BLUE RING AM'RATH

THE AM'RATH OF THE FINGERS

HISTORY

(Testimony of Cicero Claudianus, Berphauntian Legio XIII)

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Due to the primitive nature of this tribe (or people in general)  there is no official written history to draw upon when documenting these people.  

Attempts to interact with the Blue Ring to learn more about their ways have come with mixed success.  We landed on a small tropical island off the western coast of the mainland, where we encountered a tribe of Am'rath with blue ring tattoos running up their left arms.  The first group we sent out to make contact with them once we made landfall were all human.  None of them returned...

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Later on, after sending more racially… diverse members of our expedition did we find out that the Blue Ring use the word "Poisontongue" pejoratively when referring to humans, and foster a deep distrust for us.

Using our high elven representatives as liaisons, we were able to establish a rapport with a few of them (though the rest of our human contingent had to remain on board the ship… or "water cave" as they referred to it as)

What we've gathered, this tribe of Am'rath (NOTE:  DO NOT CALL THEM AM'RATH, they violently self identify as Blue Ring) is a coastal tribe that subsists on hunting and fishing.  They generally don't venture too far inland, but they will be extremely defensive of their coastal territory.  We've seen many partially dismantled shipwrecks on the shore of this island, and the evidence of repurposed modern equipment all over their village.  

We noticed a chest filled with very old gold coins used as a fireside bench, and when we showed interest we were able to trade one of our spears (or "sharp sticks") for it.  They seemed to think that this was a "good trade" 

It seems that as long as we don't do anything to offend them, they're quite agreeable.  Their demeanor can go from calm to pure rage in an instant once provoked (by their own strange metrics), and we'll be returning home with significantly fewer numbers than when we arrived.  

When asked about our human contingent, they told us that the ones that weren't killed were kept as slaves.  No attempts to bargain for their release were successful.

We all boarded our ship and never returned to that gods-forsaken island again.

TRIBAL TATTOOS

Each member of the Blue Ring tribe has a thumb wide blue ring tattooed around the base of their wrist.

Additional thinner blue rings run up the forearms of some of the more senior members of the tribe.

From what can be gathered, each additional ring is awarded for some kind of feat of bloodshed (whether through combat or hunting).  There is a member of the tribe they call a "spirit chief" who decides on when rings are awarded and conducts the tattoo process themselves.  The spirit chief is most likely the most powerful caster in the tribe and is very well respected.

The tribe hierarchy (including chiefdom)  seems to be based entirely upon the number of ring tattoos they have. While some members of the tribe believe that obtaining so many rings that their left arm runs out of space (and therefore begin to place rings on their right arms), others consider this idea as almost heretical. Many Blue Ring have fought violently over this notion.

CULTURE

Preferred Weapons

Blue Rings tend to gravitate towards the traditional spear or bow for hunting, but some of their warriors (or "blood-takers") will carry a short weapon in each hand to engage in close combat.

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Dialogue

Blue Ring Am'Rath employ a very unique style of common that uses descriptive terms in favour of longer words. 

Word phrases are spoken in broken English not proper sentences and are often made as statements of fact in form and tone when delivered. Even when a question is being asked.

For example, use "Have hunger, give food." (Not, "I'm hungry, can I have some food?")

Any interior dwelling is a cave.  A wooden house would be called a tree cave.  A ship would be called a water cave, and so on.

Gold and silver are referred to as Sun-metal and Moon-metal, both of which have little practical value to them.

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God - "Sky-Chief"

Gold - "Sun-Metal"

Dragon - "Scale-Totem"

Dwarf - "Hair-Face"

Elf - "Sharp-Ear"

Fae - "Spirit-Touched"

Forest -  "Tree-Place"

Human -  "Poison-Tongue"

Lie / Liar / Lying - "Poison-Tongue"​

Lightning - "Sky-Fire"

Orc - "Green-Skin"

Silver - "Moon-Metal"

Theft / Steal - "Fetch"

Wild Elf - "Paint-Face Sharp-Ear"

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SPIRITUALITY

The Blue Ring aren't necessarily reverent of gods or dragons (sky-chiefs or scale-totems respectively) They view these higher powers as powerful chiefs, though their simple nature leaves them susceptible to indoctrination. Should a Blue Ring become convinced of a certain God or Dragon's merit, they'll radicalize quickly and defend an ideology with violence (this tendency is not exclusive to religion).

