NPC Focus - Pépin Rey

Pépin Rey is a houngan who dwells in a modest shack to the northwest of Ville des Marai, where the western bayou begins to reclaim the land. The structure is unremarkable at a glance - weathered wood, a low porch, and the constant presence of damp air and drifting insects - yet it has become a place of quiet significance. From this isolated edge, Pépin offers guidance and counsel to the vaudouists of the city, serving as a steady voice shaped by experience rather than authority. Though he firmly rejects the title, he is widely regarded as their unofficial leader, a role he neither sought nor fully accepts.

His reputation carries a weight that makes open displays of power unnecessary. Three decades ago, Pépin was responsible for the death of Baron Glegali, an event that has since passed into the realm of story and cautionary tale. Whether spoken of with reverence or unease, the memory of that act lingers, shaping how others approach him. It is not fear alone that surrounds him, but a recognition that his understanding of the loa - and his willingness to act when required - runs deeper than most are comfortable confronting.

Much of Pépin’s time is spent seated on the porch of his shack, where he can often be heard engaged in animated conversation with no visible companion. In truth, these exchanges are with Baron Glegali himself, who lingers as a translucent green figure in tattered finery when he chooses to be seen. Their relationship is defined by constant argument - sharp, relentless, and without resolution. Years of this unseen conflict have worn on Pépin, leaving him wary and easily unsettled in the presence of strangers, his nerves quick to react before his judgment can intervene.

Yet this unease softens once trust is established. Those who approach him without threat soon find a man capable of warmth and surprising gentleness. Pépin becomes protective of those he accepts, offering not only guidance but a quiet, watchful care that extends beyond simple obligation. His manner shifts from guarded to engaged, and while the tension never fully leaves him, it becomes something managed rather than overwhelming.

In his work, Pépin has turned his focus toward the crafting of protective talismans, channeling his knowledge of the loa into objects meant to safeguard those who carry them. These talismans are sold both from his home and through a small shop within the city - Magie des Marais - operated by his son and heir, Jérémie. The most sought-after among them are dedicated to the loa Nieliah, a benevolent presence that manifests as a flowing blue fog, constant and steady like water in motion. Through these creations, Pépin extends his influence into the daily lives of the city, offering protection not through spectacle, but through quiet, enduring craft.

The Nieliah Talisman

NPC Focus - Robert Beaulieu

Robert Beaulieu is the proprietor of Le Café du Ris de Veau - the Sweetbread Café - widely regarded as the most popular café in all of Ville des Marais. Situated a short walk from the Keep, the establishment is open-air and constantly alive with the quiet hum of conversation, clinking cups, and the steady rhythm of daily life. Its reputation rests on its coffee, which ranges from mild and smooth to deeply bitter and intensely strong, with a dark roast blended with chicory standing as the clear favorite among regulars. Alongside this, the café offers a wide selection of pastries and beignets, most generously dusted in powdered sugar, creating a balance of richness and comfort that keeps patrons returning.

In recent months, Robert has introduced a new offering - an elven fritter - which has quickly become a point of pride for the café. Light, subtly sweet, and crafted with careful attention to texture, it has earned him considerable goodwill within the city’s elven community. This addition reflects not only his willingness to adapt, but his instinct for understanding the tastes and sensibilities of those who pass through his doors. The café, in this way, has become more than a place to eat - it is a place where different parts of the city find quiet common ground.

Robert himself is a striking figure, large in stature with long blonde hair, a full beard, and deep brown eyes. At a glance, he appears more suited to the battlefield than behind a counter, a man who might take easily to an axe and a shouted charge. Yet this impression quickly fades upon meeting him. His manner is warm, measured, and quietly attentive, marked by humor and a natural graciousness that puts others at ease. Though he is capable of intimidation when required, he rarely resorts to it, preferring instead to guide his patrons with patience and calm. Still, when situations have demanded it, he has not hesitated to assert control, and those moments have reinforced the understanding that his gentleness is a choice, not a limitation.

Less widely known is the existence of a special offering reserved for those who know to ask. Known as the Court Spécial, this coffee is infused with a potion of Cure Light Wounds, providing both restoration and stimulation in a single cup. Typically served to adventurers or those in particular need, it is priced at thirty gold pieces - notably less than a standard healing potion - making it both a practical and sought-after commodity. The drink itself is potent, carrying roughly twice the strength of a normal coffee, and is not taken lightly by those unaccustomed to its effects.

This unique creation traces back to Robert’s earlier life, when he studied as a druid before turning his focus toward the café. Though he no longer pursues that path formally, the knowledge he gained has proven invaluable, informing both his brewing techniques and his ability to craft such an unusual blend. The continued production of the Court Spécial is supported by a number of anonymous backers, ensuring a steady supply despite the rarity of its components. Its presence has only deepened the café’s reputation, reinforcing its place not just as a center of comfort and community, but as a quietly indispensable fixture within the life of Ville des Marais.

Villain Focus - Papa Abélard Delacroix

Papa Abélard Delacroix is spoken of in Ville des Marais the way one speaks of a distant storm - always present on the horizon, never quite gone, and never quite the same from one telling to the next. Once a man of refinement and influence, he was born into wealth, ceremony, and expectation. He moved easily among the upper houses, his manners impeccable, his tastes cultivated. But beneath the polish, there was a quiet discontent - an unease that the life he had been given was not the life he was meant to live.

That discontent became a doorway. In time, Abélard turned his attention away from salons and society, and toward the hidden currents that flow beneath the city - the bayou, the spirits within it, and the older powers that linger beyond polite recognition. It was there he encountered Beraie, a malevolent loa whose whispers offered not comfort, but possibility. She did not demand devotion in the way of temples. She offered knowledge, and Abélard proved eager to learn.

As his understanding deepened, so too did his detachment from his former life. Titles, estates, and obligations fell away like discarded skin. He abandoned the city’s inner districts and took up residence in the western bayou, where the air hangs thick and the boundary between the living and the dead is thin. There, he became a bokor, practicing rites that walk the line between control and surrender, bargaining with forces that most would never dare acknowledge.

Over more than a decade, Abélard’s dealings grew increasingly perilous. He learned to invite the loa into himself, allowing them to “ride” his body and will, lending him their power in exchange for passage. Each possession granted him strength, knowledge, and influence - but also left something of the loa behind within him. In time, these bargains accumulated, twisting his nature and deepening his mastery over death itself.

Through these rites and sacrifices, Abélard achieved something whispered of only in the darkest corners of Vaudou practice - he crossed the threshold into lichdom. His body became a vessel sustained by will and ritual rather than life, his presence steeped in necromantic power. Yet unlike many who seek such a state, he did not sever his connection to the loa. Instead, he bound them more tightly to himself, becoming both conduit and master of forces that refuse to be easily contained.

Now Papa Abélard Delacroix is no longer merely a man who deals with the dead - he is something far more dangerous. From the depths of the bayou, he gathers corpses and lost souls, raising them into a growing force that moves at his command. His command over the undead is not simply mechanical; it is almost charismatic, as though even death itself finds his presence compelling. His servants are not just animated - they are empowered, carrying a fragment of his will and the dark blessings he has accrued.

His ambitions do not end in the swamp. They reach outward, toward Ville des Marais itself. Whether through direct assault, subtle infiltration, or the quiet spread of undeath beneath the city’s surface, Abélard’s influence is steadily expanding. And as his power grows, so too does the sense that he is no longer content to remain a hidden figure in the bayou. Ville des Marais is not just his past - it may very well become his next conquest.

Papa Abélard’s bayou lies like a wound in the land - an expanse of dark, still water wrapped in a perpetual, green-tinged fog that never quite lifts. The air is thick with the smell of rot and damp earth, heavy enough to taste, as though the bayou itself were exhaling something ancient and unhealthy. Light struggles to pierce the canopy, and what little filters through is warped into sickly hues, casting the water in shifting shades of bruised green and black. Sound carries strangely here - distorted, delayed, or swallowed entirely - so that even the smallest movement feels isolated, watched, and out of place.

Rising from the fetid waters are the trees known as Bête pourrissante du marais, the Black Bête. Their trunks are gnarled and twisted, as though they have grown in defiance of any natural order, their bark dark as tar and slick with moisture. Their roots plunge into the mire like grasping fingers, anchoring them in waters that never still. At times, faint shapes can be seen beneath their branches - too still to be alive, yet too present to be dismissed - while their limbs creak softly in the absence of wind, as if shifting under the weight of unseen burdens. The Black Bête are said to watch, to remember, and to hunger in ways that are not easily explained, marking the boundary between the living world and whatever Abélard has cultivated beneath it.

NPC Focus - Comtesse Marjolaine Laurent

Comtesse Marjolaine Laurent stands at the center of both faith and authority within Ville des Marai, serving as the head of the Temple of Cavdes - the largest and most influential religious institution in the city. Her presence is unmistakable: composed, commanding, and unyielding in matters of conviction. She is not merely a spiritual leader, but a figure of structure and discipline, one whose belief is matched by capability. As Grandmistress of the Order of the Silver Rose, she commands both reverence and obedience, her influence extending well beyond the temple walls into the broader machinery of the city itself.

Her role is not ceremonial. Marjolaine is deeply involved in the day-to-day governance of security throughout Ville des Marai, with particular attention given to the Noble District and its surrounding quarters. Under her oversight, order is maintained with a steady and measured hand. She is known for her fairness - firm where necessary, but never arbitrary. Justice, in her view, is not a privilege afforded by status, but a responsibility applied equally, whether one stands among the city’s elite or labors in its streets. This reputation has earned her both admiration and quiet unease, as few can predict when her scrutiny might fall upon them.

Charisma is one of her greatest tools, though it is wielded with restraint rather than flourish. Marjolaine does not seek to charm so much as to inspire confidence, and those who serve under her do so with a sense of purpose rather than fear. She understands people well - how to guide them, how to correct them, and when to stand aside and allow them to prove themselves. This balance of authority and humanity has made her an anchor within the city’s complex social structure, particularly in times where tensions between classes threaten to surface.

Yet beneath this composed exterior lies a growing awareness of time and its quiet demands. Though still in her mid-30s, Marjolaine has begun to feel the weight of her responsibilities in a more personal way. Questions of legacy have started to press upon her - what will endure when she is gone, and who, if anyone, will be capable of continuing her work with the same clarity and resolve. She has found no successor who meets her standards, a realization that brings with it both frustration and a reluctant sense of isolation.

There is also, increasingly, a quieter longing she has not yet resolved. Marjolaine wishes, though she rarely speaks of it, to one day have a family of her own. It is a desire that stands in tension with her duty, one she has long set aside in service to the city. The faith of Cavdes and the safety of Ville des Marai will always come first - of this she is certain - but the cost of that certainty has begun to reveal itself. It is not doubt that troubles her, but the realization that even unwavering devotion carries its own burdens, and that strength, no matter how resolute, is never entirely without sacrifice.

Miséricorde, Comtesse Laurent's magic longsword.

NPC Focus - Gerde Benthammer

Gerde Benthammer, the dwarven founder of The Bent Hammer metalsmithing shop, is both a master craftswoman and a well-known figure within her district. Born with a bent spine, she endured a difficult youth marked by ridicule, yet she refused to let it define or limit her. Instead, she cultivated a disarming warmth and easy friendliness that has, over time, reshaped how others see her. Where once there was mockery, there is now respect - and in many cases, genuine affection. Her presence in the workshop is constant and steady, her posture bowed but her will unyielding.

Her work speaks with a clarity that requires no embellishment. Armor and weapons bearing her mark are of masterwork quality without exception, crafted with a precision and durability that have earned her a loyal clientele across all classes. Though her skill would justify far higher prices, Gerde charges only modestly above standard rates, making excellence accessible in a way that reflects both confidence and intent. The day-to-day production of standard goods falls to her five apprentices, each working under her close supervision, their efforts guided by her exacting eye.

Gerde runs her shop with a structure that is both practical and quietly generous. Apprentices receive a fair share of the value they produce, along with occasional bonuses that reward initiative and care. Among them are her own children, Niklaus and Juliane, who are held to the same expectations as the others. There is no favoritism in her workshop - only the understanding that skill must be earned, and that reputation is built through consistent effort rather than inheritance.

Despite her approachable demeanor, Gerde is no naïve merchant. She understands the rhythms of the market and the expectations of those who move within it. She is known to offer favorable terms to working-class customers, recognizing the value of loyalty and return business, while charging the wealthy at a level that aligns with their expectations of quality and prestige. Yet even in this, she adheres to a firm personal code: she does not exploit, deceive, or overreach. Every price she sets, regardless of the buyer, remains grounded in fairness.

In this way, Gerde Benthammer embodies a quiet balance between kindness and discipline, generosity and shrewdness. Her shop is not merely a place of trade, but a space where skill is respected, effort is rewarded, and character is revealed over time. Within the broader life of the city, she stands as a reminder that strength need not be loud, and that resilience, when paired with integrity, can reshape not only a life, but the perceptions of all who bear witness to it.

The Bent Hammer

NPC Focus - Sam Smorkle

Sam - “Samantha iws too fowmaw!” - Smorkle is a goblin barmaid at one of the busiest and most beloved taverns in Ville des Marai: L’elfe Dragueur. To most, she is little more than a cheerful nuisance - overworked, underpaid, and endlessly chattering in a childish, almost ridiculous manner.

That is precisely how she prefers it.

Behind the wide grin and playful affectation lies one of the most informed minds in the city. Sam is exceptionally well-educated by goblin standards - and, truthfully, by most standards - and operates as one of the most effective information brokers in Ville des Marai. She deliberately masks her intelligence beneath a veneer of silliness, speaking in an exaggerated, almost infantile cadence that causes most to underestimate her within seconds.

Those who make that mistake rarely realize it.

Sam’s true talent lies not just in what she knows, but in how quickly she learns. She reads people with unsettling accuracy - posture, tone, coin, and intent all weighed in an instant. Within moments of meeting someone, she has already decided exactly what kind of information they deserve.

Where she comes from is a mystery she guards fiercely. Some whisper she hails from the Breakwater tribe far to the west, but Sam neither confirms nor denies it. If she knows the truth - and she almost certainly does - it is not something that can be bought.

Despite her profession, Sam is not cruel.

Those of good heart will find her surprisingly generous, often providing remarkably accurate and useful information for a fair price - or sometimes less than one. Those with darker intentions, however, receive exactly what they pay for… and nothing more. Critical details have a way of slipping through the cracks: missing numbers, unmentioned traps, conveniently overlooked dangers. Enough truth to be useful. Enough omission to be dangerous.

A Typical Exchange:

Hamelin Oakencask and Perrin Émile sit at a small, worn table, the din of the tavern swelling around them. Sam approaches with a bright, toothy smile, her sharp eyes flicking between them - measuring, weighing.

A dwarf and a cleric. Clean gear. Steady posture.

Good sort, she decides.

“We’d like two large ales,” Hamelin says, placing five gold pieces on the table, “and a bit of information.”

“Suwe, two awes,” Sam chirps, rocking slightly on her heels. “Whawt wouwd uwu wike tuwu know?”

Hamelin blinks, visibly thrown, but presses on. “Do you know anything about that old house up on the hill?”

“Oh! Tthawt owd house iws haunted!” she says, eyes widening theatrically. “Uwu down’t wawnt tuwu gow up thewe!”

Perrin calmly places two more gold coins on the table. “I’d very much like to hear about these ghosts.”

Sam glances at the coins… then at the pair. Slowly, subtly, she raises three fingers.

Perrin sighs and adds one more gold.

The coins vanish into her pouch in a single smooth motion. She leans in slightly, still smiling.

