SouthBarbarians
Note, this page will not revisit the tribes already covered in Exalted. However, the Threshold is a positively huge place and only having three Tribes in all the South is somewhat silly -- so I'm adding some more.
The Barbarian Tribes of the South
the Delvan Cliffpeople -- CrownedSun
Dwelling almost directly across the South from Gem, in the Eastern Mountains, the Delvan Cliffpeople are barely known in Creation except for some of their exquisite pottery -- which occasionally gets traded to other tribes, and then eventually back into the civilized portions of the Threshold where it fetches a small fortune. Bronze skinned and dark haired, the Delvan tend to be small and wiry, with large expressive eyes and deft manipulative hands. They live high up in the mountains, in cities carved into the cliffs over the centuries since the Fall of the First Age when their people migrated from the depths of the Southern Desert that were once their home.
The Delvan are one of the most advanced barbarian peoples of the South, their society having an extensive and formal barter system and a represenative system of governance by the most powerful Clans (which are family lines tracing back to the Nobility of their old home, but which have lost almost all of their aristocratic leanings). There are three main cities among the Cliff People, the largest of which is known as Delavan -- it is the southern most city, and the first constructed by the Delvan. The other two, Gordi and Rinnis, are located a bit further to the north and linked to the main cliff-city by high-mountain roads. A single pass, descending down to badlands some 25 miles from their capital, is both well-hidden and guarded by the Delvan. The rare Delvan with a desire to explore the rest of the South will descend the path in the dead of night, typically requiring the entire night to reach the rocky badlands and two more days afterwards to reach the first Oasis beyond. Such travellers typically return with many tales and fine treasures from beyond, but seldom make it to civilized lands.
The other type of contact with the Delvan have with the outside world is in the form of raiding. The Delvan are quite peacelike, not having to worry about any enemy being able to reach their secluded home, but none the less a bit of a raiding culture has developed over the centuries. Only the highest ranked Nobles of the Clans are part of this culture, but the position is open to anyone who can fashion his own equipment -- a grueling process that involves trekking to the highest extends of the Delvan Mountains, and slaying one or more hybrocs. From the bones and feathers of the giant beasts are fashioned gliders, and the highly decorative plummed dress of the Nobles. Shamans then bless the gear, imbuing it with the fading spirit of the dead Hybroc. These flying warriors are well-known to tribes as far away as Five Hundred Miles, for the Delvan are well-skilled in their spirit-gliders -- able to ride thermals and stay aloft for days, traversing thousands of miles at a time if necessary.
The object of these raids is not loot, or blood, but instead women. While a few female Nobles exist, and the occasional male captive is brought back (to great fanfare, as this is regarded as most difficult), the Delvan especially seeks out more wives. The greatest Noble Warriors might have as many as twelve wives, though most Nobles share with their relatives rather than hording all of the women to himself. The reason for this is not immediately clear; there is no shortage of women among the Delvan, and instead it seems simply to be a mark of prestige and power among the Nobles of the Cliffpeople to have a number of women of other tribes within your clan.
The Dobí Nation -- CrownedSun
The Dobí Savannah to the Southeast of Kirighast, bounded on the north by hills and to the south by the Great Desert, is one of the few fertile stretches of land located away from the coast of the Inner Sea where Southern Civilization comfortably perches. The Dobí people dwell here, black-skinned villagers who live in small round mud-brick houses that some say look almost like faces. Much like the Hill Peoples of the East, they are only scarcely considered Barbarians at all; they are Agrarian, raising what little crops will grow in the dry savannah and some cattle. Once they were nomadic, hunting the cattle that roved across these lands, but only the smallest remnants of that past remain to them. They trade regularly with the Varang and Harbourhead for steel tools and other things that they cannot make on their own.
