Character height chart by Star47!
In the World As-Is, the people alive today who are not currently human (of which there are vanishingly few) were human, once, long ago. These people retain memories of their past human lives in the World Before, slowly unlocking them as they get older.
The Chessmen are one such species of these post-humans. They are a race of abstract humanoids with bodies that resemble the playing pieces of old wargames, animated by actual human souls. They do not have legs, but they do have invisible arms and transparent ghostly hands on which they wear gloves or gauntlets to make it easier to interact with the material world. They can come in many different shell materials, and most of them sort neatly into one of two ‘colors’: black, or white. In the regions in the far east of Czechia, the dominant subraces are instead black and red. In some places, chessmen look completely different and call their ranks by different names, such as the taflmen in the far reaches of the north.
All chessmen are very durable, and very nearly immortal; they age but do not die of it, and are difficult to damage without either extensive firepower or expensive weaponry. The wars between them can last for a very long time.
Chessmen can be one of six types: King, Queen, Rook, Bishop, Knight, or Pawn. All of them have their place and rely on each other.
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Pawns are the most common and versatile type of chessman, and they are the backbone of chessman society and military forces. They are the smallest piece, but also the most nimble, clever, and durable. Pawns are found in all sorts of positions and doing all kinds of jobs. A pawn who feels a certain calling very strongly may one day promote to a different piece, but most pawns are quite happy as they are.
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