Caldera Demons
The Caldera Demons of Stehreel are a very yellow race. One of five races of Hkahnihn, the Caldera Demons were the last born in the beginning. They trend towards an average height of 208cm (6'10") and have the most disparate builds between genders for the Hkahnihn, with the women being some of the lightest built Hkahnihn and the men being some of the heaviest. Their coloration ranges from very light and pale butters to dark mustard yellows in skin tone, they have eyes that change color with their moods, and their hair ranges in shades of silver through platinum and mercury. They possess a single horn, growing up at an angle from their foreheads, and the second longest tails of the Hkahnihn. The women of the species are the only Hkahnihn to bear wings, a point of dominance for them over all others.
The very presence of a Caldera Demon can make others uneasy, they can project an aura of unease about them that’s eerie. Some say this is tied to the rampant lunacy that infects their people, driving them to dangerous strength as spark wielders, but others think it’s their practices that affect them so.
Shown here are Olivia Pragmaton, a powerful Cleric bound to the service of the First, and Eryx, an escaped slave who seeks to rise above the station he was born into. Olivia and her two sisters have laid siege to the capital city of Lunatria and seek to bring it down, while the servants of the Inkari stand in her way. Eryx has learned the difficult magic of Time and has been enlisted to aid a castle overrun by corruption and demons.
Sanctum Primus, denoted by the Upward Horn and Banner Crest, is a collection of three Covens that work together in the southern polar region. The single horn represents the pride of the people in service to the First of the Nameless. The banner has Primus written across it in the script of the Caldera Demons.
Sanctum Secundus, denoted by the Downward Horn and Banner Crest, is a collection of three Covens that work together in the northern polar region. The single horn represents the pride of the people in service to the First of the Nameless. The banner has Secundus written across it in the script of the Caldera Demons.
Each Coven of the Caldera Demons is run by a Primarch, a High Priestess of the Nameless in direct family line from one of the daughters of the first Caldera Demon. Below the Primarch are circles of elected priestesses that rule the rest of the Coven at the direction of their Primarch. A Caldera Demon elected into these circles serves for their whole life in that capacity and will only be replaced on death. Only Priestesses may lead the Caldera Demons, no political power is offered to anyone else.
As a people the Caldera Demons are strictly matriarchal. Due to their religion, women are considered the very daughters of their goddesses, and men are imperfect and useful only for breeding and labor. Women run the households, own businesses, or serve as commanders in the military while men exist simply as slaves to the only true people: women. Men are not even given last names and are born into bondage. They can be sold, given, traded, or even killed by any woman that owns them without censure.
Caldera Demons practice ritual sacrifice as a people. During most of the year they offer sacrifice to the Nameless only once per week while during the perihelion of the season of chaos a sacrifice is offered once a day for a full month. These sacrifices can be Elven or Caldera Demon slaves, captured renegades, or even other Hkahnihn who have offended the priestesses. If none can be offered then a priestess offers herself as sacrifice to the Holy Nameless.
The rewards of the Caldera Demons are tied closely with their belief structures. Fire is said to cleanse, and the worthy need not fear even a molten brand. Branding is the preferred method of recognition among the Caldera Demons, and are bestowed with special brands that confer gifts and blessing upon the recipients. These gifts can even be a specially bonded man-child to be their slave.
The Caldera Demons worship The First primarily, but also the other female Nameless secondarily. Latreis tou Anotatou Thea, the Worshipers of the Supreme Goddess, are the prime church in the Sanctums but not the only one. The worshipers of destruction, death, and chaos also inhabit the Sanctums and there is a branch of Consecratio as well. Caldera Demons consider fire a purifying force and respect the Inkari Kain as the only one of the Spectral forces smart enough to assist the Nameless in their goals.
In magic, all warlocks are welcome, as are Clerics of the Nameless. Above them all are Clerics of the First, considered the most holy of all clerical followers. Surprising, considering their Spectral nature, but Shamans are also a powerful force in magic for the Caldera Demons; owing perhaps to their desire to ruin and dominate everything that can be linked to the infernal Inkari.
The armies of the Sanctums are primarily casters by nature. Clerics, Warlocks, Tempests harnessing their natural Lunacy, and even Shamans and Wizards twisting the Spectral elements to their bidding can be found on the front lines of Caldera Demon warfare. A woman is allowed to train her slaves to be her guardians and protectors if they are bonded slaves, and so war is one of the only professions a male Caldera Demon can be seen as useful for beyond simple labor.
Tactics of the Caldera Demons rely heavily on their wings and their Goddesses. Their slave retinues are expendable tools thrown into the meatgrinder as a distraction so that they can strike from far out of reach of their enemy's weapons.
Here is a developer diary recorded by the creator of Stehreel. For more information on the Cavern Demons, check out our facebook page!