Exetrius Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) The Katapujans Background If you were to set sail from the southern coast of Kaliphlin and head to the east, like Sirius and his companions did, you would eventually reach the kingdom of Katapuja. The archipelago of Katapuja is part of a much greater ring-shaped collection of island groups, which has a diameter equivalent to the Nocturnian peninsula. The foundation of this ring is a massive, ancient coral reef, tens of miles broad. The reef is the outline of an almost immeasurably deep bowl in the oceanic plane: the Void Sea. Over the course of time, its inscalable depths allowed creatures to reach otherworldly proportions. "Nothing can conquer this sea. One can merely settle at the edge of this whirlpool of teeth, hoping for as much as a tear to roll ashore." - King Tepuku 1. King Tepuku of Katapuja The beloved king of Katapuja, known for his conservative, pacifist attitude, his worrisome expression, but most of all: his patience and wisdom. He used to be a reckless rookie, a brave warrior of the sea, but the waves of time have polished his sharp edges. Nowadays, he is completely devoting himself to guiding his people. 2. Queen Kaja of Katapuja The queen is one of the handful of literate persons in Katapuja. She maintains correspondence with adjacent nations and keeps a log of important historic events. In secret, she likes immersing herself in magic books, although she never actually attempted casting a spell. Maybe that's for the better... 3. Puteha of Katapuja The king and queen's only son. To his fathers joy, Puteha's interests have taken a turn towards percussion and martial arts dancing. Though young, he has already become a nationwide symbol of vitality, celebration and leadership. 4. Royal Soldier Brave, strong and loyal. They are there to protect the islands from intruders and sea monsters, as well as escort anyone entering open water. 5. Shaman Ketatapapu Ketatapapu is Katapuja's medicine man as well as it's spiritual leader. He exercises both occupations with equal enthusiasm, rooting out both individual and societal diseases. 6. Fisherman The most common profession among men. In groups, they drive out small fish from the deeper cracks in the reef and then scoop them up with their nets. 7. Hunter Hunters go after the bigger prey, at the edges of the reef. They are taking more risks, but the reward of their efforts is a much tastier meal. 8. Lady Tanaja In a land that mostly consists of coral, sea shells and sand, mangroves and palm trees, textiles are a valuable good. Tanaja's mastery over cloth, thread and needles has earned her the noble title of "Lady", only adding to here excellent reputation. 9. Scavenger Scavenging is a common practice for woman and children, but it's also a family activity. Who knows what might have washed ashore! 10. Captain Serbrahad Al Ibrazar Serbrahad, or Puke Tahu as they call him here, is perhaps the most remarkable figure of Katapuja. Born in Kaliphlin, brought to Katapuja when he was still a little boy and raised by Shaman Ketatapapu. He is cunning, calculating and stubborn. With his ambitions and rash actions he has often opposed the King up-front. And yet, King Tepuku can't help but feel sympathy for this rebellious anti-hero, so reminiscent of his former self. 11. Lady Akoja It is claimed that every four generations, a woman among men is born. Akoja got her noble title upon joining the Royal Guard, the first woman to do so since the reign of the King's predecessor. She quit the Royal Guard once she met Puke Tahu, and became the first member of his crew. Together they are the very definition of the perfect duo. 12. Lost Ronin Some say a ferocious battle with a sea monster left him blind and mute. What truly matters is that he is indisputably Katapuja's strongest swordsmen. The queen suspects his ultraperception is the result of magic. 13. King Nerezar of Pukata Noja Nerezar is king of the flourishing trade nation Pukata Noja, south of Katapuja. He is an excellent diplomatic, always on friendly terms with his neighbours and the first person to remediate impending conflicts. 14. Northern Cartographer He is in the process of mapping all the Ring Nations for an unknown contractor. He isn't quite there yet... 15. Stenran Feglir Scout of a special operations squadron of the Zotharian miltary, currently accompanying Sirius Centario on his journey, which has carried him to Katapuja. 16. Sirius Centario Eldest son of Onicius Centario, the ruler of Zotharith. His charisma and luck are seemingly boundless, one has to wonder what star he was born under. His mastery of magic is impressive in its own right, but he wants to avoid being chained by responsibility at all costs. 17. Sea Orc Reportedly, there are communities of sea orcs in the deep reef zone, around eighty meters below the surface. Individuals have surfaced occasionally, but they appear to shun away from humans. 