The crafts of each culture will be defined by their treatment of aesthetics and practical realities. I will define the weaponsmithing and armorsmithing of each culture, their clothing, and their most distinctive craft.
Daltoners:
Smithing - Daltoners favor heavier weapons and armor, and their smithing has focused on ways to create thicker metals that still allow for some range of motion. Weapons tend to be more strength-focused, like hammers and axes. Their designs tend toward the ceremonial (as opposed to functional), mostly with designs that refer to the government or official church, particularly of the Daltoner version of Pelor.
Clothing - Daltoner clothing is mostly made of coarse, heavy fabrics like wool and jute. Designs tend to feature multiple layers of thick clothing--a shirt, vest, and jacket, for instance, even in the hotter months of the year. Designs tend to be simple insignias on the breast of the shirt/dress similar to the smithed items; they feature governmental or religious symbols.
Distinctive Craft - Daltoners have historically had to make due with very little in the way of resources until their arrival on Evanoch a few hundred years ago--their new plenty has resulted in reveling in excess. As a result, their invention of candy has invaded other cultures, but Daltoner candy is the most revered. They are particularly known for their development of dark chocolate.
Faninites:
Smithing - Faninites are relatively new to smithing and have tended towards lighter armors and weapons to reflect their practice with less weighty equipment. Many of their weapons are still crafted from wood, but smithed weapons are dexterity-based. The emblems used on smithed goods tend to be reflective of nature; the most common images are trees, leaves, and clouds.
Clothing - Faninites tend to wear light, comfortable clothing, even during moments of high ceremony. Designs tend to feature loose-fitting tunics and breeches among all people. Designs on clothing are diverse but always simplistic; too much showiness in clothing is looked down on.
Distinctive Craft - Faninites had practiced the art of painting for centuries before landing on Evanoch, and upon landing, their techniques came to dominate the field, particularly the more impressionistic approach to depicting things. Faninite paintings can often be identified by their use of bold colors and extreme contrast. Landscape paintings in particular are the hallmark of Faninite art.
Elves:
Smithing - Elves are known for crafting the lightest of smithed armors; their development of orcish smithing technologies after capturing the tech from an orcish military camp have taken smithing in the opposite direction. Weapons are crafted for lightweightness, including the practice of creating hollow or split blades. Engraved emblems include Corellon Larethian (god of the elves), natural items like trees, and celestial bodies.
Clothing - Elves are known for long gowns and robes which show very little variation between male and female options. Fabrics tend to be dyed natural earth tones like green and brown, with occasional pops of blue and yellow. Designs are often simple geometric designs, particularly the spiral, which is believed to be the shape of the universe among elves.
Distinctive Craft - Elves are the most experienced in the craft of creating books. Elves were the first to develop paper technology before it spread across the continent as well as inks; elven books from millennia ago still live today in elven libraries. Elven books are simple in design but often include on simple emblem which represents the contents of the book.
Half-Elves:
Smithing - Half-elves have combined the technologies of elven and Faninite smithing, being the first to create armors and weapons which combined smithing and carving technologies. Their weaponry tend to reflect the Faninite simple technology and the joint tactic of dexterity, and half-elven archery is considered the finest. Half-elves tend to make armor that has elven clothing's ceremony and Faninite simplicity, resulting in ornate armor and weaponry that lacks any distinct emblem (to stay neutral).
Clothing - Half-elves tend to create clothing that combines elven and Faninite designs; the result is loose robes over simple breeches. Designs feature the lightweight fabrics of the Faninites and the bright colors of Faninite art. Like with their smithed goods, there is a lack of affiliatory emblems, but the elven geometric designs are seen here, particularly in more complex designs.
Distinctive Craft - Half-elves are known in particular for their pottery; their fabled aesthetic proficiency paired with the practicality of the Faninites allows them to create vessels which are regarded both for the beauty and function. Half-elven pottery is known for interesting shapes and colorful glazes, especially in natural tones. This pottery is known for its use of designs of different deities; half-elven pottery shops tend to have a whole range of holy symbols to appeal to the public.
Orcs:
Smithing - Orcs, the first society to create smithing in the early smithing era, created generally heavy armors and weapons from the first alloy steel. Their weapons and armor tend to balance strength and dexterity, creating gear that would be the blueprint for smithing for thousands of years. Orcish designs are strictly functional, and only the Ragnar of orcish society is allowed to display a personal insignia.
