Blood Eagles
Of the three major goblinoid tribes in Floivin Province, the Blood Eagles are the smallest, with the highest concentration of bugbears. In fact, other races within the tribe are generally slaves or non-combatants. The tribe is named for its preferred method of torture and execution, a painful procedure in which the victim's ribs are cut and broken to resemble wings, the lungs are pulled out, and the salt is poured on the open wounds. The Blood Eagles are the only local goblinoid tribe in which the females fight alongside the males. Though their activities are generally limited to the north Vernal Wall and the Sharks' Dunes through the gap north of Skunk Ridge, they often have a vested interest in claiming unprotected mines in the Province. The Blood Eagles despise the other tribes, but several expatriates have been known to defect due to the strength and size of their rivals.
Leadership: Lord Lhaaz (bugbear, deceased), Grugzlaz (half-ogre, deceased), Bolthar Zuug (ogre magi, deceased)
Population: 300 (96% bugbear, 2% goblin, 1% hobgoblin, 1% ogre)
Allies: Unknown
Enemies: Blooded Lash, Marrow Suckers, Skull Collars
Standard: Crude, crimson eagle engraved into chest
Blooded Lash
The Blooded Lash were originally refugees of Sothos Karr, named for the central plains region of that realm, who long ago forced a rebellion and escaped into mountains east of the Dimnesse. Through the decades, they have worked their way further north through the western Vernal Wall and gradually laid claim to the upper levels of the Haunted Horrn, in which they remain. Heavy recruitment practices have ensured that the tribe remains strong, though not so numerous as the Skull Collars. As a symbol of their past, the Blooded Lash are ritually whipped by their superiors to ensure loyalty and discipline, and in battle, they rarely back down unless ordered, fighting to the death for the tribe's interests. They have since learned to train hippogriffs as mounts, companions and combatants, and maintain a strict hierarchy of leadership.
Leadership: Warlord Ultroon (bugbear), Captain Thaznag (bugbear), Captain Frackas (goblin), Dwarfgrinder (bugbear, deceased)
Population: 600 (37% goblin, 20% bugbear, 18% hobgoblin, 10% ogre, 7% hippogriff, 5% half-ogre, 3% troll)
Allies: The Score
Enemies: Blood Eagles, Eidolorn Guard, Skull Collars
Standard: Crossed scourges
Cleft Eye
The Cleft Eye is a small clan of kobolds living beneath Floivin Keep in the 'Vermin Vaults' area of the Sewers that channel the Udders through the city. Unlike most of the humanoid tribes in the region, the kobolds are tolerated by the Eidolorn Guard. Occasional clashes are inevitable, with the Flood Watch guard giving more than they get, but the late Regent Bauerkroft decreed that the clan should not be massacred, as their presence helps prevent intruders from poking their noses around in areas they shouldn't be. The Eidolorn apparently has its secrets. In the end, this works out for the kobolds, though they suffer occasional incursions from thieves and explorers who manage to find their way below the Keep, they have a high turnover rate and well defined parameters in which to plot their defenses, as well as access to foodstuffs and muscle from the dire rats they breed.
Leadership: Chief Ch'rass (wererat)
Population: 200 (96% kobold, 3% dire rat, 1% wererat)
Allies: None
Enemies: Eidolorn Guard, The Stride
Standard: Eye shorn in two by blade
Ettenhead Ogres
The precise organization of the Ettenhead giants is unknown, as they tend to keep to themselves in the ruins at Ettenhead and muster themselves only in defense of its crumbled walls. They are rumored to protect an obscured subterranean passage which leads to a hidden realm beneath the northeast Vernal Wall, but no one in recent memory has ever seen it. It is unknown whether or not they're an actual tribe or a loose grouping of giant-kin families, but the average strength and size of the members ensure that few would bother to try learning more. Their leader is known simply as 'The Titan of the Glen', but he (or she) has never been seen by the Eidolorn Guard who hold vigil over the ruins.
