The Grimmfolk are an odd bunch, from the point of view of nearly everyone else on the Continent. After all, who in their right mind would willingly choose to live in a forest that is actively trying to devour them? They don’t particularly enjoy the danger, although there are a few (mostly Wodegann and Dustervolk) who do; rather, the Grimmfolk take a quiet joy in the dark beauty of the forest, and a grim pride in surviving the threats that lurk in their home. On top of that there is a shining thread of holy purpose running through Grimmfolk society — they are the keepers of the Wold, the ones who stand guard against its awakening; if they were to abandon their post the great monsters sleeping beneath the roots would break free of their slumber, to rampage and destroy the world outside the forest.
Despite their reserved manner and preference for silence over noise, the Grimmfolk are much more complex than they appear at first glance. Their humor is predictably dark and they don’t laugh loudly or much, but they can actually become quite rowdy when they celebrate within the safety of their Wealds, where the Felwards etched into the surrounding trees mean that they don’t have to worry about hungry things being attracted by their noise and antics. The stark and alien beauty of the deep forest speaks to them on a level that few outsiders can really grasp, evoking a longing for the glimmers of light within the darkness that they express in haunting melodies and subtle artworks.
Knowledge is key to survival, in the eyes of the Grimmfolk, and a deadly tool when wielded properly. After millennia living within the Wold, they have found that studying and understanding the world around them is critical to both surviving and thriving within the forest. They have studied the things that prey upon them, preparing with ritual, poison, and elixir so that they might hunt their hunters with brutal effectiveness. They piece together maps of the Wold’s shifting ways to find the best places to find herbs, Felweyr, and other resources within the forest. They have turned the dark powers of the Wold to their own purposes, twisting the Shadow into a weapon against the monsters and the enemies of their people.
Danger is an ever-present thing, in the Grimmfolk psyche, something to be avoided where possible, prepared for if you can see it coming, and faced with weapon drawn when it finally arrives. They are cautious and temperate in their actions, always keeping an eye out for danger while remaining ready to act should action be necessary. When a threat shows itself, they close ranks and stand together against it, though they’re not shy about retreating in the face of a threat they can’t overcome. Above all else, though, they know that if they let fear take control they become nothing more than prey, and the Grimmfolk would rather die than be reduced to that.
Visual and auditory noise, anything that stands out against the backdrop of the forest, can and will get you killed in the Grimmwold, and the residents of the nation have internalized this. They never shout when they can be heard at a normal volume, and if they can murmur and still effectively communicate they do so. Similarly, they prefer muted tones to their clothing and accessories, with what few pops of color or shiny metal they have in their wardrobe kept small and easily concealed under other layers if need be. What decoration they have is often in the form of intricate knotwork and embroidery in shades that almost match the background cloth, preferring to add texture instead of color to outfits where they can. Bright colors and loud noise are contained within the home or in the heart of one of their Wealds, where they don’t have to worry as much about monsters homing in on it.
Mortals are far from the strongest creatures in the Grimmwold, and they have had to learn how to outsmart the beasts and monsters who would prey upon them. Cleverness, a quickness of wit and the ability to think of creative solutions, is prized by the Grimmfolk in all contexts, but especially in anything related to hunting or delving into the dark woods. They also value preparation as an important part of cleverness; those who have just the right tool or spell or potion at hand to solve a problem are viewed as far more impressive than those who can improvise a solution in the moment.
In the Grimmwold perspective, there is immense value in being able to accurately measure risk and judge when something is either worth undertaking or too risky to attempt. Failure to do so can be deadly in an environment as full of danger as the Grimmwold. Hunting something you’re not capable of besting, going out into the forest without preparing properly, or messing with alchemical compounds you don’t understand are all good ways to end up dead, and the Grimmfolk view such “brash” behavior with scorn. They do not tolerate those who repeatedly show themselves to be reckless and unheeding of danger, or any who don’t respect the dangers and health of the forest — those who enter the Wold without respect for the wilderness are walking towards their death, and are likely to bring that doom down upon those unfortunate to be nearby as well.
