The Hunid

> **Demonym:** Hunid
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> **Endonym:** Les Hunid (Felcarynn for *those who rove*)
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The Hunid are a resourceful human nation found in East Thel and West Thel. The people are divided into two civilizations, known as the Hunid of either corresponding Thel, due to Redsalt Pass, the desert separation between East Thel and West Thel. The Citadels are Losari in West Thel and Mhomel in East Thel, and Rotha, one of the most prominent ports along the southern border of Merethyl, is nestled at the estuary of Redsalt Pass.

#### Goods

Among the various exports of the Hunid, those that are most sought after and valuable are Hunid blades and fabric dyed with the color known as Hunid Purple:

Hunid steel are very well made. The folding process is repeated many many times resulting in a very pure blade with minimal stresses. An annealing process specific to the Hunid causes the metal to be able to create a more durable blade. Weapons made with Hunid blades are very valuable for their ability to withstand combat and improved sharpness, and therefore, cutting capability. There are many, however, who argue that Yazaka blades are superior. While Yazaka blades have a specific shape, Hunid steel and it's properties are applied to any weapon with a sharp edge.

Hunid Purple is a dye originating from a species of large sea snails found along the southeastern border of Merethyl within the shallows surrounding the shore. These snails, known as Rock Snails, use the ink, which is combined with thick mucus when secreted, to slow prey escape or as a distraction mechanism upon attack. Rotha, the port city, serves as a hub of trade and shipment of these snails. Therefore, the dye can be extracted by the snails either by "milking" the snails - prodding them until they secrete the ink, or by simply destroying the snail and cutting the gland from the creature. This secretion is an effective dye and the purple color that results is termed, "Hunid Purple". It is an expensive dye for its laborious extraction methods and marks the fabric it touches with wealth and honor.

#### Spirituality

   The Hunid are a very religious society. Though they worship all the Six, they worship Mera especially. As the Hunid arrived to the South Coast, water became a rarity and a blessing for life for the people. After the discovery of the Rock Snails, and the revenue that the sea offered, many became converted to the worship of Mera. Though it began as a worship of the water and it's creation of life, many have begun to interpret scripture and teaching of the monks and priests in different ways and skew the teachings to their gain and personal views.

#### Marriage and Weddings

Most Human cultures in Sefyll have a similar ritual. That being the bride and groom hold hands, link fingers, and hold up their hands such that the officiant burns the hands of both man and woman with a straight rod parallel to the skin and perpendicular to the direction of the fingers. The rod is smelted from raw ore contributed by both families and, among wealthy families, bears a small design that makes the hands match in their scarring. This burn is a form of scarification that is a symbol of the trails and fire of life that they will face hand-in-hand as well as a demarcation of their being in a committed marriage.

In Hunid culture, they cut the skin rather than burn it, resulting in a deep, but thin and short cut given that blood is the substance of the soul among the Hunid. This not only symbolizes the consummation of their blood, but of their souls into one familial soul, their children being physical manifestations of that soul.

#### Prejudice

The Hunid have established various trade routes that house caravans through the Beluir Desert. The routes are often winding due to the sporadic oases and rocks formations suitable enough for rest. These routes can be prowled by bandits of course, but usually this only results in thefts. Orcfolk can destroy property, kill and capture travelers, and shut down business for weeks. While this isn’t often, it can be devastating.

The Hunid have mounted several offensives over the generations into the Bariloch Range and harassed the outer villages of Ushat when trade routes have been attacked regularly.

#### Monsoon Season

During Monsoon Season, a front of cool, high-pressure moisture moves off the southwestern Bariloch Range. This front is drawn over the Beluir Desert by hot, low-pressure and then moves in a counterclockwise swirl or Northeasterly, covering the Red Hills, Beluir Woodlands, and the Moorlands. The hot, summer air is trapped at the northern border of Saeria by the Bariloch Range. Monsoon season starts in the middle of Genevieve usually and lasts until the end of Titus. The rains are a respite from the sweltering heat and dust which can be felt so much by all who live in the affected areas.

