Novayan Cultural Traditions
Novaya is a region home to distinctive cultural traditions. Its inhabitants are a strange collection of traditions and beliefs. At first glance, Novayans appear to be stoic military imperialists, with rigid social structure and customs. On further inspection, one would notice the flaws in this understanding. The peoples of Novaya, particurarly the Plainsfolk, live by the code of "Kazarak" or the art of being truly free.
Novayans are loyal only to the Grand Duchy, but are constantly at war, whether it be with enemies of the state, or inter-tribal warfare. The clans are lead by older elected women who have survived past menopause, as old men are considered unworthy to lead, having lived too long into adulthood to be considered a worthy warrior. Novayan men are socialized to believe that they must travel the world and experience the true freedoms of the land and of the hunt, whether it be food, war, or women.
To have lived a full life full of adventure and died of unhonourable causes is to be known by your descendants as a "Mudak", or a castrated pig, following the oral telling of a tale of a respected elder warrior who has survived a particularly blood thirsty battle only to have later died falling of his horse on a pig hunt.
The women of Novaya are expected to stay at home and bear children, build mud floors, and cart water for horses, but are also expected to ride into battle should the need to protect their home arise while their men are seeking Kazarak. Should they live long lives and provide well for their families, women may then be elected as "Astaman", leaders of their clan. Men are rarely ever elevated to this status.
While historically, Novayans only built temporary camps and were a largely nomadic group, in the last 200 years, more permanent settlements have been built in order to practice agriculture. Horse breeders of the open plains are still respected in their community, with many young men of the settled class being considered the closest to Kazarak while living in permanent settlements.
Following the increased use of magic prior to the permanent settlements, Novayans developed a deep distrust of magic and magical beings, and many superstitions were born. The superstitious nature of the Novayans lead to a deep sense of tradition among the clans in order to ensure the survival of the Grand Duchy. Witches, mages and sorcerers are all considered distrustful, while divine magics of druids and clerics for healing is accepted. As a warrior group, the weak are often left to die, whether they be infant or elder, man or woman.
While very few Novayan men will admit to romantic inclination due to teasing between men about defying Kazarak in order to settle with one particular woman, the Grungan author, Walentyna Baczewska, published the novel "The Glass Mountain" based on the traditional love story told by Novayan women. The story tells of a brave young man determined to wed the princess on top of the mountains between The Frontier and the Grand Duchy. The princess was so beautiful and clever, that she sang the Novayan man from his saddle to climb atop the mountain and forever give up Kazarak in order to keep him in her home for herself so that she might have brave children to protect her mountain. The story is passed down through a matrilineal system. While men are bound by Kazarak in society, the women will attempt to break it for their own benefit so that their parents may receive a dowry in exchange for their hand in marriage.
A traditional Novayan dowry will differ between clans and social roles. Hunters will provide wolf pelts as a symbol of bravery and warmth through the winters of the steppes. Farmers will provide their best seeds of that year to represent fertility. Horse breeders will give three gallons of milk from their best mare to the father of the bride, and their best unbred mare to the bride herself to represent purity. True Kazarak soldiers will give no dowry, and simply marry a woman from a warring country and bring her back to camp. Settlement and trade between countries has blurred these traditions, and many young Novayan men will attempt to haggle with non-Novayan fathers for the correct price of their chosen bride. Settled Novayan men are also expected to build the roof and furniture of the marital home to symbolise their protection and comfort, while their bride is expected to build the walls and floor from clay and horse dung to show her work ethic and connection to the land.
While there are rumours of Novayan men treating their wives as property to be abused as they wish, Novayan born women are often not subject to this, as they have been reported to threaten to take their children to their grandparents, burn down the home their husband built, and refuse to prepare food for their husbands. These threats are considered quite challenging to deal with, as to go back to the home of their mothers is not considered following Kazarak for Novayan men. War brides of the martial class generally have poor understanding of this custom and often have little knowledge of how to defend themselves should the need arise.
Novayan dance rituals take two forms. One that is unmounted, where the dancer will squat and kick out their legs, as well as leaping. The other is to display the trust and acrobatic nature of dancing on horseback, often to show of martial ability between men.
