When the world was young, there were many on Ellysium. Many peoples, many races. For a time, it seemed peace would rule, but a heart of evil beat within the shadows of the world. Darkness rose and engulfed the plane.
One by one, the lights of life were extinguished, swallowed by the darkness, as each tribe fell, entire peoples wiped from the world, their very memory lost to the darkness and time.
From their blood and ashes, a tree grew.
A tree of power that coursed with magic and purpose, grown from their loss and nourished by the souls of the fallen. The tree was tremendous and existed as much in the physical realm as that of the ethereal.
Finally, its branches coursing with the souls of the lost, the tree bore five fruits. This was the rise of the angels.
The fruit of Strength was the first to descend and the Flight Cherubim came into being, created to hunt in the darkness so no enemy could hide from them.
The branch of Valor was next to drop its gift. The Host Seraphim rose, a shield so that peace may stand, a sword that would strike chaos down.
The fruit of Passion bore the Ophanim Chorus, a magnificent force that shone light so brilliant that it burnt the dark places to nothing so that the shadows could find no rest.
From the fruit of Wisdom, the Hashmallim Dominion drew their power. Their sight cast to the future so darkness would ever take root to rise again.
And lastly... the Zabaniyahim fell from the branch of Devotion, given stewardship over the past so it would not destroy the present.
-Excerpt from the First Book of Tanaphel, Verse 1:16

In the distant ashes of ages, Ellysium was a world torn by barbarism and dark sorceries. In those time immemorial, terrible forces threatened the birth of order and civilization upon the plane. Villages were burnt, and what few cities existed were ransacked endlessly, and at every turn, those who sought only to establish some form of order were beset. The raiders and hordes held sway upon the plane, speaking nothing of the terrible beasts that roamed the land. It was a haven of terror and chaos, the likes of which never knew peace. However, very suddenly, the balance of the world changed. People rose after death, turned into guardians through the magics wrought by a great meta-spell cast at the beginning of this new age. The natives of the plane call it... Mass Effect. (Wait, no sorry, wrong game.)
The spell is known as “The Rapture.” The meta-enchantment recognizes the death of worthy beings, and according to a number of aspects, it forces the ascension of the soul to an angelic state. Each of the angels bear a different virtue, and those virtues determine what sort of angel a being becomes upon ascension. Valor for white, Strength for green, Passion for red, Wisdom for blue, and Devotion for black.
The angels were designed to eliminate the destructive elements of the ancient barbaric cultures, and in some ways, they excelled at their purpose. This meant... genocide.
Species were hunted to total extinction by the angels, all traces of their existences wiped away.
However, this was all long long ago, and people have forgotten the being which cast the Rapture or even when. The purpose of the spell, to a great degree, has even been lost. People now cannot remember a time when the angels were not present, and so they believe the angels have always been there. They have lost their origins and society does not remember the time beset by the darkness.
All the people of Ellysium now know is that the angels ruled peacefully for long ages. Ellysium knew prosperity and serenity until the balance of power changed irrevocably and the forces of the very heavens themselves turned upon each other, throwing the plane into a violent civil war.
The Five Powers were torn apart after centuries of balance.
The Angels make war upon themselves.





Seraphim consider the Hashmalim to be lesser angels, while Hashmallim hold equal disdain for the haughty Seraphim. The only time their disagreements are put aside is in dealing with the Zabaniyahim, who have been the least active members in the war by far. This seeming quiet has driven the Seraphim and Hashmalim both to paranoia.

Cherubim have an intense rivalry with the Seraphim. Very competitive amongst themselves, the Seraphim's martial nature causes many of the Cherubim to feel challenged, owing in part to their bestial nature. The Seraphim, for their part, seem somewhat oblivious to the combative nature a Cherub adopts when they interact.

Ophan and Seraph share respect between each other, but all angels are wary of the Ophanim's fully realized power. That is why all angels agreed on specific laws by which they would conduct their war, so the Ophan would never utilize the destruction that they were forged for.

The Cherubim, Hashmalim, and Ophanim are the most common allies in the war, though they rarely are allied to more than one faction at any given time and there have been times in the past when these alliances were broken, usually over concerns of one of the factions gaining too much influence.

The Angels proper have the suffix “el”
Rogue Angels take the suffix “on”

The Principalities are the largest occupied territory in the world and the primary source of developed agriculture.

The history of the Goliath can be tied to metal, and they believe that Copper is the most sacred metal. You see, while the Goliath use iron in their weapons, they have an ancient love for copper, a metal which shares much of their history. The reason why it is so revered, is the fact the metal has an affinity for green mana. This conductivity is important because when paired with their rune magic, it makes their copper works indestructible.
Once they began experimenting with Iron, they found the most effective forges to smelt down and shape the iron ore were the volcanic areas near their original home. They called these volcanic pits, An Fuil de Binah, or "The Blood of Binah" and so they began a tradition of forging weapons in the heat of the earth. The largest city of the Goliath is Cathair de'an Sinsear, where the elders of each clan come to meet in the ancient halls. The city is the single largest mercantile center in all the Green, and what marks it as such is the numerous ancient pits where the art of metallurgy took its first strides. Indestructible copper vessels are used to hold the ore as it is melted in the heart of the magma and then poured into the casts where their weapons and such are made. It is nestled in the foothills of the Ishim mountains, butting right up against the flamekin territories.

