Ho'ask

The **Ho'ask** are one of the native races of Glies. They are a race of people with yak-styled characteristics, including distinctive horns, ears, and a bulky build. Although they have similarities in appearance to minotaurs, minotaurs were *created* in Kalkatesh while the Ho'ask evolved more naturally in Glies.

## Appearance

Male Ho’asks tend to be shorter, standing at around 6 feet tall, and have horizontal horns protruding from the sides of their heads. Females tend to be taller, standing at around 7 feet tall (8 feet if the horns are included), and have vertical horns protruding from the front of their heads. Mutton-chops and full beards are common styles used by Ho'ask males. Women Ho'ask do not really grow beards, but they can grow quite long side-burns. For other features, Ho'ask have feet and do not have tails.

The clothing Ho'ask wear tends to be simple, such as tunics and work aprons. During festivals, they adorn their horns with various decorations, a custom equivalent to putting on a fancy dress to an evening party. Male Ho'ask tend to focus on their hair more, while females tend to focus on their horns more. This is only a slight variation between the genders, and both can and will decorate both aspects of their person.

Weapons used by the Ho'ask tend to also function as tools, such as hammers, sickles, and war-picks.

## Culture

### Cultural Values

To lie or break your word is a mortal sin in the Ho'ask society. Ho'ask caught in bad enough lies are branded as a liar and exiled from their community. Even a forced lie, such as by magical means, leads to a Ho'ask being exiled. This cultural belief has many effects on their society. Generally, the society leans towards good and lawful. Cheating on your spouse is considered lying, and thus their relationship culture is monogamous. Since lying is uncommon in their society, Ho'ask aren't that good at detecting lies. Finally, they believe that you "Do it yourself, and do it right. And if you do it wrong, do it again." This stems from the belief that it is dishonest to do shoddy work.

Generally, the Ho'ask are quite peaceful. They are somewhat vegetarian as they still eat meat, but tend not to because they grow most of their food. The meat they eat is almost exclusively hunted. There are many reasons for this, such as the fact that they are animal-like themselves and thus are like many livestock they would raise. Another reason is that the Ho'ask prefer doing things themselves, so they have no need for animals of burden.

Ho'ask are quite simple people, which leads to that they are often mistaken for being stupid. This belief originates from the fact that Ho'ask tend to work and be hired for many simpler tasks, such as pulling a cart. Ho'ask are in fact quite intelligent, but they culturally are okay with the simpler things in life. They don't have grand ambitions and enjoy just farming the land, spending time with friends and family, and being good people. They are not illiterate, but their education does focus more on the crafting and work they do. Historians are not common in their society, but most Ho'ask can tell you how various tools are made and the math and planning needed to prepare for winter. Their education is based on more practical information.

Ho'ask are somewhat stubborn and believe they can and should do tasks on their own. They gain a lot of self-satisfaction from this, making them quite resilient and resistant to depression. Considering this, if you're weak, it's considered your own fault. Fairness in their society is about the sovereignty of the self. There are two scenarios where accepting help is not shameful. The first is when a Ho'ask becomes an adult. Parents usually pass down their tools, and richer parents might even provide a small hobble. The second scenario is accepting help from your children. Since a parent technically created their children, it isn't considered accepting help from another person.

The people with the biggest farms tend to be the leaders of the society. There are nobles in the Ho'ask society known as the Rice Kings. They have the largest amount of land, and their families are quite huge. Their nobility comes from the amount of land they work on, and they can work on large amounts of land, as it is culturally acceptable to receive help from your children.

Ho'ask do not believe in capital punishment. For example, they do not have execution and prefer branding and exiling criminals. Considering this, tattoos are not common, as they would be considered a form of branding, and branding is used as one of the worst punishments in their society.

### Horns

The general treatment, adorning, and even cutting of the horns has a prominent place in their culture. Having a broken horn is considered a sorrowful thing, and materials used to adorn the horns can indicate different statuses. Horns lost in battle are capped with bronze and are seen as a scar of respect. Horns removed as a sign of protest or great injustice are capped with silver. Widows mourning their partner and suffering great bought of sorrow can have their horns capped with jade. One of the reasons for this is because Ho'ask marry with jade rings. Finally, exiled Ho'ask who want to show the world that they don't need their people cap their horns with a gold cap, which is seen as quite disrespectful.

### Mating Ritual

Men line up in posed flex at events such as festivals, and the women choose the ones with the best hair. Women are judged by their accomplishments, such as the wealth of their horns, while men are judged more by their appearance. Arranged marriages are not really common in their society, and the Ho'ask generally marry for love.

### Games

Ho'ask men have a game they play where they try to headbutt each other out of a circle. Women are not allowed to participate because their vertical horns can stab other people. Women instead tend to arm-wrestle. Women often bet their horn accessories when they arm-wrestle, so champions have a variety of horn decorations that do no match. Although the game is for fun, it is shameful to lose all their horn accessories, as it shows the women is not capable.

### Music

*Hanshan (寒山)* is a Ho'ask folk song from Glies. It is a song home to Han Fu(?). The song is about a Ho'ask man traveling home to his family.

## As a Playable Race

Ho'ask live up to about 100 years and reach maturity at around 12-14 years.

### Stats and Abilities

* +2 Constitution, +1 Strength
* Size: Medium
* Speed: 30ft
* **Broad Back:** A Ho’ask’s carrying capacity is determined by 20 times their Strength Modifier. Their carrying capacity is always at least 200 lbs.
* **Endurance of the Land:** Ho’ask have advantage on saving throws versus exhaustion. In addition, they gain additional uses of their hit die, equal to their proficiency modifier.
* **Skilled Hands:** Ho’ask gain proficiency in a tool of their choice, in addition they gain proficiency with the Survival skill.

### Player Characters

* Aisu Kurimu
* Tomoe
* Zhan Ren

## References

1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 Glies Concept Art Stream Ep.1
2. ↑ Glien Folk Song: Hanshan by envatilea (enva)
3. ↑ Otikata's Curse: Episode 01