The Brass Coast military concerns

While the Freeborn nation supports two Imperial armies, organized along traditional lines, most Freeborn families encourage their children to practise some martial skills. The Freeborn remember a time when the families were responsible for their own defence and they try to remain prepared in case that day should come again. Most Freeborn are commonly taught to fight wearing light armour and carrying a small shield and a stabbing javelin or sword. They are not career soldiers and by day they are tradesmen, farmers and labourers, only turning to martial matters when required.

In addition to these forces many families maintain a small dedicated fighting force, usually family members who have shown a capacity for martial excellence. These warriors protect Freeborn caravans and settlements from bands of raiding orcs or adventurous bandits. Families take a pride in equipping their warriors with the best equipment they can afford. Many of these family warriors have spent time in the Imperial armies, honing their abilities, and are often trained to fight in heavy armour in close formation. The ideal accoutrements are a ornately engraved plate breastplate often worn with other pieces of armour over layered silk robes combined with whatever weapons that family favours.

Some Freeborn warriors find such an exhilaration in battle that they actively seek opportunities to fight. Centuries ago, the Hakima began to gather Freeborn who had been disowned and turned them into a fighting force. By serving their tribe the Freeborn were able to find a way to redeem themselves. These groups were called Kohan, meaning without family, and their number has grown considerably over the years. Although they still accept men and women who have been cast out, most Kohan are volunteers, individuals who find such joy in battle that they cannot give it up. They fight for the joy of battle, flinging themselves into combat with a blood-thirsty relish that can easily dispirit an enemy. Kohan often adopt flamboyant costume and body paint, the better to unnerve their enemies. When they are not fighting they are most usually found celebrating their continued survival with that same intensity.

Groups of Kohan usually form loose bands of soldiers who live and fight together, the group serving as a surrogate for the family they have left behind. Groups of Kohan are driven by very different reasons but the traditional ones pledge their service directly to the Hakima of their tribe. They regard devoting yourself to the tribe above all other loyalties as a higher calling and see their path as a spiritual one. A “family” of Kohan is generally quite loose, and its membership fluid, although they are always of the same tribe. Kohan who cannot fight due to pregnancy or injury generally return to their birth family either until they are ready to fight again, and sometimes Kohan choose to rejoin their original family permanently.