Factions of the Artifice Saga

There are four "organizations" at play during the time of the Shadow of the Artifice Masters campaign.  Players will have the chance to perform deeds on behalf of these factions--and earning renown with them will affect opportunities available to the players later in the campaign.  From a fantasy perspective, the groups are all military orders; and earning renown is akin to advancing in ranks of knighthood.

I wanted to add other factions based on the source material, such as the Disciples of Zor or the Children of the Shadow--but these factions would not have been active at the time of the Sentinels campaign.

Bonus Renown

Characters may begin play with bonus points of renown in particular factions, in particular situations:

• All Invid characters begin play with 1 point of renown with the Invid Horde
• All Micronian characters begin play with 1 point of renown with the Artifice Expeditionary Company
• All Sentinel characters begin play with 1 point of renown with the Sentinel Alliance
• Warlocks with an archfey patron (the Faerie Queen or Goblin King) begin play with 1 point of renown with the Invid Horde
• Warlocks with the undying patron (the Artifice Elders) begin play with 1 point of renown with the Artifice Masters.

Classes of the Artifice Saga

While certain classes are a better fit for the Artifice Saga--in part because of story, and in part because of the races--all D&D classes will have a place.  The intent is to preserve the campaign as a fantasy, despite its sci-fi inspirational origin.

While particular sub-classes will be associated with particular cultures, all options will be available to all characters because of the melting-pot atmosphere of Tiresia. As all characters will begin at 1st level, and most sub-classes are chosen after that, there is plenty of time to be exposed to cultural archetypes other than one's own.

In the Shadow of the Artifice Masters

So, I've recently had a crazy idea.  My brother and I have been huge fans of Robotech for decades.  We have played various RPGs throughout the timeline of the story, as well as our own alternate timelines.  We have used both Palladium's Robotech RPG and FASA's Battletech.  One part of the story we've kept trying to play through, but never really did so successfully, is the "Robotech II: The Sentinels."  There are several versions of the story, some of which overlap:  OVA, comics, novels, and RPG.  Some depth was even added to that story in the sequel "Robotech: Shadow Chronicles."

A variety of new races are added to the setting, and the story is progressively episodic.  So, I figured why not re-interpret The Sentinels as high fantasy adventure.  In the Shadow of the Artifice Masters is a 5th edition D&D adventure-campaign (similar to the official adventures released for the edition) covering the common elements of the Sentinels story, allowing for player-character acts to effect the course of events.

Adventure Setting

In the Shadow of the Artifice Masters takes place on the continent of Fantoma, sometimes also called the "Old World."  This continent is the homeland of elves, orcs, goblinoids, and a handful of other races.  It is here that the conflicts of the Artifice Wars began between the elves of Tirol and the proto-goblinoids of Optera.

Another continent exists far to the west, about 2 months sail away.  This "New World" is Micronia--home to humans, halflings, dwarves, and gnomes.  It was "discovered" by the rebellious disciples of the high elf artificer Zor.  These disciples were pursued by an orc armada, which would only prove to pull the Micronians into the Artifice Wars.

Planes of Monvesia: Astral Companions

Just as the Ethereal Plane exists as two transitive planes in Monvesia, so does the Astral Plane.  Uniting them as a "companion" pair is Vaynon, the Dominion of the Far Wandering Star--a plane that exists simultaneously in these planes and the Material Plane. In this setting, these Astral Companions are the planes of thought (conscious and subconscious) and the planes of fantasy (dream and nightmare).

Generally speaking, spells and creatures that make use of the Astral Plane do so through the analog of the Dreaming.  Should a spell effect be destructive (ie. maddening), however, or a creature malignant, then the analog of Limbo is used.  For each unique instance, if it is necessary to know which Astral Plane is used, this is at the DM's discretion.

It is here that the Taint takes physical form as a writhing, inky purple mass that shimmers, pulses, and continually grows.  As the home of the HMDJVNW, Limbo is the ultimate plane of the Taint's origin; though it has long since spread into the Dreaming and even Vaynon.  Many psionicists, students of psychic power and mystic arts, believe that Vaynon has been completely consumed.

Gazetteer: Dragon Island

Orbimond is the Material Plane of the Monvesia campaign setting.  Its northern hemisphere is dominated by a single continent.  Both the vanara and the elves call this landmass Dragon Island, in reference to the ancient beings that were once the dominant life form:  Tirakantivu in the vanaran language, or Lohikäärmettä in the elvish.

