Ghola

An artificial race, the Ghola were created during the great war by the wizards of Telargen for use as shock troops. Half rock troll and half human, their creators took the best qualities from each race to build their super warriors.

Personality: 
    At the time of their creation, the Ghola were magically and psychologically conditioned to follow the orders of their masters. This indoctrination took the form of strong military doctrine which became a tradition handed down through each generation. As a race they are slow to anger, but are quick to mount a defense should they be threatened. Ghola are loyal to other members of their race and allies of other races, they know that by banding together the odds of survival are greatly increased.

Physical Description: 
    Ghola appear to be animated human statues. Their skin tone and coloration ranging from a marble like appearance to polished granite. The flesh is a mixture of both stone and living tissue giving them amazing resilience to physical attacks. Neither sex has hair, though some females were decorated with sculpted "hair pieces" by Telargen wizards for decorative purpose (some may still create such pieces as a matter of personal choice). Males stand up to 7' tall and weigh approximately 400 pounds, with females being slightly smaller. The race was created to mature quickly to speed up the rate at which units could be fielded in battle, physical maturity is reached at 5 years of age with an average lifespan of 50 years.

Southern Ghola

Relations: 
    Ghola are naturally most comfortable with members of their own race. However, they do not have preconceived prejudices against other races--the exception being the goblin and orc races whom the Ghola were created to combat. Elves find the Ghola's seeming dispassionate life and short lifespan a hindrance to lasting relationships. Dwarves see the Ghola as great allies in battles against their common enemies.

Society: 
    After the war, the surviving Ghola retreated into the mountains in what was Southern Telargen. There they have built a civilization of their own waiting for the day that the empire they were created to serve will be reborn. Ghola villages are set up like military camps, ruled by whatever senior officer is on site at the time. Day to day life is one of near constant training, those Ghola not in the military work to support those that are, and also receive abbreviated military training to act as reserves in case of emergencies. Most celebrations and holidays revolve around famous battles with festivals held for victories and times of quiet reflection for great losses. Each year on _____ , the anniversary of the Ghola's creation, a great festival is held in which the males and females choose their mate for the year. The need to continuously propagate the species to replace the fallen makes mating for life impractical, though it is common during peacetime for couples to renew their "vows" to each other yearly. Children are raised communally as young females would not know what is needed to care for them due to their own rapid maturation, and males are routinely away serving in military regiments.

Alignment: 
    Through years of following military doctrine, Ghola society is very lawful. Individuals predominately follow this trend and generally lean towards good. Gholas which leave their lands as adventurers may have more chaotic tendencies.

Names:
    Each Ghola upon birth is given a name by the clan elder. For males names are kept short and simple for ease of use on the fields of battle. Upon joining a military unit, a suffix is added to their name to identify the unit they belong to (normally named after a famous military leader), a prefix is added to denote ranks within the military. Females are given more elegant names, a tradition passed down by the creators who gave "pet names" to their breeders. Should a female Ghola join the military, a new name is granted to fit the military style.

Rank

Taz - Trooper

Sar - Sergeant

Ras - Captain

Zat - General

Gros-Zat - Grand General (temporary title bestowed in time of great emergency)

Common Ghola Names - Not Appended

Abrien, Balel, Dugan, Eleir, Golan, Ilien, Maor, Orear, Rafeen, Syant, Virol, Zareel

Thus a common Ghola soldier could be known as: Taz-Balel-Syant

Northern Gola