Sarlagkhun (sahr-lahg-koon)
“Those who cleave closely to the Yang Principle such as the Maoniuren appear to lose sight of the whole of society. What comes first is the individual and his comforts, his views, his life. At most all else that is considered is the immediate family. Not even the revered ancestors are given consideration unless they were a particularly esteemed warrior. The elderly are reviled as weak at best. As detriments at worst. The only thing held in esteem is strength. But this can only hold any society together for so long and when it runs out, society fractures. As the yakfolk and the other northern barbarians have shown. Only by upholding the Six Virtues can society last for eternity.”
Sage, Tong Zhao-zi
Basic Information
Anatomy
The Sarlagkhun are an endoskeletal, warm-blooded species with two arms, two legs, a horned head, and a tail. Most of their bodies are covered in a long, coarse, shaggy fur with the exceptions of the palms of their hands and feet. This fur is shorter and softer on their faces, lower legs, and hands, and somewhat longer and thicker on their upper backs and on their upper arms. The fur on their chests and bellies is shorter and somewhat finer than on the rest of their bodies. Though this fur tends to be dark, blackish to brown in coloration. A small minority, however, can be quite variable in color with rusty brown or cream-colored fur with some even having piebald patches. Their legs are digitigrade allowing for a lower center of balance and their feet are a pair of rounded, cloven hooves which allows for greater traction on many environments. Their tails are long and horse-like rather than being like their southern cousins.
Biological Traits
Males of the species tend to be around 8 ft tall with a weight average of 500 - 600lbs. Females are smaller with heights averaging around 6.0 ft tall and averaging 350 - 400lbs in weight. Males of the species tend to be larger and more powerfully built, with denser musculature and denser bone mass. Females tend to have a wider hip to shoulder ratio to accommodate live birth and breasts for suckling young. Horns appear on both sexes with the horns of males being larger, sweeping out from the sides of the heads and curving backwards. With females' being smaller and more upright.
Genetics and Reproduction
Reproduction is accomplished between the male and female sexes of the species. Young are birthed live after a gestation period of 13 months.
Growth Rate & Stages
Sarlagkhun babies are mostly helpless and completely dependent upon adult caregivers. They learn to walk within the first year of life, go through an adolescent period of about 11 years, and reach sexual maturity between 12 - 14 years of age. Though, this can occur at a younger or older age depending on factors such as diet, parentage, or environment.
Ecology and Habitats
Though Sarlagkhun can survive in a wider range of habitats and climates, they are mostly found in the arctic tundra and steppes of the Steppe of the Iron Warrior. The warmer, southern climates, however, tend to make them extremely uncomfortable.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Sarlagkhun are technically omnivorous and able to survive on a mixed diet of animal protein and plant matter. In practice, they gain most of their sustenance from animal protein and dairy.
Biological Cycle
Sarlagkhun age at the same rate as humans. They are considered to have reached adulthood between the ages of 15 - 20. Old age is reached around 60 years. Death usually occurs around the age of 80+. Though, these stages can occur at a younger or older age depending on factors such as diet, parentage, or environment.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Sarlagkhun live side-by-side with the humans of the province they call home and organize themselves into a clan-based, tribal structure largely reminiscent of the Khumuus. Like the other clan-based societies extant within the empire, the nucleus of any clan is the main family branch with the head of that family holding most of the power within the larger clan structure. The power structure is matriarchal and typically based on age and social rank with the heads of each family acting mostly in an advisory position. Major decisions are usually come to through a consensus vote, but the ultimate decision lies with the clan head who has absolute veto power over any consensus.
This same dynamic is played out on a larger scale with the tribal structure of the race as a whole. The clan heads meet with the tribal chieftains to decide the direction that a tribe will move on any particular issue. For issues which affect the Sarlagkhun, as a whole, they are decided at an annual intertribal gathering called the Khural.
This same dynamic is played out on a larger scale with the tribal structure of the race as a whole. The clan heads meet with the tribal chieftains to decide the direction that a tribe will move on any particular issue. For issues which affect the Sarlagkhun, as a whole, they are decided at an annual intertribal gathering called the Khural.
Facial characteristics
The faces of Sarlagkhun are bovine in nature. They have a short, broad face ending in rather wide, blunt snouts with broad nostrils. Their faces are mostly covered with thick, dark fur that is much softer than that on the rest of their bodies excepting their chests and stomachs. The hair on their heads and the backs of their necks is longer than the rest of the fur on their faces. The sides of their heads have large, backward-curved horns set just above their small, rounded ears. Though they tend to look mostly bovine, there are subtle differences, however, in that their large, dark eyes are centered more closely toward the center of their skulls. Giving them better depth perception than a mundane bovine. They also possess large, sharpened canines which standard bovids and their cousins to the south do not have.
Females have even finer, more delicate facial features than those of their male counterparts. As well, their fur tends to be much finer and softer than that of the males', and their horns are more upright than swept back. Males have longer fur around their nostrils and on their chins which they tend to braid or decorate with beads or leather ties.
Females have even finer, more delicate facial features than those of their male counterparts. As well, their fur tends to be much finer and softer than that of the males', and their horns are more upright than swept back. Males have longer fur around their nostrils and on their chins which they tend to braid or decorate with beads or leather ties.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Though individual Sarlagkhun, or small groups, can be found nearly any place within the empire, they primarily occupy the arctic and subarctic regions of the Steppe of the Iron Warrior.
Average Intelligence
Sarlagkhun are a sapient species capable of having complex thoughts and possess self-awareness. They form societies and utilize the technologies extant in the empire.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
The Sarlagkhun are a tribal people who reckon their descent from six, great tribes: Gashawambi, Buhawambi, Ambaweihewambi, Nauihewambi, Fathawambi, and the Weihewambi.
These are the most ancient of names in use by the Sarlagkhun with wambi, or "killer," being the accepted word for "tribe" among them. Though they are used most often to refer to groups of people, as a whole, or to claim descent rather than being used to refer to a single person. There are many clans and branch families which exist within the six great tribes. Family, or clan, names are passed down through the mother's line and are usually only used when dealing with the settled peoples to the south and are not really used much by the Sarlagkhun in their daily lives. They, in fact, have a much older system of descent-names which they use among themselves in formal situations or to speak of other individuals. When it becomes necessary to identify themselves through their parentage, they will use a matronymic system which denotes their lineage through their mother. Where their mother's name becomes a possessive article before their given name.
Tribe, or clan, names are most often used for the government census takers, and are only used in practice when a particular individual wants to declare their clan and tribe to another tribe. When used, the clan name always comes first. The very few honorifics or titles used by the Sarlagkhun are only used with their given names, never with a clan name, and come after the given name. Most often the matronymic system is used in situations which would normally call for honorifics.
Like the Khumuus, the Sarlagkhun have only one given name which they use all their lives. Their names are given to them either by their parents, or by a respected elder such as a shaman. Sarlagkhun given names are fairly distinctive and with an immense variety to choose from. In general, there are several forms of names, such as those bearing suffixes like "-ngga", "-ngge" or "-nggo", meaning "having the quality of"; the suffixes "-tai" or "-tu", meaning "having"; or "-ju" or "-boo" meaning "son" or "daughter". There are even numeral, animal, such as Eje (bull) or Yelu (boar), plant, such as Fodo (willow), or Maca (garlic), or qualities, such as Bayan (big) used for given names.
Males names will often contain words or qualities traditionally associated with males, such as "strength", "iron", "big", or "hunter". Qualities their parents may want them to possess. While female names will usually be of things associated with females, or qualities their parents would want them to have, such as "beauty", "grace", "soft", "fire", "sun", or "wisdom". Some names among the Sarlagkhun are nothing more than a partial phonetic alteration of another name. This is especially common among siblings. For example, "Nurhaci", "Surgaci", and "Murhaci".
Unlike the Khumuus, when it comes to protecting their children from possible dangers like plague, the Sarlagkhun tend to go in the opposite direction. Rather than trying to fool any hapless spirits, the yak-folk want to frighten or destroy them and may give their child appropriate names such as "Plague Killer".
When addressing someone who is familiar to them, the Sarlagkhun will often shorten their name. This is most commonly done by choosing a single part of the name and adding a vowel or the suffix -bi. Sarlagkhun names are styled on real-worl Manchu.
These are the most ancient of names in use by the Sarlagkhun with wambi, or "killer," being the accepted word for "tribe" among them. Though they are used most often to refer to groups of people, as a whole, or to claim descent rather than being used to refer to a single person. There are many clans and branch families which exist within the six great tribes. Family, or clan, names are passed down through the mother's line and are usually only used when dealing with the settled peoples to the south and are not really used much by the Sarlagkhun in their daily lives. They, in fact, have a much older system of descent-names which they use among themselves in formal situations or to speak of other individuals. When it becomes necessary to identify themselves through their parentage, they will use a matronymic system which denotes their lineage through their mother. Where their mother's name becomes a possessive article before their given name.
Tribe, or clan, names are most often used for the government census takers, and are only used in practice when a particular individual wants to declare their clan and tribe to another tribe. When used, the clan name always comes first. The very few honorifics or titles used by the Sarlagkhun are only used with their given names, never with a clan name, and come after the given name. Most often the matronymic system is used in situations which would normally call for honorifics.
Like the Khumuus, the Sarlagkhun have only one given name which they use all their lives. Their names are given to them either by their parents, or by a respected elder such as a shaman. Sarlagkhun given names are fairly distinctive and with an immense variety to choose from. In general, there are several forms of names, such as those bearing suffixes like "-ngga", "-ngge" or "-nggo", meaning "having the quality of"; the suffixes "-tai" or "-tu", meaning "having"; or "-ju" or "-boo" meaning "son" or "daughter". There are even numeral, animal, such as Eje (bull) or Yelu (boar), plant, such as Fodo (willow), or Maca (garlic), or qualities, such as Bayan (big) used for given names.
Males names will often contain words or qualities traditionally associated with males, such as "strength", "iron", "big", or "hunter". Qualities their parents may want them to possess. While female names will usually be of things associated with females, or qualities their parents would want them to have, such as "beauty", "grace", "soft", "fire", "sun", or "wisdom". Some names among the Sarlagkhun are nothing more than a partial phonetic alteration of another name. This is especially common among siblings. For example, "Nurhaci", "Surgaci", and "Murhaci".
Unlike the Khumuus, when it comes to protecting their children from possible dangers like plague, the Sarlagkhun tend to go in the opposite direction. Rather than trying to fool any hapless spirits, the yak-folk want to frighten or destroy them and may give their child appropriate names such as "Plague Killer".
When addressing someone who is familiar to them, the Sarlagkhun will often shorten their name. This is most commonly done by choosing a single part of the name and adding a vowel or the suffix -bi. Sarlagkhun names are styled on real-worl Manchu.
Major Organizations
The major organizations of the Sarlagkhun are their tribes. Traditionally, these tribes are organized along the lines of the primary prey which they hunt. Which influences where they traditionally dwell. While individual clans and families may have slightly different customs or rituals in everyday life, overall each individual displays much the same behaviors and traditions as the rest of their tribe.
The Nauihewambi live on the northern steppes closer to the arctic tundra. There, their primary prey are the massive, fur-covered elephants and rhinoceros called by the human tribes, delkhiinever, and by the yak-folk, nauihe. Both names, meaning "earth horn," speak to the sheer size of these animals and their immense tusks. Which are prized by both the tribes of the Sarlagkhun and the empire, itself, for their durability and aesthetic and artistic qualities. Their ger, clothing, and ornamentation are most often made of the ivory, wool, fur, and hide of the mammoths they hunt. In fact, most of the ger of the yak-folk as a whole are often made of mammoth ivory and hide.
The Fathawambi dwell between the far northern tundra and the eastern mountains where they hunt their favored prey: the great ice and mountain bears. Their clothing and ornamentation often feature either images of the bears, themselves, or use bear hide, teeth, or claws in their constructions.
The Weihewambi roam the central and northern steppes where their own favored prey dwells. This tribe hunts the great-toothed cats, known as chormuur (demon cats) by the humans, which stalk the lowland areas in their own hunt for prey. The teeth are especially prized, and used ritually, by many of the yak tribes. The claws, teeth, and fur of the cats are often used in the contruction of clothing and ornamentation among the tribe.
The Ambaweihewambi are one of the more isolated tribes of the yak-folk. They live mostly in the far northeast along the coast stalking the great-toothed seals and whales which make those waters their homes. This tribe is the most sedentary and the only one skilled with in the use of watercraft which they use in their hunts. Like the mammoth hunters, the tusks and horns of their prey are especially prized not just by other yak-folk, but by the empire as a whole. Their clothing, ornamentation, and other tools often include the images, and the hides and teeth, included in their construction. Especially the more waterproof hides in the construction of clothing and ger. There is a splinter tribe which roams the mountains forests and grasslands along the eastern coast who hunt the great boar who make that place their home.
The Buhawambi occupy much of the same areas as the humans and the cat hunters. This tribe hunts the great bulls and aurochs which roam the steppes. Since these herds often occupy the same areas as the humans' herds, this tribe of yak-folk lives fairly close to humans. The horns, bones, and hides of these large bovines are often used in the construction of the tribe's clothes and ornamentation.
The Gashawambi also occupy the central steppes following the flocks of giant birds called irkhoshuu (blade beaks) by the humans. Like with the chormuur, these birds are considered by the Khumuus to be a great threat to themselves and their herds. Thus, the tribe which hunts these dangerous beasts is held in high esteem by their human counterparts. The feathers, beaks, and talons of the irkhoshuu are used in the clothing and ornamentation of the tribe.
Beauty Ideals
While faces and facial features are found attractive by the Sarlagkhun, and are one of those things that can inflame physical desire, like with the suigyujin, a major factor in the beauty ideals of either sex is their fur. The overall quality, thickness, and even the color of an individual's fur can effect whether or not they're considered to be attractive by other buffalo-folk. Patchy, dirty, clumpy, or otherwise unkempt fur, or fur that's too thin or too thick, can be a detriment to the Sarlagkhun who is looking to find a partner. That said, unique fur colors or patterns such as a piebald or blonde or ginger fur color, may draw more attention and be considered more attractive for its very uniqueness.
Another factor outside of the norm for facial or body types, is that size, shape, and condition are all things which can raise or lower an individual Sarlagkhun in the eyes of their peers. Horns, in fact, are probably one of the largest determining factors of whether or not a person is considered to be attractive. A male, for instance, with an impressively thick, glossy pair of curved horns can have relatively bad fur without it being too much of a hindrance for him in finding a mate. While a female with delicately and tall horns will always find herself at the top of the stack.
For males, when it comes to the facial features of females, a finely shaped, soft muzzle with wide eyes and softly rounded ears are considered to be attractive. Females tend to pay more attention to the quality of facial fur and the teeth of any potential male mates. Tending to prefer their facial fur to be longer around the muzzle and chin to form long mustaches and beards, and large, white canines. A couple of scars across the muzzle aren't looked at askance either.
When it comes to bodies, like many females, they tend to prefer their males to large-bodied and muscular. In truth, males who are adept hunters, who often take down large or difficult prey, are the most sought after. Again, a few scars across the body doesn't hurt anything, either. Males tend to prefer a thicker build on their women. While they are rarely fat, even female yak-folk tend to be more heavily muscled than the females of other species. Which is something that the males of the species loves. They also tend to prefer wider hips and ample breasts as these features are traditionally associated with childbearing and motherhood.
Much like with their fur or horns, an individual who cannot be bothered to take care of their own feet; whose hooves are cracked, chipped, dull, or flaking are not considered to be worthwhile.
Another factor outside of the norm for facial or body types, is that size, shape, and condition are all things which can raise or lower an individual Sarlagkhun in the eyes of their peers. Horns, in fact, are probably one of the largest determining factors of whether or not a person is considered to be attractive. A male, for instance, with an impressively thick, glossy pair of curved horns can have relatively bad fur without it being too much of a hindrance for him in finding a mate. While a female with delicately and tall horns will always find herself at the top of the stack.
For males, when it comes to the facial features of females, a finely shaped, soft muzzle with wide eyes and softly rounded ears are considered to be attractive. Females tend to pay more attention to the quality of facial fur and the teeth of any potential male mates. Tending to prefer their facial fur to be longer around the muzzle and chin to form long mustaches and beards, and large, white canines. A couple of scars across the muzzle aren't looked at askance either.
When it comes to bodies, like many females, they tend to prefer their males to large-bodied and muscular. In truth, males who are adept hunters, who often take down large or difficult prey, are the most sought after. Again, a few scars across the body doesn't hurt anything, either. Males tend to prefer a thicker build on their women. While they are rarely fat, even female yak-folk tend to be more heavily muscled than the females of other species. Which is something that the males of the species loves. They also tend to prefer wider hips and ample breasts as these features are traditionally associated with childbearing and motherhood.
