Centaur
Tidaris, 1st of Heatmore, Year 829 of the Eternal Age The Hissrad band came through town today. Saw that they added a few centaurs to their band. Everything was fine until one of the stable boys made a comment. Guards had to pull one of the young centaurs off of him before he got stomped to death. I tried to haggle with them on a deal in exchange for not talking about that little incident. Biggest mistake of my life. The older ones, they know how to keep a level head. Know to when to wait and when to push. They're wiser than most. Still can't believe I lost 5 Mastisffs at that price. Gonna wring Joseph's throat out for how much gold he cost me.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Centaur the upper body of a humanoid, resembling elves and humans and the lower body of a equine. When they were first discovered, many scholars believed that they had both a humanoid set of organs and an equine set of organs. However, they only have one set. The lungs, heart, stomach, and liver are located in the humanoid portion and are enlarged to better suit the centaur's physiology. Intestines, Kidneys, and the like are located in the lower have and are also enlarged. A major secondary organ is also found there that some believe to be a second heart but it is merely to aid pushing blood throughout the rest of the centaur's body as it can't handle as much as the primary heart.
Civilization and Culture
Common Taboos
Centaur absolutely distrust magic in all its forms as a holdover of what the Fey did to them. They are willing to allow adventurers and mages amongst their bands but they refuse to let magic be used amongst their band unless absolutley necessary. Even centaurs who became Druids are not exempt from this, even if they use their powers to read omens about the upcoming weather or events.
History
The centaurs were created as a joke by several Fey Lords. They thought the species would die out in a couple of centuries. But their joke was too well crafted. It turned out the Centaurs were far more adaptable than the Fey anticipated. Events back in Faenum forced the major Lords to look away while the minor ones interacted with the new children of the Fey. Centaurs were scattered across Avestra but the most notable of them were those in the Aerin Valley. Like the Humans and Changelings, they wandered the verdant valley, even crossing the mountains into the Jade Coast here and there.
The Centaurs served as key players in moments of Aerin history, serving as advisors, merchants, and even mercenaries. They always had their own code that kept them from slipping into darker acts. Countless stories are told about Centaurs who refuse to fight each other on the battlefield. It's a likely reason why countries refuse to rely on them despite their courage. And that's likely why they were only called upon when the X'ith'ila came. Brave soldiers until the end, they fought bravely. Quite a few Eternals even spoke well about them.
Yet Centaurs still wander despite the great deeds they've accomplished, avoiding the supposed vices that other races faced. And while they trust some fey, they always watch for the Lords that might want them once more.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Adventuring groups are often the ones who like Centaurs as they have travel together during the summer months and help them hunker down during the winter. While the centaurs have a taboo against magic, they bear no ill will towards those born with magic in them. And despite being born of trickery from the Fey, the Feyborn are often some of the kindest to them, even guiding them through their lands. They have offered the centaur a permanant home but the nomadic wanderers would prefer to keep to that, keeping the idea in mind.
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