18. Abyss Dweller At the bottom of the Void Sea, the abyssal plane, the pressure is so groundbreakingly high that nothing larger than the size of a fist can live there. Unless it's not really alive, of course... Hello guys, here's my second Safe Haven challenge entry! I hope you enjoyed, even if you may not have read all of it. This was a great execise in trying to produce identical shots of different objects, which required a much more organized approach than usual. I'm pleased with how the individual shots turned out. That's it for now! C&C much appreciated! Edited January 30, 2018 by Exetrius Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TitusV Posted January 30, 2018 some very nice figs, Exetrius! It's quite cool that you managed to incorporate pieces from other themes, like PotC and (probably my favoured detail) Star Wars (the Asoka-hair) Also, your love for Ninjago can be clearly distinguished, but that's no issue at all for me Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Henjin_Quilones Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) Puteha is great! I love that hairpiece. I also love Puke Tahu (or whatever the captain's other name is), as I think he has a ton of character in those piece combos. In fact, I think this is a great set of figs from a very believable setting off of the southeastern coast of Historica. The idea of a near-bottomless sea full of giant sea monsters surrounded by a lush archipelago is great! I want to visit it now (or at least to see a giant monster lunge at a ship from the depths). Besides Puteha and Captain Serbrahad Al Ibrazar, I think my favorites are the Sea Orc (a great new species) and the colorful Shaman Ketatapapu, who has some great piece uses (like the red beard on his chest!). I think you are one of the cleverest fig builders I have seen, at least with your ability to combine accessories with colorful characters. And your ability to connect anything and everything with those trans-clear clips with stud (Spider-Man web holders)... My one quibble is that too many of the figs seem to be nobility, and not enough commoners or prototypical citizens. Edited January 30, 2018 by Henjin_Quilones Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KevinyWu Posted January 30, 2018 Awesome Figs! My favorites are the Hunter and Captain Serbrahad Al Ibrazar Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Exetrius Posted February 1, 2018 On 30-1-2018 at 9:53 PM, TitusV said: some very nice figs, Exetrius! It's quite cool that you managed to incorporate pieces from other themes, like PotC and (probably my favoured detail) Star Wars (the Asoka-hair) Also, your love for Ninjago can be clearly distinguished, but that's no issue at all for me Thank you, Titus! Looking at it objectively though, I mostly used Star Wars and CMF parts. I counted: 24 parts came from Ninjago. Assume 8 parts per fig on average, then that would translate to 3 full Ninjago figs, out of 18! But I'm very glad you like it! On 30-1-2018 at 9:53 PM, Henjin_Quilones said: Puteha is great! I love that hairpiece. I also love Puke Tahu (or whatever the captain's other name is), as I think he has a ton of character in those piece combos. In fact, I think this is a great set of figs from a very believable setting off of the southeastern coast of Historica. The idea of a near-bottomless sea full of giant sea monsters surrounded by a lush archipelago is great! I want to visit it now (or at least to see a giant monster lunge at a ship from the depths). Besides Puteha and Captain Serbrahad Al Ibrazar, I think my favorites are the Sea Orc (a great new species) and the colorful Shaman Ketatapapu, who has some great piece uses (like the red beard on his chest!). I think you are one of the cleverest fig builders I have seen, at least with your ability to combine accessories with colorful characters. And your ability to connect anything and everything with those trans-clear clips with stud (Spider-Man web holders)... My one quibble is that too many of the figs seem to be nobility, and not enough commoners or prototypical citizens. Big thanks for all your compliments, Henjin! As always, I will try to take the best characters for my saga, safe to say that Captian Serbrahad will play a role. BBC's Blue Planet is airing weekly, so that's where my inspiration came from. I have some ideas to flesh out Katapuja and other islands, but I'll work on that beyond the contest deadline. I might manage a 32x32 entry, though. Indeed, I love repurposing minifig accessories to make interesting new decorations or weapons. I found it amusing that Ketatapapu has the red mohawk, head ánd beard of the CMF Battle Dwarf, but in a radically different configuration. I appreciate your call on the nobility! I wanted to represent multiple groups in my CMF: the royal family, the unique residents, the prototypical residents, the foreigners visiting Katapuja and finally the aquatic races. I guess I could have devoted one more slot to the protoypical citizens by sacrificing a foreigner, but that citizen wouldn't have looked as exciting as my foreigner; I was at my limit for commoner combo's. On 31-1-2018 at 12:35 AM, KevinyWu said: Awesome Figs! My favorites are the Hunter and Captain Serbrahad Al Ibrazar Thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
soccerkid6 Posted February 3, 2018 Great work developing a civilization type that gets very little use in the guilds Lady Tanaja, King Nerezar, and Lost Ronin are my favorite minifigures Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gunman Posted February 3, 2018 Great series mate! I really like Lady Tanaja and Abyss Dweller is pretty badass any link on bricklink for Shaman Ketatapapu's cape? its look very cool Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Exetrius Posted February 4, 2018 On 3-2-2018 at 2:53 AM, soccerkid6 said: Great work developing a civilization type that gets very little use in the guilds Lady Tanaja, King Nerezar, and Lost Ronin are my favorite minifigures Thanks, SK! Lost Ronin's blindfold is the 'rope ring' from the CMF Spy, possibly my personal favorite creative parts usage in this series. 23 hours ago, Gunman said: Great series mate! I really like Lady Tanaja and Abyss Dweller is pretty badass any link on bricklink for Shaman Ketatapapu's cape? its look very cool Thank you! The cape is from the Amazon King: https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?M=adv001#T=P Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
