The Nefantar Tribe is one of the seven Minmatar tribes. Coming to be known as Ammatar during the years of Amarr rule, the name Nefantar has now been reclaimed by those returning to the Republic in the wake of the Elder Fleet Invasion.
Politics[]
The tribal leaders of the Nefantar Tribe, during the occupation of the Minmatar people, most famous action was the secret moving of the remnants of the Starkmanir Tribe though this wasn't known until the discovery of the Starkmanir that their actions became known. Though many believed the Nefantar were traitors to their own people and, even today, the Nefantar still feel the stigma of the their ancestors actions.
Today, the Nefantar Tribe is a newly formed tribe that currently has not elected a tribal leader yet. They, also, face legal troubles with many Minmatar organizations about claims of leadership and of ancestral lands on Matar.
Culture[]
Traditionally the Nefantar Tribe was the second largest among the Minmatar. They enjoyed their great influence and prestige among the Minmatar tribes. However, much of their tribal culture has disappeared as they have fully embraced the Amarr faith and customs.
Traditionally the Nefanatar Tribe was not as nomadic as other Minmatar tribes, with one exception the Wayfarer Clans. Wayfarer Clans were families that traveled extensively, often only returning once every few generations. One of these clans mapped the entire Immensea over the course of six generations, though their name has since been lost to history. After the Amarr conquest had begun, returning Wayfarer Clans were shocked at the change of fortune their people had experienced. Uncomfortable with their tribe's role in this new order, many simply headed out again to never return. If any still exist, they probably are the last beacons of true Nefantar culture left.
History[]
The Nefantar had a proud history until the Amarr Empire came. They famously became collaborators for the Amarr Empire, but in doing so to protect the remnants of the Starkmanir Tribe. After the Elder War, the Nefantar Tribe has experienced a rebirth with many leaving the Ammatar Mandate for the Minmatar Republic.
Origins[]
The Nefantar Tribe originated in the Tronhadar Delta on the continent of Houdea on Matar. Early in their history, they had a conflict with the Krusual Tribe which eventually comsumed most of the Minmatar tribes into the conflict. After the clan wars, a planetary peace prevailed which lasted well into to the Space Age.
When the Starkmanir decided to relocate, the Nefantars' power only grew as the Starkmanir became more and more absorbed with their own issues. While they did use this influence to claim the Hjoramold system, the Nefantar Tribe as a whole didn't move, preferring instead to hold on to their new found prominence on Matar.
Day of Darkness[]
First contact, referred as the Day of Darkness, with the Amarr was met with fear among the Minmatar, who were invade and enslaved. Nefantar leadership was torn whether or not to retreat to the safer space of Hjoramold, but leaving would make them appear cowardice to the other Minmatar tribes. Though Hjoramold was not going to be safe for long, many of the Nefantar elites suggested moving so it could buy them some time, believing they could determine how to defeat the Amarr or defend their kin already in Hjoramold. The chief made the final decision which was to stay on Matar, however some members of the aristocracy became very bitter over the decision not to move the rest of the tribe.
The disenfranchised members of the Nefantar elite began working with the Amarr to ensure the exemption of their families as the raids continued. Over the next one hundred twenty-five years, these families became some of the most powerful on Matar, and any opposition that arose would usually disappear on the next outbound slave ship. In the year 22480 AD, the Nefantar finally moved their capital to Hjoramold VII. After their move, the Amarr invaded Matar.
Aftermath the Amarr Conquest[]
Having moved the rest of the Nefantar leadership to Hjoramold, a great purge was begun there. Every Minmatar not of their tribe was enslaved as the Nefantar committed themselves to the Amarr faith. They willingly abandoned a great number of their traditions, claiming they had progressed beyond the old social structure of the Minmatar tribes. This impressed Emperor Damius III that he granted the Amarr governor of the Ani constellation only basic powers over the Nefantar. In a speech announcing this favored status, the Emperor alluded to the Nefantar poetically as 'Ammatar'. The word was quickly picked by the Minmatar slaves as a derogatory term to the tribe for their betrayal of their brethren.
