The Test

"I have seen what those savages do to their young, and it does not bear thinking about. To become one of their warriors, they subject those poor young people to the most extreme of activities. Imagine! Having to stand on a pole for half a day, or run for days looking for food! It's totally barbaric! Makes one glad to be an Imperial."

Whilst customs vary between the various tribes of the Dwellers, most of them have some form of proving test once a member comes of age. Most tribal children follow their parents into their occupation; be it crafter, farmer, fisher or trader, but there are a number of roles that exist that are different, reserved for those who had either succeeded in passing the right tests, or had failed in those tests and have no other place to go. The most highly sought after role, but also the most difficult to get, is that of a tribe's warrior hunters, a select group whose task it is to bring in the meat that fed the tribe, protect them from wild animals and intruders and, once too old for that, to lead the tribe.

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Execution

The several days that made up the tasks are typically like a festival for a tribe. In most tribes there is a central village in the territory, but most of the tribal members spend their days in small nomadic camps, either farming clearings, gathering resources like firewood, fishing on the river or away trading with other tribes and southerners. The village exists to store excess food, act as a nursery and place for the elderly and act as a central hub to tribal activities. The competition to join the warriors is one such event that draws an entire tribe together; not only are there usually quite a few families with candidates, but the older generation of tribal leaders set to welcome new members to their ranks and display them to the rest of the tribe. 
There is a feast every night, with each family in the tribe expected to bring something to contribute, be it food, entertainment or practical ability. Candidates are not allowed to partake in the festivities until the final day, when their tasks were complete. Being apart from normal tribal life was expected of a warrior.

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Participants

Every fifteen years, all those between the ages of ten and twenty five can ask their parent's permission to leave the family trade and attempt to pass the rites and become a warrior. It is a risk most do not wish to take; fail to become a warrior and it is forbidden to return to your family's occupation. The choices then are slim, either leave the tribe and hope to find a role elsewhere, or stay and be expected to perform whatever menial tasks the tribal leaders deemed necessary. The cutting down of trees to make new clearings, the daily carrying of water from the river to the communal water store; all the arduous yet important tasks. Failed warriors are still held in high regard, but are not deemed suitable partner material and faced a difficult and lonely life. Succeed in the attempt however, and the you are accepted as one of the tribe's best and brightest. Assuming you survive the first few years, when casualty rates are high, and make it through until the next contest was held, you are guaranteed a place in the tribal council, become prime partner material and your name is inscribed on the great tribal pole for the gods to take notice.
The Test is open to both males and females and designed to test an applicant’s natural abilities in dexterity, intelligence and intuition. Strength is deemed unnecessary, as a good hunter will make full use of their companions and the weapons available, and skill is deemed something that only comes with experience. To test those with such a wide variation in age and ability needed to be fair. Some of the best hunters the tribe had ever seen were also the youngest on application, and although the upper limit was twenty five, most had found their role in life by that point. Nearly all those who applied at older ages were either orphans without a trade to enter into, or disgraced and seeking to prove themselves once more.

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Related Ethnicities

• Dwellers