Humans, Major Ethnicities
Humans have standard racial traits. However, nighttime and dark places such as dungeons have an extremely debilitating effect on vision. When combined with magic laws and modifications made to spells such as Light, this indirectly causes human night-blindness to be a considerable flaw.
Description
Humanity is numbered as one of the five Creator Races, albeit the last and most primitive. However, like many other sentient races, not all humans originated on Abeir-Toril; many humans alive in Faerûn today are descended, at least in part, from immigrants from other worlds. Although they are the most recent race to achieve dominance here, humanity is found all across the surface lands of Faerûn, from the arctic wastes of the Great Glacier to the steaming jungles of Chult.
Unlike the other humanoid races, humans are not segregated into easily identifiable subraces with distinct racial traits. However, humans do vary greatly in appearance and are divided into innumerable competing nations, states, sects, religions, bandit kingdoms, and tribes.
The root of humanity’s many divisions lies in the race’s fragmented history. Whereas elves and dwarves are interloper races who arrived in a few major migrations with unifying cultural traits, humans coalesced into tribes and developed local cultures across Abeir-Toril wholly independent of one another. The earliest human cultures arose in the shadow of other, more powerful races, including the other Creator Races, the elves, and the dwarves. The dominance of these other races kept the various human cultures largely ignorant of one another and barred communications until relatively recently in Faerûn’s history.
As humanity can be segregated along historical, cultural, linguistic, and religious lines, there are many ways to subdivide the humans of Faerûn. Any distinctions are inevitably muddled, as centuries of settlement and conquest have ensured that no division is absolute. In fact, in some regions of Faerûn, melting pot cultures founded by two or more distinct ethnic groups, none of them dominant, are establishing distinct cultural and linguistic identities that mark the emergence of newly distinct ethnic identities different from their forebears.
Calishite
Since the fall of the great genie empires that once ruled south of the Marching Mountains, humans descended from the slaves of the genie lords have ruled the successive empires of Calimshan. From the shores of the Shining Sea, Calishites have migrated northwards in large numbers as far as the Fields of the Dead and the Nelanther Isles, and eastward into the Lake of Steam, the Border Kingdoms, Lapaliiya, and the Shaar. Some fled disasters in their homeland or sought new economic opportunities, but most came as conquerors under the banner of the Shoon Empire. Outside their homeland, Calishites form the primary racial stock of the Border Kingdoms, the Lake of Steam cities, and the Nelanther Isles. Calishites also comprise a large fraction of the population of Amn and Tethyr. Calishite ancestry, language, and culture have influenced all the lands nearby.
Calishites regard themselves as the rightful rulers of all lands south and west of the Sea of Fallen Stars, a birthright passed down to them by the genies who once ruled the lands between the Marching Mountains and the Shining Sea. Calishites point with pride to the unbroken line of Calishite empires dating back thousands of years. With the notable exception of the Mulan, whom they consider their equals, Calishites consider themselves culturally superior to the hordes of “unwashed barbarians” that dwell beyond their lands.
Although often perceived by other cultures as avaricious, lazy, and corrupt, in truth most Calishites seek nothing more than a lifestyle of comfort and the respect of their peers. Calishites hold the circumstances of an individual’s birth as equal in importance to his or her achievements. The class system is strongly ingrained in most Calishites, as is the ideal of a life of pampered luxury. Money is simply the means by which one achieves idleness. Calishites place great stock in pride - in one’s own achievements, family, city, and culture. Family and the role as host are likewise held in great esteem. Magic use is ubiquitous, rivaled only by the natives of Halruaa, and genies are both highly respected and feared.
Although all natives of Calimshan are known as Calishites, only those whose ancestry dates back to the slaves brought from other worlds thousands of years ago are considered members of this ethnic group. Calishites are a bit shorter and of slighter build than other humans. Their skin is dusky brown, and their hair and eyes are most commonly of that shade as well.
Calishites make skilled rogues, fighters, and wizards, and the legacy of ancient genie bloodlines ensures that many are powerful sorcerers as well. Religious fervor and monastic devotion are largely absent among most Calishites, except among the clerics of Ilmatar who minister to the poor, and the Tyrrans who uphold justice.
Regions
Amn, Calimshan, Dragon Coast, Lake of Steam, Nelanther Isles, the Shaar, Tethyr, Vilhon Reach, Western Heartlands
Outlook
Calishites believe their culture is the only bastion of civilization on the Sword Coast and Shining Sea, if not the entire surface of Faerûn. To the descendants of a 7,000-year-old empire, the shortlived “barbarian” cultures of the northern lands are barely worthy of notice. Calishite arrogance is nurtured and codified in the class and gender divisions within their society, with a person’s station at birth playing an important role in how he or she is measured. Although few speak of the class system in Calimshan or the lesser status of women, most Calishites live out their lives according to their station, risking death or enslavement if they do not. Calishites dwelling in the old Imperial lands view themselves as superior to non-Calishites and often act as if the Shoon Imperium had never fallen. Likewise, Calishites dwelling within the borders of Calimshan view themselves as superior to their provincial cousins.
Calishites are typically drawn to adventuring in hopes of quickly amassing a great fortune that will allow them to retire to a life of idle luxury. Those of lower birth often see the life of an adventurer as a way to escape the strictures of their station in distant lands where the status of their birth is unknown. A few Calishite adventurers see themselves as guardians of an ancient culture and commit themselves to recovering ancient Calishite treasures that have been lost amid the unwashed hordes of the northern realms.
Calishite Society
Traditional Calishite culture varies little across Faerûn, even among Calishites who dwell outside the borders of Calimshan. Although exceptions exist, Calishites strictly adhere to the traditional roles of their social class. In ascending order, those classes are the slaves, the labor class, the skilled labor class, the merchant class, the military, the advisor class, and the ruling class. From birth, Calishites are raised to recognize such class distinctions and treat others accordingly, even though many class distinctions are lost upon outsiders. Hard work and thriftiness are not held up as ideals, although many successful Calishites got that way through such “vices.” Instead, luxury and pampered idleness are seen as the ideal, and many Calishites will do whatever it takes to acquire such a lifestyle. Calishite culture has long harbored a fascination with food and magic, particularly magic that reduces the need for labor, so meals and frivolous magic items play a large role in Calishite daily life.
Calishites revere their immediate family and show more loyalty to their kin than they do to their deities or employers. Men are expected to enter into business and support their family’s standard of living. Women are expected to maintain the home, raise the children, and manage the funds. Children are always educated in the home unless they have a strong aptitude for magical schooling. Those parents who can afford them employ tutors and wizards. Upon reaching the age of majority (15 years), children are expected to marry and establish themselves within five years. Only women may marry above their social class. Those who fail to marry are disgraced and must either live with their parents in shameful charity or be ejected from the household (many Calishite adventurers active in other lands once fell into the latter category). Children are also expected to care for their elderly relatives and to give them an opulent funeral upon death.
Social moves are particularly scrutinized within Calishite culture, engendering an emphasis on maintaining one’s personal and familial pride. Saving face demands that a Calishite treat others as they present themselves, regardless of whether such façades bear any resemblance to the truth. Once a person or family loses face, they also lose status and may be relegated to a lower class. Privacy is a most precious commodity, for it allows an individual to act as he or she wishes without needing to save face. Calishites also place great stock in hospitality, with strictly defined responsibilities for both guest and host. Guests cannot inflict harm on their host while receiving his or her hospitality. Likewise, hosts must display as much generosity as they can afford and protect their guests from harm, for to do otherwise is to lose face.
Relations with Other Races
Calishites have poor relations with members of all other human ethnic groups, particularly Tethyrians (who are generally viewed as members of the lower class, regardless of birth) and Illuskans (who are seen as the epitome of the unwashed northern barbarian). Only the Mulan receive any measure of respect from Calishites, as their culture is nearly as long-lived as that of Calimshan.
Despite their disdain or dismissal of other human cultures, Calishites have decent relations with members of other races. Dwarves and gnomes are valued for their skill in metalworking, although many shield dwarves have not forgotten the role Calishites played in the fall of Shanatar. Elves and half-elves are both distrusted and envied. The former status derives from Calimshan’s long history of animosity with neighboring elven nations, such as long-vanished Keltormir. The latter stems from the inherently magical nature of the Fair Folk, which magiccrazed Calishites cannot duplicate. Halflings have long been enslaved by Calishites, and, as a result, most Calishites classify all halflings as members of the lower class. In turn, halflings (at least those who dwell along the Sword Coast and whose ancestors fled Calimshan) regard Calishites with suspicion, viewing all humans of this ethnic group as potential slavers. Curiously, halforcs often receive better treatment from Calishites than they do from other human societies. Although they are invariably seen as members of the lower class, in that respect they are seen as no better or worse than Calishites of low birth-status.
