Kith & Kin

“Tyger, Tyger, burning bright In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

– “The Tyger,” William Blake

The Wide World is a sprawling place, with many strange creatures, exotic cultures, religious schisms, warring clans, and ancient lineages. No two fay folk are alike, even as humans have infinite variation. From the solitary trolls of the Rimemark, to the noble elves of Alfheim, to the tribes of barbarians scourging the Ghostgrass Plains, to the stoic templars of Mythrys, there are many peoples in the Wide World—and they all congregate in the City in search of glory and riches in the Underworld.

– “The Tyger,” William Blake

There is no lore.

As you’re reading this chapter, you’ll notice there’s a lot of fantasy gibberish. If it’s inspiring, riff on the provided concepts for your character. If it’s confusing, limiting, or contradictory to your own ideas, ignore it. Mark through it with a Sharpie. Write in the margins of the book. Make your game world your own.

When does pride become hubris? When does glory tarnish to vainglory? This thin line is embodied in humans, the knaves and the kings of the Wide World.

Humans are not as hardy as the immortal fay, being given to sickness and age. Nor are they as crafty as the underfolk, being slow to develop the crafts of alchemy and lore of natural philosophy. Yet humanity has one gift that surpasses every other: war.

Humankind is built for war. The crafts they have learned from dwarves and elves have been turned ingeniously to this purpose. They breed and mature quickly to resupply their cities with men and women, replacing those lost to hardship. They are fierce, doughty, and brave. Using their arts of war, mankind has conquered much of the Wide World. They are the conquering kings, proud and terrible.

Even so, they are fractious. Humanity has never united themselves under a single banner (though various warlords have attempted the feat). Matters of philosophy, religion, or blood will divide them—as will ambition. Therefore, the power of men is spread through a handful of notable empires and hundreds of petty kingdoms.

Still, humans display many praiseworthy traits. They are loyal folk, lauding fidelity as the most noble of virtues. They long remember the deeds of their fathers in song and story, and strive to emulate them. This, in turn, creates a drive to win glory and renown for their families. Their communities are strengthened by this desire for fame, as they eschew the unworthy for fear of bringing shame to their lineage. Indeed, few folk are more fiercely protective of their kith and kin than mankind. They have a great capacity for kindness, for all their ferocity.

A myth of humankind

The Monad is one. The Monad is many.

Like a sky scattered with many constellations; like a building with many sides; the Monad has many faces that all reflect the greater truth of His unity.

It was the prophet Mythrys who taught us these mysteries (praise be unto him). It was Maiden Wisdom who gave him birth (blessed be her name).

Mythrys taught us that the many gods honored by the different great houses were all emanations of the one true god. This one true god is called the Monad.

Mythrys taught that the Monad has twenty-one separate emanations. And, though maidens might pray to the Lovers for aid in love, and warriors might pray to the Strong for aid in battle, all prayers and honor are ultimately going to Him. For men have limited perceptions, and see many faces where there is but one.

The Monad is the Magician, who long ago revealed the workings of magic to men. He is also the High Priestess, who heals the sick and protects children and mothers. He is also the Charioteer, who rides the night sky and guides sailors. He is the god of the Moon. He is the goddess of the Sun. He is Death. He is the World. He is the Devil, who made everything wrongly.

Human names

Male names:

Addam, Alesander, Bennard, Carl, Dafyd, Edric, Fenton, Gregor, Jack, Justinius, Kevyn, Lews, Marq, Omer, Polliver, Reynard, Robin, Samwell, Sylvestris, Tybalt, Usher, Zachery

Female names:

Alanys, Brenda, Catlyn, Colette, Dion, Eleanor, Imogen, Janna, Jonquil, Kaya, Lanna, Marla, Olivia, Regan, Rhonda, Saera, Sybelle, Tanselle, Ursula, Violet, Walda

Every human is a member of a kinship group called a house. Humans either introduce themselves by saying “of House X,” or by simplifying their house name into a surname. There are hundreds of houses active in the City; six examples on the following page.

Human kin

Humans divide the world into two parts: us and them. They do this by forming great and noble houses. They bind themselves together through marriage, love, and oaths. They fly beautiful banners over their keeps and display proud coats of arms on their crafts. They are instilled with a respect of certain virtues from a young age. Even the basest born and most wretched slave children are born where some banner flies. Two humans with the same house are of the same kin. They might not be directly related, but they probably know each other.

Human characters begin the game with the following talent:

Kin talent: Proud and Ancient

Describe or draw the sigil of your house. Write the motto of your house.

When your house sigil or motto is dramatically appropriate for an action being attempted, you test fate with favor.

Additionally, during Challenges, you may spend a Resolve and use the Speak Incantation action to cry your motto aloud. You—and all members of your house that hear your war cry—gain favor on their next action.

The following houses are active in the City. Use them for your adventurers or let them serve as examples for new houses.

House Crowell

Crest: A crowned porcupine Motto: I shall do as I will

House Crowell never submitted to the Empire, preferring to dwell in the destitution of the highlands rather than bend the knee. But when the Empire failed, there were few compelling reasons to avoid real civilization. So, occasionally, highlanders will fly the crowned porcupine and descend upon the City, determined to drain every drop of ale from the taverns. The folk of Crowell are bold, brash, and quick in both anger and friendship.

