Reproduction among the various races generally follows similar biological methods of insemination, conception and birth. Simply explained, typical breeding involves having a male insert his sexual organ into a female's, and fertilizing a female's egg with seed through insemination. There are some variations in method, sexual readiness, and gestation, but otherwise the biological recipe is generally the same between the different races.
Most races reach sexual maturity at roughly the same age through
puberty, though there are often societal views and laws that dictate
that legal maturity comes a few years later. Once an individual reaches
sexual maturity, they can start to reproduce for the purposes of producing offspring. The period for when a female becomes unable to carry more offspring is also roughly the same across races; with most reaching a certain age where they can no longer reproduce. In some races this period comes after a set number of successful births, instead of at a definite point of time in their lives.
Some races differ slightly in a number of further procedures and developments of pregnancy. Someone of the kin races, like a human female, tends to be impregnated from (successful) male insemination and carry pregnancy for 9 months, then give birth to most commonly one baby, but can on rare occasions give birth to twins, triplets or even more.
A scaleshaped and other draconian races will develop and carry several eggs (five to six) inside them to be fertilized during Spawning Periods (a triennial biological event), then lay them in a spawning pool, where they must be fertilized again by what is known as a Spawnfather (a more virile scaleshaped male). After 2-3 more months, those eggs will hatch. A female scaleshaped can control her own readiness; choosing either to accept the triennial changes to her body, or suppressing them for when she herself feels ready to carry eggs.
Female kafari and other similar wildkith races see increased sexual activity during periods when they are in heat, and after successful male insemination they maintain a gestation period of 5-6 months. At its end the females will give birth to litters; consisting of typically 2-6 babies per litter.
Most other humanoid races, like elves, dwarves, zjindri, etc. reproduce similarly to the kin races, with slight differences in the gestation period. Otherwise they are more or less identical in terms of reproductive processes.
RACIAL COMPATIBILITY:
Typically only same-race species can produce children through breeding; so-called Racial Compatibility. This means that two individuals of different races can't produce common offspring, due to their biological incompatibility. There are, however, a few notable exceptions.
Three of the kin races; orcs, humans, and half-giants, are Racially Compatible, and can produce common offspring. Such copulation has given rise to the halfcast; three different half-breed races who are a result of breeding between orcs, humans and half-giants. Oddly enough, it would seem that these three halfcast races can't produce offspring between each other, and are only Racially Compatible with their own specific half-breed race.
Another example of Racial Compatibility are the scaleshaped races, who all share a common pool of creation from their creators, the Dragon Gods. The various scaleshaped races can produce offspring between each other, and it is possible to study an egg to determine the race based on its size, shape and colour. A scaleshaped hatchling will typically inherit its father's race, though some exceptions can occur.
Beyond the typical civilized races, there are some specific and lesser races, which are mainly either all-male, all-female or genderless, who are only able to reproduce by using other races. The most common example would be creatures like dryads, who breed with men of other races to produce offspring. Another example would be the primitive cave-dwelling vettins on the northern continents, who kidnap females of other races to be used as enslaved breeders.
Some insectoid creatures also trap and plant eggs inside other species; using them as a food-source for their young upon hatching. Sometimes it's not an actual sentient species, but a plantoid creature that makes use of other races; planting spores and infecting another species, regardless of gender, to allow themselves to spread.
It doesn't generally end well for the recipient of these races who rely on inter-species breeding. In most cases the person either ends up breaking from trauma or constant abuse, or they are simply killed (and then possibly eaten) when their uses have been exhausted.
CONTRACEPTIVES, ABORTION & STERILITY:It's possible to use certain types of spells or herbal medicine, or even certain devices, to create contraceptives. Once an individual consumes or makes use of a contraceptive, their ability to reproduce will be temporarily neutralized or numbed, and the chance of producing offspring will be drastically reduced. There is always still a chance, depending on the contraceptive used, but they are generally found to be very effective countermeasures for those who don't wish to have children.
