Races

## Those who live in The World

A long time ago, forgotten even to the most long lived beings, the Gods that would one day become The Light created the The World and the **Mortal Races** that inhabit it.

Unlike beings beyond the normal flow of life and death (such as the Undead) these beings are all a part of the natural cycle of reincarnation that is at the core of the flow of souls in The World. It should also be noted that Spirits and Magical Beasts, despite also being a part of the cycle, are not considered true "Mortal Races", as they were not intentionally created by the primordial Light Gods but rather came into the World as a consequence of the flow of Magic.

## Mortal Races

Over the eons, countless races have come into (and were subsequently wiped out of) existence. To set them apart from mere beasts, members of these races are referred to as people, although it is a topic of constant debate where exactly one should draw the line. Extreme positions argue that orcs, goblins and especially demons are not people but monsters and should be treated as such. In their opinion only the races who form the League of Good Nations qualify a people. A more liberal definition includes every being that has the capacity to form cultures and make deliberate choices.

Here are some of the more notable Mortal Races:

### Human

Humans, Human, or Mankind, are amongst the oldest races in existence. In fact, they **are** the Oldest Race, created long before the merger of The Light and the construction of the Barrier. The Human were the first Mortal Race intentionally granted a Soul within The World, created in a collaborative effort by all Gods of Light (back then still separate beings). As such, every God gave them their own preferred talent and gift in equal measures. This made the Human become the most adaptable, and most free willed, race in the known World of them all. Free to pursue any kind of art, science, or Magic. Free to choose between the Light or the Dark. Capable of making incredible stride and advancement in any field they put their mind to, but also never being able to fully master any one discipline as well – as such is the curse of an open mind, always curious and looking for new avenues.

Human naturally have rather of a limited capability for using Magic compared to many races that came after. While there are many human Magic-users all across The World it is said that it takes much more effort and training to acclimate the human body to wielding and storing large amounts of mana as they lack he particular special blessings that the Gods granted their own races (though some scholars simply blame the fact that the Human have much shorter lifespans than the other mortal races and attest that humans simply have less time at their disposal than the other do).

### Elves

The beauty and grace of the elves are legendary, but often exaggerated in the stories. Their long lifespans allow them to learn and master virtually any skill to a level of perfection that regularly fills the other Mortal Races with envy.

While the glory days of the Elves have long since passed, their culture and history can still be felt all across Zyreema (the universally used "Crystal Mana Battery" for instance, was created by Elven Wizards thousands of years ago). Elves can be found living in many countries across Zyreema but the most likely place to find them is the very reserved Elven nation of the Green Vale.

These "Wood Elves" of the Green Vale have a close bond with the nature of their home. Much of their Magic Traditions are geared toward the hunt and living in the wilds. Their Rangers often use it intuitively to enhance their already considerable skills – and are feared for that by everyone who ever tried to enter the woods without their permission.

### Dwarves

Originally created from the bodies of the primordial Giant to act as their servants the dwarvs came to become increasingly independent as the Giant dwindled in number. Now, the Dwarven Kingdom of Nimbadnur forms the The Worlds most long standing nation and one of the cornerstones of the League of Good Nations.

Shorter than Human but much more stocky and muscular, usually with very ornate and long facial hair, Dwarves are famous the world over for their expert craftsmanship, the Rune Magic they inherited and improved upon from the Giant they once served and for brewing the best ale one can find on Zyreema.

### Fairy

Most Fairies, at first glance, look like young Elves with insect wings on their backs, and compared to the other races they are indeed quite weak and fragile. But they more than make up for that by their high affinity for Magic. This goes so far that they can suffer a condition similar to being drunk in areas of high Mana density.

### Giant

A long time ago, long before The Cataclysm when The World was still young, one of the deities that would come to form The Light breathed life into the rocky mountains of the land. These mountains stood up and became the **Titans**, and their descendants became the **Giants**. It should be noted that there are multiple kind of Giants, each sub-species taking the characteristics from their own Titan ancestor.

Despite being one of the oldest civilizations of Zyreema, the are sparse few Giant alive to this day, with almost all of them losing their lives during the great Giant war Gigantomachina and the Great Cataclysm that followed shortly after. What Giants are alive today either choose a side in the great conflict of Good against Evil or choose to make use of their strong bodies and rare magics to live a life of seclusion in the many untamed Wildlands of Zyreema.

### Hobbit

Hobbits or Halflings are even smaller than dwarf and much less of a threat in many ways. Not only are they physically weaker but they have a tendency to prefer and pursue a simple and peaceful lifestyle – a trait that often marks them as easy targets for Dungeon Keepers. Their acute senses, small frame and innate dexterity have earned them the reputation of natural thieves, though.

### Shinu

The Shinu are a race that physically closely resembles Human, except for the characteristic bird-like wings on their backs. These powerful wings are a great asset to them, but come at the cost of a shortened lifespan due to the stress using them places on the body.

