Setting
Low-magic fantasy setting.  Humanity is in a rough equivalent to our middle-ages.  Kings control Lords control Knights control the peasants, all that.  Think of a less gritty Song of Ice and Fire (low bar).

The majority of human civilization is on two large continents with various islands between.  The majority of the magical beings live either far inland from human civilization, among the smaller towns and hamlets or else on remote islands or isolated areas like deep valleys and mountains.

Humans
The race with the largest population is humanity.  Although aware of other races, Humans rarely interact much with them.  Humans KNOW about the other races, but normally avoid much contact.

Many kings and lords do trade with the Gnome Empire on a regular basis.  Free Folk are normally treated as savages to be wiped out, though in the outskirts they get along better and some trade and interaction exists.

Gnomes
Think games like "Red November" but more serious.  Gnomes are diminutive but incredibly intelligent, hardworking and militant.  Gnomes are masters of technology (mostly steam and clockwork) and hard-nosed scientific advance.  Their society holds master engineers on par with brilliant tacticians.

Gnomes are small (most standing close to 3 feet tall), and thus weaker than humans, but have an incredible talent for machinery.  They generally speak Gnomish and Common.

At birth, Gnomes are given a name, such as Elrik.  Their surname is "Son of/Daughter of" and the name of their more famed parent.  Upon distinguishing himself, a Gnome is allowed to choose his own surname based upon how he did so.  For example "Elrik Ironguard".

Gnomish soldiers prefer hefty solid weapons such as axes, spears and polearms.  Gnomes also have access to greatly advanced weapons such as auto-axes, compression repeaters and other wonders.

Gnome Empire
Though not warlike, they hold to a rigid system of rank and order.  Their society is a highly rigid cast system.  Gnomes are broken into Science/Engineering, Labor (farmers, builders, craftsmen), Academic (scholars, historians, teachers, wizards, alchemists) and Officers.  Each group is more or less insular and has its own ranking system and military branch.  The only exception is the Officer cast, the members of which are assigned (temporarily or permanently) to oversee the operations of other classes (though an officer may not OUTRANK those he oversees).  The Gnome King, for example, is merely the highest ranking Gnome in the Officer caste.

Gnomes regularly trade with humans, though it is usually restricted to simple machines such as clocks and tools and commodities like wine, beer, cloth, etc.  Gnomes are not paranoid as such, but they do carefully regulate how much of their advanced technology gets into the hands of other races.  Gnomish technology is, at worst, several hundred years in advance of that of any other race, and the Gnomes rely on this to make up for their small size and lack of numbers when compared to other races.

The Fey interact regularly with Gnomish command, but rarely trade much besides the random odd and end.  The Fey have a general apathy for technology, seeing it as more of a fashion that will soon go out of style.

Gnomish is a harsh and expressive language.  Think German or Russian.

Fey

Think old-school Shakespeare or Neil Gaiman Fey.  The Fey/elves/fairies/Fair Folk are immortals beyond the understanding of mortal morality.  They live in a complicated world of alliances, courtly intrigue, lies and complicated plots.  They believe themselves to be superior to all other races, though they rarely take part in the affairs of the other races.  They are haughty and arrogant but also immensely clever and skilled.  Fey are normally interested only in their own entertainment and betterment, though they are wise enough to know that working together can be essential to that.

An interesting but often misunderstood feature of the Fey is that they physically cannot break their word.  Doing so would cause them such immense pain that they usually die.  If a Fey promises, swears, avows, avers or otherwise agrees to do something, he must.  Similarly, if a Fey gives you his word, vow or promise that that something he says is true, it is or he has just died.

HOWEVER, Fey can, and very often do, lie, cheat, mislead, deceive, misinterpret, omit detail, gloss over important details, twist meanings, lawyer, etc.

Fey have their own language, but generally speak all languages but Changetongue. Most will be aware of a few words, phrases and basics of Brokenspeak, but few speak it well.

In keeping with their mercurial nature, Fey will often change their own names as they see fit.  The Fey Court, however, has a complicated system by which titles ("Warden of Deepwood", "Lord Commander", etc.) are granted and lost.

