Noligi Tribal Zu'aan

History

The Noligi tribe was first established as a group which would occupy the Neylkal Great Lakes, a location that functioned as a dedicated meeting ground in the outskirts of the territory controlled by the empire. In the middle of those lakes there existed one highlighted by its natural beaut and size, which the then ingenious Noligis utilized as a space to engineer floating wooden houses, supported by a series of iron rigs which connected the establishments to the bottom of the same lake. This allowed for the construction of an entire village, which came to be known as Palatarn in 4E 132.

Palatarn quickly became a booming place for those outskirts due to its functioning as an alternate society, one fully equipped with guards, access to knowledge through entire schools, a plural selection of artistic production, sport courts, and access to a vast array of food, all set above a beautiful lake which, by reflecting light, allowed the moon to keep the place awake even during the night. All of that came to a quick halt once the kin'toni attacks began taking place.

Even with its semi-isolated nature, or perhaps because of it, that isolation only seemed to express downsides, since the Noligi tribe failed to make itself fully aware of the evolving plague until it impacted their functioning directly, through the malfunctioning of electrical systems and the faultiness of many of their advanced machines. All of this contributed to even further isolation, until the year of 4E 503, when the tribe was attacked by a group of kin'toni that tore most of Palatarn to rubble.

The attack was so brutal that the group was reduced to about one thousand three hundred members, compared to their previous thirty thousand (counting both permanent members and those who would come and go to visit the floating city). Afterwards, the Noligi fought to regroup and reorganize for years. The only infrastructure that they were able to defend the most was their famous library, Calisadur, which remained more or less intact because of the uselessness of the things within to any would-be plunderers.

This became a refuge for the remaining members of the Noligi: the desks were turned back into beds, the books were ripped up into blankets, while holes were poked into the wooden floor so that they could fish right inside, thereby preventing any attacks from any surviving kin'tonis. This also served as a kind of recreation center where the members of the zu'aan took time to browse through the titles, some with much difficulty because of the lack of proper instructors, which were mostly taken down by attacks from the kin'tonis.

In the next generations, incidents appear to reduce. The rest of the zu'aan were able to propagate a generation with a slow increase in population because of their status as "undesirable" individuals due to behavior, physical appearance, and other traits such as their scent. This led to a shallow population curve that never dipped or topped two thousand individuals. The library was also expanded with some small rooms along its sides constructed by Noligis who decided to pursue a career path in Engineering and Woodworking.

The tribe, depending on viewpoint, was also perceived to be both a haven of safety for sages as well as a intolerably arrogant tribe in a contrast that wholly contributed to their status as a society of contrasts.

Psychology

Upon disassembling the psychological processes of the Noligi, almost inevitably it starts with their perception of themselves, because the zu'aan of the Noligi believe that they are thinkers, and their sense of identity revolves primarily around learning, thinking, long dialogues, hypotheses, and abstract thinking that attempt to relocate them above other tribes. Intelligence among the Noligi has developed from being a means to attain more knowledge and more skills for other purposes into being a moral attribute that has become necessarily where people were esteemed to the point they were seen as "thinkers".

Although they required more rights to respect and powers, thus forging an arrogant mold of thoughts. However, even with such emphasis on intelligence and knowledge, the Noligi suffer from a strong contradiction between their hollow ability of critical thinking and performative philosophy; whereas, other tribes with less access to knowledge may lead them to be seen as inferior, they often contain a certain amount of critical thinking which the Noligi lack, the latter's debates are more ritualized than rigorous.

Often the spectators tend to agree with whoever speaks last, more confidently, or who simply add more tidbits of rhetorical flair, which sadly leads to hegemonic ideas to be accepted not due to harsh testing and evaluation, but because they seem aligned with an intelligent persona. This very paradigm also developed in the members of the tribe a notion of dependency, where it's almost necessary for their very lives for someone to notice how "wise" they are, it was common for people to interrupt each other's activity to begin describing a specific philosophical branch that individual has discovered.

Or their positions in certain controversial topics. Said notion has produced a culture where affirmation is taken higher than truth itself, disagreements were often treated as disrespect or plain ignorance, which made it so this tribe, even while living all together in a small space, be one where most individuals feel the most isolated. Furthermore, the Noligi often develop insecurities due to the naturalized emphasis on pride that the tribe has, in result, the individuals of this tribe have persistent fears of practical inadequacy, which makes it so other tasks are regarded as lower efforts than the academic ones.

Such as physical labor, survival skills, or even emotional resilience, but oftentimes this very logic developed, as was previously stated, from how the Noligi lack such developments, which allows that intellectual contempt to become a defense mechanism against their own fragility. Their systematic pridefulness often translates into blindness as well; the Noligi believe their way of thinking makes them immune to failure, which prevents self-correction, which is a very necessary skill within the Twilight Age.

Even when decline is acknowledged, they often attempt to rationalize it as a misunderstanding that parts from other individuals or the very "inferiority" of the outside world, which locks the tribe in the stagnation that it encounters itself in.

Culture

The Noligi tribe's culture remains a branch of their self-declared intellectual logic, where thinking is displayed more than it is practiced, as an example, it's possible to observe almost daily public debates which are seen and treated as spectacles instead of practical inquiries, which contributes to another practice of theirs, which is to negate any sort of informal manner of speech, often disregarding speaking styles that don't carry "proper formality", which often leads to a far-fetched usage of language, where the meaning of words is undermined as a means to highlight their aesthetic.

Both of these also lead to a sense of dishonesty, where the use of obscure references works as a sort of social affirmation, leading individuals often to lie about what they truly understand to come off as more intelligent than they actually are. One of the habits that are put into practice are weekly discussion circles, which, oddly enough, seem to often fall into circular logics that complement their shallow eloquence quite well, ideas being repeated often, where there have been records of some conversations in such circles coming off as nearly identical to a previous one.

The reuse of old philosophical terms becomes a common trait of their conversations, where focus is nearly always centered around semantics; all of this leads to a custom where, regardless of individuality, there exists a cultural expectation that everyone must have, in some way, a position on everything, or at least the most discussed topics, which leads to aversion to those who simply declare "I don't know." Such development in self-praiseful intellectualism also leads to another notion within the Noligi, where "non-intellectual" labor (manual and/or physical labor) is framed as matters which exist beneath the act of reflection.

These are often regarded as things that are temporary, in contrast to the field of ideas, that are able to surpass any life or built structure; such a notion also makes it so survival skills are often delegated or neglected, and when confronted with such facts, members of the Noligi will often circle around philosophers on the abstract need for survival instead of regarding how little they act upon it, contributing to their admiration of theory over application or critical sense.

Also, it's common for people to make jokes or metaphors that ridicule those who praise practicality, such as "As thoughtful as a construction worker", used to refer to something as futile. Furthermore, language, as talked about earlier, is often expressed through speech patterns, where overcomplicated phrasing is used intentionally, and correcting others' minor grammatical mistakes is used as a tool to assert dominance; often, words would be redefined mid-conversation so as to convey different ideas whilst still sounding sophisticated.

Ambiguity is one of their most common rhetorical tools, since it's often used to avoid being wrong, since it's difficult to analyze an incorrect point thoroughly if the position is flexible; all of this is supported by the very language of the tribe, called Delenth, a complex language that allows for the creation of words almost on the spot, mixing terms as a means to impose new logic on the fly. Furthermore, many of the zu'aan within the tribe feel an external cultural pressure to constantly be seen thinking or debating, due to an overall fear of being labeled as a "simple" individual.

Which would often lead them to begin forceful disagreements with their own friends in front of a group as an attempt to display intelligence competitively, which contributes to the tribe's informal ranking built on an indirect intellectual stratification.

Government

On a formal level, the Noligi tribe pronounces itself a philosopher-led republic; nevertheless, they have to acknowledge the contradictions in such a statement in reality, as the decision making process usually follows the one that dominates the public forum, thus, not the interests of the many, which leads to the creation of a system where power depends on a subjective issue of rhetorical dominance in the public debate used as a way of obtaining political prestige and, consequently, the structural outline of their tribe that hierarchizes by informal networks of eloquence is being shaped.

The rule is frequently defended by referring to how "The Classics" (the validity of such a term is questioned) would have decided to govern the country, i. e. by giving the power to the wisest ones, as they would be the smartest to make the best decisions for the masses. It would be normal for rituals to be performed as a means of conferring legitimacy, whether by public recitations, debate victories, or a number of quite subjective examinations, all of which were combined in a yearly event called the "Test of Reason".

Where political aspirants had to take part in those activities for the whole day the one with the most prestige and the least interruptions being the winner. The class which is regarded as the ruling one consists of a group of self-proclaimed philosophers, their selection being, as also previously elaborated, by their ability to show eloquence in public; most of this class is quite young, since one must be able to use these abilities as a way to gain political power, thus it makes elder members of the tribe who are trying to get places in the senate struggle for these spots.

The social origin of the rulers is frequently from a tightly, knit group of well, educated families, from which they not only inherit the glory of the family's name but also a limited number of teachings that contribute to what is considered competence; such a concept has, on numerous occasions, gone down the road of nepotism, whereby many of those seats in the senate are in fact inaccessible to outsiders due to the requirement of a close relationship with certain networks.

Decisions are often taken with a structure that is, in theory, simple, where one first begins with a proposal, followed by a debate (which, as has been described, is dominated by pure rhetorical superiority), and a consensus. However, oftentimes the consensus tends to be extremely fragile, which leads to very small progress having been made throughout this tribe's registered existence; even the administrative layer that is responsible for translating words into action acts poorly.

Which leads to a society where, even in the rare cases where decisions are made as a means to solve issues (be they as little as a leakage), the enforcement of their application is small and slow, allowing more issues to overtake the decision-making; such a structure has contributed to a reality where urgent matters stall and trivial matters receive endless refinement as a tool to increase a minority's prestige. This system is often declared unsustainable, since this very structure also allows for corruption by informal powers.

