Siyim

SIYIM (Dog Men) by Reagren Wright

The Wolfen are the greatest threat to the human empire, however they have their own troublesome race to deal with. Siyim are a race of dog-headed (Pharaoh Hounds) humanoids that have developed into a minor military power. Normally they are a plundering band of scavengers who attack any village, town, or caravan they come across. They take what they want then return to their camp. Essentially, they are nothing but raiders who strike out against anything that gets in there way. Siyim live in nomadic tribes scattered across the Northern Hinterlands and some parts of the Northern Wilderness, however do to their amazing ability to adapt to any physical environment, they can choose to live anywhere they want. Although they claim the Hinterlands as their home, rumor has it they may actually be natives to the Land of the Damned. Unlike the Wolfen, the Siyim are not united, nor is their any possibility of it ever happening. Each tribe believes itself to be the strongest group of Siyim kind. To ensure their race will one day be the future masters of the world, only the strongest tribe can be allowed to survive, thus ensuring all future Siyim will be spawn from them. As a result of this belief system, Siyim are waging a bloody civil war against one another. The only time they will declare a truce or work together is to destroy their common enemy, the Wolfen. The war between the two races has been going on for five hundred years. It is a firm belief in Siyim culture that if they can gain control over the Northern Wilderness, nothing will prevent them from becoming the future rulers of the world. For the past thirty years. Siyim have been slowly moving east, raiding deep into Wolfen territory, slaying any canine race they come across. Currently they are engaging the Oak People Tribe as they try to push beyond the Taber River. That being said, since they are no major settlements anywhere in the Western Frontier, the Wolfen Empire is not terribly concerned about Siyim encroachment. In their mind, the Siyim will either destroy themselves or end up becoming a major threat to humankind who will take the fight to them. The biggest sites along Dragon Claw belong to clandestine Bizantium smugglers, and the Siyim have been trying to avoid human encounters as much as possible. They are not ready yet to take on the Shadow Coast Colonies, knowing the island kingdom of Bizantium will retaliate in force. Siyim believe when there is only one supreme tribe, their race will be strong enough to challenge the human empires and kingdoms, but until that time, humans and their allies for the most part will be left alone.
Siyim love war and combat. They setup gladiatorial areas in their camp to fight not only each other, but their slaves as well. Some slaves earn the right to live among Siyim as an equal if he or she has proven his strength in several combat bouts. Usually this individual will end up as a bodyguard for the war chief. This will never happen to a Canine or Kobold because they will always be viewed as inferiors. Siyim are extremely lazy when it comes to do anything that does not involve physical combat. To compensate, they make slaves out of anyone and/or thing they capture, particularly Kobolds. Every tribe uses a slave force of Kobolds to manufacture their giant-size weapons and armor. Siyim are also well skilled in organizing orcs, goblins, and hobgoblins into scouting parties or small armies. These two factors makes the Siyim one of the most skilled Barbarian Hordes on the battlefield, some rival Mercenary Armies in quality, skill, and daring. Fortunately, their genocidal war has kept them rather busy and uninvolved with world affairs, especially with humans, elves, and dwarves. So much so, Siyim are unaware that Dwarf craftsmanship is superior to Kobold. This also suggests Siyim have been isolated from the rest of the world for a dozen millenniums or they are not native inhabitants of the Palladium world, perhaps beings who came out of the Great Rift.
A Siyim tribe typically ranges from 20-200 strong. Each tribe is lead by the war chief, the strongest and smartest Siyim in the tribe. His status reflects the strength and morale of the tribe. Any Siyim who believes the chief is too weak may freely leave the tribe and go live with another tribe; however, the moment he leaves, his family and friends will forget whom he is and no one will recognize him as a fiend. He will be slaughtered just like any other Siyim. Any individual or small group who approaches another tribe naked with tail between their legs is indicating they recognize this tribe as being the Siyim tribe that is destined to become the sole survivors of the great war and future rulers of the world, and they want to be come apart of it.
Every tribe of Siyim has a small guild of warlocks number from three to seven. Siyim warlocks are among the most feared in the world for they believe in only commanding the most destructive forces of nature and using their full potential against their enemies. They are ruthless magic wielders who won’t think twice about sending a River of Lava or a Tornado through a small town just to watch the massacre. Siyim are guided by wandering shamans who preach the gospel of Set, who they refer to as “He who Declared the War”. The dark god has employed hundreds of them to serve as shock troops. He has been known to teleport an entire tribe into the heart of a town that has defied his will or as force of punishment. Siyim shamans serve all the tribes and how no particularly loyalty to any of them. After conflicts between the tribes, shaman will bury the dead. Each shaman has four to ten followers/acolytes who assist him. It is a firm belief in Siyim society that they will serve Set in the afterlife if they can die bravely in battle, or he will resurrect the bravest to fight again. This belief only adds to their lack of fear of death. If a Siyim should be slain or injured by an act of cowardice (retreating or surrendering), it is believed Set will have Ammit the Beast feast upon their bodies, yet their souls will remains intact, and they will expend the rest of eternity as piles of his excrement.
Males are the only ones active in the tribe. Females are considered weak and feeble, even forbidden to touch armor and weapons. Their only purpose is to cook, tend to the injured (make them well for the next battle), satisfy males with sex, and to bare more male Siyim. Males are taken away from their mothers at the age of three to be raised by their fathers, brothers, and uncles until they are warriors. Daughters stay with their mothers until they are married. It is said male Siyim threat slaves better then they do female Siyim. Consequently, female Siyim have developed into a kinder and gentle species. In fact, some try to escape the life of being dominated and tried to start their own tribes. All of these attempts have failed. Males eradicate these tribes immediately upon discovering one. They will also hunt down and slaughter any females who they find not living within the confines of a tribe. Wolfen have reported that some female Siyim will do anything to evade males, even lead their tribe into a trap, killing everyone including their own children.
Siyim are cautiously being introduced to the human race. Sages and scholars of the Western Empire and Bizantium ensure the noble leaders that the Siyim are not to be concerned about for they will soon be extinct within a century or less. However, if for some reason, they could be convinced to stop their senseless civil war and unite together as the Wolfen did, they could not only posse a serious threat to the Wolfen Empire, but to the Bizantium and Ophid Grassland colonies.

