Shiomi
The Dire Skullfishes
Clan Status: None; enemies of the Commonwealth; Commonwealth samurai have license to eliminate on sight
Totem Kami: None, though crests frequently feature the skull of a Dire Onifish
Colours: No official; preferences for dark colours and tattoos
First Kannushi: None; lead by pirate, warlord, necromancer and possible Drow Matriarch Kataviri Silinikari
Vassal Clans: None; naval operatives are called kaizoku, ground operatives are called yakuza.
Reputation: Honourless thieves and muderers; vile necromancers; warlocks who commune with kaiju; frighteningly good sailors
Preferred classes: Corsair, ninja, cleric (Ob'Silexia), wizard (necromancy), sorcerer (stormblood)
Imagery: Shiomi Fashion & Scenery Image Gallery (External)
While there are indeed embellishments and superstitions surrounding the Shiomi, their reputation is more or less accurate: they are ruthless and skilled pirates, frequent practicioners of necromancy and led by a powerful drow sorceress and cleric of Ob'Silexia (it is claimed she’s a Matriarch; the heavily-drow Oronaga Clan deny this). Their ships are often manned by skeletons and jiangshi zombies, and do not ever seem to be attacked by the sea monsters of The Sunken Expanse. It is said Silinikari’s flagship, The Hungry Ghost, is guarded by the nightmarish gashadokuro: a colossal, aquatic, humanoid skeleton capable of toppling ships with a swing of its giant hand.
Not a clan but a collective, they nonetheless have a patron of sorts, flying flags from their masts of the white, skull-like face of the onifish, on a plain black background.
Commonwealth traditionlists consider them the antithesis of the Eight-Pointed Soul made manifest; the only thing they prefer to a dead Shiomi is a captured one, and the latter are known to be slippery. At any rate, the rise of the pirates have given the warlike clans like the Raan and Ashina—increasingly obsolete during peacetime—an enjoyably challenging sparring partner.
As for Kataviri Silinikari, the facts are simply too obfuscated by rumours and legend, even to the most knowledgable of Setsu, Sokenzan,Izuka or Erayo spymasters.The Early Erayo-Yoisura-Shiomi
Despite their mild reputation, the the Nighthawks have a darker history than most clans. The ancient, united Erayo-Yoisura-Shiomi Clan is remembered mostly as naval explorers and tradesmen, however in truth the clan was largely just a pirate band. The early Sokenzan likely knew or at least suspected this at the time, but the wealth and territorial power they brought to the Commonwealth was undeniable. Eventually the Erayo-Yoisura "went legitimate" and the original Shiomi disappeared(?) for nearly a century, however to the Erayo's deep shame, they are back and more destructive than ever. The Erayo will not rest until every last Shiomi is sent to the Deadlands of O-Inai.
Geography
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