Shortly after the Doom of Elysion, the Mhordlakhy poured
forth out of the West, into the lands that now hold their name. There they
found a patchwork of petty Guidhel and Kartaghan tribes, descended from
wanderers from the East and the South. Most of these they conquered and
absorbed, though it was a centuries-long process. One of the tribes that
resulted from the merger of Mhordlakhy and Kartaghan clans, the Kholmyks,
furiously fought their further conquest and assimilation by the greater Mhordlakh
tribes, and thus migrated East, into and across the Mordhlagh Mountains.
There the clans, once home to forest and plain, settled into
the forested hills and mountain valleys, and there slowly bred their plains
ponies into hill ponies. To this day they are masters of raising, training, and
riding their sturdy hill ponies and donkeys; they make a good trade selling
geldings and mules to the merchants of Paúkgrad and Szmaüdjypol. Never
conquered for any lengthy time by any of the petty princes and kings of their
lands, the Kholmyks continue their atavistic clan-based lifestyle in the craggy
hills and valleys, from which they debouch in times of war, chaos, and plague
to ravage, pillage, loot, and enslave all they can before order re-establishes
itself.
However in turn, these cruel and savage slavers often find
themselves on the other end of the slave whip. Kholmyk women, often of rare and
exotic beauty, are regular targets for kidnappers seeking to sell the beauties
in the slave market; thus the universal distrust of men of other races held by
Kholmyk men.
RANGE: Primarily Lower Bagaudia and Eastern Mhordlakh, in
the hills and valleys of the Mordhlagh
Mountains. Some clans
have wandered further afield, and can be found in the hill country of the
Southern Verdhulann north of the Vale of Lamentation; across the Black River in the western foothills and
valleys of the Mountains of Blood; in the forested hills of the Wicked Wood in
Strigoria; and in the Black River Hills in the Western
Marches.
APPEARANCE: Kholmyk men usually stand 5’2” to 5’8” and are
of medium to stocky build; women are slightly shorter and tend to be medium to
svelte build in youth, growing stockier with age and child-bearing. Being of
mixed Mhordlakhy and Kartaghan descent, they have shimmering, pale, almost
translucent light blue skin, reddish-gold eyes, and raven-black hair. Their
lips, mouth, and tongue are deep purple rather than reddish-pink.
RELIGION: The Kholmyks, like their Kartaghan ancestors, are
usually dedicated to the King of Hell, whom they know by the name Zuulchovek
or, commonly, as Pop Bog, “Devil God.” Kholmyks are not so much zealous as they
are fatalistic; they figure Pop Bog will get their souls no matter what they
do, so they don’t much worry about pleasing him; but then, too, they do not go
out of their way to anger him. Thus the Kholmyks are a very superstitious lot,
as over the ages various things that apparently please or displease Pop Bog
pass into and out of vogue. Currently, Kholmyks fear black cats, adore white
dogs, do not trust anyone wearing cloth-of-gold, always wear something red,
cannot cross water when a dead body is visible in it, believe blue-eyed women
possess the Evil Eye, and grimace and snap their fingers three times each when
the God of Law is mentioned.
Kholmyks do not have priests or clergy; their religious
needs, such as they are, are served by female witches and male shamans. Kholmyk
witches are practitioners of black magic, sourced through the King of Devils as
their patron in a quid-pro-quo relationship rather than abject reverence. The
magiya, as they are known, do not serve the clan so much as answer to
Zuulchovek; they have their own secretive rites and ceremonies, unseen by their
own men let alone outsiders. They usually hold their sabbats on the nearest and
highest cave-ridden pinnacle, near an entrance to the Underworld, on nights of
the New Moon. Together their covens defend the clan and prepare their men-folk
for war; otherwise, each witch tends to the needs of her own extended family.
Families without a witch tend to be poor and looked-down upon.
Shamans among the Kholmyks are invariably male, and usually
few and far-between; perhaps one to three per clan. As a requirement of service
as a shaman they must remain celibate; additionally, as magic is believed to be
woman’s work, they must also dress and act in all ways as women. Thus they are
known as the baba dukhs, or “spirit women.” Their magic is different from the
fiendish witchcraft of the Kholmyk women, however. The shamans retain a more
ancient form of magic that supplicates and commands spirits, including nature
spirits, elemental spirits, and undead spirits, and thus like true witchcraft
combines elements of divine and arcane magic. Their assistance is sought only
by those who have no family witch or who wish not to seek the help of the
family witch.
Neither the witches nor the shamans are overly zealous or
forceful about their faith; they are usually a laid-back lot, as they know they
won’t get much out of their people, so they don’t push much. They are happy to
keep their people safe from the other evils of the world and enable them to
engage in their raiding, pillaging, slaving, and slaying, so long as Zuulchovek
gets his cut. They are not even overly concerned with their people paying lip
service to some other Pagan god; they know that their King of Devils has a
greater hold on their people’s soul than any other. The only thing they won’t
stand is any interference from the Gregorian
Church or the followers
of the Dungeon God; such proselytizing clergy as pass through Kholmyk lands are
favored subjects for torture and sacrifice.
