- "They are foul creatures, crafted by sorcerous rituals at forlorn spots deep in the trackless swamps of Albion, where a previous wayfarer has lost his life. Their forms are typically made up of swamp mud and the detritus of bogs. Their cries are strange and mournful. A spell caster of sorts often accompanies a Fenbeast, but not always. The spirit that inhabits them continually seeks revenge against the living and so they kill, unabated, unless their dark master bids them otherwise. A Priest of Morr can lay one to rest, but it is no easy feat."
- —Metrious Null from On the Misty Isle.
A hulking Fenbeast of Albion.
Fenbeasts are elemental creatures native to Albion that are summoned by noble Truthsayers and evil Dark Emissaries to do their bidding.
Overview
Fenbeasts are roughly humanoid-shaped hulks composed of the souls and bones of creatures that were drowned in the fens and swamps as well as of the mud, wet wood, and rotting plants of the swamp itself. A small Ogham Stone is embedded in the center of their body and holds the amorphous mass together. Fenbeasts are completely mindless, do not feel fear or pain, and are extremely strong. If their summoner is killed, they will collapse back into mud and rotting swamp detritus.
Since the Dark Emissaries fled the islands of Albion and were followed by the Truthsayers attempting to hunt them down, Fenbeasts can be found in armies throughout the known world - both kinds of these Druids selling their services as Mercenaries.
Fenbeasts are said to have originally come from the mist-shrouded island of Albion, an ancient land thought to have been naught but legend until a few years ago, when chance allowed for its rediscovery and word of the rich prizes that it held spread throughout the Old World. Adventurers, expeditions and raiders from every race and nation found their way to Albion’s fog covered shores where they fought to claim some of the island's “vast riches” for themselves. Rumour has it that most of them found nothing but a painful death amidst the age-old Ogham stones that cover the isle. Ogham stones are rune-covered rocks that supposedly channel mystical power. Empire sages believe that it is with these Ogham stones, in conjunction with a couple of groups of secretive mystics, that Fenbeasts come into being.[1a]
Some Witch Hunters are concerned with the ongoing appearance of Fenbeasts in the Empire. While there are a few ancient Ogham stones in parts of the Old World, they are dissimilar to those of Albion and all of them lie far from the few marshes of the Empire. Seeing as the majority of Fenbeasts seem to have some sort of master that drives them, this suggests that a sorcerer or more likely, a Necromancer, has discovered a new way to create Fenbeasts – a dark prospect that neither the Witch Hunters nor the priests of Morr like at all.[1a]
Fenbeasts are large sorcerous constructs assembled from material gathered from marshes and swamps where many have died in battle. They are unnatural creatures that reek of stagnant marshes and have the touch of the grave about them. The presence of a Fenbeast often indicates the presence of a Necromancer or other kind of spellcaster, often one with grim intentions. Fenbeasts, being all but devoid of will, are not imaginative opponents, but this can change with a skilled handler.[1b]
Sources