Shinu primarily live on the floating island of **Spira,** which is part of the Shining Concord Empire, but can be found in some other Light-worshiping nations.

## Dark Races

After the Dark Gods came into The World they took some of the Mortal Races and, due to their own inability to create life, warped the existing lifeforms into beings that would serve their purpose. Countless acts of cruel trial and error made up the process (resulting the creation of of many failures that became known as Demonic Beasts) but in the end they were successful, creating the Dark Races that would serve as their foothold in The World and and their masterpieces: The True Demons.

Some of the Dark Races:

### Dark Elves

The corrupted and changed elves still have their cousins cat-like grace and agility but have been turned pale and have lost all of their hair. They like to think of themselves as the most sophisticated of the evil races and are prone to arrogance.

### Duergar

Like the Dark Elves, the Duergar race got created as the Dark Gods took members of the Dwarven Race and warped them, Body and Soul, into a twisted image of their former selves. The Duergar are much rarer then most of the other Dark Races due to several wars in the past dwindling their numbers. They are very prone to battle and have an inborn tendency enjoy destroying the creations of others, thuselevationg the value of their own creations in the process.

### Goblins

Small, weak and not very smart, but with a veritable mean streak. These little green men have slim faces dominated by big noses and floppy ears that resemble bat wings. They often act like unruly children, a fact that might be a result of their short life expectancy (or vice versa). Goblins are often considered too stupid and impatient to learn any form of wizardry, but if they are generally unable has never been researched.

Female goblins do exist but are very rare. They tend to be slightly smarter, stronger and a lot meaner than their male counterparts, more often than not rising to leadership within their clans (usually by unscrupulous means).

### Orcs

Green, tough, muscular and brutish with large and sharp teeth, Orcs have a tendency to be lazy and force others to do the work for them, as the only activity they seem to enjoy are related to physical conflict or self-indulgence. On average they loom at about a foot taller than an average human.

### Trolls

Trolls are similar in appearance to goblins but are larger and bulkier with a prominent pot belly, but not as big as orcs. They also have rougher skin with a distinct brownish coloration. Surprisingly they seem to be cleverer than their other green-skinned fellows and are famed for their craftsmanship that is second only to the dwarves.

## Other Races

### Tentacle Monsters

Creatures that seem to a squirming mass of tentacles and eye stalks, Tentacle Monsters are an intelligent race native to certain layers of the Underworld. They have no gender and they communicate via very short range one-way telepathy. They have a very nasty reputation involving lewd activities but some among them claim that this is all just made up.

### Iskai'i

The Iskai'i are not native to our World. Long ago, the twin Gods of a faraway realm created the race, giving them freedom in a beautiful green world where all was connected to everything else. When their homeworld was destroyed by the Dark Gods, the Light offered the few survivors refuge on their world.

The Iskai'i are a species of tall, thin cat-like humanoids whose bodies are covered in fur. Their with prehensile tails often serve them as a third hand. Their average lifespan is longer than 20 years. They share a feature unique to all creatures of Nakiridaani: On their forehead they have an organ called a **Trii**which gives them a form of limited contact telepathy.

### Vorlon

The recent history of the Vorlon is similar to that of the Iskai'i. Their far away and isolated world came under attack and was overrun by hordes of Demonic Beasts. But unlike the Iskai'i there was no deity to save them.

Thanks to The Party however, they have gained a new home on the isle of Avalon (see "The Vorlorn Exodus" for details).

They grow tall with long slim limbs and rough bleak skin. Most surprisingly they don't have a mouth or any digestive organs and instead feed of energy distinct but not completely unlike mana. This "psychic energy" allows them to use a wide variety of telepathic or telekinetic abilities.

## Mixbloods

### Halfbloods

There have been many cases throughout history where members of different races had children together but the results of such a union usually end up as members of one race or the other, with true halfbreeds being so rare that their very existence is a matter of debate. Wizards speculate as to why this is but the current standing theory is that the particular nature of the races, as it influences the Soul and thus the Body, causes one side of the lineage to overwhelm the other more times then not, often only resulting in, at best, sparing and minor features that hint at the child's other parent.

This is even more prominent in unions of members of other races and Humans as their children, due to the nature of how Human came to be, will almost always take on the race of the other parent unless that parent is also a Human.

### Demonkin

Few Demons and Demonic Beasts have the capability of reproduction and fewer still have the ability to reproduce with members of the Mortal Races but, due to Magic or due to simple happenstance, such unions have been recorded in history with the resulting child being referred to as "**Demonkin**".

Another more common way of Demonkin being being born is if there was cases of the ancestors of the child practicing, or coincidentally being to close to a source of powerful, Dark Magic. Demonkin born this way tend to have less Demonic features than their directly demonic counterparts.