Dragon Island is divided by natural features into three sub-continents:  Prace, Raviq, and Henjal.  Each of these embodies a classic adventure setting of fantasy gaming.  Prace is home to quasi-European cultures and quintessential gaming races (human, elf, dwarf, etc.).  Raviq is home to desert civilizations built along fertile rivers, a style of play sometimes called "Arabian adventures."  In Henjal, honor, powers of the mind, and the art of hand-to-hand combat are central to its cultures, mimicking the "Oriental adventures" of past editions.

Polar projection of Orbimond, showing
Dragon Island in the northern hemisphere.

Gazetteer: Culture Regions of Prace

The subcontinent of Prace is the "known world" of Monvesia.  Over the centuries, several peoples have carved out their "own" territory here.  Often, these territories overlap; and in several cases, once-great territories have been severely diminished.  Originally, only the dwarves, elves, and rakasta (and, possibly, firbolgs) were native to Prace.  Gnomes developed from dwarves; while humans, goliaths, lizardfolk, and vanara migrated into the land of the Great River and beyond.  Today, Prace is a culturally dense subcontinent.

Human Regions: Monvesia

The humans of Monvesia can be roughly divided into six cultural groups, each with its own common langauge.

Monvesia By Any Other Name

RETCON NOTE:  Several posts have been modified to incorporate the new names and naming conventions presented below.

What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other word would smell as sweet ...

William Shakespeare, Romeo & Juliet Act II Scene 2

Monvesia is the name I have used for this campaign setting as a whole since its inception.  However, the crude map posted earlier shows that the territory I've been exploring is part of a much larger world.  As my vision of this world expands, incomplete settings from the past have started to fold into it.

In the past, I had developed a top-down setting that included three major world regions--though I never developed much local flavor.  I realized that the world of Monvesia is also built on a similar fashion: the Monvesien valley, the Forest of Vines, and Desolation are iconic locations in three, distinct subcontinents of a larger landmass.  I have chosen, therefore, to take the names of these subcontinents from that earlier setting:  with the Monvesien valley in Prace, the Forest of Vines in Henjal, and Desolation in Raviq.

These three subcontinents represent different archetypes of fantasy gaming:  Prace for eurocentic fantasy adventures, Henjal for "Oriental" adventures, and Raviq for "Arabian" adventures.  Crossover between the worlds is not only possible, but both encouraged and expected.

Gazetteer: Monvesien Valley

To date, this is the only map that exists of the known world of Monvesia.  It  has taken a while to upload because I had originally intended on upgrading the map using Hexographer--but I lost the map before that process could completed.  While I still hope to use Hexographer to create new maps for this world, I'm going to let this re-discovred map stand as is.

It shows all of the human (and most non-human) regions of the known world, as well as subdivisions of the Honderreich, Cuorria, and Voztok.  There are even features now out-dated--such as calling out the goliath homeland of Inheritance as "ogre" territory; and referencing the capital city state of the Empire as Dray, not Sena.  The borders seen here are no longer accurate--but the rivers, coasts, and highlands are.

The dominant feature of the region is the Monvesien (the Great River) and its tributaries.  The setting of Monvesia shares its name with this drainage basin--though the map depicts the greater region of Prace.  The major regions and tributaries of the River are discussed below.

Monvesian Seekers: Muses

The Seekers of Monvesia are called Muses.  Instead of coming from the ranks of the gods, they are the archdaemons of the Dreaming, powerful egregores of knowledge:  the Trivium of humanities (Poeia, Philosophia, Theologia) and Quadrivium of sciences (Arithmetica, Astrologia, Geometria, Musica).  While the Trivium seek to understand Why the world works, the Quadrivium seek to understand How.

Unlike the other archdaemons, the Muses do not have a "standard" physical form; each person who sees them sees what they want to see.  Nearly all who have encountered these Muses agree that they are female--but each describes them as being the epitome of their own race.  The only other common attribute from all accounts is the color of each Muse's robes.

There are more Muses than those detailed  below.  These include the matriarchs--Grammatica (mother of Poeia), Logica (mother of the Quadrivium), and Rhetorica (mother of Philosophia and Theologia)--who are so ancient and powerful that their interest in mortals has diminished.  Many of the Muses below are matrons themselves, with daughters and grand-daughters; these younger generations, while powerful enough to inspire mortals in the arts and sciences, are not powerful enough to patron warlocks or sponsor saints.

Spellcasting Foci in Monvesia

In place of the material components of a spell (at least, those without a specified cost nor are consumed by the spell), a caster may use a spellcasting focus instead.  These foci come in three basic types:  arcane, druidic, and holy.  The Player's Handbook lists a few options for each of these categories.  Here, I will explore how the various traditions of Monvesia use these tools.

