[hider=Confederation of Maztica] [b]Name of the nation:[/b] Confederation of Maztica [b]Name of the leader:[/b] Catequil, chieftain of chieftains [b]Capital:[/b] El-Dorra. Located deep within the Maztican jungle. [b]Ethnicity:[/b] Tabaxi. Tabaxi are a race of anthropomorphic leopardlike people that life in the endless jungles of Maztica. Tabaxi are mostly referred to by other races as Mazticans and mostly perceived as underdeveloped and savage. [b]Characters:[/b] [hider=Catequil, the Chieftain of Chieftains] [b]Catequil, the Chieftain of Chieftains (male)[/b] 3 years ago at the age of 25, Catequil was elected by the council as the new Chieftain of Chieftains, leader of the tribal confederation of Maztica. Catequil is an intelligent young man who looks to the world with an open mind. He was given the task by the elders to lead his people away from isolation and into the world. Catequil has taken up the daunting task of leading his people into the modern era. In order to transform his nation, the Chieftain of Chieftains need to make tough decisions that go directly against the culture and conventions of the Maztican people. Needless to say that [/hider] [hider=Ayar – The traveled one (Male)] Ayar is what the people of Maztica consider a runaway. A person who left his tribe to travel the world. To run away from your tribe is considered to be a grave sin, those who leave their tribe no longer helps out their family. Catequil defied conventions and took him into his advisory council due to Ayar’s fast knowledge of the world beyond Maztica. Ayar left his tribe at a young age and traveled throughout the world for 25 years before returning to Maztica. During his travels Ayar build up an extensive network of contacts with merchants, nobles, thiefs and common folk throughout the many nations. Ayar serves as Catequil’s primary advisor on foreign affairs. Ayar is a surprisingly smooth talker and fluent in many different languages. He’s generally perceived as a likeble and easy going fellow but never really shows his true intent. What’s truly on his mind remains a mystery to most. [/hider] [hider=Huanca– Grand Shaman (female)] Huanca is the grand Shaman of Maztica. Effectively she’s the highest religious authority in all of the tribes and her connection to the ancient spirits is unmatched. Like all Shamans she’s a calm and wise woman who’s duty is to advice the Chieftain of Chieftains on all religious matters. Also she oversees the education of new shamans. In Maztican culture, the position of Shaman can only be held by women. Due to her deep connection to the ancient spirits, Huanca possesses powerful magical abilities and extensive knowledge of the plant and animal life in the Maztican Jungle. It is very rare to ever see a Maztican male to develop magical abilities. Not because they lack the talent but because their culture forbids them to pursue that path. [/hider] [hider=Apaec – The fierce commander of the warbands (male)] Apaec is for many of the Mazticans a national hero. A famous warrior who defeated a strong foreign invasion force. In the past he was considered one of the strongest warriors in all of Maztica but old age is getting the better of him. He has a pragmatic attitude towards his function as warchief and advisor. Shaped through the battles he fought Apaec is well aware of the strengths and deficiencies of his people. He knows how to utilize the limited resources of Maztica and is well aware that his warriors would not last long in any form of open combat. [/hider] [hider=Maita - The old one (male)] Maita is the former chieftain of the Inzca Tribe. He is well respected throughout the confederation for his former prowess as a warrior and his fast knowledge of the Maztican traditions. Maita advises Catequil on how to deal with the various issues and problems the tribes of the confederation faces these days. [/hider] [hider=Atoc of Quehuar - The rich one (male)] Atoc is without doubt the most controversial advisor to the Chieftains of Chieftains as he was not born in Maztica. Atoc is the 2nd son of a couple of runaways that eventually settled in Sorenio Republiqa duo Azula Coatl. His father acquired a decent som of wealth as a merchant and Atoc would continue that line of business together with his elder brother Amaru. In the republic they became known as the Quehuar family with a somewhat infamous reputation for shady deals. Atoc is rather opertunistic. When Ayar asked him to come to Maztica and sit on the advisory council he didn’t have to think long. If the stories about the temple city of El-Dorra are remotely true, there would be plenty of business opportunities to take. [/hider] [hider=Ozcollo –The secondant (male)] Ozcollo is a young warrior who is the protégé of Apaec and destined to lead the warbands the day that Apaec retires or go on his final journey. He always accompanies his master whenever he goes to train warriors of different tribes, go on border patrols or when ceremonies take place. Being the secondant to the warchief is a position of great prestige but also one that draws a lot of attention. Often other warriors would challenge him so that they can show to the warchief that they would be more suitable for being his secondant. [/hider] [b]Culture and society:[/b] The Maztican society and culture is what other nations would describe as