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!colspan="2" style="background:#ed668c; text-align:center"| '''Overview'''
!colspan="2" style="background:#ed668c; text-align:center"| '''Overview'''
|-
|-
| '''STR''' || 17
| '''[[STR]]''' || 17
|-
|-
| '''INT''' || 24
| '''[[INT]]''' || 25
|-
|-
| '''WIS''' || 23
| '''[[WIS]]''' || 23
|-
|-
| '''DEX''' || 22
| '''[[DEX]]''' || 17
|-
|-
| '''CON''' || 16
| '''[[CON]]''' || 17
|-
|-
| '''CHR''' || 22
| '''[[CHR]]''' || 23
|-
|-
| '''[[Resist]]s''' || [[Negative]]
| '''[[Resist]]s''' || [[Negative]]
|-
|-
| '''[[Vulnerable]]''' || [[Light]]
| '''[[Vulnerable]]''' || [[Light]]
|-
| '''Bonus''' || +2 mana per level
|-
|-
| '''Special''' || [[Blind immunity]],
| '''Special''' || [[Blind immunity]],
always red or black [[resonance]]
increased movement in darkness
|-
|-
|}
|}


Hailing from the labyrinthine underground realm of [[Kutlaset]], the shuddeni are an isolationist people widely reviled on the surface for their association with [[Ashur]] and their role in the [[War of Night]] as agents of destruction.
The shuddeni are a loathsome race originating deep within the bowels of the earth. Constructing vast cave cities, the shuddeni lived for centuries without contact with the other races, during which time they enslaved the muscular chaja, perfected their magical arts, and grew steadily in power. Then, after thousands of years of solitude, the shuddeni burst forth upon Avendar with a hatred and destruction unmatched among races.

==Biology==
Shuddeni are subterranean, sapient humanoid marsupials, between six and seven feet tall on average. They lack eyes, instead perceiving the world with a psionic organ that allows them to discern depth, colour, and shape, albeit not the way those with eyes do. Their skin is grey in tone and noticeably wrinkled and their bodies are hairless, making their most notable physical change during maturity the depth and prominence of their skin creases. Their diets consist primarily of fungus, insects, and spiders, and they have numerous sharp teeth and strong jaws. Though otherwise physiologically similar to other marsupials, the shuddeni are bidirectional sequential hermaphrodites, their sex changing based on external social pressures. In addition, the shuddeni possess a unique experience of physical pain, which is perceived without unpleasantness or suffering. They recognize it as potentially harmful, which may lead to subsequent anger or other arousal, but the emotional dimension of the pain itself is described as neutral rather than inducing suffering or agony.

==Culture==

Shuddeni culture is rigidly hierarchical, with power, control, and dominance playing significant roles in their interactions with one another. A complex intersection of factors determines ones' social role relative to another, and there is equally complex etiquette concerning social climbing, often involving the outsmarting, humiliation, or ousting of ones' social, religious, or academic rivals. The rise of Arkhural saw the observance of many of these mores fade in favor of raw aggression, and the assertion of Rveyelhan order after the War of Night never quite blunted those teeth.

Shuddeni are near-universally agender and lack the same kinds of gender roles possessed by most surface lineages. Instead, their pronouns refer to relative status, changing based on the situation and interaction. In the mingling of humanity and shuddeni however, 'superior' and 'inferior' (in truth very complex social concepts for the shuddeni) became simplified and translated as 'male' and female.' Most surface shuddeni and many Kutlatsen shuddeni who deal with people from the surface default to masculine presentations as a result, though there are shuddeni who exclusively use the feminine for personal, social, or political reasons.

Though the shuddeni reputation for violence is not undeserved, much of their aggressive interpersonal impulses are sublimated into eroticism and sex. Such relationships tend to be contentious shading to violent, though still consensual, with the ideal of such relationships being thought akin to striking flint; ideally, both are sharpened by the impact. Shuddeni eroticism is exemplified in depictions of their gods, [[Arkhural]] and [[Rveyelhi]], who are commonly thought to have such a relationship on the deific scale. In contrast, they are nearly always utterly monogamous in their romantic partnerships, viewing their partner as an extension of themself, and tend to remain so entangled for life. Shuddeni live together in groups called clans made up of several of such partnerships, who raise any children communally.


