Solmani

#797979

Named for the Norse deities of sun and moon Solmani is a pack based off the cyclical and changing nature of the world - specifically the transition from night into day. While Solmani is a single pack it is split in two aspects: Noct (night) and Lume (day). Control over the territory shifts from one to the other with the rise and set of the sun. Liminal times between night and day such as dawn and dusk are when the pack becomes one and intermingles. The wolves of Solmani and the leaders themselves are very accepting to all kinds of wolves. Variety and difference goes hand and hand with change and they see nothing contradictory with allowing any wolf willing to follow their way of life and be loyal to the pack into their ranks. To Solmani the most important trait is loyalty to the pack and finding joy in life. Besides this they also offer sanctuary freely to those who promise to live peacefully within their lands, and enjoy the comings and going of even loners who wish a safe place to bed down.

founding members: Lira | Vira , Cardan , Miakoda , @rigel , Dryad , Nero

The idea of Solmani started out as nothing but a mutual dream of two sisters, Lira and Vira. Their youth had accustomed them to the shifting of power, but instead of allowing the fear of repetition to define them they embraced it. Solmani was a pack where they could stand side by side, but separate from one another, with their own strenths and weaknesses but sisters. It was a place of respite that they wished to offer to others who were willing to stand by them. Eventually that dream turned into a reality when they met Miakoda, Cardan, Rigel, Dryad, and Nero who would form the beginnings of the pack.

The Lume will most often sleep during the night as the guarding and care of the pack-lands falls to them during the day (the Noct will do the reverse). However, during winter whent he days are short and the nights are long oftentimes Lume wolves choose to wander during the night. While this is allowed, as the pack is one, for that period of time they may not hunt in groups, and must follow any instructions they receive from a Noct wolf. The same etiquette applies for when a Noct wolf traverses the pack-lands during the day. During a wolf's "off-time" they hodl no authority within the pack lands.

Generally the wolves of the Lume and Noct act as one pack and are harmonious together as wolves of a regular pack, though there are a few wolves with a fierce loyalty towards their aspect and only their aspect. Wolves from the Noct and Lume may mate and befriend one another without consequence. Any offspring of a Noct and Lume may be raised as the parents wish either splitting the time between the two or wholly as one or the other.

During times of Dawn and Dusk all wolves stand equal with one another, and no wolf holds dominion over one another. The Noct and the Lumes may choose to enforce laws (such as nonviolence), but Dawn and Dusk are seen as important times when wolves of the pack can be together as equals and as a single entities during the transition from day into night and night into day.

Challenges between wolves and even some violence is tolerated and somewhat expected for those with fiery tempers and feuds (although Siste, Naire, and guests may not attack except in self-defense). Killing or serious injury/maiming to other members is frowned upon and may be subject to disciplinary action at the discretion of the council and leaders. Any wolf found attacking or allowing harm to come to a pup, especially a Nain, will be considered a lawbreaker and punished. If a wolf believes they have received unfair treatment (attacked without reason, stolen from, etc.) then they may bring the dispute to the Noctis or Lumes who will mediate the dispute in as fair way as possible. If a wolf believes themselves to be wronged by the Noctis they may bring their complaint to the Lume, and if a wolf believes themself wronged by the Lumes they may bring their complaint to the Noctis. There is no rank for slaves in Solmani and while it might be possible for a wolf to coerce another without their leader's knowledge there will be no legal enforcement of any sort of ownership.

A wolf may be allowed into Solmani territory either as a guest or as Siste by any full-fledged member of Solmani. However, to gain a rank and become either a wolf of ngiht or day they must be accepted by the Alpha over that dominion. A wolf wishing to become a wolf of the night may not be accepted by the Lumes nor a wolf wishing to become a wolf of the day accepted by the Noctis.

    Lumes: Lira (Lira | Vira )

        The wolf who oversees and accepts wolves into the Lume, and is the only Lume wolf to retain their rank during the night. It is the Lumes' job to ensure that the wolves of Solmani and the Lume in particular are looked after and allowed to flourish, and the laws of the pack are followed. The Lume may accept wolves into any rank except those within the Noct, assign mentors, and place wolves into the Naire rank.

    Lume Rhwng:

        The council to the Lumes. Promotion to this rank is at the discretion of the Lumes and these wolves have proven themselves to be capable of giving advice on a vast array of matters from what to do in the case of a natural disaster to foreign policy. They have the authority to assign mentors, and accept wolves as guests or into the Siste or Nian ranks.

    Latha: Terra

        The full-fledged members of the Lume. They comprise the bulk of the pack and are the protectors and guardians of Solmani during the day. They hunt, defend the borders, act as warriors, and heal based on their talents. They can accept mentorship requests, but not assign youth to other mentors, and accept wolves as guests or into the Siste or Nian ranks.

    Lume Annuis:

        The youth of the pack that have not yet completed their Annu and are being mentored by a Latha, Rhwng, or even the Lumes themself.

    Noctis:Vira (Lira | Vira )

        The wolf who oversees and accepts wolves into the Noct, and is the only Noct wolf to retain their rank during the day. It is the Noctis' job to ensure that the wolves of Solmani and the Noct in particular are looked after and allowed to flourish, and the laws of the pack are followed. The Noctis may accept wolves into any rank except those within the Lume, assign mentors, and place wolves into the Naire rank.

    Noct Rhwng:

        The council to the Noctis. Promotion to this rank is at the discretion of the Noctis and these wolves have proven themselves to be capable of giving advice on a vast array of matters from what to do in teh case of a natural disaster to foreign policy. They have the authority to assign mentors, and accept wolves as guests or into the Siste or Nian ranks.

