The People of Oenus

### From Ollambac

The most populous peoples of Oenus hail from Ollambac. Humans and Elves may interbreed, resulting in half-elves. Humans and Orcs may also interbreed - the progeny is an Orc. Dwarves and Orcs may interbreed with the same result. Elves and Orcs may breed resulting in Drow. The Drow have a large and self sustaining population and many would take offense to the idea that they are a crossing of two races. Elf and Dwarf pairings cannot successfully procreate.

#### Humans

Humans are native to Ollambac. They were few in number during the times of legend and only in the past 1400 years or so have they become the most numerous species on Oenus. This is thought to be a result of the Human ability and need to subsist on a variety of foods. In lands wracked with war and famine humans will quickly starve or die of malnutrition. But they are also able to survive on nearly any combination of foods they can scrounge up. They are also particularly susceptible to dehydration. Humans are nonetheless adaptable and well enough suited to every climate on Oenus.

#### Dwarves

Dwarves are native to the desert of eastern Ollambac and the mountains beneath its middle.They are very well adapted for those climates. They do not sweat and are very efficient at storing and keeping water. They are almost entirely capable of surviving without water unless living on a diet of intentionally dried foods. Dwarven nutritional needs are very limited, but their calorie needs are high compared to Humans and Orcs. It is essential that they consume a mushroom known as the Okox. The Okox is a large mushroom, not unlike a tree in size and a stiff cactus in texture. About 1lb of the Okox in it's dried form will provide the total nutritional need of a fully grown Dwarf. Children need a little more than that. Without it they will become delirious and ultimately perish due to fever and shutdown of critical brain activities. Several other varieties of sustaining mushroom have been found but they are generally unappetizing and needed in much larger quantities to provide sustenance. The remaining majority of the Dwarven diet is meat and fish with few if any vegetables or fruit in their diet.

#### Orcs

Orcs are native to Ollambac. Orcs can be thought of as belonging to two groups. Some were less deeply affected by the curse on Addor and are a civilized people, slightly larger than a human in size. Others were more deeply touched and are significantly larger but with a strong instinct for violence and significantly reduced capacity for rational thought. When an Orc is born it is usually apparent which of these two groups they belong to. In civilized communities the practice of infanticide is common, and politely not talked about. In savage communities the smarter, less physically adept Orcs may survive but mostly do not. Orcs are physically very robust and are capable of surviving in almost any climate and eating almost any food. They were created by magic from Dwarves and many of the civilized Orcs are living in Dwarven communities.

*Mechanically, Orcs use the Half-Orc race.*

##### Savage Orcs

Many Orcs are more deeply touched by the curses laid upon Addor. Whether this causes them to be stronger and tougher than their uncursed brethren or if those are simply consequences of their lifestyle is unknown.

#### Elves

The Elves of Oenus are said to have descended from the sky, born from Sky 's will in his own image. Archealogical evidence suggests that they are native to the island of Mabene in the north east of Ollambac. Most Elves have fled persecution at Dwarven hands from Ollambac. What few remain are either living in Mabene or are famous for their stubbornness. Most Elves fled to North, eventually coming to mostly inhabit of Aelkot , or west to Marfet. The Elven constitution is agreeable to most climates and they can survive on a wide variety of foodstuffs and they live for about six hundred years with notable decline only in the last ten or so of those years. Elven population is limited by their extremely slow reproductive cycle. Female Elves undergo periods of infertility lasting approximately twenty years, with a six lunar month fertile period. Elven males have low fertility. An Elven woman with a human or Orc partner is more likely to conceive during her fertile period than an Elven woman with a Elven partner. This results in a very low birthrate.

Despite their long lives, Elves mature approximately at the same rate as Humans and Dwarves.

##### Half Elves

Born of Humans and Elves, Half-Elves are blessed with much longer lives than Humans and have much more robust bodies if they are able to reach maturity. Half Elves are often stillborn or die very young from disease and complications of their mixed heritage. In Human and Dwarven communities marred by racism Half-Elves are often better received than Elves.

##### Drow

The Drow are a subspecies of Elf, born from the union of Orcs and Elves. There are several self sustaining populations of Drow with slightly different traits. The surface Drow of Aelkot are found mostly in the far north. They are similar in many ways to what would be expected of a crossbreeding of an Orc and Elf- more robust than Elf and more lithe than an Orc. They have the Orcish ability to see in the dark and a Orc-normal breeding cycle.

The subterranean Drow are native mostly to the lands beneath Ollambac, though many of them make their homes beneath the seas. For reasons that are unknown they are generally unfazed by the suffering of others. This leads to a cruel streak among them, but that is commonly held to be a learned trait stemming from the lack of ability to empathize with pain.These Drow have a distinct breeding cycle wherein their birth many children at a time, five or six is common, but they are generally small, weak, and run high risks of being malformed or ill. They are magical by nature.

Some Dwarven Scholars, now deceased for their heresy, believe that the site of the Miracle of Balind where the Orcs were created to serve Addor and Euberk was actually a Old Dominion magical research center where mages sought to create a more robust, faster breeding breed of Elf who would be more strongly controlled by Sky. This is clearly nonsense.

### From Orba

The land formerly known as Ranna was transported to Orba a few hundred years ago in a cataclysmic event known as The Separation. The people of that land were mostly slain in the process. Those who survived were changed. Those who were abroad were not, and some degree of unease exists between them.

#### Halflings

Halflings are native to Orba. After the disaster that caused that land to be transported to the moon most of the survivors were living in Arno and Pridan. The Halflings living in Orba who survived were changed by the event, becoming the first generation of Gnomes. Halflings, like Humans, are well suited to survival in most lands. Their dietary requirements are easy to meet and they have no particular weakness or affinity with the hot or cold.

#### Gnomes

Gnomes are a magical race created from Halflings. They are native to Orba. Like Halflings they are well suited to many climates. Gnomes are noted for their peculiar tastes and sense of aesthetic. Gnomes living in Oenus will often find themselves suffering from insomnia. It develop slowly, usually over the course of twenty to thirty years. Returning to Orba will help to alleviate this over the course of a few months.