Eafall Tribal Zu'Aan

History

The Eafall zu'aan clan were founded by a famous bandit named Leofeicric Natuvi. She founded the clan as a result of the kin'toni outbreak where the opportunity presented itself for strong warlords to become clan leaders based on their ability to guarantee safety and protection for the members. She attracted many zu'aan to her clan- that she named the Eafall, based on her reputation as one of the most fearsome and ruthless bandits of the region. She was raised in the rough neighborhoods of the Gautarli kingdom where she ran from home at the tender age of eight.

She would fall in with local ruffians and street gangs and eventually took part in a major heist that made her a household name in the Gautarl region. She was a wanted criminal- chased and hounded by all authorities unitl she finally decided to leave the Gautarli kingdom for good. She escaped in the back of a supply wagon aided by her accomplices and family to the faraway region of Homicado. Her arrival in Homicado coincided with the outbreak of kin'toni. She took advantage of the chaos to mask herself from the vigilant eyes of the Gautarli scouts.

Word of her notoriety soon reached the ears of every troublemaker in Homicado. There were a variety of responses to her arrival. Some of the small-time criminals were keen to associate with her and make their own reputations while the established hands eyed her arrival with some suspicion. She began to recruit her own band of followers and established camp in the Homicado Tidal Marsh. She operated out of this base for many regions looting and robbing trading crafts.

She began to build herself a fearsome reputation for her uncompromising attitude and sometimes excessive measures including murder and decapitations. Her carefree activities came to an end when the kin'toni began to show up in the Homicado region. Many settlements and villages fell to their onslaught- leaving many refugees rushing to the strongest warlords and tribesmen who could offer them the best security. She offered refugees protection in return for complete submission to her authority.

They settled in the tidal marshes on settlements built atop wooden poles. Her colony was governed by strict principles that she laid down for every member of the Eafall. She controlled every aspect of live within the clan, nothing happened without her permission or knowledge. The clan would achieve their greatest victory against the kin'toni when they finally arrived at their doorstep. This would prompt Leofeicric to convert the clan into a nomadic tribe, while leaving their previous settlement rigged with fire traps in anticipation of the arriving kin'toni.

They managed to draw the kin'toni army in and triggered the trap, killing a majority of them and sending the rest scurrying away. Leofeicric was wounded but survived the conflict. She would return to lead the Eafall- converting them into a nomadic tribe. They only encountered minor conflicts throughout the rest of her reign as the clan increasingly looked to avoiding large conflicts and confrontations in the interest of maintaining their clan's numbers. The clan's new nomadic nature was also vital in helping them avoid many confrontations for the rest of their existence.

Psychology

The Eafall are known for their hard mentality that is naturally inclined towards daring activities and a life of crime. This mental trait was left over from the first members of the Eafall zu'aan who were ruffians and criminals. Leofeicric herself had led a life of crime for most of her life and was known to be a daring and reckless criminal renowned for her performing many acts and heists which no one else had ever dared to dream of, or attempted before. This rubbed off on a lot of her followers and led to the clan's distinctively rough edge.

They clan were known to have a very aggressive mindset and an air of invincibility about them. They were reckless and would eagerly attempt any plan even it had a very small chance of success, sometimes just for the thrill of it. They were known to purposely antagonize many of their neighbors and would actively roam the countryside looking for a fight and for a chance to engage others in combat. They had very dominant personalities and wanted to impose their way of life and beliefs on other clans.

This need for excitement would often lead them on suicidal ventures where the clan would sustain many losses but for every ambitious member that they lost, two more would crop up in their place- eager to prove themselves more capable than their predecessors. The Eafall did not maintain any strong emotional connections to any of their members or their possessions and were happy with living day to day without knowing what could follow the next instant. They lived from moment to moment and would steal or harvest from the environment whenever they ran into scarcity.

They were very adaptable and did not have any desires for comfort and a secured lifestyle. They were thrill seekers and preferred to live without the security of a settled life. The Eafall could easily adjust to large changes in their lifestyle and were very adaptable in this way. This was most apparent when they adopted a nomadic way of life during the latter part of their existence. The clan relied on a principle of 'survival of the fittest', which was evident on many of the clan's practices.

The leader of the clan continued to lead as long as he or she remained the most powerful member of the clan and could guarantee the survival and success of the entire clan. Eventually challengers would arise and it was up to the leader to defeat these challengers to prove his/her worth. If they failed, they were considered as unworthy of their position and would lose the clan's respect as well as their leadership position within the clan. The clan was known for their acceptance of the brutal nature of life way before the arrival of the kin'toni.

