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Origins, Values & Religion

The Aves pack was started by a small coterie of wolves from more northern climes who have decided to move south due to the antics of one. Whilst some of them were reticent to leave their homelands for good, the original small group was determined to do the best they could to whittle out their own territory in these new lands and to make sure they brought all facets of their home pack with them.

Values

The Aves pack's progenitor is egalitarian - skill is prized above bloodlines and, whilst it is known that often a child will be as skilled or better than their parent in their chosen role, it is also realised that this is not always so and, as such, care is taken, in most cases, to allow pups to choose their own paths, make their own mistakes an settle into their own role in life.

Those with little or no skill in the role they wish to take are helped, but a wolf who does not realise their lack of skill in an area where it cannot be improved isn't usually well thought of.

The pack is open to visitors and encourages those who cannot find their way in the world to join them, but any wolf who causes trouble will be swiftly removed from the vicinity of the pack.

Religion
The Aves pack venerates 5 'major spirits' - that of the sun, water, earth, death and rebirth. They strongly believe in reincarnation and are less spooked by the spiritual nature of shamans and Seers than some other wolf groups would be - though they are no less common in this group. More true to fact would be that the pack sees shamans and seer as like their own spirit-talkers and this makes them seem less 'unearthly' to the normal wolves.

The majority of the work of an acolyte and spirit-talkers in general, though, is to couch the natural world in terms that the others of the pack can understand - they have to deal with new life and death, old age, weaknesses and disasters. Rituals and events are created to allay fears or bond the wolves further to their land and their pack-mates.

Though they are dedicated to their spirits the pack rarely speak of them to outsiders.

Caveat: This is very much merely a belief, not a 'power' - similar to human societies who have personal totems. The 'reality' inspired by such beliefs can be very interesting, of course, but nothing stepping into Seer / Shaman territory. Please be careful about this boundary - I know it can be hard to tread into spirituality without tripping over into 'special abilities' but religiosity is something I felt would be interesting to explore with a pack =)

Whilst a wolf may identify majorly with one of the major spirits, that is not to say they ignore or denigrate the others or that they have to go over the top worshipping that one. There's many shades of grey, worship wise, and the following is mainly for guidance!

Sohenol - Truth, justice, behaviour, respect

Hunter - Hunters who lead a hunt tend to whisper a prayer to Sohenol - asking for guidance and patience. Many alphas and their advisors look to Sohenol for guidance. Hunt and pack leaders especially find strength in the ideals of Sohenol, and try to be careful to act with true fairness and not let personal bias impede in the decisions necessary to run a pack or hunt.

Spirit-talker - Those of Sohenol are often good arbiters - listening and knowing their pack will, easy to make friends but not letting friendship get in the way of fairness. These wolves usually make a point of doing things the right way though this doesn't always gain them many admirers.

Gift - warmth, sunlight, pack structure, justice

Rhiavet - Spirituality, calm, philosophy, the heavens

Hunter - Some hunters refine the art of hunting in a more fluid manner - whereas a wolf who feels closer to Sohenol may work on strength, stamina and endurance, a hunter who is influenced by the ideals of Rhiavet will prize dextrousness, speed and precision. Whilst all wolves may chase down a deer, it is often these wolves who will make the killing bite, or who will disable an animal by their swift actions. These wolves are often the best hunters of smaller, faster prey, too.

Spirit-talker - Spirit talkers of Rhiavet tend to be the ones who help wayward youngsters find their way - guiding them spiritually. They preside over coming-of-age rituals and often help those who have trouble finding their totems. Confidants of Rhiavet tend to be thinkers, philosophers or even savants who, at times, can seem hard to fathom.

Gift - Water, dexterousness (both of mind and body), spirituality

Toghelac - fertility, tracking, gifts of the earth

Hunter - Hunters respect Toghelac and many good trackers will issue a small request from him for assistance. All hunters understand that the bounty of the lands they live in, even the very fabric of it, was given to them by Toghelac and those wishing to make new homes or dens will have them blessed for Toghelac - perhaps by leaving a small offering to him

Spirit-talker - Strong, earthy, and with a predisposition to being close to the living earth. Many spirit-talkers of Toghelac feel they have an uncanny knack for tracking or knowing where prey is and often they do seem so to others not so close to this spirit. Much of the ability they have is gained from their close study of said animals and land and they are usually the ones who can usually predict when the herds are likely to pass through packlands and the like.

