Races of Nerele

The races which inhabit Nerele are an eclectic gathering of races from across the "planes", though it has been some time since the last "gathering" of new races occurred. In the history of Nerele, it is said that the "great beings" brought Ellarian humans to Nerele to be pitted against monsters from across the worlds sphere. Later, the scope was changed, and more races arrived on Nerele to do battle with the Monsters, the earliest and longest surviving of the races were mortal servants of the elemental and celestial courts. Ifrit, Suli, Undine, and Oread were recruited from the courts of elemental lords, while Tieflings were gathered from the realm of the fiends, and Aasimar serving the heavenly courts volunteered to intercede on behalf of the Ellarian, now Nerellian, humans.


Travelers newly arrived on Nerele tend to appear as grey skinned mostly androgynous beings, presenting mainly as their prior life's gender. Upon reaching a class master, most will need assistance gaining their class, the traveler will be presented the option of choosing a race. The choice of race for a traveler is important, and most are given a series of options which closest match their personality, though a lot of these options will be rare to find on Nerele, thus leading to many Travelers not being able to start a family. With the assistance of magic, some of these travelers of odd race can have children with most other races that are capable of producing offspring. Through this method, additional races may begin to appear and propagate across Nerele, but only if the traveler can find a suitable mate or the right magic to produce children. This usually leads to small enclaves or communities of rare races who share a common traveler ancestor.


Across Nerele there are a myriad of small communities of particular races that are just barley able to keep their populations from decline, while other races flourish. Generally speaking, it is a races compatibility with other races which keep them from increasing their numbers quick enough to outpace deaths due to old age, sickness, and monster attacks. Some minor races have, for years, turned to magic for a helping hand when it comes to compatibility, allowing them to augment their numbers through interspecies mating. For the declining populations however, magic has not been as much of a help as their numbers are to low to be saved by a few cross species couples. The following is split into three sections; Major races, those races which are able to increase their numbers with ease; Minor races, those races that are always at risk of shrinking their populations; and races in Decline, those who have crossed the threshold and no longer have sufficient numbers to increase their population faster than they lose population.

Major Races:

Nerellian Human: Humans are by far the largest of the humanoid populations on Nerele, though they have changed over the long course of time which they have inhabited the world. All humans, regardless of influence, are compatible with other humans and their elemental and celestial cousins.
Aasimar: Originally arriving on Nerele as volunteers from the Heavenly courts, Aasimars have grown into a major race on Nerele. Their compatibility with humans, and the ability to mix into the Nerellian Human bloodline, while retaining enough Aasimar blood for two heavenly-influenced humans to have an Aasimar child, has given Aasimar a large advantage in keeping their populations high.
Tiefling: Tieflings were pulled to Nerele from the courts of Fiends and Primordials by the creators of Nerele's 'systems' to serve as a wild card in service to the humanoid team. While they came as servants of evil fiends and chaotic primordials, they were forcibly drafted to fight alongside humans and heavenly Aasimar. Over thousands of years, Tieflings have managed to throw off most of the stigma of their dark origins and work with the other races of Nerele to survive. Much like Aasimar, Tieflings have a high level of compatibility and interpretability with Nerellian humans, and have been able to maintain high population levels across the centuries.
Ifrit: Ifrit were once the mortal servents of the Elemental lords of fire who were brought to Nerele, along with other 'Elemental-kin', to increase the varriance of humanoids on the world. Ifrit have thrived on Nerele and much like their celestial counterparts, the Elemental races have found a high level of compatability with Nerellian humans, being able to produce elemental influenced children with human mates. Elemental influenced humans can sometimes produce an elemental-kin child, and much more likely when elemental influenced humans and elemental-kin mate, this has led to high population levels for elemental-kin races.
Oread: Oread are an Elemental-kin race who decend from the original mortal servents of the Earth elemental lords. As with Ifrit, Oread have found an ease of compatability with Nerellian humans that has allowed them to maintain a robust population on Nerele.
Sylph: Sylph are Elemental-kin decendenants of the mortal servents of the Wind lords. As elemental-kin, they have a close compatability to Nerellian humans, which has allowed them to stay a major race on Nerele for thousands of years.
Undine: Undine are the fourth elemental-kin race, decended from the mortal servents of Water elemental lords. Like all other elemental-kin, Undine have maintained their high population through inter-breeding with Nerellian Humans over the years.
Vishkanya: An old Ellonian race of serpentine humanoids, Vishkanya came to Nerele in the early days. Though slightly later than humans, their appearance predates the celestial and elemental-kin arriving on Nerele by at least a thousand years. The Vishkanya women tend to give birth to twins, quadruplits, sextuplits, octuplits, or even decuplets. Their high birthrates have given the Vishkanya race a large edvantage in maintaining their presence on Nerele.
Stryx: Stryx are an 'animal-kin' race of humanoid owls who claim the longest continious kingdom on Nerele. Their long existance, fortified island nation, and the ability to breed in clutches, has kept a healthy Stryx population throughout Nerellian history.
Dromite: These small insectoid humanoids are generally catagorized as animal-kin by other humanoids. Growing up in dromite hives, dromites have come to love and appreciate individuality while still continuing to live in a collective environment. This individuality, together with a strong liberal view on life, means that while different, dromites rarely have a problem making friends or finding a place to live or work. Dromite are another race that has been on Nerele since the early days of the system, and though they have the ability ro breed rapidly, the vulnerability of each hive having only one active brood mother, typically the queen-mother, has always been a risk for dromite.