Once, the Dobí were quite different. They were raiders and heroes of the South, and the sight of them pushing up the Bloody Pass leading into Harbourhead with spear and bow was one that inspired fear in even the most brave Royal Guardswoman. Hundreds of years ago, however, the Guild came to the Dobí and introduced them to the trade of Slave Trading -- for a time, the fiercest of the Southern Tribes spread their arts among their Brothers and Sisters, and the other Tribes of the Near-South learned to fear the sight of Dobí Warriors. Fattened with Guild riches, the tribe gradually grew more and more accustomed to civilized things -- the slave trade gradually died away, while the Dobí began to raise fine horses and cattle in their rich grazeland. The nomadic tribe settled down, building their now distinctive homes. Cattle-raising was supplemented with agriculture, the Guild always eager to suggest profitable crops to the Chiefs. Now the Dobí buy slaves, instead of selling them, and some of the greatest Slave Citadels of the South are in their territory.
Of their past, only a few signs remain. Sometimes, in especially harsh years, the Dobi pick up their spears and raid on the outskirts of the Civilized South once again. The Guild is still heavily involved in the affairs of the Nation, though the current leaders are hoping to distance themselves more and more from the greedy Factors. Most noticable, however, are the deeper tribes of the South -- some of the nomadic Del`Zahn, the Obsidian Horde, and the Camel Raiders especially remember the Dobí.
the Obsidian Horde -- CrownedSun
The Guild Caravans lining the trade routes through the deep desert of the South surround themselves in guards, and box themselves inside stifflingly hot armored wagons pulled by Yeddim. Villages and towns surround themselves with pits filled with sharp spikes and field militia's of pikemen and fast skirmishers, hoping not so much to protect themselves as convince the Raiders to go elsewhere. The Royal Guard of Harbourhead thinks them inhuman, but instead creatures of glassy black stone given human shape. The Varang build great stone fortresses in the hills, sending to them those fated by their birth to die or ascend the ladder of heaven and become heroes. The Tri-Khan curses the Realm as cowards, while arranging hired mercenaries and Del`Zahn Warriors against the lines.
Among the Raiding Barbarians of the South, few are more feared than the Obsidian Horde. The Del`Zahn have been tamed, most believe, and the Dobí are harmless as long as harvests have been good. Yet when the black-skinned horsemen ride over the dunes, their war cries followed shortly by the screams of their victims, the South takes notice. When the Silence then descends, and the Souls of the dead meet with the Deathlords, the South wonders who will be next. Even the Realm has memories of standing against the Horsemen of the Dunes, and the ferocious battles that resulted are taught and retaught in the House of Bells, the lessons learned and strategies employed set forth as examples -- for time and again, the Legions of the Scarlet Empress have turned aside the Duneriders.
Now those Legions are gone, and the Chieftans of the Horde grow bolder, riding out further and further. The Dobí have taken the hardest hits from their former fellows, but all the Nations on Southern Stretch of the Inner Sea have paid some attention to the Hordes actions. Little thought, of course, is given to the day to day life of the Duneriders. Few know the secrets they keep, the sacred songlines through the desert that they follow, from Oasis to Oasis. Little consideration is given to the hard life that they must live, on the white sands of the South.
The Duneriders travel in small groups of five to ten families, called a gathering or a clan. Every man has a horse, which is as much a part of his family as his wife or children. All that he owns, he carries with him on his mount. Nor is he alone in such; his wife will have a horse as well, though due to the responcibilities she has of gathering food and water, and caring for children (who ride with her, on her mount, until they are old enough to recieve their own -- another reason few women are warriors). Seldom does any mated couple have more than two children; excess children are left to die of exposure as sacrifices for the Gods of the Dunes.
The clans are tightly knit, extended families of their own. Marriage among members of a clan is rare, to avoid inbreeding, and thus the Clans meet together in massive Horsemeets several times a year. It is here that young Hordesmen are put through the rites of adulthood, and given a Horse of their own. Young lovers court, dance and love, and are finally wed over the course of many scattered meets -- the man joining the clan of his new wife, adding his spear and bow to their might. Often, these Horsemeets grow quite large and end with a massive raid against a nearby settlement or city.
In recent years, Horsemeets have grown even more frequent, often little more than excuses for raids as the Chiefs of the Horde grow greedy for the Treasures of Civilization and the Gods of the Horde demand larger and more frequent raids.
the Camel Raiders -- Add Your Name Here!
Named for their distinctive mounts, the Camel Raiders are known to border states along the South as particularly brutal raiders, who worship the all-surviving Lunar Exalted Black-Hoof.
