The Greedy Farmer
His first and last mistake was thinking he could talk back to a god...
One of the most oft-recited tales among the Thangien people alongside the Cresta and the Imp, this tale dates long before the City Strife and even before the birth of Deres. In this tale, the "forbidden garden" was not created by God for Man and Man driven out, but created by a man who was subsequently driven out by a god. Whether through creative embellishments from performers and scholars or deliberate intervention from the gods, events recalled are said to be simultaneously factually true and heavily obscured. Xiar did exist, a prominent fixture in Bainshaebo until the final engagement of the city strife. Tirmutua is a real location, and was created through a divine act. The Greedy Farmer was a real person, his actions recorded and reviled for thousands of years since his passing, but whether deliberately erased by the Queens or forgotten through time, none know his true name. He is only known through his greatest, eternal folly: daring the ire of the Maiden of Blood.
Summary
A farmer toils day in and day out on his large farm outside the city walls and works very hard to maintain it. Despite his hard work he is beset by bandits on an almost daily basis, entire plots being picked bare before the day ends. Because of Roth's Edict he cannot erect fences for protection.
Xiar rebels and chases the ungrateful man, driving him from his own land. The Greedy Farmer cries out to Witheren, demanding answers. She scolds him for his selfish ways and he flies into a rage against her. In retaliation, she levies a powerful curse against his land: that it will bear no fruit so long as the Greedy Farmer draws breath.
The North finally surrenders its rain and other farms prosper but the Greedy Farmer's land remains barren. Other farmers call it "Tirmitay" the "Garden of Woe". He is forced to wander the plain scrounging for food and is turned away by his neighbors, who have not forgotten his cruelty towards them in their time of need. After some time the Greedy Farmer dies and Witheren lifts her curse, turning the former blighted farm into a bountiful garden the people name "Tirmutua", the "Garden of Wonder".
Witheren declares the garden open to all and cedes control of Xiar over to Roth, where he becomes the gatekeeper of Thananagreia. To this day the garden remains a monument to the folly of selfishness and the power of a god.
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Xiar, the God-Hound
by
Mardrena
Made with Inkscape and BlackInk
The farmer prays to Witheren, Goddess of Righteous War, and the Maiden of Blood bestows upon him her creation: Xiar, the God Hound, a great divine beast, the first of his kind. The hound patrols the land tirelessly, intercepting trespassers quickly and devouring them. The land prospers under his vigil and the farmer soon becomes the envy of his neighbors.
A rare period of drought plagues the land and other farmers are forced to ration their crops and bring water by wagonload without the rains to keep the land nourished. The farmer is able to keep his land watered thanks to the large lake nestled in his land, an offshoot of the great river. Instead of sharing with his neighbors, the farmer begins hoarding crops, and when the drought shows no signs of abating, the farmer irrationally leaves his crops to sit in the field, delighting in the grumbling of his neighbors.
His neighbors cannot pray to Witheren for retribution since Xiar is her creation, but they pray the farmer be taught the folly of his ways. They take to calling him the Greedy Farmer because he has become portly. Prayers do not fall on deaf ears, as Witheren's pity for the Greedy Farmer turns to disdain. One day, a group of children wander into the crops.
Weary and starving, they eat their fill, thanking the Gods for the bounty. Xiar comes upon them, but instead of devouring them outright, the God Hound pities them. The children fawn over him and play with him, but the Greedy Farmer ventures out to find why Xiar isn't patrolling and finds Xiar with the children. Enraged, he demands Xiar kill them. Xiar refuses and the farmer beats him despite the God Hound's great size.
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Xiar and the Children
by
Mardrena
Made with Inkscape, BlackInk, and Paint.net
Historical Basis
The events are believed to have transpired in the centuries preceding the City Strife, as by the time fighting had broken out the garden was a well-known fixture in the land outside the city walls. After so many millennia no trace of man-made habitation remains within the borders of the garden, so the precise site of the antagonistic farmer's dwelling remains unknown. Tirmutua became a critical haven for the Faithful, providing a bounty of food and Xiar providing safe passage to those in need.
Events of Aftermath
In Chapter 11 "Eurbasadur", Chi Chi Lina, Azuro takes the visitors from Earth to the garden and briefly explains the garden's history, but much of the particulars are lost on the guys while they mull over their celebrity treatment by the Thangiens.Events of Foes From Another World
In Chapter 8 "Goldheart", Shannon O'Connor recites an abridged version of the tale while she and Brianna Johansen ride Goldheart on their way to rescue Roxi Hirochner. Likely either Rowen Hashiba or Master Breeder Dar Dar Vanes, Norin shared the story with her sometime prior."This is widely considered the catalyst behind the City Strife, as Yapign claimed descent from the Greedy Farmer and that the land rightfully belonged to him and his sons. On top of demanding the 'right' to engage in all manners of vile debauchery, Yapign demanded the Gods relinquish the land to him. Roth staunchly refused, of course, stating that any claim to the land had been forfeited long ago. When questioned as to the true name of his 'revered ancestor', Yapign suddenly drew a blank, so either he was not as terribly fond of his ancestor, or the Queens had so thoroughly and completely scoured his name from memory. In any case, Yapign left their presence terribly disgruntled, and we all know what followed next..."
