The Second Races

Thanks to Christian Dimitrov for the awesome cover art!

"You shall go down into the depths. You will find the true power of Xaecreotis. And you will return it to me. I, as your Deeplord, command it." -- The orders given to the Age of Rebirth dwarven expedition that is believed to have become the first duergar.

The Second Races are all those that came about during the Age of Rebirth. While the exact end of the Reshaping and beginning of the Age of Rebirth is blurry at best, there is a distinct period of settling that followed the titanic acts of ordering and creation that occurred at the height of the Reshaping. After that period of settling, when civilization began to truly be reborn, is when the Age of Rebirth truly began.
It was during this time, when civilization, magic, and divine relations were at their zenith, that the Second Races came to be. Over the course of the numerous millennia that constituted the Age of Rebirth, cultures evolved, species deviated, and new races were created. Noted at right are the playable races that came about during this time. They're lore, history, mechanics, etc. will be detailed in their articles below. Like with the First Races, this article serves as both a hub for the playable races' articles as well as a summary of the non-playable races that came about during this time.

Those Who Rose in the Age of Rebirth

The Age of Rebirth was a time of constant change and non-stop growth. The peaks of mortal civilization were constantly reached and then pushed, impossibly, even higher. It was in these times, when the planes were more open, when mortal societies were more advanced, when the gods were alive and their non-divine compatriots were more active, that many, many races came to be.
Below, you will find a handful of categories of those races:

Undead

In the wake of the Reshaping, there were a handful of ancient undead scattered across Yophas -- liches, vampires, and the like. These entities, over the course of the Age of Rebirth, brought back necromancies and the myriad curses of undeath to the Eternal Design. While some of the present-day types did not come about until the Reckoning (see: The Third Races), it was during this time that undead as a whole were ushered into Yophas.

Arcane Constructs

Over the course of the Age of Rebirth, countless archmages and experimental arcanists pushed the boundaries of artificial, magically-constructed entities. Golems, spellbound armors and weapons, and the like were proliferated during this time period, as were the magics required to create them.

Chimaeric Fusions

On a similar vein, powerful arcanists, archfey, and other entities with arcane power sought to create beings that were fusions of other, disparate creatures. These beings, largely known as chimaeras, came to being in a myriad of experiments and arcane events. Almost anything that is a fusion of two or more other beasts or monsters was either created during this time or created using the techniques created during this time.

Sentient Plantlife

On yet another similar vein, many sentient plants were created during this time period. Whether they were magically awakened or completely evolved by arcane means, thinking and acting plants proliferated during this time period. While the lion's share were created by magic -- intentional or otherwise -- some naturally evolved or mutated in various planes and environments.

Aberrations

With the boundaries of Xeccamund and Ipacia's boundaries ever-shifting between each other, it is not entirely unheard of for relics of the Tears Beyond Reality to be deposited in the Realm of Stars. Chunks of dead planets, alien artifacts, and many more types of debris slowly found its way into the ordered boundaries of Yophas. On some of these relics, the aberrations of Xeccamund found passage into Yophas proper.
Once they were within the Eternal Design, these myriad aberrations immediately set about trying to corrupt and change Yophas -- whether for themselves or for their even more alien masters still across the border of Ipacia. To this end, many new aberrations were created, either manifested from the raw stuff of the multiverse or by corrupting different creatures.

Fiends

While many fiends, devilish and demonic, were created during the Reshaping, many new forms of fiends continued to be created over the course of the Age of Rebirth. It was, however, much more common with demons than devils, as demons continued to mutate and spawn from the Primordial Chaos. It was also during this time that demon lords rose above their compatriots and organize Ix'akroth into many different domains -- even though many of these demon lords ended up in Accorion.

Astral Creations

When the gith civilization was at its zenith, they set about using their control over the psionic threads of Ipacia to create entirely new entities. It is from these experiments in creation that many of the current inhabitants of Ipacia stem -- even if many of these creatures ended up going astray or being corrupted by Xeccamundian aberrations.

