Race stuff
Moderator: Gamemasters
Race stuff
Hey, do you guys want someone to improve tyhe grammar of the english race descriptions, or anything else for that matter? Cus id be happy to, and it's quite horrible. Come on, "humans remember few of their own history"? Sheesh
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Cervius Triri
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Cain Freemont
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- Joined: Sun Apr 21, 2002 8:54 pm
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Alright, for the ELVES (the "caption" and the link to the description says elfes. First thing to be fixed. 
)
The Elven race seems to be one of the oldest races, or at least, it is the one with the oldest written documents. The average elf is taller than a human. Elves have pointed ears, and their faces appear noble and often beautiful to humans.
Elves live close to nature. Most elven houses are surrounded by trees, and they build their houses in a strange way that somehow allows plants and trees to grow on balconies and roofs. It is said that elven cities more resemble a beautifull garden than a true city. Some elves even build, or grow, houses from living trees. Few humans ever saw an elven town, but old traveller's reports speak of hanging gardens, high, almost unnatural, beautifully formed towers build utilising incredibly hard stonework, fountains, springs, beautiful artwork and reliefs everywhere. And somehow elven streets don't seem to attract dust and junk at all.
Elves seem to be very talented spellcasters, and also have an affinity for herbs and natural things (and spells). Most do not like fighting, but they seem to be traditionally skilled in the use of bows and long, one handed swords. They have sharp senses, acute hearing and smell, and sharp eyes being able to see even in the darkest night.
The reasons for the elven ways of life lie in their age. Elves can become very old, in fact, noone has ever seen an "old" looking elf. Since they don't speak of their age often, and don't seem to like being questioned about personal things, most humans will never learn the age of an elf. But there are reports of elves aged six or seven thousand years, still without looking older to the human eye.
Since elves can become that old ( they count as "adult" with one hundred and eighty years ), they seem to think in other time periods than humans do. Thanks to this, they also have an amazing patience, which is often unbearable to humans.
Elves ( except for very young ones ) don't become angry easily. They have time. Time to think, and any problems caused by humans, or any other race, simply solve themselves with time. That's why most elves tend to act calm and friendly, they know there is no need for trouble.
In elven towns or cities, elves live with their family clan. The elven society knows no kings or noble leadership, but the oldest members of the family clans are treated with the same respect as nobles, and often decide important things.
With such age comes experience. Elves who have chosen a destiny or hobby work on it, learning and experimenting for hundreds of years to reach perfection. Because of this, elven work may be the most beautiful and of the highest quality, but it will often take man years and even more resources to finish. A Human Knight once said : "Order an expensive, beautiful sword from an elven master smith, and the son of your son can use it on the battlefield."
P.S. I am kind of unsure what Falco person is rambling about, since the description are very good. I only made very little corrections. And everyone makes mistakes sometimes. It is not, and I quote: "quite horrible".
Oh, and I did the translation "Cus id be happy to"
EDIT The bold part I could not fix. I do not know what the writer exactly meant by it.
)The Elven race seems to be one of the oldest races, or at least, it is the one with the oldest written documents. The average elf is taller than a human. Elves have pointed ears, and their faces appear noble and often beautiful to humans.
Elves live close to nature. Most elven houses are surrounded by trees, and they build their houses in a strange way that somehow allows plants and trees to grow on balconies and roofs. It is said that elven cities more resemble a beautifull garden than a true city. Some elves even build, or grow, houses from living trees. Few humans ever saw an elven town, but old traveller's reports speak of hanging gardens, high, almost unnatural, beautifully formed towers build utilising incredibly hard stonework, fountains, springs, beautiful artwork and reliefs everywhere. And somehow elven streets don't seem to attract dust and junk at all.
Elves seem to be very talented spellcasters, and also have an affinity for herbs and natural things (and spells). Most do not like fighting, but they seem to be traditionally skilled in the use of bows and long, one handed swords. They have sharp senses, acute hearing and smell, and sharp eyes being able to see even in the darkest night.
The reasons for the elven ways of life lie in their age. Elves can become very old, in fact, noone has ever seen an "old" looking elf. Since they don't speak of their age often, and don't seem to like being questioned about personal things, most humans will never learn the age of an elf. But there are reports of elves aged six or seven thousand years, still without looking older to the human eye.
Since elves can become that old ( they count as "adult" with one hundred and eighty years ), they seem to think in other time periods than humans do. Thanks to this, they also have an amazing patience, which is often unbearable to humans.
Elves ( except for very young ones ) don't become angry easily. They have time. Time to think, and any problems caused by humans, or any other race, simply solve themselves with time. That's why most elves tend to act calm and friendly, they know there is no need for trouble.
In elven towns or cities, elves live with their family clan. The elven society knows no kings or noble leadership, but the oldest members of the family clans are treated with the same respect as nobles, and often decide important things.
With such age comes experience. Elves who have chosen a destiny or hobby work on it, learning and experimenting for hundreds of years to reach perfection. Because of this, elven work may be the most beautiful and of the highest quality, but it will often take man years and even more resources to finish. A Human Knight once said : "Order an expensive, beautiful sword from an elven master smith, and the son of your son can use it on the battlefield."
P.S. I am kind of unsure what Falco person is rambling about, since the description are very good. I only made very little corrections. And everyone makes mistakes sometimes. It is not, and I quote: "quite horrible".
Oh, and I did the translation "Cus id be happy to"
EDIT The bold part I could not fix. I do not know what the writer exactly meant by it.
The dwarves are an old race. According to history, they were the third race who developed their own writing. In the very beginning it was based on pictograms – a simple and easy way to show the true meaning of the word. It was mainly used to record the history of the dwarfs and for religious purposes, thus being of a more sacrosanct nature and having no real value for daily life. But over the centuries these pictograms developed and became more simple, corresponding with the need of a script used for daily life. In the end the old dwarfish writing developed into a rune like writing; only few are still able to read or write the old pictograms nowadays.
male dwarf
A dwarf is smaller than a human, but taller than a halfling. Dwarves have very broad shoulders and strong, stable bones. In their legends, Irmorom, the God of Craftsmanship, deleted carved the first dwarves out of a rock that was given to him by Ushara, the Goddess of Earth.
female dwarf
In early times, most dwarven clans dwelled in Mountain Valleys, where they discovered strange rocks that started to burn when exposed to fire - coal. They started to dig for it, and traded the coal with other races. Deeper and deeper into the earth dug the tunnels to get access to coal and in this process they found other resources : iron ore, jewels and even gold. Iron tools replaced the old copper ones after many years
Then one day many orc tribes were forced to seek new hunting grounds. They travelled into dwarven territory. Several clashes and confrontations arose from this and the dwarven clans, one by one, decided to retreat into their mines and caves and to take their animals and resources with them. They easily fought off the orcs with their advanced weaponry and armour and went into the prepared and hidden mines during the winter. The orcs, who scouted the valleys in springtime, found abandoned cottages and villages without anything useful left. They thought that the dwarves, who had been very strong enemies, must have suffered from a mighty curse and vanished. These rumours were aided as every orcish scout who approached the mines or found an entrance by accident or superior scouting skills, vanished and was never seen again.
The orcish tribes left the "cursed valleys" and moved on to find new hunting grounds while the dwarves dug deeper and deeper into the mountains and discovered beautiful caves. They decided to stay in their caves and mines and built great halls and vast underground cities. Few dwarven houses were left on the surface, mainly for trading purposes or for farming natural resources.
Dwarves are not very interested in magic, except for Rune crafting magic. They prefer good handwork, and fine crafted items. They love the shine of gold and the cold fire of beautiful jewels. They love the taste of a good dwarven, strong beer. Their towns and caves are lightened by different light sources: Huge, thick glass-structures that direct light from the mountains deep into their halls, torches and lamps, as well as different gemstones, crafted with strong runes to produce light and warmth where they are needed. The dwarven counterpart to a mage is a "Rune Crafter" or "Rune Master" - they carve deleted magic instead of speaking it. This is a deleted "safer", but less spontaneous form of magic, since deleted failures do not hurt the crafter, but only the item it was carved on.
The crafting of runes has different effects, triggered by actions, words, movements or thoughts. These items recharge with a certain, slow rate or can be "reloaded" by a rune crafter or mage. Some of the weaker effects work all the time without necessity to be "recharged", others draw their magical energies from the owner himself. These rune-magic has more practical than aggressive use.
