Men of the Mountains

The Men of the Mountains are the most solitary race of men. Ancient of custom and rabidly xenophobic, they rarely leave their mountain holdfasts in their ancient country of  Tressen . And yet, these traditions have served them well, having kept them safe and disconnected from the world right up until the time when the entire world came knocking. The Men of the Mountains once ranged from the great Titan mountains all the way to the mouth of the great  River Tresse , but were displaced and driven back into their most ancient lands by the invading  Naziki . As a result, they have become withdrawn and distrustful of the world. Theirs is a culture that values honor above all, where men are more stubborn than even the  Karkovoi  to the south.

They do not produce much in the way of grain nor luxury, instead preferring simple lives in houses of stone, herding goats and mining for iron deep within the mountains. Their kings are old and ornery, having been reduced to Archdukes by the new regime after thousands of years of sovereignty. Many say Tressen is merely biding its time, waiting until it can fight off the yoke of Imperial oppression and then recede back into itself once more.

Physical Characteristics
The mountain men are taller and fairer than the other ancient Men of Sunrise. They stand between six and six-and-a-half feet in height. Pale blonde of hair, round of ear, and blue of eye, they are striking in appearance, and some scholars theorize that they form a bridge between the shorter races of men and the Giants in the north. In general, they are built thickly, like bears, with broad shoulders and powerful limbs. They do not wear jewelry in general, and wear mixtures of roughspun cloth and furs to protect against the cold.