Jötunn (YO-toon)
The Jötunn are a bipedal species that largely resemble Huemes in appearance, though with some key differences. For example, many of them have horns which grow in naturally as each individual ages, being covered in natural markings and/or runic tattoos, and sometimes being very tall. They originate from the fertile, beautiful realm known as Jotunheim, which has been merged with Niflheim. Nobody quite knows how they came to be; some speculate that they're the result of Huemes mutated by Faerie magic, some say that they're the result of repeated interspecies breeding between several different species (often listed are Huemes, Taurvros, Anisu, Fae, and Tessachier, with various different possible combinations and Tessachier genes explaining their runes). Others still believe that the Jötunn, much like the Fae, come from somewhere else entirely, though they lack the chaotic nature and radiation that the Fae do. Regardless of whatever the truth is, the Jötunn are one of the rarer species on Eon, often preferring to stay within the confines of their own realm.
The Jötunn are extremely powerful, being very magically inclined and possessing a vast wealth of knowledge in every form of magic. While this naturally makes them incredibly dangerous if angered or threatened, Jötunn are not particularly known to be aggressive. In fact, they prefer a swift, peaceful resolution to any kind of conflict if possible, with combat being a last resort. This being said, they do not tolerate Daevahs entering their domain whatsoever, and are very quick to destroy them.
Basic Information
Anatomy
For the most part, Jötunn individuals tend to look much like Huemes. They even have very similar heights and weights to Huemes. However, a good deal of them have horns of varying types and sizes, which is the easiest way of telling one is not Hueme. This is especially common in those who remain within Jotunheim, as the realm is populated almost exclusively by them and therefore keep them in the gene pool. Jötunn women are very frequently curvaceous, buxom, and beautiful, while the men are usually very toned and even muscular in quite a few cases.
In any given case, a Jötunn individual will typically have a number of tattoos or natural markings that can also be used as an identifier. These markings usually include darkened eyelids and fingertips (the latter of which leads some to theorize that the Jötunn have Moodlet Elf in their ancestry), as well as some having a stripe under their lip. In terms of tattoos, these tend to be runes, borrowed from the ancient Skaalsborgian language, and they serve as both cultural display and practical application, as they amplify an individual's magic greatly. Those who live far south enough adopt the local culture's writings and markings, which means it's very common to see individuals with hieroglyphics in Hefunet, Al-Abarakian script in Al-Abaraki, and traditional tribal markings in Danzor.
Genetics and Reproduction
Jötunn sexually reproduce through the normal means, via a female and male having sexual intercourse. They can breed with any other race on Eon in the case of the women, and with anything that will otherwise allow for it in the case of the men. A purebed Jötunn will almost always result in them being a carbon copy of either parent, and will always have horns if one of the parents does. In the case of hybrids, the chance of horns drops to 75% on the first generation (unless the other parent species has them, such as in the case of Taurvros or Anisu), then to 50% for the next, ~30% after that, then all the way down to 5% before finally being bred out. However, if another Jötunn with horns, or another horned parent of another species, is introduced before then, the cycle will restart anew.
While tattoos are almost always a given for a Jötunn, their markings are not guaranteed. Instead, these are more closely linked to those who descend from the Ancients, a very small subsect of Jötunn who are very tall, have blue skin, and blue eyes with black sclerae. There are suspected to be ten or fewer of them in existence, and so these genetics tend to have much less spread through the species than the ones that determine which individuals have horns.
Jötunn usually tend to have one child at a time, though there have been instances of multiple births occurring throughout their history. Those who have more than one child in a single pregnancy are considered especially blessed and powerful, and given a great deal of respect. In general, a typical Jötunn family will consist of three or four members on average, with larger sizes (7+) being more uncommon. Jötunn women are also extremely fertile, and maintain said fertility throughout most of their adult life, with most non-Ancient Jötunn women being able to conceive up until roughly one hundred to even fifty years before their death.
Growth Rate & Stages
When it comes to their horns, the Jötunn tend to begin to experience growth during the later childhood years, usually around nine or ten. Small nubs will begin to grow where their horns will protrude from and cause moderate discomfort when they start to come in. From here, more prominent horn growth starts once puberty begins fully, and will continue until the individual reaches full maturity (usually around eighteen or nineteen). The discomfort becomes less and less of an issue as the years of growth go on, with most of it being experienced during the first two years of major growth.
If a Jötunn is to have natural markings, they first start to appear as early as age four. The fingertips are what will start to come in first, and in three stages. The first stage sees the very ends of the fingers darkening, the second brings the darkening down further to encompass the entire first segment of each finger, and the third brings a much lighter form of it to the second digit. It's not uncommon for a Jötunn with to also get a pair of rings tattooed somewhere underneath where the darknening ends for visual effect.