Much like with their fur or horns, an individual who cannot be bothered to take care of their own feet; whose hooves are cracked, chipped, dull, or flaking are not considered to be worthwhile.
Gender Ideals
Women are most often the religious and clan leaders for the Sarlagkhun. Women, being closer to the Yang Principle, are considered to be closer to heaven, the spirits, and the ancestors. They lead the tribes in times of peace and guide the people in their daily lives. They cook the food and craft many of the daily necessities of the nomadic life. Clan names and all other inheritance is passed down through the female line.
Males, meanwhile, are the war leaders, hunters, and herders of the people. Men lead the tribes in times of war and provide for the people in their daily lives through hunting the steppes for surviving megafauna such as mammoths and aurochs. They provide many of the raw materials for many of the things which are used in their daily lives. They also protect the camps and clans from the wild beasts and monsters which roam the steppes with them.
Males, meanwhile, are the war leaders, hunters, and herders of the people. Men lead the tribes in times of war and provide for the people in their daily lives through hunting the steppes for surviving megafauna such as mammoths and aurochs. They provide many of the raw materials for many of the things which are used in their daily lives. They also protect the camps and clans from the wild beasts and monsters which roam the steppes with them.
Courtship Ideals
Courtships are often initiated by the male. When he meets a female he likes, he contracts a matchmaker to dilver gifts to the female and her family. These gifts are symbolic of his strength, prowess, harmony, and prosperity. Things such as an aurochs hide, bear fur and claws, a tiger's great tooth, the tusk of a great seal, and the talons of one of the predatory land-birds, are all delivered to the intended and her family wrapped in red cloths. If this first gift is accepted, then the couple begin courting.
Gifts are exchanged several times, with the male delivering more gifts to the female and her family and using this excuse to walk out with her and get to know each other. If, at any time, a gift is rebuffed, then the courtship is over and they are no longer a couple.
When the male has decided he'd like to make the female his bride, then he delivers his proposal to her in the form of one, final gift: the ambafurdihe, a whole mammoth skin perfectly tanned, supple, and without punctures which represents loyalty, faithfulness, and fertility. If this final gift is accepted, the couple are now considered to be engaged.
Gifts are exchanged several times, with the male delivering more gifts to the female and her family and using this excuse to walk out with her and get to know each other. If, at any time, a gift is rebuffed, then the courtship is over and they are no longer a couple.
When the male has decided he'd like to make the female his bride, then he delivers his proposal to her in the form of one, final gift: the ambafurdihe, a whole mammoth skin perfectly tanned, supple, and without punctures which represents loyalty, faithfulness, and fertility. If this final gift is accepted, the couple are now considered to be engaged.
Relationship Ideals
Like so much of the empire proper, a household, and a relationship between males and females are a sort of microcosmic reflection of their society as a whole. The Sarlagkhun are a largely matriarchal society and the household is nominally run by the female and all clan names are passed down to any children through her. Meanwhile, the father provides for the household through hunting, herding, and protection.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Though, there is a much older tongue the Sarlagkhun once spoke known as Gisun, from which their tribal names are formed and some words are still ritually used, the primary tongue they speak in the current age is the Khumuus language, Khel. Their writing system is a vertical script called bichig. Though they are equally adept at speaking the Yang-majority language of Dayangyu.
Common Etiquette Rules
Unlike most of the empire, bowing is not the customary form of greeting among the Sarlagkhun. Upon meeting for the first time, especially after a new year, it is customary for two people to grip each others' forearms as a greeting. The positioning of the hands is based upon age and seniority. With the younger person's palms facing up and the elder facing down. If two people are particularly well known to each other, they may lock horns in a friendly fashion. Apart from this, any greetings are usually a quick nod and a verbal greeting.
When approaching a ger of the yak-folk, it is customary to stop a small distance away, i.e. outside of the owner's territory, and make a soft roar to announce their presence. Knocking or otherwise approaching the ger to announce one's presence is considered to be intruding on the owner's territory. Opening the door with the left hand is considered to invite bad luck. Inside the ger, guests sit to the left while the hosts sit to the right. The back wall is reserved for the family shrine.
Etiquette within the ger involves not leaning on the support pillar or the ger walls, remove warm clothing upon entering to not do so implies that the host isn't providing enough warmth, sleep with feet towards the door, don't accept food or gifts with the left hand, and keep the sleeves down to avoid showing wrists. Never throw garbage into the fire or pollute the water source as these things are considered to be sacred to the Sarlagkhun and to pollute them with waste is considered desecration.
Food and tea with milk and salt are always offered to guests. Food is typically eaten with the hands, spoons, a two-pronged fork, or a knife. It is considered impolite to decline food when offered, so guests will often eat at least a little bit of anything offered in order to avoid giving offense, and never take food with the left hand. On the other hand, it is perfectly fine to refuse alcohol. When drinking, it is customary to offer a few drops to the sky, the land, and one's ancestors. In order to refuse the drink, one must go through the offering ritual, but may politely decline after.
Much like with the rest of the empire, it is customary to bring a gift when visiting another person's home. There are very few honorifics within the Sarlagkhun society. They are usually only used for clan or tribal heads and their spouses or for shamans. They come after the given name and are:
- Khan: is the honorific used for tribal chieftains.
- Khatun: is the title used for the primary spouse or consort of the tribal chieftain.
- Khatagtaj: is used for a clan chief or head.
- Noyon: is used to address a shaman.
Common Dress Code
Like the Khumuus, the centerpiece of the Sarlagkhun costome is the deel ('dell'). This is a long, loose overcoat or robe commonly made of wool or cotton which falls to the knees on both sexes. The deel is paneled and closes with the left panel over the right and is buttoned on the right side. Men tend to wear the garment a little looser, while females prefer a more snug fit for their deel. The deel is typically worn with a cloth or leather belt to secure it at the waist. Unmarried women wear two belts: leather under the cloth belt. This forms a sort of pocket at the front between the two front panels and the belt, allowing the wearer to carry small items such as purses or pipes. Unlike the Khumuus, the Sarlagkhun do not ride, and therefore have no slits up the back of their clothing. Deels for women are typically more richly embroidered and varied in their color spectrum. Men's deels are more simply embroidered and typically black, blue, green, or grey.
The design can vary slightly based on function, between ceremonial wear or daily activities, or from winter to summer. Despite the fact they usually live further to the norht, the deel worn by the Sarlagkhun tend to be a lot lighter than those worn by their human counterparts. Winter deel are lined with silk for higher status folk or cotton, wool, or sheepskin for common folk. Most ceremonial wear is made of richer fabrics like silk. The design of the upper panels, the trim, or even the embroidery and coloring can allow one to discern the tribe or clan of the wearer, as well. More detail will be given later in this section.
Due to the fact that their legs are covered in a heavy fur, with a wooly inner coat, the Sarlagkhun don't tend to wear any sort of trousers under their deel. They do, however, make a nod toward modesty by wearing underwear. This underwear consists of a lighter pair of short trousers and a lighter undershirt, with the females' being more snug around the chest in order to support their breasts.
The primary indicator of one's social status among the Sarlagkhun are their horns, manes, ears, and/or facial hair. Sarlagkhun often decorate their horns with ornaments, jewelry, or even carvings. Tribal chieftains, for instance, will have their horns carved with scenes, symbols, or characters from heroic or religious tales or featuring their own exploits. These carvings can often be inlaid with either gold or a metal alloy known as chikado which combines gold and more based metals of a reddish hue. While ordinary warriors may have simple geometric designs or symbols carved into the bottom halves of their horns or simply decorated with leather wraps, rings, or dangling objects called ever durs. These ever durs are often spiritual objects sacred to the specific person, clan, tribe, or yak-folk as a whole. Though they can be secular in nature, as well. In other words, the higher up the horn the decorations go, the higher the individual's status.
