Lurean specialty groups and cuisine
Bonegnawers- Ferocious warriors dedicated to the god Barak. The Bonegnawers in their off time are often painters,artisans and philosophers enjoying mead and passing the days by. In battle the Bonegnawer is among the most destructive and hardy warriors. The Bonegnawer studies the art of rage and zen. this leads them to unlock what's known as furies and stances. These have dramatic effects on the gnawers from growing bark to protect them, causing lightning to arc off there bodies or even cackle madly enough to mess with the perception of reality to those around them.
Ashen guard- The ashen guards are devoted to the great goddess Sylvana, the guard represent the fallen seasons. Some other cultures like to refer to them as black guard,dread knights and other monikers. the ashen guard are the final defenders of the most sacred groves of the forest's and will defend them vigorously. They are imbued with poison,self healing armor and plant like properties to become one with the forest and there sacred goddess.
Chaos weavers- Chaos weavers are very understood devotes of Laviticus. The weavers seek to understand all and have unnerving personalities often referred to as stark raven mad even by their fellow lurea. But many inventions and advancements in the lurean culture are derived from the weavers along with understanding of advanced tech other races use and how to defeat it. The think tanks of chaos weavers are a scrambling hoard of misunderstood ravings that in its awkwardness is utterly brilliant.
Soothers/bards- The soothers/bards play a very unique role in society dedicated to their great goddess Oxana. At their core they are there to relax there fellows. The soothers and bard's work out of a local establishment often referred to as the lupa den under the elder lupa. They play many roles in their community, storytellers, musicians, game masters, prostitutes, conversationalists, therapists and more. They relax the heart,mind and bodies of those who seek their presence. Sometimes the soother might merely give a song, other times the bard might perform a sultry dance, host a night of fun games or leave you strapped to a bed every muscle sore in the ecstasy of your release. The soothers and bards are multi-talented and aim to please their clients to there fullest. The comfort of one of these individuals is a common practice in most villages to the point of being an accepted form of consul. They hold high respect in any community they reside in
The coven- The coven are mages dedicated to the goddess lira. They seek to unravel the mysteries of magic,the nexus and life itself. They praise lira's self exile of the culture and often live on the fringes of society, almost the cousin to the chaos weavers. when one is in need of esoteric knowledge, remedies or assistance none need look further than their local coven.
Oracles/Augers- Oracles and augers are guides of the lurea worshiping the virgin goddess Orianna. Due to the sanctity of the the goddess only virgin woman and eunic men can pursue the path of the oracle leading many men to prefer the role of auger. Oracles live secluded lives among sacred groves often protected by ahsen guard. They help to predict the future from visions given to them by their goddess or induced by oh so reliable liquids and berries most would not dare eat. The augers take a more active role in society learning to read the weather, birds and state of the world to make key predictions to the natural state fo things like knowing when a key wind will change and when the ebb and flow of mana comes to an area.
Plain stalkers- Though not a specialty group but another form of community/ the plain stalkers have left the forest life to live among the rolling hills and plains of the world. they have built mighty structures,aqueducts and are vigorous in their pursuit of trade and engineering inspired by their patron god Porthos and ambitious like the vigilant god Sondiver.
Frost backs- Another group who isn't necessarily specialists but take to the high winter mt's. They live in a low oxygen, extremely cold climate often moving around as nomads in their frigid homes. there set up camps for weeks or months before seemingly just packing up and moving along to a new spot. Many of the main lurea consider them an oddity but respect their survival capabilities and always appreciate the aid there willing to give.
Cooking-
If one thing can be said about the lurea food, It's delicious, enjoy it. Do not ask what's in it.
Common proteins-Scalagia hound- The meat is pretty tough and bland on its own. But the meat having the lack of flavor it does tends to absorb the flavors of spices added to the dish making it an incredibly versatile meat.
Scarland- Scarland meat is a putrid dish not often consumed even by the lurea themselves. Due to the scarlands notorious deadliness though they will make dishes from it to the warriors who slayed the beast to honor the hunters and monster. Most of the creature though goes into crafting weapons,armor and religious purposes.