backward, barbaric and even savage. They care clearly far less developed then other nations. Their society is organized primarily in semi-nomadic tribes of hunter-gatherers that sustain themselves in the endless jungles of Maztica. Tribes range in size from a few dozen people up to around a thousand. Throughout Maztica there are hundreds of different rimes. Activities such as agriculture, mining and industry are extremely rare in Maztican lands. Well refined tools and clothing are if found as all from foreign making and common clothing is made of pelts and leather. Family bonds are extremely important in the Maztican culture as families are the cornerstone of every tribe. Leaving your family is considered the greatest sin a Maztican society. Most Mazticans life in small semi-permanent villages build in the large trees of the jungle. These villages serve as the center of their lives. Wood and leaves are the primary building materials and stone buildings are generally only found in the temple city of El-Dorra. Mazticans are very dedicated to their family and tribes. They rely on their brothers to have their backs while hunting and on their sisters to keep the kids fed and the houses clean. In Maztica there are clear gender roles where men serve as hunter-warriors and women as healers, craftsmen, artisans and shamans. Mazticans have always been very weary of strangers from beyond the jungle. Their creation lore states that Mazticans where born to protect the Jungles from the outside world and thus have shunned away from other races for a long time. Often killing explorers who entered the jungles of Maztica. However times are changing and a new Chieftain of Chieftains is opening up the once secluded societies of Maztica to the world. [b]Religion and magic:[/b] For the Mazticans religion and magic are the same thing. The Mazticans worship the spirits and believe that everything has a spirit. In Maztican folklore, the one spirit of Tabaxica used a small portion of her own spirit to form the earth and the sky. The sea and the mountains. The animals and the trees and finaly the races of sentient beings. Seeing how sentient races started to cut down the trees of the great Maztican jungle, Tabaxica bestowed the Leopards of the jungle a conscious spirit. These where the first Tabaxi that where tasked with safeguarding the jungle of destruction. From these Tabaxi eventually the tribes of Maztica would be formed. Mazticans worship all kinds of spirits, tree spirits, mountain spirits, the spirits of the deceased, spirits of animals and of course the one spirit Tabaxica. Within the Maztican religion shamans form the bridge between the material realm and the spirit realm. Due to their connection with the spirits, shamans can create many magical effects. The shaman rituals and knowledge is passed down from one shaman to another. [b]Military:[/b] The Maztican confederation does not have a formal standing army. However all men capable are trained as Hunter-warriors, fierce combatants that excel in defending their homeland, the Maztican jungle. In times of war, every Maztican tribe must send a warband, a group of warriors under the command of a chosen commander or chieftain. Warbands differ in size based upon the size of the tribe and how much men they can miss for the hunt. Maztican weapons and armor are considered relatively simple. Warriors are often armed with bows, javalins, shortswords and/or daggers. Metal armor is extremely rare and not wel suited for the wet conditions of the jungle. Most warriors wear some type of leather armor or no armor at all. The Maztican’s are fierce warriors who are extremely skilled in fighting in the jungle. They are masters of ambushes, hit and run tactics and guerrilla warfare. Combine that with a land that consists almost entirely of jungle, a total lack of infrastructure and you have a very hard place to invade. Invading armies often get lost in the thick jungles, wandering aimlessly around looking for an enemy who won’t give decisive battle while their foraging parties are getting picked off. [b]Geography and climate:[/b] Maztica is known for their tick rainforests and tall mountains. It’s wet and yet hot climate made the lands very fertile resulting in very dense vegetation that covers the mountain peaks and river valleys. For many who are unaccustomed to the dense vegetation and unforgiving climate Maztica is a green hell. However for those who’ve grown used the the climate, conditions have found ways to navigate the dense jungles, survive the humid conditions and often dangerous and unforgiving wildlife. [b]History:[/b] Since the birth of the Tabaxi race in the Maztican jungles they have always been divided between hundreds of tribes, competing over hunting grounds and water supplies. Conflict between the tribes was a regular occurrence. Next to fighting among their own the Mazticans regulary fought against orc tribes entering the jungles from the north. However all these conflics where small in scale and even smaller in Impact. That would remain the same until two hundred years ago when large bodies of Lizardmen started to migrate towards the Jungles of Maztica. Individual tribes where easily overrun by these invasive spiecies and a need for unity arised. It was Chieftain Aiqui-Mata unified the tribes into a confederation and rallied the