Caeda Culture

Summary of History
No one knows how to Caeda tribe came to existence, though it is believed to have been a break off from a larger tribe. The Caeda was apart of the Tribal Federation on Nuown, a group of similarly cultured tribes far far to the west of Rathnir. Caeda literally translates to Alloy, in part because of how they were the federations top smiths, and so they could say, "Alone, our metal is weak, but when combined together, our alloy is strong." They were well respected enough to gain the patronage of Torah, the god of Smithing and Diligence. Due to the benefits gained from having the patronage of such a highly respected god, many of the lesser tribes began to resent the Caeda, as well as the higher tribes. A civil war broke out for an unknown reason, and the Caeda sided with the ruling tribes, which had lost the war. As was customary, the Caeda and the other losing tribes had their patronage revoked, and their gods were replaced with resented gods. Hearing tales of "Yumi Aadul" (Misinterpreted Yimmu Audal) they began a long trek east, eventually reaching the western world border after 6 generations of nomadic migration. Days after the tribe entered, they became scattered, as game was scarce, bandits constantly threatened them, and they were introduced to new sicknesses. Many Caeda regrouped in Bardonia some time after the initial scattering. They appointed NattyNuke as the new leader, being the eldest male relative of the previous chief, his uncle. Under Natty's leadership, Natty negotiated for the rights to settle Hiroka-Lani in Theios-Essukdal territory, allowing for the Caeda to become one of Great Houses of Anoshphey.

Phrases
"Aevi Nos!" (A-vi No-s), a common and popular phrase meaning 'Stalwart Core,' this was typically said to warriors before they left for battle.

"Khar nala!" (Car Na-la), a battle cry of sorts, meaning 'Do not flee,' it was originally used as a command to not break rank, but eventually it evolved into a battle cry synonymous with 'Do not give up' or 'Do not lose hope.'

Early Life
A nomadic Caedan childhood is not easy, at the age of 4, the children leave their families tent and are forced to live in the same tent with 3 other people of the same gender. Each child is responsible for carrying the supplies needed to set up a tent, as well as their bow. Because of the hunter gatherer lifestyle, Caedan children learned how to hunt at a young age, they were also required to learn skills such as basic bow crafting, what is and isn't edible, and how to survive on their own. At the age of 8, the child is given 3 weeks to craft a bow. The bow serves as a test of the child's skills, which determines what they'll do in the future. The Caeda always had a few sheep that provided wool they would use for clothing, most girls became hunters, scouts, and tailors, though every 10 years the 8 year old with the best memory would become an apprentice to the Reris, or Lore Keeper. Most boys became hunters, resource collectors, warriors, general laborer's, and smith's.

Burial Customs
In post-exile Caedan culture, burying the dead was a luxury that the newly exiled could not afford. Instead, they'd carve the names of the deceased into stones. Many post exile deaths were easily avoidable if they had the proper knowledge, most deaths for the first 3 generations were accidental. After 2 generations of this, the stones began to be known as soul stones, as they were said to house the soul of the deceased. This is largely considered to be false, as the souls never entered the stones, therefore it cannot be called heresy. It was customary for, during a pivotal moment, for the stone of an ancestor to be held. This may seem pointless, but the stone's are not carried to fulfill the dying wishes of the dead, or to give the person a relief that someone is there with them. The stones are there to remind the individual of their mistakes, every minute detail that made the person cringe, sad, angry, or uncomfortable, ultimately placing a greater burden. Many post exile deaths were easily avoidable if they had the proper knowledge, most deaths for the first 3 generations were accidental, because of this an emphasis was made on avoiding mistakes. After the moment is done, the stones would be left behind, and the person forgotten.

Language
The Caedan alphabet is identical to the English alphabet. The language is rarely spoken any more, but it still holds cultural value in Hiroka-Lani. It is not particularly hard to learn the language, but a large number of vocabulary is long missing, and only a few of the rules are remembered. Caedan words occasionally have the same pronunciation or similar spelling to its English translation, such as Orne (Ore-neigh), translating to Iron. An example of the opposite is Nala, translating to Flee, Route, Retreat, Withdraw, etc.

Gendering words is slightly different in Caedan, Ren means Man, and Sen means woman. When writing formal documents, the Caeda with add Ren or Sen to the end of someone's name, e.g. Eddy would be Eddyren, or Sara, Sarasen. If you are unaware of said person’s gender, it is polite to add Gen at the end instead of Ren or Sen. This rule does not apply in speech, only in writing very official documents. Specific objects are gendered as well, as brushing one’s hair was a strictly feminine activity in nomadic Caedan culture, the word for hairbrush is a strictly feminine word. Pinsen is the word for hairbrush, whereas Pin means Potato, and Pinren means Potato Man. There is no plural version of Ren or Sen, so when referring to a group of men, instead of Ren's or Ran, the group would be called Ren-tora, meaning Man Group. If the number of females outnumber the males in a group or there's only females, the group would be called a Sen-tora, meaning Woman Group. This gender rule is one of the only rules to differ from the English language.

