The Worens are a race that evolved along a more feline path over the centuries. They inhabit a world very similar to the Palladium Fantasy world. Their world has several races which they call 'tribes'. These tribes are the races of that world, each sharing a distinct animal characteristic. The Wyndians, another of the tribes, has bird like wings and the Armor tribe are almost reminiscent of giant armadillos. However, the Worens, are one of the most secretive tribes. Only recently involving themselves in the worlds politics, for centuries they kept to themselves in quiet seclusion. Content to live their lives out on the plains with their horses.

The Worens, though not particularly fond of the limelight, are not a passive race. In fact, most of the other tribes of their world are afraid of accidentally starting wars with them. They are known to have hot tempers, and most of the population trains in the arts of the warrior for a good part of their lives. Woren warriors are one of the most feared things on the battlefield. With their superior experience and weapon skills, most armies outnumbering them by almost 10 to 1 find themselves on the losing end. May the gods have mercy on any race that riles up the Worens.

Though a private race, the Worens do like to explore. One of the reasons they seemed so rare at first, is they are a nomadic civilization by their nature, and constantly roam from one side of the world to the next. They usually stay away from the other tribes, but occasionally one of the race would decide to explore the other races kingdoms first hand. So, it's not uncommon to find members of the race roaming around in areas that would seem totally off the wall for them. Sometimes there are Worens in the Wyndian mountains, or exploring the farmlands of the Armor Tribe.

Their social order is a system based off of a single leader supported by others in the ruling body. The Chief is the final word, but he (or she, Worens have no such thing as gender discrimination) is advised by the elders, as well as the shamans and Mystic Weapon Makers. The community is a working unit, with each member making their own contribution to the continued existence of the village. For play, the Woren love to test themselves with games of the physical nature. From tag at young ages, to fighting tournaments in their older years, the Woren culture is focused on physical fitness and training to defend the village at a moments notice. All Worens love to utilize their physical prowess, sometimes to extremes, and enjoy even the most uneventful physical labor as long as it's physical.

A note to their gender discriminations is there is none, or close to none at any rate. A female Woren is just as lethal as any male, and more than willing to demonstrate to any outsider who would dare make the assumption they are weak. Both sexes are treated equally within the community, and you are as likely to see a homemaker father as a female chief. Some jobs however, have taken a slight stint of sexual discrimination do to physical characteristics of the two genders. Most makers of weaponry tend to be males do to their larger size and greater strength, and most hunters tend to be females do to their natural agility and quickness. Both genders are represented equally within the community defenders.

In the recent years, bizarre magical fluctuations have plagued their world, causing dimensional holes and spacial distortions to erupt at random. This has resulted some of them to explore these strange phenomenon, sometimes being sucked into other worlds. The most prominent contingent of Worens can be found in the Yinsloth Jungles in the Palladium world. What started as a 20 man exploration expedition one hundred and fifty years ago, has blossomed into a community of Woren almost 4,000 strong thriving in the jungles. (Strange Side Note: Woren's breed like normal humans but typically give birth to twins or triplets. Single or Quadruplet children are uncommon, but not unheard of.) They get along peacefully with most of the other races their, and sometimes travel elsewhere when the wanderlust that plagues their race hits them. The following is a breakdown of the Worens currently inhabiting the Yinsloth Jungles relations with their neighbors:

Tezcat: Put simply, the Worens hate them. They find them to me one of the more repulsive of the races inhabiting the Jungle, and frequently have bloody skirmishes with them. In return, the tezcat hate the Woren and they have developed quite the long standing rivalry.

Headhunters: If the Worens could be said to hate the Tezcat, then is can also be said that they absolutely loath the Headhunters. These jungle marauders are reviled by the Woren above all else, and attacked upon sight. The conflict began in the Worens earliest days in the Yinsloth Jungle, when a group of scouts was attacked and killed by the Headhunters, leaving one survivor. Since that day, the Worens have nurtured a deepening hatred for them, and kill them at every opportunity. The Headhunters in their own right have begun to prize Woren skulls because of the ferocity they have encountered in their conflicts with the Woren.

Pygmies: The Woren get along well with these little people of the Jungle, however they do not understand them. Mostly they are on friendly terms on an encounter based way, but pretty much leave each other alone.

Nomads: The Woren feel a kind of kinship with these people, because at heart, they are nomads as well. However, they also understand they are not a group, but a amalgam of individuals and are judged by the Woren on a case by case basis.

Avians: Sadly, the Worens do not wish to understand these gentle bird people. They just want them to die. In the Worens encounter with Headhunters, an Avian was with them. They have gleamed that the Headhunters revere the bird people, and believe them to be allies. This is far from the truth and makes the Worens hatred of the Avians, and the Avians mutual hatred of the Woren to be one of the Megaverse's greatest tragedies.

Cat People: As one can expect, this race and the Worens get along very well. They often help each other in need, and if push comes to shove either race could expect the other to be behind them in the worst of times. They both feel a kind of kinship with each other, and thus treat each other as long lost cousins.

