Matahouroa Worldbuilding: Other Races

 Manaia (Merfolk; Black, Green and Blue)

The  Manaia are Matahouroa’s merfolk, their lower bodies those of seahorses  and their mouths with a distinctive beak instead of teeth, akin to that  of parrotfish, hidden by the lips. Their civilization extends all over  the plane, spread beneath the waves, but the sea around Hiriwa is an  important location for the Manaia, drawn to the Scolding Moai’s power.  While they have public good relations with the Empire and the  Parekareka, the secret of the Scolding Moai is kept from them, something  not helped by Purū’s rather cryptic presence. As such, the Manaia have  taken this into their own hands, trying to manipulate their way into the  Scolding Moai.

Manaia society can best be described as a self  indulgent, constantly back stabbing aristocracy, served by octopus like  servants known as the Wheke.  Although very similar to the cephalids of other planes, they are  non-sapient, being basically like a mixture between a pet and a slave,  living to tend the Manaia’s every need. The Wheke’s dutiful servitude is  only one example the Manaia’s extensively biomantic society, warping  sea life like corals into forming their underwater cities. The Manaia  constantly innovate their realm, creating progressively more bizarre  organisms that are basically their tools. 

 Tipua (Demons; Black)

Tipua  are Matahouroa’s horrific demons, born from the immense concentrations  of Black mana in the Wairepomango, and to a lesser extent other swamps.  Physically they tend to have bestial traits, resembling grotesque  amalgamations of rodent, bat, dog and sometimes human flesh, bearing  disgusting appendages and many mouths and eyes. Most Tipua are basically  malicious predators, stalking the swamps for prey they don’t need to  consume, and suddenly and violently destroying and absorbing their  prey’s flesh and soul. Some, however, have acquired a dark intelligence  over the centuries, and tempt Kawau and humans alike with promises of  power, always granted but with a fatal price.

Pango,  Wairepomango’s Taniwha, hunts down and kills the Tipua, who live in  perpetual fear of the beast, a delicious irony appreciated by many who  live in the swamps. Several Tipua escape the Wairepomango, however,  invading Hinawahine’s lowlands and sometimes even flying or swimming  their way to other islands, though some are born in other, less  notorious wetlands. Out of the Wairepomango their cruelty can go  unchecked, spreading diseases as they please. Hunting down these Tipua  becomes thus the task of the Taniwha and Kahuna in the vicinity, many  elaborate rituals having developed over the centuries to ward off the  demons and call forth the attention their killers. 

 Patupaiarehe (Red and Green)

The  Patupaiarehe inhabit the forests of Hinawahine, particularly the woods  that border the Plateau. They strongly resemble the elves from other  planes, being lithe, sharp-eared and agile, though with pale white skin  and bright red hair. Their history is long lost to time, and some  believe them to be the descendants of the passengers of another of the  five Hōkūleʻa that came from Sawaiki, though the Patupairehe maintain  that they are the older inhabitants of the whole plane. Regardless,  most Patupaiarehe avoid contact with humanity, except for those that  interact with Rinomaunga’s Tahepuia Kahuna, and those that live on the  mountain slopes near Karatakara, who feel that the city has stolen their  land, and thus have a long history of conflicts and assaults. In recent  years, outright fighting has become more rare, yet more violent  whenever it occurs. Occasionally, some Patupaiarehe lure people into the  woods with their flutes, and blocking one’s ears is said to be of  utmost importance when traveling alone in montane forests.

The  Patupaiarehe live in small tribes, generally governed by a council of  shamans, without any stratification below them. Music is an important  aspect of Patupaiarehe culture, their favored instruments being flutes,  and it is through music that their magic is weaved; the greatest way to  find sympathy from a Patupaiarehe is to offer him/her an exquisite  instrument. While definitely not hesitant in using violent force,  Patupaiarehe stress the value of trickery and humiliation of the  opponent before applying violence, finding it to be more effective than  raw strength. In spite of their conflicts, Patupairehe do have a strong  value for hospitality, and will provide for lost wanderers that aren’t  part of their grudges. 

Taika (Red, Green and White)

Large, anthropomorphic thylacines, there are three main groups of Taika: the Pīngao Taika, that inhabit Inanga, the Hāura Taika, that inhabit the mountain ranges in the north and west of the Plateau, and the Ware Taika,  living south of the Ingikiwai, with several, lesser known groups living  in between. It is thought that the Taika once had a unified nation  spanning Hinawahine and the nearby islands, but gradually lost it or  gave it away to the Empire.

