Anthropology
Bereg-arnadh – The ancient Eladrin art of drawing calligraphy
with a blade. Developed by the bodyguards of the legendary eladrin queen Suiradrun.
Practitioners of this arcane tradition inscribe magical, glowing characters of Rellanic
(Elven) script into the air with their blades. These hovering runes are charged
with arcane power from the calligrapher. Though they quickly fade. Only those
who practice the combat arts of sword and spell (developed by the eladrin
first) have any luck.[i]
Blood
Scion Heresy, The – Vampires have long attracted the eye of the petty nobility
and merchant classes across Continents for they represent the ageless grace
that money cannot buy. In Adventia and old Nerath, it is blood as a holy
sacrament that may grant eternal life to the righteous. High Preceptors and a
first among equals, higher Masked One govern vampire thralls. They say there
are no more than twenty-five vampires in a city to preserve feeding.[ii]
Brass Construct - The Sea of Ships and its coasts have
held up and cast down countless societies. To plunder the ruins below sand,
silt and sea, the artisans of just collapsed Nerath adapted the Warforge to the
task. Brass, not iron was their skin and refined shell was their internals. The
creation forge rests on an island apparatus, home to deranged nobles and their
crew. This apparatus nests on the sea floor or on subjugated islands. Eternally
seeking the treasures of the sea in a bid to finance their reconquest of land.[iii]
Court of Sorrows – On of the few groups of psionic
practitioners that use emotions instead of shunning them. They are much feared
and demanded for their manipulations. It is thought they lurk somewhere in the
Hundred Kingdoms but spend much of their time travelling to their next target.
They do not perform easily detected or flashy changes, but as a group, subtlety
work to influence susceptibility. Weakening their targets’ ability to resist
pressure from a seemingly innocent third party. They have no obvious use for
their pay.[iv]
Eastermen – Of the same Korlathi stock as the rest of
Adventia, the people in and to the east of the Hundred Kingdoms have absorbed
different sets of ancestors. Much less of Old Adventia and more from the Animal
Nomads. At one-point distant cousins or further. The eastern people, the Weens
or Weenies are not known from Antiquity, being tribal bands alongside central
Goons. It is only during the rise of Nerath that the Weenies began forming
kingdoms. Some as resettled clients like the Hill Cantons, others in the Land
of the Water Cat, dread Karkoth or merged like the Vidya Mountains.
Elven Merchant Fleets –
Originally starting as Elven Empire-sponsored conveys which mixed state
monopoly with diplomatic expedition. The first fleets sailed to Zakhara trading
tin to the copper-using first human polities. This great trade with Kadar stimulated
both states to new heights of craftsmanship and led to the Desert Elves first
settling Zakhara. Following the empire’s collapse, the fleets continued,
enriching the merchant houses of the Havens, and defining all corners of the
Known World by their passing. The ships take on crews and discharge them at the
end, allowing great entrepôts like Punjar, The Yellow City and Gulltown.
Elf, Wild – In the Spearwood,
forgotten northern edges of the Deepwoods and the Ironwood live those Elves
which bow to no master and exult in the wilderness. These folk were once
members of the Elvish Empire who cast off their ways to live as hunter
gatherers and warriors rather than be warped by the Great Enchantment. Such
people are called Grugach in their own language. They greatly distrust
outsiders and worship only the Primal Spirits of the Earth. They are experts
with traps, stealth and riding deer. Otherwise see Elves, non-Caste.[v]
Endon, Civil War – A conflict that has ravaged Endon
in this Age of Chaos. A succession crisis between two cousins, the Duke of
Wuffmark, the Black Falcon and Duke Leroy, returning from the Red Crusade under
the lion. Seasonal yet inconclusive battles and skirmishes caused much of the
land to be reduced to anarchy and independent woodsmen. Their sons fared no
better, and Wuffmark went so far as to declare a separate kingdom under the
short-lived Black Monarch until his brother’s betrayal. Banditry, magical and
mercenary forces carved out petty domains. Now the royal line contends with its
last claimants in the Deepwoods.[vi]
Goon or Goonish – See Northmen
Grave Callers – Death dirges ae a common musical
accompaniment, but they are usually sung after a death and not as part of one.
