Fierce Deserts
Instead of a single empire these lands are roamed by strong barbarians, tales say they boast warriors with enormous physical strength comparable to that of even Zaveron’s knights, and most tribes hold rituals daily with what can only be assumed to be some form of ritual. Because of the strength of almost every living being within this area Iraedin that appear are of seemingly no concern, as such if the lack of laws or structure was looked past the barbarian lands could be said to be one of the safest places in the continent.
Of the 4 major powers of the Mainlands The Fierce Deserts is the most internally divided of the four, within the deserts there are hundreds of barbaric tribes, all of whom are frequently warring with one another. The wars between various tribes are caused for a variety of reasons, sometimes it is because one tribe is running low on food and water, sometimes it's because of materials, other times it's just because the conflicting tribes want to see who are stronger. Nonetheless, through the strife and hardships of those who live in the deserts it has bred each and every individual to be a capable warrior, whereas most villages or towns would be frightened by the sudden appearance of a Iraedin, the barbarian tribes of the desert welcome the appearance and force groups of their young to combat the vile beasts. To many within the mainlands, the Iraedin are said to be the pinnacle of destruction with no beast able to raise a pebble in terms of power, the tribes of the desert however, beg to differ, in the desert on extremely rare occasion a Sand Devil is born it is said they are born through the anger of the spirits of the desert intending to punish the tribes inhabiting the desert, these Sand Devils are strong enough to be compared to High level threats of Iraedin, which most nations consider a threat strong enough to wipe out an entire town or even a city by itself. For all the strife and bloodshed of the Deserts, there are two saving graces, the first is that despite the mutual anger towards one another for the tribes, if an outward presence ever dared to threaten the desert the tribes would temporarily put aside their differences for the sake of driving them out. The second, is the myth of the Champion of the sand, the legend is similar to small tales and myths throughout the mainland in that when a tribe is at its weakest having exhausted all means of defending themselves against a desert demon the sands champion will appear to reward them for their efforts however futile, the difference between this and most myths, is that the tribes within the desert have an almost religious confidence in the existence of the legend, and easily start a fight with any who attempts to argue otherwise.
Within the fierce desert among all the tribes who war against each other there are two which boast the largest numbers and the strongest warriors. The first major tribe is the Makos, which exists on the east of the great Enbas river, the Makos are giant brutish warriors, and what the stereotypical assumption of what a "desert barbarian" is. Nonetheless, Makos has the longest standing of any tribe, creating the closest thing to a city within the entirety of the Fierce Deserts. Due to the standing of Makos this leads their warriors to be extremely experienced in combat, heralding fighting techniques that have stood the test of time against other tribes for centuries. The other major tribe is the Dytos, west of the great Enbas river, which functions closer to a group rather than a tribe, the tribe functions nomadically with a large portion of their members separated from each other. The members of Dytos roam around the entirety of the Deserts west of the Enbas river, with their primary goal to follow in the footsteps of the Champion of the Sand to save minor tribes from the threat of desert demons. To further reinforce this upon those from their tribes maturing and becoming warriors they wear masks to cover their faces in reverence for the Champion of the Sands. Those from Dytos have no solid fighting style instead they each develop an adaptive fighting style ready to fight any foe, created from countless battles from some of the most dangerous creatures throughout the Fierce Deserts.
Divine Atrocities
Unlike most of the world, a majority of the people of the deserts are fierce believers in a religious pantheon they refer to as the Divine Atrocities with the members of the Dytos tribe being the most zealous of believers, however, the Makos clan only selectively believe in a few of the gods.
The Divine Atrocities are split into 3 categories, the Okunrin which were the gods closest to the people of the desert and would sometimes descend to help the people in times of desperate need, the Aderu, or gods who sought only to destroy and punish those of the deserts, often portrayed as the originator of certain beasts and creatures of the desert, alongside the ever deadly desert demon, and lastly the Asale, which were less of gods as they were beings of unrestrained force representing the desert and it elements itself. Within the sacred lands there will often be statues depicting various Okunrin, whilst the Aderu may only be depicted in murals in battle or stories within certain lands under control of the Dytos. However, in the more treacherous corners of the deserts there are some who do worship the Aderu. The Asale as being of the desert are far too powerful and destructive for a mortal to dare to come anywhere near them, as such, there are no depictions of them.
(parenthesis are applied for what the names of these gods translates to outside of the dialect of the desert people).
Pictures of various gods are often seen in the form of statues or murals in Dytos temples.
