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Varushkan Monster
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{{CaptionedImage|file=Varushkan Monsters.jpg|caption=There are monsters in Varushka.|align=left|width=300}}
Varushka is dangerous, and the dangers come in many shapes. Some of these shapes are familiar to the other citizens of the Empire. Disenfranchised or lazy men and women take to banditry, using the isolation of the Varushkan wilderness to create hidden settlements, raiding their neighbours and travelling caravans to sustain themselves from year to year. They are reviled as parasites by civilised Varushkans, and those bands that survive more than a few years tend to fall under the sway of dark forces.
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==Overview==
[[Varushka]] is dangerous, and the dangers come in many shapes. Some of these shapes are familiar to the other citizens of the Empire. Disenfranchised or lazy people take to banditry, using the isolation of the Varushkan wilderness to create hidden settlements, raiding their neighbours and travelling caravans to sustain themselves from year to year. They are reviled as parasites by civilised Varushkans, and those bands that survive more than a few years tend to fall under the sway of dark forces.


There are orcs here who take advantage of that same isolation. These orcs tend to be the remnants of larger tribes defeated by the Varushkans, and while they are a threat they are rarely any more pressing than any other disenfranchised bandit gang. As with the bandits, the Varushkan orcs tend to make pacts with the horrors that lurk under the trees, sometimes becoming their agents.  
There are [[orc|orcs]] here who take advantage of that same isolation. These orcs tend to be the remnants of larger nations defeated by the Varushkans, and while they are a threat they are rarely any more pressing than any other disenfranchised bandit gang. As with the bandits, the Varushkan orcs tend to make pacts with the horrors that lurk under the trees, sometimes becoming their agents.  


===Wolves===
==Wolves==
The mundane dangers of Varushka pale beside the supernatural threats. The weakest and most common of these are termed “Wolves” by the Varushkans. They are hungry, instinctual horrors that seek to feast on living flesh. Ghouls and husks are common examples of Wolves. They tend to appear in large groups and besiege a valley, or fall on travellers in large numbers, but they can usually be driven off by strength of arms or cleverness. The primary task of the boyars and Schlacta is to keep the Wolves at bay.
The mundane dangers of Varushka pale beside the supernatural threats. The weakest and most common of these are termed “Wolves” by the Varushkans. They are hungry, instinctual horrors that seek to feast on living flesh. Ghouls and husks are common examples of Wolves. They tend to appear in large groups and besiege a valley, or fall on travellers in large numbers, but they can usually be driven off by strength of arms or cleverness. The primary task of the boyars and schlacta is to keep the Wolves at bay.


===Sovereigns===
Another example of a Wolf would be the ''dubik'' of the deep forests - animate plant-like creatures that thirst for human blood and inhabit certain isolated tangled woodlands. They have an ability to mimic human speech, and seek to draw unwary travellers off the road so they may feast. On occasion, they gather in sufficient numbers to try and overwhelm a vale, and if they are successful the buildings are claimed by the forest with supernatural speed. Despite superficial appearance, they are not related to the [[vallornspawn husks]] - rather the [[Varushka_magical_traditions#Volhov|volhov]] claim they are connected to some slumbering vegetative sovereign that sleeps in the black earth of [[Volodmartz]]. This sovereign is somewhat confusingly referred to as ''the'' Dubik and said to have a particular hatred for those of the [[changeling]] [[lineage]].
A more powerful threat are the “Sovereigns.” A far cry from the instinctual terrors, these creatures are powerful and wilful individuals. Corrupt boyars empowered by sinister bargains, meddling Eternals and cunning conspirators such as the Volodya are all examples of Sovereigns. They are intelligent, patient and terrible. Sovereigns tend to be restricted to specific areas, and many of them labour under bindings or strictures that prevent them from preying on the Varushkans directly. While “Wolves” move freely, many Sovereigns tend to slumber in their lairs until external influences wakes them up. The actions of foolish bandits, thieves and roving orc bands are often blamed for wakening the more powerful Sovereigns, and many rules or restrictions in Varushka are designed to prevent people interfering with them and drawing their attention. Sovereigns sometimes work through agents who possess more freedom to operate outside their lairs. Wolves can rarely be reasoned with, but Sovereigns often present a civil mien and can be bargained with.


