“Do you see the Baron of Seoughryn over there?” Duvervor Slasny asked.

“Yes, of course, Auntie. How could I not?” asked Duvervor Thriastai in return.

“How he builds himself up to be the life of this party?”

“I hear that noble titles tend to inflate one’s head.”

“You’re not the first to make that observation. But you will be the second to know that he is about to stumble.”

“The second? How so?”

“He’s nervous. And not just because the Countess of Moerine is an attractive woman – well, attractive to him, anyway – and not just because she technically outranks him in this blasted duchy. He’s nervous because he’s lying about his achievements.”

“Can you read lips?”

“Not in the least. There is so much more about him to read. He’s clutching his hands very tightly behind him, hoping that the Countess won’t notice. And if my nose is not mistaken, he’s just betrayed himself in a way even a human nose can detect.”

Thriastai sniffed the air. “Oh dear. He really was nervous, wasn’t he, Auntie?” He chuckled quietly.

A moment later, the Countess of Moerine wrinkled her nose, looked down at the Baron’s feet, silently gave him an expression of disgust, and stormed off.

Slasny and Thriastai shared a smile and clinked their cocktail glasses together.

Veiz resemble dogs or wolves in more than just superficial ways. There are almost as many varieties of veiz in this world as there are personality traits, each well-adapted to the places where they live and the particular niche they fill in society or nature. Some are paragons of orderly social cohesion, deftly maintaining and improving the hidden fabric of families, organizations, and entire cities. Others reject life among large groups of intelligent creatures to instead appreciate the natural world and perhaps gain wisdom from it.

Veiz are built for physical endurance in a variety of ways. On long journeys, they often find themselves slowing down to let their fellow travelers catch up. Their internal organs make the best of marginal situations, and they often tolerate questionable food and water better than other humanoids might. An illness that may confine a member of another species to bed for a few weeks at a time may only be a few days of inconvenience to a veiz.

Veiz were fortunate to inherit excellent senses of hearing and smell from their ancestors. Of course it is quite handy in the daily business of living, but veiz who dwell among populations of intelligent beings combine those senses with their excellent social intuition to perform remarkable deeds. More than one clever ruse has been exposed by a veiz in the right place at the right time, who just happened to hear or smell something that wasn’t quite right. Perhaps that simple coincidence saved an empire from an internal threat to an important official; perhaps it sealed a kingdom’s fate to crumble from within under the weight of its own corruption. Veiz are welcome allies among the ranks of the wealthy and powerful.

Veiz feel deeply and genuinely, they are not ashamed of it, and they do not understand why many other intelligent beings hide or mask their emotions and reactions. The uncountable variety of sensations and stimuli to be found in the world are there to be experienced as they are, as they were intended. Many see this as enjoying life’s simple pleasures, and there is certainly a bit of truth to it, but it is far from the entire story. While it may be difficult to find something that provokes indifference from a veiz, when it does, there will be no trace of dishonesty about their disinterest.

Veiz like to find the most important parts of the world’s experiences and bring them to the forefront without ambiguity. The artistically-inclined veiz seeks the essence of an experience so that they may enhance or amplify it, but not so much that the other subtleties are lost. A more practical-minded veiz excels at incremental improvement and optimization upon established work, finding ways to increase effectiveness or reduce costs and waste.

Creating something radically new and different implies abandoning something important and fundamental. The level of abstract thought required to achieve such a mindset is so alien as to be repulsive to most veiz. But once the new invention or idea is established and accepted, veiz are some of the most eager to find and exploit its full potential, even if those ideas are villainous or destructive.

Veiz who live on the edges of society understand that a life without allies will be short, and a life without companions will be brutal. They spend very little time in the company of other intelligent beings, and they lack the larger social circles that their city-bound cousins may have. The few people in those social circles are trusted deeply, and that trust is reciprocated without question or equivocation.

When they gather in population centers, veiz network and build relationships so that their families, their organizations, and their societies might sustain and flourish. For any group of people larger than a family unit, Veiz tend to favor straightforward and clear hierarchies that empower the older and more experienced, as long as they are of sound mind. Many veiz may have learned how to play politics, and the best know how to unravel and rend rivals’ social fabrics while preserving their own.