Minor Races:

Changelings: Changelings are the offspring of hags and humans taken through magic or madness. The hag influence in the bloodline can persist for at least three generations, and often, these changelings are drawn to others of their kind, or back into the dark places to bear the children of their dark forebarers. While it's generous to call changelings a 'minor race', their presence across Nerele cannot be denied, and the persistance of their bloodlines, combined with the at times agressive 'seeding' by hags, has made changelings a fairly common, though quiet minor race.
Tabaxi: Tabaxi are an 'animal-kin' race who have a range of feline features. Tabaxi have existed on Nerele for a long time, but have never been able to keep a large enough population to become a major race of the world. Their natural instincts have made Tabaxi a go to for hunters, trackers, and scouts, and they can be found within their own settlements, or mixed in with the other inhabitants of Nerele.
Kijin: Often mistaken for Tiefling by the uninitiated, Kijin are a race which hails from a world around a different star, and are a mix of that world's elves and a monster known as Oni. Kijin have been residents of Nerele in small numbers, often in small hidden clans, for nearly as long as humans have walked the world. Though they are not able to naturtal reproduce with other Nerellian races, Kijin's long lives, cunning, and power have allowed them to maintain their numbers over the long centuries.
Half-orc: The ferocious offspring of the union of a human and an orc, usually the product of violent orcish raids. Half-orcs are a strong humanoid race which has persisted through the constant conflicts of it's parent races since the begining of Nerele. Most, though not all, Half-orcs choose to live appart from human society, though generally welcomed as humanoids by the other races, most half-orcs choose to live seperate.
Silkarg: Much as half-orcs, Silkarg originate as the unintentional offspring of Hobgoblin raids on Human settlements. Also like Half-orcs, Silkarg tend to live apart from other humanoids, though they maintain a fair relationship to any half-orc clans near their territories. Silkarg inherrit the ferocity and cunning of both their parent races, which has developped over the many years, into a rigid insular society more interested in Silkarg dominance over their local territories, then in helping other humanoids battle monsters.
Houri: Houri are a race of beautiful humanoid fey that came to Nerele in the last migration. Though small in number, Houri posses the ability to produce offspring with Nerellian humans, often producing fey influenced humans. Though unlike the celestial and elemental kin races, two fey influenced humans will never produce a Houri child, and it requires special magic for a Houri to produce a pure Houri child with a fey influenced human. Because of their natural beauty, Houri have never had issues finding mates, though their lower 'true' breeding has resaulted in them being a race with a lower population, at least they boast a long lifespan.
Xeph Xeph are a naturally psionic race, whose appearance closely matches that of humans, but with some difference. They are few in number, strongly represented in and around Wu, but have a resiliance of purpose that has kept their population above the threshold of decline for a long time. They tend to get along well with most races, and their natural agility and fleetness has made them indispensable as messangers and scouts in the east, where there population is most concentrated.
Squole: A strange race which came into being after a near passing of two of Tairyn's moons (elemental earth and water) created and later ejected a colony of oozes into the ether. That ooze colony gained sentience when it passed close to the body of a primordial (axial chaos), and eventually landed on Nerele. The Squole, named by the beings in charge of the systems, were deemed humanoids by the system and given classes. The small number of squole who landed on Nerele took the form of humanoids and set out to become accepted as best they could. Though small in number, Squole have two things going for them that makes them a minor race; 1, they have the ability to divide themselves once they have consumed enough sustinence, allowing for quick population growth; and 2, a recent traveller chose Squole as their race and has been elevating the race's reputation in recent years. The traveller Squole has redefined Squole as 'slimes' rather than 'oozes', and through their good deeds, has gained the race a fair amount of good will.
Nerelean Centaur: A breed of centaur which live in the Tsenian mountains and Taisen plains on Oroné. The local Nerelean centaur have only a small foothold in the world, and through conflict over the years, and their historical distrust of cities and large scale trade, this has left modern centaur as a lean race scrambling to keep their footing in the world. The centaur of the Tsenian mountains have begun, in the last thirty to fourty years, to adopt the lifestyle of the more established humanoids of the Tsenian Federation. The Tsenian centaur have begun to congragate into larger tribes, and to settle down in the mountain vallies of the Tsenian mountains to build cities. Through their efforts, the Tsenian centaur population has begun to flourish where their lowlands cousin, the Taisen centaur, have not.