A sleeved overcoat, or a sleeveless vest, called an uuj is often worn over the deel especially on more formal occasions such as holidays or social functions. The sleeved overcoat is typically worn by men, while women wear the vest. The costume of the Nauihewambi is, not surprisingly, mostly made of mammoth leather which is typically dyed white to blend into the mammoths' generally snowy environment. The inner lining is usually of dyed black mammoth wool. Females wear deel of undyed mammoth hide and fur with the fur on the outside. These deel usually have pictographs of differently colored beads woven into the mammoth fur. Their horns are usually decorated with scenes of mammoth hunts, strips of mammoth leather tied with ivory beads and mammoth fur. Their mane ornmentations are usually made of ivory. Ivory ornaments are usually left white or painted red. The deel of the Fathawambi are typically made of either bearskin or mammoth hide traded from the mammoth hunters. The deel of hunters are typically dyed in shades of white, black, brown, or green. Those of females are typically green, blue, or red and trimmed in bear fur. Their uuj are typically blue with white or black bear fur composing the top, front of the garment. Bear bones, claws, fur, and hide are used to decorate horns, manes, and clothing. The dress of the Weihewambi are more often a combination of their chosen prey and the more standard mammoth hide used by much of the yak-folk population. The deel of hunters are often green, blue, or brown. While those of females red or black and lined or trimmed with chormuur fur. The fangs are paticularly prized as parts of ritual costumes for tribal chieftains or shamans. Particularly headdresses. The bones, claws, hide, and fur are also featured heavily in the costume of this tribe. The deel of the Ambaweihewambi are, parhaps, the most unique of all the Sarlagkhun tribes. Much of the leather that is used by this tribe comes from aquatic mammals such as walruses and whales. Said leather is used for their clothing, ger, and the boats used to hunt these animals, called javi. The skins from many of these animals make many of the goods constructed of them to be at least partially waterproof. The clothing of hunters is usually composed of large walrus skins with an inner lining of seal skins. This tribe is one of the few of the yak-folk to actually wear trousers. The cuffs of their sleeves and pants are pulled tight to against their limbs and tied in an effort to keep the frigid waters from getting in. Females tend to prefer clothing made from the more showy mammals the tribe hunts. As well as supplementing this with different animal skins with longer, or different colored, fur. Spotted or striped seals are preferred. The bones and tusks of the sea mammals are often used in the construction of both ger and boats, as well as, used for decoration and art.
The part of the tribe which hunts the mountain forests use the hide of the great boars for their deel and are usually green or brown in coloration. The females of this splinter group will often trade the boar hide to their northern kinfolk for the seal hide to make their own clothing.
The costume of the Buhawambi are not much different than Galtumori tribe of the Khumuus people. They are made of leather taken from the massive wild cattle hunted by the yak-folk tribe. These leather deel are usually dyed green, red, or left their natural color. They often fringe and bead their deel. Females where an outer uuj of red with stiffened shoulders. The great horns and bones of the bovines are used to decorate manes, deel, and for ritual purposes. The clothing of the Gashawambi are usually made of the leather that they trade for with the Buhawambi. The clothing of hunters is often of white, green, or brown depending upon the season. Their prey is cunning and observant, and therefore their clothing is dyed in order to blend in with their environment. The front of their deel are often double-layered as that is the first place one of the great birds they hunt will strike. Females will often dress in more eye-catching colors like bright greens, reds, blues, or yellows. These are usually trimmed in the feathers of the great birds. The feathers, skulls, and talons of the birds are used to decorate manes, horns, clothing, and ritual objects.
The design can vary slightly based on function, between ceremonial wear or daily activities, or from winter to summer. Despite the fact they usually live further to the norht, the deel worn by the Sarlagkhun tend to be a lot lighter than those worn by their human counterparts. Winter deel are lined with silk for higher status folk or cotton, wool, or sheepskin for common folk. Most ceremonial wear is made of richer fabrics like silk. The design of the upper panels, the trim, or even the embroidery and coloring can allow one to discern the tribe or clan of the wearer, as well. More detail will be given later in this section.
Due to the fact that their legs are covered in a heavy fur, with a wooly inner coat, the Sarlagkhun don't tend to wear any sort of trousers under their deel. They do, however, make a nod toward modesty by wearing underwear. This underwear consists of a lighter pair of short trousers and a lighter undershirt, with the females' being more snug around the chest in order to support their breasts.
The primary indicator of one's social status among the Sarlagkhun are their horns, manes, ears, and/or facial hair. Sarlagkhun often decorate their horns with ornaments, jewelry, or even carvings. Tribal chieftains, for instance, will have their horns carved with scenes, symbols, or characters from heroic or religious tales or featuring their own exploits. These carvings can often be inlaid with either gold or a metal alloy known as chikado which combines gold and more based metals of a reddish hue. While ordinary warriors may have simple geometric designs or symbols carved into the bottom halves of their horns or simply decorated with leather wraps, rings, or dangling objects called ever durs. These ever durs are often spiritual objects sacred to the specific person, clan, tribe, or yak-folk as a whole. Though they can be secular in nature, as well. In other words, the higher up the horn the decorations go, the higher the individual's status.
A sleeved overcoat, or a sleeveless vest, called an uuj is often worn over the deel especially on more formal occasions such as holidays or social functions. The sleeved overcoat is typically worn by men, while women wear the vest. The costume of the Nauihewambi is, not surprisingly, mostly made of mammoth leather which is typically dyed white to blend into the mammoths' generally snowy environment. The inner lining is usually of dyed black mammoth wool. Females wear deel of undyed mammoth hide and fur with the fur on the outside. These deel usually have pictographs of differently colored beads woven into the mammoth fur. Their horns are usually decorated with scenes of mammoth hunts, strips of mammoth leather tied with ivory beads and mammoth fur. Their mane ornmentations are usually made of ivory. Ivory ornaments are usually left white or painted red. The deel of the Fathawambi are typically made of either bearskin or mammoth hide traded from the mammoth hunters. The deel of hunters are typically dyed in shades of white, black, brown, or green. Those of females are typically green, blue, or red and trimmed in bear fur. Their uuj are typically blue with white or black bear fur composing the top, front of the garment. Bear bones, claws, fur, and hide are used to decorate horns, manes, and clothing. The dress of the Weihewambi are more often a combination of their chosen prey and the more standard mammoth hide used by much of the yak-folk population. The deel of hunters are often green, blue, or brown. While those of females red or black and lined or trimmed with chormuur fur. The fangs are paticularly prized as parts of ritual costumes for tribal chieftains or shamans. Particularly headdresses. The bones, claws, hide, and fur are also featured heavily in the costume of this tribe. The deel of the Ambaweihewambi are, parhaps, the most unique of all the Sarlagkhun tribes. Much of the leather that is used by this tribe comes from aquatic mammals such as walruses and whales. Said leather is used for their clothing, ger, and the boats used to hunt these animals, called javi. The skins from many of these animals make many of the goods constructed of them to be at least partially waterproof. The clothing of hunters is usually composed of large walrus skins with an inner lining of seal skins. This tribe is one of the few of the yak-folk to actually wear trousers. The cuffs of their sleeves and pants are pulled tight to against their limbs and tied in an effort to keep the frigid waters from getting in. Females tend to prefer clothing made from the more showy mammals the tribe hunts. As well as supplementing this with different animal skins with longer, or different colored, fur. Spotted or striped seals are preferred. The bones and tusks of the sea mammals are often used in the construction of both ger and boats, as well as, used for decoration and art.
The part of the tribe which hunts the mountain forests use the hide of the great boars for their deel and are usually green or brown in coloration. The females of this splinter group will often trade the boar hide to their northern kinfolk for the seal hide to make their own clothing.
The costume of the Buhawambi are not much different than Galtumori tribe of the Khumuus people. They are made of leather taken from the massive wild cattle hunted by the yak-folk tribe. These leather deel are usually dyed green, red, or left their natural color. They often fringe and bead their deel. Females where an outer uuj of red with stiffened shoulders. The great horns and bones of the bovines are used to decorate manes, deel, and for ritual purposes. The clothing of the Gashawambi are usually made of the leather that they trade for with the Buhawambi. The clothing of hunters is often of white, green, or brown depending upon the season. Their prey is cunning and observant, and therefore their clothing is dyed in order to blend in with their environment. The front of their deel are often double-layered as that is the first place one of the great birds they hunt will strike. Females will often dress in more eye-catching colors like bright greens, reds, blues, or yellows. These are usually trimmed in the feathers of the great birds. The feathers, skulls, and talons of the birds are used to decorate manes, horns, clothing, and ritual objects.
