If you have an idea for a race, feel free to send me a profile and argue why it'd be a good fit. Keep in mind that any race you make will be rare, so I can explain why none of the PC's have seen one before.
Humans:
Lifespan: A century (though magic may prolong this. Humanity is unique in this regard) with children maturing in their late teens
Humans are the most common race, as well as the race that holds almost all political power. As you (you personally, dear reader. Not your character) are human, I need not go into detail about their physiology, other than the fact that they can in fact interbreed with other races, which is unique. You see, when most raced procreate, the child will be one or the other (For example, the child of an Orc and a Dwarf will either be an Orc or a Dwarf, not a hybrid). However, Human/whatever hybrids are possible. Exceptions are of course noted below. What follows is a list of the general ethnic qualities of the humans of the various continents.
Novan: Tend to blonde hair, grey eyes, fair skin. Their hair goes grey quickly. Taller on average.
Umbran: Dark hair, Dark skin, Violet eyes mostly. Hair grows quite slowly, shorter hair is more common. Facial hair Grows normally.
Aquan: Tend towards blue eyes and brown hair, northern ones have darker skin. Culturally they are fond of tattooing patterns over their limbs.
Ignan: Blonde or red hair, orange eyes, fair skin. Not that you can tell, most are covered head to toe in industrial pollutants. Tend to be quite sturdy, though this is an environmental thing.
Terrans: Only Terran unique quality is Emerald eyes, extremely diverse.
Ventan: topaz/gold eyes, as well as dark hair, and darker skin. Mexicans, basically.
Dwarves:
Lifespan: Two centuries, with children maturing at the age of thirty.
The Dwarves are a hardy people. Though short (Averaging at about four and a half feet tall), they tend to be of sound constitution. What this means is that they are strong, durable, and very, very good at holding their liquor. They lend themselves well to more violent professions, and can often be found as reliable guards in most cities. They also have a penchant for hard labor, such as mining or smithing, among other grunt work. They believe themselves to be Vaula's chosen people, and thus tend to be wise, cautious, and down to earth. They have a bit of a tinkering streak, and most tech not based on the stuff of the ancients that most citizens run into is usually dwarven. Dwares vary as much in skin tone and hair color as humans, though it should be noted that they can occasionally develop grayish skin colors, and red/orange hair is the most common color.
Elves
Lifespan of all Elves save snow elves: three centuries, with children maturing at forty. Snow elves have the same lifespan of dwarves.
Elves vary in exact appearance, intelligence, size, and even basic anatomy. They can however all be identified by their slim features, almond shaped eyes, and long pointed ears.
High elves are the more magically inclined elves, and tend towards fair skin, blonde hair, and blue eyes, though they occasionally develop greyish-white skin and glowing eyes as they grow in magic power. They are usually quite arrogant, but once one gets past that they are good enough people, just hard to get along with.
Iron Elves Are basically the opposite. A little shorter than most men, they usually have either dusky brown, grey, or purple skin, with the first the most common, along with steel-grey or white hair. Their irises vary in exact color, though they have black sclera. They are quite fond of technology, and are usually suited to understanding it's workings. For whatever reason they are quite submissive, shy, and tend to develop inferiority complexes. that said, they are often extremely friendly.
Wood elves are quite rare, as most were killed by a plague. They are almost exactly like humans in terms of skin color, eyes and hair, but have said elven features discussed earlier. They seem to have a way with animals, and are usually very agreeable.
Sea Elves Odd, rare pale blue elves, with gills, solid black eyes, and gills. They have various fins on their bodies to help them swim, and are able to telepathically communicate with a willing recipient. Almost exclusively found in the city of Voda.
Snow Elves are Short elves (roughly the size of a goblin) with pale blue to nut brown skin that live in extremely cold climates, like NOVA or southern AQUA. they are quite adept at feats of incredible dexterity.
