Metalworkers (Steamheads)

Cover art by wetaft at Pixabay

Once, a long time ago, a dragon living deep in a dark mine laid three eggs. One was the darkest black with a hint of navy, one was bone-white, and the other was a soft red.
They hatched, and thus were born Hakyi of Gloam, Misu of Night, and Jivai of Dawn. They grew, grew, and grew some more as they played with metals in their mine. Hakyi was a fire-breather and the first to discover that metal melts. Misu was an acid-spitter and learned how to etch patterns in cooled metal. Jivai was the one who crafted melted and etched items, bending and linking metal bits together to create something whole. Together, the three of them discovered everything about metalworking, as well as secrets forgotten and not yet uncovered again.
One day, as they were in the nearest town selling their wares, a story reached them that the moon had the purest metals. The three of them talked, and it was decided that since they were equals, all would visit the moon. With a goodbye to their town they flew away, and that was the last they were ever seen.
However, it's known that they landed on the moon since three nights later the moon disappeared, came back red, and then returned to its normal bone-white again. We don't know if they decided to stay there, or are stuck, but when they look down at us during the full moon and all three colors are present, we know they're watching and blessing us for carrying on their work.

— Metalworkers' Myth of the Moon Gods

Naming Traditions

Feminine names

After an apprentice is a confirmed crafter, women will choose a new name from known metals; gold, silver, and copper being only a small list. The names can have a prefix or suffix added to them if the being wishes to show their ancestry as well.

Masculine names

After an apprentice is a confirmed crafter, men will choose a new name from known uses for metals; pipes, tools, and coin being only a small list. The names can have a prefix or suffix added to them if the being wishes to show their ancestry as well.

Unisex names

After an apprentice is a confirmed crafter, nonbinary or agender beings will choose a new name from how metal is crafted; mining, quarrying, and melting being only a small list. The names can have a prefix or suffix added to them if the being wishes to show their ancestry as well.

Family names

Family names do not change unless a being declares themselves a child of steam. In that case, the Guild talks with them, makes sure they are taken care of, and bestows a family name derived from the current guild master or a master of the being's choosing, if such a relationship exists.

Other names

Positive nicknames (heard from others within the culture): cog-head, steam eater, steam drinker, steam breather, and metal mage Negative nicknames (heard from those outside the culture): mage killer, negator, cursed sightless
In a few cases, a name come from both inside and outside the community but has different meanings
Gear grabber: (within) a metalworker who hoards tools, items, and other pieces of equipment (outside) a metalworker seen buying items in the marketplace
Scrap (within) a useless being who creates more waste than usable items (outside) a metalworker who steals trash in hopes of finding metal to use

Culture

Major language groups and dialects

The metalworkers use the common languages of Bluji, but there are words from other groups and dialects that will slip in.
Steelclaw - (from the mining regions) - the name of a tool that allows small bits of metal to be quicked moved from fire to water yoffa - (from sailors) - metal that can be thrown overboard to save lives during a storm [usually of a mixed or lessor quality] icatted - (from Moscaria) - the action of using ice magic to settle the final shape of worked metal houshia - (from Aplein) - the color metal turns when right before it hits it's melting point ayamis - (from Aplein) - little bits of metal shavings that can still be used to thinly cover an item for decoration

Shared customary codes and values

The shared codes of metalworkers are listed below:

1. Beings are more important than metal; one can be replaced, the other cannot
2. Success and failure are hand in hand; one cannot be grasped without the other
3. Follow the chain of command and order; links exist to keep us all connected

Average technological level

The guild in Bluji has ideas on pipes, gears, and even how to replace a lost hand with a metal one. As of now, however, the city remains firmly on the side of magic, and since metal distorts spells, it's believed that the collective technological level is lower than it would be if metalworkers were allowed to distribute their crafts freely. This might also be the reason why many young metalworkers leave Bluji to search for a new home elsewhere.

Common Etiquette rules

Metalworkers have an arry of etiquette rules that can be seen by outsideers as well as rules that cannot be picked out of daily activities.
Observable etiquette:

• doors are opened for any person carrying items obscuring the face or needing all limbs
• a being yells loudly as they enter the room (this alerts others of the addition)
• lending and borrowing tools and pieces fo equipment (this can bleed into rent extensions, lending coin, etc.)
• shoes are taken off outside domiciles

Unseen etiquette:

• children's questions about metal are answered and encouraged (while observed, many beings don't realize that all metalworkers will do this)
• quietly repairing and doing general upkeep to the few metal structures in the city
• when borrowing or lending tools, a day and time is given as to when they will be returned (this is *not* recorded in journals as a matter of trust)

Common Dress code

Metalworkers have a dress code that is mainly for being safe while working.

1. Hair must be cut short or plaited and pinned up; if plaited, no loose ribbons are allowed
2. No makeup for any being (heat melts it and it can run into eyes)
3. Shirts are to have no sleeves
4. Pants are to have pockets with buttons and go from waist to ankle
5. Belts are to buckle around waists so as not to slip down from hips
6. Shoes are sturdy and closed; no sandals

Outside of work there is no dress code, however, metalworkers will adorn themselves with worked metal (usually crafted by friends or family) in some way; bracelets, hair accessories, and piercings are the most commonly worn.