    Oidhche: Cepheus

        The full-fledged members of the Noct. They comprise the bulk of the pack and are the protectors and guardians of Solmani during the night. They hunt, defend borders, act as warriors, and heal based on their talents. They can accept mentorship requests, but not assign youth to other mentors, and accept wolves as guests or into the Siste or Nian ranks.

    Noct Annuis: Dryad

    Nian: Nero

        The pups of the pack. While they are usually cared for by either a Noct or Lume (and will thus be raised mostly during the night or day) they are not part of either aspect and are still free to choose and wander the pack lands protected by all members of the pack. Hunting and care for the pups falls to every member within Solmani (even the Siste) and any wolf who neglects or allows harm to come to a pup will be subject to the ruling of the Noctis and Lumes.

    Siste: Cardan

        The wolves of the pack who hold no rank and are not full-fledged members of the pack. These wolves may be guests of Solmani or potential members who have not met with the Noctis or Lumes. Members of the Siste may not accept new members into the pack or invite guests, and area allowed to commit acts of violence on other Solmani members only in self-defense.

    Naire:

        The disgraced wolves of the pack who have either had their rank stripped from them or committed some crime against Solmani and are prisoners. These are the only wolves not free to come and go from the territory and receive minimal protections from violence inflicted upon them by other members of the pack.

Lughnasa falls on the Spring equinox and is a special time when the nights and days are perfectly equal. Wolves may choose to celebrate how they wish.

Samhain is celebrated on the dusk of the Summer solstice when the nights will begin to grow longer. It is a time when the wolves will run together and howl at the moon as it becomes more visible. The pack will go on a "hunt" chasing a selected member of the pack until the sun sets full. In rare cases a wolf (oftentimes a prisoner or someone who has committed treason and is sentenced to death) will be used on the hunt and will actually be slaughtered at the end of it.

Imbolc falls on the Fall equinox and is a special time when the nights and days are perfectly equal. Wolves may choose to celebrate how they wish.

Beltane is celebrated on the dawn of the Winter solstice when the days will begin to grow longer. It is a time when the wolves will run together and some of the more daring youth will dare and challenge one another to complete increasingly brash feats. Wolves feast and hunt on this dawn and will run together as a pack until the sun has risen all the way above the horizon at which point the Noct will retire.

        A tournament of sourts held among the Lume. It is combat-based and is meant to determine the fittest among them. Any wolf who has completed their Maihj or is a full-fledged member may participate in it. The winner leads a pack hunt and the prey that is killed is meant to bestow different blessings upon the leader of the hunt as well as display which traits they value and embody the most (or wish to).

        Choosing and successfully catching different prey is as much personal preference as it is political. Different alphas favor different traits and if a wolf wishes to earn a seat on the Rhwng they must show themselves to possess or be blessed with traits that the incumbent Lume favors.

        An all-purpose celebration often called for by the Lume the day a wolf completes their Annu, two wolves finally declare themselves as mates, pups are born, and other joyous occasions. The Lume will enjoy food and one another's company and for the day over the course of conversation wolves will tell each other jokes and attempt to make one another laugh.

        Ereat will mostly be declared by the Lumes out of character and players may choose to have their characters participate if they wish in the following threads for the next week or so.

        A tournament of sorts held among the Noct. It is a tournament based on both wits and physical prowess to determine the fittest members among them. Any wolf who has completed their Maihj or is a full-fledged member may participate in it. The Noctis will present the wolves with some kind of riddle or logic problem to test their wits which will lead them to either an object or location. The first wolf or group of wolves to reach the location or find the object wins. They may simply be smarter or faster or have beaten the other contestants rendering them unable to pursue. The winner(s) is presented a gift (usually a meal) by the other contestants meant to symbolize their strengths during the competition and offer a blessing. The type of meal is symbolic for the blessing and strengths bestowed.

        The blessing speaks as much to the recipient as to the Noctis of the pack as to how the wolf's packmates see the wolf in question and if they might be a good fit for a position on the Rhwng.

        An all-purpose celebration often called for by the Noctis the day a wolf completes their Annu, two wolves finally declare themselves as mates, pups are born, and other joyous occasions. The Noct will enjoy food and one another's company and for the night wolves will greet each other, not by name, but by complimentary or joking nicknames (e.g. Hello Tree-For-Face).

        Quet will mostly be declared by the Noctis out of character and players may choose to have their characters participate if the want in their threads for the next week or so.

The coming of age ceremony is called the Maihj-Annu and is comprised of two ceremonies at the beginning and end of the process as the transition from pup to adult is seen as a change that occurs over time just as all others.

The Maihj occurs any time after a pup raised within the pack is six months old, although due to its difficulty most will choose to wait until they are closer to a year old. It is when they decide whether they wish to be a part of the Noct or Lume. In order to prove themselves to the members of their desired aspect they will complete a run through the entire territory of Solmani and overcome any obstacles in their way on their own. If they wish to be accepted by the Noct the run will be completed at night, and if they wish to be accepted by the Lume the run will be completed during the day.

If the youth is unsuccessful then they must wait a period of 1 month IC (can be liquid timed) and then may try again for either the same or different half of the pack. If the youth is successful then they may either seek a mentor in the aspect of the pack that they are accepted into or ask one of the Rhwng or alpha to assign them a mentor based on the talents they wish to develop.

The Annu occurs after a youth has been mentored, and their mentor believes that they are ready to become a full-fledged member of the pack. The mentor will assign them a trial to be completed by the youth within a given time (can range from minutes to months). Every trial can be different and should be assigned based on the strengths and weaknesses of that character as well as the role they wish to fulfill for the pack.

If the youth is successful then they may take their place among the ranks of Solmani as a full-fledged member of the pack. If the youth is unsuccessful then they must wait a period of 1 month IC (can be liquid timed) and then they may try again with the mentor assigning either the same or a different test.