The Sheydor Enclave

A protected secret of Rifthaven is the presence of a small enclave of beings who call themselves Shaydor Spherians.

Demographics

The Shaydor Spherians consist of three generations. The first are the children of the original diaspora. They are mostly sensitives and healers. The second generation are their children. The grandchildren of the original refugees who were brough up on the stories they learned from them. There are a large number of warriors in their tranks. The third generation are the children of these grandchildren. They had no contact with the original refugees and are slow to embrace the paranoia that their older family members exhibit. There are a large number of explorers in their ranks. There are 107 Shaydor Spherians and they are split nearly equal among the generations.

Defences

The paranoid Spherians have set up multilayered defenses. Besides making the enclave invisible to scouting eyes from afar through camoflauge, they have established psychic defenses that cause wandering creatures to stray off course. Even creatures deliberately trying to walk a set direction or course will find themsleves unable to. The next layer of defenses consist of outposts manned by sensitives and warriors who will take more active measures to ward off any intruders. Typical strategies would be to put creatures to sleep and then move them someplace else, create illusions to lure them off course, or other non-lethal means. The final layer of defense is to activate the militia and eliminate any intruders whom have gotten this far. Once they've made contact, there is only one solution: Leave no witnesses.

Industry & Trade

The primary export of the Sheydor Enclave is healing. If anyone in Rifthaven has an illness or injuries beyond the capability of Quinn, they will send a medical team comprised of at least one healer. Only on rare occasions would they bring a patient to their own village. They would do this if there were visitors in Rifthaven who could notice the Shaydor healers. The Spherians are also very talented glassworkers and a number of their sculptures can be found hanging in the homes of Rifthaven.

Guilds and Factions

The older generations are still paranoid about discovery and urge all Spherians to stay within the enclave for their own safety. The youngest generation is more curious about the world at large and feel stifled by the restrictions placed upon them. The are many who take their role as defenders seriously and obediently listen to the wisdom of their elders. These are primarily the warriors. Then there are the explorers who want nothing more than to see what the world has to offer. The sensitives and healers seem to be split. Given enough incentive, one or more members of this generation could surely be enticed to leave.

History

All Spherians hail from the Planet Sheydor, which is much smaller than earth, but immensely rich in rare metals and silicates and has a dense atmosphere limiting visibility to little more than a hundred meters on the best of days. This group of spherians are the refugees from a particular Splugorth attack about 150 years ago. A group of Sheydor Syphrid (a competing species on the planet Sheydor, image at right) gave their location to the Splugorth. The Syphrid, wanting to rid their planet of the Spherians once and for all, had told the Splugorth that these were the most zealous resistance fighters. The slaughter was brutal and of the tens of thousands in this city, only a few dozen remained to become slaves. During the attack, however, a rift opened up for only a few moments. It was long enough for about a hundred non-combatants to escape through it. They came to The Free Lands of Rifts Earth and have remained in paranoid seclusion ever since, growing accustomed to the much greater gravity and increased puissance granted them by the erupted ley lines. About a hundred years after their own arrival, they were discovered by Monx when he and the founders of Rifthaven arrived, beaten and bloody from their own terror-filled escape. The Spherians did their best to help the arrivals from Palladium recover from their ordeal. In return, Rifthaven would keep their presence a secret and trade with them for vital necessities as required.

Tourism

No one visits the Sheydor Enclave unless invited. Their powerful psionic abilities ensure accidental visitors are led astray before they get too close.

Architecture

In their native home, Spherians made their dwellings in large tree-like structures, navigating the heights and branches easily with their long sinuous limbs. On Rifts Earth, however, a fall from a significant height could cause serious harm, so they've adapted their native architecture to be more terrestrial. Their dwellings are ornate affairs, consisting of large spheres, the bottom half of which are earthen like large clay bowls. The upper half are woven from branches and decorated with colored glass that sparkles in the sunlight. Inside, there are perches and ledges throughout. One would just as like find Spherians hanging upside down from a brach as settled into a form-fitted nest bed.

Geography

The Sheydor Enclave is well concealed under a large forest canopy and nestled between two long low hills with a small trickle of a creek running down the middle.

A Sheydor Spherian: