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History

The Xankdyn Kintoni Clan are one of the oldest inhabitants of the Rodrad Cold Swamplands- a region that is mostly left desolate because of its inhostpitable conditions. Their habitat was a hotbed of some of the deadliest diseases in Taerel and had an inhospitably cold climate. Historically, the Xankdyn kin'toni Clan were created in a research facility located within the swamps. They were created as genetically enhanced super soldiers meant to fight for the zu'aan of the Rodrad region until an accident led to their escape from the facility.

To fufil this role they had certain bodily adaptations such as their webbed like feet and scaly skin with water proof fur to survive in the swampy and partly snowy terrain. After the collapse of the large zu'aan cities, the Xankdyn kin'toni spent centuries as the only notable clan living in the Rodrad swamps. They had very limited contact with the outside world and were limited in their understanding of other cultures and languages. Their very specific body adaptations meant that they were limited to their environment and prevented them from exploring other parts of the world.

They developed at their own pace due to the undisturbed nature of their lands and relied on the wildlife for blood and sustenance. Unlike other kin'toni, the Xankdyn were capable of reprodution and thus were not reliant on "turning" the zu'aan people to increase their own numbers. Their first major wars were against another kin'toni clan who followed the course of the Xankdyn river right into the swamps. Although the Xankdyn welcomed these strangers at first, the cultural differences and linguistic barriars slowly led to the festering of mutual suspicion.

These feelings were not helped by the arrival of even more kin'toni through the river as word began to spread of the isolated and unexplored swamplands. Over the next few centuries the Xankdyn would find themselves involved in many local disputes and conflicts with the new immigrants of Rodrad. Using their familiarity with the environment and their ability to travel effectively through the swanps to their advantage, they were able to win some victories. However no large-scale battle could be conducted in the severely limiting environement.

This prevented them from inflicting any decisive defeat on their opponents to force a withdrawal. The situation was compounded by famines and wars to the South that drove swarms of fleeing zu'aan and kin'toni clans to their homeland. The Xankdyn began to take a more critical view of this migration. There was larger competition for food and living space, and the Rodrad swamp no longer seemed vast enough to support them all. They no longer welcomed new clans to their lands and instead resorted to sending threats and warnings to leave at once.

The situation forced the Xankdyn kin'toni Clan to be locked in an ongoing conflict with any new arrival in the region. They begon to develop a more militaristic and aggressive approach to incursions and easily resorted to violence at the slightest provocation. They also began "turning" zu'aan for the first time in their long history.

Biology

The Xankdyn kin'toni clan had unique anatomical features that helped them survive in the inhospitable swamps of the Rodrad region. The most apparent among these features were their half webbed feet that allowed them to distribute their weight more evenly across the soggy ground and slso paddle through the water in deeper sections of the swamps. This was the secret to their incredible mobility in the otherwise difficult terrain and provided them with an advantage over all other clans who migrated to the region. The Xankdyn were able to pick their battles and set effective ambushes with the help of this advantage.

The Xankdyn were quite tall in average and could measure up to six feet ten in height. This was accompanied by their athletic frames that afforded them plenty of stamina along with additional agility and mobility to dodge projectiles and swings. They had very developed muscles along their major limbs as a result of their sonstant wading through the thick slushy ground. Their fingers were also extremely dextrous, enabling them to transition seamlessly to the use of advanced tools and weapons that the migrating zu'aan and kin'toni introduced in the region.

Prior to this they were mostly reliant on ancient slings and flinging wooded spears. These skills required a level of hand eye coordination that was not coomon in the region. Their proficiency came through years soent hunting wild animals and predators out in the fields combined with their good eyesight. Like most kin'toni, the Xankdyn also had a sensitivity to light but could easily overcome this by swimming underwater and using reeds to breathe through the surface. They had shorter reaching arms that were more muscular to help them paddle through water.

Their fingers were also tipped with retractable claws that doubled as weapons in the event that they lose their weapon during a fight. Their entire body was covered in a waxy layer of scales that helped to keep them waterproof. Above this was also a layer of thick fur that helped to maintain their body temperatures during the cold winter months. The Xankdyn had distinctive Red irises with white sclerae and vertical beaded pupils. Their eyes were adapted for seeing both in ligh conditions and in the dark. Their vision was exemplary and they could pick up small movements along the ground from miles away.

This ability was useful for scouting the enemies activities as well as tracking and identifying their prey. The Xankdyn had matted coats of brownish hair on their heads that would be tied into braids as a fashion. It grew faster and was longer than the rest of the fur on their bodies. Their noses were tiny and flatter, with only a small protrustion to differentiate it from the rest of their face. Their ears too were created in the same way and lacked the pointy tip of most kin'toni. Their teeth were jagged and lines in two rows.

