Sorrows

The Sorrows are a tribe living in the Zion Canyon area in 2281. 
==Background==
The Sorrows' history is closely tied to their religion. The original Sorrows were a group of children, the eldest born no earlier than 2109. They spoke English and were literate, and had escaped a place known only as "The School." Nothing is known about this place, save that the children would scare each other with tales of "The Principal."Year: 2123 Less than a year after the children arrived in the Narrows,The Courier: "Tell me more about your tribe."Waking Cloud: "We have dwelt in the Narrows since the End That Came In Fire, when the Father in the Caves punished the world and made us forget the holy tongue. We have had good relations with the other tribes in the valley. At least, before Salt-Upon-Wounds brought his White Legs here. We have Daniel to thank for our continued existence. His advice and help has kept the White Legs from overrunning us so far. I do not know how long even he can protect us, though."(Waking Cloud's dialogue) notes and gifts began to appear from seemingly nowhere. At first, story books, later, medical books and weapon manuals replaced them; the sort of thing that would help the children survive the post-apocalyptic world.Year: 2124
All the notes were signed "the Father." Some contained practical advice, others provided spiritual guidance, advising them to read and learn, be kind and modest, to protect one another and fight only those who posed threats to them, and telling them that Zion was the Father's gift to them, as an apology for the sorrows of their lives and the sorrows of the Great War. 
Unbeknownst to the children, the notes and gifts were from Randall Clark, a survivalist who had been living in the park for decades and wanted to see the children survive. He kept out of sight because he believed they would be disappointed to find out he was just an old man. He gave away most of his possessions, and hoped that they would discover everything else he had left behind when they grew older.
Eventually, Randall began to die, and the gifts became fewer and far between, until one day one final note was discovered. It contained a personal message for each individual member of the group, an assurance that their kind natures had pleased the Father, and a message that the Father would step back from their lives, but keep a silent vigil. Most of the group's later history is unknown, but it is known that at some point they began calling themselves the Sorrows, and attempted to search the caves in the region for traces of the Father. However, one of them lost their lives to a trap that Clark had set, and they refused to enter them after that. This grew to apply to any pre-War buildings as well, and it eventually became a religious taboo.The Courier: "Taboo?"Joshua Graham: "The Sorrows believe in a spirit that lives in the caves, say the spirit punished them once for trespassing. They put special marks around the cave entrances to keep people out. It doesn't work on the White Legs, of course, but the Dead Horses are spooked."(Joshua Graham's dialogue)
===War for Zion===
After the sacking of New Canaan, the New Canaanites fled to Zion Canyon and brought the White Legs with them. With their arrival and assault on all tribes, the children and elderly of the Sorrows were evacuated to Dead Horse Point.The Courier: "What's your deal?"Waking Cloud: "Waking Cloud is my name. I am midwife to the Sorrows. It sounds ill-omened, no? "Midwife to sorrows.""The Courier: "Midwife? I haven't seen any children around."Waking Cloud: "The children and the old have already been evacuated from the camp. They are safe enough, unless the White Legs come for us in force."The Courier: "What do you do when you're not delivering babies?"Waking Cloud: "I tend to other hurts and sicknesses that afflict our tribe. I also scout the valley for the herbs I use in my medicines."(Waking Cloud's dialogue) Daniel has been in contact with the tribe for at least six years and is attempting to make amends with the tribe for bringing the White Legs and endangering the tribe.The Courier: "Have you known him long?"Waking Cloud: "Six years. He attended the birth of my third child. Daniel knew the ways of New Canaan's medicine. He stepped in and saved both of our lives. After the birth, I asked Daniel if he would teach me what he knew of childbirth. He agreed, and so here I am."(Waking Cloud's dialogue)The Courier: "You said you "used to" help the Sorrows with problems. What do you do now?"Daniel: "I'm trying to make amends for allowing our problem to become their problem. The New Canaanites, I mean. The White Legs have always fought with us, and with Joshua returning, Caesar has motivated the White Legs to stamp out the New Canaanites entirely. That means the tribes we work with, too. It's already I just want to prevent something terrible from happening to the Sorrows."(Daniel's dialogue)
==Society==
The Sorrows are a friendly tribe, and possess a hunting-based culture, rather than a warrior-based one. Their rite of passage reflects this; it involves a young Sorrow hunting and killing a yao guai and fashioning a yao guai gauntlet from its paw.The Courier: "I like your bear glove. Where can I get one?"Waking Cloud: "A Sorrow's Yao Guai Fist is a sacred symbol. It shows that we belong to the tribe and have willingly undertaken a dangerous quest to aid the tribe. Each Sorrow makes his own - and only after hunting and slaying a Yao Guai that threatened our people. Our shaman, White Bird, oversees the rites. Perhaps if you spoke to him, he would allow you to undertake such a quest."(Waking Cloud's dialogue) In accordance with this belief, the Sorrows have sensitive and innocent souls and mourn the loss of everyone, even those that would seek to hurt them, like the White Legs.Daniel: "The Dead Horses told me details about the attack on your caravan. A stranger's sympathy might not count for much, but for what it's worth, I'm sorry. The Sorrows will mourn your friends, too. They mourn everyone, even the White Legs. They have sensitive souls. Innocent, if there is such a thing. In spite of what's happened, I hope that Joshua and I can help you out of here. But to be frank, we need your help, too."(Daniel's dialogue) It seems they also raise normal geckos, since many can be seen in their camp and are friendly.