Much of the population of the city is transitory, as the Goliath are naturally prone to wanderlust. While some bands of druids and nomads exist, there are numerous stationary towns wherever there are fissures in the earth for them to forge with and rivers to slake the forests and their own thirsts.

The Goliath do not believe in agriculture in the same way the humans do, tilling fields and scarring the natural world, but instead, they have developed a culture dedicated to stationary gathering. They take the fruits of the land, and promote the return growth of what they take. They do this with their magic, delivered to the ground in each enchanted raindrop called from the sky by the druids.

Many of the fissures they build their towns around are not naturally occurring, but were actually called into being by the Cherubim for the Goliath who wished to settle rather than wander. The Cherubim have also been known to divert rivers, slowly but surely to better serve the town. The Cherubim look at this as a natural way to shape the world around them so that it does not destroy Binah's body.

Much of the many towns and cities the goliath actually have are built in stone instead of wood.

The gorgons occupy the Sheo Lowlands.
As a group they are able to live underground, though it has been some years since they chose to do so, instead choosing the swamps and rice fields as their home. Their diet consists primarily of fungi, fish, and vegetables and fruit that grow in the shallow waters of their home. Most of the gorgons are farmers, broken up into small villages far removed from the capitals of their people located in those ancient caves of their origins.

The gorgons are well known healers and sangromancers, and are known as Blood Alchemists. However, the alchemists are also known for the strong poisons they are capable of developing. Sangromancy is the most widely used magic in the lowlands, but it is not the only kind.

The Necromancers, are a monastic sect that only a relative handful of gorgons pursue despite their major influence both in global politics and the defense of the race. It is the sect who deal with the catacombs of old and the Sentinels. Oddly enough though, they aren't part of the Zabaniyahim church, which doubles as the gorgon government, despite being a major military and social force for their people and living in closer proximity to the Zabahiyahim. In better times they would be searched out for their skills to create monuments from the fallen so that people can pay respect for all time, and this has given them a demand that is vital to their people.

The Gorgon, meanwhile, turn all their dead into the very foundation of the caverns that acted as the cradle of their civilization. They animate the bodies using necromancy, tell the zombies to climb atop the existing walls of statues and form giant pillars/walls where they are then turned to stone. In times of emergency, they awaken the petrified dead to fight for them. These beings are known as the Sentinels. However, in the times since the war began, they have been animating the dead that once stood frozen. Zombie statues generated as the fighting force of the Zabaniyahim which spares the sparse gorgon population from the worst of the fighting.

The Flamekin and Gorgon have a very close relationship. The Gorgon can't turn their own to stone, but every other race is vulnerable to their gaze which puts an enormous strain on what cultures can interact with them without taking appropriate measures (which usually means the gorgons have to be blindfolded) which is extremely demeaning. So, hence why they have such a flourishing relationship with the Flamekin.... because their bodies are already made of stone.

The Ishim ranges and the far reaching plateaus on the other side of the continents are the homes to the flamekin. It is from here that the guilds of the flamekin dictate that which the flamekin of the Ranges do, though their rule does not extend to those who have chosen to leave either the heart of their hegemony or the colonies that fringe it. The flamekin are formally ruled by whichever guild currently has the most power socially. The Martial guild has held sway for a long long time now. Other guilds include the Harper Guild, the Crystal Guild, the Iron Guild, and whichever other ones I can think up. Suggestions totally open. (The Harper Guild is half musicians half messengers). Ranks in the guild demonstrate social standing, but not every flamekin is in the guild as there are a lot that just function as service for the guilds.

The flamekin are known for being artisans of Golems. They breathe the flame of life into the form. It helps keep the populace from having to go to war in the same numbers as the others since most of them are not members of the Martial Guild, no matter how much their membership has risen in the past years. (red artifact creature golem. Blaze counters.) Lastly, the flamekin are known for using crystalline weapons that are harder than steel and very very sharp. They forge excellent steel, but sell it to other cultures rather than make weapons of it.

Flamekin families are nuclear rather than clan based. When Flamekin fall in love, they have a ritual that is the equivalent of making love. They embrace and their flames mingle, and the flames are the expression of their soul. When the flames combine, it forms a new "ember" if you will, within one of the two parents. This ember grows and the stone in the Flamekin's body begins to swell until it eventually reaches a sort of critical mass. At that point, the excess stone (and actually quite a lot of the parent's stone) slags off. It's a very painful and arduous process and probably the closest the flamekin ever get to illness. Eventually, the stone has to grow back.
Anyways, the slag forms an ovoid geode and incubates for some time until at last the flamekin child breaks free. Brings a new meaning to "birthstone" huh?
Flamekin biology is quite strange to the other races. For one, their diet is composed entirely of sand and minerals. Their torso has two primary cavities, a "stomach" where the sand is melted and spread to the rest of their bodies, and a heart/lung combo that is a very porous latticework where the "heart" of their flame exists. Flamekin see in both visible light and infrared at the same time.

