The Tzigani

The Tzigani are a collective people and culture that span races of Orc, Half-Orc, Human, and Halfling and are the oldest known culture to survive The Breaking, dating back to original inhabitants of Shadar during the Age of Antiquity as descendents of The Mygar Horse Lords. They are a nomadic people of deep heritage and tradition - found today in traveling troupes of performers and mystics in caravans of wagons and carts across the Tzodero Steppe and The Red Valley in the Imperial Fractals.
Tzigani are known to be masters of horseback riding, faster than most others and naturally gifted from birth - attributed to their ancestors. This makes them the quickest messengers in the Valedori Empire and can often be found working in stables or as a part of the Courier’s Guild.

A LIGHT IN THE DARK TIMES

During the Age of Darkness, many Haven cities came to rely on the ever-mobile nomads of the Tzigani to trade and communicate with the other survivors of The Breaking. The practice of Tzigani to welcome all wayward individuals from all walks of life into their caravans made them a saving grace to many who found themselves displaced or in danger during this time. Their practice of cremation also became critical during this time, and perpetrated their belief of Embers to even those outside of their caravans.
Tzigani caravans also became the benefactors of many mercenary crews of the time and are sometimes credited for helping spur the first Devilblood Companies. Though this connection to Devilbloods earned them an unsavory reputation in the Imperial Age, many Devilblood look fondly on those of the Tzigani culture and are considered honorary members.

IMPORTANCE OF PERFORMANCE

The most well-known practice of the Tzigani, often exaggerated to a near stereotype, is their practice of performance - including music, dancing, and storytelling. To the Tzigani, performance is both a service to others and to the self, to bring celebration and life to the soul. Tzigani dance often involves dangerous feats of sword dancing, daring acrobatics, and fire dancing. The music and stories of Tzigani take a more cultural importance, as oral storytelling is the primary source of history-keeping for the Tzigani people, often seen as connected to shaman and Druid practices, in addition to more modern Bards. Music of the Tzigani often involves instruments like the fiddle, lute, drums, and tambourine.
The height of this performance are traveling circus groups that tour the Northern regions of the Imperial Fractals, often stopping outside of Dvaros, Lowland Bend, the Accorsa Crossroads, and Csillasgrad. While not universally welcomed due to fears and rumors of the Flametongue Cultists, these circuses are famous throughout the modern world and home to feats of spectacle that can’t be seen anywhere else.

PRACTICES OF MYSTICISM

Some in the Tzigani culture are capable of “seeing” as a part of their shamanic or spiritual practices. This is a form of future-sight and fortune telling that has connections to Primal Magic, but is often more widely believed to be spiritual or witchcraft. The most common example of the uses of these mysticism practices is reading fortunes, which is done using tarot cards, palm reading, and bone reading - which is used by most Tzigani caravans to determine safe roads and prosperous paths for their travels. Tarot cards play an important role in the culture and it is common to find Tzigani in possession of these decks, even if they do not themselves practice “seeing”.
Henna tattoos are also incredibly common among Tzigani and are often offered as a part of their circuses to outsiders as well. In the Tzigani belief, henna tattoos are a way to alter your path when given a fortune to lead you to greater prosperity. These often have innate magical properties as well, and are the subject of prophecy and destiny-writing for skilled shamans of the Tzigani people.

by Alexander Tooth