House Gryphes

Crest: A gold griffin rampant Motto: Thus always to tyrants!

House Gryphes just bleeds chivalry, and if you’re extremely good at jousting, you might get some on you. This three-part house was formed by the assassins who overthrew the Tyrant Emperor and destroyed the Empire. Previously, the griffin was thought to be a purely heraldic beast—a combination of the sigils of the three founding houses. Somehow, though, House Gryphes began breeding these hitherto imaginary creatures as mounts. Now, you’ll see the Griffin King and his circle of Griffin Knights flying above the City, smiling toothily down at the gravity-constrained commoners.

House Heartsbane

Crest: A black dragon below a sword impaling a heart Motto: Eat the weak

An ancient house, Heartsbane was known in the earliest ages for the gruesome practice of eating their fallen enemies. Though somewhat ignoble, their deeds in battle in recent years have earned them much fame. Their family's famous sword, which bears the same name as their house, was said to have felled many orcs—as well as Swart Arthi, a terrible black dragon.

Rumors persist that secret trap doors in their dungeon’s cells lead directly to the kitchen’s ovens, but House Heartsbane has proved to be a potent and powerful house despite such gossip.

House Ironpax

Crest: A crown weeping blood Motto: Peace through strength

Members of House Ironpax stretch the definition of “man-sized.” They are the biggest fuckers around, only a little shorter than trolls. It is said that in the first ages they bred with giants (but if that's true, the giants don't seem to remember any fair feelings for those of Ironpax, and will eat them just as happily as they eat everybody else).

If it matters, House Ironpax supported the Tyrant Emperor. This makes them somewhat unpopular these days, as the Last Emperor is not remembered kindly. They also have a tendency to mutter about fealty and traitors when they're in their cups. Most people don't bother to ask them to speak up, though. They really are quite large folk.

House Mourn

Crest: A white and black bend, with crow in white field and moon in black field Motto: For our sins

For the crime of witchcraft two centuries ago, House Mourn was exiled to the frozen north. It was that hard land (or the sorcery) that has given members of this house a sunken, pale, unwholesome look—as if something not quite dead.

Today, magic is thought of somewhat less dimly than in the days of the Empire (but only somewhat). The Wild of Mourn (which is how they style the lady of their house) guards the peaceful lands of the south from the rampaging orcish reavers by use of her sorcery. Occasionally, she’ll send one of her nephews or cousins down south to the City on some odd errand for the Tower of Penitence, wherein she dwells.

Arête

Humans gain arête by performing the following deeds:

• Getting married

• Fulfilling an oath

• Defeating a member of a rival house in fair tournament or duel

When a human accomplishes all three arête triggers, they gain the following talent:

Human arête talent: Byname

You are given a byname, like “the Tall,” “the Corpsegrinder, “the Patron Saint of Pilgrims,” or “the Blackhearted.” When that byname would be relevant to a test of fate, similar to a motif, you test with favor.

Bynames

For human bynames, we usually ask the player what event or instance was their proudest. Then, we elicit the help of the table to think of the coolest byname based on that event. This is done in secret, away from the player. We then have an important character grant the byname to the adventurer in a dramatically appropriate fashion.

Optional rule: Turncloak

If you ever betray or turn against your house, you lose the Proud and Ancient talent and gain the Turncloak talent:

Whenever you play up your legacy of deceit and your infamy, role-play what you say. If it would repulse your fellow humans or turn your heart blacker still, you gain favor on tests of fate that work against your house or humankind in general.

Don’t start out as a Turncloak. Play and find out why you become one.

Human role-playing concepts

• Humans exhibit almost infinite variation.

• Humans worship a confusing pantheon of gods (i.e., the major arcana of the tarot). They have a complicated theology to explain why they all worship the same god.

• Humans are familial. They laud fidelity and filial piety as great virtues.

• Humans are communal. They assemble themselves into great houses or clans. They internalize their community’s values.

• Humans are individuals. They laud personal accomplishments and they shame personal failures.

“Oh God. They’re beautiful.” “Oh God. They’re terrible.”

Some spirits are content with dwelling in the far realms as entities of Platonic thought. Others yearn to be bound with weight and hunger, and so come into the plane of Flesh. We call these spirits the fay.

In the earliest ages of the world, troops of the fay came into freshly formed creation, eager to try out the pleasures and perils of wearing skin. It was to their very great surprise that it was easier to enter the realm of Flesh than it was to leave it. Those who did not go insane from this realization became known as the elves.

Elves consider themselves the eldest people for they existed outside the circles of the Wide World long before it was even formed. (The oldest living sentient race that actually physically dwelt in the Wide World is, of course, the orcs.)

And “being old” is one thing the elves do very well. They are ageless, and never die from old age or infirmity. Some elves alive today are, indeed, very, very old. And when you are very, very old, you have a lot of experiences to draw upon—you can be very, very wise. Hence, elves are commonly thought to be both the eldest and the wisest folk.

