Human

The Five Isles have survived many turbulent ages. The last century since the Age of War has often been called the Age of Man. With the dragon kings slain and the elves and halflings suffering greatly from the plagues, humans have risen to power across all the Isles. The Diadem of Tael is human (though she speaks with the voice of Tael), as are most of the Kings and Queens of the realm.

Elf and Half-Elf

Before the Age of the Dragons, the elves ruled over vast primeval forests across the Five Isles. Their reputation for mastery of magic and war remains to this day. As the great forests fell to dragonfire or the expansion of human cities, so too did the elven population suffer. Now the remaining elves are loath to leave the small patches of untamed forest that remain. When they do, they are regarded as mythic and dangerous folk.

Half-elves are better integrated with human society, though still treated with some suspicion. Most half-elves resist settling into a standard human life, especially as their human companions age and they stay youthful. It is common to find half-elves among the nomadic Featherfolk or manning ships on the sea.

Halfling

Nobody knows how long the halflings have lived on the Five Isles. There are tales of halflings from the Age of Elves; some think they were here even earlier. Most halflings live in small, isolated towns, preferring a peaceful life away from the workings of elves and men. However, the recent plagues have decimated most halfling villages, and halfolk refugees have streamed into the larger human-run cities.

Half-Orc

When the last dragon king fell to the armies of the elves and humans, sages predicted the arrival of an endless era of peace. Then came the orcs. Sailing longships around the Firelands, the orcs landed on the shores of the Five Isles and immediately set to their craft: war. The elves were the targets of the worst attacks, and the last of the Elven Woodqueens fell to the swords and arrows of the orcs. For decades, the orcs raided the Five Isles, and then left as quickly as they had arrived, their ships laden with elven treasures. Some orc tribes remain in the mountains and moors of the Isles. Half-orcs may be the products of a union between an orc and a nearby human settlement; others trace their orcish ancestry back to the Age of War.

Tiefling

Human children are only named after ten days of life; this way, if the child falls to a pox or fever, or is born with horns or hooves or red scales for skin, it can be buried and forgotten. Tieflings are the product of a union between a human and a demon. Those raised in pagan cults are trained to use their powers to corrupt the Five Isles. Those born to normal families are killed at birth. Rarely, a tiefling will be raised in secret, hiding their demonic nature beneath cloaks and shadows. When they are discovered, they are killed, or, more rarely so, may join the Church of Tael in eternal servitude.

Dwarf

Dwarves rule over the vast Durlands to the east of the Five Isles. It is rare for a dwarf to live permanently on the Isles, though those who do are usually artisans or merchants. There is one dwarven hold, Sturmgard, high up the mountains on Stone’s Isle.

Dwarves who join the Church of Tael are especially rare. They may have been orphaned and raised by humans, or have been forced into servitude to pay back a debt.

Gnome

Vast underground gnomish cities are found in the Durlands to the east of the Five Isles. For many centuries, gnomes have visited the Five Isles to trade their magic and mechanical crafts. Some gnomes have chosen to live on the Isles, and often travel with the nomadic Featherfolk.

Gnomes are rare in the Church of Tael. Some gnomish families joined the Church in order to open trade routes; others came to the faith through simple curiosity.

Dragonborn

In the Age of Dragons, five dragon kings ruled over the Isles. They were evil, despotic rulers, burning the forests of the elves and forcing humans into slavery to craft gaudy treasures. It took a great effort, and a great cost of lives, for the humans and elves to rise up and slay the dragon kings. Dragonborn come from the northern Firelands, where dragons still live. When they come the Five Isles, they are treated with suspicion and often open hostility. There are, however, rumors that secret societies of dragonborn still live in isolated communities in the deep canyons and tall mountains of Easthorn.

A dragonborn who joins the Church of Tael has some protection from the suspicious folk of the Five Isles. A few dragonborn holy knights are popular characters in bards’ tales throughout the realm.

Hounds of St. Hestian

St. Hestian was a renown healer who traveled the Five Isles, saving kings and commoners from the brink of death. She had a talent with dogs, and trained her faithful hounds to sniff out the source of corruption within a patient or in a community.

Since the plagues began to ravage the Five Isles, the Holy Order of St. Hestian has been called upon for its knowledge of diseases and the healing arts.

The Hounds of St. Hestian are an order of holy warriors who seek out the true source of all pestilence: not bad air or tainted water, or even corrupted blood and ichors, but demonic influence.

Tael’s great enemy is Xeno, the Other, Lord of Legions, and his thrall, the demons of Hell. When a mortal breaks the laws of Tael, the very act allows the corrupting forces of the demons to spread. In the mortal realm, this corruption takes the form of poxes, fevers, and other plagues.

As a Hound, you have been trained in curing the world of the demonic presence that causes diseases. Your task is to locate communities harmed by plague, find the demonic source of the disease, and enact the law of Tael upon those whose sinful nature had allowed the ingress of the demon and its pestilence.

Faith: you may have joined because it is your religious duty as a priest or paladin of Tael.

Punishment: you may have committed a crime, and in order to avoid a more severe punishment, you instead joined the Hounds of St. Hestian.

Retribution: your family, friends, or entire village were killed by a terrible plague. As a Hound of St. Hestian, you are happy to hunt down the demons responsible.

Curiosity: like St. Hestian herself, you are an academic. You journey out not just to fight the plagues, but to learn about them.

Debt: you owe a debt, either financial or spiritual, to the Church of Tael. Joining the Hounds of St. Hestian is one step towards repayment.

The Laws of Tael

Tael (tie-EL) is the one true god of the Five Isles. From their throne on the sun, Tael guides all mortals through the daily dangers of the realm.

Though Tael is beyond all mortal comprehension, they came to the Isles five times wearing the guise of a human life. The stories of these Five Descents are studied frequently by scholars and priests, and have been used to determine the Five Great Laws of Tael.

Fighting Demons

As a Hound of St. Hestian, you will set out to locate and defeat demons.

All demons are the children of Xeno, the Other, Lord of Legions and Imperator of Hell. Though trapped in Hell, Xeno’s thrall seek power upon the mortal realm. They can gain entrance when mortals break the Laws of Tael.

For example, if a farmer were hiding their crops and failing to pay the proper taxes, they would be breaking the Law of the Lord and Lady. This sin would allow the ingress of a demon, whose entrance to the mortal realm would be marked by corruption; say, a plague of vomiting.

As a Hound of St. Hestian, you would seek to defeat the demon and punish the farmer for their transgression.

Identify the Demon

First, you must identify which demon has entered the mortal realm through covenant with a sinner. You might research through your books, look for clues, or interrogate the locals.

Conjure the Demon

Once the demon has been found, you must summon its true form! This can be done in three ways:

• Call Out the Demon’s True Name
• Find the Demon’s Hidden Form
• Convince the Faithful to Call Their Master

Slay, Banish, or Bind the Demon

The demon appears before you! You must slay, banish, or bind the demon!

Slay: through martial might, you destroy the physical form of the demon. Its essence is sent back to Hell, greatly reduced in power.

Banish: through a ritual, you banish the demon from the mortal realm. As long as your faith stays strong, the demon shall not be able to return to the place where it made covenant.

Bind: through a ritual, the demon’s physical form is destroyed, and its essence is bound to an object or small animal, such as a bottle, toad, or book. The demon is forced to follow the commands of its master, though its power is greatly reduced.