The heartweft, the flamekin believe, was a gift from the ancient god Chesed who, according to their doctrine, was the one who planted the seed of the Tree of Life in the dark times before the world. It was his last act before he departed from the world.

The distant islands of the east and their trading posts are ruled by the mercantile and marine power of the moonfolk sailors. They call the other races "sunfolk".

The moonfolk are nocturnal and have extremely powerful eyesight which makes night like day to them, but daylight is so extreme they have to wear crystal shades to be able to stand the sunlight at all. The moonfolk can see stars that a regular human's eyes wouldn't be able to perceive; Imagine if you look at the night sky and it actually looks like pictures taken from the Hubble telescope, that is how they see. Their eyesight is so adroit that they can see deep into the waters of the ocean and are able to see the currents of the winds moving in the sky and seas moving beneath. This makes them some of the foremost sailors, as well as the incredibly detailed and accurate star charts they make.

Moonfolk are not very adept hand to hand fighters, as their physical constitution is not as developed as others. However, they are absolutely unmatched as archers and are able to do minor divinations in the process of aiming to increase their accuracy.

the golden eyed moonfolk should be tied to a prophecy. One made a long long time ago.
People aren't even sure what the prophecy was at this point, but all that has come down through the ages is that they are poor fortune. Popular theories about what they are supposed to mean will of course range from just bad luck to the end of the moonfolk race. The major commonality in the taboo should always have something to do with change though, because there's nothing that scares a group secure in itself than change.

So the goldsight moonfolk reap the fruits of some unknown destiny they never asked for.

Their primary diet is of fruit, fish, seaweed, and birds native to the islands.

Chabion is a Cherubim of Goliath stock, and is an angel of particularly violent disposition. At first, Chabion was simply a malcontent, grumbling about his misgivings about the Cherubim leadership, and getting into a few, minor fights with other angels, but nothing serious. Then, suddenly, something changed, and Chabion grew even more outspoken, even more violent. He began challenging other Cherubim to more serious fights. He was a fierce fighter, and demanded that the Cherubim take a much more active role in the war, particularly wanting to level the other Angelheim to the ground. While before his targets were more or less random, just angels he was arguing with, now they were more targeted, higher level angels who more dramatically disagreed with him. Worse yet, three of these fights ended in the death of his opponent, for which Chabion showed no remorse. He actually gloried in their deaths, and tried to use his might to convince others to join him. Finally, the Cherubim decided that Chabion was far too dangerous and was no longer an asset to them. They decided to take action, but when they went to find him, he had disappeared into the wilds.

In the pre-rapture days, the barbaric hordes dominated the landscape, but the demons were the most powerful of all. They were also the closest thing to "civilized" that the barbarian races got. They had a culture of infernal worship, a written language, and even an appreciation for art to salve their vanity, but make no mistake, this was no noble society. The Demons were brutal with their knowledge, and hoarded it jealously. While the other barbarians persecuted the fledgling societies for fun, for plunder, and simply because they could, the Demons did so to ensure they remained at the top of the cultural food chain.
Beyond knowledge and intellect, the Demons had one other thing the other barbarians did not have. They had a city, a sprawling city dedicated to themselves. From this massive city, the Demons held their seat of tyranny, sending their own terrible forces, and many of the subjugated barbarian tribes of other races, too weak to oppose them.
Until the Rapture. Whether the emerging angels attacked the Demons first or last is a question of histories which were never written. Their city was scourged from the world, buried from the light of day.
Until one day…

The physical manifestation of the Rapture spell and the source of its continued existence, these enormous gemstones are composed of pure crystalline magic. Their existence has been lost to time, if many ever knew of them to begin with. Precious few modern angels know anything of the sephirot at all, and even fewer suspect what they are. They are a closely guarded secret by those whose knowledge gives them some shape of these enchantments’ significance, and their known locations are hidden from but a handful of individuals in any glory. Most of them are lost, but there are records which suggest their possible locations, but few are brave enough to seek the lost anchors of angelic creation.

