This video is sponsored by Dice Dungeons.
They’ve got a variety of items for your RPG accessory needs.
Check out the link in the description of this video.
Hello everybody Jorphdan here the PH is silent.
This is a difficult video for me to make, I feel like this subject is both too large
to tackle, and too narrow to find anything interesting about.
But as I start working on this we’ll discover the different human cultures throughout Faerun.
It’s going to be a two parter episode as there was just too many human cultures to
cover.
Hopefully it’ll hold your attention, let’s dive in.
Humans have been around for a long time.
They are credited with being one of the creator races despite being ape like and primitive.
Being listed as a creator race really means they were one of the five original races on
Toril.
With creatures such as elves and others coming later, who are thought of as not native to
Toril.
Humans have no unifying creation myth, and are probably as old as Toril itself.
Something odd is that Humans although native to Toril are also native to other worlds and
various human tribes have been brought to Toril through portals.
Humans have relatively small lifespans in the eyes of dwarves and elves.
But it is because of their short lives that humans accomplish so much.
With their limited years given to them Humans become mighty kings, or great wizards, building
kingdoms and empires.
Humans have spread out across Toril and the environment has shaped them.
Ethnic groups have evolved with different cultural, linguistic, physical, and religious
traits.
Many of these groups having descended from ancient human tribes within Toril.
From the Great Glacier to the jungles of Chult, humans can be found all across Faerun.
Humans have a fragmented history.
Where the elves and dwarves seemed to come from one major tribe, or migration to Toril
humans were isolated from one another.
Where elves had a unifying cultural heritage, humans developed their own culture separate
from other humans.
The earliest humans were in the shadow of other more powerful races and this kept human
tribes ignorant of one another.
There are four human ethnic groups I’d like to discuss in this video, covering others
in a part 2.
The Calishite, Chondathan, Damaran, and the Illuskan.
If you crack open the Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide there are even more human ethnic groups that
can be found in geographical regions across Faerun.
So I’m merely scratching the surface but these are the major human ethnic groups within
the Forgotten Realms.
Calishites are native to Amn, Calimshan, the Shaar and surrounding areas.
These areas once were ruled by mighty genie lords, humans have since taken over and
created cities for themselves.
Believing themselves to be the rightful heirs of all lands south and west of the Sea of
Fallen Stars.
This birthright was passed down to them by the genie lords that once ruled this land.
Magic is commonplace in Calishite culture.
They truly believe that they were the beginning of civilization on the Sword Coast, if not
Faerun as a whole.
The north was controlled by savage barbarians for the longest time, meanwhile Calishites
were creating cities and empires.
For further information I have videos on Calimshan, Tethyr and Amn which goes into the history
of those regions and thus the history of the Calishite people.
Links in the description.
Chondathans are hardy folk living in the areas of Chondalwood, Cormyr, Dalelands and the
Moonsea.
Chondathans are merchants and travel freely to settle new lands.
They look to better themselves and their families with money.
It is said they have conquered more land through trade and settlement than with armies.
The ancestry of these people can be traced back to the Twelve Cities of Swords in ancient
Jhaamdath which was founded around -5800 DR.
Jhaamdath was north of Chondalwood.
However the people of Jhaamdath went out to conquer new lands and encroached upon the
elven ruled Nikerymath.
High Mages from Nikerymath unleashed a tidal wave that destroyed the Twelve Cities of Swords
and reshaped the topography into what it is known today.
This occured in -255 DR and the humans were forced to leave and colonize lands throughout
Faerun.
The elves hoped to stop the humans but through their actions helped spread humanity across
Faerun.
More migrations occurred throughout history and Chondathan culture was formed through
the generations that colonized the nearby lands.
Although the Calishites, the Imaskari, the Mulan and the Netherese each forged some of
the greatest human empires of Faerun, it is the Chondathans whose culture now dominates.
This empire was spread by commerce and coin.
Up next is the Damaran who live in the regions of the Moonsea, Narfell, Thesk and Damara;
northeastern Faerun.
These people are the living remnants of the ancient Narfel.
Narfel was a kingdom ruled by evil priests that maintained their power through blood-pacts
with demon lords.
The kingdom was destroyed in -160 DR through a decade long war with Raumathar (another
human kingdom).
Since the destruction the tribes merged with other humans into the Damarans.
The Church is central to the lives of the Damaran people.
They take morality very seriously and live a disciplined lifestyle.
No surprise they have a strong affinity for divine magic and priestly lifestyles.
Illuskans, also known as Northlanders, are the seafaring warlike people of the Sword
Coast North.
They reside in the High Forest, the Moonshae Isles, Waterdeep, Illuskan and Uthgardt.
For many years they have been seen as a barbaric people.
Many southerners associate them on the same level as orcs.
But they are a strong robust people that farm, fish, and mine the harsh lands of the north.
It’s unclear when humans first settled the islands of the Trackless Sea but it was in
-3000 DR that Illuskans first migrated to the Sword Coast founding the realm of Illusk,
which is where present day Luskan stands today.
Early Illuskans learned rune magic from the giants.
Illuskans were barbaric and migratory which is reflected in their lives today.
Many take to the seas to explore, becoming fighters or rangers.
But Bards are well known too, playing important roles as lore keepers and poets.
Giving Inspiration to Illuskan warbands.
Lorekeepers need supplies and Dice Dungeons has your RPG accessories!
Fancy metal dice, you love it, you want some, but you also want 10% off your order.
Then check out today’s sponsor for their amazing dice collection and use the code Jorphdan
(with a PH in the middle) for 10% off your order!
They’ve got some great polymer dice sets for a more traditional feel, with swirl color
designs, and a mystery dice set.
It’s like a Christmas present for yourself!
That’s where we’ll end today.
Covering the rest of the Human Ethnic Groups in a second video.
It was just too much to cover in one video, so stay tuned for part two where I discuss
the remaining groups.
Special thanks to my patrons on patreon that keep these videos going!
You are amazing, so thank you!
I hope you discover a human ethnic group you like and build a themed character around it.
Like a Chondathan Merchant Rogue, or a Damaran Priest, or maybe a secret warlock?
Thanks for watching everyone, thanks for sharing these videos with your gaming group and I’ll
see you all next Wednesday for part 2!