In combat, when they can be forced into it, Fey prefer light and 'dignified' weapons like swords and rapiers.  This is when they don't employ, assassins, poison, the pen, or their sharp tongues.

The Fey Court
Presided over by Lord Oberon and his Queen Titania, the Fey Court is the closest thing the Fey have to a formal political and social structure.  Although there is a complicated system of titles, lieges and contracts, the court system is more based upon a deeply interwoven series of longstanding feuds, debts, oaths and promises.

The Fey do not interact with humanity on any regular level.  Here and there an individual from the court will involve himself in human affairs, mostly as a form of entertainment, and now and again various intrigues will revolve around certain humans or human towns.  For the most part, Fey see humans as inferior and humans see Fey as, at best a nuisance, and at worst powerful sociopaths.

The Fey do maintain relations with the Gnome Empire and they trade to a small degree.  The Fey directly or indirectly control the vast majority of the more powerful artifacts and magics in the world, though they seldom bother to employ them to any great end.

Due to age old treaties, the Fey essentially 'own' the entire Changeling race.  Changelings are commonly servants, assistants, guardsmen, errand runnner and assassins.

Other Fairy Races
There exist numerous other races which could be classified as "Fairy races" or "Fairies".  Human and Gnomish academics tend to discuss them as kin to Fey.  Fey tend to think such academics are idiots.

These races range from real to mythical, benign to downright evil.  They include:
-Goblins & Hobgoblins (evil social Fairies)  "Orc" is actually a title within Goblin society, not a race of itself.
-Brownies (loner, mischievous Fairies)
-Gremlins (related to Brownies, able to hide inside machinery in ways that defy logic.  They also enjoy ruining said machinery).
- Kelpies (evil spirits)
- Pixies (tiny flying fairies, think Tinkerbell)
- Redcaps (REALLY friggin' evil fairies.)
- Will-o-the-Wisps (tiny guardians of the underworld).
- Mermaids (singing, carnivorous, seaborne fairies)

The more civilized of these "Fairy Races" will speak a language somewhat related to Fey dubbed "Low Fey".  Goblins and Hobgoblins speak their own language, which always sounds like cursing, choking or spitting.

Changeling

A strange and elusive race, changelings are kin to the Fey and subject to their rule by an age-old armistice debated to this day.  In their natural form, Changelings look very much like pale, sickly elves with rounded melty features.  Due to their ability to warp their shape into almost anything, however, their natural form is rarely seen.  Changelings are peripheral to the Fey court, being used as agents, messengers and assassins, and have no real influence on courtly matters.  Being essentially a slave race, Changelings have no true society of their own.  Though there are frequent uprisings or rebellions, they are not organized enough to overthrow their masters.

Changelings are common in the Fey cities, filling any role their masters desire.  They are also commonly used as go-between with other races, in particular humans, since they can easily enter and leave without being detected.

Changelings can speak any number of languages based on their experiences and also Changetongue, their own secret language.

Most Changelings have an assigned 'pet' name from their Fey masters.  They will also commonly have a 'secret' name that they use only among other Changelings.

Took

The Took are servants and playthings of Fey and their allies who were once human.  When an adult human is captured or used by the Fey, it is normally for a short time or for a very specific purpose.  However, for whatever reasons they have at the time (amusement, recruitment, vengeance, etc.) human children will sometimes be stolen and brought into the Fey Court permanently.  Sometimes poor farmers will even trade their newborns to fairies or trolls for good luck or favor, who then trade them to members of the Court.

These children are raised in a strange world and subjected to strange and powerful magical energies that forever distorts their minds and bodies.  Dust of New Beginnings is an integral part of the indoctrination process and is commonly used to bind the wills of these children to a particular sire.

Though captive, they are normally not treated as badly as Changelings and are looked on more as poor needy adopted children or fairly clever pets.  They remain more or less human in appearance, apart from some small signs such as traits reminiscent of plants or animals but their minds would be alien to any cultured human.

Took are ostensibly human but their conditioning and contact with Feyic magics have forever warped them mind and body.  They are distinguished from humans by random defects such as unnaturally long limbs, too many/few teeth, feathers instead of hair, duck bills, etc.