==Sovereigns==
A more powerful threat are the “Sovereigns.” A far cry from the instinctual terrors, these creatures are powerful and wilful individuals. Corrupt [[Varushka Leadership|boyars]] empowered by sinister bargains, meddling [[eternal|eternals]] and cunning conspirators such as the [[Volodny]] are all examples of Sovereigns. They are intelligent, patient and terrible. Sovereigns tend to be restricted to specific areas, and many of them labour under bindings or strictures that prevent them from preying on the Varushkans directly. While “Wolves” move freely, many Sovereigns tend to slumber in their lairs until external influences wakes them up. The actions of foolish bandits, thieves and roving orc bands are often blamed for awakening the more powerful Sovereigns, and many rules or restrictions in Varushka are designed to prevent people interfering with them and drawing their attention. Sovereigns sometimes work through agents who possess more freedom to operate outside their lairs. Wolves can rarely be reasoned with, but Sovereigns often present a civil mien and can be bargained with.
''The Dubik'' has already been mentioned. Other famous sovereigns include the ''Howling Queen'' who is said to slumber beneath the [[Miekarova#The Razors|Razors]] in north-eastern [[Miekarova]]; the hungry king believed to rest in a barrow under [[Karsk#Broken Barrow|Broken Barrow]] in northern [[Karsk]]; and [[Agramant]], an eternal whose fascination with cannibalism makes his heralds and agents a threat to some isolated vales especially in northern Miekarova.
==Exceptions==
Not every monstrous threat in Varushka fits easily into the wolf/sovereign category. Some creatures seem to fall part-way between the two - they are intelligent like sovereigns, but lack individual power or are motivated by appetites more appropriate to wolves.
{{CaptionedImage|file=mora.jpeg|caption=Take care when fighting monsters, lest you become a monster yourself.|align=right|width=400}}
===Mora===
===Mora===
Midway between the Wolves and the Sovereigns in power are the shapechangers, the most common of whom are the Mora – strange bird-like creatures who can assume pleasing shapes to go among mankind or lure travellers to their deaths. The Mora can bypass many protections to visit human settlements, but by doing so they become tightly bound to the rules of hospitality and cannot directly act against gracious hosts.
Midway between the Wolves and the Sovereigns in power are the shapechangers, the most common of whom are the Mora – strange bird-like creatures who can assume pleasing shapes to go among humans or lure travellers to their deaths. The Mora can bypass many protections to visit human settlements, but by doing so they become tightly bound to the rules of hospitality and cannot directly act against gracious hosts.


While they are shapeshifters, Mora cannot take on the form of specific people. They can disguise themselves as a human, but they cannot take on the guise of a specific human.
While they are shapeshifters, Mora cannot take on the form of specific people. They can disguise themselves as a human, but they cannot take on the guise of a specific human.


===Plaguewulf===
===Rusalka===
These hulking beasts are lean humanoids with the features of predatory animals. Most commonly they have wolf-like muzzles and features, although versions with more rat-like or bear-like details have occasionally been observed. They are greatly feared, and the appearance of one - or worse a small pack - is a cause for great alarm in Varushkan settlements. Technically they are Wolves, but as with the Mora they more practically occupy a middle-ground between Wolf and Sovereign. They are intelligent, and seem in some way to feast on the death of living creatures - while the husks that surround them eat the meat of the dead, the plaguewulf is said to sustains itself on the 'last breath' of a dying creature. While they can feed on the terrified deaths of animals, they much prefer to drink the life-breath of humans and orcs.
Similar to mora, Rusalka are shapechangers but their natural form appears to be that of a water- or sea-dwelling beast rather than a bird. Rusalka are very rare, even by Varushkan standards, but most common in [[the Semmerlak]] and the frozen lakes of the far north. They dwell in certain bodies of water, seeking to lure travellers to a watery doom. In addition to their natural shape, they can assume the form of a human or orc - often a beautiful youth or an aged figure in need of assistance. They can also take on a form that appears as a nightmarish humanoid with aquatic features, razor-sharp teeth, wide eyes, and grasping claws. Those who let the Rusalka touch them are often rendered helpless by their touch - [[Calls#PARALYSE|paralysed]] by the strength-sapping charm of the creatures.


A Plaguewulf is almost never encountered alone; rather they are surrounded by a pack of shambling, flesh-hungry husks that appear to be largely under their control. The plaguewulf creates more husks through the use of it's horrible pestilential breath - a living being caught in the exhalations of a plaguewulf is [[Magic#VENOM|envenomed]] and the flame of their life is snuffed out by any serious illness. Still worse, shortly after their death the victim rises up as an abominable horror that preys on the living. Some scholars suggest that the effects of [[The Winter Moon#Virus Lunarae|Virus Lunarae]] are modeled on or somehow derived from the effect of plaguewulf breath. Plaguewulfs are said to be able to use their baleful spittle to create subject husks from freshly dead bodies (even if the bodies have been buried for a few days), but this is much more time consuming.
Some [[Wintermark]] travellers claim that similar creatures dwell in the northern oceans - which they call ''Hylje'' - but they consider them helpful, positive spirits. By contrast, some [[the Marches|Marchers]] claim more predatory creatures akin to shark shapeshifters dwell in the Gullet, and creep about vessels at anchor to devour the sailors aboard. There are also circumstantial reports that the [[Thule]] orcs know of similar beasts.


