How They Live

"The Wagon Peoples grow no food, nor do they have manufacturing as we know it. They are herders a, and it is said, killers. They eat nothing that has touched the dirt. They live on the meat and milk of the bosk. They are among the proudest peoples on Gor, regarding the dwellers of the cities of Gor as vermin in holes, cowards who must fly behind walls, wretches who fear to live beneath the broad sky, who dare not dispute them the open, windswept plains of their world.

the bosk, without which the Wagon People could not live, is an oxlike creature. Its is huge shambling animal with a thick, humped neck and long shaggy hair. It has a wide head and tiny red eyes, a temper to match that of a sleen and two long, wicked horns that reach out from its head and suddenly curve forward to terminate in fearful points. Some of these horns, on the larger animals, measured from tip to tip, exceed the length of two spears.

Not only does the flesh of the bosk and the milk of its cows furnish the Wagon People with food and drink, but its hides cover the domelike wagons in which they dwell; its tanned and sewn skins cover their bodies; the leather of its hump is used for their shields; its sinew forms their thread; its bones and horns are split and tooled into implements of a hundred sorts, from awls, punches, and spoons to drinking flagons and weapon tips; its hooves are used for glue; its oils are used to grease their bodies against the cold. Even the dung of the bosk finds its uses on the treeless prairies being dried and used for fuel. The bosk is said to be the Mother of the Wagon People, and they reverence it as such. The man who kills one foolishly is strangled in thongs or suffocated in the hide of the animal he slew; if for any reason the man should kill a bosk cow with unborn young he is staked out, alive, in the path of the herd, and the march of the Wagon People takes its way over him."

The kaiila

"The mount of the Wagon Peoples, unknown in the northern hemisphere of Gor, is the terrifying but beautiful kaiila."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 13~

"The children of the Wagon peoples are taught the saddle of the kaiila before the can walk."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 17 ~

The Scar Codes

"I was looking on the faces of four men, warriors of the Wagon Peoples.

On the face of each there were, almost like corded chevrons, brightly colored scars. the vivid coloring and intensity of these scars, their prominence, reminded me of the hideous markings on the faces of Mandrills; But these disfigurements, as I soon recognized, were cultural, not congenital, and bespoke not of natural innocence of the work of genes but of glories, and status, the arrogance the prides, of their bearers. The scars had been worked into the faces, with needles and knives and pigments and the dung of bosk over the period of days and nights. Men had died in the fixing of such scars. Most scars were set in pairs, moving diagonally down from the side of the head toward the nose and chin. The man facing me had seven such scars cerimonially worked into the tissue of his countenance, the highest being red, the next yellow, the next blue, the fourth black, then two yellow then black again. The faces of the men I saw were all scarred differently, but each was scarred. The effect of the scars, ugly, startling, terrible, perhaps in part calculated to terrify enemies, had even prompted me, for a wild moment, to conjecture that what I faced on the plains of Turia were not men, but perhaps aliens of some sort, brought to Gor long ago from remote worlds to serve some now discarded or forgotten purpose of the Priest Kings; but now I knew better; now I could see them as men; as now more significantly, I recalled what I had heard whispered of once before, in a tavern of Ar, the terrible Scar Codes of the Wagon Peoples, for each of the hideous marks on the face of these men had meaning, a significance that could be read by the Paravaci, the Kassars, the Katsii, the tuchuks, as clearly as you or I mght read a sign in a window or a sentence in a book. At that time I could read only the top scar, the red, bright, fierce cordlike scar that was the courage Scar. It is always the highest scar on the face. Indeed, without that scar, no other scar can be granted. The wagon peoples value courage above all else."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 15-16~

What They Wear

"I could see he carried a small rounded shield, glossy, black, lacquered: he wore a conical, fur rimmed iron helmet, a net of colored chains depending from the helmet protecting his face, leaving only holes for the eyes. He wore a quilted jacket and under this a leather jerkin; the jacket was trimmed with fur and had a for collar; his boots were made of hide and also trimmed with fur; he had a wide, five-buckled belt. I could not see his face because of the net of chain that hung before it. I also noted, about his throat, now lowered, there was a soft leather wind scarf which might, when the helmet and veil was lifted, be drawn over the mouth and nose, against the wind and dust of his ride. He was very erect in the saddle. His lance remained on his back, but he carried in his right hand the small, powerful, horn bow of the Wagon Peoples and attached to his saddle was a lacquered, narrow, rectangular quiver containing as many as forty arrows. On the saddle there also hung, on one side, a coiled robe of braided bosk hide and, on the other, a long, three-weighted bola f the sort used in hunting tumits and men; in the saddle itself, on the right side, indicating the rider must be right handed, were the seven sheaths for the almost legendary quivas, the balanced saddle knives of the prarie. It was said a youth of the Wagon Peoples was taught the bow, the quiva, and the lance before their parents would consent to give them a name, for names are precious among the the Wagon Peoples, as among goreans in general, and they are not to be waisted on one who is likely to die, one who cannot handle the weapons of the hunt and war. Until the youth has mastered the bow, the quiva, and the lance he is simply known as first, or the second, and so on , son of such and such a father."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 10-11~

