Converting it over to MRQ2 / OQ for a game I'll be running sometime later this year.

Eh, nuts to that species thing. I'm redoing the mechanical end entirely. I'm trying to gradually strip out 4e specific terminology, so that if I ever compile all of this I can publish it without having to pay WotC. This mostly comes out in renaming species. I'm trying to avoid the goofy "Runeclaw Bears" effect while still having evocative, interesting names.

Some proposed name changes:

Dragonborn are now "Dragonmen"
Tieflings and drow are now referred to solely as "the Burnt"
Shifters are "Half-Gnolls" (which is what they are anyhow) - I'm not sure if "Gnoll" itself is WotC IP. If so, Gnolls will become "Dogmen".
Goliaths are just a phenotypical variation of the already-existing "Mountain Men"
Devas are now "Nightsouls", since they are ultimately the shards of Eternal Night's soul
Genasi are now just "Elementals"
Eladrin are the trickiest to rename. I think I'll call them either "Starmen" or "Voidmen", with a slight preference for the latter.

"Hill Elves" are now "Hill People" and "the Monstrous Races", since the "Elf" name covering a range of people, only some of whom were elves, seemed to throw the PCs for a loop last nice.

Anyhow, lemme know what you think of the name changes, and feel free to propose others if you think you've got better alternatives.

Weapons and Armour in the Dawnlands

There are dozens of different types of weapons available in the Dawnlands, but the most widely available fall into three broad styles, the intricate, individual craftwork created for Dwer optimates and their servants, the mass-produced products of the foundries of Kaddish, and the simpler weapons by the Kadiz Nomads, the Hill People and by the Forest Dreamers.

Dwerwork

Weapons and armour in Dwer Tor are mainly produced by helot artisans privately contracted to optimate families. These are typically batch-lots to equip an optimate warrior and his cadre of helot retainers (who will be issued them from the family armoury only as needed) and share a common style and pattern of decoration.

An optimate going to war will wear a fitted suit of plate made from the finest Kaddish steel, though the actual transformation of ingots into plate is done by Dwer helots. A full suit comprises a breastplate, greaves, boots, bracers, gauntlets, a torc and a crested open-faced helm with chain or scale covering joints and the loins. It will be painted in his house colours, and the breatplate typically has at least the name of his house and its sigil engraved on it to prevent theft and identify the wearer in battle. Under his armour he will wear an aketon over a loincloth and little else.

A well-equipped optimate brings a one-handed spear (usually around 2m long), a wooden target shield, a shortbow and quiver, a dagger, and a hand weapon, usually either a shortsword, axe or mace. Weapons are engraved with designs in silver or gold when possible, though a small number of ancient pieces have green copper inlays. These are the most valued, as each one is a gift from the Dawnmen for some great service their optimate's family once rendered.

An optimate serving as a cataphract will be equipped with a lance or demilance instead of a spear. Most cataphracts are Voidmen, as dwarves cannot easily ride horses. Cataphracts tend to choose falcata and sabres as their secondary arms in imitation of the nomads.

His followers will wear scale hauberks (made of rectangular overlapping plates sewn together with wire) with metal boots, gauntlets and a skullcap. Recent fashion has been to add aventails and masks to the cap for increased protection, with the masks carved into frightening figures like demons, monsters and animals. The retainers typically bear spears or javelins, wooden target shields, slings, and shortswords or long daggers. Halflings typically carry javelins, while Voidmen and Dwarves carry spears. In battle, retainers typically tie cloth pennants in their lord's colours around their weapons and upper arms. They wear thick cotton salwars under their armour.

A thaumate will be equipped with cuir boilli or scale. Usually these sets include a haubergeon that hangs down to the loins, a ridged helm, bracers and greaves. Thaumate armour is usually designed more for show than combat function, though the best made sets compromise on neither. Complex, abstract designs in bright colours are common, with each member of a cadre's set expressing a subtle variation on the theme. A proper thaumate will wear a cotton peplon in the ecclesia's colours under his armour, with the cloth arranged so that it bulges between gaps. Thaumates in Dwer Tor mostly use their armour on ceremonial parades through the city, though the handful sent out with the armies of Dwer Tor to manage their supply find it useful enough.

A well-equipped thaumate going to war typically carries an arming sword, a dagger, and an iron-banded staff or rod of office. According to Dwer war doctrine, thaumates should not be fighting unless the situation is desperate, and the staff or rod of office is for distributing admonishments to cowards and the ill-disciplined in the camp and on the battlefield.

The palace guard, the city guard, the royal family, and the priests of the Hard-Faced Mother wear plate comparable to other optimates (though particularly finely made), but bear distinctive halberds wielded in both hands that symbolise the power of the king over life and death.

Kaddish Foundrywork

In contrast to the unique hand-crafted worksmanship of Dwer artisans, the Kaddish mainly produce cheap, indistinguishable weapons and armour. Most of it is made by semi-skilled labour in the factories of the Greyward to standard designs, and defects are common. The blades and heads of weapons are made by press forging steel into flat sheets, chiseling out the appropriate shape, and doing minor finishing work (assembly and sharpening). Rivets are made by pouring molten steel into clay molds and then chipping out the cooled rivets. These weapons are not normally engraved or marked in any decorative way, though owners often paint the blades.

Several common weapon types can be found in every canal and bazaar in Kaddish. The Kaddish square sword is a 1m long (counting the handle) one-handed chopping sword with a flattened, rectangular tip and a handguard, meant to be used on horseback or in loose ranks. Unsharpened (as most either are at point of purchase or rapidly become through use), it is heavy enough to be used as a club.

