (§25): a caged wall-slab breastplate; an iron-bound cornice yoke on one shoulder; an arch vambrace in brass rings; rib fragments laced into lamellar with silk; an arch-stone chest plate set in iron and brass.

Every Fighter is a climber: the sprite shows this once and does not age with experience (§11, §19).

Visual references

library/climbers/climbers-kit-001.png

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Fills Library: climbers (UNIVERSE §39)

Canonical for The kit's parts, their materials and how they are worn; the variety a climber's kit draws from; the lantern and headlamp lit by stone.

Not canonical for Any single climber's kit (each differs, §39); the two worn figures as characters; the labels' wording.

What it shows

"Climbers' kit": four harnesses (belt with leg loops, suspender straps, chest strap, heavy ringed harness), three rope carries on busts (shoulder coil, waist turns, bandolier), three lanterns lit by luminous Tower stone, three Tower-stone headlamps (headband, head wrap, helmet), tools (hooks, pitons, grapnel, climbing pole, hammer, chisel, pads, gloves), carry items (pouches, water skin, satchel, bedroll, chalk bag), two climbers wearing kit.

library/climbers/climbers-population-001.png

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Fills Library: climbers

Canonical for The range of climbers across realms, bodies and kits (UNIVERSE §39); each realm's home dress under the climb (§25).

Not canonical for Any figure as an Active's design; the degree of wear (most are heavily worn; C3 shows the range).

What it shows

"Climbers": ten veteran climbers, two per realm (Crownlands, Frostholds, Middle Sea, Sunrise Realms, Red Earth), men and women, young and old, varied builds, each with a different kit.

library/climbers/climbers-height-stones-001.png

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Fills Library: climbers

Canonical for How the height stone looks by height, how it is hung and set, how it sits at the throat (UNIVERSE §38, §39).

Not canonical for What the stone is or why it looks so (§2); the busts as characters.

What it shows

"Height stones": the three tones by height (low charcoal with moss, middle warm ivory with lichen, high chalk white), four cords, a setting in each realm's craft (reliquary cage, iron wire, astrolabe rings, silk and lacquer, set in iron and brass), five busts wearing them.

library/climbers/climbers-pale-mended-001.png

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Fills Library: climbers

Canonical for The pale and the mended (UNIVERSE §39): fading steps, repair materials, how wear rises from the boots.

Not canonical for The dark scale as a specific species.

What it shows

"The pale and the mended": five realm fabrics fading to ivory-grey in four steps; seven repairs (amber membrane, carapace, lattice, dark scale, leather, rope darning, riveted leather); three lower bodies from recent climber to old hand.

library/climbers/climbers-realm-climb-001.png

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Fills Library: climbers

Canonical for The contrast between someone of the realm and a climber (§39).

Not canonical for The young Red Earth man's helmet, which drifts toward a crest (UNIVERSE §25: never Greek); small height stones.

What it shows

"Realm and climb": three pairs, a person of the realm beside a veteran climber of the same realm (Crownlands, Sunrise Realms, Red Earth).

library/climbers/climbers-realm-climb-002.png

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Fills Library: climbers

Canonical for As 001, completing the five realms; Tower-stone armour in two realms' craft (§39).

Not canonical for —

What it shows

"Realm and climb": the same contrast for the Frostholds (with an iron-bound cornice yoke) and the Middle Sea (headlamp, arch vambrace in brass rings).