Declining Races:

Dolls: An early rogue creation of the fearsome 'Golem-lords', Dolls have become a self replicating race on Nerele. They are a race of living machines, who varry in personal appearance, but are generally consitered to look very human-like. Though they may tinker with their cosmetic appearance throughout their very lengthy natural lives, Dolls tend to keep their looks within the recognizable range of humans, so as to not be mistaken for a golem-lord.
Uncarnate: Tendrils of the great consciousness extend themselves even to Nerele, where they inhabit unfinished or recently deceased Dolls or Golem-lords. While the systems of Nerele cannot effect the great consciousness itself, the effects do carry to the local splinter. Uncarnate can inhabit animals as well as unoccupied Doll and Golem-lord bodies, and it is not entirely rare to find a talking Bear or bird. As splinters of the greater consciousness, Uncarnate do not reproduce and are very few in numbers, if recognized at all.
Aellar: Hailing from another stars world, Aellar are a race decended from that worlds elves, who magically bound themselves with giant eagles to combat an ancient threat. Arriving on Nerele in small numbers long ago, Aellar have not found the skies of Nerele to be any more hospitable than their original homeworld. Though there are still a few enclaives of Aellar living in remote areas of the wildlands, or near other humanoids, their number have been on the decline for generations.
Tengu: A crowlike animal-kin race that has lived on Nerele since the last great migration, thousands of years ago, Tengu are now a race in decline. With a small and scattered population, the largest of which live in the Styx kingdom, there seems little hope of the Tengu population returning to prominance.
Forgeborn: The desperate creation of a group of psions on the western continent of Nerele, Forgeborn were new lives created from the wreckage of old lives. The Psions, in an attempt to stall the Golem-lords expansion, created psionic forges which could put a soldier back together with psi-tech parts to replace what had been lost. It was designed to only create enough intelligence to battle the golem-lord armies, but something in the process eventually created a new race. Forgeborn are not unfriendly to other humanoids, even the psions who created them, but count a very small population, though growing. Once they gained free will, the forgeborn took possession of the psi-tech forges and secretted them away to protect them from anyone attempting to forestall the creation of more Forgeborn.
Elan: Another created race, the Elan are all willing converts into the psionic masters known as Elan. The process is a guarded secret by the Elan council, and is only used on prospective canidates, usually before their naming day. Elan are a distinctive race of otherworldly beautiful redheads, who possess powerful psionic abilities. As a created race, Elan have a low overall population.
Maenad: A primarily sea-faring race, Maenad's insular nature has lead them to be viewed as loners and antisocial by most other races. Another of the races which arrived durring the last great migration, Maenad have never had a large population, mostly consisting of small island enclaves across the world. Generally considered a minor race, Maenad have finally crossed the threshold and entered decline, though it will be years yet until their dispersed populations reallize this trueth.
Nasmaran: The Nasmaran are an animal-kin race of jackal headed humanoids. An old, but dying race, the Nasmaran keep mostly to the last bastions of a once mighty empire on the western edge of the Namen desert. The Nasmaran are suffering from an onslaught of attacks by desert dwelling monsters, agricultural failure, and disease.