Dwarven Society is organized in clans. A dwarven city can consist of one or two bigger or several smaller clans. The leader of a dwarven clan is called "Clan Lord" or "High Lord", the leader of a dwarven town is called "King". Every Clan in a dwarven City has a Great hall, where the Clan Lord resides. The family buildings or caves, called "Family Halls" surround deleted the Great Hall. Only the king's family quarters are connected with the Great Hall. Most dwarven clan halls have a separate shrine for the clan god. In most cases this would be Irmorom but also Ushara is highly praised, sometimes even Cherga is worshipped.
Every dwarven clan consists of several families. A typical dwarven family consists of a man, his wife, and the children. A common number of children is two to four. When getting married, a new family is founded and they choose a new family name. This is the reason why dwarves call their children "Son of... and ... Son of... etc.", female dwarfs take their name from their mothers and grandmothers. The actual, self-chosen family name is not mentioned and never told to strangers. This is done to prevent curses against the family.
Dwarven cemeteries lie underground, too. Buried deep beneath the surface, they are located outside, far below the towns of the living. Every Dwarven family has a family tomb. Most dwarven tombs are double graves, for the man and the woman. Every child that dies before getting married is buried in the tomb of its parents. Dwarves do not enclose golden gifts into the graves. Gold is an element of the living and has nothing to do with the dead. Dwarven grave gifts are often beautiful stone or jewel coins representing the good things a dwarf did in his life. At a special place in front of the grave the story of the dead one's life is carved and sometimes his whole life story deleted . Dwarven warriors are often buried in stone armour with stone weapons and often a stone mask is placed upon their face - their spirits may protect the clan in times of great trouble.
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There you go.. also you used Dwarfs and Dwarves... which is the correct one?
male dwarf
A dwarf is smaller than a human, but taller than a halfling. Dwarves have very broad shoulders and strong, stable bones. In their legends, Irmorom, the God of Craftsmanship, deleted carved the first dwarves out of a rock that was given to him by Ushara, the Goddess of Earth.
female dwarf
In early times, most dwarven clans dwelled in Mountain Valleys, where they discovered strange rocks that started to burn when exposed to fire - coal. They started to dig for it, and traded the coal with other races. Deeper and deeper into the earth dug the tunnels to get access to coal and in this process they found other resources : iron ore, jewels and even gold. Iron tools replaced the old copper ones after many years
Then one day many orc tribes were forced to seek new hunting grounds. They travelled into dwarven territory. Several clashes and confrontations arose from this and the dwarven clans, one by one, decided to retreat into their mines and caves and to take their animals and resources with them. They easily fought off the orcs with their advanced weaponry and armour and went into the prepared and hidden mines during the winter. The orcs, who scouted the valleys in springtime, found abandoned cottages and villages without anything useful left. They thought that the dwarves, who had been very strong enemies, must have suffered from a mighty curse and vanished. These rumours were aided as every orcish scout who approached the mines or found an entrance by accident or superior scouting skills, vanished and was never seen again.
The orcish tribes left the "cursed valleys" and moved on to find new hunting grounds while the dwarves dug deeper and deeper into the mountains and discovered beautiful caves. They decided to stay in their caves and mines and built great halls and vast underground cities. Few dwarven houses were left on the surface, mainly for trading purposes or for farming natural resources.
Dwarves are not very interested in magic, except for Rune crafting magic. They prefer good handwork, and fine crafted items. They love the shine of gold and the cold fire of beautiful jewels. They love the taste of a good dwarven, strong beer. Their towns and caves are lightened by different light sources: Huge, thick glass-structures that direct light from the mountains deep into their halls, torches and lamps, as well as different gemstones, crafted with strong runes to produce light and warmth where they are needed. The dwarven counterpart to a mage is a "Rune Crafter" or "Rune Master" - they carve deleted magic instead of speaking it. This is a deleted "safer", but less spontaneous form of magic, since deleted failures do not hurt the crafter, but only the item it was carved on.
The crafting of runes has different effects, triggered by actions, words, movements or thoughts. These items recharge with a certain, slow rate or can be "reloaded" by a rune crafter or mage. Some of the weaker effects work all the time without necessity to be "recharged", others draw their magical energies from the owner himself. These rune-magic has more practical than aggressive use.
Dwarven Society is organized in clans. A dwarven city can consist of one or two bigger or several smaller clans. The leader of a dwarven clan is called "Clan Lord" or "High Lord", the leader of a dwarven town is called "King". Every Clan in a dwarven City has a Great hall, where the Clan Lord resides. The family buildings or caves, called "Family Halls" surround deleted the Great Hall. Only the king's family quarters are connected with the Great Hall. Most dwarven clan halls have a separate shrine for the clan god. In most cases this would be Irmorom but also Ushara is highly praised, sometimes even Cherga is worshipped.
Every dwarven clan consists of several families. A typical dwarven family consists of a man, his wife, and the children. A common number of children is two to four. When getting married, a new family is founded and they choose a new family name. This is the reason why dwarves call their children "Son of... and ... Son of... etc.", female dwarfs take their name from their mothers and grandmothers. The actual, self-chosen family name is not mentioned and never told to strangers. This is done to prevent curses against the family.
Dwarven cemeteries lie underground, too. Buried deep beneath the surface, they are located outside, far below the towns of the living. Every Dwarven family has a family tomb. Most dwarven tombs are double graves, for the man and the woman. Every child that dies before getting married is buried in the tomb of its parents. Dwarves do not enclose golden gifts into the graves. Gold is an element of the living and has nothing to do with the dead. Dwarven grave gifts are often beautiful stone or jewel coins representing the good things a dwarf did in his life. At a special place in front of the grave the story of the dead one's life is carved and sometimes his whole life story deleted . Dwarven warriors are often buried in stone armour with stone weapons and often a stone mask is placed upon their face - their spirits may protect the clan in times of great trouble.
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There you go.. also you used Dwarfs and Dwarves... which is the correct one?
A very astonishing race are the lizardmen. They are a little smaller than the average human, walk on two legs, with a strong tail to add balance and agility when running, jumping or swimming. Their anatomy is astonishing : they seem to be reptiles, but instead of being cold-blooded, their body can somehow change between being cold-blood and warm-blood state. This flexibility, in addition with their tough, greenish or brownish lizard skin, their strong teeth and muscles, has allowed them to dwell in different places. Another astonishing thing is their ability to breath water. This may be a result of the lizard's main goddess influence, Tanora ( or "Zelphia" in lizard tongue ) over thousands of years.
Most Lizards are not interested in magic. Since their society is based on religion , the center of their cities is always a large temple dedicated to the water goddess. The building structures look very simple from afar : Big stone blocks. But at close distance, one can see that every single one is carved with religious symbols and reliefs, pictures and stories.
Very few humans have ever seen a lizard city from close distance: Most of them are located under water, most in regions around small islands or archipelagos in the sea, others in vaster seas surrounding continents. Lizards prefer to live underwater or on islands uninhabited by the other races, or in wet jungles and swamp areas no one else wants to enter. One reason for this is the lizard's great adaptability concerning inhabitable climates. The other reason may be the thick lizard skin, which most mosquitos can't break through
Lizardmen are the second race to developed writing. Their first "letters" were signs from their claws pressed in soft materials that hardened out with time, or simple scratch marks on rocks. Some time later, they started to use pergament-like materials from fish skin and plant parts, written with an acid, color-changing ink. Some of these materials have proven to be tough and reliable, even when the writing is a thousand years old. But since these scrolls have to be stored in salty water, and quickly rot away when exposed to air, their use outside the water only makes sense when stored in flasks or special boxes.
In the life of a Lizard, religion and honor are the most important things. The older a lizard gets, the wiser he becomes. At a deleted age of about a hundred and fifty or seventy years, old lizard start to sleep a lot , and spend the rest of their life dreaming, meditating and praying in a Lizard temple. Legends say that some Lizards live that way for hundreds of years before they die. Some of them suddenly awake with a holy shine in their eyes, and without saying a single word, walk away never to be seen again. The Priests call these ones "the enlightened ones". It is forbidden for other lizards to follow an "enlightened one".
