Cults and Brotherhoods - The Sha'ir (part 1)

The Situation

For your first animism cult, you may come from a traditional notion of spirits and animism being associated with nature. Wolf totem shamans, druids, and all of the animism cults of Monster Island fall into this category. This is perfectly reasonable. For this article, I'm going to pursue a different path and pick the Sha'ir, a collection of Djinn summoners. 

Many are familiar with the Sha'ir from the Al-Qadim campaign setting of Dungeons and Dragons, but they do have roots in pre-Islamic Arabia. They were considered to be supernaturally inspired poets and speakers. We are going to hold onto that idea and expand on it heavily.

You may find it useful to read this article by Pete Nash from Fenix magazine to expand on the idea. The djinn I'm planning on using are a bit more friendly overall, for reasons that will become apparent in the cult description.

The Djinn

 When designing an animist cult, it is very helpful to define what spirits they are going to have access to in your world and what relationship they have with them. This scopes the animist's power as well as flavors it. You do not need to have all of the spirits present in their spirit world. Nothing says that this tradition even thinks about spirits such that nature spirits exist.

Also note, you can have more than one spirit world. That is to say, if you have multiple animist traditions in your world, they don't all have to pull from the same spirit world. They may only interact with the others if the spirit manifests into this world or possesses someone. This can get very interesting if the animist needs to be of a specific tradition to remove the spirit.

Relationships 

For this cult, the Jann are Friendly. They are shapeshifters, controllers of the desert, and finders of oases. They tend to have the powers of Demesne, Manifestation, Shape-Shifting (into a camel), and Spellcasting. Their spellcasting tends to be folk magic spells (1-3 per intensity), but some gain knowledge of sorcery (1 spell per 2 intensity, must be at least intensity 2). 

The most powerful spirits known to this cult are the Ifrit and the Marid, and these are Neutral to the cult. These both have Shapeshifting (animals), Manifestation, and Spellcasting (sorcery) universally, and others may have Curse, Bless, Endowment, and a wide variety of other powers. These are universally at least Intensity 3 and are quire dangerous to deal with, as they are prone to evil. However, both are cultured, and will appreciate the Sha'ir's art. Of the two, Ifrit are the more cunning and Marid are stronger. Strong Marid are beings of immense, god-like power and not to be summoned lightly.

The Si'lat are another kind. Most of these are Hostile to the cult, though a few are Neutral. They are rarely found in the spirit world, as they Manifest and seduce men (use the Bagini, p227 Mythras), but can be defeated in spirit combat.

The Shiqq, who Manifest as homunculus-like beings are Neutral to the Shi'ar. They gain the Wither trait as well as the Passion (Lust) trait, which allows the Shiqq, itself quite ugly, to mate with humans and produce the Nasnas, another type of Neutral spirit which Manifests as a human with half a head, one arm, and one leg. 

One of the most common spirits for this cult, and universally Hostile, are the Ghul. These Undead or Wraith spirits (both kinds exist) are the bane of most Sha'ir, worthy only of destruction.

The last of the Hostile spirits are the Shaytan. They do not Manifest at all, but have the powers of Miasma and Passion (one or more, depending on intensity). These insidious spirits are often deferred to as demons by sha'ir. 

The Organization

The Sha'ir are not so much of an organization as they are a set of individuals who are recognized for their role in society. Analogous to bards and skalds, they are poets, diplomats, and mediators. They keep the peace between tribes in the area,  and a Sha'ir may fulfill this role between multiple tribes. Travel, and the adventure that results as a part of that, is not uncommon at all.

First and foremost, Sha'ir are students of the word. They read, compose, and recite poetry. Their skill in these, entirely oral in nature, is part of what drives their ability to handle the djinn that they summon. 

Rawi

The rawi, or the reciters, are sha'ir who have not yet bound their own djinn. They are students of poetry, and often follow around sha'ir looking to catch some glimpse of wisdom, a phrase of beauty to impress a djinn, or to simply learn. 

Requirements

They must have some training in Art (Poetry), though this needs be no more than a rudimentary understanding. Basic training Courtesy is also required, as Poetry is a courtly art, and it is important in dealing with djinn hierarchy. Their knowledge of their own Customs and Native Tongue must be exceptional, however, requiring at least a 75% in each to even be recognized as a worthy rawi. Lastly, some evidence of strong will must be evident, requiring a 60% in Willpower.

Benefits

Through their careful study of sha'ir, Rawi gain the ability to train in the Trance skill. Though they may never gain more than the Trance Preparation time of the Follower (p131, Mythras) without progression in the cult, many consider this to be enough. After long recitations, they are able to perceive the spirits around them and may be able to determine displeasure from djinn, warn of threats, and guide others away from them.

As a recognized rawi, they are also likely to gain some benefits when coming to the court of kings, leaders, and others, and may expect reasonable hospitality from them. Food and lodging for the rawi (and for her companions, with a successful Art (poetry) roll) is made available for their stay.

Being around other poets constantly, rawi have easy access to training in Art (Poetry) and Courtesy, as well as their own Native Tongue. 

Restrictions

Rawi are expected to act as mediators in some cases. They are called upon by their communities as experts in Customs, as diplomats, and as poets. It becomes Taboo for a rawi to deny their assistance in these cases without extreme cause (being incapacitated or severely wounded or ill would be a reason that it is denied). Breaking this Taboo shuts the rawi from the spirit world until reparations are made.