Fyr-kree Insectoids: The Worens do not understand these insect people, but have no quarrel with them either. To each their own.

Lizard Men: The Woren get along well with the Lizard Men, mostly because their territories do not clash. Both have open trade with each other, and it is not uncommon to see a Woren Explorer accompanied by a Lizard Man or two when exploring the Jungle or vise versa when a Lizard Man is in the Woren territories.

Another place in the megaverse that Worens have shown up in large numbers is a very recent phenomenon on RIFTS Earth in the South American city of Omagua. The nature of the city, and it's felinoid races that inhabit it naturally attracted the explorers that happened upon RIFTS South America, and slowly they have begun to gather there. They were accepted by the other races without question, and the wayward souls lost on RIFTS Earth have found themselves a home. At the moment, there are only about 2,500 Woren in Omagua, possibly the only ones on the entire RIFTS Earth. However, their population is expected to grow as they have situated themselves and begun to adapt to their surroundings. The following is a description of their relations with the races around them:

Felinoid, Flying Tiger, Sekhmet, etc.: The cat races of Omagua are considered distant cousins, and are to be respected and assisted. The respect is mutual, and the Woren settlement in Omagua has become another part of their society. Although the psychic cats slightly disturb the Woren, they have no problems with them in the slightest.

Manoa (Amazons): Unfortunately, the Woren share their feline brethren's opinion on the Manoan's, and although they leave them be there is a deep suspicion about them. However, they are the most lenient of the Omagua races towards the Amazons, and have usually been utilized by Omagua for any diplomatic discussions with the Amazons that have sprung up over the years. It's been proven, that if the Woren are involved in the talks, violence is less likely.

The Kingdom of Lagarto (Lizard Men): Although holding no personal grudge against the Lizard Men, the Woren understand that their new home and the Kingdom of Lagarto are at odds, and war is likely. The Woren hope that cooler heads will prevail.

Cibola: Like their new friends, the Woren have a distinct dislike for the people of Cibola. They have learned to hate them as much as any other of the cat races, and jump at the chance to exterminate the Cibolan patrols that cross their borders.

Male Attributes

IQ: 3D6

ME: 3D6

MA: 2D6+6

PS: 4D6+6

PP: 3D6+6

PE: 4D6

PB: 3D6

Spd: 3D6+6

Female Attributes

IQ: 3D6

ME: 3D6

MA: 4D6

PS: 3D6

PP: 4D6+6

PE: 3D6

PB: 3D6+6

Spd: 4D6+6

(Note: For both sexes PS and PE are considered supernatural)

Average Life Span: Eighty to a hundred years. Sometimes longer.

Average Height--

-Males: 6 to 7 feet

-Females: 5 to 6 feet

Average Weight--

-Males: 250 to 350lbs. Almost all muscle.

-Females: 120 to 180lbs. Almost all muscle.

MDC--

-Male: 4D4X10, plus 3D6 per level ((For Non-MD worlds, Hit Points: 4D6+PE plus 1D6 per level, SDC: 40, AR: 7))

-Female: 3D4X10, plus 3D6 per level ((For Non-MD Worlds, Hit Points: 3D6+PE plus 1D6 per level, SDC 30, AR: 6))

Magic: Worens, though more inclined to physical occupations, sometimes feel the call of magic. They have their own specialized magic OCC called the Mystic Weapon Makers, which is a minor form of techno-wizard magic which utilizes ancient weaponry and armor.

Psionics: None. For some reason, the Woren are incapable of developing psionics.

Natural Abilities: Being a race of cat people, the Worens have an exceptional ability to see in the dark. They can see ten times more than your normal human as long as their is a small amount of light to reflect in the back of their eyes. However, they have passive night vision not supernatural night vision, so they can not see in complete darkness. They possess retractable claws on both their hands and feet that do 2D6 (3D6 for males) and add a +20% to the climbing skill if they take it. Worens also possess a strong natural endurance and fatigue ten times slower than humans. They have exceptional balance and hand eye coordination, giving them a +10% to all physical Skills and start with a Prowl Skill at 70%, plus 5% per level.

Weaknesses: Worens are very susceptible to psionic influence. They have a -3 to save vs. all psychic attacks, and psychic attacks that affect the mental faculties last double the duration on them.

Bonuses: +1 to Strike, Parry, and Dodge, +1 Attack, +3 to save vs. Horror Factor, +2 to save vs. Magic. These bonuses are in addition to any bonuses from attributes or OCC.

Average OCC's: Worens like to fight. A LOT. So it can be said that they primarily drift towards combat orientated OCC's. Although they do have the ability to use magic, only about 20% of the race actually pursues it. Also, though they prefer hand to hand weapons, Worens WILL use guns and technology. It's just they find it more fun to be in the thick of things with their staves. ((Notes for PFRPG: All OCC's are available except for Psychic OCC's and racial Specific OCC's. The Worens are partial to warrior OCC's and the Monk OCC.))

Average Experience level: 1D6+3 for your average Warrior. 1D8+2 for Mystic Weapon Makers or Mages.

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