Calapi

The Calapi were a forest-dwelling people living in Region A during the Early Bronze Age.

Description
The Calapi are first and foremost gardeners. They have developed a symbiotic relationship with the forests they live in, growing to understand its natural processes and interdependencies after generations of observation. Calapi usually live in walled hamlets. Once the hamlets would have lacked walls, but experiences in dealing with the now vanished Muwng state have taught them not to trust purely in diplomacy when it comes to protecting their communities. At one point the Calapi were considered to be a tributary of the Muwng state, and the collapse of the Muwng not long ago was something of a renaissance for the Calapi as their tributary burderns were lifted, particularly their obligation to send warriors south. They do conduct trade with the Chapoan culture that sprung up in the old Muwng region, particularly for bronze, but they continue to call the Chapoan cities Muwong. The Calapi primarily forage their crops from the forest around them, which is filled with edible tubers, fruits, and seeds. They also hunt wild animals with blowpipes and javelins. Given their knowledge and dependency on the forest ecosystem, the Calapi have quite a complex system of mathematics that they call the Long Tally. This establishes cycles for a number of natural processes- the breeding seasons and life cycles of various animals, the migratory patterns of relevant animals, the growth cycle of trees, the years in which there will be bumper crops of fruit and nuts, weather patterns. The living incarnation of this knowledge is the Zil and his assistants. He is balanced by the Checasi, the master of checa (sacred things). He remembers the stories, such as the Long Men who cleared the space for the hamlets and their mortal children, and the Green hunter who guards the forests from destruction. Those who defend Calapi communities, or who discover new edible plants, are highly honoured. Attempts to encroach on the Calapi segments of the forest with farmland are treated with at first displeasure, swiftly giving way to violence. There are communities outside the Calapi with a friendly relationship, who enjoy the ability to trade for edible foods at any time of the year and who are thus happy to respect Calapi traditions. The general rule of thumb is that those willing to meet with the Calapi on their terms will find them accommodating, and those who wish to treat them with force had better be sure that force will work.