Shesti

Overview

Shesti, also known as ‘Hawkborne,’ are a Nomadic Andashi martial tradition; a living ethos that embodies adventure, risk, and living on the edge to experience the most that life has to offer. Reknown for their foolhardy bravery, aggressive fighting style, and flowing ‘wings,’ Shesti protect their people and wander the world as adventurers and hedonists. After many years of slowly decaying, the tradition of the Shesti is growing once more.

The core of the Shesti mindset is the concept of Vibranza. Vibranza is a state where one maximises these three elements:

Peligraza (Risk)

To pursue Vibranza is to pursue maximum risk. You should be living all your life at the very edge. By being prepared to fail and fall, you will experience the most of every beat of your heart. You should be ready to die in every battle, ready to live in every day, and ready to take any opportunity presented.

Dominanza (Control)

To experience Vibranza requires you not to be tumblling through life, but weaving yourself effortlessly into its every moment. You should seek to control and master yourself in all things, be it martial skill, art or something as simple as breathing.

Movarza (Movement)

To celebrate Vibranza, you must move in it. Your body, mind, and life in constant motion. This does not mean being free of attachments or grounded concerns; rather it means constant curiosity, shifting your perspective and seeking out the world and its experiences.

All three elements of the Vibranza must be kept in balance. Too much Peligraza and you will cut short your journey or risk too much for little reward. Too much Dominanza and you will lock yourself off from risk and challenge. Too much Movarza and you will fail to experience the world as you rush past it. Perfect balance between the three allows a Shesti to experience the most Vibranza that life has to offer.

The Shesti take this concept into everything they do, be it battle, trade, art, or speaking. This makes them very dynamic, if intense individuals. But they are also very introspective;, the pursuit of Vibranaza requires you to know yourself and how the world both affects and is affected by you.

The term ‘Vibranza!’ is also somewhat of a cheer for the Shesti, something to be called out over a round of drinks or screamed as you rush onto the battlefield.

Need:

Combatant / Bladehand

The Shesti are a martial discipline at their core; it is from this basis of risk that the concept of Vibranza grows. As such, Shesti characters must be combatants. In addition, the fighting style of two weapons is traditional among the Shesti, exemplifying their wings and their dedication to the three concepts of Peligraza, Dominanza and Movarza.

Shouldn't:

Armoured

Both the nomadic nature of the Shesti and their fighting style make wearing heavy armour unfitting. Shesti tend to view wearing heavy armour as displaying an overabundance of caution in life and prefer their Morvarza and Dominanza to keep them alive.

Costume Marker

Shesti Wings

The Shesti affix strips of cloth to their clothes and person between their wrists and shoulders, sometimes even across the the top of their backs as well. These strips flow behind the Shesti as they move, giving the illusion of wings as they strike and run, giving rise the name ‘Shesti Wings’.

Shesti wings come in a wide variety of colours and styles. Some warriors will use their wings to identify allegiance to a clan or group, wearing the colours of that clan in their wings. Other Shesti will use individual strips to mark achievements or certain events in their lives, while others simply use whatever it is they have available. A Shesti’s wings will grow in density and complexity over time, allowing veteran Shesti to be marked by their panoply of colour and movement.

To the Shesti, their wings are a symbol of their dedication to the pursuit of Vibranza and are something that will be damaged, dirtied and replaced over time as the Shesti lives. As such they rarely stand on ceremony in regards to the treatment and condition of their wings. What is important is that a Shesti wear their wings as much as is physically possible, the wings represent their pursuit of Vibranza, which is something that never stops.

Becoming a Shesti:

The journey to becoming a Shesti has three thresholds that a would-be Hawkborne must cross, each one encompassing an element of the Vibranza. During this time, those in pursuit of the mantle of Shesti adorn themselves with sparser wings of muter colours. They are generally referred to as ‘Aspirants’ or ‘wanderers’ as they pursue the concept and lifestyle of the Shesti.

