Peoples of the Krond Heights
The Krond Heights populations are divided into their vertical tiers; the river valleys, the mid-mountains, and the high mountains. Halflings are almost exclusively river valley dwellers, only occasionally settling in the mid-mountain region, and rarely even venturing to the high mountains. Goblins, too, favor the river valleys, with any surface habitation higher than that centered around entrances to the Deeps that they cannot seal up (though they’re quite happy to leave those to bugbears, their unreliable allies). Humans tend to dominate the mid-mountain regions, but find themselves mixed in with orcs, ogres, and hill giants. The mountain tops are the domain of the Hoar Frost, snorcs, and snogres.
Capritaurs, Gargoyles, and Helvetians - Long ago, Helvetians lived in the Krond Heights, and their ruins still dot the mountainsides throughout the mid-range. The ruins are a combination of burrows and surface outbuildings of stone, often surrounded by large beds of ants and termites (including giant versions of both). Though some still see Helvetians in the mountains, their former homes have become the preferred dwellings of capritaurs and gargoyles. The two do not get along. Capritaur-inhabited ruins will be somewhat ramshackle; the karrakigon will do their best to maintain their home, and improve it in their own way, building ramps and platforms to create a maze that makes sense to no one but their own herd. Gargoyle-infested ruins will be poorly maintained, with a significant band of over-hunted terrain nearby. When the stone demons have exhausted one ruin, they move on to another, and a brief war will break out between the gargoyle clan and the capritaurs, usually ending in the gargoyle’s favor, with the capritaurs moving to another place, before finding their own ruin to inhabit.
As for the Helvetians, capritaur maintain that they return to the Krond Heights every few capritaur generations. They will occupy one of their ruins for a few years (long enough for young to be born and weaned), then leave. The capritaurs hold them in almost religious awe; if a force of helvetians arrive outside a karrakigon maze, the capritaurs will happily decamp for a time, returning when the helvetians leave. For their part, the helvetians will leave behind enough surplus tools that the capritaurs consider themselves well-paid for their time.
These dramas unfold largely without giant interference. While a single giant is more than a match for a capritaur, there is seldom one capritaur, and they are usually willing to flee in the face of extreme danger, leaving the giants with little other than a bloody nose and an empty burrow too small for them to use. Ogres are more interested in these Helvetian cantons, but a few incidents where they have attempted to take them from Helvetians, or from a sufficiently large force of gargoyles, have made them wary of the cantons; since the giants don’t push it, the ogres usually don’t bother.
Goblins, Wargs, and Bugbears - The goblins and their allies prefer the lower reaches, and are not infrequent in the river valleys. Small packs of wargs hunt, and bugbears, with their superior day vision, rule over halfling and human villages in the name of the Goblin King. Much of the produce of these surface farms and ranches flows into the Deeps as tribute and trade, loosely watched over by bugbears, who extract a toll in children, alcohol, and meat. Their predations are kept in check by the goblins themselves; clans that over-extend their reach might find themselves wiped out by wargs and goblins, their territory given to another clan. Because bugbears have little patience, this happens every five to ten years, which keeps bugbear numbers manageable.
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Sidebar: Goblins and Whistling
Most goblins cannot whistle; their accent in most languages is mushy, and any attempts at whistling result in more of a wet raspberry than a piercing whistle. For some goblins, this results in a strong hatred of anyone who does whistle, which many will use to their advantage; it can add a +15% to any Distraction skill use against goblins, but reduces reaction rolls by 3. This does not work against goblin spellcasters; their magics usually involve learning to make a variety of sounds.
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Hags - The Hags of the Krond Heights are not scattered creatures, but instead form a single congregation at Lake Vrasten. Three hags haunt the shores of the lake, their checkered robes salt-crusted, but bearing the clear emblems of a Golden Key. Moreso than many hags, they seem reluctant to expend significant magic; the spells they cast are few and judiciously chosen, and their alchemy takes place away from the lakeshore (all three are addicted to Hag Stew, and are centuries old). The Ladies of Salt claim that they stay there, not in pursuit of power, but to keep some ancient evil contained. A powerful Ore-like ley line runs through the salt flats, with a seemingly anomalous vortex by the shore of the lake, near where the hags gather on the new moon. The vortex is where this Ore line of salt meets a Blood Line that extends straight down. Their mastery of the vortex provides them great power, but they seldom exercise much of it.
