Beastmen

## Description:

The Beastmen of the K2 Universe, also referred to as Beastfolk or Fiends, are heavily mutated animals or humans with traits of both races intertwined. They exist to hate and kill and consume and spread their corruption, working for or alongside Demonic entities to achieve their revenge against the more civilized sentient races. Beastmen are confined to the deepest, darkest, and least explored forests of the earth, including Canada, the United States, Siberia in Russia, and some pockets deep in Europe. Beastmen can range in height anywhere from four (4) feet to seven (7) feet tall, with other specific sects of their "race" being even more widely varied. Their weight can range from one hundred and fifty (150) to over three hundred (300) pounds of pure muscle and rage.

The most identifiable aspects of a Beastman's physiology is their heavily furred skin, which often reflects their natural hair color before their transformation. The skin itself is thick as leather and often covered in scars, cuts, blemishes, tumors and other maladies that add to a Beastman's rage and discomfort, although their hides are said to be resistant to even conventional gunfire despite their health. The eyes of a Beastman can be any range of wild colors, from yellow to a sickly green, to a bright red or totally black or brown, depending on the animal the Beastman derived his traits from and the influence it had on his body.

Beastmen are considered repulsively ugly by every other known sentient race, universally identified as monstrous abominations by even the Wad-Thet. Some Beastmen are born with subtler animalistic traits and a weakened bloodlust that allows them to pass for a relatively normal human being from a distance, but even they are often identified and expunged by the citizens who discover them.

Beastmen are widely considered to be disorganized and dumb as the animals from which they are derived, unable to form official resistance or methods of a hierarchical structure. This is, in truth, a false assumption; Beastmen have proven themselves to be cunning and deadly in more ways than simply martial capability, and many are as intelligent as a normal human person when not consumed by bloodlust. Although brutish and stubborn with a very basic tribal structure and a general inability to make use of modern technologies, Beastmen are still capable of producing their own Medieval-era weaponry and use it to extreme efficiency against their foes. The tribal structure of their society is enforced by strength and raw brutality. Beastmen are entirely consumed by their hatred for other sentient races, apply one hundred percent (100%) of their time, intelligence, and energy into that singular goal, and are not easily distracted.

Beastmen are not natural entities, and are abominations abhorred by the forces of nature itself, but can reproduce with one another so long as the two mates are of the same mutated breed. More commonly, Beastfolk must kidnap prisoners during raids and forcibly impregnate them with the mutated and corrupted seed of the Beastmen. These pregnancies are reported to be incredibly painful and uncomfortable for the unfortunate victim, who almost never survives the birthing process; if the unfortunate mother does survive, she is killed and consumed by either her child or the rest of the Beastmen. Beastmen may also be created through a transformation ritual performed on willing cultists and followers or unwilling prisoners or slaves, known to be a fate much worse than death. Beastmen are also known to be caused by Demons or Genies as punishment when a client breaks their Contract, but can also occur as a result of magical mishaps, exposure to unstable magic, etc.

Beastmen have a wide range of possible lifespans, but Beastmen have been known to live far longer than even a normal human if given access to enough magic, sacrifices, and victories in combat to bolster the user's strength. By consuming the flesh of slain foes, Beastmen can artificially extend their own lifespans by an amount proportional to the strength of the consumed foe. Many Beastmen do not live to their fullest potential, only tribal shamans and magicians having any real chance of achieving the honor of old age.

### Personality:

Since Beastmen can come from such a massive variety of places, peoples, cultures, and circumstances, it is often assumed for them to have a great difficulty in organizing full fighting forces as a result of their differences. In reality, however, Beastmen are united almost solely by their hatred of mankind and the other sentient races, wishing to bring destruction upon them for their treatment of the Beastmen and unwillingness to lend aid.

A Beastman's singular goal in life is to kill as many humans and other sentient beings as they possibly can before their inevitable deaths, doing everything out of spite for humanity. Beastmen cannot stand being in proximity to normal humans, and will be sent into a rage with only a wrong glance; the violent response is somewhat diminished for other races, but humans and Elves hold special places at the bottom of every Beastman's burning heart and soul. The Beastmen abide by no moral code except destruction and wanton violence, and consider the only real crime to be cowardice of any kind.

Beastmen are also known for their arrogance and obsession with putting others in their place, taking great joy in breaking the wills of their foes before crushing and consuming them. The Beastmen do so out of spite for the people they once stood alongside more so than out of a sense of true ego, although it is not uncommon for Beastmen to take pride in their maladies and disfigurations, using magic or tools or decorations to exaggerate their flaws. Unlike the Drow and other man-hating arrogant races, Beastmen do not fall victim to their own egos, and are often underestimated themselves, further enraging and goading the Beastmen.

