Petrinian

  The Petrinian people were a once nomadic group that consisted of tribes that originated from the Oquitanian region. They were known as mountain and plains wanderers that lived as foragers of wild fruits and herbs, with a deeply rooted tradition in brewing both alcohols and folk remedies.   Living on the move, the horses and portable breweries were the heart of Petrinian lifestyle - which is why they often resided in tent camps outside settlements, or sometimes occupied entire inns for weeks to months on end - within larger towns and villages.   They were renowned as fair merchants of exotic quality goods that still held reasonable prices. Their xenophilic culture also gave them a reputation as sly seducers and charlatans by those who envied their free and oddly luxurious lifestyle, especially as entire clans would travel near and far for their patriarchs to serve noble courts as legendary diplomats-for-hire.   This was in an era before the rise of Empires, where tribes and petty kings ruled smaller domains. With the whispers of a rising nation south of modern day Diestria, there was a sudden rise in witchery, dark magic and political instability.   The Petrinians, despite their disdain towards magic, were some of the first people to be targeted by a wave of panic that pointed them out as warlocks of discord. Bewitching rulers to cause senseless bloodshed, when in fact the many clan patriarchs toiled day and night to calm the tensions.   When the first unprovoked attacks emerged against the Petrinian people, they were swift to abandon ship and escape south into the Golden Dunes. Arming themselves with spears, blades and crossbows, as they fought off bandits, rabid civilian populaces and even used flammable kegs to obliterate an ancient Oquitanian regiment. In the wake of their exodus, they sacked a border city and killed its ruling lord to prevent them from taking chase, as the Petrinians disappeared into the deserts.     While the deserts were harsh, the Petrinian populace managed to survive and adapt. Gathering what they could from cacti fields and oases, while trading goods both with the men and beastfolk of the Golden Dunes.   They even managed to avoid open conflict with the hell worshipping tribes, by paying them tithes that consisted of great feasts and shows for their leaders. Ensuring that they survived on a pacifist lifestyle of trade, refinement and cultural services.   This changed when they came across the army of Ysand, and the Inovian people. While they expected conflict at first by the proud display of force portrayed by their advanced formations - the Inovian ambassador in charge of the contingency brought not violence, but tribute.   The mountains in which the Petrinian people resided had been within Ysand’s sight for years. As they struck back the devil and beastfolk hordes, they had finally breached into the region of modern day Petrina. With colonial foundations already underway. To avoid conflict with the Petrinian people they offered them military protection, irrigation techniques and the knowledge and tools needed to bore and maintain clean water wells.   On top of it, they also acknowledged the Petrinians as having been there before them. Meaning that it would only be right, if they joined hands with the Inovian people beneath the ever growing banners of Ysand. Asking them to embrace rulership of the region, as long as they followed Ysand’s vision and faith.   The Petrinian people accepted without hesitation. Especially since the changes allowed them to make a return to their roots. Only a decade later, the abundantly wealthy city of Petrina stood firm as a powerhouse of what would soon become the Golden Empire.