Human

The residents of the human realm of Carloth all have an unwavering devotion to their brave and righteous monarch, His Majesty, King Gabriel Boldheart.

## Carloth

The human kingdom, Carloth, is divided into three counties: Adamanth, Cerulea, and Gawaine. While King Gabriel oversees the entire human domain and administrates the capital of Adamanth, his two brothers Lord Talysen and Lord Ereck are the local governors of Gawaine and Cerulea, respectively.

### The Chimera Guard

The Chimera Guard is the border patrol. The diligent sentinels of the Chimera Guard protect Carloth from overland marauders.

### The Kraken Guard

The Kraken Guard patrol the coastline of the Algid Sea, protecting the human realms from invasion.

### The Phoenix Guard

The Phoenix Guard are a disciplined regiment of soldiers who specialize in riding giant songbirds as scouts and air support for battles.

Many believe the legend that the giant songbird mounts used by the Phoenix Guard were created by magically cross-breeding a canary with an actual phoenix.

### The Protectorate

The Protectorate are elite defenders of the human realm of Carloth. The clergy provide divine inspiration to the knights that follow them onto the battlefield.

The symbol of the Protectorate is a howling red wolf against a field of white.

Their sorcerers are battle scholars, as savvy in the field of battle as they are in the halls of a library.

### Order of the Nobleborn

Warlocks, whose focus is the eradication of the necrotic and their undead minions.

## History

When the vast and sudden Underworld Incursion erupted three hundred years ago, it was immediately apparent that, without help, the human kingdom would be overrun. The humans sought an alliance with the most powerful of the surface races, and the coalition called itself the Ardent.

The devastating war raged for a century. The human realms lay in ruin, and the virtuous King Wren was forced to acknowledge the horrible truth that final victory for the Underworld seemed inevitable. Unwilling to allow the extinction of humankind to occur under his reign, King Wren embarked on a final act of desperation.

Wren traveled north, to the foreboding Hyperborean Mountains. He brought with him thirty of his bravest knights. King Wren’s plan was to enlist the assistance of the Great Wolves, an enigmatic pack of ancient creatures who, it was told by the wise ones, held a great power beyond those of ordinary beasts.

When the human knights found the Great Wolves, they were shocked to find most of their numbers had been eradicated by the incessant assaults by the necrotic and their allies. The final pack of the noble beasts was preparing to defend itself against an overwhelming Underworld force, knowing they would perish in the attack but facing it with grim ferocity.

Inspired by the resolute bravery of the Great Wolves, King Wren and his knights chose to stand side by side with the beasts against the Underworld onslaught, even if it meant their own demise as well. In an act of incredible bravery, King Wren sacrificed his life to defeat the Underworld war party and save his knights and the wolves.

So moved by this selfless act, Lycae, the Primal of wolves, made a proposal no Primal ever had before: to give her own life to save her children. Using a unique combination of wild and blood magic, Lycae shattered her own Primal soul and distributed the power into her remaining children, transforming them into enormous, powerful creatures. Each of the thirty human knights who witnessed this unprecedented event became intrinsically bonded with a Great Wolf.

Once the human knights descended from the Hyperborean Mountains with their new Great Wolf companions, each the size of a horse and infused with the soul of a Primal, they were able to finally help push back the Underworld forces and save themselves from ruin.