Ibn Khaldun

When dusk emerges opposite of where the sun fled, when the cerulean twilight is unfurled horizon to horizon above one's head in the desert, during these quiet hours does the Kwee' watch the stars slowly roll across the night sky. When all is dark and the vitality of morning and midday has slowed to slumber; one need only isolate themselves and watch the fixed lanterns skyward twinkle. The mind recollects the day and reconsiders what is important in such solitude. It is not surprising then that constellations derived from the stars often represent what is significant to the daily life of the stargazer and that he purposely draws lines between stars to form those objects that is transfixed in his mind's eye. Be it as mundane as a cactus frond or as abstract as watchtowers launching missiles at demons; the mapped lanterns have meaning imposed from the daily life of the desert dweller - of the Kwee' upon high mesa. KᗩᗯᗩKEEᗷᑌᗰ ᕼIᒪ'ᗷᑌᖇᒍ ᗯᗩ ᕼIᒪ'ᗩ'ᗩᗰOOᒍ ᗯᗩ ᕼIᒪ'ᑫᗩᖇᗰᗩᗪ ᗯᗩ ᕼIᒪ'ᔕᑌ'ᑌᗷᗩᗩᖇ ᗯᗩ ᕼIᒪ'KIᗷᗪᗩ ᗯᗩ ᕼIᒪ'ᖇᗩKᕼᔕᕼᗩᗩᔕ - - - Constellations of the Watchtower, the Snake-track, the Cistern, the Nopal, the Liver, & the Demon Hil’Burj - (the) Watchtower Hil’A’amooj - (the) Snake-track Hil’Qarmad - (the) Cistern Hil’Su’ubaar - (the) Cactus Hil’Kibda - (the) Liver Hil’Rakhshaas - (the) Demon The six constellations attributed to the desert are arrayed in the Kwee' imagination purposefully. Some of these represent tangible objects which hold value to the Kwee's daily life, acting as a reminder of what should be on the forefront of the mind by new morn while others represent more abstract representations of one's mental state and endured thoughts. Hil'Burj wa hil'Rakhshaas The Watchtower and the Demon are often contemplated together, the former being one's sovereign will and the latter being spurious thoughts that spring forth in times of heated emotions or desperation brought on by one's struggle in the difficult clime that is the arid desert. The will to quash spurious thoughts of harming another for their food or water, the courage to stand against perfidious ideas of physically escalating conflicts over insults or other words; these are emblematically represented by the Burj launching missiles against the demons who wish to pull away the stones of the tower. Piece by piece, succumbing to spurious thoughts are what undoes the fortified strength of the Descendant's will. A common practice that has emerged among some more spiritual Kwee' is the act of picking up stones and launching them from the mesa or other high elevation - representing the Burj and its archers throwing bolts & arrows at the Rakhshaas. Hil'Qarmad wa hil'Su'ubaar The Cistern & the Nopal are often paired as they represent both the Kwee's appreciation for scarce water and a common source of food in the desert - the cactus & its prickly pears. Though much of the desert is covered in dunes, a well-traveled Kwee and desert neighbor are familiar with rocky formations & mesas that can shelter cisterns with which groundwater is drawn from. The cistern is a coveted structure that is often only referred to in the Kwee' tongue and not in Common. The cactus and the prickly pears that it bears are appreciated both for the aloe that flows and the food that can be quickly eaten; provided the handler properly removes needles from the prickly pear! Hil'A'amooj The Snake-track is a more abstractly understood constellation, owing to the more literal interpretation indicating presence of predators while having more than just that meaning to one who has actually lived in the desert. The snake-track represents the interplay between both predators & prey, of both harm and benefit. Any Kwee who has dwelt a time in the desert knows that the mere existence of a snake's track doesn't just indicate the presence of a predator, but of the predators escape from the sun as well as the possibility of a predator pursuing its food. The majesty of the predator in all its might is reconciled by the beauty of what drives it forward - be it other creatures or the mere sun and its brilliance. Hil'Kibda The Liver is perhaps the oddest constellation to register in the imagination of the Kwee'. To the Kwee', the liver is often referred to as an organ of one's health as well as one's good nature. Oftentimes, a healthy person in the desert is referred to having a wet liver. The Kwee' tradition forbids cannibalism, but the nature of an animal that is being cooked and consumed is determined by eating the liver - one's death after eating it implying the hunted game's bad nature while survival indicative of the game's good nature.

𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅗𝅥𝅘𝅥𝅯𝅘𝅥𝅮 The rabbit that laid upon the stool sprung up, hopping from stool to footrest below to the sands beneath that. Maȟpíya's nostrils flared, coughing for a moment as he reached for a sprig of myrrh which he then tossed into the campfire. The other Kwee seated around the fire facing Maulanataynuel echoed the same Achcha that Maȟpíya replied; acknowledgement of Maulanataynuel's abilities carried between each member. Jaadoo comes in all forms, tools of a season and a situation. Maȟpíya stood and began to walk around the campfire, his hand gestures regathering the attention of the Kwee who saw the demonstration. "Maulanataynuel, ask a question about our tradition and I shall answer it," Maȟpíya exclaimed, continuing his circumambulation around the fire. "I am a merchant, of the Kossuth, what should I keep in mind in matters of trade?" the new initiate asked. "In manners of trade, the reality of our people being so few and living in the hardy desert forces us to appreciate what we manage to gather in terms of food, water, & resources. This life inspires us to be incredibly gracious to those who buy from us. We let the buyer name their price, we do not shrink from a poor person offering little & a wealthy person offering more. What is meant for us will enter our grasp no matter the obstacle, what is not meant for us will never enter our grasp no matter how much we connive and struggle for it," Maȟpíya advised. "What of a person offering merely three minas for a crate of netherite?" "I generally despise hypotheticals as they are often exaggerated and I've never seen even a poor pauper have the audacity to offer three minas for a crate, maybe a single ingot, but never a crate. . ," Maȟpíya bemoaned. He paused, doddering a forefinger through the air, before adding, "In terms of bartering, we do however haggle as the Qalasheen haggle, we are freer to express our opinion on what the proper ratio good for good should be." The gathered Kwee nodded in agreement. "A girl not yet bloomed approached me wanting to purchase a book when I visited the insaan hil'Aayuun having reached Minitz. She complained that she was saving her wealth to amend a family farm that had fallen into a state of disrepair. She offered three minas for a book of finest quality and then she asked a friend with her for a loan of ten minas. I shrank away from putting her in the shackles of debt, whether she could repay the loan back easily or not. We are not wont to put others in that sort of debt nor to harm their efforts to care for themselves. I told her the three minas sufficed," Maȟpíya recounted. "That is a very nice example, yes," Maulanataynuel admitted, his head held high. "What are the Kwee's views on combat? On duels?" "Duels are welcomed, provided they aren't a means to slay kin, but the practice one gets to improve martial discipline is invited." "And what of honor duels, if one calls another out as a coward and puts a stain on their name?" Maȟpíya waved off the question with incredulity, answering, "Men don't answer the b!tch!ing of dogs. Why should I care that another man claim me coward or another man pettily denounces my tradition? He himself is not member of my tradition, what weight does his words carry to me? And what stains does an insult make? Insults are neither water nor ink. This is from a foreign tradition which we do not let bleed into ours without examinations of its merits or benefits." Maȟpíya drummed a forefinger against his bottom lip, adding, "I would not punish a kinsman who loses his cool over an insult, but I would discourage him from losing the reins of his own horse." "That is fair, yes" "Principally, combat is only waged in defense of kin, in defense of those under the gaze of our totems, & in defense of those who enter our camp for sanctuary. This extends to those who wish to use our camp as a sanctuary to discuss ending hostilities. One of the dreams of the Kwee' is that our blossoming camp be a neutral zone where any two parties - be they individuals or peoples - can end conflicts with us being mediators," Maȟpíya said. Maulanataynuel nodded. Maȟpíya took a woven garland decorated with de-needled prickly pear flowers & desert juniper and placed it gently around the new initiate's neck.

𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅗𝅥𝅘𝅥𝅯𝅘𝅥𝅮 Farisbarii paced the length of his tipi circle, addressing a young Kwee' and dictating words being written on a letter addressed to Atemu-Ta. "Aktubu Padreyo hil'Rahmunyaan min shivir hil'Kwee'Hayastaani. Kyooɳ tlee'ktubuuna shaalo risala hila kulli Aevos? Hal shaalo hazaazah bayna hil'Hurkaan wa hil'Rahmunyaan?" He took the letter from the young scribe and added his own translation, adding detail in the Common that read: I write to the Father of the Rah'muna from the camp of the Kwee'Hayastaani. Why do you write this letter to all of Aevos? Isn't this feud between the Orcs and the Rah'muna? We would be happy to host you and the Rex at the Camp-atop-Mesa in order that you two work out an amenable agreement - our people being pleased to maintain a sanctuary for feuding parties to parlay without risk or worry of attack. You need not draw attention to the desert and its sands and all who dwell in it, cherish it, and hunt throughout it alone though.

𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅗𝅥𝅘𝅥𝅯𝅘𝅥𝅮 Wild Horse strolled the neatly cut cobblestones of Númenost, hearing wind and reading word of the pact. He entered the Scholarium and submitted a letter, addressed to Tar-Caraneth. "Aktubu Malikya hil'Numenyadaan min shivir hil'Kwee'Hayastaani. La chee'h'ulumu tlaatee mamlakaan juz' fee shaalo registaan. Chaleiɳ, tlee'sfuruunapahi chee'nu!" The backside of the letter read a translation with more text beneath it: I write to the Queen of the Númenedain from the camp of the Kwee'Hayastaani. I did not know your kingdom is partly in this desert. Come! Visit us! We would be honored to host you that we may learn more about our neighbor. The Kwee Camp-atop-Mesa is located in the deep desert between the Hyspians and the Orks. Once you see a rabbit & bison totem atop the mesa, then you will know that you've found us.

One such paper would be torn off a noticeboard in one of the many towns the book merchant frequented, placed in and bound in a copy of Book of Prayer Vol I which he has had little luck in selling to a southern population with few Canonists practicing. The Wild Horse would keep his shortbow and axe close to him now.

𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅗𝅥𝅘𝅥𝅯𝅘𝅥𝅮 Mahpiya labored under the beating sun. A great tipi he pitched and laid all manners of furniture which one could recline on in the shade of the fabrics and the leather-hide walls. Rabbit stew would be provided from his tent in particular, in addition to the other foods to be served.

UPDATES Addition to Virtues/Values section: Sales & bartering are treated differently by the Kwee'. For the Kwee' and their sales, it is traditional to ask the buyer of the good to name the price they are willing to buy the good for. This is tied to an axiom the Kwee regarding their sustenance: What is meant for us will be in our grasp no matter the obstacles, what is not meant for us will never be in our grasp no matter how we connive or struggle. This tradition, through travels of the Kwee' outside of the deep desert of the south, seems to be the one most-at-odds with many other human cultures. In bartering though, the Kwee' is free to belabor the terms of X amount of Good A for Y amount of Good B. The difficulty of eking out a living in the desert has given many Kwee' pause to contemplate the difficulties that others may have. This tradition of buyer naming the price of the sold good is to ensure that the purchase does not harm the life or fortunes of the buyer.

I wholeheartedly agree with you.

THE KWEE' WHO LIVE As of the 6th of The Amber Cold 1967, the following are members of the Kwee'Hayastaani tribe either by birth or by adoption of the tradition. Those with nicknames will have their nicknames listed in italics: Maȟpíya Farisbarii ("Wild Horse") - @Ibn Khaldun Eliane Muntijnaar ("Fire-maker") - @Gimble Zahrah al-Hamra ("the Red") - @Diogen Franz Maulanataynuel ("Maestro of Magick") - @Markisstreaming Yr-Solheim Kujalleq - @Carson Moiseyu - @MCVDK The following are families, clans, or individuals who either reside with the Kwee' or are considered friends or allies (depending on whether they are individuals, clans, or kingdoms): Danilo Muntijqahwah the Southeron - @Rat Hat The Kos Clan, whose patriarch is Tadeusz Kos - @DarthPurgillus Gutlug Aatmahurk the Shaman - @Wasteland_Shaman Mamlakaan hil'Hurkaan (Orkish Rexdom) Mamlakaan hil'Hyspiyaan (Viceroyalty of Hyspia) Ahl hil'Qalasheen (The Qalasheen Tribe) - Significant respect is given to the Qalasheen as the Qali language is considered a "mother" to the Kwee'Hayastaani language.

𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅗𝅥𝅘𝅥𝅯𝅘𝅥𝅮 The small procession of Kwee', headed by Yr-Solheim & Maȟpíya, passed through the horned gateway of Orcgrimmor. Their feet shuffled and their hands struck at dhols on either side or held sringas upright as horns blared. Hands unencumbered with the tasks of holding or striking instruments swayed in rigid, martial movements. Maȟpíya stepped to the forefront of the dancing procession and, with both cupped palms turning outward, greeted the assemblage of Orks. Hinhanni! Chee'thuyu hil'Hurkaan wa tsum Mamlakaan bee'sa'eedam. Two Kwee' men dressed in feather bonnets and embroidered robes carried banners, bobbing them up and down to direct two slightly wagons to either side of the assembly. Skewers of grilled rabbit and lamb kebabs had been affixed between the walls of the wagons. The dancing soon ended with the Kwee' seating themselves amongst the Orks. Minto'Lur and Maȟpíya found each other and sat together. "Hail to thee mighty Orks of the Oasis!" Maȟpíya greeted, his hand held upright and waving as the feast began. "Welcome to Hordelandz Kwee'rex," Minto'Lur responded. The sounds of meat being stripped from bone and the guttural cacophony of feeding soon drowned out most other noises. "Latz want to klomp?" queried a young Orc, his ashen facial expression implied defeat for Maȟpíya. Maȟpíya grinned a toothy grin, enjoining himself to leap into the jaws of defeat with glee. One cannot earn friendship without paying respects to what pleases them. Thraaluk'Gorkil crossed his arms, enjoying the Kwee's acceptance of the challenge.

