Humans: Self explanatory

Goblins: 4'6" ish with green to gray skin, fangs, pointed ears, claws and black eyes. They are very much an oppressed and sometimes enslaved minority.

Vampires: Former humans who survived a vampire attack. While some live in human areas most live in deserted places in underground nests together with the humans who serve them in reward for a far safer life and the promise of immortality. The sun will kill these bloodsuckers, but some of them have been around for so long they don't even remember their names.

Werewolves: Wolves that change into humans, they view sentience as a curse.

Mechanis: Ancient and enigmatic clockwork robots.

Faeries: Extra-dimensional invaders who are currently sealed in another realm. They can appear how every they want in this reality.

Elves: Formerly immortal. They achieved this by going to the faeries' home dimension, but there the faeries betrayed and enslaved them. They are tall, thin to a degree that would be consider anorexic, have antlers or horns and a mouth full of shark-like teeth.

ITS BEHIND YOU

For my main Sci-Fi setting, set in 2600.

Posthumans: The primary descendant of the original human race after the original Sun (referred to as Helios G 2 V retroactively) imploded in 2483. Luckily, this was long after humans had begun colonizing other planets. Posthumans are near identical to humans, aside from a greater withstanding of G-Forces and a slightly different reaction to gravitational differences. Basically, they're humans who have evolved over the centuries to better hold up against the rigors of space.

Vaegir: Vaegir (they sometimes call themselves Transhumans) were originally a basic offshoot off humans, specifically ones bred with better radiation resistance due to the planets of their origin. After a very serious virus scare, of which the Vaegir were found to be the unwitting carriers (yet immune themselves), the Posthumans began rounding them up, and deposited them on one single barren planet, Poseidon XIX. The surface was then mostly nuked, to ensure the death of the virus. While the virus did eventually fade, the Vaegir survived, and even thrived, maintaining a bitterness towards their human brethren. They are essentially humans, though with better resistance to most radiation, as well as a tendency to have more developed brains. Posideon XIX has high gravity, which has led Vaegir to be more physically capable as well, to the point where it barely shows through physicality. They are primarily merchants and traders, and the majority of their equipment is factory made, ensuring it's hardiness and quantity, but lacking in art or finesse.

Esuarian: The Esuarian are a race of blue-gray skinned creatures, noseless, with various other non-human features. They are originated from the planet Esaurus, where they've built up their civilization over the past thousands of years. They are highly cultured, and put great importance on the power of the mind. Due to the fact that they don't communicate emotions the same way humans do (physically), they are often seen as emotionless or apathetic. The opposite is true, it's just that most species cannot detect changes in emotion for them. They believe nature is a wonderful thing, and celebrate it. Their technology is quite artistic and detailed.

[?] Saurian: The Saurian are an expansionistic species of hard-skinned reptile like creatures. They are bipedal, with grey to dark red skin. Their culture is proud, celebrating warriors, honor, and prowess in battle. They have little concern with the morals of fighting, and they're weapons reflect this by being made to inflict maximum pain and damage. They stand taller and broader than humans, and their technology is advanced, efficient and menacing in design. They are rarely on good terms with other civilizations.

Wyliwr: The Wyliwr are a race of lower technology humanoids, with great dexterity and agility. They worship a pantheon, use science as magic (besides using actual magic as well), and have a long and bloody history with the Saurians. They are cunning and witty, sharp-minded and careful-footed. They have cold colored skin, whether it be blue, Caucasian, or dark. They vary in the amount of animalistic traits they have physically, including tails, less digits, fangs, and pointed ears.

"To love at all is to be vulnerable." - C.S. Lewis

• Fae: roughly five feet tall and lightly build, the fae are a physically weak but magically powerful race. They have white to veyr light bue skin, a crystalline "third eye" (which is actually a magic-sensitive organ that allows them to perceive magical energy) on their forehead and a pair of translucent wings on their backs. The wings are non-functional, though their ancestors may have been able to use them to fly. All Fae are capable of manipulating magical energy, and their civilisation posessed an advanced understanding of magic, which they used to create many wonderous things. However, that wasn't enough to save them when the Demons invaded the world, and as far as anybody knows the Fae are now extinct, the civilisation wiped out by the Demons.

• Demons: the Demons are an exceptionally varied race, with individuals varying greatly in appearance. All Demons ahve certain common traits, tho: hands with four clawed fingers, feet with cloven hooves, a tail, a pair of horns which sprout eighter form the sides of their head or form their forehead (in some rare cases individuals with two sets horns are born. This is considered a lucky signs by the Demons) and more pointy shark-like teeth than one would think could fit in their mouths. Things like the appearance of the tail and horns or skin colour vary wildly (the most common skin colour is red or gray, but blue, green or white are not uncommon eighter). All Demons are able to use magic in some capacity, but only a minority are powerful enough magic users to truly cast spells (unlike the Fae, who were all spellcasters). Demons are not native to the world, having arrived thousands of years ago through a dimensional portal. Not even the Demons themselves remember what their original homeworld was like, though it was probably not a very nice place. They fought against the native Fae, eventually destroying them, but only at a great cost. The war left the world devastated, the Demon King dead, and the surviving forces in a state of disarray. The Demons are organised into seven Legions, which were originally military formations led by one of the Demon King's generals, but these days act like nations in all regards. The Legions have spent the millenias following the death of the Demon king fighting eachother for power.

• Dark Fae: Turn sout the Fae weren't quite as dead as everybody thought. Some managed to survive in secret hiding places built deep underground. However, the cataclysmic end of the war heavily damaged these shelters, killing many Fae and leaving the rest trapped and doomed to die a slow death. Or so it would have been had a young priestess not received a vision that promised them salvation. Following her orders, largely because they had nothing to lose, the Fae dug deeper, eventually finding an enormous underground lake. The priestess claimed that her vision was given by a god that slept in the bottom of the lake and that the god had saved them in exchange for servitude. The Fae built a great city inside the cavern and formed a new religion around the worship of the god of the lake. Thousands of years of living underground, as possibly other, more sinister forces, have changed the appearance of the Dark Fae, as they are now called. They have harirless, hunched over and have large extremely light-sensitive eyes (any Dark Fae that venture on the surface have to wear goggles to keep the light from blinding them), and have lost the wings their ancestors had. The crystal on their forehead has transformed into an organ similar to an anglerfish's lure, which they can make glow with faint light to allow navigation in the dark. They also possess webebd hands and feet and sharp-needle-like teeth. The exception are their religious leaders, a caste of priestesses who have retained their original appearance. However, that is only skin-deep, as their ritual of initiation involves taking into themselves a part of their gods essence, and the oldest among them are little more than empty shells housing something utterly alien. While the Demons Legions fight among themselves, the Dark Fae are building their forces, preparing to take back the surface world and bring about the awakening of their sleeping god. All things considered, the Demons might veyr well be the lesser evil.

Here are some of the egos and shells found in our solar system in one of my stories.

Egos are programs capable of self-awareness. The dominate theory is that the definition of "you" or "me" rests in the software of the mind. Because of this, it is able to be transferred or backed up with little issue.

Infolife: People who have forsaken physical bodies all together and chose to life on the net. Long ago, these people relied on destructive downloading to escape their bodies and had to fight in court for their rights as transhuman beings. These venerable egos still exist, but have suffered from gradual data corruption.

Uplift: Formerly non-sapient races that had their mental faculties augmented. Apes were the first to be uplifted, but octopi are currently the most common uplifts due to their dexterity in microgravity.

AGI: Artificial General Intelligence. Separate from other AI due to their self awareness, AGI were among the first to utilize the infolife infrastructure to move from shell to shell.

Pod: Originally bioroids grown in vats, the practice of exogenesis soon became ubiquitous enough to not warrant mention. These egos originate from biological systems, but are separate from uplifts because they originate from human stock.

Shells are the bodies that egos inhabit. Because consciousness resides in the software of the mind, it is possible to transfer from one shell to another. Every shell contains software of its own to assist a user in using the shell.

Bioshell: These are shells that are grown as a single organism. Although this limits the level of alterations available because it can only be altered on a chemical level, bioshells are usually able to reproduce with anything compatible.

Synthshell These are shells made from individually printed or grown organs. Although they are able to sustain some outlandish designs impossible to make in bioshells, most are unable to reproduce. The majority of bioshells aren't made with their own egos.

Cybershell: These are shells made from entirely inorganic components. These are the most versatile shells available and can be produced is basic industrial nanofoundries. Because they are built with utility in mind, you're more likely to see a ball of arms than you are to see a perfectly humanoid cybershell.

This looks like fun, here are the dominant sentient races of my constructed world, Arcane Realm also known as the planet Kaf. It's a fantasy world that has roughly modern world & near future technology so a lot sci fi tropes show up as well. Anyways,

Jinn are gendered spirit creatures that naturally exist as a spiritually charged ionized particle mass of plasma, labelled in most ancient texts as smokeless fire. A jinni’s natural body appears as a intangible mist or flame. To interact with stable matter, and create genetic information to procreate, and eat to gain said material,they can form a stable corporeal body. They can shape their physical bodies into nearly any substance they can imagine. Within this species there are various races or ethnic groups:

• Marid: Historically royal and privileged class. Have a natural affinity for water and live near the sea.
• Ifrit: Had a historical bad rep but began to prove they worth to other jinn. Fire affinity.
• Si'lat:The most intelligent and expert shape-shifters. They have a natural affinity for wind and electricity and the most interest in the relations of other species.

Faye They have pointed ears and large insect or bird like wings from their backs to fly looking a lot like fairies.They are born small and stay roughly around eight inches to a foot high during childhood. By puberty, they have rapid growth spurts until they hit their adult size, about 3 and a half feet tall.In addition they have magnetic material in parts of their bones which allows they to generate magnetic lift, and navigate using the planet's magnetic field while flying.

Merfolk Merfolk have the upper torsos of humans or faye and lower halves consisting of the tail and fins that resemble fish or whales. Although they have lungs as adults, they started off with gills as babies which changed during early childhood and afterwards they breathe water through their moist skin. Merfolk aren't as limited on land as their tails will quickly reform into legs after they leave the water and, likewise, their legs will quickly reform into a tail when they renter water.

Lamia They are a female only species that appear as humanoids down to their hips which then resemble a snake's tail. While their upper torso are predominately covered in skin, they may have a few small scaled regions near their ears or chins.Some may have typical round ears or pointed ones similar to faye. Many have eyes which are slit pupils but round pupils are also common. Their bodies below their hips are a scaled snake-like tail typically 20-28ft in length. Believed to be descended from naga, a similar species which had both sexes, male and female.

(Kaf) Humans Kaf Humans or Homo prehensus are the species of humans that live on the planet, Kaf. On their native planet, they are refered to simply as 'humans' by other sentient species. Humans of Kaf are adapted to arboreal locomotion and life in the trees, as seen by their physical adaptations.

Prehensus have almost the same overall appearance as the human species but their prehensile feet resemble a cross between simian feet and human hands with an opposable toe to the side. A fully prehensile tail extends from the lower base of spine and sports a fine layer of hair, the same color as that on their head.

They also tend to be shorter than most adult humans on average, closer to the size of early adolescents. Despite the variations in skin color, Kaf humans tend to have more intermediate shades with pale or very dark skin being rare although lighter shades of skin are more common in children and some females. The fingers of their hands appear somewhat long for their hand size up close and their knuckles are a bit bulky. Although typical humans arms spans are equal to or just less than their height, Kaf humans arm spans are longer than their heights, typically four to seven inches longer.

Kami Spiritual beings that embody and represent forces of the natural world such as elements in nature, animals, creationary forces in the universe, etc. Various things kami are a part of include natural phenomena like wind and thunder; natural objects like the sun, mountains, rivers, trees, and rocks; some animals; and ancestral spirits. There are also kami that are or can become anthropomorphic spirits, with nobility and authority and can be considered deities.

• Worldly kami take on human like forms when physical have two forms:
  • naga-mitama: a gentle default state that keeps mental/emotional balance
  • ara-mitama: assertive form that draws out essence to achieve full potential of abilities and a superhuman physical state and regenerative immortality while in the state
• Youkai-

Human-like:

• Oni-giants with small horns on heads
• Rokurokubi-people with elastic necks
• Yuki-Onna: woman only race with affinity for ice and snow

The animal-like Henge:

• Kitsune/Huli Jing/Gumiho (fox)
• Okami/Inugami (wolf/dog)
• Tanuki (racoon dog)
• Tengu (crows)
• Bakeneko (cats)
• Jorogumo (women only spiders)

Automatons A biomechanical race composed of nanites that were originally created to perform complex calculations but only charged with enough magic to move molecules around. Eventually these nanites form a mutual relationship with organic cells by maintaining bodily functions them in exchange for replenishable chemical energy to act as the being's nervous system. Most are small in stature in order to conserve internal energy. From the outside they have organic skin and a skeleton of hard but light metal.In place of ears are a headpiece that looks identical to headphones. In addition, most have colored tattoos on their skin that follows the pattern of their inner circuitry. Because their nanites programming are linked together by the person's consciousness, they can temporarily allow the being to have full voluntary control over involuntary functions in emergencies (breathing, blood flow, pain, muscle tension,etc.) There are two factions:

• Fauna: Their nanites construct animal cells and they appear as small cyborganic humans, roughly the size of faye.
• Flora: Their nanites construct plant cells cells and they appear as cyborganic plant-like beings.

Elemental(fire,ice,lighting) dragons that resemble western ones along with long (east asian dragons) also exist on the planet.

Originally nearly all generic fantasy beings besides they ones above (elves, dwarves, ogres, demons, centaurs, etc.) existed on the planet but large scale wars throughout the ages reduced the sentient species count to its current form to instill the need for civil political relations.

edited 25th Mar '14 7:19:47 PM by JDTcreates

All of space and time, everything that ever was and could have been... and there's still nothing on tv

All of these post's races are interesting and fun to read.

There is no broom closet ending

My fantasy D&D setting, Omni-Terra, consists of the following races:

• Human: Humans are the most widespread race on Omni-Terra, but also one of the youngest. They tend to dominate wherever they visit, they bread relatively quickly, and they are interested in other cultures. Thus, they manages to spread to all over Omni-Terra. However, a few nationalities quickly developed.
  • Aurentinian: The Aurentinians are fair-to-olive skinned trader folk from the empire of Aurentine, to the south of Omni-Terra. However, when Aurentine fell to the armies of the undead Fallen Ones, the Aurentinians were forced to leave, and thus colonized the rest of Omni-Terra. They set up their new capital far to the north, in the eastern port city of Argentry. The Aurentinians soon became the dominant culture on Omni-Terra, encroaching on other nations like Linatharan and Zakudo.
  • Zakudan: These xenophobic warrior-poet types are found to the southeast, on the remote archipelago nation of Zakudo. Until very recently, they avoided all contact with the outside world. They are spiritual and practice a form of magic unknown among humans other than the Zakudans; a sort of nature magic more reminiscent of sky elven druidism than the well-known hill elven arcane magic. They are led by an emperor, who is thought to be a dragon in human form. They are also imperialistic, seeking to bring others to their way of thinking. For this reason, the "twin empires" Aurentine and Zakudo are met with disdain from non-human peoples of Omni-Terra.
  • Eisvelti: The stocky and pale Eisvelti are known from the far north, in the frozen kingdom of Eisvelt. Despite their willingness to fight and their eagerness to prove themselves in battle, when they are in polite company they are a solemn people, showing great honor in death in general. Their dead are placed in above-ground tombs, since the ground is too hard and cold for burying the dead. In addition, Eisvelti practice a sort of spiritual necromancy, focused on letting spirits go to rest.
  • Kaliri: The people of Al-Kalir are descended partially from Aurentinian scouts looking for a new place to live. When they settled on an oasis in the Kaliri Peninsula on the Western Wastes, they founded the city of Al-Kalir, a mercantile trade hub in the sandy wastelands. They are olive-to-dark skinned and are an incredibly hedonistic people, even by the standards of Aurentine.
• Elves: The elves of the south are widely considered to be the most wise peoples in all of Omni-Terra. Though this isn't necessarily true, the kene are an ancient folk known from the dawn of the world. Four main types of elf are known in Omni-Terra, though they are all descended from the Ilsene, the dawn elves.
  • Hill elves: A magical folk, the pale-skinned, blonde Linatharene are descended from the dawn elves that abandoned the city of Merae as it was flooded. The hill elves have an immense sense of pride about them, which makes them hard to put up with by most races of Omni-Terra. Their great city of Liniatha sits in the primeval forest of Linatharan, an intensely magical place sitting on an area where many ley lines intersect.
  • Sky elves: The stoic sky elves, or Drakorene, resemble olive-toned hill elves, with three major differences. First, their eyes are green instead of the hill elven blue. Second, they have sharp talons like an eagle's on their feet. Finally, they have large, condor-like wings on their back. The sky elves live far away from other races, high in the Bolgdan mountains. They worship dragons, and have a deeply spiritual way of life, harnessing the power of nature.
  • Sea elves: The Merene sea elves are descended from the dawn elves that remained in Merae when it was flooded. Their great city and the enormous valley that it sat in eventually became Omni-Terra's Central Sea. For this reason, the sea elves are blue-skinned, have web-hands, and fins instead of pointed elf-like ears. In addition, their eyes and hair are black, and they can switch between a tail and legs at will. Sea elves are highly emotional and have a zest for life, but can be easily hurt or angered.
  • Blood elves: The Dorene are descended from sky elves who got lost in the Underbolg caverns beneath the Bolgdan mountains. Tainted by an unknown power, the blood elves' skin soon turned dark, their eyes red, and their bird-like wings became those of a bat. They also craved blood. These vampiric creatures are depraved shells of their former selves, which makes traversing the Underbolg incredibly dangerous.
• Santorin: This short but proud race is often derogatorily referred to as "halfling" by the Aurentinians, because of their height. They resemble human children, but with olive-toned skin, large feet, pointed ears, and long black hair. The santorin have no small amount of ire about this, which is why the proud nation of Santorem mostly keeps Aurentinian traders out. Like the Aurentinians, the santorin are a race of traders and explorers, and the Santorin navy is one of the most feared in Omni-Terra.
• Dwarves: The dwarves of the Underbolg are a bizarre race. They are actually clay constructs, formed by their god Bolg and appearing every so often from the Greatforge in the center of the Underbolg. No one knows how long the dwarves have been tunneling the Underbolg, but it extends like a giant web underneath the entirety of Omni-Terra. The dwarves are a tunnel-folk, constantly building tunnels, with almost a single-minded drive. Some dwarves go to the surface and interact with other races, but the vast majority keep digging tunnels and collecting untold riches in the process.
• Oni: Demonic folk from another realm, the oni resemble monstrous, great-sized humans with colorful skin, sharp tusks, and thick shaggy hair. No one knows which realm the oni hail from, but their influence is well known.
  • Akumajin: When oni magic influences the development of other races, such as humans and elves, akumajin are the result. They resemble larger, stockier humans with brightly-colored skin, slightly sharpened teeth, and thick hair. However, unlike the demonic oni, they themselves are not predisposed to be good or evil. Their appearance and their tendency for violence means they are shunned by the majority of Omni-Terra, leading the akumajin to find a way to bring themselves justice.
• Beastfolk: These races are lumped together by humans to describe races that resemble humanoid animals.
  • Zao: The zao are a wise mantis-folk about the height of a human child, with wide yellow eyes and a centauroid body posture (two arms, four thin legs). They are native to the Lin'taki jungle, a thick rainforest between Santorin and the Zakudan-Linatharene border territory of Nanako. They prefer not to fight, but have developed a way of life known as True Peace. Almost resembling a cross between Buddhism and Taoism, the zao teach that everything has a place in the world.
    • Shadow Clan: Not all zao believe in the way of True Peace. Like their ancestors before the way of True Peace, the Shadow Clan are ruthless predators. They attack without being seen, they strike before they are even known, their true motives are whispers in the wind. Very little is known about these almost ninja-like assassins, but they work for the highest bidder.
  • Sarui: These baboon-like humanoids are found mainly in the snowy areas of Rossick, a frozen tundra nearby the south pole, and Nanako, a steppeland with sparse forest cover. They are a fierce warrior people, who believe in shamanistic spirits being present in everything. However, the Zakudans quickly made them a target, and many sarui were captured and enslaved. After a long while in slavery, the captive sarui staged a revolt, and they are now freed from captivity. Many have mellowed out after generations under the Zakudans' control.
  • Ghillah: The ghillah are native to the Western Wastes, the largest desert on Omni-Terra. They are a stocky lizard-like folk who live off of the land. They and their great pack-drake caravans run across the desert, from the Starplains to Santorem. They as a people always keep their faces hidden, only revealing it to direct family or lovers. The ghillah have a reputation across the land as thieves and scoundrels, and their policy of survival-above-all-else seems to support it, though the ghillah are not evil.

