Silver Oak - Grasslands Biome
You duck into the valley between rolling hills, breathing a sigh of relief. Another gust of wind whips across the grassland. Your nose was already numb from frostbite, the rest of your body following suit, and another wintry breeze would have been agony.
At least your paws were sinking into mushy dead grass and not snow. Patches of earth peeked out from the white blanket, promising an end to a rough winter.
You pad through the valley, clinging to the slopes as the wind howls above you. Seems it blew any scent markers away with it. An innocent shortcut through the bramble led you to the entrance of a wolf settlement.
The first thing you noticed was a young oak-hickory tree. It stood like a beacon among the twisting thorns and bramble dens, berry paint splashed across its bark in glittering, swirling patterns. Wolves lay on what seem to be horse and elk pelts by the roots. They lift their heads and gaze at you curiously, clearly not expecting company but oddly welcoming of a stranger to their land.
Their motive behind the hospitality is clear soon enough. A bluish-grey wolf approaches with a confident grin across his muzzle.
Small talk segues into a sales pitch to for the knickknacks these wolves have to offer. They seem to be a group of craftsmen and tradesmen affiliated with the Wolves of Phoenix. The charming young wolf, named Daemon, explains that their pack has no leader, but rather delegates responsibilities among the group.
A great fur trader named Crumb founded the pack. They prospered in another area of the valley for years, but their camp was encroached on by Farmers, where Crumb's life was cut short after getting shot protecting his territory. The farmers picked off all wolves but Caraxes, who relocated and restarted the pack with Daemon's help. Caraxes was a surprisingly small but stocky wolf who preferred to practice the art of hunting, often going on solo or duo hunts with Daemon to feed the members.
Due to the pack's tight-knit nature, they don't readily accept strangers into their ranks. They do, however, exchange in pleasantries and foster strong merchant relationships with wolves in other packs, preferring pacifism whenever possible. They even offer to let you stay the night in a show of good will. What will you do, traveler?
Messy lore notes (lol)
Formerly fallen oak camp
Rebellion of work - believes in more, artistic value beyond hard labor that wolves waste their life in. Get what they need and focus the rest on arts
Crumbs pack is a mess with hunting lol, until Caraxes fixes it!
Crumb steps down as leader after Bridgefall and Caraxes replaces him?
Marsh joins spring y7, pelt skinner and generally good hunter. Gets along well with caraxes, much to daemon's jealousy despite being caraxes' "worst enemy".
After dating and breaking up with caraxes, marsh befriends the split sap merchants.
Crumb and kala die!! Silver Oak left without a leader and marsh turns tail and moves to split sap. Caraxes is alone, the pack is gone... daemon joins!! And now its the two of them sleeping under the stars together again.
Okay next step for these guys is to describe the grasslands den they live in. Out open seeing the stars? Big emphasis on beauty in the natural world?
the wolves died because farmland is expanding and they were shot!