Grove Tribe

Grove Tribe
A view of Héhéħenif, the nation's main settlement.
Leader Title	Shaman | Earthseer | Hratú't
Leader	CreeperColder
Capital	Héhéħenif
Inhabitant(s)	CreeperColder, Weothyr, BurningRainbow
Founder(s)	CreeperColder
Allies	Goomlandia, Hightower, Sylvia
National Colors	Brown, Reddish Brown, Red, Yellow, White
National Adjective	Informal: Grovian | Grove | Grove Tribe Formal: Hrãggistt

The main banner of the Grove Tribe.

The Grove Tribe is a nation located in the mesa in the eastern part of the map. It is populated by a people who call themselves Hrãggistt, but due to their main settlement being hidden away in a distinctive grove on the mesa, they are mostly referred to as the Grove Tribe. The tribe is friendly to outsiders, but holds its spiritual practices in high regard and demands visitors take care not to anger the nature when in the tribal nation.

Geography & Territory

Despite being located in a mesa, the geographical features of the nation are very diverse, with small forests, waterfalls, rivers and lakes all around.

The Grove Tribe has three main settlements:

1. Héhéħenif (anglicized as Grove Village), also acting as the nation's capital;
2. Eħrahibbita (anglicized as Carrot Village);
3. Harahráħenúħ (anglicized as The World Tree), a place of great importance for the people of the Grove Tribe.

A variant banner of the Grove Tribe, mimicking the mesa's layers.

The borders of the Grove Tribe's territories are marked by the so-called smoking totems, which serve both to greet and warn visitors as well as fulfilling a religious purpose of some sort.

A map of the nation's territories as of 2020-01-06. Countries in a green hue are Grove Tribe's allies.

Grove Tribe borders four states: Gayrden to the North, Mesadonia to the Northwest, Goomlandia to the Southwest and Yugoslavia to the Southeast. Grove Tribe considers two states as their allies - the Sylvian Union (informally Sylvia), Hightower and the aforementioned state of Goomlandia.

The people of the Grove Tribe do not wish to involve themselves with geopolitical disagreements, but will protect their lands profusely if need arises.

Culture

Main article: Grove Tribe religion

One of the tribe's altars, where they bring offerings to goodly spirits.

The Grove Tribe is a seemingly primitive people, with little to show in regards to architectural achievements or technology. It is known they are deeply religious, with most of their religion being concerned with different elemental spirits. They take care not to anger any forces of nature and always seek to take the course of action that would appease their deities. The folk seems to have a particular affinity for spirits of the Earth, who are regarded as ancestors and protectors of the tribe. The leadership of the tribe seems to be mostly in the hands of the religious figure called the Shaman or Earthseer.

It is also known that the Tribe has little love for corrupted spirits and creatures such as those of the Nether and the End, and seeks to purge them from their land. However, they are usually very patient and welcoming with outsiders, although they can be very insistent on matters when they believe a course of action would upset the spirits of the region.

Language

Very little is known of the tribe's own language except that they have one, as they seem to be fluent in Overworld Common and prefer to use it with outsiders. However, a few words of their language have been recorded by members of the other peoples:

hyeče! /çét͡ʃe/ - hello!

aŧra! /ɑ́θrɑ/ - goodbye!

hrãggistt /hrɑ̃gːístː/ - "earth-walkers", the name of their people (supposedly literally "we who (we) walk through/in the earth")

hratú't /hrɑtúːʔt/ - "earth-seer", the tribe's spiritual leader (supposedly literally "he who knows the earth")