Note; the above idea is undeveloped, and others are welcome to fill this Barbarian Tribe in as I've run out of inspiration for them.
the Shadowdancers -- CrownedSun
Few would still remember the tribe that is now known as the Shadowdancers as they were before their corruption. The savants of Chiaroscuro or the sages of the Varang might have scant records of those forgotten people. However, among the people most likely to have known the culture, rituals and traditions of those who now dance in shadow...among the Barbarians...speaking of the Lost Tribe is taboo. The stories are no longer told, the songs are no longer sung, and the few that even remember those tales any more gradually pass away into the next realm. All that anyone knows is that the Shadowdancers are a tribe of oathbreakers and betrayers.
The songs now sung along camp fires, on those rare nights when the shamans feel the people must be reminded, the tales told are very different than the ones that were once told of this fallen tribe. Beware the Children of Shadow! They lurk in the darkness, they steal secrets from the lips of the dead and eat the flesh of corpses. Beware those who dance with Shadows! They study unclean arts and command the dead. Fear the Slaves of the Father of Darkness...they no know fear, and serve only one master.
There once existed a tribe of peaceful herders who traversed the fertile lands along the boundaries of the Eastern Mountains. They knew the secret passes through the mountains, and the safe routes through the lands of the Dune People. They were wise, and fierce, and kindly. The Beast-God Kala`khan, Exalted of the Moon, had guided them from the valley across the mountains when the river goddess had gone mad and led them into a new land and a new existance. They worshipped her, and as she was a child of the No Moon, they held the shadows of the night in high regard and delved into the hidden lore of the deserts. Their shamans were the wisest and most powerful of all the Southern People, and their elders were the greatest storehouse of knowledge and ancient secrets in all the tribes.
None of those ancient names exist, any longer, to be whispered by those throughout the South who once respected them -- save one. Shadoweye, the Betrayer, Slave to the Black Tower. "My brethren! A new god rises, across the mountains! Stronger even than Kala`khan; he will share his lore with us if you come!" None, except perhaps those that Shadoweye lured back to the Black Tower, know the exact fate of those who left and what role they had to play in it. Did they ascent to their own damnation, or was their fate already sealed before they even left? What is known is that they became the servitors of Shadoweye, who was himself the slave to the Deathlord.
All know what came after, however. No god, no Exalt, could save the once peaceful tribe for their fate. Kala`khan perished in the Black Tower, or perhaps lingers there still, and the other gods abandoned the tribe like rats from a sinking ship. With none else to turn to, the tribe gave in to their new master -- gave in, or wandered the wastes exiled and alone...until they perished, and came to serve him in death. For all of the Fallen Tribe belong to the Father now, utterly and totally, in life and in death.
the Fire-Eye Tribes -- Your Name Here!\\ One of the largest, most organized groups of Wyld-Barbarians in the South. Ruled over by the Lunar Exalted Dragontooth, a massive reptilian Lunar with plans of conquest.
Note; the above idea is undeveloped, and others are welcome to fill this Barbarian Tribe in as I've run out of inspiration for them.
Comments
The Delvan are well done, though the name is a bit too much like the Delzahn for my taste. I'd also like to see your write-ups on the Dobi Nation, Shadowdancers and Fire-Eye Tribes. I'm not sure the Delvan and Dobi qualify as barbarians; they seem pretty civilized. - Quendalon
I picture both of them are kind of like the Hill People from the East, as described in Lunars. They're not strictly Barbarians, but they are as much as many of the groups described in the book. The Delvan have large cities in the cliffs, yeah, but so did some real native americans:P Similarly, the Dobi have some precedent too. Thanks for the responce, BTW! -CrownedSun
I very much like the Dobí; they're a people with a past, defined by cultural and economic trends. Very good. - Quendalon
Thanks; they're defiantely among my favorites at the moment, now, too. For one interesting reason -- there's lots of room for intervention there among both SolarsSouthBarbarians/AND/ Lunars. The Solars would try to safeguard and protect the Dobi from Barbarians intent on revenge while getting rid of the Guild, while the Lunars could go for either vengeance or luring the Dobi back to their old roles. - CrownedSun
