Humans

A naturally social and adventurous race, the Humans were the first inhabitants of the vast central lands. Insatiably curious, the Humans were the developers of much of the modern transit technology, including fleets of trading airships. As the fastest-spreading and most numerous of all the races, Humans quickly began establishing ports of call on lands thousands of miles from their own home. Humans are an extremely mercantile race, and are generally thought of as traders and explorers by those races who know of them. Human captains are known for allowing alien species with valuable skills to join on their crews, and airships with High Elvish navigators or Bo’suns are common sights

Physical Description
Shit dude, they're humans. What do you expect?

Society & Government Structures
The Human Nations all have HRH Rimblade III as a head of state, whom resides in Mist-Top. Operating as a constitutional monarchy, the Commission of Human Accords serves as the primary legislature. Representatives are appointed by each constituent nation of humanity and come here to propose and set policy for the Monarch’s approval. Due to the extreme distances and complications of Union Law, the Monarch and Commission often have limited reach in their large demesne.

One of the powers given to the Union Government is that of Diplomacy, which is headed by the clandestine Mistsong Accord, a shrewd guild of diplomats and businessmen whom all work secretly at the Monarch’s pleasure. Second in this is the Monarch has control of the Order of the Azure Hand, an ancient order which has always sought the best and brightest military minds. They are the hand of the Monarch, and serve to exert his will.

Each constituent human nation has a local government which is sovereign, except for the Unorganized Territories. Their governments are as diverse as the locales they live in.

Fairwind (Denonym: Fairwinders)
One of the oldest of the human states, the nation of Fairwind (And not Freewind, you insipid cat.) serves as the center of all aeronatuical commerce in the planet. The people of Fairwind are an educated populace of businessmen and traders, illiterate seamen and some of the most educated lawmen on the planet. A culture of thrift and efficency permeates the city, hedonistic and scholarly pursuits seen as a great waste of one's time. There is no true governmental structure in Fairwind, rather the trade conglomerates collude to regulate and enforce law throughout the floating fortress. The Fairwind Exchange, an "old boys club" of old businessmen and nobles dictate the laws and manage the day to day maintentence and defense of the city. Membership is largely hereditary, unless you've got the chops (and the coin) to buy a stake.

As the management of Fairwind is left to her companies' wishes, the regulations surrounding the ancient honored tradition of Sky Commerce are guarded by the Corte Del Cielo. An aeronautical admiralty board with laws stemming from the earliest ages of trade, they are a hereditary council of extremely scholarly men. Men and people of all races settle all Sky Trade disputes in this court, and Sky Privateers are tried here for acts of piracy against this board. While graft is the coin of the administration of Fairwind, her admiralty board is considered incorruptible by all trading partners.

Deep within the guts of Fairwind's latched-together and otherwise jury-rigged armada body of ships lies the Fairwind Commune. A society of beggars, unemployed craftsmen, and mutinied Fairwind Guard, the Commune is a society only spoken of in hushed whispers. Known to have ties to the Sky Privateers, and to terrorize employers and industrialists seen as exploitative to the populations, the Corte Del Cielo and Fairwind Exchange have had little success in cracking the group. Their difficulty largely stems from the Commune's intricate understanding of the many airship hulls that form Fairwind. The intentions of this group are unknown, as they are a recent pheonomena inside the flying city.

Carnival (Denoym: Carnivalese)
Originally a haven for Sky Privateers, the lawless nature of Carnival has been maintained by her peoples, even long after the autority of the Commission of Human Accords exerted itself. For a long time the Sky Privateers used this city as a port of call, the free nature of a pirate town leading to a city of raucous behaviour and debauchery. However, at the request of Fairwind, the Order of the Azure Hand was deployed to pacify it. The Sky Privateers were purged from Carnival, but the party went on. Now a large hub for all vareites of pleasure, Carnival is the life of the party.