I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.

Using these races for me and my buddy's story project. The world is called Ser, which in many languages, according to my English edition of the authoritative Wiktionary, means to be or exist (verb) or being (noun).

Kinsmen are the "human" analogue, but never really called that to equalise with the other races. There's two main races of humans so far.

Glaceans are the main human race and rulers of the Hegemonic Rising Empire. They're closest to medieval Europe in terms of culture and appearance, along with some Roman Empire and some Old Norse. Typical Imperial inspiration. All the other races listed save one are subject to this empire, which currently spans the entire country-sized landmass. Their religion is pantheon-based, which was not formally organised until they started expanding their rule. They're a progressive people who would more readily shed tradition in favour of advancement, which they see as ultimately beneficial. They tend to either keep their dead in mausoleums or barrows, or leave a memorial where the person died, the latter usually done when there's no body found. The mausoleums themselves are usually for public use and so their location is irrelevant to where the person actually died, unless you're rich or influential enough to get your own built nearby.

Jozen are the second human race. They have bad relations with the Empire because of their fighting spirit when it comes to their beliefs. The Empire employs beliefs and laws the Jozen can't really sit down with and this has caused friction between them throughout the years. They're very Asian-influenced (as you can see, I'm not really basing the interracial relationships on real world history ) but their religion is based more on Judeo-Christianity. It was just my way of not creating an immediate association to Crystal Dragon Jesus via its ties to European culture. Whether this is effective or not, we'll see...

Anyway, the Jozen are generally very strict about keeping traditions, which is why the Empire is having trouble getting them to cooperate with everything. Their stand on keeping their beliefs and way of life may create friction, but it also makes for a highly disciplined race to even an individual level, who can be the most principled and analytical of people, but it can also make for the most narrow-minded. They bury their dead in coffins - dust to dust and all that. Instead of public burial sites like the Glaceans, they usually have ancestral graveyards kept within some reasonable distance from the family residence. Because of this Jozen families very rarely move houses, preferring to refurbish, and any house is likely the same one used by that same family since many generations. Community graveyards holding multiple family lines are an acceptable alternative, but the former is much preferred if you can acquire the land for it.

The most notable thing about kinsmen that distinguishes them from our real world humans is their insanely rigid genetics when it comes to hair. All Jozen are born with black hair, and all Glaceans born with blonde or light brown hair, period. When a kinsmen mixes with another race, the offspring produced will be have a completely different, specific hair colour, and only that, the colour differing depending on the race of the other parent. The Empire's values are largely painted by this observation, which aided in their discrimination against the Jozen. Racism in Ser is not based on the colour of your skin, but on your hair. And it happens to be the default human race that practices this bias too, but let's drop that topic real quick before it gets messy. Going from this...

Silverheads are half-Jozen, half-Glacean kinsmen. They're not looked very highly upon, but can sometimes still be treated better than a Jozen by the Empire, if only for the fact that half of them is Glacean. The treatment depends on the beholder. As the name implies, their hair is silvery grey, which is strange as the parent's hair colours are not expected to mix that way. Another one of the mysteries of Ser, I suppose.

Elves, or Faydred are, well, elves. The only ones known at the start of the story are tree elves, which are pretty much like your classic vanilla wood elves. Living in the forest, archery, the works. The only thing making them somewhat original is that their culture is based more on India, such as in their designs. Unlike usual elf portrayals, they're probably the least-hated race, your common elf being pretty friendly, if a bit spineless. The Empire actually loves elves because of the cultural lens they see their world through. As said earlier about the kinsmen and hair, the Empire notice this and so their culture is painted by this belief. I haven't actually gotten around to what their hair colour is though (I only have one elven main character in an ensemble so far and I haven't figured out her colour palette, since it's a visual medium), but whatever it is the Glaceans like it for some cultural or mythological reason. Compared to the other races, an elf citizen may be second only to a pure-bred Glacean in terms of rights, and there's no notable stigma against half-elves. Well, half Glacean-half elf people anyway.

Having great respect for the forest, their beliefs and customs reflect that too. Like the Jozen, they practice burial, but they do so without a coffin. They wrap the body in cloth - the material of which is specifically for that purpose alone - and then bury it some feet below, and then they plant a seed on the ground directly above the body. This symbolises their hope in comfort that life may spring in spite of - or even in the face of - death.

The tree elves make very resourceful use of their forest environment, while also trying to actually destroy minimal plant growth in the process. As such, their main trade export isn't wood as one might expect, but rather dyes and produce that occur uniquely to their forest home. They're also the primary if not main source of silk in the country. Because of this, elven fashion and art is very colourful, and their cloth products were so sought after in the past that they're pretty common wear now.

They practically never do any sort of extensive deforestation without the intention of replanting. They also take heavy advantage of their good relationship with the Empire to monitor the chopping down of trees within their own land, often preferring that the Glaceans turn to their own local trees as sources of wood. This can be somewhat attributed to the tree elves' rather stereotypical mindset of "If it's not my problem I'm staying out of it and I don't mind." They're not at all xenophobic as the vanilla version goes, but they do prefer non-conflict, even if it means having to give up certain personal liberties. They usually only begin to draw the line when a conflict is above the individual level, such as involving their forest home or their race, but even then they vastly prefer diplomacy and appeasement to outright combat.

As said about the whole kinsmen breeding theory one-oh-one (it's fantastic, just go with it), half-elves will be immediately identified by their hair colour, though it's possible that since they're only half-kinsmen, they may achieve a greater variety of hair colours as the generations pass (Pssst, by the way, I know NEXT TO NOTHING ABOUT GENETICS).

The only reason non-elf people make any distinction between just "elf" and "tree elf" is because the tree elves have a pretty well-preserved history, telling of other elf races, one of them being the volfir, or ash elves. These elves are actually based more on dwarves culturally wise, but they still look like classic dark elves. Their culture is based around blacksmithing and mining, along with rumours of technological advancement far beyond any other race. The last mention of them was in records saying they left for far-off lands, so no one's seen them yet, meaning they're not under the Empire. Personality-wise, they're very different from dwarves, so it's more of a mix of this and dark elves.

Telkith are a race of Little Bit Beastly people who dwell around the rocky and desert areas of the Empire's territory. They have some Middle Eastern influences in them, but in order to distinguish them from the India-inspired elves they're mostly based on Africa and Australian Aborigines. They're also pretty much the coolest race (as I'd think a layman audience would react anyway) because they travel using Le Parkour and their combat system is also based on Combat Parkour. This is due to their environment, having to traverse dangerous rocky terrain, so in a way they're kinda like mountain goat people. Their belief system also revolves around the wind, and their parkour ways are implemented into it, as a way of making yourself ride the wind, or something like that.

While not exactly nomadic, they're not ones to cling to material things. They believe the past should be left to the past, but also place great importance on the community, and so because of this they usually don't hold grudges for personal reasons, but rather because someone was wronged, which is akin to tainting the community. They punish thieves much more heavily compared to other races due to the view that they're selfishly taking resources that are meant to be for the benefit of the collective whole. The telkith cremate their dead, but that's just a method to the true ends - scattering their ashes into the wind as a kind of farewell.

Despite their more beastlike appearance, it's a big misconception to think they have purely animistic beliefs. Surprisingly, the telkith maintain a pretty clear distinction between themselves and animals. They treat livestock as livestock, and pets as pets. In fact, much of their armour is leather-based, and they make heavy use of herding and using hides and other parts for personal use and for trade. The common discrimination they receive which compares them to animals or being, ahem, very friendly with them, if you actually know their culture, is pretty much completely unfounded, and is just flimsily based on their appearance. Just like in real life!

EDIT: That's quite a lot of variety you have there. Interesting stuff.

edited 28th May '14 12:42:20 AM by Nadir

Working on a manga. With pictures! All feedback welcome!

IGNORE THIS!

edited 25th Jun '14 10:32:12 AM by Eagal

You fell victim to one of the classic blunders!

