Homebrew Ash Walker Species Details

Visage of Ancient Divinity

“I don’t know what’s more unsettling about the ash walkers, the way they look forward to their death or the fact that they treat it like a birthday.” -Klauth, Draconid Adventurer. 

 

The Duna people are also known as the children of the ashen sands, or Ash Walkers. They are bipedal creatures of dark skin and short claws at the tips of their fingers. Their most notable features are their heads which resemble animals that are native to their world, Duat. These bestial heads are that of a Jackal, Crocodile, Hawk and Ibis. Not much is known of the origins of this race, only that it precedes the shattering. Scholars theorize that their heads resemble their culture’s former deities, but ever since the advent of the Eidolons, such information is nigh impossible to confirm. 

 

It is common knowledge that whatever worship of old gods has long since been abandoned by the ash walkers, their faith now lies on Eidolon Nox, the Eidolon of death and necromancy. 

 

Land of the Dead

Duat is a nation of warm ashen sands, lush oasis and cold windy nights. Most of the landmass is a desert, with various settlements built around bodies of water and oasises. 

 

Ziggurats decorate their major cities as well dense markets that focus on the trade of tools that function on arcana, giving the land a sort of rustic outward appearance. Most buildings, however take advantage of any spells and enchantments that allow for more comfortable living in the desert heat. It is normal to find the average house filled with books and research articles, as well as records and journals of extensive family history and shrines to the departed. 

 

While a harsh land with dangerous creatures, the ash walkers have learned to adapt with their expertise in the arcane. Their society has adopted the practices of necromancy and other magics that allow manipulation of the soul. Through the teachings of Nox they were able to create a society that not only allowed them to coexist with undeath, but also gain power through it. 

 

The people of Duat believe that death is merely another step in the cycle of life, with undeath being the next step. The land itself appears to be infused with Eidolon Nox’s influence, allowing anyone who has died  in the land to be resurrected as a Revenant. The Ash Walkers appear to retain this ability while outside of their homeworld. 

 

Loyal to nation and family

The influence of Eidolon Nox has brought an interesting cultural structure to Duat. Most ash walkers find an intense connection to Nox, many theorize that it is because the teachings of necromancy allow the ash walkers to maintain a social connection with their loved ones long after they have deceased. Bringing loved ones back from the dead encouraged reverence towards Nox and its worshipers, as a result the nation has an intense loyalty to their familial ties as well as their political ones. 

 

Military service, while not mandatory is seen as an hour. Prominent members of society are the ones that contribute the most to Duat and its people. Standing at the top of political hierarchy is the grand priest, listener to the voice of Nox, Grand Lich, Pharaoh Amasis. This political leader sits in her throne in the floating ziggurat above the capital city of Aharon Lapis. This temple is also known as the Eye of Nox. 

 

The population holds regular ceremonies every few months with the change of the seasons, both to pay respects to the pharaoh and to their Eidolon. It is seen as an opportunity to feast and to present offerings, Mainly these offerings take the form of paper lanterns that float towards the void, mainly as remembrance for those who have experienced “true death”. 

 

Bellow the pharaoh is the seat of seven, seven individuals that have proven themselves as both wise scholars and brave warriors. These individuals oversee the seven major cities of Duat, as well as take more personal relationships with the citizens. It is generally understood that those who wish to reach the pharaoh will need to get past one if not all of the seven. 

 

Ash Walker Names

Ash walkers are given a form of placeholder name at birth. On the completion of their twelfth winter they chose a name, or in rare cases, a priest of Nox blesses them with a name. A blessing from a priest is seldom given and normally only granted to young individuals that have been granted a crest of ico. 

Male Names: Ahmose,Khafra, Menes,Seti

Female names: Acenath, Astarte, Auset, Bahiti, Oseye, Rabiah

Surnames: Ain, Akila, Dalila, Ife, Kakara

Ash Walker Traits

Racial Trait Introduction