Humans-
Aldins are the original inhabitants of the hills and valleys of Aldea. They are people who are easily identified by a hunger for lost knowledge, an open invitation to enter the Kingdom (not always altruisticly; there are as many dead and deserted cities in Aldea as there are populated ones), and an obsession with love and matchmaking. If a neighbor is unpaired and has not declared themselves Asexual, then it's often a mad dash in the community to find and pair them up with a partner of suitable gender.
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Roamers (Roma) are the descendants of the fallen nation of Faenaria. Their ancestors had the foresight to flee when their Queen descended into darkness and madness. Today, dozens of caravans, mobile villages, traverse all of Aldis, keeping their nation and culture alive. Roamers are some of the most powerful Psychic Arcana wielders in the land, and they are a vital part of the land's communication network.
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Kernish (Viking) are the subjects of the final sorcerer King to fall- only freed in the past ten years. While a puppet council of wicked rulers controls their homeland, those who came to Aldis are some of its fiercest warriors, fighting to protect their homeland and free their brothers and sisters from magical bondage.
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Jarzoni (Middle Eastern) are a reflection of Aldis if they had gone a different path. While Aldis was protected in its infancy by rugged mountains, Jarzon was open to constant attack from the Shadow Barrens. To this day, they are a people in arms. Magic is banned and its practitioners must become priests (and women may never be priests) or face the torch. For it was magic that brought the Sorcerer Kings their power, and it must never be employed again for fear of another fall. Only heterosexual love is legal and encouraged, with homosexuals and asexuals thrown in jail until they "repent" and begin producing children for the survival of Jarzon's people. The war in the Shadow Barrens (the Roma people's former homeland of Faenaria) to their south is eternal and consumes precious lives daily. Those who flee to Aldis are often branded as heretics and hunted by Inquisitors masquerading as other refugees.
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Lar'tya (Polynesians) are a matriarchy with an enormous trade network across the great sea. Since the death of the prior king and the rise of Queen Jaellin, their emissaries have tried to spread their gendered caste system to the mainland with little success. Many males and sympathetic females have settled in Aldis as sailors and crafters.
Night People (Orcs) were created by the Sorcerer Kings to supplement their armies. They attempted to create a brutish, violent, subservient race of natural warriors to fight in their battles against one another. They failed. Night People may be more muscular than the average human, but their consciences are just as intact. When the opportunity came to grasp their freedom, they joined the Great Rebellion. Today they serve with distinction in Aldis' army, but also do work as manual laborers, sailors, and hunters.
Vata'an (Half-Elf) are the descendants of the mythical Vata race. The Vata were never numerous, and when they tried to save the Republic from collapse they were destroyed by the Sorcerer Kings in a genocide. Only these, the offspring of Vata and Humans, remain. A Vata'an is humanoid in appearance but has pale, alabaster skin and silver hair. They seem naturally inclined toward elemental Shaping and their long lifespan means they are welcome in the bureaucracy of the Kingdom as well as in mercantile or diplomatic ventures.
Vata'sha (Dark Elf) were, much like the Night People, the product of an experiment by Sorcerer Kings. When the Vata were exterminated, one of the Kings forced childbearing Vata'an to undergo experiments on their young within the womb. What began as an attempt to make subservient Shaper caste turned into yet another weapon used against them in the Great Rebellion. The black-skinned, red-eyed Vata'sha are easily distinguished in a crowd. They are especially susceptible to bright lights, so many of them live in catacombs beneath the cities of Aldis, carving whole neighborhoods with the help of Earth-shapers and manual labor from humans and Night People. When a mysterious artifact of the Old Republic is found long buried, usually the Vata'sha are the first to find it.
Sea-Folk (Merfolk) are a mysterious people hailing from the oceans. Androgynous in appearance with blue or green skin, two legs, and arms with fins, they require double the water of land-dwellers to survive but can survive underwater for upwards of ten minutes without surfacing for air. They are natural sailors and dockworkers. Many live in the city's Lake Ward, piloting gondolas around semi-submerged homes.
Rhydan (Psychic Animals) are unique to Aldis. Cats, wolves, deer, bears, dolphins, badgers, oxen, birds and beasts alike. Any type of animal may awaken as a Rhydan. They communicate via Psychic mindlink and are identified by a gilded circlet around the neck. It was the Rhydan that lead the Great Rebellion. It was the Rhydan that enacted the ritual which created the Golden Hart. If not for the Rhydan, Aldis would be a desolate wasteland of demons and monsters. Rhydan are often powerful Shapers and it is not uncommon to see a Rhydan Shaper with a human familiar- this does not imply any sort of slavery, but the two are often partners in a mutually beneficial relationship.
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Unicorns are the most powerful Shapers among the Rhydan. They are reclusive creatures, only appearing during momentous or calamitous situations. Unicorns are unable to be played in this game, but their existence may or may not be important later.
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Gryphons are the more martial counterparts of the Unicorns. While they are still powerful Shapers, these creatures allow only the most righteous of Rose Knights to ride them into battle against the forces of Evil. Gryphons are unable to be played in this game, but their existence may or may not be important later.
