Averting Atlantis is Boring, or Making Merfolk Interesting

Clueless? I just mentioned a WHOLE lot of cultures whose lifestyles were intertwined with the sea.

I know, but what I'm saying is that's the mer stereotype of humans. The two races do not interact often because merfolk rarely go to the surface and humans can't go deep enough to find merfolk. This is a medieval fantasy world, not our Earth. It's also another reason why I wanted to avoid bringing humans into the equation; so mer can stand on their own merits.

edited 23rd Oct '15 5:06:37 PM by AllHailThrall

I forgot this was an alternate earth, sorry.

But really, how many soft and clueless humans would be wandering the sea in places that merfolk would encounter? If you're out on the water with little knowledge of sailing, you'd logically stay safe near the coasts instead of trying to venture out into deep water. With that logic of "not encountering people that often," they should be meeting up with the master-sailors instead of soft and clueless land-lubbers.

You're probably right. However, then I'm not sure how to make sure that humans don't start upstaging our real protagonist. The story isn't about the humans, it's about Gill rescuing the princess from the evil sorceress.

If you don't want to focus on the humans, then don't write a lot about the humans. Just throw in a few references to humans now and then.

I threw in the "how do they see humans" thing as a worldbuilding idea for the merfolk's culture and interaction (or lack of) with humans.

Ahhh, okay.

Then since you put it like that, I'd probably think that they'd more likely see humans as sort of bogeyman figures. They'd float over with their wooden ships, blocking the sunlight from the surface, and drop large metal anchors on buildings and stuff. Those who go to the surface to confront the humans never return....

Which could easily make for some sort of in-universe horror-story among Gill's companions.

edited 23rd Oct '15 10:03:06 PM by AllHailThrall

@Sharysa: Can I just take a moment to state that I love how your mind works Your merfolk would be SO cool. Do you have any in Moonflowers? I know you mentioned a river spirit of some kind, but does that count as a merperson in your opinion?

If I was writing about merfolk, I'd actually ditch the whole "fish tail" thing and make it so that what appear to be tails (to humans) are actually long fins on their legs. In fact, I'd also make it so that the same fins grew from their arms, so they'd always look like they were dressed in wide-sleeved dresses or robes or something. I'd probably give them the ability to create spheres of air because they wouldn't actually be able to breathe underwater (but could hold their breath for long periods of time outside their bubbles). I guess they sound a bit like the Gungans from Star Wars.

D'awwww, thanks!

My river-spirit is just a water-affiliated fairy, but I'm planning a sequel to Moonflowers that deals with pirate attacks, so selkies and merpeople will make a cameo!

To add my $0.02

As far as weapons go among the Merfolk, water resistance slows down any kind of lateral movement, so only thrusting/piercing weapons retain their full effectiveness underwater. That's why King Neptune is traditionally armed with a trident. Also think spears (held, but not hurled) and stabbing-type daggers (stiletto, misericorde). Knives would be useful as tools, but would only be used as last-ditch weapons in a grappling fight, if you didn't have anything better.

What would the Merfolk think of all the sunken ships and other assorted flotsam and jetsam that Humans junk up their ocean with? Would they salvage stuff, or keep clear of it?

I fixed that problem in my story by introducing Orichalcum, a magical metal that moves as smoothly through water as iron does through air. It's pretty rare though, and hard to work unless you're a master blacksmith.

As for the sunken ship thing, merfolk salvage whatever they can get from human wrecks. Mermaids consider jewelry scavenged from humans an exotic fashion statement and typically they find odd uses for human "artifacts" discovered in shipwrecks. Think kind of like how Ariel thought a fork was a hairbrush. That sort of thing.

The metal may move smoothly through water, the body behind it will still be limited by water resistance. That means big swings are still out :P.

Not necessarily. If Orichalcum is just another term for Handwavium, then the weapon could extend its magical aura to also include the wielder. Or in other words, A Wizard Did It.

I was gonna say that someone wearing orichalcum armor would be able to move smoothly through water too. So yes, Handwavium. =P

Plus it's simply that merfolk are proportionally stronger than humans of the same size, especially in the water.

edited 26th Oct '15 6:30:29 PM by AllHailThrall

By the way, your comment about Merfolk finding odd uses for Human artifacts reminds me of a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon:

(Calvin is examining a coat hanger)

Calvin: Maybe it had some religious significance.

