Stalker
Some men hunt great beasts. Some men hunt the greatest beast of all – their fellow man. It is an unpleasant business, but most of the lords of Faelon recognize its necessity. Whether a wanted criminal or a hated foe, it is hard to argue that hiring a Stalker is not the best way to be rid of the problem.
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Haradel is a Kingdom of many different landscapes. Vast fields ready to cultivate are interspersed with small woods over pastoral plains through the central areas of Haradel. Dark woods cover vast amounts of land in the south and south-central areas of the Kingdom. To the north, east, and south lay high mountain ranges that form natural borders with their neighbors. The land to either side of these ranges is hilly and rugged, perfect for animal husbandry. To the west lies the Inner Sea and great shorelines where fishing and shipping rule Haradel’s economy.
One thing that ties all of these areas together is the wildness that prevails over most of King Mundar IIIs’ lands. Haradel’s walled cities may give the illusion of civilization, but most of Haradel’s peasants live in smaller villages or on small farms that lie close to those villages. Between these vestiges of civilization lay vast areas of wild land that has never known the plow. No domesticated or shepherded beast walks there. These places are not safe for the unwary and are host and home to many predators that are happy to range and prey on easier food near farms and villages.
Protection for the small centers of population ultimately comes down to the nobles. Bandits and predator animals are often chased around by local militia fulfilling their fealty to their lords. County and Royal Patrollers moving along Haradel’s roads keep travellers as safe as they can.
While this method of peacekeeping generally works, the local militia cannot possibly be expected to keep up with every dangerous animal that stalks a farmer’s flocks or preys upon the unwary in Haradel’s dark forests.
For those jobs that escape the notice of the militia for whatever reason, Stalkers are employed. Most Stalkers are nothing more than individuals who hunt on their own or other’s lands and are good enough to be hired by others when the need arises.
Locally Stalkers are known by many names. Many are casually known as hunters, woodsmen, or even rangers. In some locales, Stalkers are given names based on the kinds of animals they often hunt. For instance, in areas where packs of wolves prey upon the flocks, Stalkers are sometimes known as wolfers or wolf bait.
The term Stalker is most usually applied when these individuals are hired by a noble or a freeband. It denotes a hunter who is good enough to be hired by someone other than a local farmer, even though most Stalkers spend far more time keeping herds safe than they do filling warrants.
The best of the hunters will be hired by local nobles or even freebands to become Stalkers, expert marksmen who can hunt and take down specific targets within the ranks of their enemies. These are of course the cream of the crop, and most Stalkers will never find themselves employed in such a way. They are content to carry on their own business and take what employment they can from farmers or their local nobles when the opportunity arises.
On rare occasions when war breaks out the nobles will organize small groups of Stalkers together into “ranging” units. These small bands are responsible for tracking the enemy through rough ground such as forests and swamps. The Stalkers are asked to harass the enemy through inhospitable ground and drive them from it so the nobles’ troops can engage them in battle. Stalkers in northern areas of Haradel, especially Bretan, often find themselves deployed against Urdaggar raids in this manner.
As a class of people, Stalkers follow the path of the horn and are more comfortable in nature than they are with other people. They spend most of their time hunting in the wilds of Faelon where they are more likely to befriend a forest creature than they are another person. They are not born to the plow or to work the earth, though many are very good at fieldcraft and herbalism. Many Stalkers find employment with local farmers, either supplying small game for the farmer’s table or as a protector of their flocks.
The Stalker has a reputation as a solitary hunter, and for many that stereotype fits. The best Stalkers work alone most of the time. Those that hunt dangerous predators and the occasional monster prefer to work by themselves-a group of hunters will most definitely be noticed by a creature where a solitary hunter can avoid being detected. It is an unusual day when you find more than one Stalker in the presence of another; Stalkers can be territorial just like the animals they hunt and are given to bragging and even fighting to establish dominance.
There are periodic hunts sponsored by local nobles and permitted by the King that coincide with festivals and celebrations that require large amounts of food. On these occasions local Stalkers will work together to stalk and hunt game over a large area for the feast. For payment the Stalkers are allowed to keep the hides and by-products of whatever they kill for the local lord. These times may be lucrative for the Stalker, but for the most part the Stalkers don’t enjoy having to work with others of their kind.
In combat a Stalker is never to be underestimated. Their hunting skills are rarely matched. The Stalker uses his abilities to track his prey and bring them to heel through whatever terrain stands in his way and is just as useful in wide open spaces as in the confines of caves or a dense forest. His familiarity with stalking his quarry while remaining hidden to it makes a Stalker an excellent scout as well, able to spot even the most well-camouflaged of foes. This ability alone makes a Stalker very valuable to any Freeband lucky enough to be able to employ them.
