Because of the nature of the game, it is expected that we will be running into new races in our travels. We have some races created already, some were used on Aether I (such as the Aesir and the Najada) and others never got the chance to be explored before the game closed. But we are always looking for more and any player who would like to flesh out a race is more than welcome to do so. Be creative; explore real-world mythology and cultures that interest you and build from that.

We will warn you, however, that creating a new race is not a quick process and we will not accept any race that is not fleshed out and made playable. Here is what we would like to see players do in the process of race creation.

Before you get too involved in the creation, staff would ask that you submit a proposal of a few sentences so that we can make sure that such a culture doesn't already exist. While this is not to say that more than one culture cannot exist in an area, we want to make sure that a new race doesn't strongly conflict with or mirror one already created. And example of this would be:

Race name: Aesir

The Aesir are a race of northern "Empyreans," whose culture is heavily based on Norse, Germanic, and Teutonic mythology. They live in the cold, wintry climates of the far north -- the Aether equivalents of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. They tend to be bigger and brawnier than their southern cousins, and their culture is quite unlike the refined, civilized Empyre of the "known world.

Once the proposal has been approved you may begin working on the race and preparing it for submission. Create the race as if it was going to be an actual race used in the game on a regular basis. This does not mean it must be as detailed as the Empyrean or Varati, but it must provide enough information so that anyone coming in to play one as an NPC can easily pick up a character and understand the race and culture. Such things you should include in a racial write-up are:

• Race - What is the name of this new race and what race are they based from? Are they a pureblood race, like the Aesir are (Empyrean variety) or are the a mixed blood (Rusalki) or straight mongrel?

• Location - Where on the map are they located? What RL country/region do they inhabit? What is the land/or sea where they live like? Is it flat and fertile, rocky and harsh, cold and remote?

• Appearance and Clothing - The more detail the better. Do different social classes wear different things? Are certain hair/eye/skin/wing colors valued over others?

• Society - How do they live? What kind of housing do they have? What kind of government do they have? How are different races views? Do they have contact with outsiders? What kinds of behavior are acceptable and what is not? What do they eat and drink? What kind of social hierarchy is there, if any?

• Philosophy and Religion - How do they view life? Do they have gods and what is their relationship with their deity/deities? If there is a pantheon, please detail the gods and what they represent.

• Customs and Ceremonies - You don't need to create every holiday they celebrate, but discuss ones that are important to their culture. Is there a coming-of-age quest, special marital arrangements, or respected burial/death customs that must be observed?

• Names - Please provide a list of names that would be found in this culture. What RL culture are these names based on?

• Magic - How does the race deal with magic? What kinds of magic do they have? Please keep all magic to those already established in the game. If they have a magic that is usually found in another race (Varati with telepathy) please explain how this came to be. What is the race's overall feelings toward magic and how common or rare is it among their people?

• Terms - Are there any special terms used by the race that we should be made aware of? Special honorifics for certain people, terms for weapons or celebrations?

• Misc - Anything else you'd like to include about your race to fill them out. How do they fight/what weapons do they favor? Are their some superstitions they have? How would they react to outsiders?

These guidelines are not meant to frighten anyone off from creating a race, but simply to explain what we expect. Culture creation is not a quick and easy thing, it should include research into the culture you are basing your race on. However, your race need not be an exact duplicate of a real-world race/culture. You are free to include your own ideas. For example, perhaps you are doing a race similar to ancient Japan and decide there should be a group of entertainers similar to the geisha, but they are men instead of women.

Once a race has been submitted to staff and we decide that it is fleshed out enough to be played, we will then pass the race on to Astraea for her approval. Because this race is being inserted into the world of Aether, all new races will require her approval of well. Once we get her approval, the race will be ready to go and can be entered into the game as an upcoming TP. The creator/creators of the race will be considered the OOC expert on that race (but not necessarily the IC expert) and they will be expected to answer questions posed by other players on them. Staff will have all the information on the race as well, and will answer questions to the best of their ability if the race creator is not available, but the race creator should be contacted first.

Staff will only override a creator's decision/answer he or she is obviously straying from the information submitted. For example, if the information states that red-headed members of the society are killed at birth because red is a sign that a demon god has touched the child and the race creator tells a player that he can plan an red-headed NPC respected warrior and sage, staff may step in to question the change in race beliefs and seek a reason why this one would have been allowed to live.

Staff will always welcome questions you may have about race creation, though we will not create a race for you. We have some in mind that we are working on, so if there is a race you'd like to see, take a stab at creating it. It can give you a great sense of accomplishment to create a whole new group of people and see others playing out your vision.

If you would like some examples of what we are looking for in a race, the Aesir, Najada, and Rusalki have been added to the Foreign Races page in the News files.