Fellmen

Native to the rugged Gemlands, the Drachenheimers are a loyal but hardy people. They claimed their home from an ancient dragon and are forever remembered for it, dwelling in ancient Dwarven strongholds, they sit on the edge of the Faithful world and are the bulwark besides heretical humans and creatures alike.

Introduction

Far to the west live a people praised for their resilience and strength,  in lands where the winters are dark and long and the summers only wake beasts that lurk in the thickest of woods and unexplored caverns below the mountains. Where deep gorges reveal ancient ruins that stretch deep beneath the surface. People who are famed for their ability to survive, endure and adapt.  The land belongs to the Drachenheimers, a people stalwart and honourable in their mountain dwellings, evading beasts of myth and legend and carving out their lives in an unforgiving corner of the world. Living in ancient but proud Dwarven dwellings in the doorways of the mountains to isolated woodland villages with hidden secrets and superstitious people and lastly of their own making, stone cities that remain warm and lit even in the dark winter nights, staving off stories of monsters and beings worse who may hunger to reconquer these primitive lands. The Drachenheimers are awarded respect through the history of their people, holding pride for all they have achieved in ages almost forgotten but with merit to those that uphold their ancestral might, courage and determination.

Drachenheim is the seat of the Amalgatarian Church, at least to them, which is only rightfully theirs to claim. Incredibly conservative and unforgiving to those who abandon their ideals and practices, the Drachenheimers lead a life of piety and a life in service to their church and kin. They are discontent to simply exist in this form and seek to push their faith onto their neighbours, for it is their rightful duty to uphold the religious standards of the Amalgatarian Church and as such house the militant chapter of the Inquisition within their capital of Ruddelburg. Drachenheim’s history is carved in conquest and superior human might and as such the people are proud of themselves, if not just for the judging of other people and unforgiving and superstitious to other races.

Physical Description

Drachenheimers are not so different to most other humans, but generally resemble more closely to the Felkish humans in the Northern Highlands. They have a generally pale skin tone when compared to most, likely due to the climate they have grown accustomed to over the generations but retain more stereotypical ‘southern’ traits, such as brown eyes and darker hair though these are just as common as lighter shades of hair and eyes. Drachenheim is often described as a ‘melting pot of people’ for this reason, with no single type of person being more dominant than the other, though isolated villages in the mountains and forests tend to be of a particular complexion. They are by nature tall and strong, toughened by their active lifestyles whether hunting, woodcutting or mining by trade, Drachenheimers are more practical than most and are excellent crafters as a result- and often have the muscle to prove it. Standing between 5’9 to 6’4 for men and women only a few inches shorter on average, around 5’6 to 5’11.

Culture and Society

Drachenheimers are woodsmen, hunters, explorers and soldiers. These people retain a hardy lifestyle in hearty homes and are excellent at navigating the dark forests and mountains of their home and avoiding or combating the natural dangers within them. The folk of Drachenheim are loyal to each other and especially their settlement or family unit where everyone may pitch in to various tasks for the ‘greater good’ of the people there, with many isolated villages banding together to trade what resources may be scarce between them and barter the rest as opposed to a more conventional economy system that is established in the more urban cities to the south.

Drachenheim society was built on the premise of strength, endurance and the fighting attempt to overcome great odds. Being so isolated from the rest of humanity in the far and often said heretical corner of the continent has only strengthened the piety of the local Drachenheimers, faith stands above all else in society and is accurately represented in the various cathedrals and temple built usually before anything else in a newly established settlement. It is their divine duty to ensure that the needs of the Church are met unconditionally and that the message it carries is driven into the unfaithful often extremely and without forgiveness, these often being the Felk humans, Fae and Elves at their borders.

Drachenheim is the seat of Inquisitorial power in the  Amalgatarian Church and Drachenheimers often praise themselves  for such a purpose and role. They are a people who value loyalty, honour and faith symbiotically within their society. Their culture is united by their faith and the fundamental need to survive in a rugged and often ‘uncivilised’ corner of the human world and any foreign influence is hard to preach to people of such conservative traditions that are often deemed extreme to most other cultures.

The Amalgatarian Church dictates much of the same Drachenheimer laws and ideologies.

