The Agria

## Racial Overview

The Agria are a plant-like race with a history defined by fearful retreat from conflict in an ancient yet familiar age, only to reawaken in a completely foreign time and history a millennia into the future. Though the Agria theoretically boast long lifespans, the truth of the matter is unknown as they have only recently reawakened on the world stage. Whereas some Agria maintain the survivalist, retreating mentality of their forebears by living away from conflict, others have discarded their ancestors’ pacifistic ideals in this brave new world in order to protect themselves, family, and loved ones.

## The Agria

### Age

Grows in 1-5 days to toddler walking age but ages normally following, matures at 18 years. Eldest is 300.

### Eyes

Flora/Fungi: Any colorConifer: Any color with black, hollow sclera

### Hair

Flora: Flowers of any kindConifer: Extending branches with leavesFungi: Mushroom cap of any kind

### Skintone

Flora: Any colorConifer: Brown colors with red, green, gray, white, or orange.Fungi: Yellow, pink, brown, and chestnut

The Agria reawakened during the spring of 999 P.E.. Though the Agria view the current-day Omnia’s peaceful stability as an opportunity to replant their place in society and grow, they are a race haunted by their foggy memories tied to the Omnian past. The cruelty of the Laore-Hoj Protectorates, the slaughter of the Human Kingdoms, the charity of the Talamh Holds, and the Aegis War as a whole feel like familiar nightmares to the now reawakened Agria, even though the rest of Omnia has moved past these events. Despite the fogginess of many reawakened Agria’s memories of the ancient past, they are a living chronicle of an Omnia a millennia ago. This traumatic history is not shared by newborn Agria, who are born into Omnia entirely ignorant of the history of the original Agria people.

The Agria share no naming conventions as the Agria lack a unified culture, and as such normally adopt the naming conventions of any races or cultures they assimilate into. This is the case for reawakened Agria as well as newborn Agria, as reawakened Agria have only vague memories of their past lives.

## Physical Attributes

Though the different subspecies have unique physical traits, they all have a number of similarities found in all Agria. Firstly, the Agria don’t need conventional food in order to live. Similar to any plantlife, the Agria only require oxygen, nutrient rich water, and sunlight in order to fully grow and flourish. As long as an Agria has access to these, they can support a healthy lifestyle. Secondly, Agria cannot interbreed with other races, and are a predominantly genderless race, though they may present as feminine or masculine.

Thirdly, an Agria of any subspecies can change to adapt visually to the four changing seasons, though this does not impact them in any way beyond cosmetics. For example, Agria Conifers may naturally and painlessly grow apples in the spring and summer. Agria cannot be of any rare plant life (e.g. Withered Rose/Vampire’s Muse).

### **Agria Subspecies**

**Agria Flora** are similar to flowering plants, but can also resemble blooming cacti. The flowers on the Flora can come in a variety of different flower-types and colors, typically pairing with an assortment of green hues produced by the chlorophyll in their skin and in the leaves on their bodies. Flora typically appear on the shorter end of the Agria scale, ranging from 4’2”-6’6”.  Their eyes are of any color, but typically match the kind of flower that they have. Their flowers make them perfect sources of pollen for bees, and Agria Flora commonly maintain good relationships with pollinators.

**Agria Conifer** are Agria that take on tree-like characteristics. They boast sturdy bark skin, long branches, and beautiful leaves. Conifer heights can range from 5’8”-7’5”, and their eye-whites are black and hollow. However; they have vibrant irises that can come in any color. A common trait amongst most Conifers is that their skin is tougher than other Agria, though this does not impart any significant defense. Though most Agria Conifers would advise against this, they are capable of housing bird nests in their branches. Conifers are also capable of falling asleep standing upright, as laying down is troublesome when composed of branches.

   **Agria Fungi** are Agria that take on mushroom-like characteristics. They are commonly found in caves, but can also be found in some forests as well. Fungi’s height can range from 5’2”-5’11” and their eyes are similar to Flora. The skin of Fungi varies from yellow, pink, chestnut, and brown; similar to the stems of regular, non-sentient fungi. Agria Fungi require far less sunlight in order to grow than other Agria subspecies, as they lack much chlorophyll required to sustain nutrients from the sunlight.

