Clan Kotori

[Lunari]

Symbol: Raven
Element: Spirit
Colors: Black, grey, white
Values: Patience, learning by observing, loyalty
Leaders: The Feannagan (currently NPC)
Aesthetic: here
Culture:
Society

• The clans have long forgotten the Kotori, and they are now a “ghost” clan.
• Once a part of the Fionain, after a dispute within the clan several members left and created the Kotori. Taking on their symbol of the raven as a sign of disrespect to their former clan members.
  
• Number One Rule of Kotori: Never be seen by the other clans.
  
• Knowledge gathered on the “outside” is to be shared with everyone in the clan.
• Contact with the other clans is a major no-no. Any engagement with the other clans is very frowned upon, and you will be dubbed a traitor. Anyone seeing your Paidhir engage with another clansman is to kill them on sight, including the other clansman. Especially if they are alone.
• The Kotori’s main purpose in life is to keep the clan safe/hidden from the other clans, and to gather the other clans' secrets.
  • The Kotori hold no secrets from one another. This is purely out of a need for survival, for any of your clansmen that go outside will need to be best prepared on what to expect. It is vital, especially if the other clans are in battle with one another, that clansmen know what areas to avoid/know they should be extra careful.
    
• They believe that once the white raven comes, their time of hiding will be over and they are to reveal themselves to the other clans. The white raven will bring an omen of something big happening to Aldsage. As the clan of secrets, they believe it will be their duty to reveal their knowledge to help better prepare the clans for what is to come.
• Only those with the titles of “Shadow” are allowed to leave the cave. Shadows are thought to be the best skilled in stealth and combat. They also act as the clans hunters, and have a large responsibility to provide for their clan.
  These individuals are usually the most trusted of the clan as they are the gatherers of secrets. They are thought to be the most capable of clan members.
  
• Kotori live in the mountain in a special cave network everyone knows like the back of their hand. The cave entrance is well hidden, and only those in the clan know where it is hidden.
  Because of the cave dwelling, they’re all usually pale.
  • Years ago when the clan first went into hiding, they found a large cavern to call home. Since then they’ve built small stone homes within the cavern, some members have even made their homes further in the cave in different sections. Every member of the clan knows how to access the tunnels.
    
  • Because there is very little light in the caves, save for the torches, whatever fire they use for cooking, and warmth in the winter (as well as whatever firewood they’re able to safely gather), each member knows how to do daily tasks as if they had no sight at all. This is highly advantageous, especially for the Shadows as they can fight essentially blind folded without a need to see their opponent.
  • To prevent themselves from essentially blinding themselves when they go to the outside, there is one section of cave that lets in natural light as it is close to the surface. The entrance to this cave is heavily guarded as they run the risk of someone possibly falling into the opening. A clan member will spend several days in this cave, allowing their eyes to adjust appropriately, before they go to the outside. No one is allowed to talk in this cave, and there is a rotation, of several people who will stay in the cave for multiple days together. Usually this involves different hunting and watch parties.
    
• Probably the creepiest of the clans, given they have odd “stalkerish” quirks.
  
• If a Kotori goes outside of the cave they are dressed usually in dark clothes/robes with some sort of mask. This mask is usually some form of animal skull.
  
  • They wear animal skulls to hide their true identities. To be spotted by someone other than a clan member is a danger in and of itself. They wear the mask to protect themselves, rather wanting the other clans to believe in “ghost” tales, or to be some dark entity that haunts Aldsage.
    
• Usually always covered in some sort of camouflage/black paint. It’s not uncommon for Kotori to constantly have paint on their faces. The trend is to usually have it take up half your face, but mostly around your eyes.
  
• Because of this “blind sight” everyone is accustomed too, they navigate the darker parts of the cave through clicks, using echolocation to navigate.  
  
• From a young age, the Kotori are trained in the ways of stealth and observation. Trained in “hide and seek”. The children that hide themselves the best are selected to be the future Shadows and are given more rigorous training than the others, however, every clansman all have the same training.
• They use animals to communicate with those outside of the cave.
  
• The Kotori are very soft spoken/quiet in general.
• They are very stealthy, sneaky, quiet, patient, and often go unheard/ undetected by others. They make good spies and are good at strategizing.
• If they are heard, they are hardly ever seen-- which makes others believe they are truly ghosts.
  
• If they are ever spotted by another clan, their first series of steps is to disappear as quickly and safely as possible. If they are found, and know there is no way to get “unseen”( e.g. more than one person saw you, they know something weird is happening) then the clansman must make the difficult decision of allowing their Paidhir kill them to take their body back to the clan, or they commit suicide. Their Paidhir’s job is to then quickly hide their body and bring them back to the clan where a funeral will be held. More on the Paidhir below.
  • It is thought getting spotted by another clansman is a fate worse than death, and the only way to save your soul is to sacrifice yourself to save the clan’s secrets. 
    
• The clan holds rituals at night (because they feel their strongest/ safest then) to honor their dead, to pray, to appreciate one another and to honor the animal spirits that they take advantage of. Their chants sound like strange noises that make others think there are weird animals/ ghosts/ spirits that are going to haunt them or kill them in their sleep.
  
• As a wedding gift to their bride, most men will decorate some sort of animal skull that she wears at the wedding.
  
