Elementals

Hey Veeky Forums!
I'm running a campaign that takes place within 14 different elemental kingdoms. Each kingdom has people that are part elemental, looking a bit like their element and able to control it to some degree, similar to Avatar but a little bit less human.
I'm trying to find good ideas for tropes for each of the kingdoms to have, without being cliche. The last thing I want to do is make the Shadow Kingdom a bunch of grimdark assassins or make the Wind Kingdom a rip-off of the air nomads.
Here is a list of the elemental kingdoms. If anyone has any ideas to share, feel free!
>Crystal: Gemheart
>Darkness: Shadestepper
>Dust/Sand: Dustwalker
>Earth: Groundshaker
>Fire: Emberwatchers
>Ice: Frostmouths
>Lava: Moltenskin
>Light: Lightbringer
>Lightning: Sparkshot
>Metal: Steeleye
>Mist: Mistborn
>Water: Tidecaller
>Wind: Breezesinger
>Wood: Rootspeaker

(also if you have any better name ideas)

>14 elements

Why

>14 different elemental kingdom
>Earth, but also Crystal, Dust, Sand, Metal, and Wood
>Water, but also Mist and Ice

Are you legitimately autistic?

Do you have some special reason to focus on the "14" part, OP? Some mithology you're ripping off of or some grand quest involving exactly 14 shards of whatever and such? Because at first glance that's a big turn-off for any outsider(ha!) looking in.

Many of your so-called elements are just plain dumb, namely Mist, Lava, Crystal, Dust, and Water/Ice being separated. Each of those is too shallow to be an actual theme for a realm, and some of them are a straight-out downgrade of Earth, an already existing one. Try to sum up them in about 6 or 8 elements and give the people in each country the possibility specialize in the excluded ones as subschools in addition to the base land element.

>Water/Ice being separated

That can work though.

But most of these elements are completely redundant. Also am I the only one who thinks Light and Dark shouldn't be elements?

They really shouldn't, that's a JRPG convention so you can have more elements without direct rock-paper-scissors to base elements, as you normally only get light/darkness stuff farther into the game.

I do believe Water/Ice being separated kinda breaks what an element really is. Say, you can bend water fine, but as soon as it gets cold you can't do anything anymore? Looks dumb, and you also kinda restrict the Ice elementals to eternally cold regions and jobs. Even creating ice can be called a dumbed-down water manipulation.

I just posted an example of where an ice/water segregation was worked into the setting. Obviously it doesn't work with say, Avatar's elemental philosophies.

It makes more sense than having a crystal, dust, earth, lava, and metal all being completely different.

> be water
> want to freeze some motherfucker
> NO! ITS RACIST!
> want to do some kinky camouflage by misting the air
> NO! ITS RACIST!

shit in fear komrade

The system I use actually offers a feat called "Elemental heritage" that gives benefits based off of 14 different elements you can choose from. I took inspiration from the feat and had those 14 be the elemental kingdoms. I do see how it could be a bit much

How would you guys combine them?

So you're ripping off the Heritage feats. Is it really so hard to change the number so your whole setting doesn't look so 13-year-old?

>Pic
Fire Element: Fire man!
Wood Element: Wood Woman!
Air Element: Airy Woman!
Water Element: Fish

God do I hate that.

I'm gonna agree with you.

If characters have to be elemental-ish humans, then why not be more subtle?

I especially hate if they're angry fire types.

Why not:
>fire chap
>extremely careful
>makes sure not to burn himself out
>litteraly
>extremely efficient

Nations condensed to
>Earth, Fire, Water, Wind, Wood
With the remaining feats split into
>Earth: Crystal, Metal
>Water: Ice
As well as halfbreeds
>Earth + Fire: Lava
>Earth + Water: Darkness
>Earth + Air: Dust
>Fire + Air: Lightning or Light
>Water + Air: Mist
Wood's left out by that, and there's a combination missing, but it uses all the values and brings the number of factions to a more reasonable level.

Earth and Water make Wood, you idiot millennial.

>you idiot millennial

Nigga what? The Earth-Water-Fire-Air-Wood paradigm was invented by the ancient Chinese.

Except plants are nourished principally by a combination of water and air, with the earth providing next to none of their substance. Also, having living things within the standard 4-element combinations will always end up stupid.

Is OP speaking Chink? No, so we're going by American rules, you infant-with-an-internet-connection.

>OP includes Wood in his Elemental set up.

Just because it's old doesn't mean it holds water. Wood as a separate thing is dumb and even when you try to mesh it with the 14 elements OP cited, you still have a problem with Wood because it's a dumb segregation.

I think I'd like to have wood refer to plant matter in general rather than literally just wood. I think it would be an important enough element.

I like this idea! It puts an importance on heritage and breeding almost. Like Fire + Earth could make Crystal, then Crystal + Lightning could make Light.

>OP is still speaking American and not Chink

Hey OP, I think that if these elements give you a good concept for each race, then you should go for it. Earth and water elementals are pretty boring but I like the idea of races based on most or crystal. It looks like each of the races does their own thing, so as long as you can differentiate them well then keep them.