The Kaddish spear is a two-handed lugged or winged spear usually about 2 1/2m long (the triangular head alone is around a foot long). The shafts are made by sawing planks into thinner pieces and then sanding hand-grips along the length of it wherever one feels they should be. These are the most common weapon carried by members of the Kaddish military. After service, veterans will remove the spearhead, wrap leather around the tang to form a handle, and use them as daggers. Almost the entire adult population of Kaddish has one or more of these daggers, mostly as a prestige item and improvised weapon, as the heads are rarely sharp enough to be useful as tools.

The Kaddish greatsword is a traditional weapon of mamluks and mercenaries, and therefore tends to be the best made of the most common types of weapons. It is a two-handed 1.5m long straight-bladed sword suitable for chopping and stabbing with a flat crossbar handle for blocking.

The crossbow is a weapon of Kaddish origin, dating back to wars between High Kaddish and Dwer Tor after the last cities of the Hill People were destroyed. The standard design is cheaply built, but highly effective, and uses steel-reinforced arms on the bow (mainly to prevent breakage) and a dull hook on the belt to draw the bridle. More complex winding mechanisms are known (windlasses and crannequins) but are found only on custom work.

The last is the Kaddish mace, which is actually just a 1m long steel-banded rod of solid wood with a couple of plates of steel riveted to one end, and a leather grip on the other. These are wielded more or less like a modern baseball bat. Along with spearhead daggers, this is the weapon of the common man in Kaddish. When rival gangs face off, one is certain to find these maces in the hands of combatants.

Though these are the four most common weapons, they are by no means the only ones. Small workshops run by skilled craftsmen turn out an endless variety of weapons in a relentless cycle of innovation. The rapier, the sabre, the pick, the flail, stilettos, halberds, glaives and odder weapons yet can all be found, though buyers will pay a premium for anything beyond the basic five designs laid out above. Most of these workshops are concentrated in the Hall of Swords out by the Square of Justice for mutual protection, as they are a popular target for looting during riots as the rioters seek to equip themselves against whichever orthocrat is the focus of their ire.

The Kaddish also use a variety of improvised weapons, including clubs, staves, knives, bricks, slings, and hammers in urban brawls, but these tend to be impromptu rather than consider the true tools of a professional killer.

Armour in Kaddish follows the same pattern as weapons. Hauberks are ubiquitous, with a one-size-fits-almost-anyone mentality. The most common kind resembles a long lace-up leather coat that doubles as winter wear, and the second most common kind is a short lace-up leather coat. The Kaddish cannot make decent steel plate armour because no one does anything more complex than press forge steel and chisel it into shapes, however they can make very good rectangular steel shields, and a small amount of brigandine using this process. Professional mercenaries and soldiers mostly wear chain hauberks, gloves and pants, which are widely available due to some recent innovations in wire manufacturing. The most common kind of helmet in Kaddish is actually an ancient style, made of bone and horn curved over hide and worn over a chain hood, but richer mercenaries and professional soldiers pay for imported or handcrafted metal helmets.

There is no standard armament or panoply for soldiers in the Kaddish military, except that  most colleges give new recruits spears for a weapon.

Nomads and Hill People Armaments

The nomads and Hill People use a variety of weapons, especially ones made in Dwer Tor, which trades spearheads, arrowheads, axeheads and knives to buy their services and peace. The Dwer don't actually distinguish between the two groups and trade equally with both, keeping a rough parity of arms between the two hostile groups. Dwer sabres and Kaddish square swords are in high demand, as both are extremely useful on horseback. Otherwise, weaponry matches availability, with spears, bows, axes and daggers dominating.

The typical Nomad spear is 2m long, light enough to be thrown, and is plunged into opponents with a swift overarm motion as one surges past. The Hill People version is longer and heavier, meant for killing horses as they charge. Nomad axes tend to be long-handled (0.75m) one-handed hatchets with heavy heads better suited for hewing wood. Nomad bows are of excellent manufacture, and are recurved, lacquered wood and horn bows short enough to be used on horseback but powerful enough to punch through steel armour.

Citizens of Kaddish are forbidden by customary law to trade weapons to the nomads, but it is mainly used as a pretext to hang swindlers in the trade forts rather than enforced. Square swords and maces are the most common exports to the nomads.

Nomad clothing serves as armour, with thick hide and bearskin ponchos armouring man and horse alike. They make circular wooden shields covered in bearskin or horse leather to keep off arrow fire as they swiftly approach their foes.

Build Your Own Weapons and Armour System (with many thanks to Unknown Armies):

The purpose of this system is to allow DMs and PCs to replicate the endless variety of weapons one may need. It is meant for d100 type games (OQ and MRQ2 mainly). Newt, you're welcome to do as you please with these if you're reading this.

Melee weapons:

All possible weapons start off doing 1d4 damage.

Answer the following questions, and for each "Yes", increase the damage by one step according to the chart:

1d4->1d6->1d8->1d10->2d6

Is the weapon sharp?
Is the weapon wielded with two hands?
Is the weapon heavy enough to break bones when it hits?
Is the weapon longer than a metre?

Ranged Weapons:

All possible ranged weapons start off doing 1d4 damage.

Answer the following questions, and for each "Yes" increase the damage by one step according to the chart:

1d4->1d6->1d8->1d10->2d6

Are the projectiles sharp?
Are the projectiles heavier than an arrow?
Are the projectiles longer than a metre?
Does the launcher provide more force than a human arm throwing the projectile?

Reload
All weapons start with a reload time of 1 action.

Add +1 action to the reload time for each "Yes".
Does the weapon require mechanical assistance to reload?
Is the weapon ready to fire immediately as soon as a projectile is loaded?

