Gabelins - Race Artwork Overview

 Race Profile – Gabelins 

A nomadic people by choice, the Gabelins find ways to live apart from the walled, organized cities of Verdant. Sticking together in small clans, they move along trade routes during peak seasons and retire to an unknown location during the sandstorms. Though they bare some resemblance to orcs, if anyone were to inquire as to a distant shared lineage, they would be deeply insulted. They are very much their own people, keeping to strict traditions, and are unwelcoming of outsiders unless they are in the mood to trade.    

Rulers & Government  

Though they live well within the nation of Verdant and obey most of it's laws, the Gabelin people do not recognize the sovereignty of any Queen or authority outside their own. Since the clans operate independently of one another, it is unknown if they have a joint leadership or if a formal, singular ruler exists. Their clans are comprised of six to ten family groups, ranging from about sixty to a hundred Gabelins each. The head of the clan is called the Tan'maam, or the grandmother. She decides where the families will travel, when what and how they will trade, and when they will return to where they came from. Her approval must be gained before any marriages take place, and children are brought to her for approval. Whether or not she is actually the grandmother of the clan is unclear, and it is not known by anyone but the Gabelins as to whether or not they are all interrelated. Many think that the clans change from year to year, switching members between other clans to ensure no inbreeding occurs. Under the grandmother are the others of the individual families that make up the clan. They are responsible for overseeing their families, as well as ensuring the clans general cooperation during their time together. Anyone wishing to do business with the clan must go through them.  
 
Allies & Enemies  

The Gabelins avoid wars and other such entanglements, and as such have a certain amount of immunity.  While they generally dislike any culture besides their own, they know that their goods are highly sought after and are willing to do business with anyone capable of trading. As such, they can't afford to make enemies of others. However, they are known for disliking cities, and refuse to go within the walls of a town, even if their own safety is on the line. Since they have no interest in provoking others, even aggressive persons, such as the Yenya, let them pass unmolested. Some even think they are allowed into the Dense Jungles to trade. They don't discuss it openly out of professional courtesy, but occasionally Gabelins caravans will have orc goods to trade. They do seem to be irked by the Vadels, but not enough to keep them from trading with them.  

Religion & Belief  

Some races have one god. Others have ancestors. Some races have no gods at all, but gabelins have a thousand little gods and goddesses for everything. While some may be given more clout, such as gods of trade, travel, mathmatics, cleverness and family, others are none the less valued for their dominion over little things like honey, fabric weaving, starlight and hangovers. They can be called upon by the mere mention of their name, and thanked just as simply. As if calling upon then were merely asking an old friend for a favor long overdue. Though they keep their rituals very private, occasionally one may find a gabelin offering a skin of wine or bloody flesh, muttering prayers in their own language. It is best to give them space, as they consider it very rude to go staring at them during this and will become very irate if they feel you are encroaching on them.    
 
Nomads, Traders and Gourmets    

The Gabelins treasure their freedom and their people above all else. With the state of the world in constant flux, they believe the best way to keep their cultural traditions is to avoid being trapped behind the walls of other races cities and towns. They head off during the planting seasons, after the rains have  passed overhead, and move along carefully memorized trade routes to cities where they set up camp for a few weeks to trade before moving on. As nomads, their lives are structured around their ability to pick up and move with easy. They accomplish this with the construction of cleverly build wagons which glide along the sands effortlessly, allowing them to cover large distances within short amounts of time. On top of this, they have mastered the taming of wild briarback boars. These truly massive beasts have a foul temper and are territorial to the point of recklessness. However the gabelins keeps them easily, using them to haul their carts, defend their encampments, and occasionally as a food source.    
  
They make their way as traders through out every territory and people they come across. Some feel this flies in the face of Verdant's laws. Since gabelins keep no traditions but their own, they do not fall into the social structure of Citizens, Residents or Thralls that Verdant holds so dear. However, as their nomadic nature prevents them from having 'land or property' under the traditions/legal definition, they are not in violation of the law. As far as owning a business goes, while they may trade and use coin to profit, there is some degree of debate as to whether or not this qualifies as the trade benefits the clan as a whole, not as an individual, and as such can an whole 'clan' be seen as owning a business. For now however, they skirt the issue, the fact that their goods are in such high demanding may have something to do with it.    
  
There are three things the abelins excel in creating. They are masters of cloth, creating beautiful dyes which they use to color their threads and make some of the most detailed embroidery that can be found. They charge high prices for even a hand napkin done in their patterns, and the wealthy of Verdant pay exorbitant commissions for whole garbs done by gabelin hands. Along with their dyes and embroidering, the abelins create a variety of unique spices which have been shown to extend the life of meats. They are wonderfully hot and savory, so much so that they can event be used to make the tough, gamy meat of the briarback boars as succulent and tasty as can be. While they won't part with the recipe's for this, they willingly sell the blends and meat to those who can afford it. Last but far from least, the clans produce a pickling mixture which they use to preserve fruit. Every clan has their own beehive, and they use a generous mixture of honey and potato alcohol to cover sliced fruits for long term storage. When the fruit is removed, they strain the mixture, producing a powerful drink they call machit. Nothing humans make is anywhere near as strong. A potent brew, one small sip is enough to make even a minotaur woozy. Yet gabelins handle it with ease.    
  
A note on the gabelin language. While each culture of Verdant has it's own language, gabelins are among the few who speak not only the common language, but the individual languages for every race and most of the cultures. They have their own racial tongue, which is heavily accented and spoken proudly. However a gabelin could easily be depended upon to serve as a translator in an emergency situation. Because they trade with every other group, they usually know more than enough of the local tongue to get by.    
 
Family & Marriage  

While gabelins travel about in clans, there are multiple families within the clan. Each family is headed by the mother, who in turn may have several husbands in her wagon. Gabelins produce children in litters of up to eight infants, each of which may have a different father. Fidelity is highly emphasized, and a marriage is considered to be binding regardless as to how many are involved. There are strict punishments laid out for a gabelins, male or female, who goes outside of their vows for satisfaction. The family, followed by the clan, does a good job of keeping tabs on one another, and there are few if any secrets between them.    
  
The fathers and sons handle the business side of things, they also tend to the cooking, cleaning and maintaining of the family structure. They work ensuring the the camp flows smoothly, and that everyone sticks to their duties instead of going off exploring or into the cities. They set up the tents, repairing and maintaining their equipment, taming the boars and doing the butchering and working on whatever else needs done. It is the duty of the mothers and daughters to maintain the households, see to the children and the daily chores.  
  
Marriage is arranged entirely by the clans, with bargaining and discussions sometimes taking years before final approval from the Tan'maam is sought. It is forbidden for a gabelins to marry inside their original clan, and it is thought that these marriages occur during their 'down' season where they gather together. Children are kept mostly inside the wagons under the watchful eyes of their family until they are old enough to participate in the business and chores.