Barbarian

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As you might expect in a setting of savage wilderness and ancient civilizations, barbarians can be found anywhere in Thule. Barbarians come in two basic varieties: savages and advanced tribes.

Barbarian characters from savage tribes begin their careers as hunters, scouts, or warriors who know little of the lands outside their tribe’s hunting grounds. Savage tribes are small and insular (rarely more than a hundred people or so), so relatively few ever wander into civilized lands or become adventurers. Those individuals who do leave their homelands possess un- matched woodcraft and survival skills, and are prized as wilderness guides or trackers. These barbarians may be backwards, ignorant, and superstitious, but they aren’t necessarily stupid—given a chance to arm themselves with better weapons and learn the ways of other lands, they are quick to do so.

Barbarians from more advanced tribes tend to know much more about the world outside their homeland. Stories of civilization’s riches (and de- lights) draw many restless barbarian warriors to leave their homelands and seek their fortune as mercenar- ies—or raiders. Tribes of this sort tend to be strong in numbers, comfortable with practices such as agricul- ture, animal domestication, and metalworking, and more than a little warlike. Their reputation as fierce warriors ensures plenty of opportunities for employ- ment in Thule’s more civilized lands.

The most important part of a barbarian’s identity (at least at the beginning of her career) is her tribe. Some of the more notable tribes include:

  • Ammur: Fierce Dhari hill-clans from Ammu- rath, south of the Kalayan Sea.
  • Bearslayer: A tribe of dwarf warriors from the Thousand Teeth.
  • Bolotanga: A savage Dhari tribe from northern Dhar Mesh.
  • Drangir: A bloodthirsty Nimothan tribe from Hellumar.
  • Hurgan: Nomadic Kalay tribes from the eastern shores of the Kalayan Sea who domesticate and ride Thulean elk.
  • Jomurjan: Kalay nomads who roam the southern portions of the Thousand Teeth and the western parts of the Lands of the Long Shadow.
  • Kyr: A vicious tribe of Dhari savages from the swamplands of Phoor, notorious headhunters.
  • Narthan: Nomadic Dhari mammoth-hunters who roam the plains of Nar.
  • Ullathi: Nimothans who launch sea-raids against eastern Thule each spring.