Range
All weapons start with a range of 25m.

Add 50m for each "Yes".
Does the weapon provide more force than a human arm throwing the projectile?
Can the weapon fire projectiles in an arc?

Weapon AP and HP

All weapons start off with 0 AP and 0 HP.

AP

Add +2 AP for each "Yes"
Is the part of the weapon you parry with mostly made of metal?
Is the part of the weapon you parry with as thick or thicker than a sword edge?
Is the weapon specifically designed to parry blows?

HP

Add +2 HP for each "Yes"
Is the part of the weapon you parry with mostly made of metal?
Is the part of the weapon you parry with as thick or thicker than a sword edge?
Is the weapon longer than a metre?
Does it have a tang holding the blade or head to the handle?
Is the weapon heavy enough it requires two hands to wield?

Strength and Dexterity Required

All weapons start off with 0 STR and 0 DEX required to wield them.

Strength Required

Add +2 to the STR Required for each "Yes"
Is the weapon heavy enough to break bones when it hits?
Is the weapon longer than a metre?
Does the weapon rely mainly on force of impact for its effect?
Are any two parts of the weapon connected by a chain, string or other tensile connector?
Is the weapon wielded in one hand?
Is the weapon made almost entirely metal?

Subtract -1 from the STR Required for each "Yes"
Is the weapon wielded in two hands?
Is the weapon less than a foot long?
Is the weapon made almost entirely from wood, horn or other organic materials?

Dexterity Requirements

Add +2 to the DEX Required for each "Yes"
Can the weapon be used to attack in two or more ways (i.e. stabbing, slashing, crushing, etc.)?
Is the weapon wielded in one hand?
Is the weapon longer than a metre?
Are any two parts of the weapon joined by a chain, string or other tensile connector?
Does the weapon require its point or tip to hit to deal maximum damage?
Is a different part of the weapon used to parry than to attack?

Subtract -1 from the DEX Required for each "Yes"
Is the weapon wielded in two hands?
Is the weapon capable of dealing damage even on a hit that does not penetrate?

Armour (with thanks to voidstate's Unknown Ages for inspiration)

Add +1 point of armour per question answered "Yes"

Is it rigid?
Does it cushion you from blows?
Does it cover most of the body?
Is the outer layer tough?
Does it have multiple layers of different materials?
Is it custom fitted?

Helot's Quilted Jack (Cushioned) AP1
Nomad's Bearskin Poncho (Cushioned, Covering) AP2
Bandit's Stiff Leather Jack (Rigid, Cushioned, Tough) AP3
Kaddish Soldier's Laminar Panoply (Rigid, Covering, Tough, Fitted) AP4
Dwer Retainer's Scale w/ Aketon (Cushioned, Covering, Tough, Multiple) AP4
Kaddish Mercenary's Chain w/ Aketon (Cushioned, Cover, Tough, Multiple) AP4
Plate w/ Aketon (Cushioned, Covering, Tough, Rigid, Multiple, Fitted) AP6

Some pics for ideas:

Members of Kaddish colleges equipped for urban patrols:



An well-to-do Kaddish mercenary:


Cavalrymen in the Kaddish army, from poor and rich colleges:

Kadiz warriors:





Kadiz mercenaries in the service of Dwer Tor:


Dwer human helots equipped for battle:

Karl Jaw-Breaker, the richest Kadiz chief:


A Kadiz chieftain's primary wife:


A Kadiz chieftain's elvish warbride:


A Burnt citizen of Kaddish:


A Kaddish merchant:


A Kadiz merchant:


Marcion Trin Greyward, high priest of the Black Vermin Gods:


A Kaddish priestess of the Screaming God:

The Value of a Life

Raiding for slaves and ransoms is an everyday activity on the Plains of Kadiz. People are routinely kidnapped and then sold, either back to their families or to outsiders. Combined with the restitutive character of plains justice, this means that the value of a life can be very precisely defined. Even between the Hill People and the Kadiz, enough interchange goes on to allow prisoners and bondsmen to be traded back and forth.

In general, a prisoner will be offered for ransom back to their family, sept or clan unless they are intended to be a concubine or wife. If they cannot or will not pay, then he is offered to other Kadiz or Hill People clans, and if none of them will buy them, he may be retained by the captor or sold to the Kaddish or Dwer. The latter fates are considered extremely shameful, as they represent abandonment by kin and allies, and a statement to the effect that the prisoner is useless even to his captor's clan. All of this is only customary, and it is not unusual for custom to be broken for economic advantage or due to personal disputes. The Hill People are notorious for eating those slaves that they do not need and cannot sell. The only people safe from enslavement are the holy people who have pledged themselves to a daimon. Enslaving one for a long period is considered bad luck. If one is enslaved, they are immediately asked to perform a task or service, and once performed, they are free to go.

A table of prices runs roughly:

1 man = 2 women or pounds of silver = 6 horses or swords or non-Kadiz / non-Hill People slaves = 18 cattle or spears = 36 sheep = 240 arrows

These are "fair" prices, based off those used in assessing weregilt under the customary law. If the person is a chief, chief's wife, or other important personage, the fee is doubled. In practice, the enslaving party tries to get as much as they can for their prisoners. It is not uncommon to rely on a third party (another clan or tribe) to arbitrate the purchase price, and to ensure that the exchange is not marred by violence from one side or the other. Most slave trading goes on in autumn, right before winter turns useless mouths into liabilities and after the summer raiding season has ended. A slave is not normally retained past their old age, especially once they become unable to work. They are returned to their clan or tribe, or at least freed and let to go back if they please.