### **Agria Life-Cycle**

Newborn Agria are grown in healthy soil by planting one of an existing Agria’s fruit-seeds or spores, which then takes one to five days of growth before the newborn Agria sprouted is able to move around. As the birthplace of the Agria, the Sanctuary located at the heart of the Widow’s Wood and the Marigold Forest as a whole is the most compatible with supporting newborn Agria life, though anywhere in Omnia could be suitable.

    A newborn Agria is still deemed a child even when they are able to move. An Agria child requires a steady stream of nutrients as they mature, reaching the equivalent of adulthood, after which they age normally. Though an Agria can choose to willingly have a child, thus planting their seed and tending to its health to increase the odds of a successful growth, many newborn Agria come about as a result of the Agria Sanctuary’s natural pollination across Omnia through wind-currents, or of an Agria’s fruit-seeds or spores being dispersed through contact with wildlife and the environment. As such, the Agria share a general communal camaraderie where they look out for each other, despite their subspecies.

## History

The history of the Agria is more complicated than that of other Omnian races, as it is divided between their past existence one millennia ago at the height of the Aegis War’s bloodshed, prior to Shesha’s Emergence, and their current history and future following their reawakening during the year 999 P.E.’s spring season. The Agria originally shared Omnia with the Laore-Hoj Protectorates, the Talamh Holds, and the Human Kingdoms, knowing only these three races as the other Races (Laore-Glas, Laore-Tel, Ashavan, Morian, Volpi, etc) appeared in Omnia during or in the centuries after Shesha’s Emergence.

The specifics of Agria history and culture from this time is practically non-existent, primarily due to the catastrophe caused by Shesha’s Emergence wiping clean records of many civilisations, but also due to the chaos of the Aegis War during which the Agria vanished from the public eye, as well as the foggy, fractured memories of any reawakened Agria from their hibernation. What is known is that the Agria were originally deeply attuned to the natural world, and suffered just as gravely at the hands of the  Laore-Hoj’s conquest during the Aegis War as the Humans of the time. Whereas the Humans retreated to the Low Kingdon’s Holds following the Talamh’s charity, the Agria chose a different path to salvation long before the Talamh Holds opened their doors.

Though the details are murky at best, the Agria created a Sanctuary within what is currently known as the Widow’s Woods, which is the heart of the infamous Marigold Forest. This Sanctuary served as a place of protective hibernation, as the Agria became one with nature entirely to escape the ravages of the Aegis War. They then slumbered through the end of the Aegis War, as well as Shesha’s Emergence, only to awaken in the year 999 P.E. 's spring season for reasons unknown following earthquakes in the area. Though all reawakened Agria lost memories of their past lives, they do recall as distant dreams and nightmares how different Omnia was in times past, and are left now to rediscover Omnia in times present as best they can.

## Origins & Theories

Presently, there exists only speculation and scholarly theory as to how the Agria race created such a Sanctuary:

Laore-Tel scholars theorize that the Agria manipulated the region-spanning superorganism of roots comprising the Marigold Forest’s soil to create Sanctuary, as the Laore-Tel’s creation of the Trinitarium’s towering Beacon was derived from studying the same superorganism. They support this theory on the extensive geological studies and readings conducted by their Scholars on the superorganism.

Laore-Hoj scholars reject this theory, instead theorizing that the Agria bargained with the Trimedium and Fae for their people’s salvation through a Pact, thus binding the Agria’s fates to their Three-Headed God just as the Laore-Hoj did to protect Verendell from Shesha’s Emergence. The Laore-Hoj scholars don’t deny the superorganism’s existence, as their Life Sorcerers are intimately familiar with it. However, they tie this superorganism and the Agria’s Sanctuary’s creation to Fae Magic. They support this theory by the cryptic visions received by the Trimedeism devout prior to the Agria’s reawakening.

This theorizing puts the Agria in a unique position of adopting into any number of racial and cultural societies. Though the Laore-Hoj, Laore-Tel, and Talamh cultures are most vocal about adopting the displaced Agria, the Ashavan, Volpi, and Human Nomani are equally as receptive to them due to their naturally inclusive habits. The Agria people therefore have a blank slate upon which to imprint their own destinies, with many roads to choose from.