Shire Knacker

In the shires of Lyveria, knackers deal with death. They render dead livestock, break down carcasses, and extract useful materials from bone and hide. Caustic compounds to dissolve flesh, acids to clean bone, rendering processes that produce tallow and glue from what others throw away. It's the lowest work in halfling society, the exact opposite of the pastoral culture most halflings cherish.

When King Rennyn ordered forces mobilized against Mahkah Hemlig, the sheriffs had an idea. Mahkah's forces included earth elementals with stone-hard hides and heavily armored mercenaries. Conventional weapons struggled, but knackers worked with compounds that could break down the toughest materials. If those could be weaponized and applied to crossbow bolts, they might eat through elemental hides and steel plates alike.

The knackers were conscripted, given heavy armor to protect them from their own caustics, and taught to treat crossbow bolts with rendering agents. Desperate measures. Halflings aren't made for war, and knackers especially prefer to work alone, away from judgment. None wanted to go. But orders from the crown aren't optional.

So the shire knackers gathered their supplies, loaded their rust-bolts, and joined the march east. Other soldiers keep their distance. The knackers don't blame them.

When they arrive and face Mahkah's forces, they'll do what they've always done. Apply corrosives, watch materials break down, and collect their pay.