Minemi Kin'toni Clan

History

The Minemi kin'toni clan were the 'rejected' experiments of their creators in around 4E 3000. Each was sent into the craves to be eaten by the cave worms. However, by some miracle, they survived being eaten and thrive in the deep dark caves on the far side of the mountain range. Due to their twisted and deformed states, they remain on the stone age level of intelligence. However, do not underestimate these kin'toni as they have developed their unique style of fighting. Their badly deformed states curiously resemble infantile cave worms which is why they were not harmed. The Diwarale kin'toni see them as demons, burned and deformed by the unrelenting scorching sun of their hell.

They are feared by all who are unfortunate enough to bump into them. These kin'toni rarely leave the confines of the lower caverns deep below the Coldrock mountain range south of the ancient ruins but they have been known to follow the migration patterns of the cave worms they worship. They reside within several cave systems that follow that pattern of migration. Their original creators never bothered to see if their failed experiments survived or not, allowing them to develop their freedom from their cruel persecution. In that sense, this clan is considered fortunate.

Miraculously, they were able to learn enough to use simple tools made of bone and stone for hunting and defending their territory. They quickly developed a unique fighting style using various fight moves used by cave worms and other cave animals. This became frighteningly effective against all who cross their path. Many clans have tried to learn this fighting style but without much success. It is solely mastered by the Minemi clan. The religious leader of the clan is an expert in this fighting style and uses it to remain in power even against the tribal leader.

Psychology

They are serious survivalists who are uncompromising and merciless in their quest to survive. Xenophobic and paranoid, their mistrust serves them well in the wild but less so in the company of others. However, their lack of intelligence can be used against them, if you spoke their language. The Minemi clan are known to travel in packs of three or five when hunting but their mistrust reaches even between themselves. They are not well organized on their own but they are dangerous nonetheless. They have also been known to steal from other clans and each other if the opportunity shows itself.

They only change those who survive their first attack upon encountering them. Any animal or individual they kill, they eat. The Minemi kin'toni do have intelligence only their Xenophobia and paranoia prevent them from advancing beyond their primitive state. They will not use anything they are uncertain of but will examine everything new they find only to determine if it is a threat or a usable tool for their personal use. If they find it harmful or dangerous, they either throw it into the abyss of the craves or bury it to prevent anyone who understands its use to find it. Although they lack the coordination or trust among themselves to launch attacks against any other clan.

This clan is not defenceless. They believe the element of surprise is the greatest weapon; they can summon a cave worm in times of stress by mimicking the sounds of a real infantile cave worm calling for help. The worm more times than not will appear quickly and take action against those who do not smell like it. Do not assume that these primitive kin'toni are completely unintelligent. They have the potential to learn if they can get past their mental issues of trust. The Neluskskel Kin'toni Clan, whose territory borders their own, had learned that by merely wearing pelts of shed cave worm skin, they are welcomed as one of their kind.

As their languages are similar, the Neluskskel clan infiltrated and took command. They rally the members of the Minemi clan to work for them in hunting down those who had escaped them in the dark caves that open into their canyon realm and to attack those who wish to invade them. However, should Neluskskel lose his pelt his true identity will be known and he will be killed without hesitation? To coin a phrase, If they had brains, they would be very dangerous indeed.

Biology

The Minemi are adapted to the pitch black, humid, Ghar Anaroth caves. They are short, robust and barrel chested of build, with powerful limbs. This allows for r exceptional strength in climbing and weight distribution. The Downside of this is that they are lacking in running speed and reach. Their skin is albino, thin and densely permeated with nerve endings and capillaries to maximize cutaneous gas movement. This skin is vulnerable to puncture wounds and dehydration in dry air pockets.

The skin has small, keratinized barbs that are in their skin, the largest being on the palms and soles of the feet. This give enhanced traction when climbing. Under the skin, there are fat deposits to insulate from the cold and allow them to go longer without feeding. They have fine, stiff colorless bristles on their elbows, knees and spine to act as sensitive tactile pressure detectors for navigating tight spaces. These hairs give no defense or insulation. The eyes are vestigial, leading them to be blind. The remains of the eyes are deep-set and recessed into the skull.

