Overview - Island trolls reside on a small chain of islands off the western coast Sarkun. Their islands are deep into the sea and far from the normal trade routes, and normally the only ones to stumble across them are lost. It's only been in recent years that these expeditions have stopped being eaten and used in voodoo rituals. Originally thought to be little more then cannibalistic savages, barely above the status of legends, the arrival of a band of trolls in a ship-canoe has caused a stir in the diplomatic and merchant corps as the trolls now seem to be open to trade with other people. No ones sure whats caused this reversal of attitude.
Cultural/Social Overview - Troll society exist in a tribal state, with one main tribe living in the archipelago of their home, the Broken Isles. They are taught from a young age that it is ever members of the tribes responsibility to serve the tribe, whether it be fishing, hunting, scouting, building, any job that is needed. Surprisingly, a semi-democracy exist within this structure; the tribal leader is elected by the tribe as a whole, out of candidates chosen through test of arms and wit. However, it is a dual government. While the tribal leader is the secular leader of the society, the voodoo priest are the spiritual leaders of the community. Battles have been fought or canceled on the voodoo priest predictions.
The trolls are not very technologically advanced, lacking any sort of gunpowder weapons. They do not use clockwork, though they have invented tempered steel, though they prefer rock (Iron is very hard to come by on the islands, most of what they get is salvaged from ships). However, their long voodoo like traditions have left them with some of the best natural scientist in the world, and troll alchemy is even now beginning to gain popularity. Rather then focusing on the ancient desire to convert lead into gold, the troll alchemist focus on practical applications of alchemy, from healing potions to regeneration potions to strength and even skin hardening potion. it is a mixture of voodoo and chemistry that allows them to create such substances.
Biology - Troll men stand hunched, with long arms and legs. Both the men and the women have two large fingers and a single large thumb on the end of their long arms, and both have tusk that they tend to keep sharp and clean. They are mainly meat eaters, though they can and will eat fruits and vegetable to supplement their diet. Male trolls stand, when straightened, about 8 feet tall, though because the hunching they tend to come in at about seven feet on average. The women are only slightly shorter, though they do not hunch like their male counterparts. Trolls are deceptively skinny, and the last thing many buffed up humans has thought is how weak the scrawny and tall creatures must be. This is an illusion; troll muscle fibers are much denser then a humans, meaning a thin troll with lean muscles is much much stronger then even the most buff human, except in extremely rare cases. The average troll weighs two hundred and fifty pounds all together, the females about fifty pounds less.
One of the most fascinating things about trolls, and perhaps one of the scariest, is their ability to regenerate wounds. A troll, unless killed outright by a blow, will most likely recover from the wound, no matter how severe. Given time they can regenerate limbs (assuming it was from a blade and not a particular type of magic).
Trolls have a heat period of about a week. Infidelity is very low in Troll society, however, because of biological and social imperatives. Trolls mate for life. Any attempt by most non-trolls to mate with a troll will probably result in severe injury, if not death, as other races simply aren't designed to cope with trolls in their sexual acts or performance.
Trolls averagely live to about 80 years old and are assumed to reach maturity at 17.
Their skin tones range from a very light blue to a dark green.
Naming Conventions - Troll children do not receive a personal name till they reach late childhood; until then they are referred to by a generic moniker. When they finally receive a name it usually has to do with an outstanding feature, personality trait, or accomplishment.
As a troll grows older they earn titles, and these are added to their personal names as suffixes and prefixes.
Faith - The Trolls used to worship Lao's, which are between demi-gods and gods power wise. Lao's represent the very primal elements of the universe, along with the basic emotions of trolls (and many other species). They have power over there domain of faith, but very little else, unlike a true god, who can effect the entire world. However, they've replaced Lao worship with the worship of ancestor spirits, though they still practice voodoo, and many wear the shrunken heads of the dead, some out of fear, some out of respect. It is a shamanistic religion.
Language - All trolls speak troll, though they only have a handful of individuals who speak low common (which is like common, but it sounds incredibly accented and thick and hard to understand
A green jungle troll:
A troll witch doctor:
The Island Troll Banner (Some of the accessories change but the mask remain)
Wed Apr 01, 2009 12:18 pm
Is awsome