To do so is bad luck and some deliberately invoke this element. For it is often
rumored that a particular order of Adventine Assassins, known as Grave Callers
stalk, those they believe to prey upon the innocent. Announcing their presence
with deathly songs, as magical as fearful, to make them open for the kill.[vii]
Greentide – The wars in the northern Deepwoods between
the Elves and the Humanoids, with Goblinoids being the primary driving force.
This war started in the depth of Antiquity, where the Goblinoids began to
migrate into the sparely settled regions left by the Elven Empire, upending the
Northmen along the coast. So, every century the mass of humanoids has grown to
sweep over another stretch of hostile forest only to be driven from another. To
the elves this is a single fight requiring conscription of experienced adults.
This is why young elves wander far and return.[viii]
Halfings, Chaos – As secret society of Halflings
throughout the Hill Cantons. They believe in exemplifying the freedoms of
Avandra and so desire to tear down the hierarchs and lordships. Leading to just
as much banditry and infighting as communal steading. These bands are much
accused of being demon worshipers and servants of Gruumesh. For this, halflings
who grow facial hair and seek their owns settlements are watched and
threatened. Also known as Black Halflings outside of Gulltown and the Altaran
Peninsula. As that may be confused with rumors of short Imarians.[ix]
Heads or Tails – Some live in service to chance and
their patron Ranald. Ranald is an Exarch of the God Avandra. His sign is
gambling, luck in dangerous times and cats. Those who live with fate are said
to live heads or tails. Humanoids who are in the form of cats, are especially
drawn to the appeal of mixing idle habits with acceptance of a kind.[x]
Hospitaller - Words and Healing and not frequently
found together but are both the result of knowledge. It was therefore apparent
to the Ioun cult of old Nerath that healing magic was a holy gift to the world.
The modern Hospitallers follow this creed. They set up sanctuaries in regions
where they can do so safely, approach patrons for donations and practice
medicine. Welcome in most civilised lands, their secondary practices of
linguistic discovery for ancient spells, carries accusations of book theft and tomb-robbing.
Male members bear emblems of Dragon wings for Draconic script and female members,
Pixie wings for Elven.[xi]
Imperator – During the days of Nerath, temples and
faiths were united and wealthy and so sponsored armies and agents to maintain
their religious and secular power. imperators were the leaders who went out to
compel the faithful, manage the estates and scourge their enemies. Even in the
Age of Chaos, a few hierarchies still maintain the titles. Most feared were the
Crimson Arbiters, of the Gods of law and justice Who roamed the lands as judge,
juries and executioners. Giving redress and absolution impartially while they
were their crimson mask or hood. And bedecked with paper sacred glyphs.[xii]
Iron Circle, The – Emerging from south of the Elsir
Vale and in the heart of Adretia. Tyrants believing in strict order and
hierarchy. At first portraying themselves as a simple warrior society, driving
back the western Goblinoids, desert raiders and jungle monsters of distant
Imarian lands. Order for subjugation, followed by hiring the Hobgoblins. Now
they broke no defiance to their supremacy. They have reached Sarthel and even up the Nentir
River. Portraying themselves as mere mercenaries where their authority has
limits. Rumours of dark rituals and disappearances follow them. Certainly, they
support slavery, Imarians from Lokossa, receiving Corsairs and raiders.[xiii]
Knights of the Chalice – Once there was a deity who
was betrayed by his angels and slain down to the name. The order of the chalice
fights such infernal evil wherever it may be or gathering. The order takes its
name from an artifact He Who Was supposedly owned, from which a single draft of
water would allow for any atonement and purify the soul. Potentially even that
of the likes of Asmodeus. Such a cure for the world’s pain is worth seeking and
some even believe it can be used to restore its owner to his throne.[xiv]
Korlathi – The Human ancestors of Adventia, these wild
and whooping tribes swept from below the Vidya Mountains during Antiquity. To
marry or slay the earth worshipping tribes who the Elves treated with. They
were let loose by the weakening of the Elven Empire. The only reason they are
