Packhunter History
Important Events
The Fall of the Old World (0 BTF): Humanity flees their cities and megalopolises during the Long Fall. What once were havens became horrifying infernos or deadly hunting grounds. The ancestors of the Packhunters are those who survived the wilderness and found the Wildling Whispers waiting for them. Each Pack has its own myths and traditions regarding its Whisper.
Descent into Wilderness (16 BTF): Like the Scavver Caravans, the Packs discover that settlements and villages had survived the Long Fall. Though they occasionally trade supplies and weaponry with these communities and with each other, each Pack largely remains their own isolated society. They remain in the wilderness though it is not wholly their home -- many places are gnarled with eldritch energies or haunted by deadly monsters.
The Vundarkin (23 BTF): Their existence had been known for a while, though few truly went out to speak to them. Though they share certain cultural aspects, each and every Pack is its own community. A Cartel scholar dubs them “Vundarkin” -- an pre-Fall word meaning “Those who Remember”. In vain, she attempts to catalog the hundred or so Packhunters in the wilderness. The Vundarkin take to the name or care little for it, but they continue to avoid major interactions with most communities.
Eaters of Flesh (28 BTF): Several Packs are reported to worship a bloody handed Whisper called the Red Path. These individuals relish the thrill of battle and the hunt with a berserker’s zeal. They also cannibalize those monsters they kill, though they quickly learn that some creatures are deadly to eat. The God Slayers, the Pale Wolves, and the cannibalistic Carrion Cults are said to be sibling Packs to the Red Path.
Edge of Obliteration (36 BTF): The Pack of the Red Path is almost extinguished by an Eldritch Entity known as a Flenser. The survivors lick their wounds and gather like minded souls after a half-decade, successfully avenge themselves. This would be one of the several times the Red Paths would tread the edge of obliteration.
The Verdant Ones (46 BTF): This is the first recorded instance that outsiders have met and spoken with the Circle of the Green Leaf’s Elder. This self-proclaimed “Archdruid” is said to be ageless and leads his people into the depths of the wilds to cleanse corruption from themselves.
Herding Cats (65 BTF): The Devil Cats are formed by Lil (now Grandma Lil). She draws her Pack from the castouts and the forgotten of Mid-Atla. They are disdained by both Vundarkin and most other communities, but their unity and Lil’s wisdom allows them to survive the wilds.
Against the Night (76 BTF): The Stonebrood are seen descending from their sacred mountains -- with the defeat of the Night League in the area, they are no longer as secretive or as elusive.
Reaching out (83 BTF): With the arrival of the Templar and the Illustrados, the Cartels send out emissaries to other communities in Mid-Atla. Their hope is to cobble together an alliance called “the Free Tribes” in case the Archfactions attack. However, the Packhunters’ response is miniscule. Their nomadic natures make it difficult for word to get out or for them to care about the threat of invasion.
The War over Embers (90 BTF): The Packhunters do not join until the Ember War is in full swing. Dozens of Packs join the Free Tribe’s banner. Their own contributions are largely unsung, due to their own preference as irregulars and scouts instead of mainstay fighters. However, several victories are attributed to them. Due to his defeat at their spears in the Salvation of Solace, the Laughing Liar harbored a great hatred for them until his end at the Battle of Libertina.
The Aftermath (99 BTF): The Packhunters have been changed immensely by the Harbinger War. Once unwilling to traffic with communities except for the most basic of commodities, they are seen more often and in greater numbers than before the War. They come to barter or even to lend protection, recognizing that there is a place for them even if they want to preserve their way of life.
Important People and Groups
The Free Tribes: 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. These include the Grailguard, the Scavver Caravans, the Hellhounds, the Dustriders, and the Packhunters.
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.
The Illustrados Union: An Caribbean-based Archfaction known for their technological wonders, their mercantile bent, and their naval prowess
The Scavver Caravans: More than a dozen nomadic communities that travel with wagons and carts, some of which are motorized with Magna-tech. They are named for their looting of old world cities.
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 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.