Races of Dalandorov

Races here are given a rarity, along with their usual homelands (if applicable) and other pertinent information. Rarity is given with respect to being found in civilized society in Northern Dalandorov.

### Aarakocra

*Uncommon*

These birdlike humanoids usually hail from the jungle country of Chan-Zua, where Aarakocra of all varieties live in treetop cities and villages. Aarakocra culturally divide themselves further based on the type of bird they resemble, but there is no strict class system in Chan-Zua, meaning birds of a lower feather may still attain positions of prestige and authority in Aarakocran society. The Ronarch Republic is ruled (precariously) by a family of Aarakocra mystics and warriors, the head of which is known as the Ronarch. It is also notable that in recent times, some Aarakocra have moved and taken up residence in the Grand League, owing to the leader of that country being an Aarakocra despite its population being mostly gnomes.

### Aasimar

*Mythical*

Aasimar are part-mortal, part-celestial individuals that carry something divine within them, whether they be mortals blessed by a god, the descendant of a deity-graced lineage, or actual demigods created with direct influence from a holy being. Aasimar have no homeland, as their divine aspect is a reflection of their character and/or connection to the divine, rather than their place of origin. The mortal half of their lineage is usually what determines their cultural roots.

### Bullywugs

*Rare*

They keep apart from civilization and worship strange frog gods. They feed outsiders and other bullywugs to their monsters, which acts as a sacrifice to the gods, which is perhaps one of the reasons they are not more integrated into society. Hags favor local bullywug populations as a means of defense against unwanted attention.

### Centaur

*Very Rare*

Centaurs are one of a few races that once called the plains and forests of what is now the Ronarch Republic their indigenous homeland. Once free to roam the plains of what they call the Mezzan Plateau, today they must carefully plot their grazing and hunting routes to avoid towns and settlements belonging to the Republic. They live a nomadic lifestyle across the territory they occupy between Mezzian City and the Vulen Syndicate. The Centaur tribes are a proud people, no strangers to war and conflict, and were only subdued by the Ronarch Republic after decades of fighting against the might of the Ronarch. The pride and peculiar ways of Centaurs mean that they only very rarely leave their communities to try to live in the rest of the world. When they do, it is not often by choice, but rather by way of exile.

### Changelings

*Mythical*

Changelings do not possess a homeland, and are very few in number to boot. Most changelings go their entire lives without seeing another changeling; or, at least, knowing that they’ve seen one. Changelings usually conceal their identity, as they are commonly mistaken for Doppelgangers, which are universally shunned due to their evil nature. Playing as a changeling is only allowed in the Guild when a DM asks if you would like to play as one. Do not ask to roll up a changeling.

### Dragonborn

*Rare*

Dragonborn are not the same thing as half-dragons, and are more closely related to kobolds than anything else, both sharing distant relations with true dragons. Dragonborn are more common in regions associated with their respective color; blue dragonborn tend to congregate in barren, sandy places, silver dragonborn are known to form villages near cold mountain peaks, etc. Dragonborn that aren’t raised in communities of their own kind do their best to integrate themselves into whatever society will accept them - which is most civilized societies these days.

### Dwarves

*Common*

The Enchu Conglomerate, the Merchant States, Deep Quartz, and Morren all serve as population centers for the Dwarves. Dwarves are also common in the mountains of Berezovah, where they are prized for their mining and stonecutting prowess. In addition, dwarves often live in mountainous areas that serve as borders between countries, tunneling cities into the mountains in the space between jurisdictions. So long as their neighbors aren’t hostile to them, these cities become places where the cultures of their neighbors and their own Dwarven culture blend together to produce unique results. Dwarves are usually accepted in societies around the world.

### Elves

*Common*

Elves are famously known to reside throughout the Elderwood. Their villages permeate the whole of the place, from natural villages grown into the treetops to great riverside cities of wood and stone, all ornately carved with meticulous care. Most communities in the Elderwood are a part of one of the many Elven Kingdoms, which vary greatly in size and tend to harbor peaceful - yet highly competitive - relations with one another. The largest Elven kingdom in the Elderwood is the Vulen Syndicate. Elves living outside of the Elderwood usually do so with specific purpose, or are disillusioned from the rest of Elven society in some way.

