Editing Mirrors: Cultural Setting

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=DWARVES=
Dwarves, mostly through longevity, industry, and an inclination to step in and get things done, have come to control much of the Shattered Coast. Dwarves tend to be staunch and loyal, steadfast allies and grudge holding enemies. They are also brutally efficient and will hammer out a truce or work to keep the peace rather than drag out unnecessary and costly hostilities.

==Language==
All Dwarves speak '''High Dwarven''' as well as the '''Dwarven Trade Tongue''' (common).

==Government==
The Dwarven people have a king who is more a spiritual leader than political, though the wise Matron will steer her house on the word of the king if she knows the way the wind blows.

The dwarven king is always a woman, but otherwise may rise from any of the five High Houses.

===The Five High Houses===
The day to day burden of governing the Empire falls to the Matriarchs of the Five High Houses and those they appoint to make decisions for them throughout the Empire. In addition to general duties they all share, each House has a particular demesne that is its personal bailiwick.

:'''House d'Amasku:''' House d'Amasku is in charge of trade and commerce, moving goods throughout the Empire and beyond, including the construction of drays and wagons and the great stoneships. ''The current king is of House d'Amasku.''

:'''House d'Ruvyn:''' House d'Ruvyn is in charge of all things miliary, such as training and arming men and women to fight and planning tactics and strategy. 

:'''House d'Sceva:''' House d'Jaala is in charge of all things mercantile, from crafting and weaving to artisan goods of the Dwarven people.

:'''House d'Caarn:''' House d'Caern is in charge of all things related to building and construction. From lowly roads to the cities of the realm, if it was built, d'Caern saw to its building.

:'''House d'Jaala:''' House d'Jaala is in charage of all things related to life, such as food and water and healing, the growing of crops, the tending of animals, the transfer of water where it is needed, etc.

==Religion==
The Dwarves use no names for their gods, referring to each, instead, by descriptive title. It is notable, probably due to cultural influences from other races, that many of the dwarven pantheon are not depicted as dwarven in stature or form.

===The Wanderer=== 
Tall and grey, the Wanderer is depicted as a lanky male figure in traveling clothes burdened under a pack with a gnarled staff to lean on. The wolves and bears and ravens and other creatures of the wild are known to approach him and whisper secrets and news from afar.

===The Lady=== 
Lithe and young, the Lady is depicted as a young girl clad in a dark cloak with her long blonde hair flowing free behind her and deep, dark eyes. If one looks closely, it is said the twinkling stars can be seen in the depths of her cloak and her eyes.

The Lady bears a pair of bone daggers, stained a deep red along the blades.

===The Smith=== 
Stout and solid, the Smith is a figure in bronze and iron, faceless and massive. The smith is always depicted at his forge and always has a great hammer in his fist.

===The Never===
Depicted as a dwarven lad in cloak and slippers of mist and fog, the Never exists both within and without the bounds of time. The Never bears no weapon or scepter, but his hands are said to be colder than the ice in the depths of the Lost Sea and able to reach through flesh and take hold of the heart within a man.

===The Three===
As implied by their title, the three have three distinct forms. The first that of a young girl clad in flowers and laughter. The second a stately matron heavy with child clad in the green growth of the forest. And finally the last form that of an withered crone clad in bark and moss.
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=HUMANS=
Though the most prolific of the races by far, humans never had the years or the singularity of purpose to ever gain much of a foothold on the world stage. However, humans are extremely adaptable and may be found in nearly every society, though most of them dwell within the Empire.

==Language==
Humans speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) as well as the '''Human Tongue'''. 

'''Note:''' Human language is consistent (with regional accents and dialects) below the clanlands, but the '''Barbarian Tongue''' is an entirely different language.

==Government==
For the most part, humans don't establish their own governments beyond family structure with the addition of judges where there numbers are great enough.

==Religion==
Humans tend to adopt the deities of the people they dwell among.
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=ELVES=
Elves may be found as wanderers throughout the lands of the Shattered Coast and are generally accepted the way a grazing horse might be accepted. Noticed but ignored.

Presumably a land exists where the elven people hold sway, but if it does it is a closely guarded secret.

==Language==
Elves speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) and '''Elvish'''. True Elves also speak the '''Sylvan''' tongue. Half elves speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) and '''Elvish''' and may speak one other language of their choosing.

==Government==
Elves typically submit to the laws of the lands they inhabit. If they have their own government, it is not known.

==Religion==
Elves quietly worship the sister goddesses Maerlwyn and Marwolaeth.

===Maerlwyn===
Taking the aspect of a tree spirit, Maerlwyn is the goddess of endurance and growth, nurturing the elven people wherever they may wander. Three glowing stones circle her head at all times and her feet, like roots, forever sink into the ground.
 
