BOWING: Bowing is a sign of respect in Albasa City, the deeper the bow the more respect that is shown. Most people of equal social status essentially nod at each other but on more formal occasions or when presented to someone who is clearly of a more elevated social status a full formal bow will be expected and if not given could be regarded as an insult, duels have been fought over less.
THE HONEYED DEAD: The Civilized Families have a long tradition of preserving their dead in honey. Those destined for this fate are said to be living ‘the sweet life’, this comes from a longer phrase that the Civilized Families ‘live a sweet life and have a sweet death’. In the last few decades other aristo families have started to follow suit. The dead are laid to rest in baths of honey and a tomb or mausoleum is then built around them. The honey preserves the dead remarkably well. As a result the aristocratic families are very protective of the private hives they keep in Millers Woods for this purpose.
THE DANCE OF THE DEAD: Once a year the goblins of the city dig up the bodies of their ancestors and literally dance with them in a celebration that lasts all night. They dance them around the tombs to live music often with each family taking a turn to dance the body of their dead ancestor around the tomb. Then they re-wrap the bodies in fresh cloth, reapply make-up and give them gifts before placing them back in their tombs before dawn. The Dance of the Dead is meant to show respect for the relatives and remind their ghosts in the shadeland that they have not been forgotten.
THE THREE NIGHTS OF FIRE: This three night celebration is performed by the followers of the orc religion of Gorenard. In their faith the year is divided into two halves – the coals and the blaze. The coals is a time for rest and regeneration and the blaze is a time for action and war. The transition from one half of the year to the other is known as ‘The Three Nights of Fire’. This celebration is often dreaded by the city authorities as the orcs spirited celebrations rarely stick within the confines of the cities laws but arrests during this period are culturally sensitive and seen as antagonizing the orc community.
THE BURNING OF THE CAKES: About a month before the winter solstice the citizens of Albasa take part in a ceremony known as the ‘Burning of the Cakes’. This was a tradition that arose after the great magical plague that resulted in a ban on all unlicensed magical acts. The urine of licensed magical users is taken from the hospitals and the city mint. That urine is then baked into cakes. However, these aren’t cakes to be eaten. That night the cakes are taken out onto the streets and burnt. This was originally believed to be a way of dispelling the residue of magic that lingers after use and was designed to help control the plague. Today it has become a city tradition and is participated in by those from all religious backgrounds.
DUELING & INSULTS: Dueling has a long tradition in the city dating all the way back to its founding over 900 years ago. Albasa society prizes reputation and respect and any slight to ones reputation can be a life and death matter. Duels are legal as long as certain conditions are met but even those who never have any intention of fighting a duel are expected to practice the dueling arts, especially if they are aristos or members of the civilized families. Both pistols and swords are taught by experts in dueling clubs across the city. Membership of the more exclusive clubs can be very expensive. Learning both pistols and swords is thought to be character building for young men and therefore heavily encouraged. These arts have not traditionally taught to women although a new generation of women from the upper echelons of Albasa society are challenging that idea and are petitioning the dueling clubs to allow female members. This is a divisive issue amongst the civilized families and the aristos.
TIPPING: Albasa has a tradition of tipping. Even relatively small services and gestures are expected to be accompanied by a tip, especially if the person receiving the service is perceived to be of a higher social status than the one providing the service. Tipping is near universal in the neighborhoods that cater to the cities tourists, many workers in the tourist industry work off tips alone, however in the poorest parts of the poorer neighborhoods like Havok, Dampton and North Town tips aren’t nearly as universally expected as they are in say Uptown or Beach Front.
TYING SILK: Libraries and some book shops provide silk ribbons that they expect the reader to wear whilst they are browsing the books. This tradition arose from the days when Albasa was first being reclaimed from the swamps and people’s own footwear was covered in mud and thick slime. To avoid students trapsing the mud all over the library they were made to wear boots provided by the library. Over time the streets in Edgebury were drained and dried, the gesture became symbolic, and the boots became silk. Today the boots are gone and instead a silk ribbon is given which is expected to be visibly worn by the reader during their visit.
HOUSEHOLD GODS: In the homes of Tee-hi worshipers, you will be expected to bow to a statuette of their household god as you enter. The household god is chosen by each household and could potentially tell you something about the owners.
DRINKING WITH THE RIGHT HAND: You will be expected to drink only with your right hand. When firearms were first introduced in Albasa City many of the city’s taverns saw rocketing murder rates as drunk people shot one another over minor insults. As most people were right-handed it became tradition to drink with your right hand to show you weren’t aiming a gun. This is also why there is said to be a general distrust of left-handed people.
BEDROOM STARS: Many worshippers of Modella place a picture of a star or a star decoration above their beds. The star is the symbol of Modella and it is thought that this way the god is watching over you whilst you sleep. For the worshippers of Modella, sleepers temporally enter the shadelands or lands of the dead whilst they are asleep, and they think the star will help guide them home from what their holy book calls ‘the misty places of dreams’.
SPRITE CHARMS: Sprite charms are sold that are said to bring the favour of certain types of sprites. This belief is strongest regarding Millers Wood and few people would enter the wood without at least one woodland charm to curry favour with the sprites of the trees, leaves or woodland creatures.
DECORATIVE FEATHERS: Folk in the Hills and the mountain range to the north of the city known as the Perches, often decorate their homes with bright bird’s feathers in much the same way that city dwellers use flowers. They will have vases with displays of feathers in.
HEARTSTARS: The hearts of dead believers in the Modella faith are removed from their bodies and run through with silver pins. The pins are arranged to stick out at angles to give the heart the look of a six-sided star, the star being the symbol of Modella. The heart is then kept in a heartstone – a stone container built for the purpose and calved with the name of the deceased. This heartstone is often displayed in pride of place in your home. The more heartstones your family has the longer their lineage and the more respect they are accorded.
GOLD NECKED MINERS: Miners in Broadwall wear a bar of gold around their necks. This is to be given to anyone who rescues them from a collapsed mine. This is to ensure that rescuers or fellow miners will indeed come to their aid if something goes wrong.
EARTH PURSE: Orcs from Carel have grown superstitious in exile. Many of the them carry a purse that contains soil from their homeland. This not only symbolically connects them to their roots but there are those who say that the magic of the Religion of Gorenard doesn't work unless the wielder of the spell is near the soil of Carel.