Angarvunde

Many lie awake at night in terror when they feel the ground shake below them. Often, there is no earthquake, no magic, and there is certainly nothing coming to save them. A war horn booms through the city, signaling the attack, and the attack is that which marks the end of peace and prosperity for whoever the Angarvunde deem ripe for raiding. Angarvunde is a large tribe in the north, above the Giant's Highlands, that have mastered survival in the far north. They are bloodthirsty, and do not raid only for riches, but for sacrifices to their dark gods as well. They have tamed the mighty beasts of their landscape. Giants, mammoths, trolls, and wolves fight with these marauding avaltans as they plunder and destroy. Their government is simple and straight forward. Lead by the strongest, and whoever wishes to lead is free to fight them to the death. Tribal infighting is common, but when they are united and ready for an attack, the gods themselves can't save whoever they sail southwards for.

Angarvunde is a young state, perhaps the youngest of them all. They formed before the collapse of the Drakonspyre Empire, but bloomed after. Originally lead by a woman named Rangunn, this raider 'Queen' united the tribes under promises of blood, glory, and riches. Drakonspyre had nearly completely driven the Kingdom of Dawn into the ground, and Rangunn capitalized on this. For decades, the tribes of the north had feuded. Old grudges, blood oaths, hatred for one another. Rangunn however, negotiated their cooperation, through words or through brute force. Once she had the ball rolling, the north fell to her. She had the men and women of the tundra, and the trolls and shifter-ogres of the Giant's Highlands. Mammoths had been tamed for their wickedly terrifying form of cavalry. Warships were built, transports capable of moving these beasts.

It was a quiet evening in one of the few remaining cities of the 'Kingdom of Dawn'. A foggy, quiet morning. Movement within was slow. The city was left melancholic after the desolation and decimation of their home. Then, sounded a aggravatingly loud horn through the entirety of the city. This was no Drakonspyre attack, there was no fire, and there was no danakovian riders flying above. Screams flew through the city as packs of wolves were the first to enter the urban area, followed by trolls, and shortly after the raiders themselves. Roaring, bellowing, screeching, as they burned down homes and slaughtered the populace, taking whatever they could hold onto while still being capable of swinging an axe. This would not be the end of the raid, not even short. Rangunn herself entered the city when only fire and smoke was erupting from the remains, witnessing what her people had done. A smile grew from ear to ear, and she lead her host further inland. Eventually, the Kingdom of Dawn would be no more than a nomadic group of aervan. Its diversity wiped, the last hold out of their culture was a village of bird-folk in the woods.

The World of Aethius • The Multiverse of Aethier