ONESI: Upon the Fallen

Firebeards
Because there needs to be Villains

FireBeards
Starting Location: Western Barrens
Spoiler :

Society: Warrior Society.
Values: Strength
Religion(s): The firebeards worship Gheed;An ancient being, that promises the world to the true believers.
Language(s): Haidzo
Economic Base: Collection and Hunting; Raiding other settlements
Country Names: [Make a list of nation names for me to use]
Characters: General Farkhel
Place Names: Nantan

Origins : General Gheed was the founding father of the armed forces. However, what he thought was the king showing confidence in his greatest general was actually a sly snake that was scared that he would be overthrown. Gheed to not only asked to leave the realm but also tortured, mutilated and left to die in the barren wastes. Eversince, Gheed's son, Farkhel has vowed to take revenge on the Haidzo settlements. Farkhel leads an band of mercenaries that roam the country side and loot, kill and pillage anything that is related to the Haidzo.
 
Firebeards
Because there needs to be Villains

FireBeards
Starting Location: Western Barrens
Spoiler :

Society: Warrior Society.
Values: Strength
Religion(s): The firebeards worship Gheed;An ancient being, that promises the world to the true believers.
Language(s): Haidzo
Economic Base: Collection and Hunting; Raiding other settlements
Country Names: [Make a list of nation names for me to use]
Characters: General Farkhel
Place Names: Nantan

Origins : General Gheed was the founding father of the armed forces. However, what he thought was the king showing confidence in his greatest general was actually a sly snake that was scared that he would be overthrown. Gheed to not only asked to leave the realm but also tortured, mutilated and left to die in the barren wastes. Eversince, Gheed's son, Farkhel has vowed to take revenge on the Haidzo settlements. Farkhel leads an band of mercenaries that roam the country side and loot, kill and pillage anything that is related to the Haidzo.

Hey bonefang!

I really appreciate the interest but I'm going to ask you to revise this a little before it's put in. I think that the idea of a raider tribe on the high steppes is a good one, and maybe it could be an offshoot of the Haidzoela.

But, if they are, you should talk to North King about it before resubmitting this application, as he created the Haidzoela. He's done a lot of work on their culture and on the ecosystems in your region, and I think that you should read that and adapt to it before you commit to this idea. Otherwise, it doesn't make sense within the context of what's already here (for example, the Haidzoela don't have a king, and aren't really an organized nation-state).

Also, I'd really like to see more about your society, societal values, and economic base. I encourage you to look at some of the other applications for inspiration. Also, most other players have given their cultures names in their own languages, so I'd appreciate if you could do that too. At this point in history, players won't be representing nations as much as they are representing cultures.

Overall, I'm really excited to have you on board but I'd like you to revise those few things first!
 
The Five Sisters of the Golden Land

Spoiler Map :

Némori, the Golden Land, exists between the eternal heights of the Zuréna and the eternal depths of the Telesejiya. It is the one true civilization, being the home of the children of the gods and the cities of men.

The five great goddesses, daughters of the god of time, are the princesses of the rivers. Their names are Némo, who is eldest, Atsenu, Lié, Iluterié, and Utsuni. Némori is the most blessed, strongest, and wealthiest land in existence. Jyakéri is home to men who come and go from the sea, and are not to be trusted as are the riverfolk. Their land is rich, and their people powerful, but impure.

The Ilukiri is a strange land, guarded by falls of water and the stone guardians who forbid passage. Its people, the Iluki, are queer, and speak a queer tongue. They are small and dark of eye and stature. They lived in the shadow of the might of the gods, and so they were made slaves of their own will. So it is, and so shall it ever be. These are the boundaries of true civilization, of the endless tapestry of the Wheel.
 
The Five Sisters of the Golden Land

Spoiler Map :

Némori, the Golden Land, exists between the eternal heights of the Zuréna and the eternal depths of the Telesejiya. It is the one true civilization, being the home of the children of the gods and the cities of men.

The five great goddesses, daughters of the god of time, are the princesses of the rivers. Their names are Némo, who is eldest, Atsenu, Lié, Iluterié, and Utsuni. Némori is the most blessed, strongest, and wealthiest land in existence. Jyakéri is home to men who come and go from the sea, and are not to be trusted as are the riverfolk. Their land is rich, and their people powerful, but impure.

The Ilukiri is a strange land, guarded by falls of water and the stone guardians who forbid passage. Its people, the Iluki, are queer, and speak a queer tongue. They are small and dark of eye and stature. They lived in the shadow of the might of the gods, and so they were made slaves of their own will. So it is, and so shall it ever be. These are the boundaries of true civilization, of the endless tapestry of the Wheel.

Awesome!

I really appreciate when people provide names for geographical features around them, as it makes the world a lot richer.

Keep this stuff coming folks, and remember the deadline is February 20th for inclusion in Update 0!
 
This is a friendly reminder that the deadline for Update 0 is Saturday, February 20th.

You don't need to send orders, only a cultural template, but anything received after that date will not be in the update. Unless, of course, you clear it with me beforehand.
 
I'll try to have a list of major city-states and personages dropped by Saturday. Though, depending on the turn length, a bunch may enter and fall out of prominence before the region really settles.