XENOPHOBIA

Blue Ring are generally mistrusting of others - even other Am'Rath. 

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Humans - Blue Ring Am'Rath distrust humans because they consider them to be notorious liars ("Poison-tongues"). Lying is an offense punishable by death in their culture.

Goblins - Goblins or "Fetch" as they're referred to as are all seen as thieves (to the point where the act of theft is also referred to as "fetch"). Stealing, or "fetch" is an offense punishable by death in their culture.

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Fae - Blue Ring Am'Raths have a fear of fae (or "spirit-touched" as they refer to them as)  sometimes a Blue Ring will amputate a limb that has been touched by a fae to avoid becoming "spirit touched" themselves. Fae are generally avoided at all costs.

ROLEPLAY TIPS

● Avoid covering up your rings with costuming: your rings are a source of great pride.
● When responding to questions (even when you know the answer)  stare off into space for a few seconds in deep thought.  (People will interact with you differently in fun ways.)
● Wear ragged clothing and furs.  A bit of flair goes a long way.
● The dialect is an unusal way to speak, but once you get the hang of it, you can really run with it.  Be creative!
● If you catch yourself debating on violence,  you should already be on your second or third swing.
● If violence is the answer, use too much.
● New characters shouldn't enter game with more than two or three rings. Try to use earning rings as roleplay landmarks for your character!

CULTURAL VARIANT: BLACK HAND AM'RATH

The Blackhand tribe of Am'Rath have a particularly odd origin.  

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On it's voyage to Zenithstrand the ship "The Maymont" was boarded by a small group of Blue Ring Am'Rath in an attempt to find food or slaves.  They encountered stiff resistance and were overcome by the passengers aboard.  All were slain except for one Am'Rath who went by the name of BugBug.  He was taken prisoner and levied into service by legion commander Dracchus.  A few days later into the voyage, the Maymont passed through the dead sea and encountered a handful of spirits.  One of these spirits was the ghost of a former dread knight of Sverin, a Kobold named 'Squish'.  This spirit ended up possessing BugBug.  

The Maymont made landfall shortly after, and BugBug escaped and was forgotten.

Ask yourself this:  what do you get when you combine a chaotic creature with a predilection towards setting off explosives, with an equally chaotic barbarian savage?

2 years later:

Reports and refugees started reaching the settlement of Sylvanwood that a tribe of Am'Rath are rapidly expanding through wild elf territory, capturing or killing as they go.  Their primary method of attack was with the use of explosives (whether by set traps, or with thrown bombs.  Some were even reported to carry bombs right into their lines for devastating effect.

These Am'Rath all had their hands covered in ash.  A lot of them were missing digits, or burned, or disfigured in some way.  These were the Blackhand Am'Rath tribe, and their chief was none other than BugBug himself.

Sylvanwood resisted the Blackhand's advance, suffered losses, but ultimately stood firm.  They were in conflict with the forces of a demon named Czernozog who was also taking his toll on the population.  

In a strange turn of events, Czernozog made a deal with chief BugBug: Sacrifice your elven prisoners into the ley line in the fort atop Sylvanwood in exchange for great power.  BugBug accepted, and set about killing dozens of wild elves, as the forces of Sylvanwood desperately tried to stop him.  The residents watched in horror as the last prisoner fell dead into the ley line, and an shockwave of demonic power emanated from BugBug.  All the Blackhand Am'Rath screamed in agony as their souls were posessed by Czernozog's demons.  BugBug however was changed.  Judging by his horns amd wings he had achieved demonic apotheosis, and before the Sylvanwood citizens could do anything, the former blackhand tribe infernal walked out.

It was not long after that Sylvanwood came under attack by waves of demonically posessed Am'Rath.  

Eventually though, BugBug was exorcized and he hasn't been seen since.

There remains a few scattered remnants of the old Blackhand tribe that somehow escaped possession, but they exist as a leaderless shadow of their tribe's former greatness.  It seem doubtful they will unify again, but their culture has left it’s scars upon the land.

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Tribal Markings

• Burn marks, charcoal and ash covering both arms from hand to elbow.

• Burn scars.

• Options for missing digits or other disfigurements.

CONTRIBUTORS

Mike Stewart