Castles In The Sky

To: Trader Nirveli Visolela of the Silver Chimera Trading Company
From Shaeun Shontoleen, Royal Explorer of Silver Shadow Keep

 

My esteemed lady, 

The crates of dried and preserved meats that accompany this letter are from the Artic Circle’s most valuable creatures: The Sea Goat. Almost everywhere we have traveled, we have encountered the infinitely adaptable and hardy goat in many environments from lush forest to burning desert. Often they convert one to the other.            

Inhospitable cold, scarce greenery, and a lack of land not covered in ice or snow would seem to be huge impediments to the breeding of goats. However, the versatile goat has once again proved adaptable to any environment. The thick fur of the goat has become a dense undercoat overlaid by a bristly overcoat and long (up to six inches) guard hairs. It would seem that the layering of coats traps heat next to the skin and wraps the Sea Goats in a constant blanket of warmth.     

The natives hunt them on the ice during the winter months when the cold is most savage for the Wave Rammers, as they are called, are excellent swimmers. While the sea is covered with ice, the Goats are unable to flee to safety as easily. The hunters move among the herds to cut out the young males for slaughter.

Unlike their cousins in the mountains, Wave Rammers are fierce in defense of both kin and life. The young males stand nearly as tall as a man with muscled bodies longer than a Elf’s ending in a still longer tail. Their horns which are use to butt and pound at opponents are dense and curved against thick skulls. It is much like being hit by a caravan with a battering ram. As if that were not enough they can kick with their front and hind flippers or smack with their tails.

The hunters form a half-circle around each selected beast to throw their spears to pierce the heart or throat for a quick death. Other hunters must keep the hunted’s kin from avenging his death. Once dead, the goat is blessed for his sacrifice and quickly loaded onto a sled.

Every bit of a sea goat is used from the thick, woolly coat to the sinews and skin. The wide variation in the natural colors of each beast’s wool makes up for the lack of available dyes. Herds are pinned in great canyons carved in the sides of glaciers and fenced by the bones of whales and their fellows.

Hunks of seaweed treated with a particular plant makes the adults drowsy enough that the women and children of the tribe can dart in to pull off their molting coats and even shave off some of their longer hair. The Wave Rammers are then released from captivity to return to the ocean because they are not harmed, they show no great alarm at this yearly event. 

 The wool is then washed, dried, and combed like sheep’s wool. It is generally left un-dyed before being woven into blankets, clothing and summer tents. Long guard hairs are braided into thin ropes or used as thread for sewing what little cloth they can produce or trade for.

Sometimes, calves are orphaned or abandoned by their dams. Such ones are taken in by the tribe where they form a deep bond to their masters. Used as beasts of burden they can pull sleds, or carry packs. The grown females, raised by hand, produce rich, buttery milk that is used in cooking and for the making of a vile alcoholic beverage as well as cheese, and butter. The calves of the tamed ones are allowed to roam freely and sometimes return to the wild herds.

  One of the tribesmen was a sailor in his younger days and tells me of smaller sea goats frolicking in the waves of the warm islands of the Fire Sea. As I am heartily sick of the eternal cold, even in summer it barely warms above freezing, I am inclined to follow such rumors.

But first I shall be going on a wild sea boar hunt. And then, my dear friend I will keep my promise to visit. Perhaps together we can pay a visit to the Fire Sea Islands in time for the Summer Festivals.

 

As always I miss you and hope all is well with you and yours.

 Affectionately,
Your Friend,
Shaeun

Fourthmonth, Year of the Sliding Sands

 

 

 

Wave Rammer

Type: Large Mammal

Hit Dice: 7d8+21 (52)
Initiative: +0
Speed: 20 foot (4 squares)
AC: 15 (-1 Size, +6 Natural), Touch 9, Flat-footed 15
Base Attack/Grapple: +5/+17
Full Attack: Ram +12 Melee (1d8+12), Tail-Slap +7 (1d8+3)
Special Attacks: Trample: 1d8+7, Ferocity
Special Quality: Scent
Saves: Fort +10, Reflex +6 Will +8
Abilities: STR 22, DEX 10, CON 17, INT 2 WIS 12, CHA 8
Skills: Listen +8, Spot +8. Hide -1
Feats:  Alertness, Endurance, Iron Will
Climate / Terrain: Artic areas
Organization: Herd
Challenge Rating: 2
Treasure: None
Alignment: Always Neutral
Advancement  8-16 HD (Large), 17-21 HD (Huge)
Level Adjustment: N/A

 

Wave Rammers are powerfully built creatures that much resemble the rugged mountain goats. Full-grown does are typically 5 tall from ground to the top of their skull, and 8 feet long from chest to hind-end with a 4 to 4 ½ foot tail. Males are 6-7 feet tall from ground to the top of their skull, and 9-10 feet long from chest to hind-end with a 5-5 ½ foot tail.

