Stevie Lambert: (via JWB)

2026-05-10T12:41:35Z

(via JWB)

New page

{{Infobox:TwilightAgeGroup
|Type = Zu'aan city
|Name = Erleivi City Zu'Aan
|Parent Groups = N/A
|Descended Groups = Unknown
|Areas Controlled = [[$2]]
|Date Founded = 4E 349
|Date Disbanded = N/A
}}

==History==
The Erleivi city zu'aan were founded by a charismatic businessman named Okunagita Ritche during the chaos of the Shattering age, long after kin'toni outbreak, when hundreds of kin'toni came rushing across the borders and into the Tucciuser region. They were based in the Tuccuiuser region that was characterized by its very uneven terrain due to the range of hills that cut right across the entire region. This land was covered in dense vegetation with different varieties of tropical trees and plants covering all levels of the jungle landscape.

The clan was originally formed of many close zu'aan tribes that lived in the jungles of the region who made their living cutting trees and selling them to traders from around the world. This was their main way of life prior to them becoming the Erleivi city zu'aan. Their lifestyles revolved around the cutting of trees and their founder, Okunagitara Ritche was known to be an expert in this particular craft. His influence and charisma within their clan was a reflection of their high regard for his particular set of skills.

He would set up a thriving wood-cutting business that provided the region with well-cut wooden planks for use in construction. The region was hit hard by the events of the kin'toni outbreak when all business began to cease and the zu'aan were forced to fight for their own survival. It was during these turbulent times that Okunagitara would rise above the rest of the clan and establish himself as a leader among them. He renamed them the Erleivi city zu'aan after the name of their settlement.

He was the only one among the candidates to offer the people a reasonable way of defending themselves from the incoming kin'toni hordes. While the others preach about attacking the enemy, he would reason that they stood no chance in open battle and needed to rely more on their skills in woodworking to build up their defenses. He would dedicate his entire business to the building of the clan's defenses and fortifications. He correctly anticipated the kin'toni's actions correctly and his intervention was the only obstruction in the way of the kin'toni running riot across the entire region.

Future generations would tell tales of his actions during these dark times. There was a lasting image of him standing amidst the ramparts, taunting the enemy and unleashing both his crass jokes and arrows at the enemy's relentless numbers that was painted into their minds. He was immortalized in the upcoming battles where he lost his life during a particularly determined kin’toni offense that lasted for days. His last act before dying was to grip his prized axe, which he gazed into for a long time before proclaiming that the future of the Erleivi city zu’aan was in safe hands.

The clan survived the kin'toni outbreak and would go on to become one of the most successful zu'aan clans in the region. Their enclave would prosper once the kin’toni attacks began to die down. The Erleivi would attempt to build back their thriving wood cutting industries from before the outbreak, but with limited success as most of their trading partners had fallen victims to the kin'toni onslaught.

==Psychology==

The Erleivi city zu'aan were known for their devotion to the art of wood cutting. This activity was built into their psychology and the clan members had a natural affinity for it. They took an unnatural amount of interest in this field and were continuously learning and evolving new and better ways of carpentry and woodcutting. The clan would invent many new methods and tools in the process and became pioneers in this art. They were naturally very hard workers and devoted most of their waking hours to their work.

They believed in hard work as a cure to all physical as well as mental ailments. A normal day for the Erleivi zu'aan would start at daybreak when they would share in communal meals and head out into the forests to resume their wood cutting duties. This would continue into the late evenings when they would retire to large social gatherings. They were a very social and clan who valued interactions and contact with others. Their regular gatherings would see many of their members drink their local brews and make light hearted banter about the affairs of the day.

They were very fun-loving and did not take themselves too seriously, they regularly cracked crass jokes and insults which would be considered rude among most of the other zu'aan clans in the region. The Erleivi were famous for their fun-loving nature and they would regularly receive many visitors who would come to witness their grand celebrations. The largest one among these was held during the winters when eligible members from all over the region would come together in a week-long festival to test their skills in wood cutting and other wood-associated skills against other members of the tribe.

These competitions were an opportunity for any young member looking to build prestige and reputation and rise to the top of the clan's hierarchy. Their first leader, Okunagitara was also spotted in one of these competitions where he distinguished himself for his superior skill and strength. These competitions would end in celebrations where all the participants and attendants would revel in music and dance while the winners were proclaimed and rewarded. These communal events led to a close-bond between members of the clan and led to a close feeling of companionship among them.

This made them all the more likely to look out for each other and genuinely care about the well-being and future of the clan. They were very rational and would rarely resort to fighting before weighing all their available options. They wanted to be left in peace so they carry out their own activities. However, they could become determined enemies when provoked or when there were no other means apart from violence. They swore their loyalty to the clan and were willing to sacrifice both limb and life to ensure that their progeny and their way of life would survive.

