Backstory

The story of Rhizome is set on a wild and unexplored continent, called Hyphae. The southern coastland of this continent is primarily thick jungles and swamps, bordered to the north by an inland mountain range. The wildlife, plantlife, native civilizations and general geography are undiscovered. The playable history of the game begins with the arrival of a trio of colony ships from the continent of Burros to the south.

The colonists primarily come from the nation of Eldys, a majority human nation, on the northeastern coast of the continent of Burros. The Delarian religion (HELP DELARISM) was founded there, and the King of Eldys is also the head of the Delarian church. Originally a fanatically proselytizing religion, Delarian faith embroiled Eldys in numerous expensive wars. Eventually facing open rebellion from the merchant baronies at home, King Chastain III of Eldys was forced to sign a decree that the warlike conversion efforts of the church were to be waived in favor of a passive diplomatic approach. The majority of the faithful, weary from war, agreed to this but a subset of the church was radically opposed and wished to continue in their zeal. They became known as the Acriba, or the forceful in the old Eldys tongue.

King Chastain balanced these factions precariously, but was saved by the fortuitous discovery of Hyphae. Initial attempts to colonize the continent were made by the neighboring Riss nation of Petrel, but their colonies and all the colonists therein were considered lost some time later. Early reports were of a wild continent with primitive civilizations. The King of Eldys, spying a chance to dispense with the Acriba without sending them off to war with one of his neighbors, commissioned a colony of his own. With the promised opportunity of saving the souls of heathen savages, a great number of the Acriba accepted. Three ships left Eldys, loaded with missionaries and colonists, as well as assorted militia, entrepreneurs, explorers, and craftfolk such an expedition might need.

You are one of these colonists. The colonists are principally human, but some Riss and Dwarven members of the expedition are also present. The colonists are comprised of three main factions, plus the militia and independents:

Acriba: The Acriba are the main religious force amongst the colonists. Their intentions on this mission is to found a branch of the church of Delar and begin converting the natives, and controlling the religious narrative that unfolds on the new continent.

Merchantry: Representatives of the Merchant Barons of Eldys. Their primary goal is to economically exploit the new continent, setting up their own economic ventures and eventually carving out their own baronies in the new land.

Civil servants: Employees of the state led by the magistrate, their goal is to produce the infrastructure required to support the new town, grow its population, and collect taxes for the King.

The Royal Eldyian Academy: A University with a charter from King Chastain III to establish a new campus with the express purpose of navigating, charting, and documenting the local peoples, fauna, flora.

Independent: Anyone not in one of the former groups -- a colonist who has washed up as part of this expedition due to their skills, expertise, or other life circumstances that pushed them into this scenario.

Militia: A member of the militia can be associated with any other group, though they have sworn to generally protect the security interests of the expedition and colonization efforts through force of arms.