They were comfortable with many types of actions that would be considered uncivilized and brutal among the other tribes. These included murder, brutal punishments and torture which were considered to be an essential part of their life. They were known for their lack of sympathy and connection with other zu'aan. People were only judged based on their ability and what they brought to the table. It was common to abandon or replace members who had outlived their use. They were very animalistic and primal and were not interested in establishing any large-scale society or civilization.

Culture

The Eafall's cutthroat culture was known for its practices which would be considered rough and brutal in most zu'aan societies. The clan's culture was a continuation of Leofeicric's criminal gang's practices and habits before the kin'toni outbreak reached their lands. They were known for their wild and care-free living where they would carry out daring and life-threatening activities and then enjoy their plunder for days in drink and celebration. They were known for their hard drinking habits and aggressive manners that would be in full flow during these wild celebrations.

The Eafall culture was also popular for their brewing methods and their local drinks which were known for their particularly strong and revolting taste. They were brewed from local grains and produce that they plundered from the countryside. There was no method to creating this drink and its taste could vary based on the brewer. The only requirement was for it to have its distinctive strength. It was an acquired taste and every member had to be able to consume it- without retching, in order to pass one of their simple initiation rituals.

These celebrations would become a regular part of their lives when the group eventually organized a clan at Leofeicric's insistence. She created the clan as an extension of their gang and to boost their numbers with likeminded people who were looking for company and purpose. These kinds of people could be found aplenty after the kin'toni outbreak had uprooted much of the lifestyles of the zu'aan inhabitants of the region. The clan's culture was known for its disregard for conventional zu'aan habits.

They lived day to day and were not known to build any permanent habitats and structures. They settled in camps and their lived revolved around large bonfires, around which they would gather at night and revel in drinking and stories of their exploits. These bonfire sessions served as the government and administration of the clan. Decisions and plans for future raids and activities would be held here as well as their judgments on any disagreements. The clan was known for their love an art and would create many works of arts and decoration on their clothing and weapons.

Their engravings were made of intricate patterns and designs that symbolized their life and experiences along with their history. Their most visible and characteristic art were their face and body paints which had a religious significance and were used to ward off evil spirits as well as to provide bravery in combat. The clan did not maintain any written records and had a very basic form of speech that was borrowed from the Gautarl region, where their leader Leofeicric was born and raised.

The Eafall culture encouraged their members to live life to the fullest. They were expected to take the greatest risk and perform brave deeds in combat or during their heists. Their reward would come in the form of their nightly celebrations when their loot was distributed among the members based on their contributions in the heist or battles.

Government

The Eafall tribal zu'aan clan did not have any formal systems of government and administration. They were a very tribalistic society that adopted the precedents set by their founder, Leofeicric Natuvi during her early life as a bandit lord. They had a single authoritarian leader who controlled all matters within the clan and who had the final say in all decisions. There was no constant method for the election of this leader and most of the leaders came about in many different ways. The most commonly accepted way of succession was for a candidate to challenge the incumbent leader through a fight or revolt and to forcibly take over the reins of the clan.

A show of force was considered mandatory to show the clan members that the candidate was stronger than their current leader and would thus be able to lead and protect them better. The leader was all powerful and dictated all civil and military affairs. He or she was responsible for planning the clan's constant campaigns and raids in the region as well as take an active role in the execution of the plans. Leaders such as Leofeicric were able to accumulate so much power because of their competence and abilities in combat.

She was known for her brutality and daring attitude which instantly endeared her to the thrill seeking people of the clan. They pledged their loyalty to her in the hopes of new adventures and fortunes and would not be disappointed, as she turned these adventurous and roguish ways into a tradition within the clan. There were no civilians among the Eafall zu'aan clan, as each member was expected to participate in all their activities. Those looking for a more settled and prosperous way of life would eventually leave the clan when they found out the complete chaos and care-free organization within the clan.

There were no permanent structures to look after the justice and the welfare of its members. These matters were all solved in unformal bonfire meetings where the members would bring their problems to be heard before the leader- who would decide on the legitimacy of the case as well as judge and declare a guilty party and punishment. Under Leofeicric, the Eafall were known for their harsh and brutal punishments that were meant to be an example to both their members and their enemies.

The punishments were not only reserved for guilty parties but also for members who failed in their duty or did not participate in their military activities out to cowardice. The Eafall leadership was known for its disregard for diplomacy and negotiations. They functioned at their own accord- raiding and pillaging whenever they felt the need. They were very unpredictable and as a result, had very few diplomatic connections and trading partners. Their limited vocabulary and lack of manners and habits to conduct civilized interactions also contributed to their ostracization from most zu'aan conferences and meetings.

