The grasslands of the Shaar are home to nomadic tribes of long-faced, yellow-skinned humans. Conquered by the armies of Calimshan at the height of the Shoon Empire, the Shaarans of the eastern grasslands reverted to their nomadic ways once the Shoon Empire collapsed, while those who dwelt along the shores of the Shining Sea and the Lake of Steam settled in cities and founded such realms as Lapaliiya and the ever-changing Border Kingdoms. Today, Shaarans are found as far west as Calimshan and as far north as the Vilhon Reach. The inhabitants of Sespech are largely of Shaaran descent, having been brought north to serve in Jhaamdath’s armies centuries ago.
Speakers of Shaaran employ an alphabet of Dethek runes, adopted from the gold dwarf traders of the Great Rift before the rise of the Shoon Empire. If there ever was a Shaaran pantheon, it was long ago subsumed by the more powerful Jhamdaathan and Calishite cultures. Little record exists of Shaaran culture before it was assimilated by its more powerful neighbours, for the Shaarans have long maintained a nomadic way of life and an oral history.
Regions: Dambrath, Halruaa, The Lake of Steam, The Shaar, Tashalar, The Vilhon Reach
Note: The 4 skill points at 1st level are added on as a bonus, not multiplied in.
Source: Races of Faerûn (Page 106), Player’s Handbook (Page 12), Player’s Guide to Faerûn (Page 11)
Your character can be either male or female.
Every player character starts as an adult. You can choose or randomly generate your character’s age. If you choose it, it must be at least the minimum age for the character’s race and class (see Table: Starting Ages). Your character’s minimum starting age is the adulthood age of his or her race plus the number of dice indicated in the entry corresponding to the character’s race and class on Table: Starting Ages.
Alternatively, refer to Table: Starting Ages and roll dice to determine how old your character is.
| Adulthood | Intuitive1 | Self-Taught2 | Trained3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 years | +1d4 (16—19) years | +1d6 (16—21) years | +2d6 (17—27) years |
1 This category includes barbarians, rogues and sorcerers.
2 This category includes bards, fighters, paladins and rangers.
3 This category includes clerics, druids, monks and wizards.
With age, a character’s physical ability scores decrease and his or her mental ability scores increase (see Table: Aging Effects). The effects of each aging step are cumulative. However, none of a character’s ability scores can be reduced below 1 in this way.
| Middle Age1 | Old Age2 | Venerable3 | Maximum Age |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 years | 53 years | 70 years | +2d20 years |
1 -1 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
2 -2 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
3 -3 to Strength, Dexterity and Constitution; +1 to Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
When a character reaches venerable age, the DM secretly rolls his or her maximum age, which is the number from the Venerable column on Table: Aging Effects plus the result of the dice roll indicated on the Maximum Age column on that table, and records the result, which the player does not know. A character who reaches his or her maximum age dies of old age at some time during the following year, as determined by the DM.
The maximum ages are for player characters. Most people in the world at large die from pestilence, accidents, infections or violence before getting to venerable age.
Choose your character’s height and weight from the ranges mentioned in the appropriate race description or from the ranges found on Table: Height and Weight. Think about what your character’s abilities might say about his or her height and weight. A weak but agile character may be thin. A strong and tough character may be tall or just heavy.
Alternatively, roll randomly for your character’s height and weight on Table: Height and Weight. The dice roll given in the Height Modifier column determines the character’s extra height beyond the base height. That same number multiplied by the dice roll or quantity given in the Weight Modifier column determines the character’s extra weight beyond the base weight.
| Gender | Base Height | Height Modifier | Base Weight | Weight Modifier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 4’ 10" | +2d10 (5’ 0"—6’ 6") | 120 lbs. | ×2d4 (124—280 lbs.) |
| Female | 4’ 5" | +2d10 (4’ 7"—6’ 1") | 85 lbs. | ×2d4 (89—245 lbs.) |
Source: Player’s Handbook (Page 109), Player’s Guide to Faerûn (Page 32)