They covered in 4-5 inch long hairs of white, pale green, green-grey, grey, blue-grey, blue, silvery-blue or light brown layered between long guard hairs and a short, dense undercoat of wool. The undercoat is shed during the summer and grows back in the winter. Their underbelly is typically white, ice-blue or pale grey.

Spots of color and darker, mask-like markings on the face are uncommon.

A magnificent mane of white, green-grey, blue-grey, grey, black or silver fur covers the muscular shoulders cascading back from the square-jawed face. A beard of matching hair hangs from underneath the jaw.  Their horns curl back from thick skulls to the curve of the neck of both male and female.

The female is distinguished by her smaller set of horns which form only a single curl along the back of her head and small udders under her hind-quarters. The males are half again as large as the female with horns that grow continuously through their lives to curl in a multitude of spirals along their neck.

Small black or white hooves tip their flipper-liked hind and fore-feet at the end of short, powerful legs. A long, slender tail runs from their hind-end to terminate in a small fin with three trailing ends.

Combat: Wave Rammers prefer to flee conflicts rather than fight. They will seek the safety of water whenever possible.

If forced to fight, Wave Rammers are known for their ferocity. Whole herds will attack and ram a shark or other invader, reducing them to pulp in a matter of minutes.

Females will place themselves between their young and any danger, giving them young one time to hide or enter the water. Horns are the primary weapons of the Wave Rammer, and the females will use them to butt any intruder in an attempt to knock them down. Once an opponent is prone, the Wave Rammer will attack to grind the opponent underfoot repeatedly.

Male will also use their horns to butt an opponent savagely in order to drive them away or knock them down. Once an opponent is prone, the male will trample it underfoot.

If panicked, Wave Rammer herds will often run in circles. Their frenzied movements will often knock down themselves and others.

Males engage in ritualized combat to decide matters of precedence or dominance for breeding, grazing and territory. Each male will run at the other with heads lowered to butt their horns together. This will be repeated several times until one male is injured and/or unable to continue.

Society: Wave Rammer females lead the small herds, with males mostly concerned only with fighting predators and other males while females flee with their kids. Males compose only about a quarter of the Wave Runner population.

It is rare to see a Wave Rammer female that is not pregnant or nursing. Does usually breed every year in the late winter and give birth in late spring/early summer. Kids take two years to reach maturity and often hang around their mothers during most of her next pregnancy until forcibly driven off. Young Wave Runners typically leave their home herd (wave) in small groups of females or pairs of males called a tide. Females are welcomed by waves while males are tolerated on the fringes of the territory until they have defeated an older male in combat.

Wave Rammers are strong swimmers that have developed to graze on seaweed at the ocean’s edge as well as algae growing on the jetties of the rocky islands. Their front limbs have been modified for swimming though they are tipped by the unique suction hooves that all mountain goats possess. The thickly muscled and webbed hindquarters are also tipped by the same hooves that allow the strange creatures to climb amid the slippery rocks though not with the same grace as their mountain cousins.

Wave Rammers are capable of swimming several miles out to sea before turning around to swim back to land. They are known to ride ice floes, diving off to graze on nearby kelp and seaweed forests.

Wave Rammers are an important part of the diet of Artic people. Their skins make soft leather that is well suited for clothing, shelters, and containers as well as writing surface. Their stomachs are important for the containment of fat, water and alcoholic beverages.

Their meat is quite nutritious. Hunters typically only take young males from the herd, leaving the does to replenish their numbers. Young does are considered a special delicacy that is enjoyed during the Summer Festivals. 

The milk of the does provides much needed vitamins and fat to the diet of the tribesmen. Each doe can produce 3,000-6,000 lb of milk per year which is turned into fermented beverage, cheese and used in cooking. Orphaned or abandoned calves are adopted into the tribe, and raised by hand. Wave Rammers are easily tamed and require little encouragement to stay close to the village. The young of domesticated does are often allowed to run free except during winter and may choose to stay in the village. 

The hair of Wave Rammers is invaluable in the cold areas for its warmth and durability. Wave Rammers are corralled once a year in order to comb their shedding coats or shave their long guard hairs. The undercoat of curly wool is prized for its softness and is used for clothing, blankets and pillows. Long guard hairs are braided into rope. Short hair is pounded into felt. 

Varieties of the Wave Rammer may be found in warmer waters. Off-shoots may have drifted to new places on icebergs or where transported by explorers. There could be many variations in size and color among the Wave Rammers.

 Wave Rammer hides, horns, and hair is prized in enchantments against water and cold. Their hides produce thick leather that is used in canoe, kayak and hut construction as well as armor and weapons. Garments made from their hair shed water easily and dry quickly even after long submersion which makes them a favorite for sailors and those working close to the water.