Janni

Jann, singular janni, were the weakest of all genies. Jann were not natives of one of the elemental planes like other genies, instead they were natives of Toril, specifically Zakhara, the Land of Fate.

Jann served the other genie races and adopted the role of guardians of the wild reaches of Zakhara. As a whole, the jann were the physical embodiment of the desert's virtues. They were a proud people who repaid insults and impropriety accordingly. They were hospitable to travelers who showed that they deserved the treatment and who treated the jann with the same respect they were afforded.

One rumor insinuated that the jann were created initially by powerful elementals so that they could grant wishes to other genies. However, jann were not able to perform this feat.

Since they lacked the inherent telepathic abilities of other genies, Midani was the adopted form of communication for jann. Additionally, they spoke Jannti, the common genie tongue, and could communicate with animals at will. Interestingly, any animal with whom a janni spoke would never attack that janni.

Description
The jann of Zakhara resembled powerfully built humans or half-elves. Members of both sexes were usually quite attractive. The average janni stood between 6-7 ft. (1.8-2.1 m) tall. Their skin was the color of golden sand or earth, allowing them to mingle unnoticed among the dark-skinned Zakharans. Their eye color varied greatly, but always held a supernatural intensity.

Combat
Because of their tough skin, all jann were immune to the effects of the desert heat and injury or irritation caused by windborne sand. Most jann wore lamellar armor in battle but suffered no ill consequences from heat exhaustion when fighting under the intense heat of the day. Great scimitars and composite longbows were used so the jann could take full advantage of their great strength. A janni's large fists were also quite effective when used during combat.

Both sexes of jann possessed great strength, with the men being slightly stronger on average than the women. However, the weakest female janni was still stronger than the majority of hulking human men.

Jann possessed spell-like abilities that they used to their advantage. They could increase or decrease their height to a maximum of 24 ft. (7.3 m) and a minimum of 2 inches (5 cm). Jann could also use this ability to shrink or enlarge any willing or unwilling target they touched. Jann used invisibility, could create food and water, and become ethereal. They could fly and breathe underwater at will.

Jann were quite fearsome when fought within their desert homeland. While rare, a janni encountered outside of the desert was awkward and uncomfortable. Jann enjoyed a degree of resistance to anything magical while within the boundary of the desert or up to one mile beyond the edge of the desert.

Jann were capable of traveling to the Astral and Ethereal planes, as well as all of the elemental planes. Jann were not immune to any negative effects from the elemental planes, prompting them to stay for no longer than 48 hours at a time before they needed to return home or risking slowly damaging themselves. After returning to their home, jann needed to wait for another 48 hours before travelling back to an elemental plane. They could also bring up to 6 travelers with them to these planes. All travelers enjoyed the jann's protection while visiting an elemental plane.

Habitat/Society
Jann preferred to live deep within the vast deserts of Zakhara because of the safety and privacy they felt there. They acted as the natural caretakers of the desert, serving both the genie lords and the Grand Caliph.

Similar to the Al-Badia, jann were nomads, though they moved about far less than the nomads of Zakhara. A common clan of jann included 10-30 individuals led by a sheikh. Clans within a given area were part of a larger tribe. Two of the largest tribes were the House of Sihr in the High Desert and the Jann of the Haunted Lands. Amirs ruled the larger tribes and houses. Amirs were counseled by brilliant viziers who possessed spell-like abilities. Additionally, smaller clans who were not aligned with any tribe were scattered throughout the deserts.

Jann traveled between fertile lands to feed their herds of goats, camels, and sheep. Bright tents served as their homes on these mobile ventures. Jann recognized both sexes as equal in status and abilities. Both males and females could have a number of different spouses. By tradition, a married male lived in or near the tent of his family. Married females lived in or near the tent of their spouse's family until they married again, at which point a neutral site was chosen. Children were granted their own tents in the event that a tent became too small for the growing family.

Though they were a nomadic people, jann did maintain permanent locations hidden throughout the desert. Their favorite locations for these settlements were hidden oases, ancient ruins, and abandoned temples. Tents were prevalent in these locations, but the jann also constructed beautiful buildings such as mosques, bathhouses, smokehouses, and audience chambers.

Ecology
Jann were usually friendly toward strangers within their desert territories. They did not show preference or malcontent toward any race over the other, preferring to judge people based upon their actions and whether or not they were enlightened. The jann's trust in others waned as they reached or exceeded the boundary of their territory where they felt more uncomfortable.

As a race, jann strove to maintain a strong relationship with the djinn. They often called upon the djinn to aid them under dire circumstances. Efreet and dao were merely tolerated. The marid, however, were treated as royalty.

A janni could live to be 300 years old.