Booorinnnng. Sorry I couldn't resist

ITS BEHIND YOU

Well, my old setting does contain some varieties of sentient races. I'm not very imaginative though, so here goes. From a near industrial revolution fantasy world of mine.

Human - Well, what else?

Flei - These mutants exist to remind what happened a century ago when the Lakach plague arrived at the Haven continent. They have translucent skin with heavy blue tint, deep blue blood, a very thinly frame, fragile bones, no sexual characteristics whatsoever, and immense magical power. Unlike humans, whose population contain somewhere around 30% of magic capable individual, every flei are born with magical talent, and nearly all of them are way stronger than even the best human mages, able to ignore the rules of sorcery and the need for formulae and calculation and instead directly interfere with reality, an art known as 'raw magic'. This earns them a lot of fear, naturally.

Every human has a small chance, somewhere around 1 in 100000, to give birth to a flei child. The fleis themselves are completely sterile, and in fact are almost genderless. It's speculated that given a few more generations, the fleis may gain the ability to reproduce, but by then, they'll probably not resemble anything humanoid anymore.

Fleis are heavily monitored by the governments of the Haven continent. The two empires have their own specific measures in controlling the 'rotskins', and the Anzus Institute of Sorcery, the central organization of mages of the continent, basically has a leash system for these mutants. All fleis are required to be branded, recorded, and sanctioned, in order to reduce their magical power and to help with hunting one down should the need arises. Some Witch Hunter sects of Anzus are specialized in hunting fleis.

Panaden - The ancients. The panadens live in a grand sky fortress, and have existed long before even when the first apes on the world of Minir were born. They resembles humanoid giant birds, decorated in plate armor from head to ankle, but their wings look skeletal, fleshless and featherless. Still, they are fully capable of flight. The panadens also have natural control over fire and wind. All in all, a fearsome warrior race.

There's only one group of panadens at any given time, which is the Firestorm Legion, so their entire 'culture' can be traced back easily. They are in fact creations of the Seraphs, charged with watching over the worlds. They would normally keep to themselves, but had to interferewith humanity on the world of Minir, specifically of the Haven continent, when the Lakach arrived.

edited 2nd Jun '14 6:37:27 PM by arreimil

On the foundation of glass a dream is built. And, like glass, it shatters.

• Humans: Humans living on the continent of Faralon are your average medieval-ish European-ish fantasy humans. They rule multiple nations, centered mostly on the eastern coast of Faralon. They're the most numerous race on the continent (discounting Goblins, but nobody cares about Goblins), but they are often divided and fighting among themselves. There is another major group of humans as well, living in the southeastern continent of Ethys. Ethysians have darker skin and somewhat different facial features than the Faraloni (think the difference in appearance between Europeans and Africans). Their civilisation is ruled by a caste of mage-priests and they are very skilled in astrology and enchanting, though less skilled than the Faraloni in metalworking. Due to there being a large ocean between them, not much contact has taken place between the two groups of humans.
• Elves: Elves primarily live on plains and forests of central Faralon. They are mostly nomadic, maintaining only a few permanent settlements. Many old human legends portray elves as posessing incredible magical powers, and although such claims are considered as just legends and fairytales, elves are still subject to much superstision. On one hand, this has lead to humans being unwilling to trespass on elves lands, but it also means that elves are often shunned or feared by humans. Elven society seems simple compared to humans; they are split into small clans that wander around the elven lands, occasionally meeting with other clans to trade and share news. Their technology is also simple, but one should not underestimate the elves: though the legends have certainly excagerated their magical abilities, elven shamans do possess powerful magic (interestingly, elves do not seem have wizards, their spell casters instead gaining their powers various nature spirits), and elven rangers are masters of stealth and ambush.
• Dwarves: Dwarvers, or Dor'fi (sons of stone), as they call themselves are an ancient culture with tradions going back thousands of years. They are master engineers and also possess great knowlege of magical arts (although dwarf wizards are rare, as mosht instead use their skills to create magical runes and artefacts). They are famous for their imposing strongholds carved into the tall mountains that run along the western coast of Faralon, although outsiders might be suprised to find out that not all dwarves live deep underground: the slopes around their strongholds are filled with terraced fields for raising crops, and small villages populated by the dwarven farmers that tend to them (though the buildings in these villages are typically constructed underground). The dwarves' original homeland was across the westen sea, but thousands of years ago they abandoned it and sailed east to Faralon. Nobody but the dwarves know what happened to their old homeland, and being notoriously insular folk, they aren't sharing. It is unlikely they left their lands willingly, though. The dwarven society is very rigid and hidebound. They have a complex bureoucracy that tradition dictates must be followed to a letter. The dwarves have long memories (and keep extensive records), so they remember those who have wronged them or helped tham, and are said to always pay their dues, both in good and ill. They place great value on written word, and consider breaking a written contract or destroyig written records to be the gravest of sins. Their society is also strongly divided into castes: warriors, farmers, smiths and lorekeepers (ie. mages and bureucrats). All castes are considered to be of equal importance to the society, but there is no ability to switch between castes (so if your parents were smiths and you don't want to be one yourself, tough luck).
• Dark Elves: Most Faraloni humans are unaware of the existence of the dark elves, and even those who know of their existance know little of their origins, which is a shames as a lot of things would make more sense if they knew. So far the only confirmed contacts between Faraloni and dark elves have been raiding parties attacking isolated villages in the sparcely populated north. The true scope of the threat these attack represent is uknown to all but a select few. Thousands of years ago, the elves posessed an extremely advanced civilization. Using their natural affinity to magic, they created all sorts of magic artefacts. Their greatest invention, however, was a way to safely harness the energies of the Void, the place outside the bouns of reality. This gave the elves an effectively limitless source of magical power, allowing them to create wonders like of which the world had never seen before or since. However, such power came with a price: overuse of Void energies drew the attention of the Gods of the Outer Void, eldritch beings of immesureable power. Whether they even recogniced the existence of the elves is doubtful, but as their gaze fell upon the world, the elven civilization died. Reality war torn open, creating a rift in the very fabric of existance that persists to this day, and the great cities of the elves were obliterated in a storm of eldritch energy. The survivors swore to never repeat their mistake that almost destroyed the whole world, opting to live simpe lives in peace with nature rather than risk falling to their hubris again. However, unkown to them, another group of elves had somehow survived in the wasteland that used to be the heart of their empire. Most were twisted and driven insane by the energies of the Void coursing though their bodies. These dark elves, as they came to be called, worship the Gods of the Void, believing the destruction of their old empire to have been divine punishment, and seek to remake the world in the image of the gods. They are responsible for the destruction of the old dwarven homeland, having launched a crusade to conquer the dwarven empire when they were weakened by the cataclysm. Now the High Priestess of the Outer Gods has declared another crusade, to spread the will of the Gods across the world. Wast armies of dark elves, voidspawn horrors and other terrible creatures are now heading towards Faralon, intending to crush the unbeliever and remake the world in the image of their mad gods.

edited 3rd Jun '14 10:38:17 AM by Nomic

I've written a freaking Wikipedia article on the Draconics.

Species: Draconic

Male: Draconic

Female: Draconique

Child: Dracon

Plural: Draconics (Male/Mixed Gender)

Draconiques (Female)

Dracons (Children)

Appearance:

Draconics are tall dragon-like bipedal creatures with large wings, usually with a wingspan of around ten metres for an adult male and very expressive eyes and ears. The species has feline-like eyes with no visible sclera and vertical slit pupils. Their ears are pointed at the tip and are positioned high and far back on their heads.

Draconics on average have an adult height of six to eight feet. Their bodies are covered in a light, strong but brittle cartilage like armouring material that is not very sensitive to touch. This material covers every part of their bodies except their hands, feet, neck and head. They have clawed hands and feet, they have five claws on each foot, four in place of toes and one on the heel. Their fingers are very long, the ‘middle’ and ‘ring’ fingers are around the same length and the ‘ring’ and ‘little’ fingers move independently.

They have long tails with a large triangular scale at the tip. The scale, called the Isosceles, has a blunt tip and sharp edges. They have muscular limbs and their wings have a thin bone frame with a large supporting bone. This bone is the largest in the body and rests over the arms during flight.

Their colouration varies with their location, Mountain dwelling groups tend to be purple, Coast dwelling groups tend to be blue, Cave dwelling groups tend to be of a similar colour to the rock the cave is formed from and blue, Volcano dwelling groups tend to be red and dark grey/black, Plains dwelling groups tend to be of a similar colour to the grasses and plants in the area they live in, Southern dwelling groups tend to be shades of pink and light red like the brightly coloured flowers that grow in the hotter climate and Desert dwelling groups tend to be sandy coloured. There seems to be no trend with Highland dwelling groups. They have a pale, usually white, area on their chests and abdomens where the armouring is thinner and flexible. In their young, the shape of the top of this area, whether it is rounded or squared, is one of the indicators of gender visible when clothed.

Gender Differences:

Draconics and Draconiques have a few noticeable differences aside from the typical gender differences. Draconics have permanent claws on their hands which grow back very quickly if broken. Draconiques only have claws on their hands from August until the following May and they grow back slowly if broken. Draconiques also have a higher concentration of the movement activated chemical in their blood, allowing them to move faster. They also typically have smaller builds and an adult height of between five and seven feet.