Of Marriage,

Despite the Drachenheimers following the strict laws of the Amalgatarian Church, they have their own rites and customs of how a wedding shall take place, these traditions having been written and founded long ago and as such remains one of the most important events one can have in their life. Marriage is sacred to a Drachenheimer, as important as birth or death. As such, Drachenheimers have three main celebrations called the Life Trium Days, which are exactly that, the birth, marriage and death of someone. Drachenheimers are not able to marry till they reach the age of twenty, that goes for both genders but arranged betrothal is not uncommon between close families or aspiring nobles who find easy alliances in the union of their children. An entire week is therefore devoted to the wedding, no matter if it is an arranged one or done so out of love or commitment. This week is called a Huldur Feast, where friends, families and those within the settlement come to celebrate the occasion with feasting, games, socialising, gift-giving and worship. The more prominent the families, the grander and larger the Huldur Feast will be, with some being celebrated all across Drachenheim. On the last day of the feasting week, the marriage will occur at the closest Holy Site where the entire day is dedicated to the Church from dawn till dusk- with the new day after being reserved for the new husband and wife to commit alone. The consummation of the marriage is sealed upon this day and they are officially unified in the eyes of the Church and Drachenheim law. The woman in the marriage will always add the name of her husband onto her own and to the reverse this is often seen as an illegitimate wedding to particularly traditional Drachenheimers.

Of Fashion,

Drachenheimer fashion is split between societal class and wealth and are incredibly contrasting. Those of the poor spectrum value practicality with furs, leathers and cloth outfits to keep them warm in their northern provinces and safe from wild animals that may prey on them. Women are dressed more finely than the men, with dresses often decorated in various patterns and furs, jewellery and beads to entice male onlookers or at the behest of their parents who may want to arrange their marriage to a more powerful noble in the area. Men dress with far more militant purpose, as it is almost unheard of for any man to be without weapons even at formal events and are sorely miserable if they are unable to do so for whatever reason. In the richer districts, often in the capital and south where commerce flows more easily, fashion is drastically extravagant. Colours of red, blue, yellow and green are painted or embroidered on almost every surface of an outfit, with feathers spewing out of hats and helmets and the colour of one’s liege or family are painted across shields and horses alike. Drachenheim fashion is incredibly uncomfortable and over-the-top but it serves as a clear indication of their wealth and ability to pay for things that are otherworldly and unnecessary.

Language and Naming Customs

Drachenheimers have no distinct dialect or language themselves and speak Common in the majority of settlements, those on the peripheries may speak other languages but are often discouraged from doing so in larger cities. That being said, knowing several languages is often seen as something to praise and is a show of wealth and luxury. Major influences of Baerennic and even Vodska are not unheard of and have been adapted into the naming customs, certain words and even places. Places such as Ernstwald, Karlschwitz and Neebrachtand words such as Schmidt, Burg and Fjell follow this convention.

To the ever-traditional Drachenheimers, naming in itself is just as important and follows the Life Trium Days accordingly, with names added onto their family name for a sense of individual identity and familial unity. When a child is born, they are granted their ‘First’ Name, this may be whatever the parents decide. When they grow up and are married, they are granted their ‘Second’ Name, created by the now-husband to reflect the marriage; the wife then adopts this name. And when they die, they are finally granted their ‘Third’ name following the word ‘Von’ meaning from or of, that being the last they are granted by their next of kin and is often where they are born, died or their craft. A baby yet born is simply referred to as the Newest Member of the Family. Or New [Family Name] for short.

For example: A married man who has died.

Frederik Huddlburn Eenskor von Ikorschmidt

[First Name] + [Family Name] + [Second Name] + von [Third Name]

For example: A married woman.

Angelia Ackervell Eenskor.

[First Name] + [Family Name] + [Second Name]

Religion

Drachenheim in itself is frantically zealous to the Amalgatarian Church and anyone who does not openly follow, praise or respect the Church is shunned or worse and it has been known that Nobles who have declared Faith elsewhere to vanish and show up half-eaten in the woods weeks later. Even the other human Churches, such as the Orthodox Church is viewed as misguided or false. The Elven Pantheon and the Celrynian Faiths are viewed as the antithesis and are taken with extreme hostility.

The Drachenheimers are by nature superstitious folk, often believing in strange tales and stories of horrendous beasts and monsters. However, despite the sheer strictness to their faith, secluded villages especially in the north, hidden in the dark forests of Drachenheim follow some secretive and often punishable rites and superstitions that are far worse. With extreme cases of cannibalism and the worship of undead beings and murderous beasts being told. These types of secretive cult-like traditions are taken as hostile to the Church and the execution of those followers are not unheard of, often out of fear. The Fae and Elves are often to blame for this and this only solidifies the general Drachenheim view of the mythical beings as hostile and in need of eradication.