The Lizards do not know nobles or kings. They live in family clans, or in the temple, their high priests and family chiefs are their rulers. Of course, all family chiefs have higher religious positions. Legends tell of one being, the "Ushak- Sskhath", poorly translated, "Lizard King". In a far away temple at the deepest place of the oceans, rules the Lizard King, an immortal, huge Lizardman. Being the one who once brought the religion to the lizards, he now leads the high priests from there, with inspiration, wisdom and power, and helps the goddess in keeping and renewing the purity of all water. Legends also tell, that if a lizard priest is unrighteous, selfish or evil, he will one day see the sign of the lizard king over his sleeping place, and if he does not change, one day, simply vanishes. Lizards tell their younglings, that when they don't obey, the lizard king will hunt them in their dreams. No one ever saw this lizard king, but many young lizards go on travels to search his temple.
Lizard Warriors are either hunters or "Temple Guards", a kind of lizard paladin. They guard the temple entrances and priests, uphold law and order, and destroy all evil and corrupt things with their righteous fist. These guards are horrendous fighters, with almost fanatic behaviour and an unstoppable demand for righteousness. They are trained in strange lizard combat techniques and powered by an incredible rage when in battle. Their war cry, "Glory for the goddess !" ( shouted in common languague, so that the disbelievers can understand what they are ready to die for) has ended many battles deleted because the enemy just dropped his weapons and ran away in fear.
Most lizardmen don't like magic deleted, but some of them, especially those far away from lizard towns, have proven to be very talented.
Lizards prefer fresh, raw fish, meat, bread and fruits to eat. They dislike cake and other sweet things.
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And THATS done as well ^^
Most Lizards are not interested in magic. Since their society is based on religion , the center of their cities is always a large temple dedicated to the water goddess. The building structures look very simple from afar : Big stone blocks. But at close distance, one can see that every single one is carved with religious symbols and reliefs, pictures and stories.
Very few humans have ever seen a lizard city from close distance: Most of them are located under water, most in regions around small islands or archipelagos in the sea, others in vaster seas surrounding continents. Lizards prefer to live underwater or on islands uninhabited by the other races, or in wet jungles and swamp areas no one else wants to enter. One reason for this is the lizard's great adaptability concerning inhabitable climates. The other reason may be the thick lizard skin, which most mosquitos can't break through
Lizardmen are the second race to developed writing. Their first "letters" were signs from their claws pressed in soft materials that hardened out with time, or simple scratch marks on rocks. Some time later, they started to use pergament-like materials from fish skin and plant parts, written with an acid, color-changing ink. Some of these materials have proven to be tough and reliable, even when the writing is a thousand years old. But since these scrolls have to be stored in salty water, and quickly rot away when exposed to air, their use outside the water only makes sense when stored in flasks or special boxes.
In the life of a Lizard, religion and honor are the most important things. The older a lizard gets, the wiser he becomes. At a deleted age of about a hundred and fifty or seventy years, old lizard start to sleep a lot , and spend the rest of their life dreaming, meditating and praying in a Lizard temple. Legends say that some Lizards live that way for hundreds of years before they die. Some of them suddenly awake with a holy shine in their eyes, and without saying a single word, walk away never to be seen again. The Priests call these ones "the enlightened ones". It is forbidden for other lizards to follow an "enlightened one".
The Lizards do not know nobles or kings. They live in family clans, or in the temple, their high priests and family chiefs are their rulers. Of course, all family chiefs have higher religious positions. Legends tell of one being, the "Ushak- Sskhath", poorly translated, "Lizard King". In a far away temple at the deepest place of the oceans, rules the Lizard King, an immortal, huge Lizardman. Being the one who once brought the religion to the lizards, he now leads the high priests from there, with inspiration, wisdom and power, and helps the goddess in keeping and renewing the purity of all water. Legends also tell, that if a lizard priest is unrighteous, selfish or evil, he will one day see the sign of the lizard king over his sleeping place, and if he does not change, one day, simply vanishes. Lizards tell their younglings, that when they don't obey, the lizard king will hunt them in their dreams. No one ever saw this lizard king, but many young lizards go on travels to search his temple.
Lizard Warriors are either hunters or "Temple Guards", a kind of lizard paladin. They guard the temple entrances and priests, uphold law and order, and destroy all evil and corrupt things with their righteous fist. These guards are horrendous fighters, with almost fanatic behaviour and an unstoppable demand for righteousness. They are trained in strange lizard combat techniques and powered by an incredible rage when in battle. Their war cry, "Glory for the goddess !" ( shouted in common languague, so that the disbelievers can understand what they are ready to die for) has ended many battles deleted because the enemy just dropped his weapons and ran away in fear.
Most lizardmen don't like magic deleted, but some of them, especially those far away from lizard towns, have proven to be very talented.
Lizards prefer fresh, raw fish, meat, bread and fruits to eat. They dislike cake and other sweet things.
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And THATS done as well ^^
Re: Race stuff
[quote="falco1029"]Hey, do you guys want someone to improve tyhe grammar of the english race descriptions, or anything else for that matter? Cus id be happy to, and it's quite horrible. Come on, "humans remember few of their own history"? Sheesh [/quote]
Try reading the chronicle around september on the previous year. At first it looks normal, then you notice the grammar is hilarious.
[/quote]Try reading the chronicle around september on the previous year. At first it looks normal, then you notice the grammar is hilarious.
Re: Race stuff
You're not joking...AlexRose12345678910 wrote:Try reading the chronicle around september on the previous year. At first it looks normal, then you notice the grammar is hilarious.
Listen, I'm on holidays and I have little to do... I could arrange the grammer of a few pages if you'd like...
GOBLINS:
The goblin race seems to be somewhat related to orcs, although Goblins seem faster, a bit more agile and a tad smarter. They have big eyes, ears and mouths, and their whole body is covered with short fur while their faces have a somewhat leathery, greenish or brownish skin. Their voices are commonly squeaky, and some are known to cry annoyingly loud if anything frightning or mean happens.
Goblins are small, not very strong and have average intellegence. They usually live in a sort of loose family clan and their type of leadership varies. Goblins are not evil, and really dislike all "boring" types of religions, but they have a bad sense for fashion and an almost orcish respect for hygiene. They tend to eat things which no other creature would ever touch and they can have a liking for pokey things like simple spears and rusty short swords.
Sometimes, goblins are caught and enslaved by orcish tribes, therefore they usually tend to be quite afraid of orcs. In fact, goblins can be afraid of most things except Halflings, which they really adore for their cooking skills. Their acute sense of smell and taste as well as their dexterious fingers can make them talented Alchemists, craftsmen or thiefs, if they can concentrate long enough to learn something. They do not make talented spellcasters or mages usually, but a few are known to have mastered magic, although this seems quite rare. Actually, a high lor-angurian arch mage is a goblin, and said to be very wise – but how he ever reached that position is a saga in itself .
Goblins have no towns or likewise, but live in small settlements which can be commonly found deleted . Sometimes such settlements can become dangerous and develop bandit-like habits, which is a reason why goblins are generally disliked .
In Albar, Goblins are famous for their pit-fights against other animals. More intelligent ones can sometimes be found as slaves or, because of their acute smell, as a kind of hunting dog.
Some more civilized goblins even live in Gynkese or sometimes Salkamaerian towns amongst humans. These civilised ones often work as astonishingly well-mannered and gentle Servants, messengers, gifted merchants or even as respected Alchemists.
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FAIRIES
The existance of fairies has been realised for a long time , but they have always hidden very well. Only sometimes spotted, they are known to play usually harmless tricks and jokes on people. Because of their very small size and their ability to fly they can hide very well in bushes and leaves.
Female fairies have multi-coloured wings, similar to butterflies' while the wings of males are often grassy or transparent. The use of their astonishingly stable wings though looks more like that of a dragonfly, so they are able to stand still in the air even against strong or quickly changing wind. Almost no creature can run as fast as a fairie can fly. The drawback on this is definitely their minimal strength. Since they are very small and seem somewhat fragile too, they make very poor fighters in close combat. Like Lizards, they can regrow every cut-off or maimed bodypart – especially the wings, which would regrow within less than two weeks if cut off.
A deleted count in Albar has once been known to hunt and chain fairies; then cutting and selling their wings, but since fairies are very rare in human lands, very few fairies were caught. He was killed after he suddenly combusted, whislt walking in public with a powerful protective amulet around his neck, which burst into flames; after that, all his fairies were quickly released. It is said that his daughter, who had befriended these creatures, became the only female albarian countess who was able to claim her father's land as her own property.
Fairies seem to inhabit natural places, mainly deep woods. It is said that they like to dwell near elven settlements, both races seem to get along with each other deleted . In fact, both races seem to have been allies for a long time . Even though fairies usually do not get too old – in the eyes of an elf, about four centuries doesn't seem to be a very long time– both races seem to understand, respect and like each another quite well.