### Firbolgs

*Rare*

Firbolgs are native to the wilderness of Relka, said to have been borne of the mysterious fey magic that permeates the place. Firbolgs are typically quite easy-going, and are known for their hospitality and willingness to guide and assist travelers in Relka. That said, they staunchly defend their native wilds as a rule, and work as a community to hinder and expel any and all who would take advantage of their homeland. Firbolgs who venture outside of the Wilderness of Relka usually plan on returning someday, though their long lifespans allow them to live in other cultures for decades at a time without ever feeling that they’ve truly left home.

### Gnomes

*Common*

Gnomes hail from the Gnomish Kingdom to the south of the Gallahan Empire, as well as from the Grand League, which was originally three warring gnomish tribes that were brought together in peace by the Grand Arbiter Rhazir. There are also gnomish communities that live in the forests surrounding Saccarea and northern Drenadine. Gnomes can usually be found anywhere in the world that values learning, innovation, and science, as well, and there are several pocket communities of gnomes in Broadsteel and Al Kharid as a result.

### Goblins

*Rare*

Goblins are known for the fierce xenophobic nature, profound selfishness, and wanton cruelty that their tribes’ cultures tend to cultivate in isolation. Goblin tribes usually form on the fringes of society; wild forests, murky bogs, and dark caverns are all prime locations for goblins to amass, so long as there are towns or villages within walking distance to steal from or caravans nearby to raid. Goblins are viewed similarly to Kobolds in Dalandorov, and it is quite rare for a goblin to be seen outside of its tribal community, much less integrated into civilized society. Those who do join society are typically seen as an oddity, a noble savage, or even as a threat secretly waiting for the right moment to strike.

### Bugbears

*Very Rare*

Bugbears are a goblinoid race that is both larger and stronger than Goblins and Hobgoblins, but they tend to live apart from their goblinoid relatives, preferring to live in the wilderness in small communal tribes. These communal groups of Bugbears use their ferocity to hunt prey for the tribe, and do not raid settlements in the same way that other goblinoids do. That said, Bugbears do still occasionally live among other goblinoids, and when they do, they usually serve as bruisers or shock troopers for their tribe, staying close to the chieftain and benefiting from the better part of the spoils. Bugbears are only very rarely chieftains themselves in these scenarios, preferring positions where they do not have to think much to be useful. When bugbears live in civilized society, most people do not even recognize them as goblinoids, and assume they are some sort of bestial race instead.

### Hobgoblins

*Very Rare*

Hobgoblins exist at the top of the ranks of goblinoid tribes. Stronger than goblins and smarter than bugbears, those that cannot take a leadership position in their own tribe leave the tribe to find a new one where they can take command. Hobgoblins nearly universally refuse to be subordinate to goblins, and it is their natural affinity for tactics and leadership that allow for goblin raids to even organize and take place. They are vilified by most societies on the same level as Orcs, but those who do manage to gain the trust of a settlement outside of a Goblin tribe can make great use of their intelligence and strength to excel in military positions, as guard captains, or as skilled mercenaries.

### Half-dragons

*Mythical*

Half-dragons are the literal and direct product of a union between a dragon and a humanoid race. Half-dragons are functionally similar to Dragonborn, but their direct lineage gives them other aspects of dragons that Dragonborn do not possess, such as an extended lifespan that can last for several centuries, or even thousands of years if the non-dragon parent was of a long-lived race. Half-dragons do not pass on their pure draconic genes when they mate, resulting either in children that take after their non-dragon side, or, rarely, children that are Dragonborn.

### Half-elves

*Uncommon*

Half-elves occupy a unique position of being a half-race of two very common races. Though humans and elves tend to prefer living in different environments and belong to very different cultures, they coexist often enough - and hold one another in high enough regard when they do - that unions between elves and humans form somewhat regularly. The half-elves that result from these unions can produce more half-elves when they have children of their own with full members of either race, leading to a considerably large population of individuals with at least some of both human and elven blood running in their veins. Half-elves are found more commonly in human societies than elven societies, however, as their lifespan makes them more likely to be taken seriously and respected in their community among humans.

