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Drow worldbuilding, part 2
The Pyroxene Drow are one of the most unique elven culture. Drows are a nocturnal race of elves, but persecution that lead to their near-extinction forces them to live underground, only two settlements and cultures surviving: the Pyroxene Drow and the Emrald Drow. The Pyroxene culture is patriarcal and dynastic. In their culture, the ideal man is a good provider, responsable and cunning, while the ideal women is austere and asocial. The paternal aunt plays an important part in rearing of the children, since she takes care of them whenever the mother is unable to, whenever it is feeding, healing, education or discipline. However, the main care-takers are still mom and dad. Because of environmental factors, such as their dependence on Rané, an autotrophe that make the caverns habitable and causes incredible pain to those that eat it, and the Drow have to eat it at least some of the time, they have developped a culture that values a certain form masochism, simply because those who cannot well, tend to basically nerf themselves out of the gene pool. Also, lack of access to moonlight make amputation of the wings as soon as they form a necessity. This amputation have become highly ritualized. Also, Drows, because of the constant pain and suffering they have to go through, have a significantly reduced life-span compaired to other elves. This creates the necessity to create a dynastic social structure, that allows to keep track of inbreeding and to carry out projects that stretch over multiple generations. It is also a key part of politics. The Pyroxene Drow have a monarchic justice system but their civil, regional law is decided upon democratically by vote of the heads of house. Culturally, they deeply value the elderly, as someone who managed to live long through constant torture is considered impressive. They also practice a worship of the ancestors, and honor them by maintaining their work and routine over multiple generations. Taking liberties with dinner time for example, would be considered about as polite to the Pyroxene drow as if spitting on someone's grave. Because of the caverns being poor in nutriants for the fungiculture on which they depend, mummification in their culture is considered a very bad thing to do, since decomposition fluids are essencial to feed the mushrooms, and are preciously collected. In the Drow religious beliefs, the soul has to suffer inside the body during the process of putrifaction, unable to move nor protest, and can only leave for the after life when the flesh has returned to earth and mere bones are left. Skulls however are kept and conserved in memory of those dearly departed. Corporal punishment of youths is considered a parental duty in their culture, as socializing the youths to a lifetime of almost never-ending pain. This does not mean that they do not love their children, or show them compassion, on the contrary, and Drow mothers are expected to be patient, until a certain age at least, of their children adjusting to this reality. The popping out and amputation of the wings for example is celebrated with the youth being fed the best food the family can afford, so they can recuperate faster, and some amount of craddling. The younger brother would be socially expected to marry the widow of the older brother, and similar apply for the younger sister expected to marry the widower of her older sister. Also, the husband and his family is expected to help out the young mother adjust, because no one can be reasonably expected to take care of a toddler with chronic pain while in chronic pain themselves. It is possible, but it's not a desirable situation for anyone.
Drow, part 3
In terms on incest, the taboo apply depending on social class. Commoners and "bourgeois" (85% of the population) are forbidden to marry their first cousins (since most of the time, they are siblings from at least one parent), aunts, uncles, nieces, parents and sibblings. However, this taboo only apply to incest that can result in pregnancy, and in fact romantic interactions between siblings are considered perfectly acceptable, as a form of "education" and preparation for mariage. The taboo of incest does not apply to the royal family, nor to the outcasts and slaves. Outcasts, while not slaves, do no benefit from: the right to vote, the right to legal protection against assault of any kind, the right to a surname, the right to protection against murder, the right to testemony in court nor the right to hold a position of syndic. However, they are allowed to marry their family members, with the exeption of parent-child incest, all trash of the city is their legal property and are exempt from taxes. One joins them either through birth, mariage or profession: torturers, executioners, prostitutes, pimps, and negromancers are all a part of it, as well as their families. One can marry into these dynasties, but marrying out would be difficult. Given how harshly outcast females are treated, they do not particularly want to marry a man of respectable reputation anyways, given they are the very demographic from which they suffer the most abuse, plus there is the high possibility of their lover's family seeking to kill her to restore their honor. Because of that, they tend to practice endogamic mariages as a way for the young bride to keep herself in a familiar environment.
