Sothal is a traditionally seafaring culture that welcomes travelers. Each city in their isles is its own state, and each holds their own custom. It is a nation of community and unity, and neighbors look to eachother for aid. But, should an outsider cross one, the entire community bands together to hunt them down.

Sothal has the unique property of converting their magical darkness into an iridiscent black fabric - and the ability to subtract colours from it, so much of their culture revolves around the use of the fabric, in fashion and architecture.

Sothal citizens dress lightly, suitable of their primarily tropical location.It's not uncommon for them to wear nothing more than a sash for a top and some shorts for modesty. Colours range, but always complement the nigh-mandatory maroon that all of them have.

Housing varies from kingdom to kingdom, but generally falls into two categories - plaster and stone, or wood and stone. The former tends to be on more mountainous islands and clustered a good story or two above sea level to avoid flooding, whereas the latter happens on flatter islands and feature raised homes. Fabrics are draped everywhere as decoration, painting both types of housing in swaths of colour and shine. Every single one has a dedicated docks that the community has built.

Sothal, like the other Balance societies, blends technology and magic as much as possible for useful results. This is particularly apparent in their licensing of Hekate products and of their interstellar shipyards.

Sothal is responsible for the Balance Coalition's stellar naval craft. There's only a handful of general purpose craft they've designed, and so most of their abilities are spent building new ones and parts to fix them.

Sothal heavily focuses on magic. Like the other Balance socieities, Sothal has a magical talent that they pride themselves on beyond any other - malleable shadowmancy. The most common use is in textiles - they can manifest shadow into an iridiscent black fabric. They can then subtract colours from it, turning the fabric into whatever colour they desire while bottling the removed colours as dye. In creation, they also give the fabric its basic properties - stretchiness, durability and so on.

Sothal, like all Balance Societies, focused so hard on magic during its history it quite simply forgot psionics existed.

Sothal, given their status as a seafaring society, derives a lot of their cuisine from the sea.

Sothali cultivate a very small variety of oceanic greens, primarily seaweed, due to the very small amount of farmable land they possess versus the vast, wide oceans. Sugar cane is grown in the larger islands' marshlands, and spice-producing trees and other plants are integrated where possible into every major town.

Fish are a major part of a Sothali's diet, and as such there is both a thriving fishing industry and a fish nursery industry. The latter is what they tend to sell to the other nations - because why sell the best to the enemy? Otherwise, Sothali take a wide variety of pets into their lives, from the basic domestic felines and canids to exotic birds and reptiles.

Fish are a staple in Sothal dining experiences. Terrestrial creatures are not. Most Sothali dishes are heavily spiced and have a tendency to be wrapped in seaweed.

Religion, while once a thing on Balance, faded out of public and private worship shortly after the kingdoms established themselves.

Sothal breaks from the tradition equinox/solstice cycle of celebrations to celebrate two major holidays - one before storm season begins at the end of spring, and one after it concludes midway through fall.

Births are celebrated with much gusto in their communities. The dead are cremated and their ashes are used to plant a tree. There is a specific island in Sothal that is used for nothing but burials.

Sothal is a series of city states with one high king that presides over them all.

There are 14 city-states (With outlying townships) ruled over by their own minor royal families, with the capital city containing the high king that decides major policies for the nation and leaves the others to act in their stead. The capital city does not fall under the jurisdiction of the high king, but the royal guard - who govern it as a council.

• High King - Ohm Sark

Sothal has laws governing international commerce, but leaves local law up to the locals - this is especially apparent in how they handle justice. Oftentimes (and ESPECIALLY in smaller towns) the able-bodied of the area will band together to hunt down a criminal, often tapping into the more threatening types of shadowmancy to do so.

• The Floating City - A migrant floating black market operating in Sothal Territory, made of a fleet of ships linked together by bridges and rafts. Filled with vagabonds and ne'er-do-wells, but a great place to find whatever one might need.