People from Carnival despise authority, and revel in hedonistic pleasures. It is governed by it's tourism board, the Carnival Greeter Committee. They maintain a delicate balance of lawless hedonism and anarchy. While Carnival is itself a city with a small population, it's shopkeeps, bartenders, and innkeepers are some of the wealthiest, rivaling the city of Fairwind. A fierce rivalry and mutual distrust permeates politics between the two cities, particularly after The Fairwind Exchange successfully lobbied to have the city of Carnival pacified. Almost as a joke, the people of Carnival now pervasively push the rumor that the name of Fairwind is actually Freewind, much to the chagrin of it's floating sister city.

Vale (Denonym: Valean)
When the invention of airships became well known throughout the world, one race in particular took interest in the ingenuity of mankind was the Sky Elves of Zeal. A curious envoy arrived at Mist Top, with a unique offer. A city was proposed, a meeting of ideas (and commerce) in the clouds far above the ocean beneath it. Vale is unique amongst the major human settlements as it has a large minority population of Sky Elves, and very strong ties to the contintent of Zeal. A large airship hub is here as well, creating a meeting place of ideas, commerce, and people.The people of Vale adopt many of the fashions and 'street culture' of Zeal, gaudy clothing and a great focus on academic learning and peaceful pursuits over the avarice of the Fairwinders or the debauchery of the Carnavalese. Because of it's cosmopoltian nature and closer connection to Zeal, Vale more than any other sovereign state of the Union Government has attempted to secure complete autonomy from the Commission of Human Accords.

A center for all human academic knowledge, Humanity's wizards are educated at the Academy of Eryndol, run by the Sky Elves of the Cult of Aizyphiter. The Academy is one of the few places where mankind can learn such crafts, and is the only place in the Union Kingdoms that maintains a Temple of Zeal, and all the knowledge it contains. The violet domes and towering spires of the metropolis are scenic addition to the cloud-grazing continent of Zeal. The government and people are fiercly meritocratic, with great focuses on academic scholariship and diplomatic acumen. All major decisions of the city are determined by the Council of Valean Nobles, an elected board of wizards and other scholarly officials, whom are chosen by their peers. In addition to this, the Mistsong Accord has a strong presence in the city due to it's proximity to foreign nations and it's prestigious name in academic circles.

Principality of Orkland
The far flung island states of Orkland represent the most developed and structured society in the Unorganized Territories. The Principality is a collection of multiple towns spreading a diverse range of islands, from muggy tropics to desert to mountainous highlands. Each has its own nobilities and town assemblies but heed the absolute authority of the High Prince. Orkland's admission as a member state of the Union of Human Kingdoms has been stalled in part due to fears in the Commission of Human Accords that Orkland could tip the scales in favor of Valean Independence and moral objections to some traditional practices of the islands.

The present High Prince is Dranz, a man of imposing stature whom succeeded the throne by right of bloodshed. By tradition any man of noble blood may claim succession to be High Prince of Orkland, but to prove his worth and capabilities he and all other claimants fight until death. The last man standing is crowned High Prince. Famed for slaughtering all his opponents in the first daylight of the right, Dranz ascended the throne with great fanfare. Known as a hard ruler, the High Prince has decreed that all peoples of "diminutive size" are of lesser stock, and are hereby barred from all but the most menial of labor. His reputation as a harsh ruler is something the High Prince sees as a great benefit to himself.

St. Robb
The Fairwind Exchange created the East Silverstris Company to expand trade and relations with the cat and dogfolk encountered on the continent. This company was granted a charter to settle the strange Catfolk continent soon after, establishing their first permanent settlements at a place that would later come to be named St. Robb, after the famed businessman who founded the colony. The government is entirely run by the East Silverstris Company, with the Fairwind appointed governor as the final authority on all business. Long distances from Fairwind in addition to general neglect have allowed these governors to exert a great deal of autonomous authority. Inital contact had led to some mild success, though both sides seemed to be distrustful of the other.

After trade opprotunies with the Catfolk and Dogfolk fell through however, the ESC rushed to find a new source of revenue for their once-profitable colony. After some agricultural experimentation, growers found that sugar cane found the tropical plains of the region most agreeable. However, the cultivation of sugar cane is a complex and labor-intensive process. To bridge their labor needs, imprisoned Sky Privateers and some contract servants were imported from Fairwind. However, soon the colonists began to capture and enslave Catfolk and Dogfolk to meet their labor needs and increase production. This has led to a state of conflict near the settlement of St Robb, the Cat and Dogfolk known for their ability to resist and fight a guerrilla war. The intensifing conflict has brought the interest of the Fairwind Exchange and it's forces, looking to protect it's lucrative investments in the region.

Trolobeaux
A rogue settlement primarily comprised of treasure-seekers and hardy men from all the human nations, Trolobeaux is a small settlement in the swamplands of the Troll Homeland. Culturally closer to Carnival than other main cities, Trolobeaux is largely a "base camp" for would-be adventurers to forray into the largely unknown homeland of the trolls. There is no clear authority in the city, and expeditions have been known to let petty rivalries come to sabotage and violence. Unfamiliar diseases and the hard travel in swamp and mountains have led for many to see the land as a "Human's Grave."

The lure for many to such a forsaken island is legends of the people who live there. Trolls of great numbers and strength, legendary figures and even more fabled hordes of gold and treasure. At the top of this human mythology is the Craig Scholars, a society of englightened minds who are learned of "all history and knowledge spanning all the ages", led by the great Scholar-King Craig. While many human expeditions venture into these swamplands, very few return, and none report discovery of this mythical king or his great archives. Instead they speak of a brutish, powerful group of trolls whom are skilled in the dark arts of necromancy.

Sorwath Venture Co (The Adopted)
Not unlike the colony of St. Robb, the Sorwath Venture Company (SVC) is a Fairwind creation. Initally created as a means to develop relations with the Sorwath Elves, the company established a permanent port on the eastern coast of the continent known as Port Venture. Contact with the Sorwath was always tenuous at best, and downright hostile at worst. As envoys went missing and fear overwhelmed those whom settled, a large military force headed by the Heroic Father and Order of the Featherless Arrow arrived at Port Venture. While their intent was clear, the persuasive tongue of the Heroic Father and steady trickle of war golems and riflemen into the harbor convinced the people of Port Venture to peacefully surrender, and submit to Sorwath Rule. In the tongue of the elves, they're known as adopted, and are seen as equals in all facets of society.

The Adopted remained largely in their previous settlements, while a select few were chosen to advise the Heroic Family on human societies. Port Venture would be renamed to something that translates to 'gateway' in Sorwathi tongue. Since then those whom were not already considered allies of the Heroic Family are redirected and forced to arrive at this town. It is here that large numbers of both Adopted and Sorwath minders, most members of the Conclave of Heightened Minds aggressively search and enforce the strict traditions and orthodoxy of society to all those whom would attempt to trade with the Sorwath. Such an important task is entrusted to the Adopted as they took to the laws and ways of the Heroic Family quickly, expressing a zeal for their new authorities that rivaled even the Sorwath themselves.

The subjugation of Port Venture caused a great scare amongst all human nations, particularly Fairwind. The phrase "As Trustworthy as a Venture Man" stems largely from the belief that the administration of Port Venture were traitors to the kingdom, surrendering both intelligence and assets to a foreign and strange xenophobic people. Humans of most stripes see the incident as a sign that the strange society of the Sorwath Elves is something brutish, interested in conquest over diplomacy and trade. The true relationship between Adopted and Sorwathi is not clearly understood outside of their lands largely due to a willful ignorance of human groups. Very little commerce between Humans and Sorwath Elves remain today, and to most of humanity the Adopted are seen as something less in their eyes.

Relations
They like Sky Elves, and anyone that will trade with them. Standoffish with Sorwathi because of the Adoption incident.

Beliefs
Diverse, not quite denominational.

Racial Traits
+2 to One Ability Score: Reknowned for their adaptability, Humans are a versitile race able to take on many roles in the world. Medium Size: Humans receive no bonuses or penalties due to size.

Normal Speed: Humans have a base speed of 30 feet.

Bonus Feat: Humans select one extra feat at 1st level.

Skilled: Humans gain an additional skill rank at first level and one additional rank whenever they gain a level.

Emissary: Once per day, a Human may roll twice when making a Bluff of Diplomacy test and take the higher result.

Languages: Humans begin play speaking Common, Humans with high Intelligence scores may choose any languages they want, except for secret languages.