Racial History Guide

by **Nerisella Pegason** Tue Jun 09, 2015 12:39 pm

Human
Favored Classes: Paladin, Priest, Warrior

Whiteguard: The Whiteguard are a human race of individuals who came from the continent Rhea (Ray), but mostly now consolidated the majority of their kin within the walled city of Ygdrassil. Their name and tabard are drawn from their origin as a race of pale-skinned warriors from a harsh winter environment. The Whiteguard's most notable equipment when seen on the battlefield is his sword and shield and he does know how to use it. They are seen as versatile soldiers who can not only fight, but build and forge, which is manifested in their personality. They are likewise blessed with a hardy constitution and carry passive abilities which have notoriety for being a Medics best friend.
Nordic: The Nordic, or Sons of Snow, are a proud race of men and women from the barren and frozen wastes of Rhae, which is also where the Whiteguard hail from. Arguably known as the bane of Rogue's, their passive skills are what makes them known as the hand that stops assassins. Early on, during the Winter of Trials, the Nordic fought their Whiteguard kin with an eagerness to augment their martial skills beyond the traditional methods of Rhae and their like brethren. A typical Nord can expect to have a well cultured background, which is centered on the quest for glory and has moral ties to family and community. Both the Whiteguard and the Nordic now live in uninterrupted peace, resting in the most North-Western cities and mountain ranges.

Orc
Favored Classes: Warrior, Warlock, Hunter

Blackhammer: Though all manner of Orcish kind hail from a distant planet called Niophus (Ne-Ah-Fus), kin who are born into the Blackhammer clan are considered the complete opposite of those born from Stormborn blood. Brutal and hateful in nature, throughout this foreign new world that hates and reviles them, young orcs who show combat potential are put through a training ritual known as Angijak (An-Je-Jack), which translates to Blood of Iron in Orcish. During these trials, the Orc is taught to care and fend for themselves, receiving no help from anyone and being placed in a valley known as the Needlespine Pass, which is notable for its extensively ferocious wildlife. The Orc must survive here for one year on their own and then find their way back to Blackhammer Keep once they reach age 16 as proof of their capability to undergo the harshest training regiment ever known to the living. To a Blackhammer Orc, honor to the country and strength means everything. To these standards, even family falls in second place. A weak Orc from this clan is relatively unheard of, as Blackhammer Orcs who could not fight or defend themselves effectively are killed as a result of their weakness.
Stormborn: As mentioned, the Stormborn Orcs are also from Niophus, though they do not share the same lust for blood and glory their brethren Blackhammer Orcs do. For a Stormborn, peace, tranquility and shamanism are the greatest interests they have, and they have very primal ties nature and the environment they tend to live in. Very calm and collected, these orcs utilize elemental connections to create Primal Nature spells which are extremely powerful, but are mentally and physically exhausting after use. Considered nomads, bands of these orcs travel and live in scattered areas across the planet, and are much more widely accepted than their Blackhammer kin in everyday society.

Troll
Favored Classes: Hunter, Rogue, Warrior

Greenspear: Trolls are actually a sub-human species, believed to actually stem from a different genome that shared like qualities with Humans. However, trolls only have three fingers, including an opposable thumb. Their feet have four toes, three in the front and another in the rear for stability when standing still to aim and fighting. For some reason, trolls from the Greenspear Clan have developed a unique empathy with animals, able to speak and communicate with them clearly, prompting a surprising bond between the two. Greenspear trolls are expert marksman and are often seen traveling with a bow and arrow, light armament and an animalistic companion nearby.
Darkspear: Darkspear trolls share like physical qualities with that of their brethren, though they cannot communicate with animals and have taken up a more feral outlook on life, training in the way of the Spear or Javelin rather than a bow and arrow. Considered masters of stealth and sneaking around, Darkspear trolls are often enough labeled as Rogues, and their brutally fast fighting styles often involve garroting, disembowelment and striking an enemy in spots that they would likely bleed a lot from. Darkspear trolls do have a certain respect toward all life however; and they whole-heartedly believe in a natural order to the world in its grace. Thusly, they do not often kill without good reason, normally leaving a wounded and defenseless foe to be captured by those of the wild. In addition to this, it seems all trolls have an uncanny sense of mediumship, and they also have unique ways to speak to the dead and even temporarily enhance their power through ancestral tapping.

Gnome
Favored Classes: Mage, Warlock, Rogue

Mindsprocket: The Gnomish are another race of sub-human kind, actually brethren of the Dwarven heritage. However, unlike their dwarfish counterparts, gnomes have free will and an unmatched intellectual capacity. Mindsprocket Gnomes are masters of language and are gifted with the ability to understand any and all creatures speaking to them, as well as read and identify artifacts or ancient text. Known throughout the world as the authority on mechanical or technological advancements, Mindsprockets are renowned for being capable of forging or creating amazing machines, as is shown within their homeland of Drakespawn, a breathtaking city built inside of a mountain to protect the smaller race from natural predators and weather hazards.
Dreadgnome: Gnomish who are born as a Dreadgnome still have high intellectuality, though not to the same ends of their Mindsprocket kin. Exposed to dark magic before their birth, the Dreadgnome possesses a unique type of shadow magic called Dark Fey Magicka, or Shadow Fairy Magic, resulting in an enlarged cerebral cortex, which allows them to levitate about two feet from the ground if they see fit to do so thanks to a heightened sense of mental resilience. Additionally, Dreadgnomes are often notable because of their role as bankers or oddball loan sharks because of their ability to access Whimsydale, a place of rumored to hold unimaginable amounts of fortunes and wealth. Often regarded to as the greediest of all races, Dreadgnomes are respected by the criminal community, but looked down upon by authorities.

