On the Deathspawn

On the Deathspawn is a treatise written by Haneval, First Scholar to the King of South Corah, date unknown. It was commissioned by the king of South Corah, and relates to the mansthein.[1]

Although Haneval claimed to rely only on verified facts for his work, several facts written on the treatise are erroneous.

Excerpts
“Myths, legends, and rumors suffocate this subject. Even otherwise reputable scholars seem unable to resist the allure of the sensational, as if the subject matter itself is not enough. You are quite wise to commission this work, my king, as I will attempt to write the first account of the matter that relies only on verified facts.

“With that having been said, I will begin my treatise on the beings popularly known as the Deathspawn. This name is, of course, the first of many common misconceptions.”[1]

“The term ‘Deathspawn’ is a childish shorthand taken from ancient stories. While it is true that they have inspired fear and seem as terrible as monsters from such tales, they are in fact not mystical creatures, but flesh and blood like us. This should not lead one to consider them anything less than a threat to our very existence"[2] “Beyond such obvious factors as their aggression and military force, the most critical thing to fear about the Deathspawn is that they cannot be trusted. It is, of course, untrue that Deathspawn can only speak lies. Indeed, this would make them honest in their own way. Instead, they are capable of mixing truth and lies to accomplish intricate deceptions. Make no mistake, any glimmer of humanity seen within them is only a pretense.”[3] “The Deathspawn empire is unremittingly expansionist, accepting nothing but surrender from their opponents. They use peace treaties only as temporary means to focus their attention on other wars. This is, of course, the current situation in the lands of Nol. Whether their empire requires this constant expansion to survive or whether it is simply in their nature remains unknown.”[4] “One great oddity of the Deathspawn expansion is that they appear to be uninterested in holding territory for extended periods after it has been conquered. Indeed, their inability to hold territory is so striking that prudent observers must conclude it is an intentional policy. I believe with a high degree of certainty that they seek only to loot resources from other kingdoms, through toward what grand project I would not venture a guess.”[5] “Now we must turn to the subject of physical descriptions of the Deathspawn, where error and confusion reign. They are not, of course, invincible warriors who fight on to the last breath. Indeed, they will die if they lose enough blood and they can fight only as long as sein remains in their spirit, just as all other mortals. Careful scrutiny of reports suggests that the Deathspawn are actually more likely to break and retreat than humans, and certainly far more than the knights of South Corah”[6] “A notable aside is that Deathspawn blood appears to be poisonous to humans, as revealed by transfusion techniques developed by the Order of the Green Palm. Deathspawn given human blood only occasionally perish, whereas humans given enough Deathspawn blood inevitably sicken and die within hours. Similar experiments have been done with Deathspawn food, suggesting their nature is poison, through and through.”[7] “It is difficult to speak about the relevant races of Deathspawn simply because they have so much variety. They are not, of course, separate species. Better to think of them as breeds of dog, much as how Corah possesses lean hunting hounds, Nolese breeds are short and squat, and dogs from Fareshel have thick coats of fur. The Deathspawn hordes are filled with mutts, while the most notable varieties such as Catai are inbred filth spawned only to fight, bereft of higher mental capabilities.”[8] "The leaders of the Deathspawn are known as Seinans, notable for their silver hair and nearly human features. All other races of Deathspawn obey them automatically as a matter of pure instinct. Contrasting this with the belligerence of human peasants, this is one of the only points where Deathspawn society might compare favorably.”[9]