Fairies do not know the heritage of noble titles. Unlike elves however, they call their actual rulers kings and queens, they are always a couple – unmarried fairies never become rulers. The "nobles“ forming the court did not inherit their titles , and were granted the honor of such a title from their royal couple after having earned it. Different from humans, such nobles do not own any land since fairies are convinced that land cannot be owned. Because of this, they often think of humans as very stupid beings.
Like elves, the fairies have generally a good understanding of nature and life, usually they respect every living being. Their religion is usually that of the elves, although some are known to follow the ideals of younger gods too, especially Adron. Like elves, they deleted hate unnatural things like smelly undead or mean things like dangerous demons. They are naturally talented spellcasters. Even though they often seem to get bored and loose concentration if they have to study for too long, their natural talent and curiosity are high.
Commonly, fairies like to have fun and are very curious, but also careful and easily scared. They are known to never forget if someone treated them well or badly, and to always repay what they owe to their debtors . Farmers who live near forests which are inhabited by fairies, may find a golden coin or two in times of need when they or their ancestors were friendly to a fairie, but it is also rumored that a farmer who once tried to betray a fairie, had some problems with the growth of enormous thistles and stinging nettles on his fields from then on.
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*gasps for breath* wow, this is fun
GNOMES
Gnomes are somewhat related to dwarves. Although much thinner, a bit smaller and weaker than halflings, they are intelligent, agile and very good at crafting mechanical things. Usually they do not make good thieves due to their philosophical views . Their noses are somewhat big, and they have a liking for long names. It is common that male gnomes have three to four first names.
Gnomish clothes have usually more practical than decorative use. Gnomes love to dwell under the surface, in fact they prefer living in a kind of mine , although not as big and deep as dwarven ones. Gnomish homes tend to have their walls painted with bright clay.
Gnomes have a liking for strange mechanical contraptions. Their caves and mines are often equipped with complicated devices composed of wooden gears, frames and ropes just for the sake of getting water out of a well, and they are known to produce the most effective, but also most complicated and sometimes quite self destructive siege engines in the whole world.
Gnomes don't generally live in the mountains like dwarves do, and unlike dwarves, they even have a liking for magical things. Some gnomes are very talented illusonists. Although it is common that magic – except for illusions – is not liked to be seen as entertainment, gnomish illusionists are welcomed on every big official celebration. In fact, gnomes are the only non-human race who can travel through Albar without having to suffer from too many prejudices or even discriminations, mainly only because the albarian nobles would not like to see their well-paid party attraction unable to perform their tasks.
Gnomes often pray to Irmorom like dwarves do, but they usually are not very religious. Most gnomes are convinced that everything can be done without the help of mythical creatures and by the use of the own intelligence, but there have even been some who became priests or priestesses of the younger gods. Male and female gnomes are equal in society.
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And thats gnomes done too, anything else? [PS- they sound too much like D&D gnomes]
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ORCS
The average orc is a little shorter than a human. Their skin is greenish, and two of the lower jaw teeth are longer than the others, and reach a little over the lips.
Their society cannot be described as organized, in fact, it consists of different tribes. The majority of these tribes live as nomads, with a certain teritory in which they travel with their herds.. Pigs and sheep are their main source of nourishment.
Orcs do not build houses, they prefer living in caves. An orc tribe's territory normally has several caves, some are natural, extended caves, others are digged out of the ground like mines. Some orcs have specialized in mining for ore and coal, and sometimes find rarer metals or even a few gems. The main tribe changes its cave with the seasons of the year, some individuals, shamans, old ones or the tribe leaders sometimes, live in the same cave or sometimes a hut over the whole year.
The deleted larger orc tribes are split into sub-tribes with a kind of sub-chiefs. The tribe leader, most of the time, is the strongest one, and one of the oldest. Usually the main shaman is the smartest one, and often, he is their active leader, his wishes passed on by manipulating and impressing the chief. Or sometimes simply by brewing his favourite beer.
Most orc tribes are quite poor deleted. Over the centuries, they have developed a rudimentary writing, consisting of different signs and scratch marks. In times of war , an orc tribe leader developed an encrypted languague, allowing allies to exchange messages without leaving the enemy the possibility to read them.
Most orc tribes honor different gods. Oldra, for most tribes, is the goddess of fertility and growth, and is prayed to in spring. She is also called the "spring- goddess" by them. In Summer, they honor Brágon, the "daily-sun-maker" or "strong-in-summer". Since summertime often means wartime for an orc tribe, some tribes pray to Moshran, called "bone-crusher" or simply "blood lord". Either Moshran or Malachín is the war god of a tribe, sometimes both.
In Fall, the most tribes pray to Malachín, "the hunter", for a good hunt and to prepare for the hard winters. The winter caves must be filled with food for the tribe and its herds.
During Winter, the tribes live in the winter caves, and Cherga is the honored goddess. Winter is the time of death, time of spirits, time of the ancestors. Some of the ancestors' skulls, are placed in holy places in the winter quarters, and some in the chief's and shaman's quarters, to help them in their decisions and to speak to them in dreams.
Summertime often means wartime for an orc tribe THIS IS REPEATED !!! . These wars are often territorial conflicts between the different orc tribes, not resulting in many deaths, often more a sport and training to the warriors. These conflicts include espionage, stealing of animals, and some battles or battlegames to prove the strongest clan
Since the tribes are quite poor, they tend to raid small villages or farms sometimes, if they don't have enough food for the next winter. Normally, orcs are not bloodthirsty, but when they fight with other races, their primary war tactics is to cause fear in their enemies. Captives who are too badly wounded to survive, are sometimes brutally killed after the battle, with the surviving captives witnessing it. Then, some of these captives, who show strength and a brave heart, will be given the possibility to escape, to spread the news; and drive fear into the enemy's hearts. The others are sold as slaves or become personal servants, mostly peasants, cooks, or forced to help the women with their work. If the slave is worthy and shows good work or strength, and is of strong blood, he may be given the choice to leave some day. Sometimes a slave marries a female orc, and becomes a member of the orc tribe that way, resulting in several half orcs.
Orcs have a different idea of "Art" compared to a human or elf. Orcish "poetry" doesn't rhyme, but tells stories and produces disharmonic sounds to underline or describe situations. Same with orcish music. The melodies an orc produces with a flute or trumpet, can best be described as "loud", because they use most instruments just for the fun and for loudness. Orcs seem to love the sound of a drum, too. "Normal" songs, if played by a good bard, can fascinate an orc too, but it may sound strange to him, like music from another culture always does.
Orcs don't like to complicate matters. For them, it is best if a man speaks directly and with little words. That's why they sometimes have problems with elves, who always take their time, and prefer a more metaphoric speech. If a human insults an orc, the orc wouldn't immediatly strike him with a weapon, instead he would make a fierce, suiting answer, trying to make the other one look stupid. But since the orcish humor appears a little rough compared to a human's, it takes a lot for a human to insult an orc ( if he does not start to insult the orc's tribe or race ). In the most cases, it's the human who attacks first.
==
Hmm.. i need a break
The goblin race seems to be somewhat related to orcs, although Goblins seem faster, a bit more agile and a tad smarter. They have big eyes, ears and mouths, and their whole body is covered with short fur while their faces have a somewhat leathery, greenish or brownish skin. Their voices are commonly squeaky, and some are known to cry annoyingly loud if anything frightning or mean happens.
Goblins are small, not very strong and have average intellegence. They usually live in a sort of loose family clan and their type of leadership varies. Goblins are not evil, and really dislike all "boring" types of religions, but they have a bad sense for fashion and an almost orcish respect for hygiene. They tend to eat things which no other creature would ever touch and they can have a liking for pokey things like simple spears and rusty short swords.
Sometimes, goblins are caught and enslaved by orcish tribes, therefore they usually tend to be quite afraid of orcs. In fact, goblins can be afraid of most things except Halflings, which they really adore for their cooking skills. Their acute sense of smell and taste as well as their dexterious fingers can make them talented Alchemists, craftsmen or thiefs, if they can concentrate long enough to learn something. They do not make talented spellcasters or mages usually, but a few are known to have mastered magic, although this seems quite rare. Actually, a high lor-angurian arch mage is a goblin, and said to be very wise – but how he ever reached that position is a saga in itself .