Ecology and Habitats
Jötunn originate from Jotunheim. The realm is populated with beautiful vegetation and wildlife entirely unique to the area. There are trees that cannot survive anywhere else on Eon which grow fruits that are always sweet to the point that they taste like candy. The fauna here tend to resemlble livestock or otherwise urban wildlife, but larger in size. There are even predators in the form of Frost Wolves, which keep the herbivores in check and prevent them from overeating the plant life, and the Jötunn have domesticated some of them to have for companionship. The Jötunn are perfectly in-tune with their environment, as they tend to the livestock and plants to keep them healthy, and ensure that the predators have an appropriate amount of prey animals to feed on. It's a delicate balance which they maintain with expert precision.
Being merged with Niflheim, Jotunheim is rather cool in terms of temperature, though nothing too unbearable. This being said, the Jötunn are used to cooler climates because of this, so they experience a bit of a shock when and if they travel elsewhere. In these cases, they often have to buy themselves an entirely new wardrobe, after which they tend to acclimate to their surroundings very easily.
Jötunn are usually content to reside entirely in Jotunheim and Niflheim, but there are those who seek out adventure, opportunities, and more elsewhere on Eon, and so they leave their homeland to find what their heart desires. Many still don't end up straying too far from home, relocating to other northern areas such as Skaalsborg, Helholtt, and Nimescia, whereas others dare to venture further south to Magnesia, or even all the way down to Sur'Dahl and Danzor.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Jötunn are omnivorous by nature, though there are those who choose to be more vegetarian or even full-on vegan. The typical diet of a Jötunn individual usually includes grain and wheat products, very large amounts of fruits and vegetables, and quite a bit of meat, especially beef and fish. Fish is especially important to them, as fishing is one of the skills taught to even the youngest Jötunn, and it's always plentiful in the mythril streams that flow through the area.
Additional Information
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Jötunn originate from Jotunheim, their very own realm which has become merged with Niflheim. While most of them live in either of those two realms, there's still a sizable population of them which lives outside of these areas. They have settled equally on two continents on each side of Eon: Magnesia and Sur'Dahl on Terrandt, and Nimescia and Danzor on Easia.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
The Jötunn are extremely gifted in terms of magic. Some speculate that the abundance of crystals within Niflheim, which have also come to be prevalent in Jotunheim due to the merge of the realms, is a key factor in this, serving to instill within the Jötunn their innate magical inclination, and amplify it in turn. Their proximity to the Shimmers is another possible reason for them being so powerful, since the Shimmers exude extreme magical properties and powers themselves. Whatever the case may be, the Jötunn are among the strongest species on Eon in terms of magic, and they're easily capable of using any form of it as long as they have the knowledge and training to do so. They even have their own form of magic, known as curse magic, which does exactly as the name implies, placing a curse on the desired target. This was developed and honed over the course of many generations, turned into the ultimate form of defense...or as a form of punishment for the most grievous of sins. Due to the severity of a curse, a Jötunn will not lightly use one.
They are also extremely spiritual. They believe in all manner of things that cannot be attributed to the physical plane, and are known to be attuned to the spirit world. This gives them the ability to actually see and interact with the dead, rather than merely just being aware of their presence or otherwise ignorant to them altogether. Because of this, they are quite capable of helping the clergy of The Divine Light in dealing with Phantoms and their more malicious counterparts, Revenants. So highly attuned are they that it's sometimes believed that they can communicate with the Divine Sages within the Convocation of Divinity without needing to use statues as communication vectors.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
For the most part, a Jötunn name will be Skaalsborgian in nature. The only reason why this would differ is an individual being born further south, especially in Sur'Dahl and Danzor. In such cases, their names would be more apropos to said regions.
Beauty Ideals
Typically, one's tattoos are the ultimate form of beauty and sex appeal for the Jötunn. Many of them choose their partners based entirely off of how their tattoos look, especially in conjunction with any possible natural markings. Horns also play a sizable role in this, as some may see an individual's style and/or size of horns as more attractive than others.
Major Language Groups and Dialects
The Jötunn can speak whichever language they grow up hearing. For those in Jotunheim, this is typically Skaalsborgian and Abilonian, while those in Nimescia would speak its native tongue, and the same goes for ones in Sur'Dahl and Danzor. Those in Magnesia may be limited to only Abilonian if another language isn't spoken by either parent.
