Lands of Tyranny
Day 21 of The Overlord, Year 416
Venatus, Khonvoum, Sylvar
Venatus (Sylvar)
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Symbol: Bow and Arrows, (Deer Antlers)
God of the Hunt, of Primal Nature, of the Wild, of Seasons and Woodlands
It is said in the time before Balthazar and The Family, long before the emergence of The Three, Venatus was the primary god of worship for the hunter gatherers that littered the continent. The same deity worshiped in different ways by the first ancestors of the Humans and the Elves, and perhaps even the other races, each in their own primordial time, when the only rule was the survival of the fittest.Before the coming of the New Gods, Venatus was worshiped alongside those that are now called ‘the Old Gods’, especially together with the other deities more closely associated with nature: Boggereth, and its peaceful opposite, Twyll.
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Eventually as the populations grew so did settlements and civilizations, paving the way for worship of Balthazar, Lilith, Twyll and Dominium. Although the hunters and foragers continued to practise their humble ways of life, for each of the sentient races, culture inevitably moved into villages, towns, cities and into amenities and comforts of civilization.
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However, there was always a place for Venatus, or Sylvar for the Elves, and ceremonies were often held in seasonal rituals to beseech the god for pleasant seasons and good hunting. Some traditions still survive even if hidden in the form of rituals that have been ‘converted’ into rituals to The Three, or into simply folklore, the very name of the God starting to be lost for most, in favor of more generic ‘forest spirits’, usually considered as evil spirits, in opposition to the protective embrace of The Three. These people often believe that the spirits being offended might invite calamity upon the person and the settlement they belong to: increasing the chances of injury during hunts, poor foraging, miscarriages, spawning Beastkin to punish them and even inviting blight upon the people through illness and desease.
Followers
Before The Three almost every hunter, gamekeeper and woodsman revered Venatus. The few that still do, or the ones that live secluded still maintain the traditions, such as leaving the first prey of the year to be taken by the ‘woodland spirits’, as the people now call what before was better known as the God of the Hunt. Unlike the Orcs who have developed the hunt into something unlike what it was originally, the followers of Venatus have not. Rather, they maintain the same basic principle of respecting the prey they kill. Very few differences exist between the ways of worship of Venatus between the Humans, and its Elven counterpart Sylvar. Mostly these small differences would stop at specific traditions and the topic of trophy hunting. While for followers of Sylvar this would be heavily frowned upon and to do so would invite disaster and the birth of beastkins, for Humans, as long as the proper respect has been given to the prey, then Venatus would be appeased.
The more stringent followers of the God of the Hunt also maintain a simple mantra, a core belief which they adhere to: “Never take more than is needed, never waste what is given.”: once a kill is made, they are then required to use all of what they killed, but also they would be taught to respect what they kill, to not hunt for sport and to not leave their kills in agony or pain.
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While the vast majority of the already rare followers of Venatus or Sylvar are simple hunters or woodsmen, some people even more uniquely feel the need of embracing a full closeness to nature.
These lunatics that keep themselves well away from the matters of civilized societies, being usually hermits that shy even the remote rural communities, visiting them only out of necessity for some little trace, embracing instead a more solitary style of life, characterized by the following of natural cycles, the rejection of most tools characteristic of civilized people in favor of more simple things that do not need particular craftsmanship or preparations to be made.
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These odd reclusive few have been often seen dressing themselves in hides, adorning themselves with bone jewelry and fashioning their homes with what they find in the environments they live.
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Some of these followers might also often develop some sort of nihilism in the form of justifying most events in life and the world as simply driven by the law of the strongest.
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Celebrations, Festivals, and Honors
Nativis, Gifts to the Hunter
Nativis, meaning little gifts in a more ancient tongue, were offerings to the hunters for their time and labor in gathering the food and hide for the year. This later developed as populations grew to encompass the giving of gifts to those who help support one's own family. Traditionally Nativis is celebrated at the end of autumn.
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The festivity has survived the coming of The Three, though only in the form of a day in which Minerva is thanked for her mercy and the bountifulness of food, and during which hunters, farmers, herders and fishermen alike are praised and receive gifts in the form of woven baskets. The same day farmer markets are held a bit everywhere with all sorts of food being sold.
