Fomorian

The Fomorians are a monstrous, brutal race descended from the true giants and cursed by the fey to become horribly misshapen and physically repulsive. Originally a highly intelligent and magically-gifted people, the fomorians sought to conquer the Feywild during the Early Mithril Era alongside a cadre of Cyclops slaves. This conflict, known as the Fey-Fomorian War ended with a catastrophic defeat when the Seelie and Unseelie Court joined their magic together and cursed the fomorians, stripping them of their magic and corrupting their flesh until they were all but unrecognizable. The fomorians were forced to flee into the caverns of the Underdark, where they continued to devolve into the repugnant, slaving savages we see today.

Basic Information

Anatomy

The base anatomy of the fomorians is quite similar to their forebearers, the true giants, with two arms ending in hands, two legs ending in feet, bipedal locomotion and a head containing the brain and primary sensory organs. However, fomorians are unique in that their bodies have been crippled with tumors, growths, duplicate appendages, and other mutations. It appears as though their DNA has been highly corrupted resulting in each fomorian developing new mutations and disjointed body plans. In some ways, this helps the average fomorian, as more sensory organs or the unusual placement of said organs allows them to have a keen, 360-degree view of their surroundings that few other creatures have. However, these mutations do often impede their movement, causing them to hunch and shamble about and leaving them stricken with constant aches and pains. It also contributes to their shorter lifespans and many scholars speculate that if not for their innate vestigial magic abilities, the species would have died out centuries ago.

Genetics and Reproduction

Among fomorians, the birth of a child is a dangerous and often sorrowful affair. Their cursed anatomies make the process of giving live birth frought with danger, as a fomorian fetus can easily tear open their mother's belly months before the birth, dooming both. At the same time, over fifty percent of all fomorian fetuses are still-born, and the death rate for young fomorians is equally high. This, coupled with the shorter lifespans of fomorians compared to most other giantkin, means that fomorian populations grow slowly, if at all.

Growth Rate & Stages

Fomorians have some of the shortest lifespans of any giantkin, with the majority dying before age forty. Fomorians must grow exceptionally quickly in order to reach their Huge sizes, quintupling in size within the first five years of their lives. Fomorians reach sexual maturity after thirteen years; exceptionally young for compared to all other giantkin. As they grow, many of their mutations grow as well both in size and frequency, with elder fomorians often being unable to move thanks to the grotesque growths and tumors that plague their bodies.

Ecology and Habitats

Fomorians are now almost exclusively found in the caverns of the Underdark and the dimmest glades of the Feywild's Feydusk region. Their lairs feature abundant access to water, fish, and mushroom forests, as well as to the creatures whose slave labor keeps the fomorians fed. Though strong and intelligent, they rarely construct shelters, preferring to force slaves to build in their stead.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Fomorians are omnivorous, but like their hill giant ancestors, fomorians prefer to eat meat. In particular, fomorians enjoy eating humanoid flesh and so many of their slaves once broken from the toil of their servitude are consumed in deprave feasts. Fomorians do hunt Underdark creatures for food on occasion as well, especially if their slaves are needed for some other task or they have none to gnaw on.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Fomorians live in small tribes numbering between five to fifteen individuals. They are led by the strongest and cruelest of their kind, with all others being kept in line through violence. A fomorian tribe will raid other mortal settlements on the surface or other banished sentients within the Underdark in search of slaves. These slaves do much of the hard labor for the fomorians, who always set them to tasks in the hope of one day gaining the strength to sow revenge upon the fey that cursed them. Fomorians do sometimes ally with other creatures, but their hearts remain cursed with wickedness, and so they will often betray their allies at the first sign of weakness.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Fomorians are found exclusively within the caverns of the Underdark and the Feydusk region of the Feywild.

Average Intelligence

Fomorians are more intelligent than many of their relatives, particularly hill giants and cyclopses. This allows them to cast simple spells and construct plots to obtain more slaves for their small clans. However, their curse has stripped them of the ability to truly move beyond the most basic of magical abilities and their grotesque bodies make constructing armor or structures or items to aid them in their survival neigh impossible. They thus live in a highly superstitious, xenophobic and brutal tribal culture, who's history and collective knowledge is marked with violence and a lack of innovation.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

As stated above, the grotesque positioning of their eyes, ears, and noses grants the fomorians keen perceptive abilities, making it hard to surprise or ambush them. They are highly proficient in perception and use this to their advantage when patroling the dangerous tunnels that make up the Underdark they call home.

Civilization and Culture

History

The history of the fomorians remains a puzzle to many scholars. Mythology and eladrin records from the Feywild speak of their origins in the legend of "Pyrémondias & the Raven". However, other sources particularly those of Underdark denizens such as the drow or deep gnomes speak of a race of giants called the fomorians that entered the Underdark already possessing the intelligence, magic, and handsomeness the Pyrémondias legend claims was granted to them as protocyclopeans. Notably, these accounts describe the fomorians before the fey curse as possessing two eyes, not one like the cyclopses of Pyrémondias legend. And indeed, many contemporary fomorian specimens have two eyes, not one—though only one of their eyes can cast their signature nazar spell.
Regardless of how they appeared in their early days, the fomorians eventually decided to conquer the Feywild along with the help of an army of cyclops slaves. The fey claim their goal was to obtain the secrets of the Old Magic of the world, which the fomorians had been fascinated by since Pyrémondias decided to imitate the Ordning god Jötu's Hanging from the Great Oak of Sythenra. This act caused the Seelie and Unseelie Courts to unite for one of the few times in history. According to the Pyrémondias legend, the Seelie Court used their trickery and magic to terrify the cyclops slaves of the fomorians, who then fled the Feywild and abandoned their masters. The fomorians appeared undaunted by this arcane warning shot and continued to advance on the armies of the archfey. The Twin Courts of the Lavender Queen and the Scarlet Prince then combined their magic to curse the fomorians. One by one, the mages and soldiers of the proud giants were stripped of their magic and their bodies warped to reflect the evil within their hearts. The fomorians were terrified by this and fled the Feywild. Over time, they came to settle in the Underdark, which further twisted them into the hideous and evil beings we know today. Yet some remained in the Feywild, and over the centuries submitted themselves to the wild depravity of the Unseelie Court. There they serve as soldiers, bodyguards, and amusement for the dark-minded archfey that dwell in the Dusk of the Fair Realm.

Common Myths and Legends

The primary source for much of our understanding of the history and creation of the fomorians is the eladrin or fey story, "Pyrémondias & the Raven."

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Hill Giant

Origin/Ancestry

Giant-Protocyclopean

Lifespan

30-40 years

Average Height

5.56-5.76 m (18.3-18.11 ft.)

Average Weight

700-850 (1543.2-1874 lbs)

Average Physique

Fomorians are considered Huge creatures.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Fomorians bear the dark mark of the Underdark, with purplish-grey skin and ruddy red noses.

Related Myths

• "Pyrémondias & the Raven"

A depiction of an elder fomorian before the fey curse. This depiction falls in line with the records of other Underdark sentient races, such as the drow.