Taika culture differs greatly between  the individual groups, though a few traits do remain consistent. The  Pīngao Taika have largely been incorporated into Inanga's human society,  living alongside humans in the villages. They are particularly  associated with the local "Pirita Kahuna", sharing natural wisdom with  them, and offer a bridge between them and the more insular Hoiho. The  Hāura Taika, on the other hand, interact agressively with the Empire,  raiding the smaller settlements on occasion, and on occasion attacking  the Patupaiarehe. The Hāura Taika is similar in some respects to that of  the Pouakai, a warlike people that subsists primarily by hunting,  though led by an “alpha”. These alpine Taika don’t see eye to eye with  the Aven, however, both competing for resources and finding the other a  mockery of their culture, solely not at open conflict because of their  common enemity for the Empire. Meanwhile, the Ware Taika have a primal,  matriarchical, shamanistic society, avoiding contact with all other  races, reminiscing of times long gone.

All these societies have  very similar traditions, preserved in spite of the isolation. All three  Taika societies place an emphasis on a sense of morality independent  from Tapu, to know what is intrinsically right and wrong by heart rather  than enforced rules, though obviously this is expressed by vastly  different philosophies, with the Pīngao Taika taking a humanistic  approach, the Hāura Taika violently retaliating against offenders in a  way no better than those who enforce Tapu, and the Ware Taika meditating  and listening to the spirits. Regardless, all share the common trait of  being the only sapient race on Matahouroa unaffected entirely by Tapu. 

 Dragons (Red)

Known as Tama-nuit-te-Whiro or Whirotātea,  Matahouroa's dragons occur throughout the plane's volcanoes and  mountaintops, being most common in Rinomaunga. They resemble massive  winged tuataras, breathing fire, lightning or noxious gases. With slow  breeding rates – taking ten years to reach sexual maturity, and laying  eggs that take an year to hatch – and unarmored skin, they are  generally content with remaining in the relative safety of the  mountaintops, but every once in a while one descends to the lowlands,  wrecking and burning everything in its path in search of prey, which can  often be humans. The Tahepuia Kahuna have a particular endearment for  these dragons, occasionally taming them as familiars, and indeed the  Tama-nui-te-Whiro are a common motif in the sculptures made by the  Kahuna. The dragons tend to be rather cunning animals, and a perfect  alignment between the beast and the Kahuna is necessary, lest the human  become prey. 

 Taniwha (all colors)

The  Taniwha are large, aquatic reptilian creatures similar to mosasaurs,  and by extent to leviathans and serpents from other planes. However,  there is a strong divine component to their existence, being more akin  to minor deities than animals. They are born from the spiritual essence  of the waters all across the plane, mana gathering to form massive  pearls from which they hatch. They can and do lay these egg-pearls  themselves, though that is a rare event. They are technically immortal,  but can be killed; murdering a Taniwha is severe Tapu, that usually  results in instant death.

Being aquatic creatures, the Taniwha  can either be bound to a specific area, or roam nomadically. Most  Taniwha born in freshwater are bound to their lake or river, though many  are instead bound to coastlines, deltas, bays and similar oceanic  features, including portions of the sea bottom. Bound Taniwha are  invariably benevolent guardians, protecting waters deemed as Rāhui and  frequently acting in the service of the local people, though disrespect  both for the Taniwha and their sacred space are harshly punished.  Nomadic Taniwha are usually born either on the open sea, though some can  be born in rivers. They roam about randomly and can be quite  destructive, acting more as standard sea monsters. Both bound and  nomadic Taniwha are nonetheless treated with respect, and offerings to  appease them are the norm.

Five great Taniwha protect the waters  around the Moai. They were all born when the stones were erected,  spawning from the great concentrations of mana that accumulated soon  after. Fed by the strong mystical energies emanating from the Moai, they  are among some of the most powerful beings on the plane. They lend  their efforts to protect their sacred posts, often working for the  benefit of the local human communities.

- Kiwitea (White):  Protector of the Plateau, Kiwitea dwells in the Kapongatakere river,  blessing and purifying its waters, and rising in powerful waves when the  Plateau is threatened by outsiders. Adorned with pearly, shining  scales, Kiwitea once crossed the river every night, illuminating it like  an underwater sun, but in recent memory he has seldom done this,  spending more and more of his time hidden within the underground lakes  beneath Hiruhāramānia. Throughout most of Hinawahine’s history, Kiwitea  served as a messenger for Lālākea-kupu, with the Pūhihi Kahuna and even  commoners descending to the river’s shores and communing with the  Taniwha in a variety of ways. But as time went by, the Pūhihi Kahuna  rejected Lālākea-kupu, and while many citizens still venerate the shark  god, Hiruhāramānia’s Kahuna have successfully made the possibility of  speaking with Kiwitea forgotten. Nonetheless, the monarch, the Tohunga  Ahurewa and a few other people still descend to the caverns to speak to  the ancient being.
Kiwitea, historically remarked as a calm, radiant  presence, is described by the few who interact with him on a daily basis  as melancholic and austere. In recent years, he has warned of a coming  threat, which he won’t fight against.

