Humans
Cultural Trivia
Humans are curious, adaptable, and resilient, but live relatively short lives when compared to dwarves and elves. Perhaps it is because of their shorter lives that they strive to achieve as much as they can in the years they are given. Or maybe they feel they have something to prove to the elder races, and that's why they build their mighty empires on the foundation of conquest and trade. Whatever drives them, humans are often found at the forefront of , creative exploration, and technological innovation.
Age. Humans reach adulthood in their late teens and live less than a century.
Size. Humans vary widely in height and build, from barely 5 feet to well over 6 feet tall. Regardless of their position in that range, their size is Medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Ability Score Increase. Two different ability scores of your choice increase by 1.
Skills. You gain proficiency in one skill of your choice.
Feat. You gain one Feat of your choice.
Languages. You can speak, read, and write Common and one extra language of your choice. Humans typically learn the languages of other peoples they deal with, including obscure dialects. They are also fond of sprinkling their speech with words borrowed from other tongues: Orcish curses, Elvish idioms, Dwarvish military jargon, and so on.
Mythical History
According to legend, the first humans in Destrea were grown from the sand, mud, and snow, "watered" by the blood of Irreghan- a hero of the Founding Era, and one of the main religious icons in Kinfaith.
Cultural Trivia
In most human societies, family names are passed on between generations to denote lineage- though the humans forced into the Voran Caste system, in the wake of The Subjugation, were denied this cultural practice. As a result, many lower-Caste families lost their true family names. Most would later adopt the monicker of "Freeman", after the Anclevan Revolution of 1299 DC.
Human Ethnicities
Torrheni
Humans hailing from the Torrhen Shield, in the northeastern swath of mainland Destrea, most of whom traditionally inhabit the mountain cities of the Edonian Crownlands. Renowned throughout the realm for their talents as stonemasons, armourcrafters, gunsmiths, and cannoneers, Torrheni are generally industrious and conservative in nature.
The Great Ring of Goro-Dahn, a titanic stone wall that is the product of untold generations of painstaking labour by the Torrheni, encircles much of the Crownlands, and the Torrhen Shield itself.
High Aptitude – You have advantage on Survival, Athletics, and Acrobatics checks when traversing through mountain landscapes.
Irreghani
The most populous ethnicity of humans, spread throughout the Irreghan Westerlands and along the Ebon Coast. Their stubborn and crafty nature is rooted in generations of Irreghani, as far back as the Founding Era, having lived under an endless cycle of despots, warlords, and authoritarian regimes.
While other human cultures, let alone other races, tend to view arcana from a fairly holistic or mystical perspective– intractable from other aspects of the natural world, Irreghani tend to view it more as an exploitable resource, equating essence to combustible fuels while largely ignoring spellcraft. This approach has led to a surge in technological development within Irreghani societies, while having a distressing impact on the environments they inhabit- and even some they don't.
Mechanical Mindset – You are proficient in the Engineering* skill.
(*Engineering replaces the Arcana skill on your character sheet.)
Once a formidable naval empire of the late Founding Era, The Andari's island home of Atryon was destroyed in an environmental cataclysm of an unknown nature. Only their formidable fleet (who numbered only 4,137 souls) survived the event, due to the prudence of acting-Rear Admiral Adonius Rex. He and the Andari survivors would later go on to found the Edonian Crownlands, after a 30-year conquest of the Petty Kingdoms of Torrhen.
Descendants of the Andari can be distinguished by their dark skin and striking green eyes. They value honour, intelligence, ideological boldness, and carry a fervent appreciation for simple pleasures.
Naturally Naval You have advantage on Survival checks when at sea.
A blanket name for a group of clans– some nomadic, but most living in settlements– whose ancestors inhabited The Great Wide during the Founding Era. Their more recent ancestors' displacement by settler populations remains a point of contention between them, the Edonian Crownlands, and more recently, the fledgling Commonwealth.
There are myriad subcultures of The Jotünera, but generally-speaking, they are a hardy folk who can be terse and stubborn when dealing with outsiders (even from other clans). Conversely, Jotünera are highly generous and nurturing with those considered their fellow clansfolk– those not born into such company will find it difficult to attain such status, but it does happen on occasion that outsiders are initiated into a clan.
Settlers, dissidents, exiles, and drifters from all corners of the realm, who've made homes of the independent City-States dotting the Caravan Coast, and the seas over which they extend dominion. No matter which of the Independent republics, petty kingdoms, or havens of sin a caravanian hails from, they must share shade with one another; each holding an upturned nail beneath the ever-looming boots of major Destrean nations. While the city-states' disdain for one another may run deep, it is a mere thimble's worth when measured against the ocean of antipathy they reserve for outsiders.
Menacing. You gain proficiency in the Intimidation skill.
Equipment: Utility knife, 1d6 gold in a coin purse.
Descended from one of many waves of settlers to the Great Wide over the centuries, their ancestors helped to establish the Commonwealth Federation of City-States.
Commoner culture, much like that of the Caravan Coast, is the product of waves of settlers each bringing customs, traditions, and values that end up influencing their new country to varying degrees. What sets commoners apart, however, is their peculiar tendency towards orderliness, institutional trust, and fervent nationalism.
Militia Training. You are proficient with firearms.
Equipment: Commonwealth runecoin, two food rations, 1d4 gold in a coin purse.
Humans who were integrated into the Voran Empire during its westward expansions, dubbed 'The Joining' and 'The Binding', and assigned to work in Voran.
Sun-Tempered You have advantage on Survival checks when in desert, badlands, or jungle environments.
Humans who were integrated into the Gorrano Republic during Voran's westward expansions, dubbed 'The Joining' and 'The Binding', and assigned to work in Gorrano.