Their spiteful existence and attitude has led the Beastmen down a path of absolute violence and cruelty matching even the sadism of the Drow, taking pleasure in the slaughter and destruction they reap and viewing human flesh as a delectable spoil of war. Beastmen take slaves and prisoners from those they fight, and will work them all to the literal bone just so the meat is tender and bones easily accessible. Slaves are not expected to survive more than a few days, as the Beastmen are brutally sadistic and possess natural levels of endurance far higher than that of normal men; a common form of entertainment is for a Beastman to break a slave's leg during the night, and then force them to march alongside the rest of the slaves the next day, not only causing severe pain and likely death, but also permanently disfiguring those that survive the process by forcing the leg to heal improperly. Beastmen take great pride in the oppression of their prisoners and slaves, dehumanizing them and breaking their minds with unrelenting brutality and violence as opposed to the Drow, who take great pride in their careful technique and precision. Where the Drow view torture as an art, Beastmen view torture as the best form of entertainment, and a satisfying revenge.

Beastmen live very harsh, wild lives that leave little room for hedonism or excess, clans and tribes of Beastfolk often being driven to war and raiding simply to survive in the wilderness in which they are forcibly secluded. That does not mean, however, that Beastmen have forgotten or overcome their base urges and desires—instead, Beastmen now operate on minds with limited to no inhibitions whatsoever. This means that their actions are often spontaneous and uncivilized when not engaged in combat, mating with slaves, killing slaves or fighting each other, and divulging in charnel feasts whenever they feel it necessary as soon as they feel it necessary, wherever they happen to be at the time without a second thought. If given the chance, Beastmen would be hedonists as much as they are killers, but due to their circumstances that is often a rare and controlled commodity, used by the smarter and wiser members of a given tribe or army to reward and punish the soldiers properly, preventing morale from getting too low whilst also ensuring that laziness or complacency does not spread throughout the lower ranks.

In another split from the Drow, Beastmen do not fall victim to paranoia or caution, as a result of both their lack of inhibitions and their confidence in combat and hatred for espionage. Beastmen do not have a problem rushing head-first into a suicide charge, and rarely use ranged weapons not derived from magic or their natural abilities, preferring to be up close to defeat a foe. Exceptions to this are made, particularly when special degrees of cunning and ingenuity are required to defeat a strong enemy.

### Abilities:

The abilities of Beastmen vary wildly depending on the animal from which a particular Beastman has been derived, although all Beastmen share a few common traits. All Beastmen possess unusually tough hides capable of withstanding even bullets, teeth capable of tearing flesh from bone with ease, a fine taste for human flesh—the fresher the better—and superior physical traits when compared to those of human beings. Beastmen are faster, usually stronger, and possess far more acute senses than normal people, giving them a distinct advantage in combat and tracking. It is said that a Beastman can smell a human being from over a hundred (100) yards away, and smell a drop of blood in a forest from over seventy-five (75). While weaker than an average Elf, Beastmen make up for this with their sheer numbers, which can easily overrun any unprepared Elven encampment.

In terms of magical affinity, Beastmen have none. While many are created thanks to magical rituals or unnatural mutations, this does not usually result in the development or bolstering of magical abilities, and anyone with innate abilities often loses them as a result of their transformation. This does not mean that Beastmen are without magic, however, as they are known to possess strange shamans capable of summoning powerful entities from beyond the material veil, as well as cast horrifying corrupting magic that infects reality itself and transforms entire landscapes given enough time. Most of the magic belonging to a Beastman force lies in their shamans or Demonic allies/leaders.

While Beastmen do possess a lot of powerful advantages in both their numbers and physical/martial prowess, many often fall victim to embracing their flaws too much and crippling themselves in the process, leading to their consumption by other members of the group. Beastmen also care little for their own personal safety or preservation as soon as they are presented with acceptable prey, launching themselves into battle without reservation or hesitation. Those Beastman forces with better training to restrain and harness that bloodlust often fair better, but no Beastman is totally immune to their own rage or primal instinct to hunt and kill and consume, even if they can suppress their own inner hatred.

### Culture:

Beastman culture is focused on a singular goal: erase all other sentient life from the face of the Material Realm, no matter the cost. This goal is a universal one, and is the single objective reflected by every Beastman incursion throughout history. Any small raid or ambush is ultimately conducted to further their overall goal and, despite the complete fractioning and disorganization present across the entirety of Beastman-kind, all Beastfolk innately understand their collective mission. While full-scale armies and wars are rare and scattered, they inevitably result in the massacre and slaughter of thousands if not millions of sentient beings, all killed or consumed or enslaved without a second thought. Beastmen are a simple and single-minded collective that seeks chaos and corruption absolutely.

