Giants

First Descendants of the Phet

I have studied these hulking, lumbering cousins of ours for nearly three decades. What I have found over that time may astound many: That they are not at all given to the need to explore that drives most other races I have known. Instead, I watch them worhsip their Gods, tend their Mammoths, and raise their children, content to live life the simple way that it is. It's a shame that we treat Giants as such a terrible nuisance- stealing their grazing lands, hunting their Mammoths for sport, and running them from our cities and towns simply because of how they appear to us... This will be our undoing, however. If not now, then eventually. For to disrespect them is to disrespect ourselves, as we are both kin whether we like it or not.
— Varist Tomani, Phetian Anthropologist, An Ethnographical Study of Phetian Descendants

A simple and traditional nomadic people, Giants are one of the only sapient species known to be natives of the Material Plane- descending originally from the Phet centuries ago, and deliniating into all those who likewise call the Phet their ancestors... Unfortunately there are many in Saleh'Alire, especially among the Dwarven ethnicities, who would rather pretend that such a tightly defined ancestral link did not exist. Indeed, the ostrcization of the Giantkin has been long documented- helped in no small part by their history with the Dwarves, seemingly territorial natures, and general dislike of most outsiders for a variety of reasons. Stories and myths about these elusive groups, too, play no small part in peoples' perceptions of them elsewhere.

Geographic Distribution

While they don't travel much on their own outside of specific ancestral land ranges established when they first came to the surface, Giants can nonetheless be found just about everywhere in Saleh'Alire. Geographically, however, as far as Archivists can tell their populations have always predominantly centered around two major ranges: The Domur Mountains in southern Olienn, and the Raasla Mountains in central Rusatar. Migration by the Orkind has also led to significant settlement in the Hiatal Mountains of southern Tolara in recent decades, making them easily one of the most prominant groups in the Talaina'Vao region. But Giants can also be found in significant number at the intersection of the Maer'Wyn, Niesen, and Caerced ranges that separate Olienn, Martova, and Castrillis from one another. As these mountains are incredibly hazardous and difficult to navigate, though, few have actually ventured far enough into any of these ranges to encounter them there.

Physiology & Appearance

While humanoid in build, the appearance of Giants can be greatly varied. This is especially true between the Ovarketh and their cousins the Orkind... Broadly speaking, however, there are some similarities between Giants in regards to height, weight, and overall build. All Giants tend towards broad and frequently barrel-chested frames that build muscle density easily- leading to extremely muscular physiques with often matching strength; Giants are easily capable of hurling a boulder up to 300 lbs (140,000 kg). Above average bone density compensates for this massive increase in mass. but results in an incredibly high metabolism. Overall, this makes them large and powerful creatures, if a little less nimble and slower to move. Despite their mammoth size and proportions, however, Giants tend to have handsome, well-defined freatures. Among the Ovarketh, this manifests in longer faces featuring a strong angular jawline, broad sloping nose, and high cheekbones. The Orkind, however, are known for their flatter, wider nose not unlike a Firbolg's, and a slight underbite due to the tusk-like growth of their lower Canines. Skin tones themselves vary between a soft, milky colors tinged with the lightest hints of blue, green, and lavender among the Ovarketh- to the paler green tones more common among the Orkind. Texturally, their skin is thick and tough, and hard to penetrate- much like stone or bark, though only lightly textured by comparisson. Silver-grey and brown hair are likewise common respectively among those who can grow it. Most Giant males, however, still produce very little head and body hair outside of a beard.

Genetic Ancestry