Arcane Foci

• Crystal, 1 lb., 10 gp
• Orb, 3 lbs., 20 gp
• Silver Mirror, 1 lb., 10 gp
• Rod, 2 lbs., 10 gp
• Qrish, special
• Staff, 4 lbs., 5 gp
• Wand, 1 lb., 10 gp

Crystals & Orbs.  Sorcerers are the most likely mages to make use of crystals and orbs, the exact type of which is determined by the Sphere of origin of their power:

Planes of Monvesia: Ethereal Companions

The Pyrosphere contributes its energy to four of the Transitive Planes:  Faerie, the Abyss, the Empyrean, and the Inferno.  Faerie and the Abyss share the Lithosphere as well, grounding them in earthly realities.  The Empyrean and Inferno, on the other hand, both fuel the fire of the Pyrosphere with the wind of the Aerosphere.  There are both engulfing flames that reach eternally--one into the light of the Hierosphere, and the other into the void of the Necrosphere.  For this reason, they are commonly called the Fire Above and the Fire Below.

Though not in opposition  to each other, elementally or temperamentally speaking, they are still treated as a rival pair:  The Empyrean a plane of "righteousness" as the home of the Celestials and theer Virtues; the Inferno a plane of "wickedness" as the home of the Fiends and their Vices.  This is not the dichotomy of good and evil however; it is closer to Freud's pairing of the Superego and the Id--with he Material Plane as the Ego caught in between.

Both the Empyrean and the Inferno are composed of an otherworldy form of matter called aether (sometimes luminiferous aether).  This is the matter through which light travels.  In the Empyrean the aether in infused with light, while in the Inferno it is devoid of light.  These planes have therefore also been called the Aetheric Planes:  distinguished as the Empyreal Aetheric and the Infernal Aetheric.  As such, they are the Ethereal Planes of Monvesia, bound in part by the solar dominion of Helyon.

Miscellaneous House Rules (5e D&D)

No rules set an perfectly appease all players.  When it comes to Dungeons & Dragons, this isn't a problem.  House rules have been a part of the game since the beginning; dungeon masters were encouraged to customize the rules to their needs.  These rule sets, after all, are guidelines for play--the experience of the game trumps the mechanics.

Below are a few house rules for games that I run:

Initiative

Initiative is not only the ability to react, but also the ability to perceive one's surroundings and judge the best course of action.  Therefore, an initiative roll should incorporate Wisdom in addition to Dexterity.  A simple Dexterity check, though an easy mechanic, does not suffice; though adding a new mechanic would be too bulky.  I prefer to modify the core mechanic as follows:

Virtues of Monvesia

With angels redefined as divinities, the ranks of celestial creatures have been diminished.  What remains from the core rules has been augmented with sphinxes and a horned serpent in order to fill the Empyrean with majestic beings of law and goodness.  The greatest of these beings are the Virtues--most of which embody two or more celestial creatures.

The Virtues of the Empyrean are companions to the Vices of the Inferno.  Though goodness (Altruism) and chaos (Vitalism) are not necessarily at odds, these two groups represent represent opposing ideals.  Indeed, not even their Transitive Planes are in opposition; in fact, both planes share influence from the Aerosphere and the Pyrosphere.  For this reason, the planes are sometimes called the Fire Above (Empyrean, influenced by the Hierosphere) and the Fire Below (Inferno, influences by the Necrosphere).

 

Classifying Monvesian Creatures: Anachronisms, Doubles, Thoughtforms

Three new creature types were created for Monvesia in order to associate one creature type with each transitive plane as its daemon.  While several creatures were reclassified into these types, several more still need to be created.  In this post I will review the various creatures that can and will fill the ranks of these types.

NOTE:  Three races from the Eberron campaign setting could find their way into Monvesia through these creature types:  Warforged as mortal modrons or inevitables; changeings as doppleganger descendants; or even kalishtar as embodied thoughtforms.

Planes of Monvesia: Endless Companions

The world of Monvesia recognizes several more transitive planes than most other D&D worlds.  Two of these have no counterparts at all among the traditional planes of 5th Edition: Infinity (including "Per Speculum", the Mirror Plane) and Eternity (the Temporal Plane).  While analogs for each had existed in earlier editions of the game, they were treated as minor, variant planes.