For more info on the religion click here Divine Atrocities
The Makos
A giant humanoid figure, impeccable musculature through over two decades of the harshest training imaginable, all paling in front of their untold fury once in combat, these traits are what makes up the core essence of a Makos Warrior.
Within the Makos tribe regardless of one’s personality, appearance, or race, all of this is considered worthless compared to an individual’s strength and power. The warriors of the Makos tribe are trained rigorously from birth in order to combat the desert demons. This ideology is taken so seriously that despite a tribe member fighting their first desert demon and becoming a warrior at the age of 16, those within the Makos clan are only allowed to marry at the age of 24, at which point the warrior will be a veteran combatant, that is, if they survived till that point.
While Makos warriors endlessly test their prowess against the desert demons, it not simply for this purpose that they have their society revolve around the hunting of these creatures. When slain, desert demons are used for food, determining one’s status within the tribe and even using their hide/chiton/carapace to be used for weapons and armors by special blacksmiths within the tribe who use ancient techniques passed over the centuries. Building upon the mention of status, the hierarchy of the Makos clan is fairly rough, however, it can be said that their are four major categories, these being: Children (anyone who has yet to kill their first desert demon), Warrior, Valuerr (the best warriors of the Tribe), and the Chieftain. Within the tribe, even if an individual is of higher status than you, are not required to respect them or treat them differently, however, any tribe member is able to challenge another, and denying such a challenge will cause most to look down upon the even the most venerated of warriors. The only exception to the treatment of others, is the Chieftain, a warrior of such grand strength that the even a title such as Dragonslayer seems miniscule compared to the Chieftain. Unlike most of the desert people, those from the Makos tribe do not believe in the majority of the divine, with but two exceptions, Kuruk Har & Adarukh Har, most of those outside the Makos tribe believe the reason why is the legends surrounding these figures are similar to the ideal Makos clan warrior.
Towards other tribes the Makos are not always seen as a positive light, as they declare most of the Eastern deserts as their hunting grounds, leaving most other tribes to forage bugs and insects for food (however due to the danger of desert demons this can be a point of contention to being positive or negative). Additionally, as the Makos become stronger and develop greater number of warriors they slowly expand forcing other tribes to leave or become assimilated after a test of their warrior’s combat abilities. Nonetheless, regardless of the outlook on the Makos clan, the Eastern tribes can be effectively considered safe to outsiders, as in the few times outsiders have come to plunder or raze the tribes of the deserts, the Makos would respond by sending only the most brutal and violent of their warriors. Should an outsider come into the desert and attempt to visit the Makos tribe with non-hostile intentions, they will still be forced to partake a test, the test is simple, the individual must survive a single unarmed strike from the chieftain, if the outsider dies, they were weak and unworthy of any talks with the tribe, if they survive, they must be a strong and trained combatant, such is the simple laws of the Makos clan.
Should one wish, they may play a Makos warrior, for a short summarization of their mechanics, one may visit the Makos Warrior page.
The Dytos
Devoted warrior priests who worship the Okunrin and spend their lives nomadically traveling the Western deserts to assist tribes beset against powerful desert demons. After the appearance of gods within the deserts, it is expected that some would begin to worship and attempt to serve these gods, however, despite the prevalence of these gods in the legends and history of the deserts, any actual conversation with them is few and far in-between, creating a lack of teachings to follow. Nonetheless, those of the Dytos wear a mask, often fashioned out of a dead desert demon or carved from the most stable nearby resource, these masks are created in reverence for Kuruk Har, who has consistently worn a horned mask in every one of his appearances throughout the centuries. Compared to the Makos, the Dytos do not often wield weaponry made of desert demons, as they frequently gift the slain beast to any nearby tribe so that they may better defend themselves in the future, or simply so that they may eat better for the next couple days. Additionally, the Dytos do not have a set style of fighting amongst their tribe, as they specialize in adaptability and being able to fight with any armament they may come across, whether that be chains wrapped around their arms or simply their bare limbs.
While the Dytos are nomadic in nature in order to help those within the Western deserts, they have erected temples and statues in certain areas which appear to receive slightly less attention from desert demons. These temples are primarily used to teach new generations about the Divine Atrocities, alongside displaying their appearances through statues, a factor that would otherwise be forgotten over time. While joining a Temple is a choice, it is often relegated to older Dytos tribesmen, as their aged bodies are less fit for combat, these priests inscribe their knowledge through the addition of murals to the temples, alongside orally collecting and passing tales and legends of the Divine Atrocities.
