Vildarr Tribe
Something had to exist before it all, and the Vildarr are just one of many groups predating even the ancient kingdoms. Where they roamed others fled, where they hunted the beast bowed; primal goblins that were the terror of peace and tormentor of temperance. Under sun nor moon did they bow themselves below anything, and even when they lost everything they held dear the remants continued to live the Vildarr way until their dying breath. Refusing to beg, refusing to compromise, refusing to reject their end.
Culture
Customs and Traditions
The Vildarr’s traditions saw them migrating with the elk and aurochs. As these animals moved, so too did the Vildarr, rotating their camps in a cyclical pattern that followed the seasons. Certain grounds, considered sacred, became regular stopping points in their annual route. In these places they would conduct rituals, exchange goods, and prepare for the next phase of their journey. They marked these sacred grounds totems made from bone, wood, and antler, serving both as landmarks and spiritual wards against their foes, physical and ethereal.
Another core tradition is the Blood Feast, held after each successful hunt or raid. During these feasts, the tribe gathers to consume the meat of their prey, often cooked over large fires or smoked using herbs to preserve it for the colder months. The bones, sinew, and even fur of the hunted are crafted into tools, weapons, clothing, and ceremonial items as to waste nothing. Songs, chants, and drumming accompany the feasts. The elders tell stories of past hunts and battles, they teach the young during these times, reinforcing tradition with every feast.
Art and Literature
The Vildarr’s artistic expression manifest in the form of Bone Carving and Blood Painting. Skilled artisans within the tribe carve designs onto bone, antler, and horn, creating totems, amulets, and tools that depict their ancestors, sacred animals, and mythical beings. These carvings held deep spiritual significance, believed to channel the power of the represented figures or creatures into the wielder. Carved bone daggers, for instance, might be inscribed with icongraphy or symbols meant to offer protection or strength in battle. Alongside carving, the practice of Blood Painting using the blood of their prey, the Vildarr adorn cave walls, trees, and even their own skin with murals and symbols. Over time, these markings faded, blending into the land, believed to return the spirit of the hunt back to the earth.
Oral Tradition is another vital aspect of Vildarr culture, serving as the main conduit for their history, myths, and cultural teachings. The tribe's storytellers, known as Boneweavers, are the keepers of this tradition, passing down knowledge through a combination of song, chant, and rhythmic drumming. These stories speak of ancient battles against rival tribes, legendary hunts that defined their lineage, and the feats of great warriors whose spirits continue to guide the tribe. The Boneweavers also sing of mythical creatures believed to roam the untamed north, such as the "Grim Elk" that guards the sacred grounds or the "Stone Maw" that devours lost souls. These performances were often communal events, with the tribe gathering around roaring fires, participating in call-and-response chants, and creating a shared experience that unites them through their shared heritage.
Food and Culinary Practices
The Vildarr crafted Skogg, a fermented meat paste made from the crushed bones and marrow of their prey, blended with foraged berries and roots. This dense paste was stored in hollowed bone containers, preserving it for long durations. Skogg was an essential travel ration;It was consumed on the move or in times of scarcity, providing a burst of energy and nourishment that kept the tribe strong during hunts or battles. The unique, pungent flavor of Skogg, developed over time through fermentation, the longer it sat, the sweeter it became.
The Vildarr also had a deep appreciation for Bone Broths and Stews, favoring hearty flavors that could sustain them through cold, tundra nights. They boiled bones and animal fat with a mix of herbs and wild vegetables to create broths that doubled as both nourishment and medicine. The tribe often held communal meals around large fires, where these broths were shared among them; Elders ate first, then children, then warriors. Vildarr believed the energy within the ingrdients used settled at the bottom of the broths.
In addition to these staples, the Vildarr preapred fried meats and fish, smoked over pinewood fires, tundra berries, edible roots, and hardy plants. When they could, Honey was scavenged from wild hives mixed with fermented herbs to create a crude but potent form of mead, reserved for children to face their "inner self" and machinations of their fears.