I know terrance is doing stuff for the friendly neighborhood untermensch (Iluki) so I won't step on his toes there.
 
The Elka

Region: Northern Alpine mountain range; "Elka'tar", to natives

Politics/Society: The Elka peoples are nomadic, wandering their native mountain range, sustaining themselves off of a hunter gatherer lifestyle primarily built around the hunting aspect. Vegetation is scarce in the Elka'tar region, but large game is fairly abundant, allowing the Elka'tar to stay alive. There is no political organization of the Elka, nor is there a specific geographic pinpoint. The ethnic unity of the Elka is based on their common rituals and practices, while the peoples themselves are composed of a loose collection of dozens of hunter tribes that wander the region with a similar language and similar customs. Within Elka tribes, men and women both hunt side by side, and respect is paid to the elderly as wiser scribes from which to learn.

Culture: The most significant way the Elka are related culturally is in common pottery rituals. Techniques vary from tribe to tribe, but the Elka peoples alike are united by their common cultural fascination with pottery. Trade between tribes, each of which are large kin groups led by a group of elders coming from each prominent family within the tribe, is dominated by pottery; competition between the tribes is also commonly expressed in pottery rather than in physical combat, although small skirmishes do break out between hardened Elka hunters.

Religion: The Elka observe dual deities, both without sex or gender: Ül, the boundless Elka fire deity whose body illuminates the sky, and Tar, the Elka deity of stone and earth. Most of the tribal ceremonies of succession and techniques of weaponmaking involve complex and specific pottery bearing images of one deity or another depending on the specifications of the ceremony. However, the Elka attitude toward these deities is not particularly reverential or praiseful, but rather observant and respectful. The Elka see Ül and Tar as no different from themselves.

Technology and Economy: Plentiful game in the Elka'tar region sustains the Elka peoples, and due to the significance of clay pottery, Elka societies have developed stationary oven and smelting complexes, often carved into the sides of mountains that receive frequent foot travel from Elka nomadic groups. These large kilns, called Ül-ka'at, are considered, along with most tools at the disposal of Elka society, to be private property. Simple to construct, taking only roughly one night, a traveling party of Elka hunters will happen across a Ül-ka'at while setting up camp; if not, they construct one as a sort of public service. These furnaces are also used to create stronger tools out of clay or stone. Elka spears and knives are very strong and Elka hunters are raised from children to use these spears (Tar-pa'at) efficiently, making Elka hunters fierce warriors when situations for violence do arise.
 
Kontur

Starting Location: Downstream of the Shando and Némori

Society: Clannish in structure, the Kontu'st people are organized in hierarchical structures, with the highest positions generally occupied by those of military competence. Regular warfare and raiding throws the society through regular upheavals, which can lead to decent social mobility. Inheritance is determined patrilineally, with marriage being a key event, where wives are ritually transferred from one family to another. Immediately obvious to any visitor is the Kontu'st prediliction for tattooing, leading many to refer to these people as 'painted men'. Tattoos mark heritage and the achievements of great ancestors, personal accomplishments, and invoke the protection and spirit of different tutelary spirits. Gender roles are firmly set in Kontur.

Values: The Kontu'st appreciate bravery, filial loyalty, and perseverence. An idealized man is physically strong, virile competent in his field, and charitable, giving freely to those less well-off. Forgiveness is a mighty virtue, seen as an incredibly generous gift, thus have defeated enemies sometimes become, years later, stalwart allies. An idealized woman of Kontur is faithful, fertile, learned and a stalwart protector of chidlren. Both sexes greatly value physical appearance: disfigurement is particularly horrific in Kontu'st society.

Religion: The Kontu'st worship a wide assortment of spirits, divided into several groups, broadly categorized as nature spirits (Tekha), ancestor spirits (Mokha) and figments (Enakorkha). All individuals have personal relations with a particular assortment of spirits, though they must communicate through intermediaries to contact others. For example, some spirits may only be contacted by men, by children, by those who have shed blood, by those with white hair, and so on. Festivals are seasonal, with the greatest and most universal being the celebration of the coming of the rains.

Language: Kontur lacks a writing system, all of the language is oral. Their closest living relatives are the Shando. However, the southern part of the culture has had many cultural exchanges with the Némorian people, leading to the exchange of many loanwords and placenames.

Economic Base: Hunting, fishing and gathering are the traditional sources of food for the Kontu'st, and the wealth of their land permitted them to build permanent settlements even before the development of agriculture. More recently, finer trades have begun to emerge, such as boatbuilding and pottery.

Country Names: Hebut, Kadet, Kittur, Sudet, Abat

Characters: Gamur, Nurgen, Kaskon, Mokharn, Gotarn, Babben (Male); Tyura, Okhyuta, Gozhni, Kapara, Kaska, Beta (Female)

Place Names: Oddukhet (The Ocean), Namuren (The Southern River, AKA Némo), Khanuren (The Northern River), Hebuttar (The Homeland Marshes), Kadettar (The Northern Plains), Kittutar (The Long Coast)



The Kontu'st have, for longer than living memory, lived along the coastal and riverine lowlands. Here, they have made their livings hunting the bounty of their land, hunting, fishing and gathering. Even before the rise of agriculture, the high availability of food allowed for the people of Kontur to build permanent settlements. The marsh-dwelling Hebut'st ultimately came to build their villages in isolated, hidden areas, often on stilts, to provide defenses against their Kadet'st cousins, who live inland, and follow a more nomadic and warlike lifestyle in order to survive.

