PuKtan Desert
The PuKtan Desert ranges as far north as Denethen’s Helm and as far south as the Ancient Plains of Alucar. They are surrounded by the Steppes of Centos on the west side and the ever-encroaching lands of the Witch Queen on the east side. Home to the Goblins, this stretch of desert used to be much larger but since the Fractioning and the Orc/Goblin War, much of the PuKtan Desert has been swallowed up by the encroaching lands of the Witch Queen. Dunes of sand, sweeping and ever changing make up the majority of the geography, with the exception of two extremely important oases and some rockier and harsher northern landscapes.
The Goblins of the PuKtan are a bitter, worn-down race, but they were not always so. Years of harsh treatment, unfair land placement, and poor resources have turned them into a race of brigands, thieves, and warmongers. While not all of them seek the path of war, there are enough of them to colour popular opinion about their kind. The never-ending cycle of jealousy, mistreatment, and violence has forced the Goblinkin into the Undersands of the PuKtan, where they have made a pretty good life for themselves, hidden from the harsh rays of the sun, and the harsher stares of their neighbours.
Goblin evolution dictates their society and structure and they have learned to adapt very quickly to their environment, both above ground and below it. The younger Goblins are bred quickly and taught to survive, no matter the cost. This jealousy, covetousness, and resentment serve to hold back the Goblin race from succeeding more on Starhelm. Goblin deaths are more likely to be caused by their own infighting, cowardice, or ignorance than by any outside forces.
The Goblin females are well protected and ‘encouraged’ to birth as many babies as they can. This stems from not only a need to replenish their easily killed race, but also from the time of the Orc/Goblin war. The only thing that saved the Goblin race from extinction was the mandate that every Goblin female give birth as quickly and efficiently as possible to bolster up their numbers. They quickly matured their Goblin progeny to take up arms and most of them were led to their deaths. The ones that survived evolved into Hobgoblins, Bugbears, and even powerful Ogres. The mating of the Goblins proved to be far superior to the creation of the Witch Queen’s Orc forces. The role of the female Goblin is still very much the same as from that time.
Once they have matured enough to truly take on their military roles they become far more disciplined and dangerous. Hobgoblins will take up roles as Sergeants or Captains of Goblin squads, or as elite guards or skilled warriors to serve their Bugbear leaders. They have little respect for their Goblin charges, and they do their best to forget they were ever that young.
Bugbears have evolved enough to take on more serious and important missions or to lead whole tribes or warbands. They very rarely interact with each other in greater numbers, but they occasionally form specialized Bugbear units or break off from the tribe and form their own gangs or warbands. Most typically, one or two Bugbears lead a Goblinkind band of Goblins and Hobgoblins for their Ogre leaders.
The truly advanced Ogres have matured to the point where they are effectively Kings themselves. They look out for the betterment and survival of the Goblin race as a whole and have a much bigger picture of what success means. Ogres rule their own region, but they will come together in an Ogremoot at least quarterly, or more often as necessary. This does not preclude the Ogres from meeting separately or more often but the official Ogremoot happens on a secret day sometime after each equinox. Each Ogre invited to the Ogremoot will be informed on the special day as dictated by Golzect himself (through the divination of the High Volkhv of Golzect). There is no set number to attend and not all Ogres are invited to the Ogremoot. Currently there are four official Ogremoot attendees; Navandark (Warmaster of the North Steppes Basselwhip (Warmaster of the East Melchinoopo (Warmaster of the Warrens Sargutt (Warmaster of the West)
Scorpions, giant armadillos, Fennec foxes, camels and dromedaries (including the unique two-headed dromedary, the Docamella) exist within the borders of the PuKtan. The PuKtan is also home to the deadly Displacer Beast, found particularly near the north and eastern edges of the Steppes.
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