Species and Races of the Dawnlands

Mankind

Though inhabitants of the Dawnlands do not think in modern scientific terms, from such a perspective are four main sentient species in the Dawnlands. Each population in turn is divided in races, which differ physically from one another.

The first is the orc-human-elf-gnoll ring species. This species is referred to as "Mankind", with "Human" being the name of a specific subpopulation rather than a synonym (In the Kaddish and Kadiz languages of the Dawnlands, the word for "human" is "Kad"). Each of the populations listed is interfertile with the adjacent populations, but not with the others. Orcs and humans produce half-orcs, humans and elves produce half-elves, elves and gnolls produce half-gnolls. Hybrids are interfertile with all populations adjacent to both parent types (i.e. the entire species), and most of the "human" and "elf" populations have small amounts of all populations in them.

Orcs are divided into two types, green-skinned and grey-skinned. Grey-skinned orcs are mostly found in the northern reaches of the Dawnlands as part of the Mountain People or serving the Hobgoblin barrow-kings. They have yellow or red eyes, and are comparable in size to a tall Man of the Dawn, with small tusks. Green-skinned orcs are mostly found on the southern plains, as part of the Hill People culture and have yellow eyes. Green-skinned orcs tend to be much taller and heavier than a human or elf, with more prominent tusks.

There are varieties of humans known in the Dawnlands, though only two are "native" to the area.

The Men of the Dusk are found amongst the Hill People, the Kaddish, the Kadiz nomads, amongst the Mountain People, and as helots in the villages surrounding Dwer Tor. They have pointed noses, light-coloured eyes and fair, straight hair. Their skin tone ranges from pale to a grey-blue not found in the real world. They are of average height, comparable to an elf. They are humans who are not descended from the Dawnmen. To a modern person, they would mostly look "European". The Men of the Dusk have interbred extensively with elves, and orcs, and many shown signs of that heritage.

The Men of the Dawn form the bulk of the Kadiz and Kaddish human populations. They have swarthy brown or black hair and skin that ranges from sallow to pale with yellow undertones. They have both snub and pointed noses, and a small number have epicanthal folds. Their eyes are mostly brown. Men of the Dawn tend to be taller than Men of the Dusk. The real world population they most resemble are Central-Asian Turks.

The Men from Across the Desert have jet-black skin with jet-black irises. They have curly hair and pointed noses. Their hair is either black or white naturally, but is often dyed. They are taller than elves, comparable to Men of the Dawn. They come from across the desert from the city-state of Rhuap using secret routes known only to them, and they do not permit travelers to return with them. They do not breed with elves, and so none of them show elvish features.

The Salt Men have skin that ranges from a dull golden colour to light brown, flat noses, red or yellow hair, and grey, green or blue eyes. They tend to be shorter than elves, very slightly. They come from across the sea, from places they call "Krosmil" and "Haran" to trade with Dwer Tor. They have elves and orcs in those places, but do not bring them on their ships.

The Men of the Three Towns have skin from copper-red-brown to deep chesnut brown, pointed noses, hair of all colours, and eyes of all colours. They tend to be of comparable height to an elf. They come from far to the south, beyond the Kingdom of the Fallen Star, from Ilac, the City of Blue Roofs; Moryek, the City of Clocks; and Lassan, the City of Gods. No one has traded with them since the fall of the Kingdom of High Kaddish, and only a few individuals are known in the Dawnlands.

The Burnt are a true-breeding creation of the Kaddish using human and elf stock. They have black skin with undertones of red, blue and purple. They have bright white hair, and red, blue or purple eyes. They have an arbitrary mix of human and elvish facial features. They are found only amongst the Kaddish, who created them.

Elves are found amongst the same communities as the Men of the Dusk. Elves' skin is either pale green with brown lines, patches and freckles, or white with green and brown lines, patches and freckles. Their skin tans to green in either case, so pale skin with very little green is highly prized as a sign of beauty. They have dark hair, either brown or black. Elves have pointed ears and more angular features than any human. They tend to be slightly shorter and leaner than Men of the Dawn, and of the same height as Men of the Dusk.

Gnolls come in three types. There are yellow-furred, red-furred, and blue-furred.

Yellow-furred gnolls are the most common, and are found as part of the Hill People frequently. They are as large as a green-skinned orc, with dark noses and pale green eyes without irises. Many have patches of red or black spots on their coats. Some yellow-furred gnolls have red-furred children, who have yellow or red eyes, and spots that are orange or brown. This is caused by recessive genes in their population.

Blue-furred gnolls are actually mottled a black or grey colour, but the mottling produces a battleship blue colour. They have pale noses and skin, and an extra finger and toe compared to yellow-skinned gnolls. They are larger than the yellow-furred kind. They are much less common, and are found deep in the desert. Their tribes were not part of the Hill People originally, but have since made common cause with them.

I originally posted this on another thread, but am reposting it here since it's a sustained treatment of god-types in the Dawnlands:

In the Dawnlands it's almost more useful to throw out the idea of "gods" and simply talk about entities that possess divine power, since they are so heterogenous.

I'm going to keep this taxonomic, rather than go into the justification for all of it, but please be assured that I have an exceeding complex metaphysics for how it all works.

The first type of divine entity are the divine heroes of Dwer Tor, who are dwarves and voidmen who have apotheosised due to their personal power. When they die, they go up into the sky and live as stars which can be summoned back to earth by the King of Dwer Tor, and which sometimes return of their own accord. Even if they are killed, their physical shell is destroyed but their spirit returns to the sky and can come back down to earth later. Sometimes, instead of coming blazing out of the sky they are reborn as dwarves or voidmen, grow to adulthood and then awaken to their own nature. They don't grant any magic, but they must be propitiated because they are the ultimate shitkickers. When they are physically present in the world, they spend their time roaming around taking out the really big threats. They aren't omnipotent or omniscient, they are just incredibly powerful individuals.

