Oshmiri

Culture

Major language groups and dialects

Although the native language to Oshmiri territories is still Elvish, the same as most other elves, they have a second, rarer language (Aquan) consisting mostly of sounds that travel well underwater - sounding similar to whalesong or a dolphin-like clicking - that are hard to make for other creatures who may lack the physiology. Aquan allows them to communicate to each other and any nearby sea dwelling creatures (over relatively long distances in the right conditions) while underwater without opening their mouth too much to speak.
Being able to speak and understand Aquan can become quite a problem for them on when travelling to landlocked places however, as it means being around fisheries, aquariums and places that sell seafood can be a somewhat upsetting experience depending on how humanely the fish there are being treated and how loudly they are complaining at the time. Different Oshmir draw the line at different points (for instance, some will happily eat clams or muscles but draw the line at crabs) but most will not eat crustaceans or small fish themselves - they hunt larger, deadlier predator animals that more people at a time can survive off at once, and leave the smaller fish population alone to attempt to keep a balance in the local ecosystem.

Culture and cultural heritage

The Oshmir share their distant cultural heritage (and a common ancestor) with the Arbormir, though the two groups parted ways both politically and ethnically very early into recorded history. A passing acknowledgement of this fact is the best a visitor can hope for, however, as beyond both being elvish and worshipping the same pantheon, the two groups have very little resemblance to each other in modern times.

Shared customary codes and values

Generally speaking, Oshmir trend more towards a neutral alignment and outlook on the world. Their main cultural focus, particularly of the deep-sea tribes who spend the vast majority of their lives below the waves, is on their interconnectedness to the natural world, self reliance, and survival. They place immense sentimental value on being able to trace back their shared history, but are amenable to the fact that nothing is static and eventually everything changes whether they attempt to resist it or not. They will discard even long-standing traditions that no longer serve them, if it becomes a matter of survival.
The emphasis on their shared history and value on the ways of the natural world has also led to a fearsome reputation for holding long grudges in warfare - any treaty created with the Oshmir will usually only hold in the eyes of the Oshmir for one generation, and must then be renegotiated with the next one if the perceived insult that started the conflict was great enough, or hostilities will resume right where they left off with the new generation of warriors. Their focus on survival has also led to particularly ruthless and pragmatic battle tactics, during their history. Oshmir are extremely willing to fight ‘dirty’, if they have to, and will starve farmland of sufficient hydration to starve out their opponent or attack any vessel that strays into their waters by sinking the ship from beneath rather than engaging in open combat,
Those more willing to break laws for harmful reasons often espouse the view that they are not interested in concepts like ‘fairness’ or justice because nature itself is not fair - only cyclical. Others will go the other way (I.e. the view that natural world is not fair by itself, so it is the duty of sentient creatures capable of choosing to make things fair on purpose) but generally speaking, balance is sought in all aspects of life.

Common Dress code

Oshmir dress styles tend to vary extremely depending on the geography of their chosen home. Those who live in the Osphen Bay area and regard themselves as ‘more civilised’ folk tend to dress more extravagantly, with high levels of metal or jewellery incorporated into their clothing for ornamentation and more ostentatious colours, with expensive fabrics and layered garments.
Coastal and deep-sea ‘rural’ Oshmiri go in the opposite direction, wearing simple home-made garments that are a single layer or two at most (deep-sea Oshmiri sometimes wear next to nothing, using spells or heated and/or cooled sea currents for protection against extreme temperatures) which are designed to create minimal drag underwater, dry off quickly, and blend in with the natural colour palettes of their living spaces both above and below the waterline.