It is noteworthy that elves do not breed and create clans like men do. Though their bodies have all the functionality of mortal life, immortality cannot generate life. All elven births are stillborn—with two exceptions. The first exception is if one of the elven parents lays down their life for the sake of a child: either parent can pass on their own spirit to reincarnate into their own child at the moment of birth.

The second exception is gnomes.

When elves realized that they could not generate new life (only reincarnate), they decided to solve the problem like they solved many other problems: magic. They stole the children of mortal mothers, rationalizing that they would “save” the children from eventual old age and death. They used rites from the realm of dreams, transforming the children from mortal to immortal.

The early elves first assumed this would change the infants into elven children. They were mistaken. It transformed them into gnomes, their skin wrinkled and their forms hunched and twisted. Instead of being eternally beautiful and youthful, they became eternally bent and aged.

Elves and gnomes, on the whole, differ in opinion about whether or not the creation of gnomes (and the continued practice) was good and justifiable or not. But one thing almost all fay agree on is to not share this secret with the mortal races.

Gnomes are immortal, just like their elven “parents.” Unlike the elves, however, gnomes are hunched and wizened, not eternally youthful. Elves, as spirits, embody concepts easily. Gnomes lack this purpose and so are prone to feelings of existentialism. The largest problem that gnomes face, however, is a sense of otherness and exclusion. Gnomes don't “fit in” with elves easily and struggle to be fully integrated into the rites and rituals of the fay. Elves understand that the gnomes feel excluded from their society, but rarely know what to do about it.

Unlike humankind, which has sprawled into many clans and principalities, elves and gnomes live together in Alfheim, the singular kingdom of the fay. The goddess and queen of the fay is a strange three-part spirit named the Tripartite. It is said that she (they? it?) is a single entity that coexists in three places. One of the Tripartite's three faces rules each of the three elven courts.

The Maid of Mists, who rules the Court of the Sun, is a young queen of sixteen apparent years with a gentle and courtly demeanor. For her sake, elven knights ride out on errantry to do good works throughout the Wide World. Every winter, she holds a feast for her court where their tales of bravery and chivalry are recounted.

The Witchmother is a potent huntress and warrior woman that leads the Court of the Maimed Moon. Horns spring from her head and she can assume many bestial shapes. Once a year she leads her court on a crazed hunt across the Wide World pursuing some unlikely game. This event is called the Wild Hunt.

The third face of the Tripartite is the Crone, who rules the Court of Fallen Stars. The Crone is the stuff of children's nightmares. The less said about her, her loyal hairy skulls, her detachable eye, and her chicken-legged hut, the better.

A myth of the fay

There was, o’ what there was in the oldest of days and ages and times. The Sun ruled as king in Heaven, and the Moon was his queen. Together, they kindled innumerable Stars to be their children, and arrayed them in gold and silver. The Citadel of Heaven was beautiful and its people were happy.

Among the people of the Sun’s retinue was one named Abyss, who wore a cloak that looks like the space-between-stars. The Sun called on Abyss and asked her to tell him of the goings-on of Earth, where water and sand were being scattered. Abyss told the Sun that the dragons had invented a thing called Death. The Sun became quite fearful.

The Sun called on his eldest child, who was named Second Sun, to serve as his personal guard. He sealed the Citadel of Heaven to ensure that Death could not enter. He quieted the celebrations of the Stars so he could ensure he could always hear Death coming. He had Abyss forge a sword named Eclipse for Second Sun to wield in his defense.

And o’, what a sad thing happened with that sword…

Fay names

Fay names mean something. They are rendered in the fay tongue, Tylwyth, and followed by a translation in Vulgaris (in the style of a human surname). For the fay, it is the meaning of the name that is particularly important, not just the collection of syllables and sounds. Names are not gendered; any name can be carried by a person of any gender.

Fay names (with Vulgaris surname):

Adahay Lives-in-Woods, Bidziil He-is-Strong, Cha Tima the Caller, Dadgayadoh Gambling-Men, Elsu Flying-Falcon, Fala Crow, Honiahaka Little-Wolf, Ituha Sturdy-Oak, Kizikoni Burning-Fire, Makya Eagle-Hunter, Nahiossi Three-Fingers, Onacona White-Owl, Qaleteqa Warden, Sakuruta Coming-Sun, Takoda Friend-to-Everyone, Vaive Atoish Alights-on-the-Cloud, Waban East-Wind

Elves factionalize into three different kin, depending on the far realm from which they originally came. They call each faction a “court.” The gnomes, stolen into immortality, call themselves a “court” as well.

High elves

The Court of the Sun, sometimes called the high elves, have spiritual origins tied to the Welkin. The high elves dwell on mountain tops in beautifully carved castles of stone. High elves put much stock in the human notions of chivalry, courtly manners, and grace. They emulate the human traditions of knighthood and the chivalric code. Almost everybody agrees they have perfected this institution.

High elf talent: Read the Past

All high elves have eidetic memories. Bid lore to accurately recall anything you have ever seen or heard. You can go back and count the beads of sweat on your mother's forehead on the day of your birth, if you wish.

Dark elves

Beneath the forest, beneath great hollowed out mounds, dwell the dark elves who call themselves the Court of Fallen Stars. The dark elves are descended from spirits of the Wastes, and their appearance and demeanor echo those grim specters. If mortals consider elves with a sort of awe, this awe becomes a reverential fear when considering the dark elves. Though never dying, dark elves are obsessed with the trappings of death. They spend their lives looking into the void between stars in hopes of foreseeing their eventual demise.