For thousands of years, Goliath society was built on a foundation of tradition. Stories were passed down through oral tradition, and the elders were the political power, although the Goliaths themselves were far from political. The elders served mostly as a backbone for tradition, as well as arbiters for any who might violate the conventions of tradition. The words of the Elders were not law, certainly not in the way humans would understand them, but rather more akin to a father's commands to a small child. Over countless centuries, the reasons behind certain behavioral traditions were lost, but the Elders carried on the teachings of these traditions with a zeal equal to that of their predecessors. To even question the words of an Elder was to be a disobedient child in the eyes of the Elders, and most of the Goliath society.
Eventually, though, as the Elders lost their connection to the source of their traditions, certain members of Goliath society felt they were losing their connection with the Elders. The Elders had always been looked upon as father figures, and so society found it upsetting that they were losing that connection with them, almost like a child who ages to find his father's mind slipping away. So, in an effort to recapture the connection with the elders, certain fragments of society tried to delve into the depths of history, not to defy the Elders, but rather to rediscover the foundations of the traditions they clung to.
The Elders, however, viewed this in quite a different light. To them, this was an act of defiance, perhaps even an attempt to circumvent the Elders entirely. Naturally, they didn't all feel that way, and some Elders praised and even participated in the journey of past discovery. The most stringent traditionalists amongst the Goliath also opposed this new movement, but quite frankly, most people didn't care one way or the other. Many didn't even feel the subtle disconnection of the Elders in the first place.
Generations passed, and the division between the traditionalists and the historians grew increasingly, but slowly, greater. They were still one another's neighbors, friends, even brothers and sisters, but they were growing apart. Just as the Elders had eventually lost their connection with history, so too, ironically, did the historians lose their connection to their original mission. Their charge changed from discovering the origin of the Elder's tradition to discovering the origin of any tradition. Eventually, the historians became more. They became researchers, theorizers, scholars, perhaps, in a rudimentary way, academics.
Goliath society had begun to change, shifting, ever so slightly, away from a nomadic lifestyle to a sort of occasional-sedentary one. Some Goliaths, especially the smiths or the stone-masons, settled in pretty much one place. Most of the others would wander for a while, settle in one place for a while, and then wander again when the wanderlust grabbed them. The historians were more or less the same in this regard, wandering when they felt the need to research or map or dig something up, and settling down for a few seasons when they didn't. Of course, for the historians, the more they found and the more they wrote, the harder it became to travel around. This led to the founding of the Great Library, which was part library, part museum, as it contained everything that had been written by the historians (that had survived traveling through rain and heat and so forth), as well as any physical relics they may have stumbled upon.
The founding of the Library infuriated some of the Elders who believed it was a mockery of the oral tradition the Goliaths valued so highly. Others, however, felt it was an excellent way to keep tradition alive, and still more people, including a few more of the Elders, joined the historians. It was at this point that actual tension began to arise between the two factions of society, though initially, these problems were minor. Historians began actively trying to settle near the Library, and for longer periods of time, consequently (though unintentionally) monopolizing the local food supply, though no Goliath ever went hungry because of this. Slowly, over the course of two or three generations, the historians were firmly entrenched in the city. Traditionalists were still as welcome as always, but it didn't always feel that way.
All of this movement away from tradition and toward history began to worry the Elders who held strongly to tradition. Finally, these Elders made a conscious decision to expand their own influence and exert more formal authority. The Goliath had many celebrations throughout the year, but had two which were considered major, held in Cathair de'an Sinsear. Both of these were festivals in honor of Binah and Chokmah together, and were celebrated at the Summer and Winter Solstices. The Elders had recognized that while both factions still worshipped both deities, the historians were beginning to identify with Chokmah in their search for wisdom and secrets, and the Elders wanted to use that to reign them in. Therefore, at an Elder's council, it was decided that the festivals would no longer be dedicated to both. Instead, the Summer festival would be dedicated to Binah, whereas the festival of the Winter Solstice, when travelling was made more difficult, would be dedicated to Chokmah.
The Elders designed this to discourage the historians and their ilk, because they knew the Chokmah festival would have far fewer attendees than the Binah celebration. Unfortunately for them, their plan backfired, because although fewer Goliaths did attend, it began to foster the very division the Elders were trying to quell. It also provided a forum for the historians to educate and convert some of the traditionalists, who came just for the celebration, as they had done every year before anyway. After several years, as the division between the two festivals grew wider, the Chokmah festival was moved from Cathair de'an Sinsear to the Library city, and a few years later, the Library itself was rededicated to Chokmah.

The bulk of Goliath society was caught in the middle of these increasing tensions. Most of the people still vehemently revered the Elders and the traditions they represented, but the Goliaths were also naturally curious people, and the historians offered much to sate that curiosity. Finally, an event occurred of such monumental significance that neither side could possibly ignore it. It was nightfall on the Festival of Chokmah, the Winter Solstice, when the sky burned with the path of a falling star, which crashed with sickening impact into the ground near the edge of the great forest. Trees and grass alike where charred in a wide trail to the spot the massive rock fell, and below it, the cavernous ruins of some long-forgotten city below the ground.
The naturally curious Goliaths investigated, and the historians were quick to act. They sent nearly every researcher and digger they could to the site. On their first dig, they recovered a sizable piece of the star, as well as several artifacts from the mysterious, buried ruin. The ruin was only partially accessible to them, but they had recovered a few things, including three strange books made of stone, written in an unknown language. These relics they brought back to Chokmah's library to study them and try to decipher them. As for the piece of the star they recovered, they viewed it as a gift from Chokmah, an arrow sent to point them toward wisdom and discovery.
When the Elders learned of this event, they knew it would cause massive problems. They did not know what the star was, or what the mysterious ruins were, but they believed no good could come from it. They immediately ordered that no Goliath could go near the area again, until the Cherubim could fix the damage that had been done. This upset many people, including the traditionalists, who were, once again, naturally curious and wanted to know the truth about the star and the ruins. But the Elders demanded it be left alone, and the traditionalists reluctantly obeyed. The historians obeyed as well, at least for the time being, since they had much to study before returning anyway. For a short time, they were contented with studying the relics they had claimed.
Until, that is, the Elders came, in full force, to the Chokmah library and demanded the historians hand over everything they had found, especially the piece of the star. The historians told them that star was sacred to Chokmah and his followers, and they refused to give it up. The Elders argued with the metaphor: "If an arrow pierces the heart of your mother, do you gauge the arrow out and keep it as a trophy?" but the historians would not budge. Finally, the Elders offered a compromise. They said if the historians gave up the star willingly, they would not only be allowed to keep the other relics, but also they would be allowed another foray into the mysterious ruins.
After much deliberation, the historians agreed, and handed over the star. The next day, they set out on their second dig, knowing that they could just take another piece upon their arrival. To their horror, when they arrived at the site, the landscape was almost completely different. In the short time they were gone, the Cherubim had already done their work, and the site was gone forever. Realizing that the Elders had likely known about this, they quickly returned to their city, but when they did, they found their library in shambles, the mysterious relics either smashed or gone.
When the historians confronted the Elders back at Cathair de'an Sinsear, the Elders were unapologetic of their actions. They said it needed to be done, for the sake of tradition. This, of course, enraged the historians, and, surprisingly, many of the traditionalists, as well, who saw the deceit of the Elders to be far beneath their dignity. The historians, and those who shared their outrage, left the Green immediately, never to return.

