The dasamahayodha were once ten great warriors who served their king. After they finished their service and performed great deeds, they built temples to the Divines, and one such Divine honored them by making them into giants and founders of their own tribes.

The largest tribe is the Nandhimithra. They are elephant herders and mahouts, defenders of Divine places, and keepers of tropical orchards. Because they can speak to the elephants, they treat them as equals. The Suranimala tribe are closest to their emperor. They keep the local water reservoir, grow rice, and are known for their weaving and tailoring. They favor long-distance travel by foot, and as such, are perfect messengers. The Gotaimbara live in imbara forests, clearing it for their rice paddies and large farms. The Theraputthabhya protect their coconut groves ferociously. They are more religious and tend toward ascetism. Their warriors are known for rock-hurling. The Mahabharana herd hares, antelopes, elk, and boar. They are known to crush hares as a form of slaughter to prepare them for eating. They are very swift runners. The Velusumanna are mounted warriors who keep massive herds of horses. They are said to be able to break horses no one else can break. They are also known for their cunning and stealth.

The Khanjadeva have one leg slightly longer than the other (which they do through kanna). They herd buffalos, which they slaughter by grabbing by the legs and dashing on the ground when they wish to eat them. The Phussadeva live by the sea and practice archery. They are renowed for their archery skill, shooting arrows through thick hides, solid stone, and even thick iron plates--or water--and still hitting their exact targets. They use conch shells as rallying horns, and the sound of them is like thunder. The Labhiyavasabha live near the mountains and are known for their noble appearances (which they form through kanna). They are earth-movers, landscapers, who built a huge reservoir for their tribe. And the Mahasona keep palm tree orchards to make palm oil and other products. They begin as children to tend these orchards, ripping up the trees bare-handed. They keep a very ancient and honored cemetery.

The social structures of the tribes are all the same. Each tribe is led by a great warrior, even if the warrior is elderly and retired. They serve for life. They select their successor based on their fighting skill; a council of other warriors verifies the choice. The warriors lead the tribe, but the lords lead the country. Each tribe is split into a caste system of lords, warriors, craftsfolk, and servants. The lords serve the emperor, who rules the country. The lords are feudal lords, but they also are often practicing merchants. The warriors run the tribes and have their own councils within the tribe and collectively. The craftsfolk are a small caste. They represent the farmers, herders, gatherers, and makers of the tribes, set the prices for trading, and protect the craftsmen from the lords and merchants, even though they are a lesser caste. The servants are everyone else, and they are the bulk of society.

Children are raised by their families. They begin being educated at the age of six or seven. If they live somewhere with a school, they go to school. If not, the family educates them. At the age of 16, they leave school and begin working at the family farm or the local lord, if they are not a warrior or lord. Those who are warriors train to be warriors from the age of 12. Those who are lords train in special schools and come back to serve as lords at the age of 16. They reach adulthood at the age of 21, when they hit their last growth spurt. If no growth spurt comes, they force it through kanna. At adulthood, they must go to the emperor's court to present themselves to the census if they are a servant of craftsfolk. If they are a warrior, they must present to the census and their local lord. If they are a lord, they must present to the emperor directly.

Courtship rituals vary by tribe and are very complex. Gifts, dances, rituals, contracts, and poetry are usually involved. The woman (or nonbinary) will eventually demand a service of the one seeking their attention. This can be as simple as bringing them fine clothing or even just a night of sex, or it can be as complicated as demanding lotuses from a water reservoir and the water that washed the sword that took head of their enemy's greatest warrior. There is no courtship between castes. Marriage is common place and casual in the servant and craftsfolk castes. Among warriors, it is common to have many spouses. Among lords, marriage is a massive event, and a lord may only marry once, but have many concubines.

Every tribe has their own festivals revolving around their own milestones: victories in battle, their founding, their greatest representatives. They also celebrate the two seasons (dry and rain), and they honor their ancestors at two festivals per year. Personal feast days include birth, matriculation, adulthood, marriage, and death.