Kypiq

*This article pertains to an area of the game which is currently **in development**. The information presented here is incomplete, and will be updated as more information becomes publicly available.*

The **Kypiq** (/ˈkɪp.ɪk/ *KIP-ick* ( listen)) are one of the twelve Tribes of Elyria, and are found natively in the the Broadleaf Forest biome. The Kypiq are the smallest of the Children of Mann, topping out on average at a mere 125cm (4ft) tall with a lean frame. Their weight averages around 60 lbs.

## Biology & Nature

The Kypiq's physical attributes include medium to olive-tone skin, light brown, chestnut, or auburn colored hair, and large brown eyes which help them traverse the thick canopy of the forest. Thanks to their small size, the Kypiq can hide easily as well as fit into smaller spaces that most tribes can't. Their large brown eyes enable Kypiq to see in low light and glow similarly to a Cannis Rabbit in the dark. Lastly, because of their closeness to the natural world, they can mimic animal sounds with animal emotes.

Disadvantages of the Kypiq include limitations on gear and mounts available to them as their small stature prevents them from using larger equipment or animals. The Kypiq source of food is primarily plant and products produced from plants like nuts and berries. Because of this consistent diet over generations of Kypiq, consuming meat results in lethargy as their body can't process the food and get the same amount of energy from meat as well as other tribes of Mann. Lastly, while agile, their lean frame leaves Kypiq much more susceptible to heavy hits and stuns.

### Attributes & Traits

The following are typical attributes that characterize a Kypiq individual:

* Physical
	+ Exceptional agility, poor stamina and strength compared to most Tribes.
* Mental
	+ Kypiq are clever and curious, they are not prone to focused thinking and would rather work through a problem by testing various solutions.
* Social
	+ Heavy reliance on intuition and are overall very welcoming to those who reveal themselves to them.

## Environment & Resources

The home of the Kypiq is among the trees in the Broadleaf Forest biome with an intricate zip-line system connecting trees for ease of travel. Homes, businesses, and other buildings are built among the trees leaving the trees mostly unchanged while also adding what they need to in order to build their infrastructure. Housing is on a per family basis with families living close to one another. The wealthier live higher up in the trees, while the Steward of the Forest lives in the strongest and tallest tree.

The Kypiq live in the greatest forests that the world can remember seeing, rivaled perhaps only by those in the tropics. Their small stature makes inhabiting other biomes potentially dangerous but, in the forest, they are able to find peace among the canopies of the trees.

Living hand-in-hand with nature, they have all they need for both subsistence and economic or technological prosperity.

### Food

1. Fruits, Berries, etc. found in the forest (Primary)
2. Forest Vegetation (Primary)

### Clothing

1. Leaves
2. Cloth (Secondary)
3. Silk (Primary)

#### Armor

* Tribal Armor Concept: Kypiq Light Armor
* Tribal Armour Concept: Kypiq Medium Armour
* Tribal Armour Concept: Kypiq Heavy Armour

### Tools & Weapons

1. Wood (Primary)
2. Metal (Secondary)

### Containers

1. Ground (Mounds)
2. Wood (Stumps)
3. Metal (Secondary)

### Housing

1. Leaves, Branches (Modular Pieces of Trees) (Primary)
2. Wood (Ironwood) (Primary)

### Architecture

Using the trees themselves as their foundation, they employ an additive style of architecture, rather than subtractive. What this means is that, for their infrastructural needs, they take only the most minimal amounts as needed, leaving the trees as unchanged as possible.

Housing is done on a per-family basis, similar to the Neran style of housing. Communities are rather tightly-knit, and families living closely to one another in proximity are close socially as well, resulting in much co-habitation of certain spaces.

The wealthier, or cleverer, live higher among the canopies then others, with the Steward of the Forest living in the strongest and tallest tree.

They have developed an intricately-constructed zipline system in order to travel from one tree to another without ever setting foot on the ground.

## History & Lore

### History

Prior to the Neran, Kypiq, Hrothi, or Brudvir tribes, it is believed that there was a group of what is referred to as the "Proto-Neran". At some point in the past, there had been a cataclysmic event that scattered the Proto-Neran into four distinct environments. The Kypiq, after leaving the grasslands, found the Great Forest.

*Among those ancient Kypiq ancestors was an individual, and her mind was truly a wonderful thing. It told her not to look down, but instead look up. They climbed into the forest canopy and made all manner of dwellings and tools to keep them safe. Doing so, they managed to truly see the forest for the trees. Over time, through evolution and more than a few falling-out-of-tree accidents, the Kypiq grew smaller and smaller into what they are today.*

## Culture

Faedin is a large component of the culture of the Kypiq, as such they are protective of the forest and the living things around them. Those who disrespect the forest will invoke their anger, although they will always maintain a friendly demeanor. As they have a natural curiosity of things, Kypiq are drawn to traveling merchants to find out more about the outside world and are generally interested in trading for new contraptions or technology.