Alignment: Males are selfish and evil (never good). Females can be any alignment although they tend toward good and selfish.

The Eight Attributes: I.Q.: 3D6, M.E.: 2D6, M.A.: 2D4, P.S.: 4D6, P.P.: 3D6, P.E.: 4D6+6, P.B.: 2D6+6, Spd.: 5D6.

Hit Points: P.E. Attribute number plus 1D6 per level of experience starting with level one.

S.D.C.: 20 plus those gained from physical skills.

Average P.P.E.: 2D4 for males and 2D6+2 for females.

O.C.Cs.: Males can become any men of arms (except knight and paladin), warlock, or shaman. Females are peasant laborers or simple peasants.

O.C.C. Skill notes: Siyim are masters of the wilderness and guerilla warfare. Add a bonus of +10% to any wilderness and espionage skill. They also gain a +5% to all physical skills because of their enjoyment of physical competition.

Horror Factor: 10

Physical Appearance: Their bodies are perfectly human accept their head is that of a Pharaoh Hound. The dog head is reddish orange with occasional white markings on the center of forehead or the bridge of the muzzle. They have amber color eyes (although as newborns to age three they have blue eyes). Their nose, whiskers, and eye-rims are always the same color as the coat. Siyim “blush” when excited or happy, with their ears and nose becoming bright pink. All Siyim have large hands with six fingers and large humanoid feet with seven toes. They also have long canine tails.

Size: 6-9 feet (1.82 to 2.74 m) tall, 5 feet/1.52 m +1D4 feet (.3 to 1.21 m).