Hobbes: Maybe it explains why your room is such a mess.

And while I'm tossing random ideas around, here's another: One sunken ship might have been carrying a cargo of rum, or some other potent potable. The casks are leaking, making all the sea creatures who venture near it drunk - a strange new experience for Gill and his cohorts?

edited 26th Oct '15 7:36:54 PM by pwiegle

Im gonna throw my 2 cents in, we all know what you might owith humans, but what about the merfolk themselves. Are they the steriotypical "fish with human torso/head/arms" or will you be makign them more alien? and if so, how?

There are two kinds of merfolk in my setting.

First are "standard" merfolk, usually just called "merfolk". They resemble your typical merman or mermaid, with a few specifications. They're always youthful and beautiful, so mermen tend to look young and fairly Bishonen, while mermaids are curvaceous and look like lovely maidens. Neither gender wears much clothing; mermaids typically wear just enough to protect their modesty, while mermen are pretty much a Swimming Shirtless Scene. They most often have dark hair and light skin, but their skin and hair color can often run the gamut. Their ears are slightly pointed. Finally, a stylistic choice is that each mer has the tail of a specific fish, rather than a "generic" fish tail. For instance, Gill has the tail of a tarpon, and the Big Bad evil sorceress has the tail of a serpentine oarfish.

Then there are the Deep Ones, which tend to be much more monstrous, though they aren't necessarily evil. They typically resemble merfolk, but they have the tails of more unusual underwater beasts. In addition, their human halves are less "conventionally" attractive and they have attributes of their fish half, like "angler" Deep Ones have bug eyes, jaggedy teeth, and a lure, while "lobster" Deep Ones have knobbly skin and claws for hands.

edited 26th Oct '15 11:40:41 PM by AllHailThrall

I see, what about their physiology? I'd assume that the Deep Ones would be somewhat blind because of the visibility at that depth, regardless of how many light shows you can put down there, and instead rely on sonar or echolocation. Which is one of the reasons for my question.

The other reason is because the Space Is an Ocean thing seem cyclical in nature, it and related tropes exists because the sea seems more alien underwater than on land, due to our (Read: the layman's) comprehension of the deeper parts of the ocean being rather shallow.

Deep Ones are often characterized by having poor vision... but this is primarily because this is the merfolk making that characterization, and Deep Ones do have poor vision in the lit-up areas that the merfolk prefer.

Deep underwater, where the merfolk are the ones that have trouble seeing, Deep Ones, have excellent dark vision and great hearing and smell. To the Deep Ones, it's actually the merfolk that are the blind ones.

edited 27th Oct '15 9:32:35 AM by AllHailThrall

Why do mermaids care about "modesty"? What's the justification?

The justification is that I want people other than adults to read the book. In-story there is zero reason for them to care about that. But I don't want my book to be slapped with the literary version of an R rating just for that.

edited 27th Oct '15 7:59:09 PM by AllHailThrall

I guess I figured But why not cover the mermen as well and justify THAT?

Never mind (Sexism)

>_> I don't want to make it sexist....

, You know, folks, there's a fair justification for mermaids wearing bras, and it's not just modesty, it's plain convenience and vanity. Not sure how much to say without making the thread R, but it's for the same reason we wear sports bras when running; to keep everything in place, so to put it. As for vanity reason, take a look at those National Geographic photos of elderly tribal women who's never worn bras in their life. I don't intend to offend anyone, but it's not exactly Victoria's Secret. So, bras on mermaids are totally justified.

...why do I feel so bloody uncomfortable writing about it? :|

Thing is, that particular explanation kinda falls flat in water, where the natural buoyancy of fatty tissue should keep things properly stabilized.

What's the water-temperature? I ask since I guess as unless it is handwavered as realy warm water or temperature-resistant Merfolk skin would the Merefolk probably be quite chubby. Compare with the insulating flubber off seals and whales.

Also logically would their bodies either be "aquadynamic" (if that is even a word) or they would wear clothes trying to streamline the bodies in order to make swiming easier.