### Language

Kypiq have two main languages, Neran and Pyqsi, and a third language referred to as Forest Cant. Neran is the main language used for communicating with neighbouring tribes. Their native language Pyqsi comes from the same root language as Neran. Yet, their approachable and mellifluous language has evolved to be very contextual, which is ultimately why it didn't become the language of choice for commerce. Pyqsi can be heard among the treetops of the great forests and in the great academies founded generations ago by Kypiq masters: the Kinothian and the Arkyn.

Additionally, the Kypiq have invented their own internal, and secretive, language, Forest Cant. This is often referred to as "Forest Chatter" by the other tribes. This form of communication involves a variety of sounds that may sound like the chirp of a cricket or bird, or the simple snap of breaking branches. Used only by Kypiq and never taught to outsiders, this special form of communication mimics the sounds of the forest and it travels well under the forest canopy. There is no written alphabet..

### Religion

Faedin is the main religion of the Kypiq, while the Brudvir share the same religion both tribes have different tenets that they follow. The Kypiq believe that all living things, including plants, trees and insects, are filled with spirit and are linked to the spiritual plane. As a result of their deep connection to all living things, the Kypiq guard the forest and vow to kill no living thing if it can be helped.

### Rituals

Every tribe has some specific rituals of either religious or cultural origin that have become part of the tribes' identity.

#### Sunsleep

The Kypiq believe the sun’s disappearance during the Longest Night represents the spirit of the sun, weary from its long job of warming and enlightening the world, growing bored and turning away from its job to focus its attention elsewhere.

The Kypiq believe that it falls on them to recapture the sun’s interest, to entertain and delight the spirit of the sun so that it will return its attention to the Kypiq and their forests and bring life-giving light and warmth, once more.

The three years of **Sunsleep** makes a long period of elaborate parties, feasts, and entertainments, capped by the Sunsight Festival, where Kypiq use lanterns, simple fireworks and other lights to recreate a raucous sort of daylight in the middle of Longest Night. Travelers to Kypiq lands at this time are often taken in and fed, the Kypiq inviting them to take part in their festivals to entice the sun back into the sky. These travelers often return with wondrous stories of a forest gleaming with the glow of thousands of paper lanterns, the sky itself alight with bursts of color and sound.

This time of darkness and cold also brings communities together in unique ways that are responsible for breathtaking works of art. These works are rare, captivating works that occur in a unique moment of time, often representing once in a lifetime, or indeed once in several generations, spectacles.

#### Masque of Passage

The Festival of Passage is a major ritual of the Faedin religion. The Kypiq celebrate this by hosting The **Masque of Passage**, a masquerade lasting a full month where people dress up in costumes to honor the different animals of Elyria.

To the Kypiq, the Masque of Passage is a moment of joyous reflection, a celebration of the souls, in all their unique and beautiful forms. Throughout the months of the festival, each Kypiq takes on their soul’s many forms, donning elaborate costumes as they adopt the shapes and identities of animal spirits of the world around them, remembering past forms and celebrating potential future incarnations in equal measure. With each form comes a story that is shared with fellow celebrants and its moral: a lesson learned from that form that can serve the soul as it whirls through the Cycle. The most popular forms are the forms of the wolf, badger, horse, squirrel, alligator and raven.

The Kypiq also put up masks during this festival. Each mask represents the Faedin's belief that the animal spirits of the world are deeply connected to the Tribes of Elyria. One can don a mask to enjoy the many shapes and forms a soul can take in the Cycle.

Outsiders are always welcome, and it’s not unusual to find Neran in attendance, complete with masks and costumes of their own. To the Kypiq, every newcomer is a chance to hear a new story and learn a new lesson that may inspire their soul anew and grant them a new form in the next life.

## Sociology

The Kypiq are rascals and somewhat hoarding in their mentalities.

### Economy & Roles

* Architects
* Gatherers
* Silk Insect Breeders
* Warriors (Mokshin)
* Engineers
* Tinkerers
* Scouts
* Tailors
* Alchemists
* Traders

### Social Classes

The Social Classes are determined less on the basis of interpersonal hierarchy, and more on their position as valued beings of the Forests they revere.

* Guardians of the Forest (Nobility)
* Keepers of the Forest (Aristocracy/Mayors)
* Stewards of the Forest (Gentry)
* Servants of the Forest (Commoners)

Because of the shared lineage and language with the Neran, Kypiq land is distributed into the pidgin-Neran terms of Kindomes, Dutrees, Suntrees, Burtrees, and Tallements.

