Ancestries of the Aether

Common

• Common

  Dwarf

  Mostly

  • Dwarf
  emigrated
  • from the Boundless Sea, where they had assimilated into a culture of island nations and seafaring but maintained parts of their original culture. Dwarves historically very literally burrowed their way up out of their origins in the Crags (Layer 5), and spread further only once they had emerged on the surface of the Mortal Plane.
    

    Gnome

  • Mostly emigrated from the Boundless Sea, where they had assimilated into a culture of island nations and seafaring but maintained parts of their original culture. Gnomes in this setting do not suffer from the bleaching, but they do share a common culture encouraging exploration and discovery that originates from their fey origins in the Woodlands (Layer 3).
    

    Goblin

  • Mostly emigrated from the Boundless Sea, where they had assimilated into a culture of island nations and seafaring but maintained parts of their original culture.

    Halfling

  • Hobgoblin:

    Mostly emigrated from the Boundless Sea, where they had assimilated into a culture of island nations and seafaring but maintained parts of their original culture.

    Hobgoblin

    One of the indigenous peoples of the Aether, but also a culture that migrated from other planes, hobgoblins have two notably differing cultures here.
    

  • Those who emigrated from the Boundless Sea and formed many of the original colonies were known for their martial prowess and commanding presence, often having served as ship's captains on the sea and forming some of the fiercest crews known to that plane. That culture carries over for some, but for those native to the Aether, this culture is strange and alien.

    Hobgoblins native to the Aether were known in times past to be thoughtful and measured in their decision-making, encouraging a strategy to life that, while suggesting a linked cultural history to other Hobgoblins, also provided a very different way of life. These hobgoblins were known to be stoic, often hard to befriend but invaluable allies in a pinch. Hobgoblins in the Aether rarely resorted to violence unless absolutely necessary, but maintained strict practice of martial arts that means that any violence they enacted would be over very quickly. Even now that their great kingdoms have been shattered, most hobgoblin tribes still carry on these traditions the best that they can, augmenting them with what they need to survive.

    Human

  • Mostly emigrated from the Boundless Sea, where they had assimilated into a culture of island nations and seafaring but maintained parts of their original culture.

    Orc

  Mostly

emigrated
• from the Boundless Sea, where they had assimilated into a culture of island nations and seafaring but maintained parts of their original culture.

  Uncommon

  Catfolk

  • Catfolk

  • spread just about everywhere in some manner, though they traditionally hail from a region of the Mortal Plane that is no longer there. Most catfolk in the Aether emigrated from the plane below a few centuries back, but even these had only lived there for a few generations. Catfolk are the humans of the more animalistic ancestries in many ways, sharing little culture between themselves except for a fondness for learning and a characteristic bravery that often leaves them cast as heroes. Catfolk tend to adopt whatever culture they find themselves in, leading members of the ancestry to be almost as diverse as the cultures they live in.

    Elf

  • Fleshwarp:

    Elves Generallyoriginally hail from the Woodlands (Layer 3), where their heavily factionalized culture and strictness of cultural practice eventually caused a further split in elven culture and society. Most elves who today reside in the Aether hail from the groups who abandoned the originals in favor of the idea of engaging in community with all elves, regardless of the circumstances of one's birth or the nature of one's arbitrarily-decided manners. Elves famously have four distinct words for the concept of family, and the most all-encompassing - the word "Ashana" - is used to represent the family an elf has with all of elvenkind.

    Elves reproduce rarely and by exposurechoice, toand at least half of all reproduction is done by assimilating an individual of another ancestry who volunteers, adopting them into the four rings of elven family. Elves live exceptionally long lives, and some elves today are over a millenium of age.

    Fleshwarp

    The far-reaching presence of magical residuum on this plane leads many to undergo mutations, especially those who might have close contact with aetheryte or ancient artifacts. Though some grow resilient enough to resist these effects before encountering them, others are unfortunate enough to be the target of mutations that can range from an extra finger to a complete body restructuring. Fleshwarps, as they are called, are often thought of as frightening or dangerous by the upper class, but the display of a mutation has the opposite effect with the working class, often seen as a sign of solidarity and a life well-lived.
    

