Firbolgs

Firbolgs in Wildemount

Firbolgs are a forest-dwelling race native to the Greying Wildlands, particularly the mysterious Savalirwood. Their bodies are covered with thick fur ranging from tones of earthen brown and ruddy red to cool grays and blues, and even to wild hues of pink and green. Their bodies are bovine or camelid in appearance, with floppy, pointed ears and broad, pink noses, but they are bipedal and have hands that can manipulate weapons and objects.
Most firbolgs live in extended family units, and it is unusual to find one living alone. However, they are introverted to the point where they seldom engage with other firbolgs outside the family unit, and firbolgs rarely form their own cities, villages, or even large tribes. Despite this, many firbolgs enjoy visiting other nations' settlements for a short time for trade, sightseeing, and to visit friends.

Firbolg Classes

Most firbolgs are druids, rangers, or fighters. Among their kind, these vocations are passed down from one generation to the next. The firbolgs' magical heritage also expresses itself in other ways; those who become bards preserve the clan's lore, and firbolg sorcerers defend their communities. Firbolg wizards arise when a clan becomes friendly with elves.
Firbolg rogues are typically scouts tasked with spying on neighboring folk to determine their intentions. They are most common among firbolgs whose homes border human settlements. Firbolg barbarians are rare except among clans that face constant threats from evil humanoids and other invaders. Firbolg clerics and paladins are usually dedicated to nature gods, enforcing their will. Firbolg warlocks are rare, but some clans forge alliances and arcane pacts with powerful fey beings. Firbolg monks are almost entirely unheard of, though a monastery might take in the young survivors of a devastated firbolg clan.

Firbolg Names

Firbolg adopt elven names when they must deal with outsiders, although the concept of names strikes them as strange. They know the animals and plants of the forest without formal names, and instead identify the forest's children by their deeds, habits, and other actions.
By the same token, their clan names merely refer to their homes. When dealing with other races, firbolgs refer to their lands by whatever name the surrounding folk use, as a matter of tact and hospitality, but among their own kind they simply call it "home."
Sometimes firbolgs adopt the nicknames or titles outsiders give them under the assumption that those who need names can call them whatever they wish.

Firbolgs in the Dwendalian Empire

Most imperial citizens have never even heard of firbolgs. Stories involving these folk are rare, and typically liken them to the giants, depicting firbolgs as hulking humanoid warriors rather than fur-covered nature lovers. People living in the great crossroads city of Zadash might be familiar with one firbolg in particular: the jolly, eccentric enchanter known as Pumat Sol. This familiarity means that many warm quickly to new firbolgs, albeit after some initial surprise.

Firbolgs on the Menagerie Coast

Since firbolgs are neither prone to travel nor native to the Menagerie Coast, their numbers along Wildemount's western shores are vanishingly small. The people of the Clovis Concord share the same folk tales of giant-like humanoid firbolgs as the folk of the Dwendalian Empire, and are likewise surprised by their gentle nature when they meet them.

Firbolgs in Xhorhas

Firbolgs who travel southeast from the Greying Wildlands and cross the Dunrock Mountains might find themselves wandering the wastes of Xhorhas. The territorial monsters that prowl the wastes show no pity to unprepared wanderers, and most firbolg families know better than to undertake such a dangerous journey.
With northern Xhorhas firmly under the control of the Kryn Dynasty, the dark elves have saved a number of firbolg travelers from monsters over the years. Enough of those have remained in the wastes for small firbolg communities to develop in Rosohna and other major Kryn cities.

Firbolgs in Tal'Dorei

Fur-covered folk with floppy ears, flat noses, and long faces, firbolgs are a humanoid people with a unique, somewhat bovine appearance. They aren’t insular by nature, but they feel most at ease when surrounded by the natural world, leading the vast majority of firbolgs to never leave their forest homes except under circumstances beyond their control. As a result, many folk in Tal’Dorei don’t even know that firbolgs exist. Those firbolgs who do live in the realm’s cosmopolitan cities either grow annoyed or accepting of people constantly questioning who—or what—they are.

Dwellers of Cold Forests

Firbolgs’ fuzzy bodies are acclimated to cold weather, and they often overheat in warm climes. They are most commonly seen in Kraghammer, Zephrah, Whitestone, and Stilben, both as residents and as traveling bards and merchants. But they are otherwise a rare sight south of the Cliffkeep Mountains, though some firbolgs enjoy a comfortable life in Emon after learning a few handy spells to keep cool in the summer.
The largest and densest population of firbolgs in Tal’Dorei is found in the eternally winter-bound forest of the Frostweald. These firbolgs have a friendly but cautious relationship with the capricious fey who also dwell there.