[Shantis]

Reorganizing the information, since several things needed to be updated and corrected. Review made after meetings with our members and tuning for roleplay purposes

People of the Woods

Spoiler

The concept of "wood people" is started during the Netheril empire campaign against the nomades tribes, and several groups were decimated by House Dukarrus or became slaves of House Roschetti. Due to this, a great number of members dispersed, spreading throughout the world during the campaign of the empire over the years, ending 10 years back after the campaing against barbarian Warlord "Lord Xurrios". As the destrution of various different tribes caused a large number of orphans, without many adults to guide them, druids and rangers from several different tribes came together to protect these orphans and survivors.

Initially called the wood people (The people of the woods), they are essentially groups of travelling nomads, led by druids, priests of Jannath or veteran rangers, who travel between various differents forests of the world, trying to survive, protecting nature and entering into balance. Unlike ordinary tribes, wood people have strong roots in knowledge and druid lifestyle, protecting and caring for wildlife, other races (whether humans, elves or even monsters like bugbears, orc or others) whenever they have related problems with nature, and when the request comes in peace. They have a vision that all races should mature, to enter into mutual peace, living in harmony with each other and with nature.

They have a posture of watchers and guardians of the balance of the nature, avoiding to engage in politics between races, mainly in times of war. They have a fear and a certain repulsion for the empire, for their policy of slavery with other races and what they done with the nomad tribes in the past, and against the elven people, for supporting / keeping relations with the Netheril empire in this respect.  They are disgusted to hear humans and elves daily calling on heroes using magical proclamation to invade and decimate other races in their territories, raiding and invading, while the wood people look at the untouched human cities or elf towns several times.

They consider Sullivan as close as the races have managed to get in terms of coexistence, with different species living in the same region tolerating each other, even if they do not deem appropriate the alliance of monster tribes like gnolls, orcs and other raiding and decimation the human and elvens. Without choosing sides, wood people follow in peace between different forests taking care of the nature, treating people, animals and protecting the balance, without choosing sides between conflicts of different races.

The command structure of each nomad camp is simple: The leader is called "Father" or "mother" among the members of the group, representing the moral posture and guiding the members of his nomad group to act peacefully in the regions they visit. Generally this type of command is made between druids and priests of Jannath. then comes in they structure the hunter and scout (ranger), the champion of the nomadic tribe (fighter or barbarian), witch or shaman (Druid, sorcerer or cleric of Jannanh) And the storyteller (bard), who carries orally stories of the nomad tribe and they members. It is normal to see a member of the group taking on two or three different roles, while the nomadic tribe is structuring itself and increasing they numbers. (Multiclass / roleplay).

Because they are survivors of other tribes, wood peope is very flexible in they structure, accepting other races as half-orcs, half-elven, forming slaves like gnomes, dwarfs or hins... And even "monsters" if they fully adopt a peaceful stance and understanding among any other race, and accept to protect the nature. Tolerance and respect among species, striking the balance is something that people seek. But they are formed, in their vast majority, in human groups.

Spiritually speaking, members of the tribe are encouraged to discover their personal animal spirit, which represents the individual ideals, values and instincts of each member. Rangers and Druids have their animal spirit incarnated in a real animal after a quest for self-knowledge. Sorcerers (in the figure of shamans or witches) have as familiar their extension of knowledge, using these creatures as their eyes and ears.

Gradually, by embracing the self-knowledge of the animal spirit, the primordial instinct is awakened in the member of the tribe. Their emotions and instincts become more intense on full moon nights, and at certain times they are able to transform into animals from which they incorporate this spirit, representing nature through it in various ways. In terms of class, Druids and shifters are considered almost pseudo-lycanthropes by other groups because of this. Sorcerers using self polymorf as well. The other classes of character, although they incorporate the animal spirit and have traces of this animal in their behavior because the primordial / primitive instinct, do not become any other creature.

Starting relations with other races and groups:

Spoiler

An essential note for all:
This is the point of view of the group as a whole, it's not exactly the individual stance of players or players-characters, or something obligatory and forced to roleplay.

Much of this can be changed by good roleplaying.

Feel free to put in a new topic of your own group or faction how you see others groups or factions.

Any necessary revision, we edit this post.

Thanks

Humans of Netheril Empire: The wood people tolerates them, but does not trust those who live within the empire, due to past wars. They are extremely fearful and avoid arcane guild by being publicly known (in rumor or reality) for hunting druids to extract their secrets and for hating them. And he does not like to relate to noble houses, why House Roschetti sells others as slaves, and why they were harassed by  House Dukarrus for some time after the war. House Skettus keep slaves, but in public treats them with a certain level of care, even being slaves.

