If you've been following the weekly release of chapters in the Empirefall Chronicles, You probably caught a passing reference to something called “Bog Water,” which is a fun little lore nugget I wanted to shed some more light on.
Bog Water started as a joke. We were prepping for a Kickstarter campaign, and trying to come up with some backer rewards.
suggested we put together a collection of cocktail recipes for some in-universe libations.One thing to note about me is that I like cocktails. Specifically, I like experimenting with different flavors and coming up with new ideas. One thing to know about Andrew, is that he likes to write checks that
and I have to cash. Andrew knew that I'd hear the phrase “cocktail recipe” and run with it.The plan was 12 specialty drinks each based on a fictional, in-canon cocktail and accompanied by a little lore snippet. I told Andrew and Rob that I was going to include a 13th drink that was just a shot of Malört garnished with a pickle1.
I pitched it as a delicacy in the Nothonian Enclaves, but the rest of the galaxy can't stand it (This is somewhat of an understatement). Then, Rob suggested we call it “Bog Water” keeping with the aquatic theme of the Nothonian culture. At that point, we completely derailed a business meeting to brainstorm the lore behind this unholy atrocity.
Caelnyx: A Tasteful War Crime
First impressions are hard, especially when putting your best fin forward is mistaken for an assassination attempt.
As first encounters go, the Nothonians have had a rather tough time. The Nothonians are primarily an aquatic race, and their vessels are designed to mimic their natural habitats. Most of them are filled with water.
A Nothonian exploration fleet caused a panic aboard Rhyno recon ship by accidentally flooding the airlock and shorting out the door controls. Years later, after a number of small skirmishes (and once the two factions learned how to communicate), a [insert faction] delegation arranged to meet with a Nothonian envoy in neutral space to discuss the possibility of a cease-fire and future cooperation between their people.
At the meeting, the Nothonian ambassador presented the Rhyno representative with a bottle of Caelnyx (kale-nix), a high-end (and exceedingly rare) Nothonian liquor. Caelnyx is like ambrosia to the Nothonian Enclaves. Tied to ceremonial rituals, it was the single most generous gesture the Nothonians had to offer except for the fact that as far as the Rhyno were concerned, Caelnyx was (and still is) the single most vile concoction in the galaxy.
The first sip was so gut-wrenchingly horrid that it triggered a violent gag reflex. Believing she'd been poisoned, the Rhyno officer present at the meeting ordered her security detail to open fire.
Two Nothonian attendants were killed in the ensuing scuffle before a third member of their delegation was able to scoop up the officer's glass and down the remaining portion.
Secret Recipes
The recipe for pure Nothonian Caelnyx is a carefully guarded trade secret of the Nothonian Enclaves. So much so that no one really knows what's in it, but as it gained notoriety in the rest of the galaxy, rumors started to surface that at least one of the ingredients was fermented Nothonian flesh acquired during ritual sacrifices to their shark god2.
Caelnyx rapidly became a sort of running joke on worlds outside of the Enclaves. It was something so vile that you had to experience at least once, but it was so difficult to come by that few people ever got the chance.
As demand for the liquor continued to rise, distilleries outside Nothonian territory started attempting to recreate the “barely palatable, near death experience” as described by the few individuals unfortunate enough to experience the real thing, but every attempt fell short.
Nothonian travelers would often scoff at the knock off varieties claiming that true Caelnyx must come from Nothonian seas, and that anything produced outside of their homeworld was “little more than bog water.” It was intended to be a playful slight, but the name stuck.
As popularity rose, a number of distilleries attempted to pawn off failed product lines as special Bog Water varieties by mixing in a little bit of brine and slapping a new label on the bottles. Given the expectation that drinking it was an awful experience, this proved to be a surprisingly viable strategy for recuperating losses tied to under-performing brands.
Counterfeit Caelnyx
Despite the success of Bog Water, the notoriety of its Nothonian counterpart kept Caelnyx in high demand due to its exceedingly limited supply. Naturally, multiple crime syndicates started a counterfeit trade. A few well placed bribes, and a handful of threats were all it took to acquire zome authentic Caelnyx.
