The Books Were Wrong: Gnolls

 Sort of a play report, I suppose.

The Books Were Wrong is a "Sourcebook-Altering" game. Dan did a thing for it here, about Kobolds. Since its basically a game about empathetic fantasy anthropology, I think it was inevetable that I would do this at least once.

I choose Gnolls because their entries read like either the most heinous propaganda you've ever read, or like a report using only said heinous propaganda as sources.

Using the monster manual entry from 5e. Maybe I'll do the volos guide to monsters one later, but that ones long as shit. I'm still calling the author "Volo" out of spite though.

This can be said to be a part of my Kith and Kin setting, but but the only "canon" parts are the ones that don't contradict other things.

On Gnolls

Gnolls are feral humanoids that attack settlements along the frontiers and borderlands of civilization without warning, slaughtering victims and devouring their flesh.

Volo states that Gnolls attack settlements on "frontiers" and "borderlands" which would be the most notable element of this opening, if the entire thing were not one of the most egregious examples of demonization that I have had the misfortune of encountering.

The culture Volo was part of was a particular Youngfolk culture native to the northern coasts of the southern continent. While several centuries prior to this document this culture had been relatively confined to these regions, it rapidly expanded through both violence and diplomacy, establishing a wide territory, which lasted until a few centuries ago, with a total "lifespan" of aproximately 500 years, give or take two or three centuries based on a few ambiguities of what constitues a direct successor-state.

Volo appears to be referring to Gnoll retaliation against forces which were encroaching on traditionally Gnoll-held savannahs and rainforests at the time, characterizing this retaliation as offensive, rather than defensive. While the aggressive expansionism would be more than enough to suspect this, consultation with Gnoll oral historians appears to confirm this, and provided insight into some unexpected elements of this document.

This is characterized as "Feral" in this document, which is such an egregious example of dehumanization that I must conclude this document was intended as a propaganda peice to further galvanize military action.

Demonic Origin. The origin of the gnolls traces back to the time when the demon lord Yeenoghu found his way to the material plane and ran amok. Packs of ordinary hyenas followed in his wake, scavenging the demon lord's kills. Those hyenas were transformed into the first gnolls, parading after Yeenoghu until he was banished back to the Abyss. The Gnolls then scattered across the face of the world, a dire reminder of demonic power.

Appears to be a garbled version of a cosmogenic tale common to gnolls. While gnolls do possess distinct cultures, this tale appears to be common among the majority of the ones I had the pleasure of interacting with, though certain details differ. This is notable due to the distance these cultures had with each other (in some cases, essentially on opposing sides of the southern continent itself).

The most consistent features of the cosmogony that are relevant to this document is that some entity that embodies primordial instinct is loosed upon the world shortly following its creation, devours a vast amount of food, and then mates with itself to produce the first bands of Gnolls. The typical Gnoll conception of most divinities is that of neutral and impersonal forces which are responsible for the creation and persistence of coherent reality, which differs from the Imperial conception of divinity as "Ideological Paragons." Reverence for the spirits is seen as a direct way to empower and sustain these forces, which contrasts with the Imperial policy of binding, banishing or enslaving spirits that did not submit to them.

"Yeenoghu" appears to be a mangled mistranslation of a Hyena spirit reveared by some savannah gnolls, which was then conflated with this "Instinctual creator." Notably Volo uses this to characterize Gnolls as originating from hyenas themselves rather than addressing their status as one of the Kith, though admittedly I am unsure if Volo was aware they more closely resemble tall, bipedal baboons than Hyenas. I suspect he may have never left the central territories of the Imperium throughout his entire life.

Notably the Gnoll sources I consulted on my travels did not object to the idea of the cosmogenic entity being a "demon" as the morality of this entity is both nonexistent and irrelevant to Gnoll religion. It is revered, but mostly as an embodiment of instinct and animal wisdom, and frequently plays second fiddle to local spirits.

Nomadic Destroyers. Gnolls are dangerous because they strike at random. They emerge from the wilderness, plunder and slaughter, then move elsewhere. They attack like a plague of locusts, pillaging settlements and leaving little behind but razed buildings, gnawed corpses, and befouled land. Gnolls choose easy targets for their raids. Armored warriors holed up in a fortified castle will survive a rampaging gnoll horde unscathed, even as the towns, villages, and farms that surround the castle are ablaze, their people slaughtered and devoured.

The majority of this appears to be complete fabrication. I can find no official Imperial sources or Gnoll histories of them "razing buildings, gnawing corpses and befouling land." Even the statement armored warriors holed up in fortifications is inaccurate, as if one was at war with a Gnoll band, they would most likely be more than capable of scaling fortifications.

