Warforged

"Do you have any silverware?" -Pino Chio, 900, 4th Cycle

Crafted from mystical veins of ore discovered in the Katlan Mtns, the first generation of warforged were invented by dwarven artificer Skalla-Grim Chio in the waning years of the 4th Cycle's 9th century. Designed for manual labor and general security, the warforged quickly showed intelligence beyond their programming and challenged many scholar's ideas of life and sentience. As every decade sees the crafting of a new generation of warforged, their programming and relationship to the world becomes more and more complex.

Additional Information

Geographic Origin and Distribution

As of the year 935, 4th Cycle, only a few hundred warforged exist in Pescaliat. With Skalla-Grim's approval a couple of warforged were purchased by the tiefling nation of Rakka to assist with dangerous missions, while the majority of warforged remain in the Free State of Thorvald's capital of Grettir. Experimentation has been slow, especially after Skalla-Grim became swept up in the fame and adulation of his discovery. His research assistants have continued to produce new warforged, analyzing years of data to create more and more complex models.
Gameth started developing their own warforged models during the Lead War of the early 930's, but only a handful of units have been confirmed to be completed. These warfarged are more earthy and stony than their Thorvald counterparts, created from materials mined from the ancient quarries of Gameria dating back to the magocracy of Old Myltev.

Civilization and Culture

History

A Blank Slate

When Skalla-Grim Chio announced to the world the creation of his first warforged, many scoffed at the idea of a machine capable for thought and free movement. But as his creation moved around the stage and performed basic functions unassisted, it quickly dawned on the audience that they were witnessing the first step into a new era of life on Ekal.
Funded with research grants by Thorvald's government, the first generation of warforged were designed for industrial and combat purposes with little consideration for their thoughts or feelings. As these warforged began to interact with the world around them, they started to act and talk beyond the capabilities of their programming. It was as though the warforged were learning about the world through experience like most living beings, and researchers stood divided over whether they should encourage this free will or remove it from the programming.
Each warforged's relationship to the world is shaped by a combination of their programming and lived experiences. As more and more warforged enter the world, each generation helps to further mold the concept of a warforged's identity and culture.

Common Myths and Legends

The Sentience Debate


As more warforged get developed, the debate grows over whether these creations should be considered as fully sentient and therefore in possession of a soul. The answer to this debate could have enormous implications for the religious beliefs of Ekal and how the reincarnation cycle of souls is perceived. 
For now the Ageless One has stayed neutral in the debate given the small number of warforged currently in operation, focusing on more pressing issues like interplanar invasions and rogue necromancers. The average person in Rakka and Thorvald perceive warforged merely as constructs, something more complicated and innovative than any previous inventions but still simply a soulless tool.

Lifespan

TBD

Discovered by

Skalla-Grim Chio

Proliferation: Very Rare
Stats/Rules: Eberron