Insula De Virsta: Kouzelheks Tribe History
The Kouzelheks are a tribe of witches, men and women who can channel magic. Their ancestry is human. Channeling a great deal of magic can take a toll on their minds, particularly the witches who deal in darker magic. They age slower; witches could potentially be immortal if they don't cast their magic gregariously.

The Witches Calendar is based on the cycles of the moon. The full moon begins the new month.

There are two forms of magic that the Kouzelheks study. Kouzelnice is the study of light magic, with a focus on magic within the natural world, balanced and fair handed. Heksenketel is the study of dark magic. Dark magic is very chaotic. Few witches willingly choose to study it, though some are simply born skilled at it.

The witches believe in balance beyond anything else. The balance is not maintained stricly by numbers; though one Heksenketel witch is the balance of two to three Kouzelnice witches depending on the level of their strength. It's considered a bad tiding when there are more Heksenketel than Kouzelnice; it's an indication of unrest or some trouble soon to come.

Witches study both Kouzelnice and Heksenketel until the age of 13 at which point they pick one over the other and continue their studies strictly to that practice. This is called pledging. A pledged witch has more weight in society. Pledging is a sacred ceremony that takes place at the witches altar, near the lake. Pledged witches may make any number of sacrifices or recommitments at the altar until they attain their full power. All witches are trained in altar ceremony and the importance it bears.

Most witches have red hair at birth, which turns black when they gain their full power. Some births are unwitches, incapable of attaining their full power. This is usually flagged with blonde hair, though some red-headed witches are unwitches as well. They can do some minor hearth magic, though some unwitches are unable to do any magic at all.

The witches believe in celebrating big moments. Every witch birth is a huge celebration, as well as the attaining of a witch's full power. It is a rite of passage. There are even somber celebrations at the death of a witch.

When a witch develops her full power she chooses a witches name. This is the name that she is called in public or ceremony to recognize her special power. Witches at home may still call her by her given name.

There are male witches, but because of certain genetics they are often far weaker, resembling a pledged female even at their full power. They are still considered important to society, but do not typically carry enough weight to make decisions. Fidelis is an exception to this, an unusual boy born both powerful and gifted in Heksenketel magic.

The tribal leader is selected by her predecessor. She selects the next leader before she passes. She is not always the oldest or wisest, often being the most favored. The head witch is not always the tribal leader. They are two separate positions of power. The Head witch leads the morning weather ritual and attends most ceremonies and pledgings. The tribal leader attends tribal councils meetings and makes decisions which affect the tribe. Currently the head witch and tribal leader are one in the same.

The witches are instrumental in the weather of the island. They control the wind and rain, temperature, and clouds. Each morning they stand before the circular lake and call forth the elements. The witches prefer springtime temperatures and like to maintain the island between 65 and 75 degrees. It usually rains once a week to water crops, more so when they warm the island up.

The witches hold that they were the first established tribe on the island, however this is contested strongly (and is in fact untrue). The witches did help other tribes form, such as the intelligent animals. There are not many left, but they did gift several species with thought and speech.

As a sign of respect a witch will touch the door frame upon entrance to another witches house. A witch will not touch another witches broom or personal altar, any of her equipment without first asking permission.

Some witches use tools such as the runes or tarot to help channel their power. Others scrye flame, mirrors, and water. Some witches choose not to divine altogether and simply practice with potions and spells. All witches keep a personal spellbook, copying spells from her mentors and inventing her own.

Upon death a witch is sent out into the lake via the Northen River. She is placed in a small boat with her broom, and any personal belongings she wishes. Some witches choose to take their spellbooks as well, but most leave them to their loved ones or the tribe. The head witch often has possession of unclaimed books that were left behind. Once in the boat and on the water, her body is burned, the perfect union of elements. If her soul is strong and connected to the land she will become a ghost and rest on the Star Island.

The witches lead the tribal council. They also have a hand in most sacrificial ceremonies, even for tribes not their own. They have a deal with the Nghrau, who patrol the Island at night to ensure that everyone is safe; it is a shaky truce that has the vampires bristling with resentment.

A witches vocabularly:

The darkening: when a witch's hair turns from red to black. This signals that she has reached the height of her power.

The lightening: when a witch's hair turns from black to red, or red to blonde. This is an indication that she is losing power, or has lost her inner balance.

Inner balance: a sacred balance that all witches must maintain. Usually through meditation a witch can find her balance (and each witch's balance is different; it is not something that can be taught, rather a technique learned and applied individually).

Full moon ritual: a ritual that can only be done on the full moon. These include the first initiation and first pledging.

New moon ritual: a ritual that can only be done on the new moon. These include the Poder Macht (done after the darkening).

First initiation: After birth a few years pass before a witch can be taught magic on a curriculum level. The first initiation is performed when a child is ready to learn. It is a private ceremony between child, parent(s) and head witch.

Pledging: a witch can pledge any number of times. It is done in an altar ritual and can be done at any time barring that the altar is not being used by another witch, or if it is the first pledging. Pledging is a short ceremony and not considered terribly private, though some witches will insist a degree of privacy.

Poder Macht: the full rites. This ritual is performed when a witch gains her full power (and thusly her hair darkens). This is a public ceremony. Most, if not all of the tribe attends to see a witch become a full member of society. During the Poder Macht a witch picks her witch's name.

Weather ritual: this is the daily, morning ritual that all of the full powered witches partake in. They sing facing Estrella island and call forth the weather for the day. If a daily ritual is missed the weather is usually chaotic and errant. Only a Heksenketel witch can easily balance it back out for the next day's ritual. There have been periods of time when there was no Heksenketel witch, however the head witch has always been particularly careful during these times to send at least one witch to perform the ritual.

Availability: Very open, bearing in mind that men are less powerful than women and the pbs must have red or black hair. The witch's tribe is very large.