Daithen

The Daithen are a nomadic race that occupy the desert and scrubland around the Forge, the hottest desert on their planet where nothing lives. Traditionally defined by their vast apothecary knowledge and tradition, they are a mostly peaceful race, but will not shy from a threat. Their planet Dasren is in a cluster in the Isles that also connects to The Heartworlds.

# Physical

Daithen are a humanoid race, distinctive in their horns, poisoned tails, and rolling gait that comes from their calf tendons being too short for their heel to touch the ground when standing, and they thus walk on their toes. Averaging on the shorter side in comparison to humans, they are powerfully built and stocky with blunt features and dark complexions. Though they have round pupils, their pupils can dilate larger than those of other species, giving them superb night vision, and their irises are all darkly hued. In the three oldest tribes it is not uncommon to see irises that are completely black, though that genetic component is harder to find in the other four tribes. There is also a rare anomaly that pops up in some Daithen that manifests in black sclera and iris, giving them completely black eyes. In their history these Daithen have been great Apothecaries that have contributed significantly to their knowledge of apothecary.

All Daithen horns are black, thick at the base, and never are shed, but stop growing with the rest of the body. They vary in shape, depending on the hormone levels of the Daithen, but it is also argued that the shape of horns reflects the psychological orientation of the bearer rather than physical predisposition. This is due to the fact that, though Daithen with higher levels of testosterone tend to have rams horns and Daithen with higher estrogen levels tend to have more classical demon shaped horns that angle backwards, there is a great deal of variation within those generalizations. Not only will horns develop their shape with a blatant difference to the norm for their hormone levels, but some Daithen who for humans would be considered nonbinary, have horns that don’t conform to either shape, like curving straight back along the skull or curve forward.

Despite having poison glands in their tail, it is the most delicate part of a Daithen’s body. The bones are thin and easily broken, and though the whip-like appearance of the tail is a striking contrast to their horns, it means that it also has little support muscle wise. The stronger looking the tail, the more attractive a Daithen is considered. Tail’s end in a distinctive arrowhead shape that is a solid bone, and only that part of their tail secretes the painful, but not deadly poison. Searing bare skin it is painful, but when it comes into contact with open wounds, eyes, or ingested, it is excruciatingly painful, but not deadly. It is only deadly if distilled though a special process that few Daithen know.

# Culture

The Daithen are a nomadic people who live in the scrubland and desert around the Forge, the hottest part of the desert where nothing lives. A few Tribes also range into grassland, which they will farm during the winter. Having only seven Tribes, each tribe is made up of nomadic groups that will occasionally come together as a whole. This splintering of a Tribe is not due to internal conflict, but because it is easier to be mobile with a smaller group. Not a warlike people by nature, they have conflict but prefer to resolve it without bloodshed. However many Daithen take pride in Rashna, a style of combat traditional in their Tribes that involved a staff with a short, sword like blade at one end and a counterweight with two spikes on the other. Many of them carry this weapon and can use it effectively, but they prefer not to. Hospitality is important to them as a people, but the level of importance varies depending on where the Tribe lives. For instance, the Muether Tribe from the south lives in more hostile conditions than the Dthenter, thus the Muether stresses hospitality more because without it a wanderer could easily die.

Their strongest tradition, and the most valued members of the Tribe are the Apothecaries. Herbal knowledge is vital to their lives, since it is used in nearly every aspect of it. Before their bodies adapted to the desert, the legend is that the Apothecaries would administer herbal pouches to everyone to help them cope with climate. The knowledge of those pouches is still held, and they are made for those seeking to venture into the Forge. The role of the Apothecary is a sacred one, though any Daithen is allowed to become one if they go through all the training. Other Diathen have knowledge of apothecary, but only as it pertains to their role in the tribe or career outside it, while the Apothecaries bear all the collected knowledge of all tribes dating back as far as possible.

They have no concept of gender identity except as it pertains to the shape of horns, which they will use more readily to judge than anything. However in their language there is no concept of gender distinction, seeing as it only has a single, gender neutral pronoun. The concept of gender came more from outside cultures, and has not integrated itself into their language or their culture at large and is more present among Daithen that interact more with outside cultures.

