Lore:Erabenimsun Tribe

The Erabenimsun Tribe banner

"The Erabenimsun are quite war-loving. They are seen as greedy and cruel by their fellow Ashlanders and are believed to not have respect for many Ashlander customs. They care little about prophecy, history, and lore, so the Wise Woman has little power in this tribe. Erabenimsun is also typically the most heavily armed and armored. They are warriors first and foremost, valuing strength above all else." — Ulran Releth, "Ashlander Tribes and Customs"

The Erabenimsun Tribe is one of the four distinct Ashlander tribes of Vvardenfell, the island district in the province of Morrowind. The Erabenimsun are the most prominent tribe of Ashlanders in the Molag Amur region and live in a permanent settlement, the Erabenimsun Camp deep in the hills of the wastelands. They are generally war-like and hardy folk that tend to have an intolerance for outlanders and even other Ashlanders. And although there is a portion of them that favor war and raiding, there is a sect of peace-loving Erabenimsun that live and hunt off the fat of the land.

Culture

The Erabenimsun are a warrior society through and through. Compared to the other four tribes, they care little for prophecy and the lore of their people as they often live in the now. Because of this, wise women have little power among them. Above all else, the Erabenimsun value strength. On the other side of that, they have a severe distaste for exiled Dunmer as they will kill them on sight. An exile's weapon is given as an offering to the cairn of the tribe's first Ashkhan, Shadar Erabenimsun. The cairn was initially located on the outskirts of Ald'ruhn, north of Ramimilk but it is unknown what became of it after House Redoran took over the land. Like the other tribes, the Erabenimsun would make annual pilgrimages to the site.

The Erabenimsun were in possession of Ashlander tokens, tribal heirlooms passed down through the generations by previous ashkhans and gulakhans. Some of them include Sanit-Kil's Heart of Fire, an enchanted amulet worn by the famous witch-warrior of the same name. In the late Third Era, the glass war axe of the war-loving Ashkhan, Airan-Ammu became a token of worth acknowledged by the other tribes. There is also the Robes of Erur-Dan the Wise, from the eponymous wizard and counselor of legendary Erabenimsun Ashkhan, Assur-Abanba. The Seizing of the Erabenimsun is another enchanted token of the tribe.

The tribe was the first to domesticate the wild Nix-Oxen and it was the legendary Ashkhan, Ashu-Ammu who rode one into battle. According to myth, the tribe would also train the Rubyflare Torchnix, a glowing variant of the creature.

As hunters, the Erabenimsun are exceptionally skilled and members of the tribe could earn the title of "Huntmaster". Some creatures of note will even be given names to reflect their might as beasts. The largest and most aggressive female mudcrabs will be called "Mother Jagged-Claw", and the biggest, most dangerous Nix-Ox is called "Great Zexxin". They will call a kagouti pack leader, "King Razor-Tusk" and as per tradition, both novice and veteran hunters will hunt these creatures to rekindle the spirit of the land.

History

Cairn of Shadar Erabenimsun

Ulath-Pal; the Erabenimsun Ashkhan

The Erabenimsun was founded by Shadar Erabenimsun, one of the original Velothi nomads who wandered the region. Together, he and the other founding Ashlander leaders (known collectively as the First Ashkhans) united the Velothi to fight a common enemy that roamed the land known as Skar. The four befriended a warrior named Dranoth Hleran and together with the four ashkhans, slew the monster with his spear, Calderas and their people settled around its carcass.

In time, Shadar and the other ashkhans grew old and died, and the new generation of leaders took up arms and banished House Hleran from out of the wastes. The cairns of the First Ashkhans were built around the site of the ancient battle and the camp built in front of Skar became Ald'ruhn, a neutral ground where the tribes could commerce with one another.

By 2E 582, the Erabenimsun built their camp on the northern base of Mount Kand and south of Nchuleftingth. During this time, the tribe was preyed upon by an ancient cliff strider they called Old Stomper but it was later killed by an outlander working with the tribe in Ald'ruhn.

By the fifth century of the Third Era, the tribe's camp was located north-northwest of Mount Assarnibibi's shrine and not far from Zafirbel Bay, which was just over a hill to the northeast. At that point in time, it was a permanent settlement, unlike the other nomadic tribes and their camps. Around this time, the tribe's Ashkhan was Airan-Ammu and under his rule, the Erabenimsun became arrogant and bold, confident in their strength. His own son, Han-Ammu would call him "a bully and a stupid brute". When he passed away, Ulath-Pal took up his mantle and the people eventually lived in fear of him. He would name Han-Ammu one of his gulakhans because of his father's previous status.

The new Ashkhan and his courtier of gulakhans were criticized by the wise-woman, Manirai for their lack of respect for customs and hospitality, and their barbaric nature. In 3E 427, the Nerevarine traveled to the camp and hoped they would acknowledge them as the hero of prophecy. When the Ashkhan flat-out rejected them, Manirai devised a plan in which they would defeat Ulath-Pal and his war-loving gulakhans so that Han-Ammu could claim the title of Ashkhan via his heritage. Despite their deaths, Han-Ammu refused to accept the title but the Nerevarine presented them with three tokens and gave the Ashlander the motivation to take over as the leader. With everything all said and done, Han-Ammu named the warrior Nerevarine and gave them the Seizing of the Erabenimsn, a token of immense worth that would serve as a sign to the other Ashlanders of their recognition.

Known Figures

Ashkhans Shadar Erabenimsun (ca. late Merethic Era) Unnamed Erabenimsun Ashkhan (After Shadar passes away) Ashu-Ammu Assur-Abanba Airan-Ammu (ca. late Third Era) Ulath-Pal (3E ? – 3E 427) Han-Ammu (3E 427 – 3E ?)

Wise-Women Sannemmu Khamishi (ca. 2E 582) Manirai (ca. 3E 427)

Gallery

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  Erabenimsun Tribe banner ca. 2E 582

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  The Seizing of the Erabenimsun

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  Erabenimsun Camp ca. 2E 582

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  Erabenimsun Camp ca. 3E 427

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  Nix-Ox War-Steed

See Also

• For game-specific information on the tribe, see the Morrowind and Elder Scrolls Online articles.
• For game-specific information on the camp, see the Morrowind and Elder Scrolls Online articles.

Books

• Ashlander Tribes and Customs by Ulran Releth of House Redoran — A treatise on the Ashlander tribes