Location/Potential Loner Band Interest Check!

[aspentrees]

Hey everyone! Aspen here, with a new location/family/potential loner band idea that's been kicking around in my head! I'll be updating this as ideas come to me, feel free to comment!

This is the origin/family/tribe of a character I want to bring on board, who I'm calling "Joy" or "Marah" at the moment. He is a jackal mix hailing from Northeastern Africa, mainly in Egypt near Cairo. His tribe was originally entirely nomadic and may still be semi-nomadic. They are traders, livestock herders (cattle, sheep, goats, camels), and specialize in making and dying wool and weaving clothing. 

Their population consists of almost entirely jackal mixes, with lots of golden jackal blood mixed with Arabian and Ethiopian wolves, and local landrace dog breeds (pariah dogs, like the Canaan dog and the basenji). 

The tribe, which doesn't have a name at the moment, have only been Luperci for roughly four generations. Secluded from many larger Luperci populations, being a nomadic tribe, was a "pack" of jackal hybrids consisting of a family unit. Once introduced to the ways of Luperci and shifting, they sought to expand their unit into a tribe and picked up skills in weaving, herding, and cloth-making in exchange for hunted food. They see their Optime forms as "gifts" from the gods, but prefer to hunt in their Lupus or Secui forms to remain more in tune with the "natural order".

Some youth of the tribe, at around a year old, set off on their own to learn more in the ways of their trade, becoming the merchants of the tribe. Others stay behind to tend to the animals and learn more skills in weaving and cloth-making. All pups, upon reaching shifting age, are taught how to herd, dye, and weave regardless of gender.

Biases: Some anti-wolf bias. No biases against gender or sexuality, although the tribe is primarily matriarchal.

Religion: Polytheistic. Water is very important to their culture, and rain is considered a great gift. They believe great rivers are the bodies of powerful deities sent to Earth, and waterfalls are their return to the spirit world. Ancestors are highly valued for their wisdom, including pre-Luperci ancestors, and tribal members have scheduled celebrations where they commune with their ancestors, similar to Día de los Muertos.

Language: Publically, Arabic. Privately, the tribe has their own language that is held very secretly. Many tribe members have two names: their birth name in the mother tongue, and a name with a similar meaning in Arabic.

• Names: Often virtue-based, such as Marah ("joy") and Amal ("hope"). May also be in reference to prey animals or other powerful predators like lions. As for surnames, they are convention-based. For example, if Amal is the mother, her pup will be named Marah al-Amal. The middle name, if desired, is either the name of the father or the name of the grandmother. ex: Marah Haqq al-Amal (in this case, Haqq is the father).
  

About Joy: Middle-aged jackal mix from Tribe. Once he received his Gift (i.e. being able to shift) his love for life and wanderlust blossomed immensely. He became a merchant for the Tribe, heading to Cairo to join the main trading hub there. From there, he joined up with a caravan of like-minded merchants and travelled up to the jackal-heavy Jerusalem and spent some time there making cloth and trading his goods. Then he travelled to Athens, and from there, the rest of Europe. In his travels, with his friendly nature and positive attitude, he gathered many friends (and some enemies). His new band made their way to Onuba, hoping to see and experience more of the world. Hearing of a land called 'Souls across the sea, Joy decided to head there, eager to see all that he could see in his lifetime.

Joy has spent much of his life traveling, and has become more knowledgable about the world and its inhabitants. Scrappy and lean, he is generally a very positive and free-spirited individual, but has gotten into his fair share of fights with others he doesn't quite see eye-to-eye with. He also still retains his training from when he was a pup, and plans on going back to his homeland when he feels he has seen enough.

It is very likely that Joy has fathered pups in his travels and feels partly that it's his duty to "turn" non-Luperci, to give them a Gift as well. I haven't yet decided if I want him to know his pups or not, or if he has any remaining family in the Tribe such as younger siblings. For reference, when I bring him on board, Joy will be around 6 or 7 years old. Joy is not adverse to traveling companions as well!

this is all ive got for now! more will be added/updated later.

[Myst]

Hi! I have a couple of questions. How much will Joy's backstory influence the loner band? There's a lot of thought put into it, but it seems like he's the only one in the prospective band from that tribe, so I wasn't sure. And, what sorts of things do you see them doing/what is their purpose?

The Forms thread in the Requests & Suggestions forum has a Loner Band formation form that might help with more details. :D

[aspentrees]

Hi! I have a couple of questions. How much will Joy's backstory influence the loner band? There's a lot of thought put into it, but it seems like he's the only one in the prospective band from that tribe, so I wasn't sure. And, what sorts of things do you see them doing/what is their purpose?

The Forms thread in the Requests & Suggestions forum has a Loner Band formation form that might help with more details. :D

 
hey! the loner band concept may not be a thing, that's something I would need to flesh out more lol ;; that's why its a "potential" loner band! otherwise, his tribe would just be an origin point for other characters :0 i'll update the thread more when i decide more information about the band, if there will be one! thank u for ur suggestion <3

I imagine, just as a very basic idea, Joy would gather some folks he's met in his travels and "live" with them, acting as a sort of head of the group, since it was his idea lol,, he would want to live near water for sure, like a river or waterfall or even lake/ocean! and they would be a very trade-heavy band for sure! lots and lots of trading uwu I think Joy would kinda try to "convert" people to a culture similar to his Tribe, bc that's how he grew up! and if folks want to join, that's fine with him!

[Myst]

Ahh okay I gotcha now! I misunderstood the location part and my brain assigned it to "the location where the loner band would be"

[Nocturne]

I'm thinking the same thing as Mandi -- this is such a cool idea for a tribe as backstory! I'd love to have a character who also comes from the same background, especially because you've put such detail into its structure. However, I also love that the idea also allows for a loner band of travellers from all over the world!

Do you think Joy would be acting alone, or would he still be connected to his original tribe in some way? Sending missives all the way across the world would be extremely difficult, but perhaps there's a grander mission that he's embarking on for the tribe as a trader? Or is he just acting as an independent trader at this point?

[aspentrees]

I'm thinking the same thing as Mandi -- this is such a cool idea for a tribe as backstory! I'd love to have a character who also comes from the same background, especially because you've put such detail into its structure. However, I also love that the idea also allows for a loner band of travellers from all over the world!

Do you think Joy would be acting alone, or would he still be connected to his original tribe in some way? Sending missives all the way across the world would be extremely difficult, but perhaps there's a grander mission that he's embarking on for the tribe as a trader? Or is he just acting as an independent trader at this point?

good question! i don't think he would be regularly communicating with his home tribe tbh, since he'd be halfway around the world...but he is trying to spread his beliefs to others! not in a super evangelizing, violent way, just a "hey this brings me joy so i think it'll bring you joy too!" he most likely would say often that he's from this tribe, just out of pride lol