  • Gnoll:

    Gnoll

    One of the indigenous peoples of the Aether. Gnolls have always been an oddity in the sky: they don't fly, they have no natural affiliation with the air, and they have little interest in the Aether's natural magics. Gnolls are unique in one other way: they're the only Aetheric people who intensified their worship of the gods in the wake of the Shattering. Gnolls are a deeply spiritual people and always have been, advocating respect for ancestors, gods, and powerful beings alike with one notable difference from most others: their respect is entirely transactional and practical in nature. Most gnoll tribes have several clerics of varying gods as tribal leaders, and these clerics serve the purpose of ensuring that the tribe maintains the favor of the gods in all possible respects. The methods by which they do this can also be seen as strange and uncivilized to colonists, and for this reason, many avoid them, but all indigenous to the plane know that having a gnoll at your side is an advantage in just about any situation.
    

  • Kobold

  • Sylph:

    Mostly emigrated from the Boundless Sea, where they had assimilated into a culture of island nations and seafaring but maintained parts of their original culture. Kobolds were not as common on the plane below, as their dragon-fearing culture did not pair well with their lack of a natural ability to swim on a plane that was mostly water. When news of an unending sky reached them, though, many kobolds leapt at the opportunity, seeing it as the start of the fulfillment of the promise that kobolds would one day ascend to full draconic majesty, and the fact that some kobolds have since begun to sprout wings suggests that this prophecy may be more than just wishful thinking.
    

    Sylph

    One of the indigenous peoples of the Aether, usually human-descended but varying. Sylph are said to have been changed upon their arrival to the plane millenia ago, with some claiming it an act of fate or the gods. Whatever the case, the sylph adapted most graciously to the change, quickly building up the largest and most advanced civilizations on the plane. It is said that every hulk in the Aether is of ancient sylph construction, and the way that modern sylphs have advanced after the destruction of their original civilization in the cascade would have many believing it. Sylph build, discover, develop, and advance, flowing from project to project quickly and continuously, and despite their community with others of their kind, many sylphs regularly venture out on holiday to work for one of the companies that provides especially interesting work. Sylph have little care for gold or materials, usually; their people are the best at locating these things, and they're rarely in short supply at home. Instead, sylphs look for the most interesting and ambitious jobs, seeking to test their limits. It is not uncommon for a sylph village to be constructed and then entirely emptied within a month as all of its residents decided to focus on another project for a while before returning home. Still, sylphs always do return home, and a family member or friend's extended absence is cause for distress indeed. The sylph hold a particular grudge against Skyline for this, as many sylph who extended a benevolent hand or wing out of benevolence or honest interest were subsequently captured and held by the company as "permanent employees".
    

    Sylph start with 15ft of fly speed.

  speed
  • Strix:and gain an additional 5ft for every flight-related feat obtained. Sylph wings are not a physical part of their body but rather the result of naturally channeling air and electricity, and can therefore be dismissed or summoned at any time as a free action.
    

    Strix

    One of the indigenous peoples of the Aether. Strix have always valued a symbiotic bond with nature and their surroundings, and this extended naturally to the large, lush continents that made up the Aether pre-Cascade. Their feelings of obligation towards the land on which they live only grew stronger after the Shattering, and strix often serve as caretakers not just of their own islands but those nearby. Strix build their villages and cities in such a way that they do not impede the lives of the plants and animals around them, but they also do their utmost to ensure that at least one surface is facing the open sky directly. Many colonists have arrived at a seemingly-uninhabited island only to see the tops of strix buildings barely peeking over the sea of green. Strix rarely tend to reach out past their communities nowadays without a specific reason, be that as simple as for trade or as complex as for the greater good, seeing an obligation to their tribes and the natural world around them.
    

    Plenty of strix were swept up in the early days of colonization, forcibly assimilated into the new culture due to their usefulness due to their flight. Labeled as "birdmen" by these colonists, the gathered strix and tengu were often put to work doing the most dangerous jobs in the early days of sky travel, told that it was payment for housing and food but knowing in reality that it was little more than slave labor. Though these days are mostly past given the advances in technology on this plane, these "birdmen" still generally find themselves a part of the lower class despite the fact that there are still jobs that only they can do. A fusion of tengu and strix culture has resulted in some colonized areas, and some proudly reclaim the name of "birdmen" as a sign of pride.
    

    Strix start with 15ft of fly speed.
    

  speed
  • Tengu:and gain an additional 5ft for every flight-related feat obtained.

    Strix live on average 60 years in this setting, and some wonder if even that is more due to the isolation that many indigenous cultures to the plane now face rather than due to any biological fact. Additionally, in this setting, strix tend to appear more bird-like compared to the Pathfinder default, especially in the facial area.

    Tengu

    One of the indigenous peoples of the Aether. Tengu have always been a heavily communal people, rejecting the endless advancement that many other cultures aspired to in favor of simple life. Many errantly believe that the tengu's way of life descended from modern elven culture, but this is actually the opposite of the truth; observation of the tengu gave elves a model to combine with their own culture in forming their Ashana. Tengu share many similarities with elven culture but go one step further in terms of the dissolution of the family: everyone is recognized as a part of the same family, to the point where biological ties dissolve almost entirely. Older adults are mother or father, grandmother or grandfather, everyone of similar age is a sibling, and those from other tengu communities are aunts, uncles, and cousins. The prioritization of tradition in tengu culture can have deleterious effects on those who naturally stray from it, though, and the common rejection of modern technology is a point of contention for many, both of which are common causes of separation and formation of new families and villages. These things also cause some tengu to set out in search of adventure, of course, but even a tengu who strays far from the flock is always welcome home unless they've done something truly horrific.
    

    Many tengu were swept up in the early days of colonization, forcibly assimilated into the new culture due to their usefulness due to their flight. Labeled as "birdmen" by these colonists, the gathered strix and tengu were often put to work doing the most dangerous jobs in the early days of sky travel, told that it was payment for housing and food but knowing in reality that it was little more than slave labor. Though these days are mostly past given the advances in technology on this plane, these "birdmen" still generally find themselves a part of the lower class despite the fact that there are still jobs that only they can do. A fusion of tengu and strix culture has resulted in some colonized areas, and some proudly reclaim the name of "birdman" as a sign of pride.

    Tengu start with 15ft of fly speed.

  speed
  and
gain
• an additional 5ft for every flight-related feat obtained.

  Rare

  • Sprite

  • Other ancestries at GM approval.

Ratfolk

Ratfolk are survivors more than anything else. After the Cascade utterly destroyed their original civilization despite its location on the Mortal Plane, and after another split left half of the rebuilding ratfolk society completely missing from this reality only a few centuries later, many ratfolk scurried off to eke out a meager living among other cultures as a part of the poorest classes. Yet many ratfolk hold on tightly to the traditions that grew out of a fusion of pre-Cascade ratfolk culture and Cascadism, an ideology that developed in the wake of the tragedy of the gods. Ratfolk live in small multi-family groups where the principles of Cascadism are religiously observed, but rather than settling for this life, young ratfolk are encouraged to aspire to become a beacon for others, a light that can unify a community in the same way. Ratfolk often set out to wander and explore, taking a role similar to rōnin or wandering samurai. They do their best to serve other communities, to learn from their service, to take only what is appropriate in payment, and to never put themselves in a spotlight greater than the one they put these communities in. Rather than preaching the virtues of Cascadism as zealots, they seek to lead by example, and in doing so hope to reclaim a fraction of the glory their culture once had.

Ratfolk live on average at least 60 years in this setting, having a similar length of life to many other ancestries.

Sprite

Sprites hail from the Woodlands, the third layer of the world. Within the woodlands, they have a culture of equivalent exchange and of caring for the world one inhabits, taking what they need from the forests but leaving them more whole in the aftermath. This combines well with a natural curiosity and a nomadic culture; sprites wander freely, alone or in small groups, to see the world and experience what else it might have to offer. Sprites live long lives, with no definitive endpoint save where curiosity triumphs over caution. Some do eventually settle down in villages, but most sprites know that one day they'll get the urge to get up and explore a new direction one day. It's little wonder, then, that some of them made it to the Aether.