"Warforged" is a catch all term for sentient, living constructs from the Lost Age. The secrets of their creation are lost to time, but once they were used to fight mighty battles for civilizations. Existing Warforged are the remnants of those long forgotten armies, each one an artisanal magical curiosity. Never breathing, eating, or sleeping, they can be found scattered across Temir as trackers, swords for hire, and gladiators. 

History

Given there apparent age, it's easy to think that the Warforged have a long and storied history, but while their bodies last a long time, their memories are finite. The Age of Prophecy is a dim memory for even the eldest. But historical accounts trace them through the centuries. Both the Frontier Rangers and Wizards of the Coast have counted prominent Warforged among their members for a time. They come and go, leaping between decades, often left behind in dark places when their bodies stop functioning, only to be rediscovered and repaired. 

Age of Prophecy

One of the legendary heroes from the Plague of the Hungry Dead was Warforged, a great oaken sentinel. It's said he opened the way for the Keeper's Walk during the Rise of the Prophets, as well. The Church at the time still entertained the Warforged Question, putting them to sword and flame to establish whether they had souls. Ever since the War of Broken Fate, more and more Warforged have resurfaced, both thanks to the Demon Lord of Artifice's promise to enrich anyone who could return one to him, and as they recovered the skills needed to repair each other. 

Age of Peace

Warforged have a growing community in the shadows of the University in Isard. They work in the Shipwright's Harbour, and record their history, patching together accounts from their own scattered memories, and searching through the University archives for reference to themselves.They are a people looking for a place to happen. 

Culture

Warforged have no families, share no meals, and have no traditions, but they are not content to be orphans. They're known to embrace local traditions as best they can, and make their own families as required. Warforged weddings have become quite common, and many of them undergo elaborate engravings depicting their friends and loved ones. Many of them keep diaries and notebooks, excited to build records for when their memory of the present eventually fades, that they will neither forget nor be forgotten. 

One tradition the Warforged have developed is carefully keeping track of each other, and never leaving each other behind. To abandon another is to leave them at the mercy of the future, unloved and forgotten. Warforged undertaking dangerous tasks will often apprise close friends of the details, and their community contributes to a fund for retrievals, either finding lost comrades or chasing down other Warforged that may still be out there, waiting in the dark. 

Politics

While they have no central leadership or civilization, the Warforged are drawn to communities that embrace self-determination. While they have many differences and conflicts, they embrace liberty as an essential fact of who they are, and a necessary good for flourishing. The largest division in their community is on the subject of history, with many Warforged scholars determined to discover their role in the past, while others prefer to reject the past and embrace their present and future, always looking forward. 

Magic

Warforged are built to designs, and those designed to be magicians are excellent at it. Their wizards excel in the schools of Transmutation and Conjuration, and more and more custom-built chassis with all manner of sorcerer abilities have been discovered. Some embrace bardic magic, becoming storytellers and lorekeepers, and many of those rebuilt in the Demon Kingdom follow the pact-bound path of the warlock. 

Religion

Warforged are fascinated by religion. Though not built by the gods, the existence of Warforged clerics means that they are not beneath their notice. Their faiths are a personal matter however, and they often honour whatever shrines catch their fancy. There are wooden chassis Warforged who walk the druidic path, and many recovery missions are led by Warforged paladins who are oathbound to lead their people out of the dark. Most often they can be found venerating the old dream gods, especially Sanaa, the Dream of Freedom, and Zuri, the Dream of Beginning. To the Warforged, those dreams are one and the same. 

Names

Warforged choose their names, often casting off dimly remembered designations. Most opt for simple nouns that feel good to say, or fit them best. Some hold to old ranks, or take the names of people from their pleasant memories, to honour those left behind. If a Warforged marries someone with a surname, they'll almost always take that family name as their own. 

Sample Given Names: Azure, Bolt, Brass, Fury, Lazuli, Opal, Paradox, Prime, Quirk, Sarge, Star, Veil

Notes

Page references

• Warforged, Eberron: Rising From the Last War p.35