Though they are much younger and smaller than most other races, the warforged are one of the most famous (and infamous) races in Khorvaire. Created halfway through the Last War, they became a fixture on the battlefield, and after the Treaty of Thronehold, they became a free people. The same treaty forbade any further production of their kind, so barring any secret creation forges, their population dwindles (standing now at about 150,000 worldwide).

History

• When the explorers of House Cannith first found the creation forges deep in the jungles of Xen’drik, they had no idea what they did, but the powerful magic auras they emitted and the many references to them in ancient texts told them it was worth it to bring the forges home. Upon further research, the artificers were able to decipher a serious of complicated rituals that would bring life to an inanimate object. The first Cannith warforged were close to golems; simple constructs capable of following instructions. King Jarot quickly ordered a serious of gargantuant warforged from house Baron Merrix, siege engines designed to defend Khorvaire from invasion.
• Soon after, Merrix’s son Aarren discovered a series of magical factors and addendums to the warforged ritual that would imbue the constructs with the spark of sentience. Although the fully-formed creatures had the brainpower of a child, they could quickly adapt to any martial lessons, and followed orders quite well.
• The forged were put into full service in 965 YK, bought up mostly by the Cyran military. Within a few years, their martial efficacy was proven, and other countries quickly starting buying up squads. Most forged were treated as property until 986, when King Boranel was touched by the amazing service of a particular troop of warforged. He declared that all warforged committed to Brelish military service would be declared legal citizens upon completion of their duty (i.e., the end of the Last War).
• This emancipation was spread legally throughout the continent during the Thronehold treaty proceedings, but a loophole allowed individual countries to decide how emancipation would be processed. As a result, most countries have included indentured servitude (sometimes stretching ten years) as a condition of citizenship, making the forged little better than slaves.

Characteristics

• Warforged became reknown soldiers because of a series of racial traits. They required no sleep, so they were perfect for night watches and could march all day, surprising an enemy expecting a normal pace of travel. They required no food, water, or even air, significantly lowering supply costs and preventing any airborne agents from lowering their numbers. They felt no pain, ignoring all but the most severe injury, giving them a longer timespan in which to finish their objectives. Finally, their mental acuity was suited to military life: warforged thought nothing of doing repetitive tasks for hours, and with no social life, they never missed home or thought of going awol.

Psiforged

• One of the variations on the warforged design immerged in the last 3 years of the Last War. Imbedded with psionic crystals, the psiforged would have become a serious force if production wasn’t stopped by the Treaty of Thronehold. Psionic energy was not widely used on the continent’s battle fields, and even when it was, it was rarely more than one rogue psion. Small squads of psiforged worked in conjuction, creating hiveminds capable of doing massive damage on the battefield. Today, there are only about 10,000 psiforged left.