Factions of Teredahar: The Wind People

The Wind People are a tribe of Human nomads who live at high elevations along The Torran Spine Mountains in central and eastern Teredahar. They're reclusive and don't seek out other groups except for a little bit of trade they do along Kurudar's northern border. They have left numerous walls, stairs, and simple bridges throughout the mountains but don't control any fixed territory except for a string of tiny mountain holdfasts they only use during winter. Like most nomadic peoples, they herd animals rather than farming. Many get around simply by walking but some families have salvaged or been gifted retired airships which they have learned to maintain and operate as a much faster means of getting around in the lower mountain passes.

Description

For this group's subrace stats, see Races of Teredahar - Humans. 

Wind People and their descendents are often shorter than average; most are less than five and a half feet tall. They have copper-coloured skin and black hair. Their eyes are often very dark brown, almost black in colour. A hard life of travel gives most wind people a lean, athletic build rather than muscular.

Wind people often shave their heads and have elaborate tattoos on their scalp, face, and elsewhere. These tattoos often incorporate geometric designs or abstract animal forms and include writing in the Wind People's own secret language. Psionic Wind People often weave power tattoos (Pathfinder SRD) into these designs to hide them from casual observers. Such tattoos require a special ink which they are skilled at making.

To better operate in the often-extremely-windy environments they live in, Wind People often wear tight, form-fitting clothes with little or no adornments that would flap or come loose in the wind. Often these clothes are made from animal hides and lined with fur for warmth.

Interaction

Travelers in Teredahar may encounter lone descendents of the Wind People among the crew of large airships, sailing vessels, or desert caravans. Wanderlust runs very strong and they are unlikely to settle down in cities or towns.

One particularly large family of Wind People operate a traveling trading post in an old Drakoni assault carrier called the "Enduring Dominion" (Drakoni: Eskavok Taldeéthun). The Dominion visits each of the major cities of Teredahar twice per year bringing loads of exotic goods for trade. For many common folk this is the only time they can see Wind People and the ships' arrival is often integrated into a local carnival or festivity.

The Wind People are the only community of psionic Humans on Teredahar. This unique way of manipulating magic is a closely-guarded secret. They do not overtly use this power or demonstrate it for anyone. They have been known to adopt and train psionically-gifted individuals (even of other races) into their culture if such an individual is exiled from his or her own culture. Joining the Wind People means fully accepting their culture, traditions, and lifestyle for life.

Next Week

Next week will be a Cities article going into some of the details of the largest, most influential, and second-most-populous city in Teredahar: Sylridian, Syldar.