The first threshold is encompassing Peligraza. Aspirants attempt to reach a state of absolute minimum risk within their lives, the intent being a sort of causal ‘purity’ from which they can grow. For most, this involves cleansing themselves of risks and maladies within their lives, settling all debts, facing all grievances held (be it against or from them), reducing earthly possessions and existing in a state of peace and contemplation, actively avoiding risk and danger. For some, this is accomplished with a time of hermitage. but for others it is done through a dramatic casting off of risk. An Aspirant will know they have passed this threshold when the aversion of risk and danger becomes nearly physically painful. In a moment of active clarity they will seek action of risk, having properly attained a understanding of what enjoyment danger brings to life.

The second threshold is encompassing Dominanza. During this time Aspirants live, train, and experience life with other Shesti. They learn the martial traditions of twin swords, they experience the life of a Shesti from those that embody it, and they share in those experiences. An Aspirant will know they have passed this threshold when another Aspirant comes to them for guidance on living life as a Shesti and they provide it.

The final threshold is encompassing Movarza. Aspirants must travel beyond the Shesti they have known to live the life of a Shesti outside of the comfort of their peers. Some Shesti will travel far across seas, though others will not have to travel far before Movarza brings them into a state of Vibranza. There are even a few Aspirants who never allow themselves to pass this threshold, believing that this is the purest state a Shesti can pursue. An Aspirant will know they have passed this threshold when their pursuit of Vibranza nearly kills them. Coming within inches or moments of death achieves a level of clarity of experience that perfectly represents Vibranza.

It is not uncommon for Aspirants to self-withdraw from this journey as they experience elements of the Shesti life that are not amenable to them. But it is worth noting that its not possible to fail this path. You will either die in its pursuit, leave it yourself, or reach a state of Vibranza.

History:

The true history of the Shesti has been lost to the sands of time and the collapse of the Andashi Empire. What is known among its practitioners is that it draws from the time of Grand Andash and was a form of thought that brought joy and decisiveness to the Nomads during the time of great centralised power among the Empire. Vibranza and the Shesti ensure that the Nomads were impossible to predict and dangerous to under estimate.

The modern history of the Shesti is intertwined with the Al’Mai. The last few practitioners of the Shesti way were a part of Nomadic Clans in the highlands of Mukarrem, who joined with the separatist cause of the Al’Mai during the years 222 to 224. Heroes such as Kharas Al’Mai exemplified the role of the Shesti as battle leaders and champions of their people. When The Concord and the Al’Mai mended the rift between them, the growth in the numbers of Shesti and their notoriety had driven interest in these Nomadic warriors. As the dust settled some Shesti travelled to Abqala in the north of The Tribelands where they began to teach the way of Vibranza to the Nomads there. In doing this they ensured the continuation of the tradition for generations to come.

Three Things Shesti Are:

Warriors of Life

To fight is the first calling of the Shesti. In battle they pursue Vibranza to its truest extent. They also fullfill a duty to their people to defend them and keep them strong, providing Dominanza and Movarza to their people, their own unique form of tithe. All Shesti should seek to mastery of combat, always at the forefront, mixing bloodlust with skill, death and life in equal measures.

Meditative Movers

The Shesti are deeply introspective. The purpose of pursuing Vibranza is experience, and experience is of little worth unless it is reflected upon. Shesti should take time to dwell on their experiences and let them be changed by them. They should open their mind to the loftier concepts of meaning, impact and change.

Foolhardy and Danger-clad

To be a Shesti is to pursue life at its most - to be in the vanguard of a night out or a day of battle. Shesti should always be open to new experience, the more dangerous the better, simply for the sake of experiencing them, rather than in pursuit of any other ideal (although it is nice to have money and do good.)

Two Things Shesti Aren't:

Stupid Daredevils

All three elements of Vibranza must be held in balance, lest the pursuit be for naught. With this in mind, Shesti carefully match Peligraza with their own Dominanza and Movarza to ensure that no one element supersedes the other. Shesti should be careful they do not cut their journey short through a flawed understanding of any one element.

Drunkards Seeking Pleasure

The pursuit of Vibranza often leads to a life of wild abandon and adventure, but it rarely leads to a life of slothful excess. While alcohol, alchemy and other such pursuits can surely increase danger, the greatest experiences of life are seldom found repeatedly at the bottom of a bottle. Variety and danger are the spice of life, not simple self pleasure.