In the long distant past, two factions controlled the majority of the world. The Kings of Light and the Queen of Darkness (cliche go! It's prototypical at this point, deal with it.) Each faction was composed of a number of tribes who owed their allegiance to each of the monarchies, the tribes controlling their own lands, shared by other tribes, some allies, some who bowed to the other faction.
As each tribe expanded, their influence grew, but this caused conflict to simmer upon their borders.
Despite this, the land was ultimately peaceful, the people not willing to start a large scale conflict while they were alone. It was so for hundreds of years... until the monarchs themselves became involved.
Regardless of the normal stresses of ruling their lands, they maintained an aloof ignorance of the other. It was not until a prophecy came arose that forced the royals to acknowledge their opposite faction. The prophecy stated "when the world fell to the flames of war, when the dark and light clashed, the monarchs would rise and break the world in twain."
Concerned about the prophecy the monarchs agreed to consult the other. Unfortunately, the meeting did nothing to resolve the potential conflict. Some offense or another was given, the exact nature unknown, but when the groups parted, the factions had declared war.

Not all tribes were involved in the fighting, but without question, each faction was completely committed to the fight. The only beings not involved were the neutral tribes, those who did not bow to either monarch.

As the war escalated over months, the fighting became fiercer and the casualties grew. As the battles raged, it became more and more apparent that the war was inevitable. Conflicts long suppressed behind the idyllic facade were ignited as the savagery of war drove peace from the minds of the tribes. The veil of peace was torn asunder and none were as surprised as the monarchs whose own vanity or pride had begun the downward spiral of bloodlust.

Several times, the monarchs met to discuss peace, but it was with a growing fervor that they spoke of ceasing the war.... largely because they were no longer sure if it was possible to rein in the violence their factions had thrown themselves into.

There seemed to be only one recourse. The monarchs must fulfill the prophecy. So, like a bad 80's sitcom, they decided to divide the world in two... but knowing that the flames of hostility would never dull so long as they stayed in the same world, the monarchs pooled their powers and cast a spell that forever altered the world. They created a twin, dividing the world with itself. The tribes of the light faction suddenly became the sole occupants of one world while the tribes of the dark queen inherited their own world...
Where once there was one world, now two occupied the same space, though at different frequencies. The world knew peace once more.

The world is more than two worlds. There is the veil between, the shadow cast by each.... the remnants of the spell and the world that once was. And those people who would not fight caught between.

The "Dawn Faction" is composed of allied colors.
Elf- WG
Merfolk- UW
Faeries- UB
Humans- BR
Trolls- RG

In the ages since the world was refracted, the day faction has developed fantastic magics unrivaled across much of the multiverse. They have even created living spells, illusions and powerful enchantments which act as creatures.
(Yes, enchantment creature will be a thing here. I came up with this waaaaay before Theros was public.)

The Dusk Faction is composed of enemy colors.
Soltari- WB
Goblins- WR
Imps- BG
Vedalken- UG
??????- UR
Profit!

While the dawn faction and their people focused on developing magic, the dusk faction began to refine their ability to construct solutions to their needs. Constructs and Golems and other artifact creatures are servile to the needs of their people.

People have begun to vanish.
They awake on the other side of the veil, terrified and lost. As they spend more and more time in their opposite world, they begin to change, their identities seeming to run as they are affected by the magic wavelength of the world.
As more strangers begin to appear in their opposite world, scared individuals clinging to each other for something familiar, the native inhabitants become more concerned, unsure of what to make of these new appearances.

None in the world know what has caused this to begin happening... but those responsible are not from the world. They are from the between. The shadow beings have begun to manifest in each world, those who have retained their sanity are learning to push into the worlds, and each time they do, natives are sucked across the veil.
The last of the lost tribes have begun to appear in the courts of each monarch, wearing masks and cloaking themselves in mystery... ingratiating themselves to the current rulers. What they are planning is unknown, but their agenda is clearly their own.

