Goliaths

From the highest mountains of Kar Vreld and Wulveral hail these mighty and mysterious children of stone, rumoured to be descendants of the Giants of old. They emerged into the consciousness of the humanoid races of Eramon during the aftermath of the Age of Terror, though perhaps they have existed for far longer and only migrated into more accessible territory during this time, when the great cold-weather beasts they hunted - and still hunt - grew, for a time, scarce.   Powerful but grim and disciplined in their own way, the Goliaths have a culture focused on strength and resilience with little time for frivolity. Life in their harsh homelands is brutal, resources are thin, and death comes suddenly; Goliaths treasure the strong bonds of family and clan and look poorly upon the fairweather friendships of those who can afford such trivial connection; a friendship with a Goliath must be true and resolute, and this intensity of character is not always comfortable for members of other cultures to swallow.   Goliaths are not overly warlike or cruel, but will compete fiercely for resources and have a grim practicality that loses little sleep over raiding others and dealing decisively with enemies. There is a sense of purpose and dedication to task that gives the monastic culture of Kar Vreld a certain appeal to the Goliath; it is not uncommon to see an imposing, shaven-headed giant among the pupils of a great master or seeking out hermitage in the frozen wilderness to contemplate tranquility.   Other Goliath tribes spread fiercely into the harshest deserts of Qadoris and in large numbers into Tamuz, where the fiery hellscape proved undaunting to the fierce survivalist spirit of their people. Such things come naturally to a Goliath, whose life is always silhouetted against the profound vastness of the landscape they inhabit.