So, I had a sit down to think about the Au Ra, and the Xaela in particular. Now, we haven't seen Othard or the steppes the Xaela call home, but we do know they are culturally influenced by medieval Mongolia. Of course, I don't know how accurate this is going to be in the end, but I thought I'd write up a quick and dirty guide to a revisionist, modern fantasy take on tribal life, to better organize my thoughts and maybe give some other players ideas.
Please bare in mind that this isn't exclusively Mongolian, either, but a mix of steppe cultures. I also invite anyone to correct me where anything contradicts established Lore.
The Steppe
A steppe is a flat, dry grassland. Think prairie. Because of it's geographical features (or, more accurately, lack of geographical features), steppes tend to the extremes - very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter. Like deserts, steppes are often dotted with oases that the itinerant population uses as waypoints and camping sites at various times of the year. The soil is generally too infertile for farming, and so permanent settlements are rare, and usually found near permanent sources of water, like rivers or lakes. The Dalamiq tribe have established just such a village.
The Yurt
Technically, yurt is a Turkish word. The Mongolian equivalent is the ger, but since SE used yurt, I will too.
The yurt - a kind of collapsible tent that's easy to take down and move - is the center of tribal life. A yurt is made from a trellis-like frame of wooden slats, tied together with leather thongs. These frames are covered by thick felt rugs. The roof is made from poles, like rafters, that sit atop the walls. Like the walls, it is also covered with a rug. A special flap can be opened in the dome cap to let smoke out.
A yurt can be taken down quickly, and can be carried by two to four horse. It only takes about two to three hours for two people to construct a yurt. The construction is very sturdy, and will stand up to strong winds or even the weight of a full-grown man walking on the roof. Inside, the floor is usually covered with yet more felt rugs, except in poorer families. Cushions are used for sitting and sleeping, and beds are rarer. Some families might keep a small cot for the head of the family to sleep on. One portion of the tent is usually screened off as a sort of master bedroom, with another screened off as a pantry.
![[Image: old-yurts-300x162.jpg]](http://www.simplyyurts.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/old-yurts-300x162.jpg)
A single yurt is home to an entire family, sometimes including the elderly and poor relatives, as well as any guests and visitors. A typical yurt has between six and ten permanent residents, with room for more.
Yurts are mentioned in the Dazkar description especially.
Animals
Horses were very important to real-world Mongols, and are even more important to at least one Xaela tribe. I'm looking at you, Goro. It can be inferred from some of the clan descriptions that the horse is still essential to the Xaela as well - the Noykin are famous for their horse-breaking, and the Oroq use horse fat to lacquer their sleds.
This is actually good, because horses are everything to on the steppe. Horses are great transportation, a source of food, and make perfectly good leather and milk. They're even essential to waging war. The steppe horses are bred to be typically strong, tough animals, with the constitution to survive the freezing winters, broiling summers, and the meager diet of dry steppe grass.
Of course, horses aren't the only animals raised by nomadic tribes either. Sheep, cattle and oxen are common as well. Camels are often used, especially in the dryer, more desertlike regions. Yaks would be common in the higher, more mountainous regions.
Camels - in place of or in addition to horses - would be appropriate beasts of burden for the Bairon, Mierqid, Torgud, Uyagir, Kagon, and Urumet tribes, as they are all desert dwelling tribes. Yaks are most appropriate to the Angura, Arulaq, Khatayin, and Ura tribes, as it explicitly states they make their homes in mountainous regions.
Food
I mentioned already that the soil is infertile, so it should come as no surprise that the primary diet of a Xaela would be mostly meat. Almost any kind of meat, in fact - wild game, horses that have gotten too old to work or been injured, dog, beef, antelope, mutton or even rat, if there aren't any better options. Meats are typically roasted over a fire or boiled in salted water. Sausages and sun-dried meats are typical travel rations.
Vegetables and fruit are harder to find and almost always gathered wild. Berries and wild onions are the most common. Historically, rice was either bartered for or stolen, as were teas. Tea was usually drank with salt and/or milk. Butter was also sometimes added (and is gross. Don't do that. Eyuch.)
Milk was the other staple in the historical diet - it was often fermented into a mildly alcoholic drink called kumis. It was also often curdled and drank as a soup or eaten as a porridge. The curds could be dried and powedered for storage. When it was needed, it could be mixed with water, milk, or - in a pinch - blood and eaten as a paste.
Tribal Structure
First is the yurt, ruled by the head of the family. A collection of yurts is an obogh, a kind of village. Three or four obogh make up an orda, which, as I don't know a politer way to put it, I'm going to go ahead and call a horde. Orda are ruled by the Khans, a hereditary title that can only belong to a member of the ruling class, the noyans. A tribe is actually made up of several of these orda. There isn't typically a single leader for a given tribe, as each Khan more or less does as they please.
