Author Topic: Subrace & Template Roleplaying Resources and Lore  (Read 87886 times)

MAB77

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Subrace & Template Roleplaying Resources and Lore
« on: January 28, 2021, 11:28:59 PM »
Welcome to our Subraces and Templates RP Resources section.
You'll find here an exhaustive list of supported subraces and templates on our server and details to help you portray them in-game.
This is the collective effort of numerous members of our community for which we are enormously grateful.

Do take note of the following points:
  • Our available subraces and templates are from the following D&D settings: Birthright, Dark Sun, Dragonlance, Eberron, Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, Mystara, Planescape, Ravenloft and Spelljammer.
  • When creating a character, you must select a subrace and/or template that is valid for your chosen setting of origin. See the Racial and Template options per setting table below.
  • Characters from the the Gothic Earth setting are limited to standard humans and half-vistani.
  • Characters from all non-officially supported settings are limited to the default races of Neverwinter Night and cannot apply for a subrace or template.
  • You are expected to roleplay your character in a manner befitting your chosen subrace and/or template. Subraces and templates can and will be removed if this is neglected.
  • If you apply for a restricted race or template, you'll find the application form here and our subrace and template application guidelines here.
  • Characters are limited to one template or subrace. However, a character can have both a template and a subrace. If both are restricted, they must both be approved by the Community Council. A single application form can be filled out but it should contain information pertaining to both the subrace and the template
  • Additional information on planetouched subraces are available on this link.

Subrace and Template options
This is the complete selection of custom subraces and templates available on Prisoners of the Mist.
Subraces specific to campaign settings that use the stats of the standard races are not listed in this section, but are included in the Racial and Template options per setting table below.

Dwarves   Elves   Gnomes   Half-Elves   Halflings   Half-Orcs   Humans   Templates
Standard Dwarf   Standard Elf   Standard Gnome   Standard Half-Elf   Standard Halfling   Standard Half-Orc   Standard Human   Blooded
Arctic   Athasian   Chaos   Abber Nomad   Afflicted Kender   Caliban   Aasimar   Draconic Ancestry
Athasian   Belcadiz   Deep   Athasian   Athasian   Eneko   Abber Nomad   Feytouched
Badland (Unath)   Celadrin   Fire   Giamarga   Cerilian   Hagspawn   Athasian   Yuan-ti Tainted One
Cerilian   Drow (EB | FR | GH)   Forest   Half-Drow   Furchin (Polar)   Mul   Axani   
Dark   Grey   Thinker   Half-Sidhelien   Maztican/Wild   Oscray   Cansin   
Deep   Grugach   Tinker      Rhul-Thaun   Scabland   Half-Vistani   
Dream   Kagonesti   Whisper      Stout/Deep   Scro   Lerara   
Duergar   Poscadar   Wild      Talenta   Tanarukk   Tiefling   
Frost   Qualinesti         Tallfellow   Tarek   Xeph   
Glacier   Shadow         True Kender         
Gold   Shiye                  
Gully   Sidhelien                  
Ishikorobokuru   Snow                  
Kogolor   Star                  
Korobokuru   Sun                  
Moulder   Silvanesti                  
Wild/Jungle   Sithican Grey                  
   Sithican Wild                  
   Umbragen                  
   Valley                  
   Wild                  
   Wood (FR | GH | MY)                  
   Xakhun                  


Racial and Template options per setting

Ravenloft   Mystara   Spelljammer   Birthright   Dark Sun
Abber Nomad   Belcadiz   Anadian Halfling   Anuirean   Athasian Dwarf
Blooded   Draconic Ancestry   Common Gnome   Brecht   Athasian Elf
Caliban   Half-Orc   Furchin (Polar Halfling)   Cerilian Dwarf   Athasian Half-Elf
Dwarf   Half-Elf   Scro   Cerilian Halfling   Athasian Halfling
Feytouched   Hin   Spaceborn Halfing   Half-Sidhelien   Athasian Human
Giamarga   Human   Tinker Gnome   Khinasi   Mul
Gnome   Ilsundal Elf   Wildspace Dwarf   Rjurik   Rhul-Thaun Halfling
Hagspawn   Kogolor Dwarf   Wildspace Elf   Sidhelien   Tarek
Half-Elf   Moulder Dwarf   Wildspace Half-Elf   Vos   
Halfling   Rock Gnome   Wildspace Half-Orc      
Half-Vistani   Rockborn Dwarf   Wildspace Human      
High Elf   Shadow Elf         
Human   Shiye Elf         
Sithican Grey Elf   Wood Elf         
Sithican Wild Elf            
Forgotten Realms   Eberron   Greyhawk   Planescape   Dragonlance
Aasimar   Aasimar   Badland (Unath) Dwarf   Aasimar   Afflicted Kender
Arctic Dwarf   Aerenal Elf   Deep Dwarf   Axani   Dark Dwarf
Axani   Chaos Gnome   Deep Gnome   Cansin   Gully Dwarf
Blooded   Deep Gnome   Draconic Ancestry   Draconic Ancestry   Half-Elf
Cansin   Draconic Ancestry   Drow   Fire Gnome   Human
Celadrin   Dream Dwarf   Duergar   Frost Dwarf   Hill Dwarf
Chultan Dwarf   Drow   Forest Gnome   Planar Dwarf   Kagonesti Elf
Deep Gnome   Duergar   Grey Elf   Planar Elf   Mountain Dwarf
Desert Dwarf (Maztican)   Eneko   Grugach Elf   Planar Gnome   Qualinesti Elf
Draconic Ancestry   Khorvaire Dwarf   Half-Drow   Planar Half-Elf   Silvanesti Elf
Drow   Glacier Dwarf   Half-Elf   Planar Halfling   Thinker (Mad) Gnomes
Duergar   Khorvaire Gnome   Half-Orc   Half-Orc   Tinker Gnome
Forest Gnome   Half-Drow   High Elf   Planar Human   True Kender
Gold Dwarf   Half-Elf   Hill Dwarf   Tanarukk   Wild Gnome
Hagspawn   Half-Orc   Human   Tiefling   
Half-Drow   Human   Lerara      
Half-Elf   Khorvaire Elf   Lightfoot Halfling      
Half-Orc   Khorvaire Halfing   Mountain Dwarf      
Human   Talenta Halfling   Rock Gnome      
Ishikorobokuru   Tiefling   Scabland Half-Orc      
Korobokuru   Tundra Halfling   Snow Elf      
Lightfoot Halfling   Umbragen   Stout/Deep Halfling      
Maztican/Wild Halfling   Valenar Elf   Tallfellow Halfling      
Moon Elf   Whisper Gnome   Valley Elf      
Oscray   Xeph   Wood Elf      
Poscadar Elf      Yuan-ti Tainted One      
Rock Gnome            
Shield Dwarf            
Star Elf            
Strongheart Halfling            
Sun Elf            
Tanarukk            
Tiefling            
Wild Elf            
Wild/Jungle Dwarf            
Wood Elf            
Xakhun            
Yuan-ti Tainted One            
   
« Last Edit: May 11, 2024, 10:12:03 AM by MAB77 »
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MAB

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1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

MAB77

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Restricted Races Application Guidelines
« Reply #1 on: January 28, 2021, 11:30:59 PM »
The following are guidelines and tips to apply for a restricted race and/or template (official application form here). The restricted race/template application is designed to assure that certain powerful races and templates are picked for their roleplay qualities rather than the abilities they grant, and that they are not played in a disruptive manner. Applying players must demonstrate that they understand the race and/or template they are applying for and how to roleplay them.


Application for a subrace/template:

Character name:
- See our server rules regarding character names.
- The name must be reasonable and believable within the culture that your character is from.

Player account:
- Indicate the relevant player account for this character. This allows the CC to quickly locate you in game to assign the race template once approved.

Other characters/accounts:
- You do not necessarily have to list all your characters (especially if you have a large quantity), but you should at least list your most famous ones. You are required to list ALL your other player accounts.

Alignment:
- If you select an alignment that is atypical for your chosen race, a plausible explanation will be required in your character's background to explain why the alignment deviates from societal norms.

Starting class:
- The chosen class for the character's first two levels.

Planned classes:
- Optional, if relevant/known. You are not locked into this, but it helps to assess the potential of the character if you have defined plans.

Desired race/template:
- State the desired subrace and/or template.

Setting of origin:
- The chosen race and template must be a valid player option in the chosen setting of origin.
- Characters from non-D&D or generic D&D settings are limited to the standard base races and cannot apply for a restricted races or templates.
- You are invited to research the setting of origin and the place of your chosen subrace/template therein, be it Ravenloft or otherwise, prior to applying.

Please indicate your starting attributes for this character (PRIOR to the desired subrace modifications):
- Indicate your starting attributes (STR, DEX, CON, INT, WIS & CHA) PRIOR to the desired subrace modifications.

Please indicate your starting attributes for this character as you understand they should look if the subrace template is applied:
- Indicate your starting attributes as you understand they should look after the subrace template has been applied.

Religion/Belief (Mandatory for divine spellcasting classes; Clerics must also list their chosen clerical domains):
- The chosen belief must be a valid option in the chosen setting of origin.
- If devising a custom faith, take the time to describe its core precepts and clergy members responsibilities.

Give a short physical description of your desired PC:
- The description should include all common known features for the chosen race and/or template.
- Uncommon features should be explained.
- Planetouched and feytouched characters are limited to a maximum of two (2) Planetouched traits and Feytouched traits.

Character Background (around 350 words):
- The history of your character: where does he come from. Introduce your character to the Council by detailing what events spurred your character on its current path and shaped its beliefs. Explain how your character has developed the skills he started with at character creation.
- All characters ought to be unique individuals with their own goals and aspirations. Be sure to detail your character's personality traits as to give a good feel of how you intend to roleplay the character.
- It is suggested that you read the Reminder - Background rules and cheesing before drafting your background.

Describe in your own words the subrace and/or template you are applying for (around 350 words per subrace/template):
- Give a general description of the race and/or template you are applying for.
- Provide a thorough description of their society. Discuss about their origin, system of belief, and evolution into the race/template they are today. Explain what kind of relations they have among themselves. Detail how they view and interact with other races. Etc.
- Explain how all the above relates to your own character.
-When applying for a restricted template, describe how the template relates to your character's subrace and how it would have impacted their life.
-When applying for both a restricted template and a restricted subrace (eg. Feytouched Half-Darkling), you must describe both the subrace and the template in this section.

How will your character adapt to exist in the setting of Ravenloft? (250 words or less):
- Do not limit yourself to the initial reaction of your character's arrival in the Mists. Introduce long-term goals to your character that go beyond the common tropes of gaining more knowledge, power or wealth. Describe how you intent to fulfill them in a manner befitting your chosen subrace/template.
- The Council makes it a point to respectfully remind players that outcast subraces and templates trend towards antagonistic/conflict RP inherently due to the setting. Therefore, it is important that you take significant consideration about how your outcast subrace/template character will adapt to the atmosphere of the lands of the mist. Regardless of one's alignment and deeds, you should prepare yourself for the possibility that any outcast race/template will be treated harshly due to the xenophobic native populace. That means you may be relegated to diminished access to certain sections of play and it is the responsibility of the player to respect the inherent conditions of the environments their outcast character inhabits. Playing an outcast character can be challenging in this setting, however, it is a unique RP experience when properly portrayed within the atmosphere of Ravenloft.

Did you read and understand all of PotM's rules?
- The only acceptable answer is yes of course. Do make sure to read and understand them before applying. The rules can be found here.


General Tips:
- The word limits attached to each question are guidelines only. Try to answer as succinctly as possible, while providing all detail you feel is relevant.
- Do answer each question in a distinct section, don't write it up as an essay.
- Do put large images in spoiler tags, or included simply as links.
- At the end of the application, do include extra information you think might be pertinent, that doesn't fit into any of the questions presented.
- The permissions can, and will, be stripped if abused or used to create a poor representation of the race/subrace/template.
- When applying for both a subrace and a template, the Community will approve either both or none. The Council will not approve only one of the two.
« Last Edit: February 07, 2023, 10:11:13 PM by EO »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

MAB77

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Humans
« Reply #2 on: January 28, 2021, 11:32:57 PM »
Quote
Humans


Humans of Ravenloft

Humans make up the majority of the population of the Land of Mists. So large is the human population that many of them only know of other races through rumor or legend. They fill every niche in society and represent a wide spectrum of cultures and ethnic groups. Every human holds the potential to perform great good or commit great evil and can choose which path to follow. Humans are the masters of their own nature; it is both their greatest strength and their most fatal flaw. Human communities can be found in every settled domain.

The Native PC info thread contains the essential information you need about the natives of Ravenloft.

Numerous other resources about the setting are readily available in the Ravenloft Setting section of our forum.

Don't miss the neat Ravenloft Random Character Name Generator to generate a name befitting your chosen culture.



Humans of other Settings

Dark Sun
Humans are the dominant culture in the explored parts of Athas. Among the races, they are known for their versatility and willingness to adapt to the harsh realities of life on Athas. Humans on Athas tend to be dark-skinned with brown or black hair, although exceptions exist. Templar and noble humans tend to display the greatest variety of hair and skin coloration. Athasian humans are also the main denizens in the domain of Kalidnay, a desolate and desertic land stranded in the Mists.

Birthright
Cerilian humans are the most populous race in Cerilia and inhabit every part of the continent. The humans of Cerilia were divided into several tribes of people in the ancient past. These tribes founded the nations that now claim much of the continent. Five human nationalities or cultures currently exist: the Anuirean, the Brecht, the Khinasi, the Rjurik and the Vos. The domain of Vorostokov in the Frozen Reaches cluster is also populated by Vos.

Dragonlance
The humans of Krynn were among the first races created by the gods. They represent the Neutral portion of the triangle, and thus they were gifted with the freedom to choose their own ethical and moral paths. Due to their short lifespans, humans are viewed by longer-lived races as ambitious and impatient, restless and dissatisfied with their lot in life. Humans live throughout Ansalon, with cultures so diverse that the differences between individual humans are as great as differences between elves and dwarves. A race of extremes, humankind keeps the great pendulum of history constantly swaying between good and evil, law and order.

Eberron
The dominant race of Eberron, humans are originally from the continent of Sarlona but migrated westward nearly 4,000 years ago arriving in the region now known as The Lhazaar Principalities. Over the next century humans spread across the face of Khorvaire establishing settlements that would later evolve into what are now known as the Five Nations.

Forgotten Realms
Humanity is numbered as one of the five Creator Races, albeit the last and most primitive. However, like many other sentient races, not all humans originated on Abeir-Toril; many humans alive in Faerûn today are descended, at least in part, from immigrants from other worlds. Although they are the most recent race to achieve dominance here, humanity is found all across the surface lands of Faerûn, from the arctic wastes of the Great Glacier to the steaming jungles of Chult. Unlike the other humanoid races, humans are not segregated into easily identifiable subraces with distinct racial traits. However, humans do vary greatly in appearance and are divided into innumerable competing nations, states, sects, religions, bandit kingdoms, and tribes.

Gothic Earth
Gothic Earth is a dark and shadowy version of Earth's history. Humans and half-vistani are the only playable races for this setting. A character from this setting can come from any culture and from any point in time from antiquity to the 1650s. The Gothic Earth PC Information Thread contains details on various societies.

Greyhawk
The world of Greyhawk encompasses the Flanaess, the easternmost portion of the vast continent of Oerik, on the planet Oerth. Oerik is the largest of Oerths four continents, and four oceans surround them all. Six major races of humanity share the vast Flanaess: the Baklunish, the Flan, the Oeridian, the Olman, the Rhennee, the Suloise and the Touv.

Mystara
The humans come in all shapes and sizes, without any common theme to unite them. Historians claim that they all descend from three ancient races of humans: the Neathar, Oltecs, and Tangor. A fourth, the Alphatians, arrived in this world just over 2000 years ago, and has also contributed to the various cultures now found today. With such a short life span, humans have evolved rapidly and there are now more races of humans than one can possibly keep track of. The world is divided into four distinct parts: the Known World, the Hollow World, the Savage Coast and the Thunder Rift. 

The Known World refers to the planet's surface and contains a multitude of cultures. They can be found on all the continents of Mystara, and seem to have adapted to almost any climate. There are too many races of humans to describe fully, but the two most common are the Thyatians with their olive complexion and dark hair as well as the Common Alphatians with coppery complexions and brown or red hair. Other Known World human culture of notes: the Atruaghins, the Daros (or Darokinians), the Ethengarians, the Ierendians, the Traladarans, the Minrothads, the Ylari and the Northmen.

The Hollow World is a great hidden world within the hollowed centre of Mystara. Ages ago, a few immortals gathered together to make it some sort of preserve for cultures about to go extinct on the surface world, so that their lore and culture could be maintained in some fashion. People of the Known World are mostly unaware of its existence and the Spell of Preservation that governs this "Hollow World" makes it so that the cultures that lives there have no intention to leave it. Significant cultures in the Hollow World includes: the Alphatians, the Antalians, the Azcans, the Jennites, the Merry Pirates, the Millenians, the Nithians, the Oltec, the Tanagoro and the Traldar.

The Savage Coast is a part of the surface world, far removed from the setting of the Known World. It is affected by the Red Curse, a sinister enchantment which eventually kills its inhabitants through mutation unless the metal cinnabryl is worn in contact with the body. The specifics of the "Red Curse" include mutilation of the body and extreme degeneration of physical and mental health. It also imprisons the inhabitants of the region, as debilitating effects result if they leave the cursed area. The technology level is reminiscent of early Renaissance.

The Thunder Rift is a secluded valley surrounded on all sides by nearly-impassable mountains. It mainly consists of a few settlements amid untamed wilderness populated by the traditional creatures of the Mystara setting. It's exact location on the planet is unknown. There is no contact between its denizens and the rest of the world.

Planescape
Humans can be found nearly anywhere in the multiverse. Most are born and raised on the planes, employed as merchants, adventurers, or any other profession known on the planes. Humans may not be as powerful as many planar races, but they are highly adaptable, allowing them to live in places some planetouched cannot. Much of the conflict between ideologies occurs among humans, especially in Sigil and among the factions. Human settlements usually reflect the architecture of the realm or plane where they live, resembling traditional homes but influenced by whatever races they coexist with. Still, many humans have no ties to any specific realm or land, and can be found wandering and exploring the multiverse. No matter where you go on the planes, humans likely have been there first.

Spelljammer
By far, humans are the most numerous race in wildspace. They are pioneers, explorers, pirates, and merchants in countless ports throughout the Spheres. Humans build many common ships of wildspace, as well as cities that are hubs of trade and commerce. Humans have settled countless worlds, moons, and asteroids, and can be found almost anywhere. Their cities are magnets for those seeking to deal with humans or non-humans on neutral grounds.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
Quick to Master
Skilled


Sources: Birthright, Dark Sun, Dragonlance, Eberron, Forgotten Realms, Gothic Earth, Greyhawk, Hollow World, Mystara, Planescape, Ravenloft and Spelljammer Campaign Settings, Wrath of the Immortals
« Last Edit: February 15, 2023, 07:16:28 AM by MAB77 »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

MAB77

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Calibans
« Reply #3 on: January 29, 2021, 12:24:35 AM »
Quote
Calibans


Calibans are twisted humans exposed to curses or foul magic while still in the womb. The birth of a caliban in a community is often seen as a sure sign of the presence of witchcraft — specifically, the corrupting aura of a hag.

The basis for the caliban race are the characters Quasimodo, from Victor Hugo's novel The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, and Caliban from Shakespeare's play The Tempest.


Physical description:
Calibans are physically powerful but misshapen humanoids. No two calibans look alike, but common deformities include twisted backs or limbs, asymmetrical features, bristly skin, or tusklike teeth. Some of them achieve hulking size, while others are stunted runts.

While many of the calibans of Mordent display the variety of deformities common to others of their kind, a certain set of characteristics seems more common to Mordent than elsewhere, what is called Howling or Wailing Ones. These calibans are born with chalk white skin and hair, pure black eyes, and wide, distorted mouths, as though set in a perpetual unearthly howl. They also tend to be more wiry than other calibans, though retaining the peculiar strength of these cursed beings, and the birth of a caliban is considered a sure sign that a powerful spirit rests uneasily nearby.


History:
Calibans are not a race per se, but heavily deformed humans. Each will have its own story according to they were raised.
 

Outlook:
Calibans are widely considered brutish, savage creatures; their name is a corruption of "cannibal," stemming from their most infamous reputed habit. In truth, many calibans are simple-minded, petty brutes, but this is often the product of their upbringing. Rejected as monsters, most calibans spend their lives hidden in dank cellars or flee civilization to roam the wilds. In truth, a caliban's heart can be as pure and noble as that of any human.


Society:
Calibans do not form societies of their own. As creatures of unnatural origin, they can hail from any populated domain. Most are born in lands where magic is relatively common, such as Darkon, Hazlan, and Tepest.


Relations with Other Races:
Calibans are universally reviled because of their appearance and what they represent. They are not welcome anywhere.


Alignments:
Calibans can be of any alignment, though are often a product of their environment and can react violently to the treatments they receive. They tend toward chaotic alignments.


Religion:
Calibans have no religion of their own, but may follow a religion from their native domain.


Language:
Calibans have no language of their own and speak the local tongue of their native domain.


Names:
There is no common thread about the names of calibans. If lucky, one is given a name befitting the culture he lives in, if not it is likely to be simply a derogatory nickname.


Adventurers:
Calibans set out to adventure for a variety of reasons ranging from the need for survival, to trying to find acceptance in the world. They can technically be of any classes, though barbarians and rogues are more prevalent. They live on the fringe of society, kept out of sight. They are less likely to have received any formal education.


Setting:
Calibans are exclusive to the Ravenloft setting.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Str, -2 Int, -2 Cha
Darkvision


Sources: Ravenloft Player's Handbook, Ravenloft Gazetteer III
« Last Edit: March 04, 2023, 04:55:04 PM by EO »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

MAB77

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Dwarves of Ravenloft
« Reply #4 on: January 29, 2021, 12:29:30 AM »
Quote
Dwarves of Ravenloft


(Note that the information below focuses on the dwarves of Ravenloft, but most of it applies to hill and mountain dwarves in general. Details on the dwarves of other settings are included in the settings section.)

Dwarves are a stout race, built as solidly as the mountains they call home.


Physical description:
Dwarves stand only 4 to 4 1/2 feet tall, but they are so broad and compact that they are, on average, almost as heavy as humans. Male dwarves favor long, braided beards, although they often go bald at a relatively young age. Females braid their hair in long pony tails and often tie ribbons to these braids. Hair and eye color, ranges from rust red to browns to black; dwarven hair often turns silver or slate gray by adulthood. Dwarves are dark-featured folk. Their skin, typically a light tan or dark umber tone, is coarse and often streaked with ore dust or soot, as dwarves take pride in displaying the efforts of their labors. Dwarves prefer the same somber, earthen tones and muted colors in their clothing, often adorned with precious metals.


History:
There is no unifying history to the dwarven clans of Ravenloft. Each clan will have its own origin story to tell, but they seldom share those with strangers.


Outlook:
Like dwarves anywhere, those native to the Demiplane of Dread are stern and rugged. Some say that the dwarf race is the least changed by their time in the Mists. After all, they live underground and are insulated from the terrors of the surface. Others, however, argue that no people know the terrors of Ravenloft better than the dwarves. If the stories of ancient horrors found buried far beneath the Land of the Mists are true, this may well be the case.

The dwarven mindset centers on the forge and family. They respect dedication in all forms — to hard work, to their clan, and to codes of honor. A dwarf holds nothing so precious as her family and nothing so beautiful as finely worked steel. Dwarves have little time for frivolity. Their music consists entirely of dirges for their ancestors or anthems of clan tradition. Other races often view dwarves as dour and humorless creatures but retain high praise for dwarven craftsmanship.

The grim and quiet dwarves of Ravenloft have no use for idle chatter and speak only when the situation demands it. They tell no jokes, sing only dirgelike songs, and frown on festivals or holidays. It is easy to understand why many people consider dwarves a dour race. They work hard and cannot abide laziness. So somber a race, it has often been noted, perfectly suits the shadowy realm of Ravenloft.

Dwarves are an avaricious race, fond of gold and other precious metals. Their mines are always run efficiently and make high profits. They also favor strong drink, although this often makes them argumentative and brings about disputes and brawls.

It is difficult to imagine a more loyal friend or tenacious enemy than a dwarf. Anyone lucky enough to befriend one of these proud demihumans will find an ally who stands by him in even the most dangerous of situations. By the same token, however, angering one of these folk is not something undertaken lightly. Dwarf feuds often span decades and even centuries, with heirs often seeking revenge long after the death of the original combatants.

Dwarves claim a spiritual kinship with the earth itself. Some humans have distorted this, believing that dwarves are actually elemental spirits. Many human folktales speak of dwarves who require a diet of gold and gems or who turn to stone if touched by sunlight.


Society:
Dwarven communities on Ravenloft have much in common with the Norse culture. The center of dwarven culture is the town of Tempe Falls in Darkon, though nearby Corvia also hosts a sizeable dwarven population. Smaller dwarven communities have also spread south along the Balinoks and to other mountainous regions, such as the Sleeping Beast of Lamordia. In recent years, dwarven explorers have also been making inroads into the forsaken region of the Mountains of Misery once known as Arak. There they have been laboring to reopen the abandoned mines and a long-neglected trade route that once connected Tempe Falls to Liara in Nova Vaasa.


Relations with other races:
Dwarves get along fine wit gnomes, and passably with humans, half-elves, and halflings. Dwarves say, "The difference between an acquaintance and a friend is about a hundred years." Humans, with their short life spans, have a hard time forging truly strong bonds with dwarves. The best dwarf-human friendships are between a human and a dwarf who liked the human's parents and grandparents. Dwarves fail to appreciate elves' subtlety and art, regarding elves as unpredictable, fickle, and flighty.


Alignments:
Dwarves are usually lawful, and they tend toward good. Adventuring dwarves are less likely to fit the common mold, however, since they are more likely to be those who did not fit perfectly into dwarven society.


Religion:
Many Ravenloft dwarves have much in common with the Viking and Norse culture. As a result, they usually worship the gods of the Norse pantheon. A few adopt the religious practices of the land they live in. Other clans drawn from other worlds may also worship the gods of the Morndinsamman, the Dwarven Pantheon, whose chief deity is Moradin, the Soul Forger.


