Pirate Prince
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To codify some Shi'ido rebels,
- Image Credit: Vera Tihonova | Yang QI
- Role: The Ku'sharnan shamans are a unit of beastmaster warriors native to the Ku'sharna province on Lao-mon.
- Permissions: N/A
- Links: To'polism
- Unit Name: Kusharnan Shamans
- Affiliation: Shi'ido | Ku'sharna, Lao-mon
- Classification: Force User Combat Unit
- Description: The Ku'sharnan shamans are a Shi’ido specialized unit of beastmasters who use their natural inclination for telepathy to direct a variety of animals, especially for hunting and combat.
- Unit Size: Medium
- Unit Availability: Rare
- Unit Experience: Trained
- Equipment:
- Lightspears or spears
- Beelzeborks, Val'gols, Ts'Kiza, Grov'akk, & other animals
- Combat Function: Animal bond is combined with general telepathic training, allowing them to influence bonded animals and to see through the beast's eyes. Animals may thus be employed as scouts, directed by their masters as they view their surroundings, or as messengers, carrying datachips and other information in their mouths or clutched in their talons. Shamans are also frequent users of battle melds, coordinating their attacks together similar to a hive mind. While adept warriors in their own right, they mainly rely on their beasts to attack; without them they are far less effective. Disrupting their mental links to each other and/or their animals can prove disastrous for this unit.
- Beastmasters: Shamans can control various animals through a telepathic link, using predatory beasts as weapons (though they treat them like fellow warriors).
- Empathetic: Their connection to animals necessitates a higher level of empathy, which carries over into their interactions with other sentient beings. Shamans can detect the emotions of others to an uncanny degree, and respond according to their desires. Because of this, they may be seen either as incredibly compassionate, deferential people - or exceptionally manipulative.
- Animal Reliant: Shamans are heavily reliant on their animal companions, to whom they are bonded, often for life. Should all their beasts be killed or incapacitated before the battle is won, they become far less effective.
- Disruptions: Disrupting the bond between a Shaman and their beasts can be catastrophic. The out-of-control animal may become agitated and distressed, motivated to attack or flee on instinct, and the Shaman is left without a beast to rely upon. It also sucks to be the person doing the disrupting, since the Shamans will viciously attack anyone who gets between them and their animals.
- Too Much Empathy: The instincts and emotions of others, be they beast or man, can bombard the Shamans, distracting them at the worst of times. Some have also been observed to take on animal characteristics and behaviors, but it should be stressed that a shaman who loses themselves to the beast is seen as weak and shameful by other shamans.
The province of Ku'sharna is an ancient land, often considered the cradle of Shi'ido civilization. It is the origin point of the To'polism, Lao-mon's most prevalent religion, and host to many ruins dating back thousands of years. The Ku'sharnan people are mostly modernized, but many still practice millennia-old cultural and religious traditions.
What began centuries ago with farmers bonding with their livestock in order to shepherd them away from danger developed into the tradition of the shamans. These select members of the tribe would create bonds with predatory animals to aid them in the hunt. During warlike periods, these bonds were used to the tribe's advantage as the beasts accompanied their masters into battle, fighting the enemy alongside them.
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