The second type of divine entity are vampiric heroes. Vampires were created in the kingdom of High Kaddish as an easier way for members of the warrior elite to attain god-like power. A vampire starts off drinking blood, and eventually, as they grow more and more powerful, begins consuming souls, which makes them even more powerful. The idea is to swell one's self with so many absorbed souls and their power that one becomes a god. Vampires gather cults around themselves either to help gather the necessary sacrifices, and use their powers to benefit their cultists. They do not grant divine magic, but many vampires are very old, and teach their followers the things they have learned. Joining a vampire cult is sort of like joining a guru's cult. No vampire has ever actually made the transition to god, though many have gotten close. Almost everyone else at the level of divinity sees them as a threat and takes them out whenever they can.

The third type of divine entity are spirits, ghosts and demons. Spirits and demons are essentially the same thing, and it's mostly a matter of how one feels about a particular spirit or demon that determines which label you use them as. Ghosts are the souls of prominent dead people, while spirits are the souls of things that are not people. These are dealt with by shamans, who can bind them into objects, propitiate them with sacrifices and rituals, etc. These are the most common types of divine entities, and include the insectile gods of the Forest Dreamers, the Black Vermin Gods, Makar of the Red Hand, the Old Hill Kings, etc. Spirits can perform magic themselves or teach it to others, but don't grant the ability to cast divine magic.

The fourth type are daimons. Daimons are separate from spirits in that they are not the soul or spirit of anything in particular. Instead, they are a kind of astral symbiote that binds to the soul of a particular person who must be willing (at least initially). They do grant divine magic. Daimons tend to have their own agendas, sometimes inscrutable, and once bound to an individual the bond cannot be broken except by the death of that individual. Daimon-bonded individuals do not normally form cults, and constitute a sacred class of individual in the Dawnlands who are normally let to be by everyone else. Daimons can have opposing goals to one another, and only bond with the one person at a time.

The fifth type are the "true" gods, who are entities who were alive either before or during the time when the Dawnmen still walked the earth. These include a planet (the Leper Star), the Moon (the still-living head of Eternal Night's son), the evening / morning star (the Herald), the Storm Bulls and the Wolves of the Earth, Eternal Night itself (who is dead but not gone), and the Hard-Faced Mother, who is the mountain that Dwer Tor is built on& the mother of all dwarves . Of these, the Hard-Faced Mother, the Storm Bulls and the Wolves of the earth are the most commonly worshipped. These entities do not grant clerical magic, but they do bestow good or bad fortune on those who pray and sacrifice to them, and can manifest as various natural phenomena as part of that.

The sixth type are simply powerful entities of various unknown types who are placated to avoid their wrath and seek their favour. This includes the Screaming God, the godfish of Rhuap, the Headless God, One-Handed Rider, and most famously, the Dawnmen themselves.

Finally, the History of the Dawnlands

This history of the Dawnlands will have two parts, a description of the conception of their own history that the Dwer, Kaddish and Kadiz share, and the actual facts of the matter so that referees may derive what they please from it.

Prior to the beginning of time, the following basic facts are understood:

There was a god named Eternal Night who created the world, the elves, gnolls, goblins, and various other monsters and gods including his son, Moon, the Storm Bulls and the Wolves of the Earth. His wife, the Earth, created the first dwarf (Kakarna), halflings, foreigners, and various other monsters including the Carnean Worm. No plants grew upon the world, and all things ate on another in an endless hunt. Time had not yet begun, for there were no days or nights, and all was darkness. Eternal Night and the Earth lay wrapped around one another, fornicating and creating new things constantly, and all things lived between them.

Kakarna was his mother's favourite son, but Moon was his father's. Moon was much larger and stronger, but more wicked and more rash. Kakarna was smaller, but clever and easier to get along with than his brother. He was very curious, and one day he wondered what was on the other side of his father and mother. Wishing to spare his mother the indignity of digging into her, he grabbed hold of his father and climbed into the sky. He was so small that Eternal Night did not notice him climbing up his belly and around to his back.

When he reached his father's back, Kakarna was surrounded by the Great Light which surrounded Eternal Night and Earth. He had never seen anything so bright, and he was blinded. He nearly lost his grip on his father's back and plunged into the Great Light for all time, when a hand reached out and grabbed him.

Kakarna was pulled aboard the fiery ship of the Dawnmen, who were born of the Great Light. The Dawnmen covered his eyes with a cloth and gave him a bowl of beer to restore himself. Kakarna had never drunk before, and before long he was roaring drunk. He bragged to the Dawnmen about all the fine things that his mother and father and their children had created, and they were in awe of the wonders he described. Then Kakarna asked the Dawnmen who they were and what they were doing, and how they came to have such a fine ship.

The Dawnmen told him that they were chased by the Winter Wind across the Great Light, and that they were seeking a place where they could find refuge from him, and that it sounded like the best place was between his father and his mother, for there was neither winter nor summer then. Kakarna drunkenly agreed to lead them down, and to ask his father for permission for the Dawnmen to settle. The Dawnmen gave him mint tea to sober him up, and they gave him many seeds to carry down and show to his father as the gifts they would offer if Eternal Night would let them settle.

Down went Kakarna, with pouches full of seeds. When he got back down to Earth, he petitioned his father on behalf of the Dawnmen. He told Eternal Night about what he had done, and why, and Eternal Night grew angry. Then Kakarna told his father about the Dawnmen, and Eternal Night grew even angrier. Then he told his father about the gifts they had given him, and Eternal Night was furious. As Kakarna held aloft a handful of seeds of every type, Eternal Night seized him between two fingernails and jerked him up into the air, scattering the seeds across the world where they became plants.

Eternal Night lifted Kakarna up to his mouth and he screamed so hard at him that Kakarna's eardrums burst, and he squeezed him between his fingernails so hard that Kakarna's eyeballs popped out, and then he disavowed him as his true son, and hurled him over his shoulder into the Great Light, screaming that the Dawnmen were beggars or worse, and that their gifts were insults to him, and that they were connivers, for they had lied to his son.

Kakarna flew through the Great Light, but the Dawnmen sailed after him, and they dragged him aboard their ship with a lasso. When they saw his wounds, they were angry, and demanded to know who had done this to their friend? When Kakarna told them that his own father had, and that he would not welcome the Dawnmen as guests, the Dawnmen grew wroth. They cut out a horse's eyes and set them in Kakarna's sockets, so that he could see,

A Brief Account of the Founding Myth

There was a god named Eternal Night who created the world, the elves, gnolls, hobgoblins, and various other monsters and gods including his son, Moon, the Storm Bulls and the Wolves of the Earth. His wife, the Earth, created the first dwarf (Kakarna), halflings, foreigners, and various other monsters including the Carnean Worm. No plants grew upon the world, and all things ate on another in an endless hunt. Time had not yet begun, for there were no days or nights, and all was darkness. Eternal Night and the Earth lay wrapped around one another, fornicating and creating new things constantly, and all things lived between them.

Kakarna was his mother's favourite son, but Moon was his father's. Moon was much larger and stronger, but more wicked and more rash. Kakarna was smaller, but clever and easier to get along with than his brother. He was very curious, and one day he wondered what was on the other side of his father and mother. Wishing to spare his mother the indignity of digging into her, he grabbed hold of his father and climbed into the sky. He was so small that Eternal Night did not notice him climbing up his belly and around to his back.

When he reached his father's back, Kakarna was surrounded by the Great Light which surrounded Eternal Night and Earth. He had never seen anything so bright, and he was blinded. He nearly lost his grip on his father's back and plunged into the Great Light for all time, when a hand reached out and grabbed him.

Kakarna was pulled aboard the fiery ship of the Dawnmen, who were born of the Great Light. The Dawnmen covered his eyes with a cloth and gave him a bowl of beer to restore himself. Kakarna had never drunk before, and before long he was roaring drunk. He bragged to the Dawnmen about all the fine things that his mother and father and their children had created, and they were in awe of the wonders he described. Then Kakarna asked the Dawnmen who they were and what they were doing, and how they came to have such a fine ship.

The Dawnmen told him that they were chased by the Winter Wind across the Great Light, and that they were seeking a place where they could find refuge from him, and that it sounded like the best place was between his father and his mother, for there was neither winter nor summer then. Kakarna drunkenly agreed to lead them down, and to ask his father for permission for the Dawnmen to settle. The Dawnmen gave him mint tea to sober him up, and they gave him many seeds to carry down and show to his father as the gifts they would offer if Eternal Night would let them settle.

Down went Kakarna, with pouches full of seeds. When he got back down to Earth, he petitioned his father on behalf of the Dawnmen. He told Eternal Night about what he had done, and why, and Eternal Night grew angry. Then Kakarna told his father about the Dawnmen, and Eternal Night grew even angrier. Then he told his father about the gifts they had given him, and Eternal Night was furious. As Kakarna held aloft a handful of seeds of every type, Eternal Night seized him between two fingernails and jerked him up into the air, scattering the seeds across the world where they became plants.

Eternal Night lifted Kakarna up to his mouth and he screamed so hard at him that Kakarna's eardrums burst, and he squeezed him between his fingernails so hard that Kakarna's eyeballs popped out, and then he disavowed him as his true son, and hurled him over his shoulder into the Great Light, screaming that the Dawnmen were beggars or worse, and that their gifts were insults to him, and that they were connivers, for they had lied to his son.

Kakarna flew through the Great Light, but the Dawnmen sailed after him, and they dragged him aboard their ship with a lasso. When they saw his wounds, they were angry, and demanded to know who had done this to their friend? When Kakarna told them that his own father had, and that he would not welcome the Dawnmen as guests, the Dawnmen grew wroth. They cut out a horse's eyes and set them in Kakarna's sockets, so that he could see, and they made him new eardrums out of the sails of their ship. Then they swore that they would avenge their friend's injury, and settle the Earth whether Eternal Night approved or not,

At first, Kakarna was worried, but the Dawnmen gave him more beer to bolster his courage, and they drank much themselves as they sailed back to Eternal Night. As they went, the Dawnmen listed off the wrongs that Eternal Night, and Moon, and the other sons and daughters of Night had done to Kakarna, and he came to share their hatred, except for his mother, whom he still loved. He made the Dawnmen swear that they would not harm her, and they agreed to swear to this if he would help them deal with Eternal Night, and they each uttered oaths pleasing to the other and drank.

Soon they came to Eternal Night, who was staring into his wife's face and paid them no mind. The Dawnmen did not wait for him to before they began hurling javelins and firing arrows. Normally, Eternal Night could not be hurt by weapons of his children, for they were forged of the darkness that he was, but the Dawnmen's weapons were of the Great Light, and they wounded Eternal Night terribly. As each one pierced him, a single speck of the Great Light shone through, and these are now the shining stars.