“Thewe awe vewy eviw ghosts up in thawt house thawt wiww scawe uwu siwwy! Be vewy cawefuw if uwu gow thewe, ow uwu might poop youw pants!”

She pauses, wiping the table with a rag, her voice dropping - sudden, quiet, razor-sharp.

“It’s a front. Mixed band - human pirates, northern coast. Backed by kuo-toa mercenaries. They fake the hauntings to keep locals away. Leader’s a fat orc - Captain Garsh. Only access to their sea caves is through a trapped floor entrance in the northwest corner of the house. Under an old bed. Watch your step.”

Just as quickly, the mask snaps back into place.

Hamelin and Perrin stare, stunned.

Two more coins hit the table.

Sam scoops them up as she turns away, already calling over her shoulder:

“Two fwosty awes coming wight up! Hwave fun pwaying wit da ghosts!”

NPC Focus - Marquise Désirée Fournier

Mayor Marquise Désirée Fournier, widow of the late Mayor Marquise Gaston Fournier, now stands as both the heart and voice of Ville des Marai. Though she was never formally elected, the city embraced her without hesitation - lifted into power by equal parts public adoration and shared mourning. What began as sympathy has since transformed into genuine loyalty, for Désirée has proven herself a ruler not of title, but of presence.

Under her guidance, the city has taken on a more generous rhythm. Most notably, she has granted the working class a weekly day of rest - an unheard-of indulgence in many lands, yet here it is celebrated as an extension of the city’s deeply rooted culture of revelry and resilience. Even the nobility, ever watchful of their own interests, have accepted this decree - not as a loss, but as a contribution to the living spirit that defines Ville des Marai.

Unlike many who govern from balconies and behind closed doors, Désirée walks her city.

She drifts through lantern-lit streets and river-worn alleys alike, speaking with dockhands, merchants, and aristocrats with equal ease. One evening she may be found beneath silk-draped balconies, trading pleasantries with nobles; the next, laughing openly in a crowded tavern, powdered sugar clinging to her lips as she enjoys fresh beignets and leads a chorus of sailors in song. Her dignity never falters - it simply adapts, as fluid and natural as the waters that cradle the city itself.

She is rarely alone.

At her side stands Timothée, her towering half-ogre bodyguard - a silent, immovable presence. Clad in a subtly enchanted breastplate and bearing a heavy war pick, he is less a man and more a warning made flesh. Where Désirée invites, Timothée ensures.

Gaston Fournier, in contrast, was a man remembered more for absence than action.

Known derisively as Gaston le Gris, his rule was marked by stagnation and indecision. The city endured him rather than followed him, and in the end, it was that very lack of presence that sealed his fate. He was found dead in his chambers, poisoned by an unknown hand.

What shocked the city more than his death, however, was the message left behind.

Two lead coins had been placed over his eyes.

A cruel inversion of tradition - where nobles are sent to the afterlife with gold to pay Le Passeur, Gaston was given the fare of a commoner. The implication was unmistakable.

The nobility howled for justice. Many demanded swift and brutal retribution, convinced the act must have been carried out by a peasant emboldened by resentment. Désirée, newly elevated and not yet crowned by time, refused them.

“No soul will pay for a crime born of ignorance,” she declared.

No arrests were made.

In the weeks that followed, seven peasants were found murdered under mysterious circumstances. Whether vengeance, silence, or something more calculated, no culprit has ever been named - and Désirée has never spoken publicly on the matter again.

Since Gaston’s passing, many have sought her hand - nobles, merchants, and opportunists alike - but all have been turned away.

“What my husband gave me in our life together cannot be recreated,” she has said. “I will not diminish it by pretending otherwise.”

The two bore no children, yet Désirée is rarely without them.

She is often seen in the streets, crouched to meet a child at eye level, speaking to them as though they were dignitaries. For the “honor” of their conversation, she gifts the child a silver piece, and their guardian a gold. What might seem extravagant elsewhere has, in Ville des Marai, become something more - an unspoken ritual of goodwill.

Through these small, deliberate acts, Désirée has achieved something few rulers ever do:

She is not merely respected.

She is beloved.

Color Focus - Religion and Spirit Worship

Deity Worship

Iyja - Maiden of winter

The people of Ville des Marie are quite religious, and follow many Gods and Goddesses. While there are quite a few churches in the city, certain Gods and Goddesses are considered too dangerous and there are no official churches that have been built in their name. These "outlaw" deities still have plenty of worshipers, but their worship is kept secret for the most part. They are denoted with • Bullet Points on the following list.

Amtia - Goddess of love and childbirth. Alignment: Chaotic Good. Favored weapon: None. Domains: Family, Good, Pleasure
Amtia’s worship is warm, intimate, and ever-present in the quiet corners of life. Her shrines are adorned with flowers, soft fabrics, and tokens from mothers and lovers alike. Midwives serve as her de facto clergy, and nearly every birth is accompanied by whispered prayers in her name. Her followers believe love is a wild, sacred force that resists structure, and her rites often involve private vows, shared offerings, and the binding of lives together through simple, heartfelt acts.

Aurelisse - Lady of the Living Earth, goddess of healing, marsh, and ancestral land. Alignment: Neutral Good. Favored weapon: Sickle. Domains: Healing, Plant, Community
Aurelisse is revered in the quiet, living spaces of the world - marshlands, cypress groves, and the fertile edges where water meets soil. Among Cajun communities, she is understood not as a distant deity, but as a spirit present within the land itself, honored through humble shrines of herbs, bone, and woven reeds. Her followers, known as traiteurs or traiteuses, practice healing as a balance between body, spirit, and environment, drawing on generations of inherited knowledge, natural remedies, and ritual tradition. Those who live in harmony with Aurelisse are said to receive her quiet blessings of restoration, while those who exploit the land without respect risk inviting slow and certain retribution from the very earth beneath them.

Bridia - Goddess of sacrifice and protection. Alignment: Lawful Good. Favored weapon: None Domains: Denial, Devotion, Protection
Bridia’s temples are austere sanctuaries - strong stone, steady candlelight, and an atmosphere of solemn duty. Her clergy are caretakers of the vulnerable, overseeing orphanages, shelters, and places of refuge. Worship revolves around sacrifice - fasting, vows, and the surrender of personal comfort for the sake of others. It is widely believed that Bridia listens most closely when devotion costs something real.

Cavdes - God of paladins. Alignment: Lawful Good. Favored weapon: Longsword. Domains: Exorcism, Good, Sun
Cavdes’ churches gleam with polished steel and radiant light. His followers - especially paladins - live lives of strict discipline, blending martial training with constant prayer. They serve as protectors and judges within the city, admired for their righteousness but often feared for their severity. To Cavdes’ faithful, evil is not theoretical - it is an enemy to be found and destroyed.

Danreus - God of the journey and animals. Alignment: Neutral Good. Favored weapon: Staff. Domains: Animal, Travel, Wood
Danreus has no true temples - only roadside shrines, marked trees, and offerings left at crossroads. Travelers, hunters, and laborers favor him, and his clergy are wanderers who rarely stay in one place long. His faith teaches that life is movement, and that to remain still too long is to invite decay of the spirit.

• Edmos - God of power and domination. Alignment: Lawful Evil. Favored weapon: Mace. Domains: Domination, Evil, Law
Edmos is worshiped behind closed doors and beneath polite society. Nobles, crime lords, and the quietly ambitious whisper prayers to him in private. His rites focus on control - of others, of circumstance, of the self. His followers believe the world is divided between those who rule and those who are ruled, and that mercy is merely weakness dressed as virtue.

Gavren - God of harvest, soil, and the turning seasons. Alignment: Neutral Good. Favored weapon: Scythe. Domains: Plant, Renewal, Community
Gavren’s worship is humble and cyclical, strongest in the fields beyond the city but present in every kitchen and marketplace. His shrines are made of earth, grain, and simple tools, often rebuilt with each season. Farmers, laborers, and cooks alike honor him, thanking him for each meal. His faith teaches patience - that all things grow, wither, and return. Festivals in his name mark planting and harvest, filled with shared meals and communal labor, reinforcing the idea that survival is a collective effort.

• Idros - God of luck and chaos. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral. Favored weapon: None. Domains: Chaos, luck, Trickery
Idros thrives in gambling halls, festivals, and back-alley games of chance. His symbol is often scratched into surfaces or carried as a hidden charm. Worship is less about prayer and more about risk - dice rolls, wagers, and reckless decisions made in his name. To follow Idros is to trust that fortune favors the bold, or at least the entertaining.

• Iyja - Maiden of winter. Mother of Northmen. Alignment: Neutral Evil. Favored weapon: Icicle. Domains: Death, Ice, Trickery
Iyja’s worship is cold, quiet, and deeply unsettling. Her followers embrace hardship as truth, often enduring freezing conditions or emotional detachment as acts of devotion. Originating from northern traditions, her faith teaches that warmth and compassion are illusions, and that only endurance and survival are real.

• Khorus - God of evil and destruction. Alignment: Lawful Evil. Favored weapon: Flaming morningstar. Domains: Destruction, Evil, Fire
Khorus is worshiped by zealots who see destruction as a sacred act. His rituals are violent and symbolic - burning, breaking, and unmaking. His followers believe that all things are temporary, and that only through destruction can something stronger emerge. His presence in the city is rare, but catastrophic when revealed.

Lunemère - The moon mother. Alignment: True Neutral. Favored weapon: Sickle. Domains: Healing, Knowledge, Magic, Moon
Lunemère’s worship is subtle and introspective. Her temples are quiet, bathed in soft light, and filled with whispered prayers. She governs mystery, intuition, and hidden truths. Scholars, healers, and mages often follow her, seeking understanding beyond the obvious.

Marelle - Goddess of rivers, storms, and the drowning deep. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral. Favored weapon: Trident. Domains: Water, Storm, Travel
Marelle is both giver and taker, worshiped along docks, riverbanks, and in flood-prone districts. Offerings are cast directly into the water - coins, flowers, or even blood in desperate times. Sailors and rivermen pray for her favor, while entire neighborhoods fear her wrath during storm season. Her moods are unpredictable, and her clergy reflect this - some gentle guides of the current, others wild prophets of the coming flood. To cross water without acknowledging Marelle is considered a dangerous arrogance.

Maxdal - God of bards, music and communication. Alignment: Chaotic Good. Favored weapon: None. Domains: Charm, Communication, Knowledge
Maxdal lives in laughter, song, and whispered secrets. His “temples” are taverns, stages, and street performances. His clergy are performers and messengers, believing that stories carry truth across time. A well-told tale or perfectly delivered joke is considered an act of worship.

Olene - Goddess of honor and strength. Alignment: Lawful Neutral. Favored weapon: Longsword. Domains: Exorcism, Law, Strength
Olene’s faith is disciplined and precise. Strength is measured not just in muscle, but in restraint and adherence to a code. Her followers often act as duelists, guards, or arbiters, believing honor must be upheld constantly through action, not merely claimed.

Omtia - Goddess of home and hearth. Alignment: Neutral Good. Favored weapon: None. Domains: Good, Healing, protection
Omtia’s worship is quiet but universal. Nearly every home contains a small shrine to her, and daily acts - cooking, cleaning, caring - are considered sacred. Her clergy blend seamlessly into the population, as her faith teaches that the home itself is holy ground.

• Selkyr - The Laughing Mask, god of deception, wit, and hidden truths. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral. Favored weapon: Dagger. Domains: Trickery, Charm, Chaos
Selkyr is a trickster with a personality - bold, clever, and dangerously charming. His symbol, a split-faced mask, appears in theater troupes, con artists’ rings, and whispered jokes that carry more truth than they should. Unlike Idros, who governs chance, Selkyr governs intentional deception. His followers prize cleverness over luck, and many see lies as tools rather than sins.

Solpère - The sun father. Alignment: True Neutral. Favored weapon: Spear. Domains: Balance, Fire, Sun, War
Solpère represents balance through force and inevitability. His temples are grand and aligned with the cycles of the sun. His clergy often serve in military or governing roles, teaching that war and destruction are necessary components of cosmic balance.

• The Nameless One - Diety of corruption and decay. Alignment: Chaotic Evil. Favored weapon: None. Domains: Corruption, Destruction, Pestilence
The Nameless One is never openly worshiped. Its presence is felt in rot, sickness, and quiet degradation. Hidden cults embrace decay as the ultimate truth, believing all things must break down. Their rituals are secretive, grotesque, and often buried beneath the city itself.

• Tielia - Mother of pain. Alignment: Lawful Evil. Favored weapon: Dagger. Domains: Denial, Evil, Pain
Tielia’s followers believe pain reveals truth. Some are self-mortifying ascetics, while others inflict suffering in controlled, ritualistic ways. Pain is clarity, devotion, and purification. Whispers suggest her influence can be found in interrogation chambers and darker corners of justice.

Tyzotl - Diety of magic and mystery. Alignment: Chaotic Neutral. Favored weapon: None. Domains: Confusion, Magic, Mysticism
Tyzotl’s worship is unpredictable and experimental. His followers are mages and seekers who treat magic as an ever-changing question rather than a tool. Rituals are rarely repeated, and discovery itself is the highest form of devotion.

Uhther - God of war and judgement. Alignment: Lawful Neutral. Favored weapon: Two-handed sword. Domains: Inquisition, Law, War
Uhther’s temples double as courts, and his clergy act as judges and executioners. Justice is not kind - it is precise. His followers deliberate carefully, but once judgment is made, it is carried out without hesitation or mercy.

• Uthgon - Barbarian god of war and destruction. Alignment: True Neutral. Favored weapon: Bearded Axe. Domains: Death, Destruction, War
Uthgon’s worship is primal and visceral, often brought into the city by outsiders. Strength and survival define his faith. His followers respect power above all else and view civilization as fragile, something that can be torn down at any moment.

Valtrenne - Goddess of wealth, trade, and contracts. Alignment: Lawful Neutral. Favored weapon: Dagger. Domains: Commerce, Law, Trickery
Valtrenne’s worship is woven into markets, counting houses, and whispered negotiations behind closed doors. Her shrines are small but meticulously maintained - scales, ledgers, and coins arranged with ritual precision. Merchants, bankers, and smugglers alike invoke her, for she governs not morality, but agreement. A contract made in her name is considered binding beyond law, and breaking such an oath is said to invite ruin both financial and personal.

• Vorathis - Keeper of forbidden knowledge and terrible truths. Alignment: Neutral Evil. Favored weapon: None. Domains: Knowledge, Darkness, Madness
Vorathis is not widely named, and those who speak of him do so carefully. He represents knowledge that costs something - sanity, safety, or soul. His worship is secretive, often taking place in hidden libraries, sealed chambers, or beneath the city itself. Scholars, occultists, and the dangerously curious are drawn to him, seeking answers that should perhaps remain unknown.

• Vyrtia - Goddess of death and the undead. Alignment: Neutral Evil. Favored weapon: Dagger. Domains: Death, Necromancy, Undead
Vyrtia’s worship is a quiet, lingering dread. Her followers do not fear death - they manipulate it. Some funerary rites secretly invoke her, ensuring the dead do not fully rest. Necromancers revere her openly, while others invoke her in fearful secrecy, knowing death is never truly the end under her gaze.

Non-human peoples of Ville des Marie are free to worship the same gods as the human population, and many do so when it suits their lives within the city. An elf might offer a quiet prayer to Amtia at a birth, a dwarf may invoke Bridia in a moment of sacrifice, and a halfling might keep a small shrine to Omtia within their home. The loa, too, are open to them, and it is not uncommon to see non-humans participating in shared rites, festivals, and quiet devotions alongside their human neighbors.