The poison of their tails also holds a prominent place in their codes. It is considered to be a gift to them that is to be used respectfully rather than desecrated, and due to the vagueness of this rule it is a major source of contention among and within the Tribes. For nearly all tribes the use of it to torture for information or wealth is strictly forbidden, and generally the use of it at all except in apothecary is frowned upon if not persecuted.
As one may have gathered, laws and punishments vary greatly from Tribe to Tribe, but the crimes that are punished by banishment and death are held by all Tribes. Murder, arbitrary or unjust withholding of materials vital to life, repeated harm to a child, and rape are all punishable by banishment, which is enforced by the criminal being branded across the face with the Mark of the Cruel, which is an indicator to Daithen (and sometimes other races familiar with their customs) to turn away the person with it. Often they will be killed by other Daithen in an act of vigilantism, since killing on with the Mark of the Cruel has a light penalty if it is punished at all. The only act punishable by public execution is the sharing of apothecary knowledge with non Daithen. One may use apothecary on them, but to teach it is punishable by the death of the student and teacher, which has caused contention with other tribes.

Facial tattooing is as prominent in Daithen culture as the art of apothecary, and it links to their tradition of taking on a single role or career for life. At the start of puberty, one will declare the path they will follow, and this is influenced by their parent’s careers and what the Tribe might have a shortage of among other things. They will then train in this field until reaching a proper level of competency, at which point they will go through a ceremony where they will receive the tattoos specific to their job, and the color of the tattoos is specific to each tribe. While it is allowed to change tracks during training, after the tattoos have been done it is simply not done to change careers. You can, but at the risk of alienating many of the Tribe.

The center of the Forge houses the Lattice Portal of the planet, and over time the Daithen have regarded it as something terrifying, something mystic, and eventually as the portal it is after the apothecary Castiana was the first to go through the Forge portal, and return to the planet successfully. Mercenaries and merchants use the Lattice Portals almost exclusively, since other Daithen have little need or desire. Merchants tend to stay in the Isles, though mercenaries and assassins often venture into The Heartworlds and rarely even farther, and of the two groups are the more adept. As per Daithen tradition of the sharing of knowledge, it is customary for portal traversers, no matter what they do, to share any new knowledge of portals with one another, and pass on the collective learning to the youngest.

# Tribes

The Daithen are split into seven Tribes that occupy different areas of the scrubland around the Forge. Originally there were three Tribes, the Dthenter, Denritha, and Drendeth, but four groups split off due to size and internal conflict. Though they do not war within one another, but the Denritha and the Rathsen do bear some old animosity from their split.

Drendeth: The oldest of the tribes, members of this tribe are distinguishable by black facial tattoos. They hail from the northern scrublands, roaming as far down as the northern border of the Forge.

Dthenter: Characterized by dark red facial tattoos, and are one of the few tribes that have dominion over land fertile enough to farm during the cold months. They hail from the eastern part of the scrublands and extend into grassland.

Denritha: Marked by dark purple tattoos, this Tribe wanders southwest of the Forge.

Torneth: Originally part of the Drendeth, they are known for dark blue tattoos, and span from the west into the northwest and are one of the larger Tribes. Also one of the three Tribes that farms.

Rathsen: Having split from the Denritha, they stick to the outskirts of the Forge and to the west, often coming across the Torneth but without conflict for the most part. Dark green tattoos mark this Tribe.

Muether: One of the two Tribes that came from the Dthenter, they wander the harsher lands to the south and southeast, with tattoos that are a deep orange.

Vasenth: With tattoos of a brighter red, the Vasenth take pride in the Dthenter Tribe roots. Spanning the northeast, they farm what grassland they have during the winter.

# Governing Structure

Because each Tribe is split into different groups, each group has three leaders of its own, as when they come together as a Tribe the leaders act as a parliament. The three leaders are the Duen, the eldest Apothecary, and the Distren. The Duen takes care of conflict with the group, as well as mediates with outsiders and other Tribes. The Distren takes care of the members of the Tribe by overseeing the preservation and distribution of food, and management of water. Since the Tribes barter with each other and only use money with outside cultures, the leaders do not manage money, but leave it up to the individual. The eldest Apothecary is the closet they have to a spiritual leader, but also takes care of the herbal and heal needs of the group. Together the three decide where the group will travel and camp.