No husk, even one from created by a ritual such as [[Quickening Cold Meat]] will attack a plaguewulf, and they seem to have the ability to exert dominance over many such creatures giving them their less-common sobriquet of ''Wulfkings''.
===Plaguewulf===
 
Another creature that occupies a nebulous middle ground between Wolf and Sovereign is the supernatural predator called the [[Plaguewulf]]. They are usually classified as Wolves, although the [[Plaguewulf#Elder Plaguewulf|Elder Plaguewulf]] especially is closer in power to a Sovereign. The Sovereign named ''the Howling Queen'', who is said to slumber in north-eastern Miekarova, is said to be the progenitor of these horrors, each of which is capable of threatening a small or undefended vale with their flesh-hungry minions.
In addition to their venomous exhalation, the plaguewulf is known to possess a cunning and clever intellect, and great reserves of healing energy which it sometimes shares with it's husk minions, as well as being able to strike mighty blows with it's claws that rend limbs or send human opponents sprawling.
==Further Reading==
 
<span style="font-size: 1.2em; font-weight: bold;">Sovereign</span><br>
====Plagewulfs in Play====
* [[Charnel Lord]]
A Plaguewulf is capable of starting a serious infestation of husks, and often directs its forces to attack isolated settlements. The true horror of the plaguewulf is that once it starts killing humans, it's forces become larger and able to attack better defended settlements. A plaguewulf and it's forces are more than a match for a group of human soldiers, and defeating one would require the effort of a band of well-equipped and well-prepared heroes.
* [[Dho'uala]]
 
<span style="font-size: 1.2em; font-weight: bold;">Monster</span><br>
Plaguewulf venom can be purged by any effect that removes the [[Magic overview#VENOM|venom]] condition, but it is important to note that once the target has been envenomed it does not matter how or when they die - if they die while under the effect of this venom, they will rise as a flesh-hungry husk within a few moments. Attempts by some creative [[Warden|wardens]] to 'pre-poison' themselves have been tragically ineffective - once exposed to the venom, it must be removed with an effect such as [[Spell list#Purify|purify]] or an unspeakable second existence is inevitable.
* [[Plaguewulf]]
 
<span style="font-size: 1.2em; font-weight: bold;">Tale</span><br>
They are intelligent and can speak. There are dark tales of individuals who have made pacts with plaguewulfs; one story tells of a bandit who worked with a plaguewulf to lure travellers into ambushes. Once the plaguewulf had feasted, the bandit looted the corpses. Another story tells of a vale who helped a plaguewulf attack and devour the life of residents of nearby villages in return for safety from the beast's rampages. In almost all such stories. the human who deals with a plaguewulf comes to a horrible end, either at the hands of the people it has betrayed or the jaws of the plaguewulf - these monsters are incapable of gratitude.
* [[Mime_each_lonely_word#The_Naming_of_the_Beasts|Naming of the Beasts]] - 384YE Winter Wind of Fortune detailing the rise of sovereigns in Varushka
 
Some histories mention plaguewulfs as having fought alongside the armies of [[Alderei the Fair]], and the [[Volodny]] are known to bargain with these hideous creatures.
 
It is worth noting that plaguewulfs, while supernatural, are living creatures and not undead.


[[Category:Varushka]]
[[Category:Varushka]]

Revision as of 17:26, 28 June 2023

Varushkan Monsters.jpg
There are monsters in Varushka.
This is a placeholder page for content that PD are actively working on.

Overview

Varushka is dangerous, and the dangers come in many shapes. Some of these shapes are familiar to the other citizens of the Empire. Disenfranchised or lazy people take to banditry, using the isolation of the Varushkan wilderness to create hidden settlements, raiding their neighbours and travelling caravans to sustain themselves from year to year. They are reviled as parasites by civilised Varushkans, and those bands that survive more than a few years tend to fall under the sway of dark forces.

There are orcs here who take advantage of that same isolation. These orcs tend to be the remnants of larger nations defeated by the Varushkans, and while they are a threat they are rarely any more pressing than any other disenfranchised bandit gang. As with the bandits, the Varushkan orcs tend to make pacts with the horrors that lurk under the trees, sometimes becoming their agents.

