Thuringian

"You have a heart of stone, King Sigmar, but by the gods, you are a warrior to walk the road to Ulric’s Hall with! Aye, you have it!"

- King Otwin the Berserker, accepting King Sigmar's call for unification





The Thuringian tribe were an ancient war-like people populating the lands of what is today Drakwald, and as such the Thuringians are the direct descendants of what few Drakwalders are still left within the world. Like many other tribes, the Thuringians came into the lands of the Empire in -1000 IC and settled within the deep, dark canopy of the Drakwald Forest. Out of all the tribes within the lands of the Empire, the Thuringians were feared throughout the barbarian kingdoms for their famed berserkers, warriors whose ferocity and rage in battle is matched only by the savagry of the dreaded Norsii of the north. Indeed, for it is said by other tribes that only madmen and lunatics would dare to live in such a dark and evil place such as the Drakwald.

Most Thuringians are warriors, but above all berserkers without equal. They often fought bare-chested, with warpaint coloring their entire body, their hair greased into spikes and their skin pierced with rings, bones and metal. Many of them were also large and imposing figures, often standing taller and stronger than most other men. In many ways, the Thuringians were more like the Norsii in appearance and character than any other tribe in the land. When Sigmar became King of the Unberogens and tried to unite the warring tribes under his dream of a unified Empire, it was only the Thuringians who were openly and fiercely hostile to him.

Sigmar, who managed to unite all the tribes, even the ferocious Teutogens under his banner, failed to diplomatically bring the Thuringians into the fold, for they are a war-driven people and to bow down to someone who hasn't earn their respect in battle is a prospect no Thuringian is willing to allow, not even their ruler, King Otwin the Berserker King. King Otwin was a giant of a man, with piercing and scars adorning his body and a crown of golden spikes rammed into his temple. Yet Otwin was no fool and he knew he would never be able to hold his title should he bow to King Sigmar, no matter how noble his cause may be, and as such he lead his tribe into battle against the combined armies of all the Human tribes, all for the sake of saking their honor. And so the Thuringians fought a battle they knew they will lose, where King Sigmar and King Otwin locked themselves into a titanic struggle. With great effort, Sigmar disarmed Otwin and began to strangled the berserker rage out of him. As he became lucid, Sigmar gave him two ultimatum; join him in his empire and push back the darkness that assails their lansd or face merciless and total annihilation of their entire people. Seeing in Sigmar a man he can respect and follow in battle, Otwin finally relented and the Thuringians fought for Sigmar's cause and became a proud founding member of the newly formed Empire.

Source

 * Sigmar's Heir (Fantasy Roleplay)
 * pg. 11
 * Time of Legend: Heldenhammer (Novel) by Graham McNeill
 * Chapter 16: "To be a King"

[[Category:T]]