Matope
What are the Kiokote?
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- The Kiokote, half-forgotten and thought to be the stuff of legend and story, have returned from the Northern hills to the Swamp.
The Culture
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- The Kiokote live on the plains and revere, above all things, speed, freedom, and athleticism. For the most part Kiokote live in small haremic groups of several does and a lead buck referred to as a stallion. Although stallions are figuratively leaders, most tribes, especially the larger ones, have a council of does that are responsible for making any major decisions about the group and delegating duties. Hunting is shared equally between members and for the most part does are free to move between tribes at will. While solitary does are uncommon, many bucks end up on their own for obvious reasons, or formed into small bachelor groups.
In many ways the Kiokote are very similar to Kimeti, including their stance on monogamy (not for everyone), their love of song and story (although your average Kiokote would rather a foot race than a sing-along), and their omnivorous diets. They tend to be closer to their children than Kimeti, however—although not all Kiokote foals are raised by their parents, many are.
Roleplaying Notes
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- Your Kiokote character may have come over under many circumstances. Most commonly the Kiokote are affected by a strange illness called The Ache which manifests as intense depression and wanderlust; while this previously led frequently to death, a sweeping epidemic of the Ache accompanied by strange dreams recently led many Kiokote to seek out the Swamp, hitherto known only to them in lore. Your Kiokote may have come with this initial delegation, or come alone, or been brought here by the recent catastrophic flood, or even born in the Swamp itself (or on the borderlands) to one of the initial travelers. His history will determine his view of Kimeti: a normal part of life or strange people that still seem quite alien.
Just like Kimeti, Kiokote have Naming Dreams. Their names are far more likely to feature athletic, woodland, or prairie themes, however.
The Familiar
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- The Kiokote familiar is the cheetah, known among the Kiokote themselves at times as merely “the cats.” Bred to help in the hunt and to be a formidable racing companion, cheetahs are protective, loyal, and frequently unfriendly to everyone but their chosen Kiokote. The secret of taming and controlling the cats (inasmuch as the cats can be controlled) has now been passed to the Kimeti.
Tell Them Apart
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- As eggs, female Kiokote are accompanied by greenish-yellow grass, whereas males are accompanied by bluish-green grass. Adult Kiokote can be distinguished by their facial hair: males have beards, while females do not.
What are the Acha?
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- Legends in their own right and frequent stars in old tales and songs, the fun-loving Acha have made a splash in Matope.
The Culture
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- Even more gregarious than the Kiokote, Acha live in huge good-natured tribes on the open deserts. Able to go for days without water and with very little food, the Acha are hardier than their dainty appearance might suggest, but for the most part no more substantial: the Acha are hedonists to the bone, living for beauty, art, music, and fleshly pleasures. Their cultural addiction to good times runs so deep that serious disagreements are few, rivalries play out in elaborate social snubbing and friend-making and backstabbing, and figurehead “leaders” for most tribes are chosen purely on the basis of good looks or musical or artistic talent. Acha tend to move from one from oasis to another, leaving one when they’ve worn it out with their constant partying to find another. Groups meet and merge and separate frequently, and despite their vast territory the Acha are on the whole well-connected with one another.
The exception to the rule are the hunters, who work with their trained dogs and live an altogether more solitary life. They are usually charged with providing their tribes with meat, but some live lonely lives in the harsh desert, away from the oases favored by the Acha. Even these strange people, however, are driven for the most part by a raw love of the hunt and a pursuit of pleasure.
The Acha also have a singular gift that has never been seen before: although they love stories, their poetry is altogether of a more formal sort than the usual Swamp fare, and they have, in their vast numbers, invented elaborate choral singing—a precious gift they are gladly spreading among their new friends.
Roleplaying Notes
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- The Acha aren’t ones to do things in a small way. When they got the dreams that told them to pursue the old stories, they got together and made a general decision that it sounded like fun to take a little traipse south and see what was going on with the old folks back home—folks that, curiously, their songs had not forgotten despite their isolation. So they came in waves, a few dozen for every hundred or so Acha, and continue to arrive a few at a time. Despite the hardships of their journey—a journey they were far less suited to than they imagined, that sacrificed more of their numbers than they had thought possible—they remain upbeat, prepared for all the new kinds of fun and beauty the Swamp has to offer.
Like the other Kin, Acha receive their names via Naming Dreams--but remember their native environment and social focus on beauty and the arts!
The Familiar
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- Aloof, dainty, speedy, and beautiful, the Sand Dogs are nearly as gorgeous as their owners. Capable and fleet-footed hunters, adept at bringing down the huge-eared hares of their desert home, Sand Dogs are prized companions. They are loyal, but tend to have a certain regal detachment to them—usually. Some Sand Dogs are quite silly and playful, especially compared to the savage Eaglehound of the Swamps—whom they can, incidentally, breed with.
Tell Them Apart
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- In the egg, female Acha can be identified by the flowers growing on their cactus. As adults, male Acha have an extra set of curled horns beneath their ears which the females lack.