Wolves

The mundane dangers of Varushka pale beside the supernatural threats. The weakest and most common of these are termed “Wolves” by the Varushkans. They are hungry, instinctual horrors that seek to feast on living flesh. Ghouls and husks are common examples of Wolves. They tend to appear in large groups and besiege a valley, or fall on travellers in large numbers, but they can usually be driven off by strength of arms or cleverness. The primary task of the boyars and schlacta is to keep the Wolves at bay.

Another example of a Wolf would be the dubik of the deep forests - animate plant-like creatures that thirst for human blood and inhabit certain isolated tangled woodlands. They have an ability to mimic human speech, and seek to draw unwary travellers off the road so they may feast. On occasion, they gather in sufficient numbers to try and overwhelm a vale, and if they are successful the buildings are claimed by the forest with supernatural speed. Despite superficial appearance, they are not related to the vallornspawn husks - rather the volhov claim they are connected to some slumbering vegetative sovereign that sleeps in the black earth of Volodmartz. This sovereign is somewhat confusingly referred to as the Dubik and said to have a particular hatred for those of the changeling lineage.

Sovereigns

A more powerful threat are the “Sovereigns.” A far cry from the instinctual terrors, these creatures are powerful and wilful individuals. Corrupt boyars empowered by sinister bargains, meddling eternals and cunning conspirators such as the Volodny are all examples of Sovereigns. They are intelligent, patient and terrible. Sovereigns tend to be restricted to specific areas, and many of them labour under bindings or strictures that prevent them from preying on the Varushkans directly. While “Wolves” move freely, many Sovereigns tend to slumber in their lairs until external influences wakes them up. The actions of foolish bandits, thieves and roving orc bands are often blamed for awakening the more powerful Sovereigns, and many rules or restrictions in Varushka are designed to prevent people interfering with them and drawing their attention. Sovereigns sometimes work through agents who possess more freedom to operate outside their lairs. Wolves can rarely be reasoned with, but Sovereigns often present a civil mien and can be bargained with.

The Dubik has already been mentioned. Other famous sovereigns include the Howling Queen who is said to slumber beneath the Razors in north-eastern Miekarova; the hungry king believed to rest in a barrow under Broken Barrow in northern Karsk; and Agramant, an eternal whose fascination with cannibalism makes his heralds and agents a threat to some isolated vales especially in northern Miekarova.

Exceptions

Not every monstrous threat in Varushka fits easily into the wolf/sovereign category. Some creatures seem to fall part-way between the two - they are intelligent like sovereigns, but lack individual power or are motivated by appetites more appropriate to wolves.

Mora.jpeg
Take care when fighting monsters, lest you become a monster yourself.

Mora

Midway between the Wolves and the Sovereigns in power are the shapechangers, the most common of whom are the Mora – strange bird-like creatures who can assume pleasing shapes to go among humans or lure travellers to their deaths. The Mora can bypass many protections to visit human settlements, but by doing so they become tightly bound to the rules of hospitality and cannot directly act against gracious hosts.

While they are shapeshifters, Mora cannot take on the form of specific people. They can disguise themselves as a human, but they cannot take on the guise of a specific human.

Rusalka

Similar to mora, Rusalka are shapechangers but their natural form appears to be that of a water- or sea-dwelling beast rather than a bird. Rusalka are very rare, even by Varushkan standards, but most common in the Semmerlak and the frozen lakes of the far north. They dwell in certain bodies of water, seeking to lure travellers to a watery doom. In addition to their natural shape, they can assume the form of a human or orc - often a beautiful youth or an aged figure in need of assistance. They can also take on a form that appears as a nightmarish humanoid with aquatic features, razor-sharp teeth, wide eyes, and grasping claws. Those who let the Rusalka touch them are often rendered helpless by their touch - paralysed by the strength-sapping charm of the creatures.

Some Wintermark travellers claim that similar creatures dwell in the northern oceans - which they call Hylje - but they consider them helpful, positive spirits. By contrast, some Marchers claim more predatory creatures akin to shark shapeshifters dwell in the Gullet, and creep about vessels at anchor to devour the sailors aboard. There are also circumstantial reports that the Thule orcs know of similar beasts.

Plaguewulf

Another creature that occupies a nebulous middle ground between Wolf and Sovereign is the supernatural predator called the Plaguewulf. They are usually classified as Wolves, although the Elder Plaguewulf especially is closer in power to a Sovereign. The Sovereign named the Howling Queen, who is said to slumber in north-eastern Miekarova, is said to be the progenitor of these horrors, each of which is capable of threatening a small or undefended vale with their flesh-hungry minions.

Further Reading

Sovereign

Monster

Tale

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