CORPS is a classless level based system that wanted to strive towards bringing strong strategically focused small group combat to the heart of a role playing game. Inspiration and frustration for this game was created from several other RPGs such as D&D 4e, Rolemasters, 7th Sea and HARP. These games have a lot of elements in them that the developers of CORPS like but with enough glaring flaws as to encourage us to come up with our own answer to what we really want. Since we wanted to focus primarily first on combat and since that generally involves the most tactical and technical rules of fantasy genre games like D&D, we wanted to make sure we got it right. To do this, especially in a classless system, we wanted there to be a large number of options for people to create the kind of character they would like to envision themselves playing rather than picking a class that most closely associates to what they are looking for. In part of the creative process of making a player character, there is often some distinguishing characteristics related to the given race of a player character. In many RPGs this is one of many options for a player to choose to customize and build the kind of character they want and CORPS is no exception. So without further delay let me introduce 2 more playable races in CORPS.
Burman (Bur-man)
Overview
Burman are one of the more adaptable races in the prime world, perhaps second only to humans. Burman inhabit nearly all climates both in civilizations that are exclusive only to burman as well as within cities and towns comprised of other civilized races. Belief as to how burman came to be vary greatly. Popular common belief points to burman being born from rock and stone and ore. Given all the varying kinds of rocks, stones and ores in the world it could explain how so many varied yet racially similar burman came to be.Physical Traits
Burman are often described as being stout or stocky and burly men, in fact it is believed that’s where the racial name of burman originated from. Most Burman are between 4’ 5” and 5’ 2” tall although some localities of burman have been as tall as 5’ 6”. Despite their height burman are generally rather stout and with their stoutness also comes strength. Burman usually vary in weight between 170 lbs to 250 lbs and while not a universal trait, burman are usually stronger than their human counterparts. Regardless of their height or strength however all burman have a very thick skin which is usually an earthen color. Their toughened skin makes them incredibly resilient creatures capable to surviving levels of punishment that would otherwise be fatal to most other humanoid races. Like all mammals burman are covered with hair. Their hair in general, like their skin, tends to be coarse and thick only thinning out towards the later stages of life. By human terms burman tend to have an overabundance of facial hair, capable of growing several inches in a single month. Many females are also capable of growing facial hair but to a lesser extent than males. Burman also share a common trait that they have spectacular vision, much better than that of humans especially in low light settings. Before burman were integrated with other races the bulk of their race lived underground for countless generations. In that time they seemed to have developed the ability to see clearly short distances with next to no light source at all, while still being able to operate daylight or torchlight with no consequence. While many might consider the diminutive height of a burman as a disadvantage burman commonly utilize it as an advantage. Their stocky frame and low center of gravity cause burman to be incredibly surefooted. In physical combat it is widely regarded that a line of burman can be nearly as daunting to a cavalry charge as a row of pikeman.Personality Traits
Much like personality traits of humans burman are a varied lot. Burman can be a jolly and friendly people or cruel and despotic. Their upbringing and environment make up a great deal of who they are. However there do tend to be a few characteristics that are common among most burman. Perhaps the most common is pride in their accomplishments. Burman generally like to tell of what they have done and even what they will do. To many burman, what they have done represents who they are, and if a burman has done something great, be it felling an enemy with a single blow, saving an innocent, or even drinking someone under the table there is no doubt friends, family and even nearby strangers will hear of it for days. Along with their tendency to brag about their deeds burman are often considered one of the more boisterous civilized humanoid races in the world. Burman being boisterous may also be on account of their tendency to appreciate a good drink but even sober they are usually easily heard over other races. Burman also share a trait in that they tend to seek and create structure in their lives. Burman don’t generally travel much from an area they've come to call home unless some life altering/ending event takes place. Most burman are content to find a comfortable place to call home and live out the rest of their days there. Although when their homes are threatened burman are among the most fierce and staunch defenders of it. Coupled with a tendency towards stubbornness, removing burman from and area they call home can prove to be a challenge task both in times of peace and war.Lifecycle
Burman share a similar lifecycle to that of humans. They reach maturity in their early teens and full adulthood by their early 20s. They have slightly longer gestation period than humans, usually lasting about 10 or 11 months and have a lower birthrate than humans usually about 1 offspring every 3 or 4 years. Female burman are fertile into their 60s but rarely beyond that. Burman have been known to live for 120 years or more but their average life expectancy is usually in the early 100s.Feydra (Fay-drah)
Overview
“The Fey” is a rather generic term used to describe a host of creatures that live in the Enchanted Realm - one of the other worlds of tremendous magic that seems to mirror the prime world in some ways. Fey creatures seem to have the ability to travel into the prime world at whim, most times they seem to revel in mischief, though many stories of Fey coming to the prime world to warn of impending disasters fill the mythologies of all of the civilized races. It is said that time and perception vary greatly between the worlds, and anytime Fey creatures visit they rarely stay long. The most common race from the enchanted realm to come to the prime world is the long lived Asari, tall wispy creatures that seems very close in appearance to the Altwani. Asari, as well as most other Fey, begin to undergo severe and predictable effects if they stay too long in the prime world. Within a time frame of a single month an Asari will lose the ability to return at will to the Enchanted Realm and they begin to suffer pronounced memory loss. After a mere two months in the prime world an Asari will have completely lost their memory of their existence in the Enchanted Realm. Once this exposure to the prime world has taken its toll it seems to be impossible to reverse - the Asari lose most of their magical powers and begin to age at a rapid rate (albeit quite slowly compared to the lifespan of most mortal races). At this point the Asari is no longer a fey creature but instead has become a Feydra, or the Lost Fey.Physical Traits