Art & Architecture

Inside the metalworker's guild there are square plates hung upon the wall starting from the entrance and going to the back. These are all made and given to the guild when an apprentice turns crafter, then overlaid with more work when the crafter becomes a master. The reason they start from the front is to show those that created the guild and have helped paved the way for others to go further.
Furniture in the guild is made of metal, then turned comfortable with cushions from the seamstresses guild apprentices. Sailmaker apprentices have made the curtains that hang on detailed metal rods, and the candle holders are also made of metal.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

A few traditions observed by metalworkers include, but are not limited to:

• pounding a nail above an entrance and touching it (as a reminder that details are just as important) when heading out
• putting fruit in water (metalworkers believe it refreshes the part of the mind that creates; outsiders believe it makes old, standing water taste better)
• not working from dusk to dawn

Birth & Baptismal Rites

When a child is born in a family that has a metalworker (whether or not it is their child or blood kin), the metalworker visits them during their first full moon and rubs a copper symbol over their head (symbols can include those made for luck, fortune, love, friendship, adventure, etc.). This is done until the copper leaves a green mark*, no matter how faint, on the child. The green mark is seen as the child being blessed by the moon gods (there is an offshoot of fortune-telling that tries to read the marks to determine when that blessing will arrive and how it will impact the child, but not many metalworkers believe in this [though they will seek out the information "just in case"]).
*In the case of a child not reacting to the metal, a time period of five nights is sought.

Coming of Age Rites

At the age when a child can become an apprentice (and thus chooses to be a metalworker), they are gifted an old set of tools from the master they wish to apprentice under, have their hair plaited by a chosen being, and will celebrate the day before with foods favored by the moon gods in addition to ones they like as well. The first object they are taught to make is a malleable metal bracelet which they will wear until they become a crafter. (When that happens, they will break their first bracelet into seven pieces and make seven new accessories with the knowledge they've learned. Six will be given to others; the guild master, their master, another apprentice they consider a sibling, a crafter they admire, a person they wish to start a relationship with, and one to be thrown into the ocean under a full moon. The seventh they themselves will wear.)

Funerary and Memorial customs

When a metalworker in good standing with the community dies, each member of the community crafts a square to show what that person meant to them. All the squares are then welded together and the immediate family takes the deceased to the nearest mine to be buried. Their tools and pieces of equipment are given to members of the community, and their metal plate in the guildhall has a red ribbon knotted onto a corner.
If a metalworker is not in good standing with the community, however, and dies, their tools are given to the next ship setting sail and the willing sailor is paid a little extra to drop the "cursed" tools into the ocean. Their body is taken by high-ranking guild members to be buried in an unmarked grave surrounded by trees. Their plate is taken down from the guildhall and the empty space is not used again.

Common Taboos

As a group, there are a few taboos that the guild has set for metalworkers. If any of these are found to be done by a member of the community, there will be an announcement made detailing their actions and the community will decide if the person is to be on probation, exiled to another city/country, or allowed to remain in Bluji as a metalworker not in good standing:

1. Sexual relationships with a being not at a crafter level or who is under the age of 18
2. Stealing equipment or items from other metalworkers (if stolen from a mage, the action is lauded)
3. Sabotage in any way, shape, or form that would hurt or hinder a fellow metalworker
4. Violence to another who does not deserve it (as determined by the guild)

Common Myths and Legends

There are few common myths and legends held by this group as many of them have different backgrounds and ancestries, however, belief in the moon gods and legends of Silversmith Calamine Lilina are commonly shared among metalworkers on dark nights (and after a few drinks).

Historical figures

There are several historical figures lauded in the metalworker's guildhall, some from Bluji and others not.

Amalg Kanu	creator of the Bluji guildhall
Piper Clawshine	saved his crew from drowning in the mines during a flood
Dopper Ata	offered to help invaders against Malla, sabotaged their weapons instead
Rosegold "Rose" Diaz	discovered that very specific works of magic will work on metal
Zamak Thon	discovered how to etch metal without dragon acid
Rass Navia	killed the Mad Mage Melia during her pillage of Bluji
Quar Brukk	discovered a way to make small gears without burrs
Silver Herfic	crafted metal flasks that allowed red plague healing potions to travel

Ideals

Beauty Ideals

Inside the metalworking community burns, scars, and other signs that show a dedicated to one's craft are considered beautiful. However, there is a balance - if a being has too many scars, burns, etc. then they are judged to be a Scrap and will have a harder time finding friends within the community.

Gender Ideals

No matter a being's gender, the ideal of creating a new use for metal, discovering unique metals, or finding a new way to shape metal, etc. are ideals held by all.

Courtship Ideals

When courting a woman, many metalworkers enjoy giving gifts reminiscent of her name. To court others within the metalworking community, tools with names/symbols engraved are seen as a useful and elegant gift.
There is no age restriction on courting*, however, a courtship can not change into a sexual relationship unless all beings involved have their crafter license, an outside equivalent, or have reached the age of 18. *when a being is of a much younger age than the other being in the courtship, the guild might "request" that the older being wait before starting their courtship. No being has declined that request at this point and so the consequences are unknown.

Relationship Ideals

Relationships among metalworkers usually grow over time. At the start, it's between two people. After they have successfully stayed together for four years, other people are allowed to enter the relationship in sexual or platonic ways. The largest recorded relationship had eleven people in the prime circle (children and parents were not counted), and each of the eleven had a different relationship with all others involved.
Note: relationships between metalworkers do not need to be sexual in nature and relationships do not need to stay within one group. Rosegold Sunbash, a roc, is a perfect example of this. She had five, translating from roccish, "heartsong" partners with which she shared her domicile with. The children in the group were adopted, or in three cases, bought as eggs from traveling merchants.

Metal Star with Glass by manfredrichter

This metal star with fragments of glass masquerading as ice is one of the many symbols used by metalworkers during a child's birth. The blessing being bestowed in this case is one of calmness and of being able to "ice up" when needed so that a better outcome can happen.