Sirens:
Average life span: 400, with children maturing in their mid twenties
Sirens are among the very strangest of all the races. While they aren't too unorthodox in their appearance, they make up in other ways. Sirens typically stand a bit shorter than humans, and may appear similar to elves. They have pointed ears as well, but they are much shorter. They tend toward fair skin, and it seems their hair can be literally any color. They have eyes with bar-shaped pupils, akin to a goat. What makes them special is they are almost entirely female, with only one in two-hundred children born male. Unfortunately, they may only breed with their own race (An exception being one with divine blood, who may basically breed with any race that reproduces sexually) , this means males are a treasured resource, and are often given preferential treatment in society to entice them into staying in their home village, as it goes against their principals to force a living being to do anything against their will.
Their technology is among the most advanced in the realm, though rare and expensive. Found a plasma rifle? It's either recovered ancient tech or siren tech. They are also extremely magically sensitive, with one little caveat that gives them their name: Their magic is activated through song. While powerful if you can pull it off, you better be a good singer if you want to be a mage. Male sirens, however, can perform song-magic about as well as an orc. That being said, they are often very smart and quite handy with their tech.
At Present, Sirens are slowly going extinct, likely owing to their hideously unbalanced birthrate.
Orcs:
Lifespan: up to seven decades, and mature in just twelve years.
Honorable, just warriors. Orcs are among the kindest of any race you will meet. Their villages tend to run on a meritocracy, similar to IGNIS. But while IGNIS leaves the weak to die while the strong flourish, the Orcs believe that it is the sacred duty of the strong to protect the weak, and to teach the weak to be strong. It is said that the original Orc community was a small group of rampaging marauders, burning and pillaging everything they came across. However when they came across a temple to Vaula and butchered the inhabitants, they were visited by an aspect of Vaula herself. She demanded that they atone for the sons and daughters they had slaughtered, or be destroyed as well. For the first few years, they didn't listen and continued their path of destruction. But they noticed that it seemed that everything conspired to kill them, as if the world itself wanted nothing more than their destruction. Thanking back to the goddess' words, they considered the lives they were ending for the first time. They finally thought of their victims as people, just like they thought of their brothers and sisters.
But how could they atone? They certainly didn't much want to be barbarians anymore, and if they didn't atone Vaula would destroy them. Then, they had an idea. What if their killing aptitude could be put to a better purpose, using their might to protect people from others like them? So, that's what they did. While it is unknown how they originated, this is also widely considered to be the origin of paladins. In Vaula's name, they slaughtered countless brigands and monstrosities, protecting the various people from any and all threats for little more than a bit of food and shelter in return. To this day, they uphold this tradition in the hopes that Vaula might forgive them.
Physically, Orcs stand at about the height of a man, and are often quite strong. They have tusks of varying thickness ranging from one to two inches in length jutting out of their lower jaw, and for this reason they tend to have an underbite. They usually have grey to green to dark brown skin on their powerful bodies, and pointed ears, no longer than a man's. Unfortunately, Orcs for whatever reason are highly resistant to magic. While this may make it difficult for wizards to kill them, they are rarely able to produce magic (this means they can't cast very well).
Da Mob (Gurblinz, Koboldz, and Gnomz)
Lifespan for all of them: Same as Orcs, though Koboldz mature twice as fast.
These three races seem to have united, and share a sort of 'mob mentality.' Only a century ago were they able to band together and convince the rest of the world they weren't simple vermin. They are all alike physically in that they seldom grow more than four feet tall.
Gurblinz: (Yes, that is how it's spelled, yes that is how you say it)
A Gurblin is like an Orc. If that Orc was short, and quick with their hands instead of strong. Okay, they're green and that's about it. They have long pointed ears (Longer than elves even) and large noses, and they tend towards dark hair and more 'agile' builds. They are quite good with their machinery, and Gurblinz have an innate curiosity. The spelling of their name harkens back to their days as mostly illiterate tribals, and they found the spelling that they adopted at the time too endearing to correct. They provide tech support to 'Da Mob.'
