Shaol'mara | Mistwalker Village

[Zak Dymo]

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: Expand upon the lore of Takodana while supplying a location that adds an aspect of Dathomiri Zabrak culture to the First Order.
• ​Image Credit:
  Upper Image: Foggy Temple by Bill Zhang
• Lower Image: Bone Village at Night by Bill Zhang

[*]Canon: N/A
[*]Links: Jorah zos Darnus | Under Cover of Night
SETTING INFORMATION

• City Name: Shaol'mara
• Classification: Rural Town
• Location: Takodana
• Affiliation: The First Order
• Population: Sparse
• Demographics: Dathomirian ex-patriots descended from the Nightbrothers and Nightsisters, the Mistwalker Clan is predominantly composed of members of the Zabrak species, or near-Zabrak hybrids formed through interspecies mating with human/near-human species.
• Wealth: Low. Shaol'mara is defined by a mixture of subsistence farmers and hunter-gatherers. The denizens largely dismiss the conveniences of modern technology in favor of the traditions and religious custom of their ancestral Dathomir.
• Stability: High. The Mistwalker Clan is led by an elder revered as the Shaol'ma'ka -- He/She Who Dwells In Darkness. Part village elder, part religious leader, the Shaol'ma'ka speaks for the Mistwalker Clan on all matters relating to village affairs and is considered the final authority on civil disputes. Law and order is maintained by the presence of First Order Stormtrooper Corps and Security Bureau personnel.
• Freedom & Oppression: The Takodana Zabrak of the Mistwalker Clan practice their native ancestor worship freely, without limitation or curtailment from the First Order government. Internal policing is handled by the familial elders, with the Shaol'ma'ka serving as mediator as tribal disputes emerge that cannot be resolved by the families concerned. Children born to the Mistwalkers are subject to compulsory screening to determine Force Sensitivity, which is ordinarily achieved by annual visits by the First Order Security Bureau to Shaol'mara and similar settlements across the planet. Those determined to have a high degree of Force potential are subject to removal for national service. The Shaol'ma'ka has decreed that this is a great honor upon one's family. Even among those not selected as having the requisite potential for Force Sensitivity, compulsory military service is expected of both males and females when they come of age.
• Description: A quaint, rustic village propped up in an isolated region of the planet, Shaol'mara occupies a relatively stable area of land that marks the transition from tepid swamp to the south and temperate forests to the north. The structures of the commune are spaced widely apart enough to create areas for crop cultivation. The northern border of the village extends into the forest, while the southern tip contains fishing pylons with kayaks and canoes.

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POINTS OF INTEREST

• Docks: Pictured above. Located along the southern edge of the village, where tributaries of the River Usk empty out into the Ja'loja Swamp, the docks feature a number of small kayaks and canoes used by traditional fishermen.
• Zhaboka Arena: Similar in construction to the Nightbrother Arena on Dathomir, this is an open air, gladiatorial amphitheater where traditional Zabrak martial arts are practiced alongside cultural dances and rituals important to the Mistwalker's ancestor worship.
• Temple of the Mists: In times past, before the Force Sensitives among them were pressed into national service for the First Order, the Temple of the Mists was a place where shamen and witches of the Mistwalker Clan would summon the spirit ichor as part of their religious ceremonies. Today, it serves a more municipal purpose as the de facto supreme court from which the Shaol'ma'ka hears tribal disputes.
• Landing Field: In those instances where Shaol'mara is visited by a small shuttle or air speeder, an area to the west of the village is left fallow for use as a landing field.

SECURITY
Low. Shaol'mara is primitive in almost all respects. The Zabraks of the Mistwalker Clan prefer traditional tools and weapons. Hunters prefer the bow and spear. Blasters and slug throwers are uncommon within the village. The traditional zhaboka is the neigh-universal weapon found here, being seen as both essential to home-defense but also an important part of the Zabrak cultural identity. Minor crimes and delinquency are handled internally by the clan. For any major crimes, First Order law enforcement personnel are contacted at the garrison in the planetary capital of Andui.

HISTORICAL INFORMATION
Shaol'mara has its roots in the Clone Wars. During the last days of the Old Republic, the planet Dathomir was subject to a number of assaults committed by the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The increasing acts of aggression and hostility triggered several departures from among the Nightbrothers and Nightsisters, who struggled to maintain their simple and ritualistic lifestyle among the wider galaxy. When the Nightsister Clan was nearly eradicated by the Confederates, the news prompted many of the wandering ex-patriots to seek shadowports in which to maintain a low profile for themselves.

A coven of Dathomiri ex-patriots arrived on Takodana shortly after the Declaration of a New Order, originally at the shadowport of Andui though the commune eventually took root in an isolated area of the planet. Over the next several generations, the culture and traditions of the Nightsisters and Nightbrothers began to evolve toward what would become recognizable as the Mistwalker Clan. This was greatly aided by the Gulag Plague, as during this time the village was at its cultural height -- this due to the fact that during this time the village retained the majority of its young adults, many of whom to that point would leave the village in search of job prospects in Andui or off world. Instead, Shaol'mara achieved a cultural renaissance during this era, emerging out of the Four Hundred Years Darkness not as Dathomiri ex-patriots, but as their own, unique cultural identity as the Takodana Zabraks.

No longer were they Nightsisters or Nightbrothers, they were the Mistwalkers.

By 853 ABY, Shaol'mara was under the control of the First Order. Despite this, the village and its people continued to subsist as they had for centuries as the Mistwalker Clans. Viewed as primitive, the people of Shaol'mara are largely dismissive of modern technology in favor of traditional methods of hunting and farming. Datapads, comlinks, and other modern technologies are sparsely visible in the community, though the majority of the tools in use are far more ancient.