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~#~ The Mossborn Clan ~#~


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The Mossborn has officially been made a clan of Hefrumm on the 9th of The Seed, Year 82 of the Second Age.

 

General:

The Mossborn clan has simple values. They stand for equality and equal opportunity amongst clan members, meaning all dwarven people have equal rights in the clan. Due to their troubled history they seek cooperation with other settlements and groups, looking to learn their cultures and integrate their styles into their own unique craftsmanship.

 

The pillar values of the Mossborn Clan are: Honour, Humility, Harmony. Honour is a common value among many dwarves, for the Mossborn it means having value in one's self, one's clan, and their accomplishments. Although honour and humility may seem opposing values, they actually complement each other. Humility tempers the dwarf, keeping them honourable without being arrogant. The final pillar is harmony, which was hard learned due to turbulent past. To be harmonious is to be open and accepting of the differences of others, but it does not mean to be submissive. Harmony can only be achieved through mutual respect, if there is none then there is no point in placating the disrespectful.

 

 

History:

During the latter part of the First Age, Theodoric Grimgold, the progenitor of the Grimgold Clan, had discovered an uncharted island. He settled the island but a group of native forest dwedmar had already been occupying it. In order to promote harmony with the natives, Theodoric let his son Balderic rule the unoccupied mountains as its own kingdom. Theodoric also had a forest dwarf child with the natives named Brak The Leafy, who grew up to become the leader of the forest dwed and who formed the Mossborn clan. The Grimgolds and Mossborn brother clans coexisted well. The Grimgolds provided metals from the mountains to the forest dwarves, which promoted a metal crafting culture rarely seen in other forest dwedmar. In exchange, the Mossborn supplied the Grimgolds with premium wood for ship construction so that the two clans could raid their neighbours together, bringing wealth to the island. After Brak’s untimely passing due to disease, the position of chief was succeeded by his son, Barlow The Dirty. However, due to pressure from the original forest dwarves inhabitants, the Mossborn clan slowly adopted isolationist attitudes, which stoked feuds amongst the Mossborn due religious differences between the original inhabitants and those who accepted the new concepts introduced by the Grimgolds. Overtime these feuds and grudges to eroded at the Mossborn, and the original brother clans grew distant from each other. By the end of the First Age, the Mossborn clan was on the verge of collapsing. Upon migrating to the new realm of Almaris, the clan exploded into a self-annihilating civil war when the 6th clan leader, Eilek The Bramble, eloped with a dryad, a sacred creature to the Mossborn.

 

The few remaining survivors of this fracture spread out over the realm, living alone, joining small local communities or dying out. However, the heir to the clan has survived and has vowed to reform the clan from the ground up, ending the clan’s isolationist policies, embracing the beliefs of the Brathmordkin and integrating back into the Grand Kingdom of Urguan. The heir to the Mossborn clan throne is Garedyn The Mossy, and as of now the clan has been reformed with new forest dwedmar, and it is settled in Hefrumm.

 

With Garedyn's efforts to rediscover his lost relatives and adopt new dwarves to his clan, the Mossborn grew slowly. They worked together to build a better place for themselves and for other forest dwedmar in Hefrumm. As a result of their efforts, High Chieftess Celeste'Tol and the council of chiefs recognised the Mossborn to be an official clan, and ever since then the Mossborn lived in unity with their other forest dwarf brothers. No longer in isolation and no longer in turmoil.

 

 

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A depiction of Eilek The Bramble

(source)

 

Culture:

General:

The Mossborn are well renowned for their cultivation of mosses and herbs, which they brew into paint and use it to dye their armour green. They create this green metal armour to camouflage themselves in the forest, and with special moss oil they can lubricate their armour for silent movement. The Mossborn are adept at creating equipment specialised against beasts such as bears or wolves. They also used Moss Armour for ceremonial purposes like funerals. Today, the Mossborn are not the cold isolationists they once were. They are accepting of all dwarves and allowing any dwarf to join their clan, though there are still weary by instinct of non-dwarven outsiders. The Mossborn have equal rights among males and females, which was not the case in their old history. These industrious forest dwarves seek to rebuild their clan, and to grow past the folly of their ancestors by being accepting of new people, ideas, and cultures.

 

Appearance / Clothing:

Red and blonde hair are common in the Mossborn clan, along with red, blue and brown eyes. Though this only applies to those who are related by blood to the Mossborn. Since all dwarves are welcome, there are many distinct faces in the clan.

 

The Mossborn love wearing embroidered clothes, woven from fabrics of the forest. Many also possess face-paints or tattoos made of moss dye.

 

Relics:

Because of the major conflict caused by in fighting, nearly all the clan's relics are missing or destroyed, much to the grief of the survivors. Though they keep a list of all relics, in hopes of one day recovering them:

1) The Crucible: This is an iron pot, which is believed to have been the first to be used to create moss dye. It is believed it has been destroyed in the conflict.

