In the reckonings of most worlds, humans are the youngest of the common races, late to arrive on the world scene and short-lived in comparison to dwarves, elves, and dragons. Perhaps it is because of their shorter lives that they strive to achieve as much as they can in the years they are given. Or maybe they feel they have something to prove to the elder races, and that’s why they build their mighty empires on the foundation of conquest and trade. Whatever drives them, humans are the innovators, the achievers, and the pioneers of the worlds.
A Broad Spectrum
With their penchant for migration and conquest, humans are more physically diverse than other common races. There is no typical human. An individual can stand from 5 feet to a little over 6 feet tall and weigh from 125 to 250 pounds. Human skin shades range from nearly black to very pale, and hair colors from black to blond (curly, kinky, or straight), and males might sport facial hair that is sparse or thick. A lot of humans have a dash of nonhuman blood, revealing hints of elf, orc, or other lineages. Humans reach adulthood in their late teens and rarely live even a single century.
Variety in All Things
Humans are the most adaptable and ambitious people among the common races. They have widely varying tastes, morals, and customs in the many different lands where they have settled. When they settle, though, they stay, they build cities to last for the ages, and great kingdoms that can persist for long centuries. An individual human might have a relatively short life span, but a human nation or culture preserves traditions with origins far beyond the reach of any single human’s memory. They live fully in the present—making them well suited to the adventuring life—but also plan for the future, striving to leave a lasting legacy. Individually and as a group, humans are adaptable opportunists, and they stay alert to changing political and social dynamics.
Lasting Institutions
Where a single elf or dwarf might take on the responsibility of guarding a special location or a powerful secret, humans found sacred orders and institutions for such purposes. While dwarf clans and halfling elders pass on the ancient traditions to each new generation, human temples, governments, libraries, and codes of law fix their traditions in the bedrock of history. Humans dream of immortality, but (except for those few who seek undeath or divine ascension to escape death’s clutches) they achieve it by ensuring that they will be remembered when they are gone.
Although some humans can be xenophobic, in general their societies are inclusive. Human lands welcome large numbers of nonhumans compared to the proportion of humans who live in nonhuman lands.
Exemplars of Ambition
Humans who seek adventure are the most daring and ambitious members of a daring and ambitious race. They seek to earn glory in the eyes of their fellows by amassing power, wealth, and fame. More than other people, humans champion causes rather than territories or groups.
Human Names and Ethnicities
Having so much more variety than other cultures, humans as a whole have no typical names. Some human parents give their children names from other languages, such as Dwarvish or Elvish (pronounced more or less correctly), but most parents give names that are linked to their region’s culture or to the naming traditions of their ancestors.
The material culture and physical characteristics of humans can change wildly from region to region. In the Realms, for example, the clothing, architecture, cuisine, music, and literature are different in the northwestern lands of the Necromasthan in distant Kingdom of Astora or Vinheim to the east—and even more distinctive in far-off Karato-kur. Human physical characteristics, though, vary according to the ancient migrations of the earliest humans, so that the humans of the Old World have every possible variation of coloration and features.
In the Realms, ten human ethnic groups are widely recognized, though over a dozen others are found in more localized areas of Arata. These groups, and the typical names of their members, can be used as inspiration no matter which region your human is in.
MINDITE: Taller and slighter in build than most other humans, broken into two catagories, High and Low. Low Mindites have dusky skin, hair, and eyes while their southern cousins High Mindites typically have golden hair and eyes with paler skin.
Mindites Names: (Male) Aseir, Bardeid, Haseid, Khemed, Mehmen, Sudeiman, Zasheir; (female) Atala, Ceidil, Hama, Jasmal, Meilil, Seipora, Yasheira, Zasheida; (surnames) Basha, Dumein, Jassan, Khalid, Mostana, Pashar, Rein
ASTORAN: Astorans are slender, tawny-skinned folk with brown hair that ranges from almost blond to almost black. Most are tall and have green or brown eyes, but these traits are hardly universal. Humans of Astoran descent dominate the western regions of the Eastern Lands, around the Sea of Fallen Stars and the Silver Sea.
Astoran Names: (Male) Darvin, Dorn, Evendur, Gorstag, Grim, Helm, Malark, Morn, Randal, Stedd; (female) Arveene, Esvele, Jhessail, Kerri, Lureene, Miri, Rowan, Shandri, Tessele; (surnames) Amblecrown, Buckman, Dundragon, Evenwood, Greycastle, Tallstag
STAGLANDER: Found primarily in the midwest of the Old World, Staglanders are of moderate height and build, with skin hues ranging from light browns to fair. Their hair is usually brown or black, and their eye color varies widely, though brown or hazel is most common.