remembered at all is that the Elves wrote about them and the Korlathi were
entranced by them. They were described as red or blonde, but it appears there
was some commonality between them and the Animal Nomads. They worshiped Pagan
Kord and feared iron as death itself.[xv]
Lude - Also written as Llwde, see Westermen
Nemec –
The language of the Hundred Kingdoms. A variety of the common togue derived
from Goonish origins and salted with the technical terms from the Sea of Ships,
thanks to the long dominance of Nerath. Heavy on the constants. Many neighbouring
regional documents use it for ease of merchants, leading to much confusion with
rural locals.[xvi]
Northmen - The merciless yet hearty people who have
swept forth from northern Adventia to wreak havoc on the classical
civilizations. They descend from the Korlathi, as the Goonish people. Taking
possession of the north except for Pohjola, due to werebeasts. They idolized
the Elves but sought to subsume them. They helped collapse the great empires of
Antiquity. Tearing down civilization until those who had been in contact the
longest were convinced of classical glory and organization. Forming a synthesis
in Nerath and redefining themselves in return. They worshiped Pagan Gods but
now are almost all Systematic. Except for hateful Karkoth.
Old Adventia - There is actually very little about
pre-Korlathi Human inhabitants of Adventia. The Elven Empire recorded them as
earth-worshippers, and said they were darker with bland eyes and fought each
other. Farmers who worked or acquired copper and bronze. The Dwarves of the
Vidya Mountains have tablets for trading in skins and herbs. Records in Hevastar
say they anachronistically worshiped Erathis and Melora as a matriarchal pair.
While this all supposedly was destroyed by the invaders, dwarven records make
frequent mention of mountain crossings going all the way back to the Cold
Period.
Owl Wardens – A fighting order of goalers from the
time of the Elven Empire. The empire was not so organized to have a system of
imprisonment, so the order increasingly took on that role. Invoking the hidden
forces to imprison great foes. Their devotion to the Gods Torog, Sehanine and
the Primal spirits of the night was carried out in secluded glens beneath the
full moon. Or in the deepest pits where their carved dungeons reached the
Underdark. It was one of the few occupations available to the Winter Caste and
much knowledge was lost with their disappearance.[xvii]
Pantless Barbarians - A derogatory name used in the
Hill Cantons to refer to people beyond the Vidya Mountains. They recount the
pantless were victorious over the shirtless, but still will not wear proper
clothes. Few scholars study the language of people as opposed to the people as
they appear in history. However, those that do suggest it is based on distant memory
for the non-riding people of the Fenreach, the Tieflings of the Horned Hills
and the forest-dwellers of the Spearwood.[xviii]
Raven’s Wings – A band of holy warriors of the Raven Queen,
whose remit covers much of southern Adventia and into Zakhara and Sugdh when
they can manage it. Founded by an emperor of Bael Turath, they wander those
ancient byways for the sole purpose of eliminating the undead and any who
practice necromancy. Their methods are not kind and worse on living things who
can feel pain. Haunting the ruins of Antiquity, gatherings have been seen at
Vor Rukoth in the years since the city’s rediscovery.[xix]
Red Cloaks – An order of Assassins that once spread
across Adventia and beyond, dwelling in the heart of Nerath’s cities. With the
fall of Nerath and the dwindling of trade and communication, the organization
has collapsed. Still some young rogues seek to emulate it.[xx]
Scholar-Knights – There are two orders of the Knights
Academic, the secular Stormchasers who harvest crystalline lightning and
enforce order for impious Sanctaphrax and Undertown, and the dissident Shepards
of Erathis, who fled the university-city with the spiritual and secular
earth-scholars. The Shepards are sworn to the goddess Erathis, and pursue an itinerant
culture of paladin-hood, sheep-tending, and knowledge-seeking. While the
Stormchasers rely on their artificed platemail, the Shepherds rely on heavy
shields and what plate they wear is hidden beneath wool and leather. It is rumored
that the Shepards are alchemists. Though
if true, that would mostly pertain to sheep liniment.[xxi]
Sea-Men – A race of Humans who come from the sea in
small skin boats, they apparently live among the ice of the Whale Sea and the
