Chume'taly
Chume'taly
Culture
Music
Chume’taly music is largely percussive in nature. They use mostly drums in various sizes and tone. Unique to them is the chi’chayia, which is like an upright xylophone made of hollowed out pieces of Duronga wood. Vocal music is usually a kind of rhythmic chanting and the lyrics are fairly simple as is the subject matter.
Jewelry
Jewelry is mostly made of polished wood, but metal work shows up on occasion. Such items are a mark of prestige as they must be imported in.
Customs
Traditionally, the chume’taly utilize the extended family model with the parents living with their elder offspring. Each pregnancy will produce from one to three cubs. A chume’taly female will have a few litters in her lifetime and so family units can get quite large and complex. To the chume’taly, their first independent hunt is of great importance. It signifies that they’re no longer dependant on their parents. They can attempt this anytime they feel ready.
Mothers birth their litters in private. If any of the cubs are going to die it’s usually in the first few days after, so none of the young are introduced to the public until the mother is certain she knows how many are going to live. Their father is permitted to join her once she’s done giving birth but it’s a mother’s right to announce her offpsring’s number and gender. There are no special celebrations for the young. Chume’taly also don’t celebrate birthdays the way humans do.
Children wear simplified versions of adult clothing. They begin their education at age 2 and typically finish by age 10. They’re considered adults at that age.
They bury their dead in a hollowed-out tree trunk. The tree is selected a while before the person's death. In the event of a sudden death, their family selects an appropriate tree for them. These tree trunks are placed out in the woods in sacred groves. It’s one of the reasons that outsiders are only permitted inside Chume’vera. They fear that their burial groves will be disturbed. It’s not done to enter these groves except on the anniversary of a person’s death. The groves are carefully guarded.
Arrows and spears are very common.
Beliefs
Unlike the rest of Keverynn, they believe that the sun Deity is female. They also have differing views on the moons.
Sun They believe that she is a lioness named Keverr. She is said to dwell in a palace at the heart of the sun and watches over the world as the sun moves across the sky. It is the chume’taly belief that they are all descended from Keverr and her mate Morkshu, He of All forms.
Moons The moons aren’t necessarily female according to the Chume’taly and the names are quite different.
Ana-Lashan Ajai’ilef Ana-Turann Nubai’ilef Ana-Leta Xarani’ilef Ajai – dragon Ilef – moon Nubai – wyvern Xarani – fire
Ajai’ilef is protected by Belaref, a female green dragon as opposed to the silver dragon commonly thought as its protector. This is because the chume’taly are surrounded by green dragons and it makes more sense to them. Vreshtu, a blue wyvern female, guards Nubai’ilef. Translated into the common tongue, Vreshtu means Stormbringer. Pyore is a male elf who guards Xarani’ilef.
Other notable chume’taly Deities are Amberyl, Orionas, Morkshu, and Nelorenn.
Funerary Rites
These vary from type to type, but only slightly. They wear a shade of green that is nearly black as their mourning color. The body is cleaned, prepared, and dressed in finery and laid out on display for three days before being interred at the base of a tree or among a group of trees. It is believed that doing so allows the spirit of the deceased to permeate into the wood. Funeral trees are never cut.
For those with a higher rank, such as a Dragonlord, they are interred in a grove of trees along with their predecessors. Different family groups have their own tree or small group of trees. Some of these are even located in the city. The wealthier members of society have these groves on their property.
Magic
The chume'taly aren't especially known for their aptitude with magic. It rarely pops up among them.
Biology
Breeding
The different types of chume’taly are much like breeds of domestic cats. They are completely genetically compatible with each other. At one point in their history they were all one species, but branched off into the sub-species that exist in present day Keverynn. The offspring of such a union would have characteristics of both parents. These mixed offspring can breed as well.
Crossbreeding in this manner, however, is abhorrent to the chume’taly. They take great pride in their heritage and anything that sullies it is anathema to them. It’s one of their few cultural taboos.
Relationships between two different types are frowned on, but are borderline accepted so long as there are no offspring. Even so, it happens from time to time. Such families are outcasts in chume’taly society. The stigma is so strong that they rarely chose to stay within Me’chu’sholan Province.
These mixed breeds—when they exist—are usually seen in the Nomad territories and among the Darkriders, though sometimes they live in the other Dragonlord Provinces.
Gestation
The gestation period is usually around 4 months for most types and will sometimes be a little longer. Each pregnancy will produce from one to three cubs. The young have an accelerated development, roughly double the growth seen in human children.
Diet
Chume'taly can't process alcohol, it's toxic to them. As a recreational beverage they drink a kind of sweetened milk called nejiin.
While they can process vegetation they require their diets to be at least 60% protein to maintain their health. As a general rule the majority of their food is meat and other protein. They'll eat fruit and other things for the flavour rather than necessity.
Clans
Noyolu
- High clan: M’peln
- Mid clan: S’rethran
- Mid clan: G'foril
- Low clan: L’trusha
Dafaum
- High clan: H’let
- Mid clan: B’nyern
- Mid clan: A'melren
- Low clan: Z’patchn
Fruppa'kmi
- High clan: T’kern
- Mid clan: T'ketchn
- Mid clan: D’nyer
- Low clan: Q’xer
Kehua'kmi
- High clan: Y’naraln
- Mid clan: O’makel
- Mid clan: Z’char
- Low clan: M’trawn