===Marwolaeth===
Lithe and young, Marwolaeth is depicted as a young girl clad in a dark cloak with her long blonde hair flowing free behind her and deep, dark eyes. If one looks closely, it is said the twinkling stars can be seen in the depths of her cloak and her eyes.

Marwolaeth bears a pair of bone daggers, stained a deep red along the blades.

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=GNOMES=
Rare in the lands, most Gnomes dwell beneath the mountains in the Hall of the Mountain King or in the vast expanse or the Hartshorn forest. Gnomes have a very close bond with the Dwarves.

==Language==
Gomes don't have a language of their own. Gnomes speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) and either '''High Dwarven''' or '''Elvish'''

==Government==
Gnomes are loosely governed by a circle of elders in each village or community, but studiously follow and submit to Dwarven law as well.

==Religion==
Gnomes tend to follow Dwarven or Elvish Deities.
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=TIEFLINGS=
Across the great desert, the Tieflings built their own nation hand in hand with the Dragonborn. Though smaller in the area of land it covers, the Confederacy rivals the Empire in resources and power. Tieflings delight in convoluted thought and in pacts and bargains and mental discipline.

==Language==
Tieflings speak '''Dwarven Trade''' and '''Outlander''', the tongue of beings from beyond the planes.

==Government==
The Tiefling Parliament is the main government of the Tiefling Confederacy and act as both lawmakers and judges. The parliament is situated in the city of Adamalasha, with circuit Triunes riding between outlying settlements to relay decrees and settle disputes.

==Religion==
Tieflings adhere to an essentially a monotheistic tradition, with a single all-knowing deity opposed by a lesser being created to test the faithful. Some Tieflings acknowledge a third player on the cosmic stage, but these teachings are considered heretical.

Tieflings of the caravanserai revere the Great Gyre, a spiraling sandstorm afixed in the midst of the great desert.

===Taam'at the Eye===
Taam'at is the all seeing, all knowing creator. Taam'at does not manifest and has neither form nor gender.

===Lok'mal===
Lok'mal appears as a dark, lithe teifling intent on decieving and leading astray the faitful. Lok'mal means Truth Twister.

===Lady Shi=== 
Lithe and young, Lady Shi is depicted as a young girl clad in a dark cloak with her long blonde hair flowing free behind her and deep, dark eyes. If one looks closely, it is said the twinkling stars can be seen in the depths of her cloak and her eyes.

Lady Shi bears a pair of bone daggers, stained a deep red along the blades.

===The Gyre of the Great Sands===
A spirit resides within the sands, and the power of that spirit rises like a stationary twister many miles in diameter, towering over the sands and whipping them in a violent tearing vortex that reaches into the sky.
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=DRAGONBORN=
Dragons in humanoid form, the dragonborn are powerful, physical beings, their colorful scales flashing under the desert sun.

==Language==
Dragonborn speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) and '''Draconic'''. Dragonborn may speak telepathically to any other dragonborn within 30 feet if they have line of sight. 

Dragonborn emit noticeable pheromones that add depth of emotion easily perceived and nuanced by other dragonborn, but other species can smell them too and have a crude shorthand as to what some of the more commonly prominent smells indicate.

Halflings in particular are fond of saying, ''"Nothing smells so good as fresh baked yeast bread, but an angry dragonborn comes close."''

==Government==
Dragonborn submit to the laws of the confederacy in the larger social setting, and act as the enforcers of those laws in the confederacy. On a community level, however, Dragonborn submit religiously to their elders and abide by their words. Personal conflicts among their own are almost always resolved by formal one on one combat.

==Religion==
Dragonborn are a spiritual people without being overly religious and tend to speak to deity respectfully, but as to an equal. They aknowledge the Wyrm, a non-draconian godling known to them as Sik'vodili, and the spirit of the Gyre (See Tiefling Religion).

===The Wyrm===
The prinary deity acknowleged by the Dragonborn is a transcendant draconic being known as the Wyrm. The Wyrm appears as a great sand scaled dragon that breathes black fire.

===Sik'vodili=== 
Lithe and young, Sik'vodili is depicted as a young girl clad in a dark cloak with her long blonde hair flowing free behind her and deep, dark eyes. If one looks closely, it is said the twinkling stars can be seen in the depths of her cloak and her eyes.

Sik'vodili bears a pair of bone daggers, stained a deep red along the blades.
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=HALFLINGS=
Island dwellers, halflings area pastoral folk. Fishermen, herdsmen, and farmers who value family over all else. Halflings share their island home with a race of Half Giants.

==Language==
Halflings do not have their own language. Halflings speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) and '''Giantish'''

==Government==
Halfling government, such as it is is usually an impromptu affair of casual conversation over barley and beer and rich fish stew. Whoever would speak, halfling or giant, may speak and be heard. In matters of judgement, volunteers are selected from among whatever halflings and giants are present at the time (usually 3 or 5 individuals) and their judgement is abided.

