Thunderhusk Clan

Below are the listed the known and rumored details of the tauren tribe Thunderhusk.

Basic Information
Name - Thunderhusk (Tribe/Clan)

Founding - Unknown, Ancient

Race - Tauren

Alignment - Lawful Good (previously Neutral Good)

Affiliation - the Tauren, the Horde, Crimson Legion

Based - Mulgore, Thunderbluff and the outlying provences

Size - Nearly 50 of original bloodline, rumored 150 more bound by blood or alliegiance

Status - Active

Organisation - Female Elders preside over the clan, supported by male figurehead know as 'First Spear' who acts as hunting leader (this role has shifted to military leader in recent years and been renamed 'First Shield'). The tribe is comprised of a series of extended familes living all over Kalimdor, those of the original bloodline currently live in and around Thunderbluff. All parts of the clan follow the path of the current Elder and her coven of Seers. Male leaders of the seperate strands of the family support the Seers and the Elder at tribal council.

Physical Traits
Thunderhusks have a few common characteristics that set them apart from other Shu'halo, things perhaps not apparent to the casual observer but nevertheless signs of there strong lineage and good breeding within Mulgore society. Some specific physical attributes are linked to notable ancestors.



Fur - Thunderhusks have fur that is grey, white or a combination of both. Recent generations of Thunderhusk have a wider variety of colours, showing some brown or reddish tinges. The Thunderhusk colouration is a strong gene that shows on all the tribes fur in some capacity.

Eyes - Grey or Blue eyes are common among Thunderhusks of the original bloodline. They have particularly keen, but delicate eyesight and are prone to blindness in old age.

Horns - Thunderhusk males have particularly prominent horns, they are often white and taper slightly upward giving them a regal, dominant look. Thunderhusk females often have longer horns than those of other tribes, in a variety of colours.

Stature - Thunderhusk Shu'halo are uncommonly large, many of them standing between one and three feet taller than an average tauren. Thunderhusk children often have premature growth spurts, and are generally taller and broader than other youths of there race.

Youth Traditions
Thunderhusk children are conditioned in a few key ways to prepare them for life in and beyond Mulgore;



-They are exposed to poisons and neuro toxins in controlled quantities, to build a resistance to the formidable venoms used by spiders, snakes and centaur archers. Many Thunderhusks are reported to be able to suffer from poison effect at a slower then usual rate, once every few generations one son/daughter of the tribe is rumored to be immune.

-Thunderhusks of both genders are expected to excell physically, they are set in a rigourous physical training regime from the age of 5, which ends at the age of 14. Thunderhusks who perform well at these tasks are exceptionally althletic, capable of feats of endurance beyond the reckoning of common tauren.

-'Young Husks' are expected to attend a Great Hunt upon coming of age, where they are expected to perform skillfully with spear and bow. The size of the quarry a young Thunderhusk fells at his/her great Hunt, and the manner of its death are considered strong portents and omens by the tribes Elders.

- Thunderhusk females are deeply spiritual, the Elder Crones insist all Thunderhusk children take a spirit walk before they come of age. Youths with the strongest affinity for nature, and aptitude for magic are groomed for service to the Earth Mother, or Mulgore political life as shaman, priests and more recently druids.

Trade Commerce and Politics
The Thunderhusk are a particularly old tribe, deeply entrenched in Mulgore's political hierarchy, they push a lawful good agenda, seeking to keep the Shu'halo on the old path; respecting the balance and supreme majesty of nature. The Thunderhusk oversee the production, shipment and trade of vast amounts of Kodo Hide and home produced herbal remedies. This wealth is used to build tauren municipals, repair villages and bolster Mulgore defences with materials not commonly used by tauren; such as metal or engineered devices.



Brief History
The true age of the Thunderhusk tribe is unknown. The family history is seperated into two main sections; 'The Eldings' reffering to the nomadic days before Thunderbluff was formed, and the era of the 'Sons of Argan' reffering to the line descended from the surviving child of Loken Thunderhusk, the Elding.

Oral traditions and myths dictate Husks having walked the plains of Mulgore and the Barrens for thousands of years. The tribe hunted mighty Kodo and desperately fought against the encroachments of the Centaur; many of the clan were lost in these battles, entire generations were all but snuffed out in fire and steel. Elders of the clan speak of an ancient affinity for high mesa's, many camps and tent-towns were built in these places for safety over the years.

The choice of camp location had an vital impact on the tribe;

-They were able to defend against attack easier, becoming famed for there resilience against larger foes.