Hartus, Festival of the Wild
Hartus is a simple festival in celebration of the bounty provided by the country-side, woods and the wilds. The festival begins at the end of spring and traditionally lasts for two days and two nights. The participants enjoy a feast of berries, fruits, fish, baked goods and wild game, typically deer, among other prepared foods and drinks.
Elven typical Traditions (Sylvar)
Festival of Spring (Zinith’Salor in Elven)
The coming of Spring is a tradition shared by Humans and non-human followers of Venatus alike. For one-night for followers to gather in their camps and perform the Zinith-Salor: a ceremonial dance undertaken typically by the entire camp in which each participant is dressed like a particular animal local to their environment and dances performatively according to the animal they portray.
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Ilthdan, Festival of the Hunters
This typical Elven festival to Sylvar is one of the few Elven celebrations that still survives in full in the most rural communities. It is on this day and the days following, in the middle of summer, that followers prepare a large assortment of food and drink and celebrate until the last crumb is eaten and the last drop drunk. The main bounty is usually a larger animal killed the day before while the rest of the settlement prepares the feast. Should a large enough prey not managed to be caught, that would be taken as a bad omen, and while the celebration would still be held, the women would all be wearing dark hoods during the celebration and the day after, some say to hide their features from vengeful spirits, others say that it is a symbol and an oath to be better hunters, others, just some form of penitence for the lack in skill of the hunters.
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Fala’ayun, Honoring the Long Nights
The Fala’ayun starts at the end of autumn and is maintained until the Zinith’Salor. During this period it is customary for no feasts to be held, for less food to be consumed, and for sleep to be endured for longer. To reduce the need for more food to be eaten. This custom is upheld in many Elven communities, and has probably survived the longest for its practical usefulness as both rural communities and the poor that often live in ghettos and such in Human towns can have a justification to be saving the little food they have access to.
Traditions
Khonvoum Ogroids still maintain true to the lifestyle of the ‘Old Ways’. Living off the land, taking only what is needed and when it is needed. The more traditionally oriented still keep some of the traditions characteristics of the cults of Venatus and Sylvar, but often deviate greatly when it comes to trophy killing. Ogroids will hunt and kill beasts that are strong, intimidating or cause fear, simply because considering them worthy hunts and opponents to fight. They hunt for food as well as for prestige, but will be mindful not to disrespect the ritual of the hunt by leaving anything to waste.
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Some Ogroid raiders are convinced that the act of raiding and pillaging is a religious one. It is through these acts that the tribes seek out worthy opponents and entice those brave enough to confront them to bring their bronze. Despite such destruction never being part of the ‘Old Ways’, the Ogroids convince themselves that such activities are bait and thus part of the hunt.
Enough raiding will enrich certain tribes to the point where a chieftain will often seek to start a warband. Ultimately then, they will fight the nearby Orc tribes to assert themselves as the most worthy in an attempt to unite the tribes. Typically, when they are successful, a warband is amassed and their attacks against other neighbors only increase in number and daring.
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Interestingly, individuals who show bravery, courage or great skill and are still defeated in battle are spared. Those true to the way of Khonvoum believe that, when such a worthy opponent in battle is met and bested, they should at some point be freed, to test their might again and again against Ogroids in honor of might and physical prowess. A process that has become the way of life with Ogroid warriors.
Celebrations, Festivals, and Honors
Khon’gethal, The Challenges
Undertaken usually every two or four months, on the first of the month, depending on the tribe, Khon’gethal is the day in which all warriors may challenge each other in matters of physical prowess in honor of Khonvoum. Although duels do happen where Ogroids bear grudges, the challenges are often competitive tree trunk throwing, large rock tossing, or similar feats of strength, and both challenges and fights are held with honor and respect in a primitive concept of sport, rather than a fight between enemies.
Authors: Hokan, Rashan, from a concept of Maya and Mojito, some Art (I believe #1 and #8) by Hugh-Gi-Oh!
