Humans

Humans are one of the shorter lived races of Calibran, but they have made up for it with numbers. They have become one of the most populace races, occupying much of the land west of the Caribre Mountains, all the way to the Great Western Ocean.

They have also become one of the most active races, building a number of cities, and taking a large part in the defeat of the dragons and the founding of the Dragon Throne that replaced their rule. King Aramnor, the first to sit on the Dragon Throne, was a human, as is the current occupant, King Hesleof Obella.

Humans have a talent for technology and gadgets. It may be partly due to the universities they have founded, and the sharing of ideas and plans, but in any case, they are the most technologically advanced race in Calibran.

While the amazons and barbarians are biologically human, their cultures are estranged from the bulk of humanity, and both are different enough to warrant dealing with separately.

Biology
Humans can be as short as dwarves, or as tall as the biggest minotaurs, though both extremes are rare. Most often, they range between a little over 6 feet down to just over 5 ft tall. Their complexions run from dark to pale, and they can have hair that is blond, brown, red or black.

They can live as long as a 100 years, though this is exceedingly rare. Nobles more normally reach between 70 and 80 years old, though this is because they are often better cared for and have, on the whole, easier lives. Peasants and serfs might be lucky to see 50, depending on their circumstances.

Cathedra Gate
This is the capitol of the Kingdom of Calibran, and the seat of the King. The Dragon Throne is located within the Royal Palace, and it is from here that the Kingdom is administrated. The Marked come here as the first step of their trials to take their place on the Dragon Throne.

It is the largest city in the realm, and is a major trade hub. Stay on most roads long enough and you will eventually wind up in Cathedra Gate. Technology is at its maximum level with the strongest walls constructed of the firmest stone to defend the inhabitants. Bronze, iron, steel, and gold are all in abundance. Mighty siege weapons line the wall tops, well cared for and ready to defend against threats to the city.

The population is primarily human, but with the amount of trade and the number of roads that go through the city, any of the races can be found here at any given time. It is located just north of the Fields of Farsalon, in the delta of the Serpent River as it spills into the Great Western Sea.

Cathedra Gate also serves as the home city and center of the human Noble House Belgrave.

Pelaj
On the western shore of the Calibran, this pirate haven is a place where gold coins are valued more than life itself. Every vice known to mortals is available for the right price. Watch your back, though, for the swiftest of thieves will lighten your pockets at the first opportunity. In an effort to curb the crime rampant in the city, the nobles of House Valeev have passed laws against going armed within the city. Most obey the law, but of course many criminals ignore it.

Home city and center of the human Noble House Valeev.

Krulea
Named after the city’s revered founder from the dawn of the Age of Strife, it is one of the oldest cities in Calibran. Eno Krulea was actually a half-breed who hid his elvish heritage and lived as a human. Only when he entered his 120’s did he have to admit his true heritage. But, being the person who tamed the frozen north, the respect in which he was held overcame the prejudices of the city's citizens. A legendary hunter, he was the first to turn away the herds of Yeti that ravaged the early settlements that would become the city. With his guidance and strength the city thrived in the cold. Kruleans are hearty and strong, and nothing is more of value to them than family.

Home city and center of the human Noble House Northvode.

Wert's Dune
In the harsh lands of the Silent Sands, this town is an oasis. Resources are scarce, and so the population have come to embrace a life of simplicity. Tribal in nature, they are thought to be violent and aggressive. This reputation has earned the inhabitants of the desert city the nickname horcs, intended as a demeaning slur. This reputation is not entirely deserved, and their culture, while unique to the desert, has as much sophistication and kindness as any in Calibran.

Home city and center of the human Noble House Trystane.

Religion
Humans in general believe in a trio of gods. Arvios and Edern are twin brothers. Arvios is blond and embodies light, while Edern is black haired and embodies darkness. Their bride is the goddess Erasil.

Arvios rules summer, and Erasil is his wife for the whole of that season. Edern rules winter, and Erasil stays with him in the darker days of the year. In spring and summer, the brothers war with each other. They are so preoccupied with their battle that Erasil is permitted to run wild and free.

Language
Humans speak a number of languages and dialects, each unique to the city and place where they live. Many never leave the place of their birth, and therefore go their whole lives speaking nothing but their local language.

The King's Speech is the language of the Kingdom, a common tongue that most humans who have traveled at all or have any contact with the outside world speak to some extent or another. Most other races also use the King's Speech.

