An Article detailing Tricerok, a fifth Breed of Dragon King, associated with Earth.

Yes, I know the gods lived on the Blessed Isle. Read on to find out how I justify
it…

Introduction
In the time before the First Age, the primordials, who had created the world as
a sanctuary from the Wyld, dwelt in the heavenly city of Yu-Shan. The Blessed
Isle was the place of the gods, the servants of the primordials, who serviced
Creation and saw to its functioning. And in each of the four directions, the
Elemental Poles of Creation, dwelt the beasts, the beings of flesh and of simple
Essence; humans, beings of flesh who had souls, which were reborn through
the wheel of reincarnation, stripped of their memories by the peace of Lethe;
and the four Breeds of Dragon Kings, who were between beast and god, who
had the power to rework Creation with their Essence, and whose souls would
persist through death to a new body and, in time, regain their memories of their
past lives.
In this time, it is said, the chain of life was complete and unbroken.
But the gods laboured on and on, created to work with no end in sight, while
the primordials who created them rested, and played the Games of Divinity. In
time, the gods’ hearts turned against their makers, and they plotted to defeat
them and claim mastery over Creation. To this end they created the Exalted,
champions of humanity, to serve as their army, and in the primordial war, so
fierce that it burned away the vast majority of Creation, they eventually
succeeded.
For the love of their patron, the Unconquered Sun, the Dragon Kings chose the
side of the gods and fought against the primordials. And for this the primordials
crushed their ranks, striking such blows that millions of Dragon Kings were slain
and their souls shattered beyond possibility of rebirth. With the primordial war
won and the Exalted triumphant, the Dragon Kings were ruined; their wondrous
cities left hollow, their civilisation crippled. Knowing that they could never again
attain what once they had had, the Dragon Kings withdrew from humanity,
falling into insular conflicts of theology and territory.
But the Solars, the Exalted of the Unconquered Sun, saw this and were
concerned for their allies, who had aided them in their hour of need and who
had suffered for it. And a small number of the Chosen of the Sun decided that
they would try and set things aright.
History: The Tricerok Are Created
When, in the war, the Exalted realised that the Dragon Kings were being truly
destroyed, a number of hasty and mostly ineffectual methods were attempted
to counter it. The only successes garnered by these desperate moves were the
preservation of a few of the tattered shards of Dragon King souls that had been
destroyed. Sadly, these fragments, having lost their unity and structure, were
but lingering scraps of Dragon King power and memory, bereft of the vitality
and personality they had once held.
Sidebar: Chaos Souls

Those first, failed attempts to create Dragon King souls from the Though they were
Wyld, unstable and unwanted, were left to dissipate back into the studied for many long
chaos from whence they were formed. But although they lacked
memory, these souls still managed to manifest some small measure
years, stored for decades
of will, and were able to cling desperately to existence. Drifting in the acadamies and
through the border between Creation and the Wyld, these souls temples by Exalt and
eventually succeeded in finding those few packs of feral Dragon Dragon King, none
Kings that hunted these tainted regions, and were incarnated in real succeeded in making
Dragon King bodies.
them truly whole again.
Though they number little more than a dozen, these Chaos Souls Sorcerers pored over the
would occasionally succeed in gaining their due sentience and power, myths of primordial
as true Dragon Kings did, and went on to beget a series of dark creation, consulted the
legends that still persist among Dragon Kings and humans; tales of
mad, twisted creatures that fed upon the inhabitants of Creation and
gods, and scrutinised
who wielded power over the Wyld itself. And these creatures’ souls Dragon Kings who put
still flit along the edge of the Wyld, seeking life and power yet… their own souls under
study for the chance of
Mechanically, Chaos Souled Dragon Kings are represented as restoring their people.
Inheritance 3 Fae-Blooded Dragon Kings, who always possess at
least one Derangement(Or Erratic Temperament), and at least one Time and again, a
Mutation. breakthrough was
thought to be reached,
but the pitiful creatures
hatched from these attempts were to true Dragon King souls as a scarecrow of
tattered clothes and straw is to a man. Without exception, they were unstable,
insane, and found their semblance of life to be little more than suffering.
Though much was learned, no Dragon King who had been slain by the
primordials was ever returned to life.
So, reasoned one sorcerer, late one night, when the shadows danced among his
books, and the moon glanced through his window; if we cannot return to life
those slain by the primordials, then at least we can restore life to their
civilisation. And with assistants and allies and willing Dragon Kings in tow, he
ventured out into the depths of the Wyld, to take the form of new Dragon King
souls and force it upon the chaos beyond the world.
But the souls he created were chaotic and unstable, for the power of the
Dragon Kings is a thing unknown to humanity, and not even one of the Solar
Exalted could craft their power as the primordials could. It was only by infusing
these souls with some of the essence of Earth could the required stability be
imparted. Unfortunately, this infusion of Earth made these new souls unsuitable
for birth into the bodies of the Anklok, the Mosok, the Pterok or the Raptok; for
each of these Breeds was aligned with the powers of Fire, Water, Air and Wood.
Thus the Solar crafted new bodies for these souls, bodies to match the Earth
which allowed them to survive; bodies tough and strong to manipulate stone
and soil, and sharp of the senses to feel and see and smell it.
And he brought these new Dragon Kings to Creation, to the slopes of the
mountain itself, and he named them the Tricerok, the Dragon King Breed of the
Elemental Pole of Earth.