Halflings are signatory members  of the Tiefling Confederacy.

==Religion==
Halfling deities tend to manifest as odd folk heroes with lessons to impart.

===Mok Ji===
Jovial and mocking and always of good humor, Mok Ji manifests as a three legged, three armed, three eyed halfling male bearing Lantern, Shears, and Weighted Net. He typically offers a challenge to anyone he encounters.

===Jon Kon===
Jon Kon appears as a young lad in his halfling form, but is a known changeling and will usually appear to folk first as an animal before transforming into a tousel haired boy with a shepherd's crook in one hand and a sling in the other.

If spurred to action, Jon Kon likes to sling acorns that explode when they hit sommething.

===Kuolema=== 
Lithe and young, Kuolema is depicted as a young girl clad in a dark cloak with her long blonde hair flowing free behind her and deep, dark eyes. If one looks closely, it is said the twinkling stars can be seen in the depths of her cloak and her eyes.

Kuolema bears a pair of bone daggers, stained a deep red along the blades.

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=HALF GIANTS=
The Half Giants of the Dragon Archipelago are descended from storm giants, typically growing 9-12 feet. They are by and large loremasters and arcanists. They share their society with the halfling people, and while they do not make as clear a moiety as do Tieflings and Dragonborn, both peoples fill needs the other cannot and share in the joy and labor of community and living.

==Language==
Half Giants speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) and '''Giantish''' as well as '''Primordial'''.

==Government==
Half Giants believe in peaceable agreement between parties and gianatfolk in conflict can sit and talk for days or seasons to come to a workable arrangement. They hold themselves accountable one to another, but they do not practice any form of governance beyond the adult tendency to look out for and teach the young.

==Religion==
Half Giants revere, study, and interact with elemental forces, but they are also fascinated and delighted with the deities observed by the Halfling folk and often pay them similar reverence.

Only '''Kuolema''' baffles them. They are physically unable to hear her name when it is spoken, and though half giants live longer even than Elves, none of their kind remember ever having seen her, though there are giantish recollections of visitation and interaction with both '''Mok Ji''' and '''Jon Kon'''.

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=BARBARIANS=
Barbarians may rightly be divided between the Steppe Barbarians and the Plains Barbarians, but the similarities are enough that it is easiest to discuss them as a single people.

==Language==
Barbarians of the Plains speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) and the '''Barbarian Tongue''' which can be understood by both Plains and Steppe Barbarians. Each Barbarian also speaks the dialect of his particular clan. 

Barbarians of the Steppe typically do not speak '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common), but they speak the '''Barbarian Tongue''' as well as the tongue of their particular tribe. Barbarian PCs can select one bonus language. This language can be '''Dwarven Trade''' (Common) if desired, but does not have to be. Throughout the Empire and the Confederacy, the '''Human''' tongue is the most versatile after '''Dwarven Trade'''.

==Government==
Barbarians employ a tribal style government ruled by a circle of elders and shamans. The clan's leader is invariably a member of his clan's circle and at need may opt to have his voice count twice or count not at all. 

Matters between individual clans are settled by the circle of leaders at Clanclave, which is traditionally held every seven years.

Raids and skirmishes often rage unabated during the intervening years between when a wrong is perceived and when it can be properly settled at Clanclave.

==Religion==
Barbarians mostly revere spirits of nature and each clan is consecrated to a particular totem spirit that they revere and try to emulate.

But there are spirits that transcend even the totems.

Like the Dwarves, Barbarians do not name their deities, preferring descriptive titles.

===Totems===
Each clan pays particular respect to their special totem, but all totems are recognized and appealed to as appropriate.

===Day===
Above the animal totems of the clans, the spirit of Day is regarded as a spirit of truth and revelation.

===Night===
Above the animal totems of the clans, the spirit of Night is regarded as a spirit of mysteries and hidden strength.

===Storms===
The spirit of storms manifests as a raging fury of weather with a great warrior wielding thunder's hammer at the storm's heart.

===Trickster===
The trickster is the spirit of unexpected change, a shapeshifter and manipulator of fire. The fox is the most common form he is found in.

===The Lady===
Lithe and young, the Lady is depicted as a young girl clad in a dark cloak with her long blonde hair flowing free behind her and deep, dark eyes. If one looks closely, it is said the twinkling stars can be seen in the depths of her cloak and her eyes.

The Lady bears a pair of bone daggers, stained a deep red along the blades.

===The Slain God===
The Slain God is a figure out of legend who is said to have sacrificed himself to bring peace between his people and the Empire and is depicted as a figure held by spikes onto the surface of a great stone table.

===The Ancient Mist===
Older than Night or Day, the Ancient Mist is known to have the power to obscure both and to sink into the hearts and souls of any of the People too long caught in her presence.

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