Other humans outside the Netheril empire or common folk :

They respect and help other nomad tribes to defend protect and get hunting and fishing promising. They help farmers, fishermen and hunters gain access to better natural resources, giving blessings by a priestess of Jannath or purifying and healing natural problems, such as druids to find the balance of the nature.

Elvens: They respect the harmony of the elves with nature, but consider them weak, by supporting human slavery, and for a long time moving campaigns against other races, various reactions to call wars or hunting other different species in the recent past. They also do not consider elves to be reliable, since they have a long life, can not adapt their posture for survival and live with nature as easily as humans and other races. Because they have an arrogant and snobbish attitude towards other races, this does not help to gain confidence.

- Gold Elves: Reactions with the elitist positions of the gold elves only generate mistrust and it is tried to avoid contact, due to the way of acting with humans, due to the difficulty in finding a common field.

- Moon Elves: They are considered more tolerable and less arrogant and elitist than the gold elves, but distrust and lack of confidence are apparent in terms of group (due to the strong elitist impression that the entire elven race passes as a whole) or at the individual level.

- Wild elvens, because they have a life-style more directly connected with nature, and because they have a very different posture than the other elves, this type of elf is seen with a certain respect, but still with distrust.

- Dark elven live far away from the nomads, for various reactions. This is why distrust is generic just as the other elves.

Dwarves: They are a race of former slaves within the empire, and consider them very aggressive when removing wood and metal from the nature. They are recognized as great craftsmen

Gnomes and hins: most former or still are slave of the empire. Although they want to free them, the wood people can not interfere with the politics of each race. They publicly express their displeasure about it. They maintain respect for communities of these two races, helping them deal with problems of nature if they are required.

Race of monsters: Many monstrous races have a tribal structure or tribal family structure between them. Just as wood people are peaceful with humans and other civilized races, they maintain their neutrality with other races in the same way. They do not interfere in their frictions with other tribes and races, and maintains a peaceful stance, assisting any race and any tribal, civilized or wildlife creature with nature's problems. Usually this translates into some small degree of respect, where either party can seek the other to deal with specific problems, as solutions to problems with regard to diseases, natural disasters or situations where wood people can help in the balance and restoration of nature.

Oocly and icly points of the group:

Spoiler

Some oocly and icly points to guide players.


1 -For roleplay purposes, have at least 1 ranger or druid level, to gain access to some basic knowledge as a roleplay base. Access to use of light and medium weapons and armor, bows, combat weapons, feats and the essential animal empathy.

2 - Classes: Not talking about icly roles, but classes oocly: Druid, Ranger and Cleric (Godness Jannath) are our default group. Barbarians and fighters are well acepted. Rogues too, but because of the outdoor roleplay, at least one level of ranger class help a lot. Sorcerers is possible to. Wizards are interesting but will depend a lot on roleplay, why books and scrolls is something more of the Arcane Guild style. Monks Of Jannath is confirmed by the server lore. Paladins of Jannath need to confirm with a dm. Bard is acepted too without problems.

3 - This is a group that values the roleplay a lot. Going out all day to win xp and level up can make you stronger as a character in a game, but level does not mean character development. It takes us a long time to level up, and we probably can not go to events, and if it is, we will more observe and care for the injured, acting on self-defense of ourselves and the members of our family and icly tribe, of find a way to join in the event if fit in our roleplay. So do not always go up fast means direct character integration of the group. Value your roleplay first.

4 - The characters adopt a neutral stance, without directly confronting icly groups or characters: 

- We avoid contact and problems with Arcane guild because in the past (rumors or not) they hunted druids and animal spirits, and rare species to pick up ingredients or reagents, or steal druidic secrets.

- We avoid contact and problems with House Roschetti because they are slavers, and use other humans, monsters animals to fight in arena to the death.

- We avoid contact and problems with House Dukarrus, because they won the war against the tribes of barbarians and nomadic tribes, making some of them slaves.

- We avoid contacts and problems with elves because they are allies of the Nethril Empire, which approves of slavery. Another reason behind is that elves have their own defenders of nature with their own elven to solve own problems, making the presence of human nomads unnecessary by serving the elves to the elves themselves. Therefore any action on elven lands would be considered unnecessary, except dms event in relation of the defend of the balance of the nature.

- We avoid fighting directly against monster tribes (Gnoll, bugbears, kobolds, etc) if possible, because we are invading their territories. The confrontation against them is allowed as self-defense, or when you are in the same spawn with humans (fight for territory between species, affecting the balance of the nature), or to protect rare species (a druid or ranger uses animal empathy in an wild animal, and the group's escort  the animalm through dangerous lands, in his new "territory"...), or help in the balance of nature. Go hunting monsters in their own territory of them is no excuse, and can break the roleplay by justifying this. We need something more solid to go with.

- We try to help the balance of the nature, protect our tribe, avoid icly political conflicts.