Rhunok

**Rhunok** is the God of War and Conquest venerated by the ice trolls of Northrend. As one of the Emneraki Loa his effigy takes the form of a fourfold horned white bear with a long, hanging tongue and fur ever decorated by a thousand different war-paints, braided with bones and skulls of all the foes the trolls have slain in his name. His claws are said to be of black steel and his fangs of silver.

## Myth

None know in certainty from whence Rhunok came, for indeed even the priests themselves oft argue about his origins. What is known is that he has always been part of the ice trolls, though in times past he may have carried different names. One legend purports that Rhunok was the bear companion of Tharon'ja, and when they made war against Mor'thek and his spawn in ancient times, Rhunok earned his master's pride by hewing down enemies beyond count, and for his great battle prowess he was rewarded with godhood by the fathers of trollkind.

Another tale suggests instead that Rhunok was an ancestral force of the world, a spirit born from the blood spilled by the first killing between a troll and another, and henceforth he grew and guided the murderous instincts of mortals towards greater acts of glory and conquest.

One common belief among trolls is that Rhunok, like other such gods, walks amidst mortals. It is said in fact that after a great battle, his presence may manifest over the bodies of the slain, taking the form of a skull-masked ice troll dressed in bones and furs to claim the souls of warriors to live and fight forevermore in his divine battleground within the glaciers of Icecrown, thus earning Rhunok's amusement, and his blessing to be recognised as truest soldiers.

## Worship

To venerate Rhunok is to venerate strength. He is not a god of deep prayers and long rites, for his creed is the battlefield itself. He is honoured by displays of triumph, most often made with the spoils of a conquered enemy, such as their weapons, armour and corpse, though a living one is considered a greater prize. The priests of Rhunok are the Rhunok'ai and they are tasked with blessing weapons on the eve of battle. Wearing bear skin cloaks and grey suits of polished armour, they accompany other warriors in their ordeals, where they sing the great and terrible war songs of Rhunok to bolster their spirits, and when the fray takes them they throw themselves at their enemy in an unrelenting rampage that ends either with their deaths or that of their foes.

Rhunok does not take offerings that are not claimed by blade from a worthy enemy. Yet once something is taken, it can be given to Rhunok to beseech his favour, no matter what it is. These may be items worn or wielded by a vanquished foe, or perhaps a shrine they had to another god, it could even be their home, or their family within it. These sacrifices to Rhunok must be prepared by digging a hole within the ground, hemmed by blades plunged in the earth, then his name must be invoked as the sacrifices are buried and he who makes the offering speaks his plea.

In ancient times before the fall of the Drakkari Empire, entire cities were razed and given to Rhunok, with naught but ash and snow to make their burials.