Rathor
Contents
Fast Facts
Height: 4' - 9'
Weight: 80-300 lbs
Life Span: Adult (18 Years), Elder (290 Years), Deathly (335 Years)
Notable Features: Regardless of their form they have at least some animalistic features, even if these are vague and hard to identify at times. Heterochromia and vitiligo are both extremely common within the Rathor.
Player Restrictions: Animal related restrictions (diet, temperament, climate preference, etc.)
Racial Ability: Wild Walker - A Rathor will slowly pick up, for better and worse, traits associated with their animal form in their other forms, be it advantageous or disadvantageous. While this can sometimes cause other animals to leave them alone and cause the Rathor to be more at home in wild areas, this isn't directly a part of their ability and not all Rathor will be treated this way. In particular, Rathor that are prey animals may be harassed more.
Population: 10,000,000
History
During the Age of Lost Time and even before it, for ever success there are a number of failures. Sometimes what looked to be a failure was in actuality a success, though a shaky one. The Rathor, also occasionally simply called the Rath despite their insistence to not claim this title, are one such example.
The Rathor upon their initial conception were not as much a race as much as a subclass. A small group of Hyr'norai who culturally broke off from the rest much earlier than any other variation of elves later to come. They called themselves the Rath'norai in order to separate themselves and their beliefs from the early Hyr'norai. They came into existence when their central focus of worship began to shift and put Azunath as their central deity. This small group of the Hyr'norai venerated and respect Azunath more than any other Gods at the time. While the understood the need for an respected the presence of the other God, he was the one who their values aligned with most strongly, and so they dedicated themselves to following in Azunath's footsteps. Azunath himself took note of this small group and while he didn't interact too strongly he did offer them his well wishes and a new name that would be symbolic of his blessing. From them on this group became known as the forest elves, the Rath'norai.
The Rath'norai molded themselves to be the perfect follows of Azunath, or, at the very least the best followers they could be. While other group advanced into a more stationary life style and created the fledgling versions of what would later become greater society, the Rath'norai remained highly nomadic and focused largely on how they impacted the world and nature as a whole. They preferred to stick to themselves, avoiding other races. While they had no qualms against these other groups, they simply didn't share the same patterns of belief, and the Rath'norai decided it was better not to engage. In future years this led to a lot of early Rath history, a lot of that early knowledge dying with the oral storytellers who knew it before the information could trade hands. Their avoidance of other races led to them hardly being acknowledged, leading most to believe the Rathor are a much younger race than they actually are and not even elves at all. This was fine to the Rath'norai, who focused on Azunath and the world around them. They learned how to live alongside it, nature itself accepting them and treating them as a natural piece of itself, welcoming them in a way many other races simply weren't.
The Gods continued to build the world around the Rath'norai, and the Rath'norai were satisfied to simply exist inside of it. Regrettably, not all of those Gods were kind. At one point Quarae lost her mind. Early on, much earlier than the rest of her siblings who became corrupted. Her mind was fractured, and Quarae herself was lonely. She wanted a race all her own, so she wouldn't be so lonely, but Quarae had nowhere to start. She didn't know as much about mortals as her divine siblings. She was so very lonely though. So Quarae did something awful. She decided that, surely it'd be fine if she just took a couple apart. Just to see how they worked. Just so she could make something for herself.
Quarae chose the Rath'norai to take apart and put back together. Originally she wasn't going to use all of them, but as she worked, her mind grew more addled. More wrong. The Rath'norai became her lab rats, and in a twisted way, she loved them. She loved each and everyone one of them.
Quarae didn't see the cruelty in her actions, not in her current state. The Rath'norai could easily go somewhere nice after they died, or just be reborn as something else. It wasn't cruel, not to her, but it was to the Rath'norai. Their population had grown quite large over the time they'd been wandering the land. Groups splintering off to form their own tribes which in turn grew and splintered. It was only after she'd already started that she decided she needed all of them. It was only after she'd started, she decided that they wouldn't be missed.
Things did, understandably given her lack of experience, did not go well for Quarae. Nothing went to plan. A good number of her subjects died long before she could really get to work. They were the lucky ones. She kept trying, time and time again. She worked tirelessly, and by the time she was done all of the Rath'norai had been reshaped. Poorly at that. She twisted them up, breaking them apart and putting them back together in all the wrong ways. The damage she did to them reaching far past that of the flesh, leaving deep aches all the way down to the soul. She broke them, and a part of Quarae realized that. A part of Quarae, the part that was reminiscent of the original Quarae, felt bad for it. She gave them a new name, as they were hardly elves anymore. They couldn't recognize themselves, so she simply dubbed them the Rath as that was all that was left of them. Husks of what they'd once been. She left them in that state, moving on to try again because even Quarae in her madness could feel traces of shame.
The newly born Rath were in pain. Those who lived were no longer comfortable in their own bodies, causing a mental kind of pain in the form of dysphoria. They weren't the same anymore. Some had their bodies broken so badly there was no way to solve the pain. Others found themselves the opposite gender than when they'd started and absolutely hated it. There were those who had new eye pushed into their skull or strips of flesh that didn't belong to them, a means to patch up what Quarae had broken. The most painful were those who realize the skin they were staring at or the new eye that allowed them full sight had once belong to a friend or love that hadn't made it. It was both miracle and curse any of them had survive at all. Sheer luck or perhaps deep-rooted misfortune.
The Rath mourned what they used to be, the loss of the 'norai being truly symbolic to their loss. Those few who stumbled across the Rath and understood what they once were also understood the loss of the 'norai, a word used to indicate a race is elven in nature. That's what the Rath were. Lost and broken elves, changed into something that was no longer elven to begin with by a God who was so pathetic it was hard for her fellow Gods to even get mad. The Rath could do nothing but mourn, trapped in bodies that could barely support themselves on an anatomical level without shutting down, bodies with felt wrong.
