Eberron - Rising from the Last War

20

LEAVING THE MROR HOLDS

d8 Reason for Leaving

A fe ud with a rival clan has gotten out of hand, and

it's best that you spend a few decades away from the

Holds while things cool down.

2 You come from a large family and there's no room for

you to shine in your hold, so you hope to make a name

for yourself in the wider world.

3 Your clan has arranged your marriage and your future,

and you've decided to have a few adventures before

you settle down.

4 You're pursuing a ve ndetta with a personal rival, seek­

ing to defe at them either in battle or in business.

5 Yo u're searching fo r a legendary dwarven artifact, sto­

len centuries ago by a Karrnish noble.

6 You want to assemble champions who can help you ex­

plore the ancient ruins beneath your ancestral home.

7 You've rejected your clan's attitude toward daelkyr

magic, earning the enmity of powerful dwarves.

8 You want to understand how the other peoples of

Khorvaire-especially the goblins and ores-have

fought the daelkyr.

DWARVES OF THE FIVE NATIONS

Dwarves are spread across Khorvaire. Dwarf soldiers

and engineers were part of the armies that united the

Five Nations, and dwarf masons laid the foundations

of the greatest cities of Galifar. Traditionally loyal to

family and clan, dwarves who were born outside the

Mror Holds tend to transfer their fierce clan loyalty to

their new homes-and particularly to the edifices of

stonework that symbolize the permanence and stabil­

ity of those places. A Brelish dwarf might fe el a deep,

personal connection to the towers of Sharn or the great

walls of Wroat; some dwarves love the great Cathedral

of the Silver Flame in Thrane more than devout follow­

ers of the Silver Flame. Ultimately, the typical dwarf in

wider Khorvaire is more patriotic than the average hu­

man of the Five Nations, and many dwarves fought for

their nations in the Last War, at least for a time.

When creating a dwarf character from the Five Na­

tions, consider both your national loyalty and the role

your family plays in your life. Do you live near family?

What kind of work do your closest family members pur­

sue, and is that reflected in the background you choose?

Are you close to your relatives, or have you had a falling

out? Did you lose kin in the Last War?

DWARVES AND DRAGONMARKS

The Mark of Warding appears on dwarves of House

Kundarak, which had its origins as one of the clans of

the Mror Holds. Kundarak dwarves live across Khor­

vaire while maintaining close ties to the Mror Holds and

their loyalty to the house over any particular nation.

In addition to providing all manner of security, House

Kundarak dominates Khorvaire's banking industry. As

a dragonmarked house, it is obliged to remain neutral

in the politics of all nations, including its homeland. As

CHAPTER 1 I CHARACTER CREATION

a result, Clan Kundarak is no longer represented on

the Iron Council that rules the Mror Holds. However, it

wields an influence over the other clans that reflects its

wealth and its status in the world beyond the Holds, and

the voice of Kundarak members arguing against the use

of daelkyr magic carries significant weight.

ELVES

PUT UP YOUR SWORDS AND TALK OF PEACE, OR HIDE

behind your walls of stone. When the host of Valenar thun­

ders forth, neither will save you.

-Shaeras Vadallia, High King ofValenar

Te ns of thousands of years ago, the elves of the distant

continent of Xen'drik rose up against the giants who

ruled over them. This rebellion is the defining event in

elf history. As the ancient war progressed, the mage­

breeders of the giants bound magic into the elves who

remained loyal to them, forming the drow-assassins

bred to prey on their other kin. Ultimately, the elves fled

from Xen'drik and settled the island nation of Aerenal,

where they split into two distinct cultures: the intro­

spective Aereni and the warlike Tairnadal. Thus, a war

nearly forty thousand years ago established the pattern

of how elves live today.

Neither the Aereni nor the Tairnadal (which include

the elves of Valenar) have much interest in human ac­

tivities, but small numbers of elves have immigrated to

Khorvaire over the centuries and have more or less inte­

grated with the cultures of the Five Nations. The drow,

though, are virtually unknown on Khorvaire.

As a whole, elves are driven by tradition and respect

for the past. Where humans value innovation, elves

strive to master and perfect the techniques of their

ancestors over the course of studies lasting centuries.

Elf society has changed little over the last five thousand

years, while Khorvaire is constantly evolving. Whatever

the origin of your elf character, consider your relation­

ship wit.h the past: Do you value the traditions of your

ancestors? Or do you fe ar that your people are too

mired in the past, and need to find a way to adapt and

move forward?

HIGH ELVES: THE AERENI

For thousands of years, the island nation of Aerenal

has been ruled and protected by the godlike power of

the Undying Court, a council of undead high elves. The

greatest heroes of the Aereni join the Undying Court af­

ter death, joining their heroic ancestors in immortality.

The Aereni are isolationists who have little interest

in the world beyond their island. The Five Nations are

a place of chaos and war, so why would any sensible

elf venture into that madness? As you make an Aereni

elf character, decide what has caused you to leave your

island home and the protection of the Undying Court in

order to wander the world. Are you in search of a power

that could earn you your place in the Undying Court?

Have you been given a quest by one of your own death­

less ancestors? Or are you an exile, banished from your

homeland for some crime against your people's rulers?