Leadership: The Titan of the Glen
Population: Approx. 100 (at Ettenhead), beyond that unknown (79% ogre, 9% hill giant, 5% troll, 3% half-ogre, 2% half-giant, 1% athach, 1% ettin)
Allies: Unknown
Enemies: Eidolorn Guard
Standard: None
Marrow Suckers
According to the late sorcerer Fisslakk, who it turns out was not such a bad bloke, the Marrow Suckers clan were all slain after consuming poisonous liquors they found in a dwarven tomb in Skunk Ridge. But considering the relatively small numbers of dead that were observed, it's not clear whether he was referring to his own family within the greater tribe, or the entire troglodyte clan. In either case, it can only serve as a benefit to the Floivin Province residents in the long run, because the creatures were notorious for vandalizing dwarven ruins, and abducting, torturing and even devouring slaves. A lair is purported to exist somewhere within the treacherous death trap known as the Crowslode, and if a remnant of the Marrow Suckers still exists, its likely that they've still got prisoners remaining some grisly end.
Leadership: Unknown
Population: Unknown (96% troglodytes, 2% rust monsters, 1% dwarves, 1% humans)
Allies: None
Enemies: Blood Eagles, Gnarlbottom Clan, Eidolorn Guard
Standard: Bone with forked serpent tongue wrapped about it
Pinewater Maulers
More of a loosely organized gang than an actual tribe, the Pinewater Maulers are what the kobolds of the Frail Forest have dubbed themselves. They are rarely encountered in groups of more than a dozen, but they've been known to waylay and trouble travelers in the Forest, and to take up small fishing and hunting encampments along the east bank of the Pinewater (thus their name). It is unknown whether they have any relation to the Cleft Eye clan living beneath Floivin Keep, but on occasion there will be humans and elves in their midst. These are generally rogue or brigand elements trying to make some headway in the Province, or Roodeyes and Reddenbalms trying to harass one another, but only rarely would the major elven families of Littlewolf go to such an extreme. Supposedly there is a central figure, a 'Mouse the Murderous' who organizes the Pinewater Maulers into raids, but his or her level of direct interaction is unknown. Still, for being such a minor threat to the Floivin population, centuries of attempts by the elves and the Eidolorn Guard have been unable to completely stamp them out.
Leadership: Mouse the Murderous
Population: Unknown (96% kobolds, 2% humans, 1% elves, 1% half-elves)
Allies: None
Enemies: Eidolorn Guard, Reddenbalms, Roodeyes
Standard: None
Skull Collars
The largest and most mercenary of the three goblinoid tribes inhabiting the Province, the Skull Collars are also the most diverse, with their fingers in a number of interests. They maintain a hydra hatchery in the Tooth Marsh, a number of hideouts in the east Vernal Wall, and bands can often be found in the employ of various factions, or simply terrorizing farms and locals in the Crown Pasture or Frail Forest. They derive their name from the practice of affixing the skulls of their fallen opponents to a necklace or harness, the more the better. The Skull Collars are known to sell themselves to the highest biddest, regardless of the race of that bidder, and look past their inbred racial enmities to the betterment of their tribe. Thus, they can strangely be found in the occasional employ of dwarves and men. They've got at least one major stronghold located in the eastern Vernal Valley, overlooking the Great Westermarch pass through the mountains to Toul Tabor belong, and many other scattered shelters.
Leadership: Warchief Chizel (half-giant), Lt. Wogg (bugbear), Chef Gusta (ogre), Dvagol (hobgoblin, deceased), Gortjik (hobgoblin, expatriate, deceased), Krogmek (bugbear, deceased), Maggit (goblin, deceased), Rugalar (worg, deceased)
Population: 1200 (37% goblin, 20% hobgoblin, 18% bugbear, 10% worg, 7% ogre, 5% half-ogre, 3% half-giant)
Allies: The Score
Enemies: Blood Eagles, Blooded Lash, Eidolorn Guard
Standard: Necklace of skulls