The Erleivi were also artistic and were known for the skill of their craftsmanship which was visible in many of the region's woodwork.

==Culture==

The Erleivi city zu'aan culture was characterized by their reverence for wood cutting and their skill in the art. They knew they were the best in this field and prided themselves on the quality and precision of their work. This tradition was inculcated among their members from a very young age where they were taught the use of their tools and handed their own personal equipment once they mastered its use. This mastery over woodwork would make their products some of the most sought-after goods in the zu'aan world.

They would regularly receive merchants and traders from all over the world who would come to trade in the clan's most prized assets. This trade would bring in a lot of wealth to the region and help the clan establish themselves in the region. The Erleivi were known for their dedicated work culture and devoted most of their waking hours to their work. Their culture looked down on laziness and inactivity such idlers were considered a disgrace to the tribe and actively ostracized from their normal society.

Their engaged in many large scale projects that utilized their wood resources to build impregnable defenses. The style and architecture used in these projects would become associated with their culture. Their houses were built to allow maximum air circulation due to the humidity and heat of the region. They had wide and tall doors with ventilators and courtyards in the center of their homes. They engaged in many artistic activities and would regularly decorate their homes with paintings, mosaics and elaborate wood carvings that were done by hand.

Their culture would be studied by many latter civilizations who would mimic their reliable and efficient architectural style. The Erleivi zu'aan culture was also known for its fun-loving nature and celebrations. They would engage in regular social events at the end of each day where the people would come together to socialize and have fun. The Erleivi culture was known for its winter festivals where competitions would be held to identify the fastest and best wood workers in the region. Many of their greatest leaders and members would rise to prominence after winning this competition.

Their culture allowed its members to engage in trade and spread the word about their culture to other parts of the world. The tribe prized independence and many of their young ones would be taught to fend for themselves once they attained adulthood. The regular wood cutting activities was used to build up their strength and they would be tasked with finding their own path in life once they had learnt all that the clan could teach them. Despite this independence, they were all taught to be loyal and to help their clan whenever they were in need.

This culture produced rational and responsible zu'aan who could think for themselves and not resort to instant violence like the rest of the region. They spoke in a common Tucciuser dialect that was identifiable by its coarse and guttural pronunciations.

==Government==

The Erleivi city zu'aan clan's pattern of government was adopted from their earlier practices long before they became an organized clan. This system of government was based on the groups tribal system of organization. Their decision-making was handled by a group of elders who consulted the clan and decide on the best course of action. Their decision was respected and obeyed by the entire tribe as an act of respect and deference to their experience and knowledge. This pattern was changed by the founder of their clan, Okunagitara Ritche who used his massive influence within the group to become the sole leader of the entire clan.

He would completely reorganize their systems and structures to make them more decisive and responsive to the chaotic scenario of the kin'toni outbreak. Okunagitara rose to prominence with his wood cutting skills which would later on, become a business that provided perfectly cut planks for use in building the clan's structures. His products were also shipped out as exports to many of the local clans in the surroundings. Helping him build up allies and contacts within the neighboring regions.

By his thirties, Okunagitara was already a member of his tribe's highest council of advisors and would play a role in advocating for more contact and trade with their neighbors. He also sponsored a large expansion of their homeland into a city which would become known as the Erleivi City- after their ancestors who inhabited these lands. He noticed the people of the Erleivi city grow desperate and sought out a powerful and decisive leader to lead them out of the dark times of the outbreak.

He would slowly begin to challenge the traditional leadership of the clan and propagated a new brand of patriotism that called on every zu'aan to perform his duty and support his ambitions to take the clan to new heights. He named the tribe the Erleivi city zu'aan and inspired them to step up to the defense of their lands. He was picked as the unanimous leader of the clan and was vested with the authority to make decisions on behalf of the clan. He was a natural in his new role and would give up his profit-making business which was turned into a defensive industry to provide the clan with the resources to fortify themselves.

He commenced the building of spiked trenches all around their city along with the construction of high towers and palisades that would block any access into the city. The people also responded to his dark humor and found relief in it during these hard times. He would make it a point to address them each day to maintain their morale and to provide them with a clear picture of the situation they were faced with. He also instituted some reforms of the society during this period, the first among them being to make work mandatory among all members of the clan.

To show his intent and commitment to the plan, he himself would join in on frontlines- working on the construction of the walls surrounding the city. This government of the Erleivi city zu'aan was based on a tribal loyalty to the clan and devotion towards a single, capable leader.

==Military==

The Erleivi city zu'aan had their start as a woodcutting clan that valued physical characteristics such as strength, tenacity and coordination. These qualities would serve them well when they were eventually forced to resort to violence during the kin'toni outbreak. The Erleivei zu'aan were among the first clans to quickly adapt to the chaos. They were already in possessions of a variety of woodcutting tools that could easily be adapted for military use. These ranged from the earliest hand axes of the clan that were fashioned out of stone and wood to the more improved metal works that they created during the latter half of the first era.

