Godborn

Gods ("Tanru" in the imperial language) have always coupled with humans, but in the thousand years since the gods sent their avatars to our world to lead the Empire, the number of people who can trace their ancestry to a deity has grown tremendously. Within a generation of The Eternal Empress laying claim to the imperial throne, rules of succession changed to favor godborn children (of either parent) over legitimate heirs. Today most of the empire's noble families count godborn among their bloodlines and the details of a nobles celestial ancestry is an important consideration in marriage arrangements and political appointments. Unsurprisingly, much of the day-to-day intrigue of the Imperial Court is centered around arranging for desirable heirs to catch the attention of avatars or godborn with high amounts of divine blood in hopes of giving the family bloodline a fresh infusion of divinity. There are four categories of godborn, described below.

Aztanru

Aztanru ("Demigods") are the offspring of a god and a yuritanru. Unlike other godborn, demigods have a celestial birth, though not always a traditional one. A demigod's celestial body often emerges fully grown (or at least old enough to communicate; infant demigod births are rare) from the body of the parent god or some other object in the celestial sphere. demigods may leap full armed and armored from their father's forehead, claw their way out of a wild animal, bloom from a lotus plant, fall from the heavens, or arrive on the heavenly plane in any number of spectacular ways. The demigod's celestial birth often destroys the earthly avatar, but in some cases the earthly body of the god is born normally. Some demigods allow their avatar to grow normally before inhabiting it. Others inhabit the avatar's body immediately, often using their powers to transform it into it's adult form.
Like the gods, demigods are 10-12 feet tall and have the same dusky complexion as the people of the empire but tend to have light-colored hair (ranging from light brown to pure white) and eyes (with violet being the most common). Also like the gods, their possession of a celestial body makes demigods effectively immortal. A demigod's avatar can be killed just like a god's, but this is a very difficult task due to the demigod's divine powers (which vary from avatar to avatar). Where gods can empower a new avatar relatively quickly (about a month) when their old one dies, the process is more difficult for demigods, typically taking a year or more.

Yuritanru

The Yuritanru, sometimes referred to as "highbloods" are godborn with 50% or more divine heritage. They may be the child of a god and a human or of two godborn. Yuritanru are shorter than gods and demigods, usually between 8 and 10 feet tall. The lighter hair and eye color common among gods and demigods is still found in yuritanru, but is much less common. Many have the same dark hair and eyes as their human ancestors. Since yuritanru have no celestial body, they are mortal. However, the aging process slows greatly once a yuritanru reaches adulthood. Starting at about 30, yuritanru only age one year for every 10 years that pass, reaching middle age around their 300th year and dying of old age only after six or seven centuries. Yuritanru are born with divine powers, but they are much more limited than their divine ancestors.

Jayriktanru

Jayriktanru (also known as "halfbloods") are 25-50% god. They're typically 6-8 feet tall and generally have the same coloration as their human ancestors (though a few have light hair or eyes). Jayriktanru age at about twice the rate of highbloods in late adulthood (1 year for every 5), reaching middle age at around 150 and dying of old age somewhere between 300 and 400. Halfbloods have some supernatural abilities, but they are much less impressive than those possessed by purer godborn.

Yuzdetanru

Yuzdetanru, who often refer to themselves merely as "Godborn" and are sometimes called "lowborn" (often as an insult) are a few generations removed from the most recent god in their family. Most look just like normal humans, but some are taller than average or have the light hair and eye coloration associated with the gods. Yuzdetanru are long-lived by human standards (dying of old age between 100 and 125), but not nearly as long-lived as the other godborn. About a quarter of Yuzdetanru have some kind of supernatural ability as a result of their divine heritage.