Language and Literacy
The native tongue of Calishites is Alzhedo, a language derived millennia ago from Midani (the language of Zakhara) and Auran. Alzhedo is one of the two major root tongues of both Thorass (“Old Common”) and Common. Alzhedo employs the Thorass alphabet, a set of characters used to represent the trade tongue that came into use thousands of years ago along the shores of the Lake of Steam. Most Calishites also speak Common, particularly the singsong Calant dialect. Those who trade with or live in the Realms Below prefer Undercommon, the trade language of the Underdark. Given their extensive contacts with geniekind, Calishites often learn Auran or Ignan. Other common second languages include Chultan, Halfling, Lantanese, Shaaran, or Tashalan, languages spoken by many who dwell along the shores of the Shining Sea. Few Calishites learn other nonhuman tongues. All Calishite characters are literate except for barbarians and commoners (that is, characters with the commoner NPC class), who must spend skill points to acquire literacy.
Calashite Deities
Various Calishite faiths and religious practices have waxed and waned in popularity since the Time of Genies. At various times in history, the Calishite religious tradition has included the worship of dark, forgotten deities, the veneration of genies as divine beings, and the belief in a single sun god. In modern times, Calishites worship the deities of the Faerûnian pantheon, and the folk of Calimshan pride themselves upon accepting all creeds and religions. Although Calimshan contains major temples to the lion’s share of the deities worshiped in Faerûn, ten faiths have long been prominent in Calishite society, suggesting that some or all those deities may have once formed the kernel of an ancient Calishite pantheon. Those deities include Tyr, Azuth, Talos, Shar, Ilmater, Savras, Sharess, Siamorphe, Umberlee, and Waukeen.
Calishite Characters
Magic has long played a role in Calishite culture, making both wizards and sorcerers commonplace. The latter group consists largely of Calishites who can trace their ancestry back to the genies who once ruled the Calim Empire and Memnonnar. The influence of various faiths has waxed and waned in Calishite culture, but clerics and monks have rarely played an important role. Whereas monks located elsewhere on Toril have strong martial and mystic traditions and are responsible for the preservation of the lore of fallen realms, the monks of Calimshan devote their energies to relieving the suffering of the lower classes.
Perhaps the most common classes among Calishites are rogue, fighter, and fighter/rogue, for the history of Calimshan and the states it once dominated is strewn with bloodshed, corruption, and thievery. Calishite barbarians are almost unknown, except among the nomads of the Lands of the Lion. Likewise, bards are rarely seen outside Calishite harems, and there is no druidic tradition within Calishite culture. Calishite paladins are almost unknown outside the church of Tyr and the city-state of Saelmur.
Prestige Classes: Calishites have a long tradition of assassination as a tool of political influence and personal vendettas, so the assassin is a common prestige class in Calimshan. Secretive guilds of lower-class rogues sometimes study the mysterious arts of the shadowdancer, or more commonly take up the guild thief prestige class. Powerful Calishite wizards often choose to become archmages.
Chondathan
Chondathans are hardy folk, not afraid to take risks, travel, or settle new lands, and are always looking to better themselves and their families monetarily. As Chondathan culture has taken root in so many distant lands, Chondathans are comfortable in most human societies. Many Chondathans are merchants of one sort or another, selling their skills and the fruits of their labors for coin. Although Chondathans make skilled mercenaries and cunning rogues, Chondathan culture has not encouraged study of the Art or great religious fervor. Notable exceptions exist, particularly in the study of the Art among the Netherese-influenced Chondathan cultures that lie north and west of the Inner Sea.
From the cradle of the Vilhon Reach, Chondathan emigrants have settled most of the western and central Inner Sea region as well as much of the Western Heartlands. Outside their homeland, Chondathans form the primary racial stock of Altumbel, Cormyr, the southern Dalelands, the Dragon Coast, the Great Dale, Hlondeth and the north shore of the Vilhon Reach, the Pirate Isles of the Inner Sea, Sembia, and Sespech. Thanks to far-wandering Chondathan traders, the Chondathan tongue is spoken even in regions where the number of pureblooded Chondathans is small or nearly nonexistent. Chondathan ancestry, language, and culture form a significant portion of Damaran, Vaasan, and Tethyrian heritage.
Chondathans are slender, tawny-skinned folk with brown hair ranging from almost blond to almost black. Most Chondathans are tall and have green or brown eyes, but all builds and hair and eye hues may be seen. Those Chondathans who dwell north and west of the Sea of Fallen Stars (except in Sembia) are more likely to have blue eyes and have fairer complexions and darker hair than those born in the South, evidence of a significant Netherese heritage. In Chondath itself, particularly in the lands bordering Sespech, a significant Shaaran influx in recent centuries has given many natives of Chondath more of an olive-skinned hue.
Chondathans regard themselves as having come to dominate central Faerûn almost by accident; they have “conquered” more land through trade and settlement than with armies. They show little arrogance and only a small amount of pride regarding the predominance of their language and culture. Likewise, Chondathans are more apt to identify themselves by their national origins (such as Cormyrean, Dalesfolk, or Sembian) than by their ethnic group. If Chondathans do have a common vice, it is perhaps their cultural focus on wealth and its acquisition. Among Chondathans, prestige and influence are often directly tied to wealth, and it is no accident that the merchant nobility plays a strong role in most societies influenced by Chondathan culture.
Regions
Chondalwood, Cormyr, Dalelands, Dragon Coast, Great Dale, Impiltur, Moonsea, Nelanther Isles, Sembia, Silverymoon, the Vast, Vilhon Reach, Western Heartlands, Waterdeep,
Outlook
Chondathans measure others by how much wealth and influence a person or family has acquired. To a Chondathan, all things are for sale, assuming one can agree upon a price. Intrigue and covert manipulation are simply means to an end, but unnecessary bloodshed is destructive and wasteful. Chondathans have found that power inevitably swings to whoever controls the purse strings, not whoever carries the biggest sword, and set their aspirations accordingly. Fierce competition in all walks of life is the guiding rule of Chondathan society, and those raised within its confines are used to seeing fortunes won or lost, with commensurate gains or losses in stature. Chondathans expect each individual to look out for himself or herself, and they are often surprised when others act selflessly.
Chondathans are drawn to adventuring for one of two reasons: Some take up arms and spells to defend that which they hold most dear, a tradition harkening back to the early Chondathan settlers. Others are drawn to a life on the road by the same impulses that send Chondathan merchants into unfamiliar lands in search of trading opportunities, a hunger to search for wealth in the unknown. Most Chondathans who adopt adventuring as a career are drawn to the potential of acquiring great wealth by looting some long-forgotten tomb or recovering some fabulous treasure from an ancient ruin.
Chondathan Society
Chondathan culture varies widely across Faerûn. Compared to other cultures, particularly Calishite and Mulan, Chondathan societies have relatively weak class divisions. Hard work and good fortune have been enough to catapult more than one member of the lower classes into the merchant nobility. Commerce plays an important role in all Chondathan-dominated cultures, giving rise to the maxim that everything is for sale at some price. Chondathans honor their word, although not for moral reasons. One’s reputation is like a purse with a fixed number of coins that, once squandered, is costly to repurchase.
As Chondathans place a high value on book learning, many receive some amount of schooling while growing up. Chondathan youths are apprenticed to a master by the age of 12 and are expected to learn a trade during their apprenticeship. Chondathans have little patience for able-bodied indigents, and all adults are expected to earn their own keep in whatever field they were trained. Wealthy persons are afforded great respect in Chondathan societies, and those who squander money foolishly are looked down upon. Chondathans are expected to work until no longer physically capable or until death. Even those too infirm to earn a living often pass their days at their former place of work, offering advice to those who have replaced them.
Outside Chondathan-dominated lands, Chondathans strive to integrate into the local culture, even if that means learning a new tongue or converting to the worship of the local gods. Of course, such integration strategies do not interfere with sharing Chondathan necessities and customs with the local populace, a practice that over time slowly subsumes the local culture. Chondathan minorities usually organize themselves into merchant houses or trading costers for protection and to maximize their opportunities for profit.
Relations with Other Races
Chondathan history is replete with clashes with various elven realms, and, as a result, few Chondathans (with the exception of some Cormyreans and most Dalesmen) have good relations with the Fair Folk or their half-elven brethren. Likewise, Chondathans have traditionally regarded the planetouched with a great deal of suspicion, as Chondathan culture has never had a great deal of interaction with outsiders and most planetouched they have encountered were representatives of rival cultures (such as the air and fire genasi of Calimshan, or the aasimar and tieflings of Mulhorand and Unther). Half-orcs are considered little better than their full-blooded brethren by most Chondathans. They are seen as little more than raiding scum intent only on disrupting the flow of trade and pillaging the farms of hardworking settlers.
