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Barbarians

Barbarians are most easily defined in their signature feature, their Rage. Being more durable than any other class, with a mix of strength, brutality, feral instincts, and indomitable might, to be a barbarian is to be a level above all others on the battlefield. While they may not be a master of combative skill like a fighter or a ranger, or have the power of their oath like a paladin would, the barbarian tips the scales to equal footing by their rage, granting them enhanced abilities and the ability to shrug through blows that would fell any other. The way this rage appears depends on person to person, with it being a blood curdling scream, or a hyper focus in a calm disciplined mind, and the form this apparates is different from how the barbarian is set by its subclass.   Barbarians is the name labled upon a group of people outside of the main fold of the Impilturian Empire when it began its conquest of the Sea of Fallen Stars. Originally a slur for entire cultures, the word eventually began to morph to a title of reverence in those whose legends used to be called barbarians, a reincarnation of the heroes of old, or fear in those who those legends turned their ire and their relentless might towards. In the modern day, barbarians are most often in the tribalistic and nomadic cultures that perch along the hinterlands, but barbarians can also come from civilization, a hero in a military formation, a celebrated brawler, gladiators, and even those who tap into the Arcanum to fuel their physical prowess. To be a barbarian is to strike fear into your enemies, and awe in your allies, a warrior through and through.   The Barbarian has several unique forms they can take, they are:   Ancestral Guardian. These barbarians come from cultures that revere their ancestors past, and believe that these spirits echo on through the ages, guiding their descendents forever. A barbarian of this variety go for a variety of ways that they may contact the spirit world, from bones to tattoos to occult rituals. However they go about it, their rage is less about an emotional outburst as it is a drawing of the spiritual energies, inviting them to inhabit and bolster the barbarian so he may deal the enemies of his tribe their just deserts. These spirits can take many forms, the benevolent and the malevolent in equal measure, with a desire to help the living or to destroy all in their descendent's path. A sufficiently practiced Ancestral Guardian may even become familiar enough with the rituals to commune with them himself.   Beast. The Path of the Beast rarely comes by the volition of the individual that walks this path. These individuals are inflicted with Beast Blood, which is a stain upon their bloodline and is considered impure by all cultures. Small sects of Beast Barbarians may exist in the deepest forests, or coldest mountains, with the largest group of Beastbloods terrorize the High Sanctuaries of the Volhynia Mountains. In their everyday lives, these individuals appear normal with some uncanny features like paticular hairy skin, bigger eyes, or long fingers. It is when they unleash their rage that the Beast Blood swells to the surface and mutates the individual, growing wolf fangs, cats claws, or spiked tails, and a feral destructive nature directed with an animalistic simplicity.   Berserker. The word Berserker comes from the Kvasir  words for "bear-warrior," and while the Impilturians pinned any fighter from Varaskien and Kvasir as as berserker, they were in fact a unique variety of warrior and were the elite shock troops of the raiding Kvasir. Traditionally, the transformation into a Berserker would require a ritual involving bear blood and hides that they would wear, along with hallucinogenic and painkilling drugs the whole night and day before the battle. These terrifying warriors would sometimes devolve into using their bare hands and running at their foes on all fours, tearing limbs and succoring in their blood. Modern day berserkers can be found anywhere, with their rage fueling their martial prowess on the battlefield or the arena without the savage ritual, with the old ways kept alive in Kvasir.   Giantish. Giants are a primeval form of life, having been in power during the time of the Dragon Emperors, and in the modern day scattered in the pockets in between the wide civilizations of the smaller races. While they can be found in their various forms just about anywhere, Giants keep their numbers controlled to prevent overpopulation and overpowering their home environment. It is the different forms of giantfolk that the Giantish barbarian actively works to emmulate. Having under gone runic rituals these individuals are able to enter a state where they immulate a fraction of a giant's power, becoming larger than a normal humanoid as well as incredibly strong, capable of becoming a hulking colossus of destruction. Those that enter the Path of the Giant however are some of the more civil and educated of barbarians, having learned these abilities from certain giantish races themselves, as well as having to learn their language along with rudimentary magics.   Storm Herald. The natural world is the source of power of a great many individuals, with druids, rangers, and others who are sworn to the protection of the natural state, drawing their power from the trees and fields and seas and mountains. Alongside the druids, elite champions may learn the abilities to also wield the forces of nature in a much different way from the long traditional teachings of druidic magic. Storm Heralds wield the power of the terrain they belong in, with a Herald from the Desert drawing on the heat and winds of the sandstorm, a Tundra Herald wielding a blizzard, or the Sea Herald emmulating the hurricane. They wield this power through their rage, creating powerful mantles of natural energy to destroy those who would threaten their way of life. Storm Heralds form groups called lodges within the terrain they hail from, with one such lodge called the Alabaster Cliff Inn in Rusulka.    Totem Warrior. Totems are physical landmarks that tie the individual in communion with the totem with the spirit animal it represents. It is a highly meditative and spiritual journey that eventually leads to this barbarian with a companion and spiritual guide in the form of the animal they are drawn to. These individuals as a consequence also learn how to commune with the birds and beasts of the world in their journey. The individual typically fits within a certain catagory of totem, with the spirit animal choosing the barbarian that they will implant. A bear totem barbarian will be stocky and more hairy because of their connection to the spirit bear, an eagle spry and having incredible vision, as examples. Most tribes that have totem barbarians have a variety as each individual is drawn to an individual creature. A notable exception to this is an entire clan of wood elves in Elyn'aran who are all engrained with a tiger spirit, and their totems reflect that.   Wild Magic. The Arcanum is an ever present force invisible and intangible by the vast majority of the population. Only with certain connections or the most rigorous of training can one begin to hear the Music of the Arcanum. However, this tangled web of invisible threads of mystic energy sometimes tangle within individuals, pushing magic through their very blood, these are sorcerers. This can happen by birth, by accident, or by rigorous ritual. Some of these individuals, awash with arcane power, have little recourse but to channel this bursting magic energy in the form of wild outbursts of raw magic energy. These are strange and unpredictable, and often hazardous to those in the vicinity when the barbarian first learns of the power coursing through their veins. As such, a Wild Magic Barbarian is often a solitary creature, driven from place to place by the need to direct the uncomfortable resevoir of raw magic out at something before they burst.   Zealot. Unlike paladins and clerics, Zealot barbarians are typically unsanctioned divine warriors, fighting with a fury and zeal that is both of their own natural capabilities, and also from the divinity they serve. In general, these are most commonly gods of war, destruction and violence, although some divine orders also have barbarians that settle themselves into the crusading ranks, such as those that crusade against undead. While they are not usually sanctioned when in more structured heirarchies, due to the typically unorthodox nature of a barbarian, they are still welcomed within the armies of these theological warriors. After all, it is undeniable that the god they both revere has shown its favor by bestowing its power upon this barbarian. It is of note that these barbarians, due to the explicit favor of the gods, are some of the hardest to kill, as they are surrounded by clerics who will raise them from the grave, and require no ritual in order to accomplish, as if the soul is merely waiting for the green light to return.

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