They have long, pointed ears and an enhanced sense of hearing to be able to navigate by sound. The nose is convoluted and sensitive, to allow them to trace chemical trails through water or still air. This sense does not work in moving air. It also has nasal and pulmonary filters to allow them to filter and neutralize common cave gases to allow them to survive in hazardous atmospheric zones. The teeth are short, blunt, and extremely dense. These allow them crush and ingest the mineral-rich chitin and bones of cave organisms for calcium.

The teeth are bad for blood extraction from large prey. The claws are thick, non retractable and chisel like, for purchase while climbing. These claws hamper their fine motor skills. The fingers have adapted tendons that are highly elastic and strong. This means they can quickly ancor their weight without tearing muscles while climbing. The joints and muscles are altered to allow them to move nearly flat against the ground, as an adaption to be able to fit into small passages. They have an geothermal sense using specialized organs in their chest cavity.

This is used to locate sources of geothermal heat in the caves. This can be overwhelmed by large sources of heat such as lava or large fires. The ribs are fused and densely reinforced at the sternum. This allows for superior protection for vital organs against crushing and impacts, such as during falls or cave ins. Being more rigid, this means they are less flexible in the torso. Inside, they have hepatic "cell clots" capable of storing small reserves of oxygen. This allows them to have an brief window of activity in airless pockets or toxic gas zones.

This supply is short lived during physical exertion. They have a extremely high concentration of myoglobin in their muscles so that they can have exceptional muscular endurance for long climbs or swims. The bloodstream has an unique protein that acts as a pH buffer. This means they can survive mild ingestion of acidic cave water or prey with acidic blood.

Culture

The Minemi clan is often associated with cave life and cave drawings that tell of their past. Some kin'toni suggest that the artwork that is either viewed, witnessed or seen in the caves of Mauatarala was made using either the blood of other animals or their blood, and this theory has brought about much speculation and discussion in the kin'toni'ati community; however, it is also true that in reality, the Minemi clan creates cave drawings using a dark-coloured ink that is often found in the polluted waters adjacent to the Mauatarala region. It is also important to note that when Minemi clan members interact with one another they often do so with an expressionless face.

While communicating in a unique touch-based language known as Clink-Ka, although sometimes one will touch a kin'toni left shoulder to express either surprise, shock, or excitement when a fellow clan member tells the one who touched them to tell a hidden secret of their ancient past in an alternate language called Pxyit, where most of the Pxyit lexicon involves the use of onomatopoeia during communication). During the middle hours of the night, it is suggested by the urban legend that Minemi kin'toni will occasionally bring a bucket made of carved rock with them to the region of Zazquia, a colder region that is right next to the Mauataralan region or, geographically speaking, just north of it.

The journey to Zazquia takes a couple of hours on account of Minemi kin'toni being able to walk at a ridiculously fast rate, but after spending several moments filling up their bucket. With the polluted water they carry it with both hands on the bottom and side of it back to their caves, but the journey back to their cave often lasts until right before sunrise — although it is often suggested that a vast majority of those that carry the bucket of polluted water with them back to their cave make it back to the cave in time for the dawn. But the most interesting and peculiar thing about the Minemis and their strange culture is their unique but unsynchronized foot dance.

Which is often performed by a group of kin'toni to praise the cave worm. This polyrhythmic dance consists of several different stomp sequences being performed at once — in this case when several Minemis begin to stomp with their left foot and clap with their hands while another several Minemis do a much different but slightly harder stomping sequence; however, they often make sure that they aren't stomping too hard as stomping too hard often disturbs the cave worm's peace.

