The Still-Stone People

The gods placed us where we are meant to be.

Core Concept

Where the Valen embrace cyclical change as sacred, the Caryatids see it as a flaw to be overcome. Their highest spiritual goal is to achieve perfect, eternal stasis, transforming from living beings into unchanging, conscious stone.

Physiology & Biology

A silicon-based lifeform that begins life as a somewhat mobile, geode-like youth. As they age, they undergo a slow, deliberate process of petrification, their biological processes replaced by stable, crystalline structures. The oldest members of their society are sentient, unmoving mountains who perceive time on a geological scale.

Psychology & Society (Faith / Fiction)

Core Faith: They believe that change, movement, and emotion are symptoms of an unstable, immature state. True wisdom and enlightenment are found in stillness. Their society is a quiet, contemplative meritocracy where status is measured by one’s degree of petrification.

Core Fiction: Their greatest hero is not a warrior or explorer, but the “First Sleeper,” a legendary ancestor who was the first to achieve perfect, unbroken stillness and become a permanent part of the planet’s crust.

Gameplay Hooks & Tensions

Playing as a Caryatid would be a unique, meditative experience. Movement would be slow and costly. Quests would revolve around finding the perfect place to “root,” defending it from change, and engaging in long-form contemplative Rituals.

They are the natural enemies of dynamic, evolving species like the Valen, whom they see as chaotic and tragically trapped in a meaningless cycle of flux. A Caryatid might seek to “bless” a Valen world by trying to halt its seasons, an act the Valen would perceive as an attempt to murder their god.

Eidos Generated

• [stasis]
• [permanence]
• [rigidity]
• [patience]
• [geological_time]