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Sidebar:
Lake Vrasten and Key Holders
Keyholders who perform their daily meditation on the state of magic near Lake Vrasten roll 2d6+4 to determine the local state of magic. This effect is so powerful that if a Keyholder will visit Lake Vrasten that day, even if it is due to effects beyond their control or divination, the +4 is added. Any spell cast near Lake Vrasten has a % chance equal to its level to automatically double in cost, without benefit; apprentice and journeyman spells are exempt.
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Halflings - The Krondian halflings are a client-race of the goblins, and many have significant goblin blood. Known locally as “bugans”, those with goblin blood are part of the halfling communities, and the terms are used interchangeably by goblins, halflings, and humans alike. The halflings gave themselves to the goblins several hundred years ago as vassals, and so are semi-independent. Halfling villages will have a goblin or bugbear overseer, to whom they give a significant portion of their harvest and livestock. In return, they are shielded from giants and, to an extent, the bugbears. Halfling men may choose to enter into goblin dominance games, and this method is occasionally used to overthrow overseers who go too far or escape some punishment, but most of the halfling society discourages this; if too many play the game, most halflings fear that the games will become mandatory, and they prize their independence. This coexistence is not completely peaceful; goblins still steal halflings as slaves, but they can be bought off with wrong-doers and foreigners, most of the time. Thus, while the halflings do not actively raid for slaves, minor offenses may be punished by being sold to the goblins for a bit more safety.
The river bottom halflings raise sheep and grains, with a lot of those grains being rice. Their homes are usually the traditional halfling burrows with sod and timber buildings in front of the entrance, and used for outbuildings such as paddocks and shearing barns. Their first language is Goblin, with some having proficiency in the local human language or giant. With access to goblin markets, they have a good supply of metal tools, but are limited by goblin decree in the weapons they can keep, or armor they can wear. There’s a fair amount of “not technically a weapon” and “not technically armor” that goes on; bugans don’t wear leather, but they do like thick, quilted jackets of wool and felt. They don’t have a lot of weapons, but some iron strips can really help a flail last through the seasons, can’t it? Under goblin rule, the bugans can have knives, clubs, staves, and slings, plus tools like mauls, flails, axes, and scythes. They have no spears, no swords, no bows or crossbows. They can own no armor, nor shields. The halflings may harbor neither mage nor sorcerer, and their clerics must meet the approval of the Goblin King’s representatives, and treat goblins on demand from a captain or more senior goblin. Approved churches are The Home Foundation, the House of Life’s Fire, Church of Everlasting Hope, The Founder’s Creation, and, of course, the goblinish churches of The House of Shackles, The Order of Agony, and the House of Knives. Clerics of the good churches are heavily persecuted, but allowed to practice, since it keeps the halflings happy and producing.
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Bugans at a Glance
Ability adjustments
-3 Strength
-1 Wisdom
+2 Dexterity
+1 Constitution
-2 Looks
-1 Charisma
Bugan Pros:
One free purchase of Hiding, Sneaking, Listening, and Blacksmithing*
Harder to hit: +4 to defense
Low Light Vision
+10% to Observation when scent is involved.
(*The standard halfling of the Krond Heights is a Harfoot; they lack the standard ability to Hide in Natural Surroundings, instead gaining a free mastery die in Blacksmithing; bugans from Longfellow stock and communities will reflect that).
Bugan Cons:
Size small for HP and Knock-backs.
Short stature means they move at ½ the speed of humans.
-1 foot reach with weapons
Native Goblin Language (must purchase others).
Preferential Talent Access:
May purchase the following talents at 50% BP cost:
*Blind-fighting, Pain Tolerant, Poison Resistant, Tough as Nails, Crack Shot, Greased Lightning (for slings only)
Fighter 30
Ranger 35
Barbarian 40
Thief 25
Rogue 50
Assassin 45
Mage 75
Fighter/Mage 55
Fighter/Thief 25
Mage/Thief 50
Cleric 40
Bugans are halflings with significant goblin blood, but raised in the halfling and bugan communities of the Krond Heights river valleys. Though their reactions are a touch slower than a standard halfling, they have better (and bigger) ears and noses, and large eyes that drink up light on dark nights. In their own communities, bugans have relatively few social problems, and are treated as any other halfling might be; outside of the Krond Heights, bugans whose goblin blood is revealed find most races react to them more negatively.
