Minotaur

Introduction

What they do get correct about the past is that when the Giants ruled, if the Minotaurs avoided the Giants they could battle their true rivals: Naga. Minotaurs loath Naga with a zeal bordering on absurdity.    

The Jade Shamans

  Gideans are the only Saharians that Minotaurs refuse to attack and since all Saharians are easily distinguishable by their eye and prominent hair color, they attack all the other human races hoping to loot what they consider valuable. In their legends, a Gidean once visited one of their lost Factions and taught them sacred knowledge they never had before. The Gidean in their legend chose to live with that Faction and died when the Faction was killed by a Naga Brood that no longer exists today in the land of Torentia long before the Azurians had expanded their borders to encompass where this lost Faction used to live. The Gidean died and the rest of the knowledge he could have taught them, it angers Minotaurs that the Azurians did not help at that time, they do not hate the blue haired ones but they are not particularly fond of them because the ruins of the lost Faction are within their borders and the Minotaurs are never allowed to enter the land of Torentia.  

Most Minotaurs in the Fen and Dray Factions believe the blue haired ones (Azurians) are hiding knowledge they uncovered in the ruins and that is why they are barred from entering their land.

  The main reason they are barred from entering is because Minotaurs are warmongers and the constant attacking of caravans does not make it easy for any Saharians to care much about any type of negotiations with them. No Minotaur would agree that this is the reason, they believe war is natural and the looting of an enemy, the contest of battle is part of their culture.     The Gidean in their legend taught them about plants and trees, how to identify the poisonous ones and find the ones to help them. Minotaurs uniquely have a weak immune system and so the knowledge passed onto them by this unknown Gidean is incredibly valuable, their Jade Shamans are perhaps the most tedious in how they pass on knowledge because they cannot lose this knowledge ever. It allows them to battle their enemies without being compromised by the sicknesses from the human races that affect them so dramatically, the knowledge from the Gidean is the most sacred and those who teach and pass on the knowledge are picked very carefully. The newest Shamans will have to pass on the knowledge perfectly to the next generation and in this, they have the most accurate passing on of knowledge, even more detailed than anything the Giants pass on orally in this regard.   There is far more invested in this knowledge for the Minotaurs because it also means their survival.     Meeting any Gideans is so incredibly rare because one lives on land and the other in the oceans of Genivan, Gideans do not travel through any lands that Minotaurs inhabit as all the rivers, canals and lakes they use to travel are far from Minotaur lands. The Gideans have their own interesting legends about Minotaurs and do not share the hate or discontent the other races have with Minotaurs.   The Eons do not have much of an opinion of Minotaurs as they do not see them often, Sordeans also do not see Minotaurs up north as Minotaurs despise the cold and do not live up north or anywhere near the northern border of the land of Ivangar (Taloreans), Sordeans will battle Minotaurs as the Minotaurs will attack them on sight hoping to loot precious trinkets and paper. Few in Sordean society know of the legend of one of their own. Taloreans despise the Minotaurs as they are attacked most frequently by them. Zarythians also do not have regular contact with Minotaurs and Minotaurs are mostly unaware of these Saharians and will hesitate to attack them, unsure what the purple means in their hair and eyes (if it is connected with their Massacre Legend). The Azurians are frequently attacked by Minotaurs, so loath them same as the Taloreans.  

Trinkets

  Minotaurs absolutely love the strange technology and gadgets that Saharians make; quills, spoons, hammers (if too small to wield in combat), eating knives, wheels and anything else they do not create in their own society from stone, they love these 'trinkets' and are truly fascinated by it. Oddly, they never use these ‘trinkets’ as they call them in the manner in which they were intended, instead these trinkets are used as decorations, items of great value for marriages, battle prowess and anything they can hang on themselves to make a clanking noise. Since Minotaurs are superstitious in many ways they believe that the noise from the clanking spoons, combs or any other metal objects hung about their clothing and armor will keep the Ancient Full and Half Breeds away. They are utterly terrified of Dragons (an Ancient Full Breed) and Wyvern (an Ancient Half Breed). So, the clanking noise they believe keeps them at bay since most Minotaurs live near the areas where the two inhabit.   If a Minotaur loots a bell, it is the most precious item and given to their Shamans and traded between the other two Factions nearby, only one Faction of Minotaurs is isolated and rarely sends a trade delegation as their journey is far too dangerous but on rare occasions, once or twice a generation, the Zorn Faction living in the foothills of the Shattered Mountains will visit the Minotaurs in the west. The Dray Faction will call the others to join in the meeting as the trade delegation from the Zorn Faction will come to them first, since it happens to infrequently all Minotaur leaders are notified about them. If there is conflict within a Faction or Faction warfare, there will be a temporary peace until the Zorn Minotaurs leave.   Bells are given to their Shamans so they can attach them to a piece of long wood, a small log (small trunk of a tree, cut down to their height around 6ft tall) that a Shaman will carry and shake to cleanse an area that a Dragon or Wyvern has been seen or a made a kill, they believe the Ancient Full and Half Breeds leave a magical taint they must cleanse in order for their warriors to venture out and be safe. Since bells are not traded between the Saharians often and Minotaurs lose their bells or they become damaged, looting one is the greatest treasure. The Shamans will look to that family and potentially chose a new Shaman from their family or if one is not qualified to take up the mantel of the Jade Shaman Way then they will chose a family member to be a protector for the shamans who venture out to collect the plants and herbs they need to sustain their immune system.  

It is a very revered position and Minotaurs desire to have some connection to the Shamans of their Factions, so the looting of a bell is not often but when it is, there is much fighting over who discovered the bell.

 

Minotaur Culture

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The oddity of Minotaur culture is only exacerbated by the fact that they are very rigid in their thinking, they hardly deviate from how things have always been done. Even their Soothsayers who are their greatest speakers of abstract language are highly revered because of the rigidity in their own minds. Since this is built into them, it makes it difficult for them to communicate with the human races on Genivan. They hardly negotiate with their own kind and will have inter-Faction wars and Faction to Faction wars, they love battle and in their rigidness they have built their society this way. They hardly ever change from a cultural standpoint.   If they could overcome their need to war, loot and test their battle prowess they might learn more about Gideans, exchange knowledge and have allies with the Saharians but alas, this is not the case.  

Scars of Shame

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Minotaurs use a form of shame in scarring, if a Minotaur regardless if female or male does something unethical or against their cultural tenants, they are scarred badly by their Faction members.   A male Minotaur will not consider a female a mate unless she can hunt down game, an animal or even a Saharian but if she loses the Saharian and is seen; she will be gouged along her face and her horns sawed off. She will be outcast, able to live near the Faction but never able to interact beyond begging for food and never able to marry. Since Minotaurs are incredibly superstitious, Minotaurs believe their females are sacred in an odd way, they should never be seen by a human and the human live, unless it’s a Gidean. They will be known as an Orin, The Lonely Ones.  

Strange as it is, that is their belief.

  Now a male Minotaur who attacks a Dragon, Wyvern or Unicorn, either out of fear, panic or glory, they will have their hands cut off, their arms they will gouge deeply, burn circles into their face and saw their horns off as well. They will be called Aembra, The Cursed Ones and they will go to live in the same manner as the Orins.