Page 31 - Volo's Guide to Monsters

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Cff.A..P.TER l t MONSTER LOR~

First, personal adornment has little value in the ordning
fringes of their territory look and behave like primitives.
bed of the ocean where at last it would drown.
nels that atlowed him to pull the tarrasque down to the
To unfamiliar eyes, stone giants encountered on the
under the sea, so that Stronmaus couid find the chain-tun-
ate while others remain at rock-throwing range.
of valor. Skoraeus tapped with his hammer on the stone
ments, one or two giants might come forward to negoti-
spears for Hiatea so she could complete her ten tasks
all but the lowest of stone giants. If offered such entice-
Surtur refused to forge new ones for him. Skoraeus crafted
are suitable tributes; money is a weak inducement for
runes on his old weapons to imbue them with magic when
ute. Beautiful and large furs, exotic food, or art objects
smelting to Surtur. Skoraeus showed Thrym how to carve
the group speaks Giant and the giants are offered a trib-
and the secrets of the earth. Skoraeus gave the secret of
for safe passage through their territory, if someone in
giant gods about magic, wards, banes, hidden treasures,
It's possible for travelers to negotiate with stone giants
Skoraeus is considered the most knowledgeable of the
warning, and the next stone won't land so harmlessly.
end would have ended differently.
understand that this wasn't a miss; it was a measured
asked Skoraeus for advice about Memnor's words, the leg-
were seen as no fault of Skoraeus. If Surtur had instead
rock. Those who know anything about stone giants
eventually reacted rashly, but the consequences of his acts
nowhere and exploding into shards against a nearby
which was misleading when taken out of context, and
ant territory might be a boulder, thrown seemingly from
actly what he had heard. Surtur brooded on that message,
A creature's first sign that it has intruded into stone gi-
know what Memnor had said, Skoraeus told his brother ex·
aren't treated politely.
pered something in his ear. When Surtur demanded to
unwelcome in the stone giants' caverns, and trespassers
In a classic tate, Memnor came to Skoraeus and whis·
so. But outsiders, particularly non-giants of any sort, are
divulging.
sonable people. Among their own kind, they tend to be
a keeper of secrets that he must be forced or tricked into
on artistry might think them to be a peaceful and rea-
He acts as an observer, a confidant to the other gods, and
Newcomers who know only about the stone giants' focus
sidelines during the schemes and battles of his siblings.
In the tegends of the giants, Skoraeus often sits on the
GENTLE GIANTS?
raeus is depicted twice as tall as any other stone giant.
carving of a stone giant in a tribe's caves. Typically, Sko·
and a new speaking stone begun.
and the other a hammer, and as the largest statue or reUef
tion and honor demand that it be crushed into gravel
art in two ways: as a pair of hands., one holding a chisel
of the stone is used, is considered poor artistry. Tradi-
deities in his father's absence. He appears in stone giant
thick, so that the message ends before the entire surface
Creator, second in skill to Annam, but master of the other
a stone. A cylinder that turns out to be too long or too
Stone giants worship Skoraeus Stonebones as the Great
the message they carry, so there is no blank space on
SKORAEUS STONEBONES, THE GREAT CREATOR
Speaking stones are sized to match the length of
from top to bottom.
boors cast out by a society of artists and philosophers.
flipped over to reveal the second line of script, also read
the ideals stone giants aspire to. They are the brutes and
bottom as the cylinder rotates; then the cylinder must be
bers of stone giant society and the poorest examples of
in two alternating spirals. The first is read from top to
outsiders are almost always the least successful mem-
wraps around the pillar like the threads of a screw, but
As such, the stone giants that are first encountered by
can be read as the cylinder goes around. The message
ders or as hunters that wander beyond those borders.
in a cradle designed to balance it upright, the writing
ciety, to serve as guards on the tribe's most distant bor-
and strength) or when it's rotated with its base placed
often pushed literally to the perimeter of stone giant so-
hands (a feat impossible for any creature of human size
their lives fall to the lowest rungs of the ordning and are
descending spiral. When the cylinder is turned in one's
Those who can't infuse artistry into every aspect of
upright stone cylinder into which writing is carved in a
athleticism and grace.
word through "speaking stones." A speaking stone is an
of strength but is also striving to display consummate
Stone giants also make extensive use of the carved
stone giant hurling a boulder isn't only performing a feat
mor might incorporate runic letterforms, for example).
ing is concerned, artistry is fundamental to the effort. A
tales, often as part of an image (a character's arms or ar-
homes or attack enemies. But even where boulder toss-
tableaux. Names, dates, and descriptions appear in their
stone giants well when they have cause to defend their
stone giants also employ mundane writing in their stone
der hurling and catching. Their rock-throwing skills suit
Although they are unsurpassed masters of tale carving,
levels of artistry, stone giants compete in games of boul-
SPEAKING STONES
tempt. To determine the ordning beneath the highest
pathetic and viewed with a combination of pity and con-
tale with the addition of proper illumination.
Those who show little skill in carving are considered
in flat, dim light, but it reveals a second, much deeper
Of course, not all stone giants have the hands of a god.
these special techniques tells one story when it's viewed
in its true form. For example, a tale carving made with
shadow, the carving is incomplete and can't be viewed
-ELMINSTE~ ~ in the proper location. Without both the light and the
BUT IN PURSUIT OF IT. THAT'S WHAT STONE GU,NTS DO,
shadows in specific ways when a light source is placed
ALE, THAT THEY FORGOT HOW TO 1.IVE IN ANY OTHER \VAY
of shadow and light. They design carvings to p~oduce
stone giants have a nuanced appreciation of the effects
WITH THEIR CRAFT, OR TH£ SEEl<ING Oft TREASURE OR
For a people that spend their lives mostly in darkness,
We ALL l(NOW OF DWARVES w~ FELL so DEEP IN LOVE