Magic
Next to the elves, humans have the greatest mastery of the arcane arts. They have investigated and researched magic to such a degree that their adepts are among the most powerful. They have made up for their short lifespan by founding several arcane schools, writing their discoveries down in texts and teaching them to the next generation of wizards.

Rule of the Dragons
For most of Calibran's history, it was ruled by a dragon, or a number of dragons. Humans have, in the past, worshiped these powerful creatures as deities. This came to a permanent end after the Battle of Farsalon.

The Dragon Wars
In wars that lasted centuries, a faction of dragons that believed they should rule fought the other races, and some dragons sympathetic to them, over the future of Calibran. Most often it was dragons who killed other dragons. But, over time, the other races began to find ways to kill the winged monsters. The noble elves of the Glittering Wood were the first to kill a dragon, using their magic. Next, a dragon was unwise enough to crawl down into a dwarven mine, never to emerge again. Other dragons were killed by the minotaurs and rarely outnumbered by goblins. Once seen as invulnerable, people began to seek the dragons' weaknesses, particularly regarding their pride.

The fights were too fierce to continue forever. The human warrior Johelm Belgrave forged an army made up of all of the races of Calibran. Belgrave led his army into battle against Dragons led by the legendary Liszurath the Indomitable in the wide Fields of Farsalon. After a lengthy battle with heavy losses on both sides, Liszurath was killed and the dragons defeated. this was the first time Dragons suffered such kind of defeat. This broke the dragons' power in Calibran, and shortly thereafter the Dragon Throne legacy was created by Aramnor and a cabal of noble elf wizards, along with the system of Marked candidates that is in use to this day.

After Farsalon
The human noble houses have extended their rule to most of the river lands and plains west of the Caribre Mountains and north of the Glittering Woods. Though each of the Dragon Kings have done their best to maintain the peace, humans have been among the most fractious of their charges. They fight among themselves and with other races over land, wealth, and other such things. None of the conflicts have been as wide or as costly as the Dragon Wars that ended with the Battle of Farsalon.

Johelm Belgrave
As a young boy, Johelm heard tall tales of mortals killing dragons in battle, exposing the monsters' weaknesses. As he grew older, he became a great warrior and forged an alliance of all the other races against the dragons. He led an army against a Flight of Dragons at the Fields of Farsalon. His foes included Liszurath the Indomitable, a legend among the dragons. Johelm's battle plan led to the defeat and death of each of the dragons, though Johelm himself died, bathed in Liszurath's acid breath.

Aramnor
Aramnor was Johelm's friend and chief lieutenant, and it was Aramnor who finally struck the blow that killed Liszurath the Indomitable. Who he was before, and whether his family was common or noble, is unknown. He was famous for his incredible strength and courage, and was perhaps the only human to be respected by minotaurs in this regard.

After the Battle of Farsalon, Aramnor became the first king to sit on the Dragon Throne, eventually giving his seat up to the first of those Marked by the elves' magic. It was Aramnor's dream that this would ensure the throne would be occupied by a worthy ruler, chosen for nobility and courage rather than the randomness of birth. Upon abdicating his throne, it's said he went to live with the elves. Little is known of his life after this point.

Hesleof Obella
Hesleof is the current occupant of the Dragon Throne. He was never the greatest warrior, or the strongest of his companions. What he did have was charisma, and the ability to draw people to his cause and hold their loyalty.

He was born in the south of the realm, and trained from birth as a Marked contender for the Dragon Throne. Hesleof's rule has been one of noted fairness and prosperity, with the King's stated goal being to bring the different races together in greater cooperation. He has sat the Throne for over two decades at this point, one of the longer reigns in the history of the Dragon Throne. As he grows older, middle years passing, he looks forward to the day he can give his seat up to the next King or Queen.

He is remarkable in that his companions in the Trials included the minotaur Ruric, where up till then each Marked had been supported by companions all from his or her own race. This was a controversial departure from tradition at the time.

Naming Conventions
Depending on where a human is from, and what Noble House they belong to, their names will vary.

House Belgrave
The nobles of House Belgrave, and the peasants and serfs under their rule, choose names that are warmer in tone, and have a rhythmic sound. Examples include Tommanda, Tommarey, Bryanark,  Alberara, Janenna, Catrietyr, Lucarah, Mariasei, Joecel, Branetyr.