- Purū (Blue):  Purū dwells in the seas around Hiriwa, supposedly guarding them. She is  very rarely seen, spending most of her time in the ocean depths,  between the coastal coral reefs and the abyssal realms. Not even the  Manaia see her frequently, Purū’s presence being exceptionally subtle,  her normally cobalt scales reflecting and allowing light to pass through  in a myriad of ways in order to make her invisible. It is said indeed  that Purū has very little interest in fulfilling her duty, though on the  rare occasions in which Hiriwa is attacked she manifests powerful sea  storms and sends hordes of sea monsters.

The Karetai Kahuna,  Parekareka and many other Hiriwa mages summon her on occasion,  communicating with her via divination. Her answers are usually very  cryptic and bizarrely structured, creating riddles that even the most  experienced mages have immense trouble deciphering, testing thus the  intelligence and worthiness of anyone who bothers to call upon her.  Those who do successfully solve her riddles are rewarded handsomely for  their trouble, not only acquiring the desired knowledge, but arcane  secrets desired in even a subconscious level. The Alalā and Manaia both  seek her, yet she refuses to interact with them, often even violently  repelling their forces away.

- Pango (Black):  Guardian of the Wairepomango, Pango is a sinister presence that is  rarely seen, but frequently felt. With pitch black scales, he is hidden  in the depths of the swamp, only his milky white eyes betraying his  enormous bulk. Pango faithfully does his job, hunting down swamp  monsters such as the Tipua and other enemies of Koronitiwa, stalking  them in the murky waters silently, before suddenly striking and crushing  them with his jaws. However, he also serves another purpose, to protect  and grant access to the Grieving Moai. To this end, he seduces mages  with whispers of power, tempting them to make contracts with him. These  contracts are often rather twisted and potentially rather cruel, but  Pango does keep his word, and rewards the mages with the secret of how  to bypass the ravenous hordes that protect the Grieving Moai. These  mages become the Ataata Kahuna, who are at Pango’s ultimate mercy due to  the strength of these contracts. Nonetheless, Pango does occasionally  absolve a contract if it grows bored with that person.

- Hīwera (Red):  Residing in the geothermic lake in Tīrarae, Hīwera is a fickle  creature, infamous for her temper. Whenever she feels like it, she  floods forth the burning, bubbling waters of the lake, having little  concern for who gets scalded. Often she leaves for weeks at a time: the  geothermic lake is thought to be connected to a system of underground  lakes and caverns, in turn connected to nearby rivers and streams, which  she often floods over in scalding torrents. Nonetheless, she always  returns, and turns these very lethal waters against any intruders who  would desecrate Rinomaunga. Hīwera's passion is greatly admired by the  Tahepuia Kahuna, who offer her crafts and food in return for  inspiration, advice and precious gems and ores present in the depths of  her underground lake system, which she generously offers.

When  she leaves through the streams and rivers, she often makes her way into  the sea. When she does, she almost invariably shows up in areas where  there are local Kahuna identifying themselves as Tahepuia, before  returning to her lake. This is taken as proof that external Tahepuia  Kahuna are true members of the order, a fact that the Pūhihi Kahuna and  the Pirita Kahuna have taken extreme dislike to, reffering to her as  “the undutiful Taniwha” and “worthy of death”.

- Torouka (Green):  The Ingikiwai river is the home of the Taniwha known as Torouka,  protecting the mighty river from its source to its mouth in the  Wairepomango. Torouka prevents monsters from Wairepomango from swimming  upriver, oversees the passing vessels, and exercises the life giving  properties of Ingikiwai, blessing crops and providing healing knowledge  to those that seek it. He also manipulates the natural cycles along the  river’s shores, speeding up the arrival of nurturing rains and guiding  the spirits of the dead in the cycle of reincarnation or departure. In  turn, it’s a tradition by all in the vicinity of the river, from farmers  to Karatakara’s high merchants, to offer sacrifices to the Taniwha,  usually in the form of food, though the emerald-scaled beast will  accept anything given honestly. Usually easy to please and rather  nurturing, Torouka has been growing restless and more temperamental in  recent years, something that the Pirita Kahuna have observed with  interest.