Sakamohr

"The only good Sakamohr is a dead Sakamohr. I'll never forgive them for what they did to Belyos. What's that you say? The palace in Llaris was designed by a Sakamohr? Diyom take you! They're uncultured swine, and I think you're talking nonsense."

Sakamohr claim that they are the original inhabitants of the continent, and that they also originally occupied the area that is now known as the Inner Sea. What happened to the Sakamohr who lived in that region, no one knows, as the Imperial peoples who settled the lands claimed that they were empty, with no evidence of past occupancy.
Unlike their neighbours to the north, Sakamohr are not as ethnically homogenous, but tend to have lighter colour hair and skin, and whilst not ubiquitous, blue eyes are common with Sakamohr, unlike with Imperials.
Almost 200 years ago, a collection of Sakamohr clans took advantage of the anarchy in Imperial lands and invaded. Taking control of most of the southern parts of the Empire, they claimed hegemony over the lands for 180 years before in-fighting and a period of cooperation from previous Imperial states evicted them from Imperial lands.
Sakmohr influence over southern Imperial culture is often deliberately ignored, but during the middle age of their occupation, some of the clans sought to integrate better with their Imperial neighbours, and emulated some Imperial styles. This fusion of the two cultures produced a short-lived distinctive style that is emulated by more fashion conscious Imperial nobles.

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Naming Traditions

Family names

All Sakamohr hold allegiance to their clan first and foremost, and this is reflected in their family name, which has two parts - their clan name and their role within the clan. Actual correlation to one's biological family is not present. Clan names are often after animals and natural features associated with positive traits.
Some examples are:
Eagle-Smith
Wolf-Hunter
Horse-Tanner

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Culture

Culture and cultural heritage

The mixed Sakamohr-Imperial style that grew up in and around Belyos in the mid-1500's was a direct result of Mostyr and his son Thrildsay's fostering in the city of Llaris. Whilst the city at the time was a bare reflection of its past glories, and certainly nothing like the urban metropolis it would become 400 years later, the fusion of the wooden simplicity of the Sakamohr and the stone, dome heavy style of the earlier Empire, became popular with the remnants of the more well-off Imperial citizens who remained.
When Thrildsay was overthrown, and the Sakamohr leadership devolved into anarchic in-fighting, the remaining Imperials with any wealth remaining were targeted, and those not killed outright fled, taking their unique fusion style with them and great fire that came a few years later destroyed most of the standing buildings in the city.
The aftermath of Til-Yaltur's crusade saw all connections to the Sakamohr viewed as abhorrent, and the remaining buildings in Belyos with Sakamohr influence destroyed. Those constructed by exiles in other cities tended to survive, particularly those outside of the regions devastated by the Sakamohr occupation. In recent years, this architectural style has become quite popular, as a way of acknowledging some of the benefits that the Sakamohr hegemony brought to the Empire. Even so far that Sakamohr captives are used as consultants to get the styling authentic.

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Shared customary codes and values

The Sakamohr homelands are traditionally located in the south of the lands claimed by them, around their only major city of Cheingo, but have spread throughout the entire region, particularly along the coast, covering an area much larger than the neighbouring Empire. As such, culture and values have changed significantly in that spread, but there are some common values still present from their early nomadic ways.
Primary amongst these values is the significance of the herds of horses and cattle that dominate the central Sakamohr Plain. Even though some of the clans have changed to a maritime culture, and are well known for their nautical skills, the horse and cattle still feature in art and aesthetics heavily.
Religious worship is secondary to most Sakamohr, and their knowledge of the various pantheons is very different to Imperial and even Dwellers theology. All Sakamohr venerate only one of the gods, a benevolent guardian spirit that represents their land, and their status as outsiders to the more theologically diverse Empire. This spirit's name varies considerably across Sakamohr lands, but its ubiquitous nature has led many Imperial theologians to associate it with Nexi, and as such all Sakamohr are viewed with considerable distrust.

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Average technological level

The Sakamohr lag behind the Empire in terms of metallurgy and other infrastructure related technologies, with typically weaker steel in their weapons and armour, and seemingly unable, or unwilling, to construct such things as roads and bridges. The Kharsh in Cheingo is the area's only large stone building, but its form differs vastly from typical Sakamohr architecture, and the methods of its construction are not known. Imperial scholars who have seen the building postulate that it pre-dates the existing Sakamohr culture, and is far older than the city that has grown around it.
In some aspects the Sakamohr are more advanced than the Empire. Their horse breeding skills are excellent, and Sakamohr horses are considered the finest in the world. Their equine skills are also noticeable, with horse-archers and armoured cavalry being an important part of their tactics. 
Whilst Sakmohr ships are smaller than their Imperial counterparts, they are far better suited to the coastal waters they traverse. With long hulls, triangular sails, and a clinker-built structure, they roam far to the north and south, raiding the coast where Imperial settlements pop up and even being seen in the seas on the way to the Northern Continent. There have been a number of demands to the Emperor of Belyos to send a fleet of Imperial ships south to clear the seas of Sakamohr pirates, but high ranking navy officials know such a thing would be foolish and waste of ships.

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Historical figures

The one person whom all Sakamohr know of, is Pexld the conqueror, who took the largest, unified collection of clans ever seen in Sakamohr history through the mountain pass and captured the famous Imperial capital of Belyos.
Opinion of the figure is deeply divided; amongst the clans that live a long way from the Empire, he is revered as a righteous leveller, who showed the hedonistic Empire that their ways were weak, and that true strength lies in the Sakamohr.
To those whose lands were either next to the Empire, or who now border the heavily patrolled Marches, Pexld is a foolish egomaniac, whose religious zealotry might have given the Empire a bloody nose for a few hundred years, but ultimately brought the wrath of a much larger and powerful nation on them, causing hardships for many. They are keen to remind those who live further away that of the 10 clans that entered the Empire, only 2 returned, much reduced in number, and the crusade that followed them a just over a hundred years later decimated the clans in their path and saw Cheingo destroyed and left in ruins for a long time.

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Typical depiction of a Sakamohr from the clans closest to the border with the Empire.

Related Organizations

• Nexites