"Tuchuk women, unveiled, in their long leather dresses, long hair bound in braids, tended cooking pots hung on tem-wood tri-pods over dung fires. These women were unscarred, but like the bosk themselves, each wore a nose ring. That of the animals is heavy and of gold, that of the women also of gold but tiny and fine, not unlike the wedding rings of my old world."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 27~

"...free women, incidentally, among the Wagon Peoples are not permitted to wear silk; it is claimed by those of the Wagons delightfully I think, that any women who loves the feel of silk of silk on her body is, in the secrecy of her heart and blood , a slave girl, whether or not some Master has yet forced her to don the collar."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 58~

"She was not as the other women of the Wagon Peoples I had seen, the dour, thin women with braided hair, bending over the cooking pots. She wore a brief leather skirt, slit on the right side to allow her the saddle of the kaiila, her leather blouse was sleeveless; attached to her shoulders was a crimson cape; and her wild black hair was bound back by a band of scarlet cloth. Like the other women of the Wagons she wore no veil and, like them, fixed in her nose was the tiny, fine ring that proclaimed her people."

"'.......She seemed much different than the other Tuchuk women' I said...
Kamchak laughed, the colored scars wrinkling on his broad face, 'Of course,' said Kamchak, she has been raised to be a fit prize in the games of Love War"

~Nomads of Gor pg. 32 and 33~

"Among the Wagon Peoples, to be clad Kajir means, for a girl, to wear four articles, two red two black; a red cord, the Curla, is tied about the waist; the Chatka, or long , narrow strip of black leather, fits over the cord in front, passes under, and then again, from the inside, passes over the cord in back; the chatka is drawn tight; the Kalmack is then donned; it is a short sleeveless vest of black leather; lastly the koora, a strip of red cloth, matching the Curla, is wound about the head, to hold the hair back, for slave women, among the Wagon Peoples, are not permitted to braid, or otherwise dress their hair; it must be, save for the koora, worn loose. for a male slave or Kajirus, of the Wagon Peoples, and there are few, save for the work chains, to be clad Kajir means to wear the Kes, a short, sleeveless work tunic of black leather."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 30~

"The Wintering was not unpleasant, although, even so far north, the days and nights were often quite chilly; the Wagon Peoples and their slaves as well, wore boskhide and furs during this time; both male and female, slave or free, wore furred boots and trousers, coats and the flopping, ear-flapped caps that tied under the chin; in this time there was often no way to mark the distinction between the free woman and the slave girl, save that the hair of the latter must needs be unbound; in some cases of course, the Turian collar was visible, if work on the outside of the coat, usually under the furred collar; the men too, fee and slave were dressed similarly, save that the Kajiri, or he-slaves wore shackles, usually with a run of about a foot of chain."

~Nomads of Gor, pg. 59~

"The women in bondage present, who served us, each wore four golden rings on each ankle, and each wrist, locked on, which clashed as they walked or moved, adding their sound to the slave bells that had been attached to their Turian collars, and that hung from their hair; the ears of each, too, had been pierced and from each ear hung a tiny slave bell. The single garment of these women was the Turian Camisk. I do not know particularly why it is called a camisk, save that it is a simple garment for a female slave. The common camisk is a single piece of cloth, about eighteen inches wide, thrown over the girls head and worn like a poncho. It usually falls a a bit above the knees in front and back and is belted with a cord our chain. The Turian camisk, on the other hand, if it were to be laid out on the floor, would appear somewhat like an inverted "T" in which the bar of the "T": would be beveled on each side. It is fastened with a single cord. The cord binds the girl at three points, behind the neck, behind the back, and in front at the waist. The garment itself, as might be supposed, fastens behind the girls neck passes before her, passes between her legs, and is then lifted and, folding the two side of the T`s bar about her hips, ties in front. The Turian camisk, unlike the common camisk, will cover the girls brand; on the other hand, unlike the common camisk, it leaves the back uncovered and can be tied, and is, snugly, the better to disclose the girls beauty."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 90~

"The Turian collar lies loosely on the girl, a round ring; it fits so loosely that, when grasped in a man's fist, the girl can turn within it; the common Gorean collar, on the other hand, is flat, snugly fitting steel band. Both collars lock in the back, behind the girls neck. The Turian collar is more difficult to engrave, but it, like the flat collar, will bear some legend assuring that the girl, if found, will be promptly returned to her Master."