Azunath returned to find the Rath in this state, horrified by what his fellow God had done. His favored children, broken so far beyond repair. They begged Azunath, asked him to fix them, but there was nothing he could actually do. Quarae had broken something so deeply fundamental that it was outside the power of even the Gods to repair them. Even when he went to the other Gods for help, there was nothing they could do.
The Gods decided that to let the Rath continue existing is such misery was an even greater cruelty. Azunath's children were in such a pain they couldn't sooth, it would be kind to let them pass. Hopefully that would allow at least Malek to fix some of the damage that had been done, allowing them to be reborn. Azunath felt bad for the decision though, so before the Gods went through with it, he decided to inform the new leader of the Rath, his only remaining priestess. Outright, she refused. The Rath might have been broken and grieving, but they were still strong. A people full of pride and wild intent. Even after all this damage, emotionally they were strong. If their life was to be suffering, they'd ensure it. Azunath tried to reason with them that they could be fixed, but they continued to refuse.
As bad as he felt, something needed to be done. In their current state they were a danger. There was no telling what the Rath would produce if they were to have children in such a state. The two parties did eventually come to an agreement. The Rath could continuing living, but they must be turned into animals. These new bodies would be more stable and could be hand crafted by the gods to handle the damaged mortal souls of the Rath. Their children would unfortunately be no more than normal animals, but the Rath themselves would be allowed to keep the full extent of their lifespan. While the Rath and by extension the Rath'norai would disappear forever, it would prevent further suffering. The Rath weren't pleased with the deal, but Azunath made it obvious that the other Gods weren't going to allow him to give them any other options. What choice did they have other to accept? Especially when even mundane tasks had become so difficult for them.
The thing about Gods and mortal is that when the two cross paths, nothing ever seems to go as expected. Somewhere in the limitless possibility of the world, somewhere in that chaos, something unexpected had happened. As the Rath began to change from mortal to beast, something in the very souls of the Rath disagreed with the change and they became something else. Their bodies shifted, but not in the way intended. The Rath became what is commonly referred to in the modern era as Beastfolk. Turning into all strange manner of animal, but still standing on two legs with distinctly elven bodies. They spoken like elves and thought like elves, their children would take after them in form and thought. Limbs twisted and bodies shifted, but they remained humanoid while also becoming beast. Not Rath'norai, but not just Rath either. Different, but something greater now, something one might dare say closer to what the Rath'norai had wanted to become. True children of Azunath.
Azunath was frankly overjoyed. He had been resolved to lose the race he so treasured, but something had given them a second chance. Different as they were, they still at their very core were the same. Even with all their changes they were still themselves. What Azunath had loved about them was still there, so he blessed them a new name one final time. The Rathor, still Rath just as they'd always been Rath, but greater now. A way to remember they were once else, a way to remember that they were still themselves.
The Rathor were satisfied with this. It wouldn't be their final transformation, but this one was undoubtable for the better. They grew and bred as a race, reintroducing themselves to the other races and growing from those interactions. Some remained nomadic while others joined the greater societies created by the sedentary races, even when they remained partially travelers. When they transformed something inside of them had changes, so that their entire purpose itself changed. Something called to them, and most were keen to figure out what it was.
After properly becoming the Rathor, they began to become aware of a curious tug. Some said that this tug pulled on their souls, while others called it a pull on their very being. Regardless, they became a curious sort, overwhelmed with a want to understand the phenomena they dubbed "The Purpose". No one could pinpoint the source of the tug, nor could they articulate a reason for their new Purpose. It seemed as though each Purpose was custom-tailored to each individual Rathor. Special, unique, and difficult to explain to other Rathor. Trying to explain a Purpose to someone belonging to another race was something that many ended up writing off as impossible entirely. Those who did make the attempt found the sensation to be something very Rath-centric. It was something the other races had trouble even imagining, let alone understanding.
To a certain degree, the Rathor could loosely understand each other, but the custom nature of each Purpose made it difficult to fully get the sensation across. Eventually, it was slowly built into the Rathor culture as a whole. Even if it was hard to explain, it was a very universal thing to the Rathor. Completing one's Purpose became a bigger and bigger deal to the Rathor as they advanced as a race. The Purpose itself was an interesting if vague concept. It wasn't an 'end goal'. It wasn't even a step by step plan for how to get to that end goal. It was little more than a direction and a general sense of what that 'ending' should look and feel like. It might have some kind of theme to it like smithing or protecting others, but how someone got there and what exactly that looked like to them was entirely different for each Rathor.
A Rathor with the general purpose of smithing might be drawn towards apprenticing under a powerful master, or instead, they might just start experimenting on their own. Similarly, their end goal might be to create the most powerful weapon in the world, or they might simply want to craft a weapon for a hero who can save lives. While most Rathor had a common thread of their end goal being something 'grand' that wasn't always the case either.
Some found that they didn't even have that much to go off of. Not even a general theme like smithing or thievery. Instead, they just felt something pulling them in certain directions, pushing certain answers out of their mouth, and traveling to certain locations. This wasn't some greater being controlling them either. This was them on some level. They speculated that these actions were their soul pushing them in certain directions because their conscious self wasn't quite aware. The soul could understand the Purpose fully, even if the brain couldn't. They came to trust instinct and travel, both becoming even more central to their existence.
The Purpose wasn't to be mixed up with fate either. This wasn't fate to the Rathari. In fact, to imply that the Purpose was an aspect of fate would be a grave insult to any Rathari. To imply such was a fast way to make an enemy out of a Rathor and to some those could be fighting words.
