Chumen

Chumen are bands of hostile humans in the Antaran Empire in Betrayal in Antara. They are active in the province of Chuno and are first seen in Chapter 4.

For non-hostile Chumen, see Chuno.

Description
Chumen are the only category of enemy combatants in the Antaran Empire to visibly include women. Both genders have gauntlets visible on their forearms and their partly-bound hair straggles over their faces; their clothing is visibly tattered and torn. Male Chumen have dark hair and beards which look gray during combat. They wear dark ragged tunics and aprons over several layers of darker and lighter shirts and trousers. Female Chumen have orange hair and wear lighter brown ragged tunics over several layers of darker shirts and trousers, while female Chumen Mages have black hair and bloodstained clothing.

In Battle
Chumen rove in groups of three to five, sometimes including Chumen Archers or Chumen Mages. While Chumen Archers are not visibly different from regular Chumen, Mages carry staffs.

Chumen may wear Leather Armor or Chainmail, carry Long Swords or Broadswords, and sometimes bear Banded Shields. Their equipment is occasionally Iced or Poisoned. Mages usually carry Quarterstaffs but occasionally have a Staff of Nightmares. Archers are usually found with Long Bows and regular Arrows.

History
Among the Chunese people, the term "Chumen" refers to visibly differentiated descendants of those who survived the magical disaster that created the Waste. These deformed or disabled descendants of Chunese survivors were often feared for their physical differences and had a reputation for being unbalanced. While many Chumen men and women have resided in Chunese towns for generations and are accepted in their communities, others live as outlaws.

During the incursion of Wraiths in the Ridgewood, attackers include Chumen who have been maddened by being deprived of their souls by Wraiths.

Trivia

 * Female Chumen are the only enemies to have different vocalizations from the rest of the enemies in the game, using the same battle vocals as Kaelyn Usher.
 * "CHUMEN" is the answer to a trivia chest found in the swamps east of Torlith: "Sad twisted people / Born of disaster and shunned / By others."