Ratfolk

"One bit me one time. Big 'ol chompers. Damn near bit through me arm. He said to me 'I ain't no rat! I'm a mouse! There be a difference there be!'. Tell you the truth, I ain't seen one since to know the difference!"   -overheard at the Bone Dragon Inn

Ratfolk/Mousefolk are a race of small, humanoid rat and mouse people who live underneath the ground in warrens. Ratfolk is usually referring to a city-dwelling folk, while Mousefolk tend to live in the country and open plains, but they are biologically and functionally the same species. They also live in underground spaces such as sewers or tunnel systems, like those in the Underdark.   Ratfolk are one of the several races that were created after the Ascension Treaty.  

Society & Culture

  Ratfolk society is varied from place to place, as ratfolk tend to absorb much of the cultural norms of whatever culture of larger humanoids they are living alongside. Ratfolk under Imperial cities, for example, will sometimes form Senates of their own, modeled after the Imperial Senate of The Empire of Avarend    Ratfolk tend to dress simply, favoring colors that help them blend in with thier surrondings. They also tend to wear similar clothes to the culture they live around.    Ratfolk eat a diet of underground dwelling mushrooms and hunted meat.   

Origins

  Ratfolk were created in an alchemical experiment sometime during the third verse (v3). This experiment gave an ordinary group of rats intelligence, while also enlarging the body and giving them the ability to stand bipedal. Little is known about the alchemist who performed the experiment. The Spires do not claim to know who the alchemist was, saying they would never approve of such an experiment.    Ratfolk mythos worships this alchemist as a creator and many ratfolk pursue alchemy because of it.   

Language

  Ratfolk language favors compound words, such as "walk-see" instead of patrol, or "speak-now" for conversation. An ongoing list of these compoud words will be included in the notes section. They also tend to replace some nouns totally with a descriptor, such as calling babies "Smalls", or swords "sharps".   Ratfolk names tend to be simple nouns, sometimes pluralized, such as Lights, Stones, Hat, Clover, etc.   

Relations

 

Warrens

 

Deep Rats

  The only ratfolk to not absorb and mimic the culture they are living with are those that live deep in the Underdark.