Eternal Night was shaking with rage, and for the first time since he created her, he turned his face from Earth to look upon the Dawnmen. Then the Dawnmen and Kakarna struck once more. As Eternal Night turned, Kakarna leapt from the ship of the Dawmen onto Eternal Night's head, grabbed his hair, and pulled it back so that Eternal Night's throat was exposed. One of the Dawnmen, who is remembered only as the First Murderer, took his sword and slit Night's throat, and the great giant of the sky fell onto the Earth, dead.

In the aftermath of this, the Dawnmen cut out Night's heart and set it in the sky as the sun, and they castrated him so that even dead he could not sire new children who would seek revenge, and they imprisoned the First Murderer in the red star to expiate their sin, and Kakarna married the first star and created the race of dwarves and built the first city (Dwer Tor), and the Dawnmen built the city of Kaddish and helped plants to grow, and the Children of Night warred upon them many times and were scourged, and Moon was slain and his head cast into the sky, and the Dawnmen let their ship be borne away by the Winter Wind while they hid between Night and Earth, so that it became the Herald that wanders the night sky.

How the Dawnmen Became the Kaddish, and Why No One Remembers Their Names

To consecrate the city of Kaddish and show that they would be good friends to all the people of the Dawnlands, the Dawnmen held a feast to which they invited everyone, from Kakarna and his wife, to the Insect Gods of the forest, to the God of Gates, and even Moon, though he was greatly angry at them for slaying his father. Only the Storm Bulls and the Wolves of the Earth were not invited, but no one noticed.

Moon came only because Kakarna begged him to make peace with the Dawnmen, saying that there was no use crying over their father, and they must act together to make sure the Dawnmen did not do the same to their mother or to them. If they came under guest-right, the Dawnmen would not dare to slay them.

All the guests arrived at Kaddish, each bearing gifts for the hosts. Kakarna brought bronze, which the Dawnmen had never seen before. He told them that he had taken their sun-metal (copper) and blended it with the blood of his father (tin) and created a new kind of thing for them, for he knew the Dawnmen delighted in new things and were forever making new wonders.

The Insect Gods brought the knowledge of dreaming with them, which the Dawnmen had never done before, and because this let them make even more things than the previous gift, they esteemed it even higher than Kakarna's.

Red-Handed Makar brought them women like themselves, made of mud with his life-giving red hand, and brushed with the death-giving black hand so that they were mortal, and he gave them to the Dawnmen to keep them company, and to be their friends and wives, and the Dawnmen were very pleased, for they had left all of their own women behind when they fled the Winter Wind, and each one sat one of the women down next to himself, and named her, and called her his wife.

The God of Gates brought them a strange statue, of a man like the Dawnmen but sitting on a stone chair, and with no face, except for two ears. He told them that this was the Guardian of Conscience, and that anything spoken into the right ear was forgotten for all time, and anything spoke into the left ear would be remembered for all time. And the Dawnmen found this incredibly funny, and sat the Guardian at the table next to Kakarna, and they warned Kakarna that if he got drunk, all of his bragging would go into its left ear and they would tease him until he had done the things he had sworn to.

And all the other gods brought wondrous things, which the Dawnmen praised them for. Only Moon did not bring a gift. When the Dawnmen asked him why he had not, he glowered at them and said "You have me here, that is gift enough," and the Dawnmen laughed and sat him at the other end of the table from Kakarna, who sat between them and the Guardian of Conscience.

Then the feast began, and the Dawnmen were generous hosts, and they gave bowls of beer to all the guests, which the guests were amazed by for other than the Dawnmen and Kakarna, none had ever drunk beer before. And all the gods got drunk, and boasted and joked and said that the Dawnmen were fine hosts.

Only Moon did not drink, for he saw the other guests grow drunk, and he did not trust the Dawnmen, though he ate at their table. And the day went on and on this way.

As night fell, Moon thought he could hear the howling of wolves, and the braying of cattle. And he excused himself from the table and went to piss out all the water he had been drinking, which became the Dawn Lake on the eastern side of Kaddish. As he stood there, he saw that some of the Dawnmen who were not at the feast were leading the Storm Bulls back to Kaddish, and that others had caged the Wolves of the Earth and were hauling them back to the same place, and that these were the source of the howling and braying that the other gods had not noticed because they were drunk.

Moon grew angry and stomped back to the table, and his footprints became the pits of the Pit District. He bellowed at the Dawnmen that they were thieves, that the Storm Bulls were his father's cattle and the Wolves of the Earth were his father's pets, and that as eldest son they were now his. But the other gods were too drunk to help him press his claim, and as he stood there screaming at the rest, one of the Dawnmen crept up behind him and cut off his head.

Most of the gods were too drunk to realise what had been done, but Kakarna was not as drunk as the rest because he was worried about boasting into the Guardian of Conscience, and he jumped to his feet with his hammer in hand. He accused them of murdering his brother, and of breaking the guest-right, and of using him to convince his brother to come to the feast in the first place. And he raised the hammer to smite all of them.

But the Dawnmen were all armed, for it turned out that they had been planning this for some time, and Kakarna realised that he could not defeat all of them at once. So he leaned in to the Guardian of Conscience and he whispered the name of the land the Dawnmen had come from into its right ear. And all the Dawnmen and Kakarna and anyone else who knew forgot its name, and how they could sail across the Great Light to it. And the Dawnmen, realising this, threw down their arms and hung their heads in shame, and begged Kakarna's forgiveness, saying they would pay whatever debt he pleased for Moon and for the Storm Bulls and the Wolves of the Earth.

Now, Kakarna had never loved his brother, and he and the Dawnmen were good friends, but he was drunk and furious, and he did not know if the Dawnmen would ever forgive him for what he had done, so he thought long about what penalty he would assess.

