Terrapiner (TEH-ruh-pYe-ner)

Out in the western half of the The Warmwind Sea there is an island. This island is unusual in many ways, not least of which is that it seems to move. The mariners among the aboriginal natives' number (most of them) know that dead reckoning is very often a death sentence; and with such a sheer abundance of food, shelter, and tropical fruit, many of them do not go very far from its rocky shores in the first place. In fact, most of the denizens spend their time making love and music. Every time one turns around, there is a pineapple or banana to pluck. If one spends enough time playing a ukulele next to one of the many mysterious and misty waterfalls, a rainbow scaled fish is just bound to jump right into one's cookpot with a piscine smile. The only native land mammal is the famed and oddly named Hawaiian Hoary Bat.

None of the scholars at the world famous Bardic College Campus have ever been able to determine what a Hawaiian is, although their educated guess is that they were some type of majestic creature, no doubt of stunning intellect and grace.

Many marine mammals make their habitat around the island, however. Nesting lion seals and lounging flamingos cohabitate peacefully amongst the swaddling root systems of the Matted Mangrove trees surrounding much of the island's perimeter. Having become so intertwined and grown together as to have become a single organism, these trees' root systems send tendrils of discovery many fathoms down in the sea, but do not grab onto any surface. Millions of organisms make their homes within these root systems, as the island simply floats where it will. It is slave to no tide nor current, either, which is stranger even still. All of this is to say; these Terrapiners live in a paradise unmatched. Their beautiful brown skin and silky black hair are stunning in and of themselves, but when adorned with flowers, or delicate tattoos that sparkle with embedded pearl, these folks can command the attention of any mainlander. Some of their warriors are quite fierce looking with the tattoos. That being said, they have very few warriors to begin with; perhaps two dozen at any time. They have no natural enemies as there are no official States anywhere near them. Only the luckiest Drylander mariners have ever laid eyes on the mystical place, and once they meet the people living there, most of those stay and raise their own little families in paradise. Every night is a beach party, but on special occasions there will be jugglers slinging flaming torches, and whole pigs roasting in the sand. Traditional dances tell their sacred tales and traditions, and each color of every flower has its own special meaning or purpose. A sprig of bright yellow Mamane is a message of romantic interest, for example. A wreath of Ohe'ohe indicates a warm welcome, while a single bloom of the fiery red Koki'o is a clear declaration of anger. There is an entire symbolic language that has grown around the plentiful flowering shrubs, trees, and plants that grow on every slope of this mountainous island. The varies magical and misty waterfalls on this island have come to symbolize a religious pantheon for the superstitious islanders. Each fall has a name, an associated virtue, and songs written in homage by brilliant, lovelorn balladiers. Trysts and clandestine meetups are often happening in and around the tropical falls.

The other end of the spectrum, unfortunately, happens here as well. Many a young person - far too many - has fallen to their death over the mysterious and unforgiving Wailele. Self propelled or not.

Naming Traditions

Family names

Generally having to do with the stars on the day of the birth-naming their children after the constellation Archimeed for instance; their name for the constellation is Hu'lu Hu'lu, the child would be named Hu'lu or some derivative thereof.

Culture

Major language groups and dialects

There is only one. The word "Hawaiian" is here used, in the available texts, for the second and last time in our archives; but for all intents and purposes, it is a vowel heavy creole of elvish and common.

Culture and cultural heritage

Their culture is one of reverence towards nature and the gifts that they have been given, living in a tropical paradise. They have ceremonies and events celebrating their good fortune and abundance, and it is considered rude to brag.
Their cultural heroes are based around that person's particular uncommon beauty. Beautiful in body, yes. The desires of our younger selves never quite leave our thoughts; even when we age past the days of being able to act on them. Beauty in thought, beauty in word, and beauty in deed are the standard by which people are judged upon Terrapin Isle.

Shared customary codes and values

They value peace and tranquility above all; a beautiful side effect of their very real emotional connection to this free floating island.

Average technological level

Master woodworkers and wood carvers. Their twine and rope making game is second to none.
Methods of tracking stars and the moons during inclement weather; navigation techniques.
Medical herb distilling techniques.

Common Etiquette rules

Giving gifts when welcoming someone is very common; usually, flowers or a small gift of food or drink. It is also customary for the visitor to leave a small gift when they leave.
When eating, no utensils are used. The first three fingers of the main hand, only, are used to grasp and pull away the food from the table. The off hand is often used to get the food to the mouth more daintily, but the upper crust keep their left hands in their laps all hoity-toity like.
Turning down sex is considered incredibly rude.
Sex on the sand of the beach is bad for everybody involved. Have a little patience.
Bragging of any kind is considered very uncouth.

Common Dress code

Clothing makes one even hotter. It is already hot. It is also very wet for a portion of every day. Too much clothing is simply impractical.