Chondathans have good relations with dwarves, gnomes, and halflings, for all have proven to be good trading partners and have traditionally dwelled in small enclaves within Chondathan societies. Among human cultures, Chondathans get along best with Calishites, Damarans, Shaarans, Tethyrians, and Turami. Relations with the Mulan have never been warm, Illuskans are regarded as little better than orcs, and other cultures are largely unknown.
Language and Literacy
Chondathans speak Common and Chondathan, two closely related tongues. Chondathan, one of the root tongues of Common, is the modern form of Jhaamdathan (“Old Chondathan”), which was one of two root tongues of Thorass (“Old Common”). Chondathan employs the Thorass alphabet, a set of characters used to represent the trade tongue that came into use thousands of years ago along the shores of the Lake of Steam.
As many Chondathans dwell amid other human cultures (or at least have extensive trade contacts with such societies), many individuals learn the local tongue or the language of their nearest neighbor. Commonly learned second languages include Illuskan if the individual in question lives in the Western Heartlands or the North, Damaran if she lives in northcentral Faerûn, Shaaran if she lives south of the Vilhon Reach, Turami if she lives on the northern shore of the Vilhon Reach, or Alzhedo if she lives along the shores of the Lake of Steam. Spellcasters, particularly those who dwell in Cormyr or the Dalelands, usually learn Netherese and Elven in order to acquire magic from old sources. Few Chondathans outside those areas learn Elven, a legacy of generations of conflict and a likely contributor to future conflicts.
All Chondathan characters are literate except for barbarians.
Chondathan Deities
Chondathans honor the deities of the Faerûnian pantheon. Such is the magnitude of the Chondathan diaspora that no deity is particularly favored by the majority of Chondathans across Faerûn. In fact, Chondathans have traditionally adopted the deities of other cultures, incorporating them into their sprawling pantheon. Gods and goddesses venerated in regions inhabited primarily by Chondathans include Azuth, Chauntea, Deneir, Eldath, Helm, Kelemvor, Lathander, Lliira, Loviatar, Malar, Mask, Mielikki, Milil, Mystra, Nobanion, Oghma, Selûne, Silvanus, Sune, Talos, Tempus, Torm, Tymora, Tyr, Umberlee, and Waukeen.
Ancient Jhaamdath was one of the first human cultures to develop the written word, and, as such, literate Chondathans have long honored Deneir, the Lord of All Glyphs and Images. The church of Deneir has spread to other cultures as Chondathan traders spread the trade tongues of Common or its antecedent, Thorass, bringing with them the Thorass alphabet. At present, the church of Deneir has its greatest influence among those literate Chondathans who dwell in Cormyr and Sembia.
Similarly, ancient Jhaamdath’s wars were fought with horrible magical plagues, so Talona has been a part of Chondathan culture since the rise of that culture. The church of Talona is widely feared and reviled among modern-day Chondathans, despite the activities of other faiths that have wreaked far greater devastation across Faerûn in recent years. Nevertheless, a small number of Chondathans turn to the Mother of All Plagues precisely because of the fear and misery she has engendered and in hopes of acquiring the ancient plague-spawning magic her cult is said to control.
Chondathan Characters
Chondathans typically make good fighters, drawing on their culture’s long-standing mercenary tradition. Likewise, many Chondathans find their calling as rogues, a product of their culture’s emphasis on the acquisition of wealth and the wide range of skills. The most common multiclass combination among Chondathans is fighter/rogue. Chondathans are rarely barbarians, sorcerers, or wizards, as no sizable group of Chondathans has ever reverted into barbarism; ancient Jhaamdath had relatively few relations with dragons, social or otherwise; and wizardry has long been associated with the unleashing of plagues in Chondathan folklore. Those Chondathan sorcerers who do exist usually hail from lands north and west of the Inner Sea and have one or more High Netherese ancestors in their heritage.
Prestige Classes: Chondathans often take up the study of the divinely inspired prestige classes, such as arcane devotee, divine champion, divine disciple, divine seeker, and hierophant. Chondathans worship evil deities as well as good, so blackguards are not unusual among evil-aligned members of this ethnic group. Many Harpers are of Chondathan heritage, so the Harper scout prestige class is also common. Similarly, the folk of Cormyr are largely of Chondathan descent, so many Purple Dragon knights are Chondathans.
Damaran
In the aftermath of Narfell’s fall, scattered groups of Nars, Rashemi, and Sossrims struggled to survive as a wave of Chondathan emigrants settled in the lands of the Easting Reach. In time, these four populations gradually coalesced into a relatively new ethnic group known as Damarans, so named for the first human realm to be founded by this integrated population. After centuries spent battling the horrors unleashed by the ancient magics of Narfell and Raumathar, Damarans are proud and stubborn folk who refuse to buckle in the face of unspeakable evils and whose worldview leans toward moral absolutes.
Although Damaran folklore derives from the ancient traditions of Nar, Rashemi, and Sossrim tribal groups, Damaran culture evolved under the civilizing influences of Chondathan immigrants and dwarven traders, and primarily reflects the mores of both these influences. After centuries of ever-expanding settlement, Damarans now make up the primary racial stock of Damara, Impiltur, Thesk, and the Vast. Damaran settlers have tamed one land after another and form a significant fraction of the human population in Aglarond, Altumbel, the Great Dale, the Moonsea region, and Narfell. Most Damarans make their living as farmers, loggers, or miners in a harsh and unforgiving land. They make indomitable foes when angered.
Damarans are of moderate height and build, with skin hues ranging from tawny to fair. Hair is usually straight brown or black, although sandy blond is not unknown. Eye color varies widely, with brown being most common. Damarans who dwell south of the Earthfast mountains more closely resemble their Chondathan cousins, while those who inhabit Vaasa have a significant Sossrim heritage. Along the eastern shores of the Easting Reach, Rashemi heritage predominates, except in Aglarond proper, where builds are slighter thanks to a significant amount of wood-elven heritage.
Damarans see life as a series of unending challenges to be overcome, many of them legacies of the hubris of long-fallen empires. For a typical Damaran, there can be no compromise with the forces of evil, even to serve a greater good. Trust must be earned, and only those deserving of trust are to be respected. Even those who inherit titles of nobility must prove themselves worthy of their inheritance. History is not something to be cherished or exalted, but rather it is an object lesson as to the folly of unchecked power.
Regions
Aglarond, Damara, Great Dale, Impiltur, Moonsea, Narfell, Thesk, Vaasa, the Vast,
Outlook
Damarans respect those who demonstrate heroism and self-sacrifice and stand unflinchingly in the face of evil. Damaran society is intolerant of weakness or selfishness, viewing deeds in stark black or white. The moralistic nature of their society strongly shapes Damaran youth. Most youngsters follow in the path of their parents, subscribing to their strong moral fervor. Others rebel against the strictures of Damaran society and flee its constraints. The latter path accounts for the neverending tide of settlers emigrating to the borders of human settlement, the large numbers of Damarans who have made their way west into Chondathan-held territories, and the small number of Damarans who turn to the worship of demons.
Damarans have a long adventuring tradition, reflecting the generations-long battle to reclaim the lands of the Easting Reach from the demonic legacy of Narfell. Many youths, particularly those of noble blood, take up adventuring for a few years in order to prove themselves worthy of their titles. Those not in line to inherit great estates also do so in hopes of winning new lands and wealth for themselves, or in response to the crusading zeal of Damaran society. The good-aligned churches of the Easting Reach have a long tradition of funding expeditions into the mountains or the depths of the great forests to smite some ancient evil or another.
Damaran Society
Damaran society is lawful, except in Aglarond, where a strong elven influence plays a role, and the Vast, which is much more in line with Chondathan mores. Religion plays a central role in Damaran life, yet there is by no means a universality of belief. Although religious fervor is admired, individuals are judged by how they conduct themselves and the strength of their personal moral code. Class divisions are less noticeable than elsewhere in Faerûn, but those who have been judged morally unfit are strongly shunned by their peers.
Damaran city-dwellers are usually educated in church-run schools, while itinerant priests minister to those who dwell in wilderness regions. Many Damarans learn their trade during an apprenticeship at a church-run school before setting out into life, while others join a religious order, directly pledging themselves to the service of the church. As they grow old, Damarans often return to the church of their youth, tithing much of their wealth to its coffers and living out their last years in service to their patron deity.
Damarans retain strong cultural ties to their Chondathan forebears and easily integrate themselves into Chondathan-held lands. There has been little Damaran migration elsewhere in Faerûn, but those Damarans who do stray far from their homeland associate themselves with a local church of their faith.
