Jhoshik kindred

One of the three great Humanoid kindreds of Iuldar, often called the "Human-like" kindred. Today, they are the most politically and economically important kindred, with Humans in particular being the clear masters of the world. This rise to priminence only happened recently in Iuldar's history, from about the beginning of the appropriately named Era of Man.

Classification
Main: Category:Jhoshik Races

The Jhoshik and Vros kindreds are sometimes collectively called "Hashuranites", because of their shared descent from the Hashbrin of the pre-classical Hashuran civilization. While it is easy to think that the Hashuran Hashbrin split into two groups, one of which became the Jhoshik and the other of which became the Vros, that isn't quite the case. Indeed, some Vros races are more closely related, biologically, to members of the Jhoshik kindred than they are to other Vrosim. What separates the Jhoshik from the Vros is not descent, but rather the state of the khaalnas, the magic system inside every Humanoid of Iuldar. In the Vros, this system wends its way throughout the whole body, wrapping around internal organs and bringing an unparalleled sense for magic, while in the Jhoshik the only organs that it wraps around are the heart and lungs, giving Jhoshikim a weaker connection with magic. The reason that the distinction between Jhoshik and Vros is calculated this way is that magical proclivity was much more visible than descent to the Iuldari taxonomists who created the concept of the kindreds.

Members of the Jhoshik can be said to fall within two categories: Main-branch and Fringe. The vast majority of Jhoshikim fall within the main branch, and they most visibly display the characteristic features of the kindred, whereas most of the races in the "fringe" are extinct today - with only three survivors - and they are the most "different" from the rest. The "fringe" Jhoshik are not actually a single branch, but represent any Jhoshik lineage that is not part of the main branch - which is to say, not descended from the Heylim.

Main Branch

 * Heylim (presently extinct)
 * Deep Dwarves
 * Edrishi
 * Dwarves
 * Alchayati
 * Humans
 * Chindar
 * Nelshan
 * Qotarr
 * Durgeel
 * Halflings

Fringe

 * Shetzan (presently extinct)
 * Sinestrans
 * Tymiiri
 * Kuüru (presently extinct)
 * Ollokia (presently extinct)
 * Rotaas (presently extinct)
 * Kharraj

Characteristics
The characteristics which define the Jhoshik kindred are, for the most part, the characteristics that could be used for the humans of Earth. They tend to have skin colored by melanin, either exclusively or primarily. They tend to have five fingers on each hand, human-like ears, and don't have any special features to their eyes. However, there is also a great deal of variability within the kindred, and each of the stated characteristics has at least one major exception. For example, the Chindar have purple skin, while members of the Shetzan lineage have ultraviolet vision.

As stated above, the primary feature that distinguishes Jhoshik from Vros is their khaalnas. The lack of internal weaving in the Jhoshik means that they have a weaker connection to the magical forces of the world, and lack the magical senses that the Vros are known for. However, this doesn't mean that their personal magic is altogether weaker. In fact, one magical advantage the Jhoshik have over the Vros is that, if properly exercised, their magical potential will never stop growing - whereas a Vrosite's maximum potential is fixed from birth. A Vrosite's fixed maximum potential is very often quite a bit higher than a Jhoshikite's starting potential, but with time and continual practice, a Jhoshik can match or even exceed a Vros counterpart.

History
-WIP-