Cultural Lore

Suggested Options: Talagaad, Talabheim, Hergig, Ravenstein, Küsel, Ahlenhof, Nuln, Altdorf, Middenheim, Marienburg

You are very familiar with a specific city, port, town, Dwarf Karak, or large fortress, and never get lost within its bounds. You know where to find an NPC who’ll put you up for the night, buy or sell unusual goods, and help with any common problem. You know the city’s public figures by name and sight, along with its recent history, founding myths, looming threats, and any odd laws or customs of the city’s inhabitants.

You're also familiar with the quirks of city life more generally, standing apart from the country bumpkins who wander in come market day. When you arrive in a new town, it doesn’t take you long to find a place to eat, stay, or find odd-job employment. You can instinctively tell when you’re in a rough part of town, or somewhere you’re not welcome.

You know what to wear, how to talk, and how to act to be recognised by career criminals as one of their own. On your home turf, you know the territories of local gangs, and who they’re expected to pay tribute to. Even when you arrive somewhere new, you can quickly access any black market, and arrange a meeting with anyone connected to the criminal underworld. You can always ferret out any local gossip about your fellow ne’er do wells, and can spot common cons and grifts without needing to make a Test. With the right tools, you can pick locks and disable traps.

Suggested Options: Taal, Rhya, Ulric, Sigmar, Manann, Morr, Shallya, Verena, Ranald, Myrmidia, Grimnir, Grungni, Valaya, Asuryan, Isha, Kurnous, Lileath

You know what to wear, how to talk, and how to act to be recognised as a specific god’s devotee. You’re familiar with their most obscure holy days and tenets of your chosen god’s worship, and with doctrinal splits within the faith. You know the leaders of the cult by name, and where to find your god’s nearest communal place of worship. You recognise fanes and relics that are sacred to your chosen god, and miracles enacted by invoking their power.

You have lived in the Karaks of the Dwarfs, ancient underground holds of hardy clansfolk. You are numerate, can converse in the Khazalid language, and can read and inscribe the Klinkarhun (the Dwarf runic alphabet). You know the lords of your clan and hold, and can recall their trade, the deeds of their ancestors, and the grudges they are most eager to settle. You know how to show reverence to Grungni, Grimnir, Valaya, and the other ancestor gods. You recognise the works of evil creatures like Orcs, Goblins, living dead, and the creatures of Chaos, along with other wretched subterranean creatures that most Humans assume to be apocryphal.

You have lived in the mightiest Human realm of the Old World, a fractured Empire of provinces and city-states defended with faith, steel, and gunpowder. You can converse (but are not necessarily literate) in Reikspiel, the primary language of the Empire, and can recognise common coinage. You can recall the great personages of the Empire, historic and current, and know the rough makeup of provinces, major riverways, and so on. You know a little of the old enemies of the Empire: the undead, along with Orcs and Goblins, but likely think them a threat of the past or of far-off lands alone. You know the basic tenets of the Empire’s most commonly worshipped gods (page 137), and various superstitions regarding manifestations of heresy, such as magic, mutation, and the violation of the dead.

You have lived in Ulthuan, the sanctuary of the Elves and realm of the Phoenix Kings. You can converse and write in Elthárin, the language of Elves, and are decently schooled in arithmetic, and the history and geography of the known world. You know the name and heraldries of the ten Princes of Ulthuan, and keep abreast of the political intrigues between their agents. You know the names and tenets of the Elven pantheon, especially the Cadai that rule in the heavens. You recognise the works of evil creatures like Orcs, Goblins, and living dead, but are especially wary of the threat of Chaos and the corruption it brings.

You know what to wear, how to talk, and how to act like a noble, to get by in the company of aristocracy or royalty without embarrassment. You recognise the heraldries of all the great families, and know their dominions, histories and current political allegiance. You keep up with gossip at court. You can secure an invite to any noble’s social function.

You have lived within the bounds of Bretonnia, a feudal kingdom west of the Empire, and a land of peasant serfs and chivalric lords. You can converse (but are not necessarily literate) in the Bretonnian language, and recognise the common coinage of the land. You know your king and duke by name, and could recognise your local lord by face. You know the tenets of the Lady of the Lake, and the legends of Gilles de Breton and the Grail Companions. You’ve learned various superstitions regarding monsters inimical to the kingdom: Orcs and Goblins, Beastmen, mutants, sorcerers, and the living dead.

You know what to wear, how to talk, and how to act like a soldier, ingratiating yourself with officers or the rank-and-file. You can recognise a soldier’s rank and regiment by sight, and can recall any famous or recent engagements that regiment fought in. You know the basics of battlefield tactics, and understand the logistics of military campaigning.

Suggested Options: Talabecland, Mootland, Hochland, Middenland, Ostland, Stirland, Reikland, Westerland

You have lived, worked, or regularly travelled within a rural province, about the size of a Bretonnian dukedom, High Elf kingdom, Wood Elf realm or Elector Count’s dominion. You know its roads and rivers, its coaching inns and ferries, along with all the nearest villages, watchtowers and larger settlements. You know the quirks and sub-cultures of its resident population, along with who holds power, and what they’re threatened by.

More generally, you know how to mind your manners around country folk, and can tell where you’re not welcome.

You have lived in Athel Loren, Laurelorn Forest, or another dominion of the Wood Elves. You can converse (but are not necessarily literate) in Elthárin, the Elven language, and know at least a little of the lore of trees and spirits. You know the wards or kingdoms of your forested realm, and which lords hold dominion over them. You know the names and tenets of the Elven pantheon, and how to treat with spites and other nature spirits. You recognise the works of creatures like Orcs, Goblins, and living dead, but are especially wary of Chaos corruption, in all its subtlest guises.