== Appearance ==
==Kutlaset==
[[Kutlaset]] is the collective name of the shuddeni underground where the shuddeni build their cities, and the labyrinths which connect them. Each of Kutlaset's cities is dominated by a single clan for whom it is named, ruling over other clans in the region. Yithoul is the most famous of these, noted for its dominance of the underground in the northern parts of the continent of Avendar and for its modern use of kidnapped people, particularly chaja, as material for void rites and research, a practice which most other clans refrain from or do not practice on the same scale. Shuddeni are famed for their cultivation of various species of giant spider for everything from food to silk, which they trade with the surface. Owing to their unusual perception, they favour bright colours and unusual textures in art and clothing. Their history, erudition, and surprising charisma have made them the ideological enemy of many on the surface, some of whom will respond to shuddeni with violence on sight.
Shuddeni are subterranean, sapient humanoid marsupials who have a distinctive lack of eyes. They instead perceive the world with a passive, pseudo-psionic blindsight, allowing them to discern shapes and distances with ease. Their skin is grey in tone and noticeably wrinkled; they often apply scented oils, glitter, and other cosmetics to these folds as a cultural norm. Their bodies are hairless, making their most notable physical change during maturity the depth and prominence of their skin creases.


The individual Kutlasen shuddeni prioritizes themself and their partner, followed by their clan, followed by their ruling clan and city. Ruling clans tend to be very entrenched and stable over time, and rarely change in a city or region; wars between them are common, both to claim territory and resources and to preserve their own power. Non-shuddeni are broadly regarded with disinterest shading to antipathy, more akin to animals or scenery than people; their opinions are often coloured by the violence their presences can provoke and the clashes between the alien mores and perceptions of the shuddeni and those of the surface world. Outside of Yithoul, the shuddeni tend to be incredibly isolationist and xenophobic as a result, and rarely if ever allow non-shuddeni into their clans.
==== Example Descriptions ====
Below are sample descriptions from NPCs and past player characters. These descriptions are for reference only; you should not use them for your characters.


===Yithoul===
''Syeirah, Archmage of Void''
The most powerful clan in [[Kutlaset]] for millennia, Yithoul is a primarily Arkhuralite stronghold and the only living shuddeni clan with direct access to the surface outside of [[Harrud]]. It is through Yithoul that the rest of Kutlaset does trade in the northern reaches of the continent, making it a very rich city. Though much of it remains inaccessible, hidden behind the nigh-uncrossable basalt catacombs beneath, the parts it shows are a hub of the kind of black pageantry most visitors of the surface expect -- which is precisely how they like it.


== Var Bandor and Earendam==
Petite in build and stature, this young shuddeni woman carries herself with a nervous and watchful air. Her face is thin and angular and bears ragged, fresh-looking burn scars spreading across one side, pulling one side of her aubergine-painted mouth up into a perpetual sneer. Where it is not scarred, the pale cinereous folds of her flesh are densely tattooed with sinuous black glyphs that wind across her scalp and down what is visible of her neck, shoulders, and arms to the tips of her long and slender fingers. Spicy, bitter hints of myrrh waft from the faint sheen of oil coating her skin, all but completely masking the reek of singed bone and old blood that clings to her.
Shuddeni on the surface are largely concentrated in Var Bandor and Earendam, and tend to be decently integrated with communities in those cities, their laws being conducive to their favored vocations and ways of life. They are more likely to be worshipers of [[Rveyelhi]] given the Black Staff's legacy and rise to power, particularly in Var Bandor.


==Religion==
== Playing a Shuddeni ==
Shuddeni must be played as having dark and evil natures. They are dedicated to hatred, greed, and cruelty, and thus require some extra consideration when roleplaying. They are more likely to be attacked by some NPCs and PCs simply because of their race than most characters are. They are more likely to be feared and mistrusted by both strangers and acquaintances.


The shape of shuddeni culture traces directly to the worship of Tzet-Askhari, their creator and parent. Its touch is heavy, permanently skewing their resonance towards black and rendering them somewhat alien in outlook and behavior. The arts of summoning they perfected were religious rites, and they revered the demons they subjugated as fellow creations of the Dragon.
== Culture ==
Power, control, and command are the most significant factors to a shuddeni. Their natural intelligence and charisma allow them to often move quickly through academic or philosophical circles; when combined with their lust for authority, shuddeni make for obvious, if sociopathic, leaders. When in a position of command, they often believe that the inherent supremacy of their decisions or outlook make them superior– and in turn, those who follow them often find themselves belittled, marginalized, or otherwise degraded. A shuddeni may act cooperatively, or encourage cooperation in others, but ultimately, anything which threatens his personal power or autonomy is anathema to them.


