The Kaivar
There was a time when Ashenfeld was nothing more than squatting tribes of primitive warriors fighting each other. Even when the giants first stalked the land, these tribes did war with each other and the giant kin. However, some tribes sought either peace or cooperation with the giants. This is the rumor of how the Kaivar came to be, with some saying they have the blood of giant gods in them. They are one of the oldest peoples in Nilush, and some of the most prolific, though these days they are dying out as things stand.
The Kaivar are a warrior like people, hailing from their mountain home in the highest peaks in Northern Ashenfeld. This mountain, they call Kaiva, said to be named after the first Consort of the Giant Gods that once walked the land. Through this consort were the Kaivar born, and it is for this reason that the Kaivar are a incredibly tall people, all at least growing to be 7-8ft tall and built like boulders. They have ethnic origins of the Alddin tribes of the far north, and so they are osmetimes seen as "The Northmen of Ashenfeld". Sadly, not much information is known about their culture, save for their proclivity to adopt people into their tribes, and blood relation being something less important to the Kaivar.
They are however known for their horsemanship, and form blood bonds with their mounts in strange pagan rituals binding a riders spirit with their mount. Should one die before the other, the survivor must than seek death in battle, and shall never rest until they achieve hoored death. They are also notorious for their massive weapons, their preffered weapon being a curved greatsword like that of a scimitar, mixed with the heft and handle of an axe they call, Avalanche Blades. No matter if on horseback or on foot, the blade is designed to be able to knock a rider off their mount from the sheer weight of impact, regardless of whatever straps one might wear to their horse. This, coupled with their scale armor, furs, and rough demanors, make them some of the most favored sellswords in Ashenfeld and neighboring territories. In fact, sellswording has become a crucial part of their cultural identiy, with the Kaivar largely migrating out of their home to wander either alone or in small groups to ply their trade at sellswording. Given their stature and penchent for beserker like fury, they excel at this job easily.
However just as it has shaped their identiy, so too will it likely be the death of them. Few Kaivar live in their homeland, though they still show great reverance for it. Some even describe their main settlement as being a ghost town of empty buildings, like a masouleum of those still living, but all the living have vanished. They wander whereever they wish too and where they can find pay, and the sellswording life kills far more than are able to retire. This, and their warrior like culture, mean few like the idea of growing old and dying. Though their numbers have been hepled with their penchant of adopting (with those proving themselves to the Kaivar being adopted and recognized as ethnically Kaivar by the tribes should they be deemed acceptable) in truth their numbers continue to decline. However, some whisper that perhaps one day, the dead Giant Gods will return, and reunite the scatterted tribes of the Kaivar into a marauding horde of mounted warriors, crying out names to gods that are long dead.
Culture
Major language groups and dialects
The language of the Kaivar is a dying language, said to be based off of the tongue of giants and the earliest forms of Ashfeldian language. It is described as a very gutteral language.
Major organizations
Given their mercenary nature, the Kaivar have no organized nation to speak of, aside from the mountain city they hail from. Though given how many have traveled out into the worlds, it is said the city is effectively a ghost town, with the city being abandoned largely save for a few old, elderly caretakers.
Related Locations