Government

The Minemi kin'toni clan has very little organized government of their own. They are controlled by one leader who is usually an infiltrator from the Neluskskel kin'toni clan. This leader will drink all the blood of anyone who dares to try to take his or her position as leader of the clan. There are constant fights over leadership but the only direct challenges to take control are to the death. The leader chooses who leaves to hunt, who stays to defend their post, and who feeds first. Those who are in the process of being changed are given nothing until they are one of them. Only a few of those taken survive the transition due to starvation and or shock from pain due to the deformities they must endure.

The strongest are turned into one of the Neluskskel clan so to keep their members weaker than their own. It is a clear case of manipulation; the Minemi clan are the soldiers of the Neluskskel clan. However, it is not without its perks; the Neluskskel clan have been known to reward certain members who showed strength and valour with swords and shields by their 'leader' who trained them how to use them in combat. Only those who the Neluskskel deem strong but controllable are given this 'honour'.The only threat to the Neluskskel control is the Minemi clan's spiritual leader. Similar to a witch doctor, this individual is considered a high priest by the Minemi clan.

He or she often wins the hearts of his or her fellow kin'toni in favour or against their tribal leader depending upon the debate at hand. Highly intelligent by Minemi standards, this high priest is considered a threat to the Neluskskel clan. However, killing this individual would bring an instant uprising against the tribal leader, leading to a most unpleasant demise as attacking their high priest would certainly anger their God. This individual is seen as the chosen one, sent by the cave worms to bring them guidance and wisdom. The political structure that there is a hereditary autocracy.

The most strong influence is the high priest of the Minemi kin'toni Clan's religion. The most popular issue is the lack of a legal system. The personal Freedoms in this clan are decent and scandals are infrequent. The foreign relations are that they are at war and losing. The government's stability is that it is somewhat little. The main export is labourers and main import is food. The main resource is mining gems and metals. There is a major deficit in trade and the strength of the economy is stable. Wealth in this clan is spread throughout small upper classes, the rest of the clan has very little wealth.

Military

Surprisingly, the Minemi clan does have a fairly organized army. Through observing and mimicking the sandworms and other cave animals, they had developed a dangerously effective sort of martial arts. They move slowly to conserve energy and to respect the cave worms sensitivity to vibrations. They are capable of moving somewhat fast despite the fact they are all but blind. This makes them a formidable force to be reckoned with. With the Neluskskel clan organizing their movements, they can be a dangerous threat to other clans. The only one who can stop the military from marching against another clan is their spiritual leader.

The two figureheads of the clan have been known to clash over almost everything. It is when the two agree that moves the clan with passion and determination. Their weapons are of simple stone and bone but their hand to hand combat skills easily makes up for their lack of technology and that in of itself makes them very treacherous and very difficult to compete with physically. It is also important to know that despite a Minemi kin'toni's blindness he or she is often very accurate when it comes to landing punches or blows. Other clans do well to stop them with ranged weapons, that the Minemi clan does not have.

This has made many embarrassing defeats for them, but the Minemi kin'toni Clan often wins in their caves. kin'toni of this clan have little armour, for they do not have much to make it with. Minemi kin'toni often finds their strength in doing jumping jacks, which helps strengthen the bones in their bodies. Other exercises that are practised regularly include the stretching of the arms and legs, one-handed push-ups, and even crunches. However, there is often a period of rest as they take a fifteen-minute slumber every hour on the hour despite staying awake for all but three or four hours out of a day.

This army relies heavily on stealth and the use of one-handed stone mauls. They often employ alchemists' fire and mercenaries. They are famous for making clever use of terrain and for their light, but terrifying armour, but also for their debauchery and for fighting while intoxicated. Each legion contains 10 platoons of 100 soldiers. They have a strict chain of command, with ranks based on family connections. At the moment, they are recovering from an embarassing defeat. The Minemi kin'toni Clan has suffered from the fact kin'toni in this clan fight over leadership. This has hurt the military before.

