It is often said that with adversity comes resilience. Perhaps the greatest proof of this claim is the Gnolls rise, fall, and rise again. With most peoples, their history has little bearing on their physical and fundamental psycology. Such cannot be said for the Gnolls. The two are intertwined so closely they may as well be one.

Gnolls are a species of beastfolk native to the Darkrass Plains, where they had created a large city-state then called Fezlá (now Wayriver), which was notably more developed and advanced than other settlements of its size in the 2nd century. This golden age was cut short by pre-Sylvin Empire humans who took the city in a war and, through numbers, forced the Gnolls out of their ancestrial homelands.

The Gnolls resettled across the Great Trade Sea in the Kiteshield Peninsula, Aegispoint, and Lastlanding where they culturally fragmented, separating into countless tribes and clans, each of which founded its own new city-state. These city-states, weakened by the lack of the great minds other clans had taken, were unable to approach the glory of lost Fezlá. The resulting strife led to the Gnolls warring against one another.

The Gnoll Wars are many and numerous, so much so that only the first seven have names. The rest are numbed, and the numbers march steadily on into the hundreds of thousands. The Gnolls fought not only over resources and territory but, most commonly, over individuals. The war forges of many a city-state burned hot the day any Gnolish guild affirmed the crowning of a new master.

The numbered wars should not be mistaken for the primary cause of the Gnolls minimum of suffering. That is the responsibility of the Five Great Gnoll Wars. These were events where all of the city-states had cause to war upon one another, and all devolved into ever-shifting alliances where the frontlines changed week to week not only by combat but due to an inability to understand who was fighting who.

While most people would stop fighting given such chaos in a war, Gnolls are a stubborn people and persisted through these hardships. These five Great Gnoll Wars were so impactful on Gnolls Eyom-wide that they left permanent marks on their biology, magical abilities, and general psychology through natural selection in but a thousand years.

This fact overshadows everything else about the gnoll wars, including their proclivity to live in fortified structures, the countless magical and natural hazards created by ancient war machines and spells, and the general impoverished state of almost all small Gnoll settlements which contrast with the ludicrous wealth seen in their cities.

Fortunately for the Gnolls, the Fith Great Gnoll War seems to have been the last of such conflicts. The Gnollish invention of Eyom's banking system and subsequent rise of the city-states as a collective superpower, combined with the work of the Philosopher Ashlin, brought the Gnolls back to a stable, prosperous, and advanced culture which spreads across Eyom not by war but by trade and financial conquest of regional markets.

Of course, they still have a few small wars here and there. Seemingly for old times' sake.

Personality

Gnolls are notably stubborn, tough, and childish. Literally. Gnolls do not experience mental maturity in terms of social behavior beyond that of human 12-year-olds on average. This does not mean they are unintelligent. Far from it. Gnolls are very clever and cunning. What it means is that by default Gnolls see the world with childlike wonder, think in blacks and whites rather than shades of gray, and can experience lifelong wrath which progresses to bloodlust over something as simple as being called a "Smelly doo-doo head."

If not for the Gnollish ability to meditate on logic, axioms, and possible situations, Gnolls would never have been capable of developing civilization. Fortunately, Gnolls do possess this ability and it is most potent. With a mere ten minutes of meditation, a Gnoll can attune their minds to any particular philosophical stance, guiding their thoughts, behaviors, and actions along the logical paths they have just mentally refreshed themselves upon.

This also adjusts their personality, and seemingly even what they can and cannot remember.

The effect of this is like watching a child suddenly transform into a wise old sage with the physical capabilities of an adult in their prime. Consequently, all Gnolls share a deep love of philosophy, which for them is a skill akin to carpentry or weaving rather than an academic exercise or part of a religious sect. Gnolls are expected to change their behavior to suit the needs of their day as they come, and also expected to cast off such "Heart Anchors" (as the Gnolls say) at the end of their workday.

A Gnollish father can come home from their work as a lawyer has just lost a major case for their client which has serious repercussions for the entire Gnollish legal system, and within a few minutes be just as excited to go play fetch their eight-year-old daughter as she is, and then get just as much enjoyment out of chasing that ball on top of it. Then, the next morning, they can return to being the serious and downcast law professional who lost a major case.

Other than this, Gnolls are largely what one would expect of hyenas, who are people. They focus very much on their family, so much so that lifelong friends often merge into a single household. They see Alphas are more important than males and consequently form matriarchal societies, yet are strangely egalitarian despite generally believing their women are the most suited to make decisions for the clan.

It is important to note that like most canines, Gnolls will often bite if irritated or angry.

