Dza'teva

SECTION VERY UNDER CONSTRUCTION

• Amphibious; while they live underwater they can be on the surface for small periods of time, provided there is enough moisture in the air.
• The Diya Gele Aata: Sacred texts written on stone before recorded history, forbidden to be viewed by outsiders
• Their holy land lies in the depths of water below. They can adjust biologically for pressure changes, but naturally they cannot go above the water for extended periods of time, or into the dark depths of the ocean.
• Holy rituals can allow individuals to survive on the surface or in the depths. However rituals to go to the depths are forbidden and kept to the black market and cults.
• Dead bodies sink, not float (due to the failure of a buoyancy organ), dragging the body and soul into the depths
• No single name they use to describe their species, the name they have was given to them by the surface dwellers
• They only have one name for surface dwellers, seeing them as equal, apart from the aolctic and itaeia who they see as touched by the sea
• It is said that a Dza’teva kiss can bring a drowned person back to life. A slightly more skeptical belief is that a Dza’teva kiss to a living surface dweller can grant them the ability to breathe underwater. Urban legends tell of Dza’teva kidnapping fishermen and youth near shores and forcing them into servitude as a spouse.
• While they worship 3 main deities, there are hundreds of gods in the pantheon, leftover from sunken statues littering the deep (believed to have belonged to a lost civilization).
  • God of creation
  • God of the sea
  • God of destruction and rebirth
• The Dza’teva are proficient in using nets in combat, however only after nets were first used against them. While they have developed ways of creating nets from seaweed/kelp, coral and orichalcum their preferred method is simply to steal nets from the drylands. The Dza’teva have not mastered the art of using nets to catch fish, it is possible they believe the main use of nets by the surface dwellers is to use in combat against them.
• Metal tools and weapons are rarely used by Dza’teva due to both the inevitable damage caused by saltwater corrosion, as well as their conduction of electricity and sharpness, used to kill Dza’teva in combat by surface dwellers. As a result they treat metals with suspicion and caution, even when found in shipwrecks and sunken ruins, they view it as cursed.
  • Gold is an exception, due to its natural resistance to corrosion, color, and malleability it is popular among Dza’teva, although rarely found.
  • Silver is a cursed metal among Dza’teva. It is resistant to corrosion so can be brought to the depths, however it’s high conductivity is dangerous to the seafaring folk.
• Tools and weapons are used mostly from coral, bones, stone and shells. Bludgeoning and slashing weapons are near useless underwater, and piercing weapons are greatly favored.
• Dza’teva have a near monopoly over orichalcum, an extremely strong and valuable metal found underwater, or near water beneath the surface. Unfortunately the only ways of harvesting it are through magical means or with outside help in mining it.
• Hydrothermal vents are used for heat and energy, but people remain cautious of them due to their potential dangers. They are seen as direct lines of communication with the underworld and gods.