Gensai of Lakeport

Hey Game Fans, we’re back for another part of a feature on the Homebrew setting of Lakeport.  Today we’re going to look at one of the races from Lakeport, the Gensai.  Like the rest of the Wanderers, they draw from an extra-planar heritage.  There are planes of raw energy that exist in the multiverse, and strange creatures and energies bleed across to the world of Lakeport.  The Gensai draw an ancient connection to the elemental planes.  Like the other Wanderers, they occur within other populations and have no culture of their own.   Let’s dig into these unusual beings

Gensai

The Gensai are a group of several different races that share a common ancestry and similar abilities.  The most common types are tied to the Elemental Planes of Air, Water, Fire, and Earth, but there are rumors of more esoteric planes of elemental power that have spawned Gensai.  Most Gensai stay close to areas that remind them of their elemental heritage, but a few venture into the larger world of Lakeport.  The ones that do find a world of wonders and acceptance.  

Appearance

Gensai are marked by their elemental connections.  Earth Gensai have skin like rock and eyes like gemstones, Water Gensai constantly glisten with a sheen of moisture and smell like the sea.  Fire Gensai have skin that crackles like wood in a fire and smell of burning metal and wood.  The Air Gensai have soft blue skin and windswept hair and smell of clouds and rain.  They share similar characteristics of the cultures that host them, and the Gensai physicalities blend with these traits.  Humans and Orcs are especially common host cultures for the Gensai, but they appear in every population.   

Personality

Gensai are caught in an interesting dichotomy.  On one hand, they are restless, and the elemental aspect of their nature wants them to be on the move, constantly finding new places and things.  On the other hand, they have an imperative hard wired into them to establish larger communities and create more Gensai.  Gensai are more common than the other Wanderers, but are still a rarity in Lakeport.  These two driving ambitions create internal tension within the Gensai, and in their communities.  

Society

Gensai are a little out of place in the societies of Lakeport.  Water Gensai are extremely well loved along the rivers and streams of the High Forest, and they have places waiting for them in the communities of that forest.  Earth Gensai (and to a lesser extent, Fire Gensai) are appreciated by the Dwarves, Gnomes, and Halflings that open their communities to them.  Air Gensai are less common among the societies of others, but can be found among the Horselords of the Amber Sea, and the Hobgoblins of the North.  

The Elemental Nodes

There are places where the elemental planes overlap with the world of Lakeport.  These are secret locations, their whereabouts a closely guarded secret.  Some of these were the domains of long banished elemental lords, others are the temples where the Elemental Energies are gathered to sustain the dreaming elementals within.  Every Gensai feels an urge to find one of these places of power during their lifetime.

Adventurers

Gensai adventurers are the rare few that allow their urge to explore override their desire to create more Gensai.  They are team players, and work well with other people to achieve success.  They are often the driving force for a party to move from location to location, and their wanderlust is virtually insatiable.  Gensai get along with other sentient creatures and are distantly polite to strangers which can come off as aloofness.  

Religion

Gensai typically worship the Congregation of Elemental Masters, a wide ranging group of elemental lords and powerful elemental spirits.  They are a polytheistic faith, with a Master representing a specific aspect of daily living.  The ones that worship other Gods tend to either worship the Gods of their host cultures or the Slumbering King.  

Rules addendums

Gensai from this setting have the  rules described in the Elemental Evil Player’s Companion