Physical Description

Broadly speaking, Gnolls are bipedal canid creatures with tan fur decorated with brown and black spots. Their feet are paw-like and well suited to long travel across harsh terrain without footwear (Though no gnoll would be caught dead without a nice pair of boots). They have human-like hands ending claws rather than nails, a face with a long canid muzzle filled with a preditor's death, a short tail that refuses to not express their current emotion, and triangular ears atop their heads that poke out from their manes of wavy hair.

Internally, Gnolls possess some very robust anatomy. Their bone structure uses hollowed channels for added strength and for storing certain chemicals they produce via their natural metabolic processes. These chemicals can be drawn on for use like fuel cells during certain activities.

Gnolls are remarkable for being extremely sexually dimorphic, with wildly different physical capabilities for each sex. They are almost polymorphic, as ants are, due to these differences. Gnolls have three distinct sexes which they translate as Alpha, Beta, and Gamma. In more conventional terminology, Alpha gnolls are female (reproductivly), while Beta and Gamma gnolls are male (reproductivly) but are extreemly diffrent in size, build, and typical behaviors. Gnolls typicaly do not mind being called male or famle, but their culture draws three distinct lines, and biological science shows genuine genetic diffrences between all three catagories.

Alphas

Gnollish Alphas are the tallest of the gnolls, standing on average an inch taller at the top of their heads than any other form of gnoll. They resemble human females in overall shape with a curvy body featuring a narrow waist and broad hips. They even possess a pair of permanent breasts as human women do. However, this is where the comparisons to human women end.

Firstly, Gnollish Alphas possess six breasts, as canines do. Only their uppermost pair are permanent, with the other four developing during a pregnancy and usually but not always slowly removing themselves within 2 years after birth.

Birth is an even more painful ordeal for Gnollish women due to their species' origins as Spotted Hyenas. The genitalia of the Alpha Gnoll closely resembles that of the male; the clitoris is shaped and positioned like a penis, a pseudo-penis, and is capable of erection. The Alpha also possesses no external vagina (vaginal opening), as the labia are fused to form a pseudo-scrotum. The pseudo-penis is traversed to its tip by a central urogenital canal, through which the Alpha urinates, copulates and gives birth.

After giving birth, the pseudo-penis is stretched, and loses many of its original aspects; it becomes a slack-walled and reduced prepuce with an enlarged orifice with split lips. This state can be permanent without medical treatment but is hardly the worst senario. Many Gnollish Alphas have the entirety of their genitalia ripped off during the birthing process, leading to a very high rate of deaths during child birth.

For this purpose, Alpha Gnolls are always attended by a harem of at least three Betas. These act as her servants, caretakers, friends, and nurses and are always trained as midwives to assist in the birthing process and post-birth reconstructive surgery.

Gnollish Alphas are quite strong, and while their sex places them at the top of the Gnollish social hierarchy (which is matriarchal), this puts them in the position of choosing how they will support their clan. While most choose to work as government officials, many become blacksmiths, or other physically demanding professions. Many more enjoy working in technical arts such as goldmsithing, tapesterymaking, and minting.

Beta

Betas are the most common form of Gnolish male, comprising 3 in 4 of all Gnollish males. They have a slender, curvy, notably short build and express many behavioral traits similar to that of Gnollish Alphas, including: a heightened level of socialization, the insistence of the establishment of social pecking order, and deep-seated need to emotionally connect to many others.

Beta are often designated on forums with the term "Male-β", which has connentations in non-Gnollish cultures that do not exist within Gnolish Culture. Betas are not "Beta Males". Gnolls use the β symbol as a form of numbering (the Gnollish number system being: α (alpha) = 1, β (beta) = 2, γ (gamma) = 3, δ (delta) = 4, and so on.). There are some modern movements to use the Zräysian numeral 2 instead due to international pressures, but tradition's grip is mighty.

With this position on the Beta (sometimes called Domestic Male by other cultures) clarified, one may still assume based on their name that they are a second class citizen. This is also untrue. Beta have a very important place in Gnollish cultures as the stewards of the house. Their traditional roll is to ensure all of a household's logistics, finances, and chores are completed as required. The general mentality means the vast majority of Beta prefer this and similar social rolls. (Scholar's Note: The term Domestic Male is a direct translation. The Zräysian word kérighïnk, which is what they are called in Gnollish, translates as domestic in most languages. However within Zräysian culture when used in reference to a person the term becomes "Keeper of the Home". This does not translate to housekeeper, as it implies a position of authority rather than submission. Of course, that is the formal usage of kérighïnk. The general vernacular uses the word as a pronoun, and often shortens it to kér.)

Betas are found working jobs where thought labor is in demand. They have a natural talent for focus and problem solving which steers the majority of them to such positions. Many of them are talented accountants, financiers, philosophers, artists, and writers. While some take up more physically laborious professions, this tends to occur only outside of Gnollish lands where they are generally speaking, about as strong as a human.

