Sbrithnir's Crew

Sbrithnir's Crew was an unusually large crew with an unusual combination of warlike and cultural traits driven largely by its relationships with the Monkin and Taru of Senteru - the isle that was their home for most of their existance.

Structure

Like all crews, Sbrithnir's Crew was made up of a number of Writhes and gangs. In terms of how the crew functioned, it is the organisation of the gangs that we look at here,

Around half the Crew were full members of a gang: the remainder - the "Unganged" predominantly the young, the infirm or those whose abilities best fitted them to unskilled labour, normally in support of the Burrowkiss. There were also around a dozen unganged who were specialists and crafters outside the gang system. Sbrithnir's Crew were unusual in having unganged adults and, perhaps in consequence, were more formal in their use of gang ranks as titles.

Ranks of the Ganged

The gang members rank was a title or honorific - the leader, for example of the Clutchkiss would be formally addressed as The Clutchken when referring to the role, Preparlon Clutchken as an individual within the crew and Preparlon Ken within the crew. An unganged drakiss might be referred to as, for example, "Fivuni Unganged" - an address that would in many crews be a mortal insult but with the unganged specialists vital to parts of the Crews economy, the term was far more nuanced in Sbrithnir's Crew.

The Crew's organisation prior to the Union with Jorrath, the crew numbering 209 at this point.

Assets

The tunnels and halls taken from the Monkin-doo and expanded and decorated in their own style; the metalwork captured and hoarded from those wars and their own mining and manufactures not sold in trade. Though not poor the hoards of the Crew and Sbrithnir were rarely large for they traded more than many and ravaged less than most.

They also maintained an extensive archive of historical detail on both Sbrithnir's life and the wider history of Senteru since their arrival. These have been well used by the Tarembura in support of their oral tradition. This in turn has strongly influenced the crew's culture and the development of their literary tradition, most notably in "The Lay of Jorrath and Sbrithnir".

Economic Basis

Unlike most Crew's Sbrithnir's Crew have never engaged in agriculture or foraging to a significant extent (at least after settling at the Roost). Food is mainly obtained by trade with the Monkin-ban (metalwork and protection from the Monkin-doo being the prime goods of exchange), though since the late fourth century the Alkiss have engaged in the cultivation of mushrooms using wood debris. Gifts from the Tarembura in return for access to the Crew's archives have been a significant source of grain.

Military

The tunnelling gangs have up as the standing military force with skirmishing in the tunnels and caves an ongoing possibility even during the periods of nominal peace with the Monkin-doo. A standing guard (of Clutchkiss) kept is on the Shellkeep and training for all as a "reserve" for wider outbreaks of warfare. Their favoured weaponry typically is picks/warhammers though the biggest strategic weapon is the ability to outbreed the Monkin-doo.

Religion

Like many Crew's, Sbrithnir's has a cult of the drakkun, lead by the Scaleken. Likewise their mythology of the heros for whom the months of their calendar are named. Unusually they also have a Cult of the Spirits of the Deep which is strongest in the Burrowkiss and emerged during the ongoing conflict with the Monkin-doo.

Sbrithnir Sindrach

Capital

Sbrithnir's Roost

Demonym

Sindrach

Currency

No formal currency but bartering and exchange of appealing trinkets, engraved or precious stones and ruffrings.

Legislative Body

The Gangsthing started shortly after the union of Jorrath and Sbrithnir and over the years varied in role between advisors to a monarchical leader and chaired oligarchy acting as the makers of laws, decisions and leaders. It has always been at risk of subversion by an unscrupulous gang leader, for example the Treason of Lifo'aram (see below) or being but has generally been held in balance.

Location

Sbrithnir's Roost

For more Information on the Drakkis

Drakiss on the species
A Drakkun's Crew on Crews in general
Drakkin Calendar on their Calendar
Writhe on their social grouping

Where They Operate

Senteru

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A History of the Crew

For a chronology of the Crew, please refer to the timeline section below. Here we look at some of the broader themes of the Crew's history.

Impact of the Drrakkun on the Crew's Development

No crew exists in isolation from its drakkun. The history of the Crew begins on Sullesfrith's Isle where they spent several generations tending to the egg and subsequently the young drakkun. Sullesfrith, like many drakkun spent extended periods away from the roost so the crew were responsible for much of Sbrithnir's upbringing and education.