History: Tricerok in the First Age

The new Dragon Kings were met with mixed approval. At first, as they were
revealed slowly to colleagues and other parties who had been interested in the
endeavour, they were met with approval; such that the sorcerer who originally
created them oversaw the creation of more of their ilk. But when the Tricerok
were revealed to society at large, there was a controlled yet powerful uproar.
Solars had created sentient beings before, but those had been servants, tools;
they were built with various safeguards in place, and for a very narrow purpose.
For the first time, the Exalted had created a full, separate race of individuals,
designed to live their own lives. Many felt that such a move was the first step on
a slippery slope, and others worried about the opinions of the gods, that mere
humans were emulating the greatest feats of the primordials themselves. As for
the Dragon Kings themselves, a new conflict erupted in their society, between
those who supported the creation of new Dragon Kings, which might revitalise
their whole species, and those who felt that the Tricerok were but imitations
that made mockery of their loss and would only serve to cheapen the survivors
of the war.
As with all Dragon King conflicts, violence quickly broke out and spread, while
the remnants of old groups who had once rebelled against the rule of the
Dragon Kings began to whisper again in human society.
With forays into the Wyld as risky as always, and with support drying up, these
factors led to the creation of new Tricerok souls being ceased. The process was
formally made illegal, and with the Eclipse caste working hard, conflicts over the
new Dragon Kings died away. Those Tricerok who had been created- numbering
less than four thousand in totality- were left to integrate with First Age society
as best they could.
Sadly, the Tricerok were doomed to forever be the second-class citizens of the
Dragon Kings. Though possessing the same abilities as others of their species, it
was never forgotten that they were not “real” Dragon Kings. They possessed
none of the rights or status among spirits that their kin had (though they were
friendly with the Mountain Folk, who they felt an affinity for and often worked
with), and were of small enough number that they were not trusted to be
capable of surviving as a separate nation… although this estimation would, later
be proved wrong.
In the meantime, the best way for a Tricerok to live was to assist the sorcerer-
technicians of the Exalted, particularly in the areas of architecture; the Tricerok’s
adeptness in the Dragon Kings’ Earth Paths meant that a group of Adult Tricerok
could cut the time it took to raise a Manse to a fraction of the time that it would
take even bound demons to accomplish the same task, and a few individuals
even came to be regarded as skilled architects in their own right. Those that did
not work in the construction of the First Age’s marvellous buildings generally
became artificers, bringing some of the Dragon King’s crystalline- and
occasionally vegetative- technology to the human settlements of the Blessed
Isle, who were far from the homes of the old Dragon Kings. Some small number
also became medics, in particular on the battlefield, using the Path of Yielding
Earth to restore both equipment and soldiers to full effectiveness.
It was thus, as a servant race of the Solars in all but name, that the Tricerok
lived out the First Age. They worshipped the Unconquered Sun, as did their
progenitors, and remained loyal to the Solar Exalted as the First Age wore on…
until the behaviour of the Exalted Kings and Queens became more… erratic.