House Northvode
The nobles of House Northvode, and the peasants and serfs under their rule, choose names that tend toward the guttural. Examples include Peder, Kell, Petter, Varild, Eric, Delling, Ole, Harald, Rothwell, Kalman, Rolf.

House Valeev
Examples of names include Ziven, Mikail Gaznayev, Yurii, Andrey Koikov, Gavrie, Vedrine, Cheslav Klyugin, Matfei Golovastov, Jov Dobtcheff, Marika Valeev, Danya Kosygin, Yurii Kochuokova, Dimitri, Michael Starkova, Stephan, Fadey Gromyko.

House Trystane
Examples of names include Skylara Teryall, Mariya, Myriah, Alyse, Borse, Belandra, Mellario, Mors, Tiene, Obella, Elia.

Notable skills and Traits
Humans are not as strong as dwarves or minotaurs, not as long lived or as wise as elves. They are not as vicious as goblins, or as brutal as orcs. Or rather, any given human has the potential to out do any of these races, while humans as a whole are generally unremarkable.

Water wheels, clocks, machinery of all types fascinate humans. They work on gadgets small enough to fit in the palm of their hands, or big enough to fill whole buildings. Some are weapons of war, and some are quite a bit more benign. Humans are the master tinkerers and engineers of Calibran.

They are a race of mediators and diplomats, which is perhaps helped by their racial neutrality. They can get along with just about anybody, to some extent or another, and often end up leading alliances. This is often not because they are the best suited to leading, but because they are the only candidate everyone involved will accept.

Cultural notes
Humans are not as unified as the other races tend to be. They split off and found their own cities and Noble Houses, different Orders and Fellowships, each with their own agenda. Even these goals can change with a rapidity the other races find alarming. This tendency has led to the evolution of two cultures that, while biologically human, are culturally so different as to be unrecognizable, the barbarians and the amazons. However, humans are adept at diplomacy and forging ties between disparate groups, which is perhaps one reason more humans have ascended the Dragon Throne than any other race.

Noble Houses
While Aramnor and a cabal of noble elven wizards created a system that determined worth by more than just birth, the humans of Calibran have created Noble Houses for themselves. These Houses are wealthy, and strong enough to make and keep their wealth for generations. While there are a number of minor houses, they all owe allegiance to one of the four great Noble Houses. Some among the Noble Houses believe that one of their own should sit the Dragon Throne, notably those of House Belgrave, descendants of Johelm Belgrave, and that the Throne should be passed down through their line.

The four greatest Noble Houses are:

House Belgrave
Descendants of Johelm Belgrave, and the largest and wealthiest of the Noble Houses. They have their center in the capital of Cathedra Gate.

House Northvode
House Northvode has its home and center in the northern city Krulea, in the foothills of the northern Caribre Mountains. With goblins to the east and orcs to the south, and the wild lands of Chaos on their borders, they are great fighters and warriors. They also have more contact with the barbarians of Themm to the west than other humans.

House Trystane
The humans of House Trystane make their home in the southern desert city of Wert's Dune. They are close neighbors of both the noble elves of the Glittering Woods, and the rough and tumble minotaurs of Kehlaktur, and they share some traits with both cultures. They value aesthetics and artistry, and are known for their attainments with magic and other studies. However, they also have given birth to some of the great heroes and fighters of humanity. In any case, few can match them in the deserts of their home.

House Valeev
With their home in the city of Pelaj, on the shores of the Great Western Ocean, the sailors of House Valeev are some of the greatest navigators and explorers of Calibran. Their navy is the largest in Calibran, and every shipowner, sailor, and fisherman probably owes money or favors to House Valeev.

Other Organizations
Besides the Noble Houses, there are a number of other organizations that are human in origin and whose membership is primarily human.

Swords of the Gods
An alliance of several different groups who are dedicated to chivalrous ideals of protecting the weak and eliminating the unquiet dead. It is made up three organizations. The Red and White Guardians are an order of warrior monks that are most active north of the Misty Woods. Mostly commoners, they are led by Brynden Tommary. The White Company is made up of knights and men at arms who have sworn their service to the greater good. They are led by Mikken Dredfyr, a famous knight and tourney champion. The Starred Brothers are a company of wizards specializing in combat magic, with a bodyguard of some of the best swordsmen in the kingdom. They are most active in the south, near the Glittering Wood. They are led by Lysander Ollena.