Sklavi
Physical Description
Sklavi are humanoid creatures that stand slightly taller than humans, with a male average being about 6 feet and females standing at about 5’6” with both genders being a little more muscular and widely built than an equivalent human. Sklavi have skin of a deep orange color which varies based on the individual, with some having more reddish tinged skin and others are more yellow-orange. Their ears are pointed with the top points extending slightly outwards. Like humans, their have molars, cuspids, and incisors, though they have 12 cuspid-like teeth instead of 4 and their teeth are larger and sharper than those of humans. The Sklavi face extends outwards slightly, giving them a somewhat feral appearance. Their eyes are typically yellow to yellow-orange in coloration and are very sensitive to light, allowing them to see in low light conditions in much the same way as a cat can. Sklavi age and mature at about the same rate as humans do. Sklavi are completely hairless.
Culture
The Sklavi are among the most organized and civilized of the races. They have intellect on par with that of humans and keen inquisitive minds. There are three major nations of Sklavi in the known world, all formerly part of a massive Sklavi empire which split into three independent states. They all share fairly advanced technology, the ability to make steel arms and armor, castles, temples, fortresses, road ways, and even libraries and places of learning.
Two of the Sklavi nations are empires, ruled by an absolute monarch, the other is a Republic with a senate with a consul being the highest member of government. In all three, there is a ruling elite class of warriors, and a lower class of hereditary slaves, slaves which are largely made up of other races conquered or captured by the Sklavi. The Sklavi have agriculture and beasts of burden, with crops largely grown by slaves or the lower classes. While scholarship is important to the Sklavi, military prowess is also highly regarded especially for men in society and they field full time professional armies with peasant soldiers making up the bulk of the army with the noble class as officers.
The Sklavi have a polytheistic religion with 9 deities representing 9 facets of life, which a re generally worshiped collectively by the Sklavi. There are also a number of minor cults whose beliefs and practices are largely secret. There are also a variety of philosophical schools with different beliefs regarding the nature of the gods or the meaning of life.
Valgnar
Physical Description
Valgnar are large and powerfully built humanoids, with males standing at an average of 6'4" and females at around 5'8" and in both cases, they are well muscled and thick boned compared to humans. Their skin is a shade of light green. Their teeth are similar to those of humans, though their cuspids are very large and sharp in comparison, especially their lower cuspids which often extend out of the mouth. Their eyes are a shade of pale green or yellow-green and allow them to see in very little light, though they are also sensitive to the full light of day, making the Valgnar more nocturnal than diurnal. Valgnar are hairless. They age and mature at about the same rate as humans do.
Culture
The Valgnar are a race that highly esteems warfare, strength, courage in battle, and martial prowess. Every male Valgnar is a warrior first and his other professions secondarily and even the women, who often stay home farming and raising children when males fight, are expected to be competent warriors. Valgnar have a Darwinian outlook on life, where the strong should rule over the weak and that battle is how superiority and inferiority are determined. Valgnar often take slaves from their conquered enemies, which are forced to do manual labor and are looked down upon as cowards, since they surrendered rather than die in battle.
Along with their belief in martial prowess, the Valgnar believe in honor as well - in the importance of keeping your oath, in protecting your family, in loyalty to your friends and your lord. Valgnar society is feudal in many regards, with the warriors of a village swearing fealty to the village chief and the chiefs swearing loyalty to lords, and with a number of warring kings who demand the loyalty of a number of lords beneath them. As many male Valgnar die in battle, it is customary for chiefs or highly successful warriors to have many wives.
The Valgnar worship a mother and father god and goddess, the king and queen of the gods, and then also venerate a number of their children, gods of various things like weather, fire, plants, and so on. The king of the gods is, of course, a warrior and the queen a goddess of motherhood, hearth, and home.
The Valgnar have the ability to work iron and even steel, though their skills at architecture, science, and other measures of civilization lag a little bit behind their military technology. They do have castles and keeps for lords and kings, along with ships for raiders and walls to protect their towns, though the typical Valgnar peasant lives a relatively spartan existence.
