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Races / Feral
Alignment : neutral, evil History:The feral are the youngest of the major races of Aabahran. In the year 368, the aristocracy of Miruvhor executed a massive cleanup of the city. The main goal of this cleanup was to purge the city of filth, namely the lowest class of homeless, unemployed, and various other unwanted people in the city. These people were given an option. They could either be thrown into the Dragon Sea with the rest of the trash or they could try to make their livelihood in the Forsaken Lands. While many choose the quicker death by drowning, most of the soon-to-be refugees opted to be forcibly relocated into the most dangerous place in Aabahran. After that, history is not very clear. What is clear is that all the non- humans, along with some humans, died upon the first night. Somehow, the surviving humans found a way to make a kind of rugged village in the sands. The village was not meant to last for long. With each passing day, the effects of the chaos energy inherent in the Forsaken Lands became more and more apparent upon the humans. They began to physically transform into chaotic, half-mammal monsters. Losing most of their humanity, they willfully left their village and vanished into the sands. Months later, rumors of feral wandering the Dragon Teeth Road began to circulate in the taverns of Miruvhor and Maelbrim. Soon, many people had spotted feral in the cities and their existence was confirmed. They began to come from the Forsaken Lands in greater numbers than their original numbers would have suggested. A second cleanup was ordered; a joint monster-hunting expedition manned by the Maelbrimese and Miruvhorian armies was quickly formed and sent out. It was a slaughter. The mostly human expedition was no match for the demonic speed and sheer force of fury these new feral brought from the Forsaken Lands. Even lone feral are incredibly hard to spot and catch, and if cornered, are more than a match for a handful of ill-equipped regulars. It was only at the Great Wall of Aabahran, where it was discovered that feral have a weakness to fire, that the feral were driven back. A line of defense could be manned and held, but it was impossible to ever take the fight to the feral themselves. It is in this status quo that the feral find themselves alive in today. Usual Height:Feral are slightly taller and leaner than humans, but the extra height is lost due to their heavily curved spine. Even with the extra height, feral weigh about the same as humans. Hometown:Maelbrim, Val Miran, Miruvhor Religion:A few feral feel drawn to the various faiths. Chaos, Discord, Scourge, and Cycle are the most common. Very rarely, a feral may seek salvation in Nature. Religiously empowered feral are noted for being extreme zealots, even more fanatic and aggressive than their counterparts in the other major races. Having nothing in the way of formal education, the feral are not known to be skilled at using advanced magic. They do have the intelligence and capability, but it is rarely developed beyond basic cantrips. Physical Features:The feral are omnivores with an extremely efficient digestive system, able to break down bones, plant matter, and other things that most of the other races would find indigestible. Like most other scavengers, the feral are not very picky about what they eat, and are very adept at conserving energy, patiently waiting for the environment to kill their prey. They have been known to be cannibalistic when forced through desperation. It is not understood how feral find enough water to sustain their roving colonies. Humans and feral may not reproduce by normal means. An unusually high percentage of feral are sterile or barren, but when impregnated, the feral usually give birth to three or four children at a time after a gestation period of about seven months. Interestingly, some feral mothers are not able to produce milk and instead feed their young with their own blood. Child mortality is very high, with about three-fourths of all feral dying before being becoming full grown at the age of 12. They are able to reproduce at about the age of eight. Women generally lose their fertility at around the age of 30, and any feral over the age of 50 is far into her senior years. Society:The feral are a race of humans that have been mutated by the forces of Chaos. They share many of the same characteristics as other humans but have diverged enough socially and physically to be an entirely different species. The feral are anarchistic, nomadic scavengers by nature, living in loose colonies that wander their arid homelands. The number of living feral is unknown, but is estimated to be far less than the other major races, likely numbering in the thousands. There are no known permanent settlements of feral in the world. Feral tend to form roving colonies, similar in style to cats. They live and travel together but the individual takes care of all of the individual's personal needs. It is not uncommon for lone or small groups of feral to break away from the main colony for weeks at a time. They live a subsistence life and have little need or capability for any political organization. Unlike other nomads, the feral do not follow game or raise animals, due to the harsh nature of their environment. Moreover, they do not range between water sources. They seem to move erratically, operating on a whimsical, day- to-day basis. Most of their equipment is scavenged or improvised from the tools of other races. Compared to those other races, the feral have a lesser need for such tools, as their bodies and the typical range of mutations within a colony provides a large, natural set of tools for most survival tasks. The daily life of the feral is very severe. Being based in the Forsaken Lands, they have three major threats to their survival. The first of these is the unforgiving environment itself, being an arid wasteland of a desert. Temperatures are extreme, food and water are scarce, and there is little in terms of natural resources. It is not clearly understood how the feral survive the inherent natural dangers of the Forsaken Lands. The most dangerous of these are the sand golems, tainted scorpions, and torments that stalk through the night. Perhaps the feral hide, perhaps the feral hunt them in turn, or there may be a sort of understanding between the monsters and half-demons. Despite whatever the case may be, when a feral journeys out from the Forsaken Lands and attempts to return, that feral is attacked just as any other outsider would be. This suggests that there is a connection between the area itself and the creatures that live there. The second major threat is that they must contend with the chaotic forces that would see them turned into full-fledged demons. The chaotic energy that is a part of their homeland is slowly tearing the race apart, making them half- demon. All feral must learn to live with their disfiguring mutations. Some mutations cause death while others are so psychologically damaging as to drive the feral completely insane. Various degrees of mutations, insanity, and illnesses have become a daily part of the average colony. The last major threat comes from the outside. Hunters, raiders, and the occasional army from the Elven Kingdom, Maelbrim, and Miruvhor scour the edges of Forsaken Lands, effectively hemming them. Gaia herself is even attempting to purge the race should they ever venture into the natural wilderness. The were-beasts in particular look down upon the feral as their opposite counterparts. Druids have also been known to be aggressive, fearing infection of the forests by the chaos that all feral carry within themselves. Relationships with Other Races:A vast majority of the feral who leave the Forsaken Lands find themselves as highwaymen, small-time raiders, mercenaries, and vagabonds. Most races tolerate the presence of feral much as they tolerate lepers, who are safe only when out of sight or when they are useful. Many end up on the fringes of Miruvhor and to a lesser extent Maelbrim, where they are mostly treated worse than animals. Because of this, feral who live with other races are known for their versatile survival and stealth skills. Due to their natural skills and fitness, they are a valued commodity for governments and some organizations, but they are rarely treated as more than a particularly cunning, dangerous, wild animal. |