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Sidebar: Krondian Halflings, Language, and Stealth.
The native language of Krondian halflings is Goblin, not the local human language. Characters made from this stock, be they halfling or bugan, will reflect that. As Harfoot halflings, they likewise lack a bonus to hide in natural surroundings, instead gaining a bonus mastery die in Blacksmithing.
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Hill Giants - Hill giants live on the eastern slopes of the Krond Heights, avoiding the interior. The few who live in the interior are under the control of the hoar frost giants, a situation that does not please them at all. Hill giants make poor servants, and the hoar frost use them to extend their reach, letting them lord over humans and ogres, so long as they pay tribute to their masters. Hill giant uprisings happen every few decades, whenever they perceive that a particular clan chief has gotten weak, but are short-lived; the hoar frost soon regroup and destroy their subjects, often aided by the hill giant’s own ogre allies.
The hill giants of the eastern slopes, above the Shashyfs and Sanakirs, are more independent, but that makes them less predictable and more dangerous. They war with each other, and with any hoar frost giants who have established themselves nearby, and bully their lessers (i.e. anyone shorter than them) for tribute. Disorganized and fractious, they’re influential for the chaos they cause around them, and how they destabilize any alliance not against them.
Hoar Frost Giants - Lords of the Mountains, the Hoar Frost Giants have six kingdoms in the Krond Heights, each boasting approximately three hundred giants. The numbers are approximate because individual giants may leave their current king and pledge to another, largely without penalty unless the two kings are actively at war. Both men and maids have this freedom, and many young giantesses leave their current king to seek out a mate at a new court.
These kingdoms and courts are not, it should be noted, a concentration of three hundred giants living in close quarters. Instead, it is ten to twelve chiefs, each of whom give fealty to a single overchief. This fealty might be nominal, and mostly consists of the king having the ability to stay with their underchiefs, sleep with their women, and direct them in war. The court is wherever the king happens to be, and his bodyguard consists of giants who would be chiefs of their own clans, did they wish it. Chiefs are accompanied by clerics; most often a cleric of the Emperor of Scorn, though lesser clerics may be from the Way of the Berserk or the Temple of Armed Conflict.
For the most part, the giants are content with their arrangements; the goblins stay in the lower reaches, those of the midmountain bow to the giants or get destroyed, and they are free to hunt and fight and raid. Yeti hunts are popular past times, as are recreational raids on to a rival’s land, killing their vassals and stealing their livestock. Within a given lair, most fights are non-lethal, but no rules prevent escalation; on a raid, lethal force is the norm, though unless they wish to start a war, the raiders will probably not coup de grace fallen opponents. It is one thing to kill a fellow giant with a sword stroke in glorious battle, quite another to stab him while he is down. Wars are avoided between giant kingdoms, though not unheard of. There are rumors that some force greater than the giants holds them in check, and that any giant king who transgresses too far, in the opinion of this nameless force, will find himself, and much of his holdings, destroyed.
Krond Heights hoar frost do not keep Sturm Wolves; they are not common this far west. Attempts are often made to train bears, but no one can really call them domesticated, merely “not likely to attack anyone the giant likes.” The prestige hunting pet for giant kings is a wyvern, with two kings keeping a mated pair. To feed wyvern eggs to a giant is to honor him highly, and they feel obligated to return the honor in some way; needless to say, those kings with mated wyverns are considered very highly, should they share their bounty. Others keep owlbeasts, simply to prove that they can, but they’re regarded as lesser pets than the mighty wyverns.
