Zwek

States

Barony of Al
Barony of Juwango

Zwek are strong, mountaineers but, instead picturing of rugged, independent, mountain men picture, instead of community- and family-focused man. The Zwek have learned that the only way to survive the long winters is to band together in communities, putting both strength of arms and brains together.

At a Glance

Cultural Touchstones

Pragmatic, engineers, builders, defensive, strategic, conservative

Who is Strong?

An engineer

Who is Family?

The people you physical share a space with; your neighbors.

Common Characteristics

Descriptions

Cheerful, thoughtful

Convictions

To build is the greatest thing a man can do

Relationships

All humans have a Relationship to their family (whatever that means for their culture; See the Who is Family? section above).

Preferred Loadout

In the highlands, light armor & small or medium shields. Sidearms are most common and there is a strong tradition of wrestling. For soldiers, medium shields that favor Cover (hoplon) are preferred and the pavise and crossbows are very common since they're typically used on the defense. If medium armor is used, chainmail is preferred because of its flexibility.
In the lowlands, chainmail is way more common, even in the non-soldier population but javelins and medium piercing weapons are also very common.

Beast-faced Helms

It is a very common tradition for Zwek warriors to craft their helms to look like beasts and monsters as a way of channeling their power and skill.

Other Things to Note

Inheritance

Inheritance for the Zwek is not directly parent-to-child. Instead, when a person died, the community comes together to inventory and catalog their belongings. Then, going from oldest to youngest, each person in the community chooses something form among their belongings. When the youngest has chosen, if there is still more things left over, it starts over at the oldest.

Spirit Affinity

The Zwek seem to have a keen affinity for the spirits of their land, with spirit cults being the most common in Juwango and Barony of Al. These cults don't spread or gain widespread notice because they're so heavily linked to a specific location: leaving that location means you essentially lose the connection and power. And, of course, the Zwek do not see what they do as anything unusually or heretical (because the Brotherhood doesn't think like that).