Totem Kami

Patron Kami of the Clans of Marai

The Totem Kami are an odd pantheon of ascendent spirits who act as patrons of each clan in the Commonwealth of Marai. Each kami is represented by a particular species of animal, called their Mantle, based on which form the kami chooses to manifest. Each clan's spiritual leader is said to be their Chief Kannushi. Though their manifestations and overal theology are odd, they behave very much like other Material Gods in the sense that they receive and dispense Divine Quintessence.

It is whispered by some divine scholars that the Totem Kami share a relationship to their clans in much the same way The Great protect and guide their individual tribes in The Skylands (the main difference being the God-Kami are not humanoid), though both cultures would consider such a thought blasphemous.

The Totems

For a complete list of the clans and their Totem Kami, see the full article on Political Geography of the Maraian Commonwealth.

The Birth of a Clan

Within the Commonwealth of Marai, all citizens are ultimately subjects of an overarching clan (though they may petition to form vassal clans and govern themselves more directly, within limits). However a clan cannot exist without being recognized by a Totem Kami, a spirit of wisdom that blesses a pure soul's desire to lead their people. Sometimes the future clan leader is seeking a kami for this purpose, sometimes a kami chooses someone to lead a new clan completely by surprise. At any rate, when the kami has chosen, they become the clan's Totem Kami, the chosen soul its Chief Kannushi. These leaders are not only clerics or mortal swords of their Totem Kami, they handle civil and military matters as well, making each clan a sort of theocracy, each of a unique religion.

When someone seeks out a kami, they typically set out on a journey, to dull one's ears to the language of man and grow more sensitive to the language of the spirits. Benevolent kami are driven away by even the slightest aura of greed or distemperance, so only if the seeker's soul is pure will the kami feel safe enough to occupy a physical body (usually a nearby animal) and visit the seeker directly. The body the kami chooses, called its Mantle, is reflective of the nature of its blessing, and the clan uses the chosen animal as motif in their heraldry and biographical poetry.

Note that not all clans have mundane animals as Totems; three (The Izuka, The Shan and The Iname) have bestial fae or yōkai as theirs. Though interloping fae are rarer than Waking fauna, they are as valid a Mantle for kami as any other; the kami are creatures comfortable on either side of The Veil.

Blessings

The domains, divine fonts, favoured weapons and backstories of the Totem Kami may one day be expanded upon. In the mean time: a kami can have any one primary domains and four subdomains, so long as they are reflective of the clan's nature and the kami's flavour of blessing (charisma, might, insight, even luck). Similarly, the Storyteller and Audience are encouraged to pick a favoured weapon suitably flavourful, perhaps based on the clan's preferred classes.

Profile art: A combat wizard of The Raan clan, with a summoned avatar of the Raan's Totem komainu.

Profile art credit: Muzinabu

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Banner image: The body chosen by the Totem Kami of the The Kyoketsu clan was of a red fox. It is common for warriors to decorate their arms and armour in the theme of their chosen animal.