Half-Dead (Thaowon)

In most of Taharjin's Flame, The Half-Dead survive as a myth more than anything else. In Rela especially, tales of half-men, half-spirits abound, often with lasciviously spun details of the deeds which led to their twisted existence. One popular story which has enjoyed great popularity upon Drakoyan stages, A Walk in the Shade, tells of an Arlosian maid, Fica, and her spectral lover, Atelei. Above all, A Walk is a cautionary tale illustrating the dangers inherent in courting the powers of Death - invoking by analogy the dark magic of the The Exiled Tradition.
Tragicomically, the play's other theme is of course the famed lustiness of Arlos's Cszunli people.
While fiction, A Walk in the Shade and works like it hint at a deeper truth, artistic imaginations typically fired by actual accounts by those who have returned from long voyages speaking of ghost men. Given what is known of the Exiled Tradition and their command of the forces of Life and Death, it is not only possible but indeed probable to suppose that such creatures inhabit the dark places of the world.

by midjourney

Which they do, in fact. What is revealed here is all that is known about the mysterious Half-Dead. Hard details are scant, but the following description is widely agreed upon by those with firsthand knowledge of the race.
The appearance of the Half-Dead seems to vary widely. Some appear as nearly normal versions of their parent Species (Human or Elf), with slightly paler complexions and tending towards the gaunt side physically. Others look more definitively undead, with wan and ghostly auras or bones peeking out from thinly-stretched flesh. Those of the latter type cannot dwell comfortably in mortal societies, but it is said that Thaowon with less conspicuous traits can and do pose as mortals, and may even live out reasonably normal lives among them. (See chart below for details.)

by midjourney

Thao-An, where the Half-Dead race is said to live, is held by most to be somewhere in the Geldak Sea, although this body of water is often traversed and the island has never been found. Sailors who claim to have seen it fail to rediscover its location on a second search. Whether the Half-Dead are evil or not, or are products of Exiled magic or not, are open questions. One thing is for certain, however: they are elusive. One may presume there are reasons for that, and give thanks that they do not choose to make themselves better known.