Free Tribe History

Important Events:

World’s End (0 BTF): The end of the world knew not status or wealth -- all were subject to its scourge. In the fires of the apocalypse, groups of refugees flee from infested or irradiated cities toward rural areas. Many groups join settlements or found new ones. Others, like the Scavvers and the Packhunters, adopt a nomadic lifestyle. In the southern part of the Continent, the land is blistered and withered into the Dustlands or mutated into the Brackenmarsh -- in both fronts, humanity struggles to survive. 

Reign of Terror (10~  BTF): From the New England areas and the Stonefather mountains, vampiric humanoids and their horrific underlings raid survivor settlements and drive nomads south and east. Many of these villages are forced into servitude to the sorcerous Night Kings. Others become food. The northern Midwest is overtaken by a Wintry entity - the “Vorn”. South of this frozen tyranny, humanity battles the insectile Hivelings for survival. 

Resurgence and redemption (20~  BTF): Humanity has adapted to their new surroundings. They fight against their troubles in independent, disparate groups. The Night Kings’ progress is halted, the Hivelings are driven back, and a hero leads the fight against the Vorn. Worship of the Whispers spreads among Packhunters and other folk.

Victories and Turning Tides (30~  BTF): The Hivequeen is slain by Grailguard blades and her abominable scions are driven west. The Cartels grow from the north Hudson State, expanding their influence and connecting settlements via trade and defense pacts. They discover Snakewater near Libertina and hire Packhunters to defend the area. On the other hand, Cartels’ northern progress is stymied by the Night League. In the south, Prosperous city-states rise up amid dust and marsh, the product of human tenacity. 

A Time of Flame (40~  BTF): The Vorn is overthrown by the Hellhounds’ fire and brutality. In the southern Midwest and the Mid-Atlantic, the reforging of humanity continues. Magnatech is invented in Mid-Atla and the Midwest by Scavvers and Hellhound priests. However, the Grailguard almost splinter in a civil war. Things fare poorly in the Dustlands when the first Harbinger marches from Mesoamerica and devastates the communities he finds. 

Discord in the ranks (50~ BTF): The Night Kings press their attack from New England, but are defeated in what would be their last great offensive. With magnatech ATVs, the Hellhounds raid their neighbors for scrap and reagents. The Grailguard are the only ones to resist them. Far to the south,  refugees flee the Harbinger’s wrath. They go east to their allies in the Brackenmarsh. 

Iron and Roses: (60~  BTF) In an unlikely alliance, the Hellhounds and Saint Carmine assail the mountain strongholds of the Night Kings, scattering the vampiric sorcerers into the high winds. When Hellhound raids cease, a united Grailguard battles a Hiveling invasion and devastates them in a brutal counterattack Survivors flee the Brackenmarsh as a second Harbinger obliterates their defenses and razes their city -- these would become the Dustriders.

Strife and Slaughter  (70~  BTF): The alliance between the Hellhounds and the Saint of Roses ends amicably, but the Hellhounds are plunged into civil war. The Cartels add Port Atlantica to their ranks but they inherit the strife of the vice-ridden city. The Grailguard bridges the gigantic Mississippi Swell with the Dragonspan to continue their aggression against the Hivelings. Erstwhile, the Dustriders continue their flight north with the Harbingers at their back. 

Dire Meetings (80~ BTF): The Illustrados and the Templars make contact with the Mid-Atlantic peoples. Fearing invasion, the Cartel reaches out to other factions to unite against this potential threat. The Dustriders make contact with the Grailguard, warning them of the Harbingers. Many Dustriders would stand with the Grailguard in the ill-fated defense of their ally’s home - they face not two Harbingers but four. This gives the Cartels the spark and time they need to unite the folk of the Mid-Atlantic into the Free Tribes. Only the Hellhounds stand aside from this alliance.

The War over Embers (90~  BTF): The War over Embers begins in full but humanity suffers terrible losses and disorganization. The Templars are early to join the Free Tribes but internal struggles draw them away mid-war. The Illustrados and Hellhounds enter the fray several years into the war with the latter as one of the Free Tribes. 

