Avari of Haradwaith:



 Of the Avari of Haradwaith: the jungle Tuktan

 and the Jendiar of the Grey Mtns.

In the wilds of Haradwaith are two divergent cultures of Avari, ancient refugees of the wars of sunken Beleriand. One living in the trackless jungles of the Taur Nu Gwath, the other, in the Thuja forests in the shadow of the Mithrinaeglir, the Gray Mountains of the South.



The Tuktan Avari

 Within the endless tropical Taur Nu Gwath of Far Harad, the seldom-seen Tuktan live lightly among the luxuriously thick  jungles. The Tuktan are descended from Nelyar Cuind, refugees of Beleriand-that-was, fleeing the incessant warfare and the seeming victory of the Dark Lord. Most of the Tuktan live in an interconnected web of villages, loosely knit, in the Eastern jungles lying in the shadow of the Yellow Mtns.

Although they primarily forage and create fruitful gardens discreetly placed, they also hunt the forest kelvar. But most prized are the Mûmakil of the scrub forest to their north, which they ritualistically hunt. They carve the immensely hard great tusks into implements, items for body adornment and the distinctive, long-bladed spears they use for the hunt as well as for defense.

All but the spears (which they reverently believe holds the spirit and power of their source) they trade both with the few tribes of Men who share their forests and with the Avari from the far LakeLands of the north who come south tothe Lake of the Moon to barter.

Their villages are in the greater trees of the jungle, the dwellings and lodges joined by walkways woven from vines. Well hidden, strangers passing directly underneath are often unaware of their presence. Both sexes are heavily and intricately tattooed.

The Jendiar of the Southern Gray Mountains
 The Jendiar are the soundless hunters of the Mithrinaeglir. Of Tatyar stock, a remnant of the tribe of the Penni, they like the Tuktan are refugees of Beleriand. Living in temporary shelters made of rock or in tents woven from the shaggy bark of the Giant Thuja, the Jendiar live dispersed in groups of 20 or 30 and are always on the move.

   They are among the most adept hunters of all the Speaking peoples and are peerless trackers. Their weapons are bladed with the rock crystals that are common in the crags of the Grey Mtns. They hunt both with bow and weighteddarts although they are known to trap as well. They range far and have been known to track prey far into the eastern hills.

   Of late, there have been incursions of the strange folk from beyond the sea who have built a great   colony on the great bay beyond the Mountains – the Numenoreans who rapaciously seekprecious metals and slaves. The Jendiar melt into the landscape when the unwelcome strangers enter their lands. When they are forced to, they ambush the Numenorean expeditions, becoming a tale of bogeymen to the Colonists: “The grey ghosts of the mountains grey”.