Banuk
Animistic nomads of the north, the Banuk split off from the other tribes while fleeing from the Ravenous Tribe, likely a reference to the early Tenakth. Like the Nora, their tradition is oral, leading to similar fuzziness around their true origins. Banuk value independence and personal responsibility, expecting all to “survive and prevail”, even if that means sacrificing everything else.
Like the other tribes, Banuk lands were encroached by the Carja during the Red Raids, leading to many Banuk shamans being captured and taken back to Meridian to aid in hunting machines to slaughter in the Sun-Ring. This led to even more disdain for interacting with other tribes, which is only just now beginning to wane.
Culture
While others would label the Banuk as isolationist, they would likely say they just don’t want to waste the effort of getting to know someone who isn’t cut out to endure. Prove you can survive and thrive in the beautiful, frozen north, and you will earn their attention and respect.
Banuk are organized into “weraks” — something of a cross between an extended family or clan, and a large nomadic hunting party. Each werak has a chieftain working in concert with a shaman, and members apply based on their deeds, and are only accepted after enduring one or more trials to prove their hardiness. Any challenger may compete with the chieftain to take the position, though the standing chieftain has advantage in the competition.
Shamans are the spiritual leaders of the Banuk, following an animistic view of the machines which believes they have souls of “Blue Light”, which may be influenced, corrupted, and even taken in by humans. Shaman succession is closer to a master-apprentice relationship, with sufficient advancement earning a place on The Conclave. Not much is known of the Conclave beyond its presence as a group of elder shamans, and that it meets at a secret place in Ban-Ur known as the Malmstrom.
Banuk shamans are also known for weaving machine parts into their flesh, often leaving blue cable visible to mark their status. It is implied, though never explicitly stated, that these augmentations may be more than decorative. Shamans are known to be able to “sense” nearby machines, or to intuit the intentions of machines in ways similar to someone with a Focus device. Stories of their most famous ancestor, Banukai, speak of the abilities she gained by such augmentation, though it did eventually lead to her death.
Geography
The Frozen Wilds grants access to The Cut, which is the south-most end of Ban-Ur “lost” to the Red Raids. This area includes much of Yellowstone, including the Grand Prismatic Spring, and the borders of modern-day Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Some liberties were taken with real-world geography, especially with the placement of The Cut relative to the other landmarks in Nora Sacred Lands, specifically All-Mother Mountain (Pike’s Peak) and the Air Combat (Force) Academy.
While the rest of Ban-Ur is not seen in-game, it is mentioned that it is due north from The Cut. This, along with the description of Ban-Ur being frozen and mountainous, implies Ban-Ur likely encompasses what is now Glacier National Park. The real-world distance between Pike’s Peak and the Grand Prismatic Spring is ~650mi (ca. 1,000km), while the distance to Glacier National Park from the Springs is ~380mi (ca. 600km) — a plausible in-game distance to a capital city from the border of its lands.
“The Malmstrom” may reference the ruins of Malmstrom Air Force Base in Great Falls, Montana. It is supposed to be a month’s march from the heartland of Ban-Ur, which might imply that the heartland is even farther than Glacier National Park — possibly as far north as Banff.
Banuk in Skyline
Like the Nora, Banuk should not be considered intellectually inferior due to their animistic views or nomadic lifestyle. Quite the opposite — the machine-sensitivity of Banuk shamans has allowed them to adapt technologies in ways beyond even the industrial Oseram. For example, Banuk have been known to use machine augurs to carve holes in frozen-over lakes and rivers to get at the fish below.
On the other hand, not all Banuk should be assumed to share the animistic spirituality of shamans — Banuk hunters are just as likely as any outlander to doubt the existence of the Blue Light. Similarly, some Banuk shamans may choose to accept the benefits of machine augmentation without subscribing to the animism — each may have followed their own path to the spiritualism they share with their werak.