Welcome to the Statehouse/Table Oneshots and Headcanons

Personifications Mechanics

My headcanons for the mechanics of personification. This should have been the first chapter but ah cest la vie.

Birth: Personifications pop into existence fully grown. They start out a little blank due to how new they are, but with people and time they eventually get more personality. Usually personifications are not related to each other and they don't actually have parents. They have people they have claimed as parents (ex. Florida with Spain). Personifications can decide that they are related to each other and treat each other accordingly (ex. The Carolinas and The Dakotas.). It depends on how long they've known each other and how close they are to each other. We support found family in this house.

Personalities: Personifications and their personalities and actions are dictated/influenced by their people and governments. This means that some parts of themselves they cannot control (ex. Texas is stuck being a republican who makes bad choices). They do have some interests and ideas not dictated by their people (ex. Alaska and Maine's friendship). Also, great emotional turmoil can overtake their usual programmed instincts (ex. I have an example, but I'd rather not mention it-this is supposed to be fun).

Immortality: Personifications are immortal so long as cultural identity/general idea of them exists. Most states started out as territories before they became states. This immortality is the variant where the personifications can die, but they will comeback eventually. Depending on the severity of the death and the state in question it can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days to come back.

Personifications and Mortals: Mortals often find themselves instantly liking their states when they meet them, unless they have incredible dissent for their state. Mortals meeting other states can varying. If it's not a state they originally came from but have been living in for a while, depending on their experience there they will find themselves either liking them or being disgusted by them, there isn't much of an in between. Mortals meeting states they aren't from may not think much of them other than they are a little strange, unless that mortal is one with more of an eye for the supernatural, then they are gonna feel uncomfortable meeting them. There's something bigger and more ancient about them even if they walk around in the body of a young man.

Sicknesses: A personification's immune system depends on their population. Larger populations = stronger immune systems (this also works for pain tolerance). States can get sick in a few ways. 1. They catch it because there is a epidemic/pandemic (look Ben only had Washington get Covid but I just have to believe that everyone had it at some point). 2. They catch it from a citizen they were in close contact with, this only really happens with states with smaller populations. 3. They catch it from another state being sick. There's a fourth way which leads me to my next point.

Weather: Extreme weather effects states physically. Sometimes they won't feel any effects of it if they are used to the weather. Examples include:
-Winter Weather: States like Alaska, Montana, Michigan, Colorado, and others will themselves not usually feel the effects of extreme winter weather. In fact, because they are so much hardier they can stand to be outside without much on (snow shorts or going naked). If you touch them or get too close however you will often feel the cold radiating off them. After that it depends. Some states if they are having unprecedented cold weather will get a cold if it isn't too serious. If it's worse than that then states will go into hypothermia. And if you have something like February 2021 then there will be states going into full on torpor from the effects of it. I have a whole fic about this!
-Earthquakes: Again, the more used to it the less effected the state will be by it. If it's a little earthquake they usually won't feel anything, other than possibly nausea, a mild headache, and a loss of balance, and that is if they aren't used to earthquakes. Bigger earthquakes result in migraines, a loss of balance, body tremors, and in extreme cases broken bones and seizures.
-Wildfires: Wildfires result in fevers, and the worst wildfires can result in states having burns appear on their skin. They also physically begin to smoke from the heat.
-Tornadoes: A lot of states feel nothing from tornadoes and actively enjoy watching them or chasing them. The worst ones result in dizziness and loss of breath, but that's if you have very little experience with tornadoes.
-Hurricanes: Hurricanes are unpredictable monsters. If you're Florida it barely registers for you, other than a leap in adrenaline production. Some states when faced with hurricanes will feel frenzied and manic. Others will get nausea and bad cramping. Migraines, joint pain, seizures; there are multiple reactions to hurricanes. Some are better at dealing with the side effects than others.

I'm gonna cap it off here, but likely I will have more to say on the mechanics of personifications.