The Lobrun Race in Abbatine
The lobrun race is tall and bulky, with typical individuals over 250 cm
tall. They have deep red, leatherlike skin and hard black eyes. Their hair
tends to be black or red, and grows in a mane from their head down to their
shoulders. It can grow quite long, but most lobrun keep it tightly trimmed.
The rest of their bodies are hairless.
They are uncommon in Abbatine. The majority of the local lobrun population
serve as slaves in the plantations around Paiden Free City. They were bought
into the world by the youda, who have long regarded them as good for nothing
more than menial labor. The few who are not enslaved typically live as fugitives
in the World's Edge Forest between Paiden and the Edge of the World. Many
of them turn to banditry and theft to support themselves. The behavior of
the free lobrun only lends credence to harsh laws supported by the Faiai
Family. The fact that a typical lobrun can easily crush a human or youda
skull helps matters not at all.
Advantages & Disadvantages
Lobrun have +6 ST (55 points), -2 DX (-15 points), -2 IQ (-15 points), +2
hit points (6 points), Inconvenient Size (-10 points) and Social Stigma
(-10 points, enslaved race), and Ax/Mace at DX+2 (8 points).
It costs 19 points to be a Lobrun.
Culture
Primal lobrun culture was probably pastoral. They are well-suited to survive
as hunter-gatherer clans, and this structure is still visible among those
lobrun who escape their youda masters. The youda of Paiden lack records
showing when they originally found the lobrun, but it seems clear that the
lobrun have never created an advanced society on their own. Lobrun culture
under servitude to the youda of Paiden is essentially composed of borrowings
from local youda and human culture. Most are resigned to slavery, though
some critics of the Eight Families' policies suggest that this is due to
overseers' practice of using raw jaya and other drugs to keep their charges
tractable.
Lobrun Life in Paiden
Most lobrun in Paiden are slaves on the plantations, and are rarely allowed
into the city proper. In fact, there are enforced city laws forbidding slave
lobrun from being brought within the city walls, except on certain specific
occasions (typically for sale at auction). Even when they are to be sold,
the vendor must obtain a permit for each lobrun from the Patriarch's agents.
Those lobrun who flee from slavery are regarded as dangerous fugitives,
and are hunted and killed on sight. Because the risk of hunting renegade
lobrun is comparatively high, however, those that escape to the wilderness
and maintain a low profile are generally not pursued. With some isolated
exceptions, there are no outstanding rewards for the return of escaped lobrun.
Even their former owners typically do not want them back, as they fear that
former renegades among their work force will only spread dissension and
trouble.
Free Lobrun
There are a few free lobrun in Abbatine. Most of them remain far from Paiden,
as they are unwilling to risk the reception they face there. Those that
do venture into Paiden are typically advised to obtain extensive free passages
from whatever representatives of the Eight Families they can find. Even
then, their options within the city proper are limited. Though other cityfolk
in Abbatine (particularly in Hegger and it's dependencies) will employ lobrun
as bearers and laborers, virtually none in Paiden will hire a lobrun for
any purpose whatsoever.
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