Geniekin

In most of Golarion, geniekin are rare, forming small, unique niches within larger parent societies. They bond over shared experiences and shared language, or at least commiserate over hardships they experienced as social and literal outsiders in human culture. Where they gather in thicker numbers—often in neighborhoods in the cities of Osirion and Kelesh—geniekin tend to break apart along elemental lines, and develop unique cultures that blend their host societies and those of the genies from which they descend.

In Qadira and Kelesh, many geniekin either live as slaves or work as servants or laborers for Keleshite households, while others form small caravans to wander the deserts. Those who set out to make their own fortune must fight against the prejudices of their society to succeed. A few overcome these challenges and make comfortable lives for themselves, but these are the exceptions rather than the rule. Many end up living in slums or find themselves forced into a life of crime to survive.

Osirion’s rise in elemental activity has sparked a demand for those who speak the elemental languages, creating a much more hospitable cultural climate for geniekin looking to make lives for themselves. Oreads and ifrits can easily find work as guides and interpreters for caravans crossing the desert, and undines may make an easy living plying the waters of the River Sphinx. Only sylphs meet with prejudice with any regularity, and then only in the cities, where privacy is treasured and the sylphs’ inquisitive natures make them few friends.

In the deserts of northern Garund, a geniekin’s reception largely depends on her specific elemental ancestry. Almost all communities readily accept undines, who are thought to bring water to wells and rain to parched villages, and sulis’ charm gains them acceptance in most settlements. Most other geniekin, however, meet with superstition and distrust. Many find work with the alchemists of Thuvia, as these scholars see many parallels between their alchemical studies and the geniekin’s elemental natures, and value servants who aren’t afraid of being burnt by acid or scalded by flames.

The isle of Jalmeray is perhaps the most inviting region for geniekin. The westernmost of the Impossible Kingdoms readily accepts geniekin immigrants—if only because they enhance the nation’s mystique—and welcomes them to the island’s monasteries, either as disciples, scholars, or more mundane servants.

Relations

While all geniekin share some experiences as outsiders living among those not touched by elemental energy, a geniekin’s relationships with members of other races largely depend on her elemental affinity.

Oreads, for example, get along famously with dwarves. They respect elves and aasimars for their studiousness and devotion, and sympathize with the plight of halforcs and half-elves. Oreads have strained relationships with half lings, tieflings, and humans, whom they find overly excitable and brash.

Ifrits, on the other hand, find much in common with tieflings, with whom they share many physical characteristics. They get along poorly with dwarves, half-orcs, and half lings, who find their domineering personalities grating. Ifrits thrive on conflict, and often forge their strongest friendships with those they disagree with most passionately.

Sylphs find easy allies among half lings and gnomes, thanks to the natural curiosity the three races share. They often find it difficult to get along with dwarves, who consider them flighty, and elves, who find them invasive.

Undines prefer the company of other undines. They are not unfriendly toward other races, however, and their interests often overlap with nature-focused elves and gnomes.

Sulis share sympathies with halflings, as both races count slavery as a very serious concern in the Inner Sea region. They make easy friends among humans and half-elves, and often try to pass as these races when traveling in hostile lands.

Faith

Despite their diverse heritages, geniekin approaches toward faith and the divine are startlingly similar. Not all geniekin are equally devout or drawn to service, but most are born with a knack for magic thanks to the extraplanar ancestry that infuses their beings. Even geniekin who do not pursue a divine calling engage on some level with the divine and entities from other planes, and many geniekin offer at least occasional prayers to one or more deities.

Ifrits tend to be the least devout of the geniekin, and they usually restrict their devotion to fiery beings such as Moloch or Sarenrae, though their attitudes toward their chosen deities involves more respect and rough affection than submission to a certain god’s will. Undines and oreads, by contrast, are naturally spiritual and often quite devout, and many take vows as clerics, druids, monks, or other professions devoted to divine pursuits. Undine clerics favor Gozreh, though followers of Desna and Besmara are also common. Most oreads worship Irori or Abadar, though those oreads born in dwarven lands tend to worship Torag instead. Sylphs worship deities who encourage and sate their curiosity, finding themselves drawn to Desna for her association with dreams and travel, or, for those whose faith takes a darker cast, to Norgorber in his aspect as the Reaper of Reputation. Sulis often feel pulled toward many different faiths at once, and many adopt a patchwork belief system or a pantheistic mind-set.

Some geniekin find communion in the faiths of demigods, particularly the Elemental Lords or the Eldest of the First World, who better represent the geniekin’s primordial relationship with the world. A good number of geniekin believe that such devotion pays homage to their outsider ancestry, or that as manifestations of the elements they’re destined to find true purpose or power in these faiths.