Fankiang

The Fankiang were a tribe of nomadic humans living on the Plain of Horses in northwestern Kara-Tur or the northeastern Hordelands. They were among the tribes mistakenly called "Tuigan" by outsiders following the Horde Wars. They were one of the three major tribes of the plain, alongside the Tsu-tsu and the Kashghun.
==Territory==
The Fankiang lived in the eastern regions of the Endless Waste. Their lands bordered those of the Pazruki, Kashghun, Quirish, Zamogedi, and Gur tribes. They made their home around the cities of Li-Raz and Haxkhun in the southwestern Chigidi Mountains; the latter served as a military outpost and first line of defense for the capital against any attack on the Fankiang from the north or west.
==Society==
The Fankiang, like the Tuigan and Zamogedi tribes, were known to maintain a yunïchaar army. Such armies were formed from the children of their enemies, kidnapped and raised to be loyal, elite soldiers, after an ancient custom of the Hordelands.
They spoke the Fankiang dialect of the Chuchian tongue.The Horde lists "Fankiang" as a language in its own right, but the Kara-Tur sources discuss this as only a dialect of the Chuchian language.
==Culture==
As one of the more cosmopolitan tribes, the Fankiang followed the Path of Enlightenment. Nevertheless, white camels were considered sacred, and the qaghan maintained his own herd of such beasts.
==Government==
Circa , the qaghan of the Fankiang tribe was the autocratic Chuqali Shilai, who kept the city stable and tightly controlled by his army. His strict administrative system was adopted by many other large tribes and cities of the region. In fact, Shilai had little love for administration himself and delegated most responsibilities to subordinates, and even ordered executions for administrators who pestered him with details and tasks.
==Relations==
Formerly, the Fankiang city of Li-Raz was rent by feuds and fighting between its various factions, until Shilai passed laws that divided the people into two different classes. The Western Court was composed of people who descended from the original settlers, while the Eastern Court was composed of people who descended from those hsing (clans) that had been subjugated or annexed by the Fankiang tribe of Li-Raz. The Western Court found unity through their shared contempt for the Eastern Court, while the Eastern Court had no power anyway and any revolts they attempted were swiftly crushed by the army. In this brutal way, the city was kept peaceful, orderly and stable.
Moreover, although they were both of the Fankiang tribe, the people of Li-Raz looked down on the people of Haxkhun, who were resentful of their subordinate, second-class status.
Circa , the Fankiang had no true allies among the tribes of the Endless Wastes, and they were engaged in feuds or hostilities with the Commani, the Quirish, the Tuigan, and the Dalat tribes. Over the years, the Fankiang and Quirish regularly raided each other, with the Quirish usually losing. The Fankiang and the Tsu-tsu tribes were also bitter enemies, but they maintained an uneasy peace. Qaghan Qaland T'akk of the Igidujin tribe bore a special hatred for the Fankiang tribe, Li-Raz, and Qaghan Chuqali Shilai and directed raids against their herdmen and caravans.
==History==
The Fankiang's feud with the Commani began long ago, during a couralitai, a grand council of the khans (chieftains) with all the tribes in attendance. During a heated argument at the council, the khan of the Commani and his sons were assassinated. The murderers were never discovered, but, after finding evidence against them, the Commani suspected the Kashghun and that the Fankiang protected the assassins. This led to hatred between the two groups, which lasted even into the mid–14 century.
Around , a band of rebels split from Li-Raz. They desired to found their own community, and so settled Jugicha. This triggered a realignment of the hsing (clans) of the Plain of Horses, ultimately giving rise to the Tsu-tsu tribe. Later, the Tsu-tsu sought to conquer Li-Raz. To this end, around , they made a treaty with the Kashghun and allied against the Fankiang, proposing they assault them from opposite sides. Although the Tsu-tsu attacked the Fankiang from the north, the Kashghun changed their mind. The Tsu-tsu were forced to withdraw.
When Fankiang raiders attacked the Tsu-tsu and killed qaghan Shajji Hoijarek's own wife and children, all the Tsu-tsu swore a vow of vengeance with him.
In , the Tsu-tsu qaghan Shajji Hoijarek hatched a scheme to lure the Fankiang into a trap. He ordered forty camels be stained white, as white camels were held to be sacred by the Fankiang, and left to graze a day's ride west of Li-Raz, where they would inevitably be spotted by Fankiang scouts or herdsmen. Tsu-tsu horsemen then lay in wait to ambush any Fankiang who came to round up these apparently sacred beasts. Fankiang herdsmen sighted these possibly valuable camels and reported them to qaghan Chuqali Shilai, who dispatched soldiers and adventurers to retrieve them. This ambush may have led to battle or all-out war between the two tribes.
As Yamun Khahan rose to power over the Hordelands, his Grand Army of the Tuigan ultimately conquered the Fankiang, some time between and . Despite this, they remained one of the only tribes to offer any real resistance to his rule, being very rebellious and difficult for him to control.The date and circumstances of Yamun's conquest of the Fankiang are not known. However, since the Fankiang are still unconquered as of c. 1357 DR in Kara-Tur: The Eastern Realms (being before the creation of the Tuigan and the Horde setting), it is presumed to be after this date, and before the setting date of The Horde, 1359 DR. At another couralitai called by Yamun Khahan, a young Dalat noyan (noble) desired a Fankiang nobleman's daughter for himself, even though she was engaged to another. Disregarding this, the Dalat man kidnapped her and escaped back to his tribe's lands, leading the Fankiang to declare a blood feud against the Dalats over this outrage.
==Appendix==
===Notes===
===References===
===Connections===
Category:Humans
Category:Tribes
Category:Ethnicities
Category:Organizations in Li-Raz
Category:Organizations in Haxkhun
Category:Organizations in the Chigidi Mountains
Category:Organizations in the Plain of Horses
Category:Organizations in the Hordelands
Category:Organizations in Kara-Tur
Category:Organizations on Toril
Category:Organizations