Owu (O-woo)
Tengu native to the perpetual night of Skovasil, the owu resemble owls instead of crows, and can easily see in the darkness that dominates the realm.
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
Instead of learning an elemental language, most owu learn to speak Giant, and many seek to understand the dark language of the undead, Necril.
Culture and cultural heritage
The owu are respected for their knowledge of magic and their skill as scribes, healers, and architects, but are also feared for the dark magic that some practice. Many outside Caromid believe that the owu serve the Sep-cru giants willingly in exchange for knowledge of necromancy, and this has led the owu to guard their secrets carefully.
Average technological level
The owu prefer magic to technology, with many having turned to necromantic arts, utilizing the undead to preform laborious tasks.
Common Etiquette rules
The owu always very careful to speak tactfully around the Sep-cru giants, lest their words be taken as dissent and they be punished for it.
Common Dress code
Most owu wear dark cloaks, so that they can easily blend in with the trees of the forest that surrounds their ancestral home, the Iblui Tower.
Art & Architecture
Like most tengu, the owu prefer large, tower-like structures, and many owu are great architects, having a solid mind for planning and designing layouts. Some believe that Lavardi originally settled near the owu and brought them into his thrall soley to use them in the construction of his fortress, the Flesh Pyramid.
Common Customs, traditions and rituals
Owu find that tasted cooked Nezumi flesh to be extremely addicting, and thus many Sep-cru giants reward their owu servants with imported nezu slaves.
Birth & Baptismal Rites
Owu eggs are taken from their parents and placed in communal nests in the Iblui Tower, so that they owu can be hatched without parental attachment and focus on their studies. The owu cannot remember if this policy was put into place by the Sep-cru giants to keep them from rebelling, or if it is an ancient tradition of their ancestors to help them hone their skills.
Coming of Age Rites
When an owu comes of age, it is assigned by its superiors for its lifes work, usually being sent to somewhere else in Caromid or being regulated to a certian floor of the Iblui Tower to help teach the next generation. The most impressive of owu mages are sent to the Flesh Pyarimd to personally serve Lavardi and the Sep-cru. Many owu in this time must choose either to stay in Caromid and faithfully serve the Sep-cru, or attempt to secretly sabotage them, or even to flee the country and attempt the journey to the Free Lands. Few end up making the journey, as most Sep-cru treat the owu relatively well as long as they behave.
Funerary and Memorial customs
Low-born owu who never make much name for themselves are often converted into undead upon their death, so that they can continue to serve Caromid in undeath.
Common Taboos
While defecting to the free lands is outwardly shamed by the owu, many respect those who choose to leave, despite the consequences it might have to their friends and families.
Common Myths and Legends
A majority of owu worship Thoth, the tengu god of magic and writings, but many are forced into necromantic studies and the worship of the titan Phob by the Sep-cru giants.
Ideals
Beauty Ideals
Like all tengu, the owu take great care in trying to keep their feathers clean, although owu feathers lack the brighter sheen of other tengu.
Gender Ideals
Females are more dominate in owu society, taking on more leadership roles, and having slightly more advancement opportunities.
Courtship Ideals
Due to their views to personal family, owu courtships are a matter of business and need, rather than romantic feelings. Thusly, a female simply chooses a partner who catches her interest, mates with them, and then they go their separate ways. Although discouraged, is not uncommon for the owu to mate with the same partner year after year.
Relationship Ideals
Owu are raised communally in the Iblui Tower and thus few have an actual relationship with their birth parents, instead forming strong bonds with others in their hatching pods. Many serve individual Sep-cru giants, with a wide variety of willingness. Some Sep-cru treat their owu servants well, rewarding them for their hard efforts, while other giants are brutal tyrants, killing those who make the slightest mistake and raising them as zombified slaves.
Major organizations
Many owu serve as advisors to the Lavardi, the Lord of Flesh, necromantic lord of Caromid, but mostly serve as a way to ensure their survival. Some owu flee Caromid to join the Free Lands in the hopes of one day overthrowing the giants and freeing their people.
Random Owu Homelands
| % Rolled | Homeland | Trait Gained |
|---|---|---|
| 01-60 | Secluded Owu Tower | Reluctant Apprentice |
| 61-80 | Dark Forest | Necrotoxin Resistance |
| 81-90 | Crypt or Necropolis | Friend to the Undead |
| 91-95 | Non-tengu Settlement | Gifted Smuggler |
| 96-00 | Unusual Homeland | (Roll on Unusual Homeland table) |
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