Many veiz are driven to experience what the world has to offer, and despite the hazards, adventuring is not an uncommon choice among bolder individuals. Veiz adventurers are more likely to make names for themselves through deeds of physical prowess, but there are still stories of veiz who applied their guile, cunning, or devotion to accomplish what force alone could not. In time, a veiz will find a way to get it done. They may not get it done first, but they will get it done better, and they will bring back a story to inspire the next generation to achieve even greater deeds.

Veiz who grew up with family structure often state their family’s name before their own given name. Those who did not have close families, or who wish to distinguish themselves, will tend to use a chosen name without a family name. Veiz names are typically not gendered.

Examples of family names

Abakimout, Aloiustial, Efaybaneid, Ezoudaret, Ibaougheiz, Iliranoub, Onadarar, Onyetouz, Ositoreg, Ubayhatien, Ukaurayad, Ydaetheros, Ydobelis

Examples of individual names

Blasor, Chagarbur, Gerilest, Hutinir, Kainaril, Muraktas, Nymorkel, Rhuraneld, Swedrasam, Tanund, Vietlor, Yarothum, Zydynem

Choose one of the following at level 1:

• Increase your Wisdom and Constitution by 1.
• Increase one ability score by 2.
• Increase two different ability scores by 1.

Veiz mature somewhat more quickly than humans, most reaching adult size and proportions by age 14, but they are usually not considered adults until age 18. Most veiz live almost as long as humans, most reaching their 60s, some their 70s, but very few their 80s.

An individual veiz tends to have an alignment which reflects not only their upbringing but also how much they accepted or rejected the society in which they were raised. Those with larger families and those who were raised in cities are more likely to choose lawful alignments. Those who grew up on the fringes of society and those who found themselves at the mercy of the natural world may lean away from lawful alignments.

Tenacity. You may choose to bite with your teeth as an unarmed attack. When you hit with your bite, you inflict piercing damage equal to 1d4 plus your Strength modifier. You may use your bite to initiate or sustain a grapple. You also retain the standard unarmed attacks that all characters may use.

You are a humanoid.

You speak, read, and write Common and Veizram.

Intestinal Fortitude. You have advantage on saving throws to avoid or end the poisoned condition. You also have advantage on saving throws to avoid or remove levels of exhaustion.

Veiz display a wide range in body types and physiques. A few are as small as gnomes or halflings, a few are as burly and imposing as a dragonborn, but most fall in between those extremes. You may choose to be Medium or Small at level 1.

Your base walking speed is 30 feet.

Tails Don’t Lie. Veiz have a talent for reading and interpreting body language. You are proficient in Insight.

Tracker’s Intuition. You have advantage on Perception checks related to hearing and smell.

Veiz can be broadly divided by the circumstances in which they were raised. Choose one of the following heritages.

Keshem are more common in areas of low population density, including wilderness areas.

Your build and coloration suggests the wild canids of the world, like wolves and coyotes. Your fur is more likely to be longer and rougher, colored to be functional in the wilderness areas where you lived. If you are from a particularly cold climate you may have a double coat and relatively large hind paws. Your ears are triangular and always pointed, but they may lie down when you are particularly joyous, fearful, or angry. Your snout is of moderate length and breadth. You have a functional tail.

Ability Scores. Increase your Strength or one other ability score that you have not already increased by 1.

Fringes of Society. Your time in the wilderness, away from other intelligent creatures, has taught you to live off the land and use what nature offers to best effect. You are proficient in one of Medicine, Nature, or Survival.

Kiritz are the dominant subrace of veiz in populated areas. They are more likely to have strong family bonds, with members of the same family bearing strong resemblance to each other.

Kiritz of elevated social, economic, or political status tend to be particular about the social circles of their younger kin. Some go as far as arranging marriages to build alliances and bases of power.

Your build and coloration suggests the domesticated dogs of the world, with quite a range of variety in nearly all aspects of physical appearance. Your fur may be short or long, and of many colors or patterns. Your snout may be long or short, broad or narrow. Your eyes may be of any plausibly canine or human color. Your ears may be of any plausibly canine length and shape. You may or may not have a tail; if you do not, you were either born without it or you can vividly recall how you lost it.

Ability Scores. Increase your Charisma or one other ability score that you have not already increased by 1.

Member of Civil Society. Your material needs are less of an immediate daily concern, so you have spent time honing your intellectual or social skills. You are proficient in one of History, Persuasion, or Religion.