The Battle of the Broken Bell (96 BTF): A trap is laid for the Harbingers at the outskirts of the Libertina ruins. They are defeated by artillery, sorcery, and heroism. As opposed to their past losses, they do not reincarnate months later -- the three Archfactions remain vigilant regardless. A tenuous peace with trade agreements is formed between the people of the Midwest, Mid-Atla, and the other two Archfactions.

A Troubled Peace (97 BTF): The Free Tribes hold together but it is not easy. The Hellhounds balk at the loss of raiding and scrap. The other Free Tribes strive to rebuild after their casualties, with the Grailguard being especially affected. Due to their wartime efforts, the Scavver Caravans and Packhunters are granted some representation. Most of the Dustriders stay in Mid-Atla while the rest return south and west. With many different groups and equally different cultures, there is friction. Only the threat of the Harbingers’ return and the other two Archfactions’ invasion keeps the Free Tribes from falling apart.  

Important Persons and Groups

Carmine Conclave: A portion of the Temple of the Shattered Mother known for its focus on diplomacy rather than militancy, though they are far from unarmed. Members are called Carmine Templars or Carminians. Their founder was called Saint Carmine or the Saint of Roses. 

Cartel: aka the Kindly Cartel who comport themselves like businessfolk and corporations of old, but act more like criminals when it suits them. These are part of the Free Tribes. 

Dustrider Militia: A massive group of refugees fleeing the Harbingers’ wrath and their ruined settlements to the southwest. They would have met their end at the Mississippi Swell that cuts the continent in half if they hadn’t encountered the massive Dragonspan bridge built by the Grailguard. 

The Free Tribes: Formed by the Cartel, this is a group of communities and tribes based in and around the Mid-Atlantic (aka Mid-Atla) area, but also within the New England, Tidewater, and Midwest regions.

Grailgard: Soldiers, scholars, and smiths dedicated to protecting humanity and its knowledges. Styling themselves as the honorbound warriors of the ancient eras, they battle monstrosity and raider without doubt or fear. . Second only to the Dustriders, they suffered the worst of the Harbingers’ invasion.

The Harbingers/Harbinger Hosts: Four sorcerous entities of incredible power and the monstrous armies that followed them. They came from the west and savaged their way to Mid-Atla until they were stopped by the combined efforts of the Free Tribes, the Illustrados, and the Temple. 

Hivelings/Hivequeen: Monstrous insects the size of humans (or bigger). Some of them are powerful psychics. They nest in towering mounds and raid their environment (and human settlements) for food and building materials. It is rumored that they seek out human brains to expand their psychic power. 

Hellhound Motorgangs: Over a hundred different warbands from the northern Midwest that revel in raucous battle and bloodshed. They used to raid the territories around them for supplies or demand tribute from settlements. 

The Illustrados Union: An Caribbean-based Archfaction known for their technological wonders, their mercantile bent, and their naval prowess

Kindly Cartels: Groups of soldiers and merchants with offices across Mid-Atla and surrounding regions. They comport themselves like businessfolk and corporations of old, but will murder to protect their allies and interests. 

The Night League: Formerly two dozen settlements and towns under the brutal rule of powerful vampiric entities. These stretched from the Stonefather mountains to the rest of the northeastern region of the continent. Calling themselves the Night Kings, these individuals treat other humans as nothing more than thralls and food. They are greatly diminished but are still a threat. 

Scavver Caravans: These are scattered nomadic communities that convey endlessly in Mid-Atla and nearby regions. They loot city and military ruins, using or selling their gains.

The Temple of the Shattered Mother (aka Templars): An northern Archfaction based on their faith to the God-Empress and dedicated to the destruction of wickedness and eldritch evil.

The Vorn: An Eldritch Evil of winter and shadow. It enslaved the people of the northern midwest for several decades before a stalwart band of heroes led a rebellion against them. It was slain by a now lost legendary ax called the Flame Reaver (which is also a moniker for its wielder).

The Vundarkin Packhunters: The Vundarkin Packhunters are simple and small bands of associated families that wander the wilderness. Many choose a spiritual “Whisper” to follow as a guide.