Gift - Earth, homes/dens, animals

Kalain - Rebirth, lifecycle, intuition

Hunter - Very few hunters think of Kalain as their primary deity - perhaps only when hoping a herd's young will become strong so there will be a bounty next season for hunting. Females will sometimes send a soft message to Kalain to help them through birth and to give them strong young. Hunters who are sometimes not very bright, but seem to have great luck with hunting due to an instinctual ability might be called 'blessed by Kalain' or similar. This isn't always a compliment within the Aves, who prize hard work and true ability.

Spirit-talker - Kalain's path is a relatively common one for a spirit-talker - his way encompasses much of what is important to a pack - the birth of young, the caring and rearing of pups and helping those pups find their way within the pack. Followers of Kalain are often healers and midwives of a sort - even if all they can do is help calm an expectant first-time mother. Because of this, many of Kalain's spirit talkers are female.
Those who speak with Kalain also help the pack 'understand' the cycles of life and give hope and comfort by reminding the pack that a loved one who has passed away will one day rejoin the world in another form.

Gift - Rebirth, life, caring


Jaitain - Death, killing, strength, determination, blood

Hunter - Many a strong hunter prays to Jaitain to let their bite be strong, their kills fast and easy. Wolves rely on killing and death to survive so, where this deity might seem dark within a human context, it has a strong connotation for a wolf pack - blood, lifeblood, is common to all creatures and even a strong hunter knows he must respect his prey's life as his, one day, will also come to an end.

Spirit-talker - Very few spirit-talkers take this path. Those who do have to be strong of mind or are affected by a strong morbidity. They work towards understanding the nature or death, presiding formally over deaths and burials when available. They can be comforters, though, taking care of those left behind or they can undertake a study of prey animals in the extreme - helping to devise other ways of taking down prey swiftly or effectively.

Gift - Sustainability, Winter, Rest


Remember all that is described here for spirit-talkers is belief. For non shaman / seer wolves, these 'powers' will be drawn from observation, understanding and training and they have no real special abilities except from, perhaps, being particularly gifted at a particular thing.

Personal Spirits List
Please note that animals are not exclusive to one wolf and that wolves are not restricted to taiga animals - they're just included as common animals which are likely to come up more often.
Animal companion types may be generic e.g. 'bear' or more specific e.g. 'brown bear'.

Mu'sha - Pheasant
Kalain - Snake
Jove - Brown Bear
Saturne - Arctic Hare
Elysion - Silver Fox
Cora - Wild Boar
Tolero - Black Bear
Orion - Reindeer
Shalise -
Jaq - Pine Marten
Iris - Swift

Wolves with No Companions Yet
Quintus (will be Crow)
Ravia (will be Hawk)
Kevarian (will be a Doe)
Ithil (will be Hare)
Gaias (will be Blue Spruce)
Dia (will be lynx?)
Kuri (will be ???)
Nashira (will be ...)
Arcturus (will be coyote?)
Dubhe (will be bear?)
Hazel (will be ...)
Pegasus (will be ...)

Ideas (Taiga Animals)
Hooman
Arctic Hare
Snowshoe Hare
Rabbit
Pika
Mouse
Beaver
Squirrel
Rat
Porcupine
Fox
Lynx
Raccoon
Raccoon Dog
Polar Bear
Brown Bear
Stoat
Weasel
Mink
Wolverine
Badger
Skunk
Otter
Puma
Seal
Walrus
Moose (Elk)
Caribou (Reindeer)
Red Deer
Mule Deer
Musk Ox
Mountain Goat
Canada Goose
Osprey
Goshawk
Golden Eagle
Peregrine Falcon
Barn Owl
Horned Owl
Snowy Owl
Jays
Crow