Those being any such minimal institutions that are able to control speaking space, texts, and reputations, creating a sense of constant vulnerability that lives at the mercy of confident speakers of gossip. Historically, such a system seems to fail constantly when attempting to address diplomacy and survival logistics, which is something undeniably crucial in the Twilight Age.

Military

The Noligi's militaries focuses a lot in a very unusual framework of military tactics, seen such institution as an issue that represents an embarrassing part of sophisticated thought instead of something that's truly relevant According to their reasoning defense is something to be regretted as they have the habit of considering physical work as something low and dirty that is only allowed because of the way reality imposes it on them. The Noligi usually explain this position by means of an excuse which is shaped by the fact that true reason should prevent conflicts altogether.

As if war were a failure of logic rather than a material condition that is forced by physical means; such thinking leads to the formation of a set of ideas which consider the militarily weak as one of the intentional due to the superiority of the intellect and not because of the mismanagement of the forces. The organization of the forces, or the absence of organization, operates under an extremely ill, constructed framework: there is no permanent army, no clear chain of command, and no hierarchy of roles.

Since even the latter changes according to debate results and philosophical discussions on the need and consequences of the war and theoretical understanding of the strategy, all these advanced logics contradicting the need for training or combat history; something that reflects the government's tribe, where power is given through talk instead of efficient actions, which also causes collapses and overall stagnation. When it comes to the way training is done, the Nogili do it in quite the sporatic manner, and even in those rare moments it's performed in a surface level abstract method.

More often than not, exercises are done by discussing strategy without concrete historical examples, such as with moving toys around old maps as an attempt to discuss how fighting would insue in hypothetical scenarios, or by re-visiting moral debates about the relevance and need of violence. The emphasis is on personal intellectual growth rather than on drills, stamina, and coordination which at the same time disclose the tribe's disdain for practical skills (whether these be weapon handling, survival skills, physical training).

Thus leading to the neglect of those elements with which the formation of a proper army capable of fighting is facilitated. Their army has built a humiliating history, displaying repeated failures in the defense of their own territory from both raiding zu'aan and kin'toni, having to rely in skunk tactics where most of the members pretend to act dead, something complemented by their awful smell, as to prevent the tribe from becoming a slaughterhouse for passerby raiders.

For other tribes, the Noligi's military is seen as unreliable, naive, and laughable, their slow mobilization, excessive deliberation, and paralysis caused by their abstract thinking constantly failing to sustain the tribe safe, leading to recurring emergencies that threaten the very existence of the Noligi directly.

Religion

The Noligi pride themselves in their lack of beliefs; which creates an interesting identity resolved around the rejection of faith, though still blatantly unthoughtful. Their atheism is not presented as a position reached through inquiry, openness to discussion, and study, instead it being a presumed endpoint of what proper reasoning would imply, although such constant disbelief functions as a marking point of intellectual development and maturity. Belief in a higher power is treated as laughable, as well as evidence of mental laziness or emotional weakness.

Which leads to any encounter with a faithful individual leading to scornful interactions, where such belief is treated as inferior and, overall, dumber, instead of as a proper philosophical stance; Thus, atheism becomes the default thesis socially. However, it often times seems as though belief wasn't abolished, but shifted, where logic is treated as a quasi-sacred principle; Logic, for the Noligi, is as self-evident as would be many Gods in other religions, a force embedded into existence itself, thus leading to a set of beliefs that justify existence as an inherently rational phenomenon.

They believe zu'aan, as existing beings, should live with such notion as a priority in mind, and within such belief, negate any compatibility with transcendence, mystery, or any level of metaphysical speculation. Attempts of discussing unknown matters such as the origins of the universe, suffering, consciousness, life, and free will are treated as a failure of reasoning instead of curiosity; contributing to the Noligi's contradictory institutions, where logic, which is seen as a tool to question faiths, becomes itself dogmatic and unquestionable.

Their prideful stances, among other things, lead them to organize their atheism into a kind of hierarchy in which one considers the other to be more primitive, and thus, faith, spirituality, or any form of ritualized belief, whether directed internally or externally, is seen as something "dated" or "embarassing", and the rest of the world is treated as culturally less refined than the processes which shaped the Noligi tribe. One of the chief culprits behind the Noligi's growing sense of superiority over other types of existence is the coexistence of this attitude.

Which actually treats the most different and diverse as brute or outdated without the ability to reflect on them from the outside perspectives, even when the faith they so violently oppose happens to be the tie that binds survival, tradition, and communal identity, features with which the Noligi are scarcely familiar yet. The Noligi don't substitute religion with an ethically or existentially thought out alternative, therefore, they end up in what foreign authors often call a meaningless logic themselves, which takes logic in a way that makes it very complicated to reach shared consensus.

As if life had no other purpose than to be rationally observed and engage in shallow debates. Also, their perception of the world and care for religion as its justification do not appear to be derived from well, grounded, maybe even fair, spiritually argumentative analyses, which in turn, even other atheist societies regard the Noligi as the spiritually less humble ones.

Miscellany

Nearby Groups

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