Gomla
The Gomla are an ancient civilization, and are generally recognized as one of the four Great Empires of the Locus.The Gomla were most noted for their mastery of the matter and mind schools of magic. They made extensive use of phase transmutation, both in order to construct their vast tunnel networks, and in order to create large numbers of melting swords with which to equip their armies. They also made extensive use of thought projection, such as illusion lanterns and mindspice. They were also known to place hypnotic mindscript on their armor, in order to induce feelings of terror and panic in their enemies.
The character of the Gomla culture is heavily influenced by the conditions of their home world of Goml. Goml has an unusually thin ozone layer, making it dangerous to stay outside for long periods during the day. It also has a large moon with a high surface albedo, making it unusually easy to see at night. As a result, the Gomla developed a primarily nocturnal culture. In order to find shelter during the day, the Gomla burrowed underground, eventually creating large subterranean cities.
The subterranean and nocturnal character of the Gomla played an important role in their early military success. The extensive tunnel networks they built provided them with an infrastructure that was highly resistant to surface attack; as a result, Gomla armies didn't need to worry about protecting their supply lines, and could appear and disappear at will within established Gomla territory. The tunnels were also invisible from the surface, allowing the Gomla to invade neighboring territory without the invasion being noticed until it was too late. Their nocturnal nature meant they would usually attack at night, using their tunnels as shelter during the day. This negated the advantage of enemy ranged troops, allowing the melee-oriented Gomla soldiers to come to grips with minimal casualties.
The classical Gomla language has only three vowel sounds (a,i,o). Some of its consonants form chronemes, with long and short variants. The most distinctive of these is the glottal stop; a long glottal stop sounds roughly like a pause in the middle of a word, but functions as a vowel separator rather than a word separator. It can be represented by a double apostrophe ('').
Banner symbol
of the Gomlati.
The Gomlati are an extant remnant of the Gomla civilization. When the Gomla Empire collapsed, it kept much of its military and its most notable citizens preserved in petrified form. The goal of this was to wait until the conditions leading to their downfall had passed, at which point the Gomla civilization would be re-established, providing an ideal world for its prominent citizens to live in. The preserved soldiers were to be the ones responsible for reconquering their empire.
In order to ensure that the preserved Gomla awoke at the correct time, the Gomla established a secret society that would outlive their empire. This society, the neo-Gomla or Gomlati, would keep an eye on surface events and determine when conditions were right for a Gomla revival. Of course, after several thousand years, they still haven't acted. Whether they still exist is debated among academic circles. But that doesn't mean the Gomlati aren't still watching.