talonschild
Drive-By NESer
Putting this here - it's a signup, after all.
The Cahuilla Nation
The mountains of the south hold several nations of men. These nations are all nomadic, all herding the mountain goats, all sure-footed, and all - there's no delicate way of saying this - fecund. Like, you have no idea. Enough that, despite the dangers of living on the mountainside and the petty warfare endemic to the mountains, the population has inexorably risen. The Cahuilla, then, are mountainfolk who have picked up and left for greener - or at least emptier - pastures.
The mountain heritage of the Cahuilla has marked them indelibly. They are a short, stout people, able to walk or run for hours on end. Nothing much larger than a goat lives in the mountains, so goats provide nearly all the necessities of life - sustenance, leather from skin, rope from sinew, and suchlike. The Cahuilla, naturally, are superb tanners. Goatskin only comes in small amounts per each, so Cahuilla have a very patchy aesthetic.
Cahuilla industry revolves mostly around arms production. In the mountains there were large quantities of easily accessible blasting powder. Metal is generally traded for or taken in raids, whereupon it is melted down in a small furnace and reforged into barrels and ammunition. Old weapons, when their metal pieces wear down, are often melted down and made into new ones. Bullets and shrapnel are collected after a battle, to be melted down and repurposed. Often camp will be made on the battlefield itself to bring the industry to the source. All Cahuilla items are made to be supremely portable, and all items - even those used in smelting - are either housed in Cahuilla tents or are taken down at night and stored in tents. Blasting powder is more difficult to come by, but plentiful enough.
The government of the Cahuilla is quite fluid. The basic unit of the Cahuilla is the tribe. Tribes are based, not on blood, but on locale. Those who live in the same village - generally two hundred to two thousand families - are of the same tribe. Changing tribes is as simple as walking over the hill to the next village. Tribal identities persist even while on the march, though when multiple tribes march together, the ease with which tribes can change results in some confusion until a tribe's elders decide to settle and those who opt to settle with them become that tribe. Elders are those around whom the tribe revolve - changing elders happens automatically as some individuals gain gravity and others lose it.
The exception is when the Cahuilla are on the march. This happens often, as the village relocates. Usually, relocation occurs when the herd have grazed all the grasses in the area, and greener pastures are needed. Thus, the tribe goes on the march to another area of their tribal land. Less often, a tribe will abandon its tribal land, either when it is forced to by invading peoples, or when the tribe has become either too large or too small for its allocated land. In the former case, frequently a part of the tribe will split off and form a new tribe, going on the march in search of tribal land for itself. In the latter case, they will find another tribe to join. The decision to go on the march and to settle down is made by tribal elders, who remain tribal elders for the sake of continuity for the duration of the march. Most possessions, while on the march, are transported in large carts, which also float on water and serve as shelter for a family.
Tribes feel some affinity for for each other as fellow Cahuilla, but they fairly regularly get involved in disputes, especially over land. These disputes usually manifest themselves in raids, but on occasion they escalate. These feuds run their course, and then settle themselves or are settled by the Grand Council. The Grand Council only really steps in if the feud escalates beyond raids. All feuds are set aside on the march.
The national government of the Cahuilla - such as it is - is the Grand Council. Each tribe - numbering 156 at present - sends their highest elder as a deputy to the Grand Council. All Grand Council decisions require an absolute majority (over half of all members, present or not) to take effect. The Grand Council is responsible for allocating land to the various tribes, and also for settling disputes when the disputing parties request it or are unable to settle it themselves. The Grand Council also deals directly and as a whole with foreign governments. At times the Grand Council finds it convenient to appoint a Supreme Leader. The Leader must be elected by absolute majority, and cannot be removed from power unless the Grand Council appoints by absolute majority a replacement, or abolishes the position by absolute majority. Envoy positions function according to the same rules. As positions are regularly created and abolished, the details of any individual position - including title, duties, responsibilities, rights, and anything else - can and do change from incarnation to incarnation. As the Grand Council traditionally meets in Chumash, Chumash town can be considered the capital of the Cahuilla. It should be noted that the Grand Council has no way of enforcing its decisions - tradition and sheer force of personality are required both within the Grand Council and between the Grand Council and the tribes.
The Cahuilla fight mostly as really good light infantry. When they go to war, they carry their rifle, ammunition, roughly thirty pounds of food and water, and some piece of heavier ordnance - usually a part of a mortar, as that's about as heavy as the mountain passes allow. Captured cannon are sometimes wheeled along while they have the appropriate ammunition. Cahuilla rifles are not particularly accurate at medium to long range, but they are very dependable, never jamming or misfiring. They also are weighted, used for clubbing.
The Cahuilla never took to the air much. They have some concept of hot-air balloons, and make little ones, with a small fire heating a balloon made from a single goat skin. These are usually attached to heavy objects to make them somewhat more portable. Beyond that, some adventurous Cahuilla have been trying to recreate small dogfighter aircraft, with minimal success. Perhaps if they capture a few. It is important to remember, though, that as men from deep inland, Cahuilla have no use for a navy.
