Trolls

Twice the height of a man or more, trolls generally have large curling tusks and or horns that they adorn with trinkets and engrave crude runes upon. Their skin tones generally match the coloration of the stone most commonly found in the area of their birth. Most trolls have a hunch backed and wrinkled appearance resembling old humans but have corded muscle strong enough to shatter stone or heft fully grown cattle above their heads. Younger trolls generally have elongated, protruding faces and lack the tusks or horns of an adult. A troll’s tail is a point of pride and is often left unadorned and swayed in front of others as if to taunt them or dare them to attack. A troll without a tail is typically one that has faced utter defeat or folly. Trolls begin life as little more than feral beasts, however over the course of decades their intellect will develop and improve. Most trolls living today are still simple minded creatures compared to other sentient species. Female trolls are especially rare and competitions among male trolls for the attention of females is fierce. Female trolls grow much slower than male trolls but develop much faster mentally than their male counterparts. Along with greater intellect female trolls are said to be masterful illusionists or shapechangers, using tricks and seduction on unsuspecting men. Trolls have a great love for mischief and even the dullest of them are capable of low cunning. A troll will only die by violence, starvation, poison or disease. Though they lack gills, trolls are capable of breathing underwater. Should a troll lose a limb it will regrow over time. Fire and acid put an end to their regeneration for roughly three days, though the older the troll the faster they recover their capacity to regenerate. If a troll is severely wounded and its wounds are burned it will die. Due to their sheer size most trolls die of starvation or violence in a desperate struggle to feed themselves.

**Troll Magic**Largely based on curses and mischief. Trolls utilize crude runes and some items related to the target or purpose of their magic (a fetch or voodoo doll, hair, blood, treasured items) and/or bloody rituals using livestock. Old trolls can burden others with a curse simply by declaring one but the spiritual, magical power required to maintain the curse remains lost to them until the curse is lifted or runs its course.

   **Troll Culture**
Trolls don't have a "society" per se. They are nomads travelling in patriarchal packs made up of their own family or, more often alone. Each family has its own history and traditions. When a young troll is deemed large enough to fend for itself it is forced from the pack to fend for itself. Females will not live with males, preferring to live with their female kin or alone but often in a more sedentary style than males with a wide territory. Old trolls cease nomadic behavior and instead bully young trolls into gathering food for them. Young trolls will often "prank" anyone they manage to sneak up on by throwning large rocks at them from above or felling trees in the path of caravans. A troll's sense of mischief is often petty and cruel. Only with age do trolls engage in more lighthearted tricks, saving their wickedness for those who cross them. When a troll pack happens upon a den of females they are often manipulated into completing various tasks and/or surrendering much of what they have for the opportunity to start their own pack. Infant trolls are thrust upon the male that sired them and harassed from the den to raise them far away. Old trolls will bellow from great elevations when they feel it is time to celebrate, worship or go to war. This is the only time many packs and dens will gather in one place. Troll numbers typically increase exponentially after a troll gathering. It is at this time that younger trolls might challenge older ones for supremacy, often ending in failure simply due to an elder's immense size but clever trolls have been known to win against less senior elders. The winner will lay claim to the elder's domain and the subservient packs and dens therein becoming an elder in name if not in age. Elders are expected to remember all of their race's history, even if they can't, and to warn of any potential threats to the trolls of their domain.