Troll

Think monsters under the bridge.  Trolls are enormous, strong, nigh unkillable, and dumb as a bag of rocks.  Trolls are not inherently evil, but tend toward violence and theft because it's far simpler than figuring anything out for themselves.

Trolls are not terribly social, so groups of them are rare, being no larger than an extended family, though at times the bonds between family members can be incredibly strong.  Most trolls live as loners either wandering the forests and mountains or else choosing a promising cave to settle down and smash anything they don't like.

Interaction with other races is limited.

Trolls speak only Common, and even then, badly.

Trolls will take whatever title they think up or whichever nickname their fellow trolls take to calling them.  Rockbiter, Grey Menace, Manbasher, etc. are not unheard of.

Trundle-Wick

Animated scarecrow.  Long ago, in the days of the Ancients, the means for animating random organic matter (straw, sticks, twigs, gourds, etc.) was well known.  Since the disappearance of the Ancients, the knowledge has been passed down in fragments and bits and has gone from science to art.  Created primarily, by witches and the like, they are now rather rare, but not unheard of.

Witches and other practitioners of dark arts create Trundle-Wicks by binding a still-beating human heart into a frame made of twigs, cloth, straw, vegetables, bones, hides, wax, leaves, or whatever else, then call upon ancient spells to breath life into the construct.  They are thus born into a life of servitude to their creator, having life but no will or memory.

Over time, or in certain circumstances, Trundle-Wicks have been known to regain memories from the persons they once were, and to throw off their chains to seek their own paths.  This is rare.

Free Folk

Were-wolves (and other animals).  The free folk are nomadic tribesmen from the mountains and deep forests.  Technologically, they are roughly stone-aged.  Free Folk rarely leave their own communities, and when they do they are met with great mistrust and scorn.

The Free Folk generally avoid contact with other races, though they are mostly indifferent to Fey.  In some isolated areas, trade and interaction between Free Folk and humans can be common.

According to the common lore of the Free Folk, mainstream human culture is actually descendant from a long-lost tribe of Free Folk who lost their ability to commune with nature and thus to take animal form.

Free Folk speak only Common.

Free Folk have given names and sometimes titles based on accomplishments or nicknames.  Among other tribes, or non-Free Folk, they will use the name of their tribe (Windwalker, Leavewarden, etc) as a last name.

The Ancients

Creators of "The Ancient Tongue" and many great magical artifacts.  Scholars cannot agree if these were merely an ancient society of Fairies/Gnomes/Humans, or a distinct race.


Wights

Superstition.  According to varied accounts, Wights are the result of an unholy union between men and fallen gods.  They don't exist.  Don't worry about them.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:14, Wed 08 Feb 2017.

In reply to GM (msg # 1):

Common - Basic trade language which may incorporate various words from other languages.  Think English today.

Ancient Tongue - Spoken by the Old Races, a dead language today.  Akin to Latin in a sense, it is also the language of magic runes and is in of itself magical.

Fey - Spoken by the Fey and few else.  The Fey language is soft, beautiful, tonal and lilting.  Think Japanese or Enya.

Low Fey - A derivative language of Fey spoken by Brownies, Pixies, Gremlins, etc.  Although linguistically similar to Fey, they are different enough in pronunciation and tonality that speaking one will not help in speaking the other.  It is seen as a 'low-class' language by the Fey.

Changetongue - The secret language of the Changelings.  It is not only incomprehensible to all other species on a conceptual level, but also unpronounceable due to the way Changelings alter the physiology of their throats, tongues, etc. while speaking it.  There is no written form of Changetongue.

Gnomish - Spoken by Gnomes and, sometimes, various Fairy races.  Gnomish is a harsh, hardy and expressive language.  Think German or Russian.

Goblin - Spoken by Goblins and Hobgoblins.  Always sounds like cursing, choking or spitting to those who don't speak it.

Brokenspeak - Also called "Daemonspeak". Noteworthy for being (according to legend) the language of the ancient Daemons.  Another dead language. Similar to Ancient Tongue in that it is magical.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:26, Wed 11 Dec 2013.

