Bulleteater

You Are What You Eat

"They said it wasn’t smart to drink right out of the tank while it’s running, but I’m fed and they’re dead. How smart is that?” 

 ~ Slick Wjeld, Guz’Gazzan Engineer

A collection of roving warbands, traders, and pirates that dominate the Northern Dust and the Longtooth Coastline, the Bulleteaters are clever and ruthless marauders and inventors known for their deadly war machines and otherworldly fortitude. The Bulleteaters are a veritable horde of tribes, each lead by an independent Warchief. Bulleteater tribes are entirely autonomous from each other but join as a collective to face efforts made to exterminate them. While there is not a direct seat of power, the capital city of Guz’Gazzan serves as a neutral meeting point for the Bulleteater Warchiefs. While many Bulleteaters are merciless raiders, others engage with outside groups to trade and cooperate, and iconic individuals have made an incredible impact on the world through their clever inventions and innovations. Bulleteater ingenuity is nothing short of miraculous, but this same cleverness makes them an even deadlier threat. 

Attribute Changes

The Bulleteater Birthrite grants a +2 Grit Attribute Bonus.

True to their name, Bulleteaters will regularly ingest gunpowder, drink gasoline, and chew on metal. The hardship of the Bulleteater lifestyle culled those too weak to survive Early in its practice. Over generations, those who survive this brutal culture are incredibly hardy and can stomach many substances that others would consider fuel or munitions.  

The Bulleteater Birthrite grants a -1 Will Attribute Penalty.

Bulleteaters are frequently exposed to roaring engines, explosions, and constant screaming. They still hear engines even when sitting in silence. As a result, Bulleteaters pay little mind to their surroundings and are easily spooked. Constant exposure to heavy industrial fumes can also be detrimental to one’s sanity.

The Bulleteater Birthrite grants a choice:

+1 Skill Attribute Bonus

-or-

+1 Focus Attribute Bonus

Bulleteaters have excellent hand-eye coordination. Many Bulleteaters have an innate understanding of complex devices, machines, or explosives. Bulleteaters are clever and provocative, figuring their way around complex problems and thinking outside of the box.

The Bulleteater Birthrite grants a choice:

-1 Power Attribute Bonus

-or-

-1 Charm Attribute Bonus

Due to the inherent recklessness of their way of life, many Bulleteaters suffer from long-lasting injuries. Moreover, when they engage, Bulleteaters will often eschew social norms and make any performative gestures with the bare minimum of grace.

Class Abilities

The Bulleteater Birthrite grants a choice:

Drive

-or-

Engineering

Your choice applies as an additional selection to your Studious Tenderfoot Class Feature.

Beliefs

Bulleteaters lack a uniform belief structure or ideology that the general populace holds as a keystone of morality. Instead, Bulleteaters globally engage in the practice of Geophagy, regularly ingesting dirt, metals, petrol, and gunpowder to be tough enough to handle the harsh realities of a Bulleteater’s existence. This practice, over generations, has produced an incredibly robust and staunch population, as those that couldn’t eat bullets and drink gas died in the early stages of the practice, leaving behind the remarkably resilient Bulleteaters of today.

Despite the perceived chaos of their organizational structure, Bulleteaters can be innately competent constructors. When a project catches their interest, Bulleteaters drop everything to contribute to its completion. Bulleteater construction crews are made up of hordes of volunteers, each screaming suggestions on how to improve the project while “motivating” less crafty members to lift with their legs. While construction projects may seem haphazardly chaotic, Bulleteaters are capable of slapping together complex machines and structures in record time with the bare minimum of materials.

Education

Bulleteater education is non-existent. They instead follow their often misguided intuitions during their formative years. There is a single institution of learning within Guz’Gazzan called the Scarabrinth. It’s an enigmatic structure of an obfuscated design, with the world's largest stockpile of blueprints, machine designs, and operation manuals. The most brilliant Bulleteaters maniacally comb through the catalog of blueprints while dreaming up their next mad war machine. 

