The Ashwalkers

It is not an exaggeration to say that the Ashwalkers are the primary reason for Chak Hruun's emergence as the principal power in the known world.    About 1,400 years before the present day, gnoll priests discovered how to send their consciousnesses to Narr, the realm of the Beast Chiefs. It is theorised that Gnaroll himself, patron of the gnolls, must have allowed them to reach him, because the ability has never been found in worshippers of any other Beast Chief.   Why were the gnolls given special access to the realm of the first gods of Char Navash? The theology of Gnaroll's priesthood had always been centred on order and discipline, which has always led to a more rigourous, structured religious regime than those dedicated to the other Beast Chiefs.   The gnolls' inherent respect for Gnaroll's authority also led to a greater dependence on his guidance than that which was sought by the other beast races, which had already enabled them to use his knowledge to build several great cities before the founding of Chak Hruun.   All of this is to say that the first Ashwalkers appear to have reached a harmony with their Beast Chief that no other priesthood has managed before or since, and this harmony eventually led them to discover the secret of interplanar mental projection.   When the first Ashwalkers reached Narr, they were welcomed by Gnaroll, who was pleased to see his children reach such a high level of spiritual power, and he shielded them from the attention of the other Beast Chiefs, who may not have welcomed any form of mortal incursion on their realm.   These first Ashwalkers spoke face to face with their god, and with the most learned of their pious ancestors, whose souls had been shepherded to Narr by Gnaroll's guiding voice.    As the patron of knowledge and order in the Beast Chief pantheon, Gnaroll was happy to share his enthusiasm for the gnolls' burgeoning civilisation, and imparted magical wisdom and gifts to the Ashwalkers that enabled them to build bigger, better and faster than before.   He also assisted directly in matters of states, arbitrating disputes between the pre-unification gnoll city states and guiding his people to a place of unity with one another, which laid the foundation for the nation of Chak Hruun.   Among the Ashwalkers, there were always some who were more powerful than others, and a natural hierarchy began to form based on who had the power to spend the most time in Gnaroll's realm.   The most powerful among the first Ahwalkers became known as the Ash Lord, or Asharch, and was seen as a source of wisdom second only to Gnaroll. The first Asharch was known as being a harsh, unyielding woman who was also unbendingly fair and just. She established training programs for future Ashwalkers, and ensured that the gnolls would not lose this precious gift.   As the generations passed, a system for choosing new Ash Lords quickly emerged, as whoever among the living had spoken the most with Gnaroll over the past three years would be chosen as the new Asharch.   This system ensured that the position did not simply pass from one old gnoll to another, with each only ruling for a short time, as the new Asharch would just as often be a powerful young cleric as they would an old, experienced priest.   Similar processes were put in place on a city level to form local governments, which worked in unison under the Asharch's rule to function effectively as a single nation. As such, Gnaroll's will and guidance was sought across the country, not just in the capital of Hruunchash which was built by the 10th Asharch between 124 and 103 B.C.H.   In modern times, Ashwalkers are chosen from those among Gnaroll's clerics who demonstrate an aptitude for magic and a devotion to the god. They are trained by Ashwalkers in their home temples, then eventually move to postings around the country and even to gnoll communities abroad to make sure that no island of gnoll civilisation is without the guidance of Gnaroll.