Beastmen
| Beastmen | ||
| ||
| Setting: | Age of Fantasy | |
| Games: | Age of Fantasy, Age of Fantasy: Skirmish, Age of Fantasy: Regiments, Age of Fantasy: Quest | |
| Species: | Beastmen | |
Beastmen are a coalition of different species of bestial humanoids, which rely on ambush tactics to overwhelm their enemies.
For centuries, the Beastmen coexisted peacefully in the southern savannah of Tyria, where they established imposing cities and prospered through trade. However, the emergence of the Rift brought widespread devastation, reducing many of their cities to ruins and forcing them to flee as Daemons invaded their homeland. Today, most Beastmen have retreated northward, surviving through raiding and scavenging as they continue their search for a new home.
History
Wild Savannah
South of Tyria lies a vast, untamed savannah where wildlife has roamed freely since time immemorial. This ancient and untouched land was shaped solely by the natural rhythms of the world, remaining wild and primal. Beneath its surface, however, latent magical energies whispered of a deeper power - one that would awaken in the form of the Sacred Tree.
The Sacred Tree
At the heart of the largest watering hole in the region stood a towering, verdant tree. Its branches offered shade, its fruit sustenance, and from its roots flowed a mysterious magical essence that transformed ordinary beasts into sentient beings. The tree's sap carried transformative properties, granting intelligence and spiritual awareness to those who consumed its gifts. Over generations, its influence radiated outward, creating concentric circles of awakening across the savannah.
Waking Life
Over countless generations, the animals that fed on the tree's enchanted fruit began to change. Slowly, they gained sentience and formed distinct tribes, each shaped by their origin: the proud Ndoli, cunning Waheni (hyena-kin), nomadic Hapari, formidable Ndwarī, and elusive Silombi. Though territorial conflicts marked their early history, the tribes gradually learned to coexist through shared rituals and trade. These early Beastmen developed a sophisticated culture that blended practical survival skills with artistic expression, their woven fabrics, steel craftsmanship, and oral traditions reflecting a deep connection to both nature and the sacred.
Time of Prosperity
United under their shared reverence for the Sacred Tree, the Beastmen established a flourishing civilization across the savannah. A magnificent capital rose around the tree, its organic architecture blending seamlessly with the sacred canopy above, while satellite cities spread outward along vital watering holes and trade routes. Skilled artisans constructed stone fortresses and temples adorned with mystic runes that pulsed with the Tree's energy, their designs reflecting a perfect harmony between nature and craftsmanship. The civilization thrived through advanced metallurgy that produced weapons and jewelry of remarkable quality, alongside intricate textile production that transformed wild fibers into garments worthy of spiritual ceremonies. This golden age also saw the establishment of profound spiritual and scholarly traditions, with shamans preserving ancestral knowledge through oral epics and sacred carvings. For centuries, this delicate balance between wild instinct and civilized achievement defined their prosperous era, as the Beastmen's cultural achievements matched the majesty of the Sacred Tree itself.
The Holy City
At the heart of Beastmen culture stood the Holy City, a marvel of organic architecture that grew symbiotically with the Sacred Tree. Its stepped temples and winding pathways followed the Tree's natural growth patterns, while underground springs channeled its magical essence throughout the city. The Tree's canopy formed a living cathedral where shamans performed rituals and preserved ancestral knowledge. This spiritual capital became the anchor of Beastmen identity, its very stones imbued with sacred power.
Swallowed Up
The cataclysm came without warning when the earth split asunder. Known as Skarenda, the Rift tore through the savannah's heart with terrifying force, fracturing the land in multiple directions like glass struck by a hammer. The devastation was absolute and unforgiving, the mighty Sacred Tree, pillar of their civilization, toppled into the gaping abyss, its once-clear life-giving waters turning black as poison as they poured into the depths. Stone buildings that had stood for centuries crumbled in moments as the hungry earth swallowed entire districts whole, while the carefully balanced magical energies that sustained the land twisted into chaotic vortices that warped reality itself. From these nightmarish fissures emerged the Daemons, skeletal and horned creatures whose very presence seemed to drain hope from the air, wielding weapons of shimmering darkness that cut through steel and flesh alike. Those Beastmen fortunate enough to survive the initial disaster found themselves facing an unstoppable invasion force, their once-proud civilization reduced to desperate bands of refugees as the Daemons systematically drove them from their ancestral lands in a relentless tide of destruction.
City of Tears
Now, only haunting ruins remain where the glorious Holy City once stood, their broken silhouettes casting long shadows across the wasted land. The few structures still standing serve as ghostly reminders of former glory, broken arches carved with intricate tribal motifs that tell stories no one remembers completely, shattered obelisks whose ancient runes still faintly glow at night with fading magic, and the massive stone basin that once collected the sacred sap of the Tree now filled with brackish, stagnant water that reflects only emptiness. The surviving Beastmen have diverged into two starkly different paths in their struggle to endure. Some remain traditionalists, making dangerous pilgrimages to the ruins to perform rituals at broken altars, clinging to the old ways with desperate faith as they whisper prayers to gods that may no longer listen. Others have become pragmatists, having abandoned the ancient traditions entirely to survive as raiders or mercenaries, their once-sacred weapons now turned to profane purposes. The Wild Savannah stands as a grim cautionary testament to the fragility of civilizations, where once there was vibrant life and potent magic, now only the ceaseless wind whispers through empty halls and across the Rift's jagged edges, carrying with it the echoes of what was lost and the unanswerable question of whether anything can ever be reclaimed.