Goblins have no towns or likewise, but live in small settlements which can be commonly found deleted . Sometimes such settlements can become dangerous and develop bandit-like habits, which is a reason why goblins are generally disliked .
In Albar, Goblins are famous for their pit-fights against other animals. More intelligent ones can sometimes be found as slaves or, because of their acute smell, as a kind of hunting dog.
Some more civilized goblins even live in Gynkese or sometimes Salkamaerian towns amongst humans. These civilised ones often work as astonishingly well-mannered and gentle Servants, messengers, gifted merchants or even as respected Alchemists.
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FAIRIES
The existance of fairies has been realised for a long time , but they have always hidden very well. Only sometimes spotted, they are known to play usually harmless tricks and jokes on people. Because of their very small size and their ability to fly they can hide very well in bushes and leaves.
Female fairies have multi-coloured wings, similar to butterflies' while the wings of males are often grassy or transparent. The use of their astonishingly stable wings though looks more like that of a dragonfly, so they are able to stand still in the air even against strong or quickly changing wind. Almost no creature can run as fast as a fairie can fly. The drawback on this is definitely their minimal strength. Since they are very small and seem somewhat fragile too, they make very poor fighters in close combat. Like Lizards, they can regrow every cut-off or maimed bodypart – especially the wings, which would regrow within less than two weeks if cut off.
A deleted count in Albar has once been known to hunt and chain fairies; then cutting and selling their wings, but since fairies are very rare in human lands, very few fairies were caught. He was killed after he suddenly combusted, whislt walking in public with a powerful protective amulet around his neck, which burst into flames; after that, all his fairies were quickly released. It is said that his daughter, who had befriended these creatures, became the only female albarian countess who was able to claim her father's land as her own property.
Fairies seem to inhabit natural places, mainly deep woods. It is said that they like to dwell near elven settlements, both races seem to get along with each other deleted . In fact, both races seem to have been allies for a long time . Even though fairies usually do not get too old – in the eyes of an elf, about four centuries doesn't seem to be a very long time– both races seem to understand, respect and like each another quite well.
Fairies do not know the heritage of noble titles. Unlike elves however, they call their actual rulers kings and queens, they are always a couple – unmarried fairies never become rulers. The "nobles“ forming the court did not inherit their titles , and were granted the honor of such a title from their royal couple after having earned it. Different from humans, such nobles do not own any land since fairies are convinced that land cannot be owned. Because of this, they often think of humans as very stupid beings.
Like elves, the fairies have generally a good understanding of nature and life, usually they respect every living being. Their religion is usually that of the elves, although some are known to follow the ideals of younger gods too, especially Adron. Like elves, they deleted hate unnatural things like smelly undead or mean things like dangerous demons. They are naturally talented spellcasters. Even though they often seem to get bored and loose concentration if they have to study for too long, their natural talent and curiosity are high.
Commonly, fairies like to have fun and are very curious, but also careful and easily scared. They are known to never forget if someone treated them well or badly, and to always repay what they owe to their debtors . Farmers who live near forests which are inhabited by fairies, may find a golden coin or two in times of need when they or their ancestors were friendly to a fairie, but it is also rumored that a farmer who once tried to betray a fairie, had some problems with the growth of enormous thistles and stinging nettles on his fields from then on.
=
*gasps for breath* wow, this is fun
GNOMES
Gnomes are somewhat related to dwarves. Although much thinner, a bit smaller and weaker than halflings, they are intelligent, agile and very good at crafting mechanical things. Usually they do not make good thieves due to their philosophical views . Their noses are somewhat big, and they have a liking for long names. It is common that male gnomes have three to four first names.
Gnomish clothes have usually more practical than decorative use. Gnomes love to dwell under the surface, in fact they prefer living in a kind of mine , although not as big and deep as dwarven ones. Gnomish homes tend to have their walls painted with bright clay.
Gnomes have a liking for strange mechanical contraptions. Their caves and mines are often equipped with complicated devices composed of wooden gears, frames and ropes just for the sake of getting water out of a well, and they are known to produce the most effective, but also most complicated and sometimes quite self destructive siege engines in the whole world.
Gnomes don't generally live in the mountains like dwarves do, and unlike dwarves, they even have a liking for magical things. Some gnomes are very talented illusonists. Although it is common that magic – except for illusions – is not liked to be seen as entertainment, gnomish illusionists are welcomed on every big official celebration. In fact, gnomes are the only non-human race who can travel through Albar without having to suffer from too many prejudices or even discriminations, mainly only because the albarian nobles would not like to see their well-paid party attraction unable to perform their tasks.
Gnomes often pray to Irmorom like dwarves do, but they usually are not very religious. Most gnomes are convinced that everything can be done without the help of mythical creatures and by the use of the own intelligence, but there have even been some who became priests or priestesses of the younger gods. Male and female gnomes are equal in society.
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And thats gnomes done too, anything else? [PS- they sound too much like D&D gnomes
]=
ORCS
The average orc is a little shorter than a human. Their skin is greenish, and two of the lower jaw teeth are longer than the others, and reach a little over the lips.
Their society cannot be described as organized, in fact, it consists of different tribes. The majority of these tribes live as nomads, with a certain teritory in which they travel with their herds.. Pigs and sheep are their main source of nourishment.
Orcs do not build houses, they prefer living in caves. An orc tribe's territory normally has several caves, some are natural, extended caves, others are digged out of the ground like mines. Some orcs have specialized in mining for ore and coal, and sometimes find rarer metals or even a few gems. The main tribe changes its cave with the seasons of the year, some individuals, shamans, old ones or the tribe leaders sometimes, live in the same cave or sometimes a hut over the whole year.
The deleted larger orc tribes are split into sub-tribes with a kind of sub-chiefs. The tribe leader, most of the time, is the strongest one, and one of the oldest. Usually the main shaman is the smartest one, and often, he is their active leader, his wishes passed on by manipulating and impressing the chief. Or sometimes simply by brewing his favourite beer.
Most orc tribes are quite poor deleted. Over the centuries, they have developed a rudimentary writing, consisting of different signs and scratch marks. In times of war , an orc tribe leader developed an encrypted languague, allowing allies to exchange messages without leaving the enemy the possibility to read them.
Most orc tribes honor different gods. Oldra, for most tribes, is the goddess of fertility and growth, and is prayed to in spring. She is also called the "spring- goddess" by them. In Summer, they honor Brágon, the "daily-sun-maker" or "strong-in-summer". Since summertime often means wartime for an orc tribe, some tribes pray to Moshran, called "bone-crusher" or simply "blood lord". Either Moshran or Malachín is the war god of a tribe, sometimes both.
In Fall, the most tribes pray to Malachín, "the hunter", for a good hunt and to prepare for the hard winters. The winter caves must be filled with food for the tribe and its herds.
During Winter, the tribes live in the winter caves, and Cherga is the honored goddess. Winter is the time of death, time of spirits, time of the ancestors. Some of the ancestors' skulls, are placed in holy places in the winter quarters, and some in the chief's and shaman's quarters, to help them in their decisions and to speak to them in dreams.
Summertime often means wartime for an orc tribe THIS IS REPEATED !!! . These wars are often territorial conflicts between the different orc tribes, not resulting in many deaths, often more a sport and training to the warriors. These conflicts include espionage, stealing of animals, and some battles or battlegames to prove the strongest clan
Since the tribes are quite poor, they tend to raid small villages or farms sometimes, if they don't have enough food for the next winter. Normally, orcs are not bloodthirsty, but when they fight with other races, their primary war tactics is to cause fear in their enemies. Captives who are too badly wounded to survive, are sometimes brutally killed after the battle, with the surviving captives witnessing it. Then, some of these captives, who show strength and a brave heart, will be given the possibility to escape, to spread the news; and drive fear into the enemy's hearts. The others are sold as slaves or become personal servants, mostly peasants, cooks, or forced to help the women with their work. If the slave is worthy and shows good work or strength, and is of strong blood, he may be given the choice to leave some day. Sometimes a slave marries a female orc, and becomes a member of the orc tribe that way, resulting in several half orcs.
Orcs have a different idea of "Art" compared to a human or elf. Orcish "poetry" doesn't rhyme, but tells stories and produces disharmonic sounds to underline or describe situations. Same with orcish music. The melodies an orc produces with a flute or trumpet, can best be described as "loud", because they use most instruments just for the fun and for loudness. Orcs seem to love the sound of a drum, too. "Normal" songs, if played by a good bard, can fascinate an orc too, but it may sound strange to him, like music from another culture always does.