Dark elf talent: Foretell

Bid lore to ask the GM: “If I do X, will Y happen?” You receive a “yes” or “no” answer in the form of a prophetic hunch.

Wood elves

Below the high elven mountains there lies the sprawling forests of the Court of the Maimed Moon, also called the wood elves. The wood elves, who are descended from spirits of the Weald, do not make permanent shelters in the forest, but practice a nomadic lifestyle where they follow herds of game seasonally.

Wood elves are great weavers, and weave wood and grasses into many beautiful things—ships, bridges, shelters, and armor. Wood elves often tattoo living plants onto their skin that grow and shift into new patterns over time.

Wood elf talent: Keen Senses

Wood elves have the eyes of a hawk and the nose of a wolf. A wood elf’s senses can grow so acute that they can hear the chatter of living stone, the gossip of growing roots, or the rumors of passing insects. Bid lore to temporarily sharpen one of your senses beyond normal limits and ask the GM a question based on these heightened senses. Example questions might include:

• “If I focus my sight, can I read their lips from here?”

• “If I listen very closely, can I tell if anybody is invisible here? Like, do I hear anybody breathing or any heartbeats or anything?”

• “I take a tiny taste and spit it back out. Can I tell if it’s poisoned?”

• “Based on their scent, can I tell which path the thief went down?”

This ability only lasts a moment. As normal, if the GM does not give you any new information, you do not expend a lore bid.

Gnomes

And, of course, there are the gnomes, who are called the Court of Redcaps for the stout red hats that gnome men wear and the large mushrooms in which they dwell. It is true what they say about children that run away and live with the elves: they find immortality and never grow up. They do, however, grow old. The human body was never meant to live forever. These children—these gnomes—soon find themselves twisted by the elven food they eat and their own strange dreams. Still, they learn a lot over the course of their unnaturally lengthened lives.

Gnome talent: Weird, Wise, Ancient

When you bid lore, you can ask a follow-up question to the answer for free.

Arête

Fay gain arête by performing the following deeds:

• Killing something without using a weapon

• Providing aid to a spirit

• Making someone they’ve kissed cry

When a fay accomplishes all three arête triggers, they gain one of the following talents:

High elf arête talent: Akashic Consciousness

Some high elves can cast their memories back through their bloodlines and ask questions of their ancestors or past incarnations. Spend a Resolve and ask the GM any question about an event that happened in the past. If it’s at all possible that one of your ancestors would know about it, the GM will answer the question.

Dark elf arête talent: Spout Doom

Spend a Resolve to ask the GM: “If I do X, what will happen?” The GM provides a prophecy, which pours unbidden out of your mouth.

Gnome arête talent: Uncanny Knowledge

If nobody at the table has an appropriate motif to bid lore about a subject, you may bid lore about the issue at hand. This is similar to having a motif of “Whatever You Don’t Know, I Know.”

Elven role-playing concepts

• Elves are a lot like humans but everything is turned up to eleven. Heroes are so heroic. Villains are absolutely villainous. Elves love to play out archetypes.

• Fay society is a lot like human society, but just a little different. Instead of dogs, elves keep foxes. Instead of horses, elves ride stags. Elves still have cats, though.

• Elves succeed with less “technology” than humans. They do not write books because they can rely on the memories of the high elves. They do not practice advanced metallurgy because they have the weavings of the wood elves. Alfheim relies on magic for many of its crafts.

• Gods are real to the elves. Their goddess (goddesses?), the Tripartite, literally rules their society. Having invisible gods is weird.

Gnome role-playing concepts

• What if you made children super smart and let them live with demigods? Gnomes, that’s what. Gnomes act a little bit like the children in Village of the Damned. Elves probably don’t realize that gnomes are weird, but humans do.

• Gnomes have a bad sense of humor. When impending doom is coming on them, they laugh. When they’re dying, they tell a joke. They really go in for physical humor and slapstick, too.

• Seriously though, aren’t mushrooms the best?

Spend 2 Resolve to meditate for a watch (Watches). Draw a card. The GM describes a number of interesting “visions” equal to the value of the drawn card during your meditation. (Remember, pages have a value of 11, knights have a value of 12, etc.)

These visions are sensual experiences. For example, you could hear the clatter of dice as bored crusaders gamble, smell a nearby goblin taking a shit, hear two guards talking about who’s going to be on duty tonight, sense the quivering tension of a spike trap embedded in the ceiling, and so on.

The GM provides these details by looking at their map and Meatgrinder table. Starting near the player’s current area and moving outwards, the GM provides one salient detail from the nearby rooms. Each vision should yield a meaningful detail (e.g., the presence of a hidden door, detected by an imperceptible draft in a nearby room), but need not be elaborate or detailed (i.e., the GM need not mention that the door is trapped, or that it is activated by pulling on a statue’s arm).

Any Meatgrinder events that occur when a watch passes are resolved after the GM has given your visions.

