Races of Eamon

The great majority of people living in the Kingdom of Evenhold, the continent of Addar, and the entire world of Eamon are humans. Though shorter-lived than many of the other races, humans reproduce quickly and are remarkably inventive and adaptable, establishing communities across lands of all kinds from the sweltering tropics to the polar glaciers.

Physical description

Humans are a highly diverse species of bipedal mammals with smooth skin that varies in color from light to dark, and with hair on their heads that varies widely in color and length. Humans range from lithe to stocky and short to tall, with males (men) being slightly larger than females (women). Humans are usually considered mature by the age of 18 years, and can live naturally to be as old as 100, though most have a shorter expectancy often reduced by injury and disease.

Humans are capable of interbreeding with elves and orcs, and Eamon has small populations of half-elves and half-orcs at places like Elmendor, Loathia, and elsewhere. Humans can also successfully breed with halflings, though this is less common. Interbreeding with dwarves or other species is not unknown but offspring tend to be sterile.

History

The origins of humanity on Eamon are complex and poorly understood. While archaeologists have found evidence of proto-human species living in Addar many hundreds of thousands of years ago, it's uncertain whether those species arose naturally on Eamon or whether they, like many others, came to the world through ancient rifts. Most evidence points to the latter theory, and naturalists tend to agree that humans originated off-world, with early ancestors coming inadvertently from Earth, Toril, and elsewhere.

The earliest human civilizations on Eamon are thought to have arisen in southeastern Addar, near what is now the mouth of the Gulf of Hedrin, and radiated out from there through the rest of the continent and to others beyond the sea. Oppressed for many millennia by the Great Old Ones, humans are now a free and flourishing race.

Ethnicities and cultures

Humans tend to class themselves very loosely as Northlanders, Midlanders, and Southlanders, with Northlanders — most common in the Northern Reaches and Ta — tending to be fair-skinned, Southlanders from Ja'gala and the southern coasts of Addar tending to be dark-skinned, and Midlanders falling in between. Many kingdoms in central Addar, particularly the Kingdom of Evenhold, are composed of a diverse mix of all three.

Humans speak a great variety of languages, but within the continent of Addar — and possibly beyond — the most widely spoken language is Common.

Industrious and strong-willed, dwarves are skilled miners and craftspeople who often live in underground halls.

Elves are an ancient and long-lived race who mostly inhabit the western lands of the continent of Addar.

Halflings, also called hobbits, are a diminutive people who resemble small humans.

Seen by many humans as opportunistic, devious, or even evil, individual orcs vary considerably from one another and can defy the expectations of other races. The orcs most often encountered by adventurers in human-dominated areas tend to be rogues and bandits; those living in settled kingdoms like Nostrum may be farmers, crafters, merchants, scholars, or practitioners of magic.

A long history of war with other races has left the trolls of the continent of Addar suspicious of outsiders, and today most live in isolation from the outside world, keeping to the tunnels, caverns, and hidden valleys of their mountain kingdoms. Most in central Addar live either in the northern kingdom below the Aevinn Range or the southern kingdom in the Sax Mountains.

Sometimes known in the north as Melosians, the catfolk or "cat people" of Eamon are intelligent humanoid felids who most closely resemble terrestrial ocelots or cervals. Fast, agile, and quick-witted, catfolk often prefer to tackle problems with care and precision rather than brute force.

History

The origins of catfolk are lost in the mists of history, but the race is known to have inhabited the vast southern continent of Ja'gala for many millennia and is likely as old as humanity. A small population of catfolk inhabit the island of Melosia in the Malphigian Sea not far from the port of Evenhold, the descendants of individuals who were brought north by slavers centuries ago and escaped their captors.

Distribution

Most catfolk live on the tropical continent of Ja'gala in a complex collection of countless small city-states; a smaller number live in nomadic tribes or seafaring clans.

Physical description

Catfolk stand slightly shorter than the human norm and tend to have slender builds. Thick fur covers their bodies, and though coloration varies between individuals, most local catfolk have patterns similar to cervals. Those on the great southern continent are said by explorers to be more physically diverse.

Individuals possess unusually keen senses, including sharp eyesight, hearing, and smell, and can detect sublte movement and vibration.

Catfolk mature slightly faster than humans, reaching adulthood by about 15 years, but tend to live longer and can often reach 100.

The boar-like Gakkians — commonly called Gaks or the Gak — are best known to the other peoples of Addar through hostile encounters with their warrior caste, brutish fighters who often travel in nomadic raiding parties attacking targets of opportunity or serving as mercenaries. However, gaks are more diverse than most know and have a sophisticated society rarely seen by outsiders.

Physical description

Gak closely resemble boars, with snouts, tusks, hooved feet, and a round, stocky build, but unlike boars they're bipedal and their arms end in five-fingered hands. Most have a shock of dark, coarse hair on their heads and lighter hair over most of their bodies which can be black, brown, grey, ginger, or even dark blue or violet. Their tusks, which protrude from the corners of their mouths, continue to grow throughout their lives and are an important symbol of status and seniority; in male gaks of advanced age they can be enormous and curled, while female tusks tend to be smaller and straighter. Some gaks have their tusks carved with intricate patterns or capped in metal.

Male and female gaks both average around five feet in height at maturity. Gaks grow quickly and become adult members of society at the age of about 12 years, but they have shorter lifespans than humans, with few ever reaching 70.

Society

Lizardfolk or "lizard people" are a race of reptilian humanoid beings who have the physical characteristics of lizards, with bodies covered in scales that range from the normal green to light brown, grey, or other shades. They live in scattered communities across the continent, avoiding human-dominated cities and towns.

Merfolk are water-dwelling beings with a human-like head and torso and a scaled, fish-like tail.