Ulagu
Physical Description
The Ulagu are a strange race that combines features of mammal, reptile, and insect. They are a eusocial species with castes of worker, warrior, and queen, each born different with their own unique traits. Ulagu have tough gray hairless skin with a scaly mottled texture. Their faces are extended like a snout and their teeth are all sharp and predatory. They fingers and toes have sharp claws that allow them to climb or attack. Their body temperature seems to fluctuate and yet they can easily endure wide ranges of temperatures that would kill humans. The sclera of their eyes is black and the pupil a luminescent yellow color, slit like that of a cat or reptile. They can see in absolute darkness, without even a trace of light, though they are blinded by daylight and feel uncomfortable in the presence of other bright lights. They ears as large, fanning out like the wings of a bat and are very sensitive to sound. They have tails as well, resembling those of a reptile.
Ulagu workers are small but sturdily built, standing about 3'6" in height. They are quite strong and tough for their small size and work tirelessly at the behest of queens and warriors. Warriors are larger, standing around 4'6" and having thick muscles and dense bones, combining with their great dexterity to make them deadly combatants. Queens stand at about the same height as warriors but are fat rather than muscular, with large stomachs and breasts, they are constantly gravid and frequently lay eggs. Workers mature very quickly, becoming adults in less than 10 years, though queens a warriors don't reach adulthood until 15-20, though in all cases Ulagu rather slowly, living upwards of a century for workers or several centuries for warriors and queens.
Culture
Ulagu culture exists entirely underground, in vast subterranean labyrinths that have been carved out by the worker caste over millennia. Though alien in many regards, the Ulagu and quite intelligent and are masters of stone working and architecture, creating amazing structures beneath the earth that are beautiful, functional, and make an assault against them virtually impossible. They are also skilled steel workers and make weapons and armor of good quality.
It isn't entirely known what the Ulagu eat or how their society is organized. They make occasional raids on the surface world, during the darkness of night, but these are rare and for the most part they avoid surface dwellers. It has been observed that the Ulagu are all devoutly religious, worshiping a single god who they believe dwells under the earth, with the priests of this deity ruling over their strange society.
Sunaj
Physical Description
The Sunaj are short humanoids, standing at an average of 4’6” for males and 4’4 for females, with a slight build and yellow colored skin. With thin features and limbs and light bones, the Sunaj are neither strong nor rugged, but have amazing dexterity and hand-eye coordination. They have long and pointed ears which are quite sensitive to sound, along with pointed nose and generally sharp features. Their eyes tend to be orange or red in coloration and able to see quite well in the night and the day, though their hearing and sense of smell are also rather impressive. Like their relatives, the Sunaj have 12 cuspid like teeth instead of 4, though their teeth are proportionately similar to in size to those of humans. Sunaj generally grow and mature a little faster than humans do, reaching maturity and old age in about 75% of the time a human does. So a Sunaj who is 15 years of age may be the physical equivalent of a human who is 20.
Culture
The Sunaj are largely a nomadic people, living by herding animals with only temporary stops during the hardest parts of winter or in regions rich in game or edible plants. They live simple lives, living mostly in tents or yurts, with only the items which their pack animals can pull. They live in a wide range of climates, from arid plains to arctic tundra, any places with land for their animals to graze upon. Though they live simple lives, they also have some ability with technology and can work steel, fashion composite bows of great quality, and are expect leather workers. They prefer to trade for steal and iron though, as the life of mining and refining metals is ill suited to the Sunaj.
One of the most important elements of Sunaj life and warfare are the Worgs, gigantic wolves that can weigh several hundred pounds. Every Sunaj warrior is expected to own at least one Worg, for be fed through hunting or from his herd animals, and to be able to ride and train it. Worgs are massively powerful and dangerous fighters, more than making up for the small size of the Sunaj in a battle. Their fast speed and endurance is also a great asset to them, especially for the Sunaj archers. The Sunaj often feed their Worgs the bodies of their fallen foes and allies, allowing each military engagement to sustain their mounts.
The Sunaj revere nature and the elements and their holy men are typically shamans who venerate spirits of the earth, forests, animals, weather, and so on.
