Karameikos - Vaults of Pandius

The Demography of Karameikosthe ancient age. Their presence inKarameikos dates back to the Great BeastmenInvasion of BC 1000, when their ancestorsravaged the Traldar civilization and ultimatelycontributed to its decline. In the followingcenturies, gnoll numbers have occasionallybeen on the rise, but they never managed toovercome the Traladarans again and havebeen slowly reduced to mere bands and smalltribes scattered in Karameikos’ northernwilderness, forced to ally with otherhumanoids (orcs, usually) in order to survive.Gnoll bands, for example, are found in theHorned Heads orc tribe (in the northernAltan Tepes) and in the Rashak’s Reavers orctribe (another orc tribe stationed betweenFort Doom and Luln). Exceptions to this ruleare the Faceslashers tribe (who serve“Queen” Ilyeana Penhaligon at Haradraith’sKeep) and the powerful Death’s Head tribe,the last powerful gnoll tribe who controls theupper Foamfire valley and regularly threatensVerge and its surroundings. Individual gnollmercenaries can also be found in the serviceof some human (like the Black Eagle Baron)or humanoid villains.Ogres (pop. 1,400)Bands of common ogres (Homo monstrumbrutalis) came to Karameikos in theaftermath of the Battle of Sardal Pass (BC492). There are no known ogre tribes, asmost of the ogres live in family groupsscattered in the Cruth Lowlands region.Some of these groups have allied with localdominant orc tribes (like the Blackstone orthe Greyslayers). Elsewhere the ogrepresence is scarcer. They are mostly found asmercenaries among other humanoid tribes ofthe Black Peaks range (like the Death’s Headgnolls) and of eastern Karameikos.Wood Imps (pop. 1,000)These pesky evil creatures of the forestsgradually migrated to Karameikos fromAlfheim in the past centuries, spreading inthe land’s thick forests like the DymrakForest and the Radlebb Woods. The woodimp tribes are held at bay by the Vyalia andCallarii elven clans that inhabit the forestsand are seldom dangerous, but from time totime the imps manage to forge alliances withthe enemies of elves, like the goblin tribes orother monsters – and then they can becomea problem.Lupins (pop. 550)Small groups of lupins are scattered amongKarameikos’ southern towns. They aremostly immigrants from other countries(Thyatis in particular, from where mostrecent immigrants in the Grand Duchycome), who live at the edges of humansociety. In inland villages lupins often haveto face the hatred of local Traladaranpeasants, to whom they recall memories ofthe beastmen of ancient legends or thewerewolves. That is why those lupins wholive in Karameikos’ interior tend to stayalone in the wilderness, away from humanpresence. However, most lupins inKarameikos prefer to stick to morecosmopolitan settlements, like the cities andtowns. Karameikan lupins are mostlymongrels (30%), while represented breedsinclude the wolvenfolk (20%), who wanderthe woods and the wilderness, away fromcurious eyes, and a clan of Cimarron hairless(30%) who lives together with the HairlessDog orc tribe of the southern Altan Tepes.Minor breeds encountered in Karameikosare the great beagles (10%) and the shagheads(10%).24THRESHOLD: The Mystara Magazine Issue #1