Language:
Dwarves speak Dwarven, which has its own runic script. Dwarven literature is marked by comprehensive histories of kingdoms and wars through the millennia.



Names:
Norse and Scandinavian names, like Gunila, Kallio, and Thorvid are excellent choices for dwarf characters. A dwarf's name is granted to him by his clan elder, in accordance with tradition. Every proper dwarven name has been used and reused down through the generations. A dwarf's name is not his own. It belongs to his clan. If he misuses it or brings shame to it, his clan will strip him of it. A dwarf stripped of his name is forbidden by dwarven law to use any dwarven name in its place. In addition, every dwarf has an appellation of some sort. Common examples might be "the Bold" or "the Foe Breaker." A typical dwarf changes these titles several times over the course of his life, always striving to reflect his greatest accomplishment.

Male dwarven names:

Agbert, Agdi, Agfrith, Agrun, Aldkarl, Alf, Alfgautur, Alfgeir, Alfsteinn, Alfstyrr, Alrek, Althjof, Alviss, Andvari, Angantyr, Ansgar, Aricin, Arild, Arkin, Armod, Arngrim, Arnljot, Arnvardur, Asbiorn, Asbjorn, Asgaut, Asgrim, Ask, Aslak, Asmund, Asrod, Athalketill, Audun, Avang, Bafur, Balki, Bard, Bardi, Barri, Baug, Beinir, Beiti, Bekan, Bifur, Birgir, Bjarkmar, Bjarni, Bjolf, Bjornarr, Bjornlaugur, Bjornolf, Bjornvaldur, Bodil, Bolli, Bombor, Booth, Borgar, Borgvaldur, Bothe, Bothi, Brand, Brander, Bresi, Brian, Brondolf, Brunvaldur, Brunvardur, Brynjolf, Bui, Cnute, Cortie, Dagbeinn, Dagolfur,

Dagvaldur, Dain, Dellingr, Den, Denny, Dolghvari, Draupnir, Dreng, Drott, Duartr, Durin, Dvalin, Eddval, Egil, Eikinskjaldi, Eikki, Einar, Einbert, Einolfur, Eirik, Eitri, Eldfrith, Eldgrim, Eldkell, Elvis, Enar, Eric, Erik, Erland, Erling, Eylimi, Eystein, Eyvind, Fafnir, Fastbert, Fasthallur, Faststyrr, Fastvarr, Finnbogi, Fjalar, Fjolmod, Fjolvar, Floki, Flosi, Freyhallur, Fridleif, Frithjof, Frosti, Fundin, Fyri, Galar, Gamble, Ganger, Ganndalf, Gardar, Gardi, Garrett, Garth, Gauk, Gaute, Geiri, Geirleif, Geirmarr, Geirmund, Ginnar, Gjest, Gjuki, Glammad, Gloin, Grenjad, Grim, Gris, Gudmund, Gudolfur, Gunnar, Gunnbjorn, Gunnvardur, Guthhallur, Haaken, Haeming, Hafgrim, Hafleikr, Hakon, Hallarinn, Hallbjorn, Hallstein, Hallthor, Halvard,

Hamar, Hamdir, Hammer, Harald, Hardar, Harry, Hastein, Havard, Heimir, Heptifili, Herbert, Herryk, Herthjof, Hilario, Hildibardur, Hildigrimm, Hildiingur, Hildikell, Hildiolfur, Hildithegn, Hjalm-Gunnar, Hjalmvothur, Hjorolf, Hjorvard, Hlothver, Hogna, Homstein, Hord, Hoskuld, Hraerek, Hrafknel, Hrapp, Hreggvid, Hroald, Hrodmar, Hrolf, Hunding, Hymling, Idmund, Ingemar, Ingemur, Inger, Ingharr, Ingimund, Ingjald, Isleif, Isrod, Ivar, Iver, Ivor, Jarnskeggi, Jokul, Jolgeir, Jormunrek, Kalf, Kari, Karr, Kiarr, Kirk, Kjar, Kjarr, Kjartan, Kleng, Knui, Kodran, Kol, Kolgrim, Koll, Konal, Kotkel, Krossbyr, Kveld, Lang, Leidolf, Leif, Magne, Magnus, Melnir, Mikkel, Modolf, Mord, Njordstyrr, Njorthrbiartr, Norbert, Nori, Nyr, Oddvar, Odell, Oin, Ola, Olaf, Olav, Olvir, Olyn, Onar, Onund, Ori, Orm, Orn, Orr, Ospak, Osvif, Otkel, Ozur, Raevil, Ref, Regin, Reidar, Reider, Rekk, Roar, Rolf,

Runolf, Sigbardur, Sighildur, Sigingur, Sigkell, Sigmund, Sigurd, Sigvat, Sinfjotli, Siv, Sjolf, Skagi, Skallagrim, Skarphedin, Skefil, Skirvir, Snaebjorn, Snaevar, Snorri, Solvi, Soti, Stein, Steinar, Steinbjorn, Steinleifur, Steinthegn, Steinvothur, Stigandi, Storvirk, Sumarlidi, Svafnir, Svanmundur, Svanrun, Svart, Sveinstyrr, Sveinulfur, Svewn, Syver, Tait, Tanni, Tarjei, Terje, Thangbrand, Thjodrek, Thjodrorir, Thorald, Thorarin, Thorbert, Thorfinn, Thorgrim, Thorhadd, Thorhall, Thorin, Thorir, Thorkel, Thorlak, Thorleik, Thorolf, Thorstein, Thorualdr, Thorvid, Thrain, Thror, Throst, Thurlow, Tind, Torald, Torger, Tormundur, Torrad, Trigg, Tryfing, Turfeinar, Tyrkir, Ugbjorn, Ulf, Ulfmaerr, Valgard, Vali, Vegeir, Vestri, Vibald, Vidar, Vidgrip, Vigbardur, Vigfus, Vigingur, Vignarr, Vignir, Vigrid, Vikar, Viking, Vinndalf, Vit, Volund, Yngvi,

Female Dwarven Names:

Aadny, Aafrid, Aalaug, Aasa, Aasbjorg, Aase, Aasfrid, Aasgerd, Aashild, Aaslaug, Aasrunn, Aasveig, Aesa, Agnhild, Alfhild, Alfrid, Alof, Annbjorg, Annfrid, Anngjerd, Annhild, Annlaug, Annveig, Arnbjorg, Arnhild, Arnhill, Arnlaug, Arnora, Asa, Asbjorg, Asfrid, Asgjerd, Aslaug, Asrunn, Asta, Astrid, Asveig, Aud, Audbjorg, Audfrid, Audgerd, Audgunn, Audhild, Audrun, Audveig, Bekkhild, Bera, Bergfrid, Bergljot, Bergthora, Bergunn, Bestla,

Bjarnhild, Bjorg, Bjorgfrid, Bjorghild, Bjorgunn, Bjorgveig, Bjornhild, Bodhild, Bodil, Bodvild, Borghild, Borgny, Borgunn, Bryngerd, Brynhild, Busla, Dageid, Dagfrid, Daghild, Dagmaer, Dagmoy, Dagny, Dagrun, Edda, Edny, Eidbjorg, Eidfrid, Eidunn, Eirunn, Eldrid, Embla, Erika, Eydis, Eyfura, Eyrun, Eyvor, Finngerd, Finnlaug, Fjotra, Fredbjorg, Fredgunn, Fredhild, Fredlaug, Freydis, Frida, Fridbjorg, Fridgunn, Fridhild, Galumvor, Geirhild, Geirrid, Gjaflaug, Grimhild, Gro, Groa, Gudbjorg, Gudfrid, Gudlaug, Gudrid, Gudrun, Gudveig, Gudvor, Gullrond, Gunbjorg, Gunda, Gunila, Gunn, Gunnfrid, Gunnlaug, Gunnveig, Gunnvor, Gyda, Hallbjorg, Halldis, Hallfrid, Hallgunn, Hallrid, Hallveig, Heidrun, Hekja, Helga, Helgunn, Hella,

Herbjorg, Herborg, Herfrid, Hergunn, Herkja, Hervor, Hilda, Hilde, Hildebjorg, Hildeborg, Hildegunn, Hildigunn, Hildrid, Hill, Hjordis, Hjotra, Hladgerd, Hleid, Holmfrid, Hrafnhild, Hrodrglod, Inga, Ingebjorg, Ingegerd, Inger, Inghild, Ingibjorg, Ingigerd, Inglaug, Ingrid, Ingunn, Ingvild, Isgerd, Jarlaug, Joreid, Jorfrid, Jorgunn, Jorlaug, Jorunn, Kara, Kjellaug, Kjellbjorg, Kjellfrid, Kjerlaug, Knuthild, Kolfrosta, Kollbjorg, Kostbera, Lidveig, Lidvor, Liv, Liveig, Livunn, Lofnheid, Lofthaena, Lydveig, Lydvor, Lyngheid, Malfrid, Malmfrid, Mildfrid, Mildrun, Modgunn, Modhild, Moyfrid, Nauma, Norbjorg, Norfrid, Norgunn, Norhild, Norlaug, Norveig, Oda, Oddfrid, Oddgunn, Oddlaug, Oddrun, Oddrunn, Oddveig, Odfrid, Odlaug,

Odveig, Olbjorg, Oleiv, Olrun, Olvor, Oslaug, Oyfrid, Oylaug, Oyonn, Oyvor, Ragna, Ragnfrid, Ragnhild, Rambjorg, Ramfrid, Randi, Ranfrid, Rannveig, Ranveig, Reidhild, Reidun, Reinhild, Runa, Runhild, Saereid, Salmoy, Sebjorg, Sif, Sigbjorg, Sigfrid, Signe, Signhild, Signy, Sigrid, Sigrlinn, Sigrunn, Sigvor, Silksif, Sinrjod, Siv, Skjalf, Snefrid, Solaug, Solfrid, Solgerd, Solgunn, Solhild, Solmoy, Solrunn, Solunn, Solveig, Solvor, Steinunn, Steinvor, Svanbjorg, Svanhvit, Svanlaug, Swanhild, Sylgja, Thjodhild, Thorbjorg, Thordny, Thordun, Thorfrid, Thorgerd, Thorhild, Thorunn, Thorvalda, Throa, Thurid, Tofa, Torgerd, Tova, Tove, Trudi, Tryghild, Turid, Tuva, Unn, Unnfrid, Unnhild, Unni, Unnlaug, Unnveig, Urda, Vaetild, Valbjorg, Valfrid, Varunn, Velaug, Vidrun, Vigdis, Vighild, Vilbjorg, Vilborg, Vilfrid, Vilgerd, Vilgunn, Ymbjorg, Yngvild, Yrsa,

Dwarven Surnames and Bynames:

[name of enemy]'s-Bane, [name of enemy]'s-Killer., Absent-Minded, Anvilmaker, Anvilsmith, Anvilworker, Armormaker, Arrow-Odd, Axearm, Axebeard, Axecaster, Axecrafter, Axeforger, Axehand, Axeheart, Axeoath, Axeshadow, Axesmith, Bag-Nose, Bare-Legs, Belly-Shaker, Berserks-Killer, Black, Blackpick, Blacksword, Blind, Blood-Axe, Bloodaxe, Bloodblade, Bloodpick, Bloodsword, Bluearm, Blueaxe, Bluebeard, Blueblade, Blueclub, Bluehammer, Bluehand, Bluehelm, Bluespear, Bluespike, Bluesword, Bold, Boulderdelver, Boulderdig, Brave, Breat Rope, Bronzebeard, Bronzecaster, Bronzecrafter, Bronzefist, Bronzefoot, Bronzeforger, Bronzehand, Bronzeheart, Bronzemaker, Bronzesmith, Bull-Bear, Buttered-Bread, Chertbeard, Chertbreaker, Chertcrusher, Chertcutter, Chertdigger, Chertdweller, Cherthand, Cherthelm, Cherttracker, Copperback, Copperbeard, Copperfist, Copperhand, Copperleg, Crow, Deep-Minded, Dueller, Earthcarver, Earthcrusher, Earthdelver, Earthdigger, Earthhewer, Earthsmash, Easterner, Fair, Fardig, Feeble, Fetter-Hound, Finehair, Firearm, Fireaxe, Firebeard, Fireblade, Firefist, Firepick, Firespike, Firmbeard, Firmfist, Firmfoot, Fish-Hook,

Flamefist, Flamefoot, Flamehair, Flamehammer, Flameheart, Flameoath, Flamespear, Flat-Nose, Flayer, Foebane, Foebreaker, Foecrusher, Foehammer, Foehewer, Foemaul, Foepick, Foespike, Fosterer, Gemcheek, Gemfist, Gemfoot, Gemheart, Gemhelm, Gemmaker, Gemworker, Good, Gossip, Graniteaxe, Granitedelver, Granitefist, Granitefoot, Granitehair, Granitehammer, Granitehand, Graniteminer, Granitepick, Gravelbeard, Gravelcheek, Gravelfist, Gravelfoot, Gravelhelm, Grayback, Graybeard, Grayhammer, Grayhand, Grayheart, Grayoath, Graypick, Grayshadow, Grayspike, Graysword, Grey-Cloak, Groundbreaker, Groundcrusher, Grounddweller, Groundsmash, Hairy-Breeks, Hairy-Cheek, Hammerback, Hammerbeard, Hammerfist, Hammerhand, Hammerheart, Hard-Mouth, Horse-Head, Hot-Head, Hunter, Ironaxe, Ironback, Ironcarver, Ironcrafter,

Irondelver, Irondigger, Ironfoot, Ironforger, Ironheart, Ironhelm, Ironhewer, Ironsmash, Ironsmith, Keen-Eyed, Lean, Little, Long-Leg, Lucky, Mansion-Might, Marblecarver, Marblecutter, Marbledweller, Marbleminer, Metalmaker, Metalsmith, Mooncheek, Moonfist, Moonhand, Moonheart, Moonoath, Night-Sun, Noisy, Oakback, Oakbeard, Oakheart, Old, One-Hand, Onyxbeard, Onyxfist, Onyxfoot, Onyxheart, Peaceful, Peacock, Pickfoot, Pickheart, Pilgrim, Pin-Leg, Powerful, Proud, Prow-Gleam, Quartzheart, Quartzoath, Red, Redaxe, Redfist, Redhammer, Redhand, Redheart, Redhelm, Redleg, Redmaul, Redspike, Ringcaster, Ringforger, Ringmaker, Ringworker, Rockarm, Rockaxe, Rockback, Rockbeard, Rockcutter, Rockhand, Rockhelm, Rockhewer, Rockquarry, Rocksmash, Rockspear, Rocktracker, Serpent-Tongue, Shalecarver, Shalecrusher, Shaledig, Shielddelver, Shieldminer, Shieldquarry, Shieldsmash, Showy, Silk-Beard, Silveraxe, Silverbeard, Silverblade, Silvercheek, Silverclub, Silverfist,

Silverfoot, Silverhammer, Silverhelm, Silvershadow, Silverspike, Skinflint, Skull-Splitter, Sleekstone-Eye, Smooth-Tongue, Snake-in-the-Eye, Southerner, Spideraxe, Spiderbane, Spiderbreaker, Spiderhewer, Spiderpick, Spiderslayer, Spiderspear, Steelaxe, Steelbeard, Steelhammer, Steelmaul, Steelpick, Steelspear, Stonecrusher, Stonecutter, Stonedig, Stonedigger, Stonedweller, Stonehammer, Stoneheart, Stonehewer, Stoneshadow, Stonesmash, Stonespear, Stonespike, Stout, Strongbeard, Strongblade, Strongcheek, Stronghammer, Stronghand, Stronghelm, Strongshadow, Stubborn, Swordcrafter, Swordforger, Swordmaker, Swordsmith, Swordworker, Thunderaxe, Thunderblade, Thunderfist, Thunderhammer, Thunderoath, Thundersword, Tit-Bit, Trollaxe, Trollbasher, Trollbender, Trollblade, Trollhammer, Trollhewer, Tunnelcarver, Tunnelhewer, Unruly, Wartooth, Wealthy, Whelp, White, Wry-Mouth, Wry-Neck, Yeoman,


Adventurers:
A dwarven adventurer may be motivated by crusading zeal, a love of excitement, or simple greed. As long as his accomplishments bring honor to his clan, his deeds earn him respect and status. Defeating giants and claiming powerful magic weapons are sure ways for a dwarf to earn the respect of other dwarves.

Adventuring dwarves favor hafted weapons like axes, war hammers, and picks. They almost always wear the heaviest armor available to them. Because the weapons they wield generally require both hands to use, they often forego shields. For ranged weapons, dwarves favor the crossbow and pistol - the former because it is a traditional weapon of their people, and the latter because it is loud and has a demoralizing effect on the enemy.


Settings:
This entry focuses on the dwarves of Ravenloft, but the standard dwarves are common throughout the Multiverse and usually encompass both the Hill and Mountain dwarves of a given setting. The dwarves of Athas and Cerilia have different attributes and have their own entries. The list below gives an overview of the stout folk of other worlds.

Dragonlance
The Neidar (hill dwarves, knoll dwellers) are the name given to those dwarves who at the time of the creation of Thorbardin chose to live outside. Neidar clans form small villages that consist of modest houses of thatch, wood, and stone. Because of their dwarven roots, they are excellent miners metalsmiths, and woodworkers. Once part of the society of subterranean dwarves, they were cast from their homes in the wake of the cataclysm that preceded the Age of Darkness. Forbidden to return to their former homes, they were forced to live permanently above ground. Neidar have been reasonably successful at integrating themselves into Krynn society and are as likely to be found in urban taverns as in their own modest villages. They get along well with Humans and Kender. Some have established cordial relationships with Elves. However, most other dwarven races shun the Neidar, particularly the mountain dwarves.

The Hylar (mountain dwarves) live in fabulous underground cities beneath immense mountain ranges. The most famous of all dwarven kingdoms is Thorbardin, a 300 square mile area in the Kharolis Mountains. They have little interest in the affairs of other races. In fact, most mountain dwarves have never seen a non-dwarf. They are not interested in helping others unless they can be shown that the matter affects them directly. Two other dwarven races are closely associated with the Hylar and often live in the same cities. The Daewar, who are respected fighters, deter to the Hylar's leadership. The Klar are hill dwarves who serve the wealthy Hylar in menial roles.

The Dark dwarves of Krynn refer to the members of three mountain dwarves clans that live the deepest underground: the Daergar, the Theiwar, and the Zhakar. The Daergar and Theiwar are notorious for their violent behavior, and some say, madness. The zhakar were afflicted with a strange illness, caused by a mold, which resulted in their constant state of decay. They withdrew, or were expelled, from dwarven society in general.

The Gully Dwarves, or Aghar, are considered by many to be the most repulsive of races on Krynn. Gully dwarves are the diminutive cousins of true dwarves, though they still have a seat on the Council of Thanes in Thorbardin. They managed to eke out a meager existence wherever they can, mainly in refuse heaps and other places most civilized races would not care to touch.

Eberron
Dwarves of Khorvaire are natural miners and smiths, and they control most of the precious metals found naturally across the continent of Khorvaire. Powerful dwarf families mint coinage and operate banks, issue letters of credit, hold loans, and collect debts. Dwarf bankers and merchants wield a great deal of economic power throughout Khorvaire, and they are well respected as a result. To an extent, they are also feared, since dwarves are known to be ruthless in collecting unpaid debts.

Forgotten Realms
Found largely in the northern reaches of western and central Faerûn, shield dwarves. are the dominant northern branch of the Stout Folk. Renowned for their smithwork and craftsmanship, shield dwarves have endured a centuries-long decline in the face of never-ending wars with orcs, goblins, giants, and trolls. Taller by half a foot than their gold dwarf cousins, shield dwarves average 4 1/2 feet tall and weigh as much as an adult human. The skin of a shield dwarf is fair or lightly tanned, and her eyes are usually green or silvered blue. Both genders wear their hair long, and males (and a very few females) have long, carefully groomed beards and mustaches. Hair color ranges from light brown to red, with all shades fading to silver or white as time progresses. Shield dwarves keep to their word, whatever the cost, and are incredibly stubborn, unwilling to concede an inch unless there is absolutely no alternative.

Greyhawk
Hill dwarves make their home in rolling hills or on mountain sides, perhaps 'dug in' on the mountainside and extending partially into the underdark. There, they or their family or clan usually engages in profitable mining operations and work the stone and earth, mine it for metals or gems, or engage in other occupations. Four to four and a half feet high, weighting a hundred thirty to a hundred seventy pounds, they are stocky and muscular with ruddy cheeks and eyes of any color save blue. Their skin is deep tan or light brown, their hair is black, gray, or brown. A typical life span is about 300 to 400 years, but some as old as 450 years have been known.

Mountain dwarves live deeper under the mountains than hill dwarves but generally not as far underground as deep dwarves. They average about 4-1/2 feet tall and have lighter skin and hair than hill dwarves, but the same general appearance. They claim they were the first dwarf race and that all other dwarves are descended from them, an attitude that contributes to their isolationism.

Mystara
The main breed of modern dwarves, the rockborn dwarves, hails from Rockhome, which is by far the largest centre of Dwarven culture. The government is a sort of clan-based constitutional monarchy, where the power is shared between the King and the Senate. The population is divided in seven large clans, each having a major focus of interest (military, religion, administration, commerce, etc.). The clans act as political parties, with senators being the head of the largest families. The Dwarven society is also quite complex, with a significant role given to "Guilds", which acts like social clubs.

Planescape
Many settlements in the dwarven realms engage in profitable trade in metal goods. Like their Prime brethren, planar dwarves are well known for their skill at the forge. Those that leave the realms often use the skills they have learned to set up their own smithies in whatever plane they settle in, and cities such as Sigil are always receptive to dwarves for just this reason. The majority of dwarves are found in the Dwarven Mountain, located in the Outlands. Most non-lawful, non-evil, dwarves are drawn there either when they die or when they find it on their travels. Lawful neutral and lawful good dwarves are most often encountered in Erackinor, located in Solania, a layer of Mount Celestia. Some dwarves can even be found in Nidavellir (the realm), which is located in Nidavellir, the third layer of Ysgard. The dwarves of Nidavellir tend to be slightly chaotic, and many of them are also magically inclined.

Spelljammer
While many groundling dwarf clans and kingdoms are in decline, the dwarves of wildspace thrive. Within the myriad of asteroids and moons, the dwarves have built vast kingdoms that at times eclipse those found on terrestrial worlds. The wildspace dwarves have come to call themselves the Starforged Clans. The least of their kingdoms are built into flying castles called citadels. Even greater kingdoms can be found on larger, immobile asteroids and moons. Asteroids are the primary home of the Starforged Clans. These range from stark, barren boulders only a few hundred feet across to huge rocks that could qualify as small worlds. Many citadels have been abandoned or lost over the millennia, and wildspace is littered with these enormous structures--many of which have be inhabited by non-dwarves.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Con, -2 Cha
Darkvision
Defensive training vs. giants
Hardiness vs. poisons
Hardiness vs. spells
Offensive training vs. orcs
Offensive training vs. goblinoids
Skill affinity (lore)
Stonecunning
Weapon Proficiency (Dwarven Waraxe)


Sources: Domains of Dread, D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook, Ravenloft Player's Handbook
« Last Edit: December 08, 2024, 12:07:38 PM by MAB77 »
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High Elves of Ravenloft
« Reply #5 on: January 29, 2021, 02:49:21 PM »
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High Elves of Ravenloft


(Note that the information below focuses on the High Elves of Ravenloft, but most of it applies to high elves in general and details on the elves of other worlds are included in the settings section.)

The "fair folk" are children of nature, respected by some humans but quietly feared by others. Though wandering elves can be found throughout Ravenloft, most native elves hail from the regions surrounding the elven lands of Sithicus or eastern Darkon. These elven cultures are unrelated. This entry will focus mainly on the Darkonian elves and the native elves of the Core outside of Sithicus. The Sithican grey elves and wild elves have their own entries, as do the elves of Kalidnay whom are treated as Athasian elves.


Physical description:
All elves of the land share the common traits of pointed ears, vulpine features, and lithe builds. They tend to have dark hair and eyes of green, violet, or gray. Their eyes reflect light like an animal's. Elves prefer to dress in light, fine fabrics like silk or satin. The fashion of Darkonian elves is set by season: pastel greens and blues are worn in the summer, followed by yellows, oranges, and reds as the trees turn color in the autumn. During the winter months, the Darkonian elves restrict themselves to black, white, or gray tones, to be replaced by an explosion of colors with the coming of spring.


History:
The elves of the Core do not share a common history.


Outlook:
Elves measure their lives in centuries and lack the sense of urgency that seems to drive humans. In times of need, elves can react as quickly as any other race, but they see nothing wrong with dedicating months or years to perfecting a sonnet, observing beauty, or engaging in the pursuit of pleasure. Humans often call elves hedonistic and claim that they have only a bystander's understanding of death. In fact, in some lands, elves are commonly thought — however erroneously — to be fey creatures, immortal nature spirits merely aping the human form.


Society:
Darkon's Mistlands contain three primarily elven communities: Neblus, Nevuchar Springs and Sidnar. Elven settlements in other lands are rare and limited to very small villages in remote locations. Legends speak of still more elven cities hidden from human eyes by powerful elven magic or the Mists.


Relations with Other Races:
Elves mingle freely with other races only in Darkon where non-humans are not seen with as much prejudice as elsewhere. They otherwise try to remain discreet and out of sight as they are viewed with varying degrees of awe and fear. Some domains treat elves with outright hostility. In Falkovnia they are to be captured on sight and made slave of the state. More than one unfortunate elf has had her supposed immortality tested by the inquisitors of Tepest as they believe them to be shadow fey. Still, elves do occasionally settle in human lands where they can become respected scholars. In some locales, tales circulate of elves who served as advisers to entire human dynasties.


Alignments:
Elves can be of any alignment. Those in the major elven settlements of Darkon lean toward lawful alignments. Elves elsewhere generally value their freedom as much as their kin of other worlds and lean toward chaotic alignments.


Religion:
Elves of the Core are not unified by the worship of a particular faith. Nevuchar Spring is the seat of power for the 4th Sect of Ezra and many elves are drawn into the faith. Other Darkonian elves are as likely to follow the faith of Ezra as that of the other main Darkonian religions: the Eternal Order, the faith of Hala or the faith of the Overseer. Elves everywhere may still be worshipping the traditional elven pantheon led by Corellon Larethian or practice druidism. In an earlier edition of the Ravenloft setting, a significant amount of elves were said to primarily worship the Celtic pantheon. While this was not reinforced in 3rd edition, it remains a perfectly valid option to select and would be a logical choice for elves of Tepest and surrounding domains.


