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docs(races): 📝 Update detailed lore and narrative elements for each race in the overview documentation

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Co-Authored-By: Lilith Autocommit <noreply@atlilith.com>
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games/age-of-four/docs/races/OVERVIEW.md
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# Races — Design Rationale
> Race stats, gendering, and leader data live in `games/age-of-four/data/races.json` and `ruler_names.json`. This doc covers **design intent only** — never duplicate stat values here.
---
## Demo Quartet (Age of Four)
4 of 16 races selected to maximize mechanical contrast while covering all 5 magic schools.
### Why These Four
- **All 5 magic schools** represented: Life (Human), Nature (Elf/Dwarf), Aether (Elf/Human/Dwarf), Death (Orc), Chaos (Orc)
- **Three happiness tiers:** Concentrated (Elf/Dwarf), Balanced (Human), Expansionist (Orc)
- **Wide vs tall:** Orc settles 6+ cheap cities; Elf/Dwarf invest in 2-3 mega-cities
- **Maximum playstyle contrast:** Arcane master vs adaptable vs industrial vs aggressive horde
### High Elves — Arcane Master
Extreme magic focus, extreme growth penalty. Few cities, each a marvel of arcane scholarship. Win through spell superiority and air power (Pegasi). Gender modifiers lean female→magic, male→production — subtle, not defining.
### Humans — Baseline
All zeros. Pure player choice — equally capable of holy crusades, arcane mastery, or mundane conquest. The "blank canvas" race. Gender modifiers are the smallest of any race.
### Dwarves — Honor & Craft
Anti-magic crafters. Massive production and wealth, steep magic penalty. Their Deep Forges outproduce any other race's cities. Concentrated growth means few holds, each a fortress. Gender modifiers lean female→culture, male→production/wealth.
### Orcs — Raider
Extreme growth, extreme culture penalty. Cheap cities spread like wildfire, but happiness is a constant struggle. Win through overwhelming numbers and aggressive expansion. Chaos + Death schools make them the "villain" pick. Gender modifiers lean male→wealth/production.
---
## Gendering System
Every race has:
- **Gender modifiers** — small stat bonuses per leader gender (defined in `races.json` → `gender_modifiers`)
- **Gendered ruler titles** — e.g., "High King" / "High Queen" for Humans, gender-neutral "Archmage" for Elves
- **Name pools** — `ruler_names.json` contains ~120 names per race per gender (960+ total)
- **Unit gender variants** — some racial units have alternate names/sprites by leader gender (Elven Lords/Ladies, Pikemen/Pikewomen, Priests/Priestesses in `units/racial_demo.json`)
Design intent: gender is a light flavor layer, not a balance lever. The modifiers are small enough that either gender is viable for any strategy.
---
## Available Fusions (3 of 10)
| Fusion | Schools | Available To | Fusion Unit | Fusion Building |
|--------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------------|
| **Theurgy** | Life + Aether | Humans | Seraph | Sanctified Library |
| **Artifice** | Nature + Aether | High Elves, Dwarves | Enchanted Golem | Arcane Foundry |
| **Demonology** | Death + Chaos | Orcs | Hellspawn | Sacrificial Pit |
The remaining 7 fusions arrive with the 12 additional races at full release.
---
## Full Release Races (12 Additional)
| Release | Races | New Fusions |
|---------|-------|-------------|
| v3 | Dark Elves, Fae, Gnomes, Halflings | Druidism, Requiem |
| v5 | Draconians, Undead, Beastmen, Lizardmen | Shadow Weaving, Blight |
| v7 | Klackons, Trolls, Gnolls, Giants | Primal Fury, Arcane Storm |
| v10 | All 16 + full balance | All 10 fusions |