Relations with Other Races
Damarans have long and abiding ties with shield dwarves and are favorably inclined toward the Stout Folk (with the notable exception of the duergar). Halflings are rare in Damaran lands outside Impiltur, but are viewed quite favorably by most Damaran communities. Gnomes are regarded similarly to dwarves, although they are less well known in Damaran lands. Elves and half-elves are almost unknown outside Aglarond and the Gray Forest, and are regarded with some amount of suspicion. Dark elves are not unknown in the Galena Mountains, and have earned the enmity of those native to the region. Half-orcs are regarded with a great deal of suspicion, although their numbers make them a tolerated minority in Vaasa.
Damarans have long struggled with the evils unleashed by Narfell’s sorcerers, leaving them quite hostile to the progeny of demons such as tieflings. Fire genasi have long been associated with the Red Wizards of Thay and are thus equally disliked. Other planetouched are rare in Damaran lands, and hence viewed as objects of wonder.
Among human cultures, Damarans get along best with Chondathans and Turami thanks to extensive trading contacts. Nars and northern Rashemi are tolerated, if looked down upon to some extent, while Mulan and Thayan Rashemi are viewed with a great deal of suspicion. Lingering memories of the Horde prevent the establishment of good relations with the Tuigans. Finally, due to the notorious Bloodstone Wars of a few decades back, most Vaasans are regarded as demon-worshiping reavers, even those who happen to be of Damaran racial stock rather than Vaasans.
Language and Literacy
Most Damarans speak Common and Damaran, two closely related tongues. Damaran employs an alphabet of Dethek runes, a legacy of early cooperation between the inhabitants of Impiltur and the dwarves of the Earthfast Mountains. The exceptions are the inhabitants of Aglarond and Altumbel, who speak Common and Aglarondan, a tongue closely related to Damaran that incorporates many Elven words and uses the elven script of Espruar.
Common second languages in Impiltur include Chondathan, Dwarven, Aglarondan, or Chessentan. In Damara and Vaasa, second languages frequently known include Chondathan, Dwarven, Orcish, or Uluik. Many Nars can speak Rashemi or Uluik, and Tuigan is becoming increasingly popular. The inhabitants of the Great Dale are most likely to learn Rashemi, although some learn the Thayan dialect of Mulhorandi. In southern Thesk, Aglarondan is the most popular second language, while Chondathan and Turmic are the preferred second tongues along the coast around Telflamm. In Aglarond, most inhabitants also speak Elven. Other common second languages include Damaran, Chessentan, Sylvan, or Mulhorandi. All Damaran characters are literate except for barbarians, commoners, and warriors.
Damaran Deities
Damarans honor the deities of the Faerûnian pantheon. They favor lawful and good deities, except for cultists who turn to the worship of chaotic evil demon princes. Along the Dragon Reach, commonly venerated deities include Chauntea, Eldath, Mystra, Tempus, Torm, Tymora, Umberlee, and Waukeen. To the east in Impiltur, favored deities include Ilmater, Selûne, Tymora, Valkur, and Waukeen. In addition to the church of Chauntea, Thesk’s reliance on trade along the Golden Way has brought the churches of Shaundakul and Waukeen to prominence. Likewise, the church of Mask has grown strong in Teflamm preying on that same caravan traffic.
In Aglarond, Chauntea is venerated by farmers, while fisherfolk venerate Valkur and Selûne. Although Umberlee is acknowledged, she is widely held in great disdain. Aglarondans also pay homage to the Seldarine, particularly in their guise as the gods of the Yuirwood elves. The Great Dale has long been home to followers of Silvanus the Oakfather, locked in bitter conflict with the disciples of Talona. The church of Ilmater dominates Damara, while Vaasa has long been home to the cult of Orcus. Tempus is venerated by barbarians dwelling along the edge of the Great Glacier and among the tribes of Narfell.
Of all the deities, Ilmater represents the enduring spirit of all Damarans and occupies a central place in Damaran culture. Ilmater’s church is effectively the state church of both Impiltur and Damara, with paladins of Ilmater proving to be regular occupants of both thrones. Most Damarans along the Easting Reach pay at least token obeisance to the Crying God or one of his many saints on a daily basis. Most churches of Ilmater are dedicated to at least one of his saints, with the followers of Saint Sollars the Twice-Martyred being most prominent in Damara.
Damaran Characters
Damarans typically make strong paladins and monks, for the discipline and self-sacrifice required of both professions resonate strongly with Damaran morals. Many Damarans find their calling as clerics or, to a lesser extent, druids or rangers, for the appeal of serving a divine entity is strong. Fighters and rogues are less common in Damaran culture than elsewhere, for there is neither a strong mercenary tradition nor a strong mercantile presence along the Easting Reach. Notable exceptions do exist, including the city of Teflamm, where a strong thieves’ guild holds sway, and the Galena Mountains, where a secretive brotherhood of assassins is said to have a hidden stronghold. Arcane spellcasters of all sorts are rare in Damaran society, reflecting a long-held suspicion of magic powers that are not bestowed by a deity. While wizards are generally accepted, sorcerers are looked on with suspicion, for the sorcerous arts are thought to be a legacy of demonic heritage.
Prestige Classes: Like the Chondathans, Damarans are drawn to prestige classes with divine associations, such as the divine champion, divine disciple, divine seeker, or hierophant. The Shadowmasters of Telflamm naturally include a number of rogues who take up the assassin and shadowdancer prestige classes.
Illuskan
Illuskans, also known as Northlanders, are the seagoing, warlike people of the Sword Coast North, the Trackless Sea, and the Dessarin river valley. Although their ancestors founded Illusk, one of the earliest human civilizations in Faerûn, as well as the great city of Waterdeep, Illuskans have long been seen as a barbaric people, having barely risen above the status of orcs in the eyes of many southerners. Illuskans are more than just barbarians, however, as their culture has given rise to powerful runecasters, fearless sailors, and legendary skalds. They also farm, fish, and mine their rugged lands, trading their goods with southern merchants. However, long-fallen elven empires, barriers of geography, and a cultural emphasis on raiding over trade have conspired to ensure that Illuskan culture and bloodlines have not taken root in other lands.
Illuskans are tall, fair-skinned folk with eyes of blue or steely gray. Those who dwell among the islands of the Trackless Sea and in Icewind Dale are largely fair-haired, with blond hair predominating over red and light brown. Those who dwell on the mainland south of the Spine of the World are more prone to raven-black hair, an indication of significant Netherese heritage.
Illuskans regard themselves as a strong, proud people forged by the harsh environment in which they dwell. They feel they have earned, through strength in battle, the right to claim the lands they have settled. Illuskans regard most southerners as weak and decadent, two much-despised traits. However, they are fair-minded and always willing to make exceptions for those who have proven otherwise. Illuskans themselves are bold and impetuous, given to proud boasts, the consumption of prodigious amounts of mead and ale, and quick tempers.
Regions
High Forest, Moonshae Isles, Nelanther Isles, the North, Silverymoon, Waterdeep
Outlook
Illuskans take their measure of another person by assessing strength, martial prowess, valor, and honor. From an early age, Illuskans are tested by their elders, their peers, and their juniors, and their response to such challenges are reflected in their status within the society. To an Illuskan, there is a natural pecking order in life, and those who are weak in any fashion do not deserve to hold a position they have not earned. Deceptions, lies of omission, and trickery are despised, while straight speech and forthrightness are to be admired.
Illuskans are typically drawn to adventuring for one of two reasons. Some Northlanders hope to prove their strength, valor, and martial prowess, earning them respect in their eyes of their kin and inspiring bard’s tales for generations to come. Others seek conquest and plunder, hoping to make up for the meager fare and wealth their homeland provides.
Illuskan Society
Illuskans have little concept of class divisions, considering such artifices as an example of the weakness inherent in southern cultures. Honor and prestige in Illuskan society are earned through displays of strength and martial fortitude. Both magic and commerce are regarded with suspicion, for both are seen as upsetting the natural order of things.
Illuskans are expected to be self-sufficient from a young age. Those who must rely on others are treated well but not respected, although the elderly are accorded the respect they earned before the debilitating effects of age set in. Those who hire strangers to do a task rather than do it themselves are considered suspect. Book learning is admired but not expected. Those who die an honorable death are burned in funeral pyres, preferably aboard a small ship pushed out to sea. Such ceremonies are believed to free the soul from its mortal tether.
Illuskans often have difficulty adapting to other cultures, particularly societies where battles are fought indirectly through words and gestures rather than openly with axes and war cries. Most expatriate Illuskans eschew the worship of “weak” local gods, and few can be bothered to learn local languages. Instead they find odd jobs, usually as mercenaries of some sort or the other, and then join their fellow expatriates in nightly drinking bouts in which prodigious amounts of alcohol are consumed.