By mid-afternoon in the pre-monsoon days, the sky is so laden with dust that it makes the sun seem a fuzzy blur, the muted beam of a fire in a fog of heat. The dust is borne into the city from the desert and nearby farmlands on what is called by various things in various cultures, but usually is centers around the idea of “Dragon’s Breath”, the Common translation. These hot winds precede the monsoon yearly. There is a phenomenon which is called, “pre-rain anger”—this is a translation to Common, as there are many euphemisms for it in each nation’s tongue—in which most areas see a rise in petty arguments, domestic disputes, violence, and homicide. The waiting for the relief of the rain can cause much anxiety for all, as their livelihoods and future depend upon it as the monsoon is vital to the economy.

A poor monsoon or a delay of a few weeks in the arrival of monsoon rains can make the difference between bumper crops and famine. The difference is in the irrigation that will need to be performed to provide enough for everyone. Bad monsoons also increase inflation and debt, suicides increase as well in these times.

The monsoons are a time of peace since armies can’t march through the mire that is made from so much precipitation. It is said that the cloud and storm giants tread Sefyll at this time as well, clashing in their eternal battle in the skies above, never to be won. The Monsoons also stir up much art and culture. The well-known poem, attributed to the famous Ciyobetan Poet, Lyric Grahlin, is one of the most common examples of art reflecting the rainy season:

> Rain makes earth a comely courtesan
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> Attired in the green silk of grass
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> Wearing silver ornaments of sprung-up mushroom
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> Ruby of purple colored worm of moist fields
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Among the Hunid the Monsoons affect the culture in specific ways: Titles or nicknames with "cloud", "rain", "sky", etc. are seen as very honorable. Family songs and musical compositions are taught only to special students or family members and are used to call in the rains yearly. In the days leading up to the Monsoons, Hunid women in rural areas will lock their husbands and children in the house and plow their fields at night in the nude. This is done in an attempt to appease Mera to send the rains by celebrating her domains of renewal, birth, and purification.

#### History

Humans arrived in Merethyl in what is now considered the common beginning of the 1st Century as the Elves had a much different system of time. The Humans were generally welcomed by the Elves, though the members of the High Elf Council and those of the scholar class were reluctant to associate with them. Many rural, tree-dwelling elves who focused on the magic of nature and healing began to befriend the humans. These elves were great lovers of the land and so they taught the humans how to manage the planting and harvesting of the fertile Merethyl soil, they also introduced the practice of magic to man. This western area of Merethyl became what is now known as the Kingdom of Felcaryn. The humans began to spread into the Highlands as well. Upon the arrival of the humans in the 1st Century, the humans founded the city of Brestad, at the eastern foot of the Munil. These humans began shallowly mining the Munil for iron ore and found copper.

At the end of the 1st Century, a large group of humans, though still a minority, broke off from the nation now known as Felcaryn in search of other areas to settle. These sailed around the Knile Peninsula and past the Môrfell Bay and landed in southwest Merethyl, becoming known as the Hunid. A large group of people grew an increasing distaste toward the Monarchy of Felcaryn and so decided to leave. Collectively they left the east and traveled by boat southward. Eventually they landed on Leira and found it to be inhabited by many Gnomes and Halflings. They decided to continue on until eventually settling the southwest coast of Merethyl. They named these two large forests West and East Thel (Thel meaning "sister" in elven).

Despite this familial name, West Thel and East Thel have been in a near-constant state of contention and war for many years. Following the events of the Beluir War, tensions rose and have scarcely ever been laid to rest since. It was then that each group split and grew individually in languag,e culture, etc, taking upon themselves new names. Most of the animosity felt between the Thels is based on which is the original people to take on a new name (Nafrat for West Thel and Al-Šarǧ for East Thel) and leave behind the endonym Les Hunid and, by extension, the shackles of the Felcaryn Monarchy. In fact, the name Les Hunid is now used by both side to refer to one another in a derogatory way, as if to mock one another as still being under the Felcarynn thumb.

##### Mubarizun

Mubarizun are champions that fight duels in the battles for the Hunid army. The Mubarizun are composed of elite warriors who are champion fighters. In the battlefield their role is to undermine the morale of the enemy before the beginning of the battle by slaying their champions in duels. There are several of note in the history of the Thels.

