KSV - Foes, Foreigners & Monsters

Foes, Foreigners and Monsters Pastebin

>>>>>>>>Foes<<<<<<
>>>>Beastfolk
Woodlands/Humanoid. A crude and savage collection of tribes that plague the wooded areas of Canton. Once the most populous and widespread of creatures on the continent, their time of prosperity and beginnings of civilisation has since devolved since the arrival of Man. Worshipping the Fae like minor gods, they have long been the tool of Fae machinations, and have suffered greatly as hapless footsoldiers in the. Unlike the Fae, most did not have the opportunity to flee the continent to the Deepwood and join their kin there.

The vast majority of beastfolk have goat-like features, hardy slabs of muscle with low wit but a dangerous animal cunning. There are others, nearing extinction, that bear the heads of animals wolves, birds and other animals. Men of war have noted that, in times of conflict, these rare breeds are generally deferred to as leaders and lieutenants. The rites and culture of each individual tribe differ greatly, though few Almighty-fearing men of Cantôn find studies of this to be a worthy pursuit. Of all the Cantôn tribes, one thing can be relied upon to unite them. Their utter envy and hatred of Man and all his good works.

>>>>Fae
Woodlands/Humanoid. It is rare for a mortal man to witness these beautiful, ethereal creatures and live to tell the tale. It has been centuries since the Fae have viewed themselves as a collective people or nation, their fickle nature dooming their civilisation to feuds and infighting as surely as the armies of Man did. Most left the continent following their great defeat at the hands of Adam and Cain, and the race has yet to recover from the horrific losses they sustained on that fateful day.

And individual Fae is considered a child at the age of a hundred years, and their spawning is less and less frequent in this age. There are Fae alive that remember the Deadmen taking Ardenne,  the first landing of Adam and Cain and even when Man first appeared on the continent. A few, ancient and terrible in power, remember even more than that. Such creatures are not to be trifled with, for they are as overwhelmingly powerful as they are utterly without moral qualms that Man can understand. One Fae might murder the world if they could on a whim, yet at the same time find a mild lie to be an abhorrent abomination. The reverse is also true, and only cements every troubadours tale that the Fae are not to be trusted.


>>>>Bluejay Band
Woodlands/Urban/Human. The lot of the common peasant is not a happy nor easy one. The demands of the lords and disparity between the livelihood, opportunities and rights by law take their toll. Many an angry farm boy has looked to the woods from the plot of land they are expected to work on sweat away upon up until their deathbed, taking but a third of what they reap. They have considered the danger, hardship and risk. And they have still thought “at least there are no lords -there-” before walking off and abandoning their life of servitude.

Some die, alone and victim to all that which lurks in the forests. Others survive, content to live alone or form remote communities far away from the demanding gauntlet of the nobility. And a few begin to think of what might be done to bring this same freedom to all their Cantôn brethren. These few join the Bluejays, a movement sworn to removing the yoke of noble oppression from the shoulders of all common folk.

The line between a common brigand and a Bluejay is a blurry one, all too easily a Bluejay camp can turn to outright brigandry and worse with little pressure. Others pay lip service to the cause and take more than is strictly necessary to keep the fight against tyranny going. An organised leadership structure appears to be anathema to their cause, and whether these rogue camps are disciplined or even hunted by their brethren appears to be up to the individual Bluejay’s discretion. Most Lords of the realm, if not all, make little distinction between a Bluejay and a common brigand, save those that attest that the Bluejay menace are a greater threat due to their invariably gifted archers.



>>>>Scalefiends
Hills/Wastelands/Serpent – The Wastelands are home to both the great beauty of the Mustang and the vile horror of the slithering Scalefiends, devouring anything they can scrounge up in that hardy land including their own young. These scaled, four-armed snake-like creatures are not averse to conducting trade with the odd two-legged creatures from across the mountains, but a Scalefiend merchant will almost -always- try to barter a newborn human babe into the deal. Such things are considered an exquisite delicacy among that evil race and, while the proud men of Montbrun would never condone such a bargain, the heathen folk of Cathago have no such qualms when it comes to their lower caste slaves. It is an expensive and costly endeavour in blood and gold for a Cathago slaver to sail up past the Ardenne and cut a deal with a Scalefiend for a captured Wastelands Mustang.

It has been many years since the Scalefiends ever posed a serious threat to the impregnable bastions of Montbrun. Nowadays the theft of human babes and children from the scattered hamlets and towns on the edge of the Wastelands is not uncommon, though the Scalefiends persecute such crimes as much as their quasi-civilization punishes anything. Theft is immoral after all, though devouring babes is not.



>>>>Deadmen
Cursed Land/Varies – One wishes that the Deadmen were a plague unique to the lost city of Ardenne in Romaine, though the tales of a similar rot creeping across the foreign realms proves this to be otherwise. Langland mercenaries, always boisterous and ready with a tall tale, hush and murmur with darting eyes of the Black Ships from across the endless ocean to the West. Traders from the cold north speak of warriors of Norsikaa venturing across the World’s End Mountains in search of the famed treasures of legend only to return… changed.

Their fell masters are rarely seen, and rarer still leave any survivors in their passing. More worrying still is that no records of these creature’s existence are present from the time of Adam and Cain, implying that they are a recent corruption. That, or a cover-up of terrifying reach. On all corners of the civilized world, in the dark and forbidden places friend to neither man nor beast, something sinister stirs.