### Leadership

The leader of the Kypiq is known as the Spirit of the Forests. The other Guardians of the Forest, led by the Spirit, are the Thorns and the Roots below them. Because cleverness is considered a vital forest skill, and leadership is viewed as a spiritual duty, all the Guardians tend to also be accomplished inventors and devout Faedin.

Land-and-or-tree-owners become Stewards of the Forests and are expected to keep the forest well-tended in addition to providing for their Tallements, tending toward practical crafts. The Keepers of the Forest oversee Tallements or Burtrees and may be well-versed in trap-making, alchemy, or mercantilism depending on where in the forest they are situated.

### Education

The Kypiq prioritize science and technology, most careers are found in tinkering or a technology related profession, and in alchemy. For those that choose to pursue alchemy, they are sent to the Kinothian, a school with some of the greatest alchemists of the Kypiq. There is also a school for technological pursuits called the Arkyn where Neran and Kypiq learn from the greatest tinkerers and mechanists. Not all Kypiq follow technology or science, those that don't choose to follow them, choose other pursuits that aren't altogether time consuming like tailoring or weapon crafting. However, the simpler crafts of the Kypiq usually pass through community training or are picked up from outsiders and not directly passed down from family members.

### Military

Since the Kypiq aren't especially strong, they utilize their cleverness when it comes to battle. They choose to take advantage of battlefield technology and terrain to aid them in a fight against threats to their forest. In a larger battle where their way of life is threatened by larger military forces, the Kypiq use guerrilla tactics and contraptions rather than facing head on. However, this means that the Kypiq are at a disadvantage when fighting on large flat surfaces like a Plains biome. One specific sector within the Kypiq army are the Mokshin, who specialize in sabotage and incapacitation, dismantling armies behind enemy lines. These Mokshin can sometimes come to the aid of their allies, the Neran, in times of war.

## World Relations

### Friendly

**Neran** - The Neran and Kypiq maintain a constant stream of trade goods and materials like food, inks, and silks; while also maintaining a mutual respect for the ingenuity and reliability of one another. While the Neran aren't as respectful towards plants as the Kypiq, they are still praised by Kypiq for their sustainable and efficient farming practices.

### Unfriendly

**Hrothi** - The Hrothi distrust the Kypiq as the small form of the Kypiq can easily fit into the tunnels of their mountains. The Kypiq hold a natural curiosity of the Hrothi's passages and manuscripts, this curiousity leads them to use experimental and chaotic ways of breaking into the underground rooms and passageways of the Hrothi.

**Janoa** - The Janoa stand for everything that the Kypiq hate, they slaughter animals for sport and consume them in the belief that they will absorb their spirit and make them stronger.

**Brudvir** - Although the Brudvir hold the same religion as the Kypiq, the two tribes disagree on basic tenants. While the Kypiq are generally tolerated by the Brudvir, the Brudvir are usually not welcome within the forests of the Kypiq as they can't be trusted not to kill.

## Character Creation & Playstyle

Players have many options to choose from when creating their character. Dependent on their own preferred playstyle, they may prefer one or more tribes and regions over others. In order to assist players in their choice, the main page on tribes provides an overview of the main considerations players may have when making up their mind on the decision which would be the tribe or tribes their character inherited its main genetic traits from. This is presented here: Tribes - Playstyle Considerations. That page also provides an overview of the main physical and mental strengths and weaknesses for all tribes, and more comparative overviews on different aspects. This also helps players to compare the tribes before they choose their characters destiny.

## Media

* A Pre-Alpha look at a female Kypiq character
* A Pre-Alpha look at a male Kypiq character

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Caspian, Official Tribes: Kypiq, 17 June 2017
2. ↑ Vye, The Game Garden Grows, 6 April 2017
3. ↑ Vye, Tribal Clothing Concept: Kypiq & To'resk, 12 May 2018
4. ↑ Snipehunter, Tribal Armor Concept: Kypiq Light Armor, 27 September 2018
5. ↑ Snipehunter, Tribal Armor Concept Scuplt: Kypiq Medium Armor, 17 January 2019
6. ↑ Snipehunter, Tribal Armor Concept: Kypiq Heavy Variant, 31 January 2019
7. ↑ Kaizen, CoE news "Building Elyria" Concept Art, 18 October 2017
8. ↑ Snipehunter, Celebrate Longest Night, 22 December 2017
9. ↑ Serpentius, The Festival of Passage, 19 September 2018
10. ↑ Snipehunter, Mark the Festival of Passage with the Faedin faiths, 19 September 2018
11. ↑ Soulbound Studios, CoE Discord channel #Media, 14 July 2018
12. ↑ Vye, Tribe Exploration: Kypiq Female, 16 March 2018
13. ↑ Vye, Tribe Exploration: Kypiq Male, 23 February 2018