The Purpose was something deep down within the soul. A brand in its confines that neither Living God or Corrupted could change despite their greatest attempts. It was something that had always existed, but thanks to the multiple transformations of the Rathor it had become stronger. As they were pressed and changed under the hands of the Gods these brands became apparent to the Rathor themselves. The Rathor believe that anyone with a soul has A Purpose, however, the draw is not as strong for other races due to the fact they have not been changed in the same ways as the Rathor. In the modern era it's still the belief of the Rathor that others follow their Purpose subconsciously just as the Rathor themselves follow it actively. These are however just the beliefs of the Rathor and it's uncertain to most if these claims are actually true since no other race has ever displayed something similar in their habits or actions.
Because some couldn't really place a name to their Purpose, it became something of an obsession to figure out some kind of theme. This was especially true for young children with little world experience. Rathor under the age of 10 rarely had a theme for their Purpose figured out. Most couldn't figure out a general theme for their Purpose by their coming of age ceremony. For many it was even a big part of the ceremony itself, coming to them with a dramatic kind of flare to be announced to all their family present.
This didn't always happen though. Some could find themselves stuck for years trying to figure out a theme. Some would even get confused regarding the direction their Purpose was pulling them, trying to drag them 18 different places at once. The Rathor over time discovered a couple of ways to help provide clarity to their Purpose.
The biggest and the first apparent helper was, of course, travel. Even after slowly shedding their tribal heritage and nomadic roots a good majority of Rathor indulged travel. It was a cultural norm that most Rathor to travel, and they might end up settling in very distant area compared to where they were born. Travel proved to be a good way to figure out one's Purpose, so it gained even more importance to the Rathor. Travel allowed a Rathor to see the world as well as see people from all walks of life. Not all Purposes were objectively good. Some Rathor found themselves drawn to thievery or even killing. While not necessarily celebrated, if it was for the sake of a Purpose it wasn't always frowned upon by Rathor society when when discouraged. The Purpose was just so important that in some cases what needed to be done, needed to be done. While alternatives to more negative Purposes were always encouraged, the Purpose took precedent regardless of the chaos it caused. Again, travel helped young Rathor see a world of opportunity and choice, which was seen as helpful for steering some away from toxic Purpose Paths.
Age was another factor. The Purpose grew more clear as the Rathor grew older.
Dream meditation was also helpful and encouraged from a very young age. Meditation and dreams both held great importance to the Rathor. Dreams could sometimes be messages to the Rathor, or so they thought. Either from the Gods or messages from their very soul to the conscious mind. While sometimes they could be meaningless drivel they could also hold great secrets. Kyrikain in this respect gained something of importance in Rathor culture. Alongside dreams, regular meditation also helped. Meditation to the Rathor was a form of placing oneself between sleep and the waking world. It allowed one the openness of dreaming while still maintaining the presence of mind to process anything you might learn.
These traits earned the Rathor something of an interesting reputation. Travel is what reintroduced the other races to the changed Rathor. The relationship was a bit rocky at first, as most relationships would be if you suddenly met a 9-foot tall humanoid that looks like a bear. Most Rathor were peaceful travelers though. They took on a disposition of kindness, offering aid and advice to anyone else they met on the road. Many became wandering healers and warriors. The roads became a safer place with the Rathor traveling them, even if stumbling across one in the middle of the night could be a terrifying experience.
It became apparent after enough children were born to the species that the Rathor could be any beast of Atharen that wasn't classified as a 'monster'. The parents of the child weren't always even a good indicator of what animal the child might end up being.
The Rathor enjoyed the challenge of building up a positive reputation though.
The Bleeding was an interesting event for Rathor culture to say the very least. Whatever had caused them to become the Rathor in the first place seemed to react strongly to the following chaos that came flooding into the world after the Bleeding. Or, at least it interacted strangely with a portion of the population. A small portion of the population went through a final change, or final as far as most are aware. Their bodies shifted and from the Bleeding there were born two subraces of Rathor.
The first became known as the Rathor-Beastalt. These were the Rathor who went unchanged by the effects of the Bleeding, at least for the most part. While they felt extremely weird and there were without a doubt some small changes, they remained relatively unchanged. At least compared to their ancestors and the other subrace of Rathor.
The second subrace became known as the Rathor-Neoalt. These Rathor changed. A lot. Something inside of them began to shift and it seemed that the way both their bodies and souls interacted with the natural magic of the world abruptly shifted. The Neoalt became more and more humanoid, losing fur and scales and all manner of features until slowly they looked human or even in some cases borderline elven. Almost. The Neoalts kept small features. Horns, tails, their eyes, their ears. Smaller traits compared to their Beastalt cousins, but it was still very apparent that they had some kind of beast in nature. The Neoalts gained an interesting ability to make up for their changed bodies, as well as the lack of certain skills Beastalts might have retained (altered strength or speed for certain animals). The Neoalts gained the ability to transform, but only on a small scale. While they were limited in what they could do, it was still fairly amazing to those became Neoalts.
The form they first became after the Bleeding was dubbed their true form. Secondly, they had an animal form, where they could fully and truly turn into the animal they physically represented. The third and last form as a human form where almost all animal traits were hiden with only a few shining through. Or in some cases less human and more humanoid. While most were humans, some Neoalts had very elven features in their humanoid forms. Not enough to comment on in the study of the race, but enough to make a quiet note about. In addition to that, traits that weren't as easily visible on the Beastalts became very apparent on the Neoalts. That being vitiligo and heterochromia, two traits extremely common to the race as a whole. Some have speculated this is the lasting effect of Quarae on the race making themselves known.
