The Gamekeeper Turned Poacher

The district around a covenant is sorely troubled by a bouda, and it is suggested that a Cynamolgus might be the best solution to this elusive creature even a magus cannot kill what he cannot find. The characters are asked to track one down; there are rumors of a wanderer divorced from his homeland nearby. The price he asks is steep, and once he has completed his task, the characters may discover that he is more trouble than the bouda ever was.

of venomous scorpions and spiders whose bite brings swift death to their victims. Beyond this land of venom is the pasturage of the Cynamolgi. These tall men wear great beards and maintain packs of savage dogs which are used to drive off the lions, leopards, hyenas, and other fearsome predators that would feast on their cattle if they could. These cattle are highly prized by all, and are the target of Nubian slavers; the Cynamolgi are themselves rarely taken as slaves since they are too troublesome to capture.

A Cynamolgus's bond with his dog pack is a strong one. A Cynamolgus man is suckled on a bitch, and his teat-mates become the foundation of his pack. No one can approach the dogs save the man who raised and trained them, for fear of serious injury. When a Cynamolgus dies, his dogs must be killed and buried with him, or else they run wild and become the very ravening cattle predators from which they used to guard.

Cynamolgi have a reputation for being a solemn race who weigh every matter with great deliberation, but are decisive when they act, and fierce in war.

The land of the Cynamolgi is west of that of the Megabari or Trogodytes, who are themselves south of the Ethiopians. Like their neighbors, the Megabari are pastoralists, although they herd sheep and goats as well as cattle. The Megabari go naked except for their loins, which they cover with skins. They carry round shields covered with stretched oxhide and fight with spears and arrows, but their champions carry massive clubs with iron knobs.

The Megabari are nomadic, following pasture and the rains. Each band has a tyrant to rule them; the tyrant is the owner of the two pairs of animals whom the band consider to be their parents — a bull and cow, and a ram and sheep. Once one of these animals die, its mate is killed and another pair of the same species is chosen to be the new Father and Mother of the band. The owner of this pair becomes the tyrantin-waiting. Once the old tyrant loses one of the other parents, the tyrant-in-waiting assumes full authority, and he is "adopted"

by a second pair of parents.

The women hold power in the bands, and are afforded great respect, and no man will ever dare strike a woman. Only the tyrant has a wife; the other women choose with whom they will lie. If the tyrant's wife should choose a partner, then he is bound to pay the tyrant a specified number of sheep.

When the rains come, the Megabari graze their stock and feed on their blood and milk, which they allow to seethe together for a while. However, as the pasture withers, the Megabari retreat into the marshy places and fight with one another for the scant grassland. Such wars begin with the throwing of stones; once injuries ensue they continue with bows and arrows, which leads to many casualties in mere moments, so good archers are they. The fighting is usually terminated by the women, who rush into the fray to protect their sons.

The Carnivorous Bull

The carnivorous bull originates in the land of the Megabari, but is occasionally brought back by Nubians who capture a Megabari tribe as slaves and take their livestock as spoils. Some believe that Megabari

Intrinsic Virtue & Flaw (Men): Puissant Bows; Prohibition (harming women)

Intrinsic Virtue & Flaw (Women): Temporal Influence; Sensitive (to disrespect)