Relations with Other Races
Illuskans judge members of other races and ethnic groups by the same standards by which they judge themselves. In other words, they respect strength, martial prowess, and the strength of one’s word. Illuskans get along well with dwarves, although the two groups have been known to war over disputed territory. Gnomes and halflings are seen as weak and given to trickery, inspiring scorn in most Illuskans. Similarly, elves and half-elves are seen as weak and overly reliant on magic, although dangerous nonetheless.
Illuskans of the mainland harbor a deep and abiding hatred for orcs, and few are willing to view half-orcs as any better than their porcine kin. Illuskans have nothing but scorn for humans from the South, particularly Calishites. Tethyrians, particularly those born in the North, are regarded with cautious respect, for the two groups have lived alongside one another and fought with each other for generations. Chondathans are viewed similarly to Tethyrians in the Silver Marches region, although their “southern” ties are considered more suspect. Planetouched are regarded with suspicion for, like elves, they seem to be creatures of magic. In particular, tieflings are seen as little better than fiends, though earth genasi are respected for their strength. Other humans are regarded with suspicion, for few Illuskans have ventured beyond the cold climes of northwestern Faerûn except to raid and plunder, and fewer still have any knowledge of other cultures.
Language and Literacy
Most Illuskans speak Illuskan, a language derived largely from Old Illuskan (spoken by the folk of Old Illusk) mixed with a smattering of Netherese. They usually speak Common as well, but few are literate. Along the northern coast of the mainland, particularly in the city of Waterdeep, many Illuskans speak Chondathan, the language of their Tethyrian neighbors. Although Old Illuskan had an alphabet of its own, today it is only found in the ancient tomes of the Green Library in Ruathym and in ancient fragments of lore stored within the Host Tower of the Arcane in Luskan. Although rarely put in written form, the modern Illuskan tongue uses the Thorass alphabet introduced by Tethyrian migrants.
All Illuskan characters are literate except for barbarians, aristocrats, commoners, experts, and warriors.
Illuskan Deities
Although the inhabitants of Old Illusk venerated a pantheon of beast totems and passed this tradition down to the Uthgardt, at present most Illuskans worship the deities of the Faerûnian pantheon. Illuskans largely adopted the gods of the Netherese pantheon in the mixing of cultures that occurred following Uthgar’s sack of Illusk, and then adopted the rest of the Faerûnian pantheon as it grew beyond the ranks of the Netherese deities. The eight most prominent faiths in Illuskan society include the churches of Auril, Mielikki, Mystra, Oghma, Talos, Tempus, Umberlee, and Uthgar. Other churches with significant followings, particularly in areas where Illuskans and Tethyrians live alongside one another, include Eldath, Lurue, Malar, Milil, Selûne, Shar, Shaundakul, and Valkur.
Auril, the Frostmaiden, has long demanded and received veneration in the cold climes in which most Illuskans dwell. She is seen as the bringer of winter on the world, to be appeased with offerings of food and strong drink placed upon rafts set adrift at sea during autumn and winter. The church of Auril is strongest among those Illuskans who dwell in the Frozenfar (the region of the Sword Coast north of the River Mirar), but a large temple to the Frostmaiden known as the Winter Palace stands in Luskan.
Patron of the Uthgardt tribes, Uthgar is worshiped through the veneration of a beast totem unique to each of the various tribes. Even non-Uthgardt Illuskans find the worship of the Tempus-son attractive, as the heroic virtues of Uthgar’s battlewon kingdom are still celebrated in the long sagas of the Illuskan people.
Illuskan Characters
The Uthgardt and the Illuskans of the sea isles are renowned barbarians, and many find their calling as fighters or rangers as well. Bards, known as skalds, play important roles as lorekeepers and poets, giving inspiration to Illuskan warbands. Clerics and adepts play an important role in tribal life. Although Illuskans have little tolerance for thievery, many Illuskan sailors and pirates are actually rogues with a maritime orientation to their skills. Druids, paladins, and monks are almost unknown in Illuskan culture. Wizards and sorcerers are rare but not unknown, particularly within the ranks of the Arcane Brotherhood that rules the City of Sails.
Prestige Classes: Illuskan clerics often study rune magic and become powerful runecasters. Evil Illuskan reavers are sometimes drawn to the way of the blackguard, but good Illuskans of the settled North have a strong tradition of supporting the Harpers and often take up the Harper scout prestige class.
Mulan
Since the fall of ancient Imaskar, the Mulan have dominated the eastern shores of the Sea of Fallen Stars. Led by two pantheons of deities, the ancient Mulan empires of Mulhorand and Unther conquered at various times Ashanath, Chessenta, the Eastern Shaar, Murghôm, Rashemen, Semphar, Thay, Thesk, and the Wizards’ Reach cities that lie south of the Yuirwood. In their wake, these empires have left ruling elites composed almost exclusively of Mulan. After millennia of rulership, the Mulan have become arrogant, highly resistant to change, and wholly convinced of their cultural superiority.
The Mulan are firmly wedded to the use of magic, with the only major point of disagreement being whether to pursue the arcane or divine tradition. For many generations the god-kings, powerful avatars of the Mulhorandi and Untheric deities long resident on Toril, ruled both empires as incarnate gods. The somnolent rule of the god-kings permitted the development of a powerful priest class in Mulan cultures that has long struggled with practitioners of arcane spellcasting for power. Their heavyhanded clerical rule prompted repeated rebellions by wizards and sorcerers, leading to the dominance of Thay by Red Wizards of Mulan descent.
Mulan are generally tall, slim, and sallow-skinned with eyes of hazel or brown. They lack much body hair, and many, including all nobles, shave any hair that they do have. Hair color on an unshaved Mulan ranges from black to dark brown. The lower classes of Thay, Mulhorand, and Unther often have significant Rashemi or Turami blood, leading to darker complexions. The folk of Chessenta have long mixed with the nearby Chondathans, and pure Mulan features are rare there.
The Mulan have a long and proud history, viewing both their society and their culture as eternal. Rapid change is regarded with suspicion, and the arcane arts either warmly embraced (Thay) or viewed with deep distrust (Mulhorand and Unther). Mulan believe themselves to be more civilized, more prosperous, more creative, more powerful (should they choose to be), and in all other ways superior to all other ethnic groups. Even in the face of evidence to the contrary, Mulan are dismissive of other cultures’ accomplishments and openly arrogant with respect to their own.
Regions
Chessenta, Chondalwood, Mulhorand, Thay, Unther
Outlook
The Mulan believe in order and discipline and are strongly resistant to change, the legacy of millennia of undying rule by the god-kings of Unther and Mulhorand. They haughtily believe that they are either the chosen of the gods (in Mulhorand, Unther, and Chessenta) or above the gods (in Thay) and hold their culture above all others. Unlike most other human cultures, the Mulan believe they dwell in an earthly paradise, where stability and security shall reign for all eternity. The afterlife is merely a mirror of the mortal realm. In Thay, such beliefs have been twisted to regard undeath as the mirror of life, while in Unther the centuries-long tyranny of Gilgeam made a horror of both this world and the next. Mulan are indoctrinated from a young age to revere their cultural traditions, to respect the law, and to honor the servants of the gods (or the Red Wizards, in the case of Thay).
Although not drawn to adventuring, Mulan seen outside their traditional homelands are usually adventurers of one sort or another. Some have fled enslavement or been driven into exile due to differences with the local authorities, whether they be mercenary lords in Chessenta, cultists of Tiamat in the remnants of Unther, bureaucratic priests in Mulhorand, or autocratic Red Wizards in Thay. Others are sent abroad as agents of one of the Mulan realms, serving as representatives of a Thayan enclave, tracking down relics plundered from a Mulhorandi tomb, fighting in a Chessentan mercenary company, or spying on those who have designs on Unther’s carcass.
Mulan Society
Despite the fragmentation of the Old Empires of Mulhorand and Unther, the Mulan have changed little despite the passage of centuries. Strict class divisions segregate Mulan society into the nobility (including all clerics and arcane spellcasters), the commoners (farmers, merchants, and skilled craftsmen), and slaves (everyone else). Although upward and downward mobility is possible in Mulan society, primarily by joining the clergy or studying the Art, the Mulan discriminate against most other human ethnic groups and races and preserve strictly defined class roles.
Despite the centuries-long presence of the god-kings, the Mulan are not particularly reverent, nor are they overly interested in commerce. The Mulan aspire to power, preferably backed by magic, and engage in endless intrigues to accumulate personal power no matter what the cost to the ideals to which they nominally ascribe.
