The Libetri people are a human tribe from the southern region of Arofea. They are divided into four villages which all share the same language and cultural habits. These villages are Calaina, Valavega, Taiarina, and the smaller Sovega.
The province is entirely inhabited by humans of Libetri blood. It was first established when their ancestors arrived on the land, in the year 274 FE. Originally, they were one unified state, only splitting after various events throughout the tribe's history. They are known to fight amongst themselves, but tradition demands they come to a truce once a year during harvest season.
Some cultural aspects can vary with each village, but they tend to follow similar traditions.
Their social hierarchy is pretty simple, consisting of a supreme leader, called the village chief, to keep everyone in check. The village chief also chooses a few advisers to help, usually divided by their tasks: there will be a military adviser, an experienced general who keeps track of the armies; an economy adviser, who keeps track of all the resources of the village, and will guide villagers in what resources to prioritize at any given moment; and lastly, a religious adviser, the head healer who will keep track of medical supplies and act as a shaman for the village, often offering counseling as well.
Once the chief retires, they will choose between their military or economy advisers to become the next chief. Healers cannot become leaders, because of their extremely important role in Libetri society. The retired chief will then become the village Elder, offering extra guidance to the village in times of need. A village chief traditionally retires at age 140. In the case that the chief dies before reaching that age, a vote is held among all villagers to see which adviser gets the new chief position.
Head healers are not chosen by the chief or villagers. They will usually have a right hand assistant of their own, who will take on the next head healer position after the current one dies.
The Libetri people worship mainly two deities: Vedis, the god of harvest and fertility; and Dhekius, the god of warfare.
When women are pregnant, they will leave offerings at the temple of Vedis. The offerings include fruit and wine, and an object that can vary depending on what the mother wants in her child, usually something characteristic to a specific job (such as arrows if she hopes for a skilled hunter; or a piece of clay for a skilled artisan.) Animal bones and body parts are also left as offerings if the parents want the child to have a special characteristic reminiscent of that animal, such as an raven feather for a cunning child; a wolf tooth for a strong child, etc.
In Sovega, it is common for the mother to leave a small clay figurine of herself, in hopes that Vedis will grant a healthy and safe pregnancy with little complications. Other family members may also leave their offerings. During harvest season in spring, a huge festival is held in honor of Vedis, and all villagers offer gifts in hopes that the next harvest season will be bountiful.
Worship to Dhekius is more somber, and the god is usually evoked in times of war, or when mentioning a fallen warrior.
The role of priest is often given to those skilled in herbal medicine. Usually, priests, or healers, are female, but there are some male priests as well. The gender ratio of healers varies with each village; in Calaina there are no male healers as all men are expected to take military paths.
Healers live somewhat secluded from society, mainly focusing on their rituals. To become a healer, one must be appointed to start training as a young child, or in some rare cases, begin their training if they show interest as a young teen. Usually this is reserved for teenagers that cannot do anything else due to a disability, but becoming a healer is rare even among the disabled.
In Valavega, the role of healer is much more hereditary, with several healer families dedicated to their role from birth.
In Libetri culture, the human body is considered sacred and there is little shame in seeing the naked body. Communal baths are common, although they are still separated by gender. The warmer months will have the people wearing simple linen clothes, loosely tied around the body. Tunics are very common, and men often wear shorter tunics that reach the tights, while women typically wear dresses that reach past the knees. It does not snow in the Libetri region, and as such people prepare for the colder months by wearing an extra layer of wool or fur to protect them from the cold wind; women wear longer skirts while men cover their legs by wrapping cloth around them, similar to socks.
On their feet, people often wear sandals made of leather and wood (for the soles.) Some sandals are fastened with leather strips around the feet, while some can go up to the knees.
Clothing style also varies by function. Healers often cover up from head to toe in brown, orange or green robes that are embroidered with nature motifs at the hems. They rarely wear shoes, as it is believed it would weaken their connection to the earth, and thus diminish their healing powers.
Hunters typically wear leather vests around their torso, over a linen shirt, and with a green or brown tunic covering the whole outfit. Some hunters go the extra mile of crafting a “coat” of leaves and branches to further camouflage themselves in the woods. They also wear leather gloves to protect their fingers from the friction of their bowstrings.
Soldiers wear leather armour covering up a thick cloth tunic, and a tabard on the front. The most protected areas are the chest, neck and stomach. Some soldiers are able to secure iron armour to protect their chests, but these are rare to come and more expensive to produce. The fighting style of each village has developed around these types of garments, and as such most soldiers value the agility that metal armour would not grant them.
This ritual started being practiced in Calaina in the year 719 FE, but has eventually spread to the other villages, as the Libetri began to place great religious significance on the practice. It is a ritual meant to appease both Dhekius and Vedis, and it began to be practiced by the four villages in the year 756 FE, as there were worries that outside forces would invade Libetri territory.
Once soldiers-in-training reach the age of 20, they will be ready to come of age as full-fledged soldiers. In order to do so, they must participate in the diodese ritual. A young man who is currently in diodese is called a Daionei. During this ritual, they will duel other daionei in a mock fight, while nude. They will use heavily decorated wooden spears with blunt ends, and whoever can knock the other person to the ground will be considered the winner of the duel. The decorations on the spears are highly personalized to the daionei warrior wielding it, and they are traditionally arranged to represent his strongest traits as a warrior.
The diodese ritual is considered an offering to both gods; a display of courage and virility. During diodese, daionei are expected to display their combat prowess as well as their sexual maturity, hoping that the gods will approve of them and grant them good fortune in the shape of many victories in their battles and healthy offspring.
In preparation for the ritual, a priestess will bless the young daionei in the name of the gods, while they breathe in the fumes of a sacred plant, burned in an incense. They will tattoo a rune symbolizing Dhekius on their back. This tattoo can be expanded as the soldier ages and participates in battles, and more runes can be added depending on the strengths he shows in life.
The Libetri people are usually fair skinned, although many individuals can have more tanned complexions. They typically have dark hair, ranging from dark brown to black. The most common hair texture is straight, usually 1a or 1b. Their eyes are also dark colored, and green colored eyes are possible but very uncommon. Most Libetri have sharp features, with fairly long and straight nose bridges, high cheekbones and square jaws. They typically do not have an epicanthic fold over their eyes.
Their average height is 1.70m for males and 1.65 for females.