Language:
Elves speak a fluid language of subtle intonations and intricate grammar. While Elven literature is rich and varied, it is the language's songs and poems that are most famous. Many bards learn Elven so they can add Elven ballads to their repertoires. Others simply memorize Elven songs by sound. The Elven script, as flowing as the spoken word, also serves as the script for Sylvan, the language of dryads and pixies, for Aquan, the language of water-based creatures, and for Undercommon, the language of the drow and other subterranean creatures.


Names:
When an elf declares herself an adult, usually some time after her hundredth birthday, she also selects a name. Those who knew her as a youngster may or may not continue to call her by her "child name," and she may or may not care. An elf's adult name is a unique creation, though it may reflect the names of those she admires or the names of others in her family. In addition, she bears her family name. Family names are combinations of regular Elven words; and some elves traveling among humans translate their names into Common while others use the Elven version.

Male Elven Names:

Addonwy, Aelhaiarn, Aeron, Aled, Anarawd, Arhtudd, Arianvagyl, Arllechwedd, Armagil, Arthawd, Arvor, Arwystli, Berwyn, Bleddig, Bleddyn, Bleuddydd, Bradwen, Branwaladr, Brioc, Brochwel, Cadfael, Cadfannan, Cadwaladyr, Cadwgan, Cadwgawn, Caerwyn, Caradoc, Cemlyn, Cenydd, Cewydd, Cirdan, Clais, Colan, Cuhelyn, Cwenarth, Cydifor, Cyfnerth, Cymran, Cynddelw, Cyndylan, Cynwrig, Cynyr, Dallwyr, Daronwy, Deheuwynt, Derwyn, Drych, Dyfrig, Dylan, Ednowain, Ednyfed, Edynfed, Eidyn, Einiawn, Einion, Elwyn, Enodoc, Ernan, Eryl, Euddogwy, Eurwyn, Fagan, Ffernfael, Gareth, Gerwyn, Glyndwr, Gorthyn, Griffri, Gronw, Gruffydd, Gryffyd, Gwaednerth, Gwasdewi, Gwenwynwyn, Gwilym, Gwion, Gwogan, Gwrfelling, Gwrgenau, Gwyddnaw, Gwydyr, Gwyn, Heddwyn, Heilyn, Heylyn, Hwfa, Hyfaidd, Hywel, Iago, Idnerth, Ieuaf, Ieuan, Ifor, Iocyn, Iorwerth, Islwyn, Ithel, Llygad, Llywarch, Llywelyn, Lythan, Madog, Madyn, Maelgwn, Maredudd, Mathonwy, Medwyn, Meilyr, Melfyn, Meurig, Morfran, Moriddig, Morvran, Morydic, Myrrdin, Nath, Neilyn, Nwython, Pebwyr, Rhiryd, Rhobart, Rhydderch, Rhys, Rhywallan, Sadynfyw, Seisyll, Sulien, Talfryn, Tegerin, Tegwared, Thomas, Trahaearn, Twynnell, Urien, Vaughan, Wyndod, Ynyr,

Female Elven Names:

Aeronwen, Angharad, Annwyl, Arwyn, Blodyn, Ceridwyn, Creirdyddlydd, Delwyn, Dyddgu, Efa, Eiddwen, Eifiona, Eirawyn, Eldrydd, Enid, Enith, Erdudfyl, Generys, Geneth, Genevieve, Genilles, Glynis, Gwen, Gwenddyd, Gwenhwyfar, Gwenllian, Gwerfyl, Gwerydd, Gwir, Gwladus, Gwledyr, Gwyneth, Hunydd, Hylin, Iwerydd, Lleucu, Llewelydd, Lynwen, Madrun, Maelona, Marured, Meirwen, Melangell, Morfudd, Morfyl, Morgwen, Muriel, Myfanwy, Nerys, Nest, Nonna, Olwedd, Perweur, Rhiain, Rhiannon, Rhonwen, Tangwystl, Tangwystli,

Elven Surnames:

Annwyl, Apsimon, Bedward, Blaeney, Byddir, Bynyr, Cadwalader, Caffyn, Carduggan, Catharn, Ceidiog, Cnaitho, Connah, Eathel, Eddow, Ffoulkes, Flello, Fychan, Gadarn, Gough, Gwalchmey, Gwgan, Gwilt, Gwyther, Knethell, Kyffin, Laugharne, Llewellyn, Llowarch, Llwyd, Mostyn, Prytherch, Pugh, Qiult, Rhiann, Siencyn, Tegg, Treffgarne, Vawer, Yorath


Adventurers:
Elves take up adventuring out of wanderlust. Life among humans moves at a pace that elves dislike: regimented from day to day but changing from decade to decade. Elves among humans, therefore, find careers that allow them to wander freely and set their own pace. Elves also enjoy demonstrating their prowess with the sword and bow or gaining greater magical powers, and adventuring allows them to do so. Good elves may also be rebels or crusaders.


Settings:
This entry focuses on the elves of the Core, but High elves are the most numerous type of elves in D&D and can be found in the settings listed below. The elves of the Birthright, Dark Sun and Dragonlance settings are slightly different than high elves and have their respective entries.

Forgotten Realms
The high elves of Faerûn are the Moon Elves. More impulsive than the other elves, and dislike remaining in one place for any significant amount of time. Most moon elves are happiest when traveling, especially across the expanses of untrodden wilderness that still survive in Faerûn. This is probably the single greatest reason why they are so much more friendly and accommodating to other races than many other elves: They do not isolate themselves from the human lands behind impervious defenses. More details about them are available here.

Greyhawk
The High elves of Greyhawk, also called forest elves, live in homes of living wood grown from the trees of their villages high in forest canopies. Elves were present in the lands east of the Crystalmist Mountains for many centuries before first human kingdoms arose there. The encroachment of humans and other humanoids slowly drove the elves from their plains settlements and into forest and upland realms. The exodus into the Flanaess with the Twin Cataclysms drove them further and caused even the Flan to come into conflicts which would occasionally result in battles. As more and more land was lost, many elves made alliances with other demihumans, or even human civilisations (mostly Oeridian), in order to keep a footing in Flanaess. The Major elf-ruled countries are Celene (Grey and Wood elves), The Duchy of Ulek (Wood and High elves), and Lendore (Aquatic and High Elves). Tribal and independent groups are common in grand forests, such as the elves Highfolk and the Vesve Forest, or in the Gamboge or Grandwood Forests, having settled the area long before humans entered the area or forced to retreat to the woodlands by encroaching human lands.

Eberron
Living among short-lived, everchanging races such as humans and halflings, the elves of the Five Nations, or Khorvaire elves, have learned to identify themselves more by nation and culture than by race. With a blend of the longlived perspective common to other elves and the quick, adaptable nature of other races, these elves are equally capable of long-term planning and quick, decisive action.

Mystara
The high elves of Mystara are the Ilsundal Elves. They are the descendants of the elves who followed Ilsundal from Evergrun to the Sylvan Realm and later made their way to the Known World. Ilsundal elves are found in many parts of the Known World. Their major settlements before AC1000 are in Alfheim, the Principality of Erewan in Glantri (Ellerovyn) as well as the Radlebb Woods in Karameikos (Callarii). Ilsundal elves usually have fair or tan skin, blonde or golden hair and blue or green eyes. After the events in the years AC 1000-1010 that saw the kingdom of Alfheim conquered by Shadow Elves, the Ilsundal Elves can be found in Wendar (Alfheim Clans) and Karameikos (Alfheim and Callarii Clans). Many Ilsundal Elves are also found living alongside humans in other parts of the Known World.

Planescape
Though technically all sort of elves can be planar elves. High elves still represent the majority of them. Most of them live in Arvandor, located in the first layer of Arborea and home to the majority of the elvish pantheon. Its deep woods appeal to the elves, many of whom never leave it. Perhaps due to the proximity to their gods, these elves are even more haughty and aloof than their Prime counterparts, with a very strong tendency towards isolationism. Outcasts of elven society are often drawn to Fenmarel Mestarine's realm Fennimar located in Limbo. Most planar elves feel strong ties to nature. Even if they plane on which they are living or visiting does not have a traditional environment, they will still respect the natural (or unnatural) order that is found on that plane.

Spelljammer
The elves of wildspace are a powerful, yet aloof race in command of the largest single fleet in the Known Spheres. The delicate crystalline ships of the elven fleet are greatly feared throughout the spheres. They enjoy the finer things in life, such as art, poetry, and fine wine. Though they are slow to act, when roused into action they are a force not to be taken lightly. With the backing of their powerful navy, wildspace elf colonists have claimed many forested planets and asteroids. Commonly, wildspace elves will serve in the Elven Imperial Navy for several centuries before retiring to some unclaimed forest at the frontier of the Known Spheres with their family and retainers. It is in this way that wildspace elves have spread themselves throughout a multitude of worlds and spheres.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Dex, -2 Con
Hardiness vs. Enchantments
Keen Senses
Low-light Vision
Skill Affinity (Listen)
Skill Affinity (Search)
Skill Affinity (Spot)
Sleeplessness
Weapon Proficiencies (Longsword, Rapier, Shortbow, Longbow)


Sources: D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook, Ravenloft Player's Handbook, Ravenloft Gazetteer II, Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, Eberron, Mystara, Planescape and Spelljammer Campaign Settings
« Last Edit: March 12, 2023, 12:30:15 PM by herkles »
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MAB77

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Gnomes of Ravenloft
« Reply #6 on: January 29, 2021, 02:59:05 PM »
Quote
Gnomes of Ravenloft


(Note that the information below focuses on the Gnomes of Ravenloft, but most of it applies to gnomes in general and details on the gnomes of other settings are included in the "Settings" entry.)


Physical description:
Gnomes are spindly humanoids standing about 3 to 3-1/2 feet tall and weighing 40 to 45 pounds. They have tanned skin and wizened faces. There are known for their large noses, fair hair and large, sparkling blue eyes. They prefer to wear comfortable clothes in bright, primary colors, decorated with gem-encrusted jewelry that would be gaudy by anyone else's standards.


History:
The gnomes of Ravenloft come from different backgrounds and ancestry. They do not have a particular racial history.


Outlook:
Gnomes adore animals, beautiful gems, and jokes of all kinds. Members of this race have a great sense of humor and while they love puns, jokes, and games, they relish tricks--the more intricate, the better. They apply the same dedication to more practical arts, such as engineering, as they do to their pranks.

Gnomes are inquisitive. They love to find things out by personal experience. At times they're even reckless. Their curiosity makes them skilled engineers, since they are always trying new ways to build things. Sometimes a gnome pulls a prank just to see how the people involved will react.


Society:
The largest settlement of gnomes in Ravenloft is the town of Mayvin in Darkon. Demand for gnomish skill has also drawn small communities (less than a hundred or so) to Valachan and Hazlan. The largest gnomish settlement outside Darkon exists in Nova Vaasa, where it has become fashionable for nobles to have gnomish jesters in their courts. There are rumors that these jesters also serve as spies for their respective courts, making use of their inherent magical abilities and small size.


Relations with other races:
Most humans find gnomes less threatening than other nonhumans simply due to their small size, but humans remain wary of gnomes' reputed inborn magical powers and eccentric personalities.


Alignments:
Gnomes are most often good. Those who tend toward law are sages, engineers, researchers, scholars, investigators or consultants. Those who tend toward chaos are minstrels, tricksters, wanderers, or fanciful jewelers. Gnomes are good-hearted, and even the tricksters among them are more playful than vicious. Even gnomes are as rare as they are frightening


Religion:
In an earlier edition of the Ravenloft setting, the majority of native gnomes were said to primarily worship the Olympian pantheon. While this was not reinforced in 3rd edition, it remains a perfectly valid option to select. Otherwise, gnomes in the Mists are not particularly known to be pious, though nothing prevents them from joining the local faith of their domain. The traditional gnomish pantheon may still be worshipped by some of the native gnomes. The chief gnome god is Garl Glittergold, the Watchful Protector. His clerics teach that gnomes are to cherish and support their communities. Pranks are seen as ways to lighten spirits and to keep gnomes humble, not as ways for pranksters to triumph over those they trick.


Language:
The Gnome Language which uses the Dwarven script is renowned for its technical treatises and its catalogs of knowledge about the natural world. Human herbalists, naturalists, and engineers commonly learn Gnome in order to read the best books on their topics of study.


Names:
Gnomes love names, and most have half a dozen or so. As a gnome grows up, his mother gives him a name, his father gives him a name, his clan elder gives him a name, his aunts and uncles give him names, and gains nicknames from just about anyone. Gnome names are typically variants on the names of ancestors or distant relatives, though some are purely new inventions. When dealing with humans and others who are rather "stuffy" about names, a gnome learns to act as if he has no more than three names: a personal name, a clan name, and a nickname. When deciding which of his several names to use among humans, a gnome generally chooses the one that's the most fun to say. Gnome clan names are combinations of common Gnome words, and gnomes almost always translate them into Common when in human lands (or into Elven when in elven lands, and so on). Alternatively, gnomes worshipping the Olympian pantheon are likely to have Greek sounding names.

Male Gnomish Names:
Boddynock, Dimble, Fonkin, Gimble, Glim, Gerbo, Jebeddo, Namfoodle, Roondar, Seebo, Zook, Abascantus, Abronychus, Acaeus, Aclepiades, Adeimanthos, Aegon, Aeimnestos, Aeolus, Aesop, Agamedes, Agamemnon, Agastrophos, Agathocles, Aias, Aischylos, Akadios, Alektryon, Alexandros, Alkamenos, Alphesiboeus, Ameinokles, Amphitrion, Anaxandridas, Andokides, Antikles, Antiphones, Apollophanes, Argos, Arion, Aristophanes, Asteropaeus, Astyanax, Athenodorus, Autolykos, Basileios, Borus, Brygos, Castor, Cephalos, Cheiron, Chrysippos, Cleandros, Cleodaeos, Clytomedes, Croesus, Cyneas, Daedalos, Damasithymos, Deinokrates, Demarmenos, Demetrios, Demokrates, Diokles, Diomedes, Dymnos, Eioneus, Epaphos, Epaphroditus, Epiphanes, Eteokles, Eudorus, Euripides, Eurykratides, Eurysthenes, Festus, Ganymedes, Gylippos, Harmocydes, Herakleides, Hermogenes, Hieronymus, Hippokratides, Hylas, Iakchos, Iambulus, Iphikrates, Isokrates, Kadmos, Kallisthenes, Kephalos, Kleitos, Kleomenes, Kyrios, Laertes, Laios, Leonidas, Lykomedes, Meidias, Melanippos, Menekrates, Metrophanes, Mikkos, Mnesiphilos, Mnesus, Narkissos, Neoptolemos, Nestor, Nikomedes, Oenopion, Olympiodorus, Onomastos, Orestes, Orion, Orpheus, Pallas, Paris, Parthenopaeus, Perikles, Phaestus, Phillipos, Philoctetes, Polydius, Polykritos, Porphyrios, Praxis, Priam, Ptolemaios, Pyrrhus, Pythagoras, Sebastos, Silanos, Simonides, Sisyphus, Talos, Teiresias, Telemachus, Theoclymnius, Theodoros, Theophylaktos, Thukydides, Tyrus, Xanthippos, Xenokrates, Zenicetes

Female Gnomish Names:
Bimpnottin, Caramip, Duvamil, Ellywick, Ellyjobell, Loopmottin, Mardnab, Roywyn, Shamil, Waywocket, Achradina, Aerope, Agathé, Alkmena, Althea, Amphitrite, Anastasia, Andromeda, Antigone, Antiope, Appollonia, Ariadne, Artemisia, Atalanta, Briseis, Caleope, Calypso, Carina, Circe, Cybele, Cymothoe, Deianeira, Demetria, Dione, Elektra, Eriboea, Eris, Europa, Hekabe, Hermione, Hippolyta, Iola, Iomene, Ione, Ismene, Jocasta, Kallisto, Kassandra, Khlöe, Kleopatra, Klytemnestra, Kypris, Laodameia, Lede, Medea, Megaera, Menelaia, Merope, Nausicaa, Nephele, Nikasepolis, Niobe, Omphale, Pasiphae, Penelope, Persephone, Phaedra, Phoebe, Phyllis, Pylia, Rhea, Sophia, Thebe, Thetis, Thisbe, Verda, Xene, Zoe

Clan Names:
Beren, Daergel, Folkor, Garrick, Nackle, Murnig, Ningel, Raulnor, Scheppen, Turen.

Nicknames:
Aleslosh, Ashhearth, Badger, Cloak, Doublelock, Filchbatter, Fnipper, Oneshoe, Sparkegem, Stumbleduck.


Adventurers:
Gnomes are curious and impulsive. They may take up adventuring as a way to see the world or for the love of exploring. Lawful gnomes may adventure to set things right and to protect the innocent, demonstrating the same sense of duty toward society as a whole that gnomes generally exhibit toward their own enclaves. As lovers of gems and other fine items, some gnomes take to adventuring as a quick, if dangerous, path to wealth. Depending on his relations to his home clan, an adventuring gnome make be seen as a vagabond, or even something of a traitor (for abandoning clan responsibilities).


Settings:
This entry is about the gnomes of Ravenloft, but standard gnomes can also originate from the Eberron, Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, Planescape, Mystara and Spelljammer settings. Special subraces of gnomes, including those of Dragonlance have their own entries.


Eberron
The gnomish thirst for knowledge is well known, and Zilargo is renowned for its libraries and universities and for the skills of its learned alchemists and elemental artificers. Weak as they are physically, the gnomes have refined the use of knowledge as a weapon. When diplomacy fails, they fight their wars with blackmail, espionage, and careful assassination. A gnome's innocent curiosity may be just what it seems; or it may be a well-honed facade concealing a cunning and manipulative mind.

The gnomes' natural gift for illusion is a manifestation of their racial bent toward deception; a gnome will rarely engage in direct conflict when he can strike from the shadows or trick others into working on his behalf. Most gnomes derive great pleasure from these subtle games; two gnomes might be engaged in vicious political feuds with one another and still be great friends.


Forgotten Realms
The rock gnomes of faerûn are in wide demand as alchemists, inventors, and technicians, though most prefer to remain among their own kind in simple comfort. Gnomes adore animals, gems, and jokes, especially pranks. They love to learn by personal experience, and are always trying new ways to build things.


Mystara
Mystaran Gnomes are quite rare, but present in many regions. They all belong to the same race, but cultural differences have divided them into various "subraces". Best known are the rock gnomes, present in Karameikos and neighbouring Known World nations, as well as in the Alphatian Kingdom of Stoutfellow. Their only nation is Highforge, whose government form seems closely related to the Dwarven clanic monarchy of Rockhome. They also are the masters of the Flying City of Serraine, whose inhabitants are called the sky gnomes, a wondrous city kept afloat over the Known World using ancient Blackmoor technology.

Although many adventuring gnomes have taken up illusionary magic, most gnomes prefer the bardic life. Gnomes adore animals, gems, and jokes, especially pranks. They love to learn by personal experience, and are always trying new ways to build things. Gnomes stand 3 to 3 1/2 feet tall, with skin that ranges from dark tan to woody brown. Their hair is fair, and their eyes are often some shade of blue. Gnomes generally wear earth tones, but decorate their clothes intricately. Males favor carefully-trimmed beards. Gnomes live 350 to 500 years.


Greyhawk
The gnomes of Greyhawk are possessed of sly humor and earthy wisdom. Measuring the practical value of things as seen by the gnomes against the pretensions of other cultures, their wit is often revealed in inventive and embarrassing ways. Their creativity is not limited to practical jokes. They are fine craftsmen who appreciate precious stones and make beautiful jewelry, along with woodwork, stonework, and leatherwork of excellent quality; they invent and experiment often. Seldom avaricious, gnomes take equal pleasure in music and story, food and drink, nature and handmade things. Most gnomes are not prone to cruelty, though their lively jokes may sometimes make things appear otherwise.

They originated in the far northern forests. Originally they were trappers and reindeer herders, but they first migrated south centuries before the Twin Cataclysms. Clever and canny, they've suffered abuses from a number of nefarious overlords: first Keraptis, then the Vecna-possessed Gnomelord of Blemu, then Azalin, and finally the orcs and goblinoids of the Bone March. Rock gnomish migrants settled among the dwarves, elves, and halflings already inhabiting the Flanaess, quickly adapting their language, magic, technology, and culture to their own. Rock Gnomes can be found in large numbers in the Abbor-Alz, Cairn Hills, Flinty Hills, Iron Hills, Urnst states, Ulek states, Greyhawk, Ahlissa, Nyrond, and Keoland, and smaller numbers elsewhere throughout the Flanaess.


Planescape
Although most often found throughout the Upper Planes, planar gnomes tend to follow a few different paths. A great many tend to the quiet pastures of Arborea and the Outlands, living simple lives. Another significant portion become Guvner sages, spending their days pouring over ancient tomes with an almost joyful sense of exploration. The last major group is the often-maligned tinkerers. Among the magical landscapes of the planes, their clockwork machinery stands out as an eyesore in all but the gears of Mechanus. Interestingly enough, these disparate groups all co-exist quite well in Bytopia, where gnomes are perhaps the most plentiful race.


Spelljammer
Common terrestrial gnomes are almost unheard of in wildspace, since their natural habitats (living earth in wooded areas) are in short supply. A new gnomish subrace, descendants of Krynnish tinker gnomes, has taken readily to the void, and is much more common. The few common gnomes in space tend to live near elven lands, digging in wherever they can.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Con, -2 Str
Defensive training vs. giants
Hardiness vs. illusions
Low-light vision
Offensive training vs. reptilians
Offensive training vs. goblinoids
Skill affinity (listen)
Skill affinity (concentration)
Small stature
Spell focus (illusion)


Sources: Domains of Dread, D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook, Ravenloft Player's Handbook
« Last Edit: February 16, 2023, 07:59:29 PM by MAB77 »
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Halflings of Ravenloft
« Reply #7 on: January 29, 2021, 03:02:18 PM »
Quote
Halflings of Ravenloft


(Note that the information below focuses on the Halflings of Ravenloft, but most of it applies to all lightfoot halflings in general. Details on lightfoot halflings of other worlds are available in the Settings entry below and the following link.)

Halflings are tiny humanoids, easily mistaken at first glance for human children. Halflings do possess a childlike curiosity about the world around them, which often expresses itself as wanderlust.


Physical description:
Halflings stand about 3 feet tall and usually weigh between 30 and 35 pounds. Halflings hair and eye color are usually dark brown. Halfling men often have sideburns but beards are rare among them and mustaches are almost unseen. Halflings prefer simple, comfortable garb and avoid ostentation. A halfling reaches adulthood at the age of 20 and generally lives to the middle of her second century.


History:
The halflings of Ravenloft come from different backgrounds and ancestry. They do not have a particular racial history.


Outlook:
Halflings prefer trouble to boredom. They are notoriously curious. Relying on their ability to survive or escape danger, they demonstrate a daring that many larger people cant match. Halfling clans are nomadic, wandering wherever circumstance and curiosity take them. Halflings enjoy wealth and the pleasures it can bring, and they tend to spend gold as quickly as they acquire it. Halflings are also famous collectors. While more orthodox halflings may collect weapons, books, or jewelry, some collect such objects as the hides of wild beasts--or even the beasts themselves. Wealthy halflings sometimes commission adventurers to retrieve exotic items to complete their collections.

Halflings enjoy the gentle comforts of the world that many other races seem to overlook. They do not crave gold like the dwarves; if they have enough money to live comfortably, they are content. The gems and jewels that fascinate gnomes interest them only as curiosities. The high grandeur of a typical elf's lifestyle also has little appeal to them, for it is often so pretentious as to be uncomfortable.


Society:
The halflings of Ravenloft do not form a cohesive society. Most halflings are nomadic, wandering in clans from one domain to another. Unlike the constantly drifting Vistani, however, halflings tend to take root in a given area for a few years, experiencing all it has to offer before moving on. Any settlement in Ravenloft of sufficient size may boast a halfling community, though these may be ghettos. Some halflings have settled down to form permanent communities. The largest of these are both in Darkon. Halflings in the city of Rivalis raise goats, produce cheese and take pride in their flower gardens. The town of Delagia supports itself through fishing and is actually built atop Lake Korst, its buildings resembling beaver dams. Tales are told of a village of halflings hidden somewhere in the forests of Sithicus. These halflings were hideously tortured by the black knight who previously ruled that land, however. They are now said to be insane, feral creatures.

Halfling culture is pastoral. They keep their gardens, raise a few pigs or chickens, and avoid having more to do with outsiders than they can help.


Relations with other races:
Halflings are lucky enough to avoid most of the animosity that other nonhumans face. With their small size and lack of supernatural powers, halflings present humans with little to fear. Humans respect halflings' courage and general good nature — sometimes to a fault. Humans often treat halflings with good-intentioned condescension, believing that all halflings are as innocent and harmless as the young children they resemble. Some human bards claim that halflings were created when a powerful hag tried to purify a human as an experiment, driving all the evil from his body. The experiment was a success, but the victim was reduced to half his former size, the "evil half vanishing to none-knows-where. Halflings pay this legend very little mind.

Halflings try to get along with everyone else. They are adept at fitting into a community of humans, dwarves, elves, or gnomes and making themselves valuable and welcome. Since human society changes faster than the societies of the longer lived races, it is human society that most frequently offers halflings opportunities to exploit, so halflings are most often found in or around human lands.


Alignments:
Halflings tend to be neutral. While they are comfortable with change (a chaotic trait), they also tend to rely on intangible constants, such as clan ties and personal honor (a lawful trait).


Religion:
Halflings that lives in human communities may be drawn to the local religions such as the Church of Ezra or the Eternal Order. Though the traditional chief halfling deity is Yondalla, the Blessed One, protector of the halflings. Yondalla promises blessings and protection to those who heed her guidance, defend their clans, and cherish their families. Halflings also recognize countless lesser gods, who rule over individual villages, forests, rivers, lakes, and so on. They halflings pay homage to these deities to ensure safe journeys as they travel from place to place.


Language:
Halflings speak their own language and usually the language of the domain in which they live.


Names:
A halfling has a given name, a family name, and possibly a nickname. It would seem that family names are nothing more than nicknames that stuck so well they have been passed down through the generations.