Light Elf

Luminow: Light Elves, better known as the "Luminow" are the polar opposite of the Dark Elves, or Drow. Usually they possess pearl-white skin, Golden-yellowish hair, and bright blue eyes. Hailing from a parallel universe, Light Elves are fierce inter-planar rivals of the Drow and see them as tragic elven cousins. Light Elves prefer daylight instead of the darkness like Drow do. Generally they live in cities high up on the tops of mountains made out of crystal and magical gems. However, this tendency has given rise to a general animosity between them and the Dwarves that would tend to live beneath the Luminow. There hasn't been any record of a war between the two races, but that doesn't stop both races from disliking each other. Considered the greatest priests and priestesses of all time, many of the Luminow have gone on to be famous for their amazing healing prowess. Their power is derived from a powerful magical artifact known as the Sunwell, and they are completely dependent on its seemingly endless supplement of holy mana.

Dark Elf
Favored Classes: Rogue, Warlock, Mage

Drow: In ages past, the elven people were torn apart by discord and warfare, driving out from their surface lands their selfish and cruel members, who sought safety in an underworld of their choosing. These creatures, later known as Dark Elves, or Drow, grew strong in the arcane and shadow arts over the centuries and content with their gloomy fairyland beneath the Earth. Though they still bear enmity towards and seek revenge against their distant kin, they generally keep to themselves, and are described as chaotically evil in alignment, but highly intelligent. They are seen as black or gray-skinned individuals with pale or ghost white hair. Their equipment, fine mesh chainmail, is black in color and described as being empowered by exposure to the strange radiations of shadow magic in the Drow homeland, Kel'Thuzad. Females are inherently more powerful than males, and only females seem to have the capability to cast spells, namely known for having quite strong Battlemage's. Drow have an uncanny resilience to magic, unlike any other race, even if they are not spellcasters themselves. All Drow inherently know sign language. Drow society is fragmented into opposing noble houses and merchant families, and they base their rigid class system on the belief that the strongest should rule. Female drow tend to fill many positions of great importance, with priests of the dark goddess Lolth holding a very high place in society. Drow fighters are required to go through rigorous training in their youth, and those who fail are put to death. It is rumored that the Drow have made an alliance with the Dreadgnome's, though there is no substantial evidence supporting this accusation.

Undead
Favored Classes: Warlock, Rogue, Mage

Forsaken: The Forsaken are the very epitome of necromantic study, and is an example of mankinds foolishness to delve into the unknowing while unprepared to face possible consequences. Long ago, a Human Warlock named Archimedes began dabbling into the darker realms of shadow magic, and learned that you could raise the dead and bring them back to life as mindless minions to do his bidding. However, a miscalculation in mana consumption was made, and the spell ritual required more mana than he and his followers combined could supply, and as a result, it took the souls of each member and compressed them into a single soul shard, which was absorbed by Archimedes following his death. His body was then forever transformed, his soul having been captured and taken over by an evil spirit known as Belias Antemodian, a necromancer who lived in ancient times. Archimedes was turned into a Lich, and his followers, Undead. Since then, he has used this shadow magic to corrupt the minds of both the living and the dead, emassing an army that once managed to conquer the entire continent shared by all others, until the Winter of Trials took place. During this season, the entire span of the continent was overtaken by ice and subzero temperatures. It was at this point where the Undead army began to shift into a tipping point of control. As the cold prevented many races from leaving their homelands, Archimedes was forced to travel to their strongholds and cities in an attempt to conquer and defeat them. However, as the battles grew longer and no clear winner in sight, Archimedes power weakened, and the control he had over many of his Undead minions had began to wain without his mana to maintain their mindless substate. The Forsaken are those who remain loyal to Belias Antemodian, or Archimedes, while those who were freed of his captivity took up the title of Frostjaw in memorum of the Winter of Trials which broke the chains of their endless torment. Many Forsaken have taken up naval fleets and titles as privateers or pirates. Recently, they've had a few unfriendly run ins with the Shar'khan, as they are imposing on their territory: The Ocean of Cairn.
Frostjaw: As stated, the Undead who belong to this faction are those who had been freed as a result of the Winter of Trials. The Frostjaw are considered cunning in its purest form, and are especially intelligent in the art of Frost spells and shadow magic. Described as ghost-white, nearly decrepit humanoids which little facial recognition or features, these Undead are highly versatile and remain unhindered in any environment when moving. These Undead also have a passive skill known as Critical Vision. This grants them an advantage in combat, which allows them to deal a higher level of damage than that of their counterparts, the Forsaken. Now, the Frostjaw remain in an old run-down mining town known as Brill, while the more powerful of the Frostjaw kin are stationed in Frostjaw Keep. Though these Undead were once forsaken, the control on their conscience was broken during the Winter of Trials, when Archimedes, who was the leader of this scourge, began to weaken due to fighting multiple kingdoms on multiple frontiers with little success, despite the assistance of Belias Antemodian's shadow mana. Archimedes still maintains control over the Forsaken in the Forsaken Enclave and Deathknell, while the Frostjaw are an independently governed faction, run by no leader in specific.