Mulan place great stock in education, and all members of the nobility and middle class receive some amount of instruction as a child. Many youths are apprenticed to a powerful wizard (Thay) or join the church of one of the god-kings (Mulhorand and Unther) at a young age and are raised apart from their families. As adults, the Mulan are expected to serve their role in society and not make waves. Death is a lifelong obsession for most Mulan, who spend their entire lives preparing themselves for the afterlife. The Mulhorandi epitomize this obsession, planning every detail of their journey into the afterlife.
Outside Mulan-dominated lands, Mulan keep to themselves, forming isolated enclaves apart from the local society. Thayan enclaves are simply the latest such example of the Mulan holding themselves apart from and above other races and human ethnic groups when dwelling in foreign lands. Of necessity, some cross-pollination of cultures does occur through trade contact with neighbors, but expatriate Mulan prefer to limit such contacts whenever possible. Mulan from the Old Empires almost never venerate deities other than their homeland’s pantheon, and most Thayans can hardly be bothered with any gods. Few Mulan see the point of any languages other than the local dialect of the Common tongue.
Relations with Other Races
The Mulan view members of other human ethnic groups with disdain. The Turami minorities of Mulhorand, Unther, Threskel, and Chessenta are generally tolerated, (except in Unther, where they are almost universally despised), but they are always considered members of the lower class. North of the Wizards’ Reach, the Rashemi form the bulk of the lower class of Thay. The Red Wizards nominally restrict their ranks to Mulan wizards and sorcerers, but many look the other way if they find a Rashemi spellcaster skilled in the Art and willing to pretend to be a Mulan, although powerful Rashemi wizards can dispense with the charade.
The Mulan get along with the gold dwarves of the Great Rift, thanks to centuries of trade, and are inclined to view all the Stout Folk in similar light, although arctic dwarves and wild dwarves might prove an exception. Rock gnomes are largely unknown, so the Mulan view them as little dwarves. Halflings are similarly rare, as the largest nearby concentration of the hin lies in far-off Luiren, and are generally treated much like dwarves as well. Elves and half-elves are almost unknown to the Mulan and the subject of great superstition, stemming in large part from the frustrations Unther’s armies experienced long ago while attempting to subjugate the Yuirwood. In Mulhorand and Unther, the Fair Folk are seen as wizards by the bureaucracy of priests, and thus are regarded with the same combination of fear and loathing as Red Wizards of Thay.
The Mulan despise half-orcs, a legacy of the Orcgate Wars handed down for centuries. Western Chessenta is a notable exception, particularly in the city of Airspur, where half-orcs are tolerated. Of the nonhuman civilized races, planetouched, particularly aasimar, are the only race looked up to by the Mulan. After millennia of intimate involvement with the godkings, aasimar of Mulan descent are seen as descendants of the gods and thus worthy of great respect. Tieflings engender fear rather than reverence, for they are seen as the spawn of Set and Sebek. Genasai are scarce, although fire genasi of Mulan descent are treated as full-blooded Mulan in Thay and welcomed into the School of Evocation.
Language and Literacy
Depending on their homeland, Mulan speak one of the various tongues of the Rauric language family - all derived, at least in part, from the slave argot of ancient Imaskar. The language of Unther is Untheric, while the language of Mulhorand, Murghôm, Semphar, and Thay is Mulhorandi. Untheric employs Dethek runes for its alphabet, suggesting a strong tie between the gold dwarves of the Great Rift and the early inhabitants of Unther. Mulhorandi is rendered in the Celestial alphabet, first introduced by a manifestation of Thoth.
In Chessenta and the Wizards’ Reach, Chessentan, a tongue closely related to Untheric with strong Chondathan and Shaaran influences, has largely supplanted Untheric. The folk of Chessenta have long used the Thorass alphabet in addition to Dethek runes, and Chessentan is almost exclusively written using Thorass characters. Both Thay and the cult of Set render Mulhorandi in the Infernal alphabet, consciously repudiating the rule of the current god-kings.
Common is less frequently spoken in Mulandominated lands than elsewhere in Faerûn, but it still widely known nonetheless. Mulan who learn second tongues often choose one of the other Rauric languages mentioned above, Aglarondan (among the cities of the Wizards’ Reach), Chondathan (Chessenta), Durpari (southern Mulhorand), Rashemi (Thay and the Wizards’ Reach), Shaaran (southern Unther), Shou (Semphar), and Turmic (Chessenta and Mulhorand).
All Mulan are literate except for barbarians (very rare among this ancient race), commoners, and warriors.
Mulan Deities
The Mulan are the last major human ethnic group to venerate a pantheon of deities other than the dominant Faerûnian pantheon. Until the Time of Troubles, the Mulan of Mulhorand, Murghôm, and Semphar venerated the Mulhorandi pantheon, while Unther, Threskel, and parts of Chessenta venerated the Untheric pantheon. Following the deaths of Gilgeam and Ramman during the Avatar Crisis, the Untheric pantheon effectively vanished, its last members (Tiamat and Assuran) absorbed into the Faerûnian pantheon. The Mulhorandi pantheon finally awoke to its own dire position. Today, the Mulan of Mulhorand, Murghôm, Semphar, and Unther venerate the Mulhorandi pantheon, while those who dwell in Chessenta, the Wizards’ Reach, and Thay largely venerate the Faerûnian pantheon.
Assuran, the Lord of Three Thunders, is known as Hoar in other lands. He is a deity of justice and vengeance, venerated by Mulan of Unther and Chessenta, although his cult is strongest in the cities of Akanax and Mourktar. Hoar’s church has declined in influence in Unther as Anhur’s has grown, but it remains strong in Chessenta where Hoar, in his guise as Assuran, is venerated as a god of storms and regarded as one of the celestial patrons of the country.
Horus-Re, the Lord of the Sun, is worshiped primarily by Mulhorandi who govern and administer. Although his faith is strongest in Mulhorand, his church has attracted an increasing number of adherents from the ranks of the fallen Untheric god Gilgeam who have renounced their formerly wicked ways. Clerics of Horus-Re rule vast estates in the name of their deity, and control an immense amount of wealth and power in Mulhorand. Women in Mulhorand and Unther have long worshiped Isis, the Bountiful Lady, known as Ishtar in Unther. She has a very strong following among good-aligned arcane spellcasters.
Before his death the Untheric god Gilgeam blamed Tiamat for all Unther’s ills, driving many Untherites who opposed his harsh rule into her embrace. The Dragon Queen earned her moniker as Nemesis of the Gods when she slew the Supreme Ruler of Unther during the Time of Troubles, an act of liberation that has earned her church large numbers of adherents, even among nonevil Mulan. In neighboring Chessenta, Tiamat has many followers as well, for there she is known as Tchazzar, the red dragon Father of Chessenta. In time, her church is likely to contract when Tiamat’s true nature is finally revealed.
Mulan Characters
Mulan typically make good fighters, whether trained in the mercenary armies of Chessenta, the church armies of Unther and Mulhorand, or the wizard-led armies of Thay. The road to power in Mulhorand and, until recently, Unther lies in the various priesthoods. As a result, many Mulan in those realms are clerics of one of the Mulhorandi gods, Hoar, or Tiamat. Chessenta has its fair share of clerics as well, many of whom serve various Faerûnian deities, but only the churches of Kossuth and several evil Faerûnian deities are strong in wizard-dominated Thay.
In Mulhorand, good-aligned deities with strong martial traditions employ many paladins in their service. Wizards and clerics are well established in Chessenta, Mulhorand, Thay, and Unther, although their efforts are much restricted in Mulhorand by the bureaucracy of priests. Bardcraft, brought back by Chessentan mercenaries from western Faerûn, is held in high esteem in Chessenta but is otherwise almost unknown in lands dominated by the Mulan. Monks are found in large numbers only in Mulhorand, where most orders are integrated into the church of Thoth. Rogues are common in the teeming cities of Mulhorand and Unther, where priests are more corrupt than pious. Mulan are almost never barbarians or druids, as they have always lived in cultures established by the god-kings and their clerics. Likewise, Mulan rarely find their calling as rangers, for the Mulan dwell in long-settled lands with few forests or other areas of wilderness.
Prestige Classes: Many Mulan take up the divine prestige classes of arcane devotee, divine champion, divine disciple, and divine seeker. Assassins and blackguards devoted to evil deities are not unknown in Mulan societies and are especially prevalent in Thay and Unther. In Thay, almost all Mulan wizards of sufficient skill eventually choose to join the ranks of the Red Wizards.
Rashemi
Concentrated in the harsh and dangerous northeastern reaches of Faerûn, the Rashemi are tough and sturdy, undaunted by extremes of weather or human cruelty. Despite their relative isolation from the rest of Faerûn, most Rashemi are surprisingly well versed in the affairs of other nations, for many travel extensively as youths as part of a coming-of-age ritual known as a dajemma. Although Rashemi barbarians and rangers are widely known across Faerûn, members of this ethnic group also make skilled wizards, sorcerers, and clerics.