Culture and Cultural Heritage
The Sarlagkhun are a nomadic-hunter people who spend their lives surviving in some of the harshest conditions of the world. The herds, packs, or flocks they hunt are the central focus of their lives. Like the Khumuus, their lifestyle is centered around their family and clan, their community, and involves the tracking and hunting of the six great animals of the steppes: the nauihe, the great bears, the great cats, the great sea mammals, the great bulls, and the great birds. This way of life has shaped the yak-folk culture for millennia and influenced their social relationships, family structure, and their art, music, and literature.
A preeminent example of this shaping of culture is the Sarlagkhun's rules of hospitality and support which extends even to personal enemies. While interclan and intertribal rivalries, and even warfare, is quite common among the yak-folk, leaving someone, anyone, in need to suffer and die on the steppes is a punishable offence. They are obligated to provide sustenance and shelter to anyone who seeks it out.
The Nauihewambi are one of the most respected tribes among the Sarlagkhun. This is due to the fact that they primarily hunt one of the most powerful and keen beasts roaming the steppes. An animal which benefits the Sarlagkhun as a whole by providing not just its meat, but the hides, wool, and tusks from which their clothing, ger, and other equipment are most often made. Therefore, the Sarlagkhun, as a whole, greatly respect both the Nauihewambi and the mammoths nearly as deeply as the Khumuus respect their horses.
A preeminent example of this shaping of culture is the Sarlagkhun's rules of hospitality and support which extends even to personal enemies. While interclan and intertribal rivalries, and even warfare, is quite common among the yak-folk, leaving someone, anyone, in need to suffer and die on the steppes is a punishable offence. They are obligated to provide sustenance and shelter to anyone who seeks it out.
The Nauihewambi are one of the most respected tribes among the Sarlagkhun. This is due to the fact that they primarily hunt one of the most powerful and keen beasts roaming the steppes. An animal which benefits the Sarlagkhun as a whole by providing not just its meat, but the hides, wool, and tusks from which their clothing, ger, and other equipment are most often made. Therefore, the Sarlagkhun, as a whole, greatly respect both the Nauihewambi and the mammoths nearly as deeply as the Khumuus respect their horses.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
The door of the ger always faces south. The north wall is the place of honor where the altar dedicated to the gods and ancestors is set up. The western wall is considered the to be the man's domain where his weaponry and hunter's tools are stored, as well as a skin bag of fermented milk hung on a wooden stand to be ready for guests. The eastern wall is traditionally the woman's domain where food is prepared and utensils are stored. The central area of the tend is where the firepit is kept.
The hunt is one of the more sacred acts to the Sarlagkhun mind. In many cases, the animals the yak-folk hunt are quite powerful, cunning, and tenacious, which turns every hunt into a legitimate battle for survival and a contest of strength, cunning, and willpower to bring even one of these mighty beasts down. Thus, the hunt itself becomes a sacred act to the primal yak people. When a beast is taken down, it is always thanked for its sacrifice in allowing the family or clan to live for another day, and not a single piece goes to waste. By far, the most sacred, and celebrated, of hunts is when one of the Greater Beasts is brought down. These immense animals are often the children of the Great Beast Spirits themselves and are often much more massive, intelligent, and powerful than even their standard kin. If one of these Greater Beasts is brought down, especially during the first hunt of the year, it is considered to be a sign of great fortune upon the clan who took it, and a sign of prosperity throughout the next year. Celebrations are had, and the hunter who made the kill is admired and treated preferentially through that year's hunting season.
Every successful hunt or battle is etched into the horns of the hunters who participated in it. These carvings are then filled in with a paint or lacquer of a color to stand out from the hunter's horns. In the case of tribal war chieftains, they are filled in with chikado.
The ritual of the Bigan Senggi (Ferocious Blood) is an ancient contest of strength, cunning, and ferocity which is called by many names and practiced in one form or another by nearly all the shouren. It is closest to its primal roots among the Sarlagkhun, however. This ritual can be invoked for any number of reasons, but the most common is due to insult, injury, or challenge, and it most often used when trying to decide on a war chieftain. A ring, fifteen feet across, is dug out of the earth with cloven hooves and the resulting trench is filled with the blood of the latest hunt as a sacrifice to the earth.
What follows is a series of growled challenges and replies from the challenger and the challenged. Once the challenges have concluded, the challenger and his supporters will begin a traditional dance and a chanted song which involves a lot of stamping, rhythmic slapping of the body, roared responses and the baring of fangs and tongues to bits of the chant in order to intimidate the challenged and his supporters and psych themselves up for the battle ahead. After the challenger is done, the one who was challenged and his party responds in kind, then both contenders step inside the blood circle.
The following battle is a brutal fight where the goal is for the challengers to show their strength and, possibly, their ability to lead their clan or tribe in times of strife. In order to prove this, one of the figthers must make their opponent submit. Weapons are not allowed, only the natural weaponry and the ferocity of each fighter is allowed to be brought into the ring. The fight only ends when one of the fighters is too broken or bleeding to continue, and thus submits, or they are dead.
Most fights don't end in the death of either fighter. Especially in the case of celebratory events like the Naadam. In those cases, they are mostly ritual contests meant to showcase the abilities of each of the respective fighters. The yak-folk may be primal, but they aren't stupid. A meaningless death is a loss to the Sarlagkhun as a whole. For one week, at the height of the season of Fire, the Sarlagkhun have a festival called a Khural, which is a festival gathering all the tribes together at the Tengeriin Nuur and involves a lot of inter-tribal and inter-clan revelry and rivalry featuring contests of the Bigan Senggi, athletics competitions, and archery competitions, and even ritual hunts. The Tsagaan Sar is another holiday adopted from the Khumuus people and marks the Sarlagkhun New Year celebration. Family members visit each other and exchange gifts and eat massive quantities of the special treat of the meat-filled buuz. The yak-folks' buuz are often filled with all of the meat of the Six Great Animals to symbolically wish all the tribes successful hunts over the next year.
On the day of the wedding, the bride and grom dress in their very best deel, and the bride dons her tribe's wedding uuj and attaches a red veil to her horns. This veil can be of silk or of crimson beads depending upon the tribe. The groom and his party go to the bride's dwelling in order to escort her to his home where the wedding ceremony will take place. Once there, he is met by the bride's father and her male relatives standing before her ger with a thick rope circle of braided, rope of red-dyed leather before him. The rope circle is fully fifteen feet across and the groom comes to a stop outside it along with the males traveling with him stationing themselves around him.
What follows is a completely ritualistic version of the Bigan Senggi where the goal is for the groom to showcase his own strength and ability to protect his bride by overpowering her father. In the distant past, this would have been a real battle between the prospective groom and anyone willing to challenge him for the right to take the female as his bride. These usually ended in the deaths of one or more yak-folk. In the modern day, these battles are ritualistic and the male is simply meant to get the bride's father to accept the new son-in-law by submitting. There is a lot of grunting, growling and bashing of skulls, but the father almost always willingly submits.
After this ceremony, the bride and the groom's parties gather together to go to the groom's dwelling for the actual ceremony. The two parties then compete to reach the site of the wedding ceremony first. The bride and her party will harrass the groom in order to distract him and reach the site first. However, the groom has prepared a meal near to his domicile in advance to honor the bride and her party. Which is something they are obligated to attend in order to accept his hospitality. This distraction allows the groom to reach the wedding site first.
Once both parties reach the site, the wedding ceremony is officially performed. The bride and groom jointly slaughter an antelope, caught earlier for the purpose, to check its liver for signs of good fortune. After which, the couple are presented two cups of wine which have ghee liberally smeared along the edges. They each take one drink from their own cup, then exchange cups and drink from that one. During this time, the shaman calls on the benedictions of the ancestors and the gods. The bride doffs her cloth belt to lay bare the leather belt beneath. The couple then pours wine for their guests and the celebration commences with feasts of the Six Animals, cheese, buuz, milk liquor, and many other delicacies being served over three days.
At the end of the first night, the newly married couple are gifted a ger, hunting tools, and several smoked sides of meat to start their life together by both sets of parents.
While giving birth, the mother is attended by a midwife and other female relatives. Men do not enter the ger during this time. Once it is born, the umbilical cord and placenta are buried near the southwestern wall of the ger, either inside or outside of it. This is thought to connect the child to the earth where it was born, as well as, to help restore a woman's fertility and heal her womb. The baby is cleaned with pure water from around the place of its birth before being given to its mother to nurse.