Many enemies have been fooled into thinking that a Stalker’s only strength lies in their ability to take down their target at range using his admittedly superior skills with a longbow. Many follow the time honored tactic of closing with an archer and engaging a Stalker up close and personal. This is often the last mistake they make. The Stalker is not a stranger to close combat. Many creatures the Stalker hunts must be cornered and brought down with a sword. Those enemies that think they can gain advantage by closing the distance with a Stalker find a wily enemy that is both agile and strong.
Stalkers are not rich by any means. Those that develop a reputation and are sought out to fill warrants with freebands can become so, but for the Stalker that plies his or her lonely trade locally, they earn but a very meager living. Their houses tend to be small and hand built from what Faelon provides them. Many build small cabins that afford only a modicum of luxury if any at all. Some are rumored to live in caves or in burrows like the animals that they hunt, and while these rumors are more than likely false they represent how others view the Stalker: as little better than the animals that they hunt and protect others from.
Not helping that popular view are the low social graces that most Stalkers employ. A Stalker grows up in the wilderness learning to track animals and kill them as a way to make a living. They are also usually adept at processing the meat and carcasses of their kills, making use of every last piece of an animal. They can be on the hunt for long periods of time. Spending most of their time in the wilderness they are not prone to any kind of bathing. If you ask them, they will deny bathing as it lays upon the Stalker an unnatural scent that keeps their prey wary of them.
Many Stalkers will use grease from their kills to darken any metal they have on them such as buckles and even sword hilts. The grease may keep the metal from reflecting and warning their prey of the Stalker’s presence, but it does little for the Stalker’s smell or appearance, as the animal grease reeks and gets all over the clothes of the Stalker.
Stalkers are often mistrusted by those that employ them, both Freebands and citizen alike. A Stalker lives on the edges of society, prowling dark forests paths and plying their trade on frontiers and wilderness areas that few save their inhabitants pay any attention to. For this reason they are often looked upon with suspicion and fear. Frightening are the things that come from the dark places and prey upon civilization. Even more frightening are the people that hunt and vanquish them.
Wherever you find a Stalker you will also find rumors about their past, conjecture about who they may be running from, and general rumors about their domestic life or lack thereof. It’s almost a holiday when a Stalker comes through town to work as the local gossips can turn from the lives of the locals and speculate wildly about the enigmatic Stalker.
In the loneliness of the wild places of Faelon some Stalkers will take small woodland creatures as companions. Many have trained dogs to assist them in hunts, while others have been known to keep a chipmunk or squirrel as a companion. Many a Stalker’s mental state has been questioned because they strode through town speaking with a squirrel perched atop their shoulder.
Most of society may not understand the solitary ways of the Stalker, but when their services are needed the Stalker quickly becomes a best friend or at least a tolerated persona non grata. Again, those in rural areas are likely to have a higher opinion of the Stalker than their city counterpart.
Predators are a daily part of life on the farm, and the local Stalker can often mean the difference between starvation and plenty over the course of a long winter. Local nobles often hold the Stalker at arms length during normal times, but are more than happy to pay large sums of money for the destruction of a pack of wolves that are preying on the livestock or to eradicate some horrid creature that is stalking the locals.
Hunting creatures often brings the Stalker into contact with knights and patrollers, who see it as their ordained task to protect the realm from such creatures. Stalkers are often snubbed by professional soldiers or those that serve a specific deity. Haradelan Knights in particular look on Stalkers condescendingly as on first glance a Stalker has no guiding principles save the thrill of the hunt and the compensation for the kill. In reality most of this suspicion is envy. Stalkers are often called upon when local authorities can’t or won’t take care of a problem, and those that must live life under orders are often jealous of those that are just as skilled but far more free.
To say the least, whenever these two classes of people meet, there is usually friction. The two are often forced to work together by noble lords who will hire both the Stalker and beg service of the knight by imploring his sense of honor and duty to their patron god or goddess. They also encounter each other in freebands where at least the two are recognized for what skills and weaknesses each brings into battle.
It is sad that the knights and the Stalkers often don’t get along; working together they are much more powerful than alone. One shows great courage and is bound by duty to fling themselves into terrible and dangerous situations when they arise. The Stalker is more calculated and can patiently wait out their prey for days after tracking the enemy has established its habits and patterns.
Whatever is thought of them, Stalkers are an important part of Haradelan society. You won’t hear much grumbling from them, unless they have to spend time around another Stalker or a knight. They seem to understand their own importance and wear the mantle of the feral loner very well. Most are unconcerned with what the rest of the world thinks of them; they have far more deadly things to worry about in the wild places of Haradel.
Whether in the employ of a local farmer looking to rid himself of a wolf problem or in a Freeband hunting at the behest of a warrant, a Stalker is a formidable fighter not to be underestimated at range or in hand to hand combat. Hiring one is often costly depending on their skill and reputation, but it is always worth every last bit of gold.
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