~Nomads of Gor, pg 19~

Their Standards & Brands

"The brand of the Tuchuk slave, incidentally, is not the same as that used in the cities, which for girls is the first letter of the expression Kajira in cursive script, but the sign of the four bosk horns, that of the Tuchuk standard, the brand of the four bosk horns, set in a manner to somewhat resemble the letter H, is only about an inch high."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 62~

"'Look!' he screamed leaping up and down And I looked and saw suddenly and my heart stopped beeting and then I uttered a wild cry for from the left, ridimg with the Thousands sweeping over the hils, i saw the standard of the Yellow Bow, and on the right, flying forward with the hurtling Thousands, its leather streaming behind its pole, I saw the standard of the Three-Weighted Bola.

'Kataii!' screamed Harold, hugging me. 'Kassars!'

I stood dumbfounded on the planking and saw the two great wedges of the Kataii and the Kassars close like tongs on the trapped Paravaci..."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 264~

"...the standard of the Kataii is a yellow bow, bound across a black lance; their brand is also that of a bow, facing to the left;

~Nomads of Gor p. 106~

"..the Paravaci standard is a large banner of jewels beaded on golden wires, forming the head and horns of a bosk its value is incalculable; the Paravaci brand is a symbolic representation of a bosk head, a semicircle resting on an inverted isoceles triangle."

~Nomads of Gor p. 106~

Ceremonies, Rituals and Festivals

"The games of the Love War are celebrated every spring...whereas the Omen Year occurs only every tenth year."

~Nomads of Gor, pg 115~

" 'It is the Omen Year,' had said Kamchak of the Tuchuks....It is in the spring that the omens are taken, regarding the possible election of the Ubar San, the One Ubar, he who would be Ubar of all the Wagons, of all the Peoples."

~Nomads of Gor, pg 55~

"The animals sacrificed, incidentally, are later used for food, so the Omen taking, far from being a waste of animals, is actually a time of feasting and plenty for the Wagon Peoples, who regard the Omen taking, provided it results that no Ubar San is to be chosen, as an occasion for gaiety and festival. As I may have mentioned, no Ubar San had been chosen for more than a hundred years."

~Nomads of Gor, pg 171~

" ' This is the first Omen, said Kamchak, '--the Omen to see if the Omens are propitious to take the Omens.' "

~Nomads of Gor, pg 172~

" Conrad spoke. 'The Omens have been taken, ' he said. 'They have been read well, ' said Hakimba. 'For the first time in more than a hundred years,' said the Paravaci, 'there is a Ubar San, a One Ubar, Master of the Wagons!'... 'Kamchak,' they cried, 'Ubar San!' "

~Nomads of Gor, pg. 334~

"The institution of Love War is an ancient one among the Turians and the Wagon Peoples...The games of the Love War are celebrated every spring..."

~Nomads of Gor, pg. 115~

"The theoretical justification of the games of the Love War, from the Turian point of view, is that they provide an excellent arena in which to demonstrate the fierceness and prowess of Turian warriors, thus perhaps intimidating or, at the very least, encouraging the often overbold warriors of the Wagon Peoples to be wary of Turian steel."

~Nomads of Gor, pg. 116~

"As I knew, not just any girl, any more than just any warrior, could participate in the games of the Love War. Only the most beautiful were eligible, and only the most beautiful of these could be chosen."

~Nomads of Gor, pg. 117~

"Suddenly the Tuchuk bent to the soil and picked up a handful of dirt and grass, the land on which the bosk graze, the land which is the land of the Tuchuks, and this dirt and this grass he thrust in my hands and I held it. The warrior grinned and put his hands over mine so that our hands, together held the dirt and grass, and were together clasped upon it. 'Yes,' said the warrior, 'come in peace to the Land of the Wagon Peoples."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 26~

"'You would risk,' I asked, 'the herds the wagons the peoples?....' 'Yes,' said Kamchak. 'Why?' I asked. He looked at me and smiled.'Because,' said he, 'we have together held grass and earth'"

~Nomads of Gor, pg. 52~

"'He is a stranger,' she said. 'He should be slain!' Kamchak grinned up at her. 'He has held with me dirt and earth,' he said."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 32~

"He grinned a Tuchuck grin. 'How are the Bosk?' He asked.

'As well as may be expected,' said Kamchak.

'Are the Quivas sharp?'

'One tries to keep them so,' said Kamchak.

'It is important to keep the axles of the wagons greased,' observed Kutaituchik.

'Yes,' said Kamchak, 'I believe so.'

Kutaituchik suddenly reached out and he and Kamchak, laughing, clasped hands."

~Nomads of Gor pg. 44~