Engatrau: Mud-Lovers

Perception

Social Status

The term "engatrau" literally means "mud lovers." Farmers were never given the time of day, and their work was considered mundane and base by Tuhran standards. At least, though, farming wasn't disgusting. Usually one would only work with weeds in the topsoil, and the farmer had a wide variety of tools on call to do the tilling and plowing. At the very least farmers didn't have to wade in muck up to their knees, only to stick their arms three-quarters of the way further in muck, just for a small few pieces of twine.

Yet, for the people in the small towns of northwest Tuhra, whose only export could be kaoker, the engatrau were the first, last, and only economic support they were given. The more "civilized" people of Yattau and Wyausolsnuh gave those smaller towns no heed yet could never understand how or why northwest Tuhra grew to be self-sufficient. The engatrau know.

History

Most engatrau have in their ancestry a long line of farmers and a short line of engatrau. Northwestern Tuhra was once a breadbasket, feeding the entire continent and to the colonies beyond. The Great Tuhran Flood cut short the grand tradition the small rural towns once held, killing the soil overnight. Tuhra began to starve, especially in the flooded lands. When Tuhra rerouted its trade and its diet to other regions of the continent, northwest Tuhra was left without employment. The few people who could retain their jobs were females from the cottage industry, who gathered roots from the trees for weaving and other crafts. These crafts couldn't be sold in bulk, but rope could. The men, women, and even children worked hard to mass produce the material to keep their town alive. The communal efforts all the people saved their towns from ruin; at least, that's what the surviving towns say.

Type

Raw Materials Gathering