All Sorrow tribals tattoo themselves with the symbol of the Virgin River. This symbol is meant to remind them of the suffering the tribe has had to face to reach the point where they are now and to show their lasting connection to the Virgin River, and, in part, Zion and nature as a whole.Josh Sawyer's tumblr "The Sorrows use the river pattern to reflect their suffering and their connection to the Virgin River in Zion."
===The Ghost of She===
The Ghost of She is a legend that embodies Sorrows culture. According to Waking Cloud, a clever and curious girl lived among the Sorrows tribe long ago. One day, she slipped away from the camp and went to play in the nearby caves. She did not know that yao guai slept in this cave and she was killed by one. The tribe wept at the loss and because the girl died before her naming day, her ghost remained restless and continued wandering the earth. Many hunters tried to slay the beast, but were unsuccessful. The tribe's shaman remarked that because the beast had consumed the girl, the two were now one.The Courier: "Tell me about the Ghost of She."Waking Cloud: "That is a sad story. I do not like to tell it, but if you are asking, it must be at White Bird's request. That, I will honor. Long ago, a girl lived among this tribe. She was a curious child, and a clever one, and her mother had a devil's time watching over her. One day, the child slipped away from camp and went to play in the caves nearby. The girl did not know that a Yao Guai slept in that cave. The girl died. The tribe wept, for the girl had died before her naming day, and her ghost would remain restless and wandering upon the earth. Many hunters tried to kill the beast, but it eluded them, or drove them off. The shaman said that since it had consumed the girl, the two were one. So we call the beast Ghost of She, for the child had no name to be called. That is the story of the Ghost of She. It is a sad story. It is our story."(Waking Cloud's dialogue)
==Notable members==
* Daniel (leader)
* Dancing Flame
* Waking Cloud
* White Bird
==Religion==
The Sorrows' ancestral religion involved the exclusive worship of a spirit known as "The Father in the Cave" who helped the first Sorrows find their place in Zion and provided them with gifts to teach them how to survive in the recently destroyed world.The Courier: "Who or what is the Father in the Cave?"Waking Cloud: "Have you not heard of the god of the New Canaanites? He is our protector and our judge. He helped our ancestors find their place here in Zion. He gave us many gifts, but we are not to seek him out. His caves are forbidden to us. Those who seek them out are taken from us."The Courier: "That doesn't sound like what I've heard about the New Canaanites...."Waking Cloud: "Perhaps you do not fully understand the New Canaanites. I have seen the Father's images. His holy bride and holy son were given unto the world to save it. They dwelt in the caverns of the mountains, caverns which can still be seen today. The people sinned against Him, and were punished with the End That Came in Fire and the loss of the holy tongue. Only the New Canaanites were spared."The Courier: "I see. That's fascinating."Waking Cloud: "I'm sure Daniel could tell you more. His knowledge of the Father is greater than my own."(Waking Cloud's dialogue) The caves that the Father dwelt in are considered sacred to the Sorrows; entering any of these caves is forbidden and considered taboo; those that seek them out are taken from this world.Waking Cloud: ""(Waking Cloud's dialogue) To ensure these caves remain untouched, they are marked with white hand prints.Follows-Chalk: ""(Follows-Chalk's dialogue)
