"...the Moist Earth, the Mother of all life {two obscure symbols} Dryad, Naiad, Nymph {list of unknown symbols} Gods {two lines obscured) devastation {crack in stone} came from beyond the {half a line worn away} silver ships {seven unknown symbols} deep waters, fertile, and {three lines worn away} Worship Her {two unknown symbols} nurture Her land {one line worn away} we are Her children, we are the Belthani..."
- —Extract translated from the Talastein Carvings, now held in the Royal Academy of Talabecland, translated with marginalia by Teclis of Ulthuan.[1a]
The Belthani were the earliest tribes of Men to arrive in the Old World from somewhere farther south. They were known to inhabit the Reik Basin since the Dwarfs' Golden Age, before the start of the War of the Beard in -1997 IC. Their lands there were later conquered by the Unberogens and other pre-Imperial tribes. The Belthani were also present in the lands that later became Kislev.[2a][3a][5a][6a][9a]
The Belthani interred their dead in barrows.[3c]
History[]
Origins[]
The Dwarfs' history with the Men dwelling in the territory of what would become the Empire goes back a long way. The first Human tribes arrived during the Dawi's Golden Age before relations between the High Elves and Dwarfs had deteriorated into war. It was during the War of the Beard that the Dwarfs recognised the potential of trade with the Human tribes of the Belthani, though they were not yet envisioned as allies.[3a]
The Belthani were a fairly peaceful and pastoral people. Their numbers were not large enough to create much conflict among their own. Tribal quarrels usually resulted in a group moving to another land to eke out a living. The Humans made use of primitive technology that included stone weapons, copper tools, and pottery, but their ability to grow crops was what initially made the Belthani valuable to the Dwarfs, who needed to muster and fortify their own people for a centuries-long war.[3a]
Living with the Belthani[]
For the most part, the War of the Beard took place far from the lands of the Belthani tribes. This enabled the Belthani to grow and prosper. The subsequent war pitted the Dwarfs of the Karaz Ankor against the Orcs and Goblins and brought the threat to the Humans. When Karak Varn fell to the Greenskin onslaught, a small number of Dwarfs took up residence with the eastern Belthani tribes. They worked to keep trade routes open and supply the provisions the karaks needed to continue the fight.[3a]
Around the year −1000 IC, a confederation of warlike Human tribes crossed Black Fire Pass and began conquering the land from the Belthani. These tribes pushed the first people out of the fertile river valleys and open countryside with their bronze weapons and chariots. The Dwarfs living with the Belthani could do nothing but work to minimise the slaughter. Moreover, the new, more militant tribes of Men might be potential allies in the Dwarfs' fight against the Greenskins. In the Dwarfs' previous accord with a Human people, the Belthani were merely a provider of foodstuffs.[3a]
Rise and Expansion of Karak Azgaraz[]
Under King Mordek Strong-axe, Karak Azgaraz's lands grew to their greatest extent. The realm stretched into the lowlands, reaching the Blitzfelsen Hills and Blitzfelsen Ridge to the east and Tahmetal in the north. Local Belthani tribes came under Mordek's rule and fortified outposts were built on the new borders. This was not an expansion based on conquest, but simply the Dwarfs claiming benevolent dominion over the unorganised Humans.[3b]
But the new borders proved difficult to hold when Orcs and Goblins attacked Karak Azgaraz from an unexpected direction -- the far side of the Grey Mountains. The centuries-long war followed the same pattern that befell the Karaz Ankor and the Dwarfs were eventually forced to pull back. The pressure on Karak Azgaraz was soon relieved when the Unberogen tribe moved into the area vacated by the Dwarfs.[3b]
The warlike Manlings had little love for the Greenskins and made common cause with the Dwarfs. Ultimately the Unberogens also made war on the Belthani, and overran the Dwarfs' allies. Dwarf law required Karak Azgaraz to respond with force, but the Dwarfs recognised the Humans were a means to an end.[3b]
They negotiated an end to the Belthani slaughter with the understanding that the ancient people would seek new homes elsewhere. The new alliance with the Unberogens allowed Karaz Azgaraz to stabilise its frontiers and finally push back the Greenskins to the edges of the Dwarf realm.[3b]
With the loss of territories controlled by the Dwarfs, many Belthani from the lands that would become the Empire and Bretonnia found refuge in the holds of the the Vaults.[8a]
At Present[]
The research of the rich and eccentric Baron Bastian von Hargenfels of Nordland indicates that there may be remains of pre-Imperial Belthani settlements in the foothills of the Worlds Edge Mountains where he hopes to find some lost artefacts for his collection. The area is also close to the southern edges of Sylvania and not too far from the ruins of Karak Varn.[3b]