Descended from the nomadic tribes that fought and won the Orcgate Wars and later built the empire of Raumathar, the Rashemi are the most numerous human ethnic group on the Priador plateau and in the lands that border Ashanath, the Lake of Tears. Outside Thay and Rashemen, Rashemi minorities are also found in Aglarond, Damara, the Great Dale, Impiltur, Mulhorand, Narfell, the Wizards’ Reach, Mulhorand, Semphar, Thesk, and Unther. Although not widespread, Rashemi culture has had a significant influence on both Damaran and Tuigan culture, and in its day the Rashemi empire of Raumathar rivaled the power of Mulhorand and Unther.
Most Rashemi average about five and a half feet in height, with stout and muscular builds. Most are dusky of skin and dark of eye, with thick black hair. Rashemi males are unusually hirsute and often sport bushy black beards. Although handsome, many seem almost ursine in nature. Baldness is almost unknown among Rashemi males, although inhabitants of Thay are known to shave all body hair in imitation of the ruling Mulan. Female Rashemi wear their black hair long, often in elaborate braids.
The Rashemi display little of the cultural arrogance common to other major human ethnic groups whose ancestors once ruled empires. Instead, they see themselves as inhabitants of a harsh but beautiful world ruled by place spirits, and cherish their strong and abiding ties to the land. Most Rashemi identify themselves by national origins (for example, Rashemaar, Thayan, or Theskan) rather than ethnicity, although centuries of harsh rule by the Mulan in Thay have done much to strength sympathies between the Rashemi of Thay and the inhabitants of Rashemen. Little emphasis is placed on the acquisition of wealth or ancestry, as each child is expected to earn his or her own place in the world.
Regions
Aglarond, Hordelands, Rashemen, Thay, Thesk
Outlook
The Rashemi view life as an unending series of challenges to be faced and overcome. They place a strong emphasis on strength, whether it is physical strength among the folk of Rashemen or magical prowess among the Thayan Rashemi. Respect and status must be earned, and a great deal of emphasis is placed on individual accomplishment. Childhood among the Rashemi reflects this cultural outlook, as youths are subjected to greater and greater tests as they mature. Admittance into the ranks of their elders must be earned.
The most common reason for adventuring among the Rashemi is the coming-of-age ritual known as the dajemma. Rashemi youth are encouraged (required, in the case of males in Rashemen itself) to go on a yearlong journey to see the world, after which they are accorded the status of adults. Naturally, some fall into a life of adventuring during such a trip, although most eventually return home and settle down. The Witches of Rashemen have their own reasons for setting out into the world, including the recovery of ancient magics hidden across Faerûn and the effort to oppose the machinations of the Red Wizards of Thay.
Rashemi Society
Rashemi culture varies widely from Rashemen to Thay to Thesk, although each society exhibits some common traits. In Rashemen, contests of physical and martial prowess are common, including snow-racing, skiing, wrestling, drinking, and the like. In Thesk, most contests revolve around the accumulation of wealth through skill at trade. In Thay, the influence of the Red Wizards has raised magical prowess above all other forms of contests. The Rashemi of all three lands share a common suspicion of excessive civilization, which is often seen as soft or weak, and place little emphasis on inherited titles or wealth.
The Rashemi have never placed a strong emphasis on schooling for a variety of reasons. In Rashemen, the land is continually beset by outside threats that require warriors, not scholars. Those who do study as children are usually tutored by one of the mysterious witches. In Thay, the ruling Mulan have long been suspicious of academic inclinations among the lower classes and discourage the lower class (specifically, the Rashemi) from excessive study. Rashemi youths are given to carousing and competing with their friends. As adults, the Rashemi are expected to settle down and contribute to society, although industriousness is not as highly respected as it is in other lands. Elderly Rashemi are respected for their wisdom and their mental strength, even if their physical faculties have faded. Their past accomplishments are not forgotten, even if they no longer can perform such feats. Death is seen as a time of celebration, for it is then that a Rashemi’s deeds enter into legend.
Outside their native lands, the Rashemi congregate in groups of fellow exiles. Their nights are spent wandering from tavern to tavern, challenging the locals to contests. Few find steady work except as mercenaries, and those who do quickly spend their meager coin on their fellow expatriates.
Relations with Other Races
Northeastern Faerûn is largely devoid of nonhuman civilizations, leaving the Rashemi generally ignorant of nonhuman cultures other than the centaurs and gnolls of the Thayan Plateau. Dwarves are perhaps the best-known race, as the dwarven kingdom of Siremun in the Firepeaks to the east has long traded with Rashemi traders in the markets of Almorel. Elves, halfelves, and halflings are viewed as objects of wonder, long associated with the fey creatures of the North Country. Gnomes are also regarded as creatures of magic. Half-orcs, tieflings, and genasi are regarded with long-standing suspicion, the legacy of centuries of folklore that have grown up around the Orcgate Wars and the conflagration unleashed by Narfell and Raumathar. Aasimars are closely associated with the various Mulhorandi priesthoods and treated accordingly. Among human cultures, the Rashemi get along best with the Nars and the Sossrims. Despite the close proximity in which many Rashemi and Mulan dwell, relations between the two cultures are tense at best, with hostility (usually cloaked) the norm.
Language and Literacy
Rashemi speak Common and their national language, whatever that may be. The Rashemi language, derived from Raumvira and the dead language Halardrim, uses the Thorass alphabet introduced by Chondathan traders traveling along the Golden Way. The Rashemi tongue is commonly employed only within the borders of Rashemen. In fact, more Rashemi speak the Thayan dialect of Mulhorandi as their mother tongue than speak Rashemi. Other languages with a significant number of Rashemi speakers include Aglarondan, Chondathan, and Damaran.
The most common secondary languages among the Rashemi are Mulhorandi (particularly the Thayan dialect) or Rashemi, depending on whether they live in Rashemen or Thay, respectively. Those Rashemi who dwell farther west often learn Chondathan, Damaran, Aglarondan, Chessentan, or Untheric.
All Rashemi characters are literate except for barbarians, adepts, experts, warriors, and commoners.
Rashemi Deities
Traditionally, the Rashemi venerate “the Three” - Chauntea, Mielikki, and the Hidden One (Mystra), a trio of goddesses introduced centuries ago to Rashemen by the folk of Thesk. They also venerate a host of local place-spirits and spirit-heroes little known elsewhere in Faerûn. The spirits of Rashemen do not have names, but express their actions through miracles, omens, and by dispatching servitors. Outside Rashemen, many Rashemi nominally venerate the deities of Mulhorand as well. However, centuries of persecution by the Red Wizards of Thay have ensured that such worship is confined largely to the home. Small cults of the four elemental deities, particularly Kossuth, exist as well, legacies of Raumviran influence over the culture of the Rashemi.
Rashemi Characters
The Rashemi have a long-standing warrior tradition dating back to the Orcgate Wars, and barbarians, rangers, and fighters play a prominent role in Rashemi society. Likewise, the Rashemi hold arcane spellcasters in great respect, including the mysterious wychlaran and the greatly feared Red Wizards. Clerics, druids, paladins, and monks are relatively rare, for the Rashemi do not have a strong tradition of organized religion outside the Witches of Rashemen. Rogues are almost unknown, for the Rashemi have never placed a strong emphasis on the accumulation of wealth.
Prestige Classes: The most common prestige class for Rashemi is, of course, the hathran, although a small number of Rashemi wizards living in Thay become Red Wizards.
Tethyrian
The Sword Coast has long been home to native human tribes who intermingled with wave upon wave of immigrants, whether they arrived as conquerors or refugees. In recent centuries, these disparate groups have gradually coalesced into a relatively new ethnic group known as Tethyrians, occupying a vast territory stretching from Calimshan to Silverymoon and from the Sea of Swords to the Sea of Fallen Stars. After centuries of enslavement and oppression by one group or another, Tethyrians are fiercely independent, protective of their freedoms and suspicious of threats posed by powerful kingdoms and empires. Given their disparate ancestry, Tethyrians have never developed a unique language of their own, instead adopting the language of the latest wave of conquerors or refugees. Today most Tethyrians speak Chondathan.
As Tethyrian culture is a melting pot of Calishite, Chondathan, Illuskan, and Low Netherese, Tethyrians are tolerant of and comfortable with members of other ethnic groups, with the notable exceptions of upper class Calishites and, to a lesser extent, Mulan of Thayan descent. In Calimshan, Tethyrians compose the bulk of the lower classes and have long been discriminated against by the largely Calishite upper classes. Outside Calimshan, many Tethyrians are craftsmen or caravanners, while others find employment as mercenaries in the employ of other realms. Tethyrians make skilled fighters and rogues, reflecting the struggle to survive successive waves of conquest and generations of warfare. Tethyrian culture has a long tradition of bardcraft, reflecting the absence of a Tethyrian empire at any point in history and the corresponding reliance on itinerant bards to preserve and spread Tethyrian oral history.
