Dohwar

The dohwar, sometimes called dowhar, were a race of short, flightless avians. A merchant race, they considered themselves the great rivals of the Arcane, although the Arcane themselves barely acknowledged their existence.

Description
Dohwar distantly resembled penguins. Their chests were covered in white feathers, while the rest of their bodies was covered in black feathers. They had wings that, although not useful for flight, were capable of grabbing objects. They walked by waddling ungracefully, which was considered by elves an insult to the very idea of elegant movement.

The dohwar dressed equally ungracefully, mixing clashing and extremely bright and showy clothes, also to the dismay of elves and other races. However, when on a planet whose population was not accustomed to their appearance, dohwar would adopt a more inconspicuous outlook, covering themselves in hoods and cloaks in order to appear nothing more than short people.

Dohwar diet included fish, plankton, and vegetables. They were immune to the effects of alcoholic beverages, but were highly susceptible to being intoxicated by sweet food, which produced on them an effect similar to drunkenness. A single apple, for example, could produce the effects of a strong ale, while small amounts of honey or maple syrup could drive a dohwar completely drunk.

All dohwar were also innately capable of communicating telepathically with each other. They also used their telepathic skills to read other creatures' minds, an important asset in conducting business. These abilities did not function on the aperusa, however, which incurred hatred from the dohwar. Although usage of this power was mentally taxing for them, two mated dohwar entered a state of pairing known as a "merger", during which their lifelong connection allowed them to finish each other's sentences. This behavior was considered extremely unnerving to other races.

Personality
Insistent merchants, dohwar intentionally lacked any social skills. When negotiating, they frequently engaged in pushy and unpleasant behavior, pairing up against a potential customer and endlessly reciting their list of merchandise or offers to buy their client's possessions until some sort of deal was struck. They carried incredibly varied selections of goods, including wagons, small boats, magic items, and any other items imaginable.

While seemingly chaotic and disorganized when seen by outsiders, dohwar were very well organized and worked well together for the good of their species. They were constantly under the impression that everyone else in the multiverse was actively working against them, a feeling that most of the time inspired solidarity among their own.

Combat
It was uncommon for dohwar themselves to get involved in fights. Their only natural weapons were their fangs, which had evolved to eat tough vegetation on several planets across wildspace. They usually hired mercenaries, typically giff, to fight in their stead.

However, if in a situation in which mercenaries could not be trusted or relied upon, some dohwar did specialize in combat. Known as Protectors, each of these fighting dohwar was armed with a weega, a type of sword blade that was worn on their beaks, which turned an otherwise harmless peck into a deadly weapon. Protectors also favored heavy armor.

Some groups of dohwar Protectors were capable of riding space swine and organized air strike groups known as Deathsquealers, typically composed of squads of four Protectors each. These riders wielded lances in addition to their weega and were proficient with numerous air fighting techniques.

Society
Dohwar society was organized in large groups known as cartels, which ranged from over 100 to around 230 individuals, including adults and children. Each cartel was led by a powerful spellcaster known as a President. Other spellcasters down the hierarchy were known as Executive Board members and Managers. The latter usually piloted the dohwar spelljammers. Due to the dohwar's strong aversion to pain, many spellcasters specialized in healing magic.

The favored ships used by the dohwar were known as uspos, huge spelljammers shaped like penguins lying on their stomachs. They were typically employed as merchant ships and were loaded with trade goods. Although uspos did not carry any armament, they were frequently crewed by well armed security squads of Deathsquealers and giff mercenaries.

Dohwar religion was centered around deities associated with commerce, wealth, and profit. They were known for worshiping deities of various alignments and from diverse origins. Religious donations offered by dohwar were seen as investments in their future relations with their deities.

As a society, the dohwar were almost universally shunned and considered a major irritant. They were deemed intolerable by elves and reigar, and were largely ignored by the Arcane. Mind flayers and beholders considered them only of interest for their biological experiments, while the neogi appreciated the taste of dohwar flesh and gith pirates sought them for the loot in their ships. The only race that maintained friendly relations with the dohwar were gnomes, who had an enormous interest in the gadgets they sold in order to incorporate into their inventions. The dohwar themselves were also known for reselling many gnomish inventions.

While being able to live in any environment, dohwar tended to prefer arctic and sub-arctic climates, near large bodies of water. Their relation with the environment was one of balance and non-disturbance. They were monogamous and mated for life, and reproduced by laying a few eggs once a year. The eggs were referred to as "new wares".

The homeworld of the dohwar was said to be an arctic planet populated by millions of individuals engaged in several business practices. Its location was unknown and not actively searched for by any race.

History
In the mid‒14 century DR, a small group of dohwar from Realmspace traveled to Clusterspace in pursuit of a neogi trading vessel in retaliation for a failed attempt by the neogi to capture the dohwar ship. Upon arrival in the Astromundi Cluster, the dohwar started forming alliances and attempting to establish a trade organization within the sphere.

Notable Dohwar
In the mid‒14 century DR, a dohwar merchant sold wares in the Greater Market in Bral. Another dohwar worked as a serving wench on one of the asteroids of Garden.

Appearances

 * Novels
 * The Maelstrom's Eye • The Radiant Dragon