Their criminal and violent pasts also didn't help their cause in this regard.

Military

The Eafall's attitudes and lifestyle were easily adapted to a military lifestyle. They were already a very active and daring people before they eventually organized themselves into a clan and were used to violence which they regularly subscribed to during their heists and criminal activities such as robberies and kidnappings. The core group of the Eafall's first members were formed from Leofeicric Natuvi's partners in crime. They would influence the way of life within the clan and set the attitudes which would become the norm within the clan.

The clan were known for their aggressiveness and violent tendencies which they would unleash during their regular raids and attacks on the remaining settlements and villages in the countryside. These attacks were a necessity for the clan because of their reliance on plunder from these attacks to sustain themselves. Thus, military success was a necessity in order for them to continue sustaining themselves. The Eafall's leader played an important role within the military of the clan.

He/she was expected to be a competent and brave leader who could handle the responsibility of controlling and planning their military actions, as well as lead from the front during the actual attack. Leofeicric set the precedent in this regard, since she was herself a very capable fighter who would regularly be seen at the frontlines of their battlefields. She pioneered the Eafall's combat style which consisted of lightly armored agile fighters who would perform quick attacks and then dodge or escape before their enemy could retaliate.

They relied on their agility for defense and were not known to fight in the conventional formations of other clans. Their attacks were usually preplanned surprise attacks conducted at night to catch their opponents off guard. They would then disappear into the darkness along with their plunder before a retaliation could be mounted. Participation was mandatory among all members of the clan. This was necessary as the clan had no formal settlements and the entire clan moved and participated together on all of their attacks.

Their greatest military success would come against the kin'toni when they booby-trapped their entire campsite and successfully led the kin'toni into it- killing most of their numbers. They would adopt a completely nomadic lifestyle after this even. The Eafall's equipment were a mixture of weapons that they produced by themselves and weapons that they scavenged off their fallen enemies. There was a great variety in the quality of their weapons as well as the way they fought which was a mix of ranged and close combat.

Their best works were reserved for their leaders and their bravest warriors who had the first pick when it came to the distribution of their plunder. They were known to favor light equipment as well as armor that allowed their limbs to move freely and retain their agility- which was their main form of defense. They colored their clothes in dark colors and would also use an assortment of face paint to help them blend into the dark of the night when most of their attacks took place.

Religion

The Eafall tribal zu'aan had their own religion that focused on the worship of their god, Falan. Their beliefs were centered on the glorification of combat and bravery. Their approach to these acts were very ritualistic and involved sacrifices and ceremonies that were held before the clan embarked on any battle and after each victory or defeat. They considered Falan to be a warrior goddess and believed that she showered her blessings on the bravest and most daring within the clan.

The reason for Leofeicric's popularity and acceptance within the clan was because many of their numbers considered her to be a reincarnation of their warrior goddess. Leofeicric for her part would do nothing to dispell these numbers, instead, she actively promoted these rumors and promoted the values associated with the goddess. She was relentless in her pursuit for new battles, conflicts and raids and would always actively be on the lookout to build her reputation on the battlefield.

The Eafall believed that dying in combat was the most glorified form of death. They believed that Falan herself would guide these warriors to the afterlife. These beliefs inspired many of the oldest among the clan to also participate in their battles, in the hopes of meeting their deaths while in combat. Their religion involved many rituals that were conducted before and after their battles. The pre-battle ceremonies involved the priests and their leaders leading their clan chanting and the blessing of a colorful paint like substance that they would extract from the roots and plants of the region.

They would then apply these colors to their face- with the belief that it would bless them with unnatural courage and help them conquer any doubt and hesitation that might cloud their judgements. These colors would also serve their secondary purpose as camouflage since most of their attacks came at night and was also used to terrify their enemies. After battles, a similar ceremony would be held where the clan would gather around a bonfire with their loot and plunder. The priests would bless these plunders and lead them in a celebratory prayer- while they drank themselves into a stupor with the help of their locally brewed alcohol.

The plunder would then be distributed among the clan based on the contribution and heroics of each member. The clan leader assumed a big role in all the clan's religious activities and the priests were personally selected by the leader in most cases. This helped the unification in purpose between the leadership and their religion. These teachings and the rituals of the priests would undergo minor changes with every new leader. This was because most of their leaders would go to unnecessary lengths to make themselves seen as a god and would only select priests who validated their claims and actively promoted them.

Each leader wanted to appear as the zu'aan reincarnation of Falan in order to boost their legitimacy as a leader and win over the loyalty of their most zealous warriors.

Miscellany

Nearby Groups

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Eafall Tribal Zu'Aan

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