Drajjini (Dra-JINN-ee)

Appearance

Regal and austere with antlers that interlock across their body, the Drajjini are known for their dragonic appearance, strict respect for the boundaries of nature, and reverence for and protection of Dragons. Tall but with lean muscle, they are known for inheriting a sort of Dragon-like stamina in the way they are raised. They often wear loose but regal clothing, their hair kept long but held together in buns by Dragon Ivory Cuffs and hair needles. Regardless of gender, they grow the hairs that sprout towards the back of their cheeks as long as possible, representing the whiskers of the dragons they live among.

Common Personality

The Drajjini tend to be an insular people, often standoffish to those from outside of their varying clans. Those who demonstrate reverence for nature and/or the Dragons particularly find themselves in at least decent standing among them, even more so if they respect their culture and traditions that they have preserved for thousands of years. Nevertheless, the Drajjini always seek to be polite, demonstrating their displeasure in how they care for outsiders rather than if they care for outsiders. Those Drajjini who were born and raised outside of the major Drajjini community are treated as outsiders with a greater grace to allow for an adaptation to their ways and culture. Those who do so are fully embraced, especially if they form a bond with a Dragon in their care.

History Summary

The ancestor of the Drajjini, Verim Draji-Kyni, had been stolen away by the dragons as a part of the second drajin war, along with others. Raised among Dragons to act as their spies in human society, Verim was a fierce warrior who saw himself as part dragon even when he possessed none of the features that the Drajjini possess now, but wearing their armor of bonds, the DragonScale. It was his capture by the Ancient Barinman people, his adoption by the revered Ideem Adwar, and the subsequent end of the Third Dragon War through his and other efforts, that he gained the respect of the title Draji-Kyni or "Dragon Kin". When he and the rest of those who had bonds with the dragons passed through the Tree on the day of the first Florim, in the scattering of mankind, they found themselves returned among the Dragons who raised them, and with their help established a civilization dedicated to preventing miscommunication between the heralds of the natural world (The Heraldic Beasts) and all Maphra (Mankind).

Society and Common Environment

Drajjini society revolves around a reverance for and respect of nature through their unique relationship with the Dragons, seen among them as the peak heralds of the animal world. As such, they set up their main civilization around and in defense of "The Great Nests", the most ancient Dragon nests of old. Such is their relationship with the Dragons that villages of Drajjini people are known and even expected to spring up near the nesting grounds of Dragons, be they temporary or permanent. As such, despite their generally insular and protective nature, the Drajini have established overall positive relationships between themselves and other nations, and have made themselves natural liasons in desputes when Heraldic beasts of any kind (not just Dragons) are involved. They are also one of the few people who found a way to traverse the 77 worlds through the tree without major techological advancements, allowing the scattered tribes to come to each others aid with swift rapidity in the event of an assault, uniting them even through many smaller villages, towns, and cities are scattered among the worlds.

International/Multi-ethnic relations

The Drajini are a society that reveres and respects nature, and thus are respectful of other nations and societies that do the same. This makes them allied with the Fae (tentatively), the Sagittarian (and by extension, the Nyraku-Ai), the Arauk, and several others for whom this is a priority. Consequently, they have the opposite opinion of those who seek to conquer nature (The Zenetherian empire and the current Zynkarian Kingdom as one example), and have little respect for those who seek to break natural harmony. In terms of Multi-Ethnic relations, however, their insular nature and the Emiramis (Noble class) obsession with maintaining purity of bloodline made such practice frowned upon, especially in the upper classes of society, and causing a rift between the upper and lower classes, most of whom interacted with and had no issues with such relations. This divide was only broken as the tribes scattrered more and more, adapting to the cultures around them for the sake of the creatures they were blood-bound to protect, which eventually reduced the stigma somewhat. However, there is still a stigma against those of mixed blood (Lacrimaphra) in Drajjini society to this day.

Religious Tendencies

Drajjini are a people who revere nature in the form of The Mother (representative of the Universe itself, mother of all the worlds), and Dragons as heralds both of her voice and those of all living beings. This reverence and respect for nature also makes them appear callous when it comes to death, as they see it as a return to the cycle. Thus, they are fierce warriors against the Dark Arts, seeing such unnatural powers as not worth even studying for weaknesses, but needing to be purged from the face of the earth. This makes them particularly superstitious and unaccepting of newer variations of Aspects that they have not seen before, resulting in the exiling of many Paragons.

Ethnic and Racial Traits

• Racial Categories: Animaphran or Lacrimaphran, though Lacrimaphrans are often barely tolerated among the upper class. Due to their Drajinic features, they have bonus point(s) in Stamina.
• Languages: Deijini, as well as the universal language of the location they are in, and the language of the nation that they are in.
• Endurance of the Dragon: Drajjini often train their physical endurance through physical exposure to the elements along with training in their powers. Those who have undergone this training have a reduced difficulty when rolling Stamina+Grits to endure difficult environments.
• Unique Mogulian Items: The DragonScale (Dajjini secret armor), Dragon-Ivory Spike (Drajini double-sided javelin), Dragon-Ivory Knives, Dragon Pearls

Aspects

• Aspect of Persistence 
• Those who don't possess this power or a potential mix of this and other powers are seen as suspicious.

Unique Martial Traditions

• Daji-zitok - Martial arts focused on the Dragon-Ivory Spike and wielding it both as a returning throwing weapon and at melee range
• Daji-S'utak - Martial arts focused on the Dragon-Ivory Knives both as a close ranged or thrown weapon.
• Daj-Ukpalk - Martial arts focused on the remote manipulation of dense pearls of Dragon Ivory, wielded through resonance and deadly at any range.
• Draiji-gisai - Secret martial arts given to those who have been blessed with The DragonScale. They must have recieved at least a moderate amount of training in one of the other forms to be initiated in this one.

Associated Nation: The United Drajini Emirates and City-States
Associated Languages: Deijini