Who are the Illakma?
Contents
Rationale[edit]
As this is an introductory adventure, all PCs will start as 'outsiders' to the Empire of the Petal Throne itself, initially ignorant of the complexity of the cultures of the Five Empires.
Who we are[edit]
We are the mighty Illakma tribe, dwellers in one of the finest valleys in the Chavengar mountains, feared by our enemies, revered by our allies for our wisdom and loyalty.
Where we are[edit]
We dwell in Illakmanu village, which has seventeen huts (two more than the wretched Uchumun tribe!) three terraced fields, one with tall wheat, and we control five upland pastures where our shepherds keep our fine strong hmelu (six legged goats).
Our best hut is the Men’s Hut, where the Dzeu (headman) keeps his bronze spear and wooden plough and the carved tallies of the herdsmen. It stands just outside the fence which marks where the authority of the Women’s Hearth begins and ends. All within that circle are subject to the rule of the Dzeuch (headwoman) and her council, and woe betide any man or woman who refuses to perform their daily tasks. Some young men never go within the village at all and stay out in the pastures or in the Men’s hut, just to avoid being told to hoe the fields and card wool by their mothers. They change their minds when they realise this means they never get to meet any girls and will never get married.
What we believe[edit]
Our valley was carved from the rock by the goddess Uchsvun, mother of the tribe, Queen of the green grass and sweet water. Our wise woman lives in a hut by the spring and makes the sacred drinks for the spring rites, though she does not take part herself, remaining unmarried and chaste her whole life. Once in his life each man must go to the shrine of Thek, which lies high on the bare mountain side among the snows, and place upon it a stone carved with his name and the names of his wife and children by the hermit there, so that all might be recognised by Thek and admitted to heaven. Prayers written on soft woollen cloth are also left there, fluttering in the breeze from a prayer-pole.
What we know[edit]
We know how to grow the tallest wheat in the mountains, we can weave the finest woollen cloth, our hmelu-dogs are the best and most loyal, we can build stout square huts from stones, mud and dung that only let in a little bit of wind and rain and pens for our sheep from piled dry stones.
We know how to terrace the steeper slopes with such walls to save and deepen the soil, and how to find clay for pots by the deep pools down the valley in the land of the Uchumun. We can chip stone to make good blades for our bows and spears, though the chlen-hide ones we get from traders are better. We know a good rate for trading hmelu cloth and leather for salt from the desert men. We know you must have salt or your neck swells and children become stunted and stupid like the Uchumun tribe.
Who are our allies?[edit]
Our allies are the Gukhu clan and the Iutamau clan. They are nowhere near as rich and magnificent as we are, and we kindly help them out when their flocks are raided, and help them take vengance on trespassers.
Who are our enemies?[edit]
Our enemies are the A'ul, crazy thieving desert folk who live in the next valley. They herd hmelu and thus pretend to be real people, but we see through their lies. We do not like the Kraikma tribe. They do not talk properly and wear black and worship some god called Kark or Karki, something foreign and nasty anyway. They are good with spears though, and when we take their pastures and herds it will be a tough fight.
We also dislike any beast that takes our hmelu. The Hlaka, the flying people, used to do this, but after we made war on them and threw their babies off cliffs with their wings bound they stopped.
The world outside[edit]
The world beyond our valley is full of ignorant fools. The Uchumun are weak and their Dzeu is lame. They spend too much time in their fields and village being bossed about by their wives and not enough in the high pastures breathing the clean air. We took their pasturelands from them easily and stole all their hmelu, not that they were worth much, being as stunted and stupid as the Uchumun themselves.
We see traders every year who come from the north, the land of the thieving desertmen, and trade for salt. Later in the same year these traders come up again from the south with beads, pots and stuff called 'Chlen-hide' which mades good knives.
Once every seven or eight years, a priest of the God Under the Mountain comes to our village. He dresses in colourful robes edged with feathers of many colours and wears a hat with a huge plume in it to cover his bald head. He talks in a strange accent and tells tall stories. He says we are all owned by his God, which is proven by the piece of thin leather he carries covered in squiggles. He always demands to see the herdsmen’s tallies, and then takes several hmelu away.
The elders say it is unwise to stop his theiving, which he calls 'tax'. Some tribes tried once and then giants with sharp spears turned up and killed everyone. This priest is not all bad though; he settles disputes between tribes that wars have been unable to resolve and claims he can speak to the flying people, the Hlaka and stop them stealing hmelu. Once, it is said, he came with a gang of men with bronze collars and made good paths down to the village of the Uchumun and beyond and steps up to the pastures and wise woman’s pool.