Society
The Beastmen are split into little orphan tribes, having to decide if they want to be the guardians of ruins or wander into the unknown, and how much of their former ideals they are willing to forego in order to survive and thrive again. Many Beastmen now wander up the rift towards the heart of Tyria, looking for a new home. In order to survive, they raid settlements and burn down forests to build their iron equipment and camps.
The Tribes
Several species of Beastmen exist. Their native names are Ndoli, Waheni, Hapari, Ndwari, Kemba, and Silombi. They have bonded over generations and learned to work together, each species bringing its strengths. Now that they are reduced to smaller refugee bands, this balance has been harder to maintain. Some bands lack one or several species, which means they can’t rely on Hapari for scouting or on Ndoli for hunting. Some groups are dominated by a single tribe, enforcing their will over others. Most Beastmen view these bands with contempt as failures who have abandoned the wisdom of their people.
A Divided People
The surviving bands of Beastmen are often qualified as either ‘Keepers’ or ‘Wanderers’. The Keepers are those who remain on the former Beastmen territory, trying to maintain the temples, protect the ruins and uphold the traditions. They must face a lack of resources and frequent conflict. Some of it comes from looters looking for valuable artefacts, but a lot of the clashes are with Rift Daemons, since the Rift is an open chasm through most of the Savannah and the Daemons are pushing outwards more and more.
The Wanderers are those who left the Savannah, either pushed away by starvation and violence, or making a deliberate choice to leave their old society behind and try to build something new. Either way, they must learn to adapt to new environments and find a way to secure a place for themselves in territories that are often already claimed by another faction.
Sometimes, bands of Wanderers end up finding a permanent territory to settle, but this is the exception rather than the norm.
A Hard Life
Whether they are Keepers or Wanderers, all Beastmen have suffered one notable transformation. Where their old civilisation was very peaceful, focused on fine craftsmanship, communion with nature and developing one’s intellect, the trauma of the Rift forced them to become warriors. Coupled with the destruction of most of their infrastructure and environment, this has turned them into fierce fighters, wielding crude, heavy metal weapons. They can no longer take years to slowly grow a tree into the required shape; now they chop down forests and pollute rivers with their forges. Most of them do not relish this, and it pains them to do so. But softness has become an unaffordable luxury for them.
Rule by Consent
A Beastmen tribe does not have a single leader. Their way of life was guided by a religion centred around the Sacred Tree and the associated Gods (believed to be the ancestors of each species) and their Shamans are still the main moral authority of a tribe, as the Beastmen’s beliefs still hold sway over most of them. Warrior chiefs, those that preside over fighting and hunting, now have more influence than before since conflict is more prevalent. Each species represented in a tribe also has one or several representatives that will speak for their kind during debates, every night around the fire. Consensus is important to the Beastmen, but now it also varies a lot by tribes. Some groups have essentially become warbands submitted to their leaders, while others have rallied around a visionary shaman. In these desperate times, anything is possible and the old structures are weakened.
Natural Nomads
Even in the heyday of their cities, Beastmen cultivated a link with the natural world, and frequently made long treks and hunting trips. This has allowed them to survive the fall of their cities, as they fell back on a nomadic lifestyle they never completely forgot. Some Wanderers seek the wildest possible places, eager to simply exist in nature, hunting and sleeping and forgetting their pain. Others hope to find somewhere to rebuild cities and revive their old civilisations. Many wish only to survive, working as mercenaries, poachers or bandits, not thinking much ahead of their next meal. Some Keepers roam the old ruins, ambushing daemons and looters, cursing those who turned tail and ran away. Others among the Keepers are exploring the ruins and trying to find the right artefacts to revive the Sacred Tree, which they believe is the key to their rebirth.
Play Style
Beastmen are a very melee focused army. While the defense is lackluster and only one spell to change this, the offensive capabilities are very good. Nearly every unit has furious and there are enough ways to buff this even further. You want to get into melee as quickly as possible and try to use your overwhelming amount of attacks.
See Also:
Similar To
- Warhammer Fantasy: Beastmen
- Age of Sigmar: Beastmen
- Kings of War: The Herd
Miniatures
There are offical OPR models for all units, but you can use whatever beastial miniatures you have laying around. From centaurs to gnolls and all other antrophomorphic figures can be used to represent your units.
See Also: Beastmen Miniatures
| Beastmen |
|---|
| Overview - Miniatures |
| Age of Fantasy factions |
|---|
| Beastmen - Chivalrous Kingdoms - Dark Elves - Deep-Sea Elves - Duchies of Vinci - Dwarves - Eternal Wardens Ghostly Undead - Giant Tribes - Goblins - Guilds of the Nexus - Halflings - Havoc Dwarves - Havoc Warriors High Elves - Human Empire - Kingdom of Angels - Mummified Undead - Ogres - Orcs - Ossified Undead - Ratmen Rift Daemons - Saurians - Shadow Stalkers - Sky-City Dwarves - Vampiric Undead - Volcanic Dwarves - Wood Elves |