However, most non-human races remain rooted in the faiths of their own kind, worshiping the deities as they are known in the outer planes and across other worlds. For example, elves revere Corellon Larethian, dwarves honor Moradin, and orcs follow Gruumsh, among many others. These gods are not seen as foreign by their followers, but as the true and ancient powers of their people, whose names and forms have endured across planes of existence. In this way, Ville des Marie becomes a place of overlapping faiths - where human gods, loa, and the divine patrons of other races all coexist, sometimes in harmony, and sometimes in quiet tension. These "other gods," as they are known, rarely have temples in the city and are usually honored by small home altars of their faith.

Agnostics and even true atheists do exist within Ville des Marie, but they are exceedingly rare, for the presence of the gods is not a matter of distant faith but observable reality. Miracles are witnessed, divine magic is wielded openly, and the influence of higher powers is felt in both subtle and undeniable ways. Those who deny or question the existence of the gods are often seen not as heretical, but as willfully blind, stubborn, or deeply skeptical of interpretation rather than truth itself - for while few can deny that something answers prayers, not all agree on what those powers truly are.

Creature Worship

Across the marshes and forgotten edges of the world, the thinking creatures that dwell beyond the reach of cities - lizardfolk, ogres, kuo-toa, and countless others - do not bend knee to the structured pantheons of humankind, but instead venerate older, narrower powers through the guidance of shamans rather than formal clergy. These spiritual leaders do not preach doctrine so much as interpret signs - ripples in black water, the behavior of beasts, the slow decay of things left undisturbed - and from these omens they speak the will of their patrons, whether god, spirit, or something less easily named. Their faiths are intimate, territorial, and often bound to specific places or conditions, unlike the broad, ordered worship of the civilized world. Those few among these creatures who adopt the human pantheon are typically seen as aberrant by their kin, for to follow such distant, structured deities requires a rejection of the immediate, living presence of their own primal powers, and an abandonment of the older truths that lurk in the wild and patient places of the world.

• Sstheres - Demi-Goddess of the Still Mire. Alignment: Neutral Evil. Favored Weapon: Heavy Mace (often shaped like a knotted root or bone cudgel). Domains: Water, Death, Evil, Plant 

Sstheres has no temples in the traditional sense - only places where the land has already begun to forget itself. Half-sunken towers, drowned roads, stagnant pools choked with reeds, and long-abandoned structures claimed by slow water all serve as her sanctuaries. Her followers do not build; they inherit what the world has discarded, believing that anything left behind has already been chosen by their goddess. Once a patient hunt-mother among lizardfolk, Sstheres learned that prey did not need to be chased when the world itself could be allowed to close around it. In time, she turned that same philosophy toward the divine, and when the greater gods looked elsewhere, she quietly claimed a fragment of their power without challenge or proclamation. Her doctrine teaches that urgency is weakness and that all things eventually slow, falter, and sink - and that true power lies not in force, but in the certainty of waiting until resistance no longer matters.

Vaudou

Roughly ¼ of the population of Ville des Marie follow a belief known as Vaudou. Vaudou is a worldview encompassing philosophy, medicine, justice, and religion. Its fundamental principle is that everything is spirit. Humans are spirits who inhabit the visible world. The unseen world is populated by loa (spirits), mystè (mysteries), anvizib (the invisibles), zanj (angels), and the spirits of ancestors and the recently deceased.

The primary goal and activity of Vaudou is to sevi loa (“serve the spirits”) - to offer prayers and perform various devotional rites directed at Kiliitu and also particular spirits in return for health, protection, and favor. Spirit possession plays an important role in the religion, as it does in many other world religions. During religious rites, believers sometimes enter a trancelike state in which the devotee may eat and drink, perform stylized dances, give supernaturally inspired advice to people, or perform medical cures or special physical feats; these acts exhibit the incarnate presence of the loa within the entranced devotee, and the loa are inferred to be "riding" the devotee. Vaudou ritual activity (e.g., prayer, song, dance, and gesture) is aimed at refining and restoring balance and energy in relationships between people and the spirits of the unseen world.

Vaudou is an oral tradition practiced by extended families that inherit familial spirits, along with the necessary devotional practices, from their elders. In the cities, local hierarchies of priestesses or priests (houngan or mombo), “children of the spirits” (ounsi), and ritual drummers (ountògi) comprise more formal “societies” or “congregations” (sosyete). In these congregations, knowledge is passed on through a ritual of initiation (kanzo) in which the body becomes the site of spiritual transformation. There is no centralized hierarchy, no single leader, and no official spokesperson, but various groups sometimes attempt to create such official structures. There are also secret societies, called Bizango or Sanpwèl, that perform a religio-juridical function. Another practitioner of Vaudou is the bokor. Bokors are often associated with the creation of zombies and various other undead, and as such are reviled by the common peasant. It's not unusual for a bokor to have a small army of zombies accompanying them, much to the disconcertion of those nearby.

A Houngan

Vaudou teaches that there are over a thousand loa (or lwa). They are regarded as the intermediaries of Kiliitu, the supreme creator deity in Vaudou. The sage Clément Gagneux argued that by learning about the various loa, practitioners come to understand the different facets of Kiliitu. There are no buildings dedicated to the loa, and religious services always take place outside of the city walls. This is done out of necessity, as vaudouists and deity worshipers are sometimes at odds. Vaudouists are tolerated by law, and visual acts of intolerance are illegal (bigotry runs rampant, however, in the form of higher prices, lower wages, being ignored or passed over for important functions, etc).

The loa can offer help, protection, and counsel to humans, in return for ritual service. They are thought of as having wisdom that is useful for humans, although they are not seen as moral exemplars which practitioners should imitate. Each loa has its own personality, and is associated with specific colors, days of the week, and objects. The loa can be either loyal or capricious in their dealings with their devotees; Vodouists believe that the loa are easily offended, for instance if offered food that they dislike. When angered, the loa are believed to remove their protection from their devotees, or to inflict misfortune, illness, or madness on an individual.

A Bokor

Practitioners believe that some Vaudou priests and priestesses became loa after death (such as Baron Glegali), or that certain talismans are loa. Vaudouists often refer to the lwa residing in "Jainea", but this is not intended as a precise geographical location. Many loa are also understood to live under the water, at the bottom of the sea or in rivers (such as the famed Rivière Tumultueuse). Vaudouists believe that the loa communicate with humans through dreams and through the possession of human beings.

During rituals, the loa are summoned through designs known as veve. These are sketched out on the floor of the ceremonial space using cornmeal, ash, coffee grounds, or powdered eggshells.

Various Real-World Veve

For game purposes, the multiple types loa are treated as having purviews with the devotee, and as such have many more "domains" than a standard god or goddess do. The devotee is able to honor and bargain with multiple loa, and as such have access to different domains depending on the type of loa.

Loa, Benevolent: Any good-aligned devotee. Domains: Good, Healing, Love, Pleasure, Protection.

• Names: Pyriel, Baltha, Alik, Kielik, Rieliah, Bariel, Nieliah, Kasdiel, Banael, Binem

Loa, Impartial: Any neutrally-aligned devotee. Domains: Balance, Luck, Magic, Mysticism, Travel.

• Names: Kiliitu, Adudis, Inyammid, Suuhazuu, Aralit, Immabius, Tana, Buni, Nyasamsu, Marduga

Loa, Malevolent: Any evil-aligned devotee. Domains: Bestial, Death, Destruction, Evil, Pain.

• Names: Beraie, Anzus, Aras, Vapar, Lithora, Dumplorandt, Mère Grosse, Vapul, Sadya, Black Bête (replace Bestial with Plant)

Loa, Orderly. Any lawful-aligned devotee. Domains: Domination, Inquisition, Knowledge, Law, Strength.

• Names: Lili, Ninki, Lila, Ayastal, Mammyl, Puaba, Ninu, Sabi, Nisab, Ammere

Loa, Turbulent: Any chaotic-aligned devotee. Domains: Chaos, Confusion, Fire, Shadow, Trickery.