Bendith
Physical Description
Bendith are small humanoids, averaging about 4 feet in height for both males and females with slender delicate builds, medium green skin, and blue, green, or blue-green eyes. Unlike many of their cousins, Bendith have hair in a similar pattern to humans, which is typically a shade of dark green and grows upon their heads and on the faces of males, with body hair slightly sparser than what is found in humans. Their ears are large and rounded, very sensitive to sound, and while their eyes are quite good, they cannot see as well in the night as in the daylight. Bendith are very agile and dextrous, but are also weak and relatively fragile, and tend to avoid direct physical conflict when they can. Bendith grow and mature at about the same rate as humans, though they tend to also be longer lived than humans, with a lifespan about 50% longer.
Culture
The Bendith once had a thriving empire, though after a number of wars and conquests, it has been reduced to a single large island city which is a hub for trade and commerce. The other Bendith have spread across the world, becoming wanderers, travelers, or in many cases slaves to the Valgnar or Sklavi. The Bendith empire was quite advanced technologically and socially and Bendith scholars still maintain much of that knowledge. They become useful advisers in the courts of kings and lords because of this, or sometimes teachers, scholars, or even wizards. Those Bendith with less knowledge sometimes travel the world as merchants and traders, sometimes diplomats or even con artists or swindlers. In some regions they are welcomed for their worldly knowledge and friendly natures, in other places are are seen as weaklings to be enslaved or exploited, and in others as pests to be killed or driven away.
In the Bendith city, there is no formal leader, but rather a number of wealthy trading families which rule by virtue of their wealth, as representatives are voted into office by a system of open bribery before serving a temporary term. The lack of formal nobility and focus on bribes means that it is possible for Bendith of low birth to rise to positions of affluence, should they attain enough wealth. The Bendith follow the faith of their ancestors, a pantheistic religion which holds that all of reality is united as a semi-sapient deity which is usually represented by the sun. While the Skalvi are the race that the Bendith most frequently trade with, they are also despised by many Bendith for being responsible for conquering so much of their empire.
Akkis
Physical Description
The Akkis are lareg and powerful humanoids which are covered with short fur and have features that could be said to resemble those of a hyena and human. They stand at around 7 feet tall for both males and females, with relatively few obvious differences between the sexes that are recognizable to other races. Their faces are distended into muzzles with powerful jaws and sharp teeth. Their fur tends to vary from light reddish brown to dark brown, sometimes mottled or spotted as well. Their eyes are dark brown or black in color and sensitive enough in low light to allow the Akkis to operate by day or night. Their snouts allow them to have a very keen sense of smell, to track by scent alone, smell faint traces of substances, or gain information about other’s by their smell. Their sense of hearing is quite good as well. Akkis grow to adulthood quite quickly by human standards, becoming fully adult by about the age of ten, but they likewise age rather quickly as well, seldom living past the age of 50.
Culture
The Akkis live in lightly forested regions or hot grasslands to the south and east of many of the other prominent races. They live primarily by hunting, with tribes following herds of large herbivorous animals across the plains, though some tribes herd animals as well. Their technology is relatively basic, with most of their more treasured or advanced items being things stolen or traded for with other civilizations. Most Akkis tribes have knowledge of smelting bronze and so many of their weapons are made from this, though some are stone age in technology and a few can work iron, though all will trade for or seek to acquire iron or steel at any opportunity. Tribes are usually ruled by an elder female, though Akkis society is informal enough that they are no universal rules, any strong warrior can rise to lead a tribe.
Almost all of Akkis society is nomadic and tribal, with individual tribes stating out vast swathes of territory as hunting grounds, though tribes frequently conflict with each other over land, make raids, or engage in light skirmishes such as counting coup or other light activities. They seldom involve themselves in protected wars or occupations, preferring instead to make a surprise attack and then withdraw, hoping gaining some wealth or pushing out the borders of their territory slightly by doing so. As many other races of the known world, they take slaves from raids, though with members of other races these slaves are often sold as the Akkis have no use for slave labor themselves, and with other Akkis slaves, the slave is generally encouraged to become full members of the tribe after some period of acclimation.