Art & Architecture

Oshmiri artwork usually comes in the form of carvings, statues, pottery, and mosaics - textiles are not a huge part of their lives, as the vast majority of Oshmir who live rurally or out in the open sea (as opposed to in cities) will improvise with whatever is to hand to create clothes.   Their homes are usually designed for function rather than form, made out of waterproof concrete in whites, blues or sandy colours, and - where convenient - will often feature a second level below the surface, with things like storage spaces for valuables naturally blocked off to those who can’t breathe underwater. Any formalised defences will also make extensive use of the native terrain and any nearby water, as it gives them an automatic home advantage over non-waterbreathers.
They trade extensively with other cultures, however, and a bleed between cultures can often be seen within the boundaries of the primarily land-based Oshmiri cities. In return for foods and goods they do not have easy access to above the surface, the Oshmir are particularly well known for exporting precious resources such as Aguaverde, potent healing potions enhanced with magic from the Elemental Plane of Water, Dragon-Turtle blood, and ‘Rainstones’ (enchanted stones which can, as the name suggests, be manipulated to summon rain) which are extremely prized in farming communities that struggle periodically with irrigation.

Birth & Baptismal Rites

Expecting parents start creating a shell necklace out of local shells, shark teeth and sea glass for the child. It is then formally presented to them alongside a blessing ceremony a few weeks after the birth, once both mother and child are stable and healthy enough to do so. Generally speaking, it must only be made of materials from locations the child has visited or resides in, and will be added to in this way during the course of their life as the individual travels around and experiences new things. 
The necklace becomes a record of that person’s history as events and memories are tied to the items they choose to add to it - the size, intricacy and material value of an Oshmir's shell necklace can often tell you a thing or two about them from a distance if you know their cultural importance. Typically they are only gifted to children with at least one Oshmiri parent, but in more multicultural areas it has also become fashionable to gift one to a spouse as a courting gift, too.

Coming of Age Rites

When the elf comes of age, their shell necklace is given a further blessing of a cleric at their local Wayshrine of Osha. Some voluntarily choose to make a pilgrimage to the Aludaoin Reef to seek a blessing from Kydia also, usually in return for successfully performing a task that proves their readiness for adulthood to the Tidethane, but it’s not a strict expectation - especially not of the coastal mostly land-dwelling sea elves.

Funerary and Memorial customs

The elf’s shell necklace is customarily returned to the Wayshrine of their place of birth, or to the place where their ancestor’s relics are located. Surviving family members, significant others, and very close friends may also choose to keep certain pieces from the necklace to add to their own (or just as an important keepsake) if they would like to. The body, geography permitting, is taken to the Jade Barrows on Taefnal island and buried according to their societal stature in life. Important or renowned figures are likely to secure a more permenant place in the Barrows themselves, but the vast majority are given an air burial within the boundaries of the Venari Forest.
If being returned to the Barrows is not feasible, the individual is usually given a burial somewhere in nature (most commonly an air burial, but in exceptional circumstances other methods are permitted as long as the person is not cremated, as being reduced to ash does not really sustain other natural life in an immediately useful way) at the nearest convenient location that has been sanctified for that purpose.

Common Taboos

Cursing others with bad luck is only a mild taboo, but will sometimes still be something an Oshmir bristles at when done in front of them. The direction of luck is better left to gods, not mortals. Individuals who carry themselves with a disproportionate sense of entitlement are also particularly likely to meet scorn among the Oshmiri - sea elf children are raised with self reliance as a guiding principle. Even deep in the cities of the 'civilised' world, to the sea elves the world is you versus nature - and no help is coming, so you have to get busy swimming while you still can. Cremating Oshmiri dead instead of returning them to nature to be fed on by something else and poisoning water supplies tend to be the two most common 'hard lines' that become a problem with other cultures, particularly during periods of warfare.
Stealing or destroying a sea elf's necklace is a grave insult - especially theft - and individuals who steal them may find themselves and their families opened up to a targeted campaign of careful but ruthless attacks until the stolen item is returned, upto and including hostage taking and the destruction of a thief's professional reputation and standing in their community rather than just attacks on their person. Doing this is the quickest way to start a generational feud with an Oshmir, but that is not a highly recommended goal to have.

