Dreadbound

Dreadbound

Dreadbound are hunters sent after threats that guards, militias, and courts cannot stop. They track plague-born creatures, cursed objects, and oath-breakers who hide behind power or law. Most towns never see one. Many people believe they are stories meant to scare others into obedience.

Dreadbound appear when patrols fail and watch posts go silent. They are not soldiers and do not hold territory. They are sent to end a single problem that has grown too dangerous to ignore. If a Dreadbound is hired, it means the situation is already severe.

They do not stay once the work is done.

The Curse and the Source

The power of the Dreadbound comes from a nameless minor god. It has no temple and no recorded faith. No priest claims it. It does not speak, teach, or answer prayer. It acts only through a mark.

This god places a single cursed rune on a chosen person. The rune is burned into flesh and soul. It cannot be removed. It is not given through ritual, worship, or consent.

The rune grants heightened strength, endurance, and awareness. It sharpens the mind against fear and corruption. In return, it imposes a curse. Every Dreadbound feels a constant pull toward monsters, curses, and unnatural threats. This pull never fades.

Ignoring the pull causes physical collapse. Fever, hallucinations, and loss of will follow. If resisted long enough, the Dreadbound dies.

No Dreadbound lives to old age. None retire. They die in the field, alone, or broken by what they hunt.

Becoming Dreadbound

There is no known way to seek the mark. The god chooses without warning. Most marked individuals are already damaged or desperate. Survivors of plague zones, border fighters, failed adepts, and abandoned children are common. Those with little left to lose are chosen most often.

The moment of marking is called the Binding. The rune appears suddenly, often during extreme stress or near unnatural danger. The pain is severe. Many die within hours. Others survive but are left scarred or unstable.

Those who live are changed. Their bodies adapt to exhaustion and injury. Their minds grow resistant to fear and taint. Some gain the ability to use narrow forms of magic. Others never do.

The Binding is feared and forbidden. Faith orders do not bless it. Courts do not recognize it. Once marked, there is no reversal and no protection under the law.

Signs, Magic, and Craft

Not all Dreadbound use magic. Some cannot. Some refuse. Others develop limited magical ability as a result of the rune.

Those who use magic rely on signs. Signs are brief gestures and short words that cause narrow effects. A sign may stagger a creature, break a hold, dull pain, or force hesitation. Signs are short-lived and taxing. They exist to survive, not to dominate.

All Dreadbound rely on field mixtures. These include pain dullers, clotting agents, focus stimulants, and poisons. Many are dangerous to use and made from tainted sources. Mistakes kill quickly. Every Dreadbound learns this early or does not live long.

Methods and Tools

Dreadbound fight without ceremony. They use tools that work when supplies fail. Hooks, chains, oils, nets, wedges, and fire are common. Weapons are chosen for close fights and confined spaces.

They plan for ambushes, traps, and fast kills. They expect to fight alone.

Proof is taken only when required. A fragment, a mark, or a witnessed confession is enough. If proof would cause panic or draw unwanted attention, it is destroyed. Survival matters more than record.

What They Hunt

Plague-born creatures are the most common targets. These beings show the land’s sickness in body and behavior. They move along abandoned roads and old routes.

Cursed Objects are next. Many are old and unstable. Keeping them often creates more victims than destroying them.

The Corrupted are the most dangerous hunts. These are people whose actions harm many while remaining protected by status or fear. When law cannot reach them, Dreadbound are sought in secret.

Not all Dreadbound hunt all three, some only hunt Plague-born, some only hunt Cursed Objects, and some only hunt the Corrupted.

How They Are Treated

Dreadbound are paid well, when they are paid at all. They are also treated as unclean. Many towns force them to stay outside the walls. Inns turn them away. Gratitude is given quietly and never in public.

Rulers encourage this distance. A known Dreadbound can be controlled or blamed. An unwanted one stays unseen.

Rarity and Truth

Dreadbound are extremely rare. Most die before completing a single hunt. Others vanish without trace. Some are killed by crowds or silenced by officials.

If a Dreadbound arrives, it means everything else has already failed. They ask for clear terms, privacy to work, and payment that keeps them alive. They do not promise mercy.

When the work is done, they leave. Often without a name. Often without proof.

The threat was real.
The hunter does not remain.