In reply to GM (msg # 1):

There are several types of magic in the world: Innate, Ancient, Socery and Fairy are just a few.


Innate
The most common magic is innate magic either to magical races or to magical objects and places.  Fey, for example, have innate magical abilities though none of them can 'cast' or work spells in the traditional sense.  Many creatures have magic or semi-magical abilities which can be harnessed using technology.  Examples include the use of Slumbercap Mushrooms or Giant Spider Silk glands by Gnomes to make grenades.

Alchemy
Alchemy is the art of harnessing the innate magical properties of certain substances.  Extracts, glads, skins, eyes or other parts of magical beings are combined to produce specific effects.  In a sense it is similar to some Gnomish technology which also makes use of magical ingredients, but is different in that it requires its own knowledge of chemistry, reactions and the combined effects of those ingredients as opposed to merely putting a single ingredient to work.

Sorcery
Spell casting requires many years of research, practice and often expensive or rare reagents to work properly.  Wizards are very rare, though most large cities will have a few low-level magicians, witches or alchemists, which are commonly in the employ of the Lord or equivalent.

Ancient
The most powerful and reliable magic is Ancient Magic, and the most famed of magic weapons and the most powerful magical artifacts all employ it at least to a degree.  Such artifacts are imbued with various properties, and normally can be used by almost anyone.  This magic is intimately tied with Ancient Tongue and Brokenspeak (though even those who speak it today cannot create this type of magic).  The creation of this type of magic is a lost skill and none alive know how to create new objects.

Fairy Magic
In a sense, this type of magic is a bastardization of Sorcery and the innate magical properties of some fairy races.  Sometimes there are even fragments of words, and therefore spells, of Ancient magic thrown into the mad mix.  Brownies, for example, are particularly fond of this sort of magic.  Fey, on the other hand are not.  Fairy magic is wildly erratic, unreliable and often disastrous.  This makes it ideal for curses.

Cold Iron
An unusual substance: very difficult to work with.  Has the unique ability of blocking or negating most magical effects, fields and abilities.  It has various negative effects on magical creatures as well and is therefore highly sought after and is a banned substance in the Fey Court.  In the Gnome Empire, it is a controlled substance and falls under the jurisdiction of the Military and High Academy.  Normally then it's only available for specific research or strategic defense.
This message was last edited by the GM at 12:52, Wed 18 June 2014.

Amulet of Onam-Ra - Incredibly powerful artifact adorned with Brokenspeak runes.  Fey absolutely refuse to speak of it.

Basilisk - Lizard almost as rare as it is horrifically venomous.  Not only do they have individual poison glands in each tooth, claw, spine and eyelash, they also have toxic skin, acidic blood, toxic bile, saliva that promotes bacterial, viral and fungal growth, radioactive excrement, noxious breath, infectious sweat and explosive bones.

Chosen of the Umbra - An order of Human warriors fabled to be the greatest in all of history.  In the tradition of ancient Sparta, Chosen train tirelessly from the moment they join as children.  At full initiation, they are sealed into their armor to remind them to be ever vigilant.  According to legend, Chosen are tireless, ceaseless and sworn to continue fighting even after death.

Commander Schtock - Discharged and banished Gnomish officer.  Sought to overthrow and reform Imperial structure.  Missing.

Daemon's Eye, The - An artifact of unknown origin and power.  Gnomish scientists claim that it's shape is that of a sphere superimposed inside a larger sphere but sharing one inner surface... those who see it just say it looks like a translucent eyeball of jade, amber and onyx.

Department 517 - Intelligence and spy agency within the Gnomish Empire.

Dragon - Ancient beasts of rare intelligence and power.  Very dangerous.

Dust of New Beginnings - Also called "fairy dust".  According to human legend, this is the substance fairies (and sometimes Fey) use to abduct children and remove their memories of home.  They're right.

Excalibur - The most famed Ancient magic weapon.  Once wielded by human king, Arthur Pendragon.

Ex-Calibre - A cursed sword which looks exactly like Excalibur.  This provided no small amusement for the Fey Court on many occasions.

General Aurvon Blackwood - Duke of the Blackwood, General of the Fey army, Primarch of the Overlook.