Tethyrians are of medium build and height, although taller and broader in build than most Calishites. Their skin tends to have a dusky hue, although on average they are increasingly fairer in complexion the farther north one travels along the Sword Coast, reflecting a decreasing fraction of Calishite heritage and an increasing fraction of Illuskan and Low Netherese ancestry. Tethyrian hair and eye color varies widely, with brown hair and blue eyes being most common.
Most Tethyrians are proud of their multi-ethnic heritage, seeing their society as having defeated all would-be conquerors through assimilation rather than empire. Tethyrians are suspicious of remote rulers and large realms, a cultural bias reflected in the predominance of city-states over kingdoms and empires in Tethyrian-dominated regions. If Tethyrians have a common weakness, it is their reluctance to come together in common cause with those who are not their immediate neighbors.
Regions
Amn, Calimshan, Cormyr, Dragon Coast, the North, Tethyr, Western Heartlands, Waterdeep
Outlook
Tethyrians view life as a struggle to be survived through ties to family, clan, and tribe. To a Tethyrian, freedom is the most precious gift, and the enslavement of another is the greatest sin. Although an individual may guard his or her freedom through skill at arms or the accumulation of wealth and status, these are merely different means to a far more precious end. Loyalty to one’s kin and neighbor and generosity to those in need are considered far more lasting than the fleeting favor of Lady Luck. Although it has been many generations since the majority of Tethyrians dwelt in tribes, the cultural tradition of loyalty to those held dear is as strong today as it ever was. Where a Tethyrian lacks kin or clan, his loyalty is transferred to settlement, guild, company, band, or other organization from a young age.
Tethyrians usually take up a life of adventure in hopes of redressing a wrong to family, clan, or tribe, or in search of the freedom to chart their own course in life. Many would-be adventurers are inspired by tale of the legendary Tethyrian heroes of yore, whose exploits have been recounted for generations by traveling bards. A Tethyrian adventurer would rather wield a blade carried by his ancestors than have a new one forged, and would rather spend his last coin on a bard’s tale than a pint of ale.
Tethyrian Society
Although the cultures of most major human ethnic groups exhibit regional variations, Tethyrian culture exhibits much greater regional variation than most. Tethyrians dwelling in Calimshan, Tethyr, and Amn share much in common with their Calishite neighbors. Similarly, Tethyrians dwelling in the North hold much in common with Illuskan culture, and Tethyrians of the Western Heartlands exhibit many cultural traits shared with the Chondathans who dwell to the east.
Nevertheless, Tethyrian culture does exhibit certain unique characteristics. Tethyrians place a high value on personal freedom, and regard kingdoms and empires with a great deal of suspicion. Noble-minded rebels are much admired in Tethyrian folklore, ensuring that many common bandits of Tethyrian ancestry refer to themselves as “freedom fighters.” Tethyrians despise class divisions based on heritage, as they have long been subject to prejudice by their Calishite neighbors to the south. However, class divisions based on wealth and personal accomplishment play a strong role in many Tethyrian societies.
Aside from bards, Tethyrians have not traditionally had access to book learning, although those who do are much esteemed by their peers. Childhood is short, with even the youngest children expected to contribute to their family’s way of life. Adults earn their keep practicing the same trade as their parents, and many have the same surname as their profession. Familial, clan, and tribal bonds require that adults look out for one another, so the elderly and those who cannot earn their keep turn to relatives and friends for support. In death, the body is buried quickly and simply. The person is celebrated through stories and songs, their memory preserved and maintained through bardcraft.
Outside Tethyrian-dominated lands, Tethyrians usually form an insular underclass, welcoming of others yet holding themselves apart. Tethyrians have little resistance to adopting local deities, languages, and dialects, but their traditional ties to other Tethyrians serve to isolate them from their non-Tethyrian neighbors. Tethyrians usually organize themselves into extended clans and guilds, dominating one or two trades in the surrounding culture.
Relations with Other Races
Tethyrians hold the Proud Peoples (elves and dwarves) in high esteem, bordering on reverence, for Tethyrian folklore contains stories harkening back to the age when their ancestors dwelt in the shadow of the great dwarven and elven empires. In Tethyr, however, where elves and Tethyrians still come into regular contact, the Fair Folk are regarded with a fair degree of suspicion and hostility. Tethyrians get along well with halflings, reflecting the large number of Small Folk who dwell in Tethyrian-occupied lands and their shared history of migrating northwards along the Sword Coast to escape the grasping reach of Calimshan.
Tethyrians are indifferent with respect to gnomes, paying the Forgotten Folk little heed, even though they dwell in Tethyrian-held lands in relatively large numbers. Tethyrian reactions to tieflings and half-orcs are sharply split. Those Tethyrians who dwell north of the Cloud Peaks and have had to battle innumerable hordes and the devilspawn of Dragonspear Castle despise those with monstrous blood running in their veins, while southern Tethyrians view them in sympathy with the Calishite perspective as simply members of the lower class. Genasai are regarded with suspicion, seen as little better than the genie-worshiping Calishites, but aasimar are often mistaken for elves or half-elves.
Among human cultures, Tethyrians view Illuskans as overly warlike and Chondathans as overly greedy, but they usually get along well with members of both ethnic groups if they live in close proximity. The Mulan are despised as slavers, although that sobriquet is more properly reserved for Thayans. True hatred is reserved for Calishites, an enmity bred from familiarity and the product of centuries of discrimination against and enslavement of the various Tethyrian tribes. Other cultures are largely unknown in Tethyrian-held lands, but human immigrants, no matter how exotic, are usually welcomed and then assimilated within a generation or two.
Language and Literacy
Most Tethyrians speak Common as their primary language, usually a singsong dialect known as Calant that is heavily influenced by Alzhedo and popular along the Sword Coast. They employ the Thorass alphabet. As Talfir and other languages of the original western tribes vanished long ago, there is no ancestral “Tethyrian” tongue. Instead, Tethyrians have always adopted the languages of the latest wave of immigration. Today, most Tethyrians speak Chondathan, a legacy of the mercantile invasion from the east in recent centuries, although a few speak Illuskan or Alzhedo instead.
All Tethyrian characters are literate except for barbarians, commoners, and warriors.
Tethyrian Deities
The melting pot nature of Tethyrian culture has ensured that most deities of the Faerûnian pantheon are venerated in Tethyrian-occupied lands. Tempus is believed to have been a Talfirian deity who defeated the Netherese god Targus (Garagos). Netherese refugees brought with them the faith of Amaunator (reborn as Lathander), Chauntea, Talos, Mystryl (reborn as Mystra), Selûne, and Shar. Illuskan invaders introduced worship of Auril, Mielikki, and Oghma. Calishite armies introduced the faiths of Ilmater and Tyr. Chondathan merchants carried with them the teachings of Deneir, Helm, and Waukeen. Newer deities have arisen and been adopted as well, including Cyric, Kelemvor, and Siamorphe. Other deities that enjoy large Tethyrian followings include Eldath, Milil, Shaundakul, and Torm. Six of the most prominent churches in Tethyrian-occupied lands include the faiths of Cyric, Helm, Ilmater, Kelemvor, Oghma, and Siamorphe.
Siamorphe is originally a Tethyrian goddess, worshiped primarily in Waterdeep, Baldur’s Gate, and Tethyr. Her church has waxed and waned in centuries past as waves of idealism and cynicism have swept the nobility, but Siamorphe is currently ascendant. The church of the Divine Right is most popular among the nobility, although Siamorphe is also seen as a guarantor of just rule by many commoners.
Tethyrian Characters
Bards occupy an honored role in Tethyrian culture, and many aspire to the rank of master bard. Fighters and rogues are common in civilized regions, while rangers flourish among outlaw communities. Clerics and, to a lesser extent, druids are quite common as well, as the intermingling of cultures has produced a great deal of theological strife in centuries past. Wizards and sorcerers are also commonplace, although they rarely work in concert together. Monks and paladins are rare among Tethyrians, as adherence to a code of conduct rarely stands the test of family, clan, and tribal loyalties.
Prestige Classes: From their dim origins many centuries ago, the Tethyrians have a dark legacy of shadow magic, so more than a few Tethyrian rogues become shadowdancers. Tethyrian rogues also dominate lands such as Amn and the Western Heartlands, so the guild thief is common as well. The paths of the loremaster and archmage are both attractive to Tethyrian wizards. Good-aligned Tethyrian heroes often become Harper scouts, while those native to Cormyr frequently serve as Purple Dragon knights.