With the arrival of agriculture, populations have grown significantly, leading to a greater centralization of power. Traditional family-based organizations have given way to larger, more-inclusive clans, often with hereditary leadership. However, these petty chiefdoms are rife with instability, and rarely last more than a generation. Some chiefdoms are ruled by Kadet'st invaders, who periodically enforce their control over the marsh villages, while others remain in native Hebut'st control. Avoiding the conflict, the Kittu'st have expanded up and down the coast, migrating away from their homelands and establishing a spreading network of fishing villages along the Oddukhet, the great blue sea.
 
Ju



Boats ply the rivers near Diny, second city of the Juzhen demesne.


Mythology/History

The Kassa, a half broken coliseum over a sprawling maze, came before the people did, built by a Mad King more concerned with preserving immortality than his head. It filled them with purpose; to see, protect, and love it. Everything was accepted except understanding, for love was not the equivalent of understanding. Ancient wandering philosophers who came to the structure looking for a dialectic were ran out of the island.

There were greater truths, but those corrupted. The maze emanated this lesson above all to ardent meditators who found the time to ascend the steps of its modest central ziggurat daily.

The Shoru was one of these meditators, only she came from the West with a following.

In ancient but still more recent past, the Shoru (actually an amalgamation of several different clan heads), led her people through the Days Without (probably several waves of migration, not one giant pilgrimage). She communed with the Encompassment, and It only. It led her to the Kassa.

The Kassa accepted the Shoru’s people and they become interred with the existing Yangites. The Yangites, themselves an officialization of smatterings of tribes from hither and thither, accepted the Shoru & her Juzhen as “in kin with us”.

At this point the Shoru indisputably really is one man/woman. Now the Shoru communeS with the All Encompassing Sokol, but also Belaal and Asphet, though this communion comes through more as observations and heavenly readings. How to avoid their wrath, mostly.

The Yangites in their numbers became envious of the Juzhen over the years for this and that dispute, the dominance of the newly created society by the Juzhen, the ascendence of the Shoru over the Kassa and when the First Communion was felled by a small plague in the second city of Diny, a war ensued for control of the island. The Yangites lost and were scattered, but the succeeding Shoru decreed that all were now open to becoming Shoru and forgiven.

Society

There is a small class of literate scribes whose job it is to translate new religious texts, incorporate new "smaller pantheon" deities who the Shoru may accept or reject, decipher the words of the guru, and keep up with the ever shifting sands of Shoru statecraft.

A man or woman of high standing may (it is voluntary, though often coercive in power struggles) become part of the Shoru’s esteemed and highly secretive Horotoro communion. They undergo a process whereby some of the Shoru’s essence is transferred to them (with more or less drugging involved depending on the Shoru), and thereby ascend to the highest decision-making body.

This is a recent phenomenon that could change. The nature of the Shoru is to read the universe and guide his people, so the strategies for doing so have often changed as the world has changed. There was a martial Shoru who appointed all warriors to his circle and made great feats of in battle the key requirement. Shoru's teach, but they also set the political rules. They can completely transform the structure from Shoru to Shoru as their right. The system underneath run by the wealthy (of various stripes) is more rigid in response. It takes a strong and proactive Shoru to take them on. Shoru can be selected by many methods; selection by a retiring guru, election by an ad hoc council, wider popular election, righteous coup, etc.

The Horotoro have total de jure control of economic, political, and spiritual life in the polity and especially the Juzhen urban community (so this would include any diaspora, though the words of wisdom will surely become distorted even more with distance and certain sects will flourish). There may be dozens of Horotoro members at a time, though the turnover rate is high undoubtedly due to the intense pressure of interacting with the gods. The planes of existence become so melded that the contradictions become too much to bear and the man expires, to live amongst the gods. This whole process needs of course a dedicated group of caretakers, which it has in the form of the Shoru-shin.

This often threw day to day power into the hands of the more traditional economic elite and their class strictures based on architectural mysticism (centered on the Kassa). In actuality, everyone knew power resided with the symbolic holders of the Kassa, its walls, still walkways. and the cheap seats overlooking the city. Coups and civil wars were quick affairs centered on holding these nodes of theatrical power.

Popular acclamation under the level of the Shoru is encouraged. Even he relies on his close friends to buttress his wisdom. ‘Tally and decide’ & the 'public denunciation' systems are popular in some settlements, a protean democracy that is still rather easily exploited.

To sum: Ju is a city-state duopoly centered around the Kassa, with a slowly expanding hinterland (especially up the coasts), but more concentrated on controlling the island through shifting clan alliances, marriages, trade routes, etc. The 'Shoru caste', sailor-merchants, scribes, and the landlords of the rice farms are the most influential.


Lineage

Descent is traced through the father's side.


Religion(s)


Split among some as to whether the maze or the Shoru is more important to the faith. Then you got Sokol, Belaal, and Asphet who all look vaguely demonic in their iconography.