• Names: Baron Glegali, Diranwe, Gladuili, Papa Loup Blanc, Erdios, Eneler, Celinerdh, Lineli, Thranwe, Gwindeli

Loa, Benevolent

The Benevolent Loa are among the most widely approached spirits, their presence felt in the soft glow of candlelight, the quiet comfort of a healing touch, and the laughter shared between lovers and friends. They are said to dwell in places where warmth gathers - kitchens filled with simmering pots, shaded porches where neighbors speak in gentle tones, and the quiet sanctity of a healer’s space. Their names are whispered with reverence and gratitude: Pyriel, Baltha, Alik, Kielik, and their kin. These Loa are invoked for matters of the heart and body alike, for protection against harm, and for blessings that bring people together rather than divide them.

Practitioners who serve these spirits often describe their influence as subtle but persistent, like a steady hand guiding one away from danger without drawing attention to itself. Offerings are simple - fresh flowers, clean water, sweet foods, and honest words - yet sincerity is paramount. It is believed that the Benevolent Loa favor those who act with compassion even when no one is watching, rewarding such devotion not with grand miracles, but with small, meaningful moments of grace. In times of hardship, they are the first called upon, for their nature is to mend what is broken and soothe what is troubled.

Loa, Impartial

The Impartial Loa are the wanderers of balance, neither swayed by the warmth of kindness nor the chill of cruelty. They are said to move like the turning of the seasons - inevitable, unyielding, and without favor. Their presence is felt in chance encounters, in the roll of a fortunate die, in the strange synchronicity of events that guide travelers along unseen paths. Names such as Kiliitu, Adudis, Inyammid, and others are spoken in tones of cautious respect, for these spirits are not concerned with morality, but with equilibrium and the unseen threads that bind fate together.

Those who seek the Impartial Loa often do so for guidance in uncertain times, when decisions carry weight and outcomes remain unclear. Offerings to them are symbolic - coins cast into running water, maps marked with both known and unknown paths, or the lighting of a candle at a crossroads. They are believed to answer not with direct intervention, but with signs: a sudden gust of wind, a chance meeting, or an intuition that defies explanation. To follow their guidance is to accept that all things come with balance, and that fortune today may be offset by loss tomorrow.

Loa, Malevolent

The Malevolent Loa are feared, even among those who claim to understand them. Their influence is said to linger in places where suffering festers - battlefields long abandoned, alleys where cruelty thrives, and the dark corners of the human heart. Names like Beraie, Anzus, Aras, and Vapar are spoken with caution, often only in ritual or in desperate plea. These spirits are associated with destruction, pain, and the raw, untamed forces that tear down rather than build.

Serving the Malevolent Loa is not undertaken lightly. Those who serve them often seek power, revenge, or domination, and their rituals reflect these intentions - marked by harsh offerings, iron, ash, and blood. It is said that these spirits do not grant favors freely, but instead demand payment in suffering, either from the petitioner or from those around them. Yet, even among their dread followers, there is a belief that these Loa operate with a cruel kind of honesty: they do not deceive, nor do they disguise their nature. What they give is destruction, and what they take is often more than expected.

Loa, Orderly

The Orderly Loa stand as the enforcers of structure and law, their presence felt in the rigid lines of a courthouse, the stern discipline of a well-trained guard, and the careful preservation of knowledge. They are the unseen architects of hierarchy, the voices that demand obedience, and the spirits that reward strength through discipline. Names such as Lili, Ninki, Lila, Ayastal, and Ammere are invoked by those who seek control, clarity, and authority in a chaotic world.

Followers of these Loa often adhere to strict codes, believing that order is the foundation upon which all meaningful progress is built. Offerings are precise and deliberate - objects arranged with care, rituals performed without deviation, and words spoken exactly as prescribed. The Orderly Loa are said to bless those who uphold rules and punish those who break them, not out of cruelty, but from a belief that order must be maintained at all costs. To invoke them is to invite scrutiny, but also the promise of strength, stability, and the certainty that comes from knowing one’s place in the world.

Loa, Turbulent

The Turbulent Loa are the storm-bringers, the tricksters, and the unpredictable forces that defy structure and expectation. They are found in the flicker of firelight, the shifting of shadows, and the sudden burst of chaos that disrupts even the most carefully laid plans. Their names - Diranwe, Gladuili, Erdios, Celinerdh, etc - are spoken with both reverence and caution, for their nature is as wild as the elements they embody.

Those who honor the Turbulent Loa embrace uncertainty, seeking freedom from constraint and the thrill of the unknown. Their rituals are often spontaneous, filled with laughter, music, and acts of mischief or defiance. Offerings may be unconventional - tokens of chaos, objects of transformation, or even acts that disrupt the ordinary flow of life. It is believed that these Loa reward creativity, boldness, and those willing to embrace risk, but they are equally known for turning fortune on its head without warning. To follow them is to walk a path without certainty, where every step may lead to revelation - or ruin.

READER NOTIFICATION

Before anything else, the author wants to be clear that this work is not intended to mock, belittle, or misrepresent Voodoo (Vodou (Haitian), Vodun (Benin/West African), Vodoun, Voudou, Vudu, Voudou, and Vodon) or any of the real-world spiritual traditions that inspire these ideas. These are living belief systems that are meaningful to real people, and they deserve to be treated with absolute respect. Anything inspired by those traditions in this material is done with admiration and a genuine appreciation for the depth, beauty, and mystery they carry.

This setting uses the idea of loa and related concepts as a way to explore themes of connection, nature, spirit, and the unseen forces that shape a world. It’s meant to capture a sense of wonder - of a world where the spiritual is present, active, and woven into everyday life. That sense of magic and reverence is the goal, not imitation, mockery or commentary on or of any real-world practice.

At the end of the day, this is a work of fiction meant to enrich a game, not to define or replace any real belief. The hope is that it can inspire a sense of awe and curiosity, while still remaining mindful and respectful of the traditions that helped inspire it in the first place.

In the world of Ville des Marai, the blending of belief systems that is often seen in real-world traditions did not need to occur. The societies that shaped this setting developed with a strong foundation of mutual tolerance and coexistence, allowing different spiritual paths to exist openly and without the need to disguise or merge their identities. As a result, faiths that might otherwise have been forced together remained distinct, each preserving its own symbols, practices, and understanding of the divine.

This means that the deity worship and spirit traditions of this world do not borrow from one another in order to survive or be recognized. Instead, they stand side by side, each respected in its own right by those who follow it. While these belief systems may occasionally come into contact or even conflict, those moments are generally limited in scope - small tensions, differences in custom, or social frictions - rather than large-scale struggles for dominance or survival. Most of the time, they simply coexist, each continuing its own practices without interference.

Because of this, syncretism never became a necessary or defining feature of the spiritual landscape. The absence of forced blending allows each tradition to remain whole, maintaining its own internal logic and cultural meaning. This creates a world where multiple belief systems live in parallel, and where individuals are free to follow their chosen path without needing to reconcile it with another. The result is a setting where spiritual diversity is not the product of compromise, but of longstanding respect and coexistence.

Color Focus - Humanoid Races of Ville des Marai

    Humanoids of all sort can be found in Ville des Marai. An individual's skin color simply denotes where upon the globe they originally stem from, with lighter skinned individuals coming from the more northernly lands and dark skinned individuals coming from the equator (melanin protects the skin from the rays of the sun, causing it to be darker). The various different types within each race that can be found are as follows (and please note that there are zero physical, mental or social differences between each type within the human races, and as such the basic human character race applies to all):

Human

• Créole - The créole are a beautiful blending of northerners that come from lands far across the great Atlantyke Sea and those from the southern reaches that settled in the area. They often have dark to light brown skin, bright blue, brown or green eyes and curly dark hair. Their accent is considered to be quite musical, and most names of people, places and things come from their original language (known as Franche).

• Cajun - The cajun are the original Northern human inhabitants of the area, coming from the lands across the sea as exiles from various wars. They tend to be lighter to tan skinned and usually have eyes and hair of various brown hues. Their accent is usually quite heavy and is a blend of Franche and Common.

