> This time I have a request on info about the dog-people of Balazar (and
> the cat-people of Dragon Pass).
The best source for the Votanki of Balazar is probably the boxed campaign Griffin Island. This has good info not in the original (but long out of print) Griffin Mountain.
The Votanki are hunter-gatherers, living in small groups (a hearth averages 4-8 people). They are members (by matrilineal descent) of totemic clans, which gather in the winter in huts. During the rest of the year, they live in skin tents, and migrate after the herds.
Some Votanki have settled in the three citadels, worship Yelmalio [this may not be true since the Great Elmal Schism], wear cloth (instead of skins) and raise pigs. Elkoi practices some agriculture, and brews beer (which some think is a mild poison).
The Votanki are not dog hsunchen.
As for the Dragon Pass cat-people, I think they're called Orlanthi. The Orlanthi seem not to be very fond of dogs (according to King of Sartar), though it seems likely they do use them to help with herding. (And in East Ralios, I think they have wolfhounds to deal with the Telmori.) Probably the dogs are domesticated but not domestic -- they don't live in the house (unless the herd animals are also brought in, like in cold winters). Cats would be domestic pets, kept to kill pesky rodents, and used somewhat in hunting.
I don't agree with Peter M that the Yinkini are cat hsunchen. Perhaps they were once, but they no longer practice hsunchen ways.
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