Sentient Species of Midian:

The Known Races

There are a number of different sentient species that roam the planet. The term “race” usually applies to a separate species or sub-species rather than colour of skin; that is, while a Gaijun is considered a different race (though technically Homo Sapiens), an elf would consider someone from the Heldannic Confederation to be of the same race as someone from the Byzant Empire in spite of the differences in skin tones between the 2 humans or the fact that the Heldann’s colouration nearly matches that of the elf. Besides, most humans all look alike anyway. Half-breeds, while possible between several different races, are quite rare due to genetic differences as well as cultural biases.

Dwarves

"You gonna come down here and say that again, asshole?"

Kings without kingdoms; homes deep under the land—but no homeland; this is the lot in life of the Dwarves. There is no Dwarven homeland—no country ruled or peopled by mostly Dwarves. They are generally found among the Human lands of Midian. A mountain kingdom is the greatest Dwarven community size. The largest collections of these are in the northern mountains of the Kingdom of Formour, and amongst the Heldannic Freeholds. Mountain kingdoms are created when a mine or stronghold grows sufficiently in size. As a rule, when a mine has played out—or a stronghold can maintain its own army, then a king is chosen and the community declares its independence. Occasionally there is strife between the fledgling kingdom and the originating one, but the transition is bloodless more often than not. Relations between old and new are often kept cordial through treaties, oaths of support, and diplomatic marriages. Dwarves practice a peculiar form of representative monarchy: when a new kingdom wishes its independence, a king is elected from amongst its populace. Any adult dwarf who wishes to make the new kingdom his or her home can vote for any other. Clan & family leaders often cast a collective vote for those under them. This means that the head of a large or powerful family can vote him or herself onto the throne, or can help insure that someone else will gain the crown in exchange for being granted a noble title of their own. The elections are by secret ballot (inscribed onto a chit), but many Dwarves loudly proclaim their vote—particularly when a clan leader casts the vote for everyone (the chit will say, for example, “Clan Thordred casts its 47 votes for Durnan Halbstein”). Any given person needs a 2/3^rd majority vote to become king. Since the elections are only held on the 1^st of Gulik, if no one has a majority of votes, independence must wait for another year. This also allows the originating kingdom a chance to send a representative to convince the populace to remain under its present king rather than seek independence—although this is done usually only when there is a strategic position or valuable ore that the old kingdom doesn’t want to give up. In spite of the completely democratic process of choosing a king upon gaining independence, the newly elected royalty remains in charge of his or her kingdom until death, passing the title down to the next generation. The new king also grants noble titles as rewards or to gain support of influential people (such titles are also hereditary). A note on language: the term king applies regardless of gender; the term is derived from the Dwarven word for kingdom rather than the other way around. A woman in charge may or may not refer to herself as queen when conversing with other species. A male Dwarf may (all to often) be a misogynist, but never within earshot of a Dwarven woman.

Dwarves can live for 250 to 400 years. Their development roughly parallels Human growth, although maximum size is achieved earlier (they are short remember) and the onset of puberty begins a few years later than in Humans. The age of majority—which allows for voting privileges, land ownership, etc. is 30 years old, even though the Dwarf has been physically mature for nearly a decade. (“Have another beer, pup, it’ll put hair on your chin.”) Dwarves are densely built. They may weigh between 150 and 250 pounds—little of this is fat—although they only stand between 3 ½ and 5 feet tall. The average height and weight is 4 ½ feet tall and 220 pounds. Dwarven colouration tends toward earth tones. Their skin, hair, and eyes, are often varying shades of brown and grey.

Underground living has adapted the Dwarves to where their eyes see further into the infrared spectrum than most other species. They can see in the dark—although reading or other fine detail is impossible without light. This is not developed enough to be true thermal vision, but does allow them to see in the dark. Even in pitch-black conditions, a Dwarf can see out approximately 30 feet from his or her own body heat. Their runic language was designed to be able to see carvings in stone with their infravision (but ink on parchment still requires a suitable light source). Dwarven infravision is detailed enough to navigate obstacles or to recognize a face in the dark. Another adaptation to underground life is an almost instinctive direction sense. They are a very visually oriented people, and this helps them to navigate through their tunnels. A Dwarf rarely gets lost in a maze (or cave, or large office building).

