Drazen's Horde
| Drazen's Horde | |
|---|---|
 Drazen's Horde territory, as appearing in the Core Rulebook (2002). | |
| General information | |
| Region: | Western Oerik |
| Government | |
| Ruler: | Drazen |
| Government: | Totalitarian Despotism; tribal |
| Alignments: | Evil; presumed LE |
| Established: | 586 CY |
| Demographics | |
| Races: | orcs, bugbears, ogres, half-ogres, goblins, hobgoblins, ettins |
| Groups | |
| Religions: | Orc pantheon, Nomog-Geaya |
| Allies: | None |
| Enemies: | Ravilla |
Drazen's Horde is a humanoid faction in Western Oerik.
Description
The enormous legion known as Drazen's Horde is really something of a faction and a realm simultaneously. It is depicted on maps alongside other nations, showing its borders. But it amounts to little more than a cult of personality led by a single, autonomous tyrant known as Drazen.
The entire faction is held together by his will and strength alone. He is known for brutality and rules with an iron fist and those who do not follow or obey him are put to death. The faction would otherwise be known for its otherwise chaotic cultures which normally exist as scattered tribes noted for a constant state of internecine warfare.
History
Though the Horde occupies area which once was the southern border of Ravilla, they are not native to the region and are only there because they invaded the lands of Ravilla
Drazen built the faction from the ground up, after capturing the Axe of Stratis when it fell to Oerth as the God of War died and ascended into the heavens.
He had put out a call to approximately thirty other hobgoblin warlords in the Southlands seeking to parley to discuss banding together to make a larger union. At the preliminary outset of the meeting, Stratis' Axe fell from the sky and was thought by Drazen to be a star. When the Axe was seen in the resulting crater, Drazen gathered up adepts around him and slayed the other chieftains in combat, claiming the artifact for himself.
Drazen used the power of the axe to consolidate the tribes, and within a surprisingly brief period (two years[1]) was the master and commander of all the Southlands. Soon thereafter, he seized the prime opportunity he had created to strike out north across the Blasted Desert toward more bountiful lands to find more of the Panoply of Stratis. The march was organized with the usual structure and precision, with the orcish druids being integral to the crossing due to being able to create water and shield soldiers from excessive heat. Nevertheless, thousands died during the expedition which took an entire month.[1]
The Horde trampled over everything in their path, gathering more humanoids to their army along the way. By the time they reached the former southern borders of Ravilla, they engaged the elven armies who were already fighting with other factions in the Godwar. The only reason they were stopped was because they crossed into the nascent Free States and ran into opposition in the form of the forces of Thalos[1].
The Godwar began in 1006 (586 CY), and Drazen's Horde engaged in battle with all other factions, vying to attain the divine power of Stratis and have one of their warlords claim his portfolio.
The Horde cares little for Stratis himself, seeing the deity as weak for allowing himself to be defeated by mortals. Their interest lay in his weapons and the irrefutable power they hold.
Geography
Both geographical obstacles and other factions bound Drazen's Horde. The faction occupies the southern side of the Disputed Regions, at the northern edge of the Blasted Desert. To the East and West respectively are the Ahumut's Legion and Free States. The area Drazen's Horde now occupies was once inside the borders of the Empire of Lynn. After the expansion of Ravilla from the original "Elven Lands"[2] the Empire's borders grew smaller in some way, since Ravilla later ruled the area and Drazen's Horde marauded north to seize it and clash with Ravilla and the other factions in the Godwar.
The land Drazen originally hailed from was "the region below the Blasted Desert, known in Ravilla simply as 'the Southlands'".[1] There were cultures or inhabitants beyond the desert in the Southlands, but they were never investigated by Ravillan scouts other than peripherally, though some bands of adventurers did venture south.
The Blasted Desert or "Blazing Desert"[3] is a massive "natural barrier" desert between the Southlands[4] and the region occupied by Drazen's Horde. Note that the Sundered Empire map in Chainmail does not accurately reflect the size of the desert as described in official Chainmail sourcebook text.[note 1]
Little is known of the geography farther south, simply because it was so thoroughly ignored by Ravilla. Though it has plateaus.[8]
Members
When Drazen began gathering tribes in "the southlands, beyond the Blasted Desert"[9], the land was teeming with savage humanoids.[1][10] The faction was originally composed of "orcs, bugbears, ogres, and other murderous riffraff".[11]
Eventually, as Drazen's power grew and he marched north toward the lands of Ravilla, other humanoids rallied to his banner and eventually also included half-ogres, goblins, hobgoblins, ettins, and creatures used as combatants like owlbears, war apes, and dire boars.
