True Venderans

During the Kalriv conquest of the Sapphire Coast over the past thousand years, countless cities, tribes and groups of people have been absorbed into the Empire. For most conquered people, the path out of slavery usually comes with a combination of luck and subservience, submitting to Kalriv doctrine with the hope of one day being raised by their master or a Solar to be citizens of the Empire. In the process of doing this, their beliefs, histories and identities are absorbed by the great Kalriv juggernaut.
Not all submit to this cultural assimilation, however. Among the slaves and freed peoples of the northern and central Sapphire Coast, some individuals still reject part or all of the Kalriv doctrine. While they believe in the sun god Venderus, they spurn the idea that the Kalriv are his people chosen to lead the world in his light. Some reject the caste system and believe all men are created equal. Some people simply reject the authority of the Kalriv. Some of these people, usually made up of current or freed slaves, cannot oppose the system openly, but choose to retain their cultural identities in secret, passing them down to their families.
The True Venderans hold to the following cultural beliefs;

• Venderus did not select the Kalriv people to rule over the world; he either appointed them to protect it, or he did not give them any authority over it.
• Venderus did not elevate any class of people above the other, and that the caste system of Guardians, Solars, Forgers, Workers and slaves is a mortal creation.
• Venderus did not give any Kalriv the right to enslave others.

For most of the history of the movement, the True Venderans consisted mainly of slaves and freed Workers. However in the last few decades, rumours abound of mainstream Kalriv citizens being receptive to the idea, something concerning the aristocracy greatly.

Culture

Common Etiquette rules

Behind closed doors, great emphasis among the True Venderans is placed upon treating each other with respect and equality. There is no room for looking down on or treating someone as lesser than them; that attitude led only to castes and slaves. Even people they despise are approached on an even footing.

Ideals

Gender Ideals

True Venderans reject the bias towards men in the military classes of the Kalriv. They also reject the idea of the conquering soldier as the ideal Kalriv male.

Relationship Ideals

The True Venderans reject the Kalriv idea of marriage and courtships being reserved for men and women, and believe in a system much more like the rest of the non-Kalriv world, that men and women may marry and have relationships with any consenting adult they choose regardless of gender. To avoid incurring the wrath of the Guardians or Solars, they must keep their relationships secret.

Major organizations

Due to the Kalriv insistence of cultural hegemony in the places they have captured, there are no official networks and therefore they must all act in a clandestine fashion. There are many secret networks spread throughout the various cities and towns the Kalriv have conquered. Generally the longer a place has been conquered, the weaker the networks, however there are rumoured to even be networks among the slaves and freedpeople in Var Kalriv itself. Old enemies of the Empire before conquest, such as Lycrus, also have prominent networks.

Parent ethnicities

• Kalriv

Related Locations

• Sapphire Coast