Shadow
Enchantment creatures
Artifact creatures
Transform and DFC

Humans: There are three major human empires, which collectively greatly outnumber the other races, but divided as they are, their populations do not overwhelm that of the other societies. They include:

• The Jamaharon: A sect of pleasure seekers who live high in the mountains. Ultimately, they seek to become disentangled from their worldly concerns, and reach enlightenment through knowledge.
• The Traditionalists: A faction dedicated to the preservation of the old ways. Located in the north and central portions of the continent, they clash strongly with their neighbors which they feel have become heretics to the old gods and their place in the world.
• The Modernists: the faction located in the eastern and south eastern portions of the continent which favor progress, often at the expense of those who share the world with them. They are the primary traders in slaves, but despite that, they have made immense strides in understanding the world and freeing themselves of that which was once considered taboo.

Juggernaut – The juggernaut are immense temples, the center of higher pursuits and government wherever they can be found. The most shocking thing, though, is that these tremendous buildings are in fact, great living constructs dedicated to the peace of the realm, the last resort a city could call upon in times of great duress. Their architecture is extremely varied, no two juggernauts looking exactly alike, but nothing in the mortal realm is said to be capable of withstanding a juggernaut.

Deva (Angels): The angels of Balance, work as agents of karma, supporting the good and punishing the wicked, strictly along the lines of a being’s karma. They lack the wings angels have on other worlds, having another set of arms sprouting from their backs instead. A halo of light glows around their bodies. Long lengths of ethereally white cloth surround their bodies, constantly flowing as if underwater. Aside from these they dress simple; white wraps around their hips and simple armored tops. They often carry rosaries that indicate their status in the divine hierarchy, with the highest of their numbers carrying rosaries so large that they wrap about their bodies. They are often associated with flowers.

Loxodon: Loxodon live in herds that are protected by the yoddha, a sect of high warriors dedicated solely to the good of the herd. Their religious beliefs and government both revolve around elder worship, and many of the highest members, including the yoddha, have the mantras of their sect carved into their tusks. It is not a pleasant experience, but it shows their commitment to the way of their elders and people.

Nomad is the most prevalent class type.

Matsya (Merfolk): The merfolk believe that there was once more land upon which their ancestors walked with great cities that stretched high into the sky. Within these cities, the gods dwelled and taught man their secrets. However, all things flow in a great cycle, and the gods departed from the world. A great flood came to wash the world anew and to preserve their civilization, they were given knowledge by the divine to transform themselves into the beings they are now. The Matsya dive the oceans to try and find the secrets lost to the ages and the deep. The Matsya culture is one driven by a hierarchy of achievement, the greater a discovery, the higher a merfolk’s position in society will be.

One of the earliest secrets they discovered was the secret of flight, allowing them to interact with the dry world once again. Ruins are discovered perhaps once a lifetime, but it takes several more to discern even a fraction of their secrets.

Viashino: The Viashino of this world live at the mouth of a major river and deltas, a sunken civilization hidden in shadows in the waters of the swamps. Descended from the dragons, they have embraced the ideals of how their ancestors changed and worship the demons as the true masters of their own destiny, casting off the yoke of karma and rising to greater heights. They are assassins by trade, defined by their ambition and secrecy. Though utterly ruthless, they believe that the lives they take, offered to the demons, keep the Asura mollified and prevent the demons from trespassing into their world to collect their own, so it is in fact a service that they do for the world. Though they revere the demons, they are shrewd enough to understand the havoc they are capable of and have no desire to see the Asura unleashed upon the world.

Their homes in the southern swamps are called the Dragon’s Teeth.

Garuda: Garuda are Aven descendants of the legendary phoenix, Simurgh. Simurgh was the largest and oldest phoenix to have ever lived, using an entire mountain as its cradle and nest. During its last death, the explosion it generated cast its ashes to the four winds which snatched them away and spread them across the plane. Instead of the great bird rising and being reborn, each ash gave birth to an aven. And so the Garuda were born. They choose to live high up in the mountains, where the eddies and wind currents are strong, but without natural resources they are forced to fly down and raid lower settlements.

Amongst their settlements are monasteries dedicated to spiritual enlightenment. This monastic sect is called the 88 paths of flame. These monks combine martial arts with pyromancy, believing that if they master all 88 paths, they’ll reincarnate as a phoenix upon their funeral pyre. The yogas of the 88 paths become increasingly mental and spiritual as one approaches the highest practices, focusing almost solely on the spiritualism of pyromancy.

Phoenix

Rhox: The Druidic Rhox of the world have long been victims. What remains of their culture has been split, forced into the deepest recesses of the forests and jungles. Those settlements that have not been well hidden have been enslaved by the darker human empire in order to perform heavy labor. Their slave masters have their horns cut, a symbol that they have lost their freedom as much as a pragmatic solution to the Rhox’s natural weapons.

The last of the free Rhox were driven to the forests and some have made their way into the smaller continent. Some of the enslaved Rhox have formed an underground rebellion led by a charismatic leader.