Male Dwarves greatly prize their beards, often taking many hours to style, braid, shape, or trim them (but leaving them long and full-looking). Their beards are kept clean and are well tended to. Braiding styles can identify someone in being a member of a certain clan, military unit, or organization. Individualism runs rampant in beard styles as well. Female Dwarves take just as much pride in their hair, with the same braiding styles and attention applying. Female Dwarves do not have beards—similarly Dwarven men experience the same hair-loss that Human men suffer from. (“Try this magic ointment to control Dwarf-pattern baldness.”)

Dwarven physiology is very similar to Humans; they may be related species. Dwarven loremasters theorize that Humans may be a mutant offshoot line adapted for plains living, which would explain their greater size & speed but reduced resilience, longevity, & intellect.

A tough, hardy breed; Dwarven stamina is matched only by Dwarven pride. [Dwarven toughness grants 20% damage resistance against smashing attacks. Dwarves also gain the following saving throw bonuses: +3 to saves against crushing blows, +2 vs. petrification, +1 vs. fire and cold.]

The loremasters of the Dwarven kingdoms keep careful records of history and genealogy. The oldest kingdoms have histories that date back to approximately the time that Humans arrived in Midian (although this occurred over a millennium ago, the event is still strong within the memories of many Elves. Dwarven legends date back even farther, but aren’t as well documented and cannot necessarily be considered factual. The fact that many legends contradict one another doesn’t help matters any. For example, one myth says that the Dwarves were created to be a servitor race by the Old Ones, but slew their master and thus gained their freedom; another states that the origins of the species lie out among the stars. Dwarves love to hear a well-told tale, but don’t place a lot of faith in undocumented stories—Dwarven children are well schooled in history, but only in accepted facts.

The problems associated with underground living—specifically light, air, & food—have caused some Dwarven kingdoms to make good use of the Humans’ technomancy. While not being a people well-versed in magic, they have embraced this particular discipline fully. At least one kingdom uses cables made of glass to transmit light from the molten core throughout the mountain. Another uses the smoke from their forges to turn shafts connected to fans that keep air circulated. Dwarves love to tinker & have crafted many functional, as well as beautiful, technomantic items.

To think of all Dwarves as exclusively tunnel-dwelling troglodytes is a mistake many who have not visited their cities make. All of the stone that is mined-out has to go somewhere, & the Dwarves make good use of it with walls, bridges, aqueducts, parapet, ramparts, towers, & other aboveground fortifications.

The berserker tradition started amongst the Dwarves; and has since spread to some Heldanns. Nearly every Dwarven military has at least one berserker unit. The berserker tradition has a long history; & is highly ritualised in order to keep them from the mental imbalance suffered by the Heldann berserkers. Their rituals include war paint & drumming to achieve the proper state of mind. The Heldanns just usually get drunk. [When creating a Dwarven character, you have the option of choosing the background Berserker.]

Character Creation

Dice rolled to determine attributes:

Appearance: 3D6

Personality: 3D6-2

Grace: 2D8+1

Knowledge: 3D6

Wits: 3D6

Willpower: 3D6+2

Strength: 3D6+2

Agility: 2D6+4

Stamina: 3D8+1

Awareness: 3D6

Speed: 2D6

Common Sense: 3D6+2

Average ability scores: Appearance-9, Personality-8, Grace-10, Knowledge-10, Wits-10, Willpower-12, Strength-12, Agility-11, Stamina-14, Awareness-10, Speed-7, Common Sense-11.

Dwarven Toughness: 20% damage resistance against smashing attacks; +3 to saves against crushing blows, +2 vs. petrification, +1 vs. fire and cold; dense body structure

Infrared Vision: can see in the dark

Direction Sense: free retest against getting lost; this is a form of pattern recognition--does not apply to long overland trips or to nautical navigation

Elves

“Sweet travels and light laughter to you, my friends.”

