Rathana

> **Demonym:** Rathanese
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Rathana is a halfling nation in Leira that is made up mostly of the Sanguin Desert and bleeds slightly into the Leiran Rainforest. The Citadel of Rathana is Macas, an oasis city in the heart of the desert.

#### Politics

The Kingdom of Rathana is ruled by a Royal family, the Waldobo. Most the nation of Rathana is comprised of tribal communities, both nomadic and not, mostly found in the Sanguin Desert. These tribes are compromised of various strong family units that have lived and allied together for hundreds of years. Besides Macas, the few other major towns and cities are in the Leiran Rainforest. The tribes, towns, and cities all answer to the Royal family.

#### Religion

The people of Leira are traditionally a very religious group, though the gnomes of Ashar have moved away from this tradition, the Droatic gnomes and the desertfolk of Rathana remain very religious as a whole. Those in Rathana are also very superstitious. The Choltoahs, the shamans of the Rathanese people are the spiritual leaders and soothsayers of the people. The people worship Karth under the domain of sin. The goal of a Cholotah is to rid one of sins through various rituals. After this, a Cholotah can read the energies of the reader, talk about the future, give insight into life. Cholotahs are also speakers to and from the dead, deal with death and loss and can even call down curses.

#### History

Leira is almost entirely made up of halflings and gnomes. The halflings and gnomes of Leira have been on the continent for generations. The people themselves have no written record that dates back that far, to the Medieval Age, and the histories of these peoples are oral; they tell of tales of great beasts, of the sun scorching the earth, and the rains blessing the eastern lands. The aboriginal people of the continent are thought to be the parents of both the halfling race and the gnome race, an idea the Leiran halflings and gnomes loathe.

After many years of tribal conflicts and autonomous groups of halflings (called collectively the Rathanese) in the Sanguin Desert, the oasis city of Macas soon came into being. The surrounding tribes consented to fall under the kingdom's power as they had come to rely on the water and trade that came through the area of Macas. Slowly, the kingdom grew in numbers and nearly all of the non-nomadic tribes throughout the desert were part of the Rathanese Kingdom.

The oasis that is now Macas was first settled by a famed Cholotah, Yrallyo Cotl, and her family. At first, the family used the oasis as tool of power, allowing access with payment and other bribes. The family continued to do this for many years until the influx of aborigines made control over the entire are impossible.

The Cotl family and all of those loyal to them began to fight off many and arrival to the oasis meant that one would have to fight to stay or reach the water and shade. As the Cotl family grew, and the numbers of visitors grew, battles ensued. During the 1st Century, as is the common reckoning of time, the Cotl family was defeated and forced to give up power over the oasis. And the Waldobo began to reign shortly thereafter.

#### Holidays

> **Day of Riddance:** a Rathanese festival celebrating cleansing oneself of the sins of the past year. Families dress a straw man in old clothes on the last day of Barundar, which represents the old year. The family members make a will for the straw man that lists all of their faults. At midnight, the families bring the straw man into public areas and burn him, in hopes that their faults will disappear with him. The Cholotah roam the city or town giving blessing and counsel for the on-coming year.
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A Rathanese CholotahCholotah Anasami