Jodes

The Jodes are one of the largest Nomad groups in North America, and a member of the Seven Nations.

History
The original Jode family came from Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas. They were not driven out by economic crisis, but by ecological crisis: as the agricultural lands died, the people who worked them began to die as well. In 1998, the great sandstorms obviated the possibility of anyone farming for quite a while, and those that had the strength began heading west towards California for no other reason than it seemed easier than going east through the more densely- populated areas of Collapse America. This mass of farming peoples (not yet organized in any fashion) drifted into Colorado and there, finding a place where they could rest, settled for a few months.

Life was harsh during this period for the people who would become the Jodes. They wanted nothing more than to rest a while, gather some food, and spend the coming autumn in relative peace. There was enough food to be gathered (if one knew where to look), and the families had to prepare for the crossing of the Rocky Mountains. The locals, however, were not pleased with the influx of hungry strangers. One evening, a few hundred locals mounted a raid to scatter these new refugees.

The farmers and townies that made up the travelers were no different from the farmers and townies who were coming to kill them. They were private people who kept to themselves and wanted no trouble, but they were also prepared if trouble came. Most of these families had basic hunting or protective arms of some sort, and since each understood that other people in America were in as bad a shape as they were, most groups of families had posted sentries. When the attackers struck in the night, they did not have the easy victory they had hoped for; the poorly planned raid fell apart rapidly, and the evening degenerated into a series of disjointed fire fights across the Colorado countryside. Nevertheless, surprise and concentration of firepower worked to the advantage of the raiders, and they withdrew without many casualties.



This unwarranted attack enraged the travelers, for over four hundred of their people were killed during the night The next day, Malachi, a man of God (or so it is told), came up with the idea that each family should send a representative to council. The representative should not be the most capable member of the family, whom he said should stay on watch in case the attackers returned, but someone trusted by all. That morning, one hundred and twenty refugees sat in council. Malachi, by virtue of having had the idea, chaired the meeting. All of them were tired, he said. They still had a long way to go to get to California, and yet what would they do once they arrived? He had heard of people who had lost their homes and livelihoods, as they had, forming a coalition to do jobs for the government-salvage work, irrigation projects, things many of them had done at home. He talked about defending themselves, protecting their children, and the hard winter to come. Malachi asked the representative to speak their minds on the issues at hand. Each, being men and women of few words, spoke succinctly. After about four hours it was clear that everyone present was in accord.

All wanted protection for their families, revenge on their attackers, and the freedom to leave this potential coalition when they felt the time was right Malachi replied that all their fears and wants were well-founded, and that they could meet these adversities together by signing a partnership. Great ideas should always be put to paper, he said; the Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution were written down for all to see. No one is sure who wrote the original version of the Compact; its origin is fast becoming a matter of folklore and legend. The wording is generally attributed to Malachi Jode, but he denies it But the agreement they signed the next day was simple, and was the basis and inspiration for the current Nomad Code town to repay the locals for their malicious attack, despite Malachi's objections to revenge. They did not plot an overt slaughter, as had been attempted on them. Rather, they planned to steal from the town their livelihood, leaving them without the resources to live through the winter. It did not go that way.
 * Protect your family first, then protect the Clan.
 * Steal nothing from the others in the Clan.
 * Hoard nothing that could benefit others in the Clan.

The town was a farming community of about two thousand. During the night, the nomads crept in and ransacked all the farms, stores, and homes they could reach. Several of the nomads got out of hand and killed for spite or vengeance, some raped and burned, and some kidnapped young men or women as was their taste. Of course, alert townsfolk fired on the nomads. After a few hours, events degenerated into total chaos. By morning, the nomads had killed a third of the populace, kidnapped many others, and looted everything of value from the town.

Malachi was furious, as were many of the other nomads. They realized that whatever law still existed would be looking for them soon, perhaps with the remnants of the National Guard. They did all they could considering the circumstances: they ran.

A week later, the Earthquake of '98 stripped Los Angeles of its status as a land of milk and honey. Initially, this distressed the nomads, but the more level-headed among them realized there might be work for them there, so they camped in a remote area and sent emissaries to speak with the authorities. As it turned out, the Jodes beat out two more experienced groups for the Los Angeles rebuilding contract, at that time the most lucrative deal that nomads had landed. In order to maintain good relations, the Jodes took the lion's share of the work, but let the more experienced Aldecaldo clan supervise the project and recruit additional labor as needed.

The Jodes worked hard and prospered in LA. After that contract ended, they moved into the Northwest, tilling burnt-out forest into fields. Some stayed in California working other construction jobs, and some joined their nomad brethren on the TransCon Maglev. In every field of endeavor, the Jodes have continued to prosper.

Despite this, the clan was shunned for a time by the rest of the nomads. Their roots were very different from most early nomads, and their ready acceptance of strangers made them suspect Many of the other clans felt the Jodes would become another gang, and make life more difficult for the rest of them. All of these fears turned out to be unfounded, but it took years For the Jodes to prove it to the rest of the nomads.

The name Yode" was not something that was adopted by the clan themselves, it was a reference to the Okies in the Steinbeck classic, The Gropes Of Wrath. First used in a CNN news-blurb in early 1998, the term was a general reference to the dispossessed of the dust bowls of that year, but with the clan's high profile in the rebuilding of LA, the name soon became synonymous with that particular group of nomads. After a while, some members co-opted the name for signing legal documents. The first was Malachi, who signed the name "Jode" on the contract with the City of Los Angeles. There are still debates whether his doing so was a prescient move or a tongue-in-cheek social statement.

Unlike other nomad groups, the Jodes have worked actively to reject the culture of the statics, and are very uncomfortable in what they perceive as "static" situations. Jode encampments are never found within the limits of a city. Many former superstitions have gained religious importance with the clan: the ghosts of the cw, the spirits of the open road, the zeitgeist, fear of imprisonment, and many more beliefs now shape their world view.

Subgroups

 * Technomancers