Anatomy:

Draconics are not actually capable of true flight; the closest they are able to achieve is gliding. The membrane of their wings contains many blood vessels; a torn wing membrane is a very serious injury with a 75% mortality rate. A broken wing is also a serious injury. Many individuals who suffer a wing injury will not be able to glide even after a successful recovery. The healthy body temperature for the average Draconic is 42°C. The blood of a Draconic is a dull green and contains a chemical that behaves similarly to adrenaline that is activated by motion allowing them to move at lightning speeds. They carry their offspring for eight months and have an infant mortality rate of 16 in every 1000. Females go through a 14 month period of sterility following the birth of a child; this period is longer for multiple births. They are omnivorous, though vegetation makes up only 18% of their diet in plentiful times.

Cultural Beliefs:

The Draconics have a complex system of deities in their mythology; the deities are a combination of immortal, semi-immortal and mortal beings and have titles describing their role in serving the Draconics. The benevolent deities reside in the high realm and the malevolent deities reside in the low realm. There are two deities who do not have a permanent residence in either realm, the Gatekeeper and his mate the Guide. The placement of the deities can be puzzling, for example, the Trickster, Eion, is placed in the Low Realm after his death when in life he resided in the High Realm and was largely benevolent despite his trickery.

The main deities in their pantheon are Seone the Creator, Naone the Destroyer, Yara the Protector, Cyreus the Defender, Addon the Healer, Semia the Observer, Eion the Trickster, Chalaya the Thief, Sotar the Gatekeeper, Tirara the Guide, Celhena the Carer, Raphy the Successor and Lacarus the Deserter.

Incomplete, but eh, it's already long...

edited 4th Jun '14 3:29:05 PM by Arcee6

RIP Leonard Nimoy 26/03/1931 - 27/02/2015

Imperial Signetory Races

• Humans: Garden variety Plains Ape. Neither as good at magic as Elves, nor as good at machinery as Dwarves. A very lackluster civilization
• Elves: Beautiful and capricious, Elves have a deep connection to nature, specifically water.
• Dwarves: Stout mountain folk with a legendary affinity for good food, lots of booze, and shiny objects.

Dwarf government is basically the USSR if the national language was Gaelic (for the Scottish accent) instead of Russian. And everyone was a Spark.

• Orcks: Brutish mercenaries; distrustful of magic and those who use it. Once employed by dragons as enforcers due to their naturally intimidating stature and belligerent temperament; although their signing of the Imperial Pact now precludes this.
• Kobolds: Quasi-sentient, dog-headed humanoids. Each tribe corresponds to a species of wild dog. (wolves, foxes, coyotes, jackals, and dingoes)
• Nekoma: Quasi-sentient, cat-headed humanoids. Each tribe corresponds to a species of Great Cat (lions, tigers, lynxes, leopards)

Basically, Kobolds and Nekomata are Keidrans if they were Russian peasants; have a special relationship with the Dwarves, for teaching them Socialism, and Orcks since they used to be the dragons Slave Mooks alongside them.

• Ghouls: A canniballistic evolutionary offshoot of humans, ghouls are the result of generations of living on necromantically-tainted food. Ghouls are hunchbacked, dog-legged, have Creepy Long Fingers with huge claws, and have long, thorned tails. They also can unhinge their jaws.

Dragonheim

• Dragons: Dragons undergo five distinct life stages; Egg, Wyvern, Drake, Dragon, and Wyrm (also spelled "Wurm" by some scholars). Each dragon subtype is associated with one of the Elements; Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Necromancy, or Chaos. Dragons are covetous, cruel beings, who often demand exorbitant prices from Imperial cities and towns in exchange for not razing them.
• Occitain: A sub-species of dragon that never leaves it's flightless Drake stage. Instead of having elemental subtypes like other dragons, they instead have the ability to launch spear-like "quills" from their backs. More humanoid dragon subraces use them as cavalry.
• Dragontouched: Once in a great while, a dragon will demand not gold, but a Virgin Sacrifice. Instead of devouring the hapless waif, the dragons instead take them as a mate. The half dragon offsprings of these unions are used as ambassadors and shocktroopers.

If you've read Draconia Chronicles, they pretty much look like the dragon ladies from there, but the males have a truly mighty set of pecs instead of pseudoboobs.

Aliens

• Dysonians: A floral humanoid race with plant-based Organitek. Superficially resembling human females, they are in fact a type of "dyson tree", a genetically engineered plant intended to terraform barren planets into habitable ones.
• The Swarm: An arthopodic race with insect-based Organitek. They are somewhat like a four-way-cross between sea-mites, ants, bees, and termites. They have a caste-based society; consisting of unmated female workers, mated female Hiveguard, and queens. The adelphoparasitic males are the only ones able to harness magic, and are permanently fused to a special orifice on the thorax.
• Carrion: A parasitic race that modifies it's host for various roles in combat and labour. Hostless Carrion, called "Carrion Creepers" look like long, fanged worms with a knobbly exoskeleton, almost like a disembodied spinal column. The carrion creeper is able to consume and replace it's host's spine, and twist them into a horror called a "Carrion Crawler."

The Carrion are more or less Necromorphs.

• Vulpitorex: A four-armed, six-eared, two-tailed, antennae-bearing race of aliens that look not unlike Fox-tribe Kobolds, but have no terrestrial analogue. They share the elven view on sex-plenty and often. The human gender dynamic is switched; with females taking a dominant role in society and males staying home and tending to the house and young.
• Klandii: Pack-Territorial reptilian humanoids hailing from Klanden. Males have thicker, plate-like scales, spines down their backs, and tusk-like fangs, and resemble anthropomorphic alligators. Females are not spine-bearing and have smoother scales.
• Abominations: Born of the insane Death-Dreams of the Great Old Ones, Abominations are horrific creatures from behind the stars, crumbling, ancient cities, and the Spaces Between Spaces. No two are alike; they seem to have gotten a third or fourth-hand account of mortal races, and got nearly everything wrong.

Pets

"Pets", while sentient, are content to act as familliars for other races.

• Goblins: something of a tiny orck.
• Fairies: A tiny, magic-based elfin creature with a pair of dragonfly wings growing from their shoulder blades.
• Gargoyles: The result of a bat undergoing the same necromantic tainting as ghouls.

Crossbreeds

• Ogre: The crossbreeding of an Orck and a Kobold
• Troll: The Crosbreeding of an Orck and an Elf.
• Wendigo: The crossbreeding of a Ghoul and a Kobold.

Sub-Races

• Pureblood: Average member of the species
• Symbiote: Fused with a distinct biological entity (Organitek weapons or Carrion Creepers; pregnancy doesn't count)
• Cyborg: Enhanced with mechanical prosthetics
• Mutant: Abberant genetic sequences present

I cooked up so many because I wanted a story-lite FPS/ RPG, and ended up with a Massive Race Selection. Since world building is a bit of a hobby of mine, things kinda snowballed.

edited 19th Dec '14 1:31:42 AM by dvorak

Now everyone pat me on the back and tell me how clever I am!

Firebirds: 150cm tall birds made of fire, they are friendly towards other races and the flames they are formed from cannot be extinguished or burn anything unintentionally. They are easily domesticated, but are extremely intelligent. They build complex structures from stones to live in and will only dismantle them when the time comes for them to die. Unlike their relatives the Phoenix, they are not reborn as they are constantly burning in life. They turn to stone when they die, creating a statue to stand in place for all eternity.

RIP Leonard Nimoy 26/03/1931 - 27/02/2015

Humans

Humans are the most populous race in the known world, with estimates of around 4-5 hundred million souls being accepted as the most accurate count. Humans are the more magically potent races present on the planet. Mages are not only more common amongst humans than the other large races, roughly one in every fifty thousand, they are also generally more individually powerful than their counterparts in the other races.

Mages are typically highly regarded in human society, as their ability to command the forces of nature is invaluable to any number of endeavours. The presence of a mage can mean the difference between a bountiful or barren harvest, for instance, and on a ship, mages can cut travel times in half while combating the effects of bad weather, not to mention their obvious applications on the battlefield. The kingdom of Brighthaven have even gone so far as to grant noble status to all mages who pledge their loyalty to the crown, and amongst the successor states, magical ability is a requirement for nobility. It may be an exaggeration to say that human society is structured around magic, but it is undeniable that mages and their magic have played a huge role in shaping the course of human history.

Ghavardi

The Ghavardi are people living deep in the heartlands of the western continent, beyond the Agarean sea. The most notable physical feature of a Ghavardi would be their long sinuous neck. Fully extended, the neck of the average Ghavardi is usually half as long as the rest of their body, which are usually around 6-8 feet tall. This makes their entire upper half of their body vaguely reminiscent to that of a large snake, enough such that they are usually referred to as the Serpent necks in ancient texts. Their foreheads are usually covered with a tough bone ridge, which play a huge role in visual identification as they are usually the most distinctive feature on a Ghavardi’s face, at least by human standards. In addition, while the structure and hue of the ridge varies from individual to individual, Ghavardi of the same lineage tend to have fairly similar ridges, and indeed, in high ranking families, their distinctive ridges is used as a symbol to represent their entire clan, similar to the way heraldry was used in human society..

Their bodies are somewhat stockier when compared to a regular human, with a large torso coupled with thickly built limbs, and are generally wider as well. This usually leads to some hassle when traveling in human lands, as human dwellings are generally not built with Ghavardi bulk in mind.

Most Ghavardi usually have a short, stubby tail that only just grazes the ground when they walk, though there exist some specimens that possess a tail almost as long as their body, including several prominent kings and emperors throughout their history. The presence of a long tail on a Ghavardi is usually treated as a sign that the particular Ghavardi will be destined to accomplish great things in their life.

The Ghavardi have lifespans comparable to that of most humans, living 60-70 years assuming nothing else gets them first. They give birth to live young, and a regular pregnancy last for around 16 months. A strange quirk of their physiology means that they almost always give birth to pairs. Twins are as common to them as single births are to humans, with quadruplets and sextuplets being their version of twins or triplets to humans. Having an odd number of offspring usually means that something has gone wrong during the pregnancy.

