Thaumen

We may have lost the lands we called our own. But, we have not lost our traditions, our ways, and as long as we hold those dear, we will never truly die.

— High Priest Gelan

Thaumens are the second smallest of the 5 Human Ancestries. They are well known for their elaborate traditions and practices that they religiously follow. On top of this they are the most powerful in terms of divine magic due to their strong connection to the Great Barrier.
Though Thaumen life is filled with adhereance to tradition this should not make one think they all act alike. For many traditions help by the Thaumen emphasise individuality and self identity. As such one can tell a lot about a Thaumen by their use of rituals.

Culture

Rituals

Thaumen life is dominated by rituals which are used to celebrate all manner of things that occur during their life. Each one used to help tell the story of ones life culminating at their funeral where this story is sent to the Great Barrier to be enjoyed by the gods while the soul join their ancestors in realm of their chosen cult.
Some of the most well known of these rituals are:

• Birth/Induction - On the new moon after a child is born they are official brought into the Cult and susequently gain their Mark of the God. Children born with a mark of a different cult are sent away to live with the cult that corresponds with their mark.
• Birthdays - a combination of two celebrations: a small private celebration on the exact day of birth along with a much larger communial celebration during the next full moon. This ritual is an important part of life long story Thaumens prepare for their gods.
• Remembrance - For one month a year Thaumens hold rememberance for those who were lost in the Collapse. The month long ritual represents the month long jounrey their ancestors had to make across the Serenic Ocean.
• yearly cycles - Thaumens have a number of Rituals related to New years, Soltices and Equinoxes. Each one involving its own unique rituals
• Marriage - Marriage is celebrated by the cult community and unlike many other traditions of the Thaumen, is not tied to an astral cycle. However, they often do align with such events as they hold importance in Thaumen Culture.
• Funerals - The Final rite of any Thaumen before their soul departs to the Great Barrier. During this ritual their story is sent to the cult's god to be enjoyed while the soul is sent to the God's divine realm. The Ritual occurs during the new moon like the Induction ritual. This is done to show to duality of those leaving and joining the cult.

Religion

For Thaumens religion plays a central part in their lives. All Thaumen belong to a cult of a god and as such all members of a given cult with primarily worship said God along with any adjecent or allied Gods. Because of Thaumens inate ability to connect to the Great Barrier, along with their devotion to the cult means they are able to call upon some of the divine power their gods has. The undevote are considered outcasts and are shunned by Thaumen society.

It should be noted that Thaumens. being a part of the Human race are able to freely choose their gods so Thaumen cults can be found for any of the Gods be they good or evil as such, the New Haelia created the Order of sanctioned cults. This document contains a list of all recognised Thaumen cults with those included being allowed to practice their traditions anywhere in New Haelia. Those excluded are not granted this right and are often forced outside of Imperial territories.

Food

Notable Thaumen food is often connected to rituals as much is in Thaumen life. These foods are ofren included as part of the ritual and thus are only consumed during such events. For daily life most Thaumens will eat a standard diet of meat, fruit vegetables and grain based products. This can change depending on the given cult as certain Gods may require its cult to eat specific food and refrain from others.
Some notable dishes are:

• Grenils - Small sweet dough pastries that are eaten during the small private celebrations of birthdays. It is common for one to be eaten for each year that is being celebrated however this is often only done for children.
• Sarn bread - A hard flat bread eaten during the remeberance period. For the most devout this is all they will eat during the period. However, those is active duty are often allowed to eat freely with some limitations dependent on cult rules
• Barlin Roast - A large bouvin like creature that many Thaumen reer, One is killed and roasted for the funeral and induction ritual. Along with the roasted meat and assortment of veg and fruits are served as well, and the feast is enjoyed by the community once the burial rites have been completed.
• Trelto - A treat made from crushed fruit and dried meat. These are often found at any ritual and is given as an alternative to sarn bread for those who can't observe rememberance.
• Delrin - A broth made from spices, meat and fish. This is consumed at the celebration marking the end of rememberance and symbolises the first meal had after the great migration across the serenic ocean

Society

Family

For Thaumens family is secondary to the cult community. However family still holds importance. Often families will live with each other generation to generation. With households containing 3-4 generations at one time. Each family on top of their cult's God will also have a family God or protector who they worship at home. This protector will normally have a small statue located in the door to the home.

Cults

Cults are the backbone of Thaumen society. With every Thaumen being part of a cult and those that don't being exiled and shunned. Any given community of Thaumen will be part of a singular cult however multiple separate communities can also be part of a singular cult.

All cults within the borders of New Haelia must follow not only the laws of the land but also those set out in the Order of Sanctioned cults. This document outlines which cults are recognised by the state along with banning a number of cults due to their chosen Gods being antagonistic to the New Haelian state.
on ritual. This mark ties them to their cult and its God.

Isolation

Thaumen society is somewhat detatched from that of other with cults often running themselves with little oversight from the state. As long as they follow the Order of sanctioned Cults they are free to do as they wish. This has lead to Thaumen become somewhat self isolating, with little mixing with others outside a given cult. This does vary however on the given cult and their belief and it is not uncommon for individual to venture out from the cult. However there is an expectation that they will stay in touch and return if needs be.

In some extreme cases cults will refuse to interact with anyone who is not either part of their own cult or an allied one. In these instances members are forbidden to interact with those not in the aforementioned groups. While this is a rare pratice there is a common thought amongst Thaumen that if one find love outside of the cult especially if that individual is non-Thaumen they are expected to ensure their partner follows the rules of the given cult. Because one cannot leave a cult it is uncommon for Thaumen to form relationships with other from differing cults as both would be expected to induct the other which would not be possible.

Table of Content

Race of Ancestry

Humans

---

Ancestry Stats

+1 Wis, -1 Cha

Great Barrier Connection

you gain the ability to cast the lvl 1 spell of your cult's God. You can cast this spell a number of times per day equal to your Wisdom modifier (min 1)

Cult Knowledge

You become skilled in knowledge: religion and can take the take 10 action when recalling information relating to your god

Cult Devotion

You gain advantage on saves to be charmed

Languages

You can speak High Thaumen and Low Haelian. Additionally for each bonus to intelligence you possess you may learn an additional language of your choice.

Mark of the Gods

Due to the link Thaumens have to the Great Barrier, Thaumens are able to acquire Marks of the Gods. This shows as either a birthmark or a colouration to the eyes/hair. These marks can appear at birth, with this being the case around 10% of the time. While for the rest of the Thaumens it is gained during the Induction ritual that occurs shortly after their birth

These marks show the cult that a given Thaumen is part of and can only be lost if a Thaumen leaves a given cult. However, this is considered a grave dishonour and Thaumens without a mark are considered outcasts and find it very difficult to join a new cult. A lack of mark also severs the Thaumen's link to the Great Barrier making them unable to call upon its power.