Elves are an immortal fey race with magic pulsing through their veins. They age at one-third the rate of humans until the age of majority (60 years old—equivalent apparent age in Humans: 20) at which time the aging process ceases for all eternity. Their wounds heal without scarring, however they do not regrow lost limbs or organs. Elves take a very long time to come to decisions—often centuries—they truly have forever. Their longevity and strong sense of self also aids them in resisting being dominated by others [+3 to saves against mental control]. This also makes necromancy difficult to perform on elves. Their spirits seem to depart without trace.

Physically, elves are slightly taller and noticeably thinner of frame than humans. Their skin is pale and blemish-free. They have very little body hair. Their eyes are large and gem-like, bright, lighter colours: violet, green, blue, or yellow. Hair is straight and thin, and usually blond or black—but some have red, pink, light blue, or dark green hair. Hair is most often worn long, either free or in braids or a ponytail. Elven ears have high points, and are their most distinctive feature to differentiate them from humans when seen at a distance. Their bone-structure is frail looking, and their hands and feet have 4 digits each.

Their immortality is countered by a low birth rate. An elven community that does not see a birth for 5 to 10 years or more is not uncommon. Their slow development may play a major role in this—Elven gestation is 27 months long (2 years, 3 months). When an elf is born, the whole village celebrates; and when an elf is killed, the whole nation mourns. A single elf being slain may drive the entire kingdom to war. This sense of community is reflected in the elven economy. As long as an elf makes a contribution to the community, he or she is provided for—even contributing smiles and laughter count in their socialistic society. Rarely does an authority need to step in to ensure, for example, that more people should be growing food rather than telling stories all day. When you have to deal with your neighbours for all eternity, you learn to pitch-in without much argument. Also, elves do not have the same attachment to personal belongings that humans do. Barring misfortune, an elf will live to see even the best-constructed artefacts eventually fall away to dust.

Elven government is performed locally by a democracy of village/neighbourhood meetings with all adult members of the community having an equal share. National government is an assemblage of the Princesses and Princes of the realm—they decide such things as: military manoeuvres, closing the borders, or relations with other nations. The Princesses and Princes meet every 8 years and may meet more often if anyone can convince a quorum to convene. The family units of Elven life are the great houses. The princes & princesses are the heads of the houses. Each great house may maintain its own military and can conduct affairs much in the manner of a government. For example, it is House Deodan that actually formed the non-aggression naval pact with the Kingdom of Formour after the nation decided to allow external commerce. Not realizing that they were dealing with only one house rather than the entire country, the Formourian navy won’t attack any elven ship within its patrolled territories.

Elves do not differentiate between the sexes. Both males and females may be found performing any role, whether on the battlefront or raising children.

Character Creation

Dice rolled to determine attributes:

Average ability scores: Appearance—17, Personality—7, Grace—14, Knowledge—13, Wits—11, Willpower—9, Strength—10, Agility—14, Stamina—9, Awareness—14, Speed—18, Common Sense—9.

Fey: immortal; Fae Blood background; Gleam & Way with Animals traits; +3 vs. mental control; 50% magical resistance against necromancy

Vitality: +3 vs. disease, +3 vs. fire & cold, and +2 vs. poisons & chemicals; no scarring;

Elves may ignore (or re-roll) any backgrounds involving non-elven ancestry. All Elves instinctively possess the Balance skill equal to their character level. Elves also have an additional 1D4 bonus Hit Points.