The Neoalts started as an extremely small portion of the population and have grown over time.
Physiology/Biology
Beastalts
The Beastalts were the first subraces of the Rathor as they were the original product of Azunath's attempt to change the Rathor into animals after being changed by Quarae. The Beastalts for all intents and purposes look like humanoid animals. Their height and weight usually vary greatly depending on just what kind of animal they are. Larger animals tend to make for very large Rathor, while smaller animals tend to create more petite Rathor. Generally, when it comes to the physiology of the Beastalts they tend to take greatly after their animal form.
Various traits of the Rathor can be deeply affected by what kind of animal a Beastalt is. Strength, speed, endurance, all of these are very deeply tied with their animal for the Beastalts, and this manifests in both positive and negative ways. While the Neoalts do display inherited traits from their animal forms, it's never as powerful in their true form or their humanoid form as it is for their full animal form. Meanwhile, for the Beastalts who only have their singular form it's a constant thing, again, for better and for worse. The abilities of a Beastalt can be greatly affected by what kind of animal they are to the point that certain career options and lifestyles might be easier or cut off to them entirely. Certain Purposes are without a doubt harder to work towards for different Beastalts. For example, while a bear Beastalt is going to be exceptionally stronger than a fox Beastalt, the fox is going to be much quicker and the bear might have difficulty getting around. Especially undetected.
The Beastalts make up about 60% of the Rathor population, but have been steadily dropping over time.
Neoalts
The Neoalts are a bit more complicated than their Beastalt cousins due to the fact they have three forms they can transform between. These are called the faunis form, the humanoid form, and the true form.
Faunis Form
The faunis form of the Neoalt is essentially just an animal, at least to the eyes of most. The Neoalt takes on the form of whatever animal they represent with all their various features. In this form, they share all the traits of their animal. In essence, they become this animal. As such, they might be stronger or faster in this form than they might be in their other two forms.
While in this form things like vitiligo and heterochromia might not show up on a Rathor if those kinds of things aren't common to the animal they're taking the form of. For example, while heterochromia is extremely common in cats vitiligo is not. That being said, it does still have a chance to show up on the animal form, though it might not be as noticeable in the animal form as it might be in the true forms or even the humanoid form of the Neoalts.
The faunis form is a wonderful disguise, but it isn't perfect. When looking at the faunis form of a Neoalt it will always feel as though something may be off about the creature. Neoalts are the rabbits that stare at you a little too long and make you feel as though something is crawling up your spine. They're the bays of coyotes in the middle of the might that just don't sound quite right. While skills in acting can eventually cause this to be a less disruptive feeling or get rid of it altogether, this will always be a problem for Neoalts without any acting skills. This doesn't seem to bother other animals though, as the Rathor already feels like a normal part of nature, being the children of Azunath. Since they don't feel like trespassers so to speak in the first place, other animals of the same species as the Neoalt won't see anything wrong. In fact, quite the opposite. They'll treat the Neoalt like any other member of their race.
Humanoid Form
The humanoid form gains no benefits from being part animal. In a sense, they are completely human or elven in their physical capabilities. They might seem a bit odd at first glance. Animals might seem to favor them or their appearance is just slightly no right, but outside of a strange feeling, the humanoid form seems human.
In regards to appearance, most will have a humanoid form that's human in appearance. Much rarer but entirely impossible is an elven appearance to their humanoid form. Never quite reminiscent of an actual full fledge elven race, but ever so slightly there that people are reminded that the Rathor were once elves themselves. This is extremely rare though.
An interesting fact about the humanoid form is the prevalence of vitiligo and heterochromia. A Neoalt almost has a 100% guarantee of displaying one of these traits in their humanoid form even if it doesn't display in their true form. While it's often still present in their true form if you look hard enough, it can be more subdued. Taking the form of only a slight hue change in the skin or a slight offness to the pigmentation of one eye compared to the other. In the humanoid form, this is striking. Again, it's theorized that this is because of Quarae's influence. She experimented on the Rath when they were still elven. The Rathor's animal traits were a product of Azunath trying to save them. While there's no scientific proof many would claim it makes sense for the marking to show up more the less animal like the Rathor become, fully showing off the damage Quarae had done.
True Form
The true form of the Neoalts is the form that they first took when they become Neoalts. It is the form they are born in and the form that truly represents them the best. In this form, they carry various traits from their animal. Strangely shaped ears that can hear better than a human or fangs which can help them to inject lethal venom into their enemies. The benefits provided by these traits will never be as strong as when they are in their faunis form. Nor are these benefits quite as powerful as the benefits the Beastalts maintain. However, it does allow for a bit more flexibility in skills.
A bear Neoalt can still be a quick-footed person whereas a bear Beastalt would have to struggle for years to get anywhere near the same level. A rabbit Neoalt can put on muscle in their arms a lot faster and more naturally than a rabbit Beastalt might be able to. Either way, it's still a trade-off of some sort. Flexibility or potency.
They make up about 39.9% of the total Rathor population and have been steadily on the incline.
Rathor-Norai
The mythical .1% of Rathor that every conspiracy theorist claims exists, but no one actually has any proof of. Multiple studies have even been conducted in order to prove the existence of this special subrace that has apparently become elven once more, but so far there's been no luck. Even with multiple scientific organization chipping in over the years and multiple universities polling not only the Rathor populations but various Norai races, everyone's come up empty-handed.
