Giant

"Giants now walk where they didn't before, or perhaps they once did long ago. What are they seeking and what shall they find? That is only for Giants to know. Which heroes will rise and which heroes will fall? And who shall be caught in the fray? These questions and ages are food for the sages; for now let us fight for today!"

~ Timbertin of the Star Isles, on The Age of Giants

Giants are a species of humanoid that possess great size and great strength. The appearance of giants varies according to their type, but they are all generally humanoid in appearance, only much, much larger. Their society is notably hierarchal, and giants often vie for control over the Ordning, a hierarchy that determines a giant's place within society. In 3019 JR, the Ordning was broken by Annam the All-Father, which ushered in the Age of Giants - a time in which giants across the North of the Sword Coast came out of hiding in order to wage war upon one another.
Most giants have superior senses to the smaller humanoids. In general, they can see and hear twice as well; the cloud giant, hill giant and stone giant species have a particularly good sense of smell; and they are immune to almost all forms of disease. A female giant has a pregnancy of between nine and fifteen months, depending on the type of giant, and their offspring reaches maturity in around fifty years.
Although their ancestors were immortal, giant life spans decreased with each generation. The life expectancy of a giant in 3019 JR (seven or eight giant generations removed from Annam) is believed to be between 200 and 400 years depending on type, although often storm and stone giants can live several centuries longer on average. The oldest giants are well over 1000 years old, and because their lifespans are so much longer than humans, giants are slow to make decisions and are not easily rushed.

Civilization and Culture

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Giants are intelligent creatures with their own set of cultures and customs. Sophistication varies according to the type of giant (and, as with humans, the individual) but most are at least on a human level of intellect, with the exception of hill giants. Most giants see themselves as superior to all other creatures - the Ordning is one reason for this, but as they are also much larger than many other species, they often talk down to and patronize smaller folk, regarding them as unimportant. Most types of giants live in tribes or families, but their numbers are limited because of their size, and the difficulty of finding plentiful food. Notably, stone giants tend to be an exception to this rule, as they often find greater satisfaction in solitude.
Ancestry is very important to giants. Most giants can trace their lineage back to Annam All-Father, and this is sometimes recited formally when introducing oneself to other giants. Once a relationship had been established between giants, whether it is amiable or hostile, this is almost always continued further down the lineage. Therefore, reciting one's lineage helps to dictate the relationship that would be established. For this reason, Frost giant skalds (the giant equivalent to sages or bards) tend to include lineage in the sagas they write.
Giants have a different sense of good and evil than most other creatures. A "good" (maat) act for a giant is an act that honours a giant's deity or family, displayed bravery, or honours another "good" giant, regardless of the consequences. An "evil" (maug) act is one of cowardice, stealing, betraying a giant's deity, family or trust, or an act that forces a giant from its natural terrain type. Violating the Ordning is also considered a grave evil.
Giants often differ in their religious views between species or even between tribes, having been known to argue and even war with one another over the exact desires of a specific deity. Generally, they all accept Annam the All-Father, the creator of giants, as the top of the Ordning, the giant pantheon. The most revered temple to Annam was the 'Eye of the All-Father' which was a grand complex built atop the Spine of the World, but centuries ago that site fell into disuse and became lost to time. However, giants generally prefer to worship Annam's children, depending on the type of giant that can traced back to them - for hill giants, this is Grolantor; for frost giants, Thrym; for fire giants, Surtur; for stone giants, Skoraeus Stonebones; for cloud giants, Memnor; and for storm giants, Stronmaus.
The leader of the giants is known as the 'Storm King' and they usually live in the underwater court of Maelstrom, one of the last remaining structures of the ancient giant kingdom of Ostaria. The current Storm King is King Hekaton, descendent of Stronmaus, although not long before the Age of Giants had begun, he suddenly disappeared, leaving Maelstrom is disarray. No one seems to know where he is, leading many to believed he is either dead or kidnapped. Before he went missing, he appointed his youngest daughter Serissa to be his heir, although she remains hesitant to take control of his throne without fully understanding what has happened to him.

History

Giants were inhabiting Faerûn before any of the other humanoid or demihuman races. The first of their kind and the source of the entire species were the sons of Annam All-Father and his wife Othea, who settled on the plane to form a vast kingdom known as Ostaria. Each of their mortal sons became the progenitor for a different type of giant.
Not long after the founding of Ostaria, the giants were soon at war with the dragons. This conflict was to last for over a thousand years, and there are differing accounts of its conclusion, although the giants believe it was a result of a stalemate between Annam and the dragon god Bahumat, while dwarven accounts say that the dragons needed to declare peace to conduct a civil war between themselves. Either way, the war led to the destruction of Ostaria, a destruction from which giantkind has yet to recover.

Lifespan

200 - 400 years, although some older giants may live considerably longer

Average Height

15'0" - 25'0", varies depending on type

Average Weight

Around 10,000 lbs