Koboldz:
Odd specimens, Koboldz are short humanoid creatures with reptilian features. They have long snouts and tails, and as stated are quite short. Do not let their size fool you, they are very strong. Strong enough to challenge Orcs even. However, this power comes at price, as Koboldz are completely unable to perform magic, and their hands aren't constructed in a manner suitable to use most technology with any sort of reliability. That said, they are pretty resistant to magic. The color of their scales (while not always) is usually determined by their affinity. Greens and browns=Earth. Reds and Oranges=Fire. Blues (all shades)=Water. Gold, yellows and Middle grays=Air. white, lighter grays, and silvers=Light. Black, darker grays and purples=Darkness. They are the muscle of 'Da Mob'
Gnomz:
Short, magically capable humanoids. They have odd features. Sort of like a thin dwarf with elven features. The men often grow short beards, and for both genders their hair tends to go grey or white very quickly. Their larger than normal eyes are often solid, softly glowing colors, relevant to their affinity. The colors are the same array as Koboldz. Gnomz are known for their exceptional magical aptitude, though their hollow bones leave them very susceptible to blunt objects and angry people. However, they tend to be pretty agile thanks to their reduced weight and desire to not be bludgeoned to death. They are the magical artillery of 'Da Mob.'
Demons/Devils:
The Demons and Devils that live on RUNE are supernatural entities (supposedly) that were exiled from their homes (The Abyss and The Nine Hells, specifically) for whatever reason and cursed to live as mortals. While the causes vary wildly the most common is a desire to renounce their evil ways/become better people. As such, 'Unbound' Infernal/hellish creatures are much, much weaker than their bound kin, but are free to live in the mortal realm. In most places, while most people aren't comfortable around them, they are not seen as automatically evil. In fact, the common belief in NOVA (That they are mindless spirits that are manifested from pure sin) is a myth. They are no more capable of evil than a normal man or woman, though their upbringing tends to make them so. I.E while most Devils or Demons are evil, they aren't always. And nine out of ten Unbound aren't.
While no longer immortal (Demons do not come back if you kill them, they are completely invulnerable in their home realms (this is actually a dastardly trick. Demons and devils aren't actually specifically immortal there, everyone in the Abyss or the Nine Hells is immortal)) and susceptible to conventional death, Unbound are still ageless. When a Demon or Devil is born, they mature rapidly, usually within ten minutes, if not faster.
While Impossible to list all the myriad Demons and Devils, Broad categories are implemented.
Beasts are animalistic Demons or Devils, and are always bound, as evil is coded into them. That means no PC Beast unbound. They are mindless animals, only fit to serve their intended purpose.
Demons are creatures that embody chaos, for good or ill. These are the ones that slaughter and destroy, the ones without control. They dislike rules and regulations, and as such it is very hard to keep them controlled, and is likely the reason they haven't outright taken control of the mortal realm. This is where your Balrogs, your Oni, and your Asura come from.
Devils are the opposite, ruthless and cunning. They prefer trickery and pacts, tyranny over carnage. They love to subjugate mortals, and enjoy positions of power. While very organized, they are bound to guarding the Nine Hells, and keeping their prisoners in line. Devils are known for seven primary varieties of lesser ones, corresponding to the sins. Lust for succubi, Pride for jailers, Wrath for chained ones, and so on.
Gods And their domains (To be fleshed out later, player input is always welcome!):
Darkness, Progress, Ambition, Greed, Protection, The Stars: ♀ Auna
Light, Charity, Justice, Sacrifice, Vengeance, The Moon: ♂ Adon
Fire, Strength, Courage, War, Passion, The Sun: ♂ Fathaur
Water, Intelligence, Beauty, Love, Magic, The Seas: ♀ Iva
Air, Chaos, Freedom, Chance, Travel, the Weather: ♂ Zynir
Earth, Order, Wisdom, Family, Creation, the Land: ♀ Vaula
Death: ♀ Nyx.
Life: Ait.
Warden of the Nine Hells: ♂/♀ Asmodai
The Void Queen: ♀ Xiri
Note: All deities (except the void queen) do not have genders in the traditional sense. The symbol merely reflects their preferred identity. Ait, however, prefers to appear as a mass of lights, similar to a small galaxy.
