Cuman
The Cuman are a tribe of nomads living in Kheer Tal, the steppes of the Western Marches.
History
The Cuman and their bitter rivals, the Kipchak, once roamed over most of the Western Marches. They fought each other, other tribes now lost, and the orcs of Mishrak and Nadrak. The migration at the fall of the Western Kingdom led to the systematic destruction of the Cuman. Faced with superior numbers, technology and tactics, the Cuman and Kipchak fell back to the west, fading away to lands of more and more marginal value, until it became too difficult for the settlers to eke out a living on conquered lands. The Great Betrayal of two hundred years ago, in which the Kipchak allied with Louis the Great of DeBourgnac, led to the destruction of all the other tribes and the deaths of most of the Cuman. They still have not forgiven the Kipchak, and battles and small wars break out often.
Culture
The Cuman clans live in camps formed by a wagon laager, with tents either on the wagons or inside the laager. Even those that have settled in the area of Cumanheim continue to live in nomad style. The native language is Kipchak. Many of the tribe will also speak Common (in DeBourgnac lands), Reichspiel (near Weisbaum), or Orcish (near the Black Forest). Kipchak is in the Nomadic languages group, and is closest to Mongolian in flavour. They do have slaves, which are prisoners taken in skirmishes with neighbouring clans. Being a slave is not overly dishonourable, and slaves are often exchanged back to their own clan at the end of a conflict. The slaves are treated well, and it is not uncommon for them to marry into the clan. Slaves are usually loyal to their masters, except if given an opportunity to assist or return to their clan. The exception is the Vlach, the remnants of a conquered tribe, who are owned and traded like cattle. Kipchak are rarely taken as slaves.
Clothing
The bulk of Cuman wear a calf-length topcoat, sometimes with short sleeves, over a knee length tunic and trousers. Either boots or shoes are worn. A wide range of materials are used, with fur, wool and sheepskin perhaps being commoner in the plains, and linen and brocade replacing them nearer the towns. Colours vary: yellow, white, brown, blue, red, gold and grey are all known. Clothes can be highly patterned and embroidered. Richer or noble Cumans naturally wear more decorative clothing. Those fighting as Cavalry, whether against Kipchak, Trolls or Orcs, will probably be armoured, in a mix of Russian, Turkish, and Mongol styles. Pointed helmets with mail aventails and a metal mask moulded to look like a face are popular. The most distinctive item of Cuman clothing is a pointed cap. There are a wide range of these, possibly reflecting various ethnic sub-groups. Most have an upturned brim, often in a contrasting colour. Some versions resemble a "Robin Hood" style, others are more like old-fashioned nightcaps with upturned brims. Many have an unfortunate tendency to look like they belonged to brownies. The Cumans themselves are fair-skinned, blue-eyed and often described as handsome. They wear their hair long, and often have long moustaches, although beards are rare. Weapons are mainly recurved composite bows, together with sabres, maces, javelins, and lances for some nobles. Shields, when used, are small and usually round, or occasionally almond-shaped.
Warfare
The bulk of any raiding party will be archers on small steppe ponies. Some war leaders ride destriers and wear heavy plate, but this is most common against trolls. Any infantry would be the poorest members of the tribe, possibly including Vlach javelinmen. Tactically the Cumans are a fairly typical steppe nomad army, relying on hit and run tactics by horse archers to wear down and disorder the enemy. The most common approach is likely to be to go after the opponents' camp, use the infantry to protect their camp, and use the rest of the light horse to disorder and harass their opponent. Once any formation is broken up, and the heavier horses are blown, smaller groups are surrounded and overwhelmed.
