History and Geography
Within living memory, the southern portion of Istria was lush, fertile farmland. Its inhabitants were known for their open generosity; every stranger was greeted with warmth and good cheer, given food and drink and a place to sleep if they needed it. The villagers, although not generally up to date on the nation's gossip nor the most learned of folk, were either famous or infamous for their open-mindedness, depending upon one's own leaning.
Also within living memory, the farmlands turned into a bleak, feared and hated place. Five of the villages that once stood there literally tore themselves apart under the influence of growing taint, their inhabitants killing one another and staining the earth red with their blood. Those who retained their sanity retreated north, seeking to escape the corruption.
In the past few years, the twisting of the fringe has accelerated; it is farmland no longer, but overrun by beasts and flora wild in temperament. Indeed, it is impossible to tell the land was once field and farm, save for the few decaying ruins which remain; forests, scrubland, and in the deeper areas even jungle are now the norm. Humans do not dare to enter it — and yet some humans still dwell within its bounds.
Society and Culture
The people of the fringe are a loose society, united by necessity and by the remnants of the culture they once lived within. There are no villages as such, though many dwell near one another, in houses cradled by the limbs of giant, rapidly-growing trees. They farm no more, but collect food from their environment, relying on half-domesticated beasts to identify a newly twisted plant as edible or toxic — and their own skills in hunting. Those who can tolerate children raise them, even if the child is not their own; those who have little interest in living near other people come and go as they will, returning for those things their nomadic life cannot supply, in exchange helping to keep the most dangerous of tainted creatures out of the half-settled areas.
Formality is the rule in dealing with other people, at least in public; crafts are encouraged and fostered when possible, but the specialized knowledge is slowly dying, outcompeted by the demands of survival. Upon occasion, the more human-appearing of the Fringe's youth travel north into Istria proper, seeking to learn some of what has been lost and bring it back.
A few remnants of religion and superstition remain, but for the most part, the "niceties" of culture have been buried beneath the struggle of daily life. Though births are welcomed, they are rarely celebrated with any sort of festivity; the dead are neither buried nor burned, but left out for scavengers, their passing regarded with regret and no ritual. Most do not bother with regard for either sun or comet, though the superstitions about good and bad luck remain; indeed, some people hold them more strongly, or elaborate upon them, turning many events into good or ill omen.
The Fringe is the one place where tainted individuals are accepted — indeed, the tainted are the norm. Those who cannot curb their wild nature depart into the jungle or die; those who remain are the core upon which the Hunters depend. It is the Fringe that is the cradle of the Hunters — the forge in which their skills and self-discipline are honed. Some Hunters remain in the Fringe; others travel either north or south, setting forth onto the killing field that is their contribution to Istria's defense.
Character Options
(See also: the wanted characters page.)
The Fringe is a viable point of origin for PCs and (especially) for NPCs. Alll Hunter characters hail from this region. In addition, many tainted characters (levels 2 and higher) are likely to have started out in the Fringe. They could come to the city for any number of reasons, from seeking knowledge to searching for a less competitive environment they can call home. Then there's the city-types who travel just that little bit too far south, and come out changed… mages' powers decay, though their knowledge does not, and anyone else becomes further tainted.
No mage character may originate from the Fringe.
