Desert Tribes

Overview

The Desert Tribes Alliance is an ancient political and cultural pact that unites the Desertborne Humans, Dune Dwarves, and Sand Elves of the Shifting Sands. For centuries, this alliance has endured as the backbone of survival across the arid expanse, allowing the tribes to endure where outsiders falter. Though each tribe maintains its own lands, customs, and leadership, they recognize that cooperation is the only path to survival in such an unforgiving world.

Structure and Autonomy

The alliance is not a centralized state but rather a loose confederation. Each tribe governs itself, sets its own laws, and adapts to its particular region of the desert. Yet, they are bound by shared agreements, sacred oaths, and seasonal gatherings where disputes are mediated and collective decisions are made. This balance of autonomy and unity has kept the alliance alive for countless generations.

List of tribes

The alliance is made up of many distinct tribes, each with its own identity and domain:

Qarroshy Tribe (Desertborne Human), Karkrei Tribe (Desertborne Human), Tallesdin Tribe (Sand Elves), Indaks Tribe (Dune Dwarves), Shishan Tribe (Desertborne Human), Ruyen Tribe (Desertborne Human), Ashken Tribe (Desertborne Human), Zhainin Tribe (Desertborne Human).

Trade and Interdependence

Trade is the lifeblood of the alliance. No single tribe possesses all that is needed to survive the desert’s extremes. This exchange of unique resources ensures that no tribe is left vulnerable, and it also reinforces the bonds between them.

Traditions and Unity

Despite their cultural differences, the tribes share certain traditions. Every year, their leaders gather at the Sacred Caverns, the great meeting place beneath the desert’s heart, where they renew their oaths of unity. These gatherings are both political and spiritual, as they honor the Desert Spirits, whose balance they are sworn to protect.

External Relations

• Kazhk Horde (Sun-Scorched Orcs):
  Relations are hostile. The orcs once roamed larger swaths of the desert before being pushed into the southern Orcish Reaches by the Desert Tribes Alliance. Since then, the Khazk Horde and the Qarroshy Tribe in particular have clashed endlessly across the Redsands Plains. The alliance views the orcs as a constant threat to their borders.

• Green Republic (Grassborne Humans):
  Officially, relations are diplomatic and cooperative, with trade agreements and political recognition. However, the Republic’s lack of effort in curbing poaching along the northern frontier causes deep resentment among the tribes. Trust is fragile, as the alliance knows the Republic profits from the very smugglers that threaten the desert’s balance.

• Khenan Raiders (Desertborne Outcasts):
  The raiders are seen as traitors and criminals, former tribesfolk who chose exile and banditry over law and tradition. Their frequent raids on caravans make them enemies of the alliance, though their knowledge of desert survival means they remain a dangerous, if fractured, adversary.

• Scorvian Queendom (Scorvians):
  Relations are rare and strictly controlled. The tribes respect the Scorvians’ isolation and only meet them at the Oasis of Truce, where emissaries renew a pact of non-hostility each spring. Beyond this ritual, there is no significant cooperation or contact, as the Scorpion Hills remain perilous and forbidden to outsiders.

• Sszarath Sandscale Dominion (Lizardfolk):
  Relations are neutral but curious. The Dominion’s analytical study of the Desert Spirits aligns in part with tribal beliefs, creating a sense of distant respect. However, the Dominion’s reclusive nature and secrecy make broader cooperation difficult. Exchanges of knowledge do occur, usually centered around spirit lore or rare resources, but trust is still limited.