The Katanari (Submission Article #3)

The Tooth of Vol Yhaera is as inhospitable as they come. Acrid, choked air, burning white sunlight, and wastelands of dulled yellow stone stretching as far as the eye can see. Even more so, the very land seems alive, growing and twisting as the Mould is scattered and hardens, patrolled by the savage Irzhi, and wracked by the heedless wrath of the Oluja Tides. Yet in this hostile hellscape, one people makes their home.
The Katanari are tall, the average towering seven feet, and they are thickly built as well, with strong limbs, deep barrel chests, and strong, broad palms. The exact details of their physiology is unknown, for they spend almost the entirety of their existence wrapped in thick Irzhi cloaks, designed to protect them from the harsh air and sunlight. However, they are not human; that much is clear by their ability to survive extreme temperatures while hardly seeming to notice, and their tendancy to go long weeks without eating or drinking. They never appear outside the inner sanctums of their homes unless properly garbed, both for necessity and tradition. A Katanari seen "naked" would be considered a reckless fool, unworthy of their neighbor's trust.
For trust is everything to the Katanari. They live and die as a unit, whether family or village; there is no greater shame that a Katanari can bring upon himself than breaching this trust. Such a requirement is to be expected, in a land where sloth or lazyness could result in not finding enough Mould to repair a house before nightfall, or, worst of all, missing the faint signs of the Oluja Tides gathering high in the sky.

Civilization and Culture

Common Dress Code

The cloaks of the Katanari are brown and leathery, often stained by dist and sweat from their long use. While their faces are covered, Katanari adorn their cloaks with unique baubles and jewelry for identification. Indeed, the absence of these trinkets is seen as a red flag, for it means that Katanari does not wish to be identified.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

While art the way we traditionally describe it is rare on Vol Yhaera, passion and creativity are still shown by the Katanari in their duties. Mould is sculpted in simple yet elegant curves and designs, incorporated both into the walls of houses and huts, and onto the very ground in patches of Mould too small for traditional use. Generally, the designs sculpted are some sort of representation of the Katanari epic and religious text Bal Nashar and the Seven Truths. Similarly, the metal and bone trinkets that Katanari use as identifiers are often some sort of reference to this epic.

Common Myths and Legends

The main source of Katanari myth and folklore, as well as the bedrock of their beliefs and understanding about the world, is the epic of Bal Nashar and the Seven Truths. There is no paper on Vol Yhaera; instead, the epic's various segments and verses are memorized and recounted orally. The story follows the first of the Katanari, a being by the name of Bal Nashar who was said to have the favor of the Wind, who told him and showed him the ways of the world so he could later communicate them to his descendants. Indeed, some believe that the purpose of the epic is to teach the Katanari how to connect with Na'amet in the same way Bal Nashar did, and try and live strictly according to what the story outlines to achieve this enlightenment.