rime of the Artic Ocean. They are thought to be related to the animist
shapechangers of Pohjola. They come from Alt-Numinor or beyond and are blown
off-course fishing or on shaman quests. They do not get along with Tronskalians
who they feud with over land and whaling spots. There are two kinds, the tall
people who are sometimes given or find iron and the short people who pursue
them aggressively.[xxii]
Skulk – Descendants of slaves from the empire of Bael
Turath, they rioted and now seek vengeance for being excluded from their
master’s diabolical pact. Their pact with the Demon Prince Graz’zt is recorded
in the Tome of the Blinded Eye. It is rumored they stalk communities in a
ceaseless pogrom against any Tieflings that dreams of a new society or gains
great prominence. Those who have ceased this persecution have been cursed with
partial invisibility. Leading to desert cities inhabited by cannibal skeleton-men
and Assassin guilds devoted to the morbid gods. Guild leaders are known as Sram
and the sworn-fellows, Rogues.[xxiii]
Slaughterers - in the depths of the Deepwoods live the
tree-timed hearts of the Elves. In Antiquity they were divided into Castes and
at the end, the butchers sought shelter with the hunters. But the magic that
bound them remains, and though they live as Spring Elves, their hair is that of
Autumn. Their abattoir-villages lie on well-trodden paths, as surrounding
people bring meat for them to transform. Dye-red from forest spices, they are
jolly masters of the knife. Blood and tattoo magic are their specialty and
sports games are wrung out affairs with them.[xxiv]
Speakers of the Word – The Gods crafted the Word and
the Word is the ultimate power those chosen by the gods can wield. This belief
unites monasteries and cults across Adventia. The Word was a weapon but one
that could only be used by the righteous. Each syllable is a powerful prayer
and requires the right pitch, cadence and philosophical frame of mind to be
present in the speaker. And even then, it is best spoken as no more than a
whisper.[xxv]
Steel Vanguard – A mercenary company that has crossed the
Known World in pursuit of gold and glory. They take their name from the martial art of
the steel vanguard, fighting with a two-handed sword. This predates the
company, but they are the most proficient at it, so long as they constantly
test their skills on numerous foes.[xxvi]
Stone Keepers – The Dwarves keep their long memories
in stone and stories. Entrusting the preservation of them to those of wisdom
and commitment to history. Stone fathers or mothers chisel these into holy
places. But the chief memories they preserve are the enslavement of the dwarves
by the Giants. Stone keepers keep the smoldering anger of ancient wrongs and
long centuries of grief. Travelling to keep the clans united and learn the
fates of fallen kingdoms and city-states. The book of grudges is but the kingly
expression of this fury.[xxvii]
Viking - From the north, frozen Trond they reaved.
Pirates and corpse-ravens, seeking lives and treasure. Such a reputation still
haunts the Tronskalians, for though their piracy is no longer sanctioned by
Pagan Gods, folks have long memories. Dragonships would beach themselves,
raiding as widely and cruely as ships permitted. These adventurers cleared
lands of men and monsters indiscriminately, settling across the Riverlands,
Pohjola, the river courses of the Deepwoods and the Long Lakes. Many distant
colonies have integrated, but their spirit lingers in Alt-Numinor, chivalric
Wuffmark and the west-dreaming lords of the Long Lakes.
War-Bear – The empire of Nerath straddled the world
and recruited every kind of hoofed beast, Behemoth and drakes. But from the
eastern forested slopes of the Dawnforge Mountains, came the Soldier-Bear of
Nuria. Brown, walking upright and armed with just a helmet and polearm, they
struck fear into the Humanoids and rebels across the heart of Adventia and
Nangia. In the Age of Chaos, many struck out as mercenary War-Bears, caring
only for their bevy of bladed sticks. They travel south from their fading, secretive
town to the Hill Cantons. For they have a mystic connection to the Ursine Dunes
there.[xxviii]
Westermen – The Trouser people or Ludes, who occupied
the minds of much of the ancient Adventine world and still form a component of
many modern peoples. Korlathi, with primitive dress and chariots that emerged
from the southern Deepwoods in early Antiquity. Possibly fully formed from the
Trans-Vidya cauldron. Sweeping forth with their divine and Primal religion.