This appears to be pure propaganda, characterizing Gnolls as slaughterers of civilians, which is immensely hypocritical of Volo as Imperial forces are well recorded as having targeted noncombatants for terror purposes, which Volo would be aware of if he were half as informed on military exploits as he claims to be. Of course, the propagandistic nature of this text means that it is likely that Volo was outright lying for political purposes.

Gnolls rarely build permanent structures or craft anything of lasting value. They don't make weapons or armor, but scavenge such items from the corpses of their fallen victims, stringing ears, teeth, scalps, and other trophies from their foes onto their patchwork armor. 

Verifiably untrue, even Imperial sources contemporanious to Volo mention fearing the bone-hewn spears and blades of Gnolls, and making mention of Gnoll encampments in locations clearly altered and shaped for maximum comfort and habitability. The trophy hunting is, however, attested by modern Gnoll practices, oral historians and imperial sources. Make no mistake, Gnolls are warriors, but the trophy hunting is seen as a way to honor ones enemy, and is a variation of the relic-keeping funerary rites common to both Gnolls and the Broadfolk of the north (though this appears to be coincidence). The Gnolls repelling imperial aggression at the time this document was written did engage in this practice, which suggests that they felt the need to honor their fallen enemies in death despite have every justification to simply leave them to rot.

Thirst for Blood. No goodness or compassion resides in the heart of a gnoll. Like a demon, it lacks anything resembling a conscience, and can't be taught or coerced to put aside its destructive tendencies. The gnolls' frenzied bloodlust makes them an enemy to all, and when they lack a common foe, they fight among themselves. Even the most savage [Wild-Folk] avoid allying with gnolls.

 More propaganda. These are all verifiably untrue, and Gnoll bands frequently trade, ally, intermarry and share resources with Wild-Folk either native to the same area, or simply passing through. The rest is simply more demonization that doesn't even meet the minimum requirements for burden of proof to be necessary.

The culture of Gnolls is not a pacifist one, and does involve a degree of competition, but its to a similar degree that Imperial culture was, merely performed differently. The hypocrisy here is almost a tangible substance.

The alpha of a gnoll pack is the pack lord, ruling by might and cunning. A pack lord earns the best of a gnoll pack's spoils, food, valuable trinkets, and magic items. It ornaments its body with brutal piercings and grotesque trophies, dyeing its fur with demonic sigils, hoping Yeenoghu will make it invulnerable.

A mischaracterization of the leadership of a Gnoll band. The leader is typically one that is selected by the population of a band for being an exceptional leader, warrior or wise person. The ornamentation is not worth commenting on, and they tend to simply be in charge of distributing resources, rather than actually being in possession of them. While the position has been claimed by violence or underhanded methods and been abused in the past, the scale to which they can enact injustice is lower than that of imperial leadership, and comparable to other nomadic cultures that Volo was perfectly willing to sing the praises of.

The specificity of the last sentence leads me to believe he was mischaracterizing a specific wartime ritual, likely a form of reverence to a specific spirit or "god" in exchange for patronage. It is difficult to say for sure though, as despite the specificity of the ritual itself, Volo seems to be scant on details, though notably it does resemble a variation of the rites done before hunts in Gnoll culture. These rites are less in-depth than Volo describes, the fur is painted but with no "sigils." I believe the ritual described here to be a wartime variation, and thus more solemn and in-depth.

Gnolls celebrate their victories by performing demonic rituals and making blood offerings to Yeenoghu. Sometimes the demon lord rewards his worshipers by allowing one of them to be possessed by a demonic spirit. Marked as Yeenoghu's favorite, the lucky recipient becomes a fang of Yeenoghu, the chosen of the Gnoll Lord. In much the same way Yeenoghu created the first gnolls, a hyena that feasts on a fang's slain foe undergoes a horrible transformation, becoming a fullgrown adult gnoll. Depending on the number of hyenas in a region, a fang of Yeenoghu can lead to a startling increase in the gnoll population. Finding and killing the fang is the only way to keep that population in check.

As standard for this document, Volo describes vaguely defined cultural practices as "demonic." The blood offerings comment is interesting, as it may describe a form of ritual sacrifice (animal or human, Gnolls are as variable as any other culture group) enacted in celebration of a victory. The most interesting element is the description of a Gnoll being possessed by a so called "demonic spirit." This seems to be a demonization of the traditional Gnoll spiritual practices in the area, where they would invite a spirit to temporarily inhabit their own body as a way to channel their power and wisdom. The descriptions of the rapidly increasing population and "keeping them in check" grimly conclude Volos views on the Gnolls.

Having previously established the creation myth Volo described as being essentially of his own invention (albiet taking minor features from Gnoll creation myths) the details about the supposed "Fang of Yeenoghu" being able to supernaturally increase the Gnoll population is likely a misunderstanding of fertility rites that Gnoll holy folk lead, being then framed in a way to justify supression of Gnoll culture, or ousting from their traditional lands.

End Document