Dragonborn

Dragonborn are a race of draconic creatures native to Abeir, Toril's long sundered twin. During the Spellplague the dragonborn nation of Tymanchebar was placed where Unther had once been, creating the nation of Tymanther, where most dragonborn native to Toril dwell to this day. Dragonborn have a strong hatred of dragons, who enslaved them on Abeir.

Physical Qualities
Standing on average between 6'2" and 6'8" on average dragonborn are impressivelly tall, with a heavy weight to match, commonly possessing a mass between 220 and 320 lbs. Dragonborn feet are ended with three strong talonlike claws as are their hands, with the addition of one thumb on each hand. A dragonborn's head features a blunt snouth, a strong brow, and reptilian frills on the cheeks and ears. On the back of the head a crest of hornlike scales form what resembles a mess of ropy hair. Dragonborn eyes are usually red or gold in hue.

Dragonborn resemble in many ways what their name suggests: humanoid dragons. Dragonborn exhibit many dragonlike features, including a scaly hide and the capacity to use a breath weapon. The scales a dragonborn wears are scarlet, gold, rust, ocher, bronze, or brown in hue and though they in fact bear little correlation to a dragonborn's breath weapon and the scale colors of true dragons. The scales are typically in their greatest concentration around forearms, lower legs, feet, shoulders, and thighs, with a very fine leathery covering over the rest of the body.

Young dragonborn, who hatch from eggs like their draconic relatives, grow at an impressively rapid rate, much fater than most other races, reaching the equivalent maturity of a human child of 10 by age 3. However, this rate of maturation slows dramatically within a few short years and dragonborn are not considered physically mature for another twelve years. Once they do reach adulthood, dragonborn can expect a lifespan identical to that of humans.

Psychology
Dragonborn have a well-known dedication to honor and how deeply rooted this trait is remains debatable. However, all dragonborn tend to view all living things, even hated dragons, as deserving of courtesy and respect. To dragonborn, honor is more than a word and is often considered more important than life itself. Cowardice is not simply undesirable amongst dragonborn, it is considered outright repulsive.

Part of the roots of this honorable attitude lies in the dragonborn's drive for self-improvement. Dragonborn place great value on the skill of an individual, including themselves. Failing at a task is anathema to dragonborn and as a result they can sometimes push themselves to unhealthy extremes of effort. This aspect of the dragonborn mind means few of the race take a laidback approach to any skill or ability, striving ever to become the masters of a particular skill and dragonborn respect those among other races that approach life in the same manner. As a result most dragonborn adventurers come to their way of life through a desire to prove themselves and win respect from their brethren.

Other races may see dragonborn as proud or even arrogant because of this dedication to excellence and high standards. It is true that dragonborn are typically proud of their race's accomplishments. However, dragonborn are also more than willing to recognize with respect the accomplishments of other races in turn, whether or not the race in question is an ally or enemy.

Culture
The dragonborn drive for honor carries on into the culture of the race. Amongst dragonborn the most horrible crime is oathbreaking and honesty is expected whenever a deal is struck. Commitment to a word is expected to be carried out to the letter and all parties in a transaction are held accountable and responsible for failings. Ultimately, those who fail to meet their word are expected to accept the consequences and, in fact, most dragonborn do.

Dragonborn society in the nation of Tymanther, partially because of its martial origins, is extremely rigid in its organization, with hierarchical castes and strict laws. The nation is divided into large clans, each organized more like a military organization than a government. However, while the laws of Tymanther may be unforgiving the nation is also highly meritocratic and Tymantheran leaders are those that have proved their ability for command.

The dragonborn culture of Tymanther has a strong and abiding hatred of dragons, perpetuated by terrifying tales of draconic cruelty and retellings of the dragonborn struggle for freedom on Abeir. Though the dragons of Toril have nothing to do with this horrid past that haunts the race the dragonborn are not particularly forgiving in this regard and individuals who take up dragon-hunting for whatever reasons are honored as heroes amongst the Tymantherans.

However, though this hatred of dragons is strong, even carrying over to a condemnation of the worship of Bahamut, many dragonborn hope that life on Toril will help them escape the tragedies of their history. In part because of their distrust of dragons but also because of a general desire to forge a bright future for their people devoid of war the Tymantheran dragonborn have worked hard to earn the friendship of races around the world and few prejudices other than the hatred of dragons plague the dragonborn race. Dragonborn efforts have been partially successful but the sudden appearance of the dragonborn and the alien nature of their culture makes many wary of their motives.

Homelands
Dragonborn are most commonly found on Abeir, where the vast majority of the race dwells. There, as well as in Returned Abeir dragonborn are enslaved by draconic overlords who rule over much of Toril's lost twin. However, some dragonborn nations do exist that have wrested themselves away from draconic rule. The largest of these was Tymanchebar on Abeir, whose center of power was wrested away from Abeir by the Spellplague and transplanted on the ruins of Unther. Most dragonborn believe now that Tymanchebar has been destroyed and reconquered by the dragon lords of Abeir, no longer having the protection of its mighty citadels and armies. Today, Tymanther, the dragonborn nation formed from this expatriate of Abeir, is the strongest center of dragonborn culture, at least on Toril.