Spread
The tale is well-known to the residents of the Lonesteads and City-Dwellers. Freelanders are not as versed on the particulars: there was a farm there, then it became a wasteland, then it became a garden seemingly overnight. They revere Witheren and Ritho and attribute the garden to them both, and they know Xiar is the father of the fyrhundi who roam the plains and are worthy companions to the plains nomads. The tale is known to very few Oldworlders, but it shares many common tropes with cautionary tales from various beliefs such as fables and myths.
Variations & Mutation
"Aside from the Cresta and the Wheel, there is no tale told by the Thangien people that has deviated so wildly from factual events. Just about every aspect of the story has seen some form of alteration ranging from the conclusion of the tale to the Greedy Farmer's girth... It is a subject of much debate whether there were ever actually 'bands of bandits' that plagued the farmer so relentlessly, being that Witheren often personally hunted down criminals for sheer sport. Some contend that the 'marauders' were merely Freelanders who bartered for food in good faith and were unjustly slandered. "Some versions have Xiar happily devouring suspected trespassers, but the effect of eating so much human flesh corrupts him and drives him mad, turning him into a gigantic bloodthirsty beast that rampages throughout the land consuming everyone in sight except the farmer until Roth intervenes and restores him to his former self. In others the farmer starts out generously trading with the city but as his paranoia deepens he descends into madness bordering on almost cartoon-supervillainy. Other renditions claim he was always selfish and cruel and Witheren knew what would happen from the get-go, the proverbial 'giving enough rope' and all that... "Because the drought ended so quickly soon after, faithful insist Witheren herself went to the Northern Ring and smote the glacier with her halberd, bullying the rain into coming despite neither of the Four Queens being stated to have any particular domains over weather patterns. There are actually some tellings in which Xiar does eat the children, and Witheren is so flabbergasted she orders him to serve Roth forever more as penance, lest she draw the ire of Ritho..."
Cultural Reception
"This is actually one of the more controversial tales pertaining to the Queens as it touches very heavily on property rights. In Thangien culture, ownership has always been traditionally defined as 'the work of thine own hands save what is ceded through reciprocal barter or trade'. Some debate that because the farmer tended to so much land all on his own, he was well within his right to use it as he saw fit, however repugnant his actions. Adherents to the gods argue that he lost his right the second he demanded Xiar murder children. Whatever side of the debate people fall on, generally all can agree that his first and last mistake was thinking he could talk back to a god..."
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Witheren, Goddess of Righteous War
by
Mardrena
Made with Inkscape, BlackInk, and Paint.net
In Literature
While not performed in llaudauns, the story is shared most frequently in illustrated form both in children's books provided by the Archives of Raaezen and in historical context pertaining to the City Strife. There is a chapter in the Geodolpha dedicated to the tale written in epic format.
And he clenched his fists, and he stomped his feet
and he puffed his cheeks, and his face turned red
"Give it back! Give it back!"
"Give it! Give it! Back! Back!"
In Art
"Even back then, Witheren had a reputation for being the most capricious and coarse of the Gods. Granted, she's certainly mellowed somewhat over the millennia...but she is still not to be trifled with. I actually got the chance to ask her about the true version of events and she remained rather vague, commenting only that the farmer 'foolishly squandered her gift'...Iconography of Xiar the God-Hound is featured prominently on walls in fresco or mosaic form, tapestries, and paintings, either playing with children or engaged in battle. Because most of these depictions are said to be accurate, it is worth noting how large he is in proportion to the children. The Greedy Farmer is almost always depicted as a portly man."There is a reason Witheren is often described as the most feared of the Queens second only to Roth herself. In this story-window, she is shown passing judgement as her curse takes hold and Xiar chases the Greedy Farmer from the land. Seeing as how this window's design and construction preceded the birth of Deres by several decades...it's pretty obvious where Deres and Muriab got their inspiration for their depictions of Yapign and his sons from..."
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The Greedy Farmer (Stained Glass) by MardrenaMade with Inkscape and BlackInk
Date of Setting
5000+BC Earth-Time
All artwork used is self-made and belongs to me unless otherwise stated, such as kitbashes and commissions. Age of Defiance does not and will not use or feature RW/YST original artwork out of consideration for the OAS creators
Thanks for sharing and allowing me to read this article on my livestream! As you can see, Someone has left an explosive little treat for you... Your lore is always so amazingly detailed. I like all the angles you share the story from, showing how people of different places and times received the message. I enjoy seeing your bold and colorful art, too. I also included this article in my New Year's Reading Challenge Article. Thanks for helping remind me to get back to the idea about keeping my article headers uniform in size. <3
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i don't know when they added the sticker option but its a interesting new addition. I know they recommend 1920x480 got header size and its only a recommendation I've seen other people use full images for headers. I recently figured out you can set up a fixed size selection in paint.net so I can type out the size and click and instantly get the exact size box, so I don't have to fumble with getting the manual selection just right and I can select a slice of a drawing whatever I want. Sometimes I can give a sneak peak of a illustration I haven't fully released yet and use the header size for a special challenge. That reminds me I've got lots of work to get back to!
yep nice. I have an adjustable size in my program as well, or I could just crop any image. now is simply a matter of me choosing which size I want to use. Thanks for the recommendation. Much success with the work!
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and, yep. stickers are fairly new. were implemented during WorldEmber last year and they were Christmas themed, so you may see some of those around. Now, they've added more types of stickers and made some that are more inexpensive.
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