Valemen are a race of humans living to the west of Blackmoor, beyond the Duchy of Ten and the Eaves. They are believed to be related to the Skandaharians, possibly mixed with Peshwa blood. They are a warrior culture based around agriculture and viewed by Thonians as barbaric. Halgred Forestwalker, believed to be the first druid in the north, was a Valeman and it is his ways that are still being taught in this part of the world. Magic is left to druids and rangers to understand. A Valeman simply accepts the situation he is placed in.



Personality
Valemen are a proud people who live life to the fullest. They do not expect the world to be completely predictable nor seek explanations for everything that happens. They care about their clan, their family and their honor. One important aspect of Valeman life is their closeness to nature. A Valeman will know every hill and mountaintop far beyond his village.

Physical Description
Most Valemen are short and stocky. They have fair skin and their hair ranges from blonde to brown to red with eye color from gray to green to brown. Blonde hair and blue eyes is seen as particularly attractive and many Valemen dye their hair with lime to make it lighter in color. Valemen often dress in Tartans showing clan affiliations and status. They are known to wield massive Claymores as their favored weapon. That said, Valemen also have knights and nobles not unlike the Thonians, even though the most expensive forms of armor are rare.

Alignment
Honor and tradition is important to these people. Abstract laws are less important and they care more about personal integrity. Valemen lean towards a neutral good alignment, though can be of any. Deception and lies are frowned upon.

Lands
The Vales is the name of the region stretching from the Eaves of Ten in the east to the foothills of Goblin Kush Mountain in the west. These lands are filled with green valleys and rich agricultural fields.

Relations
Valemen have had some trade with the Duchy of Ten in the past and are on relatively good relations with those people. Many Valemen have suffered from slaver raids directed from the Duchy of the Peaks and hold a grudge against the people of those lands. Lately, the Valemen have become overrun with the Afridhi invasions and most of their time is spent fighting those occupying forces. Another important relationship for the Valemen people is that with the Fey. Ever since the days of Halgred Forestwalker, the Valemen have been close to elves and Fey. In particular a Fey race known as the Sidhe have been close to Valeman communities, many Sidhe living among the Valemen and becoming heroes to the humans, even intermarrying with them. Many of the Valeman noble families can trace their blood lines back to a Sidhe hero.

Religion
The center of Valeman beliefs is the druids. Valemen follow druidic patrons like Elgath, Faunus, Sylvain, Ordana and Terra.

Language
Valemen have their own language known as Valespeech. There is no written form of this language. Most Valemen also speak Thonian.

Names
Valeman names are formed with a first name and the word “apâ€

:!: :!: :!:

Havard has picked the bait I set when I wrote about Thunderrift!!!

:D :D :D

Hehe, yep :)

This is just a draft though. No idea how it might fit with your ideas? :)

-Havard

Oh, I love it!

Basically, they would make for the more urban Thonians of old, as opposed to the rider tribes that Robert of Geneva supposedly lead.

The Vales I envision fairly close to ed Greenwood's dalelands, with remote communities and much place for sandbox games. - For example, I have historically set/DMed "The Red Hand of Doom",
as well as the core adventure from the "Adventures in Fantasy", and other shorter scenarios there.

As to the Celtic touch, if Blackmoor is an Arthurian setting, the Valemen provide the Celtic aspect, while the Genevans bring in the Roman theme.





:)

That image is quite inspiring Havard! In fact, it compelled me to write up a prestige class for .

Valemen could be making an apperance in future sourcebooks on Thonia. The way I currently see it, Valemen probably made up most of the human population in all of Blackmoor as well as large portions of the other northern Thonian Provinces (Bleakwood, The Rand) perhaps even making it as far as the Eastern Marshes at some point in history.

Today, these regions are dominated by Thonians of course, but in earlier periods things would have been different. Ancient standing stones and rune carvings are signs of the older druidic Valeman culture.

What do you think? Does this seem reasonable? Peshwah would also have been a notable culture in those times of course. We know that the Common Thonians are a mix of High Thonians and other human ethnic groups. In the northern parts of the Empire, I am thinking those "other humans" would have been Valemen and Peshwah.



-Havard