The Transiapheian Bulletin

(Bestiary) Daeokh

Among daeokh (singular daeokha), there is no greater sin than waste. These rugged folk live in small, proud settlements in lands on the very edge of habitability. They’re not always aggressive, but they will do anything to survive in lean times, and their tolerance for necromancy and cannibalism tends to upset their neighbours.

Stats

Look: Rangy, pot-bellied humanoids, 6’ tall, with coarse brown or tawny fur, spinal humps, and the long, lumpy heads of prehistoric swine. Males have short, blunt tusks.

Equipment: Layered furs and leathers, often with patches dyed in bright primary colours. Weapons and tools are usually bone, with a few metal components. Most daeokh carry both a melee weapon (usually a spear or axe) and a bow.

Manner: Hoarse, gravelly voices punctuated by high squeals. Cordial but blunt. Always sound vaguely like they’re threatening you.

Mind: Cunning and cautious. Experts in hunting, bushcraft, and herb lore. Resistant to new ideas - innovation is often wasteful.

Tactics: Like a flock of birds or a punk band, not very organised but all on the same wavelength. Opportunistic.

HD 1 (4hp), Df leather, Mv normal, Mr 8, Atk weapon.

Tenacious: A daeokha that drops to 2 or fewer hit points from an attack and survives may make an immediate attack against the source of the damage.

Shab-Daeokh

Daeokh war machines. Rarely deployed outside settlements.

Look: A mishmash of rune-carved daeokh and animal bones, draped in a quilt of multicoloured leather. Usually quadrupedal, often has multiple skulls. The pilot sits in a complex harness in the ribcage.

HD 5 (20hp), Df chain, Mv normal, Mr 8, Atk limbs (1d8/1d8).
Undead. Half damage from slashing and piercing.

Frenzy: Once per round, a shab-daeokha can burn 1d6hp as it attacks to make two additional limb attacks. The attacks are still made even if this destroys the shab.

Piloted: A shab-daeokha is piloted by a bonewright, a daeokha necro-engineer (stats as daeokha, above). The pilot can be targeted by certain attacks and spells, though it’s a difficult shot (-4 to hit, +4 to Saves). If the shab is destroyed, the pilot has a 50% chance to survive, climb out, and join the battle. If the pilot is killed while the shab is in combat, the shab will attack the nearest living creature each round, and will always frenzy.

1d6 Daeokh Encounters

  1. A patrol of 1d6+1 daeokh, scouting the area and asserting their presence. Affable but focused.
  2. A hunting party of 2d6 daeokh, tracking something dangerous but lucrative. Offer to help out and they may let you share in the spoils.
  3. A lone daeokha, injured and cut off from her band. Willing to reveal good hunting trails nearby if helped.
  4. 3d6 daeokh skirmish with 1d6 ogres. A standard border dispute.
  5. 2d6 daeokh, encamped, cooking and eating one of their own, a comrade gravely wounded in battle. Solemn silence.
  6. 4d6 daeokh and 1 shab-daeokha marching towards a point of interest, weapons drawn. Clearly tense. Best leave them to it.

Society

Daeokh live in holds of 2d6 x 50 souls, usually made up of 6-12 extended families. On average, there will be 1 bonewright and 1 shab-daeokh per 100 daeokh. A hold is a somewhat diffuse collection of building clusters, spanning a few square miles, with a few well-patrolled satellite farmsteads in between and on the outskirts. Older holds in particular are often wild, crumbling patchwork affairs, with structures thrown together from whatever was available at the time; a cheap building that will last a generation or two is better than a costly one that will last forever. The air reeks of ageing manure and tanning leather.

Daeokh use simple bone machines, animated by bound ancestor spirits, to help with agriculture and logistics. These devices are rickety and unreliable, and require regular attention from the bonewrights to keep them working.

Daeokh are not opposed to trade, but they don’t trust currency. Most will only barter. Food, alcohol, and medical supplies are always in demand, and more open-minded holds will take tools and textiles. Exchange rates swing wildly with the seasons and the hold’s fortunes.

1d6 Goods for Trade in a Daeokh Hold

  1. High tallow. Extremely dense, slow-burning fuel. Smells like death and gives off thick black smoke, but it’s four times more efficient, ounce for ounce, than lamp oil.
  2. Climber’s jelly. Rubbing this clear, sticky gel into your gums alleviates nausea, vertigo, and altitude sickness. Watch the dosage - too much will knock you out cold.
  3. Talebones. Daeokh knucklebones threaded on strings. Go to sleep with one around your neck and you’ll dream a specific, consistent story, with yourself as the hero! (All daeokh stories end with the protagonist’s death.)
  4. Besh. Coarse, clumpy black powder. Makes a sour, highly caffeinated drink when boiled in water. A delicacy among borderland nobles.
  5. Lure crystals. These yellowish crystals, when crushed, emit a scent that mimics a specific animal’s mating pheromones. 25% chance of attracting the wrong kind of animal.
  6. Daeokh sausage. Smoky and peppery, extremely filling, never goes bad. Made, obviously, from daeokh.

Playing a Daeokha

Reroll your Constitution score and take the new result if it’s higher. You can eat spoiled, rancid, or otherwise unclean food without penalty. You must make a Wisdom check to put down anything you’re carrying that’s obviously useful - this applies to tools and consumables, but not most treasure items. Most daeokh are fighters or rangers of some sort.