Tinaf Kin'toni Clan

History

The clan was founded by Glamdeir when he gathered the other bands that dwelt on their wild green. Under his guidance, the land thrived and grew lush and vibrant. Through the clan’s efforts, the green provided delicious crops they used to trade with the neighbouring regions in exchange for zu'aan to turn and other resources their land could not provide. They built tall wooden and cloth structures that were open to the cool breeze while offering shade. These structures acted as the meeting locations for those they traded with and symbols of their openness for visitors to come in peace.

However, not all were welcome to the green. The zu'aan had discovered the green and the crops hidden in its overgrowth. Thinking they were safe from the clans and not heeding the structures visible above the vegetation, a band of zu'aan began to cut their way through the green and claiming it to be their land by right. Their arrogance did not go unnoticed by the usually peaceful Tinaf, and they soon found their path blocked by members of the clan. Not realising the threat they faced because the Tinaf didn’t speak or attack, the leader of the band of zu'aan ordered his group to attack the Tinaf and press forward.

The screams of the zu'aan were barely muffled by the thick vegetation. And when the cries had faded into silence, there were skeletal figures hung from beams placed along the borders of the green. These scarecrows were seen as the first actual threat the Tinaf sent to those who dared to harm their land. It would not be the last. Despite the warnings, other zu'aan still attempted to seized control of the green and cut away the overgrowth. With each new attack, there came more skeletal scarecrows. Until the green was completely walled in by the grim reminders of the punishment for stealing from the land.

The Tinaf closed its green off from the rest of the world and began conducting its trades with the neighbouring clans outside the borders of their verdant sanctuary. It was then that they discovered the truth. The zu'aan who continued to invade and cut into the green had been told stories about the green by a few of the neighbouring clans to lure them into conflict with the Tinaf in an attempt to take the green for themselves. Disgusted by the greed of the other clans, and angered by their betrayal and arrogance, the Tinaf halted all trading with all save for their most friendly allies.

Now whenever anyone approaches the Tinaf without the symbolic branch of friendship, they are met with open hostility and suspicion. Those who sneak into the green and encouter any of the Tinaf clan members soon discover that while the clan maintains the overgrowth and cultivates the much desired crops for trade, their main harvest is in the very lives of all who dare ignore the innumerable warnings of the wall of skeletal scarecrows. However, one thing has changed. They scarecrows are no longer made only of zu'aan skeletons.

Biology

Their eyes have yellow irises with white sclerae and horizontal slit pupils and while the distance of their vision is pretty average, they are capable of picking up on differences in the smallest of things. This comes from years of studying their environment to make sure their crops are perfectly ripe during harvest. Like with their sight, their sense of hearing is more articulated than enhanced due to their living a solitary life in the quiet of the green. This helps them differentiate between the wind blowing through the green, and the vegetation being moved by someone.

There sense of taste is equally articulated. They can tell a lot of the history of those they feed upon. They can taste the various meals the zu'aan had for the past five days. But it means they can be very particular about who they feed on and whom they turn. The one sense that gives them an edge is a heightened sense of smell. With it they can smell when someone is getting closer to their borders. Unfortunately their sense can be tricked through masking. This is how they often miss the scents of the zu'aan who attempt to sneak into their territory until they are able to hear the sounds of their vegetation being cut.

At four and a half heads tall, they are one of the shorter clans. They have a stout rotund frame and pleasant facial features when not otherwise upset. The lush vibrancy of the green has caused the clan to develop a green tinge to their skin and pheromones that can put their prey at ease. Their skin is also thick and rough like tree bark. This prevents many bladed weapon doing more than shallow cuts when they are attacked. This also aids in helping them withstand the effects of the shifting weather and both hot and cold climates, though they are especially susceptible to fire.

They have curly hair of dark brown. Despite their stout frame, the Tinaf are quick and quiet. Often they will seem to just appear in front of tresspassers or even trading partners because they move so quietly. Their stubby fingers have uniquely articulated movement from years of planting and tending to their crops. Though they are quick, their short legs do prevent them from being very agile or dexterous. Instead they rely on using tools with extended handles and will climb to reach places. When they get upset, the pheromones they produce will turn sour and cause nearly all living things to want to get as fair away from them as possible.

