"Those who scrape a living tending livestock on the steppes know the warning signs of an invading force, and can give fair warning to the authorities."
- —Description of Kislev steppe shepherd in Total War: Warhammer III.[2]
Sheep, cow, goat and pig; all animals widely raised as livestock for pastoral agriculture in the Old World.
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in a pastoral agricultural setting in order to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals who are raised for consumption, and sometimes used to refer solely to farmed ruminants, such as cattle, sheep, and goats.[1a]
Livestock are wholly unsuitable in combat, as they are not trained for battle. Anytime they encounter something frightening like fire, loud noises, or the smell of blood, they flee unless they can be calmed. Finally, some of these animals may be ridden, such as the various horses, donkeys, and mules, but with more difficulty than other, more normal mounts.[1a]
Imperial Ranching[]
"Milk and beef from cows, mutton, pork, and goat are all valuable commodities in a hungry nation."
- —Description of an Empire Cattle Ranch in Total War: Warhammer.[3c]
There are farms that are little more than tiny, muddy fields, on which graze scrawny goats or cattle with shrivelled udders. While the word "pasture" may conjure up some sun-drenched meadow, this is usually far from the truth. Squalid fields with little grass are all a smallholder can hope for. Even they must be defended against the ever-encroaching forest, for the Empire is primarily woodland and the trees do not give ground easily.[3a]
While smallholders farming a tiny tract of land with a miserable little herd will be lucky to have a shelter at all, larger farms have more land and better, more permanent, housing for the animals they keep, even managing a barn or two. Better kept animals will produce more milk and higher quality meat, unless of course the farm is raided, destroyed by invading armies or taxed out of existence –- all of which are common occurrences.[3b]
Soldiers cannot march on empty stomachs, and so large cattle farming operations are needed to prevent famine and make a hefty profit for their owners too. The more industrial-scale farms are almost always owned by the Imperial nobility, but an increasing few have come under the sway of burgomeisters as well.[3c]
Dwarf Herding[]
"Goat. It's a tough, stringy meat, but then Dwarfs are tough too, and like their food to have the same qualities!"
- —Description of a Dwarf Goat Herd in Total War: Warhammer.[3e]
For the Dwarfs, goats are a favoured livestock animal for rearing. This is in no small part because Dwarfs and goats share the mountainsides. Goat pastures are little more than mountainside shrubs and mossy boulders, yet goats thrive in such conditions -- giving Dwarf shepherds a ready source of meat for sale at their local holds. Dwarf Rangers are employed to keep an eye on goat pastures in order to ensure the hold's herds are always protected.[3d]
In the high lands, goat herds are much easier to maintain than cattle. As a result, Dwarfs are used to the taste of goat and over the years have developed many ways of cooking it. This mostly entails rigorous boiling to break down the animal's fibrous joints, although a good goat "kuri" is always welcome -- especially when cooked by an experienced Dwarf maid or "kvinn". Kuri involves the use of rare and exotic spices to preserve the meat and give it a distinctive flavor that Dwarfs love, especially after more than a few ales.[3e]
Goat farms comprise several herds kept in barns or other housings, perhaps even within the hold itself. Dwarf farms are tended by those rare Dawi who prefer the outdoors to the confines of the mountain caverns. They are a strange breed, often viewed with suspicion by their more traditionally-minded kin. And yet, without them, the Dwarfs within the holds would have no meat for their stews, milk for their stinking cheese, or even flour for their beloved stonebread.[3f]
For all Dwarfs who work above ground, the Farmers and Herders Guild is the guild they turn to. The Herders' Guild hall is usually close to the surface of a hold, away from the king's chambers, off the beaten path in one of the side tunnels where easy access to animal pens and mountain pastures is possible. The Herders' Guild's influence in the hold's affairs reflects the general Dwarfen attitude to those of their kin that spend much time above ground, i.e. they have very little.[3g]
Notable Livestock[]
- Chicken - Chickens are a staple food source in the Old World, both for the eggs they lay and the meat on their bones.[1a]
- Cow - Cows are valued more for their milk than their flesh. For most peasants, beef is a rare luxury.[1a]
- Donkey - These cantankerous beasts are stubborn, wilful, and generally unpleasant. Still, they are cheaper than horses and can be used for labour or as pack animals, and are otherwise similar to ponies.[1a]
- Draft Horse - Draft horses are specially bred for labour, such as pulling ploughs, wagons, or carts, and are otherwise similar to a light warhorse.[1a]
- Goat - Valued for their milk and their ability to clean up rubbish, goats are nearly as common as chickens in the Old World.[1a]
- Mule - A mule is what you get when a donkey and a horse have a romantic encounter. Mules make ideal draw or pack animals. They are similar to a riding warhorse.[1a]
- Ox - Oxen are incredible beasts of burden and are used mostly as dray animals. They are similar to a light warhorse, albeit slower.[1a]
- Pig - Like goats, pigs are fantastic at cleaning up waste and producing fertilizer, as well as serving as a good source of protein in the form of pork.[1a]
- Sheep - Sheep provide wool, one of the most common materials for clothing. As a result, these animals are widespread across the Old World; though the majority of them are found in Estalia and Bretonnia.[1a]
Sources[]
- 1: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition: Old World Armoury (RPG)
- 1a: pg. 83
- 2: Total War: Warhammer III (PC Game)
- 3: Total War: Warhammer (PC Game)