History: The Usurpation, and the Flight Below

Kept close at hand by the Exalted, the Tricerok were the only Dragon Kings to
dwell within the heart of the Old Realm. Unlike the Solars who lived out among
the original Dragon Kings, the Solars of the Isle were completely secure in their
power and mastery of the world around them, and… indulged. The Tricerok
were not exempt from the horrors of that time; who, after all, cared what Solars
did to creatures whom the Solars had made themselves? The unlucky Dragon
King would return in a century or so in any case, so where was the harm?
When the Solars were called together, it was traditional that their Tricerok
assistants and servants came also, and dwelt with each other while the Chosen
Lords of Creation deliberated. It was no different, once, when all the Solars of
the Realm were called to a great banquet… and Meru fell in a night of blood and
destruction.
Realising what was happening- perhaps alerted by sympathetic parties- the
Tricerok fled, as all inhabitants of the great city attempted to do. Rather than
brave the paths down the slopes of Mount Meru, however, which crumbled as
the Solars fell, the Tricerok took what they could grab… technology, automata,
friends… and pressed through the mass of humanity which poured from the
inhabited streets under the surface of Meru. The collected host of the earthen
Dragon Kings passed down, through the abandoned lower streets, into the
darkening depths of the city, evading the disasters that sprung in the wake of
the violence above, down deeper… through tunnel into cavern, through the
heart of the Axis of Creation, down into the heart of the world: the realms of
the Mountain Folk.
But, though they had reached the subterranean lands of their allies, the Tricerok
did not intend to stop. Above them, the Terrestrial Exalted were wiping out all
traces of the Solar Exalted, and the Tricerok knew they did not have the power
to return. Below teemed the chthonic hordes of the Underbrood, a seemingly
inexhaustable horde. To preserve themselves, the Dragon Kings struck
outwards, wielding the magic of the Solid Earth Path together in a massive
undertaking of many years, simply to find three Demenses within the living
earth and, within and between them, shape a massive cavern whole from solid
rock.
It was here that the Tricerok awoke, through geomancy and magic and blood
sacrifice for the approval of the Unconquered Sun, their mightiest artifact, the
Mirror of the Sun. This mighty crystal, powered by the greatest of the three
Demenses (now Solar-Aspected) and hung within a massive pillar of stone in the
midst of the cavern, shone with the light of the Unconquered Sun himself, that
the Underbrood would be kept at bay and that plants might grow in that dark
place beneath the earth.
They called this place Marilaska, which in the high Holy Speech of the Dragon
Kings, means: Reflection.
The Tricerok in the Age of Sorrows
Least of the Dragon Kings, patronised as pale imitations, the Tricerok, who have
been scorned by Heaven and condemned to the depths of the earth by the
Dragon-Blooded host, have nevertheless accomplished what no other force has
truly managed; for, deep within the Earth, their home was completely
untouched by the Great Contagion. There, they have managed to preserve,
whole and unbroken, a living piece of the First Age.
Deep Marilaska, illuminated at all hours by the Mirror of the Sun, teems with
life. Whole forests and groves of enchanted vegetation line its streets, keeping
its air clean and its people fed. The Tricerok create and maintain wonders of
their technology; beautiful and seemingly impossible architecture, high-speed
transport systems, large libraries of First Age knowledge stored within a network
of beautiful crystals, open hospitals that provide magical healing via artifacts
and skilled healers, and deadly weapons forged to battle the Underbrood.
A dynasty of Solar Half-Caste – the descendants of fellow Solar assistants and
compatriots brought along on the great flight from the Usurpation- serve an
essential role, providing magics that the Tricerok, though more powerful in
general, do not themselves possess. Expertly maintained automata aid in the
day-to-day life of the city, whether it be in tending the vast root systems of
Uliaas, the Manse-Tree which forms Marilaska’s first defence system, or mining
for orichalcum and crystal to produce Solstones, tiny versions of the greater
Mirror of the Sun that are nevertheless invaluable in exploring the deep caves
and in trade to the Mountain Folk for their battles with the Underbrood.
Not that the Tricerok are content to huddle deep below the Imperial Mountain,
nor that their lives are easy and peaceful. The Underbrood constantly scheme to
eradicate the bubble of light that intrudes into the deep darkness, and groups
with a wide variety differing goals within the cavern itself constantly spar and
maneuver around each other, kept from the traditional bloodshed of Dragon
King conflicts only be the pressing knowledge of their own small numbers.
Whether attempting to expand their underground domain, mounting secret
expeditions to the surface to judge the state of the rest of Creation, researching
fresh wonders of technology, questing to earn the recognition of the Celestial
gods or aiding the Mountain Folk in their eternal battle against the chthonic
hordes that surround them, the Tricerok do not lack for purpose or excitement.
Though they have managed to survive since the First Age, there’s no guarantee
that they will continue to do so… nor that they will remain apart from the