Sbrithnir's coming of age - Wingspread as it is often called saw the crew enter into a nomadic period, travelling as Sbrithnir explored the world and built relationships with the drakkun of Tarusia and Marivar. This phase was unusually long for Sbrithnir and only one of the crew at the

start of these travels survived to settle on Senteru - the aptly named Kordiban the Venerable.

The Crew saw several groups detached to support Sbrithnir's offspring. These events were always looked forward to by a Crew for the opportunities for advancement they present, both for those staying with the crew and those so detached. Though some went with the eggs taken by Jorrath, providing crews for Kamgrimmur and Hrafskell provided further such opportunities at hatching and Wingspread.

The disastrous eruption of Naros in 539 SY which killed almost all of Kamgrimmur's crew saw a larger exodus from Sbrithnir's Crew as

around a quarter were transferred to Kamgrimmur, again providing opportunities for advancement and breaking up of rivalries.

With Sbrithnir's death, 1,140 years after the crew was initially formed, the Crew began to disband. Three writhes went feral in the mountains of Senteru, 20 drakiss went to join Kamgrimmur's crew and the remainder joined Hrafkell's Crew, when Hrafkell returned to take over the roost 2 years after Sbrithnir's Death. The Crew's leader at that time, Pubillcri "Redruff", is generally reckoned to have done an outstanding job in limiting the losses in this period as Hrafkell's return was in no way certain.

Internal Political History - The Crew's Development as an Organisation

Like any organisation with a long history the Crew's organisation developed as the size and complexity of the Crew grew.

In its early years the gangs were small and the leader frequently tyrannical, but as the crew grew the struggles at succession became increasingly long an violent. Following the death of Hawcra Forktongue in 284 SY the leadership remained unfilled for a year and Sbrithnir made a rare intervention into Crew politics by eating the three main contenders and appointing Marronick Burrowken as the first hereditary leader.

This experiment with monarchy lasted until Langamar "Longclaw" died without issue in 422 and the advisory council, the Gangsthing, assumed control as an interim. The great mortality following the outbreak of Ruffwither (as well as Langamar's arbitrary application of justice) caused a questioning of the advisability of a hereditary monarchy and the leader of the Gangsthing became the leader of the Crew.

This became the established pattern over the remainder of the Crew's existence with the leadership being chosen by lot on the death or

incapacity of the incumbent. This made for "interesting" politics within some of the gangs at times but was broadly accepted over the centuries. The changing nature of the Crew and its activities meant that the roles of some gangs changed significantly but the continuity of the gang names was maintained, as much for avoiding confusing Sbrithnir with constant change as for the respect for tradition common to all drakiss.

External Political History - The Crew as Part of Senteru

In the wider setting of Senteru, the Crew's deep rivalry with the Monkin-doo began even before they started settling Sbrithnir's Roost for the Crew had established good relations with the Monkin-ban of the Corrido Clans, who had been much oppressed by the Monkin-doo beneath the roost. The alliance with the Corrido Clans was formalised after the clearance of the roost and this relationship remained strong and enduring surviving not just the centuries but also the transfer of the Crew to Hrafkell.

The relationship with the Monkin-doo has remained hostile by after the War of Marivo,

which came close to the destruction of both sides, the relationship was more a cold war than a hot one and in the last 200 years has begun to thaw to the merely chilly as occasional contacts between groups of miners or on the surface highlighted areas of common interest and opportunities for technical, if not political, co-operation. The Monkin-doo still maintain their claim to the upper halls though and the it is a common belief among many of the drakiss that Ruffwither came from the Monkin-doo.

The relationship with humans was slower to establish, for the Taru have a deep distrust and

avoidance of the subterranean, but as they learned of the historical records and lore of the drakiss, the Tarembura in particular began to interact with the Crew. This cultural exchange was almost certainly the trigger for the literary developments of the Crew and from 800 SY it was not uncommon to find a Tarembura at work with the writkiss, mining their records for lore, detail and new stories for Lays.

More recently trade has developed with the Mor trading post at Senkeys for jewellry and small metalwork.