Those humans descended from the Great Houses of
the Dorns still live in the lands north of the Sea of
Pelluria. Those who remain in the environs of their
ruined cities live at the will of their conquerors and
survive offff what sustenance they can grow, poach, or
scrounge. Others huddle in subsistence communities
on the vast stretches of hill country and tundra, leftft
to lives of misery only occasionally interrupted by
Shadow patrols and legates seeking provisions and
tithes. Those who choose to run as outlaws, bearing
illegal weapons and raiding supplies from the Izrador’s
chosen, must always be on the move lest they
be hunted down and slaughtered.
Dornish people are big, even for humans, with
broad shoulders and long limbs. They have pale skin
and green or blue eyes that shine with great passion
or rage from beneath their heavy brows. Their hair
ranges from gold to red and was once worn long and
bound with metal rings, each ring commemorating a
battttle in which an individual had fought. Now many
Dorns shave their heads as a symbol of shame at their
defeat by the forces of Izrador. Dorns once wore
painted leather coats, fur boots, and heavy woolen
kilts and gowns with patttterns that marked their house
allegiances. Now they are lucky to have dirty rags in
which to wrap their hungry bodies.
The Dornish people once swore fealty to the old
monarchs of the Great Houses. The nobles were
fifiercely loyal to their people, who repaid that devotion
by adhering to familial codes of honor in both
social interactions and in battttle. In the days of old,
death was seen as far preferable to dishonoring one’s
clan; every action a Dorn undertook, whether repairing
their farmstead’s wall or meeting a foe in battttle,
was to reflect proudly on their clan’s monarch. But
with the betrayal of the Night King Othaeron, Gregor
Chander, and several other traitor princes, most Dorns
are now loyal only to their own skins and swear fealty
only to their stomachs. The shades of their ancestors,
which traditional Dorns honor with altars, prayers, and
sacrififices, would weep to see what has become of their
once-great people.
In the centuries since the Sarcosans came to Eredane,
the Dorns have become excellent riders, though
they still prefer to fifight on foot. Their weapons of
choice were long spears and greatswords, though
some chose to carry large battttleaxes. Today, Shadow
patrols kill armed humans on sight, so the rare Dorns
who go armed use whatever weapons are available.