This is a natural defence mechanism that protects them from larger more dangerous predators. It tends to give those who can notice the sensation pause before they move closer. The are omnivores and so only their incisors and canines are sharpened and slightly extended. Though they are more corpulant than muscular, the Tinaf clan are stronger than most other average kin'toni. It is because of this strength they are able to put up their scarecrows without much effort.

Culture

While they build open-air structures dotted all over the expanse of their territory, the clan prefers to sleep out in the green. Often they lay on cloth and fabric mats when they aren't tending to the vegetation. Otherwise, they stay up and take turns patrolling the green for intruders. They stay close together when they sleep to have safety in numbers. Glamdeir, having taken the title of head gardener, sleeps at the centre of the commune on the dirt so that he can feel any and all vibrations to prevent them from being snuck up on.

They wear cloth garments in the style of monastery robes of various shades and colours to match the vegetation of the green. They also wear leather boots and gloves to protect themselves while working the soil and tending the plants. Each member of the clan carries a large satchel on their back where they keep their wooden and stone gardening tools. They also carry a water skin and a pouch full of seeds of the crop they hope to cultivate for the next harvest season. Some of the clan members wear hats with wide brims to protect their eyes while working throughout the day.

Amongst each other, they behave like they are all siblings. They may fight and argue and tease each other when the day is hot and the work is hard, but they refuse to give up on each other and will do everything in their power to protect the other members of the clan. They don’t hunt like other clans and instead care and feed the animals within their territory. This rapport allows the animals to feel safe around the clan members, even when they have some of them taken and killed so the Tinaf can eat. For the most part, the clan members prefer not to speak to those outside the clan.

They only make exceptions for the animals they care for and the kin'toni they trade with. Instead, the Tinaf communicate through facial expressions and hand motions. The only other way they communicate their feelings is through the pheromones they release. It is through the pheromones that they are able to be seen as friendly and non-threatening. This has allowed them to remain a neutral party amongst the turmoil of their more war minded cousins. It is for this reason that so many other clans are willing to trade with them. There is only one part of their culture that isn't evidence of a peace-loving people.

This is the wall made of the skeletal remains of zu'aan and more recently kin'toni positioned like scarecrows on large wooden beams. This wall began as a way to warn zu'aan not to settle on the green and not to damage the land. But as more refused to heed the warnings, the Tinaf’s message changed to be purely one of “Keep out”. While they will drain most zu'aan, they refuse to turn those who damaged their green. And when they discovered that the zu'aan had been manipulated by other clans, the Tinaf started killing and flaying those responsible to make more of their scarecrows.

Government

While Glamdeir is the founder and the head gardener, he does not hold all the power or authority within the clan. With the aid of some of the first clan members, he ratified the creation of a system of rule that relied on one member to be responsible for making the final decision while the entire clan had a say in the matter and in how any decision would be carried out. This allows everyone to know the intricacies and stakes of every choice that is made for the entire clan. It is how they were able to present a working plan that led to a thriving crop export industry and keep so many true allies.

It has also led to the formation of a number of laws every member of the clan must follow. The first law is “No unnatural harm can come the green.” They are to cultivate and maintain the vegetation of their territory and protect it from those who would do damage to the land. They only use wood from dead or dying trees, and only cut back the overgrowth that could prevent the rest from surviving. Everything they do is to keep the vegetation alive and strong. The entire clan is committed to keeping this law and turns those who break it into skeletal scarecrows.

The second law is “What is taken must be replentished.” For every damaged or dead plant, they grow a new one. They always plant new and different crop to replace the crops shortly after the harvest. They feed the animals and take care of them so the animals will reproduce. They then only take and eat the older ones. They only trade for and turn the elderly zu'aan who have grown families. If another clan attempts to trade young zu'aan they will refuse the trade until the proper price is paid. That way they maintain the balance. The third law is “We do not harm those who we do not have to.”

They do not hunt or go to war. They trade for the zu'aan they turn. They cultivated alliances with their neighbouring clans. They refuse to kill the animals that reside in the green with them. The only exception are those who trespass on their green and those who betray their trust. The fourth law is “Desputes must be settled in a nonviolent way.” If and when clan members fight amongst themselves, they must find a way to settle their differences without hurting each other. One option is they perform tests of strength such as arm wrestling, rock tossing, grappling, rope pulls, or they set up a new structure by themselves.

