Shuri
The Shuri (ʃɜ:ʳ.i:) caste is the most magically talented caste of the middle Danaij castes. As Danaij magic is a divine gift, the Shuri maintain the temples to the dark gods and become masters of dark elementalism.
The Shuri do not divide themselves into houses like the Vana, Shan, or Chau, instead they are more of an organization based in the Forsaken Land's temples to the dark gods. Like the Vana, they have a strict focus on bloodlines and breeding, but rather than breeding for pure Danaij, they focus on creating the most powerful dark dlementalists. Marriages are rare in the Shuri, and when they do happen, it is purely for the sake of love than reproduction.
Instead, Shuri reproductive programs aim for affairs solely for the purpose of breeding more powerful elementalists. Within the temple, Shuri freely take each other as lovers and bear children with little concern for precise breeding. Any Shuri offspring who have a disappointing degree of magical talent are offered for marriage or training in the Shan, marriage into the Chau, or simply caste out to fend for themsleves.
Outside the temple, Shuri priests are more exacting with their choice of breeding partners. They often place themselves in concubinage to exemplary elementalists amongst the Vana, or make short-term breeding arrangements to produce a child for the Shuri. They also take note of any especially talented elementalists amongst the Shan to breed with.
Adoption into the Shuri is another common way that they grow their ranks. The concubines of Vana nobles are fertile ground for powerful elementalists and the Shuri frequently test the children of such unions for those that they can bring into the fold. The Shuri and Shan maintain a shared program in which Rothet can bring their children to for martial and magical testing, and those that pass are brought into the appropriate caste. Vauth are also frequently tested.
For some Vana, the Shuri provide an alternative to expectations that they cannot fulfill or salvation from house warfare. Survivors of houses that have been decimated in conflict can enter the Shuri and enjoy the protection of the priestly caste, but they cannot regain their previous rank. Vana-born individuals who would prefer to not engage in the political arena and instead focus on magical pursuits are also welcomed by the Shuri.
Appearance and Traits
The Shuri are hybridized, showing the various traits seen across the general Danaij populace, but they still tend toward the traits of the Vana as they are the Shuri's primary breeding partners, and many of their issue through concubines are taken into the Shuri.
Shuri also see longer lifespans with an average of 750 years.