turmoil of the Age of Sorrows.
Fifth Breed: The Tricerok
Mentality
Reflecting the essence of Earth which granted them life, Tricerok generally tend
to be calm and careful individuals. In the First Age, the circumstances of their
creation developed in them a quiet and helpful posture, and remnants of this
have come through even to the present age; the Tricerok are the most
outwardly polite and courteous of the Dragon Kings. Those who come into
contact with them briefly might describe them as uncaring or distant, but those
who come to know the Tricerok well realise that, rather, these large creatures
are adept at channelling their passions into their thoughts and crafts; a Tricerok
warrior uses her emotions to bring her victory in combat, and does not waste
them in casual expression. If one of the central Dragon Kings wants you to
know how he feels on a subject, he’ll tell you directly- the Under Hunters pride
themselves on their honesty, some would say brutally so.
Because they channel their emotions into their work, a Tricerok’s personality is
revealed through their surroundings. Each of the central Dragon Kings, being
naturally gifted at craftsmanship, typically does at least a little work on on their
own dwelling, as well as their tools, weapons and even their clothes: idly
improving on one’s possessions is an almost meditative pursuit among Tricerok,
and the main activity when no other work presents itself. As a result, almost
every object or structure in their society is very personalised and expressive, if
not always beautiful. However, because Tricerok put so much effort into their
surroundings, they can also be quite possessive and territorial. This is also why
Tricerok keep everything they own very clean and well-maintained. This
perfectionism can in some cases apply also to individuals who the Tricerok
considers “theirs”; close friends or relations particularly. The Golden Children
who live among them often seek solitude purely to escape the well-meaning but
tiresome nagging of a Dragon King friend.
Some Tricerok do shun the pursuit of material perfection, particularly as they
grow older and attain more enlightenment, turning their personal expression
from their possessions to themselves. Instead of channelling their emotions into
their work, they shift it to training and meditiation; the majority of Tricerok of
Essence 4 and 5 spend their time studying, experimenting and practising their
people’s martial arts. This trend, curiously, reverses itself as Tricerok reach the
pinnacles of enlightenment; Elder Tricerok, attaining the peaks of mastery of
their talents and interests, turn back to enforcing their will externally on their
society, often through philosophical debate, teaching or political activism.
Appearance
The central Dragon Kings are the tallest of the five breeds, when stretched to
their full height at over seven feet tall. They do not have the bulk of the Anklok,
however, though they are still powerfully muscular, and typically stand in a
crouch, leaning forward to balance between their long, thick tail and the large
bone structure of their skull.
The bones and skin on a Tricerok’s head are very thick and heavy, in addition to
three horns and protective shield which covers their neck and upper back. This
shield of thick scales over a boney frame covers the Tricerok’s neck and the
base of their skull, while the horns are positioned one above each eye and one
atop the end of their snout. Like Raptok, Tricerok can eat both meat and plants,
and their jaws were equipped by their creators for this broad diet.
Their horns, though deadly weapons, are also used to dig through earth and
stone; Tricerok eyes are deep-set and have boney eyelids which, along with
muscles that close off their nostrils, allow Tricerok to literally dig with their face
without harming themselves. Their hands and feet are broad and tough, with
large, hard claws. Using the strong muscles in their arms, legs and neck to shift
and compact stone and soil on all sides, a Tricerok can tunnel through the earth
at relatively high speeds- speeds that increase dramatically through the use of
the Solid Earth Path’s magic, which all Tricerok are adept in.
Breed Abilities
As enduring as the stone they work, Tricerok are naturally adept at
craftsmanship and have an innate talent for understanding the wondrous
devices of the First Age. Tricerok are naturally grifted at Resistance, Craft and
Lore.
Breed Attributes
Tricerok are strong and have sharp senses, but above all else their bodies are
powerfully resilient. Tricerok add +1 to Strength and Perception and +2 to their
Stamina.
Tricerok have a natural talent at digging through earth and stone. When
digging, they may ignore half the obstruction’s soak and may use both their
claws and horns to deal damage simultaneously without penalty. When digging
through earth, Tricerok usually compact the soil to either side as they go, which
reduces the chance of tunnel collapse. An Tricerok may use Shape the Earth to
further increase their tunneling speed.
Natural Armour
Tricerok add +3B/L to their soak.
Innate Weapons
Tricerok possess claws, a heavy tail and of course, their horns.
Claw: Speed 5, Accuracy +1, Damage +2L, Defence +0, Rate 2
Tail: Speed 6, Accuracy -1, Damage +5B, Rate 2
Gore: Speed 6, Accuracy +0, Damage +4L/7L*, Rate 1
*Use second number when charging or bracing.
Sobriquets
Under Hunters, Lost Lords, Sun-sculpted (mildly derogatory), Chaosmade
(derogatory).
Sample Concepts
Scholar, Architect, Magical crafter, Explorer.