Tribalism
A History
It has been five generations, now, since the Grand Collapse. Five generations since the gods exacted their wrath on the pride and vanity of the Ascahara.
Let me tell you the legend, the way my father told me.
Five generations ago, there existed a great confederacy of tribal nations in the vast archipelago expanse known as the Land Tears. Duzens, perhaps even hundreds of tribes lived on their own islands. Few, if any, shared land. Merchants prospered, sharing the specialties of each tribe with one another. The Far Lands and their men stayed far away, the confederacy standing strong enough to dispel the most well armed invaders. This was all due to one tribe, the imperialistic people known as the Ascahara. This tribe united every island - some by force, and others through diplomacy. They forced an end to petty tribal disputes through their great Longhouse Councils. There was a Shared Treaty of Common Law - a constitution - that ensured justice throughout the land. Many generations of our ancestors lived in peace, if a tenuous one.
Until the Ascahara grew decadent, and arrogant. They began to force outrageous tributes from the tribes, and began a forced recruitment drive of the youths, to fund a standing army. The Ascahara united the tribal islands to stand against the Far Lands from across the sea, but now they planned on invading them, on taking the lands for themselves. In the very end, even the Shared Treaty was cast aside to the Ascahara could build their invading army. The Longhouse Councils were disbanded.
The day of the invasion, enough ships to block out the horizon sailed off to the Far Lands. That's when the thunderclouds moved in, and the gods came to the defense of the Far Men. Or perhaps they were merely casting down the Ascahara. The ships were claimed by the gods and brought to the bottom of the sea... and soon after, islands began to follow. The waves rose, higher than a hundred mountains, and crashed down on dozens of islands at a time. Even the great island of Ascahar, with its marble temples and statues the size of a hundred men, fell beneath the waves.
A few islands, however, were spared immediate death. Perhaps they were favored by the gods, or perhaps they were just lucky. Either way, the shamans were all crying in unison. They knew their islands would eventually sink, and they needed to flee. Tribesmen and women loaded on to as many ships as possible, desperate to sail to calmer waters. Guided by their tribal mystics, these exiles went out into the storm. Some sank, entire nations finding their ships useless in the waves. Others pushed on, however. We pushed on.
Eventually, we came to The Exile. The only island spared by the Gods. It was far separate from the other islands, and spared the monstrous waves. It was a clean slate. The many tribes, vassals under the Ascahara Confederacy, living their peaceful isolated lives, now had to settle on one, small island.
It has not been easy. But it is the Gods' will that we survive. Why else would we be here?
Map of the Exile
Rules and Notes
General:
1. Standard rules apply. Play nice, be thoughtful, etc.
2. No godmodding, or trying to force your will on another tribe.
3. Combat should be handled maturely, and if you're unhappy with settling it with each other I can resolve it by dice rolls.
4. Take time developing your tribe, and always remember to talk to your other players.
Tribal Rules:
1. You're playing tribes here, so your 'nation' only consists of a few hundred people. Take this in mind when creating your tribe.
2. You can base your tribe off of any historical group (Native America, African, Russian, old European, Mesopotamian, etc). You're playing a group of exiles, so cultures, governments, race, and religions can be wildly different.
3. You all have different beliefs, but you share some in common. Namely, most tribes agree the Gods live below the water in their own kingdoms. Most agree the gods are vengeful, and that they will punish people for trying to upset the natural order of things.
4. The setting is low fantasy. You can have some magic and some mystical beasts exist. Also: for story purposes, I will allow some (max 1-3 per tribe) mystics/elders who have achieved longevity, and lived through the great Ascaharan Confederacy.
If you have any questions, please ask!
Create a Tribe
Tribe Name:
Demonym: Ex. Ascahara was the tribe. The people were Ascaharans.
Population: (A few hundred, maybe 1,000 for very large tribes)
Government Style: Ex. Council, town-green democracy, Chieftan rule, etc...
Religious Beliefs:
Location on the Map: Note you can be nomadic, very tightly packed together, or spread out.
History before the Collapse: You can be brief, as much history was lost in the floods. It can be more of a legend than a historical record.
Survival Legend: How your people made their way to The Exile. This can be just a short tale.
History Since: How have your people coped on The Exile.
Other: Important values, people, trading customs, etc. Optional.
Note: If you want your people to be something other than human, run it by me. I'm open to ideas.
