Jasad

Daughters of virtue. Plural jasadis.

Basics

• Taxonomic Order: Akhoata

• Taxonomic Family: Phryscarans

• Alignment: Celestial

• Energy: Holy Virtue

• Lifespan: 300 years

• Diet: Normal human fare

• Habitat: Fertile valleys

Origins

The blood of Phryscara and the goddess Ba’Kal.

Description

Jasadis appear to be human-like women with palest blue skin, hair that is metallic in hue (ranging the colors of metals), and markings along their right arms.

Procreation

Jasadis reproduce with the male-assigned members of any sexual species that has male-assgned members, always producing jasadi children, except when reproducing with enders.

Powers

Jasadis can sense danger. They are able to communicate with sheep, goats, and sheepdogs.

Virtues

If a jasad has embodied a virtue, their touch becomes holy and can deflect, repel, or harm evil. They also gain one other virtue-based power:

• Mercy: forgiving voice (singing or humming will purify a soul)

• Piety: faith bonus +6

• Humility: immunity to temptation (WIL+12)

• Constance: strengthening voice (singing or humming gives +3 STR to target)

• Prudence: danger sense +6

• Sincerity: read people +6

• Resilience: quick healing

• Charity: always have something to give

• Sanctuary: defense (parry, dodge, toughness) +6

• Kindness: immunity to arnic energies (arnum, cacophony, hollow energy, sterisi, baleblood, mollesse, stravomenos, uafas)

• Patience: willpower +6

• Service: immunity to infernal energies (infernum, thorn energy, imperium, razdavit', bedrog, quaestus, hollow energy, peccatum, gossamer light, fusei)

It is possible for a jasad to embody more than one virtue, even all 12, but it is very, very, very difficult. Embodiment requires living that virtue with no missteps whatsoever for at least a year before the power becomes available, and then any deviation means losing the power. Most jasadis choose to embody just one.

Sisterhood

As daughters of Phryscara, jasadis have a kinship to other Phryscarans, and they recognize them immediately. They have a deep, abiding respect for them.

Weaknesses

Peccatum weakens them near to death.

Nations

There is only one jasadi nation, which is synonymous to the species. Some jasadis have left and grown up in other cultures, however, but this is very rare.

Culture

In the fertile river valleys of Mahad there dwell the jasadis, an adelfoi nation and species who herd sheep and keep to themselves after long Ages of persecution. They live in small communities, away from other nations, and tend their herds.

Every community is led by an elected group of 12, called the aithnay eashar (the twelve). These are jasadis over the age of 200 who have retired from shepherding or other jobs and now lead the community, so long as they are able to. If one steps down or dies, they are replaced in election the first day of the following year, or after 12 days of mourning, whichever comes last. There is no class stratification among their communities, but there are several distinct roles that are very well respected, each one corresponding to a virtue:

• Mercy: Healer (al'Maealij)

• Piety: Priestess (Kahina)

• Humility: Shepherdess (Raeia)

• Constance: Goatherd (Raei al'Maeiz)

• Prudence: Artisan (Harfiun)

• Sincerity: Messenger (Rasul)

• Resilience: Caretaker (al'Qayim Bi'aemal)

• Charity: Gardener (Bustani)

• Sanctuary: Dog-keeper (Sahib al'Kalb)

• Kindness: Teacher (Muealim)

• Patience: Washer (Ghasala)

• Service: Servant (Khadim)

Anyone may seek to be one of these, and most do not require elite levels of training--only the healers and some crafters do - but a high level of skill is always respected and attempted if one seeks one of these positions. Servants are not those who serve lords or the rich, but those who serve the community in roles of support.

Jasadi children are raised by the whole community. They are taught basic skills until they are old enough to start following community members and learning from them. They spend their early years learning everything they can, playing with one another, and exploring safely the world around them. Once they are in their early teen years, they are given proper, direct education about different tasks, roles, and responsibilities, including esoteric arts, crafts and entertainment, languages, poetry and writing, art works, and religion. They are not considered adults until they are 25, at which time they are encouraged to choose their role in the community.

Among the jasadis, crafts are practiced casually by everyone. Hobbies and arts are encouraged. Bead work, gardening, sewing and knitting and embroidery, poetry, singing, and pottery are common. Every year, the jasadis in closeby communities gather and share their arts in a small fair, trading and exchanging information, making connections.

