Overview
In the untamed regions the people still follow the old ways and their nomadic ways and the harshness of the terrain has made it very difficult to truly conquer the region.
These tribes are a loose connection of nomadic desert dwellers. Some of the tribes, particularly those who live and trade with the Kihoan settlements consider themselves to be part of the Su'ndari Empire. Most of the tribes outside this region have little to do with the Su'ndi except to consider them a source of potential bounty and war.
There are several sites deep within the untamed regions occupied and abandoned by the tribesmen that civilised Su'ndarians have yet to discover or understand. A body of educated men and women puts a lot of funding and effort into deciphering these ancient ruins.
The tribesmen still follow the old gods (with the exception of the Kihoan tribes who follow a mixture of Su'ndi Celestials and the Old God) but they have taken it to a more spiritual rather than intellectual level. In particular they have a beast god, storm god and a horse god that they try to keep appeased. Some scholars argue that these are simply attempts to personify the great gods rather than blasphemous additions to the pantheon.
The horse herds are the tribesmens central treasure and the Kihoan desert horse is the result of many years of careful breeding in the harsh desert environment. It is said to be the best warhorse as a good Kihoan Desert Horse is excited rather than intimidated by impending battle.
The Kihoan tribesmen have been partially absorbed into normal Su'ndi culture. These tribes spend the worst months sheltering inside one of the many settlements and head out with the turn of the seasons to fatten their herds.
Tribesmen and women are tall and dark coloured. They are very private in temperament, more warlike (raids between tribes are very common and a man or woman cannot be considered adult until they have been 'blooded') and very frugal in comparison to the average Su'ndarian. Their laws are sometimes considered barbaric because of their severity and they refuse to deal with slavery at any level. They will not even accept that debt slavery is appropriate and just. Scholars claim that the tribes own insistence that they are beholden to anyone that they owe for something is a socially respects form of debt slavery.
This will be expanded on…