Amenhat Sensuret

> In the Battle of Rotha, the Hierophant of Kemet, another name for West Thel, chose five Nafrat warriors and they challenged the Al-Šarǧ to duel. It was Amenhat who accepted the challenge and killed all of them one by one.
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Seti al-Azwar, “Bloodhorn”

> During the Seige of Halok, during the Beluir War, Seti and a small force entered the city through aqueducts and opened the gates for the waiting Hunid and Redfolk forces. It is said that by the time the forces reached the gate and walls, Seti stood atop a pile of Eyumorian bodies, covered in blood and blew his horn with a ferocity such that it rallied the army to take the city before dusk. His bloodied horn is still a relic held by the Hunid and frequently fought over.
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Hind bin Janak

> She was elevated to Mubarizun after her initiative and battle prowess in the midst of the battle. The Huni were hugely outnumbered in the Battle of Redsalt Pass. As the battle wore on, many men retreated to the back ranks, thinking to flee. Hind led the women of the camp in equipping themselves, fearing that if they lost, the Imradhen and Eyuomrians would rape them. She then confront the fleeing soldiers, grasped a spear, and rallied the force of men and women back to the front lines. And as they marched, the women sang:
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> *Night star's daughters are we,*
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> *who walk on carpets soft they be*
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> *Our walk does friendliness tell*
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> *Our hands are perfumed musk smell*
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> *Pearls are strung around these necks of us*
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> *So come and embrace us*
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> *Whoever refuses will be separated forever*
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> *To defend his woman is there no noble lover?*
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The origins of all of these heroes are in dispute, however, with some evidence pointing to their origins being from either Thel, all have tales of their childhoods being based in the outskirts of Mhomel or Losari, each variation being professed by each respective nation. All are quoted as having said they are of each locale. This has become quite the controversy over the generations, adding to the list of grievances shared by the Hunid among one another.

##### Medicine

The Hunid are pioneers of the treatment and diagnosis of illness. Hospitals and surgeons as well as many medical procedures have their history among the Thels. The best hospitals in all of Sefyll are found in West and East Thel and Hunid surgeons are highly sought after for their knowledge and skill in the art of non-magical healing. Their medicinal knowledge has developed a reverence for health and the blood (and then indirectly, the body). Doctors and nurses are regarded highly for their sacred work and treated as sober and wise individuals among the people. It is due to this history and prowess of medicine that the Hunid have the belief that the blood contains the soul of a person. Because of this there are rituals and beliefs that regard birth, life and death.

* Birth – the Hunid believe that blood is shared during intercourse and the blood itself becomes a fetus.
* Life – throughout their lives, the Hunid try to hide blood from others in public. Blood is sacred and private. Butcheries are meticulous in the cleaning of meats, there are no public executions that require blood. Menstruation is considered a gift and the physical symptoms as well. The phrase is common to one who complains, “many snails make purple” which is to say that much sacrifice makes for much beauty. Those who menstruate are seen as wise and are referred to as authority in situations where none is clearly defined, starting with the oldest,
* Death – the body is rarely buried, it is usually given for medical dissection and the development of methods for surgery where possible. The blood is drained as much as possible and then poured into water. This act is required for the soul to reach the spiritual plane. While it’s most common to use a flowing source, standing water can be used. Most view flowing water to be more hopeful way of sending the soul into the spiritual plane.

#### Holidays

> **Feast of the Reception:** a celebration of magic by the wood elves, by all humans, celebrated at varying times. The Ciyobetans, Felcaryn, and Tacuarembo in the first week of Titus, while the Windfolk celebrate it simply on the last full moon of Genevieve. The Hunid celebrate it on the first new moon of Titus. This is commonly celebrated by a simple feast and an honoring of those magic users in town, usually healers, priests, or otherwise helpful folk.
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> **Bestowal:** Much of the trade and commerce for the Hunid economy is from Hunid Purple, produced by the Rock Snails along the southeastern shore of Merethyl. Bestowal is a festival celebrating the season of procreation of the snails, which occurs during the month of Rolen. The Festival is celebrated on the 8th and 9th days of the fourth week of Rolen. The people dress in Hunid Purple apparel and sing and praise the Gods. Tall poles are mounted around city squares and public areas with many colored ribbons tied to top, as children dance and play they pull on the ribbons and wrap them tightly around the pole.
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