Elven longevity gives them time to learn additional skills. Elves do not devote themselves entirely to one task for long, however (one might even call them flighty), so elves tend to dabble in multiple areas of expertise and are often multi-classed. Select 3 skills from each of two different categories below; each skill starts at 3^rd level for proficiencies, journeyman level for apprentice skills:

Martial	Musical	Social	Wild	Craft	Magical
Ambidexterity	Craft Instrument	Charm	Animal Training	Calligraphy	Aura Perception
Blade Etiquette	Dancing	Cooking	Herbalism	Drawing	Detect Gates
Blindfighting	Epics	Detect Lies	Hiding	Engraving	Disappear
Boyer/Fletcher	Play Instrument	Etiquette	Hunting	Goldsmith	Lunaruen
Fencing	Poetry	Impress	Meteorology	Painting	Magic Lore
Melee: medium	Singing	Intimidate	Stealth	Tailor	Non-detection
Ranged: longbow	Songs	Language	Tracking	Weaving	Prophecy
Shoot from the Hip	Vocal Impressions	Storytelling	Zoology	Woodworking	Runes

Gaijin

"You are scared because I'm bigger than you are? That is as silly as my being afraid of the edge of your sword. You should be terrified because my 'edge' comes from within--I am just far better than you."

The warrior race of Gaijin stand approximately 8 feet tall & aboiut 300+ pounds of muscle. They have bright red skin, blond hair (usually worn long or in a pony-tail), and piercing blue or green eyes. Gaijin have additional calcium deposits near the temples to protect that weak spot of the skull--this results in vestigal-horns in a few; on the back of the hand at the base of each finger (except the thumb) along the nuckles (+2 to punching damage); and along the spine--in several cases this causes a small ridge along the back. Despite these differences, Gaijin are Homo Sapiens.

Gaijin live in the northern Heldannic Confederation and on Islands north of the Killian Empire ("Gaijin" is a Killian word meaning "barbarian"). Gaijin are very individualistic and have little sense of culture or racial unity. Thus they work very well in small groups, but don't organize into a definate army or country. Gaijin prize personal strength and consider intelligence & skill to be another form of strength.

Their origens remain a mystery--it predates their own careful geneologies. The rumours aboiund: Troll-blooded humans, mutants, creations of a mad god, a form of Human Plus, or magical creations (they have no special affinity, weakness, or resistance to magic, however).

Gaijin have a number of augmentations for combat. They are stronger, faster, smarter, & tougher than their Human ancestors. Sensory weaknesses (such as nearsightedness) are almost unheard of and they can see in half the light that a Human needs. They also heal at twice the rate of most other races. All are naturally ambidextrous.

They do not have the same strong sense of society or belonging that their Human ancestors have. They do not have their own culture or nation, and must borrow the cultural identities of those around them. They do not have their own histories, or even their own language. This lack of culture is one of the reasons behind them being a very passionate people, feeling and expressing emotions very strongly. A Gaijin's rage is a terrible thing to behold--many are berserkers.

Character Creation

Dice rolled to determine attributes:

Average ability scores: Appearance-8, Personality-9, Grace-7, Knowledge-13, Wits-12, Willpower-11, Strength-15, Agility-13, Stamina-14, Awareness-11, Speed-15, Common Sense-8.

Tough: +2 to all saving throws; base Armour Class of 9; Tough x2 trait; reinforced bone structure

BornWarrior: double healing; ambidexterity; +2 punch damage; Violent & Warlike as Humans

Lack of Cultural Identity: native language must be Anglan or Killian; cut starting funds in half; cannot start with either Aristocracy or Nobility backgrounds

Gaijin are hard to put down and start with 1D12 Hit Points & +1 Life Points due to lust for life and killing rage.

Additional Backgrounds

May select Berserker if desired

10% chance of being Bilingual (both Anglan & Killian count as native languages)

Humans

"Sod off freak-boy."

Humans are the most numerous sentient species, having many kingdoms that are predominantly their own. Humans breed relatively quickly, have fair life spans, and work well in groups. They are a technically-oriented species, having members that have mastered many different fields--Humans invented technomancy. Humans tend to hunt in packs of various sizes, types, & orientations: families, companies, & kingdoms being only a few. They are curious & like exploring new realms, both geographicly & intellectually. They are also a viscious, warlike species & are talented in taking over new land as well as picking up new ways to hurt others. Humans seem to enjoy watching others suffer--even members of their own species (especially those).