The Rathor-Norai have been chocked up to little more than bad eyesight and wishful thinking. Yearning for something that doesn't exist anymore and in the minds of many can never exist again. The exact process through which the Rath'Norai were created can't be replicated. Excluding the very specific circumstance of their birth and the fact the Hyr'Norai that exist now aren't like the original Hyr'Norai from which the Rath'Norai spawned, Azunath seems to have no intention of even making attempt, having pulled back from Atharen like many other Gods.
In spite of this, there are still many people who will claim sightings of the mythical subrace and point at Rathor who suddenly go missing from their towns in under a day. While there are some compelling cases of Rathor very ingrained into the structure of a town suddenly vanishing in under a night, a lot of these can be explained by other circumstances such as murders and family emergencies that made them leave town. The only thing that really still keeps the scientific community so much as contemplating the validity of these claims is the fact the Rathor themselves have been extremely... quiet, regarding the topic.
Species Limitations
For players creating Rathor characters or NPCs, the tier system determines which species can actually be chosen for them. It’s fairly simple: tiers 1 and 2 are allowed if the adaptation to Rathor standards is correct. Tier 3 is dependent on the species and its abilities; it will be marked on the necessary wiki page if the animal in question is allowed or an admin can be messaged if necessary beforehand for details to be worked out. All animals that exist on earth only rank up to tier 3, and as such are allowed for use as Rathor. Any higher tiers are likely not to be allowed, especially not at the start of play.
Psychology
Most Rathor by nature tend to lean towards kind and helpful, though they aren't push over either. They don't do it for some kind of 'honor' or glory. They don't help others because they feel obligated to. Most are just drawn to helping others because they can. Almost all Rathor are drawn to travel, and while on the road they may be tempted to help out strangers. This isn't to call them idiots or blind. They aren't going to be tricked into an obvious bandit trap preying on their good and helpful nature. Instead, they'll usually try to pull a quick one the bandits instead.
Outside of any Rathor traits noted within the rest of this section, the Rathor act and function much like any other creature might.
The Beastalts tend to act in a way that's noticeably more reminiscent of their animal than their Neoalt cousins. While not overpowering, certain actions of theirs will be greatly influenced by the instincts and nature of the animal they represent. More so than Neoalts anyway. Things like marriage, opinions on others, and various other aspects of daily life may be shifted in certain directions thanks to their animal half. If this is found to be unagreeable to the Rathor, then these instincts can be fought against, it should be notable that this is an uphill battle though.
The Neoalt are less influenced by their beastly traits than the Beastalts, however, whatever animal they are will still have a notable impact on their choices and actions. They have a much easier time combatting whatever instincts they were given.
All Rathor know the God who hurt them. Twisted them, changed them, broken them so badly that she burned herself into their genetic memory and made herself a part of their very code. Not every Rathor knows her name. Not every Rathor is even aware of why she did what she did. But all Rathor through one mean or another are aware of what she did. Most know she's not to be trusted. It's something intrinsic to their very being. It goes so far that on some level they can even sense her presence, they can feel who or what she's touched and they avoid it like the plague. Most will try to distance themselves from her presence through whatever means necessary. While Quarae isn't automatically hated all all Rathor, they tend to be at the very least nervous when she's brought up. On the other end of the spectrum, those who are aware of what Quarae used to be like tend to pity her. Rathor follows of Quarae are rare at best, but they do exist. Depending on if it links to their Purpose or not, it can cause a Rathor to be shunned. Especially if she's openly worshipped. Those Rathor who do follow Quarae, usually follow the old version of Quarae and pity they current one more than anything.
A secondary and even more unpleasant psychological impact of Quarae are random phantom pains. These pains are completely psychological and often have no impact on physical ability, but they can get annoying at best and and impact performance at worst. There's no actual telling what triggers these pains as they seem to appear randomly. The Rathor believe that the nature of these pains usually reflects either of the sufferings of one's ancestors or the suffering of one's past life. Since some pains are more recurrent for some Rathor (such as pain specifically in one eye or a specific patch of skin) many Rathor believe these theories to have some merit, though other races tend to agree and seek other explanations.
Culture
In terms of culture, the coming of age is an exceptionally important event in the life of a Rathor, both on a personal and cultural level. This ceremony is a 2 part event. One of which is very social and similar to how humans might celebrate a coming of age. It's a party for the family as a whole. Both blood related and related by emotion. While the Rathor began to no longer live in tribes, they still viewed tribes as somewhat existing within their society and over the years that belief suck. A Tribe currently is described as a group of Rathor who are your family whether they share in your bloodline or not. The second part of the ceremony is a spiritual experience in many different ways, Purpose and transformation taking center stage as those are the two things which has most prominent affected the Rathor. Experiences during these ceremonies can vary wildly.
For Neoalts, the spiritual half of the coming of age ceremony is the first time they're actually able to take on their faunis or humanoid form. Prior to a coming of age ceremony, a Neoalt is stuck in their true form. Some in the scientific community have tried to say this is simply an age factor, but Rathor who for one reason or another never have a coming of age ceremony have been documented experiencing trouble transforming or even being unable to altogether. Even with demonstrations for other Neoalts. After a proper coming of age ceremony has been held the Neoalts seem to have no difficulty whatsoever, implying that it's some part of the ceremony that teaches the transformation or the ceremony itself is genuinely what allows for the transformation to properly occur.
What happens during the second half of the ceremony changes from group to group. For some it's more of a spirit journey with the use of drugs in order to help facilitate the experience. Other groups follow a similar process, but use meditation instead of psychedelics. There are even those few groups that have the younger Rathor drink the blood of the eldest Rathor in the group and then throw them out into the woods for the rest of the night. There's a lot of creativity between different groups in how they handle the ceremony itself. There is no one standardized method and while some versions are easier on the Rathor in question, there are multiple different versions of the ceremony that will still work.
