RACE LINKS: HUMAN ELF ORC MORHKIN ELEMENTAL OVIDIAN
HUMAN
Humans are the most numerous of the races and are known for their adaptability and resilience. All humans on Teonn come from the Kingdom of Brunheim which is currently ruled by King Darrow Devall, husband to Queen Lenore Devall of the royal line Devall. The Kingdom of Brunheim is located on the western arm of Teonn.
The King holds the highest position in human culture, and is established through marriage to the eldest daughter of the royal family. These marriages are arranged between the royal family and one of the Greater Noble families. The second most powerful position after the King is his advisor. In the past, this has traditionally been the leader of the three High Priests of the All but is now Quenden, the Ovidian who led the Ovidians to ally with the Kingdom which consequently turned the tide in the last Great War. The King’s Council, who deal with the day to day running of the kingdom, is made up of six representatives, one from each of the six Greater Noble families of the Kingdom of Brunheim.
There are many cities of all sizes across the Kingdom of Brunheim, and all are controlled by nobles who swear allegiance to one of the Greater Noble families and to the human King. There is an extensive wall which was built to protect the Kingdom of Brunheim from the advancing armies of the Morhkin during the Great War. This wall marks the border of the kingdom from the no man’s land where the war raged for untold generations, known as the Blood Plains.
For as long as anyone can remember, predating even recorded history, there has been war between the humans and the Morhkin. The cities closest to the wall are heavily fortified and have known the fighting to spill over the wall from time to time, but the Morhkin have always been driven back. Further away from the wall, the war is less of an immediate reality, and human society flourishes. The epicentre of trade and economic development is the capitol city of Lorstonand which is located near the centre of the western arm of Teonn and is where the royal family resides.
Racial Ability - Gift from Birth: At character creation you get a unique ability which your character was born with. This is decided by the GM once the character is submitted, and is likely to be in synch with your background.
ELF
The Elves arrived long ago from across the ocean, bringing currency & seafaring to Teonn, and now their golden castle lies on the most southern point of the island, looking over the sea that they rule.
All elves are born equal; the only thing differentiating one from another is how they go about the business of trade: the more you have, the greater your importance in Elven society. The five richest Elves of Teonn reside in the Golden Castle in the southeast, looking over the ocean. These five, known as the ‘Seniors’, control the laws of trade within Teonn so business is done through the land in fair order. Other races can try to question or go against these, but will meet a stone wall since all trade in Teonn goes through an elf at some point. With both the technology of coin and sea travel, their control has not been threatened since they arrived.
The most distinctive feature of Elves is their pointed ears. As they take a part in most of the trade within Teonn, they can enjoy wearing the best that money can buy. The colours, materials and styles of clothing that they wear are some of the most exotic in the land.
Racial Ability - Masters of trade: You start with 50 Gold Coins extra. Also you are not affected with the mind affecting abilities charm, fear, and any ability which makes you tell the truth or identifies truth.
ORC
The orcs are known as the best fighters but not the most educated. They are tribal in nature, scattered in groups around Teonn. Some are blood-thirsty and merciless, while others are honourable and trustworthy.
are two sides of the coin when it comes to Orc society. On one side, there are the tribal Orcs that live primarily in the eastern arm of Teonn. Dotted throughout the mountains, swamps, and barren lands you will find large clusters of Orcs following the lead of the strongest in the group. They are considered savages by the rest of Teonn, ruthless and bloodthirsty. On the other side, you have the ‘Civilised’ Orcs (as Humans would call them.) They live in the west and find their place in society as body guards, mercenaries and knights. In stark contrast to the eastern Orcs, it is rare to find a group of only Orcs working together, as in the past they have been mistaken for their feral counterparts and killed on sight.
Most often you will find Orcs that are green skinned, but other similar colours have been seen. Likewise skins and patchwork is the normal garb, but they will wear metal armour when they find it or are paid to.
Racial Ability - Fighting in the blood: 3 times a day an Orc can choose to go into a Berserker Rage to double their current hit points once a fight, which lasts until there are no more enemies in sight or until incapacitated, whichever comes first. Once there are no more enemies in sight, the Orc goes to zero hit points and falls down incapacitated. In addition, while in a rage and while the Orc still has AP, all physical attacks made against the Orc does 1 HP less damage than it would normally. Once AP is depleted, they take damage as normal. Once revived from incapacitation, it takes at least 15 minutes to completely recover, and the Orc in question may not move faster than a walk, or wield any weapons or shields.
MORHKIN
The Morhkin live on the eastern arm of Teonn. They make their homes amongst the mountains and have learned to thrive in rocky, hard terrain. Their homes are found under the earth itself, in caves and in the form of stone houses above the ground. Morhkin are very spiritual, they believe in co-existence with the earth and her creatures, and they worship the elements themselves. Morhkin are born with the symbol of the season of their birth on their forehead. Those born in summer have a symbol of fire, those born in winter have a symbol of water, those born in autumn have a symbol of air, and the Morhkin of spring have a symbol of earth. Each symbol is contained within a double circle.