Being a versatile race in both talent and genetics, Humans come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, & colourations. Trolls are perhaps the species that has a wider variety. They range in size from less than 3 feet tall to nearly 9 feet tall--although these extremes are quite rare. Human weight could be less than 50 pounds to well over 1000 pounds on the upper end. Hair, skin, & eye pigmentation have just as large a range as size. Humans have also spawned different sub-species such as the hulking Gajin & the strange MetaHuman.

Humans are a somewhat psychicly aware species. Many individuals have occasional prophetic dreams, hunches, or flashes of insight. A few of them are full-fleged psychics. Humans can buy psychic skills at character generation without a teacher as instinctive abilities. Their dedication to a single task, and often stubborn determination, help Humans rise to great levels.

Humans are also very fond of "stuff." They are notoriously greedy packrats. While many species jealously guard their belongings, Humans are the only ones who devote rooms--or even entire structures--to the storage of treasured goods. Elves may store food reserves communally, & Dwarves may have their treasure-troves, but neither matches the dedication Humans have with gathering & possessing simply for the enjoyment of doing so.

Theirs is the also-ran species, falling into second or third place in many things. Humans are good with tools, but Dwarves are more tallented. Elves live longer & are better at magic. Trolls are more genetically versatile. Hobgoblins breed faster. Goblins are more resilient. However, being less specialized allows Humans to do many things well.

Character Creation

Note: Human sub-species (Gaijin, MetaHuman) have their own character creation rules and are not the same as regular Humans unless otherwise noted.

Dice rolled to determine attributes:

Average ability scores are 9 or 10 for each attribute.

Technically & Socially Oriented: +1 technical skill & +1 social skill

Violent & Warlike: learns martial skills at +10% chance to learn

Innately Psychic: Player characters may choose one of the following foci:

Self-focus: 1D6 to spread amongst attributes or 1D8 to spread amongst Saving Throw bonuses

Skill focus: 1D4 levels of proficiencies or upgrade 1 apprentice skill to journeyman

Sensitive: pick 1 psionic trait

Power reserve: +1 Willpower & +2 Hit Points, or the trait Patience x 2

Humans are reasonably tough & lucky: 1D6 Hit Points & +1 to all Saving Throws.

Additional Backgrounds/Nationality (optional; roll once on this chart; player may choose country of origen, default is Fomourian)

01-20 Byzannite

21-50 Formourian

51-60 Gothic

61-75 Heldannic

76-90 Mixed/Foreign Birth:

01-16 Byzannite Ancestry

17-32 Formourian Ancestry

33-48 Gothic Ancestry

49-64 Heldannic Ancestry

65-80 Special: roll on the Special sub-chart below

81-00 Roll twice on this sub-chart

91-00 Special:

01-14 Black

15-28 Demonic Blood

29-42 Efreet Blood

43-56 Fae Blood

57-70 MetaHuman Ancestor: choose 1 trait from the MetaHuman list

71-84 Wolf Blood

85-00 Roll twice on this sub-chart

Trolls

"Of course you realize that I am now obligated to smash your head in and grind your bones into meal."

One of the most genetically diverse species Trolls vary wildly in size, appearance, and abilities. A few standard variants are repeated amongst them. They typically have brown, hairy skin and black hair, although the sub-type may vary this standard somewhat. They do not seem to get along with anyone that they do not or cannot dominate. They are often found in control of physically weaker creatures or in small groups of Trolls of the same social backgrounds. Despite their animosity & asocial tendencies, Trolls pick up the language, habits, & accoutrements of those around them very quickly, particularly Rock Trolls. Trolls do not have a strong cultural identity of their own. Nor do they assimilate themselves into another's culture easily. Instead, they borrow from others. There are Trolls who are quite sophisticated and may even out-do the Humans that they are ripping off. There are few things creepier than encountering a Troll mage that sneers at you for your lack of fashion sense.

Trolls have wide, powerful builds. Their foreheads slope & their eyes are sunken and dark. Troll mouths are almost muzzle-like & toothy. Their ears ride high on their head and may be small & animal-like or large & round. Trolls have proportionally shorter legs than Humans.

