Skanwatre hegemony

In the west of the continent, at the Leviathans Shores, emerged the youngest nation of Kandria, Skanwatre. The history of this realm is marked by the alliances and by the blood of the wars between the numerous independent clans. Still neither the Andric Empire nor the Midden Reik have set foot in this realm without regretting it.
Few centuries ago the Umi Clan has systematically subdued all the other clans by diplomacy or annihilating them in war. There have been attempts before to unite the clans, but they all have failed at some point; be it through rivals or through the lack of support from the population. Skanwatre thrived under the reign of the Umi. But in the cities and the regions around Kirkburgh and Braeinnaird, home to the halflings, voices have become louder to separate from the rest of Skanwatre.
Over the many years they spend waging war amongst each other, they have created a warrior ethos. They highly believe in individuality and honor. The highest honor someone can achieve is to die in battle. Fleeing from a fight is seen as a great shame that will make you an outcast of your entire clan and you will become a clanless Nirion. These honorless vagabonds have lost all their rights until their honor is restored. Only a Kai Shuryo can restore the honor of a ronin. The outcast has to fight 13 battles or duels for the Kai Shuryo. Only through the way of the warrior, shall the honor of an outcast be restored. That being said a Watre has the right to choose their own way in this life as long as they are not a coward. If a Watre of a Warrior Clan sees it fit that their life is that of an Innkeeper it will be supported by their clan.
The weapons of the warriors are quite diverse cutlasses, sabers, rapier, axes, broadsword, Bidenhänder and spears but the blades that stand out the most are the curved, slender and singled edged blades. These blades are known for their exceptional sharpness and cutting ability. The steel of these blades are folded many times during the smithing process, to give it outstanding durability. These blades are known as Bolstre and they come in different sizes. The short variant, Stutt Bolstre, has a blade length of 30 cm - 60 cm, the longer version, Midlungs Bolstre, is between 60 - 80 in blade length and the longest variant, Störr Bolstre, goes from 90 cm to 380 cm blade length. Störr Bolstre beyond the legend of 210 are used as ceremonial pieces or serve as decorations. The longest swords reflect upon the history of a clan. If a Kai Shuryo dies, part of their blade is incorporated into the ancestral blade. The achievements and the history of the clan can be experienced by reading the blade.
The clan armours are quite a work of art. The horned helmets combined with the nasty looking face plates resemble the visage of a terrifying demon straight from the deepest depths of hell itself. Depending on the wealth of a clan the armours come with leather or chainmail. The clan crest is incorporated into the chest part of the armor and it resides proudly in the center of the front of the helmet. The leather and chainmail are often decorated with certain elements symbolizing the traits of the clan, the rank and the achievements of the individual warrior.
Their huge dragonboats have taught the Andric Empire the meaning of fear many times and beat their armies back into the watery abyss. Watren of the west coast are known to be excellent sailors. Their abilities to read the seas and stars is unmatched. Currently even they don't sail out to the sea too often as storms and the sighting of a particular horrid leviathan, make the sea unsafe and the current Shio Kejserina, Bylgja Mizusdotje, doesn't want to lose her fleet. This is seen as a cowardly act by the clans, but the current sovereign is looking for a solution with less sacrifices to the problem. Occasionally a small reconnaissance fleet is sent out, to track the movement of the leviathan and a bounty has been set out to slay the foul beast. Every clan is now waiting to collect the bounty and sees it as an opportunity to challenge the rule of the Shio Kejserina and the Umi clan.
Some wars have been fought against the Andric Empire, with rarely any changing results for any site. The fighting mostly took place on the high seas. After some attempts to annex Skanwatre, the pragmatic Empire has decided that it would be more beneficial to establish trade deals with the clans than pointlessly throwing sailors at them. Today the Andric Empire and Skanwatre are flourishing trading partners. The recent trouble with the waterways have reduced the trade by a lot. Currently there are talks with the The Dwarves of Lóng Huǒ to use some their secret ways through the mountains. The dwarves have barely any contact with the clans, as they see nothing worth having from them.
Before the Regions Skanwatre and Midden Reik got their names, both realms were populated by many independent Clans. Only during an invasion of the Andric Empire the clans united to fend off their invaders. The eastern clans decided to stay together and start the beginnings of the Midden Reik. The Western Clans preferred to keep their independence and became the Realm of Skanwatre. In later years the Sibling War broke out in which the Midden Reik tried to annex the Lands of Skanwatre. Which was repelled by the unity of the western clans. This was an important cut in the relations between the Midden Reik and Skanwatre, as before this incident the clans viewed each other as relatives. The betrayal of the Midden Reik is incorporated in the ancestor blade of every clan and has not nor will it ever be forgotten. Over the years the Midden Reik tried many times to bring their relatives back into their realm, but it always resulted in harsh resistance from Skanwatre. The only region that stayed in the Midden Reik was Spruceborough, as they decided willingly to join them.

