The desert nomads are tribal human nations living in the
Arid Waste east of
Illium. They migrated to the western edges of the desert some centuries ago from the land of Zagra and have retained many of their habits and traditions, though life in the Arid Waste has changed them as a people.
Culture
The desert nomads are varied in their practices and beliefs, though there are common threads that run between them. The nomads are a dynamic people, always on the move. They rely heavily on horses and camels for transport and drove large flocks of hardy sand goats between their encampments.
There are a few settled communities in the more arable foothills of the Border Range, but otherwise the tribes will spend a few months at a time at different oases or creek beds. Tribes can move around in small family groups of close to fifty, whilst other tribes are great moving towns with hundreds of people. The great oasis of Siva can home thousands of the nomads. It is regarded as a place of tranquility and safe haven for all nations, run by a sect of water priests.
Their origins from the land of Zagra have persisted in their language, gods and music - however the harsh environment of the Arid Waste has made them hardy and resilient. Desert nomads are not to be crossed. Warriors and traders alike they will strike first and ask questions later. They are superb riders and archers and their knowledge of the desert is unsurpassed.
Relationships
"Desert nomads" is a term given to them by the inhabitants of Illium who have an uneasy relationship with their neighbours. Nomad tribes are as likely to be aggressive as they are hospitable. Some tribes raid Illium's frontier and skirmishes are common between marauding tribes and Illium's
Legionnaires and
Shieldmaidens. Other tribes have more cordial relationships with Illium's people. Though travelling across the Arid Waste is treacherous some of the desert folk have become merchant princes through the lucrative trade exchange, with their own ties to the
Old Families of Marmella.
Origins
There are numerous explanations for why the desert nomads became who they are. A historian will tell you it was likely a migration caused by a famine in the once fertile riverlands of Zagra. A veteran adventurer will claim to have passed desecrated temples deeper east, filled with the stuff of nightmares. According to them the desert nomads fled their homelands when they were overrun by dark horrors.
Whatever the specific origin one thing is for certain - the desert nomads keep it a closely guarded secret. The events that drove them to the desert are taboo. Some still yearn for the stories of their paradise homeland, of flocks of brightly coloured water birds and fields of women harvesting rich red sorghum from the river crops. But the desert nomads have vowed to never return, and to never speak of it to outsiders.
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