Note that, in contrast to 3rd Edition rules, gnomes and halflings do not exist in the World of Samoth. This is not a decision I made lightly, but in light of the overall history of the world that I've developed, these races could not be integrated. More will be clear as the campaign story arc is revealed.
In place of gnomes and halflings, player characters can also be orcs, half-orcs, goblins, and half-goblins. Note again that these are not the sniveling, brutish, unintelligent goblins and orcs that you are used to, but instead are intelligent races similar to elves and dwarves.
Lastly, note that for all races, there are usually one or two "subraces". Here, I'm not referring to the standard "Wood Elf" or "Mountain Dwarf" type of thing. At this point, most of the non-human races have pretty much intermingled, so their differences come mainly from religious and political backgrounds versus a physical one. Therefore, an elf living in Esoria, while still be different from other races in that country, will have much more in common with the humans and goblins of Esoria than he will with the elves of the Akkatomian City-States. There are no "Elven Empires" or "Dwarven Kingdoms" any more, with the possible exception of the Goblin Lugalate of Nur. I believe that this makes the world much more believable. Why should every elf and dwarf have the same goals and empires when the humans are always fragmented?
This intermingling of cultures makes the so-called "half-breeds" very common. Half-elves, half-orcs, and half-goblins are common throughout the world, particularly in the west. To date, humans do not seem to be able to breed with dwarves.
Note that there are several areas of the world which aren't mapped yet (particularly in the far north and far south). The general populace of the World of Samoth do not know what lie in these areas, so there may yet be ancient elven empires still in existence that have no contact with the modern world.
There are three main world religions, AEtonism (both Universal and Eastern), Holism, and Bhuwani. All three are found in varying degrees in the west, although the vast majority of common people are AEtonist. There is one country in the West, Cadrobar, that is a very religious country based on the tenets of Holism. The Bhuwani faith is almost unknown in the West, but may exist in the form of traveling merchants, etc.
Depending on where they live, elves, dwarves, goblins, and orcs may belong to one of these religions as well. In certain areas, the dwarves (and orcs, who followed suit) chose not to adopt AEtonism. This has caused them many hardships, particularly in Esoria (the religious center of Universal AEtonism). The non-human races also have a tendency to, especially in outlying areas, to adopt one of the human faiths and intermix it with one of their ancient faiths to create splinter groups that are not condoned by the main religious leaders.
