Drints

The Drints¹ are small, carnivorous people inhabiting (though not native to) Nep Peninsula in southeastern Dragonía. They are among the world's most isolated cultures, with little to no knowledge of the outside world, although the Minotaurs of the Southern Desert to the northwest know of Drints but have never made direct contact with them.

Appearance and abilities

Drints are rather small, bipedal and covered in short, dull brown fur. Their head resembles that of our world's antelope or oryx, sporting a pair of long, slightly curved horns, black and white facial markings, and prominent fangs. Their limbs are relatively long, with three clawed digits, with those on the fingers being noticeably longer and sharper.
Drints are quick on their feet and have excellent stamina, a trait originally adapted for life in the Tærp Mountains, but has proven equally useful in the savanna of the peninsula.

History

The first Drint societies appeared in the Tærp Mountains west of the peninsula around 40.000 b.Dr, during the last ice age. They eventually moved to the lowlands to the north as the climate became warmer, transforming what is now the Southern Desert into wast grassland, where the Drints began hunting large herbivores, especially wild cattle.
As the climate continued to warm up, the region became more arid, gradually becoming savanna and finally desert, forcing the Drints to Nep Peninsula as their favoured prey moved there. While some Drints settled the Erenere Archipelago off the eastern coast of the peninsula around 18.000 a.Dr, the Drints on the mainland have since lived in small, scattered tribes which follow the cattle on their seasonal migrations back and forth across the peninsula, protecting the herds from predators while feeding on old, sick or injured cattle that get left behind.

Culture

Apparel

Drint clothing consists primarily of belted tunics made of cow hides, fastened with sinews. Necklaces adorned with small bones, fangs or tufts of grass are popular.

Cuisine

Their diet is made up almost exclusively of the meat and internal organs of wild cattle, with some parts eaten raw and others cooked over fire, though small lizards and insects caught on the go are eaten as well.

Religion

The Drints are one the few cultures of Dragonía that practice monotheism, centered on the worship of the moon, commonly known as the Great Bull. The shape of the moon is believed to foretell whether the next day will be a lucky or unlucky one; most tribes consider eating certain organs to be taboo on unlucky days, during which they are either left untouched or buried. Other ways to avoid misfortune includes avoiding playing instruments or whispering.
Fire also holds a special place in Drint religion, believed to be a gift from the Great Bull, with various ceremonies associated with it to honour him. This is because Drints don't know how to start fires from scratch, instead they must carry embers from the last site to ignite the next campfire.

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¹Original icelandic: Drintar, plural: Drinti

by Lappalingur

Origin/Ancestry

Tærp Mountains

Related Ethnicities

• Halúdrints