Male Names:
Adalbert, Aegenwulf, Aelfred, Aelfwold, Aethelbricht, Aethelnoth, Aethilheard, Aldfrith, Allric, Angenlaf, Archibald, Athelric, Baerwald, Baldwin, Bardolph, Beagnoth, Bedric, Beorhtel, Beornfred, Berenwald, Birstan, Bregowine, Burghelm, Calemund, Ceafor, Ceolbald, Cerdic, Clarembald, Cuthbeorht, Daegheard, Darwin, Delwyn, Denewulf, Deorling, Dunstan, Eadbeald, Eadwig, Edward, Egelbert, Eomer, Ernulf, Fordwin, Frealaf, Fulbert, Gerbert, Godfred, Godwin, Grimwold, Harold, Heregeorn, Hildric, Hrothgar, Hunlaf, Hybald, Ingwald, Leofric, Maldred, Mervin, Norbert, Nothwulf, Osgar, Osric, Oswold, Raedfrid, Randwulf, Regenweald, Rodolph, Saebeorht, Sigbert, Swaefheard, Teoweald, Theobald, Thurstan, Trumwine, Ulfbehrt, Unferth, Walstan, Werferth, Wiermund, Wilbehrt, Winfirth, Wulfgar, Wynne, Wynstan

Female Names:
Aelfwynn, Agenilda, Aldreda, Athilda, Baldhild, Beaduthryth, Beornwynn, Birghiva, Botilda, Brichtrethe, Brihteue, Brithreth, Burgwynn, Eadwynn, Edilda, Elvina, Engeleisia, Eormenhilde, Gertrude, Godwyna, Guthild, Herburga, Herewynn, Hiltrude, Maerwynn, Mildgyth, Quendreda, Rimilda, Rowena, Saxleue, Somerhild, Theorigitha, Thylda, Touillda, Vluerona, Waerblith, Waerhild, Wifrun, Withburga, Wulfhild, Wynflead

Family Names:
Bushgather, Goodberrel, Greenbottle, Highhill, Hilltopple, Leagallow, Tealeaf, Thorngage, Tosscobble, Underbough


Adventurers:
Halflings often set out on their own to make their way in the world. Halfling adventurers are typically looking for a way to use their skills to gain wealth or status. The distinction between a halfling adventurer and a halfling out on her own looking for "a big score" can get blurry. For a halfling, adventuring is less of a career than an opportunity. While halfling opportunism can sometimes look like larceny or fraud to others, a halfling adventurer who learns to trust her fellows is worth of trust in return.


Settings:
This entry is about the Halflings of Ravenloft, which are the equivalents of the lightfoot halflings found in numerous worlds including Eberron, Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, Planescape, Mystara and the Spelljammer settings. The following details apply to lightfoot halflings (or setting equivalent) of those worlds.

Eberron
In their homeland, halflings are nomads who ride domesticated dinosaurs across the wide plains of Talenta, but a great number of them spread to the extent of civilization. The heritage of the nomad also serves more urbanized halflings well, and halflings have established themselves across Khorvaire as merchants, politicians, barristers, healers, and criminals. The tribal nomads of the plains can sometimes be found in the cities, but often the halflings of the cities blend in with the rest of the population and display only the occasional reminder of their nomadic roots.

Forgotten Realms
The folk of Faerûn are more familiar with the lightfoot hin than with either of the other two subraces, primarily because the lightfoots are the most numerous and widely traveled of all the halflings. Nearly every human community of any size larger than a village has at least a few halfling residents. When most Faerûnians think of halflings, the lightfoots are the people that most often leap to mind. Lightfoot halflings may be the most common of all the subraces, but their behavior is also the most varied. It's impossible to describe the "typical" lightfoot halfling because, much like humans, the race embodies individuals that are the absolute antithesis of one another.

More info on the halflings of Forgotten Realms are avalaible here.

Mystara
Mystaran Halflings originally hail from Davania, but they were chased away. Tribes of nomadic Hin have been set in eastern Davania (Aryptian Desert), but otherwise the major Halfling civilization resides in Brun. Halflings are not too interested in imposing or preserving their lifestyles and traditions, instead preferring to adapt that of the Big Folks they coexist with. They rarely grow larger than 3 feet in height. They have ruddy complexions, sandy to dark-brown hair, and blue or hazel eyes. Their faces are small and childlike when compared to a human. They also have thick hair atop each foot.

Greyhawk
Halflings have no lands of their own, living instead in the lands claimed by other races. They can be encountered most frequently in the central and western Flanaess. They're a common sight throughout the Sheldomar Valley, in the Urnst States, and in the Ulek States. They favor stable nations with long histories of peace with their neighbors. They normally shun water and extremes in temperature, preferring the pastoral countryside. Halflings form tight-knit communities within dwarven and human cities, or they form self-reliant villages in secluded places. Oerth's primary group of halflings in the Flanaess is the lightfoot, the typical halfling found Lightfoots average just over 3 feet tall and are ruddy faced, with hair and eyes in various shades of brown.

Planescape
Most halflings are found in the Green Fields, located in Venya, a layer of Mount Celestia. Green Fields is a pastoral paradise, perfect for farming, and thus perfect for many halfling temperaments. It primarily exports food to other locales on the planes, and some halflings may be found outside their native realm along with these shipments. Generally halflings that were raised in Green Fields have a lot of adjusting to do to fit in on the planes, and are often as clueless as any Prime. Those who are not found in Green Fields are most likely to be encountered in the Flowering Hill, located in the Outlands. The demipower Urogalan is part of the halfling pantheon, but he serves as a judge of the dead for the halflings, and not many of their race worship him, thus there are few petitioners associated with his realm.

Spelljammer
Wildspace halflings are an often ignored yet important facet of civilization in the stars. Their enclaves can be found almost anywhere, either in traditional burrows or loose bands that wander from port to port. They are often accused of being thieves, a sometimes unfair claim. Many enclaves do have guilds that are not unlike thief guilds, but these work to protect the community rather than engage in dishonest activities. Halflings commonly live in or near human communities to take advantage of any opportunities that such places offer. They often tag along with human exploration missions to find new places to settle. The places that they seek out are less desirable to others; thus halfling colonies might be found in the most unusual places, such as furnace-worlds cooking too close to a fire body, or the glacier-encased moons of the most distant planets.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Dex, -2 Str
Fearless
Good aim
Lucky
Skill affinity (move silently)
Skill affinity (listen)
Small stature


Sources: D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook, Ravenloft Player's Handbook
« Last Edit: February 16, 2023, 08:00:48 PM by MAB77 »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

MAB77

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Half-elf of Ravenloft (Fey-Born)
« Reply #8 on: January 29, 2021, 04:34:01 PM »
Quote
Half-elf of Ravenloft (Fey-Born)


(Note that the information below focuses on the half-elves of Ravenloft, but applies to all half-elves in general. Details on half-elves of other worlds are provided in the settings section below.)

Also called the Fey-Born, half-elves are the product of rare love affairs between elves and humans. These affairs end quickly as elves count years because a human’s life is so brief, but they leave an enduring legacy - children.


Physical description:
Although half-elves inherit most traits from their human parent, they often retain faint elven traits: pointed ears, angular features, and green or violet eyes. Half-elves have no communities of their own and tend to adopt the prevailing human fashions of their homeland. They ranges from under 5 feet to about 6 feet tall, and weight usually ranges from 100 to 180 pounds. Half-elf men are taller and heavier than half-elf women, but the difference is less pronounced than that found among humans. A half-elf reaches adulthood at age 20 and can live to be over 180 years old.

To be considered a half-elf, one blood's has to be at least 50% elven. Half-elves that breed back with elves can only produce half-elf offsprings regardless of how long ago the non-elf blood was introduced. Those half-elves who do not breed with elves, thus diluting the elven strain even further, produce human offsprings. Some telltale traces of vaguely elven features may remain, but they have none of the abilities normally associated with either elves or half-elves.


History:
Half-elves have no society of their own and therefore no particular racial history.


Outlook:
The life of a half-elf can be hard. If raised by elves, the half-elf seems to grow with astounding speed, reaching maturity within two decades. The half-elf becomes an adult long before she has had time to learn the intricacies of elven art and culture, or even grammar. She leaves behind her childhood friends, becoming physically an adult but culturally still a child by elven standards. Typically, she leaves her elven home, which is no longer familiar, and finds her way among humans. If, on the other hand, she is raised by humans, the half-elf finds herself different from her peers: more aloof, more sensitive, less ambitious, and slower to mature.

Most half-elves have the curiosity, inventiveness, and ambition of the human parent, along with the refined senses, love of nature, and artistic tastes of the elf parent. Half-elves find it difficult to maintain long-term relationships. Forced into the life of an outsider — though not reviled like Calibans — half-elves often pride themselves on their iconoclastic nature. Many pour their alienation and anguish into artistic pursuits, becoming musicians or wandering bards. A few even reject their given names, adopting dramatic titles like the Wind Haunter or the Deathseeker. It is said that half-elves are doomed to outlive their human loved ones and to grow old and die before the eyes of their elven kin.


Society:
Like Calibans, half-elves are creatures of unusual birth. They do not form a society of their own. A half-elf may be born to a wandering elf in any domain but most hail from the regions surrounding the elven lands of eastern Darkon or Sithicus. Some half-elves try to fit in among humans, while others find their identities in their difference. Most find places for themselves in human lands, but some feel like outsiders all their lives.


Relations with other races:
Although half-elves are at risk in a few domains, such as Falkovnia and Tepest, they do not face the same level of animosity many other nonhumans do in human lands. Half-elves are generally pitied by both humans and elves; some even consider half-elves mildly cursed by their heritage.

They usually get along well with dwarves, gnomes, and halflings. They have elven grace without elven aloofness, human energy without human boorishness. They make excellent ambassadors and gobetweens, except between elves and humans, since each side suspects the half-elf of favoring the other. In human lands where elves are distant or not on friendly terms with other races, however, half-elves are viewed with suspicion.


Alignments:
Half-elves share the chaotic bent of their elven heritage, but, like humans, they tend toward both good and evil in equal proportion. Like elves, they value personal freedom and creative expression, demonstrating neither love of leaders nor desire for followers. They chafe at rules, resent others’ demands, and sometimes prove unreliable, or at least unpredictable.


Religion:
If a half-elf follows a religion, it will usually be one fitting the culture he lives in.


Language:
Half-elves speak the languages they are born to, Common and Elven. Half-elves are slightly clumsy with the intricate Elven language, though only elves notice, and even so half-elves do better than non-elves.


Names:
Half-elves use either human or elven naming conventions. Ironically, a half-elf raised among humans is often given an elven name in honor of her heritage, just as a half-elf raised among elves often takes a human name.


Adventurers:
Half-elves find themselves drawn to strange careers and unusual company. Taking up the life of an adventurer comes easily to many of them. Like elves, they are driven by wanderlust.


Settings:
Half-elves are common in most D&D settings.

Dark Sun
Athasian half-elves are different than the standard half-elf and are described here.

Birthright
The half-elves of Cerilia, the half-sidhelien, are different than the standard half-elf and are described here.

Eberron
Half-elves are common in Khorvaire. The race is unique to that continent, where it grew out of the earliest mingling of humans and elves. Half-elves can be as haughty as elves, though they are more able to work comfortably with humans. A few half-elves, fascinated with death and the practices of their Aerenal ancestors, become accomplished necromancers. Others favor their human heritage more strongly, to the point of blending almost invisibly into human society. While the majority of half-elves belong to their own distinct race, elves and humans throughout Khorvaire still intermingle and occasionally produce offspring.

Dragonlance
Since the time of Kith-Kanan, when elves first began to interact extensively with human races, elves and humans have fallen in love and married. After the Cataclysm, human bandits and mercenaries raided Qualinesti borders, looting the elven lands, killing elven men and raping elven women. Half-breed children are the result of both unions. Whether born of love or hate, the mixed blood of the half-elves forever brands them as outcasts from both elven and human society.

Forgotten Realms
Common half-elves are descended from humans and moon elves, sun elves, wild elves, or wood elves. While these people can be found all over Faerûn, this section describes the half-elf culture of Aglarond, the land where the largest number of common half-elves live. Common half-elves blend human and elven features, influenced by the subrace of their elven parent and the ethnicity of their human parent. Moon half-elves have pale skin tinged bluish around the ears and chin, framing their lower faces. Sun half-elves have bronzed skin, and hair of gold. Wild half-elves have brown skin. Wood half-elves have coppery skin tinged with green highlights. Most common half-elves are a bit distant, used to being cast in the role of outsiders. Half-elves are more slender than humans, and more heavily built than elves. Since the elves of Faerûn are taller and more sturdily built than the elves of other worlds, Faerûnian half-elves are very close to human size and weight. They live to be 180 years old.

Greyhawk
On Oerth, most half-elves are not readily accepted in either elf or human communities, and they often become introverted, sullen, and embittered. Yet, they still gain access to both races, as elves and humans find them fascinating regardless. Largely, it is a matter of the half-elf in question and the societies with which he or she deals. They're never accepted in gray elf society, for they serve as a palpable reminder of all that the gray elves wish to eradicate. Most half-elves are of high elf descent.

Mystara
Half-elves are so rare in the Old World as to be almost legendary. Many sages believe that a Mystaran elf/human couple somehow has a harder time at producing offspring than is reportedly possible on other worlds. When they do, the result is invariably a half-elf. Strangely enough, half-elves are more common on the Savage Coast. Some speculate Immortal involvement, others a side effect of the Red Curse. Half-elves are mostly unknown in the rest of the world.

Half-elves appear like a mix between their human and elven ancestors, hence can have a large variety of appearances. A look through both the human and elven races can give an idea of the possibilities. Despite this, half-elves are considered to be of one race: half-elven. Unlike most other worlds, half-elves aren't treated with total scorn by the elves of Mystara; they are so rare that most are curious about half-elves and will gladly accept their company for a while just to learn more about them.

Planescape
Planar half-elves are almost always the children of a planar human and a Prime elf. Like many races that do not have "pure" ancestry, the half-elves generally feel no special attachment to any one place. Some make their homes in elven communities, primarily in Arborea, but the vast majority live elsewhere on the planes. Many planar races cannot distinguish between half-elves and humans, and most assume that their pointed ears are the result of some faint tiefling heritage. Like humans, half-elves are very adaptable, and as a result can be found scattered throughout the multiverse. While half-elves may make up a sizable percentage of the population on some Prime worlds, on the planes they are much rarer.

Spelljammer
Wildspace half-elves are the result of the inevitable coupling of humans and elves. Caught between two worlds, half-elves can feel alienated by both their elven and human kin and ultimately seek their own way in the Spheres. Half-elves lack lands of their own, instead living with human or elven relatives. Sometimes, groups of half-elves will settle communities of their own on remote asteroids and worlds.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
Hardiness vs. Enchantments
Low-light Vision
Partial Skill Affinity (Listen)
Partial Skill Affinity (Search)
Partial Skill Affinity (Spot)
Sleeplessness


Sources: D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook, Ravenloft Player's Handbook, Complete Elf Handbook
« Last Edit: February 16, 2023, 08:01:47 PM by MAB77 »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

MAB77

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Half-Vistana (Giogoto)
« Reply #9 on: January 29, 2021, 08:24:31 PM »
Quote
Half-Vistana (Giogoto)


* Playing a half-vistana of darkling ancestry requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Half-Vistani (the plural form of half-Vistana), or giogoto in the Vistani patterna, are the result of a union between a Vistana and a giorgio (any non-Vistani human). Unlike the other special races of Ravenloft, half-Vistani are entirely human. However, the traits they inherit from their Vistani blood separate them from normal men and women. Half-Vistani can also originate from Gothic Earth (the Masque of the Red Death setting).

Note that the term giogoto does not strictly apply to a half-Vistana. It is also a term members of one specific tribe use for friends and allies outside of their tribe. It can even be used for a full-blooded Vistana of another tribe.


Physical description:
Half-Vistani resemble their Vistani parents, often inheriting their angular and aquiline features, eyes and hair of deep brown or black, and dusky or olive complexions. Of course, giogoto often exhibit traits of their giorgio heritage as well. A giogoto can conceal her Vistani heritage and attempt to fool a giorgio, however a true Vistani can always recognize those who are "of the blood" with but a glance.


History:
On Ravenloft, half-Vistani do not have a society of their own and therefore no cultural history per say. They are however all born out of a doomed romance. Love affairs between giorgio and the Vistani are often torrid and brief. The cultural rift cuts deeply, so precious few giogoto ever grow up knowing both of their parents. Most often, the Vistana parent moves on in the night, abandoning the child to the giorgio. Rarely, a giogoto child is raised by the tribe of its Vistana parent. In either case, the child may be cared for but is never truly accepted. The giogoto’s giorgio family may fear that the child will develop the peculiar talents of her Vistani kin, and since the giogoto is not fully "of the blood", she finds herself unable to share entire worlds of Vistani experiences.

The story of the Vistani on Gothic Earth starts only a few centuries ago on Ravenloft, perhaps even less than that, when a young woman of the Zarovan tribe gazed into her crystal ball and saw a shaft of light break through the Mists, opening a way to a rich and fertile realm far different from anything she and her people knew. Calling her people, for she was raunie of her tribe, she showed them the place she had seen in her vision and commanded that they take her there, for she had foreboding of a great change and challenge to come. But time flows differently on Gothic Earth, and nearly 4000 years elapsed since their arrival in Gothic Earth's distant past. None remain that remember the exact story of the their arrival.

Rare is the giomorgo, or half-Vistani, child who is not treasured by the Vistani people of Gothic Earth. As a small and singular clan, Gothic Earth Vistani cannot afford to disdain anyone born of their people. Few half-Vistani, therefore, feel as outcast as do those in the realm of Ravenloft. Many children born to the Vistani are half-Rom. Far more rarely is a child born of a Vistani and a giorgio, or non-Romani. Some of the more traditional Vistani decry this blending of bloodlines, pointing to the loss of their abilities and the clouding of their Sight.


Outlook:
Broken homes are the giogoto’s birthright. Many spend their lives haunted by their youth; a rejected child often matures into a sullen and withdrawn adult. It is no small matter to straddle the cultural rift of their birth, so most giogoto choose to adopt one culture over the other. They either adhere to the customs of their homeland or wrap themselves in the Vistani mystique. Regardless of the heritage they favor, half-Vistani tend to be passionate and pessimistic individuals.

Though they might have experienced a happier childhood, the adjustment is difficult for the unfortunate Gothic Earth giomorgos finding themselves in Ravenloft. Though no stranger to prejudice from non-Vistani, they get no sympathy from the local Vistani and are never prepared for the cultural shock of finding themselves rejected by their own society.


Society:
The Vistani endlessly wander throughout the Land of Mists, so a giogoto may be born in any domain. The ruthless oppression of Vistani in Invidia makes native half-Vistani rare in that domain, while giogoto are slightly more common in neighboring Barovia. No permanent half-Vistani communities exist anywhere in Ravenloft. The Barovian law forbidding the spilling of Vistani blood does not apply to half-Vistani living outside of a tribe.

On Gothic Earth, the Vistani have integrated the Romani culture and follow Rom traditions like their own. Many children born to the Vistani are half-Rom. All Gothic Earth half-Vistani are descended from the Zarovan clan, the only one to exist on Gothic Earth. Although rare, the Vistani parent may be a darkling.


Tribal Heritage:
The giogoto's Vistani parent comes from one of seven tribes that roams the Lands of the Mists: the Canjar, the Corvara, the Equaar, the Kamii, the Naiat, the Vatraska, or the Zarovan. Rumors also tell of giogotos born of a darkling, an outcast Vistani.

A half-Vistana may not even be aware of their tribal origins, especially if they knew little of their Vistana parent. And if they do know, they would be unlikely to share this information with anyone, preferring to keep their origins a mystery. Regardless to their awareness regarding their ancestry, the giogoto inherits a measure of its vistana parent powers and skill affinities, but this comes at price on the three nights of the full moon. The few of them that are actually raised in a Vistani tribe would possibly know the following information about their parent's tribe and may likely adopt their fashion style.

The Canjar are a Manusa tribe that are rarely encountered by giorgios unless the meeting serves their own purposes. Skilled wielders of magic, they are made all the more potent by their special relationship with time. Canjar males appear unkempt and beggarly, wearing robes bereft of decoration and loosely woven conical wool caps. Canjar females are heavy set, with well-lined and puckered faces. They wear colorful scarves on their heads, blouses of deep blue or purple, and layered skirts. A giogoto of Canjar ancestry has a natural affinity for the arcane arts.

The Corvara are a Boem tribe known to be tinkers, jacks of all trades, yet masters of none. They are the black sheep of the Vistani tribes and are the least welcomed of all of them. The Corvara are con artists and are willing to commit questionable acts for the right amount of coin. Sometimes they attempt to imitate the Naiat by putting on a carnival, but their entertainments tend to be more along the lines of gambling, drinking, and fighting. Like the Naiat, the Corvara dress flamboyantly and have a flair for the dramatic. A giogoto of Corvara ancestry is almost always a bit of a scoundrel.

The Equaar are a Kaldresh tribe who are expert animal handlers. Few non-Vistani display the same affinity for all natural creatures, big and small, including rangers and druids. The Equaar are wranglers and shepherds who carry all that they own on the backs of their animals. They dress in plain and practical clothing, suited for the riding of animals. A giogoto of Equaar ancestry shares their affinity for natural beasts.

The Kamii are a Kaldresh tribe that excels in the skills of the forge, working metals with ease and expertise. Their wares are not magical, but they are so expertly crafted that they often behave as if they were. Should a giorgio display a lack of respect to the tribe, the Kamii may sell them inferior goods or mildly cursed items. The Kamii are modestly dressed compared to many Vistani tribes.  A giogoto of Kamii ancestry has a good eye to size the true value of an item.

The Naiat are a Boem tribe known for their traveling carnivals and troupes of actors. They are uninhibited and spirited as they roll into town. They have colourful vardos and are often accompanied by exotic animals. The Naiat both play and sell musical instruments. Like other Boem tribes, Naiat men have dapper and handsome appearances while the women appear mysterious and sultry, dressed in bright floral dresses and bejeweled with crystals. They like to dress well, eat well, captivate the opposite sex, and generally become the center of attention wherever they go. The grace of the Naiat flows in giogotos born of that tribe, their are gifted artists.

The Vastraska are a Kaldresh tribe who excel in the art of healing. Their animals loaded with herbs and spices, the Vatraska are professional healers in the Land of Mists. Their healing is based on natural curatives, not magical spells or potions. They are also vendors of poisons. The Vatraska guard their recipes very closely and only offer their services for a fee. Like the other Kaldresh tribes, the Vatraska dress modestly. A giogoto of Vatraska ancestry takes naturally to the art of healing.

The Zarovan are of the Manusa tasque and are the most mysterious and enigmatic of all Vistani tribes. They are like visitors from another world, full of knowledge that is unimaginable to outsiders, possessed of powers that others dare not think on. Even other Vistani regard the Zarovan with reverence. Zarovan males dress very plainly in robes and wool caps. Zarovan females are heavy set, with well-lined faces, and wear head scarves, blouses, and layered skirts. There is a little something uncanny that cannot be fully explained about giogotos of Zarovan ancestry. A moment they will be just at the right place at the right moment to catch a precious vase about to fall on the floor, or they will answer a question before the person doing the asking even pronounced the second word, then moments later they just appear to be entirely out of synch with time and react late to a given event.

Half-Vistani of Darkling ancestry carry a measure of the dark taint of their outcast parent. Like darklings, their skin complexion is a shade darker than that of vistani and they are almost uniformly gaunt. Their features are sunken and worn, making them look as if they had been far too long without nourishment. A bad reputation clings to them.


Moon Madness:
A half-Vistana suffers from the lunatio during the full moon each month, his mind clouded by restlessness and anxiety. During these three in-game days and nights, he cannot rest, prepare spells or heal naturally. On each of the three nights of the full moon, the character is compelled to run wild under the night sky.

Note that the lunatio is a core component of half-Vistani roleplay. The madness part isn't enforced as to not make the character unplayable during that time period, but players are trusted with the responsibility of roleplaying the restlessness during that time period.


Relations with Other Races:
Giogoto are caught between two worlds; giorgio treat them like Vistani, and the Vistani treat them like giorgio. A giogoto’s outlook toward nonhumans usually mirrors that of his homeland. It is not uncommon, however, for half-Vistani to be more accepting toward other "unwelcome" creatures, such as Calibans and half elves.


Alignments:
In many ways, the giorgio life mimics that of half-elves. Many half-Vistani spend their lives alienated from society and often grow to distrust authority. Giogoto ethical alignment tends toward chaos, but they are no more inherently good or evil than any other humans.


Religion:
Giogoto raised by giorgio typically adopt the prevalent faith of their homeland. Giogoto raised by the Vistani are seldom religious; the Vistani worship no gods and have many legends of their cruel mistreatment at the hands of godlike beings in the distant past. Some Vistani, particularly those of the Vatraska tribe, treat fate, the Mists, and the forces of nature with a respect that approaches reverence, however.


Language:
The half-Vistani have no language of their own. On Ravenloft, they learn the domain languages of their homeland. The half-Vistani of Gothic Earth mainly speak Romani and the languages of the nation they dwell in.

The secret language of the Vistani, Patterna, is off-limit to player characters. On one side, the Vistani of Ravenloft do not teach their language to non-Vistani. On the other, if any Gothic Earth Vistani still speak Patterna, it would have evolved in a very different form than the one used in the Lands of Mists, Patterna being a patch work of words from live languages.


Names:
Giogoto raised by giorgio are often given names drawn from their homeland’s cultures. Giogoto raised by the Vistani are named in the Vistani tradition, and it is not unheard of for a half-Vistani raised by a giorgio to be named after her wayward Vistana parent.