Within six to seven days of birth the newly born baby is ritually cleansed by the midwife who assisted its birth, and its name is given to it. Dairy products, meats, and milk liquor are made for guests, but any other alcohol is strictly forbidden at this ceremony. A reindeer hunt was conducted on the day that they baby was born and a saddle of meat from the fresh kill is offered to the midwife for her assistance. The intestines are cleaned, filled with seasoned blood, and cooked along with the kidneys, liver, and the fat from the legs and hooves. The rest of the meat is cooked and prepared for the ablution ceremony.
The midwife washes the infant in the blood of the tribe's favored prey mixed with salt and powdered juniper needles. The salt cleans the infant's body, the juniper sanctifies it, and the blood connects the infant to the prey. The name is given to the child either by the midwife, its parents, or another elder who gives the child an auspicious name. The baby is, again, washed with pure water before being given drops of the prey's blood mixed with its mother's milk.
After this, the feast is held and benedictions are sung to the child.
However, normal yak-folk have, in essence, generally been left to lie where they fell. Since many of the deaths happen in the field during hunts, it has traditionally and fatalistically been viewed as a repayment to the earth for a successful hunt. These hunters were honored by their brothers, thanked for their sacrifice, and left in state where they fell. Though the core ideals of being a sacrifice to the earth endured, over time the simple benedictions became rituals and evolved to encompass the whole of the yak-folk with the exceptions of the special few.
When an individual dies, hunter or otherwise, a special, black ger is constructed for them outside of the main camp to lie in state until the preparations for the funeral can be made. If a hunter dies in the field, they are left where they lie with a small group of male hunters to watch over them while the rest go back to the camp to construct the ger. From this point on, only males may touch the body as it is believed that the pure Yin energies of death could corrupt and sicken any females. Men, being of a natural Yin alignment, are protected from this corruption.
Once the body is brought into the ger, it is undressed, and butter lamps are lit, and the body is ritually cleaned. After the boh, the male shaman, arrives, the body is purified with holy oil and juniper needles while he exorcises unwanted or malevolent spirits which may be attracted by the deceased. The tent is then sealed off while the boh goes to prepare the site of the "burial." In the case of the aforementioned hunter, that will be the site where they were initially killed. In other cases, the site will be specially chosen by the boh after communing with the spirits of the steppes.
Under the direction of the boh, the body is wrapped in black leathers and loaded onto a cart which will be pulled by two of the closest male relatives of the deceased to the site of their "interment." The procession which follows after the cart is silent so as to avoid attracting the attention of the deceased and cause them to stay in the world.
Once the site is reached, the body is laid on a large piece of white mammoth felt and a smooth rock is placed beneath the head. Four mammoth ribs, carved with the name and story of the deceased, are erected over the body to ritualistically erect a ger for the dead using the sky as a roof and the earth as the floor. A firepit is dug and lit in the center and meat and white foods are sacrificed as a final meal. While this is going on the boh chants to guide the soul to the underworld while scattering grain and holy oil to appease the spirits of the land and drive off unwanted spirits who may gather during this time to distract the soul or harm it.
Once these rituals are done, the body is left in the open for the elements and predators in the area to devour for the dead's last sacrifice for the people and the natural world around them.
On their way back, the funeral procession must walk between two, large fires in order to purify themselves, their animals, and their cart, and to drive away malevolent spirits which may be following after. As well, the cart is turned over and the oxen, yak, or camel is let out to pasture and neither will be used for a period of a week.
Funerals are typically started in the early morning and done before the sun sets on the same day.
What follows is a series of growled challenges and replies from the challenger and the challenged. Once the challenges have concluded, the challenger and his supporters will begin a traditional dance and a chanted song which involves a lot of stamping, rhythmic slapping of the body, roared responses and the baring of fangs and tongues to bits of the chant in order to intimidate the challenged and his supporters and psych themselves up for the battle ahead. After the challenger is done, the one who was challenged and his party responds in kind, then both contenders step inside the blood circle.
The following battle is a brutal fight where the goal is for the challengers to show their strength and, possibly, their ability to lead their clan or tribe in times of strife. In order to prove this, one of the figthers must make their opponent submit. Weapons are not allowed, only the natural weaponry and the ferocity of each fighter is allowed to be brought into the ring. The fight only ends when one of the fighters is too broken or bleeding to continue, and thus submits, or they are dead.
Most fights don't end in the death of either fighter. Especially in the case of celebratory events like the Naadam. In those cases, they are mostly ritual contests meant to showcase the abilities of each of the respective fighters. The yak-folk may be primal, but they aren't stupid. A meaningless death is a loss to the Sarlagkhun as a whole. For one week, at the height of the season of Fire, the Sarlagkhun have a festival called a Khural, which is a festival gathering all the tribes together at the Tengeriin Nuur and involves a lot of inter-tribal and inter-clan revelry and rivalry featuring contests of the Bigan Senggi, athletics competitions, and archery competitions, and even ritual hunts. The Tsagaan Sar is another holiday adopted from the Khumuus people and marks the Sarlagkhun New Year celebration. Family members visit each other and exchange gifts and eat massive quantities of the special treat of the meat-filled buuz. The yak-folks' buuz are often filled with all of the meat of the Six Great Animals to symbolically wish all the tribes successful hunts over the next year.
Marriage Rites
Once a marriage proposal is accepted by the bride and her family, the groom's family must deliver gifts of milk liquor and special meats to the bride's family three more times. Once they have accepted the third, and final, round of gifts the wedding date is set. As the wedding day draws near, the groom will send one, final betrothal gift to the bride and her family in the form of a whole, roasted meat (whatever the tribe primarily hunts), wine, tea leaves, and another mammoth hide. This is delievered by the bridegroom, himself, and the bride's family makes a point of entertaining the young man and getting to know him.On the day of the wedding, the bride and grom dress in their very best deel, and the bride dons her tribe's wedding uuj and attaches a red veil to her horns. This veil can be of silk or of crimson beads depending upon the tribe. The groom and his party go to the bride's dwelling in order to escort her to his home where the wedding ceremony will take place. Once there, he is met by the bride's father and her male relatives standing before her ger with a thick rope circle of braided, rope of red-dyed leather before him. The rope circle is fully fifteen feet across and the groom comes to a stop outside it along with the males traveling with him stationing themselves around him.
What follows is a completely ritualistic version of the Bigan Senggi where the goal is for the groom to showcase his own strength and ability to protect his bride by overpowering her father. In the distant past, this would have been a real battle between the prospective groom and anyone willing to challenge him for the right to take the female as his bride. These usually ended in the deaths of one or more yak-folk. In the modern day, these battles are ritualistic and the male is simply meant to get the bride's father to accept the new son-in-law by submitting. There is a lot of grunting, growling and bashing of skulls, but the father almost always willingly submits.
After this ceremony, the bride and the groom's parties gather together to go to the groom's dwelling for the actual ceremony. The two parties then compete to reach the site of the wedding ceremony first. The bride and her party will harrass the groom in order to distract him and reach the site first. However, the groom has prepared a meal near to his domicile in advance to honor the bride and her party. Which is something they are obligated to attend in order to accept his hospitality. This distraction allows the groom to reach the wedding site first.
Once both parties reach the site, the wedding ceremony is officially performed. The bride and groom jointly slaughter an antelope, caught earlier for the purpose, to check its liver for signs of good fortune. After which, the couple are presented two cups of wine which have ghee liberally smeared along the edges. They each take one drink from their own cup, then exchange cups and drink from that one. During this time, the shaman calls on the benedictions of the ancestors and the gods. The bride doffs her cloth belt to lay bare the leather belt beneath. The couple then pours wine for their guests and the celebration commences with feasts of the Six Animals, cheese, buuz, milk liquor, and many other delicacies being served over three days.
At the end of the first night, the newly married couple are gifted a ger, hunting tools, and several smoked sides of meat to start their life together by both sets of parents.
Birth & Baptismal Rites
Like with the Khumuus people, it is seen as inviting bad luck to make any sort of significant preparations for a baby before it is born. Therefore, the most that will usually be done upon finding out she is pregnant is the expectant mother to offer prayers of thanksgiving to the ancestors and the gods. Though there are many nods made to the woman's condition within the yak-folks' daily life. For instance, many pregnant women will sleep with arrows under their bedding in order to scare away malevolent spirits. It is strictly forbidden to scare a pregnant woman or otherwise to make her unhappy, to walk ahead of her, to swear or use a loud voice in her presence. She is also forbidden from doing any strenuous labor, and she is forbidden from attending funerals. The latter for much the same reasons as the rest of the empire.While giving birth, the mother is attended by a midwife and other female relatives. Men do not enter the ger during this time. Once it is born, the umbilical cord and placenta are buried near the southwestern wall of the ger, either inside or outside of it. This is thought to connect the child to the earth where it was born, as well as, to help restore a woman's fertility and heal her womb. The baby is cleaned with pure water from around the place of its birth before being given to its mother to nurse.