Ghavardi civilization far outpaces both Humans and Cattan in terms of their skill with metalworking. They are capable of producing segmented plate armour that could withstand a shot from a ballista, yet flexible enough such that a Ghavardi retains its full range of movement while wearing it; no mean feat, especially considering the flexibility and vulnerability of their necks. The Ghavardi are very protective of their skill at metallurgy, and are loathe to share that knowledge with members of other species.

Ghavardi are unique amongst the races in that they possess no magical capability what so ever. No Ghavardi in recorded history has ever possessed the gift.

Kanovin

Physically, the Kanovin are the frailest of known races. The average Kanovin stands at three feet tall, and resembles a bipedal raccoon with long, prehensile tail and a deer’s head. They are covered in fur and most specimens sport short, stubby horns that emerge from their forehead.

Mages amongst the Kanovin is hereditary, but spontaneously occurring mages are much rarer amongst Kanovin than humans. Unlike humans, however, Kanovin mages are physically distinct from their more mundane counterparts. In place of the short stubby horns that regular Kanovins sport, their mages sport large, glorious, multi-pronged antlers, which they use to channel their powers.

Kanovin mages have the ability to store their spells within their antlers. This allows them to prepare spells well in advance, storing them in their antlers in the form of an iridescent orb hanging from the tip of their antlers.. As a result, Kanovin spells tend to be a lot stronger and far reaching than their human counterparts, as they can prepare the spell in their own time, taking advantage of natural features or celestial occurrences that may not be present when they plan to unleash the spell.

A second feature of Kanovin mages is that they can trade their stored spells with each other as easily as a human can with, say, a jug of wine. This fact has allowed certain enterprising mages to set up spell dealing businesses, specializing in creating difficult or hard to prepare spells for sale to other mages. As the number of spells that a mage can hold at one time is dependent on the size of their antlers, and the antlers grow larger with age, most spell dealers tend to comprise mainly of older Kanovin.

As you might have inferred from the previous paragraphs, Kanovin magic is primarily ritual in nature. Most spells require at least an hour to prepare, and frequently require specific circumstances to be present. A large number of rituals depend on the phase on the moon, with certain rituals only being possible during certain phases of the moon. The most powerful spells typically require complex rituals that take into account a larger variety of factors, such as geographical location and moon phase, frequently taking many hours and multiple Kanovin to perform.

Kanovin are seasonal breeders. Unlike humans, who remain fertile year round, Kanovin are only fertile during the summer months. They usually give birth to a single offspring, though twins and triplets are not unheard off. They are native to the forest, and a large percentage of their cities exist in forested regions. Their physiology allows them to climb trees extremely easily, with their tails both helping their sense of balance and allowing them to cling onto branches.

edited 25th Jun '14 10:27:38 AM by CannonGerbil

ALL HAIL THE WARGERBIL!

For my Science-Fantasy-Steampunk world set in a multiversal empire I have surprisingly few actual races.

Humans

Beastfolk

Automations

That's pretty much it, though it is very impolite to refer to the second two as such, preferring to be treated just like normal humans. Some of all three were originally statues that came to life but they want to be treated different from their origins.

Their are also Youkai in some places but that is a whole, diffrent, detached dream world so they don't really count as the same kind of race at all.

§◄►§

No worries, I have very few races as well. I love Tolkien, but now everyone thinks you NEED a plethora of races just to be interesting. That personally overwhelms me—it's hard enough thinking up different cultures.

Moonflowers has three main races:

• The gods. There are as many gods in the story as in Real Life. They range in power and lifespan, but usually they can move between the Otherworld and the mortal realm as easily as breathing. Tend to overlap with the varying incarnations of The Fair Folk.
• Humans. Numerous, huge array of cultures, very rooted in the physical world. Some mortals can attain great physical or magical power, but their real power lies in two things: Community and creativity.
• The Fair Folk. In Ireland they have two cultural divisions: The Folk of the Mounds/Hills, often (keyword OFTEN) taking orders from The Wild Hunt's leader, the Hunter, and therefore dangerous for humans. Then there are the Forestborn, who follow the goddess Aine as their queen. The two factions are frequently at odds with each other as the Wild Hunt sees humans as prey and most Mound People don't bother trying to understand them at all, while the Forestborn are far more compassionate.
  • The properties that all Folk share are weaknesses to iron and salt (though exceptionally powerful Folk like the Hunter are less affected), blood that burns human skin and most non-enchanted things, and an inability to harm someone wearing inside-out clothing. They are very beautiful, tend towards light hair, skin, and eyes, have powerful inborn abilities compared to most humans, and can live five hundred to a thousand years unless killed or emotionally broken. Many of the Folk cannot pass human walls, but again this can vary with powerful entities like the Hunter.
  • The Rivermen are a very specific subset of the Folk, who have strong affinities to water and lives that are tied to the lake or river they inhabit—the Shannon and the Boyne, for example, have spirits that may be as old as Ireland itself, while the Maidin's spirit is the equivalent of a young adult and remembers the Norman conquest. Rivermen can be injured, and in theory they can be killed, but in practice it's hard to kill the embodiment or guardian of an aspect of nature. It's possible that the Rivermen are at least minor gods that were confused with fairies, but don't see enough difference to correct the notion. Either way, they are very friendly with humans and surprisingly social, though it is as ill-advised to anger them as the other Fair Folk.
  • While the Folk often intermarry with humans, interbreeding is much rarer due to the corrosive nature of Folk blood. A third of the changelings born of fairy mothers are stillborn or die in the first year, but human mothers have much better success. Unfortunately, the constant problems with the Folk of the Mounds has led to the still-strong notion in rural areas that all changelings are dangerous and must be destroyed. Even with more medical and cultural understanding of the Folk in modern times, changelings are treated with caution at best and hostility at worst.
  • Christianity has a strange position in Ireland—being the majority religion by now, only a third to a fourth of the population believes in the native gods, but the Folk are far more likely to answer to the Irish gods than the Christian one. Crosses have no effect on them unless made of iron or oak/Rowan wood, and holy water never causes more than a rash or blisters. It's very intriguing to mages and historians alike, but studies are scarce since that would entail finding a group of the Folk to keep in one place.

edited 5th Aug '14 9:34:29 PM by Sharysa

My setting has a couple of races.

Humans

This should be fairly self-explanatory, biologically speaking. There are several factions.

• Baystone/Oaksbridge/Kasthaven/Rosemont: New England, basically - a very Waspy area. Kasthaven is basically a fantasy version of the small Massachusetts town where I grew up, while Oaksbridge is Cambridge, and Baystone is Boston. Rosemont is a Doomed Hometown for one of the protagonists.
• Alabinher: A land populated by the fanatical followers of Walden the White God.
• Djanvas: A land populated by Blood Knights with severe Testosterone poisoning. They worship Tyranok and are constantly at war with Alabinher.
• Vardalgar: An Überwald, overrun with the undead. I haven't really used it much, but one of its denizens is a Peter Lorre-type character.
• Vyzobia: An island populated by tall warriors with feline noses (they are most assuredly NOT felinoids and take great offense to any implication that they are not humans.) They used to be slaves of an empire, and thus have a mad-on for killing slavers.
• Woodshadow: A Wretched Hive founded by an infamous bastard called the Grinjack. It's mostly known for tolerating slavery.

Elves

Elves are a complicated matter. Pure ones no longer exist in the setting, but they've produced several offshoots.

• High Elves: Classical elves. They were nearly immortal and said to be incredibly beautiful. However, they grew bored of this world and departed for a presumably better one.
• Azikathians: The Empire, and formerly the servant class of the High Elves. Lacking the magical abilities of the High Elves, they focused their efforts on developing technology, and when the High Elves vanished, the Azikathians suddenly discovered that there was nobody else who could prevent them from building a brutal empire... until they got stupid and underestimated the Vyzob, resulting in a long and costly war. Their empire endures, but they now rely on trade with other races to survive, which has put a crimp in their dreams of expansion.
• Durant: The dour, genetically-engineered servants of the Azikathians.
• Zinji: A strange byproduct of the Azikathians' attempts to grant themselves the ability to use magic through interbreeding with djinn-like beings, producing half-breeds with magic abilities who tend to be a bit funny in the head.

Other

Various bizarre humanoids.

• Greybods: Former humans whose souls have been baked into magical clay bodies (exactly what happened to their human bodies is something that people prefer not to contemplate.)
• Saugeren: Vampires. At first glance, they appear to be extremely refined, polite people, but if you let your guard down, they attack and suck you dry.
• Verbati: Eyeless humanoids from an alternate future where some malevolent force infected the sun, turning it black and causing everyone to go insane.
• Zuthka-Shardo: The Horde. They tend to show up every few centuries, destroy the hell out of anything they get their hands on, and then retreat after the other races have slaughtered enough of them.

edited 8th Aug '14 11:08:30 PM by StrixObscuro

By now, it should be clear to all except the most dense of us that sheep are secretly conspiring to kill us all and steal our pants.

... Did I scare everyone else off?

By now, it should be clear to all except the most dense of us that sheep are secretly conspiring to kill us all and steal our pants.

Terrans

They're basically humans with slightly enhanced capabilities and slower aging. They're slightly stronger and more durable than a normal human with somewhat enhanced senses. They age at 2/3 the rate of a regular human.

Meta

Extradimensional aliens that govern the laws of physics and are authorized to modify different aspects of it. The stronger ones are ludicrously powerful. They're near-impossible to destroy forever as their own dimension Metaspace regenerates them if they're "killed", and are immune to reality warping due to said dimension reversing its effects.

