The Domain

Very much in the north, icy. The living space of the Umatoe, governed by local bodies and majorities. The Domain works on the idea of Territorial Law, where all the local territories, referred to as Waypoints, have their own laws and rules that each visitor must abide by. The Umatoe have live in such a way that they all know all territory laws by the time they reach the rite of passage, and everyone Umatoe or not follows the AllMother's Law which reaches out to all in the Domain and is magically enforced.

Culture

Any idea that you must rely on something other than you and your tribe is seen as a bit ridiculous, and therefore worship and cults are not something Uma do or follow in the general populous. This is not to say they are not superstitious, believing in the Gifts of the AllMother, the Luck of Niniiho, the recitation of Uma legends and putting stock in rituals such as The Hunt and The Judgement. These are on the more honorable side of the Uma belief system, the righteous and the honorable, and they are to be respected and honored but primarily due to what they achieved on their own; if a Hunt was carried out by cheating, by using magic, or by something else, then it was not an honorable hunt and therefore not worthy of recognition. Acts of Hunting, Skimming, and Mimicking are among the higher order of respect, and are only honored when done with no magic or extremely limited amounts and only in the vein of self-affecting magic. If you influence the elements in your favor while hunting, for example, then the Hunt is not an honorable one. (NOTE:‘Hunting’ as an act is different from hunting for food or resources; these can be done any way you choose and no one will bat an eye) These actions are based upon skill and skill alone, including accurately assessing yourself vs your target. If you judge that you can take it alone and are incorrect, it is not honorable. Likewise, if you think you need a team and it was something you could have easily handled yourself, it is also not honorable (and sometimes dishonorable depending on what you were trying to accomplish and how much of an overkill the team was). Acts of thievery, looting, pickpocketing, brawling, dealing, double-dealing, and general wayward mayhem are acceptable neutral behavior in accordance to whatever Waypoint Rules happen to be in play at the time -- and while each Waypoint has their own version of what the Rules actually mean, generally all Waypoints are in accordance to what the AllMother specifically lays down. She is the only one with a final say as far as Rules That Shall Not Be Questioned. The only thing that makes this kind of behavior ‘wrong’ or ‘bad’ is if you get caught (stealing, double-dealing, pickpocketing) or if you hit below the belt/outside of the rules (brawling, dealing, looting). (NOTE: you can use magic or skill for any of these, as they are neutral acts and no one cares one way or the other how the end goal is achieved) Acts of betrayal, assassinations, intimidation, sucker-punches or pot-shots, lying about honorable deeds, dishonoring the dead, or political actions are dishonorable completely -- and some can get you banned for a Waypoint or worse. Several of these are in line with the Rules of the AllMother, and many have the same base sentiment; if you cannot look your enemy in the eye, you cannot take action against him. Underhanded deeds designed to undercut your enemy, to hurt, damage, or otherwise kill him in any way without giving him enough respect to see it coming and take action accordingly is dishonorable, and is never to be done. To follow through and do so turns the clan against you, and enough of those actions piled together earns you a black mark and a boot from all Waypoints, establishing you as a prey to be hunted and harassed until the day you die. You are never allowed to sleep, to eat, to rest, without knowledge that you are now prey. Any settlement or structure you make will be found and torn down. If guards see you attempting to leave, you will be stopped and chased back into The Domain. If you are injured you will not receive help unless you are on the brink of death, in which case you are to be treated only enough to get you back on your feet, for you are not allowed to die without great pains and suffering. Even on that day, they say death will not be a release, for if you do not undo the mark it will send you into The Hollows, to forever be tortured and hunted in the afterlife as well. To that end, it is said that the mark of the AllMother appears with enough Dishonor (put there by magic of the AllMother herself), yet there is a chance of removal. For Honor is not gained by recognition of your peers, but by recognition of the land and of yourself. Gaining Honor is the only way to release the Mark of the AllMother, and it will disappear as it appeared. But you must maintain this Honor as best as you can, or the Mark will return and you will be Judged -- this time not by life in the land, but by the ghosts of The Hollows. For the AllMother is only forgiving to a point. (So basically, if you start a fight with someone in authority over you, get into a brawl, beat the snot out of him and then take his place, that’s perfectly acceptable, as is making a deal with a higher-up, challenging him to a match, stealing his right of authority, or just straight-up killing him in a brawl or hand-to-hand match. Assassinating him, killing him in cold blood, or framing him on the other hand, are not acceptable and can lower your standing/land you in really hot water if anyone figures out it’s you.)

Public Agenda

Traders of information, among other things. If you need information on something or someone, chances are an Umatoe either knows something about it or knows where you can find out about it.

Assets

Unique Raw materials, active storms, free-flowing water and access to the Frozen Seas.