- Life on the high mesa's helped speed their spiritual development; fostering awe and respect in the young for the elements. Elders grew wise in the ways of weather prediction. This in turn made the Husks more adept at predicting the movement of the Great Herds, and thusly better hunters.

- The defensible nature of the Thunderhusk camps quickly made them famed safe havens for other tauren, making them expand in size and become natural hubs for trade. The Thunderhusk presided over this primitive cities with careful authority, gaining the respect of other Shu'halo tribes. Many other clans took note of the safety afforded by 'high-towns' in the pre Thunderbluff era, founding them throughout the region.

The forefather of the current Thunderhusk lineage, Loken; is said to have fought for the tauren leaders against the Centaur, and been present at the first tentative meetings with the Orcs. The Husks claim to be among those who laid the founding stones of Thunderbluff, and have lived in the city longer than any known memory. Since the formation of the Horde, the tribe have been progressively involved in dealings with other races; fighting in many of the notable world conflicts of the last few hundred years. The tribe have a deep affection for Thrall, and often raise Orcish orphans rescued from ravaged homesteads in the Barrens.

Notable Clan Lore
The Thunderhusks and their story are as much a part of Kalimdor as the limitless plains, and rolling hills; tales of the deeds of tribal ancestors are passed down by word of mouth. Many of these legends can be recounted by Thunderhusks in person. Below are a few notes on common Thunderhusk Lore.

Lokens Triumph
- The Thunderhusk ancestor famously killed a Khan of the Galak centaur, Khethel Blacktooth. The conflict took place in a isolated pass within the Stonetalon Mountains, after two days of constant fighting, the Tauren tribes were at the brink of defeat from the centaur onslaught. Loken, defending the body of his dying father tore out Khethel's throat with a slash of his horns. The death sent a wave of panic through the centaur line, which the tauren took advatage of with an earthshaking counter assault. Loken was named First Spear of the tribe in the aftermath, and wed to Druti Skyhorn; who would become mother and Elder to the new line of Thunderhusks.

Byrons Fall
- Loken the Elding had two sons, named Byron and Argan. The aging tauren lavished great affection and admiration on his children, constantly urging them to greater feats of skill and daring. The younger brother, Argan killed Vencoatl, a particularly vicious old wind serpent that had preyed on tauren for decades. Keen to regain favour Byron claimed he would kill Varga Windlord, an ancient bird of prey that lived in the high eyrie's of Mulgore. The clan Seers spoke out against the impetuous Byron; telling him beast symbolised the grace and power of the Earthmother, and should not be a prize. Foolishly Byron tracked the beast to its nest and was cast from the mountainside by the supreme hunter. The precipice he fell from is named after his folly. Loken, who at this time was almost blind and of advanced age travelled high to the summit where his son had fallen, there he died, his broken heart giving out from exaustion at last. Lokens restless spririt is said to wander the high passes to this day.

Echikee the Betrayer**
Argan Thunderhusk had four children; Diar, Brises, Perga and Echikee. Argan and his life-mate Heria loved and cherished the children, but when the time came for them to begin there trials and learn to hunt a problem became apparent. Echikee, the youngest of the group was weak and feeble, he also possessed a strange jealousy and lust, which manifested itself in a series of violent pranks played on his older siblings. Echikee grew more distant from his parents and siblings as he got older, and began to associate with Grimtotem. The tale speaks of the Grimtotem demanding an initiation rite, a payment in blood for the crippled tauren to join them. The tortured youth tricked his own sister Brises into a trap where she was then sacrificed as part of a Grimtotem ritual, her body was fed to savage trolls. The Grimtotem then rejected Echikee and mocked him for his physical deformity, since these events he went into hiding and is presumed dead.

Known Facts
- Are currently ruled by Elder Brecca, with a coven of Seers (her three daughters), supported by Protector General Ajaxxor and other chiefs from the extended family.

- Thunderhusks have a deep emnity for the Grimtotem, claiming that they have repeatedly attempted to sway and brainwash there youths down the years. This was only proven in one case.**

-Following the massacre of Taurajo representatives from Thunderhusk visited the tauren families affected and accepted many refugees into the protection of their tribe. These affiliated tribes are gradually being rebuilt and strengthend, by marriage and cooperation, under the careful eye of the Elder and her Seers.

- The current 'First Shield', Ajaxxor has enacted a draft of peoples bound to his tribe. Calling for them to rise to defend Mulgore against the new threats of the Twilight Cult and the Quillboar. Many young tauren, and previously retired veterans are now swelling the ranks of the Crimson Legion, and the Horde.