Gnoll

During the Age of Demons, before the formation of the Silver Flame, Eberron was ruled by the fiendish Overlords. These powerful demons constantly clashed with eachother, in particular the Rage of War's armies and the Wild Heart's beasts. During these conflicts, the Wild Heart bred dire hyenas which would then consume the fiendish warriors of the Rage of War.
As the Silver Flame teaches, fiends cannot be permanently destroyed. Their energy lives on, and their essence warped the dire hyenas into something that neither beast or demon, something new. This was the origin of the first gnolls, and as they were created by the joining of War and Wild, they served both overlords. They fought against orcs and the other early humanoids, as well as fighting the gnolls that served the other overlords. Even after the overlords were bound by the Silver Flame, the gnolls continued to do their bidding, fueled by the fiendish spark that burned within thm.
The Dhakaani ruthlessly eliminated gnolls whenever they encountered them, driving them back into the deep forests. Modern gnolls might have been tied to the overlords, but most of them don't know the names of their progenitors. Gnolls clans are guided by warlocks, and each clan has it's own name for the fiendish power that fuels them. All of them are cruel, deriving pleasure from violence and instilling terror. People in Aundair still share tales of the horrors unleashed by the gnolls when they last raided through the Labyrinth, and children in Breland know that gnolls will devour those that stray from the roads.
This uniformity is unusual in Eberron, which usually allows for cultural diversity in it's peoples. Gnolls aren't natural creatures, they were born of and shaped by demons, and that demonic essence still flows through their veins. They were created to spread violence, and many of them embraced this path, but this wasn't true of all of them. There were some gnolls who rejected their heritage, the gnolls of the Znir Pact.
Droaam has long been home to gnoll clans, and for thousands of years the gnolls of Droaam clashed with trolls, ogres, and each other. Centuries ago, something changed. Two gnolls from rival clans faced each other in battle, and began to question the path that had led them here. These two gnolls made a decision that would alter the course of their race; they chose not to fight.
Those gnolls urged their kin to reject the voices inside of them that called for endless violence, to refuse to live in service to fiends. Those two became four, those four became eight, until entire clans heeded the call. The leaders of those clans dragged their demonic idols to the location now known as Znir, and they shattered the images of the fiends they had lived in service to their entire lives. Together, this gathering of warriors and shamans swore an oath: They might be many clans, but from this day forward they would be one pack. Never again would they allow anyone to hold dominion over them, no gods, no masters.
The leaders of the Znir Pact had no desire to rule over other creatures, but even just holding territory would invite attack from others. This led to them developing the path that would carry them forward to this day. The gnolls would claim no territory beyond the lands around Znir, but they would fight for any who would pay a fair price. If any sought to enslave a gnoll, or to strike against Znir, they would face the wrath of the entirety of the Znir Pact. This was a lesson that had to be taught many times, but eventually the point had been made. To those who paid and respected them, the gnolls were as reliable as the stone they named themselves after. Those who betrayed them aren't around to speak of it.

Lifespan

30 Years

Related Organizations

• Znir Pact