Wolfshaunt
 | |
|---|---|
| Founded | early SA |
| Size | Major Kingdom |
| Ruler | Grandfather Josiah |
The Wolfshaunt is smallest nation-state in the Realm. It is a land filled with shadows, terror, and legend. The inhabitants of the Wolfshaunt live in frontier hamlets under the harshest of conditions. Constant rains and mists allow for rudimentary farming in the rocky soil found in the valleys of this land. Few valuable natural resources in the area and a remote location kept the Wolfshaunt relatively unpopulated during the First and Second Ages. The original settlers to this area were displaced from the Eastern Reaches by the arrival of civilization in the middle of the Third Age. Pushed out by the introduction of law and order, this collection of thieves, criminals and outcasts at first found the Wolfshaunt uninhabited. However, the new arrivals soon realized that an ancient population lived among the high peaks and dark recesses of the land. Traveling by night, the villages of the Wolfshaunt were visited by a handful of strange gothic men and women travelers. Dressed in the noble finery of the Second Age, these gaunt pale folk brought gold to the pubs, a steady demand for merchant services to businesses, and wealth to a people not accustomed to such luxury. In addition, the villages of the Wolfshaunt found protection in form of large dire wolves which protected the people from outside influence. Lured by their new-found lifestyle, the people of the Wolfshaunt never questioned whether the wolves were there to keep intruders out or themselves in. Whatever the case, the people of the Wolfshaunt have pledged their loyalty to the Counts, as the gothic folk have come to be called. Travelers to the area tell of strange sightings in the twilight hours, and woe to the wanderer still on the road when the sun sets. Some say the folk of the Wolfshaunt are bewitched, unable to recognize even when their own kind disappear. The castles of the Counts are another mystery, as few have ever traveled the winding mountain passes to their cold, black walls. Tales of guardian bats and legions of ghouls keep these strongholds remote and shrouded in secrecy.
Legend: The Hunger
When men first crawled out of the caves they had been hiding in at the dawn of the Third Age, some nine hundred years ago, those with the Hunger were already among them. Their numbers were small, but their survival depended on being unseen - hidden within the community - trusted by all - their secret safe.
And so, the Bonding began. It started with the forging of the Grandfathers Rings - for that was the term that was used for the oldest and wisest among those with the Hunger. The goal was simple - to control the youngest and most impetuous until they could learn the wisdom of walking unnoticed among the men of the Realm. At that time, they would be released from the Bond. They, too, could become Grandfathers in time.
The powers of the rings were crafted so that a wearer was immune to all except the wearer of another Grandfathers Ring. A balance in the power of immortality and control. Twin rings were always crafted with one capable of being broken down for distribution among the Bonded.
But for some control became, in itself, an obsession. The Grandfathers did not want to give up their power. And so a new set of rings were made - the Uncles rings. Like their predecessors, these rings were made of intertwined bands of silver. Identical bands were given to those who were to be Bonded. No power in the Realm could break the Bond. And while some were released, many others became slaves.
And so it was for hundreds of years, the Grandfathers amassing greater and greater numbers of Bonded. Uncles bonded Nephews. And great family trees were created. And yet, the reason was lost. Grandfathers no longer hid amongst the people - rather they became Barons and Counts and their practices of the Hunger became known.
It was then that the men and women of the Reaches drove those with Hunger out into the depths of the Wolfshaunt Mountains. They were not killed - for many are immortal. But they were trapped. In those confined valleys, however, the Grandfathers continued to amass their families - waiting for the day of release back into the Reaches.