Naming Traditions

Feminine names

Freya, Eddar, Harpar, Saga, Kira, Hrefna, Ludvika, Sunnar, Aika, Dora, Rei, Lukkar, Kata, Katla, Jana, Theodora, Björk, Amaya, Vikttir, Bjoral, Helgatir, Hirma Soffia, Mai, Arnkatla, Dagmar, Asdis, Bergrunn, Mei, Torny, Solveig, Magnhild, Liv, Annveig, Thorvi, Erika, Ingeborg, Randi, Eir, Vigdis, Yuna, Ronja

Masculine names

Masculine names Abe, Stefan, Johann, Kato, Torr, Tyr, Bjartur, Torleif, Erik, Hjordis, Alvis, Takahashi, Snorri, Nakamura, Hallbjorn, Thorfredr, Yamamoto, Oyvind, Njord, Viggo, Oddmung, Sigger, Halstein, Somerled, Tollal, Folke, Randolf, Vragi, Kerr, Stigr, Leif, Mori, Eindride, Haldor, Torgny, Ishikawa, Kare, Birger, Helge, Matsuda

Family names

The sons and daughters inherit the names of their mothers and fathers. The son might be called Yamamotoson and the daughter might be called Björkdotje.

Culture

Major language groups and dialects

Draggr, Common Speak

Shared customary codes and values

A sign of good intention and friendship is grabbing each other's forearms upon meeting.

Common Etiquette rules

The many clans of Skanwatre have different expectations on what to do in different social settings. For all clans it is always important to hear out the words of friend and foes before making any rash decision. Watren love nature and for them it is of the utmost importance to respect it and to try to upkeep at least a small garden. It is custom for the guests to acknowledge and even compliment the garden of the host, anything less would be a grave insult. Many Clans have a communal garden, in which Watren like to work in their freetime.

Art & Architecture

Watren love to carve many things, doesn't matter from which material it is carved, be it stone, marble or wood. Their carvings often represent different spirits of nature.
The architecture is very simplistic and doesn't show complex structures, but the materials they use are astonishing. Besides wood they often use the bones of creatures such as whales, bears, wolves to decorate their houses. The carvings in the wood and the bones are witness to the common heritage they share with the Midden Reik.

Foods & Cuisine

The citizens of Skanwatre love Seafood and consume it on a daily basis, but they usually aren't picky eaters as they eat kelp too. Sometimes they eat goat cheese with some form of bread or porridge. Only the upper classes and hunters tend to eat venison, goat and sometimes pork. Cattle are far too expensive to be eaten by the common folk and often just gets exported abroad.
Skanwatre is known for its exquisite wine and tobacco grown by the halfling population in Braeinnaird and Kirkburgh. These goods are exported all of kandria. The most famous wine comes for Braeinnaird and is called mid-sumar yume and tastes like sweet berries and honey on a pleasant midsummer evening. It takes years for it to mature into this sweet nectar of a pleasant dream. The wine matches perfectly with good Old Gunnarson Tobacco, with a pleasant sharp-earthly taste.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

A quiet common tradition at festivities is to showcase the martial prowess of the young warriors in duels to the first blood. Especially at Weddings between clans every partner has to fight 3 duels against warriors of the opposing clan before they are allowed to be married. In current day and age the fights are staged and in favor of the bridal pair, but in the past marriages some clans did not have the courtesy to lose on purpose. In modern times this is seen as a great insult against the bridal pair and the opposing clan. This would most likely lead to a bloody feud until honor has been restored.
Back in the days the ritual suicide has been a way to restore an individuals honor, but the modern Watren see it as cowardly and running away from the problem at hand. Restoring one's honor is only possible through courageous deeds and selfless sacrifices, which may lead to an early grave anyway, but at least the relations between the two clans are mended.
Another very important courtesy is to respect the dead of the enemy and to return the bodies of the fallen back to the foe or at least mark the graves of the fallen for later recoveries. When dead can't be recovered because the bodies have been lost at sea or in battle it weighs heavily on the bereaved. Some say when the bodies haven't been put to rest properly their spirits will wander restless through this world. The Mourning Day is an ancient tradition in which the Watren beg the spirits of friends and relatives home so they might be saved. At this important day every clan member meets back at the clan house, with diverse and loud music they try to get the attention of the soul of the lost member, so they might return home again. The music, played by drums, string instruments and throat singing, is accompanied with a traditional dance, called Rei Dansa. The participants wear long colorful silky robes. When the night is darkest they lighten a bright fire outside.

Common Taboos

Besides all of the freedom Watren enjoy, like hunting, while roaming the lands of Skanwatre unhindered, they deeply respect the opinion of their higher-ups like captains or chieftains. They would never insult a clan leader neither of their own nor of another clan. If someone feels insulted the common result is a duel of life and death as the insulted has to defend their honor.

Ideals

Beauty Ideals

Watren prefer muscular and athletic bodies and all of them love long red or blonde hair. Men often have long and oddly decorated beards and women braid their heir to diverse braids. Richer men and women tend to tie different gemstones into their hair as a sign of wealth.

Relationship Ideals

The people of Skanwatre have complex polygamic relationships and their children are often raised by the elders of a clan. The multiple marriages have different priorities, some are about inner clan politics, others are about strengthening alliances between other clans and some are just about love. The average Watre has two to three partners at once, which all strive to achieve harmony with each other. The partners are not equal and their rank is determined by their rank in their respective clans.  This gets more complicated as the clans themselves are categorized as lower and higher clans depending on their political importance. A captain of a lower clan is not equal to a captain of a higher clan. This has an impact on the social status of the children; Kids of the 1st Degree in a relationship will be above kids of 2nd Degree and those will be more valued than 3rd Degree children. Their rank in society will reflect upon the education they receive. The children of a higher clan will always be above the children of a lesser clan.

Related Locations

• Skadraggen