Using those bottles as reference, the syndicates became especially adept at mimicing their design, and filled the bottles with whatever they could get their hands on.
Detecting counterfeits of Caelnyx was noticeably more difficult than other rare liquors, because so few regulators knew what it actually tasted like, and the Nothonians refused to shed any light on its composition. Most regulators judged authenticity on the smell (which was known to “leak” from the bottle). If the labels looked right, and the odor was pungent enough, that was generally sufficient to get a seal of approval.
Modern Bog Water
In the modern era, the liquor industry has moved away from Bog Water as a liquor variety. Spirits traditionally sold as Bog Water have been rebranded as Caelnyx and the industry has adopted a grading system for evaluating its authenticity with “P Grade" (or pure) reserved for batches distilled exclusively in Nothonian seas.
Despite evolving regulations, however, the counterfeit Caelnyx market is still booming due to the secrecy surrounding the true Nothonian recipe. There have been several heist attempts throughout history that aimed to uncover (and sell) the secrets, but every one of them has been unsuccessful—and some spectacularly so.
Meanwhile, Bog Water has become associated with a particularly atrocious evolution of the traditional spirit as a murky, Caelnyx-based cocktail crafted to reach new heights of stomach turning depravity.
Recipes vary by region, but the general premise involves a potent shot of Caelyx mixed with a brined “meat paste" of unknown origin and an arbitrary assortment of garnishes. It’s become something similar to a Bloody Mary, though considerably less appetizing. Much like pure Caelnyx, it is an unhinged experience that is barely palatable, though individuals who drink it regularly claim it’s an acquired taste.
Nothonian Reception
As a general rule, Nothonians don’t drink Bog Water. They find the modern cocktail too gimmicky, and typically favor straight Caelnyx. While they would prefer pure Nothonian Caelnyx, it’s rarely available outside of their home territory. They’ll settle for lower grade bottles while traveling, but they do so a tad reluctantly.
There are those who will partake in a round of Bog Water if out with friends from other species, and their ability to hold it down makes for an interesting bar bet among younger patrons. They will also secretly admit to other Nothonians that the cocktail is “not that bad.” They just need to publicly disapprove of it on principle.3
Star Marine Hazing Rituals
Modern Bog Water has gained substantial popularity among the Star Marines of the Rogers Republic, who proudly proclaim themselves to be “the only bastards without gills who can stomach it.”
Their association with the unsettling concoction started as a bet among drill sergeants at the various training facilities over who had the toughest recruits. Each officer would call out a number, indicating how many of their rookies could down a shot without vomiting.
It eventually evolved into a celebratory right of passage for any rookie who passed basic training.
The rules are simple: Everyone takes a shot of Bog Water, and then immediately dons their newly issued helmet. The first one to remove their helmet buys a round for the group, and the last drinks free all night.
On the surface, this may seem like a silly, low-risk wager, except for the fact that aggressive vomiting was an unsettlingly common reaction to rapid consumption of Bog Water–especially among those unaccustomed to its unique flavor profile.
To make matters worse, recruits would often attempt to spike each other's glasses with especially depraved mixers specifically to exaggerate the effects4.
Learn more about Stellar Empire on our official wiki.
And don't forget to checkout “Born of Ash and Iron" right here!
Stellar Empire is a new sci-fi IP that we’ve been developing, and Andrew previously Kickstarted a card game in this universe: Stellar Empire: Skirmish!
Concept Art Created from AI iterations on hand-drawn artwork.
Tell me you're from Chicago without telling me.
In the “modern" era, most people write this off as an urban legend. However, there was a long period where Nothonians were effectively kept as sentient livestock. While the practice has largely fallen out of favor in most parts of the galaxy, there is likely at least a shred of truth to the claims.
In much the same way that I’d poke fun at a cooler full of Bug Light when I could have a Blue Moon.
Fun fact: The unfortunate side effects of this challenge are also the (in canon) origin of the phrase “Frogging the brain bucket.”