  

The Feannagan

• Rather than a chieftain, the Kotori have three individuals they call “The Feannagan”, or "The Crows". The Feannagan are thought to be the “wisest” of the clan, and are the three individuals that hold the most secrets. They follow an age hierarchy, with one being in their older years, one being middle aged, and the last one being young. When a Crow dies, the others “move up”, and the clan picks the next “youngest” Feannagan.
• The Feannagan that the clan chooses is highly important, as they are someone that the whole clan would follow and look up to.
• Being a Feannagan is a place of great honor and respect. A Crow’s family is highly respected, and often looked to for guidance.
• The Feannagan’s are the three individuals that hold the most secrets in the Kotori, and are the only three that are allowed to actually keep secrets if it’s in the clan's best interest. Even so, because the Kotori are so open and honest with one another, the Feannagan give partial details on the larger secrets.
• The Feannagan have their own ritual to “open their minds” that they perform generally on top of a mountain so they can see over all of Aldsage, and be closer to the “night.”

The Paidhir

• The Kotori believe in never doing anything alone, so they’ve created a partner system for the Shadows so that those that go to the outside always have a safety net in case of danger or being seen. This partner is called a Paidhir.
  
• The Kotori always appear to be alone, however, their Paidhir is usually at least within 15 yards of them at all times. They not only watch the other clans but each other as well.
  
• Paidhirs are usually picked as children, and the two are raised together. Your Paidhir is your most trusted clansmen. They know everything about you- your likes, dislikes, how you move, even sometimes how you think. This person is the one you trust most with your life.
• Paidhirs can be of the same gender or opposite. Usually the Feannagan will pick the Paidhirs, choosing personalities that go well together. There have been occasions of opposite personality pairings.
• If Paidhirs end up male and female, they are sometimes highly encouraged to marry, as the pair is already close enough as is, why not throw intimacy in? Especially if the pair make a good match already.
• They travel in these pairs so you always have “someone watching your back”, even if they appear alone. Pairs usually communicate with different types of bird calls. Each bird call means something different.
• A Paidhir's main duty is to not only protect their partner at all cost, but to also hold their partner accountable. Paidhir’s act as a double edged sword in a way- they are responsible for keeping you safe, but also to make sure you don’t harm the clan in any way.
• If your Paidhir gets spotted by another clan, and fails at hiding/contact is obtained by the other clan, then it is your duty to the clan and its secrets that you will stop at nothing to end the life of your Paidhir. If your partner doesn’t sacrifice themselves before you can, then the roll falls to you. You are not allowed to return to the clan, until they are dead, and their body is brought back.

Clan Infiltration

• On very rare occurrences, and if they think it's necessary, the Kotori actually infiltrate the other clans.
• They impersonate in order to communicate. Always in some sort of disguise.
• The only time they won’t wear their mask is when they’re in the enemy clans.
• Being in an enemy clan is only given to the best of the best, and it’s only for a short term. They very much have a “get in, get the info, get out” mentality. It’s heavily emphasized to not overstay your welcome.
• For a short term, the Kotori will go under the guise of being an injured traveler seeking aid. They do this for the Oisen, Vellcar, Sigferth, and Fionain Clans. They will actually be injured to make it as realistic as possible. Once their body is healed they are to leave and return to the clan.
• If the clan sees it necessary and vital, then they will select a Paidhir to fully infiltrate the clan. This usually means the person is there for years (no more than five), and then they fake their death or just fade away and return to the Kotori clan once their mission is complete.
• Clan Wynfrid and Clan Drach are the most difficult clans to infiltrate as they’re more "shoot on sight and ask questions later". Pretending you’re an injured traveler, or seeking shelter for some time is far more difficult with the two more hostile clans than the others. However, given that Drach and Wynfrid are the two largest clans, with larger numbers it makes for easier blending in… Given that the Kotori keep no secrets from one another, they are aware of the clan's behavior and just make themselves “belong” as if they were there the entire time.
  
• A fully infiltrated Kotori will spend time getting into physical shape via building muscle, tanning, etc. Whatever they can do physically to make themselves blend into the clan. They prepare rigorously for months before they infiltrate.
• Status reports are usually given every full moon, and the Kotori infiltrator will meet at a specific rendezvous with another clan member or their Paidhir to trade news. If the infiltrator can’t safely reach the rendezvous for whatever reason, they have a week to get in touch with the clan before clan members will move in to see the situation. Oftentimes, the infiltrator will be abandoned if necessary, and then later assassinated (if they’re thought to be a traitor) or their Paidhir will be contacted to see what the situation is.
• There are always two infiltrators for each clan at any one time. The arrivals and removals are always timed to make it not be suspicious.
• Those with the best acting skills, and usually the best combat skills are put into those two clans.

Gramarye

• The Kotori have more “spirit” based gramarye, allowing their minds powers not many from the other clans possess.
• Most Kotori have some sort of animal scrying gramarye, which allows them to see through the eyes of animals. This comes in extremely handing for Shadow Kotori.
• Some Kotori, with practice, have been able to control the animals they see through.
  
• A major side effect of this gramarye is the fact it leaves the Kotori completely vulnerable while they’re scrying. This is another reason why the Kotori are always in pairs when outside of the caves.
• Other gramarye include more “mental” abilities. Whether it’s understanding animals or even heightened senses.