On the question of evil, it is found in sheer uncertainty. Uncertainty dictates misunderstanding, hate, sadness, fear, and commerce.

There is an afterlife, undetermined since its conception seems to change with each Shoru.

Wealth accumulation is heavily frowned upon by most Shoru's and their loyal communions throughout the realm, and wealthy merchants, landlords, and mercenaries will often go through public ascetic rites and denunciations (which have actually become a protean democratic forum, of the most rabble-y kind) to save face.

Kinda the opposite of Platonism. Absolute faith and lack of questioning are virtues, necessary to understanding.

So yea, the key planks are:
  • three gods
  • Sokol being the supreme All-Encompassing of the three; submission and death
  • Belaal, fertility and emotions/duplicity; fertility is a ‘bad thing’ because of how dangerous pregnancy is (intertwined with youthful death), not necessarily because it represents perfidious woman or anything
  • Asphet, humanity and suffering
  • architectural mysticism for temporal ordering of society
  • bound together via the person of the Shoru, who with a chosen council guide the mass of people safely through a terrible world

A "holy land" somewhere near the Nemori, a locus of transmigration and lost teachings, was propagated by a Shoru centuries ago. He was thrown out after reckless expeditions ended in failure. The succeeding Shoru had him dismembered other manner of nasty things happen to him (detailed in one small volume of future Shoru collected teachings), but to this day a small persecuted sect remains that venerates the "Maimed Prophet" over all others and seeks a return to the holy land.


Language(s)

Basically mashup East Asian & African sounding names until something sounds cool. Things that are of or from other things get simplified, instead of adding more syllables.

The more African sounding names come from the first migration from the western lands (near thomas' people), and over the centuries those dialects became severely corrupted.

The Asian-sounding names come from the second wave from the west, closer to the Nemori.

Economic Base

Crops ~ mostly rice, lots of wheat, barely, and millet

Trade in lumber until the island is likely exhausted.

Middlemen in commerce, mercenary infantry and ships. Pilgrimage offerings and light tourism to Kassa.


Country/Person/Place Names

Juzhen - the general waters around the island and also the adjective of Ju
Shoru - the lodestone of the Ju, spiritual and ostensibly political leader
Horotoro -the Shoru's traditional inner circle; their numbers and composition change from Shoru to Shoru.
Yanga - main island
Kassa - main city and also the name of its namesake wonder at the center
Diny - second city

Cities/Polities - Pleas Plines, Wue, Yu, Waji



A bit of a rambling mess, I hate early time periods :p . I'll clean this up in the turns to come.
 
Update 0 is now locked. Expect it soon!
 
Looks good so I'll join, its a bit sad I only noticed this on the day it got locked though :(. Anyways I'll apply now while I have time, if it makes it into the first update by the GM's grace that would be great, if it must be that it comes in the next update than that's good as well.

-

Application (EDIT: Just saw that Terrance put a tentative claim round about the area I'm going [lake would be right on where I put the below claim, a site on the river system south of the nemori coming out of the lake would be fine with regards to our claims not competing]. If Terrance wants the lake I'll resubmit another application in deference to him having tentative first claim of the area)

Spoiler :

Aarugae


map

Starting Location:

Southern shores of the great lake, and the surrounding valleys, including the southern vale south of the great-lake basin.

Society:

The Aarugae (People of Enaaru) descend from the displaced remnants of the original natives (as far as memory and lore tells) of the lands where the Nemori abide, and their closely related kin who since time immemorial have abided along the shores of Atsu'sen, the sacred lake. They are closely related to the Marugae people, being separated from them by the deep gorge of the Ilyare river and the wide waters of the sacred lake. The Aarugae language hence is unrelated to that of the Nemori or of the peoples of the infertile lands to the west, and the people hence remain distinct from the greater whole of the folk of the plains. Nonetheless, the plains people (Uatsukai in the Aarugae language) endowed the Aarugae with much wisdom, with the art of bronze working and advancements in agriculture and social development largely being due to their influence, be it through direct transfusion of knowledge, or as a reaction against the historical dispossession of the Aarugae ancestors.

Aarugae society is strictly patriarchal and hierarchical, with public life being deeply mired in ritual. Cities are led by kings considered to be incarnations of the gods and their progeny who comprise the nobility of the Aarugae. These Kings in conjunction with the noble lords enact law and rule and govern the people. They are served by the priestly caste and their acolytes responsible for overseeing the construction and maintenance of public works, most scholarship and all the management of state affairs as an extension of their priestly and ritual functions. Beneath these castes in the Aarugae hierarchy is the warrior caste, which consists of warriors attached to the temples and noble households who's task it is to enforce public order and defend the whole of the Aarugae people at the command of the kings. Everyone else is considered part of the Shaper caste, be they artisan, merchant or peasant, conceived of in the Aarugae mind as those responsible for the material welfare of society.

Aarugae politics is dominated by two competing factors. Firstly, the competition between various cities and kings for hegemony over the people, manifested through family politics, marriages and ancient rivalries and feuds rather than outright war (for the fact the nobility are inter-related) and the Aarugae as one king or another claims pre-eminence as High King. Secondly the subtle battle for influence between the nobility and the priests always simmers in the background as the two castes contest for the divine right to rule (be it through kingly blood, or priestly sacredness), and for economic control over the land through landed interests.

