Masala

The Masala are a small ethnic group which live within the central and western regions of Kasar Wuta and southwestern Shamsi Desert, speaking the Masalit language. They originate from the northernmost edges of the Shamsi Desert, migrating south before settling into Kasar Wuta. They are agriculturists who grow peanuts, millet and sorghum, possessing a wealth of Racial Magic useful to these endeavors. Whether enriching their soils with ash and char, speeding the growth of their crops or summoning forth nourishing sunlight over their fields, one won't often find such capable farmers.

The Masala were under the rule of the Dar Masalit or Dar Fur sultanates for much of their history but, amid the Accian campaign in Alkelbulan, their lands were divided up into different political entities. Masala lands have in fact been an area of back and forth hostilities between Accian forces and Ilnid's sultanates. For these reason, most Masala are polylingual, speaking Masalit, al-arrabiyyah and sometimes Accian. They have only recently rid their lands of Ilnid's forces but now their Accian "allies" breath down their neck.

Racial Magic

Masala are known to possess magic useful for agriculture, their mainstay. This includes blessings from Barnok, Flithmar, Rithaldis and Shil. While they possess fire and radiant magic, these are mostly defensive and utilitarian abilities useful for surviving in Kasar Wuta and Shamsi if not for enriching their soils or nurturing their crops.

Barnok

Manipulation

Able to manipulate, communicate with, influence, direct, attract, repel, alter and enhance, hasten or inhibit the growth of domesticated plants and crops.

Eye

Able to see crops present around them, even through barriers. They can tell many things about domesticated plants by looking ranging from what kind of plant they are, their general health and whether they are sick, whether food is ripe yet or not, whether seeds are viable and what they need to germinate, etc.

Sense

Able to feel or sense crops around them despite barriers. They can tell many things about these, details much clearer by touching the plant versus sensing it from a distance. This can include their health, qualities and uses, the health of the plant, etc. They are also immune to damage from Barnok magic.

Charge

Can absorb moisture, energy or nutrients present in organic material (including still living organic material) via touch and store them inside their body. They can convert this to magic energy, transfer the energy to a target via contact, strengthen their body with the energy or re-release it like an aura. They are immune to damage from Barnok magic, absorbing moisture, energy and nutrients from these plants instead. However, they cannot generated these on their own, reliant on a source.

Craft

Able to craft new variations of crops in the form of new seeds with varying properties. Can essentially create new variants of crops or alter some basic qualities of plants from the seeds they create.

Fertility

Able to increase the fertility of crops and aid in the healthy gestation and growth of the new plant. They can also gestate the seeds of any domesticated plant by hand, ignoring its ordinary requirements, and pollinate these plants using their magic.

Will

Can produce crop plants or agricultural produce such as vegetables which amplify the magic of others upon contact or consumption. They can also extend this into existing domesticated plants.

Form

Their magic form has features of a specific domesticated plant incorporated into it. They will be able to manifest certain charictarsitics of this plant from their body or transform parts of their body into this plant. Which plant differs by individual but usually is one common to where they live.

Flithmar

Manipulation

Able to manipulate, repel, control and reshape flames present in their environment.

Slip

Able to allow their body to turn into flames when when touched, most physical matter passing right through them. These materials also behave as if interacting with fire such as burning. This is automatic, only flesh which is being interacted with converting and immediately changing back to flesh as the object is removed.

Sense

Able to feel or sense flames in their environment, feel anything interacting with fire and sense details about this fire despite barriers. Can learn more about the fire by touching it and they cannot be harmed by fire, magic or natural. However, they can be restrained using fire magic.

Shield

Immune to negative effects and damage from natural fire and every kind of flame magic. They are totally fireproof.

☀️ Rithaldis ☀️

Aura

Able to generate or summon radiant energy from Rithaldis' Plane, either from their body or into the area around them. This can take the form of sunlight, solar plasma and even ionizing radiation. They also cannot be harmed by radiant energy and can see radiant energy like radiation as a white particle.

Pocket

Able to create small portals into Rithaldis's Plane big enough to reach their hand or arm inside and extract the miniature suns which exist within. These eventually burn out outside of the plane but provide rich sunlight, light and warmth.

Form

Can convert parts of their body into a kind of radiant energy (photons, plasma, sunlight, ionizing radiation) or has these incorporated into their form. They are also immune to damage from radiant energy but anything that destroys or changes this radiant energy will translate to lost flesh when they convert back.

Shil

Aura

Able to summon or generate a kind of Shil material from Shil's Plane. This can include ash, smoke, char, soot, oil and tar. They can generated it from their body or into the area around them. They also cannot be harmed by Shil materials or magic and can see these particles in the air.

