Nuél-orokh
The nuél-orokhim are an Orokh people who reject the worship of Gruumsh and the pursuit of destruction. Instead, most nuél-orokhim worship Prometheus, the Titan god of knowledge and light. They are known in common as "half-orcs," though this term is something of a mistranslation (the Orokhimshe "nuél-orokh" translates more closely to "new orc"). Nuél-orokh society is centered around ideals of defending freedom and pursuing knowledge.
The nuél-orokhim are a slightly younger offshoot of the Orokhim people that arose during the late years of the Age of Anxiety. They quickly rose to prominence over the next four centuries before being subject to The Extinguishing, a decades-long war with the orc tribes that resulted in the near-extinction of the nuél-orokhim. Over the last three millennia, the nuél-orokhim populations have slowly regrown from tiny groups of survivors in the Western Woods and present-day Dodiöu Réijmí into a vibrant culture well-known for its intricate handiwork, mastery of natural magic, and love of good-natured physical and intellectual competition.
Naming Traditions
Family names
Unlike the orokh, nuél-orokh use surnames. These are typically not inherited, but rather adopted sometime in adolescence to reflect a deed, trait, or title, during the coming-of-age ritual known as the Nazvanhi.
Most nuél-orokhim eventually outgrow the name chosen during their nazvanhi, adopting a new surname in middle age that better reflects the honors bestowed upon them in adulthood and using the name from their nazvanhi as a middle name. Traditional titles like Rangatira and Vohoni will often replace the surname by default; more modernized titles, such as military or clerical ranks, are used in conjunction with the surname (e.g. "Sergeant Tsuv").
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
Orokhimshe is the language of the nuél-orokh. Just as with the orokh and eldorokh dialects, Nuél-Orokhimshe has no official written form, but instead relies on a strong oral tradition and a woven alphabet. Weaving color and material holds great importance; nuél-orokhim will not weave with materials that require another being's death (such as silk, leather, or fur) unless the message holds great significance. The most basic and common weaving material is dried pampas-grass, sometimes dyed different hues with berry juices or other natural pigments. Fibers made from the hair or wool of herded animals are also common materials.
Common Myths and Legends
In the founding myth of the nuél-orokh, known as the Birth of the Nuel-Orokh, Prometheus appears to a young Orokh girl named Ilga who had been cast out of her tribe's lands and gives her a controlled flame. Ilga asks him to teach her how to share fire with others, and ventures forth among her people to share the gift with them and the world, so long as they agreed not to use it for destruction.
Historical figures
Ilga the Brave, who lived during the Age of Anxiety, is considered the founder of the nuél-orokh. She brought together the first groups of orokh who rejected the wanton violence and destruction of their kinsmen
Reshvaun Tsuun was a chieftain and diplomat who rose to power in the last years of The Extinguishing. He led his people on a perilous journey across Orokh-controlled territory and into the Western Woods, where he bargained for their protection and survival from the ancient Druid circles of the land. Today, nearly all native-born nuél-orokhim claim to be able to trace their ancestry back to Reshvaun or one of the other 119 nuél-orokh who survived the journey west.
Heketoro Rangatir'kaha was the Arakhi Rangatir'nghére of the Western Woods during the War of Great Sorrow in the 300s CPX. Heeding a call for help from the Northern Eldorokh Caravans, he led a battalion across the continent and into Draxhaven. Sadly, he and his troops were lost somewhere within Draxhaven's mountains, and his Staff of the Arakhi Rangatir'nghére remains lost to this day.
Ideals
Relationship Ideals
The most important relationship in nuél-orokh society is that of a Bankhur and rider. Young bankhurim bond to their adolescent riders for life and rarely-- if ever-- accept another rider while theirs is still alive. It is believed that cruelty towards one's bankhur will turn the bankhur against the rider in the afterlife and forever prevent their Soul from ascending to the Upper Planes.
Since freedom is so highly valued among the nuél-orokhim, strict monogamy is relatively rare.
Parent ethnicities
Related Organizations
Related Myths
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