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Still think these last two things are valid, though. Fits the magic/science theme for crazy wizards to be breeding stuff.

edited 3rd Mar '12 8:05:20 PM by Exelixi

Maybe it can be a coexistent thing, also from the Gifted ones spot:

"the creatures tend to be harder to kill and ageless so that they can spread their adaptive lineage."

This pretty much explains why they are still around, having mystical spirits in them and aether makes your pretty good at spreading your kind around, plus they would have had forethought that creatures of our world didn't due to the spiritual consciousnesses.

Plus dire creatures would be a better creature for a drake to hunt, as it's a bigger meal then smaller animals wouldn't be targeted as often. In addition dire predators could easily give them a run for their money and maybe even hunt them back, keeping both populations down and allowing for weaker creatures and man to exist in an area without ending up as drake fodder.

Drakes hunt down creatures like dire birds, and dire deer, and in turn creatures like dire wolves, and dire bears hunt down drakes along with each other. It's a vicious cycle that only allows a few of these creatures to exist in a given area but well explains their existence.

edited 3rd Mar '12 8:19:54 PM by Vyctorian

The concept of "dire" animals is common to pretty much all human cultures (just not under that name) it just reflects our exaggerated fears of nature. Big Cats such as lions, for example, are often demonized as man-eaters, when in truth only rarely they choose humans as victims- they don't LIKE human meat and only hunt us when they have problems getting tastier prey such as deers. Though some do become maneaters from time to time, but those are rogues.

A magical world like Sceal would definitely have dire versions of nearly anything (including humans.)

Update coming tonight. Also, I'm working on a deeper study of the interaction of the campaign's elements, though it will take me a few days to finish.

Dire.... humanoids?

Don't we have something like Dire-Humans already?

would this cover it: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=13207120910A52800100&page=13#321

They're just buff and never got voted in.

Also, good opportunity for me to try Ogres again, maybe as Giants.

They're on the official page, some I'm pretty sure that means their canon.

edited 4th Mar '12 9:30:37 PM by Vyctorian

Oh... huh.

Titans, the Promethean Men

The particular traits of the Titan race are brightly colorful skin pigments of red, green and blue and combinations (purple, yellow and turquoise). They are all possessed seemingly of all the Gifts of Excellency, Physical, Mental and Aesthetic although starting from infancy rather then later manifesting. However, normal Gifts appear in them, apparently without Mortal Dwarf heritage, and manifest at the normal age. Further, they are hairless. These traits are quite unique to them as they also appear to be extremely recessive when added the Humanoid gene pool.

They also are of the size most humans possess and their life cycles and spans most closely resembles Human norm as well. The reason for that is because the genes for that are actually very dominant and have mixed deeply in the humanoid gene pool, mostly overriding all the various weird life cycle other races have.

Any Titan societies are by genetic necessity very insular. Those that aren't tend to be quickly breed out because of the recessiveness of their defining genes. However, because the dominant genes are spread quite thickly through the humanoid gene pool is proof their was once noninsular societies. Some Human nations claim direct ancestry of the titans and further claim to have the normally recessive genes of the Titans as their claim to genetic superiority.

Ogres, the Dire Men

Ogre was a titan and a mad wizard much like many others. He was alive during the time of the creation of the dragons and the spread of the dire rituals. Instead of applying to animals. he applied to fellow humanoids, to titans. The Ogre race was created. They possess the same traits of Titans, hairless and brightly colored, but now they are bigger, stronger, meaner, smarter like other dire lifeforms. They are possessed of tusks and horns and oddly Gifts have a higher propensity of showing up.

The original ogres were breed and raised by Ogre himself, raised to be the super men who would conquer the world. His evil plans were put to an end but the Ogre race lived on after that and spread over the world since. Not as fast as dragons and the fact their Ogre traits are apparently even more recessive then Titan traits as limited them, but the few Ogre culture still bear the genetic pride and propaganda of superiority from their ancestors instilled into them by their creator.

edited 5th Mar '12 3:10:58 PM by God_of_Awesome

So, the first thing is basically just a reprint of the Prometheans?

I like the name "Promethean" better, to be honest. It sounds cool. Plus, the connotation of "Titan" makes one think of something really, really big.

Also, cut the power level down. Give them a drawback or something. I've mentioned before that having one option be strictly better in every way than the others isn't okay.

Also, guys, if you don't mind prefacing things with details if said things are needed, that would be awesome. I've noticed several entries that need a little more context than they're given.

edited 5th Mar '12 3:12:56 PM by Exelixi

Titans are not available as a PC race, is what I would say.

Hm. . . That could work. Insular societies mean nobody does the whole "adventuring" thing, recessive genes mean a human with that heritage is just, well, a bloke. Sounds kosher to me.

Still like the old name better though.

I like invoking a name from an actual something that's also easy to remember.

Also, it is, in part, a Dragonlance reference, albeit a backwards one. The Titans are cousins to the Ogres (Dragonlance's replacement for orcs), blue skinned, hairless and definitely an air of being superior.

But they aren't massive. The word "titan" means "large" in the public consciousness so much that "titanic" is a word meaning "really frickin' huge" now.

Also, Prometheus? Totally a thing people can remember.

I suppose, to further elaborate, I like having a 'Our version of-' race.

So do I, but on the same token, connotations are powerful things. Wouldn't it be jarring to see Hobbits being seven feet tall?

Hm... could I switch Titan and Ogre around?

But then Ogre has its own connotations too.

edited 5th Mar '12 3:51:19 PM by God_of_Awesome

Quite. Honestly, Promethean is probably the best possible name for the race. It alludes to what came before, to greatness, and even to the falling-from-grace angle one might play up with their slow extinction.

Prometheus was a Titan.

And Titan, besides being big, has all those same connotations. More then big, Titan means 'greatness'.

edited 5th Mar '12 4:19:41 PM by God_of_Awesome

Is there any particular reason to change the name? Bear in mind that will be more things I'll have to remember and edit and cross-reference unnecessarily when I compile all this into a coherent book.

Shorter more iconic name, and also I wanted to change up their skin color (From just blue to brightly colored spectrum).

You can always put them under 'Promethean Men' and just include 'Titan' in their entry.

edited 5th Mar '12 4:32:52 PM by God_of_Awesome

I'd like to point out that multiple names for the same thing is a hallmark of different cultures in the same race. Which is one of our basic principles.

Of course *we* do need an official name for organizational purposes. But one man's Ogre can certainly be another's Titan.

BTW sorry I haven't made the update yet, I worked a lot today and I'm tired.

This was the concept behind the Anima Elfs and the Mortal Dwarfs (BTW, seeing as their cultures were approved, I assume they as races were too).

edited 5th Mar '12 9:49:57 PM by God_of_Awesome

I mentioned that earlie. Dwarves I know have been approved; not sure about Anima Elfs. If not, you can just rewrite the culture as beast-folk.

Beast-Folk don't necessarily fit the same purpose.