INTRODUCTION
The Amazons are a female band of elite soldiers and warriors from the forest lands of southern Ulthran. They are allies of the Druids of Tyndoth and actively work together to ensure the safety of the forest and those who call it home. The Amazon's are respected and world renowned warriors, who excel in war and are famous for only accepting women into their ranks. The Amazons found fame and reputation during the Age of Invasion as they beat back the Demon horde in their fury, raising up one of the finest armies of the light ever seen in Vathrian history. In the current age, the Amazon's no longer fight the traditional war, using their talents for battle to fight the corrupted creatures of the nightmare forest in Ulthran considering themselves a peacekeeping force charged with keeping their home safe. Despite the many years of peace in Vathria, the Amazons continue to train, ready for beat the drums of war at a moment's notice.
CHARACTERISTICS
The Call to War
Amazonians are not a people born but are an order forged through bond and pledge. Women of Ulthran and even as far as Nastiabach may find themselves answering the call to become an elite Amazonian. In Ulthran it is considered a great honor for a family where daughters choose to follow the Amazon way. This is similar to others who may choose to follow the path of the Druids, though it is also not uncommon for some Druid born women to also choose to join the Amazons. By forsaking their Druid heritage, they leave Tyndoth or neighboring communities and swear to the Amazon Queen. While the majority of Amazonian women come from surrounding lands, there are small groups within the faction from other kingdoms of Vathria who felt the almost ethereal and inexplicable pull to the group of elite women. The decision to join is often considered the first act of true bravery that makes a woman an Amazonian before she even makes her pledge.
Amazon women are accustomed to fighting in all manners of combat styles. From the day a recruit swears her oaths to the Queen, she is trained in every fighting method at their disposal. While they are considered masters of the sword and bow, the iconic weapon the order is the short spear. While the size of such a weapon means at least three could be holstered via shoulder straps, the Amazons women maintain that they only need one and to hold their weapon in hand is to be prepared to use it without delay or concern. They themselves are weapons, with training and expertise in various forms of unarmed hand to hand combat. Due to the nature of their training, Amazonians are ready for war in any and every environment. While the jungles of Ulthran are unlike other locations in Vathria, Amazons train for all eventualities, including extreme heat and cold training.
HISTORY
Age of Freedom
The original Amazons hailed from Sollovast, where tragedy befell their society. In the shadow of the War of the Seven Gods, peace returned to the land but the will of the Gods was left to the interpretation of the people they left behind. After the departure of Oriani, the people of Sollovast grew arrogant in their power. To prove to the Gods and themselves the greatness of Human strength, they planned to build an incredibly impossible tower that would reach the heavens. The arrogance of men was heard by the angels as the tower rose higher and higher into the sky. When it was nearing completion, the angels went to the tower, adorning each of its four sides with different decorations, all glorifying Oriani. Each side, with a unique interpretation of Oriani, attracted different kinds of people, and the groups of each side started to argue with the others about which interpretation should be used at the spire of the tower. One group would build the spire with their favored interpretation before another came and smashed it, rebuilding it with theirs. The cycle continued and the tower was abandoned. Sollovast descended into civil war and all four factions of Oriani suffered heavy losses.
While the men went to war, the wives, mothers and daughters were left home to survive. Bandits, robbers and worse preyed on them and as the wars got worse, many men never returned home. Women fled, banding together, holding the bloodied armors and weapons of their sons, fathers and husbands. They fended off the men that preyed on them and made their way to Ulthran. Feeling safer in the dangerous jungle than their home nation came as a shock because they were stronger now. They could defend themselves and protect one another. These women needed no man to look for safety so long as they had each other. They built a settlement for women only in the forest and committed themselves to the art of war. They named themselves Amazons.
Age of Invasion
During the Age of Invasion as the demons poured through the portal the Amazons rose up to defend the helpless and fight against the horde. Amazonian fury became legend as fighters and nations across the continent looked to them as exemplars of war. They suffered incredible losses against the darkness, but also never lost ground in their defense. They held on as long as they could waiting to be overrun, with the orders and belief to fight till the last woman took her final breath. The end of the Amazons however was not to be as the Druids of Ulthran joined them in their hour of need and in battle and blood formed a bond between the two peoples that still exists strong than ever in the current age of Vathrian history.
Age of New Kingdoms
The bond of the Amazons and Druids since the time of the demon invasions has only strengthened. While traditionally against the code of the Amazon to forbid relationships it was not unheard of, at least in rumor, that some Amazon women might get themselves involved in romantic trysts with members of the Druid clans. In their times of need, the Amazonians would be there for the Druid people, and they would be there for the Amazons too. Their relationship in the Age of New Kingdoms became almost symbiotic in nature. When Thellen Brightborn entered the region of Ulthran declaring his intentions of unifying the continent, the Amazons were present and ready to send the Sentinel army on their way. Conflict was close to breaking out as the female warriors saw the anguish of their Ulthrish kinsmen as the forests around them burned but eventually the Messenger and the high council of Nagundo gave in. To prevent any further destruction by the army they agreed to Thellens demands and renamed the nation to Ulthran. The amazons refused to be subsumed by the Sentinels and declared they would accept King Brightborn as ruler of Vathria, but only followed orders of their Queen. Thellen respected their indignation and allowed the Amazons to continue with no interference.
The Current Age
The Champion Skova is a great warrior and leader in the army of the Amazon women. In battle against the corrupted creatures of the dark forests, she and her sisters have proven themselves time and time again as heroes. Her mission was clear, the same as all other Amazonians. Protect the people and fight and die with her sisters, for the glory of Queen Calliou and the glory of the Amazon society. This pledge in her soul changed though with the news of her brother's murder. She had come to Ulthran at a young age with her brother Garrod to join the sisters, while he planned to become a Druid and learn the powers of nature. Despite her pledge to her Queen, Skova would meet often with her brother to compare what they had learned and told each other stories of their times with the Druids and Amazonians. His death killed a piece of her too, and she swore to vengeance on his murderer the Druid Champion Bardulf.
The Ages yet to come
The histories of tomorrow are awaiting an author, one who would tell the stories of the heroes and events not yet known. The Amazonian women are firm in their commitment to protect those who suffer and bring justice to the world. They hear the rumors shared by the Ulthrish of a darkness enveloping the world once more and so they prepare themselves for war once more. However those stories for now are unwritten and their outcomes uncertain as the looming threat grows larger across Vathria. . .