Giant

Overview

The Giants of Athas are one of the oldest races, dating back to the time before Rajaat. Despite a dull, brutish reputation, they have their own culture, clans, and civilization. They are one of the few races that have avoided the rule of the Sorcerer-Kings, a fact they are very proud of and willing to fight to preserve.

Elemental Bonds

A giant is defined by the type of element it bonds to after birth. As a babe, giants are all similar, but as they grow their bonded element shapes and transforms them. Kurul, or clans in the Giant tongue, form on the basis of these elemental bonds, with a single clan often claiming a specific element as their own, though uncommonly, a clan may claim more than one. These bonds are created and preserved by elemental leylines, a naturally occurring and rare concentration of elemental power. Often, it is ethereal and only detectable by those sensitive to the elements, though more powerful leylines can significantly warp the land around them. Giants have perfected the art of capturing the energy of a leyline into large gemstones called loci. With these, a giant clan can carry the elemental power with them when they migrate and are able to focus its energy to accomplish specific tasks. A clan guards its elemental loci with their lives, for it is the source of power for any new giants born into the clan and it sustains much of the elemental energy necessary for a giant's agriculture. Elemental energy can be found in many different forms, but these are the only ones known.
A giant who does not have a bond becomes a Beasthead Giant, an often dumber and more aggressive Giant that attacks nearly anything it sees.

Genasi

Genasi is a catch-all term for non-giant people who, by intent or accident, bonded with an element early in birth. The amount of elemental transformation is dependent on a variety of factors including the strength of the leyline. Weakly bonded Genasi may be able to pass as the race they were born as, and sometimes may not have a significant enough elemental connection to notice. Strongly bonded Genasi can be completely unrecognizable as their birth race and are often ostracized or outright killed. Giants regard Genasi as kindred spirits. Many Genasi who exhibit obvious physical changes find homes among the Giants with whom they share an element.

Clans

Elemental energy can be found in many different forms, but only so many are found in protected loci by the giants. These are the known Kuruls of Athas and their respective elements. Kuruls are extremely territorial and often fight with one another. Rarely will one Kurul trust another Kurul; trade is an uncommon event for Giants. Though Kuruls tend to stay in a specific area, they often send raiding parties out in all directions. Their size allows them to cross most parts of the sea of silt, giving them easy access to Trade House caravans that travel along the coast. Every 77 years (marking a full seofean and endlean cycle), a Kurul migrates to a new area; this is often a bloody affair as the new location is rarely unoccupied. During migration, a Kurul will seek out a new leyline and may change its elemental bonds over the following generations.

Known Giant Clans

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Clan Name	Element	Colloquial Name	Clan Size	Location
Arulat	Fire	Fire Giant	Huge	The Broken Lands
Buda'at	Halite	Salt Giant	Small	Salt Marsh
Eljigin	Sand	Sand Giant	Large	Tablelands
Khabtürkhas	Magma	Magma Giant	Large	Firecrest Steppes
Surji'ut	Sun	Shining Giant	Medium	The Empty Plains
Takhura'ut	Air, Fire	Smoke Giant	Large	Endless Dunes
Uru'ut	Shadow	Shadow Giant	Tiny	Deadlands
Uvas	Fire, Sand	Glass Giant	Medium	The Umber Crags
Yürkin	Sand	Silt Giant	Medium	Sea of Silt Islands

Names

Giant names follow a typical pattern: He/She who . This name is typically earned when the Giant reaches the age of 23. Giants before this are referred to as Son/Daughter of .

Basic Information

Behaviour

All the Giants of Athas share one characteristic, and that is savagery. Though humanoid giants can be congenial and friendly when properly approached, they have short tempers and are very easily agitated. They naturally distrust non-giants, and rarely take time to fix a misunderstanding through any other means than a fierce brawl.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Kuruls are led by a Khan, typically most powerfully elemental bonded Giant. Unlike traditional Athasian nobility, Giants rarely care about familial relations in regard to authority; the whole Kurul views itself as a family. Second to the Khan in authority is the Khasereti, a female giant who oversees the elemental bonding of newborn giants and functions as a spiritual guide for the Kurul. Following the Khasereti in the hierarchy are the Nöker who perform a variety of tasks from military leadership to handling Kurul disputes to overseeing the raw material collection for the Kurul. Below the Nöker are two equivalent classes, the Baghatur or warrior class, and the Drakhan, or craftsmen class; both are equally valued in Giant society. At the lowest rung of society would be the children and any Giants unfit to perform as a higher class.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Giants can be found all across Athas, though they typically stay away from City-State. The exception is near the coast where their larger size allows them to strike from and retreat to the sea of silt unimpeded.

Average Intelligence

Despite the reputation of thier half-bred counter-parts, Giants are of average intelligence. They have a very basic system of runes for written communication and most members of a tribe are taught enough to read basic runes.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Giants often wield powers related to their elemental loci. In addition, many Giants wield basic psionic abilities.

Lifespan

Typically 120-150 years

Average Height

12ft. - 24ft.