Gualaguala

Gualaguala, sister island to Aconcagua and much like it, is the southernmost part of Tamoanchan's South District. It is just as rugged and poor but a little less barren, and its richer wildlife lets the Chono gather in bigger groups and settle more permanently than their semi-nomadic kin on Aconcagua. There is some real farming, and one settlement large enough to call a village, Tagua. Most camps on both islands are short-lived and hold only a few families, but Tagua houses several dozen small families in a ring of domed huts made of bone and hide, surprisingly comfortable even to visitors.

Outside the village stands the Shaman House, home of the High Shaman of the Chono, who counsels and teaches anyone seeking help. Close by is Achacala, the sacred monolith at the heart of Chono religion on both islands, dedicated to the Old God Og and encircled by mastodon bones honoring Hawwa; inside the ring a shaman's power is believed to grow enormously. Since time out of mind the Chono have worshipped the Old Gods at this spot, and they still perform every ritual at this ancient seat of power. Druids, clerics, witches and other magic-users can feel the shrine's power, but only a shaman of the Old Gods is said to understand it fully, and only a Chono shaman attuned to it can unleash its full might. Chono shamans are easy to recognize: their neanderthaloid faces are free of hair but painted with broad black, white and gray stripes.