Orcs don't like to complicate matters. For them, it is best if a man speaks directly and with little words. That's why they sometimes have problems with elves, who always take their time, and prefer a more metaphoric speech. If a human insults an orc, the orc wouldn't immediatly strike him with a weapon, instead he would make a fierce, suiting answer, trying to make the other one look stupid. But since the orcish humor appears a little rough compared to a human's, it takes a lot for a human to insult an orc ( if he does not start to insult the orc's tribe or race ). In the most cases, it's the human who attacks first.
==
Hmm.. i need a break
((Sorry for the triple post, but its getting inconviant))
HALFLINGS
To the ignorant, Halflings look like the children of humans and indeed their appearance is similar to them. The most significant difference besides their small height are their big and hairy feet, which they proudly present in public as they avoid wearing any kind of footwear. They also tend to live longer than humans.
Halflings prefer to live in areas dominated by hills and thin forests, where they dig their homes into the earth. Over the generations these caverns can obtain quite a respectable size, filled with lots of furniture and other items; as Halflings feel that everythign might have a use, and don't throw anything away . There are actually some who have houses similar to humans but most of the Halflings wouldn't call this comfortable. In these homes they live together in big family clans led by a clan chief. This is a honorary title rather than an actual position of power. The function of this position can be described as organising feasts and festivals and especially keeping a well stocked pantry; as Halflings tend to show up for dinner uninvited and deem it improper if they have to leave with an empty stomach. Malicious tongues say that three things are most important for Halflings: breakfast, lunch and dinner! They take a serious interest in any kind of food or beverage and are said to have a notorious sweet tooth. It may be the case that a Halfling will explain at great length, the best way to cook a piece of beef, while in the middle of a battle. It comes as no surprise that many taverns boast themselves on having a Halfling as their cook and especially young Halflings favour Adron over the rest of the pantheon.
Halflings prefer to earn a living from the earth. There are actually some who got well known for their mastery in a handicraft but in general they are gifted farmers, hunters and herbalists. Quite often small shrines dedicated to Oldra can be found in areas inhabited by Halflings to protect the crop. And the harvest festival solemnised in autumn is the biggest celebration throughout the year. Through this life in nature they have developed a natural talent to move unheard and be quite nimble and even though not many Halflings would admit it, some have put these talents to good use deleted as a thief and cutpurse. Therefore it is well advised to keep an eye on your belongings when there is a Halfling around with the emblem of Ronagan around the neck.
Halflings have, in general, a very easy approach to life. Unlike the elves, dwarfs and humans they seldom worry about the future and it’s outcome. They are very restful to be with, preferring a chat about relatives and friends over high politics. They also do not have a sense for ranks deleted but value highly the importance of family and friends and loving care for their children. This is reflected by the structure of their society. They lack an overall political structure and a sense of unity. Nevertheless they prefer to live in loose communities dominated by their race even though mixed settlements with humans are sometimes heard of.
This denial of a unified race has in the past led to foreign rule, once by the Orcs and Humans respectively. Even though the rule of the Humans was by far less harsh than that of the Orcs; still both times the hardship brought upon the Halflings was great and only under these two circumstances were they willing to lay down their reluctance to accept a unitary leadership. Their childlike appearance may be mistaken as being defenceless and as the saying goes, it is easier to move a mountain than to anger a Halfling (as long as you do not take away his food, you might add), but as soon as determination has entered the stubborn head of a Halfling you would not like to stand in his way. This both the Orcs and the Humans have learned the hard way as the uprising of the Halflings had shaken their societies to the core.
Magic isn't their prime talent. It might be the case that there are some Halflings tempting the arts of magic but it is highly recommended not to stand so close as a spell or two might have unwanted effets
HALFLINGS
To the ignorant, Halflings look like the children of humans and indeed their appearance is similar to them. The most significant difference besides their small height are their big and hairy feet, which they proudly present in public as they avoid wearing any kind of footwear. They also tend to live longer than humans.
Halflings prefer to live in areas dominated by hills and thin forests, where they dig their homes into the earth. Over the generations these caverns can obtain quite a respectable size, filled with lots of furniture and other items; as Halflings feel that everythign might have a use, and don't throw anything away . There are actually some who have houses similar to humans but most of the Halflings wouldn't call this comfortable. In these homes they live together in big family clans led by a clan chief. This is a honorary title rather than an actual position of power. The function of this position can be described as organising feasts and festivals and especially keeping a well stocked pantry; as Halflings tend to show up for dinner uninvited and deem it improper if they have to leave with an empty stomach. Malicious tongues say that three things are most important for Halflings: breakfast, lunch and dinner! They take a serious interest in any kind of food or beverage and are said to have a notorious sweet tooth. It may be the case that a Halfling will explain at great length, the best way to cook a piece of beef, while in the middle of a battle. It comes as no surprise that many taverns boast themselves on having a Halfling as their cook and especially young Halflings favour Adron over the rest of the pantheon.
Halflings prefer to earn a living from the earth. There are actually some who got well known for their mastery in a handicraft but in general they are gifted farmers, hunters and herbalists. Quite often small shrines dedicated to Oldra can be found in areas inhabited by Halflings to protect the crop. And the harvest festival solemnised in autumn is the biggest celebration throughout the year. Through this life in nature they have developed a natural talent to move unheard and be quite nimble and even though not many Halflings would admit it, some have put these talents to good use deleted as a thief and cutpurse. Therefore it is well advised to keep an eye on your belongings when there is a Halfling around with the emblem of Ronagan around the neck.
Halflings have, in general, a very easy approach to life. Unlike the elves, dwarfs and humans they seldom worry about the future and it’s outcome. They are very restful to be with, preferring a chat about relatives and friends over high politics. They also do not have a sense for ranks deleted but value highly the importance of family and friends and loving care for their children. This is reflected by the structure of their society. They lack an overall political structure and a sense of unity. Nevertheless they prefer to live in loose communities dominated by their race even though mixed settlements with humans are sometimes heard of.
This denial of a unified race has in the past led to foreign rule, once by the Orcs and Humans respectively. Even though the rule of the Humans was by far less harsh than that of the Orcs; still both times the hardship brought upon the Halflings was great and only under these two circumstances were they willing to lay down their reluctance to accept a unitary leadership. Their childlike appearance may be mistaken as being defenceless and as the saying goes, it is easier to move a mountain than to anger a Halfling (as long as you do not take away his food, you might add), but as soon as determination has entered the stubborn head of a Halfling you would not like to stand in his way. This both the Orcs and the Humans have learned the hard way as the uprising of the Halflings had shaken their societies to the core.
Magic isn't their prime talent. It might be the case that there are some Halflings tempting the arts of magic but it is highly recommended not to stand so close as a spell or two might have unwanted effets
-
Damien
- Posts: 7845
- Joined: Thu Feb 22, 2001 5:59 pm
- Location: Vanima and grey Refuge, of course.
- Contact:
Which is a misunderstanding ! I explained that to Patric though.
The racial texts were originally written in ENGLISH because this was the most important languague back then. THEN, they were translated into german, often by someone else. There are a few unmatching expressions in the german texts but they are still matching, so the meaning of the english ones is the correctest one ! Do not attempt translating back from german! That would cause more unclearness.
The most descriptions were done a few years ago, the new races descriptions were done in a hurry and therefor not control-read yet by a native english speaker (or at least, i got no feedback yet from those i sent them to).
Anyhow i showed the older texts to native english speakers right after writing them, and those either corrected stuff or stated that they were error-free and throughoutly understandeable. But since then, another native german speaker has again "corrected" a few parts, which sounded uncorrect to him... that didnt happen only once or twice hehe...
Please remove the words "deleted" out of the texts. They could be mistaken and may stay in the texts then ! And please watch out to stick to the original meaning in every detail.
Thanks alot for helping and correcting !
If there is any unclearness about any meaning, simply contact me.
The racial texts were originally written in ENGLISH because this was the most important languague back then. THEN, they were translated into german, often by someone else. There are a few unmatching expressions in the german texts but they are still matching, so the meaning of the english ones is the correctest one ! Do not attempt translating back from german! That would cause more unclearness.
The most descriptions were done a few years ago, the new races descriptions were done in a hurry and therefor not control-read yet by a native english speaker (or at least, i got no feedback yet from those i sent them to).