The Cahuilla Nation
The mountains of the south hold several nations of men. These nations are all nomadic, all herding the mountain goats, all sure-footed, and all - there's no delicate way of saying this - fecund. Like, you have no idea. Enough that, despite the dangers of living on the mountainside and the petty warfare endemic to the mountains, the population has inexorably risen. The Cahuilla, then, are mountainfolk who have picked up and left for greener - or at least emptier - pastures.
The mountain heritage of the Cahuilla has marked them indelibly. They are a short, stout people, able to walk or run for hours on end. Nothing much larger than a goat lives in the mountains, so goats provide nearly all the necessities of life - sustenance, leather from skin, rope from sinew, and suchlike. The Cahuilla, naturally, are superb tanners. Goatskin only comes in small amounts per each, so Cahuilla have a very patchy aesthetic.
Cahuilla industry revolves mostly around arms production. In the mountains there were large quantities of easily accessible blasting powder. Metal is generally traded for or taken in raids, whereupon it is melted down in a small furnace and reforged into barrels and ammunition. Old weapons, when their metal pieces wear down, are often melted down and made into new ones. Bullets and shrapnel are collected after a battle, to be melted down and repurposed. Often camp will be made on the battlefield itself to bring the industry to the source. All Cahuilla items are made to be supremely portable, and all items - even those used in smelting - are either housed in Cahuilla tents or are taken down at night and stored in tents. Blasting powder is more difficult to come by, but plentiful enough.
The government of the Cahuilla is quite fluid. The basic unit of the Cahuilla is the tribe. Tribes are based, not on blood, but on locale. Those who live in the same village - generally two hundred to two thousand families - are of the same tribe. Changing tribes is as simple as walking over the hill to the next village. Tribal identities persist even while on the march, though when multiple tribes march together, the ease with which tribes can change results in some confusion until a tribe's elders decide to settle and those who opt to settle with them become that tribe. Elders are those around whom the tribe revolve - changing elders happens automatically as some individuals gain gravity and others lose it.
The exception is when the Cahuilla are on the march. This happens often, as the village relocates. Usually, relocation occurs when the herd have grazed all the grasses in the area, and greener pastures are needed. Thus, the tribe goes on the march to another area of their tribal land. Less often, a tribe will abandon its tribal land, either when it is forced to by invading peoples, or when the tribe has become either too large or too small for its allocated land. In the former case, frequently a part of the tribe will split off and form a new tribe, going on the march in search of tribal land for itself. In the latter case, they will find another tribe to join. The decision to go on the march and to settle down is made by tribal elders, who remain tribal elders for the sake of continuity for the duration of the march. Most possessions, while on the march, are transported in large carts, which also float on water and serve as shelter for a family.
Tribes feel some affinity for for each other as fellow Cahuilla, but they fairly regularly get involved in disputes, especially over land. These disputes usually manifest themselves in raids, but on occasion they escalate. These feuds run their course, and then settle themselves or are settled by the Grand Council. The Grand Council only really steps in if the feud escalates beyond raids. All feuds are set aside on the march.
The national government of the Cahuilla - such as it is - is the Grand Council. Each tribe - numbering 156 at present - sends their highest elder as a deputy to the Grand Council. All Grand Council decisions require an absolute majority (over half of all members, present or not) to take effect. The Grand Council is responsible for allocating land to the various tribes, and also for settling disputes when the disputing parties request it or are unable to settle it themselves. The Grand Council also deals directly and as a whole with foreign governments. At times the Grand Council finds it convenient to appoint a Supreme Leader. The Leader must be elected by absolute majority, and cannot be removed from power unless the Grand Council appoints by absolute majority a replacement, or abolishes the position by absolute majority. Envoy positions function according to the same rules. As positions are regularly created and abolished, the details of any individual position - including title, duties, responsibilities, rights, and anything else - can and do change from incarnation to incarnation. As the Grand Council traditionally meets in Chumash, Chumash town can be considered the capital of the Cahuilla. It should be noted that the Grand Council has no way of enforcing its decisions - tradition and sheer force of personality are required both within the Grand Council and between the Grand Council and the tribes.
The Cahuilla fight mostly as really good light infantry. When they go to war, they carry their rifle, ammunition, roughly thirty pounds of food and water, and some piece of heavier ordnance - usually a part of a mortar, as that's about as heavy as the mountain passes allow. Captured cannon are sometimes wheeled along while they have the appropriate ammunition. Cahuilla rifles are not particularly accurate at medium to long range, but they are very dependable, never jamming or misfiring. They also are weighted, used for clubbing.
The Cahuilla never took to the air much. They have some concept of hot-air balloons, and make little ones, with a small fire heating a balloon made from a single goat skin. These are usually attached to heavy objects to make them somewhat more portable. Beyond that, some adventurous Cahuilla have been trying to recreate small dogfighter aircraft, with minimal success. Perhaps if they capture a few. It is important to remember, though, that as men from deep inland, Cahuilla have no use for a navy.
