The Language of Barogue
OOC Note: The Language of Barogue is normally communicated to players via the pig pen cipher script written by our friend Silas, but this is an out of character conceit only. The words characters translate from the cipher don’t actually translate to English, but for the sake of making it actually usable and writable by STs and players alike, this is our compromise. There are a few other words and phrases with no real English translation that will be incorporated as players discover more about Barogue.
Translating the ancient language of the former residents of Barogue has been made easier with the discovery of a “rosetta stone” of sorts on an Obelisk in Waking Prime. The language seems to be mostly a dead language, with only a written source that is somewhat understood. The written source of the language seems to be the common tongue of the city, though there appears to be two styles of language throughout the carvings and writings in the city: the common glyphs of the Prince Undying’s writings that can be translated to modern words and a series of pictographs that make up the more esoteric “High Barogian''. There are no true native speakers of this language, but some Unborn can speak bits and phrases as it is similar to some of their home dialects from the Pridelands.
However, while most common words can be deciphered, the language uses a number of pictographs that rely on the context of the age. While it is sometimes possible to derive the meaning of some of the symbols from other surrounding texts and carvings, the true meaning of many of the symbols of Barogian language is lost to time. From what can be derived, each line and piece of the symbol implies a different concept or phrase. By combining several phrases together, many common pronouns are a mix of smaller glyphs combined into a whole with an entirely different meaning. However, some symbols don’t always follow this logic, so there is some amount of trial and error even for an expert to decipher the true language of Barogue.
Barogue - Loosely translated, the pictograph of Barogue means “home of the moving crystal”. It’s a common symbol and one of the first to be recognized as a proper noun. Barogue appears to be the name of the titan city, based on writings in legends and what records survive of the time. There are enough similar symbols in the recordings to suggest that Barogue was one of several titan cities, but the location of these other sites or if they survived the ravages of Barogue is unknown.
The Scion Vossa - Another proper noun represented by a symbol, the pictograph of the Scion Vossa means “psionic crystal of power”, or perhaps “danger”. While there are many legends of this massive psionic crystal, this was once the main power source of the titan city. Thought to be removed or destroyed by Sister Mammon during the fall of Barogue, all that is left of this crystal are the remnants of psi-tech throughout the city and the massive plinth in the center of the city that once housed the crystal.
The Betrayer - One of the more prolific symbols found in Barogue, though often not as an official carving or record, this symbol represents the figure known as Sister Mammon. It loosely translates to “eternal betrayer” of “they that betray at the start and end of time” in old Barogian. Commonly thought to have caused the fall of Barogue, it is unknown if Mammon was a person or a nation, but a few more zealous Final Knights maintain an oral tradition of her exploits known as ‘the Canticles' that suggests she is still alive today, someone evading the ravages of time.
The Wellspring Eternal - Loosely translated, the pictograph of this symbol means “eternal fuel” or “spring of movement”. One of the legends of Barogue speaks of a massive source of fuel known as the Wellspring, from which the power of the city derived. No location has been found so far that matches this legend, but it is possible this symbol also referred to other things, such as a fuel tank that was once attached to the city, or even a still hidden reserve of fuel within the superstructure.
Sanctuary - Loosely translated, the symbol means “safe place”. This is used in many of the religious structures of the old city, originally lending some of the first explorers to use various religious terms to describe the locations with Barogue. The verbiage of naming portions of the city after a chapel came about because of this first translation by Felicity Redfield.
Leviathan - While this is a common symbol on maps of the area and in the writings, scholars suggest that this might mean “devourer” in translations, but the symbol is incorporated into other symbols that they think mean “death” or “danger”. The common modern parlance assumes this refers to Leviathans, as it is often included in passages that deal with the defenses that the Prince Undying placed to protect Barogue through the ages, and the first expedition encountered many of the gargantuan creatures.
Gravemind or Mortis - This symbol incorporates elements of other glyphs that mean “devourer”, “eternity”, “music”, and “underground”, to the closest translation. The first Unborn that returned from the Barogue morgue when the expedition team first arrived translated this symbol for the survivors. It was also used in the stone carvings that appear near the only functioning morgue exit within the titan city. Scholars are still divided on the true meaning of the phrase, but like most things involved with the Mortis Amaranthine, it defies true understanding.
Enemy or Raider - This symbol is another with divided translations, meaning either “moving enemy” or “people of danger” or “death”. It incorporates elements that are assumed to refer to zombies and movement, but it appears in several conflicting passages. It is used to commonly refer to the enemies of Barogue, though it may actually take on different meanings depending on the contextual placement within a message.
Prince Undying - One of the first symbols understood by explorers, this was used in many of the writings of the Prince Undying that were found outside of Barogue. The direct translation of the glyph suggests “the leader of people'', but it curiously lacks the symbol for “eternity” or even something hinting at “undying”. Unlike any other Barogian word to describe a single person, this appears to be a title and not a family name. This is one of the prime examples scholars turn to when they explain the mystery and contradictions behind the pictograph language of Barogue.
Obelisk - a recent discovery, this symbol is identified with the Barogian proper noun of “tekhenu”. The symbol uses elements of “eye”, “night”, and perhaps even “passage”, though this symbol has new elements that have no direct contextual similarities to other pictographs. While the direct translation suggests this is a partial understanding of the word, it clearly refers to the strange monoliths that have been activated across the San Saba and is one of many Barogian translations that does not readily match up to common words or phrases. However, as this symbol is a proper noun, and not simply a description of a pillar of stone, it implies that this name somehow has a deeper meaning.