The Barren Age
The Barren Age is the present time in Errata, a world still reeling from the collapse, where remnants of the Bygone civilization exist in fractured ruins and unstable vaults. The world is now divided between the Plateau Cities, where the remnants of the Sovereign legacy continue to hold power, and the Dust Basin, where nomadic clans roam free.
Originally they had different names. Pākeha, immigrant, Asian, African, First Nations, Pasifika, and Māori. They collectively became Moahtai, the forgotten voice, though to the outside world they are simply Dryrunners. Descended from those who left the cities long ago, they follow old knowledge and ways of that strive for balance with their environment instead of domination and extraction.
By this time metaphysical talents have manifested in greater numbers. Though still not commonplace, these genetic accidents are cause for alarm within the cities. Though none realize it, all are distantly related to a former member of the industrial elite. These tenuous genetic links provide them with unlockable potential, but also with ability to threaten the established order. Many are hunted by the Sovereigns and Janissaries, who view these powers as a threat to their control.
Outside the cities these talents are regarded with caution or hostility. Only the Dryrunners seem to tolerate them, their navigators welcoming the aid from those who can not just read the sands and wind eddys, but who can see beyond the dust. This only adds to the mistrust between their culture and the city-states, who already view them as non-conformists.
The Moahtai however do not live in isolation. Their Runs constantly carry them to unknown areas, where they encounter traders, client villages, forts, and relic hunters in need of supply. Experts at surviving the harsh climate, and never forgetting values like Manaakitanga, Kaitiakitanga, and Ukaipōtanga, their Hakū have become a sanctuary for travelers, and through them the Dryrunners maintain ongoing supplies of Vaultcraft essential for defending their Wahka, and keeping their Wahka survivable in the depths of the Great Silt Basin.
In exchange, Dryrunner taonga occasionally makes its way into city life. Always passed on as a gift to a trusted friend or family member, sometimes these gifts get lost. Sometimes that loss warrants recovery.
The world of Earth, now called Errata (originating as a slang term referring to a list of mistakes) is in constant conflict. Plateau Cities jockey for control of resources, and the nomadic cultures like the Dryrunners pushing back against the ever-encroaching demands of sovereingn power that is neither earned nor welcomed.
Existence in it is a negotiation between values like Utu, Kaitiaki, and Mauri, and their opposites.
Will you embrace the values of the Dryrunners, or will you veer more towards legalism, utility, and profit?
Support the Build
Like what you see? Help us build Errata—an original world shaped by Indigenous creators, on Indigenous terms. We’re early in development and every bit of support helps bring this vision to life.