The structure of Morhkin society is based on age. Age determines the roles of each member in the community. The oldest in the community is known as the Elder and has full autonomy within the community. The second oldest is the Spiritual Advisor to the community and leads all the rituals performed. Other roles such as warrior, miner, farmer and parent are bestowed to Morhkin when they have reached the appropriate age, as chosen by the Elder. Child bearing occurs at all stages, since a large number of children is seen as a sign of good health and fortune. Morhkin are fond of wearing leathers and their weapons of choice are axes and shields. The men are also known for having long luxurious beards, but the odd shaven face is not unheard of. Other than the brand they are born with, Morhkin appear like the humans, but up close humans and Morhkin are easy to tell apart, due to their general air of being.
Racial Ability - Hardened Society: You have two free levels of tough at character creation. In addition the auspice under which you are born grants you the following abilities:
Spring(Earth): Those born in spring are known for being more fertile in everything they do, from growing crops, to having children. You can 3 times a day bless an item of food that will restore 2 hit points immediately. The food must be fully consumed by one person for the effect to take place.
ELEMENTAL
Awakening from its very surrounds, emerging nine moons ago, the Elementals are a recent addition to the races of Teonn. The Elementals have yet to form a structure of their own in Teonn apart from in the town they now protect, Cormere. Because of their spread throughout the entirety of the island, many Elementals have become part of the society of where they emerged. You can now see them helping out in human cities, serving as bodyguards to various nobles and elves, and some Morhkin villages have even taken a few into their communities as spiritual beings and ask for their guidance. There have been rumours of fights breaking out between different groups of elementals about what they are meant to do in Teonn.
Elementals look humanoid, except they markedly belong to one of the four elements, earth, air, water and fire and therefore exhibit their particular elements’ characteristics. They can be any aspect of these four elements. For example, an Ice Elemental belongs to the water family. They have no memory of who or what they are; the only knowledge they hold is the characteristics of their element (for instance, that fire needs air to exist and can be quenched by water), how to dress, speak and their inherent abilities. Elementals are not affected as their element would be, so a fire Elemental would not take damage from the rain. There is no natural hatred between Elementals of opposing elements, so a fire Elemental does not instantly hate water Elementals, but animosities have been formed by some along these lines.
Each family of Elemental has some underlying personality traits:
Fire: Passionate, impulsive, chaotic and quick to anger.
Water: Emotional, compassionate, flexible and adaptable.
Earth: Stubborn, reliable, practical and has fortitude.
Air: Flexible, logical, seeker of knowledge and good communicators.
Some Elementals claim that they have had a sudden sense of recognition when interacting with another Elemental, like a feeling that they are family.
Racial Ability - Born of the World: At character creation, you get a unique ability according to your choice of element decided by the GM when the character is submitted.
OVIDIAN
A new name given to the race of magical beings who have until recently been known by the derogatory term "vampires". Their recent dramatic involvement with Teonn’s politics has made them much talked about in human society.
Before the last Great War, the Ovidians were in some regions nothings more than a rumour, while in other regions small numbers were seen, and only very rarely did anyone call an Ovidian their neighbour. The first rumours and sightings can be traced back to shortly after the elves arrived in Teonn.
Because of the Ovidians' allegiance with the Humans in the last Great War, their first open allegiance with any race, an Ovidian has been given the seat of Royal Advisor to King Darrow. With their increasing integration came the revelation of how the Ovidians come into being, through the use of a magical ritual which requires the sacrifice of five living humanoid beings. The King has decreed that this ritual shall not be judged as murder as long as the five beings are slaves, criminals, or volunteers. Since the end of the war, the rumor that Ovidians are immortal has been confirmed by the King.
When you become an Ovidian, you no longer age, you become immune to disease, and will live forever unless you are killed. Ovidians can only be created by other Ovidians. To become Ovidian there needs to be a sacrificial ritual of five humanoid entities led by an existing Ovidian. Afterwards, your original personality is somewhat tainted by that of the five sacrifices, as you have literally absorbed their essence. This also alters your physical appearance, to be more blended with the humanoids which you absorbed. The ritual leaves extensive magical tattooing on your face and sometimes other parts of the body. The Ovidians are a very secretive race and the creation ritual is guarded very fiercely.
Racial Ability - Resilience of Creation: Three times a day you may kill an immobilised, willing, unconscious, or incapacitated person to heal fully.
Other than Resilience of creation, you must drink blood to heal your hit points. To drink blood from someone, they must be immobilised, willing, or unconscious. In exchange for someone losing one hit point you regain one hit point. If the person would die from being drunk from, you do not regain the hit point.