The Red Belly Traders
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Also known as the Red Belly Bandits , this clan dress as ostentatiously as possible, often with tattoos and outfits displaying the most vivid colours and patterns to display their wealth and announce their presence, the main unifying feature being at least one garment or feature in the bold red of the clan. They can be found raiding and trading in equal measure throughout the Mildark forest.
The History of The Red Belly Traders or Grimm Kegoer’s Acquisitions and Expeditions (very definitely a legal and above board trading company and purveyors of finest meats *guaranteed dead*):
If you were to talk to most people from the settler nations of Arcworlde about the Ourks of the southern swamps, they would tell you that they are huge hulking beasts, ruled by such vices as wrath, gluttony and greed, and who are only happy when they are fighting, eating or pillaging whatever they can lay their hands on.
In a lot of cases, those stereotypes are not wrong. But that’s not All Ourks, not by a long shot, and it’s definitely not the case for Grimm Kegoer.
Growing up as part of the Monstermashers, Grimm never felt like he Quite fit in. Sure he knew his way around the beasts of the swamplands, of course he could fight as well as the next Ourk, and he joined the raids and war parties same as anyone else, but there were different vices that called to him. Pride and Ambition.
Maybe it was something that rubbed off after raiding too many travelling traders, maybe it was something that had always been there just under the surface. But Grimm wanted more.
He tried to start small, hunting and herding swamp critters and other beasts for meat and trade, one of his most successful schemes involved a great red bellied hydra, affectionately named Mr Squiggles, that he’d somehow successfully raised and trained to allow him to to carefully harvest heads in order to sell on as hydra steaks and burgers! (Hydra head harvesting is an important part of their grooming process, as too many heads can actually cause a great deal of problems for a hydra, dues to headaches, toothaches and general confusion and arguments. The ideal number is between three and five.)
Following some very tricky conversations with some very wary humans, he managed to begin making something of a name for himself as a source of food in the swamps, and eventually was even trusted enough to act as a guide and trapper for scholars and explorers wishing to learn more of the swamps and its inhabitants.
While most other Ourks derided his eccentricities, even they couldn’t argue that he was making money!
This proved to be too much temptation for the Blacktoof clan, lead by Bilge Blacktoof, who decided that Grimm would be an easy mark.
He could not have been more wrong.
Between Mr Squiggles protectiveness, and Grimms raw strength and determination, they managed to fight the Blacktoof to a standstill ending up with Grimm and Bilge slumped together, gasping for breath.
It was at that moment that the idea popped in to Grimm’s head that changed the way he worked for good. An offer was made and accepted, and the Blacktoofs became the first employees of Grimm Kegoers Acquisitions and Expeditions, or The Red Belly Trading Company, after the image of Mr Squiggles that became the banner they worked under.
Due to his pride, Grimm is very much an Ourk of his word, and once a deal is struck, and a palm spat in and shaken, you can be sure that he and his would move the Jernspeak mountains to see it through!
All this has only fuelled Grimm’s pride and eccentricity, and he can now be found dressed in what he sees as the finest of traders clothes, made from some of the rarest materials he could trade for from Albion, Scotstaine, Hobbleshire and beyond, with a small pair of spectacles to pursue any goods. Now with small franchises operating out of skiffs and wagons throughout the swamps, acting as traders, guides, mercenaries and yes, occasionally thieves and bandits, the The Red Bellys have definitely made a name for themselves. Though whether that name is the Red Belly traders or the Red Belly Bandits may depend on who you speak to.
Distinguishing features:
Clan members generally prefer something extravagant over practical clothing, often with one or two highly decorative elements, such as bright colours (usually the Clan's distinctive red), patterns or unusual fabrics. Tattoos are very common, particularly among the Brutes.
Modern life in the Clan:
As a Nomadic clan, each close knit group within the Red Bellies, whether a family unit, a band of mercenaries or anything in between, has a form of transport, the most common being an unusual contraption know by Grimm as ‘Kegoer’s Patented Ourkwatic Vehicle, and by most other people as a ‘Bwagon’. These are boats, with wagons upside down on top of them! Whe travelling through the swamps or other water features, the boat is either punted or rowed, and, when travel over land is necessary, the Ourks unload the vehicle, and use their great strength to fill it so that the wagon is on the road, and can be hitched to live stock or drawn by the Ourks themselves. Each Bwagon is a unique creation and no two are quite exactly alike, the only distinguishing feature that run across them all is a sizeable flag beating the company symbol.
There are many routes that are known and used by the Red Bellies, and they will often split off in to smaller groups and tracked them to ply their trades, meet with other Ourk clans and exchange news or celebrate events or just spread the name and reputation of the Clan further afield, whether by assisting an area or bribing or blackmail local governors and law officials.
There are specific places and times for moots and clan gatherings, which the whole clan will do everything to attend, unless some great loot or hostilities have forced them off schedule. The times and places of these moots are closely guarded Clan secrets, and it is a rare thing indeed for an outsider to be brought to such an event. The most common reason being for a new member to join the clan in a huge feast and celebration.
Seeing the arrival of the clan Bwagons often brings a mixed bag of hope and fear, as they Can be incredibly useful to have around should they be a well stocked merchant family, however a rowdier mercenary group fresh from a battle may be far less desirable guests!