Introduction
The Trolls call themselves The Thräœll. This word is virtually impossible for most other Tribes to pronounce , so they are only referred to as The Troll, or Trolls.
The Trolls were created by the current Great Ogre as slaves, and although given minds of their own, they were treated inhumanely, regularly beaten, and often denied food. In many ways they were viewed as beasts of burden.
Over time, some were discarded as too old or damaged to be useful, whilst others were left behind on hunting or food gathering trips, and forgotten about. The Ogres considered them as tools, and otherwise irrelevant. Some
survived, and in time made small villages where they tried to exist. They needed food and resources, and with the Ogres to the west, they moved east.
In time, the Ogres also expanded east, searching for raw materials and new hunting grounds. Scouts discovered several Trollian villages, and in due course, that occupied by Volkar and Stoltvar. They were the equivalent of mid teenage
back then, and being fit, were taken as slaves, along with younger men. The old and the young were killed, the younger women, used and abused, before being executed.
Notable Trolls
Volkar and Stoltvar – the two Trolls who guided the Allies into Berlin. Later Volkar becomes Leader of the trolls, and Stoltvar becomes deputy leader
Naming Convention
Note: All male Troll names end in ar. Female names end in eur. They have 2 syllables.
Powers
The Ring of the New Tenth, created by Jack and Kay. This ring initially has little power, other than to adjust shields and transport limited numbers. In time, the powers are increased, but only as much as needs be.
Language
They speak their own language and Ogre. Over decades, the next generation learns English and Ancestor, and other languages also.
Funerary Rights
Both the Ogres and Trolls eat their dead. To the Trolls, this represents the ultimate form of respect. They believe that when a family member dies, their spirit stays with the body and will be consumed by evil spirits that lurk
within the earth if buried, but that fire can cleanse a body of harmful influences, and purify the spirit within.
When a body is pronounced dead, they cleanse it, including internal organs, of all evil, including the gut, discarding the contents thereof. The deceased is marinated externally, and internally with special herbs and spices. The
carcass is set on a special cooking altar and bestowed with gifts, keepsakes, and flowers.
The cooking temperature is critical, because it must cleanse the spirit without consuming it in the flames. Once the body has been cooked properly, it is offered to the family, in order of age first, and then extended relationship.
The greater a person’s worth, so the more Trolls accept the honour of eating this blessed flesh. They even cook the bones into a soup afterwards, they consider it a life-giving tonic, and hence no remains can be found in the fossil
record.
By eating the person, the acceptor takes into their own being, the purified essence, the spirit of a dearly loved person of greatest esteem and importance to them. Through consuming this, they themselves move to a higher plain
and can become more enlightened.
Trollian Society
Before they were given freedom by Owain, leading the Allied troops, most Trolls had no concept of freedom; they were slaves. They worked in heavy industrial factories, and were beaten ruthlessly for the slightest error, or sometime,
just because the Ogre in charge felt like it.
Their homes were made of rubbish, scrap materials discarded by the Ogres. This is described in Book Two, where Jack and Owain, their party, visit the shanty town of the workers in Olde Prussia.It is a desperate place. They immediately
call Da Phai Nai to feed the Trolls, and later, not mentioned in the text, assist with building better dwellings. A group of helpers assist the Trolls become a nation, showing them building techniques, and how to fashion tools using
the Ogre factories.
Trollian women do the same work as men, and are also beaten, and sometimes raped. Most young girls lose their virginity to Ogre gang-rape, and often this is their first day at work; a sick induction ritual. Afterwards they are
often beaten for not completing the day's work.
Perhaps fortunately, births of crossbreeds are rare, and when they happen, these are treated in even worse ways, most ending up as dinner. Conversely, the Trolls can reproduce easily, and regularly do. Some of their babies are
culled and served at Ogre feasts. Otherwise, most grow to early adolescence before beginning work.
Trollian Perception
The Trolls see the world as an automaton would do, a robot that does exactly what it is told. With no idea of freedom, emancipation comes as a great shock to their nation.
What is remarkable, is that for all their hostility, the Ogres did not destroy the unique essence of their creations; to make them pliable slaves, they had to imbue the Troll with fear. This they did by allowing them emotions,
an alien concept to most Ogres.
After their emancipation, the Trolls were given Tribal status as The New Tenth, so as to distinguish them from the Ogres. The release of æons of servitude was palpable, and for the very first time in their entire history,
they were allowed to be 'themselves'. The mood and the moment was captured when Volkar and Stoltvar were brought to sit and share table with the other leaders of the Allied Tribes.
A riotous frenzy followed the feast, where dancers and singers released their joy of at last being free. They did not understand what it meant, but celebrated with gusto.
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