Metas cannot exist outside Metaspace without a constant flow of Meta-dimensional energy from it. As such, they need to open a portal to Metaspace for energy to flow through them. Most of them use a mechanical device that generates a portal.

Arcane

Extradimensional aliens that can alter the laws of physics with magic and then some. Like Metas, the stronger ones are ludicrously powerful. They're also near-impossible to destroy forever and are immune to Reality Warping (as a natural ability this time).

Arcane beings can survive outside their own dimension (Manaspace/Magispace) by drawing mana from it via inter-dimensional processes. However, this requires the consumption of sentient souls. Many Arcanes visit other planets or even create their own, then get the sentient life there to worship them as gods and perform sacrifice. Sometimes, they have Gifted children with the people so that their Gifted can take over the planet.

Gifted

Half-breed between an Arcane and another race. Their soul is made of two parts- the human/other race's soul, and a Guardian Entity that's Made of Magic. Each side has their own personality, although the Guardian only gains sentience at 16 gifted years of age.

A Gifted Terran ages 1/4 as fast as a normal human, and stops aging at 40 Gifted years of age. At 100 Gifted years, they discard their human half and their Guardian emerges as an Arcane after a Split-Personality Merge. Male Gifted have enhanced strength, speed and durability while females have supreme magic, capable of destroying huge areas.

Both the Guardian and the Gifted draw mana from the Arcane dimension, but in order to keep this up, the Guardian requires sentient souls. If they become too hungry, the Guardian will drive the Gifted to kill sentient beings for souls. Failing that, the Guardian will absorb the Gifted's soul and prematurely emerge as an Arcane, with the loss of the human side's personality.

Gifted can only be destroyed permanently by killing both the human soul and the Guardian in quick succession, before either regenerates the other.

edited 11th Aug '14 8:42:18 PM by ironcommando

...eheh

In my really soft sci-fi setting...

Races

Human:

Furry purple cephalopods. Nah, just regular humans. Many of the setting's other races were created by a super-advanced species via manipulation of the basic human genome.

Surian:

Green-skinned humanoids with narrow V-shaped cranial ridges on their foreheads. The cranial ridges protect portions of the Surian brain that have a function similar to the human adrenal glands.The green skin coloration comes from symbiotic algae-like microorganisms that produce and store chlorophyll. The chlorophyll is used as a secondary source of energy the Surian body can draw on when food is scarce but can also be quickly metabolized to produce a sudden adrenaline-like rush of energy. The Surians are a passionate, emotional race with a love of physical activity and artistic expression who often come across as hyperactive and easily distracted. They are not violent or aggressive by nature and will more often choose to run from or reason with their enemies before fighting, but if there is no alternative they make capable warriors that fight with astounding speed and use creative tactics.

Kobala:

Hairless blue humanoids with cranial tentacles. The Kobala have no liver or kidneys as their circulatory system does the job of filtering fatigue toxins and other potentially dangerous byproducts, converting them into usable nutrients. While this has the advantage of giving the Kobala a healthier and more efficient metabolism, it means they are very sensitive to external toxins including chemicals and even insect bites. The Kobala are a highly intelligent, analytical and pragmatic species who value scientific knowledge above all else. They are emotionally cold and distant and tend to view other species as inferior.

Kesh'arrae:

Small, slight humanoids who are very beautiful in human terms. They have empathic telepathy, granting them the ability to cause intense paralyzing fear in other species and the ability to force others to obey their commands. They are an aggressive expanding empire with xenophobic tendencies who force their subjects to worship them as gods.

Ravanoth:

A sentient reptilian race with the empathic ability to cause a feeling of peace and contentment in others, originally used to capture their prey. Despite their predatory nature and imposing appearance the Ravanoth are kind and gentle and value peace and serenity. They are a scattered and nomadic race without a central government and are widely valued as diplomats, mediators, and bodyguards. While normally peaceable and gentle, Ravanoth are very strong and can move with surprising speed. They will defend themselves or others violently if necessary, but their sheer bulk and empathic abilities means they normally do not have to.

Kithman:

Outwardly, the Kithman are very similar to humans, but in terms of mannerisms and psychology they are the most alien species humans have encountered. And it's not just the humans that find them weird - many of the other sentient races find Kithman uncanny and disturbing. Something always seems off or wrong about Kithman, and they have ethics and customs that are all but inscrutable to humans and to other races. Individuals of most other races find it very uncomfortable to be around Kithman for any length of time.

Lupak:

A furred semi-lupine humanoid species. Their faces look essentially humanoid but with a more bestial appearance and visible fangs. The Lupak are an honor-driven warrior race who are fiercely loyal to those they view as family, whether they are blood relatives or not. The Lupak are carnivorous pack hunters with heightened senses, lightning-fast reflexes, and impressive strength and stamina. The average adult Lupak could run a marathon without breaking a sweat.

Caenor:

A cousin race to the Lupak, the Caenor are more bestial in appearance, resembling bipedal wolves.

Fear is a superpower.

My story is a sort of modern fantasy setting, though I tried to fit all the classical races, also, due to being part of a shared universe, it has some metaphysical entities as well. Also, use to the modern setting, many of these races are near extinct/in hiding.

Sentients/Peoples

---

Humans: Identical history to ours, except magical races have existed in the past. Most populous species in the world, humans are highly intelligent, resilient, and resourceful, if need be. In the past, they were normally subjugated by the magical counterparts, however, their relative lack of magical attributes gave them an edge. While in the past, a significant portion of humanity knew magic/had magical capacity, this changed as time went on. Because of this humans were forced to develop their technology, to overcome their magical short comings, which eventually led to them eclipsing the many magical races.

• Subtypes: Magikae- The few humans that were born with magical abilities. They have formed their own societies separate from the rest of humanity, and are a bit behind in technology (give or take about 50 years). They don't really on guns or conventional weaponry like we do, preferring their magic. Their magic stems from the five elements, they are separated into different principals or "schools" fire, water, air, earth, and electricity. There are also darkness and light schools, but they are considered too dangerous to use. The schools all have different principals, with individuals being placed into schools by a combination of genetics and personality, and using rings are channels for power.

Elves: A fully magical race that ruled the earth in the past. They used there magic to subjugate the humans, though, when they saw humans' development through time, they tried to become allies. However, as time went on, their rules with humans were reversed. They eventually became the minority, and, due to their inability to adapt to the changing world, were driven to near extinction. In the modern era, they mostly stay out of human affairs. Many current living elves are actually interbred with humans, with the pure-blooded elves dominating the top ranks of both elven and magikaean society. The pure-bloods look very similar to humans, except they all are far taller (they stand about 8-9 feet tall on average), have the classical pointed ears, sharp features, and eyes with very large, white irises and slit pupils, similar to a cat's eyes. They more common, interbred elves look nearly identical to humans, except that they average at about 6-7 feet tall, pointed ears, and all have eyes with white irises. A problem plaguing elvish society is it's highly patriarchal order, with men having most of the power, and women having almost none.

Drawves: Similar to elves in their endangered status, but more populous. They all have uniform, varying shades of blue skin, and are born with a unique desire and ability to create. While they were at one time far more advanced than humanity (their society is behind the myth of Atlantis) they have fallen somewhat behind humanity's technology. However, they could still be rather formidable, utilizing technology embed with magic. They live away from humanity, in caves and underground, in Steampunk style cities.

Orcs: While, like the other two races, are not as populous as humans, their population makes up a larger portion of magical creatures. While in the past they had a brash and warlike civilization, getting into several brutal wars with the elves, as history marched on, so did their culture. While orcish culture is still centered around military, and they have a strong warrior culture, their warrior culture now revolves around traditionalism, with honor being a major theme in their society. As a rite of passage, adolescent orcs are sent to hunt goblins, upon which they receive warrior tattoos to signify adulthood. Orcs mostly have pale skin, many are covered in tattoos, scars, and rings. They all possess eyes with white irises and black sclera, have noses that are compromised of nostril slits, and their mouths have small canines, harking back to their carnivore past. Unlike the elves, they have a more equal society, with women holding most high positions of power, owing to their mother goddess.

Vampires: Not so much a race, as an affliction, that effects elves, humans, and magikae. Vampirism is spread via bite of another infected individual, causing the victim to first go into shock. Their skin turns pale and they develop fever-like symptoms over the course of four days. On the third day, victims begin to violently convulse as the affliction finally takes hold, going into a shock that sends them into a near-death state, arising the next day as vampires. The infection tunes cells in the vampire to magic more significantly, making them moderate, to even powerful magic users. As long as a vampire can feed on the blood of another being, they will live. However, die to severe iron deficiency afflicting all vampires, without feeding on the blood of another every three days, they will become very weak, before dying, although this can be averted via magic or hibernation. Vampires are both stronger and faster than humans, capable of killing all but the strongest and most well-prepared opponents. Vampires are not inherently evil, and most vampires manage to curb their thirst for blood via animals, or a high iron substitute. Vampires cells are also finely tuned to sunlight, their cells quickly die facing the full UV rays of the sun, though this can be averted by routine potion injections.