Gamma

Gammas are the lest common form of Gnollish Male, comprising 1 in 4 males. They have a broad-shouldered extremely muscular, noticeably tall build. Their height is dwarfed by their musculature. Gammas are born with notably developed muscle, so much so that they typically lack body fat and emerge from their mothers with visible abs. Gammas do not need to work out to develop a strongman's physique, it's their naturally occurring state. Should they choose to work out, as they often do for fun, Ranged Males become some of the strongest bipeds of their size, and have been known to out-lift Silverback Gorillas.

Naturally, their biology has them suited to hard labor rolls, especially patrolling the local wilderness for monsters, bandits, and other threats to a settlement's safety. Their natural instincts suit these rolls well, with many of them enjoying extended piriods of solitude (Though not for more than a workday at at time, given Gnolls very scocial natures). In spite of this biological nish, a surprising number of Gammas (aka Ranged Males) become nursemaids. This is due to a very strong paturnal instinct which results in most Ranged Males adoring children. Within Gnollish Culture, it is not uncommon for an entire clan's worth of children to be cared for by the Clan's entire supply of Gammas as if each were their own child. This extends to children of other species, and persists across cultures.

(Dire Warning: Do not harm a child in visual range of a Gamma Gnoll. Even a common act such as spanking or ear-boxing is likely to result in imeadiate violence.)

(Scholar's Note: The term Range Male is a direct translation. The Zräysian word sapvuld, which is what they are called in Gnollish, translates as range (area of space) in most languages. However within Zräysian culture when used in reference to a person the term becomes "Walker of the Hills". This does not translate to wanderer or travelers, rather its meaning is closer to that of the occupation Ranger. Indeed, most culturally gnollish individuals will refer to rangers as "sapvuld". Of course, the general vernacular also uses the word as a pronoun, in which case it is often shortened to vuld.)

Relations

Gnolls are one of the most well-respected cultures in all of Eyom. This is due entirely to their domination of the markets, running of Eyom's most reputable (and first) banks, terrifying military powers, and determination to win in battle (on par with only the Hobgoblins, with many of their wars being simply to see who is braver, fiercer, or tougher), and financing of the Trans-Eyomic Railway.

Even the Wood Elves respect Gnolls for their acomplishments. While they are not seen as equals, Gnolls of high social status are able to conduct business with Wood Elves in Wood Elf territory unmolested.

Settlements

Gnollish settlements are fortresses. They may not appear to be such, but they always are. The Gnoll Wars irrevocably altered the Gnollish mentality such that they do not feel safe without fortifications, not safe with them either. Hence, most of their defensive systems are hidden from plain view. One does not expect there to be hidden passages in sewers expressly for spearmen to stab invaders from storm drains, nor that a windy road is carefuly banked and graded to become a river of molten sand at a moment's notice.

Consequently, their settlements are often labyrinthine and multi-leveled. They're also always built with multiple keeps. Those which have walls have murder holes, merticulations, and oil drops present in them from ages long before any other peoples used such fortifications. There is also always a town armory, which contains weapons for those Gnolls who might have forgotten their weapons at home during an attack. These are logically central, and more will be constructed as towns expand so no Gnoll is ever more than a four-minute run from a weapon.

Aside from these traits, Gnolls have a fascination with pillars, multi-story structures, and a genuine love of parks, amphitheaters, and a structure they call "Rock Canons". Contrary to their name and Gnollish nature, Rock Canons are not weapons, but rather great stones with channels and boreholes that can be filled with gunpowder and firework materials to create timed light shows for various celebrations.

Gnollish settlements are also very communal in nature, with each having a greater chance at more robust, more numerous, and better-designed civil infrastructure than any other people in Eyom. All but the poorest of Gnollish communities located within Great War Wastes are on par with Imperial towns of their size in terms of available civil infrastructure.

Lastly, when possible, Gnolls construct their settlements in locations with a single approach. Typically this is done by placing them on cliffsides.

Adventurers

Gnoll adventurers are the rarest people known to the Empire. They are simply too communal to set out into the world to seek their fortune unless dire circumstances require such actions. Most gnollish adventurers are the last of their clan, or Gamma looking for a specific individual who they heard was a child molester.

Of course, it's not unheard of for Gnolls to take up adventuring as a career. Even Gnolish Alphas have been known to do so from time to time. What has never, ever been documented by anyone in all of recorded history is a Gnollish adventurer who didn't come home regularly, write home weekly, and felt homesick so much that their party never minded heading back to their hometown for a visit. Especially since a Gnoll's adventuring companions are seemingly automatically a part of not the clan but the family.

Even the hardest of hearts in the toughest of chests melt when an entire family, young and old, run to you crying "Look uncle Jack is back too!" after embracing their blood-kin.