Cultures¶
"Even before considering oneself as an elf, a goblin or a Wolfen, every Cadwë is above all a citizen of Cadwallon."
Eight major peoples shape life in Cadwallon. Race is biological; culture is philosophical. A Daïkinee elf and an Akkyshan elf share blood but not allegiance — one belongs to the Paths of Destiny, the other to the Meanders of Darkness, and they may meet in Cadwallon as enemies, neighbors, or both.
Among the older races (elves, dwarves, Wolfen) the cultural split creates the difference. Among humans, who invented the split, it just names what was already there. Each people in Cadwallon brings their own version of this layered identity into the city, then has it slowly worn smooth by Cadwë life.
For Daggerheart ancestry mappings, see Conversion Notes. For homebrew additions or overrides, see Cultures Homebrew.
The Eight¶
- Humans — the dominant race; introduced the concept of choosing sides. Light or Darkness, never Destiny.
- Elves — three branches: Daïkinee (Destiny), Cynwäll (Light), Akkyshan (Darkness).
- Dwarves — mountain stock; Tir-Nâ-Bor (Destiny), Akkylannie-raised (Light), Mid-Nor Possessed (Darkness).
- Goblins — No-Dan-Kar; inventive, mutant, omnipresent. The empire of merchants.
- Ogres — refugees in Cadwallon since the founding; the Duke's elite bodyguards.
- Wolfen — Yllia and Vile-Tis lupines; three-meter predators. Live in the rural fiefs.
- Orcs — youngest race; created in 808 in Shamir's cloning tanks. Rebelled against their makers.
- Possessed — renegade Mid-Nor dwarves; bodies sewn from victims' skin. Always hunted by their own.
Branches & Sub-cultures¶
These have their own notes — pulled out because the eight-people framing flattens distinctions the city makes daily.
- Cynwäll — the exiled elves of the Ways of Light; ancestral inhabitants of the Cadwallon site
- Daïkinee — the sylvan elves of the Paths of Destiny
- Akkyshan — the dark spider-elves of the Meanders of Darkness
- Ophidians — the ancient Serpent people created by Vortiris; most followed him into the [[Labyrinth]] in 255, a few holdouts remain
Magical Populations¶
Recognized populations of Cadwallon that aren't one of the eight peoples — magical creatures of the groves and Realm-thin spaces, counted in fief censuses and present in city life.
- Fayrees — native magical fae of the groves; the largest population is in Arcadia (Ghieronburg) under Baron Mardi's Truce. Elementals and magical Familiars share the same census bracket but have no dedicated notes yet.
Homebrew Additions¶
The thirteen Daggerheart ancestries the table has integrated into the city as additional populations. See Cultures Homebrew for full notes and design rationale.
| Ancestry | Where they live | Tie-in |
|---|---|---|
| Clank | The Automaton (and Dyrsin's Tower) | Awakening Cynwäll constructs |
| Drakona | Drakaër · Wyvern Road | Co-constitutive with the Drakaër family |
| Faerie | Arcadia (Ghieronburg) | Mardi's Truce was for them |
| Faun | The Fields (Trophy) | Standing-wind agricultural backbone |
| Firbolg | [[Outskirts]] · Petropolis | Pre-Cadwallon grove-stewards |
| Fungril | Vegetal Entrails · The Shades | Sewer Workers' deep allies |
| Galapa | The Docks (Kraken) | Living pre-Ophidian-withdrawal historians |
| Halfling | The Fields · Heaven Heights | Kel-language preservers |
| Infernis | Morgue Street (Soma) | Darkness-touched refugees |
| Katari | The Krak (Kraken) | Pre-Cynwäll peninsula natives |
| Ribbet | The Bog · The Swamps | Wetland natives, taste Bloody Creek |
| Simiah | The Free District (Drakaër) | Free University antiquarians |
| Troll | Windswept Hill · The Nomadic Lands | Khaurik's other refugees |