Please bare in mind that this isn't exclusively Mongolian, either, but a mix of steppe cultures. I also invite anyone to correct me where anything contradicts established Lore.
The Steppe
A steppe is a flat, dry grassland. Think prairie. Because of it's geographical features (or, more accurately, lack of geographical features), steppes tend to the extremes - very hot in the summer and very cold in the winter. Like deserts, steppes are often dotted with oases that the itinerant population uses as waypoints and camping sites at various times of the year. The soil is generally too infertile for farming, and so permanent settlements are rare, and usually found near permanent sources of water, like rivers or lakes. The Dalamiq tribe have established just such a village.
The Yurt
Technically, yurt is a Turkish word. The Mongolian equivalent is the ger, but since SE used yurt, I will too.
The yurt - a kind of collapsible tent that's easy to take down and move - is the center of tribal life. A yurt is made from a trellis-like frame of wooden slats, tied together with leather thongs. These frames are covered by thick felt rugs. The roof is made from poles, like rafters, that sit atop the walls. Like the walls, it is also covered with a rug. A special flap can be opened in the dome cap to let smoke out.
A yurt can be taken down quickly, and can be carried by two to four horse. It only takes about two to three hours for two people to construct a yurt. The construction is very sturdy, and will stand up to strong winds or even the weight of a full-grown man walking on the roof. Inside, the floor is usually covered with yet more felt rugs, except in poorer families. Cushions are used for sitting and sleeping, and beds are rarer. Some families might keep a small cot for the head of the family to sleep on. One portion of the tent is usually screened off as a sort of master bedroom, with another screened off as a pantry.
Yurts are mentioned in the Dazkar description especially.
Animals
Horses were very important to real-world Mongols, and are even more important to at least one Xaela tribe. I'm looking at you, Goro. It can be inferred from some of the clan descriptions that the horse is still essential to the Xaela as well - the Noykin are famous for their horse-breaking, and the Oroq use horse fat to lacquer their sleds.
This is actually good, because horses are everything to on the steppe. Horses are great transportation, a source of food, and make perfectly good leather and milk. They're even essential to waging war. The steppe horses are bred to be typically strong, tough animals, with the constitution to survive the freezing winters, broiling summers, and the meager diet of dry steppe grass.
Of course, horses aren't the only animals raised by nomadic tribes either. Sheep, cattle and oxen are common as well. Camels are often used, especially in the dryer, more desertlike regions. Yaks would be common in the higher, more mountainous regions.
Camels - in place of or in addition to horses - would be appropriate beasts of burden for the Bairon, Mierqid, Torgud, Uyagir, Kagon, and Urumet tribes, as they are all desert dwelling tribes. Yaks are most appropriate to the Angura, Arulaq, Khatayin, and Ura tribes, as it explicitly states they make their homes in mountainous regions.
Food
I mentioned already that the soil is infertile, so it should come as no surprise that the primary diet of a Xaela would be mostly meat. Almost any kind of meat, in fact - wild game, horses that have gotten too old to work or been injured, dog, beef, antelope, mutton or even rat, if there aren't any better options. Meats are typically roasted over a fire or boiled in salted water. Sausages and sun-dried meats are typical travel rations.
Vegetables and fruit are harder to find and almost always gathered wild. Berries and wild onions are the most common. Historically, rice was either bartered for or stolen, as were teas. Tea was usually drank with salt and/or milk. Butter was also sometimes added (and is gross. Don't do that. Eyuch.)
Milk was the other staple in the historical diet - it was often fermented into a mildly alcoholic drink called kumis. It was also often curdled and drank as a soup or eaten as a porridge. The curds could be dried and powedered for storage. When it was needed, it could be mixed with water, milk, or - in a pinch - blood and eaten as a paste.
Tribal Structure
First is the yurt, ruled by the head of the family. A collection of yurts is an obogh, a kind of village. Three or four obogh make up an orda, which, as I don't know a politer way to put it, I'm going to go ahead and call a horde. Orda are ruled by the Khans, a hereditary title that can only belong to a member of the ruling class, the noyans. A tribe is actually made up of several of these orda. There isn't typically a single leader for a given tribe, as each Khan more or less does as they please.
Each man longs to pursue his dream. Each man is tortured by this dream, but the dream gives meaning to his life. Even if the dream ruins his life, man cannot allow himself to leave it behind. In this world, is man ever able to possess anything more solid, than a dream?
-Berserk