Slip

Able to allow their body to turn into smoke, ash or other Shil materials when when touched, most physical matter passing right through them. These materials also behave as if interacting with this material. This ability is automatic once activated, only flesh which is being interacted with converting and immediately changing back to flesh as the object is removed.

Shield

Immune to negative effects and damage from all Shil magic and naturally occurring Shil materials regardless of temperature or pressure. They can breath despite smoke as well, totally immune to harm or impedement from this aspect.

Culture

Culture and cultural heritage

by Lee Stepp

The Masala have always been farmers, growing millet, sorghum, peanuts, okra and fruit. They also cultivate honey and sometimes Isik Gozyaslari. They are known to raise cattle, sheep and Tamadla Goat but most of their attention is focused on their crops. They live in small settlements and villages but had come into conflict with Arabiyy muslims early on over land and resources. Eventually, they converted to Islam al'Rasul, close in proximity to Arabiyyah and Kemet, and were otherwise very self contained and self sufficient. The other two cultures living alongside the Masala are the Zaghawa and Fur, both equally small cultures living within and west of Kanem. The Masala and these peoples frequently intermarry and interact with each other alongside Arabiyy tribes called the Baggara. Despite all of these outside cultural influences, they have a strong identity as a culture, such as their brewing of a traditional beer called marissa which is a staple of their diet.

Common Dress code

by Lee Stepp

Woman dress modestly, covering their hair like most other islamic peopels of Alkelbulan, but are prone to wearing far more color than the Arabiyy to their west. Women might decorate themselves with jewelry made from beads and cowry shells as well. Men generally wear white kaftan or dashiki and matching turbans or kufi caps.

Ideals

Relationship Ideals

by Lee Stepp

Agriculture is at the heart of Masala communities. Both men and woman work the fields, own poperty and make decisions but usually store their harvests separately. Even older children can own their own fields and cultivate their own crops. Usually, men take care of the livestock while women cook, care for children, gather wood and collect water. They live in nuclear family groups within villages. Their walls are made of woven grass mats and their rooves are thatched with the fireproof plants of Kasar Wuta, usually crafted of still living grasses! Their homes are round with conical rooves and a strong central post, huts built closely together into compounds. Compounds are then surrounded by fences made of living millet stalks. One village might have several compounds, living componants typically manipulated into place by Barnok casters!

Masala villages have a central shaded clearing where men gather socially, women visiting each other by wells or in each others homes instead. Marriage takes place in one's early twenties and most men have two wives or more. Divorce is fairly common and, like many communities in Kasar Wuta, a brideprice is paid to the bride's family. The husband builds a new home for them to start their lives together, usually in the bride's compound rather than the patrilineal organization of neighboring cultures. Her husband will also work in his new mother-in-law's fields for the first year. Once the couple has had their first child, they will choose whether they wish to remain with her family or if they would rather re-settle with his family.

Major organizations

by Lee Stepp

Despite their proximity to Arabiyyah, the Masala aren't particularly strict with their faith including allowing far more freedom for their women. Masala women are even known to make bricks for house-building, something Arabiyy woman cannot do. More oppressive sultanates have appeared throughout their history, trying to push stricter ways of life onto the Masala, such as banning alcohol, and receive considerable resistance. More recently, the back and forth between Ilnid and the Kingdom of Accia has led to many casualties and collateral damage to the Masala. Their cattle were being stolen and their homes, tools and crops were being distroyed amid these conflicts, their loyalty to Ilnid's sultanates, who continued to fail to protect them, began to waver. Simultaneously, the grip of the Arabiyy aristocracy began to choke the Masala amid their losses, becoming oppressive and holding them all too tightly as a protective buffer against the kingdom.

Accians seized the opportunity to play this discontent between the Arabiyy and the Masala against Ilnid, offering supplies and even aid in fighting back against his forces if not liberating themselves from Ilnid's empire altogether. It wasn't unusual for Masala youths to run away and join AMTP during this period in order to gain the skills needed to liberate their lands. After service, they were encouraged to take up action when they returned home or were even sent to these frontiers during their military service, gradually pushing back Arabiyy forces year after year. Despite their peaceful, agricultural lifestyles the Masala made surprisingly fierce warriors and eventually liberated their villages from Ilnid's influence. Yet they remain wary of their Accian "allies", most Masala either pro or anti Accia. Unsurprisingly those veterans who served the kingdom tend to be staunchly supportive of Accian government. However, their homeland is still considered an unstable zone and frontier, neighboring tribes and peoples still loyal to Ilnid, in particular the Fur people who had thrived on providing the Arabiyy with slaves.