largest force of Maztican warriors the world had ever seen. During the next 100 years the Mazticans would fight a bitter conflict with the Lizardmen over control over the jungle. The war ended when the last remnants of Lizardmen where expelled from Maztica. The time after the 100 year conflict was a relatively peaceful one. Occasionally skirmishes would erupt along the Maztican-Azuri border. Not because a desire for conquest but rather out of unclearity of where one nation would end and the next one would begin. The most notable event happened 8 years ago. Hernan da Silva, a wealthy merchant from the Sorenio Republiqa duo Azula organized an expedition of 500 mercenaries to Maztica in an attempt to find the legendary golden city of El-Dorra. A day after entering the Maztican jungle Chieftain Capac Yupanqui A of the Yupanqui tribe met with Hernan da Silva, telling him that he and his men where not welcome in Maztica and that they should head home instantly. Hernan responded with beheading the Chieftain and raiding the villages they encountered. When word of the incursion reached El-Dorra, the Chieftain of Chieftains sended his own warband under the command of Apaec and over the course of 3 weeks they fought a campaign of attrition in the jungle. Apaec employed small scale hit and run tactics, ambushes against foragin parties and denied to give his opponent any form of decisive battle. The Mazticans maintained their pressure until the expedition collapsed. It is said that only a handful of people from the expedition managed to get out of the jungle alive. [b]Government:[/b] The confederation of Maztica is a tribal confederacy of dozens of tribes. In general each tribe manages their own affairs. There is very little centralization within the confederacy. However for foreign relations and managing problems that goes beyond the one tribe the council of Chieftains elects a Chieftain of Chieftains. A leader to represent their interests beyond the borders of the Maztican Jungle. The Chieftain of Chieftains often selects his council of advisors. Members from the tribes who advise the Chieftain of Chieftains on all kinds of matters ranging from foreign affairs to religious ones. Twice a year, during the summer and winter solstice all the chieftains of the different tribes meet at El-Dorra in what is called the Convergence of Chieftains. The Convergence lasts for two weeks and consists of discussions, religious festivities and warrior competitions. During the Convergence the Chieftains discuss the issues they face with eachother and the outside world. These happenings are the most important political moments and are also used to pass judgement on those who have committed crimes that exceed the boundaries of one tribe. [b]Main sources of income:[/b] Maztican tribes have a simple lifestyle that relies on what the jungle provides. They mostly hunt and gather for their own needs. Because this simple lifestyle they can survive in the harsh jungle conditions but are at the same time severly limited in what products they can produce themselves. The Mazticans mine some iron in the area around El-Dorra but the tools and weapons they make are often from low quality compared to the outside world. Gold: Near the Temple city of El-Dorra are large gold reserves. The true extent of these reserves are unknown as the capabilities of the Mazticans to mine it are limited. The Maztican jungle provides various plants and fruits for which could develop an extensive market marked abroad. Maztican women often search the jungle to gather coffee beans, cacao beans and coca leaves. Occasionally border tribes trade such products for iron, tools or other commodities. [b]How the rest of the world would perceive them:[/b] Maztica is a place that is surrounded by lots of myths and legends. Some legends tell about how the jungle eats everone who enters while others tell about the legendary golden city of El-Dorra. The truth is that Maztica is an inhospitable place that is hard to travel and its people are unwelcoming of strangers. Many nations and individuals have send expeditions to explore the jungles of which many never returned. Most factual knowledge from the place comes from runaways, Mazticans who’ve abandoned thei tribe and homeland in order to live a different life beyond the jungle. Their tales and legends have shaped the collective knowledge of what lies deep in the jungles. Tales of simple tribal life, lack of technology has shaped the image of a backward and uncivilized culture of savages. [b]Current goal:[/b] Catequil has been chosen as Chieftain of Chieftains to transform the tribal confederacy into a more open and modern nation-state. The former Chieftain recommended Catequil for the position and campaigned heavily for the support among the Council of Chieftains to gather support for a course that would be a departure of what the Mazticans have been doing for centuries. Catequil has been elected with the absolute minimum support and must balance many interests. The job Catequil stands for is a daunting one. He must open up the nation, create meaningful relations with the rest of the world while radically changing the way their society has worked for centuries. A road that would create many opertunities for both the Confederation of Maztica, her neighbors but is also a dangerous one. [/hider]