“We protect our home from the savagery of the outsiders. But despite their beliefs, we do not do so out of spite or hatred. We do this for their own safety, as there are secrets here that should never be found.”
- - An Arakai Warlord
The Arakai are an insectoid race who live in the Arakai Mountains of Koldenwelt. Known for their highly isolationist and xenophobic attitude, they are generally viewed negatively by the other races. As Arakai rarely venture outside the Mountains, the only way for the other races of Koldenwelt to learn about them is through exiles.
History[]
Early History[]
Earliest traces of Arakai history come from the first texts that they had written, some of which are over 2000 years old. It is known that the Arakai society of that time primarily revolved around hunting and that they seemingly worshiped Harstag, the Simulacra of Hunt. This however changed when they encountered with the Colossus of Ice, Kartansimal, and began to worship him as their god - much to his distaste. Shortly after this encounter, Arakai found several Qoranit ruins. It was from these ruins that they gained knowledge of The Source.
However, Arakai lacked any sort of unified society, being divided to numerous different clans that each followed their own set of laws. A warlord named Vortigern realized the potential that Arakai had if they were to be unified, beginning a long and bloody campaign to achieve this. He eventually succeeded in conquering the entirety of the Mountains and moved on to the next part of his plan, finding the the legendary Qoranit ruin, Manufacturum. However before he was able to locate it, an alliance of three revolting warlords attacked his capital of Nthcnzel and at the end of the battle killed Vortigern and all who were loyal to him. This event meant the end of the short-lived idea of "United Arakai", as the freed Arakai clans divided once again.
Recent History[]
Recently a terrible war between the two mightiest clans and those who support them has been raging in the Mountains, following an incident in which all warlords except three of the most influential were killed by an assassin. Surprisingly many Arakai have left their home to escape from the war, allowing outsiders to know even more about their race.
Biology[]
A female Arakai.
Arakai are a moderately tall insectoids who, having lived in the far north of Koldenwelt, have a natural resistance to cold. Known for having great agility in snowy and mountainous area, it is nigh-impossible to disorient them in their home region. They have red eyes deep inside their heads which is protected by a shell-like body part. Their eyes are also able to zoom towards a target, improving their mastery with a bow even further. Other internal organs are protected by the hard exoskeleton of Arakai, acting as their body armor and removing the need to carry a heavy set of armor that would make it slower to move around. This however causes Arakai to have a dangerous weakness, blunt weapons, as a single powerful swing from one usually results in a instant death for them. Their exoskeleton also keeps them warm in cold climates, due to a small layer of fur on its other side. Their sexual dimorphism makes it easy to differentiate males and females, as females have hair composed of flexible chitin.
Culture[]
Arakai hunting local wildlife.
The culture of Arakai mainly consists of isolationism and the desire to protect and study the Legacy of the Qoranit. Most clans see outsiders as bringers of destruction and disease, no matter their intentions. Due to their isolation Arakai hold next to no information on the outside world and its inhabitants. Arakai have many different rites that they have to complete during their lives, e.g. to gain a title or being allowed to start a family.
One of the most oldest parts of their culture is hunting that retains its past influence in the Arakai society. Originally a way to worship Harstag, it has become far less religious while still retaining some of the ancient rituals that were used while hunting. Hunters are one of the most respected members of clans, as the wildlife in the Mountains can be extremely dangerous. Enemy clans often target hunters due to their strategic value, if a clan's hunters die the clan loses its main food source.
Magic and Religion[]
An Arakai village outside a Qoranit ruin.
Religion is one of the most important parts of Arakai culture as most of their rites have religious purposes. Arakai worship the Colossus of Ice, Kartansimal, as their god, while some still worship Harstag. They see the great Qoranit ruins as holy sites and often use them as temples. Some however prefer to worship to Kartansimal through the acquisition of knowledge about the Qoranit. Despite the different forms of worship, their beliefs stay the same. The most important belief for Arakai is that they will have to carry the souls of all those who they've killed over the mountain Kémelomceri in order to reach afterlife.
Arakai who study the Qoranit ruins are often are usually mages hoping to find more information on Qoranit and The Source. Magi are often found near ruins and sometimes inside them if accompanied by warriors. Although there is only few who call themselves magi, all Arakai have great potential to use The Source and are able to use it in different ways. Many magi also become fixated with Qoranit technology and try to find a legendary Inventor ruin called Manufacturum that is said to hold relics inside itself which would make their owner's skills with magic near god-like.
Quotes[]
Notes[]
Gallery[]
_Image.png "Arakai (no clothes) Image.png (24 KB)")
_Image.png "Female Arakai (no clothes) Image.png (24 KB)")
Trivia[]
- Arakai serve as Fantasyverse's answer to Zio'Aeni.
- Arakai language is actually Swedish.
- Similarly Old Arakhiid is actually Old Norse.
