With all this talk about Moralinth: Cypher Edition in the blogs, its time for a little Moralinth: 5e info!
One of the largest differences between the two systems is that D&D 5e has a lot of varied races whereas the Cypher edition of the game has only Humans and Clockworks as racial choices.
Moralinth: 5e will have a grand total of 29 playable races to choose from.
The 9 races from the Players Handbook are all still available, being Dragonborn, Dwarf, Elf, Gnome, Half-Elf, Halfling, Half-Orc, Human and Tiefling.
In addition, many other races from various D&D 5e supplements are available to play as well; such as Aasimar, Changeling, Firbolg, Gith, Goliath, Hobgoblin, Kenku, Kobold, Lizardfolk, Loxodon, Minotaur, Shifter, Tabaxi, Tortle, Triton, Vedalken and Yuan-ti Pureblood. Adding to this already large list of playable races, Moralinth: 5e brings three brand-new races for players to choose from:
RATKIN:
As long as there have been cities, there have been Ratkin. Nobody is exactly sure where this bipedal rodent species originated, but they have shouldered the stigma as pests and vermin for thousands of years. Resistant to disease and with a sharp, cunning mind, Ratkin are born into large families that some remain with for life but just as many abandon to strike out on their own. Like Kenku and Tabaxi, Ratkin are often confused for lycanthropes with more simple or superstitious folk assuming them to be cursed but are in fact, their own separate species - a unique combination of rodent and mammal.
How Ratkin are treated varies greatly from Enclave to Enclave. Some see them as disease-carrying ne'er do wells, forcing them to live in shame in ghettos or in sewers. Some see them as second-class citizens but pay them little heed, and while it is rare there are the occasional Enclaves who treat Ratkin as equal citizens and respect their unique talents.
Regardless, all Ratkin are opportunistic and often selfish, putting their needs above others. They are highly social - especially among their own kind - and will often go out of their way to help others (once their own needs have been met, of course.)
CLOCKWORK: Steam-powered, mechanical artificial humanoids, Clockworks were designed as servants to the mortal races, mechanised conveniences who were tasked to do things their owners did not or could not do.
Created when the previous Emperor outlawed slavery across the Empire, Clockworks were made to fill the void left by the sudden removal of an entire social group. Most were designed to be man-servants, valets or manual labourers, but others still were designed for other tasks such as mining, guard-duty, diplomatic relations, Blight removal... the list was virtually endless.
For a time the Clockworks - being the jewel of the Imperial Technical College's many achievements - were met with incredible success and adoration by the citizens of the Empire. This all changed in 555 IR when some Clockworks began showing erratic behaviour patterns. It soon became apparent that the artificial servants were somehow becoming self-aware. A turbulent five years concluded in all-out rebellion by the now-sentient Clockworks who demanded equal rights, and it came to a head in 560 IR in an event that would later become known as The Clockwork Revolt.
Later that same year following some violent altercations, Clockworks were finally recognised as Imperial Citizens and given the rights they fought so hard for. Ironically most of them simply went back to working in the service industry, happy to do what they knew best (though now being paid for said services). Those who deemed to strike out on their own gained the nick-name of 'FreeCogs' and their treatment among their own kind varies considerably. Some see them as revolutionaries, others as a nuisance.
Clockworks are a common sight in almost all Enclaves across the Empire, with their population rivalling humans in sheer number. The further one travels from the Imperial Capital Enclave of Elysium the less people treat Clockworks as having rights of their own, but this rarely stops an ambitious Clockwork who wants to understand their place in the world.
USHABTI:
Hailing from the southern country of Timicias, the Ushabti are relics of a bygone age when their country was a the height of its power. Situated in one of the most remote parts of the Empire, the sand-filled lands of Timicias sits along one of the "Four Borders", in this instance the southern-most border of 'Afras, The Endless Desert'.
Many years ago before they joined the Estanian Empire, the land of Timicias was ruled over by their entombed and reincarnated aristocracy: the Ushabti. Unlike many of the other nations of the Known World, Timicias has strong connections with the occult and what are considered today to be forbidden magics. Their leaders were well aware that magic had long-since left the world, but a civilisation as old of theirs had seen more than one instance of the waning and re-awakening of magic. Their aristocracy were entombed upon death, as were their tradition, and when the first signs of the re-emergence of magic were recognised among the Priests of Kaphothis, they reincarnated the souls of the Ushabti into new, magically-bolstered bodies.
The world the Ushabti were re-awoken to had changed and many of their positions of power had been replaced by their descendants, but their great wealth and knowledge afforded them privileges among their people. As members of the aristocracy but with little material purpose in their society other than reverence, some Ushabti decided to start again armed with the knowledge of ancient practices and rituals. Others decided to abandon their ancestral home to travel the Known World and experience cultures other than their own.
An in-depth look at the Clockwork, Ratkin and Ushabti will be coming in future blogs including their in-game stats and a greater look at each races' history in the world of Moralinth. For the time being be aware they will be taking their place among the other twenty-six races and can be selected as player-characters right out of the Moralinth: 5e Core Rulebook.
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