Anyhow i showed the older texts to native english speakers right after writing them, and those either corrected stuff or stated that they were error-free and throughoutly understandeable. But since then, another native german speaker has again "corrected" a few parts, which sounded uncorrect to him... that didnt happen only once or twice hehe...
Please remove the words "deleted" out of the texts. They could be mistaken and may stay in the texts then ! And please watch out to stick to the original meaning in every detail.
Thanks alot for helping and correcting !
If there is any unclearness about any meaning, simply contact me.
Humans know very little of their own history. A couple of reasons might be that humans often fight with other humans (resulting in the destruction of a lot of knowledge), and that only the richer or more educated of humans teach their children to read and write (or bother to learn themselves).
At first, human written language was just a simplified version of the elvish alpahabet, and very few humans showed any interest in it; though kings and leaders that wished to be able to send secret notes via an illiterate messenger who wouldn't hhave any way of knowing the message. Much later, a human king developed a more easy to understand alphabet based on simple symbols. It was capable of coding human, dwarven, elven and even orcish tongues. It wastaught to all of the children living in his country and because of its practical use became a common trading language. Old human dialects mixed with dwarven, elven, and some orcish words, and created the currently known common language. Humans speak the common language natively, sometimes influenced by local dialects.
Human societies can take very different forms, depending on the leadership of the society and on the influence of neighbouring cultures. Some prefer to live amongst their own kind. Most humans see other races as "strangers". This results from their short living span, compared to most other races (especially elves). Amongst the more uneducated poor people, rumors about these "strangers" spread easily: Dwarves can turn anything (or anyone) into gold, lizardmen eat people, orcs steal and eat children, Elves can curse all people they don't like with a single look- to give a few common examples of these rumors. However, many human societies are more open-minded and well-educated.
Humans seem to play an important role in trade. Many of their towns have been built along trade lines and roads, so that they can offer rest and large trading areas to visitors. The most well know human societies are the following:
Primitive Cultures:
Seafolk (Norodaj) live in rough, cold climates. They wear furs, leather or rough, colored cloth, and will usually have long beards. They tend to prefer big swords, spears, hand axes and throwing axes as weapons. For writing, they use a rune alphabet similar to the dwarven one. They know the common language, but natively speak their own tongue and some dwarven words. They inhabit rough, cold, often rocky areas between the sea and mountains. They often trade with dwarves, their neighbors in the mountains, and sometimes with lizardmen. Their main food source is the sea; they live off of fishing and sheep herding (and sometimes from raiding other human or orcish settlements located somewhere near the sea). They travel in long, agile rudder boats with only a thick cloth as roof and a single sail. These boats have wolf heads at their tip, that can be used as a ram.
They pray to different gods, but mainly Tanora (Goddess of Sea), Irmorom (God of Trade and Craftsmanship) and Malachín (God of Battle and Hunting). They fear magic and some of them are afraid of elves, since elven ships passing nearby seem to appear and vanish with the mist, with "unnatural" speed, and without rudders. They are thought to be ghost ships.
Norodaj live in big family clans. The clan leader is determined in a contest of intelligence and fighting prowess, which is held if a leader becomes too old. The winner of this contest, called the "champion", than fights the old leader. If the old leader wants to retreat, it is only a symbolic fight, but in some rare cases this can be a fight to death. The leader (or ex-leader) may have up to three wives, while all other men can only have one. Marriages last their whole life, and "dishonored" men who have been betrayed (by their wives) will normally challenge the other man for a duel to the death. If a man treats his wife or children badly, he is soon exiled. Corpses of dead Norodaj are burned in a ritual of sorts, on a pile of wood. The ashes are thrown into the sea and a small piece of the skull is kept and mounted into the ram of a new boat. Every tribe has a "spirit man", a kind of shaman or priest.
Plainfolk (Serinjah) live on big plains. They raise horses and cows, and live in wooden houses located in loose villages. They are organized in clans and are known to be excellent riders, tamers, hunters and fighters. Serinjah prefer fighting with spears, bows, long swords, knives, throwing stars and throwing knives, and often wear hard leather or wooden armor. They seldom wear metal armor because of its large weight and lack of flexibility. The Serinjah have developed a type of unarmed combat, where elbows, knees, hands and feet are used as effective weapons. Some of the movements used are a little similar to the acrobatics of elven war dancers.
The Plainfolk can speak the common language, and a little elvish, but have their own ancestral language that they primarily speak. They often trade with Elves, orcs and other humans. Their main God is Malachín, the God of Battle and Hunting, but they pray to all younger gods too. Serinjah Clans are always lead by three people: A young man and woman (often an amazon), and another, much older, woman. The plainfolk believe in the power of the land, and some know druid magic quite well. Common magic is also well known to them, and some even prefer a life as a sorcerer, witch or shaman.
Plainfolk humans do not practice conventional marriage but can still promise to stay with one person. Dead people are buried in graves with small stones marking them, and a celebration is held when grass has overgrown the grave: Life defeats death, and nature wins, closing the circle of life.
Plainfolk (Ama-shoon) live in forests and plains near the Serinjah. They are organized into tribes. These tribes are composed entirelyof females and children under four years old. Once male children are over four years old, they are taken to Serinjah tribes to be raised by their fathers.
Amazons live like and sometimes with Serinjah, but have devoted their life to fighting and protecting the land. They follow Findari, the goddess of air (and the four winds). They are often experts with bow and spears, slings, swords and daggers, and throwing stars. They mostly prefer hard leather or wooden armor, though some of them may prefer iron armor instead. They ride their horses bareback (without saddles). It is said that an Amazon can also fight with her bare hands, if necessary. Amazons are lead by one female leader, who sometimes is a Findari Priest. Amazons tend to use aggressive as well as healing magic.
"Civilized" Cultures:
All of these cultures speak the common language natively. Another common thing among them is that marriages are meant for life, but can be released under certain circumstances.
Lightfolk (Salkamaerian) live in towns, villages and castles. The place of origin of the Salkamaerian way of life is the old city of Salkamar, which is also the origin of the common language and writing system.
The Salkamaerian way of life implies respect, honour, and loyalty. It is a noble one. All Salkamaerian children learn reading and writing. Slavery is forbidden by law and a military education is offered to all members of poorer families for free. The Salkamaerian kings and nobles are understood to be representatives of the people and are often wise and good regents. Cities are ruled by male or female lords (males and females have equal rights among Salkamaerians). The Salkamaerian culture is open to strangers, without prejudice.
Salkamaerian poets, bards and philosophers are well known among the world, as are Salkamaerian paladins, who fight for their honorable virtues, and for humanity in general. Zhambra, Oldra, Sirani, Elara and Malachín are the most supported gods in Salkamaerian towns.
Straightfolk (Albarian) live in small towns, villages and castles. Their life is ruled by male nobles, which own all of the Albarian land as wel as the people who reside on it. More than 90% of their people are bondsmen (the rest are nobles). A noble can call any bondsman he owns to arms or to personal service. Bondsmen who do not obey these commands are often punished badly.
Albarian females belong to their husband, or their father if they dont have a husband, and to their lord, since the male nobles still have the right of the first night. Female goddesses are not prayed to in the Albaerian culture.
The Albarian way of life has its origin in the city of Albar, and is a little older than the Salkamaerian way and developed into the opposite direction. Since bondsmen sometimes tend to start rebellions, areas with Albarian lordship have become rarer over time. The main gods vary in the different villages; nobles follow their own choice of deity.
Treefolk (Gynkeesh) live in independent towns, villages and castles. Slavery is forbidden by law, but sometimes very rich people tend to "forget" this. Gynkeesh people are ruled by the free market; their towns are ruled by merchant guilds and town majors. Their armies and guards consist of paid mercenaries. Poor people live in slums, and some become beggars or join one of the thieve's guilds. Most Gynkeesh villages have a population of mixed races. Gynkeesh villages are sometimes called a "junkyard" or "pool of sin" (for obvious reasons).
At first, human written language was just a simplified version of the elvish alpahabet, and very few humans showed any interest in it; though kings and leaders that wished to be able to send secret notes via an illiterate messenger who wouldn't hhave any way of knowing the message. Much later, a human king developed a more easy to understand alphabet based on simple symbols. It was capable of coding human, dwarven, elven and even orcish tongues. It wastaught to all of the children living in his country and because of its practical use became a common trading language. Old human dialects mixed with dwarven, elven, and some orcish words, and created the currently known common language. Humans speak the common language natively, sometimes influenced by local dialects.
Human societies can take very different forms, depending on the leadership of the society and on the influence of neighbouring cultures. Some prefer to live amongst their own kind. Most humans see other races as "strangers". This results from their short living span, compared to most other races (especially elves). Amongst the more uneducated poor people, rumors about these "strangers" spread easily: Dwarves can turn anything (or anyone) into gold, lizardmen eat people, orcs steal and eat children, Elves can curse all people they don't like with a single look- to give a few common examples of these rumors. However, many human societies are more open-minded and well-educated.
Humans seem to play an important role in trade. Many of their towns have been built along trade lines and roads, so that they can offer rest and large trading areas to visitors. The most well know human societies are the following:
Primitive Cultures:
Seafolk (Norodaj) live in rough, cold climates. They wear furs, leather or rough, colored cloth, and will usually have long beards. They tend to prefer big swords, spears, hand axes and throwing axes as weapons. For writing, they use a rune alphabet similar to the dwarven one. They know the common language, but natively speak their own tongue and some dwarven words. They inhabit rough, cold, often rocky areas between the sea and mountains. They often trade with dwarves, their neighbors in the mountains, and sometimes with lizardmen. Their main food source is the sea; they live off of fishing and sheep herding (and sometimes from raiding other human or orcish settlements located somewhere near the sea). They travel in long, agile rudder boats with only a thick cloth as roof and a single sail. These boats have wolf heads at their tip, that can be used as a ram.
They pray to different gods, but mainly Tanora (Goddess of Sea), Irmorom (God of Trade and Craftsmanship) and Malachín (God of Battle and Hunting). They fear magic and some of them are afraid of elves, since elven ships passing nearby seem to appear and vanish with the mist, with "unnatural" speed, and without rudders. They are thought to be ghost ships.
Norodaj live in big family clans. The clan leader is determined in a contest of intelligence and fighting prowess, which is held if a leader becomes too old. The winner of this contest, called the "champion", than fights the old leader. If the old leader wants to retreat, it is only a symbolic fight, but in some rare cases this can be a fight to death. The leader (or ex-leader) may have up to three wives, while all other men can only have one. Marriages last their whole life, and "dishonored" men who have been betrayed (by their wives) will normally challenge the other man for a duel to the death. If a man treats his wife or children badly, he is soon exiled. Corpses of dead Norodaj are burned in a ritual of sorts, on a pile of wood. The ashes are thrown into the sea and a small piece of the skull is kept and mounted into the ram of a new boat. Every tribe has a "spirit man", a kind of shaman or priest.
Plainfolk (Serinjah) live on big plains. They raise horses and cows, and live in wooden houses located in loose villages. They are organized in clans and are known to be excellent riders, tamers, hunters and fighters. Serinjah prefer fighting with spears, bows, long swords, knives, throwing stars and throwing knives, and often wear hard leather or wooden armor. They seldom wear metal armor because of its large weight and lack of flexibility. The Serinjah have developed a type of unarmed combat, where elbows, knees, hands and feet are used as effective weapons. Some of the movements used are a little similar to the acrobatics of elven war dancers.
The Plainfolk can speak the common language, and a little elvish, but have their own ancestral language that they primarily speak. They often trade with Elves, orcs and other humans. Their main God is Malachín, the God of Battle and Hunting, but they pray to all younger gods too. Serinjah Clans are always lead by three people: A young man and woman (often an amazon), and another, much older, woman. The plainfolk believe in the power of the land, and some know druid magic quite well. Common magic is also well known to them, and some even prefer a life as a sorcerer, witch or shaman.
Plainfolk humans do not practice conventional marriage but can still promise to stay with one person. Dead people are buried in graves with small stones marking them, and a celebration is held when grass has overgrown the grave: Life defeats death, and nature wins, closing the circle of life.
Plainfolk (Ama-shoon) live in forests and plains near the Serinjah. They are organized into tribes. These tribes are composed entirelyof females and children under four years old. Once male children are over four years old, they are taken to Serinjah tribes to be raised by their fathers.
Amazons live like and sometimes with Serinjah, but have devoted their life to fighting and protecting the land. They follow Findari, the goddess of air (and the four winds). They are often experts with bow and spears, slings, swords and daggers, and throwing stars. They mostly prefer hard leather or wooden armor, though some of them may prefer iron armor instead. They ride their horses bareback (without saddles). It is said that an Amazon can also fight with her bare hands, if necessary. Amazons are lead by one female leader, who sometimes is a Findari Priest. Amazons tend to use aggressive as well as healing magic.
"Civilized" Cultures:
All of these cultures speak the common language natively. Another common thing among them is that marriages are meant for life, but can be released under certain circumstances.
Lightfolk (Salkamaerian) live in towns, villages and castles. The place of origin of the Salkamaerian way of life is the old city of Salkamar, which is also the origin of the common language and writing system.
The Salkamaerian way of life implies respect, honour, and loyalty. It is a noble one. All Salkamaerian children learn reading and writing. Slavery is forbidden by law and a military education is offered to all members of poorer families for free. The Salkamaerian kings and nobles are understood to be representatives of the people and are often wise and good regents. Cities are ruled by male or female lords (males and females have equal rights among Salkamaerians). The Salkamaerian culture is open to strangers, without prejudice.
Salkamaerian poets, bards and philosophers are well known among the world, as are Salkamaerian paladins, who fight for their honorable virtues, and for humanity in general. Zhambra, Oldra, Sirani, Elara and Malachín are the most supported gods in Salkamaerian towns.
Straightfolk (Albarian) live in small towns, villages and castles. Their life is ruled by male nobles, which own all of the Albarian land as wel as the people who reside on it. More than 90% of their people are bondsmen (the rest are nobles). A noble can call any bondsman he owns to arms or to personal service. Bondsmen who do not obey these commands are often punished badly.
Albarian females belong to their husband, or their father if they dont have a husband, and to their lord, since the male nobles still have the right of the first night. Female goddesses are not prayed to in the Albaerian culture.
The Albarian way of life has its origin in the city of Albar, and is a little older than the Salkamaerian way and developed into the opposite direction. Since bondsmen sometimes tend to start rebellions, areas with Albarian lordship have become rarer over time. The main gods vary in the different villages; nobles follow their own choice of deity.
Treefolk (Gynkeesh) live in independent towns, villages and castles. Slavery is forbidden by law, but sometimes very rich people tend to "forget" this. Gynkeesh people are ruled by the free market; their towns are ruled by merchant guilds and town majors. Their armies and guards consist of paid mercenaries. Poor people live in slums, and some become beggars or join one of the thieve's guilds. Most Gynkeesh villages have a population of mixed races. Gynkeesh villages are sometimes called a "junkyard" or "pool of sin" (for obvious reasons).
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Cain Freemont
- Posts: 1424
- Joined: Sun Apr 21, 2002 8:54 pm
- Location: Oh, you know. Places.
Eh? But for the instance the german elven text is way more...Beautifull and elaborate than the english one. How the hell did that happen if it was a translation?Damien wrote:Which is a misunderstanding ! I explained that to Patric though.
The racial texts were originally written in ENGLISH because this was the most important languague back then. THEN, they were translated into german, often by someone else. There are a few unmatching expressions in the german texts but they are still matching, so the meaning of the english ones is the correctest one ! Do not attempt translating back from german! That would cause more unclearness.
The most descriptions were done a few years ago, the new races descriptions were done in a hurry and therefor not control-read yet by a native english speaker (or at least, i got no feedback yet from those i sent them to).
Anyhow i showed the older texts to native english speakers right after writing them, and those either corrected stuff or stated that they were error-free and throughoutly understandeable. But since then, another native german speaker has again "corrected" a few parts, which sounded uncorrect to him... that didnt happen only once or twice hehe...
Please remove the words "deleted" out of the texts. They could be mistaken and may stay in the texts then ! And please watch out to stick to the original meaning in every detail.
Thanks alot for helping and correcting !
If there is any unclearness about any meaning, simply contact me.
I fear that this was my mistake. Some time ago I have rewritten the German part of the Elven description and failed to change it with the English part. After I have recently updated the German Moonsilver pages I am working currently on the English page. I am optimistic to finish that in the course of next week. Than the differences will be elliminated.Misjbar wrote:Eh? But for the instance the german elven text is way more...Beautifull and elaborate than the english one. How the hell did that happen if it was a translation?
But thanks to those who corrected the English texts here. I will include them in the update.