>[!infobox]+ > # Varyag Clans ## History ... ## Government The Varyag have no central government. There are a myriad of Varyag clans. Some hold vast fleets and widely known throughout the world. Others have more modest vessels and fade into the background of any port they visit. Others have struck out on their own, to create a new name and a new clan with which they can forge their own destiny. Each clan keeps its own affairs, and while the fame and influence of the larger clans can push other in one direction or another, no clan has authority over any other. Clans have standing arrangements to meet at their “Port of Gathering” once each year. During the gathering, Varyag swap stories, revel with friends and gather with family who serve on other boats. They celebrate the year past and mourn those called back to the seas. Clan admirals and captains discuss matters of import to the entire clan, new ships commissioned by the clan are awarded, new captains are raised and when necessary sitting captains are removed from their position.  ## Inhabitants ... ## Society and Culture ### Clans of the Varyag  _Clan Brezano:_ When most think of the Varyag, they think of bright colors and hearty songs, enthusiastic drinkers and a gregarious nature. None of these typify a Brezano. These dour sailors carry themselves as if revelry were a sin and dress as if color was a crime. Their clothing is almost impractically modest, and typically found in shades of brown, black or white. All men are clean shaven with close cut hair, and women typically wear their hair in simple braides that keep it above the shoulder. Brezano sea shanties are somber, droning chants. Brezano are capable and determined champions of justice, seeking out those who would endanger the good seagoers of Temnia and stamping them out. There are few things pirates fear more than the crossed sword and black standard of a Brezano ship.     _Clan Frienzi:_ The seas are a rough and wild place, and it takes a rough and wild people to live there. So say the members of the Frienzi clan. They see their connection to the sea not as a curse of a jealous god, but as an expression for the true spirit of the Varyag people. A core principle of their identity: They are people of the sea. Frienzi are raucous and vulgar, never letting other people’s hangups get in the way of their good time. They’ll drink and carouse and get into fights, but they are essentially a good-natured group.     _Clan Polinoy:_ Lovers of exploration and knowledge, the Pollinoy have come to be known as the ‘sages of the seas.’ The nature of the Varyag curse precludes an education at the great universities of Temnia, but they do have the advantage of being able to sail wherever they please and learn from the people and places of Temnia first hand. Many Polinoy ships have impressive stores of knowledge from their travels around Temnia, and will often utilize that knowledge as a trade good. There is a great deal overlap between the Polinoy clan and the Conservators of the Ancient Past. Because of the fragile nature of their records, the Polinoy tend to be less enthusiastic about seeking out danger, or providing direct aid to those in need. They have a reputation for weakness and cowardice that bristles the clanspeople, but is not wholly unearned. A captain has not only his crew’s lives to worry after, but the generations of knowledge they’ve accumulated. _Clan Sarturo:_ The Sarturo clan has built a reputation for being “scrupulously amoral.” They have little interest in making the world a better place, simply to go about their lives by taking jobs which will let their feed their people and keep their ships in repair. Asking a bunch of probing questions about “why someone wants to book passage” or what the “nature of their parcel is” doesn’t help either side, and potentially takes food out of their people’s mouths. _Clan Scarengi:_ The largest and wealthiest of the Varyag Clans, the Scarengi are what typifies the Varyag spirit in the minds of most land dwellers. The Scarengi are best known as a collection of brightly dress rogues and cads, gripped by wanderlust and brimming with songs and stories from exotic lands. The Scarengi clan founded the Varyag Post, a global network of ships who deliver messages and parcels from one side of Temnia to the other. This is where much of their wealth comes from. Their reputation stems from the newly discovered lands and people they’ve discovered. The Scarengi are most people’s introduction to the wider world of Temnia. _Clan Tibori:_ In this world, there are a great many treasures. Some value gold and jewels, other value artifacts of arcane power, while others covet knowledge. The Tibori know that the greatest treasure is leverage. The Tibori have invested a great deal of time and effort creating a network of observers and informants who mine the people of Temina for information, and refine that information into leverage. Some crass clanspeople profit directly from their leverage, extorting the wealthy and powerful. Others simply use what they know to avoid prying eyes during businesses ventures that are better left unobserved. Tibori information can be used to hunt down dangerous fugitives or to ensure that a fair market rate is agreed upon of good shipped into harbor. _Clan Viriani:_ Vivacious, carefree and free-wheeling, the Viriani typify the romantic view of a life at sea. Viriani rarely sall into rough seas, and typically stick to known sailing routes. They enjoy the freedom of not being tied to any one place, but are not likely to set sail without some destination in mind. More than most clans, the Viriani attract recruits from among the landdwellers. The downtrodden and disaffected see the Viriani as a means of escaping their current situation, and even if they do not live the rest of their days at sea, they look back fondly on the time they spent with the spritely seafolk. ### Guilds and Factions There are orders of like-minded Varyag whose membership transcend clans. One of the most famous is the Hunters of the Long Night. They are Varyag who dedicate themselves to the eradication of evil, in hopes of averting the foretelling of the oracle Fiona Tibori. The specifics of the prophecy are a closely guarded secret, known only to a select few huntmasters. More revered among the Varyag, and almost unheard of outside their clanships, are the Conservators of the Ancestral Past. These brave and noble Varyag wander the world gathering as much information and knowledge as possible. They believe that the salvation of the world can be found in the knowledge lost to the world after the great cataclysm. Since the Varyag cannot remain in one place due to their curse, they work with trusted outsiders to maintain Conservator repositories. The Varyag are the lords of the open sea, and some take this to mean that all who cross their domain must pay tribute to their masters. The Crimson Sabres are one such group: Bloodthirsty pirates who take what they will from ships unfortunate enough to cross their paths, or from coastal towns where they choose to drop anchor. Cursed by the goddess Marlena for their disobedience, the Varyag are doomed to wander the seas of Temnia, never resting, for all time. The Varyag have no homes, no lands, no place of their own. Only the vast fleet of ships constantly crossing the seas of Temnia, in search of adventure, knowledge and the unknown. ## Faith and Religion ...