Beastmen organize themselves into a number of tribes scattered across the globe that may eventually rise up to become a clan, at which point they often leave their sedentary lives and take up proper arms against the nearest bastions of civilization, feeling confident enough to stop the occasional raids and take the fight to their archenemies. If multiple clans can conglomerate or have the time required to organize and establish a singular leader, a Warband is formed; Warbands are capable of overrunning entire states or provinces of a nation and hold them under siege for weeks or months at a time before eventually being beaten back, and often require a nationwide response to quell. If multiple Warbands can come together or cooperate, they form a Beastpath, called so for the literal path of utter destruction and obliteration that sits in the army's wake, often made up of millions of collected Beastmen capable of replenishing their numbers as they travel the continents in search of ever-fresh meat.

#### Hierarchy:

Beastman culture is very well ordered despite their apparent disorganization and chaotic nature, following nature's "might makes right" dictation obeyed by the rest of the creatures on the Material Realm. Tribes of Beastmen may be willing to work with or at least temporarily tolerate the presence of humans or other sentient races near or in their territory if a greater threat presents itself, or if a tempting reward is offered in return for cooperation; such instances of peace or trade are exceedingly rare, and often considered to be false reports by much of the academic community, although plenty of individuals claim to have, at one point, encountered friendly Beastfolk.

1. Pathfinder: Leader of a Beastpath; often monstrous in size and possessing multiple forms of magic and powerful items/artifacts of either Beastman or civilized make; towering creatures of unrivaled power and skill wielding unmatched martial prowess alongside inhuman intelligence and strategic knowledge.
2. Warmonger: Leader of a Warband of Beastfolk that is, by definition, the strongest and smartest of the available soldiers; often sports high-quality armor and weaponry, as well as magical equipment and the possibility to find new allies beyond the Material Realm.
3. Chieftain: Leader of a single tribe of Beastfolk, often much smaller and weaker than the higher tiers of Beastman to which some rare few may rise; commonly more charismatic than necessarily strong, or simply the most popular amongst the rest of the tribe that has grown to become the de facto leader.
4. Shaman:
5. War-Seer: A twenty-foot (20 ft.) or taller hulking monstrosity with Demonic, Shadow, and Beast genetics originating from The Unbeheld. War-Seers are the siege monsters of the Beastmen responsible for blasting the walls of castles and towns to rubble. They have two massive curved horns that protrude from either side of their head, two fat arms that end with clawed hands, two short and fat legs large enough to cause damage to structures when stomped into the ground, and one massive eyeball that takes up a majority of their torso. This massive eye is laced with powerful innate magic that allows the War-Seer to see invisible creatures, identify illusions, ignore magical light, darkness, and blinding effects, fire a massive beam of raw magical energy, hypnotize and terrify foes, and even open a portal directly to The Unbeheld.
6. Desiccator: A powerful and incredibly dangerous caste of the Beastfolk hierarchy referring to the white-skinned, armor-clad one-third-Demon-one-third-Beast-one-third-man entity with an affinity for fire and explosives, often found sporting a macabre flamethrower-spear with a spiked bludgeon built into the back stock, that marches across fields, through forests, and down the avenues of towns and cities burning all in their path; known to be fond of burnt human flesh as opposed to raw human flesh. Desiccators take pleasure in starting fires and witnessing the pain and destruction they wreak, although their bloodlust may lead to suicide or the accidental injury or deaths of allies. The white skin is said to come from the layers of ash with which they cover themselves as part of some ritual belonging to their branch of the Beastfolk faith.
7. Bugbear: A seven (7) foot tall combination of Wild Goblin, bear, and humanoid genetics achieved through unknown means (methods are believed to parallel those rituals used in the creation of Hobgoblins). Bugbears are incredibly volatile and physically imposing warriors, bred by the Beastmen Shamans to be heavy infantry in combat; much like Orcs, Bugbears were bred for war. Larger, stronger, dumber, angrier, and more violent than Hobgoblins, Bugbears are vindictive and capable combatants that will tend to revert to an animalistic and feral lifestyle without the unifying discipline provided by a tribe of Beastmen or a larger Beastpath.
10. Hobgoblin: A mutated combination of Wild Goblin and Beastman genetics, Hobgoblins are themselves a stable strain of mutation that has enabled them to move beyond their origins and separate themselves from their more barbaric counterparts; this has enabled them to forge a culture of their own and make use of their intelligence. As a result, Hobgoblins often operate in their own War Hosts separate from normal Beastmen, leading Legions of Hobgoblins and Wild Goblins on conquests across the countryside.
13. Ravenborn: [REDACTED]
### Religion:

The Beastperson religion is tribal and monotheistic, focused outwardly with heavy emphasis on the worship of leaders and important people. For the Beastmen, divine interaction comes in the form of interaction with leaders and members of the clergy, and is a system of faith that involves many artifacts and objects of sacred importance. The Beastmen afterlife comes as a form of enlightenment reached through unmitigated hatred of mankind and the euphoria brought about by the slaughter of many humans. For the Beastmen, the supernatural involves guardian angels/protective spirits, demonic trickster entities, and other mischievous spirits. Worship for the Beastmen is individual meditation and large group rituals and celebrations at their temples and holy sites. Holidays are very frequent and celebrate past miracles, full moons, heroes, martyrs, and great leaders. The celebration of the most important holidays include pilgrimages to important sites.