In the setting of Monvesia, these two planes also form a "companionship"--a trait common to the Transitive Planes.  These two planes share in common connections to the Lithosphere, the Hydrosphere, and the lunar dominion of Sylane.  They are functional, practical planes that affect the structure of the Material Plane and how mortals interact with it.

Functional Orbs

The far reaches of the transitive planes contain gateways of energy that act as gateways to the worlds beyond.  On the functional planes, these take the form of colored, pearlescent orbs, 1d6 x 10 feet in diameter.  These gateways can be identified by color:

• White, Hierosphere (elemental plane of light) [Reflection]
• Purple, Orbimond (material plane)
• Bright Yellow, Hesperia [Reflection]
• Gold, Lithosphere (elemental plane of earth)
• Brown, Stygia [Eternity]
• Olive, Utopia
• Lime Green, Arcadia [Reflection]
• Green, Hydrosphere (elemental plane of water)
• Forest Green, Tartarus [Eternity]
• Black, Necrosphere (elemental plane of void) [Eternity]

Monvesian Culture: Calendars

Dozens of peoples call the lands of Monvesia home.  Each has its own customs and taditions, and many diverge from a common history.  Among these cultures, three calendars have become dominant:  one perpetuated by human advancement; one consolidated from divergent, native customs; and one that tracks only the simplest recurring events.

Senarian Calendar

The common calendar of Monvesia is divided into six seasons of 60 days each, each of which is preceded by an extracalery festival related to one of the philosophical temperaments—for a total of 366 days. While each philosophical priesthood counts its own high holy day as the beginning of the liturgucal year, it is the Feast of Spiritual Thought that is most commonly used as the secular new year.

For followers of the philosophical temperaments, regardless of denomination, the seasons hold spiritual significance, as each is associated with a particular element and temperament.  The seasons, including the feast day which precedes them, are treated as a Zodiac of sorts:  The season one is born in has an influence on your personal and interpersonal development.

Classifying Monvesian Creatures: Divinities

I introduced the idea of divininties as part of "Planar Inhabitants of Monvesia," and later included similar information in "Classifying Monvesian Creatures."  Here, I will collect all the information about this new creature type and further explore their hierarchies.

Divinities are powerful creatures native to the Dominions. They include monsters once classified as Celestials and Fiends (particularly Angels, Demons, and Devils--now all considered Angels), as well as two new creatures: Aeons and Saints. While arch-daemons and genie nobles are unique among their types for their ability to help mortals ascend to immortality, any divinity may do so--including recently ascended saints.

Vices of Monvesia

A fiend is a being of chaos, just as a celestial is a being of light, and a fey is a being of the natural order.  They inhabit the Inferno, also known as the Plane of Passion or the Plane of Will.  Vices are the rulers of the fiends.  They represent the base passions by which choices are made; they are the embodiment of why mortals choose to do things.

Vices are the equivalent of demon and devil Lords of other settings; and it is they who make pacts with warlocks as fiendish patrons.  There are two factions of their kind in the Inferno:  Physical Vices and Spiritual Vices.  Fundamentally, there is no difference between the two classes beyond their methods and desired end results.  This divide also affects the fiends of Inferno as well, forming hyper-competitive factions that seek to manipulate mankind.

Classifying Monvesian Creatures: Aberrations, Celestials, Fiends

Several sets of aberrations (beholder-kin, mind flayers), celestials (angels), and fiends (demons, devils, yugoloths) have been either reclassified or denied in the Monvesia campaign setting.  This renders the question:  What remains of each of these types?  Which aberrations are the daemons of Limbo?  Which celestials are the daemons of the Empyrean?  Which fiends are the daemons of the Inferno?  The remaining creatures, and how they interact with each other, are explored below.

In the lists that follow, the following source abbreviations are used:

• {GGR} for the Guildmaster's Guide to Ravnica
• {MTF} for Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes 
• {VGM} for Volo's Guide to Monsters
• {PSA} for Plane Shift: Amonkhet 

New creatures are listed in italics.  All others listed creatures are from the Monster Manual unless a link is provided.

Aberrations

The remaining aberrations can be divided into seven rough "types" based on physical appearance.  These seven types can then be associated with the seven HMDJVNW.

Planes of Monvesia: Dominions, Part 1

RETCON NOTE:  This posts supersedes portions of "Planes of Monvesia: The Six Spheres" and "Planar Inhabitants of Monvesia."

