Maelstrom Campaign - Major Nations: Bantustan

Bantustan, is named in honour of the Gnoll’s first Supreme Chieftain. However most folk simply think of it as the land of the Gnolls. It seems likely that the Gnolls are mokosh people although few of them look kindly on being compared to the Kamakuran or the Merisusi. The Supreme Chieftain appoints a number of tribal chieftains from amongst his prominent supporters to act as generals, admirals, advisors and regional governors. Gnoll law tends to be extremely complex and is often expensive to administer, however a merchant who is appreciative and understanding of the financial burden of arranging suitable permits will usually find a Gnoll prepared to deal with the matter for them.

Gnolls tend to be quite free with their hospitality, but it is wise to be cautious when accepting a meal from them. By tradition, Gnolls eat the flesh of most other beings, a practice which some can find distinctly unnerving. However, if you ask politely you should receive a portion of horse, goat or cat. Whatever the meat, Gnoll cuisine is an acquired taste, often highly spiced and strongly flavoured. Decayed meat is considered to be a special delicacy and Gnolls like to serve a portion with most meals.

First meeting
The Gnoll lands are harsh and unforgiving, droughts are common, and it would be difficult to describe the ground as fertile. As a result, Gnolls have to be pragmatic to survive in the harsh surroundings. Those who judge the Gnolls by their reputation often wrongly assume they are as uncivilised as they are ruthless. There may be few famous Gnoll poets or playwrights but a wealthy Gnoll captain is every bit as adroit at trading as any Alkonian merchant. If you wish to make a positive impression it is worth being polite to any Gnoll you meet but take care not to appear overly deferential. It is always best to negotiate from a position of strength and the more visible you can make your strength the better. It is prudent to avoid appearing threatening, however, as this will be received very badly.

Most Gnolls will avoid a confrontation unless they are confident of victory. Gnolls swiftly learn to use imaginative approaches in competitive situations where the outcome is in doubt. A famous example of Gnoll ingenuity involved a Rukh captain who bet a local chieftain a hundred and twenty Mill-en Florins that his ship could beat the tribe's fastest warrior round the headland. The chieftain took his wager for the morning. At dawn, the captain’s vessel which had previously appeared to be sea worthy began to list heavily having developed three holes below the water line.

Fashion
Many Gnoll soldiers are very proud of their brightly coloured military uniforms, choosing to wear them for all social occasions. These uniforms vary depending upon which tribal regiment they are part of, but brilliant hues are favoured, especially yellows, reds and greens with large gold epaulettes. For those Gnolls that can afford them a hat is the essential fashion accessory. Some care must be taken in choosing a hat, since it is considered exceptionally rude to be seen wearing a larger, more impressive looking hat than someone more senior in rank than yourself. Hats of any size make excellent presents, especially when decorated with gold or silver brocade. The old traditional tribal garbs of furs and leathers are still worn by many scouts and shamans but they are considered extremely rustic by most.

Religion
Although most Gnolls are suitably respectful of the Gods, they are rarely devout. Each tribe usually has a single priest, that is called the Ipin, to whom they look for spiritual guidance. Worship of the Smith is far and away the most common faith amongst Gnolls who are fiercely dedicated to their tribe. The Ipin is usually a devotee of the Smith. Respect for the teachings of the Teacher and the Weaver are fairly widespread. Worship of the Merchant is rare but worship of the Huntress is almost unknown. The Huntress is not appreciated by Gnolls familiar with the tenets of Her faith.

Regardless of their personal devotion, most Gnolls tend to exhibit a distinct nervousness around anyone they consider close to the Gods. They are very superstitious about incurring the displeasure of the Gods and many think that the closer you are to the Gods, the more likely they are to notice if you do something wrong. Consequently they prefer to avoid the Ipin altogether. If you openly wear a symbol of religious dedication you risk a similar association. You might get the better of a single deal by such a means, but in the long run they are far more likely to simply avoid doing business with you.

