Occupations, Shaema

Hunter

For most occupants hunting is the main source of food in the Shaema. Some hunters live in towns, going out to hunt for weeks or months at a time, while others lead a solitary life, visiting villages only for trade.

Each hunter has his own style of trap making, leaving their signature in form of unique knots. It happens that two hunters know each other for years only by their traps, never seeing each others faces. It is taboo to disturb an other hunters trap, let alone steal his pray, but special circumstances allow it. A hungry individual or a hunter down on his luck is permitted by custom to take someone else's catch, but he is obligated to leave a token gift in its place. A small bag of salt or some string. Coin is considered a lesser gift.

Beside traps, an Shaema hunters' equipment consists of a short bow, hunting knife and trident. The short bow is used for hunting tree dwelling animals, birds and some land animals, while the trident is for fish and other smaller water dwellers.

Some of the pray include:

beaver

mud ape

crab - Shaema is rich with a large assortment of these, including the aggressive garos crab.

fish - mud fish is easier to catch than river fish, but is more often poisonous or in other ways dangerous.

salamanders - Sought after for their slimy extract used in poisons, potions, rituals etc. For instance the green papua salamander.

Frogs - most hunters ignore all but the especially tasty tamu frog. Traders from far away pay good coin for them.

Toads - used for their poison.

Tree badger - fur, fat (before winter), meat.

Shaman

Vivid dreams are the first sign that a child has the potential to be a shaman. His spirit intuitively recognizes the paths between the material and spirit plane and explores them while his consciousness rests. This can be dangerous because the spirit plane is filled with all kinds of spirits whose intentions are often mysterious and sometimes selfish. In Shaema, the stories of these spirits possessing young dream walkers are often told to children, so they know to be careful if dealing with them. Stories of wise dream walkers tricking the spirits into service are much more popular, but are sparingly told in case they inspire young foolish minds.

After years of training, a shaman-to-be goes through an initiation ritual in which he travels to the spirit plane. To get there awake he uses special potions and herbs. There he searches for an ally to be his link with the spirit plane, same as he becomes its link to the material plane. Their spirits become toago'uo (two in one egg).

Witch

In Shaema, to be a witch is to be respected. Witches are female out of custom, although there is nothing in the male sex stopping them from learning the same skills. One goes to a witch for many reasons like sickness, low fertility, crops failing and such, but a witch would tell you that her main purpose is preserving knowledge. They never charge anything for helping people but Shaema inhabitants know better than to not bring a gift with them. Witches are expert ritualists and alchemists, but are careful who they share their secrets with.

Witches of note: Kana qe Gala

Bargeman

To be a bargeman is to have a lonely, uneventful existence. When a person accepts this position, he accepts it for the rest of his life. For the rest of his time here he sits on his platform and waits for those that need to cross the river.

Bargemen are never paid in coin for they have no place to spend it. The usual goods they are paid in are food, drink, ghost weed, stories and song. Bargemen are collectors of stories and songs, and they barter them as any regular goods. All bargemen have good memories and are excellent barterers.

They are also good at keeping secrets, if paid extra. Once paid, they consider it their sacred duty not to reveal to anyone who and when they ferried across their river.

All bargemen worship xxx, the queen of water spirits. They pay tribute to her by throwing a piece of their pay in to the river and are always turned towards it when singing or telling a tale.