Cossack

## Chieftain Cossack

Chieftain **Cossack** was an infamous warrior and cheiftain who served under Imperator Far'ukor. Unmatched in his carnage, Cossack's years in the Corvus Renegades earned him one of the highest bounties in the Western Kingdoms. As the right-hand warrior to Far'ukor, he was tasked at commanding his forces and summoning allies to their army. Prior to his years of leadership in the Corvus Renegades, Cossack was a notorious warrior under Ragnar the Elder of the Hathlan Clan. As chief, he ruled over his small tribe, the Burned Dogs.

Perhaps his most notorious atrocity was a killing contest between him and his comrade Ronar the Berserker. The contest — a race between the two warriors to see which could kill 100 people first using only a sword — was covered much like a sporting event with regular updates on the score over a series of days. He also partook in the Culver massacre, an event that involved countless acts of rape and looting. In Westmarch he is known as **The Devil Dog** by friend and foe alike.

## History

Cossack was born in the Burned Dogs tribe in the foothills of Dark Passing, Westmarch. His mother, a civilian of Westmarch, was captured, incarcerated and raped by the chieftain of his tribe. When his mother gave birth to him, the chieftain killed her and took her infant as his son. Cossack was brought up in a harsh world of brutal skirmishes and tribal warfare. Though he never killed anyone at a young age, Cossack was used to clean up corpses and treat the gravely wounded. He also witnessed many men, women and children slaughtered by his peers during raids or fights.

When he was 11 years old Cossack was constantly bullied by other children, mainly due to his height, and one day picked a fight with a seasoned fighter, named Drake, who was much older than him. Cossack lost the fight and was beaten into unconsciousness. After months of healing and recovering Cossack remained the center of ridicule. Driven by impulse, Cossack sneaked into Drake's tent while he slept one night and hacked him into pieces with an ax. When one of Drake's friends tried to intervene Cossack fought back, pinned him to the ground and decapitated him. This incident became the start of a decent into blood lust and prolonged into his later years.

### ***Chosen by the Elder***

By 1234, Cossack achieved great success in pillaging and raiding small towns surrounding Dark Passing. His reputation pleased his chieftain, and many of the regional tribes sought to test his might in friendly duels. During this time however Ragnar the Elder, a wildling leader who's bloodline came from the ancient Hathlan Clan, approached the Burned Dogs tribe within Dark Passing with hostility. Cossack and his chief met him in open negotiations before any skirmishes or battles could take place, and in doing so Ragnar settled for a one-on-one duel to see who would claim ownership over Dark Passing. Cossack was chosen to represent the Burned Dogs, while Ragnar chose his second-in-command. Cossack defeated his opponent in a vicious fight, and Ragnar allowed the Burned Dogs to keep ownership of Dark Passing so long as their tribe swear fealty to Ragnar and the Hathlan Clan. Cossack was promoted into a leadership role to serve as Ragnar's new second-in-command.

Circa 1237, Cossack and Hathlan raiders were ambushed by soldiers of the Royal Army of Westmarch. Cossack surprised the belligerents on both sides of the battle with his ferocity, such as biting at a soldier's face, for example. The victory over the Westmarch soldiers proved a boasting success for Cossack and was named **The Devil Dog** by Westmarch authorities and given a large bounty. Following the battle, Cossack's nickname and battle story became a talked about occurrence within the nation. Cossack embraced his nickname, as did his leaders and comrades. By age 25, The Devil Dog was known by every major city in Westmarch.

By 1248, Cossack assumed full leadership of the Burned Dogs tribe after the chieftain died of sickness. As the new chieftain, Coassack's first order was to forge an everlasting alliance with the Hathlan clan. Ragnar the Elder granted Cossack's request and the two remained close in tribal affairs to suppress the Westmarch authorities from entering their foothills. Meanwhile, he began to learn how to read and write.

Years passed and the Burned Dogs slowly established their tribe as a governing region among other surrounding tribes due to Cossack's leadership; he later married Ragnar's daughter as a pact between both clans. In his years as chieftain, he fathered over a dozen illegitimate children, most notably Einar. Meanwhile, nearly a dozen tribe leaders across Westmarch had declared an alliance with Chief Cossack and payed him respect; those who dared oppose him were executed.

## Character and Appearance

Cossack had a bold reputation as a fierce and barbaric nature. However, outside of combat he tended to be introverted and apprehensive by default. Many noted cunning intellect that was suppressed with abominable cruelty. His lack of integrity also held him back from ever challenging Far'ukor, earning him the reputation of a loyal dog, hence his nickname, for his unquestioning obedience.

Cossack has multiple bastards, with only Einar being an exception; many of his children have little to no knowledge of Cossack's existence. Only Cossack's four oldest sons and daughters knew of him and recognized him as a fatherly figure: Einar, Gudmund, Krea and Helvar. Of all his children, only Helvar and Siv share both parents, while the rest are half-siblings.

While in combat he often wielded a war axe and bastard sword, cutting down men with ease. Though rather short in statue, Cossack never feared facing off against larger opponents. Often times he would start fights just for the sake of fighting and his belligerence outmatched even Imperator Far'ukor. According to Ikeda Cao, he was considered one of the deadliest fighters he had ever witnessed in combat. Cossack was labeled a psychopath by Alec Kylar, a master mind reader, when he crossed paths with him during a parley.