Da'Arnha Characters

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Tattoo
Shaman

Montugu choose their shaman's, based not on skill, but by the color of their skin. Montugu are typically born in varying colors of brown, grey, black, and red. It is incredibly rare for a montugu to be born with any white on them, let alone being entirely white. To the montugu, a natural white mark on the body shows that you have been "touched by the gods" and are meant to help lead and protect the tribe.

Tattoo is the very first of his kind to be born entirely white. Because of this, he was given the position of shaman. Unlike previous shamans(who have to paint their bodies white to keep the position), he was a natural. Having proven as much by willingly turning his mothers mane black and green, much to her dismay, at the age of five when dared by his only friend growing up.

Being born entirely white is a blessing, both for the montugu himself but also for the tribe. But it is also a curse. Grinba clans view a pure white creature as a sign of evil, and wage wars against entire peoples or animals if one is born white, and do not give up until the creature is disposed of. Because of Tattoo's white form, a clan of grinba attacked his village when he was 15 years old and killed nearly half of its population, including his mother, father, and friend.

Believing the attack to be his fault, Tattoo told his people that he would paint himself to change his appearance so as not to stick out and cause problems. This caused an intense rift between himself and his people. A typical shaman with only a bit of white is required, by tribal law, to have their assistant paint them in public, typically in front of his home(and it is this that kept the Grinba from attacking before, as they knew that the shaman wasn't really as white as he made himself appear). But because Tattoo was already white and had no need for paint, his people viewed his idea as a disgrace to the tribe, to his position, to thousands of years of tradition. No shaman was allowed to appear "unclean" in fear of insulting the gods.

After instense and heated arguments, Tattoo managed to get them to understand why it must be done. They could not, after all, risk losing their prized shaman OR having their entire race wiped out. They agreed, but promised themselves that they would have as little to do with him as possible due to the disgrace.

The decision, however, had an unfortunate effect on his mental health. Being unique in his skin color, he took great pride in it to the point of obsession. Marking his skin to hide from the outside world was a strike against his natural beauty and feeling of self worth. As long as he was unique, he was able to function as a normal member of the tribe, whether they associated with him willingly or not. So as to keep the feeling of beauty and self worth he so charished, he began to paint himself differently every day. As an amusement for himself and the rest of the tribe at first, since occasionally they'd share a laugh about it, but quickly grew into a new obsession.

He now cannot go a day without repainting himself. If he should be kept from doing so, or a marking end up being taken away or smudged by someone brushing up against him, falling into water, or ending up in the rain, he snaps. Fits of rage taken out on the closest living creature, demolishing a home with his bare hands, and more often than not, shouting incoherantly that quickly turns him into a sobbing wreck.

He knows that his behavior is wrong, that it is the reason the tribe now fears him, but each time he tried to curb his fits they only got worse. He has since given up on trying to change that.

His assistant is the only member of the tribe that does not fear him, and it is usually her that brings him back to reality when lost in rage and self pity. She is also the younger sister of the friend he lost.

 

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Some notes on his appearance.

-Eyes are not to be drawn with pupils of any kind. They also do not glow.
-Yes, that is a skirt. Due to their anatomy, 'pants' and 'shorts' are not options. All montugu wear them, regardless of gender.
-With the help of the thumbs on their feet, montugu are excellent climbers. The tail, however, acts only as a balancer. They are not prehensile.
-Only the first inch of his 'whiskers' can be moved freely. He cannot curl or wave them around.

Toumari
Shaman's Assistant

Under construction

Yuo
Cheif

Under construction