The Tenakth tribe is a major human tribe briefly mentioned in the 2017 video game Horizon Zero Dawn, and later one of the three main tribes alongside the Utaru and Quen in its 2022 sequel Horizon Forbidden West.
A tribe mostly comprised of battle-hardened warriors within the Clan Lands in the Forbidden West, the Tenakth were embroiled in a six-centuries war, known as the Clan Wars, with three of the Clans fighting in the past over the control of the Memorial Grove. However, Hekarro would soon reunify the Tenakth into one, after seeing Anne Faraday's recording, thus establishing peace between the clans and later the formerly hostile tribes, including the Utaru and the Carja.
History[]
Formation[]
The Tenakth are descended from ELEUTHIA-9's population, like the majority of other known tribes. The Mojave Battlefield Memorial Museum's ruins, known as the Memorial Grove, served as their starting point. The museum's holographic displays were buggy and lacking even in the early Tenakth days. But it was from these manifestations, which the Tenakth called "Visions," that they learnt of JTF-10, whom they dubbed "the Ten," and based on their interpretations, developed a feeling of honour and obligation.
The Tenakth split into the Desert, Sky, and Lowland clans, each of which entered a long-running conflict for control of the Clan Lands and the Grove, which was sacred to each of them. Beyond this and the time of their founding, just one event in their past is known: during the rule of the 9th Sun-King Ranan, who personally led his army against them, the tribe once assaulted the Sundom. Despite disfiguring Ranan horrifically and permanently, the Tenakth horde was ultimately routed by the Carja.
Unification as One[]
The Lowland Clan took control of the Memorial Grove on the day GAIA self-destructed. The rogue subordinate function AETHER infiltrated a server beneath the grove as the Lowland Commander Hekarro stood by himself to avoid GAIA's sacrifice. In response to the struggle against machines, Anne Faraday called for unity and peace in a Vision never previously seen by the Tenakth. Hekarro was drastically altered by the projection, despite it only appearing once.
Hekarro gave up the war that had ruled the Tenakth for generations after realising Faraday's vision and worked to bring the clans together in preparation for conflict with machines. Through his efforts, the three clans formed a tense alliance, with Hekarro serving as Chief and governing over them all. A competition known as the "Kulrut" was used to choose the Marshals who would serve as the Tenakth's overall peacekeepers.
The Tenakth would benefit from this newly discovered togetherness during the Red Raids, as no tribe had more success fending off the invading Carja than them. One such success was when the Tenakth took control of the Daunt for the remainder of the Red Raids after destroying Barren Light, the fort at the westernmost edge of the Sundom. Hekarro declined to advance further into the Sundom because he knew the cost to his people would be too great.
Regalla's Rebellion[]
Hekarro agreed to Avad's requests after the Liberation of Meridian and shared the new Sun-desire King's for an everlasting peace. Some, however, found it difficult to accept this development. One of them was Hekarro's most powerful Marshal, Regalla, who tried in vain to topple Hekarro. A number of Embassies were held over the course of the next two years, during which the Tenakth would exchange artefacts they had seized during the War for food, weaponry, or other valuable resources.
In one embassy, the Tenakth consented to give Fashav, a Carja prisoner who had become a Tenakth Marshal in order to survive, back to the Sundom. However, Regalla, who had gathered an army of both soldiers and override robots, attacked the Embassy. The Marshals were completely unprepared and outnumbered; as a result, the most of them perished along with the Carja of the Embassy. This signalled the start of Regalla's uprising and the restart of the intertribal conflict.
In one embassy, the Tenakth consented to give Fashav, a Carja prisoner who had become a Tenakth Marshal in order to survive, back to the Sundom. However, Regalla, who had gathered an army of both soldiers and override robots, attacked the Embassy. The Marshals were completely unprepared and outnumbered; as a result, the most of them perished along with the Carja of the Embassy. This signalled the start of Regalla's uprising and the restart of the intertribal conflict.
Hekarro requested Aloy's assistance in persuading Tekotteh of the Sky Clan to send his challengers and to block Regalla, whom he anticipated attacking during the Kulrut, in exchange for access to AETHER. Hekarro needed to host the Kulrut to replace his dead Marshals. Despite sending an army of machines to invade the arena, Regalla was ultimately forced to leave. The identical Vision of the Ten that Hekarro had seen then appeared as a result of Aloy's acquisition of AETHER, rallying his supporters behind his desire for peace.
Once more, Aloy's support would play a crucial role in shifting the balance in the loyalists' favour. Hekarro's forces were able to retake what appeared to be a lost battle after Regalla's final attack on the Grove when the outlander arrived on a Sunwing and defeated the rebel's army of machines in a single blow. This effectively put an end to the rebellion.
Members[]
- Hekarro (chief; member of the main Tenakth)
Marshals[]
- Chekkatah
- Fashav
- Ivvira
- Javveh
- Kenirra
- Kotallo
- Regalla (formerly)
- Sentekka
- Vintalla
- Zekotto
Members[]
Trivia[]
- The Tenakth tattooing method, which involves striking the tattooing tool with a wooden mallet, is unmistakably influenced by the Polynesian cultures.
External Links[]
- Tenkath on the Horizon Wiki
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Artificial Intelligences Nora Carja Oseram Banuk Tenakth Members Utaru Project Zero Dawn Alphas The Base Team Old Ones | ||