Hangdogs
The Hangdogs were a tribe based in and around Denver, CO (also known as Dog Town).
Culture
Most notable about them is their reverence of dogs. Tribe members worship dogs in a religious sense, though they also see them as friends, hunting companions, and sometimes as a source of food. Dogs also play a critical role in the upbringing of a child tribe member. Many of their social milestones revolve around dogs, including training and bonding with them.
Their existence as a tribe of scavengers has also affected their overall culture. Supplies and resources are regularly scarce, so any wastefulness is frowned upon and can be worthy of punishment. There is also a distinct focus on preserving resources, such as food and medicine.
Assets
A notable asset of the Hangdogs are their medicines: both in terms of chems and natural remedies.
The Hangdogs do not only scavenge for chems: they make their own as well.
Lesser known is the Hangdogs' familiarity of natural remedies.
Hangdogs are also talented in food preservation. In the absence of refrigeration, they are talented in making jerky from their meats and saving vegetables for long-term storage.
Foreign Relations
Many non-Hangdog people living around Danver carry a stereotype of the Hangdogs as being fierce, unforgiving raiders. This may have held some truth many decades ago, when more groups inhabited the greater Denver area. They, along with the Hangdogs, competed for resources, though the Hangdogs would regularly outpace and raid their competition with help from their dogs. Others groups were displaced or killed outright, which left the Hangdogs primarily in charge of Denver. Those that relocated told bloody tales of the tribe, which allowed the stereotype to spread. Without much contact with outsiders, the stereotypes remain, even after the Hangdogs became more self-sufficient.
This gradual shift towards self-sufficiency caught the eye of caravan businesses and hardier prospector families. While few of either came through Denver regularly, those that did could enjoy trading with Hangdogs for their chems, medicines, and hides. The Hangdogs also offered, for a hefty fee, to help these groups traverse Denver safely. In return, the Hangdogs enjoyed getting foods from other locations, new and better technology, and weaponry.
Education
One would think the Hangdogs, like the Legion, would treat their children harshly, as to teach and prepare them for the harsh world of the wasteland. However, a visitor of the Hangdogs would see an opposite outcome. Despite the talents of the Hangdog shamans, healers, and midwives, STIs and pregancy-related complications--potentially due to remnant radiation and the New Plague--still torment the tribe. Thus, children that are born even remotely healthy are seen as gifts, and the women that birth them as the tribe's strongest warriors. As the children grow, they are (sometimes, quite literally) held close by the adults around them-- as evidenced by Hangdog parents strapping the children to their backs and chests with fabric and leather as they traverse the old skyscrapers. Children are always first to receive food and medical care, and their education is highly individualized. All Hangdog children are taught basic skills; how to hunt, cleaning and dressing meats and hides, preserving food, scaling the ruined buildings, and basic first aid. In this education, it is often found that some children are drawn to one particular skill. Once this talent emerges, the child is sent to an apprenticeship for the rest of their education. They usually live and travel with their teacher after this point, until they undergo their coming-of-age ceremony; usually in their late teens to early twenties. They are regarded as children until this ceremony, which can only happen after they have tamed and trained a dog of their own, and their teacher deems them ready to perform their talent without oversight.
Dissolution Date
2269
Type
Geopolitical, Tribe
Capital
Alternative Names
The Pack
Successor Organization
Training Level
Semi-professional
Veterancy Level
Veteran
Demonym
Pack Member, Hang Dog
Leader
Ruling Organization
Head of Government
Government System
Meritocracy
Power Structure
Dependent territory
Economic System
Post-scarcity economy
Currency
Caps
Location
Neighboring Nations
Notable Members
Related Ethnicities
Comments