They could deliver a savage bite and even tear off flesh and sinews of anyone who got too close to them with the help of their powerful jaw muscles.

Culture

The Xankdyn Kintoni Clan had a very unique culture that was shaped by centuries of alienation from other zu'aan and kin'toni. They had very simple, animalistic mannerisms that were based on basic animal behavior. This was a result of their close proximity to wild animals which they relied on for blood and sustenance. The Xankdyn culture lacked behind in terms of an organized society or language but was adequate enough for their simplistic needs. Their language was very bsic and sometimes mimicked animal calls. It was only during their later stages.

And through more interactions with other zu'aan and kin'toni groups that their language began to develop and acquire its current form. The Xankdyn were known for their very basic emotions that determined their behavior. Hunger would lead them to hunt and kill while a more tranquil atmosphere would inspire their altruistic side. They were capable of displaying emotions such as sympathy and kindness to strangers in need. Their societies were close knit groups where the people cared for and worked towards their collective need. There was no individualism within their clan.

As the brutal world around them required them to work together in order to survive. People were expected to either contribute towards the group or survive on their own out in the wild. The Xankdyn kin'toni Clan did not build conventional homes or shelters. They lived in shallow caves or natural features that sheltered them from any rain or elements. The clan knew about fire and utilized it to keep themselves warm during the coldest months of the year. The smoke of their fires could be observed from a distance and was a way for the clan to navigate the land.

They were skilled at manipulating the smoke to create signals and send messages to the rest of their clan. The Xankdyn primarily relied on hunting for most of their needs. They fed on blood and meat and tanned the leather to create water-proofed clothing. The bones were useed to carve intricate ornaments along with their axe heads and knives. Celebrations and feasts were a regular part of the clan's exression. They were very common and thrown at every opportunity to celebrate a successful hunt or the initiation of a new member.

With the growing influence of other zu'aan and kin'toni tribes who migrated into the Rodrad, the Xankdyn began to slowly lose their simplistic way of life and began to implement parts of other cultures that they lacked. Their dwellings slowly developed to become large cave dwellings and their clan began to adopt the professional approach to military service. Trade and bargaining also became a major part of their interactions with other societies and their members slowly began to own their own individual possessions- something that would have been impossible before.

The rising tide of individualism led to the influx of a large amount of new goods and technology that would help their clan advance from their previous state. This was not to say that the Xankdyn welcomed new settlers into their lands. They adopted their practices but remained wary of them which later transitioned to full-on aggression against all new settlers.

Government

The Xankdyn kin'toni Clan did not have any recognized systems of government throughout their entire history. Instead, the clan relied on tribal loyalty and social pressure to organize themselves into a group. Each community would have their own headmen who were responsible for leading them and organizing day-to-day activities. Beyond that, the clan had no structures for an organized leadership or government. The Xankdyn's ancestral customs were the law of the land for the them. It prescribed the behavior and conduct that was expected of each member along with the forbidden actions and limitations on their freedoms.

The Xankdyn had a more primitive understanding of justice. They followed the code of 'an eye for an eye'. If a person was guilty of any crime against another member, the victim was usually given an opprtunity to seek redemption through combat or by inflicting the same crime that had been inflicted on him. Another important aspect of their clan's organization was the prioratization of the group before any individual. This came from the realization that survival in the treacherous Rodrad region filled with dangerous natural hazards and predators was impossible without the help of a strong community. To this end, the members of the Xankdyn were not allowed to profit for themselves or own personal property.

Everything they owned or did was for the good of the clan as a whole. These beliefs would only change later on when the group became more heavily infuenced by the foreign tribes that migrated into the region. During these later stages owning personal property became a common feature among the clan members and they started to lose the over emphasis on community. The community was once a powerful unit for maintaining order within the Xankdyn kin'toni Clan. Committing acts that were detrimental or against the community was usually met with apprehension and social criticism.

In extreme cases it could also lead to expulsion from the clan. The community as a whole participated in this preservation of their rules and customs and it was not the single responsibility of any individual, not even their headmen. The community made a lot of decisions for every person's life. They were responsible for delegating responsibilities or noticing and acknowledging the achievements of one of their own. When a person was promoted as such, their social standing immediately improved along with their responsibilities and their role in the clan's decision making. The community's role could sometimes be excessive and restricting on the members.

A their duties would frequently extend into the personal lives of the clan members. Some responsibilities in this regard included the arrangements of marriages and deciding who should be expelled from their ranks. Thus, these customs became one of the first to be thrown out when the clan began to evolve along more modern lines and lifestyles. The Xankdyn's new look bears very litte similarities to their old form. Gone are the practices of community and public property and in their place has arisen a more liberating form of government where individual expression and freedom is valued.