Within Rathor society at large, those without a ceremony are often pitied. They are seen as never having left childhood behind properly. The typical reason for this is because they lost their family at an early age. Having the nature that they do, should a Rathor that doesn't have a family present themselves to a larger group of Rathor, there's a strong likelihood they'll be adopted into the family group or that family group will find another willing to take them. In the very rare case that a Rathor is cut off from all other Rathor until into their late life, this will still apply, and their new family will hold a late coming of age ceremony for them. Those who reject both a family group and the coming of age ceremony are seen as outcasts. They're either seen as refusing to grow up or as rejecting the fact they are Rathor. Both are which are insults to the Rathor on par with a Rathor refusing to follow their Purpose. All three of these can get a Rathor ostracized from Rathor society as a whole.
In addition to ostracization, that Rathor will be treated like a child by other Rathor for the rest of their life or until they right the wrongs of their actions. A Rathor's coming of age ceremony is typically held on their 18th birthday. At which point they can get married, have children, join the military, and a variety of other things that were disallowed to them prior to adulthood. These things will still be disallowed to a Rathor who hasn't had a ceremony as the ceremony.
While it's pretty common for a Rathor's ceremony to come late for any number of reasons it's very rare to have one early. If an adopted child doesn't know their birthday then usually the Rathor who adopt them will guess on the low side and wait longer than may strictly be necessary. Even in emergency situations it's typically seen as unfair to the child to old the ceremony early since it can cause difficulties later in life such as lack of control when it comes to changing forms or more frequent than average phantom pains.
Additionally, within the Rathor culture, there's a big emphasis on family, both by blood and by personal connections. Adopting in and caring for those without a family or with a poor family is a big thing for the Rathor, to the point they'll adopt in members of other races who want or need a family. Found families are common for the Rathor. Older Rathor, especially those who live to the full lifespan of the Rathor, will have extensive social networks.
There are two types of family within Rathor culture. The first is the immediate family or the tribe. Be they related by blood or brought into the family due to the connections between Rathor, this is the type of family that as the name implies is especially close. These are the people who might attend a coming of age ceremony or other important events in one's life. They're also the first people a Rathor will go to with an issue or a problem they might be personally facing.
The second type of family is referred to as the Grand Family. This is based on the understanding that to some degree all members of the Rathor are a part of a singular family. Bound in experience, bound by merit of their race, bound by the connections between their souls and the Purposes they all share. Most if not all Rathor believe in the Grand Family and its part of why information spreads insanely easily between them as a whole. Rathor who are complete strangers to one another might greet each other like long lost siblings or friends. Even typically bad-natured Rathor might be more willing to work with others of their kind, especially if they're the same animal. It's rare that a Rathor won't consider themselves part of the Grand Family, and even then most other Rathor will consider them to be such unless the Rathor in question does something to have that right removed. This is why it's so easy for Rathor to adopt one another into their families without a second question. Even Rathor with traditionally malignant personalities or Purposes might find a small soft spot for other Rathor, though this isn't a guarantee by any means.
Rathor players should keep this in mind when encountering others of their kind, be they PCs or NPCs.
In terms of education, the family is always in charge of educating a child, something which is encouraged in Rathor society as a whole. It's a belief of the Rathor that a child should be as prepared as possible so that when they eventually realize their Purpose they aren't making up for lost time. Given possible Purposes can have to do with intellect, at the very least all Rathor are encouraged to have a basic education and families are encouraged to educate their children as much as possible within circumstances.
All children are given basic education until the age of 12, at which point they are given a couple of choices. For those who already know their Purpose, they can start pursuing it. For those that are uncertain about their Purpose, they have two other options. The first is to continue with more advanced education. The second is to start helping out their family, be it helping with a business or apprenticing under a parent's craft. The child is given the choice at this age as it's believed the soul will start to subconsciously direct the Rathor towards their Purpose at this age even if they don't quite understand their purpose yet.
Adding onto that, the Rathor are a traveling race for a similar reason. Most if not every Rathor spends time traveling. This combined with the sense of a Grand Family existing has led to a very interesting effect on the collective knowledge of the race. These two factors seem to allow for a lot of collective general knowledge between Rathor as a group at large. Two different Rathor on different halves of Atharen are almost 80% more likely to have similar or identical religious, cultural, or linguist beliefs than any other race. While there are still those who will be more influenced by the culture they grow up in and those who live in areas that are harder for other Rathor to reach, generally the Rathor are the most uniform racial collective on the face of Atharen. That isn't to say they all agree on political views... Being a Rathor won't save someone if they're standing on the opposite end of a battlefield against another Rathor if they're both fighting for their Purpose or something they strongly believe in.
Clothing and Grooming
In terms of dress, baggy and comfortable clothes are exceptionally common among Neoalts. This is done with the intention of making transformations easier. There's a general preference for articles that aren't flashing or eye grabbing, but this is considerably less universal. While this is common among the Neoalt, the preference is more rare among the Beastalts who don't have to worry about transforming and have more freedom of choice.
Another common type of fashion for Neoalts and the most common type of apparel for the Beastalts are very light and revealing clothing. This tends to apply in almost all climates, especially to the Beastalts who more often than not have fur which is suitable for their environment. Clothing means less to the Beastalts due to their appearance. Most can't show skin that's under fur or scales anyway, making covering up their fur both pointless and uncomfortable. Most Beastalts will wear as little clothing as possible electing only to hide the important bits. This is a less common sentiment among Neoalts due to not having fur, though it's still common enough because of the aesthetic and the ease of transformation such a type of clothing can provide. Beastalts as opposed to Neoalts tend to be flashy with accessory items, though there are a decent number of Neoalts who share the Beastalts love for flashier clothes and addons.