Beneath your feet there are worlds. There are lives lived, tragedies experienced, arguments made, trysts discovered. There are wars fought, there are treasures wrought. Beneath your feet, there are the underfolk.

The term “underfolk” refers to three distinct kins—the dwarves, the halflings, and the trolls. The underfolk, however, consider themselves to be one people. Dwarves and halflings consider themselves to be the same race, and happily consider trolls to be adopted siblings. Humans have trouble getting along, finding ways to split hairs over religion and heredity. The underfolk have no such difficulties—they consider themselves one family.

The underfolk are the progenitors of civilization. True, humans really ran with the concept, but dwarves first thought of it. Writing systems, advanced math, complex forms of government, written contracts, common law—all underfolk inventions. These were all taught to humanity when humans first came to the Wide World from parts unknown. The underfolk and humans have always been allies.

Underfolk society is ruled by the Council of Liveries. This is not as much of a plutocracy as it seems at first. Everybody in underfolk society is liveried—that is, a member of a mercantile organization—so everybody ostensibly has a voice. That’s the theory anyway.

The underfolk have a practical view of religion. They acknowledge that the various deities of the men and elves might be real and potent, but also rationalize that these deities probably don’t care about the poor little underfolk hiding from their gaze under the earth. They do not believe that their spirits, on death, depart to any afterlife. Their souls are too heavy. They believe they all linger in the plane of Flesh after death as ghosts. Ghosts, of course, have needs too. That’s why the underfolk construct large tombs full of nice things to occupy themselves when they finally die.

Since cities tend to get filled with tombs, underfolk are always tunneling out new homes. Whole cities have been left behind that are just necropoli now.

A myth of the underfolk

The underfolk are, compared to some of the other kith, decidedly non-religious. They do have three religious texts, which they love to quote and reference. These are the Book of Traditions, the Book of Proverbs, and the Book of Broken Oaths.

The Book of Traditions, informally called the Doings, teaches how the underfolk should structure their births, deaths, marriages, oaths, do business, do work, take rest, and so on.

Here is one example:

When a child is born, the midwife shall keep it for seven days.

On the eighth, she shall bring it and lay it on the doorstep of the household that carried and bore it.

If the father picks the child up from the doorstep and carries it within, it shall be part of the household, and his responsibility. However, the father may decline to do this.

If the father declines, the mother may pick up the child from the doorstep and carry it within; it shall be part of the household and, the mother must now take over the role of provider. The father is absolved of this responsibility.

However, the mother may decline to do this.

If the mother declines, let none weep. The little ghost shall be a brownie, and will serve the household well.

The Book of Proverbs, informally called the Sayings, provides an endless resource of folk wisdom, moral tales, truisms, poetic turns of phrase, euphemisms, and good old-fashioned common sense.

Here is one example:

The Dog returns to his Vomit and the Sow returns to her Mire, And the burnt Fools bandaged hand goes wobbling back to the Fire.

They also have the Book of Broken Oaths, a history of the early underfolk and their relationship with the Creator. It tells the story of how the underfolk broke ties with the Creator and suffered terrible hardships for breaking troth, but willingly did so in order that future generations might escape the burden of the oaths. This text is written in Ancient Underfolk, and few understand it. No examples of the text are included here.

Underfolk names

Underfolk male names:

Angus, Bill, Clive, Felix, Geoff, Giles, Graham, Jack, Nigel, Pat, Prentice, Rodney, Ruel, Robin, Ted, Tom, Warwick, Wesley, Will

Underfolk female names:

Alice, Bonnie, Bryonie, Camise, Dee, Edith, Evie, Gillian, Helen, Liza, Lulu, Maggie, Molly, Nuala, Patty, Pansy, Pippa, Rose, Ruth, Sue

Underfolk use their livery—their profession—as their last name.

Underfolk livery names:

Bellowsmender, Blacksmith, Brewer, Carpenter, Chandler, Cooper, Joiner, Miner, Runescrivner, Sculptor, Stonemason, Tailor, Tinker, Vintner, Wainwright, Weaver, Whitesmith

Whether large or small, halfling or troll, all underfolk consider themselves to be members of the same family.

Crafting

Crafting is important for the underfolk culture in general and their arête triggers specifically.

In general, crafting something (especially something that will last for centuries) is a City Action. Underfolk players might be interested in making specialized weapons or armor, or they may want to raise statues or monuments to themselves. Writing a treatise, a biography, or a popular song might also qualify as “crafting something that will last centuries.” These efforts will probably require gold, with larger works needing larger payments. This is intentional. Underfolk are known to be ambitious, and this requirement encourages this behavior in play.

The Build and Commission Craft City Actions are two options. But GMs will need to work with their players to work out expectations for what underfolk players want to accomplish.

Dwarves

Dwarves are the core of underfolk society. They’re hard workers. In many ways, they are industry personified.

Dwarves are obsessive creatures. They love to create. When they discover what craft most interests them, they dedicate themselves completely to it. Their hours are spent perfecting their craft, innovating in their craft, critiquing examples of their craft, and tearing it all down so they can start again and do it right this time. Really, drinking is the only thing that keeps a dwarf steady. It evens them out, mellows them down, lets their mind work on problems that aren’t exclusively about their craftwork.