Male Names:

Arben, Bakro, Balo, Baul, Baule, Bavol, Bela, Bersh, Besnik, Beval, Bidshika, Boboko, Boiko, Boldor, Brishen, Bubli, Cam, Cappi, Cassim, Chaine, Chando, Chik, Chuvula, Coica, Comon, Daje, Danior, Dilaver, Djivan, Djordji, Dodo, Dukker, Duntshi, Durriken, Durril, Fero, Fonso, Fordel, Frinkelo, Garridan, Gimi, Grantsha, Grigori, Grofo, Guaril, Gunada, Gunari, Honko, Ilika, Iosif, Jal, Jibben, Jivin, Kako, Kalderasha, Karol, Ker, Kirvo, Kistur,

Koloro, Kore, Koro, Krenar, Laetshi, Lash, Lasi, Lel, Lennor, Lensar, Loiza, losif, Ludovic, Lugee, Luluvo, Lutherum, Mander, Manusch, Marko, Merikano, Merno, Mertshak, Milosh, Mitsho, Miya, Mutshoro, Nanosh, Nav, Nicabar, Nicu, Ninga, Oaste, Pal, Pali, Pani, Patrin, Pattin, Petsha, Pias, Pitivo, Pitti, Plamen, Popoy, Pov, Pulika, Punka, Putzina, Pyotr, Rambo, Ramiz, Saip, Shandor, Sharo, Shebaro, Simen, Simione, Stefan, Stevo, Stiggur, Talpa, Tas, Tawno, Tem, Terkari, Terkon, Titi, Tobar, Tshompi, Tsinoro, Vasile, Vasile., Vaya, Vedel, Veshengo, Wen, Wesh, Yakali, Yanoro, Yarb, Yayal, Yerko, Yishwan, Yiswan, Yojo, Yoska, Yottoko, Youri, Yul,

Female Names:

Ali, Ana, Anis, Ashena, Betia, Bisno, Boti, Chavali, Chavi, Choomia, Darklis, Dika, Djidjo, Dooriya, Drina, Dritta, Dudee, Dunicha, Eliza, Emalia, Emmanaia, Esmeralda, Ethelenda, Everilda, Fifika, Florica, Gemile, Gitana, Golay, Herlikin, Ina, Isabela, Isopel, Jawn, Jessenia, Jeta, Jofranka, Keja, Kirvi, Kisaiya, Kizz, Lala, Lela, Liliana, Lina, Liza, Louzsa, Ludu, Luludja, Luminitsa, Mairenni, Mala, Malilini, Manishie, Marona, Meri, Milbrer, Mimi,

Mirella, Miri, Miria, Miriah, Mozol, Nadja, Narilla, Narrila, Natasha, Nitaka, Oraga, Orka, Orlenda, Papin, Paprika, Papusza, Patia, Peneli, Pisliskurja, Pita, Polly, Putsha, Rawna, Rawnie, Rhawnie, Romany, Rozalina, Rumer, Rupa, Sariya, Savira, Saviya, Shaia, Shebari, Shey, Shofranka, Sidi, Simza, Sofya, Stanka, Stavo, Syeira, Tahnee, Talaitha, Tara, Tasarla, Tatoya, Tauna, Tauni, Taunia, Tawnee, Tawnie, Tekla, Tereina, Terom, Tiawni, Truffeni, Tshaya, Tshilaba, Tsura, Tsuritsa, Ursula, Vadoma, Viollca, Yvonne, Zigana, Zurama,


Surnames:
Abela, Aberama, Abesoloma, Abia, Abisai, Acantha, Adamina, Adamu, Adara, Aditi, Adria, Aleta, Aminta, Amria, Argintari, Ashkali, Aurari, Aurari, Bashalde, Besnik, Beti, Beticos, Blasia, Boiko, Bosha, Boyash, Brishen, Calandra, Calypso, Camlo, Casamir, Cato, Chal, Chavali, Chavi, Chergari, Chik, Chingianes, Chivute, Churara, Cosima, Costorari, Cutitari, Czigany, Djambas, Erlide, Erlije, Gabori, Gelderari, Grastari, Herari, Jenische, Kabudji, Kalderash, Kale, Kantarai, Kirpachi, Kobzari, Kopanari, Kotorara, Kovachi, Laieshi, Lalleri, Lautari, Lingurari, Lovara, Machvaya, Mango, Manouche, Mechkari, Mestere, Netotsi, Padureani, Potcovari, Relia, Romere, Romungro, Rudari, Salahori, Sfirnari, Shoshoraya, Sinti, Sitari, Ursari, Vatrashi, Xoraxai, Xoraxane, Yevkos, Zingaros, Zlatari,



Adventurers:
Many giogoto become wanderers, seeking happiness in foreign lands. Many fall in with other outcasts and eccentrics during their aimless travels.


Setting:
Half-Vistani are exclusively from the Masque of the Red Death and Ravenloft settings.


Spoiler: show

Game Stats:
+2 Wis, -2 Cha*
Alertness
Quick to Master
Moon Madness
Lore +2
Skilled
Tribal Heritage Bonus
Base Outcast Rating: 2

Tribal Heritage Bonuses
Canjar: Spellcraft +2
Corvara: Influence +2, Open Lock +2
Darkling: Set Trap +2, Evil Eye (Doom spell once per day)
Equaar: Animal Empathy +2, Move Silently +2
Kamii: Appraise +2
Naiat: Perform +2, Base Outcast Rating 0
Vatraska: Heal +2, Greater efficiency at using heal kits.
Zarovan: Improved Initiative

* The +2 Wis, -2 Cha adjustment will be applied once the subrace template is acquired in-game.


Sources: Ravenloft Campaign Setting, Van Richten's Guide to the Vistani, Masque of the Red Death (3rd Edition), Domains of Dread.
« Last Edit: October 18, 2023, 05:18:17 PM by EO »
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Half-Vistana (Giamarga)
« Reply #10 on: January 29, 2021, 09:16:10 PM »
Quote
Half-Vistana (Giamarga)

A rarer kind of Half-Vistani, a giamarga is the result of a union between a vistana and an elf. They have all the features of standard half-elves with a measure of Vistani traits that separates them from all other half-elves.


Physical description:
Like most half-elves, they inherit most traits from their human parent such as their angular and aquiline features, hair of deep brown or black, and dusky or olive complexions, with faint elven traits such as pointed ears and green or violet eyes. They tend to adopt the prevailing human fashions of their homeland or of their tribe if raised among the Vistani. They range from under 5 feet to about 6 feet tall, and weight usually ranges from 100 to 180 pounds. Half-elf men are taller and heavier than half-elf women, but the difference is less pronounced than that found among humans. A half-elf reaches adulthood at age 20 and can live to be over 180 years old.

More details about the half-vistani in general are available here.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Wis, -2 Cha*
Hardiness vs. Enchantments
Low-light Vision
Moon Madness
Partial Skill Affinity (Listen)
Partial Skill Affinity (Search)
Partial Skill Affinity (Spot)
Sleeplessness
Lore +2


* At character creation, remember that the game engine does not apply ability score adjustment on half-elves. The +2 Wis, -2 Cha adjustment will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.

Sources: Ravenloft Campaign Setting, Van Richten guide to the Vistani.
« Last Edit: April 22, 2024, 09:08:55 PM by EO »
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Sithican Grey Elf
« Reply #11 on: January 30, 2021, 01:16:42 AM »
Quote
Sithican Grey Elf

The high elves of Sithicus form the most important community of elves in the Core. They are similar to the Silvanesti elves from Krynn, but the Demiplane of Dread has made them a dispirited and dreary folk, and they have lost much of their elven pride.


Physical description:
The high elves of Sithicus have pointed ears, vulpine features, and lithe frames. They are similar to the Silvanesti of Krynn. Their hair is a dull silver and their eyes are a murky amber color and reflect light like animals. They average about 5 feet tall and weigh between 90 and 100 pounds, with men only slightly taller and heavier than women. A Sithican elf achieves adulthood at about 80 years old and can live to be more than 550 years old. Their clothes and demeanor are shabby and worn. They dress in light, fine fabrics like silk or satin. Their clothing is drab, the preferred colors being white, beige, ash, and grey-green. Their armor is dented and their cloaks are frayed and torn. Much like their buildings, their belongings are in desperate need of repair, even though they are fully capable of creating exotic, formfitting fabrics.

Fashion among the civilized elves is determined by caste; a trained eye can often tell a Sithican’s place in society at a glance. Those of the artisan and ranger castes, for example, prefer utilitarian garb, favoring loose tunics over tight leggings. Elves of the aristocratic caste prefer long, flowing robes, often spun from spider silk if tales are to be believed. Although seldom seen, elves of the arcane caste may be the most easily identified. Their black robes and tri-cornered headdresses are lined with silver and crimson trim, signifying the three aspects of magic.


History:
According to the Sithicans, their kingdom began on a distant world in a land ruled by a human knight - the Black Rose - who waged a war against the gods, planning to topple them from power. The gods charged the elves with the task of stopping the Rose's hubris, but they failed. Then the gods themselves struck down the Black Rose, casting him into a misty abyss. For their failures, the elves and their kingdom were dragged down to share his fate.


Outlook:
The Demiplane of Dread has made them a dispirited and dreary folk, and they have lost much of their elven pride. The elves themselves have a general sense of apathy. Elegant architecture was once prized by the elves of Sithicus, but today the domain's settlements are crumbling. The wondrous elven wood and crystal masonries are neglected and covered with ivy. Twisting towers of living wood are blighted with insect galls and rot, and the gardens stand choked with thistles and brambles. Roads that once glittered like an evening sky are dull and crumbling. The arcane libraries slowly rot under an assault of mildew and silverfish, yet the elven wizards seem oblivious. Sithican high elves find neither joy nor beauty in the tangled forests and boulder-choked streams. Their songs are mournful dirges, accompanied by low-pitched, droning instruments that evoke a sense of loss. The deep adoration of nature and beauty is gone, replaced by solemn apathy. Sithican elves believe that their culture will survive, as it has done for centuries, no matter what troubles befall it. The domain's wicked monarchs may rise and fall, the petty problems of other realms may come and go, but Sithicus itself will endure. Denial tinges the elves' cold arrogance; all around, the wonders of their culture are crumbling. They cling to their traditions dourly, draining them of meaning and suffocating their society for reasons they can no longer remember.


Society:
Though Sithicus is erratically ruled by a dwarven despotic tyrant, Sithican elves themselves adhere to the traditional loose elven aristocracy. Without a true elven monarch to unite them, however, relationships between settlements and noble houses can become tense and bitter. Each settlement is ruled by the word of the eldest elven noble, who governs lightly. Sithicans high elves adhere to a rigid caste system according to the family of one's birth. The highest cast is the aristocracy, those few families born to rule. Several houses serve the ruling caste, forming middle tiers of society. Elves of the artisan caste become Sithicus' trained craftsmen, creating and (theoretically) maintaining all of the elves' homes and goods. The greenshaper caste is tasked with overseeing agricultural concerns, including the great brambles protecting their communities. The ranger caste consists of the elves' protectors, maintaining order within the towns and patrolling the wilds for external threats. The smallest of these castes, though likely not the least powerful, is the arcane caste, those elves who follow wizardly pursuit. Beneath the houses kneels the servants' caste, those multitudes fated to spend their centuries of life tending to the needs of their betters. Naturally, all those folk who are not born into a high caste, including all foreigners and non-elves, are considered no better than servants. All marriages are arranged within castes.


Relations with Other Races:
The Sithican grey elves do not got along well with anyone. Wild and Grey Sithican elves clash together whenever they meet. Outsiders, including elves from other lands, are treated with disdain or even hostility by the Sithican elves, who remain haughty and suspicious toward all other races and lands. Even humans who have dwelled in Sithicus for a generation or more are considered second-class citizens.


Alignments:
Sithican grey elves can be of any alignments but tend toward non-good and non-chaotic alignments.


Religion:
Sithican elves are not religious people. They believe the gods abandoned them so they abandoned their worship in turn. A few scattered ruins dot the land, but whatever names they once bore stricken off, their statuary and icons seemingly blasted by lightning. There is however a growing trend among the elves to embrace the path of the druid.


Language:
Sithicans speak Sithican, a dialect of the Elven tongue noted for its sibilants, which earns Sithicans the derogatory nickname of the “hissing elves.” Speakers of the Darkonian and Sithican dialects of elven can generally understand each other so long as both pay close attention, but Darkonian speakers may note pidgin elements within the Sithican dialect. To the learned ear, numerous Sithican words and phrases sound oddly dissonant, hinting that they may be borrowed from languages known to these lands. Many elves also know enough Vaasi, Balok or Mordentish to deal with their neighbors, or a smattering of Kartakan to interact with those expatriates making up the majority of their human population.


Names:
Note, though the culture of the Sithican grey elves is a warped reflection of the Silvanesti from the Dragonlance setting, the Welsh language is used within our module to name NPCs and locations within the domain of Sithicus. Both Silvanesti and Welsh sounding names are therefore fitting options for a Sithican player character.

Sithican Male Names:
Suggestions from the Ravenloft Gazetteer IV: Aramil, Aust, Avonathalonus, Eberk, Enialis, Falindrithan, Heian, Hemo, Ivellios, Jahran, Kardanon, Laucian, Lothas, Maravallon, Pellarin, Quarion, Quimathon, Ruric, Silvanas, Terevalis, Thamior, Tharivol, Veit
Welsh names suggestions: Aneirin, Brynmor, Cenwyn, Ceredig, Drystan, Emrys, Fychan, Gruffydd, Gwilym, Huwcyn, Iorwerth, Kyffin, Llwyd, Macsen, Myrddin, Ninian, Osian, Prys, Rhisiart, Sawel, Selwyn, Tewdwr, Trahaearn, Watcyn, Wmffre

Sithican Female Names:
Suggestions from the Ravenloft Gazetteer IV: Aleaha, Anastrianna, Antinua, Artin, Diesa, Drusila, Felosial, Ielenia, Ilde, Ladine, Lia, Lisindrela, Maleesa, Nemetranee, Qillathe, Raenavalona, Roselenna, Serinda, Silaqui, Telisina, Thyanel, Valanthe, Xanaphia
Welsh names suggestions: Aeres, Alwena, Amser, Angharad, Asgre, Blodeuwedd, Blodwen, Carys, Cassadee, Ceirios, Dyllis, Eilir, Eilonwy, Gisal, Gwanwyn, Heledd, Irvetta, Rhedyn, Rhiannon, Sara, Seren, Siân, Sioned, Trina, Vanora

Sithican Surnames:
Althonos, Caladon, Calostin, Dralathalas, Kaldeist, Lanthaloran, Oakleaf, Rathenas, Starbreeze, Takmarin

Sithican Houses:
Advocate, Cleric, Gardener, Mason, Metalline, Mystic, Noble, Protector, Ranger, Servitor, Wizard, Woodshaper


Adventurers:
Sithican adventurers can be of any class, but druids, fighters, paladins, rangers, and wizards are the most common. In Sithicus Elven rangers patrol the deep forests astride monstrous stag beetles, hunting evil creatures and discouraging foreign visitors.


Setting:
Sithican grey elves are exclusive to Ravenloft setting, they are however a grim reflection of the Silvanesti elves of the Dragonlance setting and share a lot of similarities.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Dex, +2 Int, -2 Con, -2 Cha*
Darkvision
Hardiness vs. Enchantments
Keen Senses
Lore +1
Skill Affinity (Listen)
Skill Affinity (Search)
Skill Affinity (Spot)
Spellcraft +1
Sleeplessness
Weapon Proficiencies (Longsword, Rapier, Shortbow, Longbow)

* The game engine automatically applies the default +2 Dex, -2 Con adjustment for standard elves at character creation. An extra +2 Int, -2 Cha will be applied once the subrace template is acquired in-game.


Sources: Ravenloft 3rd Edition Campaign Setting, Ravenloft Gazetteer IV, Dragonlance 3rd Edition Campaign Setting
« Last Edit: April 22, 2024, 08:49:33 PM by EO »
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Sithican Wild Elf
« Reply #12 on: January 30, 2021, 07:12:05 AM »
Quote
Sithican Wild Elf


~ Sithican wild elves ambush their grey elves cousins.
Ravenloft Gazetteer IV

The wild elves of Sithicus are the closest to a true, primordial elven demeanor that one might find in these desolate lands. They are similar to the Kagonesti elves of Krynn, but much more feral.


Physical description:
Although generally similar to their civilized kin, they let their hair grow long and mane-like. Their skin is somewhat darker than those who live in the cities. Their nature has become feral and twisted, carving elaborate spiral designs into their flesh. They dress like the primitives, covering themselves with however little tanned hide they require.


History:
According to the Sithicans, their kingdom began on a distant world in a land ruled by a human knight - the Black Rose - who waged a war against the gods, planning to topple them from power. The gods charged the elves with the task of stopping the Rose's hubris, but they failed. Then the gods themselves struck down the Black Rose, casting him into a misty abyss. For their failures, the elves and their kingdom were dragged down to share his fate.


Outlook:
The Sithican wild elf way of life is a dark reflection of Krynn's Kagonesti elves, eking a life through the dense and treacherous ancient forests of the Land of Specters, and rejecting the trappings of civilization. Where the grey elves were made despondent and apathetic by there time in the Mists, the wild elves grew more savage and angry about the state of their land. Passionate and proud, they want only to be left to themselves, believing that embracing the wilder part of nature is the only way of life. There are even rumors that they partake in cannibalism to make themselves purer and more elf-like.


Society:
Unlike their civilized brethren, Sithicus' wild elves live in small groups, much like wolf packs with one dominant leader who must constantly defend his position from up-and-coming "youngsters." Always on the move, they spend most of their time hunting and trapping high in the hills or foraging for berries and other wild, growing food and roots. They fight among other packs, although a few packs will work together on rare occasions, oftentimes when a large caravan passes near the Iron Hills. They also spend a fair bit of time raiding traveling merchants.


Relations with Other Races:
The wild elves of Sithicus shun contact with virtually anyone except their own. There is enmity with the grey elves of Sithicus that sought to subjugate them in the past.


Alignments:
Sithican wild elves embrace their savagery, they are almost exclusively of chaotic alignment.


Religion:
Sithican elves are not religions people. They believe the gods abandoned them so they abandonned their worship in turn. A few scattered ruins dot the land, but whatever names they once bore stricken off, their statuary and icons seemingly blasted by lightning. There is however a growing trend among the elves to embrace the path of the druid.


Language:
Sithicans speak Sithican, a dialect of the Elven tongue noted for its sibilants, which earns Sithicans the derogatory nickname of the “hissing elves.” Speakers of the Darkonian and Sithican dialects of elven can generally understand each other so long as both pay close attention, but Darkonian speakers may note pidgin elements within the Sithican dialect. To the learned ear, numerous Sithican words and phrases sound oddly dissonant, hinting that they may be borrowed from languages known to these lands. Many elves also know enough Vaasi, Balok or Mordentish to deal with their neighbors, or a smattering of Kartakan to interact with those expatriates making up the majority of their human population


Names:
Each Sithican wild elf child is given a name by his or her parents that reflects either a feature the child possesses or a characteristic reminiscent of something in nature. After undergoing a rite of passage, Kagonesti take on a new name that indicates they have achieved adulthood. A Kagonesti reaches this point after the age of 40, though some achieve it much quicker. It is not uncommon for Kagonesti to change names several times throughout their long lives, each name reflecting a significant event in their lives.


Adventurers:
Wild Elves are usually barbarians, though may count rangers and the occasional druid in their midst.


Setting:
Sithican elves are exclusive to Ravenloft setting.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Dex, -2 Int, -2 Cha*
Sleeplessness
Hardiness vs. Enchantments
Bonus Proficiencies (Longsword, Rapier, Shortbow, Longbow)
Skill Affinity (Listen)
Skill Affinity (Search)
Skill Affinity (Spot)
Keen Senses
Darkvision
+1 Lore
+1 Search

* At character creation, remember that the game engine automatically applies the default +2 Dex, -2 Con adjustment for standard elves. An extra +2 Con, -2 Int, -2 Cha will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.


Sources: Ravenloft Player's Handbook, Ravenloft Gazetteer IV
« Last Edit: February 12, 2023, 04:40:52 PM by MAB77 »
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Planetouched
« Reply #13 on: January 30, 2021, 07:54:15 AM »
Quote
Planetouched

Part mortal, part something else, the Planetouched are loners and individuals rarely so lucky as to meet another of their kind. The origins of the various kinds of planetouched races are as different as the forms of the planetouched themselves. In Calimshan, djinn and efreet sometimes mated with their human slaves, producing offspring whose children are air or fire genasi. In Mulhorand and Unther, the undying incarnations of the deities had children with favored humans, creating strains of aasimar and tieflings. The planetouched races have no common history, although planetouched of the same type from the same region often have a common ancestor or relation.

Faerûn is home to many native peoples and has many magic portals that lead to distant parts of the world as well as to other worlds. Through these portals, come visitors from other planes, including outsiders of various sorts, some whom dally or settle in Faerûn and have children with local humans. Eventually their extraplanar heritage gets diluted over several generations, resulting in a person with a slight bloodline of celestial, infernal or elemental origin. These beings known as Planetouched, have unusual abilities based on the nature of their distant ancestors, but in most ways appear completely human: Because  of the widespread portals, these Planetouched might look like human from any part of this world, and so may be of Dalelands, Mulhorand, Turmish or any other stock. The most common sorts of Planetouched are Aasimar, Tieflings and genasi.

The planetouched prefer to blend in with human society and rarely form communities of their own. In this way, they are a more extreme example than the half-elves (Who also rarely have their own communities) because of their rarity and varied backgrounds. Some places have a slightly higher frequency of the planetouched because of local circumstances, described in each type's entry.

The child of an outsider and another creature is a half-fiend, half-celestial. If one of these half-blooded creatures have offspring with a humanoid, the result is usually a planetouched creature. The offspring of two planetouched is always a planetouched. Mixed-heritage planetouched of this sort take after one or the other parent (seemingly equal chances) but carry the traits of the other parent, which may show up in their own children. The offspring of a planetouched and a normal creature of its type (such as the child of an Aasimar and a human) has an equal chance of being planetouched or "normal", but carries the potential for planetouched children in either case. Sometimes the outsider bloodline becomes dormant for one or more generations, only to manifest many years later.


Planetouched as Character Background:
Once you work out how to bring your planetouched character into the game, you should consider your character's background. here are some good questions to pose about your character:

-Who were your parents?
-Were you conceived in love or in hate?
-How long ago was the outsider blood introduced to your family line?
Were you an outcast as a child or beloved for your otherworldly charm? If your Tiefling has freakish physical traits, your parents may have cast you aside, left you exposed to the elements to wipe away all trace of your existence. On the other hand, an aasimar's inherent goodness, perfect features, and good graces probably provided a childhood of ease and comfort, likely to a loving and doting family.

All of these details help to define your character's personality, creating a lifelike persona for you to play, rather than just another cookie-cutter character. The planetouched archetypes below should give you further ideas for defining your character.


Planetouched Archetypes
You may use the following archetypes as guidelines for fleshing out your outsider character. They should serve as a guide to Roleplaying. from the basics presented in each, you get an idea of what affectations might surface during play.

Corruptor: You embrace your fiendish heritage and you believe your destiny is to lead mortals astray condemning them to the eternal agonies of perdition. You are sly and manipulative, ever vigilant for advantage in dealing with the chattel whose company you keep. As a corruptor, you rarely make for a good long-term companion; however, roleplaying your redemption could prove an exciting gaming experience.

Demagogue: You are a powerful public figure, able to sway crowds to act as you wish. If of good alignment, you may inspire confidence in your audience, influencing them from the paths of sin and decadence to a life of virtue and piety. However, if evil, you likely whip mobs into a frenzy, preying upon their fears and base impulses. Your skills allow you to rise through the social tiers quickly, but if your true nature is ever uncovered, you could face exile, imprisonment, or worse. In an adventuring group, you often take the lead in negotiations, being exceptionally skilled at persuading others to your way of thinking.

Deviant: You have strange cravings. Your desires may manifest as a need to inflict self-punishment, an uncontrollable appetite for chocolate, elf flesh. Your needs rule your life. Depending on the nature of the setting; the cravings should be something wickedly sinister, or something perverse (fetish).

Freethinker: For you, an ordered life is no better than a prison. Some call you capricious and flighty, but you discard those remarks as evidence of your detractors' ignorance. True freedom comes from personal choice, and the demands imposed upon you such as responsibility, values and ownership, are nothing more than chains. You are prone to erratic behaviour, but even those impulses may be too confining. Your free nature does not suggest madness or irrational behaviour, only eccentricity.

Manipulator: Whereas the demagogue rouses the masses, you are skilled at manipulating individuals. You have a knack for making others do what you want. For some reason, you inspire the loyalty, instill fierce love, or even frighten those you control. You read body language fluently, and you can anticipate what is needed to create the desired response. While manipulation is not usually seen as a virtue, some good characters could have something of this personality type, being exceptionally responsive and empathic.

Outcast: because of your unusual appearance or your intense but disconcerting personality, you find yourself an outcast from society. As people tend to fear what they do not understand, they persecute or try to destroy the object of their fear. In this case, you are the object of their fear, you are the thing they have persecuted or attempted to kill. And after a life spent fleeing pitchforks, torches and accusations of the evil eye, you have given up on society. In fact, When something horrible befalls a village or a town, you smile at the cosmic justice of it all.

Savior: You were born under mysterious circumstances, with something alien or not quite normal in your personality and features (an odd birthmark, a series of numbers on your body, weird scars, or horns, for example). You believe that you are here for an important purpose, that the gods have a special plan for you. You may not know what this special fate or purpose is, but you believe that omens exist everywhere to lead you; you just need to open your eyes and see them.

Seeker: Life is a great mystery, and you role in this life remains just as puzzling. Your uniqueness, however, has caused you to question you purpose and everything around you. You have sought all the wisest men and women in the lands. The philosophers, theologians and sages you've consulted have all offered their advice, yet none of their guidance rings true. To make matters worse, having an extraplanar creature's blood running through your veins complicates moral and redemptive matters, for you're either already blessed or damned and no holy book can change that. Having abandoned the advice of the so-called great thinkers, you now seek your answers in the world you barely comprehend. You don't know what you will find at the end of your journey, but at lest you know you walk a path of your own choosing.

Tyrant: You believe your outsider heritage grants you the right to rule over all others, for you have insight into the universe's workings and know the real nature of things. And though your place as ruler has yet to be established, and despite other's claims that you are king in your eyes only, you know your destiny is forthcoming; its merely a work in progress. Nothing can stop you from achieving your goals. And as a tyrant, your word will be law.


Planar Ancestry
An aasimar is a creature whose ancestor (anything including and above grandparent, great-grandparent and so on) is a good celestial. If one of your parents was a good celestial you are not an aasimar! That would make you a half-celestial, and not eligible for a planetouched registration.

A tiefling is a creature whose ancestor (anything including and above grandparent, great-grandparent and so on) is an evil outsider. If one of your parents was an evil outsider you are not a tiefling! That would make you a half-fiend, and not eligible for a planetouched registration.

