Novice - Firbolg Runecarving
"We should leave," Verimether whispered as he looked at the odd caricature made out of tinder and bone dangling from a branch, directly in their path.
"Nonsense!" the dwarven caravan leader shouted as he walked further down the trail. "A wee bit o' wood gonna have you running back to your hole in the hill, halfling?"
Toerdermar's bravado was nearly believable. If he could have managed to take his eyes off the totem he may have even convinced himself. But as he walked closer to the icon, he began to see what it truly was. He saw himself, dangling from the tree by a rope wound around his neck.
"This is firbolg country," Verimether said. "I don't think they want company this evening."
Qualifications
Runecarving is a difficult endeavor in and of itself but an adventurer deciding they wish to learn the firbolg variant have given themselves an even more arduous task. First, they must find a firbolg cirle; a notoriously hard task to accomplish since they are so skilled at concealing themselves. Second, the adventurer must convince the circle to admit them. This requires the adventurer to ignore the clear and dangerous warnings that the firbolg do not wish to be disturbed. How one convinces a firbolg they are friend not foe is a mystery itself, but offering a bag of nuts or berries may be a good start? Thirdly, the circle the adventurer has found and befriended must also practice runecarving themselves. Not all circles practice this profession since it is so closely related to giants and their ideals of maut and maug which firbolg have shunned. It doesn't help that dwarves are the leading practitioners of runecarving either. Their ideals of greed and consumption may be more distasteful to firbolg than giants' primitive morality. This rejection of giant lore brings us to the final qualification an adventurer must meet. Since the firbolg would not use a giant-kin language, the language they use in their runecarving is a mystery. Unfortunately, this mystery must be solved by the adventurer, since an illiterate student will not be trained.
These may seem insurmountable, or at least discouraging, but this author would see firbolg culture expand and offer this glimmer of hope; it appears that those closely associated with nature seem to be admitted more readily into a runecarving circle than those of more developed tastes. Rangers, druids, barbarians, and priests and paladins that follow a more primitive god may have an advantage when seeking to learn this variant of runecarving.
Appointment
Those that have been admitted to such an exclusive school report a rather modest beginning. One simply sits in on a lecture given by any one of the runecarvers. All who sit in front of the lecturer are considered apprentices for the time being, regardless of their skill in runecarving. As in all firbolg culture, everyone helps everyone, everyone is a teacher, everyone is a student. Unsurprisingly, a lecture given by a novice is poorly attended, but those who have knowledge to pass on are expected to teach those less skilled than they.
Responsibilities
Runecarving is simply another tool for firbolgs to use in their everyday lives. Protecting the forests they dwell within, keeping their circles hidden, and warning trespassers of the dangers ahead, even if the firbolgs themselves are that danger, are everyday duties of firbolgs. Runecarving is used to further this agenda.
Benefits
Firbolg runecarving makes Illusion, Enchantment, Transmutation and Divination spell checks easier by 1. The firbolg runecarver can also fashion totems, carve into wood, or grow a small plant in the desired symbol in 2 minutes, rather than 10. Icons that convey a warning can also inspire the Fear condition on a creature that ignores the warning. The symbol is the center of the fear status and is applied if the creature fails a 15 Wisdom save.
Accoutrements & Equipment
A carving knife and a bag of seeds are given to every firbolg novice so that they can practice their craft.
Grounds for Removal/Dismissal
Those who practice runecarving out of avarice or create an imbalance in nature are immediately expelled if not killed outright. Anyone who betrays the circle's location or endangers the tribe will wake up to find themselves alone in the woods.
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