Riders

A Rider village in the Black Eel Valley

Riders, so named for their mastery of horseback riding, is a people descended from the Dara Happan nobles of the lost city of Nivorah. They are also called Hyalorings because they are followers of the ways of Hyalor, who, in mortal life, was the one that taught their ancestors the secrets of horse-riding. When Hyalor chose to go into exile rather than remain under the Ice Dome, the Riders followed him. This is in contrast to their cousin people, the Wheels, who chose to leave only at the last moment.

Their chief deities are Elmal, the God of the Sun, and Nyalda, the Goddess of the Earth. They also worship Hyalor and Gamari, the Horse Goddess. They also associate with shamans, whose magic allows them to call upon the aid of spirits. Because Hyalor emphasized the importance of changing when necessary, the Riders hold less strictly to Nivoran custom than their Wheel cousins. In addition to their adoption of shamanic magic, they are also notably more egalitarian than their ancestors: though they still have nobles and commoners, all elders hold authority, and men and women are roughly equal.

Each Rider clan is divided into seven families, each of which consists of nobles, commoners, and elders who arbitrate disputes. Married women join their husbands' families. Ideally, each family holds one seat on the clan circle. Rider law is based largely around property rights. If a dispute can't be resolved by three elders from uninvolved families, it's up to the circle to resolve it.

Most Rider clans raise horses, cows, and goats, and farm barley. A few clans follow “Pure Horse” practices and refuse to raise animals other than horses, forcing them to rely on slaves to tend their crops. Apart from Pure Horse clans, no Rider clan practices slavery, but some are willing to sell captives taken in war to cultures that do.

Ever since the Ram People's god, Orlanth, slew the old chief god of the Riders' ancestors, Emperor Yelm, and their sacking of the Dara Happan city of Elempur, the Riders have had poor relations with the Rams, to different degrees. Riders are strictly forbidden from marriage or intercourse with Rams under any circumstances. This law ultimately stems from a belief that all children of a Ram and a Rider are destined to become evil sorcerers.

## Ride Like the Wind

Riders are one of the three major cultures in *Ride Like The Wind*, alongside the Rams and the Wheels. Your player-clan will always be one of the ten Rider clans sharing the Black Eel Valley at the start of the game.

### Lore

The clan circle has the following to say about their own people:

* "In the Golden City we were nobles, fighting the empire's enemies from horseback. When the emperor wanted us to live under a dome, we said no."
* "We could not take all our gods with us from the Golden City, but at least we had some time to prepare."
* "Our ancestors became wanderers after leaving the Golden City."
* "We have horses because Hyalor healed the wounded Hippogriff, allowing her to become Gamari."
* "Gamari gave us, and us alone, the gift of riding. The Wheels stole and perverted it; the Rams shall never have it."

## Lights Going Out

Unlike in *Ride Like the Wind*, in *Lights Going Out* your player clan, though descendants of your original Rider clan, has since become Rams. Thus, Riders have become closely related foreigners.

Still, Riders is one of the possible targets of Brolarulf's Great Raid in the *Lights Going Out* prologue, setting up a special enmity between them and the player clan for the rest of the game

### Lore

Your clan ring has the following to say about Riders:

* "Once we were Riders, but many of them still haven't forgiven us for joining with the storm people."
* "Riders say there never should be kings."
* "Riders found spirits on their flight from the Frozen City."

### Events

Riders appear in the following events:

* Rider Refugees
* Rider Request
* Rider Ritual
* Riders Gift Magic
* Riders Propose Favor
* Riders Invoke Favor
* Riders Food Favor
* Riders Plan Raid

## In Battle

In war, the Riders field an exclusively cavalry force. Ordinary warriors, called Bows, fight as light cavalry, armed only with bows and spears. Elite warriors, called Swords, fight as heavy cavalry, armed with bronze weapons and armor.

When not at war, a Rider clan may attempt to intimidate another by whooping at them - sending a troop of cavalry to gallop around the other clan’s settlement shouting war cries. The traditional response is for the targeted clan to attempt to show their strength by stoically ignoring the whoops.

The player clan has access to three (sometimes four) combat rituals: **Battle Glow**, **Firehoof**, **Strongbow**, and (only against Rams, and only if they are your ancestral foe) **Fight in Formation**. Against you, fellow Riders will use only Firehoof and Strongbow.

Riders field more auxiliaries (women who urge on the combatants and heal the wounded) than other human cultures.

A variety of Heroic Combat situations can occur when you fight fellow Riders. See Heroic Combat: Riders and Heroic Combat: General for details.

## Images

Rider emissaries, wearing their best hats.Riders trying to intimidate a neighbor.Rider merchants.A priestess of Gamari.Priestesses of Erissa, goddess of healing.Priests of Hyalor, not in a good mood.Rider shamans.The Antler Society, a new Rider shamanic movement.The clan's spirit rocks, surrounded by a flack of ravens.A Rider clan embarks on a Gods War ritual.The section of a Rider clan's Story Tent depicting the exodus from Nivorah.Riders set great store by their honor belts.Members of a Black Eel Valley Rider clan.The Pure Horse Clan, Riders who refuse to keep animals other than horses, claiming this helps their magic.Members of a wandering Rider clan.Riders in a horse race competition.Riders plating a game of chadash.Riders in an archer competition.A group of friendly Riders.A Rider, threatened.A Rider, mocking.Two Riders in a conflict.Whooping runs are a Rider custom allowing clans to intimidate each other (or fail to do so) while hopefully avoiding bloodshed.A group of slighted Riders.The cavalry charge of a Rider host.The game's main menu shows a Rider migration. Note the travoises!A group of Riders visits Berenstead.Some Riders keep pigs.A group of Riders with a serious message.A Chaos Age Rider village.
## Concept Art

Concept art of a Rider man (and Rider hats) by Marguerite Dabaie.Concept art of two herders—note the detail about belts!Concept art of a Rider man. The thigh armor suspended from his belt is something that appears several times in the finished game.Concept art of a Rider woman. Again, note the belt! And her horse mane hairstyle is fairly common in the game.Concept art of a Rider warrior.Another Rider woman.Concept art of Rider children.