Military

The Xankdyn kin'toni Clan were incredible hunters who used a mix of their mobility on swampy ground, their penchant for disguises and their proficiency with slings to hunt all kinds of animals and predators that lived in the Rodrad Swamps. Their reputation as hunters was well deserved and borne out of the need to hunt animals for blood and sustenance. Hunting was a mandatory skill for all members of their clan and those among them who were inept at it were castigated to the bottom rung of the social order. They had a chance to train themselves in this activity.

Since hunting was a regular part of the clan's daily life. The best among them were known for their uncanny ability to predict animal movement patterns while staying undetected for days. A common technique was to submerge themselves in the swamps while breathing through reeds while staying upwind of the animals to mask their scent. Their innate understanding of the terrain was also a large part of their success in this role and helped them chose battlefully carefully when they started to face other kin'toni and zu'aan clans. Their abilities would translate very well in the battlefield.

Where they defeated much more advanced kin'toni using a combination of their hunting instincts and ingenuity. They were aware of their own backwardness when they observed the organization and discipline of the armies of other zu'aan and kin'toni clans. This understanding drove them to mount a complete rehauling of their own systems to facilitate the creation of a dedicated army meant to defend and protect their lands. Most of the young individuals instantly enrolled to join the military once it was introduced. Driven by dreams of glory and making a reputation for themselves.

This generation would become one of the most recognizaable in Xankdyn history as an example for bravery and the changing attitudes within the clan. They were already equipped with the skills to engage in combat and only had to be trained to do it as an army. The transition was almost seamless and the clan quickly adapted to bring in more new ideas to secure their own position in the Rodrad region. The Xankdyn followed a pattern of military organization that was common to all armies. They created new leadership position for their army that surpassed the position of their previous headmen.

These military leaders were responsible for training the army and organizing strategies and tactics for use in battle. A lot of copywork was essential in theses early days until the clan began to grow in confidence of their own abilities and started inventing new ones. The clan was careful to implement these changes in a phased manner to avoid overcomplicating things. They learnt from their mistakes and were careful not to repeat it twice. This positive attitude helped their military grow from just an afterthought to become one of the most feared forces in the entire region.

It would cement their place as the main power in the region for years to come.

Religion

The Xankdyn kin'toni Clan followed many obscure religions that worshipped the world around them. Their religion was not monotheistic and they prayed to different dieties on different occasions. Their religions were a result of their ignorance. They observed the natural phenomenon around them such as lightning, thunderstorms, blizzards, forest-fires and began associating them with different Gods. They gave names to these Gods and personified them as regular kin'toni in their own image. They prayed to these Gods for protection from natural calamities, misfortune and tragedies.

The clan were known to make crude paintings of their Gods in their cave dwelling along with crude miniatures carved out of bone and fur. The headmen would regularly organize religious festivals and ceremonies where the clan would gather together and perform their rituals followed by prayer and chanting. Dancing was one of the chief elements of their ceremonies. The members would mimic the natural form of their God's and dance without any inhibition. A vital component of their religious ceremonies was the presence of abundant intoxicating drinks and substances.

They would perform in an inebrieted state which they felt was the closest they could come to their Gods. Each God had its own dedicated priest and devotees within the clan who were responsible for praying, performing sacrifices and seeking their favor. They created their own myths and legends that told the stories of their Gods. It gave them a relatable side with traits and personalities that they could identify with. Chief among their Gods was Sulynt- the God of cold and ice, the two elements that were a constant threat to their survival.

They prayed to Sulynt for mercy and would try to placate him with their animal sacrifices and prayers. The other God's in their culture included the Lightning God, Kinbanech who controlled the lightning and thunder- another element that was responsible for the death of many Xankdyn while they were out hunting in the land. Their hunter's favored their God, Lanet. A mythical half man-half beast with antlers who was God of the Hunt. They believed that Lanet was responsible for providing them with their prey and helping their projectiles find their mark.

They believed that their best hunters were favored by Lanet and believed more on the God's favor than the skill of their hunters. They believed that Lanet's favor could be earned through their hunting activities and that he accompanied them in spirit during these occasions. They had a habit of making a sacrifice of the prime meat from every successful hunt to their God to invoke his blessings. The God would slowly be recharacterized as the God of war when the clan began to face off against other zu'aan and kin'toni clans. The Xankdyn never abandoned their old religions even as they progressed through the ages.

Instead their God's would take on new personalities and responsibilities according to the major activities of the period. Their ceremonies and sacrifices would also grow more elaborate and the clan started making large carvings and scluptures of their Gods when they discovered better tools.

Miscellany

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