Asura (Demons): On this world, demons, called Asura, are formed when a being's karma becomes overwrought with sin. Each sin is aligned to a different color, which influences the birth of the demon. When a soul becomes utterly corrupt, and the weight of its karma is beyond what the wheel of life can bear, that being becomes a demon and their very form changes. This process takes a great deal of time, and no two demons look exactly alike, as they retain much of their former race. An asura is completely driven by sin, slaved to its whims and desires.

• Abhimasura (Pride): Asura of Pride are recognizable by their skin, becoming as stone resembling marble or porcelain and the growth of multiple faces upon their heads. Around their body float disembodied limbs, circling around them and responding to their commands. Sadly, many angels fall from grace and become Abhimasura, often for losing sight of their divine mission and instead, growing arrogant enough to put themselves first.
• Lalachura (Greed): The Asura of Greed live only partly in this world, residing in part in the spiritual realms. They have massive ethereal claws at the end of their long arms that can rend a being’s mind and spirit. Their faces and shoulders are covered by their long hair, with only their glowing demonic eyes visible through the veil of hair. They collect resources, both material wealth and more importantly knowledge, which float as small balls of light orbiting around them.
• Krodhura (Wrath): Demons of Wrath are bellicose beings with black skin and great vicious tusks. They grow extra arms topped with large thick claws and horns crown their heads. The horns and claws fade to stained red. Bones jut haphazardly from their body, which they break from their flesh and use as blades. Whirling motes of fire rise from their skin and hair, which is long and flaming, flowing as if underwater.
• Petupasura (Gluttony): The Green Asura are enormous and corpulent. They have multiple arms and a wide, stretched mouth with rows of fangs and forked tongues. They bring pestilence and disease that weep from sores. These sores grow as they become more and more sedentary, never moving, relying more and more upon their impish handservants. These Asura crave food all the time and will eat anything they have at hand. They prefer fresh meat, new meat harvested from exotic beings. They wear thick make up, kohling their eyes and coloring their lips to fake the appearance of nobility. The Petupasura make their lairs in places of former beauty, corrupting it with their presence and lounging indolently.

Misc.
Rakshasa- Cat Vampire
The true history of the Rakshasa is lost in the annals of history, but the Matsya believe that they were a race of catfolk known as the Narasimha that existed before the great flood that washed the world clean. They might have existed, but when the rains started, some of them turned from the gods, incensed that they were passing judgment upon the world. Most accepted the gods decision, but those that grew angry turned to the demons for their salvation. Hidden away in the demon’s realm, they weathered the flood outside and when the waters receded, the survivors emerged, unaware that they had been transformed by their time in the demon's lair. They were driven mad when they learned of the horrible thing they had become. They are so bestial now, that it is difficult to believe that they were ever more than horrible monsters.

The Rakshasa love the taste of flesh, craving it almost incessantly, and that drives them to consume as much as they can, but there is none they savor more than the flesh of man and his equals. The Rakshasa are hairless and their skin is charcoal black, their limbs and claws disproportionately long, making them a disconcerting sight.

Dragons: Most of the Dragons, if not all, have transformed into Asura of Wrath.

Naga- Mortal enemies of the Garuda. Keepers of the natural secrets.

Vanara- A relatively small culture of gorillas that live in the misty jungle foothills of the mountains, they are a secluded tribe who prefer to keep their own company and practice their traditions undisturbed. They are deeply spiritual society that follow the wisdom of their shamans, but fierce when roused, and there have often been times when they have gone to war over what could be considered very inconsequential matters.

Minotaurs - The minotaurs of Janhapurh are an urban species renowned for their love of art and poetry. They are often found clustered around the Juggernauts in major cities, where they may serve in various roles in the temple, such as tending to the flower gardens and leading pilgrims in the study of meditation. Though they are revered by most, they have been slowly pushed from the eastern lands and even the traditionalists seem less inclined to welcome them to their temples these days.

The minotaurs have built a culture around the act of creation, and are known for their unique form of poetry, which tends to favor long, looping, liturgical contemplation of the natural world and is intended to be recited aloud, often as a meditative aid. Minotaurs tend to dress in simple but brightly-colored robes and carry rosaries crafted from the horns of their ancestors. Their most notable choice of accessory is the choice to adorn their horns with garlands of flowers or caps of gold. They revere flowers, not only for their aesthetic beauty, but from the belief that the fragrances of certain aromatic blooms can have a calming effect on the mind. It is only natural that many of the finest incense and oils come from minotaur monasteries.

Yeti-In the frozen peaks of the mountains, these terrible predators lurk. They are elusive, and if you are hunting it, sooner or later, it will begin to hunt you. Standing twice the size of a man, with long, thick limbs, the yeti are capable of terrible violence and they do not possess any empathy. They have horrible twisted claws and sharp fangs which have ended countless lives.

Aspara- Aspara are Nymphs that dwell in the mists and seas. The Apsara are beautiful women who appear when the mists hang above the seas. They recline on rocks and entice sailors with their displays or their song. They tend to come in groups and act like floozies to get people close enough to them.

