Tulgar

FOR THOSE WHO CAN PAY THE PRICE, tulgars are a resource that can turn the tide of war, deliver a brutal blow to an unsuspecting enemy, or raze even the best-guarded vaults_ Born in the days of the Dawn War, these savage creatures can be found across the planes, from lost archipelagos in the mortal world, to abandoned astral dominions, to massive earthmotes drifting through the Elemental Chaos. These tall, muscular humanoids live in clans ranging in size from a few dozen to several hundred Tulgars accept pay from any masters in exchange for their specialty service-violence and destruction.

The tulgars were once primal spirits_ They embodied a place of primal power that was eradicated by a cataclysm during the Dawn War. Devoid of purpose, the primal spirits once bound to these sites were cast into the world and abandoned by their own kind, who were focused on their conflict with the gods. Filled with resentment toward the deities that made their sacred sites into battlegrounds and toward the mortals who had transformed those sites into cities, mines, and farms, these primal spirits made a pact to destroy everything the gods and their followers had created.

To that end, the spirits took on forms of flesh and abandoned their primal heritage. Their enmity shaped their new bodies, giving them height and strength beyond those of normal mortals. Vengeance eluded the first of the tulgars, however. In the aftermath of the Dawn War, the gods stayed safe in their astral dominions, even as the mortal races spread and grew. Unable to consummate their rage, the tulgars became bitter and barbaric, transforming over centuries into a race of powerful mercenaries. Today, the tulgars are divided into countless clans. Some tulgars have all but abandoned their ancient pact; others curse the weak hearts of their kin and hold revenge against the gods as a central tenet of their lives.

The first tulgars' decision to place their spirits within mortal bodies came at a great cost Rejected by the gods and the primal spirits alike, a tulgar that dies is t72 forced to return to flesh, often far from its comrades and clan. In this way, tulgars maintain a cycle of swift reincarnation. Their minds and memories survive the process intact, keeping the tulgars' ancient enmity alive forever.
Nowadays, with the Dawn War a distant memory, it is rare for a primal spirit to lose its place and identity as the tulgars once did. However, when a spirit is left adrift, all tulgars sense it Such an event represents one of the few circumstances under which the tulgar clans take action on their own behalf. They travel in search of the displaced spirit to offer it refuge among them and to destroy any mortal creatures that stand in their way.

The great warriors of the past guide the actions of the tulgars, with spirit talkers and other powerful leaders interpreting their will. It is said that a spirit talker can look into the eyes of another tulgar and see the spirits of fallen warriors incarnated within it. Spirit talkers are more in touch with their primal essence than other tulgars are, but the long-ago schism that gave birth to the race means that this power drives many spirit talkers mad. Tulgars call the malady "spirit sickness," and they ritually murder any tribe member that shows signs of it. With the body's death, a tulgar's troubled spirit is cleansed and can be reborn.

Tulgars covet trophies taken from the enemies they slay. Warriors and flesh hunters seize weapons and armor from fallen foes, lashing these items to themselves even if they cannot use the items. Halfspirits and spirit talkers collect totems, fetishes, and religious icons that demonstrate their superiority over the faithful of gods and primordials alike. Tulgars sometimes carry magic items whose powers they remain unaware of, and they guard even the most worthless of their treasures with their lives.

Tulgars are found across the planes and in the company of Virtually any intelligent creature that has enough power and wealth to hire them. Tulgars sometimes work toward their own ends, pillaging cities or delving into ruins in search of artifacts or displaced primal spirits.

The tulgars' eternal hatred toward the gods that destroyed them and the primal spirits that rejected them manifests as enmity for immortals and natural creatures alike. As such, many tulgars work freely with factions that try to undermine those groups, including the forsaken, aberrants, demon cults, and elementals. However, some tulgars have no such inhibitions, taking up service with devils or the devotees ofBane, Gruumsh, Tiamat, and other dark gods.

TULGAR FLESH HUNTER
When they come for you, the only thing to do is run. The problem is, they want you to run. Generations spent hunting down humanoids have granted tulgar flesh hunters an acute sense of smell. A flesh hunter is a relentless tracker, leading the other members of a tulgar tribe as they close in on their foes.

TULGAR SAVAGE
The angels cut through the tulgars' ranks, yet always more tulgars approached to fill the spaces, possessed of the strength of the greatest tulgar warriors that had lived and died before them. Each tulgar savage that fell embraced its death with an unholy purpose, its spirit strengthening its allies as they closed steadily in.

TULGAR HALF-SPIRIT
When their best warriors began to disappear from the edge ofthe fray, the general knew the battle had taken a deadly turn. The tulgars had unleashed their half-spirits, rare warriors able to take a form that reflected their primal origin. Striking unseen from the shadows, these stealthy killers could turn the tide of any fight.

TULGAR WARRIOR
The initial assault had been tough enough. but the fury ofthe lesser tulgars was forgotten quickly as the advance ofthe tulgar warriors began. The bloodthirsty howls and whirling axes ofthese great brutes
sent the defenders scattering.

TULGAR SPIRIT TALKER
The shrieking voice ofa spirit talker rings out over the crash ofcombat, offering up oaths to the primal power from which the tulgars were spawned. The archers take the brunt of the spirit talkers' attacks while the spirit talkers call forth minions to contend with the enemy's melee combatants. Despite the best attempts ofthe defending spellcasters, they could not keep their defensive magic up. The spirit talker shattered their zones of magic, its cackling laughter
echoing among the ruins.

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