Finally, when the sun began to rise in the sky and the other gods were laying around drunk and unconscious, he pronounced his weregild. Each one of the Dawnmen would say his name and title into the right ear of the Guardian of Conscience, and forget it. And then they would promise into the left ear that all gods would be welcome in their city, and need not fear being murdered whether at feasts or anywhere else within its limits.

And all the Dawnmen there, and all the others who had been stealing the cattle and wolves came and did so, except for the First Murderer who was still imprisoned in the red star at the time, though no one, including Kakarna, thought about this until much later. And then Kakarna took the Guardian of Conscience somewhere and spoke the place he had taken it to into the right ear, and this story into the left, and then he left it there.

And so all the Dawnmen forgot their names, and where they were from and they married the women that Red-Handed Makar made for them, and their children became the Kaddish, who kept all the other gifts that the gods had given them at their feast, and became the lords of the Dawnlands.

Anyhow, those are two famous myths of the Dawnlands that referees can incorporate as they please into their campaigns. I have a short euhemeristic explanation of what actually happened that I partially wrote out today, but it's more world-building material than gaming material. I may incorporate some relevant extracts of it into a post if people are interested.

Species and Races of the Dawnlands

Halflings

The dwarf-halfling-goblin-gnome genus consists of the original halfling species, and three true-breeding soul-forged races. Only dwarves and halflings are interfertile, though in actual practice such mixed-race children are considered abominations and the government of Dwer Tor puts them to death when discovered. That halflings and dwarves are the same species is not a widely-known fact within the Dawnlands, even by members of both populations, and due to the tense racial dynamics of Dwer Tor, public claims to this effect are heretical and treasonous. This is also true of the knowledge that dwarves are soul-forged.

All members of the superspecies have more efficiently rooted muscle groups than humans, allowing similar strength despite inferior leverage to longer-limbed humans and elves. All members of the superspecies are either hairless (goblins, some dwarves) or possess only dark, curly hair (most dwarves, halflings, and gnomes).

Dwarves are a true-breeding soul-forged race created from the halfling followers of the divine hero Kakarna by the early Kaddish as payment for his services. The population was transformed to resemble lesser versions of Kakarna. Dwarves tend to have flat or blunted noses, brown skin and large light-coloured eyes with slightly-ovoid pupils, similar to a horse. The average dwarf is about two-thirds the size of a human, but weighs about the same. Dwarves can see heat like others see visible light (hotter objects are brighter), which allows them a degree of vision in total darkness, though they cannot discern colours, or the outlines of objects the same temperature as the background. All known dwarves are found either in Dwer Tor, or in its colonies, or are exiles or refugees from the same. Dwarves are omnivorous, and have similar dietary requirements to humans. Dwarves live several hundred years barring disease or accident. Most live to be between 300 and 400 years old.

Halflings are the autochtonous race of the Dawnlands, having inhabited it since the local equivalent of the neolithic. Halflings tend to have pointed noses, dark-coloured pupils, and their skin is either brown with pale mottling, or pale with brown mottling, which disrupts their outline in natural environments and serves as camouflage. Their physiology resembles a smaller, fatter elf. Halflings are typically half the height of a human. Halflings have a faster metabolism than most humans, and rapidly shed weight if not constantly eating. The halfling digestive system is much more robust than humans, and will digest cellulose in plant material readily, allowing them to eat tree bark, grass, etc. Halflings are omnivorous. Halflings have excellent night vision, but cannot see heat like a dwarf. Their lifespan is comparable to a human's. They are found in the Orthocracy of Kaddish and in Dwer Tor and amongst the Forest Dreamers. In the former two places, they are lower class or caste individuals, while they are the preeminent species amongst the Forest Dreamers and form the bulk of that population.

Goblins are a true-breeding soul-forged race created from halflings 500 years ago that inhabit Moon Peak in the northern Dawnlands. The Dawnmen created them to seek out gold and silver, and goblins possess the ability to detect the presence of metal within about a kilometre of themselves. The same ability gives them an unerring sense of direction. Goblins refer to this sense as a variety of taste or smell. The goblins escaped during the Kaddish revolution, allied themselves with Dwer Tor, and now live a sedentary life operating the only known gold mine in the Dawnlands. Goblins are typically the same height as halflings but considerably thinner. Their skin varies from light blue-grey to dark grey-black, and they have long, sharp noses, large, pointed ears, and extremely large eyes very similar to a dwarf's. Goblins are metallovores, and possess the same heightened lifespan as dwarves. They are not interfertile with any other race of halfling or species.

Gnomes are a true-breeding soul-forged race created in the kingdom of High Kaddish about 600 years ago. Gnomes are widely loathed in Kaddish, and are often extremely lower class in the Orthocracy. A small emigrant population lives in Dwer Tor, where it pursues an honoured and respected trade. Gnomes are of similar height and build to a halfling, but their eyes are completely black, and they have sharp, canine-like teeth filling their entire mouth. Gnomish fingernails are hardened, similar to claws when allowed to grow out. Gnomes subsist entirely on the life-energy of living things and spirits, particularly ghosts. The easiest time for them to feed is either at the point of death or shortly after. Cadavers that are "gnome-eaten" will not rise from the dead of their own accord, nor will they spawn ghosts. Popular belief amongst the Kaddish holds that gnomes eat souls, and this is the source of the hatred the Kaddish feel. The Dwer believe that gnomes eat the pneuma, or animating life force of the body, while the soul is untouched by them. There is some evidence to support the latter idea, as gnomes traditionally work as morticians and grave attendants in Dwer Tor, and their preparation / consumption of several dying divine heroes has not prevented those same heroes from returning on later occasions.