Marak Kender

Article written by Uziel

Marak Kender (also known as Marakai) are a dour type of Kender that are native to Taladas and hail from the Marak Valleys of the Steamwall Mountains. The Marakai once lived carefree lives like their Ansalonian cousins, and were originally bordered by the Aurim Empire to the north, and the Cha'asii elves to the east. Their only singular vague threat came from the Hobgoblins who shared the Steamwall Mountains with them, but even they were not a real enemy. The kender believed that they were favored and protected by the gods.

However the Great Destruction brought about death and destruction to their land and changed everything. The sky and flora around them became covered in ash, the waters of the region were poisoned, and the walls of the valleys crushed many homes and entire communities. At first, the Marakai blamed themselves for their pride, believing they had somehow angered the gods. In time, they turned from the gods and became suspicious of their neighbours and travellers through their realm.

The Marakai are still "handlers" like the rest of their kind, but they lack much of the cheerful enthusiasm of Ansalonian kender. What little mischief and fun they delight in, are normally devious pranks and hurtful jokes. The kender band together in family units in their separate valleys, and have been known to occasionally fight amongst themselves. Even murdering a kender from a rival family/house is not out of the question for a Marakai. Despite the horrid conditions of their land, many Marakai have developed small farms and tend to crops. They normally set a series of cunning traps around their settlements, as a means of protecting themselves against hobgoblins and other intruders.

The average Marak Kender stands over three feet tall, has elfin features and a gaunt face. Most Marakai have dark hair and dress in drab garments of either black or gray shades. They speak their own tongue, which derives from Auric, but most Marakai can also speak the Common tongue of Taladas.

Following the Godless Night, the kender were befriended by the Black Dragon Gloomwing, who appeared to befriend them and serve as their protector. However in time, the dragon brought The Teacher, one of the Faceless Brethren, who told the kender he could make them powerful and no longer fearful of other races. Many of the kender believed him and trailed the Teacher to Starshimmer Lake, where they were transformed into Shadow-Fiends.

A small few of the Marakai resisted the Teacher's summons and were not transformed. Following the fall of The Teacher and the driving off of the shadow-fiends, only 400 or so kender have survived beyond 424 AC.

References

Trail of the Black Wyrm, p.232, 237-240, 246-248
Time of the Dragon, p.81-82

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This article has been viewed 318 times. It was added on May 19, 2008, and was last modified on May 19, 2008.

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