Art & Architecture

They are the sculptors of fierce looking totems and stelae placed at seemingly random places throughout the jungle. They are not rare, nor are they randomly placed, as they were constructed upon squared and polished lava rock bases that lie upon conjoining Ley Lines, according to the Terrapiner's ancient maps.

Now, let us discuss music. because in this realm, the Terrapiners have excelled and flourished, coming to create a joyful, dance-inducing style of rhythmic melody backed by harmonies in what we here at the world famous Greynor location of The Bardic College Campus would call thirds, sixths, and ninths. Or so I am told by the music nerds who are running the Art and Architecture department for some unfathomable reason.

Common Customs, traditions and rituals

Making shell jewelry and dancing for people are highly accepted forms of payment/barter. Handmade items that time and love was put into making, are valued above manufactured goods brought by the few Drylanders who have managed to find and land upon Terrapin.
There is a festival during the last Biphasal Full Moon of the year that squeamish Drylanders really ought to avoid. In fact, if our dear reader is of the more prudish variety, just go ahead and skip on to the next bit, rather than read the next sentence. Go on, now.

On the last Biphasal Full Moon of the year, the adult islanders leave their children with the elderly, and the teenaged or grieving people of the island, and have a huge party. Naked. There is much to infer, here, and we, the research team, would like you to just keep right on inferring. Because you are right.
There is a lot of rum, there is a lot of smoke, and there are a lot of naked, very fit people, dancing around vigorously. Closely. There is palm-oil involved in bulk. Once again, the research team dutifully took part in, and meticulously recorded (the video and still picture photogrammy psi-crystals are catalogued in the Order of Oghma library in Greynor ).

Birth & Baptismal Rites

Children are born underwater, in one of the warm pools formed by the oxygenated water of the Wailele feeding it. It is usually a very small and private affair, unless the delivery is unusually difficult at which point the entire clan, sometimes the whole island, will chant a Pule in honor of the laboring mother, entreating their ancestors to bestow some secret knowledge to help with the birth.

Coming of Age Rites

Circumnavigating the island, both at night and during the day, is a must for any Terrapiner wishing to call themselves such. Circumnavigating it out of sight is an ancient ritual that has fallen out of broad use due to its dangerous nature.

Funerary and Memorial customs

The dead are burned upon pyres of dry seaweed and seasoned jungle hardwood. A core of myrrh, two-and-a-half pounds worth by tradition, is nestled within the very heart of the pyre. When this is reached, the resultant flare of green flame and charmingly musky smoke signals the end of the official ceremony, and it is time now for the visitors and well-wishers to leave and allow the family to grieve.

Common Taboos

Any form of predatory behavior, from petty thievery to premeditated violent crime, is seen as criminally deviant, and often dealt with more harshly than many Drylanders would see fit (except in the case of sexual predators and sex traffickers). 
Tattoos of serpents, dragons, or fanged creatures in general are considered bad luck and even in very poor taste. Creatures with stingers, bees for instance, are considered edgy tattoos if the stinger is accentuated.
Turning a totem upside down, or knocking one over, brings seven years of bad luck in the form of famine, disease, and invasion. So it is said, and so it has always proven.

Common Myths and Legends

The legends surrounding King Kali'iko'loka are convoluted and epic, and almost certainly fiction. But there was definitely some truth to the rumor, as they say at the world famous The Bardic College Campus. There is some research to suggest the Captain they are talking about is indeed yet another iteration of The Captain, star of our very own popular fictional literature.

Historical figures

Were generally those who had the best parties, let's face it. Also, the guy that invented vanilla rum came from here, obviously.

Ideals

Beauty Ideals

They treasure shells and pearls, mother of pearl and abalone. Precious stones and metals are very scarce upon the island, and the islanders do not have the required technology or expertise to mine and smelt such things even if there were. A somewhat prodigious belly is a mark of real prestige and happiness, and such people are held as standards. Piercings and tattoos are common adornments; bird-feathers through the nose, or ears, etc., are held in high regard.

Gender Ideals

The men take care of and tend to the children, spending their days building cleverly constructed trimarans that the mariners among their people so adore.

Courtship Ideals

This is a pretty open society, and the young'uns are free to court however they wish as long as they aren't hurting each other.
Sexual predators of any kind are Relegated to the Falls.

Relationship Ideals

Once committed to a lifepartner, you are committed for life in the eyes of the King or Queen. However, there is no crazy sexual taboo to need to avoid or proscribe to. Partnerships are meant to be loving, caring and sharing relationships with people who support each other through the tough times, and to celebrate the hard won achievements with.

Major organizations

None. They made sure to stress this every time they asked us to take our clothes off and partake in another or...in another celebration. There is one community of Water Genassi that is nothing at all like these other islanders, in that they are much more the wide-eyed innocent types, as opposed to the smokey-eyed come-hither types. They are a very small community of scholars, living isolated from the rest.

Parent ethnicities

• Elvendom
• Gnomes
• Humanity

Encompassed species

• Tortle

Related Locations

• Middle Sea
• Teotachetlan
• The Warmwind Sea