All this obsessiveness pays off. Dwarf-craft is both practical and beautiful. It is highly sought after, which makes them rich. This is important for dwarves, who know the purpose of life: construct your tomb, because that’s where you’re going to spend the rest of eternity. Woe to the dwarf whose ghost goes to the afterlife bored.

Dwarf talent: Labor Unending

You may mark the Stressed condition to stay awake all night and perform two Camp Actions instead of one; see Camp Actions for details.

Halflings

Halflings are a peaceable people, good-natured, and inclined to be friendly. When dwarves make stuff, it’s the halflings who turn that stuff into gold. Of course, they take a little commission for their trouble. This is generally agreed upon to be a good relationship, because dwarves and humans don’t always see eye to eye. Besides, dwarves would rather be making.

Halflings fill in the gaps in domestic work. Dwarves might not notice that their workshops fill up with old scraps, empty oil cans, and soot, but the halflings certainly do. Halflings like the finer things in life. They like things to be clean, put together, and respectable. Therefore, if something needs cleaning, fixing, and putting-right, halflings often do that job themselves.

If halflings have one failing, it’s their love of creature comforts.

Few people like eating as much as halflings enjoy their auntie’s mushroom pie. Few people like drinking as much as halflings enjoy the pint of bitter from the Bird and Baby Tavern. Few people like smoking as much as halflings enjoy a pipe full of Old Toby from the summer harvest of ‘45.

Halfling talent: Hale and Hearty

If you eat two rations instead of one during step 2 of the Camping Phase, you may charge an uncharged Bond.

Trolls

Trolls were discovered, not born. Sculptors sometimes say that a statue is inside a block of marble, and you just need to scrape away everything that isn’t the statue. Dwarves found this to be true of trolls. As dwarves tunneled, they were surprised to find living beings embedded in the stone or twisted up in old tree roots. They carefully excavated these full-grown trolls, who awoke with no memories and no knowledge of the world. Dwarves carefully taught them speech and cheerfully integrated them into their society. In fact, dwarves think of trolls as little brothers who grew a little too big.

Trolls are gentle giants. Well, most of the time. They do have great stature and incredible physical power, but spend much of their lives dealing with their kith who are smaller and weaker than them. All trolls learned very quickly to check their great strength. When they unleash it, however, the results are devastating—both to their foes and to themselves. Underfolk view trolls who actually unleash their strength very, very dimly. They believe these trolls to be monsters, and there are many infamous examples of cruel trolls that have contributed to this image. A troll who actually embraces his strength is not welcome in proper underfolk society.

Trolls learn gendered roles from the other underfolk, but don’t really have any generative biology. That means trolls cannot reproduce. Every troll that dies means there is one less troll left in the world.

Troll talent: Giant’s Strength

You automatically win contests related to raw strength (arm wrestling, lifting contests, etc.) against other non-troll kin.

Arête

Underfolk gain arête by performing the following deeds:

• Crafting something that will last for centuries

• Recovering a precious gem or work of fine art and hoarding it as a grave good

• Discovering something secret and forgotten

When an underfolk accomplishes all three arête triggers, they gain one of the following talents:

Dwarf arête talent: Iron Beards

Spend a Resolve to automatically succeed on a test of fate related to strength, endurance, or stubbornness.

Halfling arête talent: Underfoot

Spend a Resolve to automatically succeed on a test of fate related to being quiet or subtle.

Troll arête talent: Colossal

Some trolls can perform feats of incredible strength that go beyond what would normally be attempted. Spend a Resolve to pull a portcullis up, smash down a door, push down a supporting column, or perform some other feat of impressive destruction. This talent can’t be used to do additional damage or give an effect, but can be used to change the battlefield during a Challenge.

Dwarven role-playing concepts

• Beards. You have one—it’s magnificent. Is it braided? Is it forked? Is it tucked into your belt? Is it hung with bells? Is it looped up into your hair? Is it fiery red? Cold blue? Bright blond? Pure white?

• You think magic is perilous stuff. Even when demonstrably helpful, growing to rely on it is dangerous. There's always a way to do something that doesn't require magic.

• You believe that you literally can take it with you. Get all the gold you can while you still have hands to grasp it.

• Everybody does something in underfolk society. Almost every job is production based. Dwarves have a hard time understanding how humans can have jobs that are “preacher” or “lawyer.” What do they do exactly? (Halflings and trolls wrap their heads around this a little easier.)

• Humans think that dwarves represent the best things about Joe Average: honesty, hard work, and heavy drinking. Humans are mostly right about this.

Halfling role-playing concepts

• Halflings are anachronistic little British gentlepersons. They enjoy a day at the (rat) races, tea, and little strolls around the countryside.

• Halflings like comfort. They're not lazy, as they're sometimes accused of being. They actually go through a lot of trouble to make sure things are nice and respectable.

• Halflings are better at talking to humans than dwarves are, and so usually serve as the underfolk's diplomats and brokers to human societies.

• Halflings fill in the gaps in underfolk society. Dwarves make the crockery, the silverware, the beer; harvest the mushrooms; and never question who makes the dinner. The answer, of course, is that halflings do.