>>>>>>>Foreigners<<<<<<<<<<<<
>>>Cathago
The ancestral homeland of the Cantônian nobility, Adam and Cain led their people out of slavery and across the sea to their new home. Almost every noble family on the continent can boast a link to one of the founding families that first landed in southern Pascae many centuries ago. They have not forgotten the depravities that grieved their forefathers, to this day the laws declare that the air of Cantôn is too pure for a slave to breath. The moment they step on this land, they are free.

Cathago is a ruthlessly cruel society, its magnificent cities and wealth of culture and civilisation matched only by its debauchery and disregard for morality. One’s lot in life is charted by the Tǟhn they are born into. Each Tǟhn fulfils a role in society, from rulers to warrior to merchants and the disposable Lowest. And within each Tǟhn are several tiers of the caste, promotions and privilege bought as easily as flesh on the street. A member of a higher Tǟhn may do as he sees fit from the lower Tǟhn of his own clan, and the Lowest are subject to the whims and torments of all. Life is cheap in Cathago, and cheapest of all in the capital Nova Cathago. It is the gateway between the northern and southern lands, in times past Cathago dominated all the known world with their mighty navies. The people there retain their pride, though it has been many years since they demanded and received tribute from the other nations of the world.

There are no Gods in Nova Cathago, or rather, there are many MANY Gods and Temples but they are inconsequential. There is only the Dragon, the castle sized behemoth that resides in the Palace. Though whether that fell and terrible beast really rules there is a matter of some contention. He is above petty politics and, being above it, has no input on the course this ancient civilisation takes. It is a curiosity that the Dragon Guard recruit solely from offshore, be they renowned Langland Mercenaries, Norsikaan Huscarls, Hejedii Cataphracts or Cantônian Knights. It is no shame for a Knight to join their ranks, great wealth and prestige is granted to those who serve. There is wealth and opportunity for any foreigner that travels there, though the danger is equally as great.


>>>>Norsikaa
The Northmen claim to live on the World’s Edge, that across their mountains the land drops off into oblivion and the bravest folk climb down in search of riches and secret power. Maybe that is why these folk live here, for there is little else of value in this cold realm bar their salt mines and fur trade. Cantôn scholars say this is merely a deep ravine incorrectly worshiped by the primitive savages, though none of these men have seen it for themselves. A hard land breeds a hard people, in their tongue ‘Merchant’ has the same translation as ‘Raider’ and a Norsikaan ship is as likely to trade at port as they are to pirate. The northern coasts of Cantôn have often be plagued by raiders and outright invasions, though even the shipping lanes of the far south are not safe from enterprising Norsikaan captains.

The Northmen are warriors of great renown and not without honour, many are eager to test themselves in honourable single combat against a Knight even without provocation. That said, Norsikaans have no concept of nationhood or collective faith, too many tribes and too many Gods in the world for their liking. A Norsikaan follows the man, not a banner or a book. They value the greatness of a deed, not the morality of it. They are gruff, stubborn and needlessly violent. But a Norsikaan made a friend is a friend made for life.

>>>>Langland
In some lands there is one God, in others there are many gods. In Langland there are none. Or their God is Gold. Or every man is their own God. The free men of Langland pride themselves on their independence and supposed egalitarian island society, where beggars rub shoulders with merchant princes and fortune is just a roll of the dice away. A cynic might point to their dynastically influential families, their powerful banking institutions and the sabre-rattling admiralty to argue the truth of the claim. But at the very least, most Langland folk at least -believe- that they can climb up the societal ladder with little effort and much luck.

The Langlish are master seamen, though they are unsurprisingly lacking in a centralised organisation. An Admiral is as likely to run a merchant voyage as he is to chase pirates, or even turn to a little licensed ‘privateering’ themselves. That small in number, Langland fleets are not to be underestimated. Even when Cathago dominated the world, the Langland Navies kept the isles safe from outright invasion. Also of great fame are the Freeblade Companies, famous mercenary contingents that ‘resolve’ escalating ‘disputes’ between powerful families on the island. There is good money to be made to be made in these petty wars, but the real gold is to be made across the seas in foreign lands. Professional year-round soldiery is a service that the Langlish captains charge exorbitantly for, but it is a price their foreign employers are often willing to pay.


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Monsters<<<<<<<<<<<<<
There are all manner of monstrous beasts that roam the Five Duchy Kingdom and beyond. The basilisks and wyverns make their nests where they see fit, distinguishing not in their hunt between livestock and those that shepherd them; The Pegasus of Montbrun are equally as likely to savage a mountaineer as they are to aid them; the Direwolves of Fallavon can devour a man and his horse yet still be ravenous; the Arghouls, outcasts even among the Deadmen, can eviscerate an armoured knight in moments with their freakishly long nails; the behemoth Wüdkind vary in size and shape from owl to bear to ox but share the beastfolk’s hate of Mankind.

There are creatures fouler still, skittering in the dark on many limbs and seeing all with their many eyes. And creatures pleasing in appearance but malicious in intention walk the woods at night, watching campfires and contemplating the murder of those that surround it. Also, forget not what Adam teaches. As terrible as any of these creatures may be, Man is all too capable of turning his back on the Almighty and becoming as monstrous, if not more so.