Dress and Adornments
During the colder months, they layered themselves in Furs and well made bone plating, combining thick furs from wolves, bears, and other creatures of the tundra with bone and horn plates for reinforcement. This created their primal appearance that not only provided warmth but also added a layer of protection against physical threats. These plates, meticulously carved and painted, were worn year-round, even during the warmer months when the layers of fur were reduced. Their bone plating never left their bodies, whether awake or asleep. The bone plates often held intricate designs—markings of tribal lore, personal victories, or symbols of protection, painted anew with natural dyes whenever they began to fade. A particuarly celebrated tribe memember mayve even wear no armor at all, as they believed it disgraceful to cover the form of their strongest blessed by the warriors of the past.
In their culture necklaces, bracelets, and headdresses made from bones, teeth, feathers, and other natural elements represented an individual's status, accomplishments, and spiritual beliefs. Teeth, in particular, were revered— the larger the tooth, the greater the respect earned within the tribe. Warriors who returned from hunts or raids with the teeth of a particularly dangerous creature wore them as badges of honor, the most prominent members of the tribe sporting elaborate displays of trophies. The Vildarr viewed these adornments as visual representations of one's life story, strength, and prowess. A single necklace adorned with massive bear teeth might signify a lifetime of battles and victories, while a headdress with colorful bird feathers could denote a deep spiritual connection or a significant role in the tribe's rituals.
History
Early Existence and Survival
Before humans, before time, before the concept of existential questioning, a tribe lived seeking only survival. With small bodies, short limbs, larger heads, and an appetite for aggression, this tribe of goblins was known as Vildarr, named centuries after their formation. These Vildarr were different in appearance from modern goblins; while modern goblins have leathery, smooth skin, Vildarr, and others of the epoch, were much hairier, resembling smaller bugbears. Wilder in appearance, these ancient goblins were more brutal than modern, but for the sake of survival as opposed to malice. They often found themselves low to the ground, moving about like stalkers and hunters, using ancient weaponry and tools to live their lives in relative solitude even from one another; very rarely did two tribes intersect in seasonal rotations, but when they did, these nomads were as ruthless as they were barbaric.
The Vildarr, or "Wild Ones" in ancient tongues, were some of the most territorial. Their movements were carefully monitored by other tribes to steer clear of their path; they didn't absorb other tribes no matter how large they got, which was the practice of different tribes in this region. Because of this, they weren't by any regard the largest. However, given their deep familial routines and traditions and their secreted innovations that made them terrifying combatants, it was no idea in the heads of other goblins for centuries to even imagine facing them head-on.
Disbandment
As time went on and the tribe grew, they developed agricultural practices and herding, settled down in a single region, and established their territorial borders unchallenged until the Dwarves came from the northern continent. When the Dwarves arrived, they had superior weapons but much smaller numbers, and of course, out of habit, the Vildarr were aggressive. The Vildarr spent generations at odds with the dwarves until they discovered the dwarves knew of metalwork, which piqued their interest. While they never learned such techniques, the Vildarr were keen on doing so, spending centuries adapting language barriers to converse. And while secrets were never divulged, they did at least gain access to bartering, acquiring the resources the dwarves could provide and vice versa. This created the Vildarr writing system built on the dwarven script and set the stage for the first mixed society of dwarves and goblins in this ancient time.
The dwarves were nestled in an underground society dug below the earth. Above, in the pines dotting the terrain, the Goblins lived in peace with one another until the beginning of the ancient cataclysm. When this occurred, many Vildarr and Dwarves left, moving south toward the central regions from the colder north, as providing sustenance for such a large society was complex. This is where the clash with the humans in the south began. The Vildarr detached from their Dwarven companions and shifted back to their semi-nomadic lifestyle, avoiding the dangers of the era as they could. Finally, the dwarves arrived again as aggressors with newfound companionship with the humans. The Vildarr were attacked; unfortunately, their traditions could not save them. The Vildarr were eradicated, closing their chronology with the end of the ancient era.
DISBANDED/DISSOLVED
Founding Date
~ 5000 AE
Type
Geopolitical, Nomadic tribe
Alternative Names
Wild Ones
Demonym
Vildarr
Leader Title
Location
Related Species
Related Ethnicities
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