The other major festival each year is the shearing festival. Jasadis come from all over to bring their flocks together and share in the work.

Clothing is very important among jasadi communities. They are very proud of making their own clothes from the wool of their sheep. Dyeing is also a major communal activity, and every community has their preferred colors.

Esoterica

Jasadis are beings of holy virtue and aemoa. They are the first people to become hallows (see Occupations files). They are also users of hegnh, celeste water, curacion, iremia, lhair, juaih, yahas, ujjval aatma, euergasia, waarheid, and banaru. Some use aether (esp. nzwara murazvo, livadi, ashar, and tmakikan), radiant energies (esp. euskepsia, euphony, euphoria, and tenyocan), nommic energies (esp. mijjit, blood energy, aifaellam, ancestral memory, and soul energy), and ambrosial energies (ambrosia, spirit energy). Shebvic energies are rarer, but gebvel, menab'e, and cu'ucuh'ik are the most common of them. Infernal energies are never, ever used. If they ever use peccatum, they will begin to wither and die.

Religion

Jasadis worship Ba'Kal, whom they call the Shepherdess. They view her as the embodiment of the 12 virtues they hold so dear, and they seek to emulate her. Every community has 12 priestesses (kahina), one for each virtue, and 12 elder priestesses, all of whom represent piety. The elder priestesses isolate themselves and pray all day every day on behalf of the community. The 12 other priestesses work within the community as counselors, helpers, and spiritual guides.

Every 12 days, a religious ceremony is held, representing one of the virtues, and every month is correlated to a virtue. At the end of each month there is a larger ceremony honoring the monthly virtue. Ceremonies are prayer gatherings and readings, discussions, and small offerings. At the end of every ceremony, each person is doused in cold water in a symbolic cleansing.

Gender

All jasadis are assigned female at birth, but gender is not very important to them. Female is the default gender, but those who come out as something else are respected. It is always honored but never treated as especially important. Sex is considered a healthy part of life and encouraged, and monogamy is held equal to non-monogamy in terms of importance in the community. About half of jasadis are non-monogamous and half are monogamous. For those who wish to have children, males of other nations and species are considered casual or pragmatic connections unless they are adopted into the community. Marriage between jasadis and outsiders is rare but not forbidden.

Economy

Jasadis live in communal, matriarchal communities.

Military

Each community has a small number of warriors or guards who answer to the elders, but no formal or larger military is present.

Language

Jasadi language is based on Arabic.

Trade

Jasadis trade sometimes with other people, usually trading wool or mutton or other goods from their herds.

Occupations

Some common occupations include

• Aithnay Eashar: the twelve elders in each community

• Sahib al'Kalb: dog-keepers, those who take care of the community sheepdogs. They embody the virtue of sanctuary and protection.

• al'Maealij: healers. They embody the virtue of mercy.

• Harfiun: artisans, crafters, usually shearers and weavers, dyers and clothiers, leather-workers and butchers, and others who work with the products of sheep and goats. They embody the virtue of prudence.

• Kahina: priestesses who lead the community in faith. They embody the virtue of piety.

• Raiea: shepherdesses. They embody the virtue of humility. They are the most common occupation among jasadis.

• Raei al'Maeiz: goatherds. They embody the virtue of constance. They are the second most common occupation among jasadis.

• Rasul: messengers. They communicate between different jasadi communities and other nations nearby. They are tasked with being clear and honest in their work, and therefore, they embody the virtue of sincerity.

• al'Qayim Bi'aemal: caretakers. Those who care for children, the infirm, the elderly, and others who need aid. They embody the virtue of resilience.

• Bustani: gardeners. Those who tend the crops and plants of the community. They embody the virtue of charity, as they give freely what they grow.

• Muealim: teachers. Those who teach children and train young adults. They embody the virtue of kindness.

• Ghasala: washers. Those who keep the community clean. They embody the virtue of patience.

• Khadim: servants. Those who willingly take up helping others within the community with simple tasks. They embody the virtue of loyal service.

Outside View

Jasadis are hated by most other nations because of long-standing unfounded stereotypes about their being child-stealers, deriving from their giving sanctuary to runaway children. They are persecuted in almost every class society on Shem.

Notables

• Tufaah, Jasad Manifest, Aeonian

Estimated Populations

• Main nation: 144,000

• Other: 12,000

Sample Stats

PRO 6
ATH 8
STR 10
AWA 10
WIL 11
PRS 9
STH 6