• Northerner - People that originally come from climates closer to the northern pole of the globe. They almost always have pale skin ranging from pink to tan, with blonde or brown to reddish hair and blue, brown or green eyes. They speak a variety of native languages (Franche, Espaignar, Germani, Italia and Latinus), although these are often being ignored in favor of Common.

• Southerner - People that originally come from climates closer to the equator. They usually have much darker skin than northerners, ranging from deep brown to nearly black. They usually have tightly curled black or brown hair, and deep brown eyes dominate. They are the originators of the Common tongue.

Elf

• Sun Elf - Sun elves are close to the height of humans, but with notable differences. Sun elves have light to bronze-colored skin and hair most often of copper, golden blond, and black, with red more uncommon but not unheard of. Sun elves typically have green eyes, though golden ones are also common, often with a liquid appearance, and silver, black, hazel, or copper hues have also been heard of. Like their moon elven brethren, male sun elves are typically taller and heavier than females, sometimes by as much as five inches or twenty pounds. Sun elves had a reputation for being stronger but less durable than other elves.

• Moon Elf - Like all elves, the Moon Elves are tall, close to humans in height, but more slender and beautiful. Moon elf skin is pale, often with an icy blue hue. Moon elf hair is commonly black, blue, or silvery white, although human-like colors were heard of as well, though very rare. Moon elf eyes, like those of other elves, are very commonly green, although some were blue as well. All exhibit a characteristic best described as golden flecks speckled through the iris. Male moon elves are typically taller than females.

• Wood Elf - Wood elves are easily identifiable by their coppery skin and green, brown, or hazel eyes. Wood elven hair is usually black or brown, although hues such as blond or copper red are also found. Wood elves tend to dress in simple clothes, similar to those of the moon elves but with fewer bold colors and a greater number of earth tones that blend into their natural surroundings. Accustomed to a harsh, naturalistic lifestyle, wood elves love to wear leather armor, even when they are not under immediate threat. Wood elves are roughly identical to other elves in height and build, with males larger than females. Wood elves are often stronger than other elves, but are frequently less cerebral than moon and sun elves, who put a greater value on education.

• Dark Elf - In many ways, the dark elves resemble other elves. Their light purple skinned bodies are wiry and athletic, while their faces are chiseled and attractive, though they are shorter and thinner than other elven sub-races. Due to a process of selective breeding that lasted for several generations, the dark elves (especially nobles) look attractive even in comparison to other elven subraces. They often have violet or red irises with white or silvery hair. Though their alluring appearance could be used for seduction, it is more often utilized to instill fear. According to goblins, the beauty standards of the surface races made them prone to turn a blind eye to the deeds of the dark elves, showing them greater leniency and acceptance. They dislike sunlight but will tolerate it when necessary. Dark elves hail from more northerly regions - though not as far as the true northern peoples - where the land is higher and the water table lies deeper beneath the earth, allowing them to dwell underground with relative ease, much as wood elves thrive in forests and aquatic elves in the open seas. See below for Dark Elf racial information.

• Aquatic Elf - Although they are of the same subrace, aquatic elves from the Atlantyke Sea had a different appearance to those from the Sea of the Pācificus. The former have deep green skin, mottled and striped with brown. The latter have blue skin with white stripes and patches. Some other aquatic elves have pale silver-green skin. Both groups are robust and tall with long limbs. Their thick skin gives them protection from the cold of deep water, keeping them comfortable at just above freezing temperatures. Their fingers and toes are generally about twice as long as a human's and have thick webbing between them. Their most distinctive feature are the gills visible in their necks and over their ribs. Compared to other elves, aquatic elves have deep voices and are larger and heavier. Aquatic elves have eye colors including turquoise, white, black, blue, green, and rarely silver. Their hair is usually thick and somewhat stringy, and some aquatic elves have a rough hair texture. It can be blue-green, emerald green, blue, black, silver, or even occasionally red. Warriors clip their hair short, but other aquatic elves wear it long and flowing. Females in particular sometimes grow their hair up to 4 feet long.

• Half-Elves - Half-elves stand roughly around 5' 5"​ to ​6' ​2", making them only slightly shorter overall than humans, and weigh in at 130​ to ​190 pounds, making them heavier than elves but still considerably lighter than humans. Like humans, half-elves have a wide variety of complexions, some of which are inherited from the elven half of their heritage, such as a tendency for metallic-hued skin and inhuman hair colors. For example, half-moon elves typically exhibited a pale, bluish tint around the ears and chin, while half-sun elves have a color more reminiscent of bronze, with hair of gold. Unlike full-blooded elves, however, male half-elves are capable of growing full and thick facial hair and often do so to distinguish themselves, in part, from their elven parents. Half-elven ears are about the size of human ones, but like elves, they are pointed on the ends. Half-elves are also notably more durable and passionate than either elves or humans, a unique result of the two races' blending. Half-elves usually adopt the dress and hairstyles of the culture among which they are raised. However, it was also fairly common for half-elves raised among humans to wear elven clothing in order to proudly display signs of their dual heritage. Regardless of what they wear, half-elves stand out in a crowd through the combination of physical distinctiveness and force of personality. Half-elves mature at a slower rate than humans, and can live for over 180 years.

Dwarves
• Hill Dwarf - Hill, also known as gold dwarves, are fairly common. Gold dwarves are stout, tough individuals like their shield dwarf brethren but are less off-putting and gruff in nature. Conversely, gold dwarves are often less agile than other dwarves. The average gold dwarf is about 4' tall and as heavy as a full-grown human, making them somewhat squatter than the more common shield dwarves. Gold dwarves are also distinguishable by their light brown or tanned skin, significantly darker than that of most dwarves, and their brown or hazel eyes. Gold dwarves have black, gray, or brown hair, which fades to light gray over time. Gold dwarf males and some females grow beards, which are carefully groomed and grown to great lengths.

• Mountain Dwarf - Also known as Shield dwarves, they are on average half a foot taller than other dwarves. Their skin is fair or lightly tanned and they have green or silvery blue eyes with long light brown or red hair, growing gray and white with age. Most males and even some females have large beards and mustaches. The females are slightly shorter and less heavy than the males.

Gnomes

• Rock Gnome - Rock gnomes are typically between 3-3½ ft' tall and weigh anywhere from 40 to 45 lb . They possess a natural brownish tint to their skin; the presence or absence of light has little effect upon it. Young rock gnomes possess any of a large number of hair colors that fade somewhat upon reaching adulthood. Male gnomes typically keep beards groomed in a neat manner.

• Forest Gnome - Compared with other gnomes, forest gnomes are even more diminutive than, rarely growing taller than 2'5" in height or weighing in over 30 pounds. Typically, males are slightly larger than females, at the most by four inches or five pounds. Unlike other gnomes, forest gnomes generally grow their hair long and free, feeling neither the need nor desire to shave or trim their hair much, though males often take careful care of their beards, trimming them to a fine point or curling them into hornlike spikes. Forest gnome skin is an earthy color and looks, in many ways, like wood, although it is not particularly tough. Forest gnome hair is brown or black, though it grays with age, sometimes to a pure white. Like other gnomes, forest gnomes generally live for centuries, although their life expectancy was a bit longer than was the case for either rock or deep gnomes; 400 was the average life expectancy of a forest gnome. See below for Forest Gnome racial information.

Halfling

• Lightfoot Halfling - The average lightfoot halfling stands around 3' and weigh around 35‒40 lb.  Lightfoots display the same range of skin tones, hair colors, and eye hues as humans., though they are most frequently seen to have brown or black hair and black, brown, or hazel eyes. Their skin also typically has a ruddy complexion. Males usually wear their hair short on the sides, often with a mullet or bowl cut, while females rarely allow their hair to grow beyond shoulder length. Facial hair is relatively rare, with men at most sporting long sideburns or the occasional beard, and women sometimes sporting short sideburns. Mustaches are extremely rare. Facial hair is more common in extremely old halflings. When not adventuring or entertaining others, lightfoots prefer to wear simple, well-made clothing that is comfortable to wear, yet looks attractive, favoring those with bright colors.