They were closely entwined with the Demi-Humans populations, transmitted the
previously forbidden arts of iron and even followed the Elves to the Feywild. Having
succumbed to the organization of civilization, they in turn were mixed with the
Northmen during the rise of Nerath.
Whipmasters - Bael Tureth was taught many things by
their infernal patrons. One of the more sickening was the shaping of animals
into beasts of war, like krukith. Somewhere between the Hobgoblins and mad
Zannad, the practice was maintained by a single Tiefling bloodline. Even after
the wars, they persist in capturing, taming and shaping creatures to their
will. Their dark blue skin has become diluted along the Sea of Ships compared
to the north. And they turned to Bahamut, master of Dragons. But if the dungeons
and pits of Adventia require monsters, their whips will provide.[xxix]
Wose, The – In the Deepwoods, where the Enflammee runs
clean, a people stand on the narrow line between states of being. Once the
Yellow Plant Empire extended all the way up from Imaria into Adventia, until
the cold came. The Fey who had made the journey were already transforming
generation by generation from dryad to human, a fey people but not Elven. These
people with hair like bushes and vines, and skin brown like bark still dwell
there. Deciduous now and given an unneeded distance except by Elves. They are
echoed across the tropical Known World, human-plants for a withered realm.[xxx]
[i] See Arcane
Power p.67
[ii] See Open Grave pp.16-18
[iii] Inspired by
2000 Leagues Under the Sea, Foggernauts from Dofus/Wakfu
[iv] See Psionic
Power p.15
[v] See
Unearthed Arcana p.10
[vi] Inspired by
The Hundred Years War, The Anarchy, LEGO Castles theme 1978-1998, particular
from 1984-1997, 2000 Knights’ Kingdom theme and Kingdoms 2010-2012 theme
[vii] See Arcane
Power p.20
[viii] Name
derived from Warhammer Fantasy
[ix] Inspired by
Hill Canton Compendium p.14
[x] Inspired by
Ectaflip from Dofus/Wakfu, See Divine Power p.27
[xi] Inspired by
Eniripsa class from Dofus/Wakfu
[xii] See Divine
Power p.22, p.71
[xiii] See Dragon
Magazine #402 pp.35-40
[xiv] See Divine
Power p.102
[xv] Inspired by
the Orlanthi from Glorantha
[xvi] Mentioned
in Hill Cantons Cosmology
[xvii] Inspired by
Maiv Shadowsong from Warcraft III
[xviii] Inspired by
Hill Cantons Compendium II p.8
[xx] See Martial
Power 2 p.78
[xxi] See
Librarian-Knights from The Edge Chronicles books and also inspired by the Feca
class from Dofus/Wakfu
[xxii] Inspired by
sporadic contact between Norsemen and inhabitants of Greenland and Northern
Canada, the tall ones by the now-gone Dorset culture and the shorter ones by
the Thule culture, whose descendants remain.
[xxiii] See 4E
Monster Manual 3, pp.176-177, and inspired by the Sram and Rogue classes from
Dofus/Wakfu. The Cannibal skeleton men part is based on Ghouls from Fritz
Lieber’s Newhon setting.
[xxiv] Inspired by
Slaughterers from The Edge Chronicle books, Sacrier class from Dofus/Wakfu
[xxv] See Divine
Power p.76
[xxvi] See Martial
Power 2 p.28
[xxvii] See Divine
Power p.52, inspired by Warhammer Fantasy Dwarves
[xxviii] See Hill
Cantons Compendium II p.9
[xxix] Inspired by
the Osamados class from Dofus/Wakfu
[xxx] Inspired by
the Saddia class from Dofus/Wakfu