Belthani Religion[]
"Most believe the Cult of the Mother died out long ago. They are wrong. Not only do the Great Families of my Order continue Her traditions, but the sickle is born by others, which most of whom hide far from prying eyes. Before he formed our Order, Teclis came to our great groves. By channelling Ghyran he activated the Waystones we believed had been raised by our ancestors, and showed us what our 'Oghams' truly were: a creation of the Elder Race, the Asur, the Elves. We watched wide-eyed as Teclis explained the nature of belief, magic, and of Hoeth, the god he especially revered. Not all of us accepted his foreign ways. Indeed, a full third of the Druidic Families stubbornly spurned Teclis, refusing to believe his 'truth,' and fled into the dark forests, just like the prehistoric tribes of old. But those who remained, listened, and then eventually understood. Not long after, the Jade Order of Magic was formalised, and we were its numbers. We didn't change our beliefs -- indeed, we practise the Old Faith still -- but we understood them for what they were: a twisted reflection of the truth. Since then, our role as Nature's Guardians has brought us into contact with many others who believe they are the Children of the Belthani. They are all, I am quite sure, just as wrong as we were."
- —Erowin Grunfeld, Magister Druid of the Jade Order[1a]
Sacral Leadership[]
Some scholars believe that at the time of the Imperial tribes, and the earlier Belthani, not only were there no temples, but there were no cults, sacred texts, or even priests. Instead, tribal leaders, as representatives of their people, were deemed the closest to the gods, and part of their duty included pleading with the mostly uncaring deities during disasters, and thanking them during periods of bounty.[1a]
To do this, tribal leaders normally offered great, bloody sacrifices, often Human, upon sacred days important to the tribe or deity. Often these sacred days occurred upon a seasonal equinox -- perhaps borrowing from the earlier Belthani, but this was not always the case.[3a]
Ogham Circles[]
The ancient Belthani migrated north to waystones infused with the magical energy of Ghyran, the Green Wind of Magic. The priests of the Belthani believed these waystones were sacred to Ishernos, the god-and-goddess of nature and the seasons, and the nature spirits that were found living near them.[4a]
Triskeles and other symbols were carved into the sacred markers, called "Ogham Stones". Altered waystones over time developed divine properties in addition to their original intended purposes. The few remaining hedge witches who guard stone circles do not fully understand the leyline network.[4a]
Belthani Ruins in Kislev[]
The network of leylines carrying Ice Magic throughout Kislev flows into many nexus points, most of which are capped by ancient Ogham Stones (standing stones). Some of these magical sites boast Elven ruins; others host the sacred sites of ancient, long-dead Human tribes, such as the nomadic Scythians of the Eastern Steppes or the Belthani.[2a]
Connection with Tylos[]
Tyleus, the man recognised as chief of Tylos, remains a legendary figure in Tilean folklore and is traditionally considered the father of the Tilean people. While his city is believed to have been destroyed along with most of its citizens, later traditions suggest that the surrounding agrarian and tributary tribes may have survived. These rural peoples, who are said to have supplied Tylos with food and even slaves for its grand constructions, are thought to be the true ancestors of modern Tileans.[7a]
The first Human tribes arrived in the southern Old World around −2000 IC, a period that aligns with the founding of Tylos according to Dwarfen records. It is therefore possible that the Belthani and related Human groups were among those agrarian peoples whose survival outlasted the fall of the metropolis, though no source directly states this.[5c][7a]
Sources[]
- 1: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition: Tome of Salvation (RPG)
- 1a: pp. 6-9
- 2: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition: Realm of the Ice Queen (RPG)
- 2a: pg. 46
- 3: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Archives of the Empire Vol. I (RPG)
- 4: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Winds of Magic (RPG)
- 4a: pg. 195
- 5: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 1st Edition: Dwarfs - Stone and Steel (RPG)
- 6: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Archives of the Empire Vol. III (RPG)
- 6a: pg. 66
- 7: Warhammer Armies: Dogs of War (5th Edition)
- 7a: pg. 75
- 8: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Lords of Stone and Steel (RPG)
- 8a: pg. 18
- 9: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Dwarf Player's Guide (RPG)
- 9a: pg. 19