Woag

"The Family Hearth would have you believe that the Woag are nothing more than barbaric savages, and at first glance they seem to be correct. Look closer and you find they are much more than that. Woag are skilled traders, shipwrights, and warrior poets. The savagery and barbarism comes from what they need to do to carve out an existence in such an unforgiving land." -*Description of the Woag, "Traveler's guide to Soi"

## Woag

### Capital

none*

The Woag or northern wolf people, are a collection of tribal humans that populate the northern islands of Soi.

Living among the treacherous glacial floes, they are renowned for having some of the greatest sailors and ships the world has to offer, and have a long tradition of whaling, fishing, and piracy. Despite their large landmass, the Woag have one of the smallest, sparsest populations of all the Immortal peoples.

Their genetic manipulation has led them to be classified as ab humans, identifiable by their snow white complexion, and naturally sharp ears and canines. They have an immense natural resistance to cold temperatures.

## Government

The Woag are divided into twelve autonomous Clan Holds as they were were once clans. All Clan Holds must adhere to the basic laws laid forth by the Eternal Warrior. The Clan Holds meet at a moot twice a year.  Each one sends a representative to the moot. The council at the moot has thirteen chairs, one for each representative and one for the Eternal Warrior usually empty as he rarely shows up outside of some crisis. As for international politics, the government's be given to have a very isolationist approach and tend to be xenophobic.

## Culture

   *"Honor and skill, survival and glory, these are the things that truly matter." -*Woag engraving on whale bone trinket

The Woag are a tribal people of survivalists, warriors, traders, and sailors. They prize physical and mental strength. Carving their lives out in the frozen north has led them to becoming a resilient, hardy people. Within their own clans the Woag are a tightly knit family of little strife. Towards other clans they are generally at peace, with disputes being solved typically by trial by combat or trial by ice.

The culture is varied, each  Clan Holds is slightly different. The clan holds on the water primarily fish and trade. The clan holds on the tundras focus on heading and hunting while the clan holds in the mountains are the greatest miners and artisans. All holds teach the art of combat and war to girls and boys alike from birth. They tend to have trouble making a large civilization as they care more about their immediate family than the race as a whole.

Woag are great seafarers and have merchants travel to ports all over the world. The Woag also have many traveling warriors who move about the world fighting in tournaments and working as mercenaries. Woag participate in Broken Kingdom and Goran tournaments in order to test their skill as warriors. Dispite being accomplished traders indipendant Woag prefer to take from the outside world. Their targets are typically Family Hearth trading vessels or Tallet colonies as they typically are the most profitable targets for raids. On occasion

When not engaging in raiding or tourneys, the Woag are avid whalers, hunting the creatures for their bone, flesh and various other useful by-products. They are one of the few groups of people capable of navigating the treacherous ice floes and sudden storms of their native land.

The Woag worship the Northern Scourge, The Frozen Warrior, the Immortal said to have started their culture and shaped their people. The thrill of battle is to them the closest they get to their eternal afterlife of fighting and merrymaking while still alive. Their belief is that the Immortal that dwells on their islands is the harbinger of the afterlife, setting the example so that they may follow in its footsteps.

## Natural resources

*"Diamonds litter the ground in some of the coldest regions of the Woag lands, however the winds would freeze a fur-clad man solid in minutes, Whales populate seas ripe for the taking, however the seas themselves are so fierce and treacherous that even the sturdiest of Family Hearth ships sail around them. The Woag have taken it upon themselves to challenge this land; their wealth is their trophy."* -Dockmaster near the Circle of Friends

The Woag islands are the greatest and most readily available source of diamonds on Soi. Their easy availability has led the Woag to incorporate them into their weapons and armor, oftentimes the easiest way to find diamonds in Soi is not to dig on the mainland, but to go into Woag territory.

The Woag smelt bronze and use it in the majority of their tools and weaponry due to the exposure to corrosive weather.

Aside from diamonds, the waters around the northern islands have the largest whale populations; their bone and oil are prized commodities on the mainland, which the Woag occasionally trade should they not be in the mood for battle.

## Politics

*"We are led by the strong, and thus our people hold great strength, strength of body, strength of spirit, and strength of mind."* -Woag engraving on stone worship circle

The Woag are a tribal people, their clan being led by the strongest and most clever of their ranks, often decided by popular vote or the amount of spoils one can bring back in a year of raiding or trading.

## World activity

*"The Family Hearth reported several shiploads of grain, spices, and sugar cane attacked and stolen by pirates. Coincidentally a Woag ship just arrived that is willing to trade several ship loads of grain, spices, and sugar cane."* -Ashed Dockmaster

To the most civilized nations they are considered a major hazard to trading by nautical route and near the shore, though they have been known to travel inland through river systems.

## Trade

While the Woag prefer to fight and take from the rest of the world, they will engage in peaceful trading when the mood strikes them.

Woag will most often trade in whale ivory, oil, and other by-products that can most only be found through them. Precious gemstones from their islands are sought-after commodities by foreigners. The Woag do smelt and craft bronze, however they prefer to keep it to themselves.

The Woag will sometimes use their spoils of war as trade goods if they are not particularly attached to what they have found.

The Family Hearth consider them a direct threat to their dominion on global markets in both a military and economic competitive sense. They will often brand Woag as pirates and place bounties on their heads. The Woag in turn prefer to target Family Hearth caravans, strongholds, and merchant ships for raid targets.