The Hantu Tribe
"The spirits have a way of guiding those who are lost even when they are lost themselves" - Ari Adi Jiwa
The Hantu tribe, family of Jiwa, is the wielder of “Staf Roh” or “The Staff of Spirits”. This tribe’s focus is on the spirits of ancestors that came before. They have a deep connection to natural magic, the spirit realm, and the plane of dreams.
This tribe has a belief in letting the spirits guide the world. You can ask for seances for answers to your questions but the tribe frowns upon doing anything about what you have learned unless the dead have a specific request or it would save the lives of others.
Structure
The Hantu people live off of their ancestors and seek them for guidance, other than the Ketua, other head members of Hantu tribe are often the elders of each family as they are closer to the ancestors.
Culture
The Hantu tribes core beliefs revolve around their dead ancestors. They are a wise people who rely on premonitions from the dead. Because of this, their culture is very much revolved around death and life in such a way that they focus on making themselves the most reliable and good seers to contact when they eventually ascend the stairs back to the heaven.
Public Agenda
This tribe is a more defensive group when compared to the other tribes often not engaging in open conflict but through a spiritual war on the other tribe's ideals.
Assets
They are not a materialistic people but most of the people have some amount of magic at their disposal. With this magic comes a great deal of knowledge about how the world works that they can use to their advantage while not being as technically and materialistically powerful.
History
Historically, the tribe views themselves as the first people in Nusantara as all of the tribes do. In their story at year 0, their people were created by the gods in the heaven and they descended down heavenly stairs to the plateau that they now reside on.
Demography and Population
Common races of The Hantu Tribe are Wood Elves, Bugbears, Kalashatar, Gnomes, and Aasimar. There are also members of other races around from other islands. Ratios are 40% Wood Elves, 15% Aasimar, 15% Bugbear, 10% Kalashatar, 10% Gnomes, 10% Other.
Territories
The tribe has a well established foothold over the island of Tahun nol often not being attacked there with little defenses. They also have an established relationship with Monyet Island and The Monkey King.
Military
When the Hantu do have to fight, they often rely on the younger members who are traditionally training in combat with some magic. Additionally the tribe can call upon the spirits to fight with them. The head of their military engagements are usually the elder members who are more experienced with magic.
Religion
They follow the religion of The Oracles of The Stairs which involves the belief of creation that the Hantuese believe in. They are open to the discussion of other stories with other groups but are set in their own beliefs pretty firmly.
Agriculture & Industry
The tribe grows various plants, their marshy plateau gives them a good source of rice and sugarcane, the high altitude makes it good for cassava, peanut, soybean, and potato farming, and plenty of tropical trees by the coast to farm exotic fruits. However they lack the large open fields to grow corn and the environment to grow chilies. The tribe lacks industrial power more than the other tribes.
Trade & Transport
The tribe is somewhat secluded but when they do venture out they tend to travel via 2-3 safe passage ways off of the plateau to other cities on the island. When they need to leave they use wooden merchant boats.
Education
The people of this tribe are not well educated in an intelligence sense but are spiritually brought up to be wise in the ways of the cosmos. Because of this, they lack a formal education that some other tribes value because they rely on learning from the elders and their ways of living. This makes the people of the Hantu traditionalists rarely having people leave the tribe and opening their mind to new ways.
Mythology & Lore
The Hantu people believe in the creation myth of the heavenly stairs where humans were created in the heaven by Waktu and it was their destiny to make their way down to the material plane to live for the gods so they descended heavenly stairs to the plateau that they live on today.
Divine Origins
The teachings are as old as the Hantu themself. When the Hantu worship gods they worship them based on what they need hence the worship of the agriculture god and gods of death. The traditions have been passed down over time and have not changed very much at all.
Tenets of Faith
The main tenet they follow is listening to the spirits that come before them. They focus around death in such a way that they value being on the plateau at death to get them closer to the heaven. They learn to contact spirits, some powerful people can even contact the gods that they worship. They also have a main tenet to respect the dead and to never act on what you learn from the dead unless it will save lives or they have a specific request.
Ethics
The Hantu tribe bases their ethics around the fact that if you are to act in a way that is poor such as murder or other heinous crimes, you will not be allowed access to the heaven. Instead, you will be a spirit trapped in the underworld that will become evil denying all of the knowledge that you acquired in your life.
Worship
The regular practices are praying to the gods when in need, setting out offerings for the gods, and having nightly rituals attempting to contact spirits.
Priesthood
The head leaders of religion in the Hantu tribe are defined by their connection to the spirits or by their age. The head of the tribe is also the spiritual leader who is usually from the same large family of Jiwa. The leader is given The Staff of Spirits which chooses its successor.
Let the spirits guide you
Hantu Statblocks
Hantu tribe members mostly can use a cantrip or two, some use a few spells related to the dead, and greater shamans of the Hantu tribe are full spellcasters.
Type
Geopolitical, Tribe
Capital
Demonym
Hantuese
Leader
Leader Title
Head of State
Head of Government
Government System
Thanatocracy / Necrocracy
Currency
They use the same currency as the rest of Nusantara which are nuggets of metals.
Official State Religion
Location
Official Languages
Controlled Territories
Notable Members
Related Species
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