Razaka
Summary of the Razaka and Their Realm
The Razaka (“the Red Ones”) have reddish-tan to deep brown skins, with high cheekbones, large noses, and straight black hair. Razaka males have an interquartile height range of 5’5” to 5’11”, making them average in height. Razaka are of medium build. They spend most of their lives on the seas of Tangorea, living on fleets of ships, as well as artificial floating islands and aquatic gargantua. Razaka roam the seas of Tangorea from the tropics to the fringes of the polar icecaps. Razaka Society Razaka as a whole are an extremely chaotic people. They have no nations, no monarchs, no large-scale social structure or heirarchy. All Razakan organization is strictly local and highly fluid. Related families will band together into clans, which number from a few dozen to a couple hundred or so. Sometimes clans will form loose confederations that could be called tribes. The largest tribes number about 2,000; Razaka societies larger than this are very unstable, apt to fracture when a dispute breaks out. Membership in clans and tribes is constantly shifting, as clans change their allegiances. When a clan grows large and unruly, factions will break away and these fac-tions will become clans of their own. The seafaring life of the Razaka is conducive to these moves; a clan, for example, may decide to break free from its tribe and simply sail away and fare for itself. Violence associated with changes in clan and tribe structure is uncommon; such comings and goings are an accepted facet of Razakan life. When blood is spilled, it usually revolves around maidens and suitors who find themselves suddenly on opposite sides of a tribal divide, with each side vying for the couple, whole. Some clans never join tribes. They simply flit around the Tangorea seas like water-bugs, spending summers in cool subpolar waters and wintering in the tropics. Such a way of life has its dangers--storms, giant sharks, and hostile tribes and pirates, to name only a few. However, the lifestyle appeals to those who follow it, and few who do would live any other way. Razaka tribes vary widely in their alignment. Most (about 85%) are chaotic; some are neutral; virtually none tend toward law. Some Razaka are good, freewheelers who proudly live under no one’s boot and admire others who do the same. Some are neutral, accepting a moderate mix of good and evil in their tribe so long as no one tries to gain power over another. Some are evil, roaming the seas and preying upon those who are weaker than themselves--merchant ships, coastal towns, and even other Razaka. However, these are usually chaotic neutral tending towards evil, not true chaotic evil; they are selfish and greedy at others’ expense, but rarely outright depraved or wicked.
Razakan Economies
Razaka societies make their living by harvesting the products of the sea. A Razaka tribe or clan will almost always (90% chance) trade with outsiders. Chaotic as they are, the Razaka nevertheless have a strong code of honor (known as the Bond of the Sea) vis-a-vis trading. Some Razaka clans travel long and far, often seeing no outsiders for months or even a year or more. When such roving clans meet, the Bond of the Sea is often invoked, declaring the tribes to be “virtual kin” for the duration of the meeting (usually two to five days). This means that hostilities are forbidden, and that any member of one tribe may offer a price for any item or possession of the other (whether or not that price is accepted is up to the item’s owner, but reasonable offers are seldom refused). Romantic liaisons between the tribes are also common. Razaka trade mostly in fish, exotic crustaceans and mollusks, ichors and other precious fluids and powders harvested from rare sea monsters, animals, plants, and news. It is this last commodity that Razaka are indeed rich in; their highly mobile race is privy to information from around the world. Most Razaka will seldom venture onto land, except to trade and drink at dockside taverns, swapping tall tales with sailors of other races, kindred spirits who also make their life from the sea. The vast majority of Razaka never venture farther than a mile or so inland. If they are forced to do so by others or by unusual circumstances, they will typically become morose and withdrawn until they are in sight of their beloved ocean home again.
Razakan Mores
Razaka share few social and cultural characteristics, but these few hold true almost universally: All Razaka have an innate love of freedom and of the sea; this has already been discussed. Razaka loathe slavers and slavery, having utter contempt for those who would deprive others of their liberty for a prolonged time. Even Razaka who tend towards evil will never take slaves, and very seldom kill those who are defenseless. Those who lay down their arms and ask for quarter will nearly always (90% chance for good and neutral Razaka, 75% for evil ones) receive it. While Razaka often take physical advantage of the conquered, they will take only one-third of their wealth, and never commit large-scale destruction (i.e., torching homes), or slaughter; no one knows why, though some sages point out that milking a cow and leaving to to produce more is wiser than bleeding it dry or killing it. After a night or two of sport and revelry, the Razaka raiders will withdraw from the town or ship they took, leaving the victims of the raid in relative peace. Razaka are rash and impulsive--more so even than most chaotic neutral societies. Brashness, courage, and downright foolhardiness are revered qualities for an individual in Razaka society. When one looks upon a clan chieftain or tribal elder, one looks upon a person who has cheated death on several occasions, and who will likely keep right on doing so until death finally wins a round. Razaka will seldom die of old age; even tribal elders will fight along with the rest of the tribe. Though they dislike the dour, landlubbing dwarves, the only race whom Razaka bear true enmity towards are the Zenka. Razaka despise Zenka because of the latters’ regimented society and tactics of taking slaves (many of whom are Razaka). Razaka regard Zenka as being rapacious and totally bereft of any honor or decency; Zenka see Razaka as uncivilized, unkempt savages who must be taught their place in the world (servitude to the Zenka “master race”, of course). Both races will almost certainly (90% chance) attack each other on sight. Quarter will not be granted under any but the most unusual conditions. If the Razaka are victorious, they will slaughter the Zenka; if the Zenka prevail, the Razaka men will be killed and the women enslaved. The hatred between Razaka and Zenka is arguably the most fierce, ingrained and unyielding of any discord on the face of Tangorea!
Razaka, Sula, and the Tangka; Encounters with Razaka
The Razaka bear a special reverence for Sula, goddess of the sea and storms. The Razaka are often called “Sula’s People”, as much because they mirror her tempestuous, chaotic nature as due to their ocean habitat or their worship of the ocean goddess. The ocean winds and currents have an uncanny way of favoring the Razaka in battle or travel. The most powerful of Sula’s priests are Razaka. Every Razakan clan and tribe will have priests and acolytes of Sula. The head priest will have 2d4 levels of experience, plus one level for every 150 people in the tribe; he will have 2d3 acolytes half his level (fractions rounded up), plus an additional acolyte for every 100 people in the tribe. There is a 25% chance, adjusted upwards 3% for every 50 people in the tribe, that a tribe will contain an elementalist wizard who specializes in water or air-based spells. This wizard will have 2d4 levels of experience, plus one level for every 200 people in the tribe. In battle, these priests and wizards will typically use gusts of wind, tsunamis, or summoned water and/or air elementals against enemy ships and docks. This makes the Razaka a formidable opponent. Tangka (q.v.) are allies of the Razaka; the two races often work together in peace and war, banding together against common enemies like the sahuagin, and trading ex-tensively. Any Razaka clan will likely (70% chance) have a d6 of Tangka visiting for every 100 people in the tribe. One-third of these Tangka will be warriors, who will fight if the Razaka they are with are attacked.