Values:

The Aarugae believe that humanity is by nature wretched and sinful, and that calamity is always near through the wrath of the heavens, or as a consequence of human sin. Hence the Aarugae as a people are steadfast to the point of obsession on the maintenance of ancestral traditions, the correct practice of ritual (be it religious or social). Through correct practice, the Aarugae believe that the right relationship between man and the gods is maintained, bringing with it prosperity, social harmony and good fortune. Incorrect practice is believed to incur divine wrath and require propitiation to rectify the error.

This attitude extends from the Aarugae belief in the intrinsic connection of all things, with all things emerging from a single and unalterable truth and order, which sin disrupts and undermines. To the Aarugae therefore there is no true distinction between public and private, as all thought and action is believed to affect the good of the people. Hence the absolute importance of correct action manifested through tradition and ritual infusing every aspect of Aarugae life.

Religion

The Aarugae believe in a distant and transcendant supreme God whom they refer too as Enaaru. From Enaaru proceeds the harmonic cosmic order (Gesa) which underlies all being and existence and sustains the universe and which defines the proper place of all things. Enaaru is always referred too in rites and is offered the first sacrifices in any rite, but It is never directly invoked for It is believed to be completely outside the scope of mortal affairs and Its direct intervention is not believed to be forthcoming.

Instead the Aarugae pray to and worship numerous gods and spirits (Ainye) whom they believe abide in nature and in the heavens. They believe that prosperity is dependant on good relations with these gods who in return for respect and worship grant favour to the Aarugae. Some important gods with significant cults amongst the Aarugae include

Onkala: The god of battles and patron of the warrior caste, icon of the virtues of courage and brotherhood.
Genshotan: The god of the earth and patron of commerce (since wealth comes from the Land).
Aine Aatsuen: The goddess of the great lake, and sustainer and mother of the people.
Takutsuerin: A dark trickster figure, a dangerous god to be feared but who provides powerful protection to those he favours.

Religious ritual includes sacrifices, including in times of direst need human sacrifice, and the chanting of ancient songs. Religious lore is kept secret amongst the initiated of the priesthood.

monolithic stone idols the gods are placed at sacred places, and these can often be found in the forests and vales of the lands of the Aarugae on sites which the gods are believed to have hallowed. Passersby place offerings to these to secure divine protection and blessings to themselves and maintain good order with the spiritual forces of the world.

Language(s):

The Aarugae language and its dialects feature none of the clicks that characterise the languages of neighbouring peoples, and is instead a flowing non-tonal agglutinative language in which various shades of meaning can be expressed through modifiers, somewhat similar too, but divergent from the rustic Marugae speech. Additionally the Aarugae language has a honorifics system in which levels of politeness are characterised by different forms of speech. Gestures conveying meaning through the ritualistic framework of Aarugae culture are an important part of Aarugae communication, however gestures are not as extensively used as they are in the speech of their northern neighbours

The Aarugae writing system is adapted and modified from that of the Nemori. However it has diverged in that individual alphabetic glyphs are written in logograms for each syllable of the Aarugae language rather than in a linear fashion (similar to Hangul for Korean).

Economic Base:

Agriculture is the main economic activity, and is overseen by temple and noble estates with tenant farmers, with water distribution being directed by a system of channels from the mountains and managed by various water shrines. Farming itself is highly productive around the lake, with water gardens and terrace farming respectively being practiced by the Aarugae in their highland domain.

Mining is also practiced, with metalwork, stonework and pottery being significant amongst the artisan classes utilising the ample resources of the mountain region and the lake. In addition to familial craft, temples and palaces maintain workshops and employ resident artisans to fulfil their needs, thus creating something of a "temple/palace" economy based around the Aarugae estate/tenancy system.

Mercantile trade primarily consists of east-west overland trade between the Nemori and the peoples of the western high barrens. This trade is tolled by the Aarugae kings and provides a lucrative source of income. Some limited trade by boat exists with the Marugae across the lake.

Country Names:

Ilyukamuru, Onkemuatsure, Atsuaren, Amatyar, Aarutar


Characters:

male) Ilyanden, Enkamue, Atsamakar, Haku,
female) Kiida, Nemue, Senna, Guenare

Place Names:

cities: Ilyara, Enansaron, Ilmarin, Genkainuar.
temples: Angenashuvar (temple of earth and heaven), Anaatsuki (temple of the living waters), Antemokamu (Temple of Numinous Shadow)
landmarks: Sho Gashtuven (Peak of the gathering clouds), Sho Ainyeshuar (Peak of the heavenly gods), Aarukuatan (valley of God),
 
that should be no problem, I'll amend my territorial claim in acknowledgement of your precedence (I'll also change the name of my culture to be similar to yours given their cultural similarity)

EDIT: Going by Thlayli's waterfall comment, I'll interpret the upper reaches of that river to be a deep gorge and use it as a natural border to delineate our claims.
 
by the GM's grace that would be great, if it must be that it comes in the next update than that's good as well.

Considering it wasn't that late, and that it's technically on time in your time zone (and that I didn't specify a time zone :p), I'll allow it.