TRIBAL STRUCTURE: While to the outside world it appears that
men rule the clans, as outsiders only ever deal with Kholmyk men – rarely even
seeing their women – it is actually the women of the clans who rule. The clan
boyan, or lord, acts merely at the pleasure and the orders of the baba magiya,
the council of crones, which is made up of all the witches who are also
grandmothers. The council of crones makes all long-term decisions of the clan,
including when to raid and when to trade. In the extended household, the woman
with the most living children is considered the family matron, regardless of
age or other ability, though she must take the advice of any magiya in her
family.
Once a decision has been made, however, the men must go out
to enforce the will of the women. And there they have much discretion, and
usually use it as much as they dare. Older men have much respect from the
younger, as to live to be a greybeard means one is mighty and wise indeed.
At the top of the clan hierarchy are the baba magiya, all
old witches steeped in wisdom and evil. They are served by the other magiya,
who lord over not only their own families but also witch-less families. Then
there is the boyan and his family (always from a family with a witch), who have
a degree of respect, as do the clan champions (boyets). Beneath them are all
the rest of the Kholmyks, with those who are olboyani (families that have a
living, former boyan with them) being given a further degree of respect.
Beneath all are the slaves, usually female concubines and servants, but also
sometimes including strong males; any slave can end up being made a sacrifice
if need exists, so most are taciturn and terrified. No few are simply enchanted
into submission by the clan witches. Note that the children of the concubines
are not considered the children of the father; they are often sold off as
slaves or even sacrificed.
A clan usually has 10d10 able-bodied 1st level men (usually
barbarians, fighters, rangers, or animal trainers), an equal or slightly
greater number of women (with perhaps 25 to 40% being equivalent to 1st level
thieves, scouts, or doxies), and a number of youths and children equal to the number of men and
women combined. For every 10 men there will be an additional 2nd level leader;
for every 20 an additional 3rd level; and the clan will be led by a boyan of
5th to 7th level with a cadre of 1d4 4th level boyets. For every five women
there will be an additional 1st level witch; for every 10 a 2nd level witch; for
every 20 a 3rd level witch; and the council of crones consists of 2d4+1 4th to
7th level witches. In addition there will be 1d3 shamans of 1st to 6th level;
one slave concubine per 10 men plus one for each level of each male leader type; and a
number of male slaves equal to the total number of witches. There is also a 50%
chance of 2d6 recent captives, either being held for ransom, waiting to be sold into
slavery, or being readied for sacrifice.
TERRAIN/CLIMATE: Kholmyks are native to temperate forested
hills and mountains.
TRIBAL WEAPONS: Battle axe, hand/throwing axe, composite
short bow, club, dagger, javelin, throwing knife, lariat, sling, spear, short
sword (cutlass-like saber), and staff.
TRIBAL ARMOR: Leather coat, leather armor, studded leather
armor, lamellar, scale mail, brigandine; leather coif, pot helm, and
spangenhelm (i.e., “normal helm”); small, medium, and large wooden shields.
TRIBAL ABILITIES [LL]: Kholmyks can climb trees, cliffs, and mountains; train and ride hill ponies, donkeys, and mules; herd sheep,
goats, and pigs; leap and jump; and imitate animal calls. They are considered
native to forests, hills, and mountains.
TRIBAL ABILITIES [C&C]: Animal handling (ponies,
donkeys), armor maker, battle cry, bowyer, first aid, horsemanship, horse
warrior, scale, sound imitation, all wilderness abilities.
LANGUAGE: The Kholmyk tongue, like the people, is a thorough
mix between Mhordlakhy and Kartaghan, with centuries of its own
side-development; thus it sounds familiar to speakers of Mhordlakhy or
Kartaghan, but is not understandable. It is usually written, when written at
all, using a variant of Mhordlakhy script. Usually only the witches and shamans
are literate.
MALE NAMES: Altzek, Balamber, Bezmer, Bleda, Chok, Ditzeng,
Drogo, Dukum, Ellak, Ernak, Gostun, Grod, Hudbaad, Kardam, Kotrag, Krum, Kuber,
Kubrat, Malamir, Mugel, Mundjuk, Ruga, Sevar, Telerig, Teletz, Tervel, Uldin, Vinekh,
Vund, Zabergan.
FEMALE NAMES: Arzu, Asli, Ayla, Aylin, Aysel, Aysun, Basak,
Belgin, Berna, Bilge, Deniz, Derya, Dilara, Dilek, Ebru, Elmas, Emel, Emine,
Esen, Eser, Esin, Evren, Fidan, Gizem, Gonca, Gozde, Hande, Havva, Hazan, Muge,
Nergis, Nesrin, Nuray, Ozge, Ozgur, Ozlem, Simge, Su, Tulay, Yildiz, Yonca.