The almost universal exception to the above is armor, which tends to be very covering and often tight fit to the body. This is true for both Neoalts and Beastalts, and especially true of those with warrior related purposes.
Grooming, due to the nature of the race, is different for each Rathor in order to best fit the particular animal they share the traits of. Some might spend more time on ear care. Others can spend hours ensuring that their fur is clean. The general theme for most Rathor is that they prefer to be as clean as possible. In general, they have the knowledge of how to stay cleaner than most other races while on the road, but they also need to put the time into more care for specific things like polishing and moisturizing their scales to prevent chafing or cracks.
Rathor cannot stand irritations though. They are the race that has become ruthlessly effective at pest control because of this. Lice, fleas, and various other parasite like creatures are an annoyance that's not to be tolerated, and so the Rathor are merciless when getting rid of them. When two Rathor meet on the roads immediately after greetings it's usually polite practice to offer some kind of traveling tip. A pearl of wisdom they've learned. Easy pest prevention home remedies tend to be exceedingly common in this practice.
Technology and Intellectual Pursuits
For the Rathor, all things go back to the Purpose. If technological pursuits are your Purpose then they're important to you, which makes them important as a whole. If it's productive in some way and doesn't cause harm to other people, the Rathor will support one another's Purposes without question. If it does have harm involved there are some reservations, but generally, when it comes to technology there are fewer malignant Purposes than with some other themes. Something that's believe to be a byproduct of fewer Rathor having science or technology related Purposes, which is linked back to their worship of Azunath.
Because of this, a lot of scientific and technological fields are lacking Rathor but the few there are have made some stunning discoveries which helped to move societies forward. It's a rarer Purpose for most, but those who do follow in these footsteps are just as respect as any other Rathor as long as they don't act in ways that are disrespectful.
Perhaps the biggest advancement of the Rathor that isn't related to Purposes has to do with smithing. Thanks to the physical features of the Beastalts it became important for the Rathor to become good at smithing early on in order to adjust for the sheer amount of custom-built armor sets their own race would require. The appearance of the Neoalts only furthered this idea since it suddenly became extremely important to be making armor for animals as well as giant animal looking people. The Rathor are fairly well known for making exceptional mount armor as a byproduct of this need.
On top of that though, Rathor culture believes that outside of the Purpose they should be attempting to forever keep moving forward. The act of bettering one's self is always encouraged. Because of that, continued learning past what one already knows is always encouraged. Even things that don't seem like they obviously link back to the Purpose.
Arts and Crafts
With their tribal shamanic kind of roots, music and dance always have been and always will be important to the Rathor people. There are a number of dances and songs with deeply spiritual roots, most of which are used to give praise to the various Living Gods and even the Corrupted Gods, those these songs tend to have a more sober theme to them. Many songs and dances also have ceremonial roots. There are a number of dances to be performed at the coming of age ceremony for example, and they can vary wildly depending on the exact origins of a group of Rathor and which 'form' of the coming of age they practice. Multiple tribes of Rathor splintering off throughout the ages has led to a wide variety of cultural ceremony and dance or song to go with them. Most Rathor can dance and sing even if it has nothing to do with their Purpose simply because the act of oral storytelling used to be so important prior to Quarae's meddling and the Rathor revealing their existence once more. Doing it well is a different question entirely, but that's not important for those without a Purpose related to it.
The most notable crafted good of the Rathor are smithy items and clothing. Mostly because early Rathor whose Purpose had nothing to do with these still had to learn in order to support themselves and clothe their kin. While not quite the luxury items of other races, the clothing and armor made by the Rathor tends to be high quality from years of refining their methods and the advanced of Rathor who found their Purposes in these crafts. Other crafts are mostly ignored by the Rathor unless important to the Purpose.
In terms of the fine arts usually only those with a Purpose related to a specific art will attempt learn. This isn't for any specific distaste of the arts, in fact, Rathor admire those who find the arts to be easy. Races known for making beautiful arts and crafts are often a marvel to the Rathor. The problem is, some bodies just aren't built in ways that make certain arts feasible. For some it's just too difficult to bother learning if it has nothing to do with their Purpose. Color blindness, a different hearing spectrum, or big clunky paws can all get in the way while trying to make art. The Rathor at their core are the Beastfolk, and some end up picking up the negative traits associated with their animal alongside the positive ones, making certain tasks just out of the realm of possibly without the dedication the usually comes from their Purpose alone.
Religion and Worship
All Rathor believe in the Purpose. All of them. In a way, they have to. It's almost constantly present in everyday life even from a young age. It's a brand on the soul, a constant tug that leads them in a direction but never really lays out the steps or tells them flat out what their destination is supposed to be. Even if some have a general idea, it's as mysterious and chaotic as the world outside the material plane. It's an unclear map without any of the landmarks notated and someone ripped off the piece with the destination on it.
While Rathor completely cut off from others of their kind don't quite have a name for it, it's always there. They understand it's presence and what it means for them. All Rathor believe in the Purpose, even if the form of that belief can vary due to isolation. Many believe that other races have a Purpose as well, but it's not as clear. Something happened to them while they were twisted so many times under the hands of the Gods. It made their Purposes all the more apparent to them. Allowed them to feel it so deeply. Even if they're wrong about other races, for the Rathor, the Purpose is very much a real occurrence that can't be denied.
The Purpose is, of course, a very strange thing. The Purpose itself is as unpredictable as the path the Rathor decides to take following it. While rare there have been occurrences of a Rathor reporting their Purpose completely changing after completing some kind of benchmark goal. Even more exceptional are the Rathor who report having two Purposes at once. The Purpose is a chaotic thing. One that no longer surprises Rathor, just annoys the ones who get the shorter end of the stick.
While a bit of a rarer belief, some also believe in what's know as The Secret and seek it out with the same vigor as their Purpose if no more so. The Secret is believed to be the reason why Rathor have their Purpose and in some form is believe to be linked to the Rathor'Norai. Rumors state bad things happen to those who seek out The Secret, but these are just rumors.
Regarding other religions, the most common religious beliefs of the Rathor if they believe in anything outside their Purpose is a stalwart belief in the Gods, both Living and Corrupted. The primary god to them is of course Azunath, who is often referred to by the Rathor as The Wild Father. He was their patron, the one who believed in them, the one that all Rathor seek to do well by. Other Living Gods are important, but none quite have the importance to the Rathor as Azunath does. Corrupted Gods are worshiped instead for what they once were and pitied for what they have since become.
On the other end of the spectrum, opinions of Quarae are split. Some see her as a vile thing who ruined the Rath'Norai and made their lives so very much harder. Others pity her. There are even some who still follow her older doctrines from before she lost her mind. There are a very few who are grateful to her in a twisted sort of way. Her actions were cruel, but many believe they're the only reason the Rathor have their Purpose. Such an important piece of their culture which has shaped them, let to them having an even deeper connection to nature than the original Rath'Norai could have ever dreamed! Some are grateful for that, but even then, Quarae is still someone to be feared.
Reproduction, Aging, and Death
The Rathor are able to officially marry and mate at the age of 18 only after their coming of age ceremony. What kinds of relationships differ. Rathor interpersonal relationships can vary wildly depending on the norms of whatever animal they are and the orientation of the Rathor themselves. Some Rathor might find it normal to get married and stay mates for life. Other might partner once and then go their separate ways after the child is raised properly, only ever crossing paths again for events and ceremonies where the family should be present. For some Rathor polygamy is normal and acceptable because it's simply natural for whatever animal they represent. The nature of the partnership between two Rathor can depend, and it's encouraged that two consenting adults really discuss that ahead of time as well as account for the fact their child might be born something entirely different from them requiring special care. In which case, the nature of the child is prioritized over the nature of the parent.
The child has a higher chance of reflecting one of its parents species, but it's not always a guarantee. This also applies to whether the child is born a Beastalt or Neoalt. While the child has a higher chance of taking after their parent it is not a perfect guarantee. In addition, the parents don't need to be the same animal in order to produce children, though sometimes this means the bodily parts of two parents won't always match which can lead to complications. In some cases, two Rathari might be incompatible simple based on the genetics of what animals they are.
Gestation can be anywhere between 7 and 12 months, though the typical is 9 months much like with your average humanoid species. Once again, childcare depends a lot on the nature of the animal the parents are as well as on the nature of the animal the child is. Regardless of animals, the Rathor expect one another to be good parents. Part of that is taking into account the individualistic needs of a child who might be a different species or subrace to the parent.
Childhood development is very much similar to your average human with the exception of the coming of age and things that might be specific to the animal species.
When the Rathor agreed to be turned into animals, Azunath promised them that they would keep the life span of the Rath'Norai. Intentional or not, this is a promise that's been kept over the many generations of Rathor. This means that the Rathor can live an exceptionally long time. However, much like in all things, the animal of the Rathor can sometimes cause changes to life span. A Rathor might live a shorter amount of time due to the animal they are. Most of the time though, a Rathor that actually takes care of themselves properly will live to the full lifespan of the race. In some exceptional cases, the kind of animal one is can actually go as far as to extend the lifespan of the Rathor past the normal, but this is exceedingly rare.
Funerals much like coming of age are grand family events. They are celebrated as much as they're mourned, especially for Rathor who lived a full life. Due to the Purpose, rebirth is a necessary stage of life for the Rathor. A Purpose is not something one is expected to complete in a single life time and Rathor believe with unwavering conviction that until they complete their Purpose and even sometimes after they will continue to be reincarnated without fail only experiencing minimal changes to their soul. Because of this, prayers that the Rathor in question be born to a good home and with an easy birth are common. Sometimes random Rathor outside the immediate family might show up if they hear of a funeral in the area. This is once again because of the Grand Family philosophy. These Rathor are usually welcomed in immediately and mourn and celebrate right alongside the family as though they've lost a member of their own immediate family. In some cases, these Rathor can be a great support and may even become a part of the family group.
Language
While not every Rathor learns it, most Rathor learn common as a second language since it can be used just about anywhere.
All Rathor eventually learn how to speak in Vithmi and most call it the original tongue. It's a vital part of the Rathor culture as all of the important cultural ceremonies are spoken in Vithmi, close family often speak in Vithmi before using common, and it's the first language most are expected to teach their children. Rathor who don't know Vithmi are often pitied or looked down upon by other Rathor. Those that are willing to learn it are quickly taught by any other Rathor in the immediate area, but those who are unwilling often get spoken of harshly in Rathor circles. To shun the language is to shun a part of Rathor culture, and while not nearly as bad as attempting to shun one's Purpose it's still thought of in an extremely negative light.
Vithmi is thought to be the same language that was originally used by the Rath'Norai when they were first created, though obviously it's been subject to change over the years. The language itself has very few differences outside of accent in spite of the vast distances between some groups of Rathor. While there are certain changes in dialect and the way words are said, their meanings and how those meanings have changed seems to be understood universally, something usually thought to be a byproduct of their avid traveling and need to communicate no matter how far a Rathor gets from their birth home. What changes do happen are quickly dispersed and understood by the group as a whole.