However, even after taking an enormous army of thousands upon thousands of humanoids north, the hobgoblin homeland in the Southlands was still populated by the tribes.[12]
Notable individuals
- Drazen—Hobgoblin warlord of the faction.
- Voja—Hobgoblin adept, second in command to Drazen.
- Izrock—Voja's primary lieutenant.
- Galtai—cleric of Nomog-Geaya, cult leader of the Soldiers of the Last Order.
Religion
The spiritual leaders of Drazen's Horde most notably are adepts and devotees of Maglubiyet. Many clerics of other deities also exist within the Horde.[12] There are other casters who follow druidic arts and are commonly orcish. Some spellcasters of the Horde are known as "shamans"[8], though it is unclear what class this represents.
A popular deity among Drazen's Horde is Nomog-Geaya, who sponsors a heretical cult known as the "Soldiers of the Last Order" who are led by Galtai[12].
Languages
It is presumed disparate languages of humanoid cultures are all spoken variously.
Government
Once he came to power, Drazen was a clear, unopposed tyrant. The few clues in officially published material suggest he is a totalitarian despot—including such evidence as the forced march across the Blasted Desert in which thousands died[1], and quotes from him like, “Follow me ... and fight for me, and you will serve me as champions. Fight against me and die now.”.[8] This, in addition to slaughtering opposing warlords and tribal chiefs who had met for parley. There were undeniably many tribal chiefs who were murdered at the parley, though it had been recounted as either Drazen gathering 29 other warlords[8] (30 total tribes including his own), or "over 30".[1]
Heraldry
At right is the image used in the Chainmail Miniatures Game to represent Drazen's Horde, though it's unknown whether that symbol is used in-character.
Rumors and legends
Publishing history
Drazen's Horde was only ever found in the Chainmail Miniatures Game and the Dragon magazine articles which supported it, written by Chris Pramas.
See also
See also:
Gallery
-
Drazen, illustrated by Sam Wood (2002) -
"Soldier of the Last Order", Dragon magazine #315, art by Fred Hooper (2004)
References
Notes
- ↑ The map of Western Oerik from the Chainmail Miniatures Game[5] does not accurately reflect the information contained in the text of the game. It shows the entire region south of Drazen's Horde as being desert, though it is not labelled the "Blasted Desert" on that map. Only the Southlands are labelled in that region. The Blasted Desert was north from the Southlands,[6] Drazen came "out of the lands of the south"[3] in the "region below the Blasted Desert, known in Ravilla simply as 'the Southlands',"[7] and the Horde "crossed" it.
Therefore, the region called the "Blasted Desert" must be between the Southlands and Drazen's Horde locations illustrated on that map, and not the entire area, even though it does not quite appear that way in the illustration, and is not labelled.
Citations
- ↑ a b c d e f g Dragon magazine #292, p102-103
- ↑ Dragon #A1 (Annual #1 1996), p.72.
- ↑ a b Chainmail Miniatures Game Core Rulebook (2002), p.6.
- ↑ "Drazen's Horde". Dragon #292 (Feb 2002), p.102.
- ↑ Chainmail Miniatures Game Core Rulebook (2002), p.19.
- ↑ Dragon #292 (Feb 2002), p.95.
- ↑ Dragon #292 (Feb 2002), p.102.
- ↑ a b c d Chainmail Core Rulebook, p6.
- ↑ Chainmail Miniatures Game Starter Set (2001), p.(insert), Build a Better Warband.
- ↑ Model Description Booklet, p6
- ↑ Chainmail Starter Set: Rulebook, p8.
- ↑ a b c Dragon magazine #315, p102-104
Bibliography
- Pramas, Chris. Chainmail Miniatures Starter Set: Rulebook. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2001.
- ———. Chainmail Miniatures Starter Set: Model Description Booklet. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2002.
- ———. Chainmail Miniatures Game: Core Rulebook. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2002.
- ———. "Drazen's Horde." Dragon #292. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2002.
- ———. "The Sundered Empire: Soldiers of the Last Order." Dragon #315. Bellevue, WA: Paizo Publishing, January 2004.
Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index
The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.
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