Warforged are one of the few living testaments to the genius of the ancients. They are living constructs that are made in massive factories called creation forges. Originally they were built for war but also operate as construction workers, city guards, and even personal servants for nobility. The process of creating a warforged is a very closely guarded secret that only high ranking state artificers know. Very few warforged are free from servitude and those that are free are looked down upon and some times even hunted by mercenaries.

There are two kinds of warforged; both are produced separately in the two only remaining creation forges, Proto Merkabre and Proto Drakota. Proto Merkabre is located in the Atlium Republic, owned by the Merkabre Cor; and Proto Drakota is located deep beneath the Great Spine and owned by the Drakota Cor.

Alatian warforged are unique in that they are made to look like humans or Devas. They generally have human like proportions with a very accurate muscle structure and an eerie mask like face. They also wear cloths and armor as their organic makers do rather than amalgamating metallic parts directly on to their bodies. (Although they can amalgamate armor directly on their bodies if they desired) More advanced Alatian warforged have pale metallic skin and are made to resemble a male or female. In personality, Alatian warforged are very cold and calculative beings that show very little emotion. Free Alatian warforged are extremely rare and are hunted by agents of the Merkabre Cor. Even if an Alatian warforged was released from service by their master they are still considered “loose cannons” that must be put down. Those that are free always live by some code of rules, law, or philosophy. Alatian warforged are never truly free in the sense that they are always bound by some goal that keeps them moving forward.

Dwarven made Drakota warforged are very abstract in appearance. They often have heavyset figures with large brows and round eyes. Their bodies have rough metal exoskeletons that can be endlessly adjusted with new parts to add variation. An experienced engineer can often tell how old a Drakota warforged is by how heavily modified its body is. Drakota warforged also usually wear very little clothing and all have a sexless appearance. In personality, Drakota warforged are very curious about life, they are encouraged to find their own interests and explore beyond what they know. This has resulted in a race of warforged that are not afraid to have emotions or to think freely as other beings do. Since most Drakota warforged work among dwarves they generally take on their habits and customs. Drakota warforged are generally free spirited and are open to many philosophies on life, they usually look at it in a more lighthearted manner then their Alatian counterparts do. They are treated better but still considered second class citizens. Outside dwarven cities Drakota warforged are usually regarded with the same hostility as the Alatian warforged.

Extra Attributes: +2 to Engineering

Warforged Mechanics

Warforged are composed of a mix of mechanical and organic parts. Some of the rules for the mechanics of the warforged race are different here then the ones in the Eberron Players Guide. Additional anatomical features have been added for enriching the world setting.

Encephalon

The warforged brain, or “encephalon,” is a complex system composed of planar crystals. The encephalon is modeled after the human brain and carries all the same functions. If an encephalon is ever damaged it can be repaired by replacing the damaged segment. If the damage component is a memory crystal then what ever stored information was on that crystal would be lost permanently or repressed. A repressed memory will automatically be transferred to another memory crystal but will take time to process. Memories can be copied and stored on to a warforged memory capsule; this process requires the help of a skilled artificer and additional equipment. Encephalon units and their components are crafted at creation forges and no where else. Note: Encephalon is a fancy word for brain.

Aether Drive

The aether drive is the device that powers all Warforged, it is located within the chest cavity. This device constantly takes energy from the aether and can function almost indefinitely. The aether drive is a piece of ancient technology that is still barely understood. In theory, a large amount of aether drives could be used to power an airship or even a whole city, but doing so would require a vast amount of residuum. Aether drives are often recycled from fallen warforged due to their high cost.

Proto Body

The Proto body is the basic organic “template” of all warforged. It is a thin humanoid body that lacks a head, and has arms that end where the elbows should be and legs that end half way down the thighs. The proto body does not require oxygen to function so it has no lungs, but it does need chemical energy. This is why warforged can eat and drink like organic beings do, although not as frequently. A warforged only needs to eat one meal a week and can go on without any food or water for almost 6 months.

Some question why the warforged would need an organic inner body when a mechanical one would be stronger. The proto body is what truely separates them from automata. The proto body has the ability to repair its self as well as certain mechanical parts. It also allows a warforged to feel pain. How the proto body is built is a complete mystery.

Warforged Death Sleep (Comma)

If a warforged aether drive is forced to shut down due to too much damage, the warforged doesn’t die. Instead it goes into a comma like state where the body shuts down and all energy is focused on preserving the mind. During this state the warforged survives on power from an auxiliary generator located under their encephalon. A warforged can survive like this for two years. The protobody can only survive for 6 months so if the damaged warforged is not revived before that time then, they will require a new proto body. In order to revive a warforged the aether drive and the body must be repaired. A Warforged can’t ever truly be killed unless their encephalon is destroyed or their power runs out. A skilled artificer that knows the inner workings of the warforged is needed to repair one.

Warforged and Immortality

Warforged are theoretically immortal, they don’t age as other races do, instead they decline into insanity. A warforged can transfer their mind to a different body when the old one begins to break down but they cant stop the slow painful degeneration that plagues their race. A variety of things happen when a warforged goes insane, some turn violent, some get stuck repeating their last task, and some simply lie down and die. The average warforged life span is about 450 years.

The Decrepit

Some warforged defy all logic and continue living for thousands of years. These are the Decrepit, insane warforged which protect and maintain the tombs of the ancients. Very little is known about them since they attack all who enter their tombs.

Warforged History

HAS YET TO BE WRITTEN…