2) Eilek The Bramble's wedding ring: Although Eilek never had an official wedding ceremony, he still used his artisanal skills to craft a wedding ring for his dryad lover. The ring was not found on his body, so the ring is presumed lost, or in possession by the dryad.

3) Verdant Plate: The most beautiful Moss Armour ever constructed, it as been passed down through generations of Mossborn leaders. It was once acquired by merchants, but fortunately, the heir Garedyn The Mossy, bought back the armour and is in possession of it.

4) Key of Tombs: The Mossborn bury their dead in underground catacombs. The original catacombs were desecrated and destroyed, but the key remains undiscovered.

 

Religion:

Their initial lack of contact with the outside world caused the Mossborn to develop particular spiritual beliefs. They believe in the general spirit of nature, that it deserves respect but also caution, since nature is full of danger. Their major belief is reincarnation, that the souls of the deceased will be eventually brought back to the land in one way or another. The Mossborn, however, are not very dogmatic nor zealous about their religion, since it was the reason that caused their tribe to collapse in the beginning. They are now more open to new religions such as the Brathmordakin, and are willing to incorporate and adapt new beliefs. The Mossborn are especially fond of the Brathmordakin of Nature, Anbella, worshipping her as their primary patron. Due to their unique smithing culture, they also praise Yemekar, God of Creation, as their second patron.

 

Quirks:

The Chief of the clan (the dwarf with the highest authority) has to receive a new title upon their ascension to the clan throne. From then on, they are always referred to by their first name and their title. An example of this is Eilek The Bramble. The title has to refer to nature, be one word long, and in some way related be to the chief's personality or appearance. Thus there cannot be a chief with the title "The Strong," but there can be one called "The Bear."

 

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A Mossborn Armourer using an unorthodox smithing technique shown to him by a Dark Dwarf

(source)

 

Trials to Join:

Trial of the Shrine: This is an entirely new tradition amongst the Mossborn, since in the days of old, the only way to become a member of the clan was to be born into it, even those who married into the clan were not considered members. Nowadays, the dwedmar wishing to join must participate in a ritual, where the chief of the clan asks obscure or confounding questions. It doesn't matter if the person doesn't answer them though the chief has the right to disqualify those he doesn’t deem fit to join the clan. The reason why it is called the trial of the shrine is because this ritual is performed in front of a shrine dedicated to Anbella. After this trial, the dwed becomes a beardling and a member of the clan, though they have to complete all other trials to become a fully-fledged members.

 

Trial of the Furnace: The second trial to join, involves a Beardling having to learn to smelt 3 different metals, with the exception of Ferrum and Aurum since these are considered standard knowledge among the Mossborn. This trial is dedicated to Yemekar, teaching the beardling of the many creations that the Brathmordakin infused into the world. This trial is also important since the Mossborn are skilled smiths, thus a wide knowledge of metals is necessary to them. Once the beardling learns to smelt 3 different metals, they must perform a demonstration in front of the chief.

 

Trial of the Smithing: In this trial, the Beardling must learn to smith 3 different crafts with the metals they had studied. Traditionally, the beardling is to craft, a weapon, armour and an object of their choice. This is another trial dedicated to Yemekar, but it also serves to illustrate the beardling's foresight, as if they choose to smelt the crafts with inappropriate metals, they won't be able to move on to the next trial.

 

Trial of the Balance: Being worshippers of Anbella, nature is of great importance to these forest dwarves. Thus they must used the tools they forged in order to help maintain balance in nature, by slaying 3 creatures who are disrupting it. This could range from a Morko bear killing too much of the local game, a cave leech terrorising the local caves or even an undead. Nature must be brought back into balance.

 

 

 

Traditions & Rites:

Rite of Foraging: In order to begin one’s path to making Moss Armour, one must be able to identify correctly the herbs and mosses that are needed for the process. Those who pass this trial and considered Apprentice Armourer’s and can continue to learn the craft.

 

Rite of the Armour: In order to complete one’s training, one must craft a set of Moss Armour. Moss Armour is not only judged on its durability, but also on its artistic value. After completing this trial, an Apprentice Armourer becomes a full on Armourer, and can blacksmith at their will.

 

Rite of the Little: This trial is a persistent tradition from the days of the Mossborn isolationism, where it was called the Trial of Runts. The original purpose was to weed out the weak, but now it is meant to be a social gathering to encourage and help promote the growth of the children of the tribe. It involves various physical activities, such as marathoning, swimming and climbing trees. Though each year a different test is added.

 

Moss Feast Tradition: This tradition is not an actual feast, but it involves gathering newly bloomed herbs and ingredients collectively as an entire tribe, and then processing them into usable ingredients for Moss Armour or other crafts. At the end, families usually receive a figurine of a folk heroes from stories, to honour their participation.