Weight: 175 to 250 lbs (78.75-112.5 kg).

Average Lifespan: 50 years, no Siyim has ever lived passed 60, though the war kills of most before they reach the age of 30.

Natural Abilities: In addition to their physical strength and endurance, Siyim also have Nightvision (50 feet/15.24 m), superior day vision, and a keen sense of smell and hearing. They can leap 8 feet 2.43 m) high and 12 feet (3.65 m)long without a running start.

Track Blood Scent: A Siyim can follow the scent of blood up to 300 feet (91.44 m) away. Base Skill: 20% +4% per level of experience.

Recognize the Scent of Others: A Siyim can recognize and follow a familiar scent up to 50 feet (15.24 m) away. Base Skill: 16%+4% per level of experience. +10% to recognize and follow the scent of a fellow tribe member. Roll once for every 100 feet (30.48 m) when following a scent trail. A failed roll means the trail is lost.

Extraordinary Vision: Can see approximately 3 times better than a normal human. They can spot and notice things out of the ordinary or when they attempt to conceal or camouflage themselves (-15% when attempt to use these skills against them or it gives them a +10% bonus when attempting to use such skills to locate concealed/hidden objects out in the open wilderness (not indoors).

Adapt to Physical Environment: Siyim have the amazing ability to adapt their physiology to the dominant environment around them. These metabolic adaptations take time to occur (2D6 hours), but once they do the Siyim can maintain them broad changes indefinitely for as long as they remain in the region. Living arboreal regions they gain the skills of acrobatics and climbing at skills levels 89% or receive a +15% if they already posses the skill and they increase their leaping ability by 50%. They will suffer no ill effects from arctic/freezing environment. Sub-zero temperatures inflict only 10% of the normal damage and penalties. The can also be done for desert/extreme heat and dry conditions. Even exposure to temperatures up to 200 degree F (93 C) inflicts only 20% of the normal damage and penalties. They can survive three to five days without water. They can enter disease and plague conditions (+5 to save vs. disease) and even if they did catch something, the disease will not be fatal and the effects, penalties, damage, and duration is half. They can live nocturnal or underground. If they do so, their Nightvision increases to 300 feet/91.4 m (daylight will become blinding), their range 0f hearing becomes greater, and they gain an excellent sense of direction and depth/height. In darkness and underground, they would have a +1 bonus to initiative and to dodge. Do to their incredible resistance, they always takes half damage against fire and cold.

Wilderness Survival: Experts in surviving in the wilderness regions, regardless if it’s a forest, desert, mountains, etc. They need so little in order to survive: Base Skill: 45% +5% per level of experience.

Bonuses: +2 to initiative, +2 to damage, +3 to Perception, +3 to poison, and +3 to save vs. Horror Factor. A bite does 1D6 points of damage and no P.S. bonus is possible.

Magic: Only if they become a Warlock or a Shaman.

Psionics: None

Enemies: All Canine races, Kobolds, and Gnomes. Indifferent toward humans, elves, dwarves, troglodytes, giants, trolls, changelings, and faerie folk. They are hated by all the Dying Races of the Land of the Damned, Ramen, and Phoenxi.

Allies: Goblins, hobogoblins, orcs, and ogres. Were-beasts and Tautons are among their strongest allies.

Habitat: The Northern Hinterlands and the western parts of the Northern Wilderness.

Favorite Weapons: Giant size Kobold weapons. Polearms (their true favorites), spears, large swords, battle axes, and ball & chain. They are unfamiliar with rune and magic items, but they will take any weapon that gives them an additional advantage.

Other Notes:

1. Worship only Set.

2. Wear light, chain, and double mail armors.

3. Poor craftsmen and builders

4. Adaptive

5. Their language is a rough & guttural version of Dragonese. Those who speak Elf/Dragonese will have a -20% penalty in understanding them (unless spend time learning their version of the language.