The "outer planes" of Monvesian cosmology are finite, independent demi-planes that exist within one of the other planes created by the overlapping of the Spheres.  This is similar to the way that the Abyss and Astral Domains exist within the plans of 4th Edition cosmology.  These planes are called Dominions.  Two sets of these planes will be explored here:  the Thrones and the Powers.  Collectively, these are the Greater Dominions

Thrones

At the hear of each Sphere, a vast city can be found, housing the aeon of that Sphere.  The city sxits simultaneously in that Sphere's Elemental Plane as well as each adjacent Cosmic March. It is from these aeons that the angels originate, and it is through the angels that that will of the aeon is communicated and/or enacted.  While the aeons are the supreme governors of the Spheres, dominion over individual planes is exercised by the most powerful inhabitants of those planes.

There are six Thrones, one for each Sphere.  Each is inhabited by that that Sphere's aeon and a majority of its saints.  Some archsaints may have dominions of their own elsewhere.

Planes of Monvesia: Cosmology

RETCON NOTE:  This post replaces both the majority of "Planes of Monvesia: The Six Spheres" and portions of "Planar Inhabitants of Monvesia"

The planar cosmology of Monvesia is not as complex as traditional D&D campaign settings.  In this setting, six Spheres form the basis of known cosmology.  The two-dimensional model of the Spheres as presented by the Universal Orders in Communion with Dray is inaccurate.  The Spheres should be considered in three-dimensional space, overlapping each other so that they connect at a single point.  This is the basic cosmological structure of the Monvevian campaign setting.

Each Sphere is a meta-plane encompassing smaller planes  They are the fundamental energies of the cosmos, embodying the six Temperaments and their associated Elemental forces:

• Hierosphere, or Altruist Sphere
• Necrosphere, or Nihilist Sphere
• Aerosphere, or Idealist Sphere
• Lithosphere, or Materialist Sphere
• Pyrosphere, or Vitalist Sphere
• Hydrosphere, or Dynamist Sphere

Orbimond, the Material Plane

Plane of Six Spheres

The [Prime] Material Plane (or Mortal World/Realms) exists at the point where all six Spheres meet. It is the only point in the cosmos where opposing Spheres come in contact.  Many mages and philosophers have suggested that it is this contact of opposing forces that has made life possible.  The other planes radiate out from this point, affected by the interactions of the Spheres.

In is called Orvemondt in the Honderreicher language, and Orbemonde in the Cuorrian language.

Artificers, Bards, Druids, and Rangers all draw their energy from the Material Plane.  The inhabitants of this plane are collectively called mortals--including beasts, dragons, humanoids, and monstrosities.

Shield of the Universal Order of
Spiritual Thought, depicting a 2-
dimensional representation of the
point that the Six Spheres create
the Material Plane.

Genasi of Monvesia

This post supersedes a portion of "Humans of Monvesia, Part 2: Uncommon Humans." 

-----
Language Analog:  By human region (see "Humans of Monvesia, Part One")
Inspiration:  The Elemental Evil storyline is a good fit for this setting, given their mutual elemental fetishism.
-----

Other Races in Monvesia?

This post supersedes a portion of "Other Non-Humans of Monvesia."

Part of what makes a campaign setting unique is not only what races are included in the setting, but also which races are excluded.  Several new race options have been introduced in sourcebooks and "Unearthed Arcana" articles.  Some races, either common to most D&D worlds, or unique to some, may not have a place in Monvesia.

I had introduced a rating system for aversion in "Creatures NOT of Monvesia," so will use that again here.  Some of these races may be considered for inclusion in the setting in the furture, should there be a need for it.

Goblinoids of Prace

This post supersedes portions of "Humans of Monvesia, Part 2: Uncommon Humans" and "Other Non-Humans of Monvesia."

"Goblinoid" has come to mean three, particular, interrelated races in modern Dungeons & Dragons.  In the past, similar terms had been used to collectively describe these alongside ogres, orcs, gnolls, and kobolds as well.  It is in this wider context that I use the term when discussing the races of Monvesia.

Goblinoids in Monvesia are the result of a temperamental disorder known as Taint.  Each tainted race has an untainted counterpart.  These races can be grouped into clades according to their racial origin.

Thoughtforms of Monvesia: Taintspawn

Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes presented several creatures that would be classified in Monvesia as thoughtforms. This includes: natives of the astral plane (allip, astral dreadnaught, berbalang), beings created to serve in the Mortal Realm (eidolon), and even beings born from the Taint (gray render, oblex, sorrowsworn).  The latter are classified as taintspawn, and each plays a unique role in the overall mythos of the Taint.