For the most part feydra retain much of their physical appearances as they had when they were asari, even after several generations in the prime world. Meaning they are generally tall and thin creatures. Most male feydra stand between 6’ and 6’ 5” and rarely weigh more than 170 lbs. Female feydra are usually between 5’ 8” and 6’ tall and usually about 20 pounds lighter than their male counter part. The most notable difference among feydra and asari is that the feydra don’t have a magical shimmer to them, as they've lost much of the magically qualities asari seem to possess. That being said, compared to races native to the prime world, feydra still have a strong affinity towards magic. Feydra tend to be intelligent and are capable of picking up other languages fairly quick. Feydra tend to have large eyes with small pupils but very large irises - leading the unobservant to believe that their eyes are solid orbs of colors. However this merely helps grant the feydra keen vision in low levels of light. Feydra have slightly pointed ears often causing them to be confused with Altwani. However aside from their tell tale height difference and large eyes feydra also have large hands for their size. This seems to be a result of some trace amounts of magic that remain with the feydra after their transition from the asari. The feydra are capable of drawing in the life essence of certain creatures they've recently killed through their hands. The feydra are then able to utilize this essence to accelerate healing of their own wounds as if they were able to rest for a long period of time in the blink of an eye. This has caused some individuals to inherently distrust feydra thinking them somehow related to vampires or other fantastic monsters however most people seem to either be unaware of this fact or choose to simply ignore it.Personality Traits
While the Feydra are one of the least common humanoid races for a human to meet face to face across the realms, they are surprisingly large in number. Feydra are most commonly found living with altwani however many Feydra seem to be filled with a tremendous sense of wanderlust that prevents them from staying in one place too long. As a result there are very few known population centers made up of feydra, although this can also probably be attributed to the race being relatively new to the prime world. Feydra have a great variation in their personalities - other than their almost insatiable desire to travel and their quixotic dispositions which seem to remain a constant among the race. Like humans Feydra tend to be social creatures enjoying companionship and the company of others however the bonds they hold with others seem to wax and wane over time. Even among family feydra may be loving and caring or cold and indifferent with a constantly changing disposition over time. To humans this comes across as feydra seeming to be uncaring or distant at times, however most scholars believe that the rational thought process of the feydra is so great that it often inhibits their emotional responses, causing them to react inappropriately or not at all when by human standards they should. Another common trait among feydra is their ability to learn or at the very least, mimic things taught to them quickly. Very often the first time they try something that requires great focus or a degree of skill feydra can pull it off with great success. However that success can quickly become inconsistent over a number of repeated trials. Many feel that feydra have a kind of natural beginner’s luck but there are documented cases of feydra being able to briefly use a great deal of focus for a short time to accomplish varying skilled tasks. While often invoked when feydra are attempting something new this trait is by no means limited to new tasks. Aware of it or not all feydra seem to possess this ability to a certain degree which at times can make feydra appear to be cocky or humble depending on their own awareness and control of this unique talent.Lifecycle
Feydra have an incredibly slow life cycle among races in the prime world. Many believe asari to be immortal and when they are changed by the prime world into feydra people believe some of that immortality stays with them. While little is known of the asari, feydra that have been born in the prime world seem to reach maturity within the first 20 years of life but they don’t tend to reach full adulthood until they are well into their 40s. The birth rate among a female feydra who is bearing children is almost nonexistent averaging roughly 1 child every 55 years. Most females however remain fertile for the first 200 years of life. The gestation period for a baby feydra can vary greatly between 24 and 30 months. The population of feydra is only as large as it is because at some point in history it is believed a large exodus was made by the asari to the prime world. Although no one knows the reason for it. As a result the majority of feydra race was practically thrust into the world over the course of a few months. A very few feydra have been known to live to see their 500th year of life however most feydra live for between 330 and 375 years. The effects of aging are very minimal among the feydra. Symptoms of old age usually only manifest and rapidly progress within weeks of a feydra dying of old age.So now with half of the playable races introduced I'm sure at least person is wondering what's the point of all this? Well it's simple, the races of CORPS provide a number of unique racial bonuses and abilities to each player character. While we're fairly solid on what these racial benefits are, it seems rather odd to explain exactly what those mechanics are since so little of the game is actually known. But worry not, as this series sees completion other aspects of CORPS will be made available to help give a better idea of what this game is all about why someone might be interested in giving it a test run at the ol' gaming table.
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