Common Myths and Legends

Some commonly discussed myths and legends of the Oshmiri include:

• The discovery of the Tidepearl in the Venari forest on Taefnal island - the site has since become holy ground, and the Tidepearl is regarded as an artefact of significant magical power that allows the Oshmiri more direct communion with their favoured gods than most mortals.
• The formation of Kydian Maelstrom - including the goddess Kydia’s fabled battle with Uuletrizk and the fall of the Triton/Water Genasi city state that the Titan corrupted and took control of before being struck down and imprisoned.
• Sea Hags tend to feature as the ‘bogeymen’ and villain of most children's stories for Oshmir.

Historical figures

Veldua Falen - An Arbormiri adventurer, described as a scrappy young girl with red hair and silver eyes who was a good enough navigator and leader despite her age that she easily held the respect of her crew. She first discovered and went on to travel around mapping the Taefnal islands aboard her ship, the Dawnseeker, securing her place in the histories. Previous to her successful traversal of the islands, many of the Abormir's ships had been lost trying to force a path through the deadly and unstable waters surrounding Kydia's Maelstrom. Veldua was the first in modern elvish records to hit land on a new continent by travelling west.
Nerwenye Qurinan - the priestess who discovered the Tidepearl within the Venari forest, often depicted as a thin-built wanderer with silver hair and green eyes. Exposure to the Tidepearl made Nerwenye into the first of what in modern times would be considered a 'true' Oshmiri sea elf (as she was a wood elf prior to the discovery of the artefact, and the name for sea elves as an ethnicity now was merely a faction name to differentiate the two sides of a political split, back then), her physiology transformed by the artefact into one much more acclimatised with surviving the ocean.
Ilmilas Xilric - an Oshmir adventurer who supposedly traversed every sea while on the run from the Giscellan Hegemony for some unknown crime, and eventually got lost in the icy north, last anyone heard. Although he was well known and celebrated as an capable ranger and explorer in his time, he has since become a name associated with lost causes and fools errands by most.
Carda Torylnn - a Tidescrown ruler who negotiated the "Treaty of Golden Exchange" which essentially struck a deal to secure the rights of any human living within Oshmiri territory, who were at the time little better than informally enslaved hostages after initial deals to move and begin to cultivate areas of unused Oshmiri land as sharecroppers became a political sore spot, due to the vicious war between the Giscellans and the Duermir. Once the treaty was put into place, any human still living in Oshmiri territory could petition the Giscellan Hegemony to effectively buy their freedom. The treaty sowed a great amount of human bitterness and distrust towards the sea elves - at least historically - but in securing it Carda ensured significant financial gains for her people, too, which was poured directly into infrastructure projects and resources for the Aludaoin Reef and ensured that strong ties to the Oshmir's deep-sea kin remained for a long time afterward.
Taraen Seris - a Tidethane who successfully led a personal campaign to expel the old (mostly human) thieves guilds from Oshmiri territory around the Osphen Bay region, following an attempt on one of his family members, in a bid to purge corruption and maintain the sanctity of the borders between human and elvish lands.

Major organizations

Order of Osha - The religious order operating in the name of the favoured deity of the Oshmir and primary go-to for religious services in their territories. Clerics operate at various Wayshrines of Osha across the full geographic range of Oshomia, the Taefnal islands, and the continent of Ash’arae in general.
Cobalt Court - Political leadership of the Osphen Bay region, ruled by a clan system with delegates from the landowning noble families with a monarch figurehead elected by the Court, referred to as a Tidescrown.
Jade Court - Political leadership of all territories in the Taefnal Islands still held by the Oshmir, with a similar clan system and figurehead leader as the mainland for each seperate island/territory, known as a Tidethane.
Tidethane of Aludaoin - the deep-sea Oshmir, who live in and around the Aludaoin Reef, spend their lives mostly beneath the waves in extremely dangerous territory and for the most part choose to ignore and avoid the political manoeuvres of their brethren above the surface in favour of defending the natural balance of the oceans and policing Kydia’s Maelstrom. They elect a Tidethane by popular vote whenever the previous Tidethane abdicates the role, or (much more commonly) dies in action - the Tidethane then becomes their voice whenever the land-walking Oshmir wish to parlay with their oceanic counterparts to share knowledge or aid.

Encompassed species

• Pavo