Religion

The Minemi kin'toni clan worships the cave worm. It was these creatures who spared the lives of their ancestors and took them in as one of their own when their creators cast them out to die in the darkness of the abyss. They make several cave drawings throughout their territory, telling the tale of their continued survival. Some of the more intricate cave drawings show a crude map of the tunnels they have explored. They include where enemies had come and where they had found the most food. These drawings are also worshipped as their 'divine' guidance from their spiritual leader who makes these drawings daily. This spiritual leader, be it a priest, witch doctor, or whatever term one may give him or her, is slightly more intelligent than the other kin'toni of the clan and uses this to manipulate the populous to serve his or her ambitions.

This clan, which often recognizes the cave worm as its primary god, is sometimes known for peeling off some of their skin to feed to the cave worms as a token of their devotion to their religion of choice, which is often referred to by kin'toni'ati religious experts as Tyrmaromism, which, translated from Pxyit, literally means "Worship of the Cave Worm." This skin shedding is a sacrifice in honour of their god and is performed once every few weeks during what most Minemis consider to be their "communion" time. Somewhere near the edge of the Mauatarala region contains a gallery full of non-visual signs, depending on the time of day.

Determine when the best time to pray to the cave worm might be. If warm light can seep through the cracks of the top of this ancient gallery, which has supposedly been around for nearly 25,000 years, then a Minemi kin'toni will often find it best to do a sacred ritual involving the use of dance and song in Pxyit to praise the cave worm; however, if the gallery is dark and pitch black, the Minemi must then clasp his or her hands together and pray in Clink-Ka. The symbol is a carved representation of a person and a carved representation of a status symbol and there is not a holy colour in this religion.

It is passed Down via many holy carvings in a cave gallery with much commentary Their creation myth type is dismemberment and involves cave worms. The origin of mortals was they were made from stone. A major myth and its symbol is the serpent. The Deadly Sins: gluttony, dishonesty, cowardice and self-injury and High Virtues: charity and loyalty. The coming of age rite involves leading a public ceremony and marriage involves two people of either gender. The clan's marriage rites involve large-scale celebrations and death rites involve a wake. There are no major taboos in this religion.

Miscellany

When the creators of the Minemi clan abandoned them and forced them to live in caverns containing worms, it was originally suggested by early kin'toni'ati psychologists that this was the death of them; however, in later centuries, it was proven by kin'toni'ati Psychologists in around 4E 1980 that this was their rebirth as their early history left them with constant abuse and torture. In a place known as the Weojfrosn (Pxyit for Cave of Tears) most funerals of recently deceased kin'toni will be held, oftentimes with the spiritual leader present and accounted for.

The spiritual leader will often engage the crowd in a moment of silence and an ancient prayer, then all of the Minemis will carry the dead to a burrow and watch as a group of worms will presumably eat the remains of the carcass and sometimes when Minemi kin'toni are stressed out they sometimes will use the sharp edge of a sedimentary rock called a gfoindos and carve a much larger rock to pass the time until he or she can make something useful out of the rock that was carved. In some cases, the rock is often carved into either an archaeological three-dimensional figure called a hcodmado or a weapon they can use in battle.

Three religious holidays are: Daechath is a solemn religious holiday celebrated on the fall equinox. It is associated with madness, miscommunication and a legal problem. Traditions include public exchanges of gifts and swearing of oaths. No faiths celebrate it differently, Eroall is a religious holiday celebrated on the summer solstice. It is associated with death and hatred. Almost no groups celebrate it differently and Denas, a joyful holiday celebrated on the winter solstice. It commemorates an act of kindness. It is associated with opportunity, an illness and communication.

The clan's written language is made of characters that are formed with mostly curves in a somewhat complex style. They represent syllables. Most of the characters are very close to a previous culture's writing system. A ritual in this clan is that anyone wishing to give thanks for a safe journey must offer a gift of blood beneath a tree during the dark of the moon on the spring equinox. Three of the laws in this clan is that the penalty for a free man accepting bribes is a few months' imprisonments. The penalty for smuggling is the loss of a limb and the penalty for stealing food is whipping.