Unlike sirens, the Apsara save people who crash and hold them prisoner. They are unable to leave because the Apsara crave attention and they'll lavish the prisoners with gifts and pleasures. The mists that form on the seas act as a gateway to the Apsara's palaces, far far up in the clouds. Naturally, this means that sailors 'ware the mists that blow in.

Eventually they will let the men and women they take go home, but not before they learn something new from the outside world. Usually a new dance or new song that they've never seen before, but they have a darker impulse of plunder too. They hunger for art and have been known to crash boats to harvest the goods on the ship, or even the ship itself if it's nice enough.

Apsara occasionally turn up where you wouldn't expect them. The imperial courts take huge pleasure in having an Apsara appear and they are drawn to festivals. The mists are the only things that dictate where an Apsara goes. They can turn up on land, but are most often associated with the sea.

Ahden stands as an oddity within the swirl of the Blind Eternities. The empires that dwell upon the plane have never seen the races so many other worlds take as granted. Humans do now walk this world. Elves have never been heard of. Merfolk do not swim these oceans. Somewhere within the ages past, the evolution of the world rejected the familiarity of humanity and its shape.

In the ancient times, there was a race that controlled every aspect of Ahden. They carved great swathes from the interior of the earth, harvesting the rock and ore. They explored the darkest depths of the oceans. No answer was beyond them and they ruled the plane utterly. Then, they suddenly vanished, leaving behind only ruins and cryptic mysteries in their wake.

An epoch passed and new races arose. Many found the ancient ruins, and in their own ways, they learned from the legacy of the vanished beings, harnessing the powers left behind.

As the empires rose, the Leonin came into conflict with the Ogres for control of the Highlands. The Mountains and rolling plains became a battleground, and only one race would take the Highlands for their home. The Ogres possessed greater strength, but the Leonin had great numbers to rival anything the Ogres could do. The Ogres were driven from the highlands and all the way out of the fertile lands. Turned into exiles, the ogres had no choice but to settle under the tyranny of the draconic lands. The Leonin would unwittingly create the means for the Dragons to launch the greatest war Ahden had ever known.

With the Ogres as their slaves, the dragons pushed to conquer the lands around them. The Viashino of the edgelands, where the deserts met the fertile lands, cast the Ogres back with their druidic magics. The dragons weren’t going to abandon their attacks and were forced to attempt to conquer the Fertile Lands. The Foxfolk of the lowlands and the Leonin allied and brought the war to a stalemate. It would appear that the war would continue, neither side gaining an advantage, but the Foxfolk and Leonin alliance appealed to the Avens of the distant islands off the coasts, and together the united force drove the Dragons back to their borders. In the Draconic homelands, the final battle of the war was waged. Fierce magics tore at the land, and in desperation, the dragons did the unthinkable. They allied with the demons that dwelled in the deepest mines. It would be their undoing. The powers the demons brought forth ripped at the land. The combined magics of the war were too much for the land and the leylines of the Draconic home swelled and buckled, destroying their kingdoms and triggering the constant mana storm that ravages the badlands to this day. With no other choice, the surviving dragons and ogres retreated to the underground. There, they enslaved the goblins, conquering their cities, and dealing with the alliance the demon lords that dwelt in the mines and caverns of the ancients forced upon them.

The Alliance now controls the fertile lands and stands as the greatest power on the plane. But there are rising threats to their power. The twisted remnants of the dragons still lurk in the darkness, but the ancient enemies of the Avens threaten the coast. The Viashino face their own threat as the rising Bandit kingdom of the Ophidians gains power in the deep deserts and the thoughtweft Eumidian Queen builds her kingdom in the north.
These are the Alliances of Ahden.

The North is composed of a frozen expanse where the Yeti dwell. The mountains towards the northeast become the frozen north and the start of the highlands. The highlands flow down to the rolling expanse of planes in the east, butting right against the coastlines where the aven keep their local aeries towers. Their original island homes are further east in the oceans that the Kraken control.
To the north west, the Eumidians control the vast hardpacked wastelands, their insectile nature the only life that can regularly survive in the wastes. To the south of them, the great desert spreads out, twice the size of the fertile lands in the east.
Upon the center of the continent stretches the scars of the badlands, stretching all the way to the north. The only way to circumvent passing through is the far south in the wetlands that make up the coasts and lowest portions of the fertile lands. On the western side of the badlands stand the edgelands, where the lands start to become the desert. Canyons and Isolated patches of forests and lakes make up the rocky edgelands.

Foxfolk- Healers, Diplomats, and Spies. Will take any means to avoid a power struggle.
Aven- Sentinel warriors of the Islands and Plains. Knights and Lords keep the peace.
Dragons- Exiled tyrants. Hold a deep vendetta against the Leonin specifically.
Demons- Underworld scavengers. They hold the dragons in debt and enjoy temptation.
Kraken- Ancient abominations. They use the cephalid as their tools. They are the only ones who still remember the ancients.
Cephalid- Kraken worshipping dark dwellers
Viscerid- Slave race of the Cephalid. Brutish but strong.
Viashino- Druidic Shamans who seek to control the elementals that spawn from the draconic badlands.
Ophidian- Bandit barons and thieves of the desert.