==History==
A shuddeni typically delights in violence, either their own, or those of their underlings. Their magical, and at times, physical, talents are almost always turned to this end; yet, even if they personally abstain from open war, their rhetoric will willingly compensate. Evil is a biological necessity to a shuddeni, influenced as they are by [[Tzet-Askhari]]. Functionally, to them, it is the only true constant. They believe its seed either should exist, or does exist, in all sapient life. This makes them despise all who encourage goodness, purity, peace, or compassion, as these concepts are, to them, merely veils which shroud a mortal’s true and inalienable nature
The shuddeni emerged unknown eons ago from the places light has never reached. Within their vast caverns connected by labyrinthine networks of tunnels filled with traps and dead-ends, the shuddeni lived for millennia without contact with any other sentient people. Though unquestionably bloody and cruel, their society was stable until the torpor of [[Tzet-Askhari]], which the shuddeni claim happened in the century before the [[War of Night]] in contradiction to other lineages' tales about the war. The power vacuum left behind by the absence of stable Askharan power resulted in the ascension of a deity known as [[Arkhural]], driving the shuddeni down a more aggressive path that culminated in their failed invasion of the surface. [[Rveyelhi]], newly deified by [[Iandir]] and charged with bringing order to Kutlaset as he had to [[New Yithoul]], returned to Kutlaset after the close of the War with a band of his newly-sigiled followers and spent the next several centuries spreading his dogma and dislodging Arkhural's near-complete dominance of the shuddeni soul.
==== [[Yithoul]] ====


Though shuddeni have since integrated relatively well on the surface, many retain a lingering resentment towards the ch'taren for the Day of Two Dawns, and many still say if not for the ch'taren, they would have triumphed.
A powerful tribe of the shuddeni, the Yithoul erected a city and dark temple in a vast underground cavern below the maze of the phase spider. Though far from the only shuddeni settlement underground, it is widely regarded as the most powerful, and has been the heart of shuddeni culture for millennia.
==== Surface Shuddeni ====


[[Category:shuddeni]][[Category:Lineage]]
Most commonly found in [[Var Bandor]] and [[Earendam]], surface shuddeni tend to be decently integrated with communities in those cities, having twisted the laws in those places to grant them maximum freedoms in their areas of interest. They are more likely to be worshipers of [[Rveyelhi]] given the Black Staff’s legacy and rise to power, particularly in Var Bandor.
[[Category:People]]

Latest revision as of 05:42, 16 August 2024

Overview
STR 17
INT 25
WIS 23
DEX 17
CON 17
CHR 23
Resists Negative
Vulnerable Light
Bonus +2 mana per level
Special Blind immunity,

always red or black resonance

Hailing from the labyrinthine underground realm of Kutlaset, the shuddeni are an isolationist people widely reviled on the surface for their association with Ashur and their role in the War of Night as agents of destruction.

Biology

Shuddeni are subterranean, sapient humanoid marsupials, between six and seven feet tall on average. They lack eyes, instead perceiving the world with a psionic organ that allows them to discern depth, colour, and shape, albeit not the way those with eyes do. Their skin is grey in tone and noticeably wrinkled and their bodies are hairless, making their most notable physical change during maturity the depth and prominence of their skin creases. Their diets consist primarily of fungus, insects, and spiders, and they have numerous sharp teeth and strong jaws. Though otherwise physiologically similar to other marsupials, the shuddeni are bidirectional sequential hermaphrodites, their sex changing based on external social pressures. In addition, the shuddeni possess a unique experience of physical pain, which is perceived without unpleasantness or suffering. They recognize it as potentially harmful, which may lead to subsequent anger or other arousal, but the emotional dimension of the pain itself is described as neutral rather than inducing suffering or agony.

Culture

Shuddeni culture is rigidly hierarchical, with power, control, and dominance playing significant roles in their interactions with one another. A complex intersection of factors determines ones' social role relative to another, and there is equally complex etiquette concerning social climbing, often involving the outsmarting, humiliation, or ousting of ones' social, religious, or academic rivals. The rise of Arkhural saw the observance of many of these mores fade in favor of raw aggression, and the assertion of Rveyelhan order after the War of Night never quite blunted those teeth.

Shuddeni are near-universally agender and lack the same kinds of gender roles possessed by most surface lineages. Instead, their pronouns refer to relative status, changing based on the situation and interaction. In the mingling of humanity and shuddeni however, 'superior' and 'inferior' (in truth very complex social concepts for the shuddeni) became simplified and translated as 'male' and female.' Most surface shuddeni and many Kutlatsen shuddeni who deal with people from the surface default to masculine presentations as a result, though there are shuddeni who exclusively use the feminine for personal, social, or political reasons.

