Tuigan

The Tuigan, or Horselords, were a tribe of humans from Taan, also known as the Endless Wastes, the vast steppes that stretched between Faerûn and Kara-Tur. The name would later be applied (mostly by westerners) to all fifteen of the tribes of the 'Hordelands' after a brief alliance of the tribes invaded eastern Faerûn.

Territory
The original tribal lands of the Tuigan were in the central Wastes. Their lands bordered those of the Dalat, Naican, Khassidi, Zamogedi, Quirish, and Oigur tribes.

Description
Tuigans had yellowish-bronze skin with black hair and broad, flat features. Tuigan men traditionally shaved the crown of their heads and braided the sides and back of their hair.

Culture
In summer, Tuigan men enjoyed hunting snow-beasts in the mountains.

The Tuigan tribe had an open feud with the Fankiang and were on friendly terms with the Naican and Gur tribes of the Wastes.

Tuigans could also be found in Semphar, Thay, Thesk, Narfell, and Rashemen.

Organisation and governance
The 'Tuigan' were organized into fifteen tribes: Commani; Dalat; Fankiang; Gur; Guychiang; Igidujin; Kahghun; Khassidi; Naican; Oigur; Pazru ki; T'aghur; Tsu-tsu; Zamogedi; and the actual tribe called the Tuigan. Each tribe consisted of several clans, known as ordu, each ruled by a khan. Each ordu consisted of three or four villages, known as obogh. On rare occasions, an individual is elected by the ordu to become the khahan (great khan) of the tribe, and even more rarely, a khahan can rise to lead multiple tribes.

Gender roles
Boys and girls were both taught to ride from the age of four at the latest. They were given bows and arrows as toys, and were expected to be accomplished shots by adulthood. Boys were also taught to wield the saber, lance, and pole-lasso.

Men were expected to be the tribe's warriors, shepherds, and leaders, while women were expected to perform all domestic duties. Otherwise the sexes were equal in all other aspects. Even though women were not expected to fight, they were still trained to, and there was no discrimination against female warriors. Women did occasionally rise to become khans as well, while the wives and mothers of all male khans were to be his advisors. If a male head of a household died, his wife would inherit control of all of his affairs. Although it was customary for a wife to remarry her brother-in-law or stepson, this was not law.

Language
The tribes spoke Tuigan - a language developed from Roushoum, but with three distinct dialects influenced by Raumviran in the north, and Shou Chiang in the east. The southern dialect remained most true to Roushoum, but did adopt quite a lot from Muhjuri. They used the Thorass alphabet to write with after learning it from traders encountered along the Golden Way.

Diet
The Tuigan mostly ate meat, as vegetables were almost unknown among them. They did not cultivate any crops, and rarely picked wild-grown fruits and vegetables (mostly berries and wild onions). Their meals were usually roasted, or boiled in salted water. They preserved their food as sausages and sun-dried jerky that they called charqui. Many in Faerûn falsely believed that Tuigans ate insects, though they did eat rats when other meat was scarce.

Mare's milk was their staple drink, and Kumiss made from it was a common alcoholic beverage. The milk was also curdled, to be eaten as a kind of porridge, with the curds dried and powdered for long storage, then mixed with water, milk, or blood when needed.

Rice and tea bought from Shou merchants were special treats.

Religion
Steppe tribesmen typically worshiped Teylas, their god of the sky and storms, and Etugen, their goddess of the earth. Minor gods were also venerated, including aspects of Eldath, Malar, and Selûne, as well as the beast totems of Horse and Tiger, and several nature spirits tied to specific natural locations. They did not believe that any of their gods were evil, even if the gods themselves were evil.

The tribesmen were very tolerant of foreign deities, though this was largely due to a lack of interest in them. The devout followers of these gods were welcome among the tribes, even to proselytize, as long as they obeyed tribal law.

History
The people who would become known as the Tuigan were originally called the Taangan ("people of the Taan" in the Tuigan tongue). They had migrated west from the Plain of Horses around -8900 DR and settled the land, living as herdsmen of goats and horses. They remained as such for about 1,800 years until the empire of Imaskar expanded into their lands, demanding slaves and mounts from them. Despite subjugating them, the imperialist Imaskari did see potential in the Taangan, teaching them Roushoum, and training them in their arts of war. The Taangan soldiers excelled as cavalry and served as such in Imaskari armies until the empire's fall millennia later.

Although others would claim the lands that the Taangan lived in as their own over the next 1,600 years, none left a permanent mark on Taangan culture like the Imaskari had.

The rise of Raumathar resulted in the subjugation of several Taangan tribes - largely the ones living in northern Taan, near where Raumathar had established their capital of Winterkeep. Although there was at least one concerted effort to get rid of the Raumathari, the tribes could not do so until after the end of the Great Conflagration which saw Raumathar's destruction, relegating the surviving Raumvirans to the westernmost parts of Taan.

The Taangan lived in relative peace for the next 1,500 years. Then, in the, a man of the Hoekun clan of the Tuigan tribe named Yamun killed his father, the khan. With help from the Naican tribe, Yamun took over the other Tuigan clans, becoming khahan of the Tuigan tribe. Yamun Khahan had the notion to unite all of the people of the steppes, and intimidated or fought any clans who disagreed with him over a campaign that lasted the next 23 years. When the Tuigan campaigned against the Zamogedi, the Gur quickly joined them. Next, the Oigur were forced to join. By the end of Yamun Khahan's campaign, only the Fankiang still actively rebelled against him, though he had technically conquered them too.

Under Yamun Khahan's banner, the Grand Army of the Tuigan invaded the nations of Semphar, Khazari, Shou Lung, Thay, Rashemen, and Thesk. They were defeated at Phsant in 1360 DR by King Azoun IV of Cormyr leading an alliance of nations from throughout Faerûn.

The tribes returned to Taan and separated back into their former divisions over the next three years, until Yamun Khahan's son, Hubadai, declared himself khahan of the Tuigan like his father before him, and reiterated his father's desire to unite the tribes, but this time by establishing a true nation, not just a grand army. Hubadai Khahan managed to win the support of the Naican, Oigur, and Commani tribes, who helped him establish the Tuigan kingdom of Yaïmmunahar. The other eleven tribes rejected this new nation however, resulting in some violent conflicts.

Although the Spellplague caused an influx of Shou refugees into Yaïmmunahar, and it did noticeably impact the number of nomads abandoning that way of life and settling down, the kingdom remained small, and failed to achieve the goal of uniting all of the steppe tribes under the Tuigan banner a second time.

Behind the scenes
Tuigans are modeled after the Mongols.

Appearances

 * Novels
 * Horselords &bull; Dragonwall &bull; Crusade &bull; The Mercenaries &bull; Sentinelspire
 * The Ring of Winter
 * Video Games
 * Neverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of Westgate
 * Neverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of Westgate
 * Neverwinter Nights 2: Mysteries of Westgate