The Akkis religion entails the worship of spirits, often spirits related to natural or primordial forces. They have relatively few dedicated holy men or women, but instead all members of a tribe will usually make offering to or try as they may to appease the spirits.
Morgish
Physical Description
The Morgish are large humanoids, with males averaging at 7’8” and females at 7’3” in height, both being heavily muscled with dense bones and thick green skin. Morgish have small rounded ears and hearing below that of humans, though their black eyes are large and let them see well in the dark. Morgish have incredibly strong constitutions which allow them to eat almost any organic material, including rotten plant or animal material, poisons, and even organic wastes. Unlike many of their distant relatives, they have thick hair upon their heads, usually allowed to grow long and becomes matted with filth. Morgish mature extremely quickly, being able to fend for themselves by 5 or less and becoming sexually mature by 10, though they continue to grow through their teens. They begin to weaken and show signs of old age in their 30’s and seldom live beyond their 40’s, usually because of violence rather than health.
Culture
Morgish have very little culture to speak of. Their intelligence is too low and violent natures too extreme to develop technology or civilization. They virtually always go nude and wield weapons that can be picked up off the ground with minimal modification - clubs, bones, stones, sharp sticks, and the like. They live in small packs of 20 to 100 individuals in warm climates, usually jungles or tropical forests where vegetation and game are common and the winters are mild. They are lead by a small group of dominant males who usually kill or castrate rival males in fights for dominance.
The Morgish are extremely violent, killing any non-Morgish creature that looks vulnerable and devouring it. They also eat each other when the opportunity arises. The Morgish breed extremely quickly and can survive and all manner of plants and animals, which helps to balance out their violent natures and short lives. They are nearly universally despised by other intelligent races and considered a great danger in the regions where they are known to be common.
Grarag
Physical Description
Grarag are large furry humanoids with reddish brown skin and dark brown fur. Males average 7’4” in height with females at around 6’8” tall. They have pointed ears and distended faces with flat noses and large mouths with sharp teeth. Their eyes are red and let them see in day or night almost equally well. They have about the same lifespan and maturation rate of humans.
Culture
The Grarag are hunter gatherers who primarily live in cold regions of the world, in forests and tundra with game to hunt, as they survive primarily through eating meat. They live in tribes of several hundred members, which are typically semi-nomadic. They have relatively little technology, effectively stone age technology with stone or bone weapons, primitive bows or slings, and what ever they can steal or trade for.
Their tribes are ruled by their tribal mystics, usually an elder male. The Grarag spirituality is based on a sort of earth worship and veneration of nature, with a focus on the seasons and cycles of life. Little else is known of their culture.
Trelling
Physical Description
Trelling are tiny creatures, standing no more than 3 feet in height for both male and females, the only obvious distinguishing feature being that males are a yellowish shade of green while females are more olive colored. They have enormous ears which give them a sharp sense of hearing, though their eyes are relatively small and their vision is poor, especially in the dark. Their fingers are long and tipped with sharp claws, their toenails are also very long and sharp - together with their low weight makes them excellent climbers. They are very slightly built, looking like skin and bone compared to other races, though they are also remarkably agile and even tough for their size. Trellings age and mature at around 3 times the human rate, becoming effective adults by the age of 6 and usually dying of old age before they reach 25.
Culture
Trelling are not very bright, and never advance beyond having a childlike intelligence. As a result, they form no culture of their own. Their natural language is quite simple and primitive, having only words for the most basic and important concepts and when Trellings learn another language, they so so with difficulty. Many other races, most notably the Sklavi and the Bendith, have made it a practice to enslave Trelling and use them for manual labor. When left to their own devices, Trellings tend to live on the peripheries of other societies, relying on their ability to climb and hide, along with their quick maturation rate, to survive. Those races who do not enslave the Trelling generally see them as a nuisance to be eliminated when possible or at least driven away. Trelling tend to be more cowardly than violent, though if they have large numbers and feel very confident and aggressive, they will sometimes attack other races. There have been a handful of unusually intelligent Trellings that have appeared over the years, some believe that these Trelling are somehow mystically significant.
