Mask Weaver

One of the first duties of the halfling shaman is to help his people attain their Spirit Masks , and as a result halfling shamans are often called mask weavers. The shaman serves many other crucial roles in her community. He heals the sick and injured. He helps to find and train the lions, chimera, and sphinxes that the nomadic tribes of the Talenta Plains rely on as mounts. He serves as a diplomat for the tribe, both when dealing with other tribes and with the spirits of nature. And he acts as a storyteller and record keeper, preserving the oral traditions of his people and passing them down to the next generation.

While mask weavers recognize one another as peers, their first loyalty is to the other members of their tribe. Even when a mask weaver dies without training a successor, a tribe will not turn to an outsider in search of aid; instead they will simply wait, confident that the spirits themselves will speak to one of the children of the tribe and teach him the secrets of the mask weavers. While it is rare for a mask weaver to leave his tribe, there are two ways it can happen. Occasionally a young shaman is called forth by the spirits and ordered to go out into the world, in search of a hidden destiny that is far more important than his service to the tribe. The morbid alternative is when a tribe is destroyed. Even during feuds, enemy warriors will try to avoid harming a mask weaver, since many say this will bring bad luck to the slayer. As a result, a mask weaver may find himself the last surviving member of his tribe. Most of these orphans leave the Plains, searching for a new life in the wider world. Either of these could serve as background for an adventurer.

Related Locations

• Talenta Plains