Witchwolf

Not to be confused with Isonhound Shifters

"We seek the monsters that you fear the most. We chase the nightmares that haunt your cowardly dreams. The deadlier the prey, the more we exalt in the hunt, the more we honor our gods. This harsh land breeds the savage... and we revel in it. [...] We fought monsters... and we became them!" - Wulfrik the Wanderer

An image of a female Witchwolf hunter in Breme (Art by Z-O_U)

An image of a male Witchwolf hunter in Breme (Art by misaki)

Witchwolves are a species of humanoid beings with wolf-like characteristics native to Breme.

About

Witchwolves share a lot of similarities with Shifters that are found in Isonhound. Like Shifters, Witchwolves are predominantly human in form, but they often retain beast-like aspects, such as a tail, claws, fanged teeth, and fur. At will, they can temporarily enhance their beast-like features—both physical traits and abilities. However unlike Shifters, Witchwolves only have wolf-like traits. Witchwolves are predominantly hunters and trackers, trekking across the frozen tundra of Breme and its surrounding islands to hunt down the greatest of prey for the sake of the hunt. They do hunt for survival, but the thrill of combat and taking down a tough opponent is what drives them to do the hunt.

This constant challenging of themselves to find and kill the largest monsters on Breme and its surrounding islands like Krystovos have led the Witchwolves to develop a fearsome reputation as great warriors, excelling at combat in the rugged terrain of the arctic. The natives of Breme, from Bremish humans to Bremish Snow Elves give the Witchwolves plenty of distance as such, especially when Witchwolves have a tendency to hunt humans and elves that they deem as prime hunting targets. In general, Witchwolves are feared in Breme, and because of this, Witchwolves are generally lacking in their social skills with the other races of Breme as a whole. That isn't to say that communication does not happen. Tribes of elves and humans sometimes hire Witchwolves to hunt down terrible monsters that are harassing their villages, or to deal with marauders that they cannot deal with by themselves. The prospect of fighting such fearsome opponents is often times enough for a Witchwolf in terms of payment, but food and material to forge better weapons and armor are generally appreciated.

Yet, foreigners would be wary of entering the crosshairs of a band of Witchwolves, for they will not stop until their hunt is complete

History

It is easy to assume that Witchwolves and Shifters share a similar background from each other given their similar natures; that Witchwolves are the offspring of humans and lupine beast-folk. Yet, this is not the case. The reason why is because Witchwolves predate humans on Breme. When the first humans arrived on Breme, they encountered Witchwolves, which indicates that Witchwolves are not hybrid offspring but instead natural inhabitants of Breme. Scholars and explorers generally agree that Witchwolves came from the Beastlands, and speculate two possibilities for the origins of Witchwolves in Breme:

1. The Witchwolves come from the Beastlands like all other beast-species, where their obsession with the hunt disturbed the peaceful nature of the land leading to their exile to Breme during Pre-History
2. The Witchwolves come from the Beastlands, but instead of being crazed hunters who were exiled, they were bored hunters who hated the fact that their prey would roll over for them for the sake of keeping the peace, and migrated to Breme for more challenges in their games during Pre-History.

Regardless of where the Witchwolves originate from, their first contact with other species, especially humans, was not the greatest first impression. Bremish tradition tells about how the first settlers in the Bremelands feared going too deep into Breme out of fear of being hunted by Witchwolves. Eventually, a sort of passive aggressive co-existance was developed, with the general principle that if the humans stayed out of the way of the Witchwolves, the Witchwolves would stay out of the way of the humans. Occasionally Witchwolves were employed by the humans and native Snow Elves to hunt down dangerous monsters.

On the island of Krystovos though, the original human settlers decided to go on the offensive. The established Kingdom of Xandria fought the Witchwolves relentlessly, chasing them off the island completely and claiming the Great Tree, a beacon that led the Witchwolves to Krystovos in the first place.

When Vilavon invaded the Bremelands, many scouting expeditions and raiding parties were struck down by Witchwolf parties eager to see what challenge the new game offered to them. The Witchwolves proved to be incredibly formidable foes to Vilavon, who oftentimes marked out areas not to expand or raid into as a result of Witchwolf activity.

Notable Tribes

Crystaleye

The Crystaleye tribe is notable for being one of the main tribes fighting the Kingdom of Xandria. Crystaleye Witchwolves were marked as formidable enemies in the chronicles of Xandrian scholars, often identified by their blue and white armor and attire. Eventually, the Crystaleye would be chased out of Krystovos along with all their kin, settling somewhere on Breme.