### Halflings

*Uncommon*

Halflings love to lead easygoing, agricultural lives, and this is reflected by their homelands, which are found wherever there is plenty of arable soil. The Korrend and Vale provinces of the Gallahan Empire, Neplia-Morren, the Ronarch Republic, and the Merchant States are all places where large communities of Halfling farmers can be found. Halfling wagon communities also live in the South, where they are regarded as odd, peaceful outsiders, if somewhat prone to thievery, and commonly take up trading, caravaning and odd jobs wherever they stop. When not living peaceful agricultural lifestyles, Halflings are renowned for their abilities as sneak-thieves and assassins, and are thus viewed with suspicion when living in urban areas. Halflings looking to lead an honest life in the city often turn to working in the food industry, taking advantage of the connection between halflings and agriculture to put suspicion at ease. Many halflings genuinely enjoy working with food, but the unfortunate truth is that some do it out of fear of persecution.

### Half-Orcs

*Uncommon*

In Dalandorov, Orcs are an aggressive and evil race, magically cursed (or, as most orcs purport, blessed,) by the evil orcish god Gruumsh to be drawn to committing foul and evil acts. Orcs commonly kidnap people in raids, for use as bargaining chips, for slave labor, or, sometimes, for breeding. Half-orcs are born of such unfortunate circumstances, and most can trace their lineage back to a specific Orcish raid. Half-Orcs themselves are thankfully not corrupted with Gruumsh's curse on the Orcish race, and most are not kept or raised by the Orcish half of the family, as Orcs breed with other humanoids hoping to create more full Orcs. Half-Orcs tend to be found in the Berezovan province of the Gallahan Empire, as well as sparsely around the Merchant States, Al Kharid, and the habitable areas around the Luuru Rainforest. These are all places where Orcs historically raided and created Half-Orcs during the height of their activities in Dalandorov, before the Gallahans nearly wiped them out completely.

### Humans

*Common*

Humans originated from the jungles south of the Al Kharidian desert, but it was in Al Kharid that humans first thrived, first as a mercantile society, and second as collectors of knowledge, with their expansive libraries making up for their relatively short lifespan. Humans eventually started to venture north, and today they are most commonly found in the Berezovan province of the Gallahan Empire. They are also found very commonly across the Gallahan Empire in general, as well as in Tralvasia to the East and Drenadine to the South. Humans were once known for their propensity to mimic and assimilate into other cultures, but recently a pro-Human movement within the Gallahan Empire has begun a change in the cultural zeitgeist of humanity.

### Kalashtar (Alphesians)

*Mythical*

The Alphesians share a mystical connection with a force known as the Light. Only one is known to have left their island in the past several hundred years: Phoibe Alpheotis. Legends taught to followers of The Path of Light tell of another ancient city to the north, which she is seeking to save her people.

### Kobolds

*Uncommon*

There are two varieties of kobolds - a barely intelligent variety, who cluster in hives or tribes, and a somewhat more intelligent variety that tend to thrive as the populous lower class in tolerant or low-life cities such as Pitside, Nevernoon, or the Lissian Empire. It is unclear if the more intelligent variety of kobolds are a genetic rarity among the less intelligent ones, if the difference between the two is simply a matter of upbringing, or if they are two distinct subspecies altogether. The ones who cluster in tribes are seen as vermin at best, and dangerous invasive parasites at worst.

### Lizard folk

*Very Rare*

The royalty and backbone of the Lissian empire, or the nomads and cultists of distant wildernesses. They are very mistrusted by society, and are known to eat other humanoids.

### Leonin

*Very Rare*

Leonin are related to tabaxi, but come from the heart of the Luuru Rainforest, and are more physically fierce than their northern relatives due to the dangerous nature of the forest. The Leonin of Luuru tend to separate from their families when they reach adulthood, and live solitary lives until they meet a mate, which they stay with for the rest of their lives. They have various ways of marking where they have been, as well as indicating territory lines, allowing Leonin to find one another and interact when the need arises. While rugged individualists, they are generally good-natured, work cooperatively with other intelligent creatures, and hunt for sustenance, not for sport. Those who leave the Luuru forest only do so when they are unable to start a family after many years of searching, or when their children have left and their mate dies.

### Loxodon

*Very Rare*

They live on the Mezzian Plateau. Once respected rulers of the pre-Ronarch tribes, they became a subjugated race when the Ronarch Republic took over centuries ago. They are rarely seen outside of their enclaves. They were originally matriarchal, with males regarded as brutish, but these stereotypes have weakened significantly in recent generations.