Also, it wouldn't make sense if the highland first migration peoples suddenly diverged into two fairly distinct cultures in the first turn.

Welcome!



I'm going to try to bang out the update today, if it's not released today then it'll be at some point this week.
 
ooc: Thanks a lot :)
 
People:

Male: Ketsura-|| (Ketsura-side click), Nuri, Tikeji, Zhritsaké, Seki

Female: Tsiasenu, Zhuki, Tsilé, Atelarié

(This is in addition to the legendary figures Tsenuki, Rizuké, Jikeji, etc. Women will also commonly be named after the rivers.)

City-States:

Telié, !-ji, Zhuetsatié, Rizuri, Tsa-!-tsa, Iyasurana, Ketoi
 
Oichí dírcha
(Trans. People of the Dark Land) (Proun. ou-chou-i d-our-cha)
Through the spear are men made


Starting Location:

The conflux of the two rivers south of the Némori to the coast.

Society:

It is difficult to trace the origins of the Oichí dírcha for they are, so far as can be told, the first people of the Oichí dírcha. Perhaps there were others before, but we know nothing of them. While one cannot say, with precision, where they came from one can say what made them. That - well, that - lies solely at the feet of the Némori. It was their wealth, and the expansion, which sparked ethnogenesis. The wealth of the Némori, taken through endemic raiding, gave the Rítai (chiefs) the wealth to purchase followers and engage in more raids which created larger followings. But it was the rizu's piecemeal efforts to reign in the Rítai raids which created true Oichí dírcha polities and gave the Oichí dírcha a sense of themselves.

The Rítai make up the upper echelon of the Oichí dírcha polities. But not all Rítai are made alike. Some Rítai command vast legions, others just their (very extended) kin. Those Rítai at the top, Oi-Rítai as they are known, are the ones who organise the raids and fight the invaders. Both offer profit. Raids mean slaves and the movable goods needed to increase an Oi-Rítai followers and elevate new ones from the bea (peasants). War means the chance of captives (perfect for sacrifice) and a shot at taking a really big haul of movables in the form of arms, armor and baggage trains. The Oi-Rítai themselves live on top of walled mounds, often artificial, which protect them from other Oi-Rítai and rizu out for revenge. The Rítai themselves make do living with their patron Oi-Rítai, or living with other Rítai, or chance it alone but always behind walls with boats pulled up near the shore. (The Oichí dírcha like boats. A fair number of the bea live on them for safety. The Oi-Rítai and their smaller cousins use them to raid and trade - itself another profitable sideline.)

Between the Rítai and the bea are a large group of men (not exclusively) called Pendai who want to be Rítai. This is a rather straight forward process: first, you gain enough loot (or slaves) to become one. Second, you recruit a following. Third, you swear blood oaths, usually over the corpse of a fallen enemy. And boom. Finished. You're now a Rítai. Social mobility is consequently rather high, and the ranks of the bea rather low because who wants to do boring stuff like farm? This explains the need for slaves and the rather interesting fact that the majority of the populace of the cities of the Oichí dírcha are slaves. In a lot of cases, these slaves are valued retainers, confederates and friends of long (often multigenerational) standing. These slaves are Oichí dírcha in a limited sense, by virtue of long association (and some do become Oichí dírcha), but unlike the real Oichí dírcha these folks rather enjoy not risking their lives (like sane people the world over). Those slaves who do and can demonstrate themselves to be proper Oichí dírcha through martial skill and a willingness to do violence become Oichí dírcha. A first generation slave with the right mindset and skills might consequently rise rather high.

Values:

Oichí dírcha value honesty verging on bluntness, a sharp tongue (wits who can't find end up dead right quick, so Oichí dírcha with sharp tongues have sharp spears too), a very strong sense of honor and a fanatical adherence to oaths of all sorts.

Religion(s):

Oichí dírcha have a multitude of gods, of boring stuff like the harvest, the first press, the home and so on, some of which are borrowed from elsewhere, some of which pre-date the Némori interventions. These are what the bea and the slaves follow, although all Oichí dírcha honour them. The Pendai and above (the Soa) however worship - well - themselves. Or at least successful versions of themselves. In short, the most successful of their numbers. Sometimes these exalted beings are alive, usually not. Sometimes these beings are valued for their courage and martial prowess and sometimes for more boring stuff like their political and diplomatic skills. Whatever the case, the Oichí dírcha have a lot of them. Some are popular all over - Bala of the thousand spears and Oica of the fortunate storm being two of the most popular - but others are more local figures - Meb of the half a hundred spears for example. Violence is a popular form of celebration for these cults, but so are blood oaths which bind members together across Oi-Rítai. The Oi-Rítai might rule from the top down, but the cults rule across the Oi-Rítai and help keep them in-line and externally focused.


Language(s):

Oichí dírcha is a distant cousin of Hâidzòêla and Némori, but is closer to the former than the later.

