The Cunning Folk

History of the Cunning Folk

During the chaos after the first Rift tore the sky apart and turned day into night and caused the sky to bleed red there was much strife and conflict. Man and beast alike bled in the streets and battled to the bitter end, neither side wanting to let the other get the upper hand. These were dark times and many died as a result of them.

There were some that had rudimentary medical skills, both of modern medicine and of the more traditional medicines born from the people of the lands. Practitioners of the pharmaceutical and herbal medicines worked side by side triaging and treating as many folk as they could that were brought their way.

Medical camps were set up in many of the settlements that still stood within the first few weeks where the injured and sick were brought and, over time, more with medical training appeared and pitched in where they could.

Although magic had existed upon Earth before the Rift first opened in 1869, resting hidden and unseen from most of humanity, there was something about the magic that emanated and seemed in through the rifts that caused beings attuned to such things to slowly make their way towards the lands. Upon arrival, they worked from the shadows and kept their true natures hidden from the rest as they saw the conflict and strife that was caused by the beings coming from Darraknoir; not wanting to be mistaken as the enemy. Some of these folk secretly assisted with the injured and sick within the camps, but kept their true natures to themselves and blended in with the crowd.

In 1871, when the Veilguard first appeared within the Badlands, many situated themselves at these medical camps in order to help protect and guard the people within. For a time, they formed an uneasy peace not knowing that some that they were protecting were the supernatural beings that they were sworn to destroy.

It was not long before some amongst their number realised their folly and tried to raise their swords against their sworn energy. There was a short and brief conflict, but soon there were others amongst their kind that stood up and came to the protection of the injured, regardless of their caste. Those more strict in their ways were driven out of the camps, leaving those more open to protecting the injured and their healers to their own devices.

By 1876, when magic started to become more and more prominent and cause changes to happen within the surrounding lands, some healers found that they were attuned to this new magic and started to learn of ways to harness, manipulate, and channel it to assist them in healing the injured. These magical healers helped turn an almost hopeless situation into something more manageable.

After conflict outbreaks started to die down, and things started being rebuilt, the medical workers and physicians settled down in the old doctor offices within the settlements and towns, with the most prominent being within the state’s capital of Saint Denis.

After the civil unrest and the fall of the government in 1880, the old ways of medicine were abandoned and, for a time at least, the old offices were also left to ruin as civil wars broke out once again spreading conflict throughout the lands. Once more, the medical workers were mostly working out of medical camps protected by those that trusted to stay neutral.

In 1881, when the Peacekeepers were formed to help protect the lands and bring peace back to the area, the medical workers started to return to the towns to assist. Some worked with the self-proclaimed lawmen, whilst others did what they could to assist the populace in general.

In 1882, after civil unrest was calmed and quelled a new state emerged, now being known to the populace as the Badlands. During this time, the medical community came together to form a group of their own, a new breed of healer. The Cunning Folk were formed under loose guidance and a code of ethics. They utilised both the teachings of modern medicines as well as the more traditional medicines and also started to learn and teach magical means of healing as more knowledge became available to them.

Since the forming of the Cunning Folk, the group has moved to a new location just within the territory of Amberio in the Grizzlies East, nestled on top of a small outcropping of rock near Bacchus Station north of the Cumberland Forest. This location rests upon a crossing of two prominent Ley Lines that run throughout the Badlands, allowing for energies to be harnessed and drawn into the magical workings of the folk that work within.

The Void Key

With the amount of crafting and brewing and magical treatments that happen within the Cunning Folk’s headquarters, it was only a matter of time before the surrounding lands started to change and reform. The change was subtle and to most it was notable in the grand scheme of things. 

The magic in the surrounding area took note, it was almost like a living thing that twisted and turned and crept ever closer. The energies that formed from all the crafting and manipulation of magics within such a small area caused a tiny rift to open. A tear that was only visible to the most spiritually gifted of folk, and even those found it hard to ascertain its exact nature.

Over time, since the tiny rift opened, amalgamations of shaded energy have started to form and slowly shape themselves into orbs of dark hues. These orbs, once fully formed, become spheres of energy and magic that are malleable. Those that studied the energies found that they were able to form a shape. At first it was quite uncertain what this shape was but, slowly over time, it became apparent what the energies wanted to become.

In time, those with the magic to do so, found that they were able to form a kind of key from these energies. These keys vibrated ever so slightly from the magic held within. They formed a link between the Badlands and the nothingness beyond the tiny rift. The first time someone holding one of these keys tried to use an Orb of Passage to travel from one place to another they found that the key reacted to it. The Orb itself did not respond, as though being blocked by an outside force, but something did happen. The air ahead swirled and became thick with fog. A tear in the fabric of reality opened and widened. Not only did this passage offer a way to step through to the designated location, but it seemed to be able to punch through the wards and spells that protected the towns from teleportation spells, allowing fast and quick access to these locations.

In time, the magics were formed into more keys, and these keys were then bound to individuals so that they were, too, able to use them and allow for faster travel between two points, allowing them to travel directly into the towns and settlements of the Badlands so that they could reach patients faster and with safer ease.