### Minotaur

*Very Rare*

Minotaurs were originally created by magic to guard lairs, dungeons, and labyrinths, similar in function to a golem. Their original creators and masters have been forgotten with time. However, millenia ago, the minotaurs rebelled against their masters, left their labyrinths, and banded together to create their own society. Their magically innate ability to traverse mazes and labyrinths has persisted to this day, and they often work in Northern Dalandorov as secretaries and lawyers, as this innate ability seems to also apply to labyrinths of words, terms, and conditions. Minotaurs in Southern Dalandorov take advantage of their physical strength more than their mental fortitude, most commonly serving as warrior generals in the Lissian Empire.

### Satyr

*Rare*

Originating from the Feywild, Satyrs are rarely seen in Dalandorov. Typically traveling in small groups or individually, Satyrs are known to be largely driven to see the world and sample its pleasures. In Agartha, there is a known community of Satyrs who have based themselves out of the hidden city, and act as Agartha’s eyes and ears in the wider world. This community has been separate from the Feywild long enough to begin developing distinct cultural differences due to their close relationship with Agarthan society, and have a close relationship with the Silver Dragon Siblings of Agartha.

### Shifters

*Very Rare*

Found in groups in places overrun by the wilderness, they typically avoid civilization and stick together in their own communities. They are similar to tribal bugbears in this regard. Most Shifter tribes have a strong sense of togetherness and identity, and therefore most Shifters that leave their tribe only do so for a specific purpose, intending to return as soon as they can. Shifters do not usually exile other tribe members, preferring to reform those who cause serious problems for their tribal family - and executing those who do not reform in ritual combat so they never trouble the tribe again.

### Simic Hybrid

*Mythical*

The result of magical experimentation, the Simic do not exist in this setting (they are from Ravnica), but we use the Simic Hybrid race from that setting to represent those creatures that are made, not born. Such creations are unlikely to be understood by those who are not familiar with magic.

### Tabaxi

*Rare*

Tabaxi are known to live in their own towns and even cities in Chan-Zua, in villages that dot the southern part of the Western Wilds, and some small settlements near the edges of the Luuru Jungle, where they came from originally. These forest-dwelling Tabaxi take advantage of their natural agility and dexterity to weave their way through tropical terrain, and hunt prey much larger than themselves as packs. More Tabaxi live in and around Nevernoon and Broadsteel than anywhere else in civilized Dalandorov, and it is these Tabaxi that are most likely to be found traveling to other parts of the civilized world. Tabaxi tend to travel in this way in small groups, fulfilling their natural sense of curiosity by seeking out oddities and unique stories around the world as they go.

### Tieflings

*Uncommon*

Unusually common in Nevernoon, though they appear anywhere, either from direct fiendish sirage, a long-hidden bloodline, or some other form of hellish devilry. Tieflings are common enough that most people don’t bat an eye at them, even in places like Berezovah, though isolated or religiously zealous communities might still regard them with suspicion or even hostility. That said, it is fairly common knowledge that most tieflings had nothing to do with the original pact or deal that led to their fiendish nature. In fact, most people would be surprised to meet a tiefling who became one so directly - more so one who would admit to such a thing.

### Triton

*Uncommon*

There is a kingdom of Tritons some distance off the East Coast, and another off the coast of Corril. Several tribes of Triton live in the Mystic Sea as well, empowered by the elemental energy that courses through the waves. Tritons populate the bottom of the sea much like other humanoid races dot the lands of Dalandorov. However, the sea is often as untamed and dangerous as the Western Wilds,

### Warforged

*Mythical*

The majority are from the ancient civilization of Ixona, which was famously destroyed in three days by a cataclysmic event some three and a half thousand years ago. Warforged are theoretically immortal, but if they do not take care of themselves they decay over time, meaning not many survived past the second millennium post Ixona. Occasionally warforged are still found by archaeologists, still in good condition and are activated. They know little about Ixona or how it fell; most were created and trained for war only. Warforged are not robots and have souls, though their bodies are created. They bleed, feel pain, and have independent thought.

Ulmoch, a powerful artificer, created some 200 warforged, the vast majority of which are currently trapped in a demiplane, to serve him as part of a fanatic death cult. He also experimented with warforged by removing their memories and sending them out to live in the world, as a pair of guild Warforged did.

Mechanical beings capable of independent thought are even rarer. Such automatons do not have souls (probably) and are assembled instead of created. They are not found on Dalandorov; the closest thing in Dalandorov to an automaton that thinks for itself is a golem.