Staglander Names: (Male) Alrion, Bertrad, Dietrich, Egmont, Glar, Hildemar, Landolf, Laurin, Markward, Oddone, Siegmund, Willibald; (female) Alda, Belinda, Kara, Ingfried, Natali, Olma, Ottilia, Saskia, Zora; (surnames) Blume, Chernin, Fishere, Kuttner, Marsk, Nemen, Taurus, Stags, Vend
YSMIERAN: Ysmierans are tall, fair-skinned folk with blue or steely gray eyes. Most have raven-black hair, but those who inhabit the extreme north of their country have blond, red, or light brown hair.
Ysmieran Names: (Male) Ander, Blath, Bran, Frath, Geth, Lander, Luth, Malcer, Stor, Taman, Urth; (female) Amafrey, Betha, Cefrey, Kethra, Mara, Olga, Silifrey, Westra; (surnames) Brightwood, Helder, Hornraven, Lackman, Stormwind, Windrivver
ASHLANDERS: Dominant in the vast eastern desert, the Ashlanders are generally tall, slim, and amber or charcoal-skinned, with eyes of hazel or brown. Their hair ranges from black to dark brown, but in the lands where the Ashlanders are most prominent, nobles and many other Ashlanders shave off all their hair.
Ashlanders Names: (Male) Aoth, Bareris, Ehput-Ki, Kethoth, Mumed, Ramas, So-Kehur, Thazar-De, Urhur; (female) Arizima, Chathi, Nephis, Nulara, Murithi, Sefris, Thola, Umara, Zolis; (surnames) Ankhalab, Anskuld, Fezim, Hahpet, Nathandem, Sepret, Uuthrakt
RASHEMI: Most often found south of the great desert of the Ashlands and often intermingled with the Ashlanders, Rashemis tend to be short, stout, and muscular. They usually have dusky skin, dark eyes, and thick black hair or rarer red hair.
Rashemi Names: (Male) Borivik, Faurgar, Jandar, Kanithar, Madislak, Ralmevik, Shaumar, Vladislak; (female) Fyevarra, Hulmarra, Immith, Imzel, Navarra, Shevarra, Tammith, Yuldra; (surnames) Chergoba, Dyernina, Iltazyara, Murnyethara, Stayanoga, Ulmokina
HITO: The Hito are the most numerous and powerful ethnic group in Karato-kur, islands far to the east of the Old World. They are yellowish-bronze in hue, with black hair and dark eyes. Hito surnames are usually presented before the given name.
Hito Names: (Male) An, Chen, Chi, Fai, Jiang, Jun, Lian, Long, Meng, On, Shan, Shui, Wen; (female) Bai, Chao, Jia, Lei, Mei, Qiao, Shui, Tai; (surnames) Chien, Huang, Kao, Kung, Lao, Ling, Mei, Pin, Shin, Sum, Tan, Wan
THYRIAN: Widespread along the entire Old World and Southlands at the western edge of Arata, Thyrians are of medium build and height, with dusky skin that tends to grow fairer the farther north they dwell. Their hair and eye color varies widely, but brown hair and green eyes are the most common.
Thyrian Names: (Male) Bor, Fodel, Glar, Grigor, Igan, Ivor, Kosef, Mival, Orel, Pavel, Sergor; (female) Alethra, Kara, Katernin, Mara, Natali, Olma, Tana, Zora; (surnames) Bersk, Chernin, Dotsk, Kulenov, Marsk, Nemetsk, Shemov, Starag
FOROSSAN: Native to the Southlands, the various shores around the Sea of Dread, the Forossan people are generally tall and muscular, with dark mahogany skin, curly black hair, and dark eyes.
Forossan Names: (Male) Anton, Diero, Marcon, Pieron, Rimardo, Romero, Salazar, Umbero; (female) Balama, Dona, Faila, Jalana, Luisa, Marta, Quara, Selise, Vonda; (surnames) Agosto, Astorio, Calabra, Domine, Falone, Marivaldi, Pisacar, Ramondo
NECROMAN: Found only to their native land, Necroman are of average heights and slender builds. Pale to even sickly white skin is common among their people, with black or grey eyes and hair. For Necromans familial names are common among the lower classes, the nobility typically carry weighty titles. Though slaves and indentured servants may vary in their original origin, many claim new Necroman names.
Necroman Names: (Male) Abigrim, Bruzhul, Galos, Hathum, Maezar, Sithos, Virael; (female) Beren, Cucia, Emaress, Omeren, Mepris, Moxaura, Yulen, Zacia; (Neutral) Cozael, Drezael, Fazis, Haxis, Kraedhir, Uhadhir, Zraeshis