Resources & Links

From FiranMUX

The technology level of FiranMUX is similiar to that of Earth's early Iron Age, and the game itself loosely borrows from ancient Greco-Roman architecture and lifestyles. Below is a list of web site links which may provide interesting reading about that particular time period. Note that nothing on this page trumps the theme of the game. In many cases, the information contained in these links cannot really be applied to the Firan world, for a variety of reasons; however, they offer some interesting background reading that can be thought of as adding a bit of "local colour" to the game world. When in doubt as to what is thematic, consult the newsfiles, not these links!

• Public Domain Art You Can Use for Firan Wiki Pages

Lifestyles

The lifestyles of the Firan people depend on their race, social class, and clan; however, a quick glance at some of the links below can help you understand more of the background colour in your characters' lives.

This image of the well-preserved Roman remains in the English town of Bath might give an idea of Anarinuell's own bathhouse.

• Women in the Ancient World - this site may seem plain at first, but has a vast collection of links, essays and other material about gender roles in the classical world.
• Perseus Project (Greek) - as well as having lots of Roman and Greek literature, the Perseus Project has a great number of pictures of period art and architecture.
• Wikipedia: Ancient Roman Culture - Wikipedia articles should, as always, be taken with a pinch of salt, but these provide some useful background information.
• Wikipedia: Ancient Greece
• Ancient Greek Lifestyle - a day-to-day guide for ancient Greek citizens. Read it in conjunction with Firan's own Social Classes day in the life series.
• Ancient Roman Entertainment - Firan entertainment and leisure - the baths, the amphitheatre, the gladiators - owes a lot to Ancient Rome; read about what the Romans did for fun here.
• The Roman Makeover - a useful resource for players of fashionable female Firans, this is a guide to Roman makeup and hairstyling.

Thematic Clothing

It is important to note here that FiranMux only loosely borrows from Greek and Roman Culture. There are many important differences, and this includes clothing. However, basic Greco-Roman clothing and hair styles fit well into the game and so, the game does use them. The links below may help provide some basic information on what these clothes would look like as well as how they were made and worn. Contrast these resources with the Clothing page, or with the results of @products/tailoring in game.

• Roman Clothing with Photographs - this useful site has lots of helpful visuals - drawn and photographed - of both clothing and footwear.
• Roman Clothing for Women - a very handy page - nearly all the links lead to pictures of Roman clothing or jewellery.
• Roman Clothing for Men - from the same site, this has a large number of images for men's clothing and accessories.
• How to Make a Roman Tunic - this and the next link are both modern-day guides to making Roman garments; while they might be useful for the player of a tailor character, don't take them as Firan gospel!
• How to Make a Stola
• Roman Clothing - a mostly-text, at-a-glance guide to Roman clothing.
• Ancient Roman Jewelry - this has some beautiful pictures of Roman jewellery - an excellent resource if your character is going to be learning smithing/precious!

Classical Art and Architecture

While the Firan world has some modern touches - locks on doors, for example - much of its architecture is based on that of the classical world. Be aware, though, that concessions must be made for the gameworld - don't expect Firan houses to fit exactly the outlines below, particularly given the database bloat issues! Art resources are useful for anyone playing a sculptor, an artist or even a potter; a lot of Greek art, in particular, was found in red- and black-figure painting on vases.

Architecture

• Roman Temples - a mostly text resource with a couple of pictures of Roman temple architecture.
• Clickable Map of the Roman Forum - features lots of pictures of public buildings in Rome.
• Forum Romanum - mostly modern-day photos of the ruins of the Roman forum, this still gives a good idea of what it looked like.
• The Roman House - featuring a floorplan and a mostly text guide to a typical Roman home.
• Wikipedia of Ancient Greek Architecture
• Wikipedia: Ancient Roman Theatre
• Roman House Lecture - another guide to Roman houses, this one has more pictures.

Art

• Met Museum: Greek and Roman Art - New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art has one of the best classical collections in the world. This site has beautiful pictures and descriptions.
• The Beazley Archive - featuring art, pottery and sculpture, this is a really great, picture-heavy resource.
• Ancient Greek Sculpture - take a look at their photo gallery, which also has a couple of resources for helmets.

Food

The Firan diet borrows some from Greek and Roman culture while being its own unique mix of foods. The following includes real-life recipes for some dishes you can find in Firan as well as some information on ancient Greek and Roman cuisine.

• Ancient Roman Diet and Cooking Information - a day-to-day style guide to food preparation and consumption in Ancient Room.
• Antique Roman Dishes - this features a smorgasboard of classical recipes for the truly dedicated Firanite!
• Greek Spinach Pie, or Spanakopita - a modern-day spinach pie recipe.
• Wikipedia: The Ever-Popular Flaming Cheese

Goods and Games

An example of Ancient Roman jewellery - a gold bangle taking the form of a snake.

Crafting has always been one of the most popular aspects of Firan; while players like to use artistic license with their creations of pottery, carpentry or perfumes, some of these resources can help further understanding of what was typical in the classical period. Firan entertainment also derives from Rome - but there are key differences. Perhaps most crucially, our gladiators do not fight to the death.

Goods

• The British Museum's Roman Gallery - while not quite as user-friendly as the Met's site, this features pottery, sculpture, coins and other wares.
• Roman Perfumes - a background to perfumes in Rome that could be useful for players of perfumers.
• Roman Furniture - a brief text guide with some useful snippets.
• Furniture and the Greek House - given that there is no surviving wooden Greek furniture - and most Greek furniture was wooden - it can be hard to find pictorial resources for classical carpentry, but this site features lots of great pictures.
• Ancient Touch - this is a merchant's site that is really only useful for its pictures - but it does have a lot of them, featuring images of Greek and Roman wares including all kinds of pottery, jewellery, weapons and so on.
• Wikipedia: Chariots

Games

• Ancient Greek Theater Masks - there are lots of pictures in this Greek theatre guide.
• Roman Gladiators - this is mostly text, and please be aware that the Firan gladiatorial arena isn't nearly as brutal as Rome's; however, this does have some excellent background information on gladiatorial combat.
• Ancient Roman Board Games - while Firan doesn't have coded board games, an enterprising player could find inspiration here for some fun scenes!
• Greek and Roman Ball Games - this has some great ancient artwork that appears to depict Greeks and Romans at play.

Combat and Weapons

Due to the inevitably limited nature of coded combat, Firan cannot hope to replicate all the weaponry of the ancient world - but the following links can give an idea of what the Romans and Greeks fought with, and how they fought. The Firan world does not necessarily employ the same tactics used by the Romans

Weapons

• Roman Offensive Weapons - this has lots of pictures, though not very much accompanying text. The detailed photographs here might prove useful for weaponsmiths.
• Roman Archery - this shows the various arrowheads used in the Roman world.
• Ancient Greek Armour, Shields and Helmets - another picture-heavy resource with great shots of Greek armour.
• Wikipedia: A Guide to Roman Military Equipment
• Wikipedia: The Roman Spear
• Wikipedia: The Javelin

Combat

• Roman Legion Organization - both this and the following link have interesting explanations of Roman army structure and tactics.
• Roman Cavalry - this is interesting, but cannot be applied in-game - the Firan army does not use cavalry, as griffons are known to enjoy eating horses!
• Wikipedia: Phalanx Formation