Characters:Factions:Keepers of the Yeti Spirit

The Order of the Keepers calls itself, officially, the Keepers of the Spirit of the Yeti. That name is the Manish rendering of their Half-Elvish name. Human adherents, particularly those with well-developed senses of humor, are more florid about naming the Order. Other names include "The Order of the Mystic Yeti", "The Keepers of the Mystic Spirit", "The Children of the Yeti's Spirit", and the most common of the florid appelations: "The Blessed Order of the Children and the Keepers of the Sacred Spirit of the Mystic Yeti." This final appelation was invented by a Human abbot now known as Mithel the Laughing.

All proper names for the Order include the word Spirit, when referencing the Yeti. Thus, "The Order of the Keepers of the Yeti" is a misnomer because it implies that yetis are physically kept by the order. Nothing could be farther from the truth. (The 'zoo' is a purely, and disgustingly, Human invention, which rural Half-Elves deplore.) The Order can only be found to be in 'possession' of a yeti when a young yeti is found in the wild and is either sick or injured. Then, the Order takes the creature in, seeks to restore it to health, and then releases it again.

The behavior of the Order is difficult to classify. Its members can be either monastic or itinerant, as well as either shamanic or philosophical in their pursuit of the Yeti's mystic traits. There are those like Rhayne Frostbloom who pursue the yeti in art and are not officially members of the Order despite the fact that they worship the yeti. Shamanic 'students', as members of the Order call themselves, are mostly likely to be found in the wild. They view the yeti as a totem animal and invoke its power when it is needed. Many of the Half-Elvish students choose this path or the path of the artist. Both of these paths allow Half-Elvish folk to express their magickal abilities and creativity. Yeti shamans are sometimes found in the company of Rangers. The two Orders have similar ways of viewing the world, the woods, and their duties in it.

Human members of the Order tend toward a philosophical and metaphysical study of the yeti. Because Humans have little or no control over the deep currents of the world, they focus instead on cultivating those qualities which they attribute to the yeti. The disciplines studied by Human yetins are varied and include woodcraft, unarmed combat, physical and mental strength, moral virtue, visual and performed art, herb lore, and singing. Singing, however, is not actually thought to be an ability of the Yeti. It is interpolated from Half-Elvish practice and very common for the Yetins of both races. The same can also be said of Rangers. Singing is a skill for which the wise traveller should be watchful. A Human who has mastered his own voice and associates readily with Half-Elves is probably a Ranger, a Yetin, or both.

The local outpost of Yetin thought is known as the Abbey of Shining Mist, though it reaches further outward through the mountain hamlet of Arynsval. The abbot's hut is located near Arynsval.

One of the more noteworthy sects within the Yetin order is called the Lineage of Malad. The Maladrim, or Children of Malad, are werebeasts of predominately Human ancestry. They follow the example of their founder Malad Ursan in drawing upon the wisdom the Yetis and the mercy of the Powers to cope with their bestial tendencies. Several of the Yetins at the Abbey of Shining Mist are also Maladrim. Lesteph Brighteyes and Luran Waterpaw are among them.