Common Dress Code
Jötunn can wear just about anything, and it depends entirely on where they live. Those who remain in Jotunheim will typically wear longer sleeves and some small amounts of fur for a little extra warmth at night, whereas those who go to even colder climates like Helholtt and Skaalsborg will add more layers and more furs to insulate themselves better. Individuals who venture further south will shed their long sleeves and instead wear clothing more suited to warmer environments, sometimes to the point of wearing no sleeves (or even no shirt entirely) and much shorter shorts.
Aside from this, many of them also wear necklaces, rings, and other forms of jewelry. This largely has no cultural significance and is merely down to the preferences of the individual, though the Ancients are believed to treasure jewelry as a means of remembering those lost - and yet to come.
History
The history of the Jötunn is shrouded in fog and mysticism, with even the Jötunn themselves not entirely sure where they came from. All they know is that they came to exist in Jotunheim, and that the realm was theirs to tend to.
In the countless years since then, they have cultivated it and allowed life to flourish brilliantly within its borders. They busy themselves with being caretakers, hunters, and gatherers, as well as teachers, and they've mostly kept to themselves as long as they live in the Frozen Wastes. For a long while, they kept to themselves as best they could. They let the world go on its own way and made no efforts to contact or impede them in any way.
The Great Voidseed War changed all of that, as even the Frozen Wastes were threatened by the terrible Voidseeds that desired to conquer Eon and give it to their lord. Jotunheim saw several terrible battles, with a not-insignificant cost of life and damage. It was these struggles which caused them to join the war at large, coming to the aid of the Divines' armies on battlefields all across Eon and helping to turn the tide. The final battle in which many Divine children and even Nandipha herself perish saw many Jötunn also lose their lives in defense of the planet. Jotunheim was also fused into Niflheim by this battle, caused by an unstable schism used by the Voidseeds to attempt an attack on the Jötunn's back lines. In the aftermath, the Jötunn were integral to repairing many of the magical structures which had been damaged or outright destroyed. This comeradery and rapport with the other denizens of Eon helped them to open themselves to more frequent interactions and communication with the planet at large.
Staying true to that desire and their word, they've kept up-to-date with technology in an effort to make sure they can stay in touch with the rest of Eon. While Jotunheim still enjoys its sovereignty, its people also freely connect with others around the world. This has led a number of them to leave their homeland and spread to certain other pockets of Eon. While it's not entirely common to see one out in public in the current day and age, it's much more possible than it would have been in the past.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
For the longest time, the only other species they interacted with were the Shimmers, whose realm, Niflheim, their own bordered on. They were on very agreeable terms with one another, and it's believed that there have been Jötunn in the service of Queen Mab for millennia in addition to her Shimmer forces. Together, they kept their realm safe from external threats like Daevahs and Voidseeds. This alliance remains strong to this day, and it's very common to see a Jötunn with a Shimmer companion that they live with.
Following the Great Voidseed War, they began to interact with the rest of Eon at a much higher rate. They could be seen in settlements of many other species, openly engaging with them in conversation and trade. This was soon followed by the eventual first migrations to permanently settle in other areas of Eon. Over the years, this has remained as a slow, steady stream of individuals who seek to live in society at large. They get along very well with just about any and every species they come in contact with, to the point where they're compatible as friends and lovers with each of them.
There are no known negative views of any of the other races on Eon that the Jötunn hold, with the lone exception of the Fae, which they share with the overwhelming majority of the planet. Those in Jotunheim will regularly patrol with their Shimmer allies to make sure no Fae have dug themselves in anywhere in either realm.
Scientific Name
Gigantes mystici
Lifespan
Ancients: Immortal; Descendants of Ancients (<4 generations): 900-1200; Others: 300-400
Average Height
Men: 4.572m (15')[Ancients]; 1.9304m (6'4")[Non-Ancients]
Women: 4.3688m (14'4")[Ancients]; 1.7526m (5'9")[Non-Ancients]
Average Weight
Men: 312.97kg (690 lbs.)[Ancients]; 99.79kg (220 lbs.) [Non-Ancients]
Women: 288.03kg (635 lbs.)[Ancients]; 70.30kg (155 lbs.)[Non-Ancients]
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
By and large, Jötunn are usually fair-skinned, even in the bountiful expanse of Jotunheim where the sun is out. This is most likely more from the fact that it's cooler, and so they're more prone to covering themselves up with more clothing and thus getting less sunlight. Further south, in other places like Magnesia and especially Sur'Dahl and Danzor, Jötunn can actually attain darker skin tones. In fact, it's not too uncommon to see an individual with tan skin in Sur'Dahl, and even dark skin in Danzor.
Related Organizations