Within six to seven days of birth the newly born baby is ritually cleansed by the midwife who assisted its birth, and its name is given to it. Dairy products, meats, and milk liquor are made for guests, but any other alcohol is strictly forbidden at this ceremony. A reindeer hunt was conducted on the day that they baby was born and a saddle of meat from the fresh kill is offered to the midwife for her assistance. The intestines are cleaned, filled with seasoned blood, and cooked along with the kidneys, liver, and the fat from the legs and hooves. The rest of the meat is cooked and prepared for the ablution ceremony.
The midwife washes the infant in the blood of the tribe's favored prey mixed with salt and powdered juniper needles. The salt cleans the infant's body, the juniper sanctifies it, and the blood connects the infant to the prey. The name is given to the child either by the midwife, its parents, or another elder who gives the child an auspicious name. The baby is, again, washed with pure water before being given drops of the prey's blood mixed with its mother's milk.
After this, the feast is held and benedictions are sung to the child.
Coming of Age Rites
Among the Sarlagkhun, the coming-of-age rites are nearly identical between the tribes. The only real differences are in the details of how each hunt is conducted and what prey are taken. Throughout their young lives, the yak-folk are trained in the arts of tracking and in the techniques of bringing down their tribe's preferred prey. At an appropriate age, somewhere between 15 and 20, the young Sarlagkhun is invited to lead a hunt. They are expected to track, and lead the hunt itself, by themselves. In most cases, though, they are not expected to actually bring down the beast by themselves, especially in the case of large animals like the nauihe. They are, however, expected to land the killing blow on whatever is being hunted. Once this is done, a celebration is had, and the young one is considered to be an adult.Funerary & Memorial Customs
Of the many things that the Sarlagkhun have borrowed from the Khumuus, their funeral rites are the one thing which went the other way around. In the earliest days of the yak-folk, the only people who would be buried were great warriors, shamans, or chieftains. They were buried under mounds of earth and rock called deyen, which can still be seen in places on the steppes even now. These mounds are called ovoo by the Khumuus and are revered by them as places where guardian spirits dwell. These mounds (called myo by the Kobito) are even found in the high mountains, standing watch over ancient gravesites dedicated to a long-dead race called the Takin.However, normal yak-folk have, in essence, generally been left to lie where they fell. Since many of the deaths happen in the field during hunts, it has traditionally and fatalistically been viewed as a repayment to the earth for a successful hunt. These hunters were honored by their brothers, thanked for their sacrifice, and left in state where they fell. Though the core ideals of being a sacrifice to the earth endured, over time the simple benedictions became rituals and evolved to encompass the whole of the yak-folk with the exceptions of the special few.
When an individual dies, hunter or otherwise, a special, black ger is constructed for them outside of the main camp to lie in state until the preparations for the funeral can be made. If a hunter dies in the field, they are left where they lie with a small group of male hunters to watch over them while the rest go back to the camp to construct the ger. From this point on, only males may touch the body as it is believed that the pure Yin energies of death could corrupt and sicken any females. Men, being of a natural Yin alignment, are protected from this corruption.
Once the body is brought into the ger, it is undressed, and butter lamps are lit, and the body is ritually cleaned. After the boh, the male shaman, arrives, the body is purified with holy oil and juniper needles while he exorcises unwanted or malevolent spirits which may be attracted by the deceased. The tent is then sealed off while the boh goes to prepare the site of the "burial." In the case of the aforementioned hunter, that will be the site where they were initially killed. In other cases, the site will be specially chosen by the boh after communing with the spirits of the steppes.
Under the direction of the boh, the body is wrapped in black leathers and loaded onto a cart which will be pulled by two of the closest male relatives of the deceased to the site of their "interment." The procession which follows after the cart is silent so as to avoid attracting the attention of the deceased and cause them to stay in the world.
Once the site is reached, the body is laid on a large piece of white mammoth felt and a smooth rock is placed beneath the head. Four mammoth ribs, carved with the name and story of the deceased, are erected over the body to ritualistically erect a ger for the dead using the sky as a roof and the earth as the floor. A firepit is dug and lit in the center and meat and white foods are sacrificed as a final meal. While this is going on the boh chants to guide the soul to the underworld while scattering grain and holy oil to appease the spirits of the land and drive off unwanted spirits who may gather during this time to distract the soul or harm it.
Once these rituals are done, the body is left in the open for the elements and predators in the area to devour for the dead's last sacrifice for the people and the natural world around them.
On their way back, the funeral procession must walk between two, large fires in order to purify themselves, their animals, and their cart, and to drive away malevolent spirits which may be following after. As well, the cart is turned over and the oxen, yak, or camel is let out to pasture and neither will be used for a period of a week.
Funerals are typically started in the early morning and done before the sun sets on the same day.
Common Taboos
Grabbing a Sarlagkhun by the horns is considered to be one of the grossest insults. It is considered to be especially insulting to grab a female in such a way. Both acts have the connotations of being put under the yoke or being treated as less than a person, a beast. Any such insult will often be met with righteous violence.
In this same vein, a yak-folk putting a ring through their nose has the same connotations and an individual doing such will be looked down upon by the rest of the community as debasing themselves.
Do not step on the threshold of the ger. It can compromise the protection from spirits the threshold offers and invite misfortune or malevolent spirits.
Do not lean on the walls or posts of the ger.
Do not wash dirty bodies or clothes directly in a river or other natural body of water. Water is considered to be a pure spirit by the Sarlagkhun and to directly wash dirty things in these places would be to contaminate that spirit.
Fire is considered to be a sacred, purifying spirit. So it is considered sacriligeous to burn garbage or to throw water onto the fire as water is its opposing element.
History
The Sarlagkhun were one of the races created after the genesis of the elves during the Age of Breath, or the First Ten Thousand Years of Peace by the humans' reckoning. As many non-human historians know, that age was anything but peaceful. True accounts of the Age of Breath can be found among ancient ruins of ravaged cities, logged on the oracle bones of long-dead races and overgrown villages, within the moldering contents of crumbling bamboo scrolls locked away in hidden libraries and forgotten mountain keeps, or even within the oral histories of the peoples living at the edges of the world.
Before what came to be called alternatively either the War of Tears or the War of Nine Tidings, the yak-folk lived simply and went about their divinely appointed task of protecting the sacred places from those who would wish to harm them or take advantage of the power they offered. Even in these early days of life the effects of the split between Izanagi and izanami was being felt, and the severing of the Principle Balance in the corruption of many spirits and now-mortals throughout the Shinkai and the physical world. During this time the Sarlagkhun developed close ties to the communities of yosei (elves) who were their neighbors and partners in the task of keeping these spaces unspoiled. Both the uneg dagina (fox elves) and the galt dagina, a now-extinct ethnicity of elves, used their natural abilities to cleanse the sacred spaces of the steppes, while the Sarlagkhun used brute force and bull-like strength to protect them.
The War of Nine Tidings began as one of the seemingly endless, internecine clan wars of the mu xiao. Over time, the war grew beyond the initial clans involved, bringing in other clans, and slowly growing until nearly every elven race, and even many of their shouren counterparts, was involved in what became known as the War of Tears. While the elven civil wars had only a small impact on the northern steppes, themselves, both of the majority populations of the time: the Sarlagkhun and the galt dagina, had their native passions and bloodlust roused at the idea of a conflict outside of their own domestic clan conflicts, and eagerly jumped into the fray. Their tribes went pouring through the mountain passes and into the southern lands. Once there, the tribes of northern elves and yak-folk enthusiastically threw themselves into battle they could find. Sowing chaos and confusion, blood and death, wherever they went among the settled lands. Their raiders met the armies of whomever was fighting and would engage with any, and all, groups indiscriminately. Adding one more disorienting piece to the already perplexing mass of alliances, betrayals, retaliations, and backbiting that was the War of Tears.
The insane, loose alliance of tribes and races of the northern steppes didn't initially suffer much in the way of casualties. The southern elves and shouren were initially too shocked and disoriented to lodge any sort of effective countermeasures against what seemed to be some force of natural chaos thrown into the mix of their wars. Eventually, however, those clans closest to the mountains which separated the steppes from the settled lands managed to put their own enmity aside and band together to face the norther invaders. What happened next was what generally happens when an organized, unified military machine meets a largely disparate and unorganized mass of mostly independent warriors. The disorganized tribes and clans of Sarlagkhun and galt dagina were routed and sent back beyond the wall of mountains to lick their wounds.
The fire elves were so shocked and humbled by this series of events, in fact, that it eventually led to their fall and ultimate extinction in the following centuries. That, however, is a story for another time.
The Sarlagkhun mostly kept to themselves in the intervening years between the War of Tears and the Kami Daisenso while the other races were rebuilding themselves and their homes and changing in interesting ways. The yak-folk simply kept to their Mandate and lived their lives. Although change came to their lives, as well, when the humans appeared and began building their own lives and cultures and domesticating many of the animals which made their homes on the steppe. The humans brought with them not just new survival methods, but new ideas, new social constructs, and new ways of making war.
The Sarlagkhun were endlessly fascinated by the horse-based nomadic culture of the humans at the time, and found that the social structure was easily adapted to their own way of life and society. Indeed, they were greatly impressed especially by the spirituality and community these warriors lived by, and began emulating it, as well. Naturally, it was the concept of hospitality, which enamored the largely individualistic and natural law-based Sarlagkhun the most. When war again broke out, this time between the fundamental principles of the universe, the yak-folk's lives were once again upended.
In this war, however, the Sarlagkhun were more organized and able to band with the largely mobile humans against a common enemy. This time they weren't haphazardly fighting a nominal ally under Heaven for bloodsport. This time the enemies were minions of Chaos and the Void and sought only to bring death and destruction to the world. Many of the humans who lived alongside the Sarlagkhun were warriors as well and admired the yak-folk's ideals of strength and tenacity. This strong ally again ignited yak-folk's passions and bloodlust which met the armies of the Lord of Storms like the fires of Heaven itself. Over the course of the Kami War, the Sarlagkhun became the shock troops of the northern lands. Sowing a new brand of chaos and confusion amongst the chaos races.
Over the centuries since the end of the Kami Daisenso the yak-folk's position within the Steppe of the Iron Warrior has only solidified. Especially as the status and powerbase of House Temurshonkhor and the other nobles have been eroded and replaced by the centralized power of the Imperial Bureaucracy. While their ties to the noble families were largely unaffected, the great tribes of the Sarlagkhun were obligated to swear their axes to the emperor and empress as well as their vassals within each state.
Before what came to be called alternatively either the War of Tears or the War of Nine Tidings, the yak-folk lived simply and went about their divinely appointed task of protecting the sacred places from those who would wish to harm them or take advantage of the power they offered. Even in these early days of life the effects of the split between Izanagi and izanami was being felt, and the severing of the Principle Balance in the corruption of many spirits and now-mortals throughout the Shinkai and the physical world. During this time the Sarlagkhun developed close ties to the communities of yosei (elves) who were their neighbors and partners in the task of keeping these spaces unspoiled. Both the uneg dagina (fox elves) and the galt dagina, a now-extinct ethnicity of elves, used their natural abilities to cleanse the sacred spaces of the steppes, while the Sarlagkhun used brute force and bull-like strength to protect them.
The War of Nine Tidings began as one of the seemingly endless, internecine clan wars of the mu xiao. Over time, the war grew beyond the initial clans involved, bringing in other clans, and slowly growing until nearly every elven race, and even many of their shouren counterparts, was involved in what became known as the War of Tears. While the elven civil wars had only a small impact on the northern steppes, themselves, both of the majority populations of the time: the Sarlagkhun and the galt dagina, had their native passions and bloodlust roused at the idea of a conflict outside of their own domestic clan conflicts, and eagerly jumped into the fray. Their tribes went pouring through the mountain passes and into the southern lands. Once there, the tribes of northern elves and yak-folk enthusiastically threw themselves into battle they could find. Sowing chaos and confusion, blood and death, wherever they went among the settled lands. Their raiders met the armies of whomever was fighting and would engage with any, and all, groups indiscriminately. Adding one more disorienting piece to the already perplexing mass of alliances, betrayals, retaliations, and backbiting that was the War of Tears.
The insane, loose alliance of tribes and races of the northern steppes didn't initially suffer much in the way of casualties. The southern elves and shouren were initially too shocked and disoriented to lodge any sort of effective countermeasures against what seemed to be some force of natural chaos thrown into the mix of their wars. Eventually, however, those clans closest to the mountains which separated the steppes from the settled lands managed to put their own enmity aside and band together to face the norther invaders. What happened next was what generally happens when an organized, unified military machine meets a largely disparate and unorganized mass of mostly independent warriors. The disorganized tribes and clans of Sarlagkhun and galt dagina were routed and sent back beyond the wall of mountains to lick their wounds.
The fire elves were so shocked and humbled by this series of events, in fact, that it eventually led to their fall and ultimate extinction in the following centuries. That, however, is a story for another time.
The Sarlagkhun mostly kept to themselves in the intervening years between the War of Tears and the Kami Daisenso while the other races were rebuilding themselves and their homes and changing in interesting ways. The yak-folk simply kept to their Mandate and lived their lives. Although change came to their lives, as well, when the humans appeared and began building their own lives and cultures and domesticating many of the animals which made their homes on the steppe. The humans brought with them not just new survival methods, but new ideas, new social constructs, and new ways of making war.
The Sarlagkhun were endlessly fascinated by the horse-based nomadic culture of the humans at the time, and found that the social structure was easily adapted to their own way of life and society. Indeed, they were greatly impressed especially by the spirituality and community these warriors lived by, and began emulating it, as well. Naturally, it was the concept of hospitality, which enamored the largely individualistic and natural law-based Sarlagkhun the most. When war again broke out, this time between the fundamental principles of the universe, the yak-folk's lives were once again upended.
In this war, however, the Sarlagkhun were more organized and able to band with the largely mobile humans against a common enemy. This time they weren't haphazardly fighting a nominal ally under Heaven for bloodsport. This time the enemies were minions of Chaos and the Void and sought only to bring death and destruction to the world. Many of the humans who lived alongside the Sarlagkhun were warriors as well and admired the yak-folk's ideals of strength and tenacity. This strong ally again ignited yak-folk's passions and bloodlust which met the armies of the Lord of Storms like the fires of Heaven itself. Over the course of the Kami War, the Sarlagkhun became the shock troops of the northern lands. Sowing a new brand of chaos and confusion amongst the chaos races.
Over the centuries since the end of the Kami Daisenso the yak-folk's position within the Steppe of the Iron Warrior has only solidified. Especially as the status and powerbase of House Temurshonkhor and the other nobles have been eroded and replaced by the centralized power of the Imperial Bureaucracy. While their ties to the noble families were largely unaffected, the great tribes of the Sarlagkhun were obligated to swear their axes to the emperor and empress as well as their vassals within each state.
Origin/Ancestry
Asia, Yak
Lifespan
80+ years
Average Height
6.0 - 8.0 ft
Average Weight
350 - 600 lbs
Average Physique
Sarlagkhun tend to be larger than humans and much more massively built. Perhaps, due in large part, to their bovine nature. They are much more heavily muscled and their skeletal structure is more dense. They are covered in a dark fur of varying degrees of thickness and fineness. They have a rather short, long-furred tail much like a horse's. Their legs are digitigrade with cloven hooves.
Geographic Distribution
Sarlagkhun Traits
Starting Attributes - +2 Power, +2 Vigor, +1 Passion.
Alignment - Sarlagkhun are of Yang alignment.
Thick Hide - Sarlagkhun have a hide of thick fur which grants natural armor at Rank 3.
Wicked Horns - horns count as Very Short Weapons. +1 Combat Art - Very Short Weapons with Adept - Horns.
Fierce Hunter - gain +2 to Woodcraft Art with Adept - Steppe
Starting Face: +1
Starting Qi: +2
Alignment - Sarlagkhun are of Yang alignment.
Thick Hide - Sarlagkhun have a hide of thick fur which grants natural armor at Rank 3.
Wicked Horns - horns count as Very Short Weapons. +1 Combat Art - Very Short Weapons with Adept - Horns.
Fierce Hunter - gain +2 to Woodcraft Art with Adept - Steppe
Starting Face: +1
Starting Qi: +2
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