Patience is a vital part of the Grimmwold way of life. It is staying utterly still for as long as it takes for a deer to cross in front of your arrow so you can take the perfect shot, and waiting for just the right moment to strike at a monster as it stalks towards you. It is the constant and steady tending to the forest and your garden to ensure that it stays healthy and brings you bounty in the coming year, and the careful raising of the next generation so that they might keep the nation thriving in the decades to come. It is knowing that success is as dependent on timing as it is on cleverness or strength, and that those who have mastered themselves so that they can act at exactly the right moment can best even the mightiest of foes.
When one only takes and never gives, the cycle collapses. Moderation, the conscious choice to avoid over-doing something, is prized as a virtue in the Grimmwold, in both personal and communal behavior. Greed leads to acts that destabilize the Wold and awaken the terrors sleeping beneath the trees. On a more personal level, eating too much during the year means you won’t have enough to last the winter, and taking too much from the forest around you means that you’ll have to go farther and farther afield to find the resources you need — a dangerous proposition in the Wold. In a similar vein, the Grimmfolk dislike wasteful behavior, viewing resources, objects, and structures as things to be conserved and maintained, and never wasted or spent without good purpose.
The dark woods are neither kind nor merciful, and sometimes hard choices are necessary for the survival of all. Ruthlessness, the willingness to do whatever it takes to achieve a goal, is admired by Grimmfolk, as they believe that those who cannot make such decisions put the people around them at risk. The other side to that coin, though, is that they intently weigh the costs and benefits of their decisions, to ensure that any ruthless act is worth the price they must pay for it. Ruthlessness isn’t about sacrificing others for the greater good, but being able to step back in the moment and make the hard choices before the time runs out. More often than not a ruthless choice has dire consequences that the one making it must take upon themselves, and they do so with their characteristic grim pride.
Grimmfolk names tend to have a Germanic feel, whether derived from ancient non-fiction Frankish or Gothic names or modern German names. The mortals dwelling in Ferukhar’s core territory spoke what is now the Woldtongue, a fantasy version of modern German, and the Grimmfolk have kept the names granted by that tongue despite shifting their lingua franca to Common in the last millennia. In addition to the Germanic influence, there’s a tendency to have “wold”, “burg”, “stine,” “weald,” or double consonants in the last names.
Grimmfolk have a tradition of only gaining a middle name when it is “earned.” It is granted by the family or community to represent something that the individual has survived, whether a beast, disease, poison, disaster, or just normal human trauma. If someone manages to avoid any seriously traumatizing experiences by the time they hit their mid-20s, their middle name is usually some variation on “Lucky.” Middle names are formally part of someone’s name, but are not used as a form of address like Jadefang Corsairs use their nicknames, serving instead as a key part of someone’s public identity.
Immigration and emigration also play a large role in Grimmwold naming traditions. It isn’t uncommon for native Grimmfolk to decide they’d rather live outside the Wold for years, decades, or the rest of their lives. After these folk emigrate to other lands, they still retain ties to their home Wealds within the Wold, and their children often return for some time or even permanently, bringing foreign tongues and names with them.
The other side of that coin is that the Grimmwold is widely known as the “last fresh start” for anyone who desperately needs to leave their past behind them. No foreign bounty hunters are welcome within the Wold, and anyone new to the forest is allowed to pick a new name and avoid talking about their past without comment. The only requirement for newly-minted Grimmfolk is that they pitch in, learn the ways of the forest, and don’t make any mistakes that get themselves or anyone else killed. Once someone has spent a year in a Weald without violating any of those requirements, their new community grants them a middle name and they are henceforth seen as being “true” Grimmfolk. Immigrants to the Grimmwold can have many different names depending on their nation of origin, but often enough they’re pseudonyms that may or may not actually have any relation to the naming conventions of the nation they were born in.
Emilia Folly Oswold, Josua Deadwood Hartlestine, Matz Lucky Lothhweald, Elias Stormstrike Bornburg, Valamir Rockfall Kissellwald, Zara Jackal Hossetter, Mira Bolt Hedgewold, Niclas Swiftrot Cassier, Anika Bonecrusher Feinburg, Cyrila Deathadder Everweald
The following name generators can be used to come up with the Germanic parts of your character’s name. If your character has a foreign tie, whether as part of their own backstory or in their parentage, you should look up the other nations’ naming conventions and borrow a first or last name from one of those.