Hell scarab- The outer parts of the scarab are used to produce high grade armor and defensive equipment of the lurea. But the beast is a mammoth of a monster, the internal bits are harvested and preserved to make a wide range of cuisine. The amount of food that can be prepared from these mighty beasts makes it one the most stable form of meat in the society.
Spider eggs- The lurea have tamed and made use of giant spider mounts as a form of cavalry. The eggs the spiders lay are not always fertilized and will often be harvested by the lurea to use in cooking. They are high in protein,portable and can be prepared in a multitude of ways or even eaten well enough by just heating them. A common snack is to cook the eggs over a fire in a broth letting the eggs absorb the seasonings.
Ridge back boar- The boar's are terrors of the forest and often stay in groups. But occasionally one may stray from the herd or be coerced off on its own. These beasts are sought after delicacies for their meat. tender and rich in fat, the slaying of a ridgeback is usually a feasts for the local community.
Lurea will tend to kill,scavenge and consume almost anything, due to opening of trade with other nations one of the most common commodities coming into lurean land is spices from all over the world. This have lead the lurea to mix cooking styles of various traders who have come through there land.
Fruits,veggies and nuts
The lurea love a wide variety of various additives to their dishes but not all are loved equally or are as ingrained in lurean cuisine. A few examples of commonly used ingredients or staple foods.
Pistachios-these grow rampant among the forest and have been used to mix in with many dishes. they are ground,chopped and made to use in a multitude of ways. Equally eaten by the people and used in creating feed for the war animals.
Hang man's apples- These apples are large and are arguably one of the tastiest apples most traders have ever had. though the grim tale of how to retrieve these apples have lead most to avoid harvesting them and leave it open to trade with the lurea. The tree's of the lurean forest are well known to be semi-sentient and the hangman tree is no exception using its vines to strangle prey. the lurea will feed the tree a recently deceased beast to distract it and harvest its apples.
Needle berries- Needle berries are a common hazard in the forest. These plants are twitchy and tend to explode there berries out with needles when they feel harm coming there way. They are harvested by singing a soothing melody and only taking so many of its berry bunches at a time as to not set off the plant. Once the branches have been removed they lose their ability to fill all living things near by full of sharp needles.
Black brush- A parasitic mushroom that grows rapidly upon the recently deceased bodies of animals and adventurers alike. These plants release noxious fumes when they're not harvested. The lurea have created a symbiotic relationship with a type of iron wood moss grows side by side with the mushrooms using them to filter the toxic gas while they harvest. Garlic/angel tears- Garlic grows in abundance for the species. This is often the one complaint from foreigners is there food often is heavy with garlicky flavor. Diablory- A type of spicy pepper that grows in patches. The dangers of this pepper are used to make some terrifying eye tearing projectiles as much as it is to kick up the lurean dishes spice.
other fruits and vegetable do grow in their forests and are used in the process of cooking but the above tend to be staples of the average diet.
Popular lurean dishes-
Spider egg stew- Made from boiling spider eggs,angel tears,meat, and spiced to taste over a few hours often made to bring to community dinners or for the whole family.
Hang around sandwiches- A paste made from a mix of apple,pistachio and needle berries between two pieces of bread. A common food on the go. Usually kept in a pouch hanging around the waist.
Ridge back roast- Cooked ridgeback boar, with sauteed black brush,cooked angel tears. Often the main course of a fine multi step dinner.
Brush pops- made by hollowing out the caps of black brush and inserting a meat,or paste substance that is then cooked inside.
Egg bites- Similar in brush pops but uses boiled spider eggs instead.
Scalagia jerky or scarab jerky- A day snack for training or going on hikes. Usually served with a mix of nuts and berries on the side.
Scargia-Scarab meat, cooked in a needle berry,angel tear and diablory broth.
Sauteed scarland skin- If one wishes to pray to bucket gods and give them back there bounty.
Nephilim poppers- angel tears cooked inside a diablory.
Red River conquest- A tomato based dish that uses food left over from previous meals and pasta to cook on a day to make use of food that has yet to go bad.