Though the shuddeni reputation for violence is not undeserved, much of their aggressive interpersonal impulses are sublimated into eroticism and sex. Such relationships tend to be contentious shading to violent, though still consensual, with the ideal of such relationships being thought akin to striking flint; ideally, both are sharpened by the impact. Shuddeni eroticism is exemplified in depictions of their gods, Arkhural and Rveyelhi, who are commonly thought to have such a relationship on the deific scale. In contrast, they are nearly always utterly monogamous in their romantic partnerships, viewing their partner as an extension of themself, and tend to remain so entangled for life. Shuddeni live together in groups called clans made up of several of such partnerships, who raise any children communally.

Kutlaset

Kutlaset is the collective name of the shuddeni underground where the shuddeni build their cities, and the labyrinths which connect them. Each of Kutlaset's cities is dominated by a single clan for whom it is named, ruling over other clans in the region. Yithoul is the most famous of these, noted for its dominance of the underground in the northern parts of the continent of Avendar and for its modern use of kidnapped people, particularly chaja, as material for void rites and research, a practice which most other clans refrain from or do not practice on the same scale. Shuddeni are famed for their cultivation of various species of giant spider for everything from food to silk, which they trade with the surface. Owing to their unusual perception, they favour bright colours and unusual textures in art and clothing. Their history, erudition, and surprising charisma have made them the ideological enemy of many on the surface, some of whom will respond to shuddeni with violence on sight.

The individual Kutlasen shuddeni prioritizes themself and their partner, followed by their clan, followed by their ruling clan and city. Ruling clans tend to be very entrenched and stable over time, and rarely change in a city or region; wars between them are common, both to claim territory and resources and to preserve their own power. Non-shuddeni are broadly regarded with disinterest shading to antipathy, more akin to animals or scenery than people; their opinions are often coloured by the violence their presences can provoke and the clashes between the alien mores and perceptions of the shuddeni and those of the surface world. Outside of Yithoul, the shuddeni tend to be incredibly isolationist and xenophobic as a result, and rarely if ever allow non-shuddeni into their clans.

Yithoul

The most powerful clan in Kutlaset for millennia, Yithoul is a primarily Arkhuralite stronghold and the only living shuddeni clan with direct access to the surface outside of Harrud. It is through Yithoul that the rest of Kutlaset does trade in the northern reaches of the continent, making it a very rich city. Though much of it remains inaccessible, hidden behind the nigh-uncrossable basalt catacombs beneath, the parts it shows are a hub of the kind of black pageantry most visitors of the surface expect -- which is precisely how they like it.

Var Bandor and Earendam

Shuddeni on the surface are largely concentrated in Var Bandor and Earendam, and tend to be decently integrated with communities in those cities, their laws being conducive to their favored vocations and ways of life. They are more likely to be worshipers of Rveyelhi given the Black Staff's legacy and rise to power, particularly in Var Bandor.

Religion

The shape of shuddeni culture traces directly to the worship of Tzet-Askhari, their creator and parent. Its touch is heavy, permanently skewing their resonance towards black and rendering them somewhat alien in outlook and behavior. The arts of summoning they perfected were religious rites, and they revered the demons they subjugated as fellow creations of the Dragon.

History

The shuddeni emerged unknown eons ago from the places light has never reached. Within their vast caverns connected by labyrinthine networks of tunnels filled with traps and dead-ends, the shuddeni lived for millennia without contact with any other sentient people. Though unquestionably bloody and cruel, their society was stable until the torpor of Tzet-Askhari, which the shuddeni claim happened in the century before the War of Night in contradiction to other lineages' tales about the war. The power vacuum left behind by the absence of stable Askharan power resulted in the ascension of a deity known as Arkhural, driving the shuddeni down a more aggressive path that culminated in their failed invasion of the surface. Rveyelhi, newly deified by Iandir and charged with bringing order to Kutlaset as he had to New Yithoul, returned to Kutlaset after the close of the War with a band of his newly-sigiled followers and spent the next several centuries spreading his dogma and dislodging Arkhural's near-complete dominance of the shuddeni soul.

Though shuddeni have since integrated relatively well on the surface, many retain a lingering resentment towards the ch'taren for the Day of Two Dawns, and many still say if not for the ch'taren, they would have triumphed.