 

Two Rams Tradition: When two Mossborn have an inconsolable conflict, they can challenge each other to a Two Rams Competition. It is a duel, though not always through combat. The two parties decide on the challenge, and they must compete to win it to resolve their dispute. If neither dwarf can agree to a challenge, then the chieftain can issue them one.

 

Birthday Tradition: As a show of freeing themselves of isolationism, the Mossborn adopted the human cultural practice of celebrating birthdays. Though typically they do not through parties or have cakes like humans. Instead, the birthday dwarf receives a gift specifically from their father that relates to either’s interest or profession. So, a birthday dwarf interested in shepherding would receive some ornate shears from their father. In the absence of a fatherly figure, the primary guardian of the child will be the gift giver. Since dwarves have long lifespans, they celebrate birthdays every 5 years. After a dwarf turns 50, they are not receive gifts, but they do receive wishes and congratulations.

 

Marriage tradition:  This is the process by which Mossborn dwarves get married. The partners play hide and seek in the woods, where the groom is the seeker, and the bride is the hider (though this is not set in stone.) Normally, the groom and bride know each other's locations beforehand, thus the process is meant to be symbolic of “finding one’s love in the vast woods.” Though if either couple is unhappy, they can either hide somewhere unknown or refuse to search. Marriage is usually monogamous and for life.

 

Funerary Tradition: Mossborn are buried in underground catacombs and tombs, in wooden or stone coffins. They are usually buried in suits of Moss Armour in order to “take their crafts with them into their next life.” If the deceased dwarf never owned a suit of armour, then the community of Armourers makes one together, engraving imagery that is representative of that dwarf’s life onto it.

 

Hierarchy:

 

Despite their openness, the Mossborn are very hierarchical, as it was they found that hierarchy was actually beneficial to them during their isolationist period. Thus the Mossborn retain a rigid order of power. This doesn't mean however that a person of high rank has any less rights than one of a lower rank. The ranks merely serve to distinguish between levels of authority.

 

Clan Chief: This is the highest position in the clan. The chief of the Mossborn keeps control of the clan military, law-making and production of Moss Armour. They are the head of the Clan Council, and have final say on council decisions. The heir to this position is appointed in advance by the clan chief. The heir is usually the eldest child, but any dwarf of the clan can be chosen to be the heir. 

 

Clan Elder: Once a chief retires, they become an Elder and they serve as an adviser to them or as diplomats or politicians. Though they have no direct power, they are usually also members of the Likyn council, a council of dwarves of the clan who gather to make decisions regarding policy and legislation.

 

Clan Councillor: A clan councillor is a person who possess extreme expertise or prowess in a given field. They serve on the Clan Council to advise the chief of the clan. Another method of avoiding domination by the chief is that if a new councillor is needed, then the clan chief and the majority of the council must both agree to the appointment. There can only be a maximum of 10 councillors. It is customary for councillors to seek public approval for proposed laws, by receiving votes. If there are enough votes then a law can be presented to the chief.  Though a councillor can propose laws on their own any time, by gaining votes, they can convince the chief to pass the law. The chief risks losing public support if he shuts down a popular law.

 

Clan Ritualist: A venerable position, responsible for overseeing all cultural practices, from marriage to religion. This person is usually announced by the chief to the public and then the public decides whether or not to accept them. A ritualist always has a position on the council

 

Clan Managers: These dwarves are the respective heads of their local industry or guild. Such as Manager of Moss Armour or Manager of Logging. These dwarves do not have complete control however over their underlings and are usually appointed by a vote by their workers.

 

Clan Member: The standard member of a Mossborn clan, they contribute to the clan with their labour or knowledge and can thus enjoy daily clan life. Clan members all have a right to vote in any poll or election too.

 

Clan Beardling: Freshly joined to the clan, a Beardling has yet to pass the their trials, in order to become a fully-fledged member. They do not retain the right to vote but have the right to a home, food and work and all others that the higher ranked dwarves have. Dwarves under the age of 50 are considered Beardlings and perform the trials until they reach 50, unless there are special circumstances.

 

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A councilor who handles taxes and the treasury.

(source)

 

 

Applications:

If you wish to join the clan please send a private message to my discord, HyperAlphaKing#3040. Message me with your character name and in-game name. This is only open to characters who are dwarves, since this is a dwarven clan. And it would be preferable if your character was a forest dwarf, or had at least one parent who is one.

 

Meta:

The backstory and lore for the Mossborn clan is entirely created by me, VerminHunter or HyperAlphaking (my discord). All the images used have sources under them. In case the sources don't work reply here and I'll send the links to you (if I don't lose them). Thank you for reading I hope you enjoyed the backstory of my clan.

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This clan looks really great, love their culture!

 

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Amazing new addition to the ongoing story and culture of  the forest dwarves.

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