Humans - The humans of the Krond Heights are of mixed Brandobian and Dejy stock, and speak a language that combines both the local Dejy dialect (distantly related to Bylenjy) and much Old Brandobian, with some few words from older varieties of the Merchant’s Tongue. The language, Krondian, is largely unintelligible to those without at least average mastery of Old Brandobian and Bylenjy, and novice mastery of Giantish; there is a 30% penalty to using one of those languages if someone has all three. The Hoar Frost dialect of Giant is a common second language, and many are billingual in it. Living in villages of a few dozen people, most are clients of the nearest Hoar Frost Giant ruler, sometimes through vassalage to hill giants or ogres.
The majority of the humans in the Krond Heights are shepherds, with one or two for every village also growing grain and hay, and households contributing to a communal garden. At lower altitudes, some keep sheep or goats, but those higher on the slopes tend towards alpaca and llamas. During the winter, war, or calving season, they may crowd their livestock into their houses. Houses of the common folk have walls of wattle and daub, with rush mats on half the floor, where the people live. Those who are more well-to-do will have stone walls and wooden floors on the people side of the house. Both will have thatch roofs; wooden shingles are unheard of, and would be considered an almost unthinkable luxury compared to repairing thatch every year.
Like the goblins, the giants restrict which weapons humans might carry, though it is largely a prohibition against swords, long bows, and crossbows, or any spear longer than a man (the giants have an imprecise view of this, however; “longer than a man” means “big enough that a giant doesn’t like it”). This giantish imprecision applies to armor, as well; metal armors are noticed, but leather, hide, padded, and even brigandine styles are unlikely to be noticed by giantish overlords.
Krondian humans, it should be noted, hate their halfling neighbors, whom they regard as being slaves of the goblins, unlike their own noble vassalage to the giants (who will happily enslave and eat them at their whim, it should be said). They make no distinction between the goblins and the halflings, and certainly none between halflings and bugans. They also expose any half-orc or fieri children detected among them.
Kobolds - Kobolds are perhaps the most successful species of humanoid on the planet, bar humans. Tribes of kobolds live almost everywhere, eking out an existence in the shadow of larger humanoids, demihumans, and even giants. In the Krond Heights, their preferred habitat is narrow cracks that don’t penetrate down to the Netherdeep; too small for giants, too disconnected for goblins, kobolds venture out of these holes to hunt, gather, and steal, relying on the natural fortification of their crevasses, enhanced by traps, brambles, and wicker barriers. A common target of kobold raids (in addition to food or tools) is the puppies of human-owned dogs, or the occasional bitch in heat, to supplement their own pet’s bloodlines..
Orcs and Ogres - Ogres and orcs (including both sn’ogres and white orcs) in the Krond Heights are almost always lackeys of the local giants; even semi-independent tribes of orcs likely give fealty to a giant lord. Orc and snorc raiders are used as game pieces by the frost giants; while they cannot contain the orcish tendency to destroy everything, they will happily use it, having the orcs raid villages loyal to opposing lords, or using them as a mercenary force to root out capritaurs or gargoyles from ruins, if the giant desires. Orc tribes are kept small, sometimes by simply bashing them together for the amusement of the giants; direct two tribes at each other, or at the same target, and invite your court to watch them fight (perhaps with thrown boulders swaying the results one way or another).
Ogres, despite their legendary rock-headedness, are viewed as more valuable by the giants, and more predictable due to their equally legendary laziness. If a band of ogres is supplied with a good source of food, and someone to take care of that food for them, they’ll laze comfortably about until someone disrupts their debauchery. So, bands of ogres are often used as overseers of human villages, with giant goats being sent to the ogres and giants, and the humans making their own living. When raided, such hamlets will be protected by the ogres, in theory, though it is more likely that the ogres will launch a retaliatory raid when they get word that their food was stolen. If the ogres themselves become intolerable, the humans might send an emissary to the giant chief, but many such emissaries are enslaved, not entertained.
Sn’ogres are a different story. Hardier and less indolent than their “lowland” cousins, Sn’ogres serve many hoar frost giant chiefs and kings as gamekeepers, free to hunt and slay for their own purposes, but responsible for guiding the chief to prey when he chooses to hunt. Of course, they are also used to attack other targets, or as scouts in war. Sn’ogres are particularly active in slushie hunting, tapping them for alcohol for their giant masters.
Next week: Peoples of the Goblin Deeps!