Economic Base:

Farming makes up the majority of the economy but is slave dependent to a large degree. Farming techniques are at least as advanced as the Némori (this is unsurprising given the origin of so many of the slaves). However, the land is generally flatter with a much large alluvial flood plain because of the convergence of the great Nua and Cé rivers who form the mother river the Tua. At the mouth of Tua the flood plain turns into ten thousand islands, each more fertile than the last, with fishing so rich you don't need to bait your hook. The cities of the slaves and bea produce goods, function as markets and act as marshaling points for the great raids. The temple cities which house the two great cults are sites of religious wonder and are the largest urban sites by virtue of the gifts of slaves the Soa provide. The greatest of the Oi-Rítai have cities themselves, although these are often more transitory. They also lack a true economic function (being full of Soa) but act as points for the distribution of patronage, garrisons and fortresses in times of trouble.

Country Names:

It's a bit more amorphous than that. Oi-Rítai can form sort of states. Although, really, they're more alliances than states. More often than not they own slave and bea cities which provide them with goods and taxes. But its rare for an Oi-Rítai to control one on their own. More often than not, there's some sort of condominium arrangement with a few Oi-Rítai in alliance sharing control of their cities. (It's this fluidity that makes them so hard to conquer, defeating one Oi-Rítai just creates a new one who raises his own following). The temple cities are the closest thing to true states, having large standing armies (of Oi-Rítai) and can build ever larger ones through religious appeals to Oi-Rítai who profess one of the two main creeds. The biggest raids are all temple organised.

Characters:

Fur
Find
Laí
Loethai
Nes
Sua
Belchu
Naí
Emer
Flid

Oísai
Sabí
Caíl
Meb

Place Names:

Same as above, with the addition of an í. Cities are usually named after their founder with í just indicating that it's a place name and not a person name. The great temple cities are í-Bala and í-Oica.
 
Still coming together:

Culture Name: Kanadim. Formal: "Kanadim Ata-ta" ("The Kanadim Confederacy of Tribes").

Starting Location: South eastern point.



Society:

"Say mortals, that the only true caste, is that of honour and merit." - Ure-ta |[|.

The basic concept of family within Kanadim society is the emphasis on the extended family (Ure). Many different extended families and their respected households make up a village (Ata-ure) and many villages make up a tribe (Ta).

Geographically the tribes exist on a varied landscape, where the lower half of the tribes live in the savanna and the northern half live in the jungle areas. The eastern segment of tribes live alongside the coast. This has lead to certain distinct cultural dress and mores based on adaptation to the three differing environments

Each extended family lives communally. What is important over the individual person is the relationship between individuals and how everyone is connected to one another. An individual’s great achievement for example, is shared with his or her extended family and is thus by association, depending on the gravity of such an achievement, reflected on the entire village or even tribe.

There exists both matriarchal and patriarchal led extended families, although patriarchal extended families are more common as a general feature throughout all tribes. Those tribes that are situated within the jungle regions are mostly matriarchal, even to the extent that they raise female warriors among the Y'at castes in the villages there. This has to do more with their cultural consciousness in seeing women as the continuation of life rather than any reactionary beliefs against majority patriarchal underpinnings, as according to Kanadim Tato-ure religion, the benevolent creator Kana, created both man and woman at the same time to show his love equally for both sexes.

In ancient times past, the Kanadim were cohesively ruled by deified monarchs. The oppression upon the people by these divine tyrants inevitably led to wide spread rebellions by the populace which as a result gave birth to new social structures and mores. Kanadim social stratification is currently loosely rooted in a caste system (Sana) but allows for high degrees of social mobility both in terms of inter-caste marriages and even in some cases -- caste elevation for said extended families or individuals.

This is due to such occurrences being derived from merit recognition which is based in the Kanadim philosophical notions of honour and its relation to cultural prestige and family lineage links. The past oppression experienced by previous generations (continued on in chants and tales that hail from those dark times) coupled with social and cultural emphasis on merit and honour has equated to a rather harmonious caste system, where pride in one’s tribe takes precedence over pride in one’s caste.

Very broadly speaking, there exists five main castes and seven main sub-castes. The main five castes are as follows: The Chiefly caste (Lat), The Priestly caste (Tan), The Warrior caste (Y’at), The Merchant caste (Ma) and the Laborer caste (Io). The Y’at and Io castes are the most numerous, with the Lat and Tan castes having the lowest numbers and the Ma caste being somewhere in between the two. There are many differing castes within a given village, but usually Lat families are the families which govern over a village, although there are exceptions to this such as some villages which are predominantly populated by Y'at families which are self-contained, meaning they don't need laborers as such work is divided among them all, this being a result of certain historic village wars which have effectively changed the caste composition of these villages. Each tribe has vast variations of castes.

Being a collective confederacy of twenty tribes, each tribe has its own local council (Ka) where the members are made up of the chieftains of each village within a given tribe. The elected representative(s) of each tribe (by decision of the village council), represent each tribe’s interests during collective gatherings on this scale. Such gatherings are not common but are frequent enough to sustain peace relations and cohesion between the tribes. Traditional categorizations of geographical groupings of tribes are called provinces (A’an) but tribes rarely recognize such groupings since each tribe is proudly independent.

Ethnicity wise, during the time of the monarchs, peoples from all regions in the reach of those old states were subdued into service by those so called divine kings. The ancient "volunteer recruitment" of the Jungle Clans, the People of the Plains and the Sea Peoples were forced to give up their language, cultural and religious identities.

