Terran

The Terrans are a proud, semi-nomadic people with a quiet, observant nature. Their numbers are small and their disposition is calm and peaceful, though they are not averse to defending themselves or their people when the necessity arises. A tall and powerful people with rock-colored tough skin and bald heads, they are intimidating to behold, regardless of their demeanor.

A Life of Balance

Terran life revolves around the idea of balance and on living ones life so they might achieve a spiritual resonance in sync with the earth. Through doing so, the Terrans believe that their lives become increasingly intertwined with nature until, eventually, they achieve a perfect unification, shedding mortality to live on as spirits of stone and earth. Those who die too far out-of-balance are doomed instead to tread Iskatel’s surface, never finding rest or peace, never returning to the stone and earth that granted the first Terran life.

Reverence for Ancestors

Ancestry is important to the Terrans, but not in the sense of individual family lines. In fact, a Terran child knows only the names of their parents and grandparents, never further back, and never carries with them a family name. Instead, the Terrans remember and revere great cultural heroes who belong to the whole of Terran society and to whom they may call upon for wisdom at great carved standing stones that mark graves or sites of historical importance.

Consistent and Unchanging

Life among the Terrans is simple, unchanging, and slow. The people live in tents, traveling and hunting vast tribal lands during the warm seasons of spring and summer, and in stone or thatch huts throughout the cold fall and winter seasons. As a culture focused more on spiritual pursuits and inner peace than temporal gain, they are not a technologically advanced race, though by no means are they simple-minded. The Terrans are accustomed to hard work and believe all people should carry their own weight in society so long as they are able, as idle bodies waste food and resources. Those who are slowed by age or disability, however, are not left behind or disrespected as they might be in some other societies, but cared for regardless of the cost. This extra effort is rarely needed for long, as Terrans who see themselves becoming a cost to the clan will choose, out of a sense of honor and duty, to take a walk late one night and return to the earth.

Physical Appearance

Terrans are a large people, standing anywhere from 6 to 8 feet tall and weighing between 200 and 500 pounds. They are entirely hairless and have a rough, rock colored skin that is often marked with large veins of an alternating color as if their skin were actually stone. Terrans embrace these natural skin designs and enhance them through painting their bodies with greens, reds, blues, and yellows. Terrans wear simple leathers and generally carry spears, clubs, hammers, axes, longbows, and skinning daggers for weapons. Women are generally smaller than men, tending to be less than 7 feet tall and under 300 lbs, while men tend to be 7 feet tall or more and weigh over 300 lbs.

Relations

As a naturally peaceful and introspective race, Terrans get along with most other races, though they do not often intermingle with any of them. Terrans are closer to the Seakin and the Ankasu than any of the other races, as all share a connection to nature. Conversely, the Terrans have long standing conflicts with the orcs and so are naturally very distrusting of half-orcs. Older and more traditional Terrans sometimes worry about the expansionist and urban nature of humans, though it is not uncommon to see younger or less traditional members of the race doing business, or even living, in human cities and border-towns.

Religion

The religion of the Terrans is one based on balance and harmony with the spiritual energy of Iskatel itself, so the Terrans do not worship any gods. Instead of clerics, druids, or oracles, the holy men of the Terrans are meditative monks. The cultural focus on balance and inner peace leads to a people who tend toward both neutral and good alignments.

Adventurers

Terran adventurers are not common. Those who do become adventurers generally do so out of a sense of duty or responsibility. Examples may be a ranger who takes it upon themselves to keep the lands free of orc incursion, or a contemplative monk who wanders human lands to spread a message of respect for the earth. Some Terrans may sojourn among the other races in their personal pursuit of enlightenment and be inadvertently lead into adventure during these travels.

by Antonio Frascaro

Terran Traits

Ability Score Increase

+2 STR +1 WIS

Age

Slightly longer than humans, reaching full maturity at approximately 25-30 years of age and having a lifespan of approximately 150 years.

Alignment

Tendency toward neutral alignments.

Size

Between 7-8 feet tall, weighing 280-400 pounds. Size: Medium

Speed

30 feet

One with the Land

Proficiency in the Survival Skill or the Animal Handling Skill

Powerful Build

Count as one size larger when determining carrying capacity and the weight that can be pushed, dragged, or lifted

Tough Skin

Have a base, unarmored AC of 12.
Add 2 to the AC provided by any armor.

Languages

Common, Terran, +1 Language of Choice