Werewolves: Like vampirism, lycanthropy affects humans, elves, and magikae alike. Lycanthropy is spread via bite from a werewolf, causing both a magical and hormonal change to the infectee. A change fully occurs the day before a full moon, the day of, and the day after, when the tides are at their highest, and lunar activity makes iron surge in their bodies. On transformation dates, the lycanthrope will experience a painful transformation, as their muscles tear, their bones break and reform, and hair sprouts all throughout their bodies, on,y surviving due to the powerful surge of cellular division during the transformation. Once transformed, lycanthrope a lose their human facilities, becoming vicious animals, driven by a ravenous hunger the change causes. A transformed werewolf is brutal, strong, and could easily over power and kill a vampire. On dormant days, the lycanthrope has heightened senses, such as smell and hearing similar to that of a dog, as well as heightened metabolism making them very hungry often, as well as generally giving them a slim build. Even while dormant, they are all faster, stronger, and more durable than the average human. They also have a powerful healing factor, healing bullet wounds in a matter of days. With extreme training, both physical, but mostly mental, lycanthrope scan gain control over their changes, with some becoming so refined they can only utilize certain traits, such as claws or their full strength at will, some even being capable of healing wounds in seconds through concentration. (The main character is this, and turns out to be a magikae as well, later on).

Giant: The most endangered of all the main races, giants number in the hundreds at this point in history. Due to their status, many giants are solitary, while very few live in small tribes. They have mostly equal societies, with men and women dividing work evenly. Because of their small number, and how different they appear from the other races who would be more capable of assimilating with no one noticing, giants stay entirely away from humans, inhabiting dense forests, and utilizing their strength and primitive technology to survive. They generally stand between 12-15 feet tall, and physically look similar to neanderthals.

Centauri: Like giants, due to both their critically endangered status, as well as their distinct appearance, they are unable to fit in with society. They live in a mostly patriarchal society, where men are warriors and hunters, while women do labor. There are only about a thousand centauri left, and they all inhabit a large city in one of the magical forests that grow on the unexplored islands of Europe.

Metaphysical Races

---

Angels: The metaphysical race that inhabits the region of the spiritual world known as heaven. Angels come in many different forms, from the classical winged human forms of most angels and the archangels, to the multiwinged, multi-faced forms of the seraphim. Their society, while technically under God, is mostly self-governed, with the highest angels forming a council from which they make changes, and punish other angels. Angels have a deep-seated hatred/rivalry with the daemons, the two sides stuck in a near perpetual state of Cold War with one another. Angels cannot be killed by mortals, only other metaphysical beings. While angels are generally benevolent, they are often not that pleasant willing to do anything in the name of what they think is right, are not above killing, and want to kill the main protagonist of one of my stories.

Daemons: The theoretically opposite to angels. The daemons are compromised of the original fallen angels at the top of their society, and comprising their warrior-caste, as well as their offspring with each other and the spirits of the spirit world. The fallen generally look like themselves, while their offspring look like twisted versions of spirits. Daemons are vicious and cruel, although some have risen above their inherent evil. They take joy in causing pain and suffering, and want power over the angels and God, seeking the main protagonist's powers to achieve this.

Half-bloods, Mal'akhshad: The result of an angel breeding with a daemon. Only five mal'akhshad have existed in history. Many look purely human upon birth, and can access both angelic and demonic attributes. The angels have sought to/and succeeded in, killing everyone born in history (except for the main character). They are a very dangerous threat due to their potential being greater than any angel, or any demon. Neither inherently good nor bad.

Nephalem and Cambion: Nephalem are the hybrids of angels and humans. They are usually about 7-8 feet tall and are born with the ability to access their angelic attributes. Campion are the offspring of humans an demons, looking completely human, but capable of accessing demonic attributes, neither inherently good nor bad.

Spirit: Deceased soul of a human, generally choose to live in their own peaceful society, outside of heaven, but not hell. Can interact with the corporeal plane and possess people. Can be banished.

Non-sentient species

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Dragons: Giant, sky faring reptiles. They are a protected species. Have long, serpentine necks, with mouths filled with razor teeth, with a beak at the end of their mouths. Their scales are very strong, capable of staving off most attacks. They are capable of breathing fire, and their arms are large powerful wings. Have a strong, powerful tail to attack enemies. While it is difficult to do, dragons can be tamed and ridden.

Goblins: Vicious, tailless reptiles, goblins have a humanoid build, but are quadrupedal. Their mouths are filled with razor teeth, and they have long talons at the ends of their fingers. They hunt in packs and are generally a problem for both orcs and dwarves. They are covered in green scales, with spines running along their backs.

Trolls: Massive, quadrupedal primates, built similarly to apes. They are powerful and dangerous. They are omnivores, and hunt horses, deer, and moose, as well as eating the leaves and bark off of trees. They are generally hairless, and have faces that are like a cross between gorillas and lizards. Orcs have managed to tame them.

---

That's all I have right now.

edited 11th Aug '14 7:26:17 PM by OmniGoat

This shall be my true, Start of Darkness

My version of one has three major groups. Angels are the anthropomorthic personification of Order: They are all conceptually tied to a single concept and have forms greatly related to said concepts.

Demons are the anthropomorthic personification of Chaos: They are also conceptually tied to a single idea and represent it via chaos.

Humans are normal like we see in our world except for Mages: Mages have the ability to channel and summon angels and demons and bend the world with either chaos or impose their order depending on what type of race they specialize channeling.

All the races are morally neutral.

Hybrids may between Human and other races but they tend to be overwhelmed conceptually by the demon or angelic parts until they get fully converted or die. Called Cambion for half demons and Nephilim for half angels.

Struggling through it all

all without proper names so far:

The Humans

• standard: nothing biologically different between humans from any of the major or minor or misc civs beyond skin, hair and eye color.
  • demon hybrids: live for a little longer than normal humans, varying depending on the type of demon they're descended from; anywhere from 10 to 40 years more and no higher. while its common to inherit some physical traits from their demon parent, its not guaranteed to happen. for those whose heritage isnt immediately obvious on the physical level, the color of their eyes is a dead giveaway. first generation hybrids generally have really dark iris's, with a dark reddish-brown if any color can be made out. the color gets brighter the further down the line; by the final generation (about 5 or 6, if their mixed heritage hasnt been continued) their eyes are an almost glowing pink or red color.
• The Ageless: humans from a past world blessed by the goddess of time. they dont age and they're always placed in this world for a specific purpose. either put into positions of power (the theocratic leaders and the high empress) or used to fuel the systems of magic in the place, they're always important people, if not particularly well known. in the case of the magic donors, they're even saved from death- that is, at the cost of all freedom and awareness.
  • The Descendants: exactly what it says on the tin. nothing particularly unique about them beyond their heritage; the only ones aware of their status are the family of the southern theocratic leader/fire god and the high empress of the eastern empire.

Demons

a catch-all term for an alien race of chaotic beings from another dimension.

• Original Generation: the natural state of these beings is of monsters. they have no hereditary form. demons of any shape can give birth to demons of any shape. this is largely to their detriment; it makes it hard to band together and create civilization when theres no gaurantee new members will ever be able to speak to or understand them, and theres always the worry of demons being born in incompatible environment. as a result, they tended to live in separation, at most in small nomadic families that improvised whatever means of communication worked. random life-span.
  • Feral demons: usually the end result of demons who spend too long in isolation before the end of their growth period. extremely territorial and viscious, when these are encountered they've almost universally put down.
  • New Age Demons: any demon whose descent can be traced to an human-demon relationship. these demons have a consistant hereditary form and formed into numerous sub-races. the consistancy in form continues well beyond the point they could be said to have any relation to humans.
    • The Beast races: a catch all term for the many sub-races that make up the unified clans north of the eastern empire that stand between them and the northern republic.
    • The Nomads: an aquatic sub-race of nomadic merchants, consisting of amphibious(the "diplomats") and fully aquatic demons (generally the hunters, though they sometimes take part in diplomancy with certain other race. they carry their spoils and ware in the hollowed out (and waterproofed) shells of giant domesticated tortoise and occasionally use underwater tunnel systems for long term storage.
    • The Abyss Dwellers: similar to the nomads, they're an aquatic sub race consisting of both amphibious and fully aquatic demons, though all more adapted to atmospheric pressure. they live at the bottom of the great sea canyon dividing the western continents, with their city base within a massive barrier that repels water and contains air (a city they went through great trouble to create, having had to deal with the many setbacks over the course of many generations). they're particularly aggressive to land races and have a reputation for attacking theocratic ships for supplies, though as the city grows this lessens and they begin to trade more with the nomads.
    • The Heavy Fliers: large bird-like demons. generally too heavy to fly, they achieve that result anyway from the use of gravity magic to make themselves lighter. having gotten their magic from a human, they extend their gratitude to humanity as a whole, though they brook no behavior from them that they deem "lacking in dignity" and often start violent skirmishes because of it. not currently decided where they live or on what.
    • The Light Fliers: small bird like demons, formerly part of the eastern demon clans, they eventually migrated west to an isolated island out of fear for having to live in a bustling land full of creatures all large and heavy enough to crush them without thinking. generally fearful of other races, they have little but contempt for the other demon races, though they occasionally reach out to some humans, particularly those from the theocracy, as they generally tend to be more careful and aware of their surroundings when in the flier's territory or presence.
    • The Feral Raiders: another catch-all term, this time for the clans on the northernmost west continent who have a viscious loathing for humanity in general, and regularly raid settlements for supplies rather than growing their own through agriculture. not actually feral, but generally seen as such from those who do not personally witness their advanced coordination and tactics. notably, one of their leaders is an ageless demon, which probably explains their hatred for humanity. theres a divide between NA and OG demon raiders.

Misc

gods, eldritch horrors, primordial beings and such. the primary one of note, also the only one i'll mention here:

• Shape Shifters: chaotic and nigh-unkillable. in the previous world, they were relatively harmless for the most part, completely unorganized and mostly just living for fun. the goddess of time did not bring them over to this world from the last like the demons, but the nature of what they are meant they followed anyway. the amalgamation of human death and suffering in a single persons life, they follow humanity wherever they go. the major difference is, this worlds shapeshifters are actively malicious for unknown reasons, and barriers currently have no defence against them.

and thats about it.