Phoberos and Skophos

The western edge of Akroan territory is a region of arid canyons and caverns called Phoberos, a land of harsh natural whims haunted by ravenous monsters. Fierce bands of wild minotaurs haunt these badlands, and for centuries these brutal marauders were the only minotaurs the human poleis ever knew—which contributed to the minotaurs’ reputation as bloodthirsty brutes. But to the north of Phoberos, far from the walls of Akros, stands the sprawling, labyrinthine polis of Skophos. Skophos is mentioned in a few ancient odes, but only a handful of humans have ever beheld Skophos, and hardly any have successfully navigated its labyrinthine passageways and returned to tell of it.

The founding of Skophos and its troubled history with Akros are the stuff of myth, and it is difficult to distinguish the mortal history of the two poleis from tales of the twin gods, Iroas and Mogis. The gods warred with each other, their followers and champions vied for control of scarce land, and two ideals—the nobility of heroic struggle and victory versus the brutality of savage slaughter in war—competed for a place in the mortal mind. Just as Mogis is the dark shadow of everything Iroas stands for, so is Skophos the reflection of Akros. And Phoberos is the bloodstained battleground where the eternal conflict between the gods and their poleis is waged.

Demography and Population

Minotaurs of Phoberos
Most of the minotaurs that roam the badlands of Phoberos are outcasts from the society of Skophos. They are bandits and marauders, bloodthirsty killers infected by the wild rage of Mogis. These minotaurs have more in common with the monsters in the Monster Manual than with the civilized people described in chapter 1 of this book (including their Large size). Most of them use only the barest minimum of technology—tattered clothes, piecemeal armor, and heavy weapons, all scavenged from their fallen foes. They wander alone or gather in bands under the leadership of the strongest among them, and in either case tend to kill any human they encounter. Three distinct bands are particularly well-known by their Akroan foes. Bloodhorn Minotaurs
Named for their blood-caked horns, the Bloodhorn minotaurs have ragged claws to supplement their charges and gores. Gleeful in their brutality, they slaughter and devour any intruders they encounter in the badlands, and particularly value the bone marrow of young humans. They take pride in their overlarge, razor-sharp horns. Felhide Minotaurs
The notoriously dour Felhide minotaurs are descended from the warlord Thyrogog of the Ashlands. The Theriad recounts the brute’s defeat and the loss of his great axe, Goremaster. Viewing Thyrogog’s defeat as a divine sign, the warlord’s descendants retreated into the Ashlands. Burial rites among the Felhide minotaurs involve devouring those who fell in battle, to remove their shame from memory and fuel the survivors’ revenge. Should another scavenger reach a fallen Felhide before the rest of the band can eat the dead minotaur’s remains, the minotaurs mobilize to track down as much of their dead comrade’s body as possible. Ragegore Minotaurs
Ragegore minotaurs are the most ferocious of their kind, deeply infected by the bloodlust of Mogis. Ragegores never withdraw from a battle, entering a frenzy of furious delight at the sight of an enemy’s blood. While in the heat of battle, a Ragegore minotaur seems to feel no pain and barely notices wounds that would kill a human. Some Ragegores have been known to fall dead immediately at the cessation of battle, their life sustained only by their fury.

Territories

City of Skophos
When Akroan soldiers encounter minotaurs in ordered squads, patrolling the badlands on predictable routes, clad in armor and wielding bronze weapons, they tend to speak of the “Bronzebone band,” as if these minotaurs were just one more faction competing for dominance in Phoberos. But these minotaurs aren’t just one more raiding band; they are the soldiers of Skophos, the minotaur polis. Skophos stands as a literal maze, its twisting streets carved from the red sandstone of the badlands. The walls of the maze rise as narrow buildings that serve as homes, shops, and defensible fortresses for the city’s predominantly minotaur population. Mighty stone outcroppings tower over the labyrinth, including temples to Mogis (the most prominent), Erebos, Keranos, and Purphoros. The fortress-palaces of tyrants, the lairs of monstrous oracles, and cavernous indoor markets also stand as destinations at the end of confounding avenues. Priests and warlord champions of Mogis rule the city, with individuals serving as tyrants over city districts. The city’s rulers rarely meet in council, and when they do, the quarrelsome tyrants rarely find common cause or any basis for agreement. Only the priests of Mogis can force the city’s leaders to put aside their quarrels and work toward a single goal.

Infrastructure

Lesser Peristyle
The minotaurs of Skophos acknowledge the entire pantheon of gods, though they are far enough inland that they have little cause to honor Thassa, and many of them view Iroas as an enemy of their people. They worship a more ancient aspect of Karametra, who demands blood to ensure the fertility of the earth. In the shadow of Mogis’s great temple, most of the gods are honored with some kind of violence. In that context, the small temple known as the Lesser Peristyle is an oddity. Dedicated to Ephara, it is a place where minotaurs debate philosophy and strive to rein in the excesses of the tyrants who govern the city. The existence of Skophos is a testimony to the benefits of an ordered society, as Ephara teaches, and that self-evident lesson is the strongest argument that Ephara’s handful of priests can make to justify their presence in the city. From that starting point, they pursue their vision of a better way of life, aspiring to nobler principles than senseless slaughter and better governance than iron-fisted tyranny. Under the leadership of the temple’s priests—Haraksi, an ingenious smith and mother of eight, and Olakia the Torn, an oracle who experiences visions from both Mogis and Ephara—a school of minotaur philosophers aspires to a vision of Skophos that can coexist in some measure of peace with the wider world. Mogis’s Chalice
Many grand temples to Mogis stand in Skophos, presenting a stark contrast to the crude shrines that usually serve as sites of worship for the god of fury. Near the center of the polis, one temple larger and more elaborate than the rest serves as a holy site and the seat of the minotaur government, called Mogis’s Chalice. Fires always burn in two great copper bowls on either side of the temple entrance. Iron-spiked crenellations ring the temple roof, many decorated with skulls. Red clay is smeared at the entrance and the altar, often anointed with fresh blood. Inside, a massive bronze minotaur head hangs above the black marble altar. Legend holds that if anyone, minotaur or otherwise, kills a hated rival or enemy in the main room of the Temple to Mogis, they will be blessed by the god of wrath. Even the minotaurs of Skophos will not interfere with such a battle, and the victor is always allowed to depart without further bloodshed.