Mythology & Lore

The Aalis were the origin of all the Clans, and of the Umatoes specifically. It is said they wove the mists into snow, then pounded the snow against the sides of the reef mountains as it drifted, pummeling the ice, snow, rock, and coral into one being which they then ripped from the mountainsides. This being leapt from the arms of the creators, falling from the skies down to the rivers and seas of ice. They found long claws useful for running, and proceeded to run from the gods. When the Aalis sought them out, the Umatoes hid from the gods by digging their way under the ice and finding small shoals in which to hide until they passed. Eventually the creators got bored and went to create other members more willing to abide by them, and left the Umatoes to their own devices. The big clan took this as a sign, and began to dig their way up from the icey seas, climbing and clawing and claiming all the mountain and the sea they traveled on as theirs. They allowed the other clans to grow at the edges of their borders, but none were allowed to pass beyond. When the Aalis took notice of their accomplishments and growth, it is said they returned to the Umatoe clan, who did not run this time. They stood their ground, and as the gods came down to enforce will upon the clan, the clan decided they would be the ones enforcing will. The gods had no claim on their clan, they proclaimed, and they would not listen to any creatures, large or small, that they had no wish to listen to. The clan would stay as it was, and would not be ordered around like the others. The gods looked down upon this decree, and it is said they debated among themselves. One of the gods came forward and challenged them; if they won, the Aalis would leave them. If they failed, they would do all that the Aalis asked of them, including coming back with them into the skies. The clan agreed, and the challenge was brought forth. But the challenge was a distraction, a farce. For as soon as it was issued, the clan instantly saw it was not one they were meant to win; it was a challenge to swim upward into the frozen wastes and back down again before the next sky-change. The clan felt the Aalis had already cheated them, and yet they were smarter. The clan as a whole reached into the sides of the mountains, tearing and ripping at the rock and coral and ice, binding them together with the resources of the land to create small, quick fleeting ships able to cross the ice and tundra and waves in one movement -- blades were interjected into the bottoms of the ships for the ice, and they learned natural ways to keep afloat for the water at the ends of the world. They kept their mendings a secret, only to be revealed when necessary. The day came. The Aalis took mortal form and dove into the waters to swim under the ice, melting it as they went. The Clan set their boats into the ice and raced off, the sleds allowing them to travel faster than they could on paw. The Aalis were shocked by this invention and had not understood it, for the Clan used no magic in its construction. The groups raced, the Aalis doing all they could to stall or destroy the crafts so the Clan could not win. One member, a smaller Umatoe, saw the attack coming in the NeverWaters and leapt clear of the attack, diving into the cold black waters and right at her attacker. Legend says she wrestled and fought with the Aalis, tearing the fins from the god and fixing them to her own tail with borrowed magic. She swallowed gulps of air and set off after her fellows, speeding past the boards and the Aalis. Her tail allowed her to swim faster than the others, her small size allowing her to slip through and around obstacles until she reached the World’s End. It is said a single Aalis sat at the center of the waterfall, waiting. The Aalis explained she was sent ahead to say that the Aalis had won, but was impressed by the Clan’s cunning and the fearlessness of the Umatoe herself. Here, the stories diverge. Some say the Umatoe was unimpressed and angered at the gods trickery and attacked the Aalis, killing her. It is said the act of killing her and shedding her blood enabled the Umatoe to steal her magic and solidify the fins around her tail and the air-pocket at the base of her neck. Others say the Aalis gifted the Umatoe with true fins and the air-pouch as a reward for her cunning and ruthlessness. Either way, it is said that when the racing Aalis finally arrived at World’s End, neither the Aalis nor the Umatoe were present. They rushed back to the land to find the Umatoe had already beaten them, flashing her fins and throat-pouch in a loud proclamation of freedom. The gods had lost, and she demanded they leave the mountains and never return. That Umatoe became the Nhaemuki, leader of all the Umatoe clans, and it is said that all female Umatoes can follow their ancestry to her. It is also said that when the Nhaemuki died, she was taken away from the mountaintop by the ghost of the Aalis she found at World’s End, and that every Nhaemuki after her meets the same fate upon death.

Utenut - "Umatoe will be Umatoe"

Type

Geopolitical, Country

Training Level

Trained

Veterancy Level

Experienced

Leader

Nhaemuki

Leader Title

Nhaemuki - "AllMother"

Government System

Tribalism

Power Structure

Transnational government

Economic System

Gift economy

Currency

The Umatoe work off the idea of equal exchange (within the whole idea of the gift economy value is determined by the engaged parties. Sometimes tasks are performed in exchange for merchandise, sometimes rumors are exchanged for a common food. Therefore, the official currency is whatever you have that someone else wants.

Official Languages