What is an Aldech?
As a cross between an alfar and a hodekin or yadekin, aldekin share the same sexual dimorphism as their hodekin parentage; males taller and more slender, while females are bulky and muscled, though the difference is not nearly as pronounced. Aldekin skin, while still somewhat grey, has a polished pearly sheen to it that almost makes an aldech look like a statue. Aldekin do not have hodekin pointed ears. When living in hodekin society, aldekin are expected to conform to the accepted gender roles; living elsewhere the rules are often much more flexible. Because of the long-time friendly relationship between the parent races, aldekin are relatively common.
What is an Alp?
An alp is half-alfar and half-elben. Given the general animosity between these two races, alps are one of the rarest types of half-bloods. In terms of appearance the alp is a very unique being, their skin is not a simple middle-point between alabaster alfar skin and elben chocolate, but rather their skin features a marbled blend of the two. The two tones swirl around one another in some places and flow seamlessly together in others. This unique appearance means than an alp can in no way hide his parentage, it is printed on their face.
What is an Elruk?
Elruks are the children of the other side of the war, half-uruk and half-elben. Generally speaking, an elruk is the tallest being you are likely to find in the Bay, often reaching seven feet or more. They also share the uruks pointed ears, but not their fanglike teeth. The skin of an elruk is a dark mossy green, and their eyes vary between an elben’s green and the more common purple. Like the aldekin, elruks are quite common, and many are involved in the war effort.
What is a Farul?
Though the two races don’t see eye-to-eye right now, that is a fairly recent development, and intermarriage between alfar and uruks is not uncommon. A farul is generally unremarkable in appearance, and it is quite possible to not realize you are speaking to one. The vast majority of faruls look just like alfar, with the exception that they have pointed ears like an uruk. Some also have an uruk’s purple eyes, but the majority have green as would be expected of an alfar.
What is a Greun?
The first of the human half-bloods is the greun, whose other parent is an uruk. The most notable feature of a greun is his or her pointed ears, which are often even longer than a normal uruk’s. Secondly is the skin tone, a warm yellow-green colour that generally manages to avoid looking sickly. Human eyes are usually brown, which is true as well of greuns, but when the human parent has blue eyes the child’s eyes will be purple. A greun is shorter than an uruk, being closer in height to a human, but is naturally more muscled.
What is a Hodem?
Like their aldekin brethren, hodems display some sexual dimorphism. But where the half-human half-hodekin differs is that the gender variance is primarily an issue of height. While human females are often slightly shorter than their male counterpart, a female hodem is the same height as a hodech, while a male hodem is the same height as a man. Musculature among hodems is unpredictable; some females are well muscled and look almost the same as hodekin, while others look more like human children. Likewise, the males may be dextrous and skinny or more muscled like human males. Hodem skin tone and eye colour, however, always match those of the human parent, while their ears are always pointed like a hodech’s.
What is a Mondel? What is a Sonner?
Mondels and sonners are physically almost identical except for skin tone. Mondels, half-human half-elben, have their elben parent’s dark skin, while sonners, half-human half-alfar, have alfar skin. These half-bloods always have brown eyes as is usual in humans, and they appear as humans for the most part. They do, however, share their alfar or elben parent’s tolerance for the cold, and often wear little in terms of cold-weather clothing. Human hair is nearly always brown, but mondels have black hair like elben, and sonners have blonde hair like alfar.
What is a Svugar?
The hybrids of elben and hodekin, the svugar, are mysterious-looking creatures. Their skin is ash black, and their sunken eyes are black or grey. Because of their appearance it is sometimes remarked that they look sickly or dying. While extremely skinny, their strength is comparable to that of their parent races. Svugar share the hodekin stature, rarely exceeding four feet tall, and many walk somewhat hunched over, diminishing their height further. The other distinguishing features of a svugar are a complete lack of external ear, instead having just an ear hole, and thin hair that hangs limply.
What is an Urdech?
Lastly, urdekin are half-uruk and half-hodekin. It seems that uruk blood is somewhat stronger than hodekin, as both male and female urdekin are similar in build. Though shorter than humans, the average urdech is about the same height as a yadekin. They are bulkier than a yadech, but not as heavy-set as a hodech. The skin of an urdech is also something of a surprise, being not grey like the hodekin or green like the uruks, but rather blue; it ranges from pale greyish blues down to dark rich blue, but never as dark as navy. Most urdekin share the hodekin eye colours of grey to black. Because both parent races have pointed ears, this is also true of urdekin.
Children
Half-bloods can have children as well, and the racial nature of that child depends on the race of the other parent. The following chart shows how to determine the child’s race.
Parent 1 | Parent 2 | Child |
Race A | Race A-Race B | Race A |
Race A | Race B-Race C | Race A-Race B or Race A-Race C |
Race A-Race B | Race A-Race C | Race A-Race B or Race A-Race C |
Race A-Race B | Race C-Race D | Race A-Race C or Race A-Race D or Race B-Race C or Race B-Race D |
Half-Bloods in Society
The reaction to half-bloods varies depending on the nation and the type of half-blood in question.
In general humans are fairly accepting of half-bloods, but prefer half-humans over other types, and prefer pure-blood humans more. Half-bloods running from the prejudice the war has inspired have flooded into Human territories, creating tension in the nation. Few svugar ever leave the Elben-Hodekin border region, where they primarily dwell, because of public reception to their appearance; many potential romances also fall apart because their children would be svugar.
Since the war began, alps and urdekin, as well as svugar and faruls and anyone else with the opposing side’s blood, have been viewed with suspicion by both alliances, though more so by the Alfar and Hodekin. In something of a demonstration of the uruks’ devotion to equality, Marthon am Vale, a svugar, has risen to the top rank of Commander in the Uruk military during the war. Also in contrast to the suspicion put on some half-bloods is the fact that aldekin, and to a lesser extent elruks, have gained increased respect; they are seen as a physical symbol of each alliance.
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