Fae, non-wolf shifters, ghosts, aliens – who knows what else is out there in the world? If you want to play something other than the three races we have detailed, just submit a concept. We will flesh this area out more as people create characters that aren't in the Big Three. Do remember to think through how the race has survived to this day, and what niche they fill in the world.
Elves are mostly known for their long lifespans, fascination with magic, and general capriciousness. In ancient times, elves were more populous, especially throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa; however, the combination of long gestation times, low birth rates, and the fact that they are just as susceptible to violence from humans, fellow elves, or other supernatural entities has resulted in them being a footnote in the annals of history. Elves have never forgotten (or have convinced themselves) that there was a time when they were the dominant race, and many elders hold a grudge about it.
There are a wide variety of elven peoples in existence, though many of them are scattered and shrinking enclaves attempting to avoid revealing themselves to humanity, or trying to blend in with it, and it is worth noting that ear shape and length change along with skin, hair, and eyes between disparate cultures. Many elves opt for cosmetic surgery to correct their elfin features so that they will not be singled out.
One of the many subsets of the elven people call themselves the Wing Riders. Some believe them to be a separate race or subset of elves, others see them as simply normal elves imbued with a certain type of magic. No matter the belief, all Wing Riders are supposedly born in areas that sit on the coasts of large bodies of water. Legend says that coastal areas are where the mounts used to be found and so these places also attracted or produced Wing Riders.
Traditionally, Wing Riders rode rocs or giant eagles; however, over time, many winged beasts including pegasi, wyverns, griffins, manticores, phoenixes, and all manner of flying beasts became mounts. However, they still had a general affinity for the more bird-like mounts. In modern times, the Wing Riders face the plight of our natural world acutely. Through the loss of wild spaces, or even extinction, no rider born in the past century or more has been able to find a mount capable of bearing their weight. This leads to despair and death for the mountless rider.
They are attuned to magic and their interests may be among any area of magic, although almost all Wing Riders focus on life magic. These magics allow them to heal others, commune with animals, bond with their mounts, and generally understand nature on an instinctual level. Wing riders are able to communicate with all manner of winged animals; from their giant mounts all the way to tiny insects. Magic for the Wing Rider starts out weak but with learning, experience, and practice their powers grow.
A gargoyle is a creature that is created via some power, be they God, magi, or devil, from a stone/wood carving or statue of cast metal. While those most often seen in civilization have humanoid characteristics they are not all the same. A gargoyle can range from completely animalistic in form and mind to a form and mind that would be hard to distinguish from a human or other supernatural.
As with form, their skills vary widely and most often align with their body forms. However, all gargoyles have an ability to talk to and manipulate natural building materials to some degree. The species, in general, has an affinity for plants and animals due to their bonds to stone, land, and the animal nature of their beings. Some are even granted the ability to heal, affect plant growth, and the weather. Though flesh and blood normally, when they sleep, though rare, the gargoyle returns to that material from which they were made. Some gargoyles fall into deep sleeps that may last weeks, years, or even longer. Many have the ability to create sacred and sanctified spaces either by will or simply by inhabiting an area. Although many traditionally associate the gargoyle with Catholic churches they can serve any building: sacred or secular. The importance for the gargoyle is that the place offer sanctuary and kindness to those in need. In this concept a church, an orphanage, a domestic violence shelter, or a Hindu temple could be equally acceptable as a building under their protection. Usually, a gargoyle will align with those sacred structures that align with the magic or powers which created them; however, this is also not a hard rule for their existence.
In temperament, the gargoyle prefers diplomacy or to scare off individuals who threaten their place or charges. If pushed to physical confrontation, however, they fight with animal-like fury, with no regard to their own injuries, and seem to heal far more rapidly than normal when wounded while acting as a protector. However, this accelerated recovery comes at the cost of physical and mental exhaustion that can leave the gargoyle weak and vulnerable for minutes, hours, or even days. Gargoyles can be caring, devoted, and loyal. Even the most animalistic of their kind can be befriended by those who have the patience and heart to gain their trust.
(The following is according to North American Voltairian oral tradition.)
Many centuries ago, the Voltairians were plentiful, and lived in harmony with other races. Besides being winged, each of the Voltair had some control over one of the four alchemical elements (earth, wind, water, and fire). Some were stronger than others, but none were known to use their powers for evil or against nature. If a major disaster threatened a city, they would attempt to adjust its course to protect the city, but would never attempt to negate it entirely – if they did, they knew, it would likely only worsen the problem and make it more uncontrolled.
Voltair and humans lived openly together for years in peace, but after a massive earthquake struck the territory where both peoples lived, the resultant huge loss of life for both sides resulted in a break in the trust, as the Voltair claimed to have not sensed it coming but had both the power to sense it as a natural event, and the ability to cause it if they had chosen to do so. Tension grew over the following years, until the discovery of a teenage human girl's body near a Voltairian village caused both cultures to prepare for open warfare. Unfortunately, the Voltair were technologically inadequate and had sworn an oath not to use their powers for combat, and as such were massacred in the bloody conflict that followed. The remaining Voltair from that territory have fled and gone into hiding ever since; it's unknown whether other Voltairian cultures have existed in other parts of the world, but the known sources of Voltairian culture are traced back to the Toronto region of Canada.
Voltair have three common traits that mark their bloodline within other cultures: