Trackers of the Godbeast Daily Life
Collectively there are approximately 200 individuals known as Trackers of the Godbeast. Trackers believe that life is a series of tests and challenges designed to hone their hunting prowess in hopes of one day taking down a Herald of the Godbeast. Although Trackers have no aversion to settlements or humanity in general, they find several communal concepts distasteful. Groups are only as strong as their weakest member and outposts often breed complacency, reliance, and routine; the slow death of the hunter.
History
The entirety of Tracker history is kept through stories passed down from parent to child and often features various totemic animals in moral-driven fables. Given the nature of this form of record keeping, inconsistencies and variations abound. The following is a compilation of the commonalities between several different versions of a Tracker creation myth. Inconsistencies, personal insertions, and explicit content has been omitted.
It was Man’s hubris that called the Godbeast into being. Gentle and fair the Godbeast graced man with the Truths, asking nothing in return save a domain of harmonious tranquility. In his greed Man divided and butchered the Truths so that each would have their own severed slice. Yet these partial Truths were incomprehensible before Man’s impatient logic. In frustration Man sought to add to their own piece of Truth. Some sought to graft their own ideologies into a Truth while others waged endless war to steal fragments of Truth from others. But these shattered Truths, once forged by a God, could not be remade by Man, their divine spark extinguished by arrogance and cruelty.
Saddened by the sight of so much conflict and angered at the fate of his Truths, the Godbeast rampaged across the works of Man. It destroyed everything man of uncaring stone or unfeeling metal, unmade weapons of impersonal destruction, and erased the bars of infrastructure used to cage untold millions. When the its rage subsided, the Godbeast surveyed the devastation left in its wake, the ruins of its frenzy. With its anger gone, no feeling remained in the Godbeast expect heartbreak and it wept. For seven years its cries could be heard around the world.
Our seven ancestors, ancient and wise though their names are lost to the ages, did not sit idly by while the Godbeast suffered so. They each traveled far and wide to find a treasure. Sifting through the wreckage of the Old World they each found a wondrous artifact, not something of Man but something before Man’s time, something wild. Although they searched apart, each of our ancestors abandoned their cloak of Humanity in exchange for something different. Humbly, our ancestors presented these gifts to the Godbeast, offering up the sum total of their tribulations and trials. They wished to share with the Godbeast what each believed was their greatest discovery, their greatest personal Truth.
The Godbeast was moved by their display. Although their Truths were warped and primal, the Godbeast saw something else within them, a new Truth that it had never noticed before, the unflinching desire to seek challenge and overcome all obstacles. The Godbeast had realized, the seven misshapen creatures before it hadn’t come out of hope, greed, or to request its mercy or power. They came out of pride, to show off what they accomplished! The Godbeast roared with laughter, much to the bewilderment and dismay of our ancestors, such was the relief it felt! The Godbeast gracefully clarified to our ancestors that it had taken so much from Man and yet a mere seven years later, there was still so much pride left in him. Our ancestors grew offended, and it was the Godbeast’s turn be confused as they explained that they no longer wished to be named as Man. They would take on the namesakes of the world’s innocent victims, caught between Man and God, countless of the world’s floral and fauna were obliterated. The Godbeast was forced into a moment of stunned silence, it was Man that had summoned It, Man that hoarded its Truths, and Man that It had decimated. It was their cruelty, vanity, and avarice that It had reviled, but had it missed their capacity for compassion, love, and generosity?
Stoically our ancestors awaited the Godbeast’s response. When it finally came, the Godbeast that bowed to our ancestors, It would resurrect the Truths in the animal and plant forms of the Old World and named them Heralds. The world would heal, life would return to even the most caustic and irradiated landscapes, such was the power of the Godbeast. Once our people reclaim all of the wild Truths the Godbeast will reveal itself once more so we may open the next stage of our story.
Each of the seven ancestors spread their teachings, their personal Truths to as many as would listen. They formed the seven tribes, including Predator and Prey. The other five have been lost to their own hunts.
Locations
The Lodge of Truths
A oakwood longhouse that is said to house all of the Tracker’s recovered Truths and the stories of those who uncovered them. It’s location is ever shifting and thoroughly occulted, a phenomena of the Truths it houses. It is said that those who have a Truth to add to the Lodge may find it appearing before them. Others claim that it appears to the Trackers who have lost sight of their goals.
Meeting Ring - Teranaesyem
A circle of longhouses that Trade Prince Elidor Emrys has built within his largest outpost, Teranaesyem. Although it sees sparse traffic, its popularity as a place for temporary respite and celebrations is attracting an increasing number of Trackers who wish to share exploits or recruit for bigger hunts. Traders frequently buy and sell large quantities of monster parts here.
Tribes do not have a recognized leadership and often represent an extended, estranged association. Despite this, members of the same tribe will frequently provide reasonable assistance to fellow tribemates in need. Occasionally a Tracker will require assistance in a particularly difficult hunt. In this case, the hunt ‘belongs’ to that Tracker and they are typically designated the ‘Alpha’ or ‘Leader’. It is rare for Trackers to deviate from an Alpha’s instructions unless they are prepared to leave the hunt.
Tribe of the Predator - Roughly 50 individuals. Population is predominantly mammals and reptiles of a predatory nature.
Tribe of the Prey - Roughly 80 individuals. Population is predominantly mammals of a prey-like nature. Arboreal or forest-dwelling Namesakes are most common.
Fringe-Finders - Roughly 40 individuals. Effectively tribeless. Either outcasts or undecided.
Tenderfoots - Roughly 30 individuals. Unnamed and too young to hunt.
There were originally seven tribes. It is told that because of the implicit connection between the Tribe of the Predator and the Tribe of the Prey that they have been more resistant to the misdirection of the Storm.
Diet/Lifestyle
Given the strong sense of individualism amongst Trackers, daily habits and rhythms are impossible to generalize. Despite their differences all Trackers share a sense of pride and honor in their Namesake. Acquiring a Namesake is a right of passage that marks the Tracker ready for formal induction into one of the seven fraternal Tribes. Any Trackers bearing a similar Namesake feel a kinship birthed of shared experiences. Wolves, Foxes, and Coyotes may find themselves drawn together in secret gatherings to compare accomplishments or compete in feats of wit or strength. Invariably these gatherings are cause for celebration and one of the few occasions when Trackers, of any kind, gather together. As such, there is no better way to make allies or hear stories of fellow Trackers’ exploits than one of these legendary revelries. Although difficult to find, there are tales of outsiders finding such a congregation and being welcomed as long as they bring a fitting tribute.
Frequently, Trackers attempt to emulate their namesake as a way to honor themselves and their ancestors, although a starving Rabbit will eat meat if no other options are present. Trackers that are too ‘civilized’ or too reliant on technology are often pitied and seen as losing their way. In particularly egregious cases, a Tracker may curse the offending individual with a name effectively refusing to call them by their Namesake. The degree with which the new name takes hold is how universally reviled the individual has become. If it ever becomes the only name used for that person, they are considered a Fringe-Finder or outcast of the Trackers of the Godbeast.