Geographical Origin

The Bulleteaters have all but infested the northern reaches of the Dust, encompassing the entirety of the Longtooth Coastline with their warbands venturing further outward as needed. Guz’Gazzan is located at the mouth of the Black Blood, an inlet bay rich in petroleum and coal deposits, directly in the center of the Longtooth Coastline.

Grooming

Bulleteater grooming habits are non-existent, even when provided ample resources to practice good hygiene. Bulleteaters instead opt to retain an optimum level of filth at all times. Bulleteaters often have stain-splotched skin from unattended grease, oil, and dirt left to soak in the heat of the Dust. They often claim the soil benefits their health and protects them from the environment's harsh elements. Very rarely do Bulleteaters retain all of their teeth. The common practice among Bulleteaters is to replace any lost chompers with a chrome implant, making silver-toned smiles a regular feature of the Bulleteater Tribes. Another trait common in Bulleteaters is their breath. When a Bulleteater forcefully exhales, as through a cough, burp, or laughter, their breath is visibly black and even explosive when held close to an open flame. This is a result of the frequent ingestion of fuel and blasting powder.

History

The Bulleteaters are one of the longest-lived Birthrites in Salt, with their roots leading deeper even than the foundation of the Holy City of Requiem. Despite their longevity, the Bulleteaters have accomplished very little on the world stage. Many attribute this impediment to their ongoing practice of Geophagy, for which they have derived their name—brought into practice by an early Warlord, Rivet Torque, who was struck by madness. He forced his people to ingest their munitions and fuel, believing that it would make them stronger. Most of the Bulleteaters died from obvious health complications within the first few years of the adoption of Geophagy, while the Warlord Torque and his most zealous supporters seemed empowered by the ritual. Over the countless Generations, those who thrived became the hardened, durable Bulleteaters of today. Belching brimstone and shaped by madness. 

Politics

Bulleteaters do not often engage in what most would refer to as political discourse. Each Tribe is autonomous from the other, controlled by a Warchief that acts in the best interest of their Tribe. Most conflicts rarely escalate past the petty squabble or revenge-driven blood feud between individuals. Issues that become unmanageable for two(2) or more Tribes to resolve without outright destroying each other are brought before the War Tribunal in Guz’Gazzan. At a War Tribunal, the War Chiefs will gather to consider the problem to deliver a final judgment. Though the Tribunal’s word is absolute, an unfavorable verdict is often met with the same result as if there had been no trial at all.

Relationships

Bulleteater relationships can be intense. While most are short, Bulleteaters with lasting bonds are devoted for life and will often live in a pack, with the most successful groupings developing into a whole Tribe. Each Tribe handles its internal affairs by its own set of rules, as determined by the Warchief. Bulleteaters make fast friends but keep volatility present in their relationships. If a Bulleteaters reputation turns sour in the face of their Tribe, they can be beaten, exiled, or even put to death. 

Social Caste

Bulleteaters do not maintain any actual social order. While a Warchief may determine the enforcement of rules within their Tribe, little stops a Bulleteater from walking away from the Tribe altogether. Also, Warchiefs are not held accountable to each other, and their Tribunals are primarily a formality to prevent open war between Tribes. Bulleteaters have the freedom to do whatever they want, whenever they want to. However, access to the things they want is a different story.  

Values

Bulleteaters have several values that set them apart from the other Birthrites of Quantum State. First, Bulleteaters have an eye for quality. They can quickly determine an item’s objective value after a small, thorough inspection. Bulleteaters will often toss objects they do not need, only to pick them up again later as if they had never before seen the thing. Second, Bulleteaters hold admiration for cleverness. If you can pull a ruse over a Bulleteater, you have an equal chance that they will be enraged or tickled. Bulleteaters are also fond of making plots as long as they don't have too many steps. Finally, Bulleteaters have a notoriously short attention span. At times they can ramble on aimlessly about whatever is on their mind, for hours whether anyone is listening or not. You can often witness Bulleteater chewing on their bit to keep their focus on the task at hand. 

Wealth

While some Bulleteaters have turned their ruthlessness and expertise into fortunes, most live in the abject poverty of the Frontierland. Even a Warchief knows only a life of desert sands, saltwater, and scrap metal.