Odoacer labored under the flickering light of a candle to pen a response. Wrotek & Ogmios ( @TheGentleDuck @siglms_ ) sat next to him, inspecting his penmanship and padding away at droplets of tears that slicked his beard and ran the bridge of his nose. "Runjek en Prinkoz Johannes, makos Heinrich. Anuanek Odoacer hal'Cingedoz. Eigi anastandenekoz arvoju at lendhan hwyriz ach ju. Eptir Cunimund daudiriz beūtan dun di Bodbwodz, bileiþanekoz med forhtan." In Common, a translation accompanied the terse message in Sprækjom: I write to the Prince Johannes, son of Heinrich. My name is Odoacer hal'Cingedoz. We do not protest your decision that the land change over to you. After Cunimund died outside the wall of Bodbwodz, we left with dread & grief. The letter then continued, in Common, reading: Our love for the folk of Alstreim continues to this day. The respect our kinsman Cunimund had for Heinrich Lothar was unshakeable and our appreciation for the Aaunic-folk for granting us the ridge of the Langkette will never die. We see no offense in you reclaiming what was apportioned as is your traditional right. As a show of good faith and that our migrating away was not of scorn, but rather simply of grief for Cunimund's death; we gifted his legal and governmental printing-press blocks to one Witold Jazlowiecki ( @PecenyRohlik) as we understood him to be in the employ of the Aaunic Kingdom to dispense manuscripts for the government. We thank you for promising to keep Cunimund's grave in tact and have one small ask - to keep the earthenwork wall & the runestone circle relatively in tact too as that is where his duel had taken place based on where Cunimund's body was found. Our kinsmen Ogmios & Wrotek would like the opportunity to make pilgrimages there to pay respects from time to time. A small notation on the margins is made, reading: PS: You will find a beautiful map fashioned from wood and painted in detail in a small cavern below the library tower. Enjoy!

𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅗𝅥𝅘𝅥𝅯𝅘𝅥𝅮 "Aktubu Rexum hil'Hurkaanu min shivir hil'Kwee'Hayastaani. Chee'nu shukrum mundhu hil'da'ewa. Saachee'sfuru hila Orcgrimmor mundhu hil'ijtima'a!" The returned response read. A translation accompanied it, reading I write to the Rex of the Orks from the camp of the Kwee'. Our thanks for the invitation. We will travel to Orcgrimmor for the gathering! Mahpiya looked over his handwriting, finishing with a flourish his calligraphy. Mahpiya bade Moiseyu, Yr-Solheim, Franz Maulanataynuel, Zahra al-Hamra, and others of the Kwee' to prepare rations of rabbit, flatbread, & prickly pear preservatives in anticipation for their travels to the summit.

"Aktubu shaykhum hil'Qalashaanu min shivir hil'Kwee'Hayastaani. Kyaa wasaaf tawsufu hil'gundu?" A short letter read. On the back of the letter, a translation accompanied: I write to the Shaykh of the Qalasheen from the camp of the Kwee'Hayastaani. What description can you describe of the bandits? A fuller paragraph below that read: We will watch the deep desert from atop our mesas and question any who strike us as suspect lest they mean to strike the Qalasheens again. If you find any evidence, be it witness, banner, or lost weapon, please let us know so that we may better find these marauders and bring them to you dead or alive. The letter, both front and back, would be signed Maȟpíya Farisbarii.

𝅘𝅥𝅮𝅗𝅥𝅘𝅥𝅯𝅘𝅥𝅮 Wild Horse devised for himself a pastime whether sat upon saddle or seated within tipi pitched atop quiet mesa. Maȟpíya labored with care with each book binding, each margin decoration, and with faithfully rendering into the written word what he either memorized or heard from the one who met with him. Many cycles of dawn to day to dusk rolled its reds and blues and violets across the sky in succession for each book he produced. The Kwee' contended with his absences into his tipi with joy, knowing he would eventually step out with yet another work for their enjoyment either in reading what he wrote or spending what he earned from it. 𐌕𐌉𐌐𐌉 𐋅𐌉𐌋'𐌌𐌵𐌕𐌀𐌊𐋅𐌀𐌔𐌔𐌉𐌔𐌀 𝚃𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚃𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚜𝚌𝚛𝚒𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚜 In the tradition of the Kwee', the prices of the books are negotiable. The oft-repeated mantra of the Kwee regarding how they approach trade is 'What is meant for us will be in our grasps regardless the obstacle, what is not meant for us will never be within our grasps regardless of our conniving or our pursuit'. One may also commission any transcription [forum post of lore, history that is within a character's capability of having access in-character] for a price starting at least ten minas. Sample Works: You can also join the Kwee' Discord (click the image below!) where there is a channel #minecraft-book-request where you can put a book request! Please note that we would appreciate you interact with us in roleplay, but give this option especially for those who may play in different time-zones!