• Strongheart Halfling - Strongheart halflings are moderately shorter and stockier than their lightfoot kin. They also have a greater tendency for wearing armor of all kinds. Their skin tones and hair colors roughly range the same gamut as humans, though brown, blond, and black hair are most common. Their eyes tend to be blue or green. Both male and female stronghearts are incapable of growing beards or mustaches, though they are known to grow sideburns down to mid-cheek. Members of both genders often plait these sideburns into long braids. Strongheart halflings possess a steadier resolve compared to the Lightfoot halflings, gaining a +1 racial bonus on saving throws against fear and mind-affecting effects.

Goblin

• Goblin - Goblins usually stand between 3′4″‒3′8″ and weigh about 40‒55 lb on average. They have flat faces, sloped back forehead, broad noses, pointed ears, and small, sharp fangs. and their eyes vary in color from red to yellow. Their skin color ranges from yellow through any shade of orange to a deep red, though they also come in shades of green. Their hair is almost always black in color. All members of the same tribe normally share the same skin color. Goblins typically dress in dark leathers soiled by poor hygiene and colored in a similar range of tones to their skin.

• Swamp Goblin - Swamp Goblins stand the same height and weigh the same as their cousins. Their appearance is the same as well for the most part, but they more often have varying shades of green skin ranging from deep to pale. Their hair is usually black or deep green. They rarely wear armor heavier than leather and usually decorate their clothing with leaves and flowers in order to blend in better with their swampy homes. Swamp goblins are the original inhabitants of the bayous and swamps in the region.

Male goblins tend toward a rough and unattractive appearance, while females are often regarded as surprisingly cute; they are also more common, as goblin society is generally matriarchal in nature.

For Swamp Goblins, see below for racial information.

Orcs

• Orcs - Orcs are considered to be the most common kind of orc. Orcs of all kinds usually have grayish skin, coarse black or green hair, stooped postures, low foreheads, large muscular bodies, and porcine faces that feature lower canines that resembled boar tusks. Many also have wolf-like ears that are pointed on the ends, similar to elves. Orcs are roughly the same size as humans and other similar humanoids, though usually robust and muscular. They stand between 5-6' in height and weigh 175 to 500 pounds, with females usually being 15% smaller than the male but just as strong. Orcs all follow a militaristic creed, and find glory in combat.

• Gray Orcs - Gray orc males are typically 5' to ​6' 10" in height and 154​ to ​438 pounds in weight, while females are typically 4' 7" to ​6'3" in height and 114​ to ​398 pounds in weight. They are rather hairy, with long "manes" of black bristles on their head, shoulders, and back. They have wolfish ears, and their faces are somewhat less porcine than those of mountain orcs, though they retain the tusks and are still obviously orcish. In coloring, gray orcs typically have red, orange, or yellow eyes, black hair, and gray skin with mottled patches of darker or lighter shades on the chest and flanks. Unlike mountain orcs, they typically wear more "civilized" clothing, normally in shades of black, brown, blue, and other dark colors.

• Half-Orcs - Half-orcs are, on average, somewhere from 5' 9"​ to ​6' ​4" in height and usually weigh around 155​ to ​225 pounds, making them a little taller and stronger than humans on average. Most half-orcs have greenish skin, jutting jaws, prominent teeth, a sloping forehead, and coarse body hair, which causes them to stand out from their human brethren, though their canines are noticeably smaller than a full-blooded orc’s tusks. Half-orcs as such appear bestial to humans, though amongst orcs they are considered human-like physically. Half-orc hair is most often black, though it grays very quickly with age. In general, half-orcs do not live as long as humans, maturing by their sixteenth year and often dying before their sixtieth. Half-orcs that have lived amongst orcs often picked up the common orcish tradition of ritual scarring. Half-orcs with such a background do not look upon scars as marks of shame or as unattractive blemishes, but rather as marks of pride that demonstrate their skill and bravery in battle. On occasion, however, scars are used for a darker purpose, with orcs marking half-orc slaves with scars in the same manner a rancher might brand cattle. Half-orcs have shorter lifespans than humans, reaching maturity earlier and rarely living longer than seventy-five years.

Dark Elf

• Ability Scores: +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence, +2 Charisma, –2 Constitution
• Size: Medium
• Base Speed: 30 ft.
• Darkvision: 120 feet
• Light Blindness: Abrupt exposure to bright light (such as sunlight or a daylight spell) blinds dark elves for 1 round. On subsequent rounds, they are dazzled as long as they remain in the affected area.
• Weapon Familiarity: Dark elves treat the hand crossbow, rapier, and short sword as martial weapons rather than exotic or simple weapons.
• Keen Senses: +2 racial bonus on Listen, Search, and Spot checks.
• Cultural Grace: +2 racial bonus on Perform (dance) and Perform (sing) checks.
• Automatic Languages: Common, Elven, Undercommon
• Bonus Languages: Dwarven, Gnome, Goblin, Orcish, Terran
• Favored Class: Wizard or Bard
• Level Adjustment: +0

Forest Gnome

• Ability Scores: +2 Constitution, +2 Dexterity, –2 Strength
• Size: Small
• Base Speed: 20 ft.
• Low-Light Vision: Forest gnomes can see twice as far as humans in conditions of dim light.
• Natural Illusionist: Add +1 to the Difficulty Class for all saving throws against illusion spells cast by forest gnomes.
• Speak with Animals: Forest gnomes can speak with animals (as the spell) at will, but only with animals of the burrowing mammal type.
• Woodland Stealth: +4 racial bonus on Hide checks made in natural environments.
• Keen Senses: +2 racial bonus on Listen checks.
• Automatic Languages: Common, Gnome, Sylvan
• Bonus Languages: Draconic, Elven, Goblin, Orcish
• Favored Class: Druid or Ranger
• Level Adjustment: +0

Swamp Goblin

• Ability Scores: +4 Dexterity, –2 Strength, –2 Charisma
• Size: Small
• Base Speed: 30 ft.; swim 20 ft.
• Darkvision: 60 feet
• Amphibious: Swamp goblins can breathe both air and water.
• Marsh Camouflage: +4 racial bonus on Hide checks in swampy or bayou terrain.
• Bog Resilience: +2 racial bonus on saving throws against disease and poison.
• Automatic Languages: Goblin, Common
• Bonus Languages: Orcish, Draconic, Giant
• Favored Class: Ranger
• Level Adjustment: +0

Gray Orc

• Ability Scores: +4 Strength, –2 Intelligence, –2 Wisdom
• Size: Medium
• Base Speed: 30 ft.
• Darkvision: 60 feet
• Light Sensitivity: Orcs are dazzled in bright sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell.
• Hardy Mind: Gray orcs gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against mind-affecting effects.
• Intimidating Presence: Gray orcs gain a +2 racial bonus on Intimidate checks.
• Weapon Familiarity: Gray orcs treat the great axe and falchion as martial weapons.
• Automatic Languages: Orc, Common
• Bonus Languages: Dwarven, Giant, Goblin
• Favored Class: Fighter
• Level Adjustment: +0

READER NOTIFICATION

This section is intended to explore different races within the setting as part of worldbuilding and storytelling, with an emphasis on diversity, identity, and cultural flavor. It is not meant to reinforce harmful ideas, hierarchies, or stereotypes. Each race is included as a means of enriching the world and the stories that take place within it.

The author wants to be very clear that racism, in all of its forms - whether overt, subtle, or systemic - is completely antithetical to the intent of this work and is strongly discouraged. These concepts are not meant to be carried into the table or used to justify harmful behavior. Instead, the hope is that this material encourages respect, understanding, and appreciation for differences between peoples and cultures.

At its core, this is a cooperative storytelling game, and the focus should always remain on shared enjoyment, creativity, and mutual respect among all participants. Everyone at the table deserves to feel safe, included, and valued.