Their first military organizations during the kin'toni outbreak were composed of civilian members who wielded their woodcutting tools and stood behind wooden barricades to face off against the kin'toni hordes. These groups were a disorganized bunch who were more concerned with defending their own homes. Their first leader, Okunagitara would leverage this determination and passion of the people to propose a plan for the protection of the region. His methods agreed with the people and he quickly found himself thrusted into the top leadership position of the tribe.

He started a new brand of patriotism, calling on every zu'aan to perform their duty. He led by example, when he converted his entire profit-making business to service the clan's needs. His wood cutting business was responsible for the construction of their settlement's defensive structures. He commenced the building of spiked trenches all around their city along with the construction of high towers and palisades that would block any access into the city.

This full- blown commitment would see their walls being raised in time before any kin'toni invasion reached them. Military training was also given a lot of emphasis during this period and every clan member was trained in the use of a bow and arrow, slings or other ranged weapons that could engage the kin'toni from behind the safety of the walls. The massive amount of preparation that they put into their defense would finally pay off when the kin'toni hordes finally appeared in the Tucciuser region.

These hordes would make a bee-line for the Erleivi city and engage in many battles and sieges against the occupants. Okunagitara acquitted himself admirably during the coming defense of the city. The people also responded to his dark humor and found relief in it during these hard times. He would make it a point to address them each day to maintain their morale and to provide them with a clear picture of the situation they were faced with. He also instituted some reforms of the society during this period, the first among them being to make work mandatory among all members of the clan.

To show his intent and commitment to the plan, he himself would join in on frontlines- working on the construction of the walls surrounding the city.
Future generations would tell tales of his actions during these dark times, standing in the ramparts and taunting the enemy and unleashing both his crass jokes and arrows at the enemy's relentless numbers. He was immortalized in the upcoming battles where he lost his life during a particularly determined kin’toni offense that lasted for days.

==Religion==

The Erleivi city zu'aan followed an old religion that was based on the worship of a mystical tree god that they called Thesen. This religion originated from the earliest inhabitants of the Tuccuiser region who dwelt within the forests and recorded many oral accounts of their interactions with their god. They believed that Thesen visited the worthy in dreams or during moments of artificially induced trances. The most devoted followers and priest were always found in a state of intoxication.

The myth around the god would evolve over the centuries and become more developed with each passing generation. Stories and legends were born and would change and evolve according to the needs of the people and the demands of the era. Thesen was known to take the form of an owl when he appeared before the zu'aan. Thus, the owl had a special religious significance for the people of this region. Many of the artwork and wood carvings of the region's natives carried this emblem and doubled as prayer accessories.

The Erleivi city zu'aan's insignia and flags carried this symbol which would become synonymous with the people of the region. The myths described Thesen as the first creation of the cosmos and the oldest being. His worshippers would pray to him in the hopes of unlocking the secrets of the universe and learning from his unlimited knowledge. They believed that he was the creator of all zu’aan and attributed their ability for thought and reasoning to him. According to their holy texts, all other land creatures who were not gifted with greater mental capacities were the creations of other inferior gods, who came after Thesen.

The more religious members of this sect believed that death was the only way in which one could become fully reunited with Thesen and his knowledge. By the time of the Erleivi city zu'aan, the religion was already at a very developed stage and had its own principles and holy texts as well as practices that were associated with it. The clan built many places of worship deep within the forest where their most devoted priest and followers would live in isolation. These devotees would be involved in continuous prayers and participate in communal worship ceremonies where they would all be heavily intoxicated.

The more conventional members of the Erleivi who dwelt within the settlements were more reserved in their approaches to worship and did not engage in use of intoxicants. Most of the regular clan members viewed these extreme practitioners of their religion as backward and primitive people. Their first leader, Okunagitara also discouraged these extreme religious practices. He considered them as lazy dreamers who were delusional and removed from the reality of the clan's situation.

He would tone down these practices when he assumed total leadership of the clan and made it mandatory for every clan member to be a participant in the clan's activities. Religion would take a back seat as the clan became embroiled in the chaos and battles of the kin'toni outbreak.

==Miscellany==

{{NearbyGroups
| Centre = {{PAGENAME}}
| North = Unknown
| Northeast = Unknown
| East = Unknown
| Southeast = Unknown
| South = Unknown
| Southwest = Unknown
| West = Unknown
| Northwest = Unknown
}}

{{CrossSiteAttribution
| User = [https://www.freelancer.in/u/Jangou Jangou]
| Holder = Jangou S
}}

[[Category:4th-century Twilight Age zu'aan cities]]

[[Category:Jangou S's contributions]]

Erleivi City Zu'Aan - Revision history

Stevie Lambert: (via JWB)