Tuskarr

The tuskarr are a walrus-like humanoid people indigenous to the frozen landscapes of Northrend. While they are nomadic in nature, the tuskarr have established settlements throughout the continent, although each settlement is far distanced from one-another.

## The Tuskarr

### Population

~50.000 (Pre Eternal Winter)

 Unknown (During Eternal Winter)

## Appearance

Despite their stout and round appearance not allowing them to be as agile as any other race in Northrend, their sturdy and blubbery bodies make up for it as they are highly resistant to the continent's harshest of weathers, barely having the need to wear clothing at temperatures where other races would freeze to death. Their tusks get longer as they age, often getting a yellow-ish tint the older they become, though this colouration may also be due to poor cleaning.

At the same time, it is also noted that the tuskarr can survive for up to six hours underwater without the need to breathe air. Combined with their high resistance to cold temperatures, some tuskarr often use this to swim underneath the water and wait for long periods of time to ambush either prey or foe.

When they communicate or give signals from afar to other Tuskarr, they let out long, whistling sighs or let out echoing roars depending on the settlement the tuskarr hails from, though generally they rely on whistling noises.

## Culture

While each tuskarr tribe varies from one-another in terms of their cultures, most tuskarr are generally a peaceful, nomadic race that roam throughout most regions of Northrend, with most settlements being placed either at shorelines or some in the heart of the continent. Tuskarr adopt a live and let live, sometimes friendly attitude towards other sentient races, with the exception being ice trolls due their constant skirmishes in between the two, and the Undead Scourge, often labelling them as 'slaves of Karkut'. Though tuskarrs are peaceful by their nature, that does not mean that they are not fierce warriors. They will valiantly defend their lands from any invaders, prohibit the spilling of Tuskarr blood from one-another and have a vengeful attitude towards the ones that have wronged them or murdered their kin. This type of behaviour is especially solidified on Tuskarrs that hail from the settlements of Moa'ki, Kaskala, Kamagua and Pal'ea, as these clans are often harassed and attacked by the ice trolls for *'our skin to be turned into their hides, our tusks to be turned into horrifying, hollowed instruments that make awful noises, our meat for their meals and our blubber into tallow for their forbidden needs',* as described by Aangaq the Tusked.

Tuskarr society is divided in between its clans hailing from the lands they have settled, which are led by their village Taatax/Anaax (meaning Elder in Kalu'ak) acting as their leader with the exception being their capital Pal'ea, which is led by the Agilliq and Agunilliq Council, an elective system where each Agilliq hails from a different tuskarr settlement while the Agunilliq is elected by the tuskarr citizens who live in the capital's region.

Most tuskarr clans are often centred around a culture of fishing and hunting underwater monstrosities, often outmatching the ice trolls by catching enormous amounts of fish with their giant nets and icebreaker ships, or hunting mighty prey like killer whales, giant squids and even krakens. However, not all clans revolve around their fishing skills, as there are some who either hunt ground prey like caribous, shoveltusks and seals. Tuskarr often prepare hunting raids, regardless of land by sea, in groups of five to twenty people, depending on the target itself.

Tuskarr are born with only one name, as they often obtain their surname by the feats they have accomplished when they reach adulthood, but there have been some instances where they obtain their titles at a much older (or even younger) age. While these surnames are often related to their hunting achievements and skills (For example: Nutuq Snakefell, Karakbaq Whalefiend, Katuq Yetislayer, etc.), there are some surnames that define a tuskarr's other traits, such as their skills at making high quality clothing (Naula the Sealtanned), herding and breeding animals like penguins, shoveltusks and mammoths (Karuk the Herder), to even their capabilities at leading or training tuskarr warriors into battle (Aangaq the Tusked).

Tuskarr often wear clothing made out of shoveltusk fur or sealskin, the latter being far more coveted due to its great thermal conductivity and water proof properties once doused with fish or whale oil and left to dry before being turned into oilskin. They often use bones either as buttons, belts and bowls or for weapon handles. At the same time, oils made from fish or animal hide are also used as fuel for lamps to light their paths and settlements or turned into Galu'mua (Burning Paste in Kalu'ak), a thick, beige grease that is used into medicinal practices to treat both wounds and infections.

While their weaponry is often made with ivory and wood, there are some instances where their weapon heads (such as hatchets or spear tips) are made of a Pykrete-like material (should probably find a name for this material), where roughly-crushed bones are mixed with water then left to be frozen in a shaped mold before being placed onto a bone or wooden hilt. This material has often been described as *'sturdy like Elunite or Truesteel, while just as sharp and lighter as the mentioned metals'* in Istariel Frayfeather's book Tuskarrs: The Nomads of Northrend.

Should you ever stumble upon a tuskarr settlement, there is no doubt that the first thing you will see is their large, fish shaped kites. Often times adored by tuskarr children and elders alike as a passtime toy, these kites are also used as a signaling device to point out either the village's location or direction of said village, or to show that a great event is happening.

### Faith

*Main article: Tukanak*

The tuskarr faith is Tukanak, a polytheist religion where it involves a spiritual form of mediation in between the people and their spirits of the dead with the help of their pantheons. The main tuskarr deities are Tayutka, Oacha'noa, Issliruk and Karkut. The tuskarr priests, called Hayun (Mystic in Kalu'ak) and Agahayun (Greater Mystic in Kalu'ak) are granted great power through their spiritualistic connections with their deities, though they are dependant on the usage of trinkets in order to channel their spells. Tuskarr Hayuns and Agahayun also channel spiritualistic rituals to guide legendary tuskarr spirits into giant, black tuskarr statues in order to either have these statues as spiritual wards or as a place for other tuskarr to seek the spirit's counsel.