In their original forms, the taintspawn are monstrosities and oozes; but in Monvesia, they are physical manifestations of of thought and will that have been channeled though the taint itself.  Not all of these creatures are necessarily evil, however.

For complete statistics of these creatures, check out Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes.

Expanding 5th Edition Goliaths

Goliaths entered Dungeons and Dragons in 3rd edition's Races of Stone.  They were carried over into 4th edition's Player's Handbook 2.  In the current, 5th edition we first saw the race in the Elemental Evil Player's Companion; it later appeared again in Volo's Guide to Monsters.  In its relatively short time as part of the game, the goliath race took an important step in its development in 4th edition's rendition of the Dark Sun campaign setting:  In this setting, the goliaths replaced its quintessential half-giants--a race of true-breeding human-giant hybrids.

In this post, I will explore the giant-ness of golaiths.  When adapting the goliaths to Monvesia, I had replaced the Stone features of the race with Storm traits, highlighting their half-giant nature.  Now, I choose to explore how each true giant race could be reflected as its own goliath subrace.

Monvesian Culture: Goliath Medicine

Medicine Work is nearest thing that goliath culture has to a religious tradition.  It is a profession that focuses on the purification and healing of the mind, body, and spirit--particularly in relation to the prevention, isolation, and eradication of taint.  This tradition incorporates several "sciences," represented by archetypes of several different classes.

• Spiritual Sciences, Hierosphere domains or Way of the Astral Self
• Mortal Sciences, Necrosphere domains or Way of Mercy
• Martial Sciences, Psi Knights ("Psychic Warriors") or Soulknives
• Natural Sciences, Alchemists

Medicine Terminology

As a whole, those who practice goliath Medicine are called Medicine Workers.  One's particular science could be specified instead--such as Physical Worker, Mortal Worker, Internal Worker, etc.  Following the "Tier of Play" model, levels of expertise are also noted:

• First Tier, Medicine Student
• Second Tier, Medicine Worker
• Third Tier, Medicine Elder
• Fourth Tier, Medicine Chief

5th Edition Dogfolk

Plane Shift: Amonkhet treated us to another therian race in D&D:  the dogfolk.  This race specifically takes the form of the Khenra--jackal-folk prone to twin offspring.  While this particular race is unique to the world of Amonkhet, the idea of dogfolk has been common to gaming for decades.  In BD&D, we had two versions:  the Lupins (the foil to and rivals of the Rakasta) as well as the isolated Hutaakan.  Just as with catfolk in my previous post, I will explore the possibilities of dogfolk subraces.

To play an alternate dogfolk subrace, disregard the features identified below as being specific to the khenra. Instead, apply the traits of your chosen subrace.

Khenra

Khenra are unique to the world of Amonkhet, one of the many planes of Magic: the Gathering.

Ability Increase:  +1 Strength
Khenra Twins:  {see Plane Shift for full details}

5th Edition Catfolk

MONVESIA RETCON NOTE:  With the release of Mythic Odysseys of Theros, to idea of this post is made somewhat obsolete.  For one, the Leonin, divided between Tabaxi and Rakasta below, are now represented by their own race.  For the needs of Monvesia, the Leonin from Theros will be used to represent the Rakasta of Prace, while the Tabaxi from Volo's Guide will be used for the Raviqi catfolk. 

Volo's Guide to Monsters presented our first taste of catfolk in 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons.  However, it only gave us one of several catfolk that have populated the game:  the Tabaxi.  While similar to other options from the game, such as rakasta, the tabaxi are optimized to a particular style of play.  Using the traits of the tabaxi as a baseline, we can explore some of the game's other catfolk--as well as those of other popular games.

To play an alternate catfolk subrace, disregard the features identified below as being specific to the tabaxi. Instead, apply the traits of your chosen subrace.

Tabaxi

Tabaxi typically resemble leopards and jaguars.  They are friendly and nimble hunters.

In Monvesia, these are the Parrsasca.  These are the female Leonin of Magic: the Gathering. 

Ability Increase:  +1 Charisma
Natural Climber:  You have a climb Speed of 20 ft.
Naturally Observant:  You have proficiency in the Perception skill.

Monvesian Culture: Veldi Madjiq

The magic practiced in Veldistan is not the tower wizardry (ie. Schools of Magic) of other human cultures, but something more closely related to early human practices in Desolation.  It was the form of magic once taught by the HMDJVNW known as ENSHZRYD.  During the Exodus, humanity developed the Old Ones' arts into their own.  This was the form practiced by the saint Mohas--writer of the text that would form the basis of human religion in Monvesia.