Religion
The Caedan religion was actually apart of a larger pantheon. When the Caedan people lived among the Tribal Federation of Nuown (not in Rathnir), each tribe in the federation had a patron god. Any new tribes would be given a god from the pool of existing gods. Any new gods that were similar to an older one would be devoured by them. The gods of the Tribal Federation of Nuown were not traditional gods, rather they were spirits of sorts. The gods of Nuown did not walk the earht, rather, each of the gods would have an item tied to them. This item was their essence, the source of their power. The item would display the power of the god, each of these items would be highly guarded by the tribe the particular god is patron of.

Torah was the traditional god of the Caeda people, Torah was the god of Smithing and Diligence. Torah was a much better god to the Caeda people. Despite Torah being taken away from the Caeda during the exile, whispers of Torah still exist among the Caeda. Torah quite literally translates to "Smith," in Caedan tongue. Torah was said to be very diligent in shaping metal, to a point where he'd sacrifice his followers health to do so. Torah's patronage was highly respected in the Tribal Federation of Nuown.

Baat was the god of Mischief, Treachery, and Sand. To have the patronage of Baat was a great disrespect, as Baat was not seen as a good god in the Tribal Federation of Nuown. Baat, starved of attention, coveted the Caeda people at first, but after a mere two generations of patronage, Baat got bored. Baat wished to return to the Tribal Federation, but he was tied to the Heart of Baat, and as the Heart of Baat was in the possession of the Caeda, he'd harass them constantly. The Caeda had also hated Baat, much preferring their old god, Torah. Knowing they couldn't survive without a patron god, they chose to give offerings to the Heart of Baat. Despite the mutual hatred, Baat still protected the Caeda, as it was his duty.

Granbak the Greedy
Granbak the Greedy is a classic Caedan tale, it tells the story of a group of women who entered the forest, searching for Ryn's iron sword. They came upon the base of a mountain, where they found a small cabin. Knocking on the cabin, a dwarf appeared, introducing himself as Granbak. He had three children, and all of them hated the women, but the women were well equiped, so he chose to show them hospitality. After listening to the women's story, he told them he knew knew the location of the sword, which was a lie. He said that he'd only tell them if they went to the cave and slew the monster that had been eating his family. The women complied, but one of them died during the battle. Returning to Granbak, grieving, they asked for the location of the sword. Seeing how weakened they were, he and his children attacked the women, and killed all but one. No one knows the accuracy of this tale, but it was written in the first book ever written by a Caeda, as well as it being orally passed down before that.

Nala Ren
Nala Ren translates to Running Man. There is very little information on this folktale, but it is believed to have been a monster of sorts, used to keep children from wandering to far from home.

The Epic of Ryn
The actual words of the original story is long forgotten, but the story itself still very much exists in different forms. Ryn means Lost in Caedan tongue, the story is of a warrior named Ryn. Ryn was considered to be the Heracles of the Caeda people. He was said to have slain a pack of wolves with an oak trunk, crushing the wolves flat. In recent years, Ryn has been interpreted as Reina, an Angel of Theios.

Ryn's Weapons
His most famous story is of when, at age 17, he bested the Bestigor King in three challenges, one of strength, one of intelligence, and one of drinking. After losing all three challenges, the Bestigor king flew into a rage, ordering his 12 sons to bring him the head of Ryn. Ryn fled the area, with 20 sheep belonging to the Bestigor King. The strongest son, Durl, caught up to Ryn and attacked, they fought for 23 minutes. The battle ended when Ryn ripped the horns off the head of Durl, a great shame to the Bestigor people. Upon his return, a weapon was forged of the horns of Durl, a weapon Ryn used even in death.

Another famous story of Ryn is of his acquirement of the first Iron sword of the Caeda people. At the age of 18, Ryn was searching for sweet berries when he came upon a dwarven hold. The dwarves spotted him and attempted to drive him out with awful music, the dwarves did not want visitor's but did not want a war with humans. Ryn still approached, knocking on the large stone gate. He demanded to be allowed entry, the dwarves refused him entry and fired an arrow at him. In retaliation, Ryn tore a fir tree from the earth and began pounding of the stone gate. After breaking into the hold, the dwarves were so astonished that they got on their knees and apologized, one of them gave Ryn an iron sword as an apology gift. To Ryn, this iron sword had been like no weapon he'd ever seen.

Ryn used both weapons in combat, favoring his left hand, where he wielded the weapon of Durl's horns, and in his right hand was the sword of iron.

Ryn's Quests
The returning of the first flame- During the Caeda's exile, the first flame was stolen. The first flame is what kept the head god of the Nuown pantheon alive. Each god was tied to a certain item, and Merilyn (Mer-ill-in) the patron god of gods, was tied to the first flame. Without the flame, the god's power dwindled. While Ryn was a Caedan man, he still held respect for his generational brethren back in Nuown. He searched the land for 3 years for the first flame, finally finding it's location. The first flame was heavily guarded by goblin shaman's, tapping it's power for their dark rituals. He stalked the grove where the goblins hid, learning patterns and who was in charge. 3 weeks of stalking later, and he saw the perfect opening to steal the flame, a small group of Bestigor scouts came into the grove, and the goblins attacked. Seeing his chance, he jumped onto the alter and slew the shaman's, he then lifted the brazier that held the flame and began sprinting towards the exit. Ryn sprinted all the way back to the Nuown and returned the flame, in gratitude, the god's enchanted his iron sword with the flame of Merilyn.