Clothing - Orcish clothing is generally spare; a traditional orcish wardrobe consists of closely-fitted clothing of shorts and a light tunic. Designs are very simple and are designed so that any orc could wear any garment, regardless of body type. Clothing, like smithed gear, is kept free of elaborate designs, but striped clothing has become popular in the last few generations.
Distinctive Craft - Orcs, as the progenitors of smithing, were the first to create practical tools. As a result, the hand tools used in essentially every industry are based on orcish designs, especially basic inventions like the axe, pick, and hammer. Orcish tools are also kept free of designs, though modern smiths have begun to leave initials on an inconspicuous spot on their tools.
Dwarves:
Smithing - Dwarves, the second society to adopt smithing in history, developed smithing into a more decorative art. The undenied leader of work in smithing heavy armors and weapons lies with the dwarves, who use compliment their raw strength and balance out their lack of mobility with bulky armors and weapons. Their designs are the most ornate of all smithed goods, displaying deities of choice, clan insignias, and personal emblems such as hammers and anvils.
Clothing - Dwarven clothing tend to be loose-fitting but highly ornamental, with lots of extra flourishes such as ascots and sashes. To compensate for the many layers dwarves wear, the fabrics used are very lightweight, though this balance was only derived in the last few hundred years. Designs include large images of deities, family crests, and emblems of one's profession.
Distinctive Craft - Dwarves are known for their production of exotic weaponry; they are credited with the development of weapons such as the halberd, the glaive, the flail, and the trident. Adventurers in search of the finest exotic weaponry tend to seek dwarven smiths, who often even accept custom weapon commissions. These rarer weapons are usually stamped with both signatures of the smith and etched imagery at the customer's request.
Gnomes:
Smithing - Gnomes picked up smithing technology from the dwarves and immediately adapted it to gnomish needs, and as a result, gnomish armor rests in the space between the heavy armor they learned from and the medium armor that suited their needs better. Weaponry and armor looks for the balance between lightweight materials and durability. Gnomish designs are ostentatious and geometric; typical gnomish smithed gear often features elaborate designs which cover the entire item.
Clothing - Gnomish clothing uses the most durable of fabrics with an emphasis on comfort; adventurers often obtain gnomish clothing for its strength and wearability. The fabrics are of the brightest colors, usually paired for the most extreme contrast. The designs here are again geometric, with a special emphasis on irregular patterns.
Distinctive Craft - Gnomes are known for the gadgets, mechanized creations which can simplify a task, such as automatic looms, self-fueling furnaces, and rudimentary clocks. Key to these processes is the smithing of fine items like gears, springs, and screws, all of which required great technological advances to create. Gadgets tend to not be heavily decorated, but the devices usually take on distinctive and interesting shapes.
Halflings:
Smithing - Halflings, who rely on their dexterity to live in the treacherous habitat they're used to. They are responsible for creating many of the lightest weapons as well as the lightest armors, mainly hide armors--halflings are expert leatherworkers. Their designs are mostly about function, but also with an eye on interesting design; simple designs are sometimes engraved or pressed into gear, such as ocean waves, the moon, and mountain peaks.
Clothing - Halflings were the first culture to create the loom, and their work with textiles remains the dominant paradigm for the industry. Their lightweight and durable fabrics have been used to create all manner of clothing styles, from common and functional to ornate and striking. Designs tend to use groups of complimentary colors, bows, and hats. Evanines say that people tend to wear whatever was popular in Curagon, the halfling capital city, about 20 years earlier.
Distinctive Craft - Natives to a dense rainforest, halflings have become experts in gathering medicinal plants from nature; their potions, salves, and poultices are among the most advanced and sought after in the land. In addition, the glassmaking required to hold these medicines in bottles has resulted in halflings advancing glassblowing techniques significantly--their glasswork is as often strictly functional as it is ornate and decorative, sometimes taking the forms of moons, flowers, and pyramids.
There you have it: a guide to the various crafts of each culture. This will allow me to give much better descriptions of gear as well as a nice bit of worldbuilding about their distinctive crafts. I'm looking forward to getting to share these details with my players.
That's all for now. Coming soon: a one-shot based on the movie Face/Off, factors to consider in terms of crime and policing in your world, and a guide to the tattoo art of cultures in my homebrew setting. Until next time, happy gaming!
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