The Amarr poured a great deal of wealth into the Ani constellation in an attempt to help the Nefantar build up their infrastructure which included research centers, stations, trading hubs, hospitals and cultural buildings. The Nefantar inclination towards establishing and developing fixed centers of trade combined with Amarr underwriting soon led to an accumulation of vast amounts of wealth that the tribe hoarded in various locations.
The first crack in the relationship between the Nefantar and their Amarr overlords came in 22762 AD with the secession of the Khanid Kingdom. The destruction of Starkman Prime in 22947 AD drove the crack further, and the Nefantar leadership, unbeknownst to the rest of the tribe, began moving the remaining members of the Starkmanir tribe to their holds to provide shelter and protection. Papers were forged, strong-arming and coercion were used as the Nefantar acquired a great number of Starkmanir slaves, hiding them as slaves in their holdings. The Nefantar would later claim the protection of the Starkmanir as their primary motivation for siding with the Amarr during the Minmatar Rebellion, and the Elders confirmed they approved the plan.
Minmatar Rebellion[]
While many small attempts had been made at rebellion before, the destruction of Starkman Prime heightened and intensified incidents of unrest throughout the Amarr Empire. Ironically, the Nefantar played a role in fermenting this unrest by exporting Minmatar with the most signs of dissidence to all corners of the Empire, and hiding the fact that a fair number of Starkmanir actually did survived in their holdings. It took two hundred sixty-nine years for the spark set by Drupar Maak to ignite into the Minmatar Rebellion.
The Amarr answered the Nefantar plea for help by sending their largest battleship, the Reclamation. Initially the Amarr force swept aside whole squadrons of rebel ships, and the governor of Ani, Lord Basad, used the brief respite granted by the Reclamation's arrival to construct a formidable fortress in orbit around Hjoramold VII.
The tide turned quickly for the pro-Empire forces, but a double agent lured the Nefantar tribal leader to a remote location in the Uriok system to assassinatee him. This act caused a massive disruptive acts among those slaves still held in slavery, and days later a saboteur succeeded in destroying the Reclamation in the Traun system.
With the threat of the Reclamation gone, the rebel fleet turned back towards Hjoramold; the Nefantar prepared to evacuate. They dismantled monuments and relics, and snuck them out of the system along with the remnants of the Starkmanir Tribe by avoiding jump gates. The fort constructed by Lord Basad came to be known as Lord Bastion during its valiant two month stand against the invading rebel forces. When it finally fell, the last of the Nefantar had left the Ani. The Nefantar Tribe relocated to the Derelik region.
In the aftermath of the Minmatar Rebellion, both the Amarr and the majority of the Nefantar were unaware of the deception the tribe's leadership had undertake with the Starkmanir. The relationship appeared stronger than ever, as their loyalty to the Empire was awared by granting the Nefantar their own semi-autonomous domain in Derelik. The Nefantar officially adopted the 'Ammatar', and the Ammatar Mandate was born.
Elder War and Rebirth[]
In YC 110, the secret the Ammatar leadership had been keeping was exposed to New Eden when the Sisters of EVE announced the discovery of a large population of Starkmanir living within the Mandate. Oddly, the news heralded not only the resurrection of the Starkmanir Tribe, but of the Nefantar Tribe as well. While the Elder Fleet carried out its coordinated attacks designed to liberate the Starkmanir, Ammatar Consulate Governor Ana Utulf encouraged her people to go with them. Many did from slaves and commoners to slave-owners and members of the Ammatar Navy. In fact, it was the Ammatar Fleet defectors who were the first to altered their ship transponder signals to identify themselves as “Nefantar Tribe” vessels.
Nefantar, today, face many challenges. Their ancestral lands, unlike that of the Thukker and Starkmanir on Matar held in trust, had no accommodation for the Nefantar. Court cases, land disputes, and religious tensions have made it difficult for the Nefantar refugees and the integration of the tribe with the Republic.
As of YC113, the Nefantar tribe had still not chosen a chief.