• Finding new and better ways to relax and enjoy themselves is a pursuit of each and every halfling. The new recipe, the better beer, the more inventive pipe—these are things worth questing for.

Troll role-playing concepts

• You've spent your whole life as a giant among children. You learned quickly to marshal your incredible strength, lest it cause great harm to your little siblings.

• If you are scared of your own might, have any events in your past shaped this fear?

• If you regularly call on your strength, how do you deal with the underfolk who are afraid of you?

• Underfolk society on a whole likes trolls. They lift heavy rocks, they tear out tough roots, and they get things off of high shelves.

• Humans think trolls are monsters. A troll first traveling in human lands after spending their life among the underfolk will have some rude encounters.

• You'll never take a mate and have children. You see your dwarf and halfling brothers doing this. How does it make you feel?

• When a troll dies, the number of trolls is reduced by one forever. This is something profoundly sad.

A prayer to Rng: “O’ Rng, gracious and kind. We have all that we need. Your people are content and happy. Our lives are full, and we need nothing else. Please, visit your gifts on our enemies. Give them what they lack. Let them know your love and generosity.”

At home, orcs are much like everybody else. They have families. They have farms. They like to drink horns of mead with their friends. They make crafts to sell at their religious festivals. They worry about their sick goats. Few people see this side of the orcs, though. Most people only see the raiders.

Orcs are famous raiders and traders. They travel all over the Wide World and are the most accomplished seafarers. In the summer months, when the icy straits melt between their lands and the kingdoms of men, parties of orc raiders come plundering. They take gold and royalty.

It's said that orcs have a fire in their guts that is only quenched by the presence of gold. Without gold, orcs really are crazy. Why do they take royalty? Well, nobody knows. Sometimes they ransom them to their noble houses for larger sums of gold. Sometimes they don't, though.

Slavery is against the Orc-Law (an oral collection of laws and traditions), so royals that become permanent residents of orcish lands are usually integrated. Sometimes they spend the rest of their lives in the frozen north. Sometimes they're rescued by crusaders. About a hundred years ago, three major campaigns (and several minor ones) were mounted by various noble houses to win back some of these captives from the orcs. These campaigns are very much in the mind of both humans and orcs in the modern era.

Orcs are mostly matrilineal. This is because some orcs don't have fathers. Orcs can reproduce asexually through parthenogenesis. This type of reproduction (curiously enough) produces both male and female orcs; each orc is a half-clone of their mother.

A baby orc is called a goblin. Unlike human children, who take years to learn to walk and talk, goblins learn these skills incredibly quickly. Within a few days, a baby goblin is up on its feet, walking and talking and fighting and picking locks. Really, the little guys are remarkable.

Not that they're cruel, but orcs have a somewhat blasé concern for their offspring's health. Few goblins get to grow up to be orcs. It's a rough world. It's better for an orc parent to survive long enough to make another clutch of goblin babies than it is for a single goblin (or even an entire clutch) to survive. Prioritize the elders.

A myth of the orcs

We do not worship Rng out of devotion. We worship Rng out of fear.

Their voice is the sound of the falling rain that will water your crops and flood your fields.

Their breath is the wind that carries the scent of roses and fuels the forest fire.

They once heard the cries of a starving people and sent to them a beast who would give meat eternal. The tarasque soon destroyed the town.

Another time, they heard the prayers of those who had lost their way in the woods, and guided them safely to the nearest camp. The lost were soon put to the axe by the enemy soldiers.

They are Rng, Helper and Harmer. They are Rng, the Lord of Chaos.

The Secrets of Dragons

The last part of an orc's life cycle is to become a dragon. Just like few goblins survive into orc-hood, few orcs grow old enough to become dragons. The change only comes around once the orc is around a hundred, and takes a long time. The orc begins “nesting” by tunneling down into the earth and setting a few booby traps. She then begins the decades-long process of slowly metamorphosing into a dragon. When adventurers find “dragon eggs,” they're really just finding “orc cocoons.”

Even orcs don't know they metamorphose into dragons. Their society reveres dragons, but the transformation is either so taboo or rare that it is not discussed in orc society.

Orcish names

Orc male names:

Ælfric, Bassa, Boris, Caedwalla, Dernhelm, Gyrth, Kiril, Harthold, Ine, Igor, Ivan, Lofwine, Mordar, Offa, Peragur, Sabor, Svein, Thorgils, Tostig, Ulf, Vlad, Wulnoth, Yuri

Orc female names:

Ælflaen, Burhred, Caewen, Darya, Eahild, Gunhild, Gwillowen, Hereswith, Inga, Izolda, Lubov, Marta, Olgar, Raenburh, Svetar, Tatyana, Ulyana, Vera, Walburga, Zlata

Orcs use matronyms as their surnames by appending “daughter” or “son” to the name of their mother (e.g., Ingason or Martadaughter).

“I am brother to dragons and a companion to owls. My skin is black upon me, and my bones are burned with heat.”

– Job 30:29–30

It is said that, in the past, orcs served dragons as slaves. There are four orc kins, each of which once served one of the four great dragons of old. Then the god Rng came and doomed orcs to terrible freedom.

Note: All orcish kin talents are based on being Wounded. See Wounded for details on Wounds.

