Poncems

The organizational structure of the Poncems was a continuation of the military chain of command that they held before the fall and during the end of the world. It was simplified over the years from the complex system of ranks. The Poncem’s ranks were as follows: General, Colonel, Major, Captain, Lieutenant, Sergeant, Corporal, and Private. The General was the head of the tribe and was appointed by unanimous decision from the higher ranked officers. The chain of command was strictly enforced; adherence to those of higher rank was expected of all tribe members.

The Poncems followed a strict and rigid social structure. Their daily lives revolved around a set schedule that dictated when they were to wake up, when mealtime would occur, and specific times for any other tasks during the day and night. Every tribe member was expected to be fit and capable of fighting at any moment. All tribe members were armed with firearms and auxiliary melee weapons; each tribe member was expected to maintain these weapons themselves. Children were trained in the art of war alongside their basic education. Conflicts within tribe members were resolved through nonviolent arbitration; physical altercations between members was strictly forbidden, as any injuries or deaths due to arguments or negligence meant fewer soldiers around to combat the monsters in the Wilds.

The Poncems’ greatest assets were their armaments and training. It was not uncommon for them to offer their services as hunters and guards to smaller tribes, at least in the early days of the tribe. As time passed and the Poncems became more insular, they kept their armaments and vehicles to themselves. Subsistence farming and ranching sustained the tribe somewhat, but much of the tribe’s meat came from hunting in the Wilds. The Poncems also maintained centuries old gunsmithing benches, allowing them to construct and recycle ammunition for their guns.

War. War never changes… Except when it does. Sure, the fundamentals of war stay the same--fight the enemy, beat them into submission, and force them to the negotiating table after the guns stop firing. But what happens when the enemy is something unpredictable, something that is unheard of and never before encountered? What happens when the enemy is endless and has no intentions of surrender. This was the nature of war when the world collapsed--when humanity, ill-prepared for the Horrors and the emergence of magic, was forced to battle nightmares beyond reason. The governments of the world scrambled to build bunkers and safehouses, and it was the job of each nation’s military to defend the scientists, engineers, and the citizens from the Horrors of the new age. When metahumanity fled and hid underground, some stayed above, pledging themselves to fight the Horrors into the uncertain future. This was what the ancestors of the Poncem tribe had stayed behind to do.
  They were warriors of the modern era. They saw the fall, the end of the world, and the collapse of civilization as anyone knew it. But they remained steadfast, determined to fight the Horrors until the last of them died. But the military forces that would become the Poncems did not die out as they expected to. Instead they endured and built a society for themselves, creating shelters, defenses, and the basics for a functioning community. They taught their children the ways of war and how to fight the Horrors, Raiders, and any other threats that might attack them in the Wilds. Soon, the Poncems became one of the strongest, if also one of the most insular, survivor tribes in the region. They clashed with the likes of tribes such as the Sharks and The Bold and Brave. The latter tribe also stemmed from a military branch, one that often had a rivalry with the branch the Poncems descended from back before the Fall. Initial positive relationships were soured by ancient rivalries between the two groups, and they soon found themselves in direct conflict with each other on numerous occasions.
  The Poncems became skilled at hunting down Horrors. They learned how best to scout and discover a Horror’s weaknesses, chase them down into their lairs, and exterminate them with extreme prejudice. When rumors of the Coa alliance reached the Poncem, they were apprehensive at first. They were wary of others and were still convinced that they could survive on their own. In addition the fact that their old enemies, The Sharks tribe and The Bold and Brave tribe, were members was reason enough to avoid joining them. However, Coa diplomats were persistent. They needed strong defenders skilled at deterring Horrors if their grand plan of restarting civilization was to proceed successfully. In the end, the Poncems ended up agreeing to join the alliance. They successfully settled their old enmities with the Sharks and The Bold and Brave and helped found Olympia. The Poncems were instrumental in forming GateWatch, with almost the entirety of the tribe signing on to be the Gatewatch’s first members.