A small portion of the Dytos will dedicate themselves as Retributors, a status not easily obtained within the Dytos. The Retributors have two primary objectives, the first and foremost, is to recover any people of the deserts who have been kidnapped and enslaved by outsiders who then brought the desert people to their own lands, with the Retributors brutally killing those who had committed the deed and who attempt to "own" the desert people. The second objective, is to kill any who dare to worship or try to invoke the power of the Aderu, as the undertaking if successful almost always will lead to relative disaster within the deserts.
Should one wish, they may play a Dytos member, for a short summarization of their mechanics, one may visit the Dytos Warrior page.
Monsters of the Deserts
Across the deserts, even the eldest of warriors and tribesmen will tell tales of their father and grandfather's achievements fighting against the Desert Demons, even the oldest myths of the deserts includes the existence of these age old foes, leaving many to believe that the Desert Demons have existed for as long as the deserts themselves have. However, while many younger warriors, believe Desert Demons to be the ultimate opponents, it is because they are too young and confidant to know the terror represented by the mere appearance of a Sand Devil. Compared to Desert Demons, Sand Devils are rare cataclysmic creatures, signaling a period of destruction until it is managed to be slain, the frightening appearance of a Sand Devil is so great, that in the few times a dragon has been sighted in the deserts, many warriors proclaimed its presence to be far below that of a Sand Devil. While the people of the deserts are fortunate enough that a Sand Devil only shows up once every couple decades, unfortunately, they have no way of preparing for the arrival as one, as every Sand Devil is almost completely different from the last, and where in the entire deserts it will first appear is random.
Desert Demons
For both Desert Demons and Sand Devils, those of the Dytos clan and other religious tribes, believe that the monsters were created by Aderu Kanarut and Siax respectively. To those of the Makos and other atheistic tribes, they simply believe these terrors have existed for as long as the desert itself has existed. Desert Demons described in an analytical manor, could be described as predators who are far more evolved than those found outside the Fierce Deserts, leading them to often be several times larger and deadlier. Another commonly observed factor by curious researchers is that a grand majority of Desert Demons are carnivores, these same researchers believe that the extreme competition for food and survival is the cause behind the extreme nature of creatures and people in the Deserts. Every mortal within the Fierce Deserts is almost constantly forced to engage with these Desert Demons in order to aquire food, this leads to even smaller tribes being quite combat capable, however, when the roles are reversed and a particularly dangerous or a horde of Desert Demons arrive, many smaller tribes will be annihilated. Nonetheless, Desert demons are often handled rapidly when sighted, on the East of the Enbas river, the Makos hunt them to prove their worth as a warrior and to take the spoils of their hide/chiton/carapace/bone to make armor and weapons, as iron and other common metals are extremely rare within the Deserts. On the West of the Enbas river, the Dytos clan handles the largest concentrations of Desert Demons in order to attempt to prevent a disaster falling upon minor tribes in the area, many Dytos will choose to donate the meat and materials of a Desert Demon so that these Minor Tribes can better prepare for the future. Many Desert Demons have specific preferences and ecosystems, some only live near mountains or within caves, while others form vast colonies which are no small task to fully exterminate. Lastly, It should be noted for any foreigner to the Fierce Deserts, that if a person of the Deserts is engaged in battle with a Desert Demon, no matter how dire the scenario, if one interferes with this battle that is an affront to the warrior's honor, and they will stop at nothing to kill the one who brought shame to themselves (a notable exception being those of the Dytos clan).
Sand Devils
Little is known about Sand Devils, even the most wise, experienced, and elderly of the Desert people may have never seen one, as the appearance of a Sand Devil is equivalent to the announcement of a natural disaster of cataclysmic scale. Within the Makos Tribe, a special celebration and event is held to honor their strongest warriors who will go out to defeat the Sand Devil, and those of the Makos are some of the only ones of the Deserts capable of fighting the Sand Devil without fear. However, even if they lack fear with their endless courage, in the face of a horrid creature such as a Sand Devil, even the mightiest of the Makos clan hold grim anticipation, unconfident of their victory. Even outside of the deserts, those who have witnessed the appearance of a Sand Devil claim that it is such a terrifying existence that the only other creature on the Mainlands that comes close is the most terrible of Iraeidin to have appeared over the decades. One of the few actually known details about Sand Devils is that no Sand Devil is similar to the last, some may be capable of flight, other many tunnel through the sand itself, some may fight with an assortment of talons and pincers, other may use their sheer weight to crush their prey. The only sole similarity, is that most Sand Devils produce a venom or poison, either of which, with extreme lethality.