A cansin is a creature whose ancestor (anything including and above grandparent, great-grandparent and so on) is a chaotic outsider. If one of your parents was a chaotic outsider you are not a cansin!

An axani is a creature whose ancestor (anything including and above grandparent, great-grandparent and so on) is a lawful outsider. If one of your parents was a chaotic outsider you are not an axani!

Sources: Races of Faerûn, Forgotten Realms Campaign setting, Aasimars and Tieflings: a guide to the Planetouched
« Last Edit: February 12, 2023, 11:23:20 AM by MAB77 »
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Aasimar
« Reply #14 on: January 30, 2021, 08:47:51 AM »
Quote
Aasimar


* Playing this race requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Carrying the blood of a Celestial, an Aasimar is usually good aligned and fights against evil in the world. At the same time, their heritage marks them as different and often leads to persecution, ridicule or exile from superstitious or backward communities. It is not unknown for an Aasimar to give in to bitterness in the face of adversity and turn to Evil. Some aasimar have a minor physical trait suggesting their heritage, such as silver hair, golden eyes, or unnatural intense stare.

Aasimar are the descendants of humans and some good outsider, such as a true celestial, a celestial creature, Couatl, Lillend, or even a servant or avatar of a good deity. (Some of these creatures must use magic to assume a form that is compatible with a human mate, of course) While elves, dwarves, gnomes and Halflings with good outsider ancestry are reputed to exist, those crossbreeds are not true Aasimar. Eladrin are also another possibility of heritage for Aasimar, as they are more common to spend time among mortals. They are knights and lords who roam the cosmos in search of good folk to aid. Eladrins are free-spirited, but they are also mighty champions of good. Of the Eladrins there are two types: Bralani and Ghaele.


Personality:
Most Aasimar strive for nobility in their behaviour, but most often fight against tendencies toward vengefulness or quick judgment. Some also experience a great deal of prejudice, particularly from their human neighbours, which can lead to aloofness. Ultimately, most aasimar tend to be loners, unable to fully trust others.


Physical description:
Aasimar look human (and are roughly the same height and weight as members of that race), except for one distinguishing feature related to their unusual ancestry. Some examples of these features (And the ancestors that cause them) are:

-Golden eyes
-Silver hair: (Bralani, Ghaele)
-Pointy ears: (Eladrin)
-Emerald skin: (Planetar)
-Feathers at the shoulder: (Astral deva, avoral celestial, planetar, solar, trumpet archon)
-Feathers in hair (Avoral celestial)
-Pearly opalescent eyes : (Ghaele celestial)
-Powerful ringing voice: (Lillend , trumpet archon)
-Brilliant topaz eyes: (Solar)
-Silvery or golden skin: (Solar)
-Iridescent scales in small patches: (Couatl or Lillend)

Aasimar understand that they are special even if they do not understand their true heritage. Many Aasimar from a latent bloodline don’t even know what creature engendered the line in the first place. Two Aasimar from the same bloodline often have the same distinguishing feature.

Aasimar reach adulthood at about the same age as humans, but are longer-lived, with the eldest members of the race living to be 150 years old.


History:
Most Aasimar in Faerûn are derived from the deities of Mulhorand. When the mortal incarnations of the Mulhorandi pantheon defeated the Imaskari, they settled and took mortals as lovers and spouses. The half-celestial off-spring of these unions became nobles of that country, and dilution of the divine essence through marriages to pureblood humans created their grandparents, and so the lands around. Mulhorand have more aasimar than any other area.


Outlook:
Most Aasimar are wary of their human neighbours. Even those raised by parents who understand their heritage cannot escape the stares of other children and adults, for humans fear that which is different. Aasimar usually experience a great deal of prejudice, which is all the more painful to the good-inclined Aasimar who truly wants to help others survive in a hostile world, Aasimar are often seen as aloof, when in many cases this is a protective measure born of years of misunderstandings. Although aasimar are mostly human, they rarely feel like they fit in among human society. Instead, they get along best with other half-breeds --because they usually share the same sort of semi-outcast background.

Of the other races, Aasimar save their distrust for tieflings, whose fiendship ancestry strikes a chord of suspicion in the heart of the aasimar. Aasimar often look upon true celestials and other good outsiders with a mixed envy and respect. The lucky ones receive occasional guidance and advice from their celestial ancestor, and these aasimar are more likely to exemplify the stereotypical celestial virtues.

Because an aasimar's favored class is Paladin, a majority of them follow that path, at least for a time. The philosophy of the paladin class resonates in the aasimars' hearts, and they are innately suited for a career championing law and good. Some instead become clerics, since they are naturally wiser and more charismatic than most humans. Even aasimar who don't become divine spellcasters gravitate toward divine-related classes such as the divine champion, for the call of the light is very strong.

Not all aasimar live up to their potential. An aasimar blackguard or a sorcerer of evil is a terrible opponent, and deities such as Shar and Set love to corrupt an aasimar, turning her into a bitter, angry creature nursing old grudges from unjust persecution; likewise is the plane of the dread.


Society:
Aasimar rarely have siblings who are other aasimar, for the heredity of the supernatural is a chancy thing. Because of this, few aasimar get to know another of their kind. On the rare times they encounter another aasimar, there is a sort of unspoken understanding between them, and an aasimar is likely to take another aasimar's side in an argument, regardless of other affiliations, just for a taste of kinship.

Aasimar, being more rare than even half-elves, have no true-society of their own. Few have the opportunity to meet other aasimar or celestial beings, so they attempt to blend into the culture of their parents. If they had such a thing, aasimar would have a lawful good or neutral good society, focusing on charitable works, helping the needy, and campaigning to eradicate evil. In a few rare places, aasimar can find true acceptance and search for news of other aasimar born in other lands, hoping to make arrangements to have the child brought to the sanctuary and raised in an environment where he or she is cherished, not considered strange.


Relations with other races:
Although Aasimar are mostly human, they rarely feel like they fit among human society. Instead, they get along best with other half-breeds--because they tend to share the same sort of semi-outcast background.

Dwarves, elves, gnomes and halflings are neither embraced nor shunned by aasimar, for while these races have no history of persecuting the planetouched, they don't have a reputation for sheltering them either. Genasi of all types are too alien compared to an aasimar to elicit sympathy or a sense of kinship. Tieflings are the one race that garners the most suspicion from an aasimar, for those touched by the holy understand its calling and therefore can guess what sort of temptation those with unholy blood must hear.


Alignment:
Blood infused with the power of the celestial realms virtually guarantees that aasimars are good in alignment, although individuals vary wildly in their interpretation and may favor lawful or chaotic behavior. In extremely rare instances, an aasimar turns from good, becoming neutral or even evil. Fallen aasimars live as hunted beings, reviled by their own


Religion:
The indisputable fact of their celestial ancestry leads aasimars to become deeply devoted beings who feel a personal connection with a particular deity. Even those who do not become paladins (their favored class) are profoundly religious and forthright in their faith. While they are not prone to proselytizing, by words and action aasimars show the power and righteousness of their deity to those who have not yet seen the light and truth that they experience themselves.


Language:
Aasimars speak Common and have an intuitive understanding of Celestial from birth. Aasimars learn a variety of languages to assist them as they wander the world in their quest for good.


Names:
Aasimars are given names appropriate for the area and society in which they were raised. The majority, raised by human parents, bear human names. Some adopt a more celestial-sounding name on reaching adulthood to demonstrate their devotion to their deity and to the cause of good.

Male Names: Exelar, Henzio, Mortibal, Overmar, Sentalial, Vitarri.

Female Names: Alleraia, Eretri, Irethia, Marethial, Savial, Terim.


Adventurers:
Aasimars readily take to the adventuring lifestyle. Many become paladins, acting as righteous tools of their deity. Clerics are nearly as common, followed by fighters. Lawful aasimars find a monk’s discipline very appealing. Blessed with a naturally high Charisma, some aasimars become sorcerers and bards. Aasimars dislike the pragmatic deceitfulness of rogues, and barbarian aasimars are almost unheard of.


Settings:
Aasimars can come only from the following settings: Forgotten Realms, Eberron and Planescape.


Game Stats:
+2 Wis, +2 Cha*
Human Bonus Feat
+4 Extra skill points at character creation
Darkvision
Light spell once a day
Skill Affinity (Listen)
Skill Affinity (Spot)
Acid Damage Resistance 5/-
Cold Damage Resistance 5/-
Electrical Damage Resistance 5/-
Effective Character Level +1

* At character creation, remember that the game engine does not apply ability score adjustment on humans. The +2 Wis, +2 Cha adjustment will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.

Sources: Races of Faerûn, Forgotten Realms Campaign setting, Planar Handbook, Races of Destiny, Eberron Campaign Setting
« Last Edit: February 12, 2023, 11:48:57 AM by MAB77 »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

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Axani
« Reply #15 on: January 30, 2021, 09:20:34 AM »
Quote
Axani


* Playing this race requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Throughout the multiverse, a vast number of planes embody the forces of good and evil, law and chaos, and other primordial forces. At the heart of these planes lies the Material Plane, where most campaigns take place. Outsiders of every stripe roam this plane, and many interact with the Material Plane's native inhabitants. Although it's uncommon, some of these interactions produce children, and those children produce children. Outsider blood is powerful, and its influence can last through several generations, bestowing its special gifts upon the outsider's descendants. These descendants are referred to as planetouched, and they are a breed apart from the other inhabitants of the planes.

Axani have the blood of lawful outsiders coursing through their veins, most often a lawful neutral outsider like a mercane or an axiomatic humanoid, but sometimes a lawful celestial (such as an archon) or fiend (such as a devil) produces an axani descendant. This happens most often when most of the axani's mortal ancestors are strongly opposed to the good or evil component of the outsider's alignment.


Physical description:
Axani typically have overly neat, orderly appearances. They favor simple but elegant clothing and hairstyles. They are often quite attractive, with well-formed, symmetrical features. Some axani have a metallic tint to their skin or hair, but this is rare. Like elves, Axani have no facial or body hair.


History:
Axani do not have a shared racial history. They are bounded only in the fact that they all have a lawful outsider ancestor.


Outlook:
There are few generalities that can be said of Axani. They are drawn to ordered lives and like things to be neatly organized.


Society:
Axani are very rare and do not have a society of their own.


Relations with other races:
An axani is likely to suffer the same forms of prejudice as would an aasimar in human cultures.


Alignments:
As their lineage indicates, most are lawful neutral, with lawful good and lawful evil as roughly equal minorities. Neutral axani are extremely rare, and chaotic axani are almost unheard of.


Religion:
Axani are not dedicated to any particular faith, but axani clerics are almost always found in the ranks of lawful faiths.


Language:
Axani have no cultural language, although those that realize their heritage may chose to learn the language of its outsider ancestor. An axani usually learns the language of her parents.


Names:
Axani usually have names befitting the human culture one is born in.


Adventurers:
Axani are drawn to the ordered, principled life of the monk, but any profession with a structured environment, such as soldiering, suits them.


Settings:
Axani can come only from the Planescape setting.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Int, +2 Wis*
Human Bonus Feat
Darkvision
Charm Person spell once a day
Skill Affinity (Spot)
+2 Influence
Sonic Damage Resistance 5/-
Cold Damage Resistance 5/-
Effective Character Level +1

* At character creation, remember that the game engine does not apply ability score adjustment on humans. The +2 Int, +2 Wis adjustment will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.


Source: Dragon Magazine #297
« Last Edit: October 25, 2024, 05:29:56 PM by EO »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

MAB77

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Cansin
« Reply #16 on: January 30, 2021, 12:33:36 PM »
Quote
Cansin


* Playing this race requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Throughout the multiverse, a vast number of planes embody the forces of good and evil, law and chaos, and other primordial forces. At the heart of these planes lies the Material Plane, where most campaigns take place. Outsiders of every stripe roam this plane, and many interact with the Material Plane's native inhabitants. Although it's uncommon, some of these interactions produce children, and those children produce children. Outsider blood is powerful, and its influence can last through several generations, bestowing its special gifts upon the outsider's descendants. These descendants are referred to as planetouched, and they are a breed apart from the other inhabitants of the planes.

Children of randomness and entropy, cansin are most often descended from the inhabitants from the chaotic plane of Limbo, such as slaadi or chaos beasts. Such instances are rare, and the fact that they happen at all highlights the nature of chaos itself. Like axani, however, sometimes a chaotic celestial (such as an eladrin) or fiend (such as a demon) spawns cansin descendants instead of, or in addition to, aasimar and tieflings.


Physical description:
Cansin generally appear disheveled and disorganized. Their clothing is mismatched, their hair is mussed, and their caps perch at odd angles. Cansin typically have at least one, but possibly several, minor physical traits that reflect their origins. Some have eyes that randomly change color (not necessarily in sync), others have slightly irregular features.


History:
Cansin do not have a shared racial history. Their only unifying trait being they all have a chaotic outsider ancestor.


Outlook:
There are no generalities that can be said of Cansin. Each are unique inviduals with their own personal views.


Society:
Cansin are very rare and do not have a society of their own.


Relations with other races:
A cansin is likely to suffer the same forms of prejudice as would an aasimar in human cultures.


Alignments:
Naturally, most cansin are chaotic, but their very unpredictability makes neutral and even lawful cansin more common than good tieflings, evil aasimar, or chaotic axani.


Religion:
Cansin are not dedicated to any particular faith and are free to follow the religion of there choice.


Language:
Cansin have no cultural language, although those that realize their heritage may chose to learn the language of its outsider ancestor. A cansini usually learns the language of her parents.


Names:
Cansin usually have names befitting the human culture one is born in.


Adventurers:
Cansin can be of any classes.


Settings:
Cansin can come only from the Planescape setting.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Int, +2 Cha*
Human Bonus Feat
Darkvision
Entropic Shield spell once a day
Skill Affinity (Search)
+2 Influence
Acid Damage Resistance 5/-
Fire Damage Resistance 5/-
Effective Character Level +1

* At character creation, remember that the game engine does not apply ability score adjustment on humans. The +2 Int, +2 Cha adjustment will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.


Source: Dragon Magazine #297
« Last Edit: October 25, 2024, 05:30:07 PM by EO »
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MAB

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Tiefling
« Reply #17 on: January 31, 2021, 01:09:19 PM »
Quote
Tiefling


* Playing this race requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Carrying the taint of evil in their forms and perhaps their very souls, tieflings are often persecuted and feared throughout the planes. Those with gross physical alterations are often killed at birth, and even those with less noticeable physical traits are sometimes killed by their own horrified parents. Occasionally a tiefling is born to someone indifferent to its appearance, determined to redeem it, willing to exploit it, or evil enough not to care about its nature, and these tieflings are most likely to survive to adulthood. Most tieflings are evil, but a few have managed to overcome their bloodline's influence to make their own choices about good and evil.

Tieflings are the distant descendants of a human and some evil outsider, such as a demon (usually a marilith or succubus), devil (usually an erinyes, gelugon, or pit fiend), night hag, rakshasa, or even a servant of an evil deity (some of these creatures must use magic to assume a form that is compatible with a human mate, of course). Fiend-touched, and similarly tainted mixes of elves (notably the fey'ri), orcs (such as the tanarukk), and other races are known, but those are distinct lines and are not true tieflings. Tieflings are regarded as twisted, devious and untrustworthy. More often than not, this opinion is accurate.


Physical description:
Tieflings look human (And are roughly the same height and weight as members of that race), except for one or two distinguishing features related to their unusual ancestry. Some examples of these features (and the ancestors that cause them) are:

Small horns on head: (demon, devil , night hag)
Fangs or pointed teeth
Forked tongue: (demon, devil)
Goatlike legs: (devil)
Hooves:(devil)
Non-prehensile tail: (demon, devil)
Furry, leathery, or scaly skin: (demon, devil, rakshasa)
Red skin: (demon, devil)
Bruised blue skin (night hag)
Casts no shadow: (demon, devil)
Throws no reflection: (demon, devil)
Skin is hot to the touch: (demon, devil)
Smell of brimstone: (demon, devil)

Tieflings are aware at an early age that they are different from the people around them, and often have strange urges, desires, or needs because of their evil heritage. Because tieflings are born of many different creatures, it is difficult to tell if any two of them are related, and because many of them come from demonic bloodlines, even two tieflings descended from similar demons or the very same demon might look very different. Tieflings reach adulthood at about the same age as humans but are longer-lived, with the eldest members of the race living to be 150 years old.

IMPORTANT: For the purpose of applying for this subrace, remember that the tieflings of 3rd edition D&D are still predominantly human looking with only 1 or 2 minor fiendish traits. Applications that go out of their way to have the character look like a fiend will be rejected by the Community Council. While you as a player are totally allowed to decide what manner of creature spawned your bloodline, consider that most tiefling characters would not actually know the source of it. The essence of the lower planes affects each tiefling differently. A fiendish trait does not have to be reminiscent of the progenitor fiend. It is suggested you keep these fiendish traits vague as to cultivate an aura of mystery about your origin and to not make it too obvious for others to guess the nature of the progenitor fiend.


History:
Most Faerûnian tieflings come from bloodlines originating in Mulhorand and Thay. The Mulhorandi tieflings are descended from servants or manifestations of Set or Sebek, while those from Thay are usually the result of dalliances with fiends of all kinds. As with the aasimar from Mulhorand, many tieflings from that ancient land leave the region to seek their own destiny without outside interference. Thayan tieflings are usually the grandchildren of powerful wizards, birthed as part of some power scheme, and usually spend their lives as slaves or pawns to both sides of the family. In either case, tieflings from these two regions usually resemble the human race of their parents, with their inhuman traits making them stand out from other Thayans or Mulhorandi.

Tieflings are rarely seen in Eberron. There, they are shaped not by demonic powers, but by the influence of the planes. Such tieflings may be born in manifest zones when planes are coterminous. Planar tieflings are isolated oddities, often seen as exotic and strange, but not necessarily evil.

In the Planescape setting, tieflings come from a great variety of backgrounds and planes. They are especially common across the lower planes, the Outlands and in the City of Sigil.


Outlook:
Tieflings live as outcasts. Feared for their evil heritage and often acting appropriately to their ancestry, they learn to keep people at a distance and hide that which makes them different. Like all the planetouched, they are different from their own parents; rarely has a tiefling been raised in a home filled with love. Tieflings are bitter folk who expect eventual rejection from even their best friends and easily fall into lives of crime, depravity, and cruelty. Tieflings look upon true fiends and other evil outsiders with envy and fear.

Some tieflings reject their tainted blood and seek the light. Not many succeed for long, and far more slide to a comfortable place midway between evil and good. But of the creatures who work to be good, good-aligned tieflings probably work the hardest.


Society:
Because of the varied circumstances of their births, most tieflings become adults without knowing another of their kind. Given to their scattered heritage and tendency toward evil, tieflings mistrust each other, while at the same time wanting another of their kind near to experience a limited kinship. Therefore it is not unusual to find a small group of like-minded tieflings at the head of a thieves guild. Sometimes a good tiefling will search out others of her kind in the hopes of rescuing them from evil or persecution, but most tieflings are too used to looking out only for themselves that such a thought never occurs to them.


Relations with other races:
Tieflings treat most other races equally - at arm's length. They are very slow to trust others and always wary of a friend suddenly becoming an enemy. Aasimar often trigger an instinctive fear or revulsion in tieflings, making it difficult for them to work together at all. Half-orcs are the only race tieflings tolerate, since they are the only common mixed-breed race that is derided as much as tieflings. Still, a tiefling isn't more likely to trust a half-orc; she's just more likely to understand his perspective.


Alignments:
Tieflings tend toward evil alignments, though neutral tieflings are not uncommon. Those who choose a life of good and manage to stick to it are particularly rare.


Religion:
Tieflings have no common deity. Most choose to worship evil deities or none at all, though tieflings followers of good deities are not entirely unheard of.


Language:
Tieflings share no common language. Some learn infernal or Abyssal, although since most have no idea where their bloodline comes from, as often as not, they choose the wrong racial language. A tiefling usually learns the language of her parents as well.


Names:
As a rule, tieflings use human names until such time they seek to differentiate themselves from their parents. At that point, they often take names that hint at their fiendish heritage. Some choose words of infernal or Abyssal that sound menacing, occasionally without even knowing the words' definitions.


Adventurers:
As natural outcasts, tieflings often follow a life of adventure and intrigue. Those that hew to their heritage become thieves, brigands, or killers. Some tieflings reject their tainted blood and seek the light, aiming to help those in need.


Settings:
Tieflings can come only from the following settings: Forgotten Realms, Eberron and Planescape.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Dex, +2 Int, -2 Cha*
Human Bonus Feat
Darkvision
Darkness spell once a day
+2 Influence
+2 Hide
Cold Damage Resistance 5/-
Electrical Damage Resistance 5/-
Fire Damage Resistance 5/-
Effective Character Level +1

* At character creation, remember that the game engine does not apply ability score adjustment on humans. The +2 Dex, +2 Int, -2 Cha adjustment will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.


Sources: Races of Faerûn, Forgotten Realms Campaign setting, Planar Handbook, Races of Destiny, Eberron Campaign Setting
« Last Edit: May 15, 2024, 07:10:49 AM by MAB77 »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
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MAB77

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Fire Gnome
« Reply #18 on: January 31, 2021, 01:36:25 PM »
Quote
Fire Gnome


* Playing this race requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Countless ages of toil in the deep mines of Dothion, where the walls between the Twin Paradises of Bytopia and the Elemental Plane of Fire are very thin indeed, has created a hybrid race that shares some qualities of gnome and some of fire elemental. Fire gnomes are exceptionally resistant to heat and especially vulnerable to cold, and though they share some of the same interests as their cousins the svirfneblin, fire gnomes are nowhere near as insular and paranoid.

Fire gnomes do not have the innate illusion powers of their cousins, but they are capable of impressive effects with fire. They frequently give ground, only to devise elaborate schemes and return later. And also unlike rock gnomes, fire gnomes have no compunctions about killing—especially in defense of their mines and tunnels. Adept at spotting incendiaries and explosives carried by opponents, fire gnomes are all too happy to start fires (which have no effect on them, of course) in hopes of setting off an opponent’s own supply of explosives—and thus letting the fire gnomes defeat their foes with only minimal effort.


Physical description:
Fire gnomes are coal-black, with blazing, yellow-orange eyes and could very nearly pass for a baby fire giant.


Alignment:
Fire gnomes are usually neutral good, but can be lawful good as well.


Languages:
Fire gnomes usually known Common, Gnome, and Ignan. They may also start with Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Goblin, Orc or Terran.


Settings:
Fire Gnomes can come only from the Planescape setting.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Con, -2 Str
Defensive training vs. giants
Spell focus (illusion)
Darkvision
Continual Flame spell once a day
Flame Weapon spell once a day (self only)
Stonecunning
Small stature
100% Fire Immunity
50% Cold Vulnerability
Effective Character Level +1


Source: Planar Handbook
« Last Edit: February 10, 2023, 11:20:47 AM by MAB77 »
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MAB

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MAB77

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Frost Dwarf
« Reply #19 on: January 31, 2021, 01:56:13 PM »
Quote
Frost Dwarf


* Playing this race requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Millennia ago, the frost giants of the Ice Wastes of the Abyss enslaved a tribe of duergar and brought them to their home to craft armor and weapons. All but the hardiest perished, and those who survived gradually changed, becoming more like their frost giant masters. Now frost dwarves toil away in the mines and forges of the Ice Wastes, plotting their liberation - and their revenge.

Like other dwarves, frost dwarves use their environment to its fullest, though they only rarely plan out their attacks in advance. Frost dwarves hurl themselves into every battle with reckless abandon, hacking away with their axes until no enemies are left. In close combat, frost dwarves sometimes cast aside their battleaxes and attempt to grapple their foes into submission, using their frost breath spell-like ability to help take the fight out of their enemies (and later ransoming their prisoners for a hefty profit). If outmatched - or if they simply wish to remain hidden - frost dwarves attempt to confuse their enemies and cover their escape.


Physical description:
Frost dwarves have pale blue skin, blue hair and a blue beard. Their hollow eyes glow with a strange white light, and icicles easily cling to their beard and hair.


Alignment:
Being creatures twisted by the foul taint of the Abyss, frost dwarves are almost universally chaotic evil.


Languages:
Frost dwarves usually know Common, Dwarven and Giant. They may also start with Draconic, Goblin, Orc, Terran or Undercommon.


Settings:
Frost Dwarves can come only from the Planescape setting.


Game Stats
Spoiler: show
+4 Con, -4 Cha*
Darkvision
Hardiness vs. spells
Offensive training vs. orcs
Offensive training vs. goblinoids
Defensive training vs. giants
Skill affinity (lore)
+4 Move Silently
Frost Breath
Frost Weapon spell once a day (self only)
Immunity to Paralysis
Immunity to Poison
Immunity to the Phantasmal Killer Spell
Immunity to the Weird Spell
Cold Damage Resistance 10
Effective Character Level +1

* At character creation, remember that the game engine automatically applies the default +2 Con, -2 Cha adjustment for standard dwarves. An extra +2 Con, -2 Cha will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.


Source: Planar Handbook
« Last Edit: February 10, 2023, 10:22:59 AM by MAB77 »
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Tanarukk
« Reply #20 on: January 31, 2021, 03:16:48 PM »
Quote
Tanarukk


* Playing this race requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Bred from orc slaves and demons, tanarukks are a powerful and evil strain of planetouched who are spreading across the North. Because of their orc blood they breed rapidly, and there are more tanarukks than any other kind of planetouched. Entire tribes of the creatures have taken root in the Nether Mountains and continue to breed true, so in another twenty years they will be a serious threat to the tenuous peace in the North. With evil parentage on both sides of the family, tanarukks are almost always evil, without a drop of human blood in them to influence their disposition.

Tanarukks are the descendants of orcs and tanar'ri (vrocks, in particular). Similar to tieflings, tanarukks are a mortal Faerûnian creature with the bloodline of an evil outsider. They breed true with their own kind or with pureblooded orcs, and even orcs with one tanarukk parent have all the abilities of a tanarukk. Theoretically tanarukks could breed with goblinoids or even ogres and produce strange crossbreeds, although these are likely to be sterile.


