Tieflings

Blood of Hrak-Tuzul

Tieflings are a relatively new specie in Shandar, born from the violence of the Hundred Years War.

Origins

When Hrak-Tuzul captured towns or cities, they usually took as slaves the surviving inhabitants to put them to work, or as personal servants of the more powerful demons. The vast majority of the Hrak-Tuzul were violent tyrants that would not care at all for the well being of their slaves, treating them worse than working animals, but sometimes there were exceptions.
If the slave was "lucky" enough to be the personal servant of a particular type of Hrak-Tuzul, called Succubi (or Incubi for the male version), they would live a life enthralled as a personal pleasure servant of the demon, with the latter charming their slaves so they would feel immense pleasure in following the orders of their masters. Some say being dominated by Succubi was not a life, as you would not have a conscience of your own, however you were spared from the chaotic violence of other Hrak-Tuzul masters, which usually ended up with the untimely death of the slaves.
While most species were not compatible with Hrak-Tuzul blood, the union of Humans or Elves with Succubi/Incubi had a chance to genenrate offspring. These creatures had a mixture of both species physical characteristics, usually appearing as a red or purple tinged skin, a tail, and horns of various shapes and sizes. Tieflings, as they came to be called, would then pass on their demonic traits to their children, always with the constraint of having to mate with either Humans or Elves.
For this reason, and because of the stigma of being the offspring of Hrak-Tuzul, the Tieflings number has always been very low, a rare sight within the many other species.

Demonic Stigma

Life as a Tielfing is hard. Other peoples racial prejudice towards Tieflings is immediately evident as soon as one takes off their hood and shows their demonic features. The fear of their blood and what it would cause if for some reason the demon inside them would awaken is enough for anyone to deeply mistrust Tieflings. Most people simply steer away from them, muttering prayers to the Shiars for protection, but a few are outright violent, assaulting the Tielfings as soon as they realize who they are.
For this reasons Tiefling are now used to cover their features with capes and hoods, trying to conceal their demonic heritage if they have to walk the crowded streets of the bigger cities. They tend to live in hiding, usually in ghettos with other of the less fortunate members of society like other Vestiges, or in smaller remote villages where people tend to be more accepting if one demonstrates their value in helping the settlement survive. Some instead take the road and travel from town to town, surviving by doing whatever job they can find, and moving on as soon as the more hostile people find out their true identity. Finally others, disillusioned and hostile towards the society that treats them like fiends, find their way in the world of crime, raising in ranks in the ruthless underworld thanks to their gifts inherited by their demonic ancestors.
Still some people are more open minded than others and accept the Tieflings company as any other species, learning to appreciate them for who they are and what they do now, rather than their unfortunate heritage. The fortunate Tieflings that find such rare good souls demonstrate unwavering friendship and loyalty to their friends.

Origin/Ancestry

Hrak-Tuzul Vestige