Troll life expectancy ranges dramatically: from 40 to 400 years (4D10 x 10).

There are no Troll kingdoms as they are a naturally transient people. This helps explain their tendency to borrow cultural habits of other species since Trolls don't spend much time in one area. They often live in caves for a few weeks before moving on, and keep all of their belongings in a large sack thrown over their shoulder. Trolls travel light, but their bags collect many varieties of items over the years. Troll bags may contain: a tooth lost in a fight (or a baby tooth), a precious gem wrestled from a tough adversary, or a fragment of bone left from a particularly good meal.

Character Creation

Dice rolled to determine attributes:

Average ability scores: Will vary greatly based on gentetic variance. Roll percentile dice once on the first chart below for size & then 4 times on the second chart for special features & abilities--these may be considered special Troll-only traits.

I. Size

01-16 2-3 feet tall & 100-230 pounds: +2 Knowledge, +1 Agility, -1 Willpower, -4 Speed

17-68 7-9 feet tall & 300-850 pounds: no modifiers

69-00 9-13 feet tall & 950-1500 pounds: +4 Strength, +2 Stamina, -2 Willpower, -3 Common Sense

II. Features & Ablilities Roll 4 times

01-04 Big, fuzzy hair: red, yellow, green, orange, pink, or blue (choose or roll 1D6)

05-06 Tail: black & bovine (cow-like)

07-10 Big nose: ling & hooked, bulbous & warty, or dog's muzzle (choose or roll) +2 to awareness

11-16 Somewhat Human-looking: +2 Appearance & counts as either Human or Troll on the Comparative Appearance chart (whichever is beneficial at the time)

17-20 Odd skin colour: mottled green, stone-grey, corpse white, or obsidian shiny-black (choose or roll)

21-34 Thermal vision: 40 ft

35-40 Sun-sensitive eyes: poor day vision (approximately 1/2 distance of a Human), but can see in the dark 3 times as far

41-42 Sun sensitive skin: save vs. paralysis at a 12 or be frozen--stone-like--until dusk. Reroll every 10 mnutes

43-50 Fangs & large mouth: 1D6 + Strength damage; -2 to-hit unless grappling

51-65 Claws: 1D4 + Strength damage

66-70 Hind claws: 1D4 + Strength; raking type

71-78 Stone-hard skin: +2 Armour Class, +3 Damage Resistance

79-89 Regrowth: can regenerate limbs & organs in about 2-4 weeks

90-98 Regeneration: heals 1 Hit Point or Life Point per round & doesn't suffer from additional damage from blood loss due to wounds; cannot regrow limbs without the Regrowth ability (which reduces the time to 2-4 days)

99-00 Distribute 7 attribute points any way that you choose

Many of these features can be selected more than once (i.e. double regeneration speed, add an additional tail, claws do 2D4 + Strength damage).

In addition Trolls are assumed to have the background Unsanitary, and the traits Distinctive (Appearance), & Heightened Smell (Awareness), and may also select 3 from the following list of traits: Bad-tasting, Booming Voice (Personality), Distinctive (Appearance), Fierce (Appearance), Grounded, Healthy (Stamina), Heightened Hearing (Awareness), Heightened Smell (Awareness), Heightened Taste (Awareness), Natural Warrior, Remorseless, Stupidly Brave, or Tough.

Trolls are notorious for their unsanitary habits & their ability (and willingness) to eat nearly anything. The only taboo food is Troll-meat. The Trolls' digestive systems give them +2 Saving Throw bonus against poisons, and an additional +2 against ingested toxins.

Trolls are hard to kill. They have 2D8 Hit Points to start.

Although other species cannot easily tell the types of Trolls apart, other than by location, Trolls consider the different backgrounds to be very different and the differences quite important distinctions.

Additional Backgrounds: (optional; players may choose sub-type)

01-05 Black Troll

06-16 Cave Troll

17-30 Ice Troll

31-45 Rock Troll

45-80 Mountain Troll

81-00 Mixed blood, roll twice

Dwarves

Elves

Character Creation

Woodworking

Gaijin

Humans