Physical description:
Unlike most planetouched, tanarukks have a fairly uniform appearance, resembling short, stocky orcs with stooped postures. Their hair is coarse, whether on their heads or the odd patches that grow on other parts of their bodies. They have sharp teeth and prominent lower tusks, with their lower jaw protruding farther than their small snouts. Their eyes are red and glow when angry. Their foreheads are low and ridged with horn or scales; their skin varies from gray-green to dun brown. Tanarukks have the same life expectancy as a normal orc.


History:
The citadel now known as Hellgate Keep fell under the sway of demons nearly five hundred years ago. The Harpers placed wards around the site to prevent demons from conjuring any more of their kind, so Grintharke the Balor, the most powerful demon present, ordered his evil minions to breed with the orc slaves of the keep in order to produce fast breeding but powerful creatures who would serve the demons as shock troops and guards. After a few hundred years, the fiendish bloodlines stabilized, and the race of tanarukks was born.

In recent years, Grintharke was slain. His successors fell to infighting, but managed to hold power until the keep itself was destroyed in 1369 DR by an extraplanar artifact known as the Gatekeeper's Crystal. A number of surviving tanarukks fled to the Nether Mountains, while others remain under the command of one of the keep's cambions, thronging secret halls buried in the Underdark. The tanarukks of the Nether Mountains are mingling with local orc tribes and may soon branch out into the Spine of the World, where they will come into conflict with the tribe of King Obould Many-Arrows.


Outlook:
Tanarukks have the worst traits of orcs or half-orcs mixed with the temper and power of demons. Generally sullen and prone to rages, tanarukks would rather fight than ponder and would rather kill than argue. Their orc heritage impressed them with a respect for power, which was only reinforced by their tanar'ri mentors. They live recklessly and without moderation, feasting, drinking, and fighting if the opportunity presents itself. They are contemptuous of those weaker than themselves, and consider themselves a superior breed of orc. They are impressed by strength, and only a very powerful leader can convince them to settle down long enough to follow orders against a common enemy.

Among the typical rough minded tanarukks are a few who are smarter or more moderate in their temperament, possibly because one of their demonic ancestors was a marilith or some other sort of demon prone to thinking before acting. It is these tanarukks who become leaders or, dissatisfied with the life available to them among their own kind, seek out other challenges in new places. These tanarukks can be the most dangerous, but also have the greatest chance of being befriended by something other than an orc or tanarukk.


Society:
Of all the planetouched, tanarukks are the only ones with a large and thriving society, for not even the fey'ri have numbers comparable to the tribes of fiend-touched orcs. Of course, tanarukk society is a mixture of orc and demon society, which means that they act like orcs infused with supernatural evil power. However, unlike typical orc society, the strong influence of the mariliths involved in the breeding program has moderated the patriarchal tendencies, resulting in a culture where females are treated much better than slaves. Tanarukk females who give birth to many strong young can earn a measure of respect for themselves and carry some influence over their mates.

Like orcs, tanarukks perform ritual scarring on themselves and each other, particularly as a part of adulthood rites. Because they are resistant to fire, many scarring rituals use acid or jagged weapons. Others have iron jewelry or weapons (such as tanarukk battle gauntlets) hammered into place around their limbs while still hot, fusing the item in place when it cools, which prevents theft without killing the tanarukk first.


Relations With Other Races:
Even more so than common orcs, tanarukks consider other races weaker than themselves. Only demons (and, to a lesser extent, powerful fiend-touched creatures such as half-fiends) gain any respect from the tanarukks, and only because they usually have the power to back up their commands.

Tanarukks are prone to torture and then eat any intelligent humanoid that crosses their path. After centuries of service to the tanar'ri, they are quite conversant with painful methods of torture and not above eating parts of their victim while it is still alive. Tanarukks are particularly hateful toward elves, given that the weakest tanarukk is more than a match for a half dozen common elves.

Tanarukks see orcs and half orcs as valuable allies but of lesser status than the tanarukks themselves. Any such allies usually end up coerced into mixing with the tanarukk tribe to create an even more numerous next generation of demonic progeny.


Religion:
Like their pureblooded orc ancestors, tanarukks worship the orc pantheon. Despite the influence of fiendish mentors, tanarukk tribes do not worship demons. Tanarukks who are content to use their physical prowess in the service of an orc leader (without thinking too much) lean to the worship of Bahgtru. More than any other tanarukks, the worshippers of Bahgtru rarely wear armor, considering it a weakness. They tend to be the strongest and most aggressive members of the tribe.

Gruumsh, He Who Never Sleeps, is revered by all tanarukks and is especially close to the hearts of the tribal and clan chieftains. They see their demonic blood as a reward from Gruumsh for their long service, and mercilessly kill the weakest young of the tribe or those who manifest no true tanarukk abilities. Allowing one who has spurned the gifts of the One-Eyed God to live is an affront to his worship.

Tanarukk consider Ilneval, the god of orc crossbreeds and martial skill, to be their special patron, and Ilneval is worshipped almost as an equal to Gruumsh. If this new race continues to expand, he is likely to supplant Gruumsh in the eyes of the tanarukks. Ilneval is a favorite of the wiser tanarukks as well as the officers in orc armies. His worshippers are more likely to become fighters or rangers than barbarians.


Language:
Tanarukks speak Orc and Abyssal, using the former for most conversations but inserting words from the latter when more sophisticated concepts need to be communicated. Smart tanarukks usually learn Common so they can more easily interrogate prisoners. Most tanarukks are completely illiterate.


Names:
Tanarukks adopt orcish names.
Orc Male Names: Dench, Feng, Gell, Henk, Holg, Imsh, Keth, Krusk, Ront, Shump, Thokk.
Orc Female Names: Baggi, Emen, Engong, Myev, Neega, Ovak, Ownka, Shautha, Vola, Volen.


Adventurers:
Most of the wiser tanarukks are barbarians or fighters, although a fair number are sorcerers. Leaders multiclass as barbarian/sorcerers, using their limited sorcerer ability to augment their physical prowess. Less rage-prone tanarukks tend to be fighters or rangers.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+4 Str, +2 Dex, -2 Wis, -4 Cha*
Darkvision
Martial Weapons Proficiency
Creature Weapon Proficiency
Spell Resistance
Increased AC +4
Fire Damage Resistance 10
Effective Character Level +2

* At character creation, remember that the game engine automatically applies the default +2 Str, -2 Int, -2 Cha adjustment for standard half-orcs. An extra +2 Str, +2 Dex, +2 Int, -2 Wis, -2 Cha will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.


Sources: Races of Faerun, D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook (for orcish names)
« Last Edit: February 10, 2023, 11:18:22 AM by MAB77 »
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Half-Orc
« Reply #21 on: February 01, 2021, 02:00:48 PM »
Quote
Half-Orc


In the wild frontiers, tribes of human and orc barbarians live in uneasy balance, fighting in times of war and trading in times of peace. Half-orcs who are born in the frontier may live with either human or orc parents, but they are nevertheless exposed to both cultures. Some, for whatever reason, leave their homeland to travel to civilized lands, bringing with them the tenacity, courage, and combat prowess that they developed in the wilds.


Physical description:
Half-orcs stand between 6 and 7 feet tall and usually weigh between 180 and 250 pounds. A half-orc's grayish pigmentation, sloping forehead, jutting jaw, prominent teeth, and coarse body hair make his lineage plain for all to see.

Orcs like scars. They regard battle scars as tokens of pride and ornamental scars as things of beauty. Any half-orc who has lived among or near orcs has scars, whether they are marks of shame indicating servitude and identifying the half-orc's former owner, or marks of pride recounting conquests and high status. Such a half-orc living among humans may either display or hide his scars, depending on his attitude toward them.

Half-orcs mature a little faster than humans and age noticeably faster. They reach adulthood at age 14, and few live longer than 75 years.


History:
Half-orcs have no society of their own and therefore no particular racial history.


Outlook:
Half-orcs tend to be short-tempered and sullen. They would rather act than ponder and would rather fight than argue. Those who are successful, however, are those with enough self-control to live in civilized land, not the crazy ones.

Half-orcs love simple pleasures such as feasting, drinking, boasting, singing, wrestling, drumming, and wild dancing. Refined enjoyments such as poetry, courtly dancing, and philosophy are lost on them. At the right sort of party, a half-orc is an asset. At the duchess's grand ball, he's a liability.


Society:
Half-orcs have no lands of their own, but they most often live among orcs. Of the other races, humans are the ones most likely to accept half-orcs, and half-orcs almost always live in human lands when not living among orc tribes.


Relations with other races:
Because orcs are the sworn enemies of dwarves and elves, half-orcs can have a rough time with members of these races. For that matter, orcs aren't exactly on good term with humans, halflings, or gnomes, either. Each half-orc finds a way to gain acceptance from those who hate or fear his orc cousins. Some half-orcs are reserved, trying to not draw attention to themselves. A few demonstrate piety and good-heartedness as publicly as they can (whether or not such demonstrations are genuine). Others simply try to be so tough that others have no choice but to accept them


Alignments:
Half-orcs inherit a tendency toward chaos from their orc parents, but like their human parents, they favor good and evil in equal proportions. Half-orcs raised among orcs and willing to live out their lives with them are usually the evil ones.


Religion:
Like orcs, many half-orcs worship Gruumsh, the chief orc god and Archenemy of Corellon Larethian, god of the elves. While Gruumsh is evil, half-orc barbarians and and fighters may worship him as a war god even if they are not evil themselves. Worshippers of Gruumsh who are tired of explaining themselves, or who don't want to give humans a reason to distrust them, simply don't make their religion public knowledge. Half-orcs who want to solidify their connection with their human heritage, on the other hand, follow human gods, and they may be outspoken in their shows of piety.


Language:
Orc, which has no alphabet of its own, uses Dwarven script on the rare occasions that someone writes something down. Orc writing turns up most frequently in graffiti.


Names:
A half-orc typically chooses a name that helps him make the impression he wants to make. If he wants to fit in among humans, he chooses a human name. If he wants to intimidate others, he chooses a guttural orc name. A half-orc who has been raised entirely by humans has a human given name, but he may choose another name once he's away from his hometown. Some half-orcs, of course, aren't quite brought enough to choose a name this carefully.

Orc Male Names: Dench, Feng, Gell, Henk, Holg, Imsh, Keth, Krusk, Ront, Shump, Thokk

Orc Female Names: Baggi, Emen, Engong, Myev, Neega, Ovak, Ownka, Shautha, Vola, Volen


Adventurers:
Half-orcs living among humans are drawn almost invariably toward violent careers in which they can put their strength to good use. Frequently shunned from polite company, half-orcs often find acceptance and friendship among adventurers, many of whom are fellow wanderers and outsiders.


Settings:
Half-orcs can come from the Eberron, Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk, Mystara, Planescape and Spelljammer settings.

Eberron
Half-orcs are rare on Khorvaire, since humans and orcs have never lived in particularly close proximity. In the small, scattered human communities of the Shadow Marches, however, half-orcs are more common, and they can also be found in the western parts of the Eldeen Reaches and Droaam. The orcs of the Shadow Marches live much as the humans do: it is a rustic life, to be sure, but a far cry from their existence as ruthless barbarian hordes in the distant past. Half-orcs are just as civilized as the humans of the region, and often look almost human despite their size and strength.

Forgotten Realms
Half-orcs are fairly common throughout Faerûn. They have no true homeland to call their own and as a result most spend their lives wandering the world in search of a purpose. Half-orcs are invariably the product of a human and an orc, but stories are told of half-orcs carrying the blood of dwarves, goblins, hobgoblins, and even halflings, gnomes, and elves. Orcs are a fecund race, and such stories likely have some genesis in truth. A half-orc is usually about as tall as a human and a little heavier. Their skin tends to be gray with green or even purple undertones, and their faces feature sloping brows, jutting jaws with prominent teeth, and flat, squashed noses. This and their coarse body hair make their lineage plain for all to see.

Greyhawk:
Half-orcs are disliked by most humans and demihumans. Some find work and respect in civilized areas, but the majority are wicked in intent and lack foresight and organization.

In the Domain of Greyhawk, half-orcs are rare but not unknown. They are very few in number near the border with the Orcish Empire of the Pomarj, as a result of extreme racial prejudice and paranoia of orcish invasion and infiltration. However, the City of Greyhawk has long had a small population of half-orcs, even when the former Oligarch Turin Deathstalker (rumored to have been the Guildmaster of Assassins in Greyhawk) was in the area. The most important “open” half-orc at present is the aging but still active and infamous Selczek Gobayuik, Guildmaster of Embalmers and Gravediggers, who works and lives in the River Quarter.

In the Bright Lands, the city of Hardby has a substantial half-orc population. Valued as caravan guards, sailors, mercenaries, and enforcers, half-orcs serve in potions of a martial persuasion throughout the city. The Abbor-Alz has long been a refugee for outlaws, brigands, bandits and other unsavory types. Many bands of raiders are composed almost entirely of scabland half-orcs. As a race they have an unsavory reputation and as a consequence they are unwelcome in many of the surrounding nation states.

Mystara
Half-orcs raised in human society often suffer from prejudice or shame because of their orcish ancestry. Depending on the personality of the individual half-orc, they can find themselves prone to either pushing harder to become better and stronger heroes to prove their worth to the humans or powerful criminals that wish to get revenge on the entire human race that scorned them. Half-orcs in orc society often ultimately find themselves in positions of power due to their ability to out think their orcish relatives. However, half-orcs raised in this environment rarely see humans as potential friends or worthwhile creatures.

Planescape
Of the races native to the Prime Material Plane, half-orcs are most like humans and half-elves. They have no ties to any specific realm and are thus commonly found traveling, adventuring, and making names for themselves on the planes. The half-orcs have no powers that specifically watch over their race. Some worship the orcish powers; these half-orcs are commonly found in Nishrak, located on Avalas, the first layer of Acheron. Often the orcish powers use the half-orcs as elite troops, since they are usually smarter than full-blooded orcs, and can thus carry out complex battle plans. These half-orc generals are greatly feared upon that plane. Many half-orcs are not drawn to worship the orcish powers, however. They tend to go to the major planar cities, where they find work as soldiers or bodyguards.

Spelljammer
Though there are few full-blooded orcs remaining in wildspace today, there are humanoids with the blood of orcs running through their veins. These are the half-orcs, born of unions between humans and orcs. Most are former groundlings that made their way into wildspace, although there are some who are native to the stars. Half-orcs have no territories where they alone dominate. Most are found in the cities of humans, though some reside in the few places in wildspace where orcs may be found. Many inhabitants of wildspace fear or distrust full-blooded orcs, and because half-orcs have orc ancestors this prejudice is also applied to them. Many are run out of their homes and are drawn to the life of an outcast adventurer. They are a common part of pirate crews, sometimes even leading as captains.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Str, -2 Int, -2 Cha
Darkvision


Sources: D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook
« Last Edit: February 10, 2023, 11:13:50 AM by MAB77 »
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MAB

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Gold Dwarf
« Reply #22 on: February 01, 2021, 06:46:52 PM »
Quote
Gold Dwarf


Regions: Dragon Coast, dwarf (gold), Unther, Western Heartlands, Gold dwarves native to the Great Rift should select the gold dwarf region.

Found largely in the South in the immediate vicinity of the "Great Rift", gold dwarves are the dominants southern branch of the Stout folk. Renowned not only for their prowess and legendary wealth, gold dwarves have maintained their empire for millennia, unbowed by the passage of time.

For generations, the Deep Kingdom of the gold dwarves has stood unconquered, dominating the surface lands and subterranean caverns that surround the Great Rift,. As their numbers never declined in the face of endless warfare like their northern cousins, the Thunder Blessing has actually filled the great caverns of the Deep Kingdom beyond their capacity. As a result, for the first time in many years large numbers of gold dwarves are setting out to establish new strongholds across the South and the rest of Faerûn, including the Smoking Mountains of Unther and the Giant's Run Mountains of the Shining Plains.

Averaging 4 feet tall and weighting as much as an adult human, gold dwarves are stocky and muscular. The skin of a gold dwarf is light brown or deeply tanned and her eyes are usually brown or hazel. Both genders wear their hair long and males (and some females) have long, carefully groomed bears and mustaches. Hair color ranges from black to gray or brown, with all shades fading to light gray as time progresses.

Like their northern kin, gold dwarves harbor a great deal of pride, both in their own accomplishments and those of their ancestors. They also share the philosophy that anything worth doing is worth doing well, and that the natural world us but raw material to be worked into objects of great beauty. Unlike the long-beleaguered shield dwarves, gold dwarves do not share the pessimism or fatalism of their shield dwarven brethren. To the contrary, having seen the rise and fall of countless Elven, human and shield dwarven empires, their endurance has fostered a deep-seated belief that their traditions and culture are superior to those of all races.


History
Founded more than sixteen thousand years ago, the original dwarven homeland of Bhaerynden occupied a vast cavern deep beneath the southern plains ruled by the elves of Ilythiir. Bhaerynden claimed great swaths of the Underdark, but remained largely unknown in the Realms above. Little is known about the history of Bhaerynden except that a great exodus of dwarves led by Taark Shanat the Crusader left to found a new kingdom in the west about -11,000 DR. The end of the Elven Crown wars and the descent of the Drow in the years after -10,000 DR directly precipitated the fall of Bhaerynden. The first drow civilization arose in the southern Underdark around -9600 DR, but the drow quickly directed their anger against the Stout folk. Within the space of six centuries, the Stout folk had been scattered and the drow empire of Telantiwar ruled supreme in the dwarf-carved halls of fallen Bhaerynden.

The collapse of the cavern of Bhaerynden destroyed Telantiwar and created the Great Rift, scattering the drow around -76000 DR, Gold dwarves believe Moradin destroyed Telantiwar with a blow of his Axe, but scholars of other races have suggested that the drow weakened the cavern roof through excessive tunneling and reliance on magic to support the ceiling's weight. In the aftermath of Telantiwar's fall, there was a great scramble to claim new territory in the Underdark. The Stout folk quickly returned to their ancestral home and established the Deep Realm, occupying lesser caverns and miles of tunnels spreading out under the Eastern Shaar. Drow refugees claimed lesser caverns to the north, south and west of the Great Rift's establishing cities in nearby lands.

In the Millenia that followed, the Stout folk of the deep realm became down as gold dwarves. Once the borders of their realm were firmly established and defended, they set about building great subterranean cities and harvesting the bounty of the earth. While external threats from the drow and other Underdark races such as Aboleths, cloakers, illithids, ixzams and kuo-tom never entirely abated, no other race could match the unity of purpose evinced by the gold dwarves, and the sanctity the Deep Realm was never challenged. The dwarves profited in trade with each successive human empire that reached their great Rift, including ancient Jhaamdath, the fold of Mulhorand and Unther in their heyday, the Shoon Imperium at its height and in more recent centuries the mercantile Chondathan nations of the inner sea.

In 1306 DR, the Thunder Blessing shook the gold dwarves out of their millennium-long quiescence. In the decades that followed, a burgeoning population forced the gold dwarves to seek out new caverns to claim and settle across the South, upsetting the long held status quo of the southern Underdark. The largest exodus to date from the Deep realm began in 1369 R, when the Army of Gold set out on a great crusade to reclaim the caverns of Taark Shanat and restore the glory of Shanatar, the ancient kingdom of the shield dwarves. That expedition has become bogged down in warfare with the Army of Steel, dispatched by the Gray Dwarves of Underspires. Fierce battles rage in the tunnels beneath the Lake of Steam and Cloven mountains.


Outlook
Gold dwarves measure others by how much honor and wealth each individual garners as well as the status of his or her bloodline and clan. To gold dwarves, life is best lived through adherence to the ancient traditions of the Deep Realm. The very persistence of their own way of life indicates that other short-lived cultures are inherently flawed. As such, those who lack a meaningful cultural tradition or reject their elders' dictates are untrustworthy and possibly dangerous.

From birth, gold dwarves are taught to conform to the traditional strictures of their society. Every important decision, from choice of profession to their mate, is dictated by the circumstances of their birth. Those who do not act honorably in their dealings are shunned from an early age, breeding a tremendous societal pressure to fit in.

Gold dwarves lack the long-standing tradition of adventuring found in their shield dwarf cousins in the north. However, population pressures induced by the Thunder Blessing have given birth to a new generation of gold dwarf adventurers. Most gold dwarves who wander beyond the familiar confines of the Deep Realm do so in order to found new strongholds of their own, but many find the lure of adventuring hard to ignore once it as entered into their blood.


Gold dwarf Characters
Gold dwarves are painfully aware that many once-proud empires have been brought low, and they are therefore vigilant about maintaining their own. The keen awareness gold dwarves hold of the dangers to their eternal rule ensure that all gold dwarves are trained to fight from a young age. Most are trained as fighters, although clerics, paladins, rangers, rogues and even the occasional arcane spellcaster play important roles in defending the Deep Realm. Gold dwarf sorcerers usually trace their ancestry back to a powerful dragon or some creature of elemental earth or fire. Common multi-class combinations include fighter/cleric, fighter/paladin.


Gold dwarf Society
Gold dwarf culture does not exhibit a great deal of variability, the result of generations of gold dwarves insulated from outside influences. Class and clan divisions are strong among gold dwarves, and great importance is attributed to bloodlines when ascribing social status. However, the Deep Realm is so swamped with petty, decadent royals and nobles that little real power is invested in anyone but the governing council of clan elders. Commerce and craftsmanship both play an important role in gold dwarf society as does the never-satiated grasping for more riches. Pride and honor play an important rile in all aspects of every day life, for disgrace applies not only to oneself, but also to kin, clan and ling-dead ancestors.

Gold dwarves are raised in tight family units, but the clan elders play an important oversight role in upbringing of every child. Book learning is common, as is an apprenticeship to learn a trade. All adults are expected to support themselves and their family as well as bring honor and riches to the clan. Ostentatious displays of wealth are important for maintaining one's prestige, so poorer gold dwarves often scrimp and save to keep up appearances. As gold dwarves age, they are accorded increasing respect for their wisdom. Clan elders form a ruling gerontocracy that strongly enforces traditional practices. Families and clans are expected to honor their elders in death with elaborate funeral rites and tombs befitting the deceased reputation.

Outsider the Deep Realm, gold dwarves hold themselves apart, forming small, insular enclaves that attempt to replicate traditional clan life. Few gold dwarves have any interest in adopting local practices except where it furthers their ability to hawk their wares.


Language and literacy
Like all dwarves, gold dwarves speak Dwarven and employ the Dethek rune alphabet. They also speak Common. the trade language of the world above. The primary gold dwarven dialect (sometimes referred to as Rift-speak) has changed little since the glory days of Bhaerynden. Gold dwarves dwelling in the colonies in Unther and the Giant's Run often learn the languages of nearby lands.

Common secondary languages reflect the extensive trading contacts maintained by gold dwarves with their neighbors in the south and include shaaran, Untheric and to a lesser extent, Durpari, Dambrathan, Mulhorandi Halfling and Halruaan. Gold dwarves who have extensive contact with other subterranean races often learn Terran, Gnome or undercommon. All gold dwarves characters are literate except Barbarians (who are very unusual).


Gold Dwarf deities
Gold dwarves have venerated the dwarven deities of the Morndinsamman since the founding of Bhaerynden, but centuries of relative isolation and security have made their culture far less religious in nature than their shield dwarven kin. Among gold dwarves the churches of Moradin and Berronar are so predominant and have been for so long that many dwarven deities enjoy little more than token obeisance. High ranging clerics of both faiths command a great amount of institutional authority in gold dwarf society. The clerics of Berronar's faith are responsible for preserving records of the extraordinarily ancient genealogy of the noble families and serve as guardians of tradition in the home and community.

All gold dwarves revere the Soul Forger as the founder of the dwarven race, and his church is the predominant faith of the Deep Realm, centered in Monastic city of Thuulurn. Moradin's clerics sponsor many craftsfolk, particularly armorers and weaponsmith's, and serve as the principal judges and magistrates of gold dwarf society. The Soul Forger's faithful are drawn primarily from those who labor as smiths, craftsfolk or engineers, but he is also seen as the protector of the entire dwarven race and is thus worshipped by many lawful good dwarves regardless of profession.


Relation with other Races
Confident and secure in their remote home, gold dwarves have a well-deserved reputation for haughtiness and pride. They look down on all other dwarves, even shield dwarves and gray dwarves whose achievements and kingdoms have matched the glory of their own. Gold dwarves regard elves and half elves with suspicion after generations spent battling their deep dwelling cousins. Gnomes particularly deep gnomes are well regarded and welcomed as trading partners. Their impression of halflings is shaped by the strongheart, inhabitants of Lurien, whom gold dwarves find to be suitably industrious and forthright.

Gold dwarves know little of half-orcs, but usually lump them with the rest of Orc and goblinoid scum. Gold dwarves are very cautious in their dealings with humans, having found great variability in their dealings with Chondathans, the folk of Dambrath, Durpari, Muan, Shaarans, and Halrunaans. Planetouched are almost unknown but are usually viewed in the same light as the Mulan, since most planetouched the gold dwarves encounter are either Mulan Aasimar or earth genasi followers of Geb.


Settings:
Gold dwarves are the hill dwarves the Forgotten Realms setting. Their equivalent are found in numerous settings including Dragonlance, Eberron, Greyhawk, Planescape, Ravenloft and Spelljammer.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+2 Con, -2 Dex*
Stonecunning
Darkvision
Hardiness vs. poisons
Hardiness vs. spells
Offensive training vs. aberration
Defensive training vs. giants
Skill affinity (lore)

* At character creation, remember that the game engine automatically applies the default +2 Con, -2 Cha adjustment for standard dwarves. An extra +2 Cha, -2 Dex will be applied once the subrace is selected in-game.


Races of Faerun
« Last Edit: April 22, 2024, 08:32:48 PM by EO »
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Shield Dwarf
« Reply #23 on: February 01, 2021, 07:16:38 PM »
Quote
Shield Dwarf


Found largely in the northern reaches of western and central Faerun, shield dwarves are the dominant northern branch of the Stout Folk. Renowned for their smithwork and craftsmanship, shield dwarves had endured a centuries-long decline in the face of never-ending wars with orcs, goblins, giants, and trolls.

Shield dwarves are descended from the founders of Shanatar, a legendary dwarven empire that once ruled the caverns beneath modern-day Amn, Tethyr, and Calimshan. After Shanatar fell, the shield dwarves migrated north, founding kingdoms such as Ammarindar, Delzoun, Gharraghaur, Haunghdamar, Oghrann, and Sarbreen. Although those kingdoms have also largely fallen, the Stout Folk of the North endure. The Thunder Blessing has served as a welcome reprieve for the beleaguered shield dwarves, giving hope that the descendants of ancient Shanatar may one day reclaim the glory of their forebears.