Daniel has been trying to convert them to Mormonism as of late, and has experienced some success due to the parallels between the two religions.The Courier: "What do you do here?"Daniel: "I used to help the Sorrows with various medical problems and general issues they were having, but my bishop sent me here as a missionary. We New Canaanites believe that there is a path to salvation for everyone and it's important that we set people on that path if they are willing."(Daniel's dialogue)The Courier: "Give me some info on this Daniel. Who is he?"Waking Cloud: "Daniel is a wise man, and a great friend to the Sorrows. He taught me to speak the language of New Canaan - the "The Courier: "Holy books?"Waking Cloud: "Yes - the language of the New Canaanites is the holy tongue, for it is the language their sacred books are written in. The Father in the Caves brought it to them after the Judgment, but the ancestors of the Sorrows sinned against Him. They were denied the true tongue."The Courier: "Have you known him long?"Waking Cloud: "Six years. He attended the birth of my third child. Daniel knew the ways of New Canaan's medicine. He stepped in and saved both of our lives. After the birth, I asked Daniel if he would teach me what he knew of childbirth. He agreed, and so here I am."(Waking Cloud's dialogue) Daniel is apparently unaware of his failure to get his message across clearly.The Courier: "What do you know about the Father in the Caves?"Daniel: "Father in the? Oh, right. He's some spirit the Sorrows used to believe in, watched over them from the caves in the valley. They marked some of the caves around here because they think they'll be punished for going inside. I think as more of them learn the teachings of the New Canaanites, they'll lose their old superstitions."The Courier: "Uh... you might want to have a chat with them. They think your "Lord" and the "Father" are the same."Daniel: "Oh. How stupid of me. They probably also think Mary is the mother and Jesus is the child. No wonder they picked up on things so easily. I guess it just goes to show how difficult it is to communicate sometimes."(Daniel's dialogue)
==Language==
The language spoken by the Sorrows, like that of the Dead Horses, is a combination of Res and a language spoken by tourists who were visiting Res when the bombs dropped. It seems to be a combination of English, Spanish and hints of Japanese.The Courier: "Do they speak... our language?"Joshua Graham: "Most don't. It's been hundreds of years since the war. They've developed their own languages. Take the Dead Horses. We think they were originally refugees from a place called east of the Grand Canyon. They speak a combination of Res and a language spoken by travelers who were visiting Res when the bombs fell. Over time, the two languages blended. I was a translator years ago, but it's hard to keep up with all of the tribal variations."(Joshua Graham's dialogue)Question: "How did the Sorrows manage to forget how to speak and read English and all the knowledge and stories gleaned from the Survivalist's gifts in less than two hundred years?"Joshua Sawyer: "The Survivalist's notes may give an incorrect picture of how much English the Sorrows knew when he initially made contact. Even by that point, they were speaking a devolved pidgin language and many of them could not read."Joshua Saywer Formspring post May 19, 2011 (Archive)
===Examples of words and phrases===
==Endings==
==Notes==
According to Joshua Graham and Waking Cloud, the signature weapon of the Sorrows is the yao guai gauntlet.The Courier: "Nice guns."Joshua Graham: "In the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau, all tribes are known for a specific weapon. White Legs are known for their big submachine guns, "storm drums." They broke into an armory near Spanish Fork and have been using them for years. Of course, the Dead Horses have their wooden war clubs and even the Sorrows have their Yao Guai gauntlets. This type of .45 Automatic pistol was designed by one of my tribe almost four hundred years ago. Learning its use is a New Canaanite rite of passage."(Joshua Graham's dialogue)The Courier: "I like your bear glove. Where can I get one?"Waking Cloud: "A Sorrow's Yao Guai Fist is a sacred symbol. It shows that we belong to the tribe and have willingly undertaken a dangerous quest to aid the tribe. Each Sorrow makes his own - and only after hunting and slaying a Yao Guai that threatened our people. Our shaman, White Bird, oversees the rites. Perhaps if you spoke to him, he would allow you to undertake such a quest."(Waking Cloud's dialogue)
==Appearances==
The Sorrows appear only in the Fallout: New Vegas add-on Honest Hearts.
==Behind the scenes==
===Developer quotes===
==References==
 
de:Tränenvolk
es:Afligidos
it:Tormenti
pl:Smutki
ru:Скорбящие
uk:Скорботні