Adakinya

There is only one thing more terrifying than seeing the the forest leaves part to reveal the towering body of a charging Adakinya bull—teeth bared, rearing, armed with a bow or assegai or macuahuitl—and that is earlier, when the realization dawns that you're being tracked; that all you can do is wait for the inevitable.





Living in the forested foothills and keeping largely to themselves, the rumors surrounding the Adakinya far outstrip the encounters. The tall tales told of the coordinated ferocity of a slighted troop serve as a moat of intimidation around their traditional territories.





But the truth is more benign. Their notoriously dangerous traps defend against poachers and unruly predators, but they are largely vegetarian, supplementing only occasionally with small game. They plant the Cousins of the Earth in fertilized garden mounds which—in addition to seeds, fruits, and leaves—comprise the bulk of their numerous feasts.





Technologically backward, they do not work with metals, nor do they use money of the traditional sense. The Adakinya economy is a gift economy, with reciprocal gifts of unequal values serving to supplement the social bond, punctuated with periodic feasts and potlatches. Their stonework is formidable, and their blades and arrowheads are commonly made from obsidian or bone.





Different Adakinya troops have had friendly interactions with elves and dwarves, but the alliances are generally short-lived and pragmatic; defense in exchange for freedom of movement, respect for sacred grounds, or territorial sovereignty. Their natural enemies are the bugbears, hill giants, and hobgoblins that periodically make incursions into the foothills.





Semi-nomadic, each band keeps its own territory. Bands typically consist of an alpha male and his coterie, although smaller bands of young males can be found, and occasionally a lone Adakinya will journey in exile, self- or troop-imposed.





They are proficient spear- and bow-hunters. Each band has its own semi-overlapping pantheon of gods that are honored, with recently deceased members of the band or their ancestors being recognized retroactively as avatars of one or another god or goddess. The role of shaman is matrilineal, with induction occurring at pubescence and the transition involving a formidable rite of passage and a vow of celibacy.

Languages:

Adakinya speak dialects of Rubanga, with each tribe possessing its own topolect, and are generally fluent in Sylvan as a trading language with neighboring races.





Culture & Religion:

Adakinya religion is pantheistic and structured around numerous regular cultural tics and sporadic complex rituals. Each troop generally has a shaman, usually a post-menopause female, who is knowledgeable of herbal lore and multiple forms of divination, in particular capnomancy (interpretation of the smoke of fires), haruspicy (interpretation of the innards of sacrificial animals) and sortilege using knuckle bones.





Each troop maintains its own pantheon that partially overlaps with those of other troops. Individuals and families may hold patron deities as well that they will petition. The names for gods are often identical with their functions, with the Rubanga term for “Fire” being identical to the name of the god of fire, and so forth.





Individual Adakinya will rely upon simple magical and religious techniques: prayers, meditation, sympathetic magic, charms, taboos.

Prayer “Ọba, ripen my womb.” or “Òrun, make clear my trail.”