The Jungle Clans:



A Jungle Clan Chieftain

The Jungle Clans were dark skinned, short and stout in frame, known for their capable hunting and warring abilities. Including head-hunting and ritualistic cannibalism, Crude bows with arrows dipped in highly toxic poison were common in their guerrilla style warfare. The Jungle Clans lived in huts built on trees, they shared their lands with another people who were taller and larger in frame and were of brown complexion, these people shared many cultural practices such as head-hunting and the likes with the Jungle Clans but had their own language and distinct customs. Constructing giant huts on floating rafts, these people inhabited the Wetlands of the lesser Jungle regions and allied with the Jungle Clans against the monarchs during the time of darkness.



A warrior of the Wetlands

The People of the Plains:



Camel Archers of the Plains

The People of the Plains were master Horsemen who also employed Camel archers in their many skirmishes among their own towns and against the other ancient races. They were skilled with powerful bows and were famed for their trading skills. They were characterized by tall slender bodies and olive oil tinted skin.

The Sea Peoples:



A Vanguardsman of the Sea Peoples

Lastly, the expansionist Sea Peoples, with sturdy boats and ingenious fishing methods -- Medium height with fair skin, the Sea Peoples were the last of the four races to be subdued by the monarchs due to their ferocity. It is said they carried shields and axes, their chiefs even wearing a type of padded armour.

Within seven generations, they were all but these ancient peoples in skin colour and physical features alone. The current ethnic trends of the Kanadim are a result of this racial interaction which has produced the current diversity from all four ancient ethnic groups.

Values:

Merit, Honour, Tribe.

Religion(s):

"The words, "Life that spoke and thought that pondered was created by Kana", has been incorrectly interpreted by past sages as active justification of Apa-o. Where does, I ask, in this sacred verse exist the words: "Kanadim only"?" - Pata-na, lead scholar of the Tan-o in 'Kana is the Ruler of All'.

Pre-Kanadim religion (Tato), adhered to by the "ancient four", wavered between polytheism and pantheism (from the times even before the monarchs) but New Kanadim religion (Tato-ure) has for centuries taken on a provisional theism – a type of monotheism. Most of the tribes adhere to this monotheism but some particular extended families spread throughout the Kanadim Confederacy (especially within the Priestly castes) still adhere to the old practices of Tato.

Devout religious adherence by the vast majority of the population to their monotheistic deity called Kana, under Tato-ure, resulted in religious texts which tied recognition of all Kanadim people having innate worth (since all are created in the image of this deity) irrespective of caste status or tribal affiliation. Acting as a religio-cultural buffer against inter-caste enmities.

Ritualistic cannibalism is practiced but is solely confined to the Y'at caste against selected non-Kanadim (Dim) and only during times of war against such Dim. This is practiced because it is believed that by absorbing Dim enemy flesh, the divine image of Kana is balanced in the body of a Y'at (since the Y'at lose blood more often due to warring, blood must be received to balance the cosmic stability of the warrior body).

There has however, in recent years, been a philosophical and religious push from the Tan-o (a highly philosophical sub-caste within the wider Tan caste), to condemn this practice and make it taboo as their interpretations of the primary religious text of creation (Ure-ta) suggest that all people are created and thus sacred, being created by Kana -- even Dim who are enemies. Meaning that the ritual of Apa-o or "blood-balancing" that is the conceptual basis of Y'at ritualistic cannibalism is to be done by absorbing animal flesh and not human.

Language(s):

The Kanadim language lacks a written system, although a religious type script known as Si'a (which is proto-Kanadim) is used by the two highest castes in order to mainly record events and preserve geneology, there exists however the fostering of philosophical and religious scholarly debate where Si'a is written on flax paper or animal skin. Most castes have access to learning this religious script but it is traditionally used as a living system only by the higher castes. Around 40% of all Kanadim are literate in Si'a. Kanadim has regional dialects and has a rather limited vocabulary so that meaning depends on context, leading to a highly developed hand gesture system and body language expressions which have both conversational worth and at times, ritualistic worth as well.

Si'a script example - "|[|" is the symbol for "Kana", which means "Creator", "Beginning", "Emerge" or "Original".

Economic Base:

Predominantly pastoralism in the south where the grasslands are, with some horticultural tendencies and major hunting and gathering in the jungle areas. Fishing mainly takes place with the tribes alongside the coast. Inter-tribal trade forges mutual-dependence and has resulted in a complex network of trade relations between the tribes. Such trade interactions include, seashells, scrimshaw and fish from the coastal tribes are traded for furs, fruit, medicinal plants and jungle animals (for meat and for keeping as pets) from the jungle interior. Flax, wood, precious stones, fine cloth and other foodstuffs from the savanna are traded with the other tribes which completes the main features of this tribal trade network.

Characters:

Tam - M
Lari - F
Sana-ure - M
N’san -F
Lesis - F
Anas -M
Aio -F
Lapi - M
Mai’a - F

Place Names:

T’sa (Tribe) – Jungle - Capital village (T’sa-nu)

Luta’n (Tribe) – Coastal - Capital village (Lari)

Sanur’e (Tribe) – Savanna - Capital villages (Ai’a and Oi)
 
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