Gnomish New Year - Holiday celebrating the new year and the end of past regrets.  Traditional decorations include silver and green and a circle representing the cycle of duty and thus the cycle of the year:  starting with a Gnome in swaddling clothes all the way up to a warrior standing proud with axe held high to a withered academic to a Gnome in a casket surrounded by saluting officers.  Military music is traditional, as is hefty amounts of drinking.  The most prominent tradition is for each Gnome to craft a piece of pottery to be smashed by the Hammer Master.  On the pottery, regrets are listed.

Goblin Wars, The - Any of several large-scale conflicts between the loose collective dubbed the 'Goblin Nation' and another major force, most commonly the Gnomish Empire, but also various Human empires.

Hive 001 - Famously bungled Gnomish experiment to create a hive mind.  The project was scrapped thereafter.

HMS Hammer - Largest ship in the Gnomish Imperial Navy.  Equal parts warship and symbol of Imperial might.  Though heavily armed, it is more commonly used to simply ram and crush enemy ships.

Isle of Les Beau, The - Famed island paradise of hedonism and debauchery.  'Owned' by the Fey Court insomuch as an island-sized party can be owned.  Shunned by 'propper' folk, it's the sort of place where you can do or try anything and anyone.  It's like a tropical year-round Burning Man festival.

King Matt I - Boy king of some note in the human kingdoms.

Kraken - Enormous squid of myth and legend.  Likes rum.

Lady Galeena of Thornwood - Mistress of the Singing Stones and heir to the Evening Palace, Temptress Supreme of the Third Circle, Holder of the Sacred Rings Blue and Red, Fountain Eternal of the Lakes.

Leaping Slug - Rather unfortunate but extremely mobile creature inhabiting the Tarshan swamps.

Leviathan - Supposedly the largest creature that exists in the oceans.  According to legend it once sank an entire island.

Merkle the Magnificent - An extremely showy, but powerful, human sorcerer.  Supposedly he has a hidden fortress on a mountaintop that he constructed entirely with magic.

Nova Fruit - A rare fruit as outwardly beautiful as it is hideously poisonous.

Order of the Hoof and Berries - Either a secret society of powerful Fey pulling the strings behind the Fey Court, or possibly the best running joke in the Fey Court.

Pickled Life - Potion created from dead Will-O-the Wisp.  Is said to be able to regenerate any injury, negate any poison, etc.  Extremely rare, extremely dangerous to make and therefore very valuable.

Puck - The most mocked and 2nd most feared member of Oberon's court.  Also the only member of the Fey court whose name is also his only title within the court.

Rod of Ruin, The - Artifact of Ancient magic, also called the 'Unmaking Wand'.  Legend says it has the ability to destroy anything, but also that it was itself destroyed.

Seven League Boots - Ancient magic artifact of legend.  When worn, each step carries the wearer exactly seven leagues.  According to the stories, those who possess them tend to die of poor arithmetic skills.

Slumbercap Mushroom - Large pink and blue mushroom that can create clouds of perfume that cause sleep and or paralysis.

Titania's Chalice - A large silver chalice crafted for Lady Titania of the Fey Court.  In the Court, it is held by a Fey of particular note, awarded based upon extreme merit.  Every so often, the higher-ups in the court will vote to bestow it upon a Fey for a period of time.  It is combination Nobel prize, Key to the City and title.  The rights and privileges that go with it are grand, sweeping and by Fey Law, change from day to day but include such things as the right of Prima Nocta in the Court, the right to borrow Oberon's horses, bottomless drinks, etc.

Toadstool - Mushroom common to Fairy lands.  When consumed it makes the full trip of a person's digestive track in record time...

Unicorn - Very powerful and frustratingly unpredictable magical beast.  Tend to appear and disappear at will and will sometimes come to the aid of virgins.  More or less every part of their body is sought after as a magical component.

Vlass the Exiled - A human sorcerer of great note in legend.  He is credited first with being a man of great power and renown, then with being the inventor of necromancy, then being the most feared man in the world.  At his height he controlled a small kingdom populated entirely by the un-dead.  He himself died over two hundred years ago.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:11, Mon 22 Sept 2014.