Trade
Gnolls mint no coinage of their own, but the Freiboden Florin is accepted across most of the Murland continent. In the interior you may have to resort to barter, but Gnoll tribes that have met traders before will invariably accept Florins. In some cases, other coins may also be accepted and some Gnoll tribes will even take Rimici Capell Letters of Credit, although they demand a high premium for them.

Gnolls prize good quality ironworking, especially any pieces of novel manufacture of engineering. Be warned though that whilst local methods of manufacture are often crude they are usually very effective. For months, traders bringing Alkonian pistols across the Sharamoor Sea sold them to Gnoll tribes at a premium. Within a year, many tribes were manufacturing their own and very quickly the entire market collapsed. Rare pigment will always sell well in Gnoll lands, they are fond of adorning themselves with paint and the surrounding prairies yield only a few pale colours. Gnolls love bright hues and heavy fabrics and the soldiers of most tribes have their own distinctive uniforms. Surgeons implements are also prized, Gnolls have a flair for surgery, born of a fascination for the anatomy of most creatures. Salted fish sells well in some tribes.

Tritoni and Freiboden villagers are frequently taken as plunder when Gnolls attack their neighbours, so there is a ready market to purchase slaves. Gnolls produce large amounts of low grade iron ore which can be acquired cheaply but it is rarely profitable to move the ore very far. Gnoll weapons, although crude, can be effective and can raise a decent profit from those prepared to purchase such items, notably the Mayans and Amun-Sa.

Bear in mind that your reputation as a merchant will quickly spread amongst tribes in an area, particularly if you do not deal honestly. The most notorious incident in recent times involved a dracoscion powder dealer called Jarn. He had barely set foot on the Gnoll mainland before he was set upon, dismembered and devoured. Upon investigation by the authorities it transpired that Jarn had sold three score shots of darkpowder to a neighbouring tribe the year before. He swore an oath on the Smith, witnessed by the Ipin, that they had all been flame tested the day before. As it turned out not a single one fired. There was no attempt to conceal the death, the Gnolls were totally sanguine about the affair. He crossed a neighbouring tribe so they lynched and ate him. The Gnoll authorities concluded that no further action was required, a salutary lesson to anyone thinking to make a profit at the expense of the Gnoll people.

And so it began......

Dawn breaks, war looms, the evil Lord is gathering his armies to wage a campaign of destruction upon the free peoples of the world. It is up to I, Sir Maximilan Pegasus to stop him, with my trusted band of adventurers we must gather the enchanted sword of Tek, the Shield of Way-Lem and the amulet of Subsidence and together we shall slay this abomination! “TIME FREEZE” And bam, the fantasy world fades away, the enchanted sword of Tek in my hand is a rubber sword smothered in coloured ribbons with a laminated card cable tied to the hilt, I look down and I’m wearing plastic armour and unflattering heropants, and the magical world of my imagination washes away to reveal a field in Wigan, but you know what? It’s larp and I’m a larper, it’s what I do.
I started larping when I was 17, I’d never role-played before, I’d never played D&D or Warhammer, never played WoW or any form of online game, I’d never even read Lord of the Rings, I feel somewhat privileged that I hadn’t done any of those things, I think it gave me an untainted attitude towards what larp could be, I had no preconceptions about saving the maiden fair, slaying the dragon or smiting the liche, to me it was just a new thing to try.
It was cold, really cold, 10am on a September morning, the rain was battering down and I’d been given a faux fur tunic, a mouldy old sword and been pointed towards a man and told, “You’re monstering, there’s the ref he’ll tell you what to do.” I obeyed, I played wave after wave of zombies, orcs and various line monsters and to be honest, was cold, bored and hungry. That is, until lunchtime, the teams switched sides, I got into the kit I’d scrounged up, as with most first timers, a black trenchcoat. I took the mouldy old sword, stood with my fellow adventurers and it hit me, I’m a god damn hero!
Pow, there it was, a new larper was born.