Editing Salhichin (section)

== The Salhichin as Warriors – Masters of the Land ==

The Salhichin are a people forged by the unforgiving Ötgön Tal, where survival demands strength, endurance, and resilience. Tending to the colossal herd-beasts that pull Tengri-Uul requires not just skill but raw physical power. They must be strong enough to guide the beasts, swift enough to avoid their crushing steps, and enduring enough to travel for days without rest. Over generations, this way of life has shaped them into taller, broader, and more physically imposing figures than many of the more civilised races of [[Tymora]]. Even their children are taught to lash tethers, haul supplies, and ride through the shifting grasses, building a natural toughness that few outsiders can match.

This strength is not just for herding but for defence. The raptors of the plains and the raiders of the Dal Mörgöl are constant threats, and a Salhichin warrior can wrestle a beast into submission or break a man’s bones with a single blow. Their powerful frames and hardened endurance make them formidable in combat, able to strike harder and withstand wounds that would cripple lesser warriors. While the nobles of Tengri-Uul may see them as crude and unrefined, none would dare challenge a Salhichin in a test of strength, for they are not just warriors of the land but masters of the beasts that move the very sky itself.

The Talyn Bökh, the elite raptor cavalry, are feared across the plains, their trained Khar Angir able to run circles around traditional cavalry. Unlike horses, raptors can leap, climb, and dart between herd beasts, making the Talyn Bökh unmatched in skirmish warfare.

=== The Taming of Raptors – The Talyn Bökh and Their Bonded Beasts ===

The Talyn Bökh, the Steppe Wardens, are the elite raptor-mounted cavalry of the Salhichin, revered as guardians of the herds and protectors of the migration paths. Unlike the wild Khar Angir, which roam the Ötgön Tal in deadly packs, the raptors ridden by the Talyn Bökh are trained from hatchlings, forging a deep bond between rider and beast that lasts a lifetime. The process of taming these creatures is dangerous, requiring strength, patience, and an unbreakable will. To the Salhichin, riding a raptor is more than a skill, it is a sacred duty, and only the most skilled and fearless riders can claim the title of Talyn Bökh.

Not all raptors can be tamed. Unlike horses or Mörögnüher, raptors are intelligent, independent, and naturally resistant to domestication. To find those worthy of training, the Salhichin must steal hatchlings from wild Khar Angir nests, a dangerous undertaking known as the Chasuun Yavakh, or Trial of the Hunt.

This ritual is reserved for young warriors seeking to join the Talyn Bökh. They must venture alone into the wild, track a Khar Angir pack to its nesting ground, and steal a hatchling without being detected. If the pack discovers them, survival is unlikely, and many aspirants never return. Those who succeed bring back one or two hatchlings, marking the start of an arduous training process.

Some Salhichin clans, wary of dwindling raptor populations, have established breeding enclosures, where captured raptors are raised in captivity. However, these raptors are often seen as less fierce, and traditionalists among the Talyn Bökh argue that only a raptor taken from the wild has the true spirit of the steppe.

A newly taken hatchling is not immediately broken like a horse, it must first be bound to its rider through weeks of feeding, trust-building, and dominance rituals. Raptors are fiercely territorial and view humans as either prey or rivals, making early training a battle of wills. A young raptor must recognise its rider as the dominant force, or it will never accept the saddle.

At first, the hatchlings are fed by hand, ensuring they associate their rider with protection and sustenance. The Talyn Bökh spend countless hours with their raptors, speaking to them, mimicking their pack calls, and reinforcing their bond through controlled interactions. At a certain age, the hatchling will begin to test its rider, lunging, snapping, and attempting to assert dominance. This is where many aspiring riders fail, if they show fear or hesitate, the raptor will never submit.

The final stage of taming is the Tösgooch Urdakh, or First Mounting. The rider must climb onto the raptor’s back for the first time without being thrown off. Raptors do not accept riders easily, and the first few attempts are often violent, with broken bones and bruises common among trainees. Only when a raptor accepts its rider without resistance is it truly tamed, and the bond between the two is considered unbreakable.

=== Training for Battle – The Deadliest Cavalry on the Steppe ===

Once tamed, the raptors are trained for speed, manoeuvrability, and combat. Unlike traditional cavalry, which relies on mass charges, the Talyn Bökh fight in loose, fast-moving formations, striking in surgical raids before retreating into the grass. Raptors are far more agile than any horse, able to leap over obstacles, climb rocky outcrops, and weave between herd beasts with ease.

In battle, a Talyn Bökh and their raptor fight as one mind, their movements perfectly synchronised. The Talyn Bökh do not wear heavy armour, favouring light, flowing garments that allow for rapid movement. Their weapons are designed for quick, devastating strikes, including:

* Curved Steppe Blades – Designed for slashing attacks while riding at high speeds.
* Barbed Spears – Thrown from a distance to cripple enemy mounts or impale fleeing foes.
* Recurve Bows – Raptors are fast enough to keep pace with a fleeing target, allowing the rider to fire arrows mid-gallop with deadly accuracy.
When engaging the wild Khar Angir packs, the Talyn Bökh use tactics learned from their own raptors, they circle their prey, isolate the weak, and strike with coordinated precision.

=== The Bond of Rider and Raptor – A Warrior’s Death ===

The relationship between a Talyn Bökh and their raptor is not one of master and servant, but of equal warriors bound by blood and battle. If a Talyn Bökh falls in combat, their raptor will often refuse to be ridden by another, either escaping into the wild or fighting to the death beside their fallen rider. For this reason, many Salhichin warriors bury their raptors alongside them, believing their spirits will ride together in the afterlife.

For a raptor to outlive its rider is considered a tragedy, as it means the warrior died before their time. Some old raptors, when their riders pass, wander away from the herds, returning to the wild to live out their final days. Others, unable to live without their bonded human, refuse to eat, dying at their rider’s grave.

Only the strongest warriors of the Salhichin earn the right to ride a raptor, and the bond between them is forged through pain, trust, and years of battle. The Talyn Bökh are not just cavalry, they are the embodiment of the hunter’s spirit, and to ride with them is to be feared across the Grass Sea.