Earthblooded

Earthblooded orcs are green-skinned. They feel most calm when underground and prefer to dwell in caves instead of building traditional turf-roofed houses.

The underfolk encounter earthbloods most frequently. Whereas the other kins usually sail south to human lands, earthblooded orcs have found great success in tunneling down into the veins of underfolk habitation. They prefer tomb robbing (fewer pesky dwarves actively biting at you with axes), but are happy to relieve a halfling of his gold if the chance presents itself.

Earthblooded orc talent: Quicksilver Blood

Your blood has the appearance and consistency of quicksilver, and is incredibly caustic to metal. When this talent is Wounded by a metal weapon, the weapon is Destroyed.

Seablooded

Black-skinned like the ocean's depths or a rain-laden cloud, seablooded orcs keenly feel the push and pull of the tides in their heart. Seablooded orcs are most calm when dwelling near shores or on the open water.

Though all orcs raid human lands during the spring and summer months, this kin is especially feared on the oceans. They are famous pirates, rarely actually coming to shore for raids or skirmishes. It’s said that more than a few merfolk have taken seablooded spouses.

Seablooded orc talent: Poison Blood

Your black blood is a deadly poison. When this talent is Wounded by a bite, the attacker suffers Critical damage (Piercing and Critical damage).

Stormblooded

White-skinned like a cloudy sky, these orcs are tumultuously passionate. When great storms blow up off of the ocean, they can hear their own hearts singing to them. They’re most calm when the winds and rains howl.

This kin’s ancestral homeland is the most northerly of all orcish territories. The stormbloods endure the most brutal winters and severe blizzards. They claim these hardships have made them the toughest of the orc broods. Indeed, the stormbloods are nothing if not long-suffering, resourceful, and enduring.

Stormblooded orc talent: Blur

Your blood smokes like a thick mist. When this talent is Wounded, you become Shrouded. This lasts long enough for you to perform a single action or indefinitely if you stay still and take no actions.

Fireblooded

Fireblooded orcs bear dark red and black skin that’s warm to the touch. They are never calm.

Firebloods are famously effective as shock troopers. Orc clans of other kins will sometimes bring a contingent of firebloods to be used in this way. For this reason, you might find fireblooded mercenaries attached to orcs of all stripes. When the firebloods go berserk, they can punch a hole into the shield-wall of even well-trained and veteran soldiers.

Fireblooded orc talent: Berserkergang

Your blood is boiling hot. When this talent is Wounded, you may choose to enter a berserker rage. While berserk during a Challenge, you cannot Avoid, Dodge, Speak Incantations, Banter, or Aid Another; however, all of your Attacks are made with favor.

Your rage ends when you defeat every enemy on the field. If an ally has attacked or hurt you during this Challenge, they count as an enemy. You must spend a Resolve to end your rage prematurely.

Arête

Orcs gain arête by performing the following deeds:

• Hoarding a skull from a class of monster your guild has never killed before

• Hoarding a treasure of great worth

• Slaying a monster at least twice your size

When an orc accomplishes all three arête triggers, they gain the following talent (regardless of kin):

Orc arête talent: Jarl

You may hatch or gather a horde of goblins to your cause. Goblins are pretty independent little creatures. They see you as “da boss” and take commands from you, but follow those commands in their own, strange, simple little ways.

Assembling a goblin horde is a City Action. Spend any amount of XP to attract 2 + X goblins, where X equals the amount of XP you spent on this action. You may only ever have up to 8 goblins in your horde.

A goblin horde counts as an animal companion. No matter how many goblins are in the horde, they always count as “one creature” and move around together. Goblins understand whatever language you speak, but can only follow one-word commands during Challenges (given using the Command action). They have tiny minds.

Every time a goblin horde takes a Wound, one of its members is killed.

A goblin horde carries or hunts for their own food and supplies their own gear. Their gear is crap; they do not have any items or tools that you can use. They can act as porters: For each goblin in the horde, they can carry one slot worth of items.

Orcish role-playing concepts

• Orcs are basically metalheads. If it looks like it’s part of the metal subculture, orcs would be into it. Guttural screams, mosh pits, big spikey bracelets, long hair headbanging—orcs have it all.

• Orcs are brutal pillagers and savage pirates, merciless in battle.

• Orcs are also family-oriented, honor-driven, poetic, loyal, and generally well-educated.

• Orcs think a lot about fate. Orcs think that you make your own luck by doing either good or evil actions. Once you've made your choice, nothing can stop destiny from catching up with you.

• Orcs propitiate Rng, god of chaos, in order to avoid their unlucky aid. They perform a dozen or more minor taboos or rituals throughout the day to try and avoid their wrath, such as throwing beads in moving water, making a sign to avert his gaze when they voice a desire, and ceremonially offering them a portion of their meal.

• Orcs think that raiding is good, but stealing is bad. Sneaking into somebody's house and taking their gold is cowardly. Kicking in their front door, putting them to the sword, taking the gold, and setting the house on fire is good.

• Orcs maintain long oral histories. They respect poets and bards as keepers of laws and traditions. These people are unlucky to kill.

• Orcs think that magic is a woman's purview. Witchwomen are unlucky to kill. It is unlucky for a man to do magic.