N/Bestiary/Ziggurat

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[edit] Political Significance

In the olden days, a ziggurat was the political capital of a tribe. Each tribe's warlord held his/her conferences in the ziggurat. Generally, the capture of a ziggurat signified the end of power of the tribe that it was in. With Eternity's End, the Union of Five Tribes built a particularly large Ziggurat, or great house, as a home for the the Union's head and the representatives of each tribe. In time, the Ziggurat's establishment helped the transition of the Five Tribes into a single coherent entity what had forgotten its separate origins. Ziggurat construction ended a long time ago, and now few remain.

[edit] Ziggurat Architecture

Ziggurats were constructed from stone, and were arranged one tier at a time around a central ventricle. As the tribe grew, additional layers would be added concentrically. Meanwhile, layers would be added on top as well in a staggered, or stair-like, formation. Thus the size of the tribe's ziggurat signified the strength of the tribe itself at its apex. A well-developed ziggurat had a shape similar to a pyramid, but their edges were zigzag rather than smooth. Both their formation and their materials mean that ziggurats could withstand the test of time, as endurance was important to the ancient architects as it was a symbol of the tribe's might.