Gialar
History
During the Bloom Age, the Kapre existed as a collection of reclusive, semi-nomadic family groups known as Angkan in the deserts of eastern Anterra. Their culture centered on survival and the worship of desert deities, such as Gialar, the Great Vulture, from which other peoples came to name their nation. The long peaceful period of hunting and gathering within the Apoy Patag Grasslands, and fishing in the Dagat Alon Sea is distant and mythologized if remembered at all.
The Blood Age shaped Kapre culture into the form it takes now. First, a great famine in the southern lands drove a local Angkan to hunt and consume the Fomorian god Urquoth. This heresy serves as a myth to warn other Kapre from such evil acts, pointing to the cursed Preta who arose as a result. Much later in the age, the expansion of pre-imperial Marcian kingdoms initiated Ang Unang Digmaan (The First War). This conflict prompted the Kapre to construct the fortress-city of Kallunga as a primary defensive bastion, which still acts as a place of refuge.
The Blight Age saw continued conflict with Marcia, as they struggled to maintain their imperial ambitions. From 222–240 BTA, the Kapre fought Ang Ikalawang Digmaan (The Second War), known in Marcian records as the Buhang War. The Kapre managed to repel the Marcians yet again, gathering the Angkan to throw back the Marcian legions.
For the third time, Marcia has brought war to Gialar and the Kapre people, who are now engaged in the Ang Ikatlong Digmaan (The Third War). Kapre forces are engaged in the defense of the Hanay Batong Buhay Mountains, but now face black powder, canons, and modern technologies they have never known. This state of war has once again cemented their isolation as they organize their society around defending their lands from foreign aggression.
Government
The Kapre govern themselves by customs rather than a codified legal system. A Pinuno (Elder) leads each Angkan (Family), and traditionally has absolute authority within the confines of that family. Though the Kapre refer to these groups as families, they are composed of multiple ancestries and number in the hundreds or thousands. Despite their acknowledged authority, a Pinuno who wishes to break from tradition must persuade their Angkan to follow, as tradition is often stronger than the power of the Pinuno.
The various Angkan do not see themselves as a nation, only as a people. Yet, for matters involving disputes between the Angkan or that require the gathering of the Angkan for war, the Sanggunian ng mga Babaylan (Council of the Priests), often simply referred to as The Sanggunian (The Council), holds authority in much the same way as the Pinuno. This council of priests is led by the Punong Babaylan (High Priest), who is elected every 10 years to serve as the speaker for all Babaylan. Their authority is spiritual and advisory, granted by the respect of the clans, and have come to serve as the acknowledged war-leaders in major conflicts. While Aangkan are expected by custom to heed the Sanggunian, each Pinuno retains the autonomy to refuse.
Interesting Facts
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Upon initiation, a Babaylan receives a tattoo of the Eye of Gialar over their sternum. As they master the teachings and rites of the various lesser deities within "Gialar's Flock," they earn additional, specific tattoos representing that deity's domain. For example, mastering the teachings of the serpent-god Kalok allows a priest to add the ouroboros to their primary tattoo. A senior priest's body can become a complex tapestry of dozens of these devotional marks, each one a badge of their knowledge and piety.
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Kapre culture is largely oral, with each Angkan preserving its history, customs, and nomadic routes through complex song-cycles. Written language, a cuneiform-like script, is a skill reserved almost exclusively for the priesthood. The Babaylan use this script to inscribe permanent records on stone or clay tablets within their temples, while using papyrus for more ephemeral communications.
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The Kapre philosophy of "wasting nothing" is a core tenet of their faith, rooted in the worship of Gialar and Kalok's sacred cycle. This manifests as a powerful social custom: wasting any food, or refusing a meal offered by another, is considered a grave insult as it disrespects the cycle of consumption that sustains them. In some Angkan, it is even customary to consume the dead as part of this rite.
Current Challenges
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The Third War. The Kapre are engaged in Ang Ikatlong Digmaan against Marcia. Marcia now fields cannons and black powder weapons against the Kapre, who struggle to comprehend this unfamiliar technology. While their traditional guerilla tactics have slowed the Marcian advance, they face the reality that the wounds inflicted by these weapons are not easily healed. Heavy casualties have sewn despair into their warriors as they struggle to recover from the technological disparity.
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A Fractured Defense. The Kapre cannot meet the Marcian invasion with their full strength. Angkan Sumpa must dedicate warriors to containing Urquoth in the Tregintir Wastes, Angkan Hangganan commits members to managing the Tatarigami Kamenik, and Angkan Daluyong has recently been forced to defend the eastern coast from slavers. This leaves the majority of the fighting on the main war front to the overstretched forces of Angkan Bato.
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The Looming Famine. A combination of population growth and the disruption of nomadic routes by the war has led to a widespread food shortage across Gialar. The land is no longer able to sustain the Kapre people, creating the threat of another great famine. The Sanggunian warn that this will be a measure of Kapre faith as they internally recognize the parallel to historical conditions that preceded the consumption of the god Urquoth during the Blood Age.
Angkan of Gialar
Gialar is home to a number of Angkan, the semi-nomadic family clans that constitute the Kapre people. While the Angkan share a common history and culture, each is defined by the specific geographical and historical pressures that have shaped its unique way of life.
Angkan Bato
Angkan Bato's territory is mostly within the Hanay Batong Buhay Mountains on the western Gialar border, where they act as both the stewards of the fortress-city Kallunga and the primary defenders in the ongoing wars. Their stewardship of Kallunga gives them the closest relationship with the Sanggunian of Thuon. This proximity to both the war front and the priesthood has made them the most militarized of the Kapre.
Angkan Daluyong
Angkan Daluyong inhabits the remote eastern coast of Gialar in semi-permanent settlements. Their culture and livelihood are based on the Dagat Alon Sea, where they are master fishers and salt-harvesters. Due to their location on the opposite side of the continent from the major sea lanes, they are the most geographically isolated of all the Kapre clans. However, Navtog and Navrow have recently been seen in the sea, as the requests for Kapre slaves have become louder.
Angkan Hangganan
Angkan Hangganan roams the Apoy Patag Grasslands, a scrubland that borders the Krameni Kray. They have come to revere Tatarigami Kamenik, sending parties to Kamenik's sanctum by day to leave offerings. However, Kamenik's spawn, trollish creatures of stone, come to life at night, and are dangerous if encountered. Their nomadic routes are structured to avoid the territory at night, when the trolls become active.
Angkan Sumpa
Angkan Sumpa patrols the forests bordering the Tregintir Wastes. Their culture is reactive, organized around watching the corrupted god, Urquoth. Their hunters track the Tatarigami's movements and when it strays too close to the Hanay Batong Buhay Mountains, these hunters are blessed by their Babaylan and sent into the wastes to lure the rampaging god back to its wasteland sanctum. They believe that if they fail to turn him back, he will pass beyond the mountains and consume the world.