#### Pantheon:

1. Black Goat/Shub-Niggurath: The Beastmen's lead deity believed to have created the Beastmen through perverse sexual acts and mutagenic rituals/materials; associated with the woods, moon, fear, madness, plagues, and fertility. Worship of Shub-Niggurath has waned among the Beastmen in favor of The Stranger.
2. The Stranger: The primordial creator and deity of The Unbeheld, the Darkness Between Dimensions, and a Realm of absolute shadow; also the deity of the Wendigo and Fomordrin.
3. The Beast Without: [REDACTED]
4. Cluny, the Conqueror: The god of discipline, war, conquest, and conflict worshipped by the Hobgoblins.
5. Yee'Nogonneth: An ancient and evil deity believed to have once been the embodiment of animalistic fury and ferocity that is now worshipped as the god of victory, valor, mutations, disease, ruination, and war by the Gnolls.

#### Clergy:

The Beastmen allow members of both genders to act as clergy within their tribes and Beastpaths. These shamans act as spiritual leaders, historians and record-keepers, and inquisitors. These shamans are "blessed" with potent magic specializing in madness, inducing mutations and disease, and placing curses on one's enemies. Shaman are responsible for rooting out any Beastmen who are not completely obedient to their god and their holy extermination of mankind.

The shamans of the Beastmen live ascetic lives separate from the rest of the community and are forbidden from having a family in order to ensure their unwavering dedication to their job.

The prophets of the Beastmen are chosen by the highest ranking member of the tribe, most commonly selected for their strength, ferocity, body count, or the presence of obvious "blessings" and mutations. These chosen are then distinguished by shaving their hair into specific patterns and dying the hair that remains.

#### Cultural Aspects:

Common symbols for the Beastmen are representations of individual body parts or a catlike eye with a vertical iris. Their holy color is brown. The religious ceremonies and information of the Beastmen is passed down by many holy books and scrolls written and held by the shamans, as well as by oral tradition and ritualistic performances. The Beastmen hold a strong belief in their creation myth, which states that Beastmen are the result of "Order amongst Chaos." According to the Beastperson faith, mortals originate from mud and were crafted and molded from a normal human by their god to enact his will on the world. The journey poses as a major symbol and myth amongst the Beastmen, meant to represent their transformation from mundane human to their new superior forms.

The deadly sins for the Beastperson culture are cowardice, compassion, and weakness. The culture's highest virtues are rage, courage, and hatred for mankind.

The art forms associated with Beastpeople culture are ceremonial dance, chanting and music, tattoos, ritual scarification, and the construction of macabre effigies from the remains of one's enemies.

For a Beastman, their coming of age arrives after twelve (12) years of life, when a Beastperson reaches dull maturity. The coming of age ceremony is reserved only for males, and involves a large feast and a ceremonial duel between the new adult and his father or an older male friend. These duels are mostly for show, to demonstrate the child's elevation to adulthood through difficult trial, but can sometimes be used by political opponents to kill the rising generation and heir to a rival's family.

Marriage amongst the Beastmen is loose, and allows for repeated divorce that can be initiated by either the male or female counterpart. Marriage ceremonies are highly informal and are entirely optional, especially during times of war. For many Beastpeople, marriage is seen as a piece of humanity to which they can still cling despite their mutated and feral state of living. As such, the marriage between Beastpeople is informal but ferociously loyal, with both members of a marriage using their spouse as a source of comfort and emotional support amongst the unbridled brutality and chaos of their normal lives.

Death rites for the Beastmen are a week-long process undertaken only if the deceased perished in combat or as a result of some offensive action by a human or other sentient humanoid. Those who do not die as a result of those circumstances are seen as failures for their lack of active support in the extermination of mankind.

A major taboo amongst the Beastpeople is eye contact, a taboo that reflects their animalistic tendencies. Eye contact is seen as an act of aggression and intimidation, as is the case in normal animals, and is often interpreted as a challenge.

This religious system is believed by all Beastmen to a certain degree, their loyalty assured by the inquisitive shamans. Outsiders are killed without mercy.