Samerras

Samerras head

*When compared to Samerras desert, Oumaji territory looks like heaven on the Square.*

*At least where the Samerras have not yet laid mesas to shelter their crops from the merciless sun, desiccating winds, and monstrous sandstorms.*

*As it turns out, when treated properly , the desert can become bountiful !*

## Description

**Samerras** are a tribe (yet another) that relies on terraforming to thrive. But they do it for real.

Samerras terrain is special in a few ways :

*Forest* and *crops* don't grow there at random, but only in the most sheltered places.

Trying to *grow* some forest in the middle of the desert just wouldn't do. Instead the Samerras **build mountains** (**mesas**) to create canyons and the like, allowing the fertile soil to grow stuff (**on its own**). Actually, any mesa you can see has been built by them at some point. Building mesas out of the rock that surrounds them is in their blood : Their cities are mesas, their monuments are mesas... Some even say that their ancestors helped Midjiwan create the very tiles of the Square with mesas later flatenened out !

Their desert is orange-red and mostly rugged rock rather than sand. In the rare "forests" can be found the even rarer **goato'un** : A very skinny kind of goat with the most incredible fuzzy fur, that protects it from heat and dry winds. With its thin legs and tiny head, it looks like some kind of small sandstorm as seen from afar, floating swiftly over the desert. It is said that only those with a pure heart can find their equilibrium on such a shaky mount. The trees are thin trunks with small **bushes of turquoise leaves** that fall and tumble in the desert when hit by a a strong gust of wind. The Samerras wear those as hats to shade themselves and eat the **greenberries** that they countain, which is why they have that weird vivid **green skin**...

Their tribe colour is **turquoise** **blue**.

Samerras starts with **Construction**, which has the additionnal **Build mesa** ability.

## Terrain and resources

It's fortunate that they are such builders, because at the origins of their tribe, there was not a single mesa in their land...

They have :

* **- Mountain** (mesa), and actually
* **- Crop** and
* **- Forest**, to say the least.

Crops are found on tiles that are adjacent to 2 mountains. (not counting diagonals)

Forests on tiles that have 3 or 4 adjacent mountains. (not counting diagonals)

As soon as a mountain is built, the vegetation changes accordingly.

Being artificial, not a single Samerras mountain has metal in it, but some Samerras fields do.

*Example : So let's say there is already one mountain next to a field with metal on it (that you don't see). Another mesa is built, and the metal-field is replaced with a crop-field. Then if you build another, and didn't turn the crop into a proper farm, it becomes a forest. Chop the forest, you have crop again. You now could grow forest here, and adding a fourth mountain would do the same. If a foe that didn't have Organization chopped or even burnt the forest, he would be able to see the metal and mine it.*

## Mesa building

Mesas are artificial almost cubic mountains made of huge rocks skillfully stacked. Everything about them is the same except *buildings (not monuments) can be built on them* (the needed space is carved out).

Building one costs *5 stars* on Samerras field, *10 star*s elsewhere (their rocky home is just perfect for this). When built in foreign lands, the mesas have the same cubic shape, but the rock is the color of local mountains.

When the Samerras capture a village or city, it becomes a mesa, and will remain so if the city is taken. The defense bonuses don't stack up, but movement and sight are like on a mountain.

Their cities are actually mesas with various-sized openings and a few ornaments, that keep on growing higher and higher.

Samerras monuments are massive carvings : Abu Simbel, Petra, Mount Rushmore, Hegra etc. Pick your favourites.

## More monuments alternative

I tried to refrain from making an overly complicated tribe, so let's just put the idea here : Samerras could have access to twice as many monuments. Potentially with simply two of the same kind (10 kills, 20 kills ; 100 stars, 200 stars ; 12 techs, all 24 techs ; 5 turns of peace, 10 turns ; reveal half the map, reveal it entirely ; connect 5 cities, connect 10), or cool new ones all over the tech tree...

## Inspirations and other tribes

Although the basic idea was "a tribe that builds more monuments", then "that build monuments so huge that they are in fact moutains with humble wooden ornaments that explain why there are seemingly normal mountains in their territory when they are all polytopian-made", and then grabbed some inspiration from Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars Trilogy, then little greens stuff, and very unpredictably from Dragon Ball, and this picture, among other things ; I guess those tribes at least (I surely forgot some) should be mentionned as well :

Jurasa, who use Flinstone-Mesa Verde houses

Aathjai and their cold red desert (a more martian desert !)

And Haotló who are "a mesa-dwelling tribe who have lived in and around them since the beginning of time"

Other tribes I've made can be found here : Gradokko