Another option is that they will debate the issue in front of the rest of the clan to see if they can reach a compromise. The fifth law is “Whatever the issue, the clan must have a chance to talk it over.” This was the only thing that Glamdeir made law without the input of the rest of the clan. He will refuse to decide anything until he knows what every clan member thinks.

Military

While the clan does not hunt or go to war, they do know how to protect themselves and their land. Even though they can sneak up on just about any living thing, the Tinaf never attack without facing the person they are fighting. They never fight in a duel situation, preferring instead to fight as a group against equal numbers. They always wait for the other person to make the first move and then use their considerable strength to overpower them or to swing their long double-headed scythes and kill the person as quickly as possible.

They prefer not to cause any suffering and will only kill those who break their laws. They refuse to form a military or to take sides when the neighbouring clans go to war. Instead, the clan will provide crops to those willing to trade with them and will even act as mediators to put an end to the conflict. They are gentle with the animals that live alongside them, and to the zu'aan they encounter during trade agreements. Those they end up draining are the elderly who have families and are near the end of their days. They are fed and cared for until they are ready.

And then the Tinaf feed on them and turn them so that they can have a new life tending to the green. The only time they kill an animal is when they are in need of food and as with the zu'aan, they only take the eldest of a family that no longer needs them. The only times they will act in an unbridled rage and with the desire to kill is when someone harms their land or betrays their trust. When it is an invader on their land they will first attempt to drive them away with their pheromones. If that doesn't work they will reveal themselves and block the path of those harming the land.

And if they get physical the Tinaf will act quickly and with a deadly sense of mercy so there is no pain before death. But betrayal is a different situation. At such times they will kill those responsible as soon as they lay are on Tinaf soil. While still holding to the laws and practices of the clan, they will offer no warnings or mercy. They will take the head of the members of any kin'toni clan that betrays them. If the traitor is one of their own, they must out their allies and bring them into the green to fight. The only bit of actual warfare they continually practice is that of the psychological variety.

This is done by the skeletal scarecrows they turn their lawbreakers and traitors into after death. Each one is hung differently to hint at why this happened to them and the flaying is done in such a way that it looks like they were picked at by birds. This is to make trespassers wonder if they could have been saved in time and thus question if they should continue their ill-conceived plan.

Religion

The Tinaf clan worship the concept of nature and vegetation. They collectively call them the Borudi, and these are believed to control the flow of life and death in a cyclical pattern that the clan is a part of and must help maintain within the region of the green. To them, the green is their paradise given as a test by the Borudi. This is what their entire culture and laws are based around and every action they take to cultivate the land is done as a tribute to the Borudi. There is Varnul, the Mother and leader of the Borudi. They believe that from her comes all life in an unfashioned form.

She is believed to be loving and gentle. It is she who gave them the green and desires them to prove they are more than monsters who survive on the blood and death of others. It is she who hates unnecessary death and war. It is for her that they refuse to make an army or to take sides in any conflict. Every time they have to kill they ask for her forgiveness and understanding. It is for her that they only drain and turn the elderly and only eat the old animals after making sure their is new life to replace that with was taken. There is Gian, the Son.

The clan believes Gian shaped the world and forms part of the life made by Varnul into plants. He is said to be excited and funny and sweet. They believe he made the world to be enjoyed and to provide everything needed for other life to continue after being formed. It is for him that they maintain the green. He is the reason they continually plant different crops and always repair any damage to the vegetation within their territory. It is to appease him that the scarecrows are made and placed around the borders. There is Amia, the Sister.

They believe it is she who forms the life that makes the animals and placed several on the green to be the constant companions of the Tinaf. They say she is charitable and innocent and a lover of tiny things. She is the reason they care and feed the animals and only kill the eldest when they need the meat. They believe she gave every animal a part of her own being and that is why they are so gentle. When they kill an animal to eat they pray that the piece of Amia from within the animal will find it's way back to her. The last of the Borudi is called Jancil, the Father.

They believe he is the creator of the zu'aan and the kin'toni. In their religion he is a stern and just person who wants them all to survive. It is for him that they seek to trade with other clans and treat the zu'aan as nicely as possible before draining and turning them. They believe that he made zu'aan to be a testing ground to see what kind of kin'toni they would make.

Miscellany

Nearby Groups

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Tinaf Kin'toni Clan

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