Fey

As can be seen in the playable options, the fey always had a knack for taking things and making them into something new. This trend held for creatures. Many new types of fey rose during this time, such as the fairies and sprites, and it was also during this time that Baba Yaga, the first hag, was born.

The Second Races: A Pocket Guide to the Playable Options

These are only races that are so different from their progenitors (or lacking in progenitors) as to be considered completely new. Subraces that are still closely linked to their progenitor race that were created during this time period are denoted as such in their overarching racial articles.

• Celestellan (aasimar): In the earlier centuries of the Age of Rebirth, Yamma blessed a number of prominent human families with celestial blood, creating the first celestellan to guide and lead different civilizations.
• Hellborn (tiefling): In response to the creation of aasimar (or perhaps the cause of it), the Devils Ultimate began mingling human and infernal blood to create the first hellborn and allow the forces of Iduran influence over mortal empires.
• Half-Orcs: Half-orcs were created when human and orc blood was found to be surprisingly compatible by frontiersfolk across Yophas.
• Half-Elves: Half-elves were created when elf and human blood was found to be rather compatible by early human settlers in Sylthereth.
• Lithanra (Astral Elves): Lithanra were created as numerous civilizations of Ipacian elves arose over the course of the Age of Rebirth, their constituents evolving from the magical resonance of the Realm of Stars.
• Naxanra (Shadar-kai): Naxanra were born when a large-scale attempt to settle Nathrivox failed and only the elven members of it survived. These elves adapted to the plane of death and became the Naxanra.
• Wonanra (sea elves): Wonanra were deliberately created by the fey courts of Sylthereth to better explore Tudulion and even Atithis.
• Yenanra (Eladrin): Though many elves slowly spread across Yophas, many stayed in their original home of Sylthereth. Those who served the different fey courts directly slowly changed to mirror the seasons of the Verdant Paradise, creating the first Yenanra.
• Minotaurs: Minotaurs were first found on Aekkinata and were hunted by the fey for many centuries. Over time, they assimilated into society and the fey stopped their inhumane antics -- but many ancient minotaur communities still harbor a desire for vengeance.
• Deepcursed (duergar): Deepcursed were born when some dwarven civilizations took their sacred duties too far and delved too deep, becoming molded by the corrupting influences of Xaecreotis.
• Halflings: Evolved from dwarves, halflings came about when some groups of dwarves discovered they preferred the surface -- particularly open plains and ancient forests.
• Gnomes: Like halflings, gnomes evolved from dwarves who preferred slightly hillier homes and took a knack for invention and tinkering.
• Darkminds (Deep Gnomes): Further evolved from their dwarven cousins, darkminds are much like deepcursed: they were gnomes whose curiosity took them to the depths of Xaecreotis and found themselves forever changed by the Realms Below.
• Triton: Originally appearing somewhere in the Primordial Sea, triton are one of many examples of seemingly random evolution happening in the depths of Tudulion.
• Tortles: Tortles were first discovered on the islands of the Eternal Ocean. No one really knows how they got there.
• Tabaxi: Tabaxi were the result of elven hunters in Aekkinata desiring to become more stealthy predators.
• Leonin: Similarly, leonin were born of humans wishing to truly dominate the hunting fields of Aekkinata.
• Centaurs: It is believed centaurs were created when a group of humans trying to steal from an archfey in Sylthereth stumbled into a magical trap. They were cursed with a "horse's ass" to prevent them from being sneaky ever again.
• Kobolds: Kobolds seemed to have arisen from a greatwyrm arcanist, who created kobolds from dragonborn after discovering the latter to be slightly too intelligent and thus too prideful to be servants.
• Lizardfolk: Similarly, the first lizardfolk were created by a black greatwyrm who sought subservient, draconic armies to hold a great swamp in Ix'akroth. To this end, they diluted dragonborn blood with that of great lizards, creating lizardfolk.