Sturdy, Reliable

The people of the Earth Kingdom work in and with the land.  Most work a farm or in mines, or craft things out of wood and metal.  The best smiths in the world are Eartheners, able to forge magnificent weapons and armor with their superior understanding of stone and metal.  They make sturdy tools, and craft fine jewelry from precious metals and rare gemstones.  Eartheners are proud people, and they value their possessions highly, especially the ones they’ve made themselves.

People of the Earth are said to be made out of the earth from which they’re born, evidenced in their earthen toned skin.  Their hair ranges from dark brown to black and is often worn long and down.  While Earth Kingdom nobles may adorn themselves in decadence, most commoners wear simple, practical clothing, adorned on special occasions with a prized possession or family heirloom.

Strong Roots

Houses and ancestral lands were established long ago in the Earth Kingdom.  It is rare that an Earth Kingdom member will leave the land that birthed and sustained them forever.  Most would not leave at all if they could, but when they do they almost always return.  Their homeland is their way of life, comfortable and familiar.  People of the Earth Kingdom, like the earth itself, tend to be stubborn and resistant to change.

Because their ancestral roots run so deep, Eartheners are ever-conscious and respectful of tradition.  They praise their ancestors for uncovering the ways of the land and follow in their footsteps, utilizing and caring for the land as their ancestors did.  To disrespect familial lands or ancestors, would amount an offense punishable by dismissal from the ancestral line and banishment from familial lands.  Grudges can be held for ages in the Earth Kingdom, and quarrels between houses today are often the result of centuries old conflicts. Thus, Eartheners take the utmost care to never disrespect the land, because the land remembers everything and will outlast them all.

Loyal to the Land

Houses of the Earth Kingdom associate themselves with the natural phenomena that surround them.  The noble houses devote themselves to the five largest geographical landscapes; the mountains, woodlands, rainforest, plains, and steppes.  Within these biomes, lesser houses associate with major geographical occurrences, weather patterns, flora and fauna of their homeland and way of life.  An agricultural clan who relies on seasonal flooding prays to the spirit of the river for favorable waters, a mining clan reveres a gem found many generations ago, known to them as the heart of the mountain, a clan in the swamp depicts intertwined tree roots on their sigil as a sign of the interconnectedness of life, and a clan in the savanna offers a ritual dance to the goddess of grains to bring abundant grasses for their herds.

From families to clans to houses, every kinship group has their natural associations and house spirits.  They have built relationships with the spirits of their surroundings over many generations, and thus feel very comfortable in their natural environment.  They live with and through the land, trusting the spirits to be on their side.  They revere the apex predators of their lands, but live alongside them, unafraid of the wilds around them.  Earth Kingdom people do everything in their power to reduce harm to their lands, thus, they take only what they need and rarely eat animals.  Those who cannot respect the land are not welcomed in the Earth Kingdom.

Grounded Lovers

Eartheners find value in the tangible, material world, in things that are real, felt, and experienced.  They are centered by their senses and choose to focus on the reality presented directly in front of them rather than on theories and ideals, finding that doing so tends to make life more simple and pleasant.  Eartheners prefer this simple lifestyle, but when life presents a situation that challenges their way of life, a person of the Earth may have to make the tough decision to hunker down and weather the storm or uproot and find a new way to make themself feel that sense of home.

Eartheners would be hard-pressed to leave the land they love, but if something larger and more powerful threatens their land and their way of life, they would go to the ends of the earth to protect it.  On the flip-side, an adventurous Earthener might go out of their way to acquire an item that could bolster the well-being of their homeland.  Eartheners love material goods, so when an opportunity to acquire wealth or riches presents itself, the outgoing Earthener may find it hard to turn down, even if it means stepping away from their homeland for a time.

Above all, Eartheners value the riches of their own lands.  Precious gemstones and rare metals unearthed from their homeland are invaluable to an Earthener, and they would never willingly part with an ancestral artifact or family heirloom, the spiritual significance of which could never be matched in gold.