Physical description:
Taller by half a foot than their gold dwarf cousins, shield dwarves average 4 ½ feet tall and weigh as much as an adult human. The skin of a shield dwarf is fair or lightly tanned, and her eyes are usually green or silvered blue. Both genders wear their hair long, and males (and a very few females) have long, carefully groomed beards and mustaches. Hair color ranges from light brown to red, with all shades fading to silver or white as time progresses.


History:
Shield dwarves trace their history back to Taark Shanat, third son of the great ruling clan of Bhaerynden. In the legendary times more than twelve thousand years ago, the Great Crusader and his eight sons led a great westward migration of dwarves from Bhaerynden in hopes of founding a new homeland. The Cloaker Wars pitted dwarves who followed Shanat against the mysterious inhabitants of Rringlor Noroth, who rose from the depths of a great chasm in a battle for control of the caverns of Alatorin. The Stout Folk eventually prevailed, after Taark slew four blue dragons who claimed the Rift of Dhalndar as their demesne. By the hand of one of the dwarven gods, probably Dumathoin, the skulls of the four wyrms cam together with a throne that emerged from the cavern floor to form the Wyrmskull Throne. Taark renamed the wyrms' lair Brightaxe Hall and founded of the kingdom of Alatorin. Shield dwarves mark the founding of Alatorin as the beginning of the First Great Age of Shanatar.

One Alatorin was established, the eight sons of Taark Shanat set off to found their own kingdoms in the caverns to the north (beneath modern-day Tethyr and Amn). Each son claimed one of the children of Moradin as his patron deity and so each of the subkingdoms they established became tightly linked with the church of that particular god or goddess. Around -9000 DR, skirmishing broke out between the eight northern kingdoms, as each fought to extend its borders at the expense of its neighbors. Over time, the skirmishes evolved into open warfare, pitting thousands of dwarves against one another.

While these wars raged, the drow of Guallidurth took advantage of the dwarves' distraction to attack the caverns of Alatorin, which were far removed from the frontlines of the fighting. The First Spider War was fought from -8170 DR to -8150 DR and ended with the capture of Brightaxe Hall and the collapse of Alatorin. Aghast at their folly, the eight reigning kings of that era forged an armistice, and turned their armies against the drow. The Second Spider War raged from -8145 DR to -8137 DR, and ended with the drow retreating from the caverns of Alatorin.

In triumph, the eight kings marched their armies back into Brightaxe Hall, pledging never again to fight on another. Seeking to reclaim the vision of Taark Shanat, the eight kings pleaded with their gods to pick one of them to sit on the Wyrmskull Throne. In response, the gods revealed the visage of the reigning king of Ultoksamrin, high priest of Dumathoin. Shield dwarves mark this event as the beginning of the Second Age of Shanatar and the elevation of Dumathoin as patron of their race.

Despite their newfound unity, dissension still lurked within the breasts of many of Shanatar's citizens. The kings of both Barakuir and Drakkalor both thought that they were entitled to sit on the Wyrmskull Throne, backed by the whisperings of their gods who had sought to have Moradin name them patron of the shield dwarves. Before such dissent could erupt into open strife, the illithids of Oryndoll attacked the eastern subkingdons in -8100 DR, beginning a conflict that came to be known as the Mindstalker Wars to the dwarves and the War of Cloven Thoughts to the mind flayers. The illithids were driven back by -8080 DR, but in their wake the surviving Stout Folk discovered that the caverns of Barakuir, which had been cut off in the early days of the fighting, lay empty, Clan Duergar had been carried back to the thralldom in the mind flayer's realm.

The Second Age of Shanatar lasted for nearly 1,800 years. Around -6150 DR, the drow of Guallidruth once again attacked the caverns of Alatorin. The Third Spider War lasted nearly thirty years but ended with the Stout Folk abandoning Brightaxe Hall to the drow. The dwarven refugees brought the Wyrmskull Throne with them, marking the end of the Second Age of Shanatar.

As the Third Age of Shanatar dawned, the emperor of Shanatar made plans to establish a new subkingdom in the Realms Above. Dwarven scouts were sent up to the surface around -6100 DR, where they allied with humans of the region to oust the remaining djinni despots. The alliance between the dwarves and the humans quickly foundered because the rulers in Coramshan turned to evil gods. In response, the dwarves claimed the surface lands north of the Marching Mountains as their won, establishing the kingdom of High Shanatar around -5960 DR.

High Shanatar flourished for centuries under the rule of House Axemarch, but the seeds of its destruction were planted within a century of its establishment. A conflict over a looted tomb led to skirmishing and eventually open warfare. The First Kingdom of Mir was established after Iltaker fell to Murabir Mir of Coramshan in -5330 DR, marking the beginning of the centuries-long expansion of Calimshan at the expense of High Shanatar. By -2600 DR, the last known dwarves of High Shanatar had fallen on the northern banks of the Sulduskoon River, and High Shanatar was no more.

As High Shanatar struggled to hold on to its territories in southwestern Faerun, Deep Shanatar struggled with challenges of its own. Successive waves of emigration led many young dwarves north to found new realms but also depleted the ranks of those who remained. Over time, the northern kingdoms of Drakkolor, Korolnor, Sondarr, Torglor, and Xothaerin slowly dwindled away as their inhabitants migrated north. The kingdom of Oghrann was established beneath the Plains of Tun in -5125 DR. The coastal realm of Haunghdannar was established in the northern Sword Mountains and along the northern Sword Coast in -4974 DR. Ammarindar was founded beneath the Graypeak Mountains around -4160 DR, and Delzoun, the Northkingdom, rose beneath what is now the Silver Marches around -3900 DR.

Unfortunately for the shield dwarves, their conquests in the North proved illusory, and the glory of Shanatar was never reborn. Oghrann fell in -3770 DR, and Haunghdannar in -3389 DR. Delzoun and Ammarindar lasted many more centuries, but the Northkingdom eventually succumbed in -100 DR, and Ammarindar was overrun in 882 DR by lingering horrors unleashed by the Netherese of Ascalhorn.

In the South, after centuries of decline, the final fall of Deep Shanatar was precipitated by the Stout Folk themselves. Impelled by centuries of bitter resentment, Clan Duergar invaded Ultoksamrin and Holorarar around -1800 DR in a series of conflicts know as the Kin Clashes. Only Iltkazar survived the gray dwarf invasion, leaving Shanatar fallen in all but name.


Outlook:
Shield dwarves keep their word, whatever the cost, and are incredibly stubborn, unwilling to concede an inch unless there is absolutely no alternative. Such intransigence has enabled dwindling shield dwarf populations to hold on to ancient strongholds with just a fraction of their original defenders. However, it has also led to clan feuds and long-standing misunderstandings with other races that have sapped the strength of the Stout Folk. Shield dwarves love worked beauty, seeing the world as raw material to be forged and shaped into something more than the original.

Despite their centuries-long decline and deserved reputation for dourness and cynicism, shield dwarves have never succumbed to fatalism. Shield dwarves had traditionally been divided into two camps – the Hidden and the Wanderers – although such divisions have begun to fade since the Thunder Blessing. While members of the former group have literally hidden themselves away from the outside world, content to pursue their traditional way of life, members of the latter group have gone out into the world, unbowed by their face's relentless decline.

Shield dwarves are traditionally slow to trust and slow to forget slights, but a dawning realization of their race's plight has left many willing to seek out new ways of doing things unconstrained by traditional prejudices or practices. Shield dwarves have a long and proud tradition of adventuring, and many shield dwarves follow this route simply in hope of equaling or exceeding the deeds of those who have come before. Others seek to recover long-lost strongholds and treasures that have fallen to orcs or others beasts. Since the Thunder Blessing, the question for many young shield dwarves is not why they should become adventurers, but why they should not.


Society:
Although clan and class divisions were once strong among shield dwarves, generations of decline have largely broken their once dominant influence. While shield dwarves are still incredibly proud of their bloodlines, individual accomplishments now count for more than longstanding tradition of the dictates of class elders. Shield dwarves life among the Hidden is still dominated by craft and forge, but increasing numbers of shield dwarves are making their own way in the world as adventurers or as craftsfolk dwelling in human-dominated communities.

Shield dwarves are raised in tight family units, with clan elders playing a diminishing role in overseeing their upbringing. Book learning is common, and most children are apprenticed to learn a trade as they near maturity. Adult shield dwarves are expected to support themselves and their family as well as bring honor and riches to the clan. While shield dwarves do not shy away from displays of wealth, they avoid ostentatious or decadent behavior. As shield dwarves age, they are honored for their wisdom and accorded respect for their past accomplishments. Families and clans are expected to honor their elders in death with solemn funeral rites and tombs befitting the deceased's reputation and accomplishments.

Generations of Wanderers have created large and thriving dwarven enclaves within most human settlements, with all shield dwarves welcome as part of the loosely knit dwarven “clan”. Shield dwarves occupy the roles of smith or craftsmen in many human communities and are well respected for their skill as artisans. Few shield dwarves turn away from the venerations of the Morndinsamman, but most are quick to learn the local trade tongue and make friends with other races.


Relations with other races:
Shield dwarves get along with most other dwarven subraces, although they regard gold dwarves arrogance as naive and have little understanding for their barbaric wild and arctic dwarven kin. Shield dwarves have a longstanding enmity for the descendants of Clan Duergar, dating back to the Kin Clashes that marked Shanatar's final chapter, and they attack duergar on sight.

Despite centuries of squabbling with elves and half-elves, shield dwarves have always managed to put aside their differences with the Tel-quessir in the face of outside threats. Shield dwarves have always gotten along well with gnomes, particularly rock gnomes and deep gnomes. Colored by their experience with lightfoots, shield dwarves find halflings to be somewhat unreliable buy easy to get along with. Shield dwarves get along well with most humans, particularly Illuskans, Tethyrians, Chondathans, and Damarans.

Shield dwarves see half-orcs as little better than their hated brethren, although exceptions do exist. The Stout Folk of the North associate most planetouched with the horrors of Hellgate Keep and view them with suspicion. Earth genasi are a notable exception and are commonly welcomed in dwarven delves across the North.


Alignments:
Dwarves are usually lawful, and they tend toward good. Adventuring dwarves are less likely to fit the common mold, however, since they're more likely to be those who did not fit perfectly into dwarven society.


Religion:
Shield dwarves have venerated the dwarven deities of the Morndinsamman since the dawn of Shanatar, although their mythology has evolved significantly over the millennia. Taark Shanat and his followers in Alatorin venerated Moradin and Berronar, but worship of those deities receded as Taark's eight sons set out to found their own kingdoms, each choosing a patron deity of his won from among the eight children: Dumathoin, Laduguer, Abbathor, Clangeddin Silverbeard, Vergadain, Sharindlar, and the twins Diinkarazan and Diirinka.

When the eight kings came together to choose who would first sit on the Wyrmskull Throne, Moradin selected the king of Ultoksamrin, who was also the high priest of Dumathoin. This act cemented the Silent Keeper's position as patron deity of the shield dwarves but strongly disappointed Dumathoin's chief rivals, eventually leading to Laduguer's bitter exile and Abbathor's enduring corruption. By the fall of Shanatar, the shield dwarves had abandoned the worship of Laduguer, Diinkarazan, and Diirinka, while younger gods such as Thard Harr, Gorm Gulthyn, Marthammor Duin, Dugmaren Brightmantle, and Haela Brightaxe had arisen.

Dumathoin is considered the patron of shield dwarves, and his church has by far the most adherents among shield dwarves. Miners and smiths venerate the Silent Keeper, but he also has a small following among those good and neutral-aligned shield dwarves seeking secrets of arcane lore. The Mountain Shield is also considered the guardian of the dead and is propitiated by most shield dwarves during burials. Dumathoin's clerics take charge of all burials, inter the dead in secret vaults, and guard the funeral wealth of great shield dwarves.

Marthammor Duin, the Finder-of-Trails, is venerated be those shield dwarves who consider themselves Wanderers. He watches over good-aligned adventurers, craftsfolk, explorers, expatriates, travelers, and wanderers. Marthammor has a secondary aspect as the dwarven god of lightning, which curiously has attracted a small growing number of wizards and sorcerers who specialize in evocation magic.


Language:
Like all dwarves, shield dwarves speak Dwarven and employ the Dethek rune alphabet. They also speak Common. The primary shield dwarven dialect, Shanatan, dates back to the founding of Shanatar and is still spoken by dwarves along the Sword Coast from the Shinning Sea to the Spine of the World. To the east, in northcentral Faerun, most shield dwarves speak the Galenan dialect, strongly influenced by the Damaran human tongue.

Common secondary languages reflect the extensive trading contacts maintained by shield dwarves with their neighbors in the North and include Chondathan, Illuskan, and, to a lesser extent, Elven and Gnome. The shield dwarves of northcentral Faerun are more apt to learn Damaran than Illuskan as a secondary language. Many shield dwarves also learn the languages of their traditional foes, including Draconic, Giant, Goblin, and Orc.


Names:
A dwarf's name is granted to him by his clan elder, in accordance with tradition. Every proper dwarven name has been used and reused down through the generations. A dwarf's name is not his own. It belongs to his clan. If he misuses it or brings shame to it, his clan will strip him of it. A dwarf stripped of his name is forbidden by dwarven law to use any dwarven name in its place.

Male Names: Barendd, Brottor, Eberk, Einkil, Oskar, Rurik, Taklinn, Torderk, Traubon, Ulfgar, Veit.

Female Names: Artin, Audhild, Dagnal, Diesa, Gunnloda, Hlin, Ilde, Liftrasa, Sannl, Torgga.

Clan Names: Balderk, Dankil, Gorunn, Holderhek, Loderr, Lutgehr, Rumnaheim, Strakeln, Torunn, Ungart.


Adventurers:
Constant warfare with orcs, goblins, trolls, and giants have imbued a strong martial tradition in shield dwarf culture. Most dwarves learn to defend their homes and clan, with fighters, paladins, and martial clerics being commonplace. Other shield dwarves focus on time-honored skills, following the path of the expert or rogue. Arcane spellcaster are quite rare, with few of sorcerous inclination. Common multiclass combinations include fighter/cleric, fighter/paladin, and fighter/expert. Constant warfare with orcs, goblins, trolls, and giants have imbued a strong martial tradition in shield dwarf culture. Most dwarves learn to defend their homes and clan, with fighters, paladins, and martial clerics being commonplace. Other shield dwarves focus on time-honored skills, following the path of the expert or rogue. Arcane spellcaster are quite rare, with few of sorcerous inclination. Common multiclass combinations include fighter/cleric, fighter/paladin, and fighter/expert. Constant warfare with orcs, goblins, trolls, and giants have imbued a strong martial tradition in shield dwarf culture. Most dwarves learn to defend their homes and clan, with fighters, paladins, and martial clerics being commonplace. Other shield dwarves focus on time-honored skills, following the path of the expert or rogue. Arcane spellcaster are quite rare, with few of sorcerous inclination. Common multiclass combinations include fighter/cleric, fighter/paladin, and fighter/expert.


Settings:
Shield dwarves are the mountain dwarves the Forgotten Realms setting. Their equivalent are found in numerous settings including Dragonlance, Eberron, Greyhawk, Mystara, Planescape, Ravenloft and Spelljammer.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
Stonecunning
Darkvision
Hardiness vs. poisons
Hardiness vs. spells
Bonus Weapon Proficiency (Dwarven Waraxe)
Offensive training vs. orcs
Offensive training vs. goblinoids
Defensive training vs. giants
Skill affinity (lore)


Source: D&D 3.5 Player's Handbook, Races of Faerun
« Last Edit: February 10, 2023, 10:57:52 AM by MAB77 »
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MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia

MAB77

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Arctic Dwarf
« Reply #24 on: February 01, 2021, 07:56:49 PM »
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Arctic Dwarf, Inugaakalikurit


* Playing this race requires that you fill an application form and receive approval of the Community Council.

Regions: Damara, the North, Vaasa.
Racial Feats: Hammer Fist, Oral History, Swarmfighting.

Arctic dwarves, who call themselves the Inugaakalikurit, are the isolated inhabitants of Faerûn’s northernmost reaches. Native to the mountains at the heart of the Great Glacier and other northerly regions, arctic dwarves are little known to the outside world. Many arctic dwarves are rangers, barbarians, or fighters, for they hold little interest Arctic dwarves are unique among the Stout Folk in that they do not trace their ancestry back to Bhaerynden, the great cavern that later fell to the drow of Telantiwar and now lies open as the Great Rift. As such, they have little in common with other Stout Folk, lacking any common political, religious, craft, or magical traditions. In recent years, a handful of arctic dwarves have migrated across the icy northern wastes to establish new settlements along the shores of the Great Ice Sea and in the Silver Marches, but for the most part the Inugaakalikurit have dwelt in splendid isolation for uncounted generations, wholly content with their lot in life.


Physical description:
Arctic dwarves are squat and hardy, with blocky bodies, pinched faces, and stubby legs. They rarely exceed 3 feet in height and are nearly as broad as they are tall. Their eyes are bright blue, their cheeks as ruddy as apples. Their skin is white, almost bluish, but because of their fondness for basking under the bright sun, many of them are sunburned red from head to toe, a condition that causes them no discomfort or other ill effects. Their fingers and toes are thick and blunt and their feet flat and wide. Male have long, white, curly hair that hang down to their mid-back, a short white beard, and a narrow, twisting mustache; the female has no facial hair. Both sexes favor simple tunics of polar bear fur and generally go barefoot.


History:
A clan of dwarves from the Tortured Land refused to participate in a dwarven war party preparing to raid peaceful settlements in the Border Forest. Convicted as traitors, this clan was exiled to the Great Glacier. They began a year-long trek to the Novularond; all but four died along the way. The survivors of this clan are the forebears of the arctic dwarves, also known as the Innugaakalikurit.

However, since the arctic dwarves have no historical record other than their own stories, little is known about the true history of this enigmatic subrace. Scholars believe that the arctic dwarves migrated into northern Faerûn around the same time as the Stout Folk who originally founded Bhaerynden, but, if that is true, they have left no trace of their passing. Some claim that the Inugaakalikurit once ruled a northern empire that rivaled great Bhaerynden, but the Great Glacier long ago crushed any ruins it might have left.

Arctic dwarves did not always claim the towering peaks of Novularond as their home. Prior to the coming of the Ulutiuns, they dwelt in small villages across the Great Glacier. Since adapting to their alpine homes, the arctic dwarves have dwelt in quiet isolation, untouched by the passage of time.


Outlook:
Arctic dwarves are friendly and outgoing, little concerned with class or clan distinctions. They can be quite sociable with neighboring races, with the exception of frost giants, whom they despise. They enjoy life to the fullest and see little reason to accumulate wealth or material possessions. They believe in hunting and gathering sufficient food to feed themselves but otherwise have little interest in labor of any sort. They strive to spend as much time as possible in leisurely pursuits, storytelling, sports such as wrestling, and games with their children.

Arctic dwarves eat fish, caribou, and polar bear meat, and they hunt ice toads and winter wolves for meat and body parts, too. They are accustomed to speaking their minds freely and openly, and enjoy family time, singing, telling stories, and wrestling or boxing.

Arctic dwarves are rarely drawn to adventuring, but those who do usually evince a curiosity about other cultures so strong that they willingly forgo the life of leisure they might otherwise pursue. Instead of waiting to chance remote glacial homes, they head out to explore the world, seeking out the exotic and the new. As such, they stumble into adventures by happenstance, happily exploring any new environment they come across.

Unlike other dwarves, Inugaakalikurit have little interest in mining or crafts. Traditional dwarven strictures, such as those imposed by family and clan, hold little weight in arctic dwarf society, and history and the past achievements of one’s ancestors are seen as little more than a source of enjoyable tales. Arctic dwarves are quite curious about the outside world, although they have little inclination to go and see it.


Characters:
Arctic dwarves typically make good rangers and barbarians, since they are well equipped to survive in extreme environments. Likewise, generations of battling frost giants and other monsters have given rise to a strong martial tradition. The self-sufficiency of these classes enables arctic dwarves to feel comfortable about their continued survival and hence engenders the relaxed attitude many feel toward life. Inugaakalikurit have no arcane spellcasting tradition, and their lack of religious faith precludes the role of cleric or paladin. Arctic dwarves often multiclass as ranger/fighters or ranger/barbarians.


Favored Class:
An arctic dwarf’s favored class is ranger. The harsh polar environment of the Great Glacier rewards those who possess excellent survival skills, and the intermittent feuding between the Inugaakalikurit and their frost giant enemies demands the specialized skills of a giant-killing ranger.


Society:
Arctic dwarf culture is remarkably homogeneous, the result of centuries of isolation from the other races of Faerûn. Compared to other dwarven cultures, Inugaakalikurit place almost no emphasis on bloodline or clan. While individual accomplishment does garner respect, rarely are such feats remembered for more than a generation. The pursuit of leisure is placed above hard work or skilled artisanship, and few arctic dwarves are driven to accomplish more than continued survival.

Arctic dwarves receive a great deal of individual attention in childhood, with all adult members of the community serving as parental figures to varying degrees. Little is expected of Inugaakalikurit youth, so they spend their days engaged in playful pursuits. As adults, each arctic dwarf is expected to contribute to the community’s well-being, but there is little societal reward for doing more than the minimum required. Elderly arctic dwarves are considered to have earned the right to live out the rest of their days engaging in leisurely pursuits and are simply encased beneath the ice and snow when death finally claims them.

Arctic dwarves have emigrated in such small numbers from their mountain homes that they have very little experience as minorities within other cultures. Those who do leave usually look for individuals of similar temperament, regardless of race, and attempt to recreate the easygoing lifestyle of their native villages.


Language and literacy:
Like all dwarves, arctic dwarves speak a dialect of Dwarven and employ the Dethek rune alphabet. They also speak the dialect of Common spoken in Sossal, though not very well. The Inugaakalikurit dialect of Dwarven is known as Kurit and has strong ties to Uluik, the Ulutiun tongue spoken by the humans of the Great Glacier and the Ice Hunters of the North. Common secondary languages include Uluik, Giant, Damaran, and Draconic, which enable arctic dwarves to communicate with their neighbors. All arctic dwarf characters are literate except for barbarians, adepts, aristocrats, experts, warriors, and commoners.


Magic and Lore:
Arctic dwarves take a pragmatic view toward magic: It’s useful if it helps them hunt, but otherwise spells and spellcasters especially arcane ones are a matter for tales told to youngsters.


Spells and Spellcasting:
Arctic dwarves do not have an arcane spellcasting tradition. Since they do they not worship the dwarven deities, they lack a strong divine spellcasting tradition as well. Most arctic dwarf spellcasters are druids, adepts, and rangers. The druids in particular have an affinity to fire magic, because many of their most common foes (such as frost giants and frost worms) fear and hate flames.


Alignment:
Arctic dwarves are usually lawful neutral. Adventuring dwarves are less likely to fit the common mold, however, since they are more likely to be those who did not fit perfectly into dwarven society.


Religion:
Among the various dwarven subraces, the Inugaakalikurit are unique in that they do not venerate the Morndinsamman or, indeed, worship any gods. They bitterly reject the worship of all deities. A few exceptions exist, including a few arctic dwarves who have turned to the worship of the human god Ulutiu. Instead, the arctic dwarves follow a druidic tradition, venerating Talos and Ulutiu.


Relations with Other Races:
Isolated as they are by their environment, arctic dwarves have little experience with members of other races aside from Ulutiun humans and frost giants. They get along well with the former and hate the latter. Since most arctic dwarves are amiable and peace-loving, they treat representatives of most other races favorably unless shown reason not to. The Inugaakalikurit find other dwarves and gnomes somewhat amusing, a combination of their familiar appearance and odd (to an arctic dwarf) ways. Likewise, humans other than Ulutiuns are seen as odd since their cultures differ greatly from that known to arctic dwarves. The Inugaakalikurit regard elves and half-elves with a measure of awe, having only ever seen winged elves soaring high above their mountain homes. Halflings, half-orcs, and planetouched are exotic creatures to a typical arctic dwarf.
 

Equipment:
Arctic dwarves commonly employ only a handful of weapons, including battleaxes, halfspears, shortbows, and shortspears. Most arctic dwarves wear hide armor, with pelts of polar bears being most highly prized. The harsh arctic environment of the Great Glacier requires the use of dogsleds (as sleds in the Player’s Handbook), snow goggles, and snowshoes. Arctic dwarves favor riding dogs with heavy winter coats as pets and pack animals. When they hunt behind dogsleds, they often chase down and exhaust their prey, then finish the hunt with arctic harpoons. While the arctic harpoon can be difficult for arctic dwarves to wield, they favor it anyway, motivated by a mythic tradition of arctic dwarf harpooners who felled impossibly large polar bears and other prey.


Region:
Most arctic dwarves live on the Great Glacier. This region is appropriate for an Inugaakalikurit raised in the race’s homeland in the icebound mountains of the glacier.


Preferred Classes:
Barbarian, fighter, ranger, druid. A character of one of these classes may choose a regional feat and gain his choice of the bonus equipment below as a 1st-level character. An arctic dwarf character of any other class may not select one of the regional feats here and does not gain the bonus equipment at 1st level.


Languages:
Arctic dwarves primarily speak Dwarven and Uluik. They will sometimes also learn Aquan, Auran, Damaran, Draconic, or Giant.


Settings:
Arctic dwarves are exclusive to the Forgotten Realms setting.


Game Stats:
Spoiler: show
+4 Str, +2 Con, -2 Dex, -2 Cha*
Cold Immunity 100%
Darkvision
Defensive training vs. giants
Hardiness vs. poisons
Hardiness vs. spells
Offensive training vs. orcs
Offensive training vs. goblinoids
Skill affinity (lore)
Small stature
Stonecunning
Weapon Proficiency (Dwarven Waraxe)
Effective Character Level +2

* The game engine automatically applies the default +2 Con, -2 Cha adjustment for standard dwarves at character creation. An extra +4 Str, -2 Dex will be applied once the subrace template is acquired in-game.


Source: Races of Faerun
« Last Edit: February 15, 2023, 03:48:17 PM by MAB77 »
Best Regards!
MAB

Dev. Relationist for the Dark Powers.
1 Old Svalich Stradă, Castle Ravenloft, Barovia