[LORE DISCUSSION] The Lunari
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Happy friday everyone and welcome to Lore Discussion. Tomorrow's Worlds so I don't blame you if story is the last thing on your mind, but today's topic is a bit of an interesting one. In fact, it's something I've discussed and thought of before. I speak, of course, of an entire race-slash-religion that existed on the lonely mountain we know as Targon several millenia ago. Yes, today we'll be discussing... http://i.imgur.com/KSHjANW.jpg #The Lunari
http://i.imgur.com/pWzM0fI.jpg?1 #What we know
The Lunari are fascinating because almost everything about them has been wiped from the Targon record books. In fact, the Lunari were essentially never meant to be seen in-game (At least if the Solari got their way). Thanks to the efforts of Diana however, we can now see the lore about these people. While it's rather limited what we know off the bat, let's mention what we currently know:
- The Lunari were once as prevalent as the Solari
- The Lunari were eradicated or exterminated by the Solari
- It can be inferred that Lunari-blood still exists in the Solari culture/people.
This knowledge also persists into the future, as Diana revealing the Lunari temple and artifacts brought about bloodshed that killed the Solari elders. This points to the idea that the Solari indeed knew about the Lunari and did their best to keep them hidden from viewpoint...which leads to the question of what truly happened to the Lunari.
http://i.imgur.com/HEnafuh.jpg #The Fall: The Extinction of the Lunari
In my mind (And as previously stated, a basic theory I have that holds no weight), the Lunari and Solari were always sort of at odds with each other. They respected each other, but it was a sort of uneasy tension always kept between the two. However, in my theory, one key fact kept one from attacking the other to the point of destruction: The Radiant Dawn and The Luminescent Dusk. We already know the Radiant Dawn as the paragon of Solari society, the living embodiment of the sun. The Luminescent Dusk, however, would be the antithesis: The very embodiment of the moon.
With this idea in mind, some things come to light. Let's take for example Diana's armor and weapon. For one thing, like Leona's, it would be considered one of a kind and the purest form of the moon's power. Diana finding this was no mere accident: The Luminescent Dusk bloodline runs in her veins, making her the descendents of those who took up the mantle beforehand. Likewise, I also believe Diana's weapon (at one time) had a matching shield comparative to Leona's. As opposed to a normal sword and tower shield, however, the Luminescent Dusk had a smaller shield. Perhaps a buckler or a more offensive-minded sword-and-board fighting style.
Now, what the absence means is that thousands of years ago, the then-current Radiant Dawn murdered or defeated the Luminescent Dusk, taking the shield as proof of his/her demise and destroying it as a symbol of the Lunari's defeat. Thus, with no guardian or avatar to protect them, the Solari systematically slaughtered those of the Lunari. Much like history, however, numerous families and people went into hiding within Solari society. Babies were said to be twins, loved ones hid in attics, those pregnant with Lunari children lied about the parentage, etc. Essentially, the Lunari's young ones were kept alive while the elders and those who could carry the traditions were murdered.
As time passed, the Lunari became history. History became legend, legend became myth and myth eventually became nothingness. When Diana reappeared, she was not a protector of the Lunari that the Luminescent Dusk had been. Rather, she was the Scorn of the Moon. The fury of a lost religion turned human.
http://i.imgur.com/KGrepoa.jpg?1 #Today: Two Paths?
What's so fascinating about the Leona/Diana rivalry is that in a sense, both are not the last arbiters of their respective beliefs. With the Solari council slain (or at least most of them), Leona may be the only woman who remains that knows deeply of the Solari customs. Diana knows bits and pieces, but she's still the only remaining Lunari that exists. What's tragic is that so much of these two cultures has been lost simply by in-fighting.
However, one key player has not been revealed: The Eclipse. Yes, there hasn't been mention of any sort of Eclipse (Solar -or- Lunar) in the Solari/Lunari traditions, which begs the question of what DOES happen when the sun eclipses the moon. In one champion concept I did ages ago, the Eclipse was the ultimate heretic that made Diana's Lunari ways look like the most devout Solari. In fact, out of all the things that COULD happen, would an eclipse not be the most unholy and heretical thing that both races could envision? The overshadowing of one or the other to create a horrific blackness that swallows all of Mount Targon?
I think the appearance of an "Eclipse" could actually serve as a way to fix the bonds broken. Well, not fix completely but go a long way in the way of fixing some of the problems that both religions had. If there was a threat that forced both sun and moon to unite against it, it might help break some of the tension. Would these two ever be friends? No, there is no going back from what either has done (Lunari literally, Solari speculatively). Still, it's entirely possible that a threat both had to take care of would end up serving as a tool to acknowledge and respect their ways just as it had been done centuries ago...
So what do you think? Is there weight to this story or perhaps there was some history that's missing? Could these two ever come to respect each other again or will this conflict only end when Leona's light has faded or Diana's moon has been eclipsed? And, as always, be sure to vote for what discussion you want to see next!
