Gaiaterra: Elysea's Conflict/The Races of Gaiaterra

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Humans
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Dwarves
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Dwarf (Dawi)
Also known as Kindred, as they call each other, or Squats by Necromunda. The Dwarfs of the Coalition are in many ways different from the other Dwarves. The first being that they prefer to be called Dwarfs, and not Dwarves, in plural, the last person who asked why make a fuss on something so small suffered a bloody nose.

Dwarf (Old Navea)
Also known as the Fyreslayers,

Elves
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Elf (Aden)
Also known as the Wild Walkers,

Elf (Old Navea)
Known as Aeldari or Drukhari depending on the faction.

Orcs
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Orc (Horde)
Also known as Orks by the Coalition or generally as greenskins.

Halfling
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Halfling (Ratling)
Natives of Aden, the Ratling (Homo sapiens minimus) are a member of a small, loud, hungry, and lecherous Abhuman species, a far cry from the humble, welcoming, and kindhearted Hobbits (save the hungry part), likely because of their homes hostility hardening them. Ratlings are considered outsiders within Aden, as they had refused to become part of the Legion, and have often served in the regiments of the Lineage Steel Legion as members of the Militarum Auxilla. However, they are still distrusted by the more puritanical members of the Legion.

Though less resilient than their baseline Human comrades, Ratlings are naturally excellent shots. It is said that Ratling marksmen can take the head off a Harvin from over a kilometer away. Coupled with their knack for staying out of harm's way, this makes Ratlings formidable snipers who can exact a withering toll upon superior enemy forces.

Inevitably, the Ratlings face prejudice from the Legion troops they serve alongside, yet their skill as thieves, fences, and black marketeers tends to win them acceptance. Indeed, Guardsmen who give the Ratlings too much grief will often find themselves mysteriously short of ammunition in the heat of battle, while their diminutive tormentors watch gleefully through telescopic sights.

Regardless of their small stature, and their questionable status as outsiders, Ratlings have proven invaluable to the Legion armies time and again. They make exceptional forward scouts and are able to move covertly into firing positions right under the nose of the enemy army. Only when the opening salvoes of battle have been loosed do they reveal themselves, announcing their presence with hails of precision shots that catch the enemy completely off-guard.

The effectiveness of Ratling fire can often mislead the enemy into believing they face an entire platoon of Imperial Guardsmen, which in turn can draw large-scale assaults towards the snipers. With no hope of holding their own in close-quarters combat, Ratlings have perfected the art of hastily vacating their redoubts immediately after firing, scurrying away before securing a new vantage point from which to assassinate more of their assailants.

Though devious, duplicitous, and morally dubious, Ratlings possess such unique talents that they will always find a place in the armies of the Imperium. Whether killing off enemy officers or procuring black-market amasec for their own, these adaptable Abhumans have certainly found their niche in the ranks of the Astra Militarum.

Giantkin
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Ogre (Southern)
Mutated by the war in the south and the Maw. The Ogres of the south have completely changed from their sibling in the north, to the point that they are considered separate species.

Ogryn
The Ogryn (Homo sapiens gigantus) are a huge and physically powerful Giant subspecies native to Aden, often employed by the Lineage Steel Legion as shock troopers in the Legion Militarum Auxilla.

Ogryns possess many traits prized by the Legion; they are brutally strong and completely loyal, although extremely limited intellectually, which restricts their battlefield role to simple and direct assaults.

They hail from a series of cold and barren lands filled with strong beasts, which is why they appear larger, heavier, and bulkier compared to baseline Humans.

Ogryns compensate for their mental deficiencies with overwhelming physicality -- the brutish creatures stand around ten feet tall and can shrug off wounds that would kill a Guardsman several times over. These qualities mean that Ogryns make exceptional shock troops, and are often deployed on the front lines of battle by Legion commanders.

It is fair to say that Ogryns do have their limitations. Their equipment must be simple and exceptionally rugged, as anything within arm's reach is likely to see brief and violent service as an improvised club.

Their heavily built Ripper Guns must also be fitted with burst limiters to stop the Ogryns from firing ceaselessly -- thirty seconds of noisy enjoyment can easily leave these Giants short of ammunition before a battle has even begun.

Ogryns are easily confused, meaning they work best when given simple, straightforward missions, and their lack of personal hygiene borders on the criminal. However, once indoctrinated into the Imperial Creed they are doggedly loyal, and their strength and resilience make them a potent weapon.

Ogier
Ogier, pronounced OH-gehr but many choose to call them OH-gear, are a race of Giants who, unlike their other kins, have an intense love of knowledge and peace, much to the jeers and laugher of the more violent Ogres and Giants. Also known as Alantin, or Tree brothers, by the (insert human), they are great architects and stonemasons, responsible for many of the most impressive structures and cities of the world. Ogier stonework is known for its organic nature, often appearing to have been grown like plants. However, it is understood to be a skill they acquired during the Breaking, and is of lesser importance than their first love, forestry. They love the trees of their homes, which they call Stedding, and grew groves near the cities they built to remind them of their home. Even their written language resembles growing leaves and vines.

Varl
The Varl are a race of powerful, horned, and bearded giants, having twice the height and girth of Humans. They are warlike but also have a fondness for mead and brawling. Only intersex, though most of them look masculine and identify as male, Varls are produced in special "forge pits" hidden deep within their homeland, akin to the Lizardmen in Lustria.

The Varl are a cross-breed of man and animal, created by an impatient god who wove together a twisted version of the original Loom-mother’s creations, or at least thats what Cantha mythology says. Varls are horned giants who are strong and aggressive and have the reputation of being impeccable fighters. Respected as warriors, they can live to be a few hundred years old if their lives are not cut short by a fall in battle. Despite their warlike culture, they too cultivate families and are not without emotions, similar to their human counterparts, and tend to do a better job of sticking together than the humans. Their attitude towards their human allies is somewhat condescending, believing that they are superior beings, particularly when it comes to strength and fighting. But, interestingly, have a race-wide fear/revulsion of fire, with the theory being that their creation requires them to be immolated.

Faunus
Also known by the slur of Demi-Humans, Beastfolk, Animal, or Furry. The Faunus are unique in that they have animal features and a rather large dimorphism, from the Erune who looks human save for their cat ears and tail to the Kajiit looking like humanoid cats, and is the most diverse, if heavily fragmented, race, due to their varying animal features.

Harpy (Eastern)
Also known as Tengu by Canthans

Centaur
Also known as the Horseborn by Canthans

Skaven
Also known as Ratmen and, for the Coalition, Raki. The Skaven were an offshoot of the Ysoki when they had discovered Warp Stones which formed a great rift, and eventual civil war, when its toxic properties were revealed. As one side wanted to further the potential of the Warp Stone, corruption be damn, and slowly grew mad as they began to worship the stones, while the other half had refused, knowing that such a power should be destroyed. The civil war ended with the Ysoki exiling their mad kin, whose bodies had now mutated to look gaunt and even more rat-like thanks to the toxic Warp Stones.

Man-Made
Compared to other races of Gaiaterra. Man-Made, as their name implies, are not a race created by Elysea, and in most cases can't even reproduce the natural way. Instead, they are created, whether by technology or transforming a person. Thus some people don't even consider them a race.

Cyborgs
less of a race and more of a classification,

Clone
less of a race and more of a classification,

AI
Also known as robots, drones, droids, etc.

Miscellaneous
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Mora
Commonly known as the Beta,

Arboreal
Also known as Treekin, Ents, Dryads, Sylvari etc.