In addition to contraceptives, it's also possible to abort a pregnancy altogether; granted that the pregnancy hasn't progressed beyond a certain point, and depending on the race of the pregnant individual. Procedures of abortion are varied; in some cases it's a medical procedure performed by skilled professionals, or it's a herbal concoction or drug, or a magical spell or magical procedure.
There is also the societal issue, depending on the local culture and laws, as to whether abortion is socially acceptable or legally allowed. Some certain societies view abortion as a defiance of natural or divine laws, and in other societies it is considered to be a free right to one's control over their own bodies.
Some individuals are entirely sterile and can't reproduce at all. These states of sterility can occur from several causes; either natural or magical. In natural cases, a person's body might have developed wrongly as they grew up, or they might have been subjected to physical strains or injuries that either intentionally or unintentionally sterilized them.
In the case of magic; individuals who experience an Awakening (be it Magical, Divine or Spiritual) will see increased mana pools within themselves. As a side-effect of this mana surge, the increase in mana causes irreversible sterility in an individual's body. Other magical causes could also lead to sterility, such as a Withering, mana storms, certain devious spells, or a variable number of other sources and causes.
There are also those who willingly undergo procedures or seek out ways to become sterile; usually to the effect of it being irreversible. In most cases it's not out of willingness, but as a requirement or punishment. Some cultures, both primitive and civilized ones, use sterilization as a form of punishment or as a safety-measure; the latter being the justified choice of words against individuals considered too dangerous to be allowed to reproduce.
OFFSPRING & UPBRINGING:
The typical offspring of the average race will go through mainly four stages:
As a baby, they are newly born to the world, and as they grow and develop they will learn to walk, talk, and generally interact with the world and people around them. Babies are incapable of taking care of themselves, and so they depend on a guardian, be it biological parents or non-related nursers, to watch over them. Depending on the race and culture, they might be fed either milk, blood, soft flesh, or something else. Their race's biological makeup will also determine when they reach the next stage, although it is commonly somewhere between 1-3 years of age.
Toddlers are at the stage of an offspring's life when they will have more or less become accustomed to the basics of their body, and they're now able to process and consume harder foods. Their speech will improve and their control over their bodily functions will do so as well. As they continue to grow, they will learn the societal customs and expected behaviours of their surroundings; mimicking those around them.
When they reach the stage of a normal child, most races' offspring will have reached a point where they are better able to take care of themselves, although still to a limited degree. Depending on the society, a child will still be highly attached to one or several guardians who take care of them (by providing food, shelter, etc.), but at this stage they will also start to become more mentally self sufficient. Various functions of their body will begin to rapidly develop, and at the age of 11-12 (on average between the different races) they will enter the next stage of their lives.
It is at the adolescent stage that a typical child will start to experience puberty. Their body will start to change to accommodate for sexual maturity, and most guardians will at this point consider the offspring to be almost completely self-sufficient; though with a lack of life-experience to truly set them free. The act of reaching actual adulthood widely depends on the culture, and in many cultures there are various rituals and ceremonies, societal or religious, to mark the ascension of becoming an adult.
It is also during adolescence, come the first signs of puberty, that Magical Awakening could occur.
Once an offspring reaches adulthood (depending on race or society; this could be at either 16, 18 or 20 years of age), he or she will be considered self-sufficient and free depending on laws, but most will still stick to familial ties; if they grew up in families to begin with.
Offspring will at birth inherit various appearance and physical traits from their parents. Be it race, skin-colour, eye-colour, shape of ears, nose, etc. As they grow up, they will then start to inherit and develop personality traits from their upbringing; shaping their views on life, what they consider to be moral or immoral, and so on.
Typical offspring will be born to a family, where they are taken care of and loved by their parents. But this will again depend on the culture and society, as there are some places in the world where a child is only born out of necessity, or it could be assigned to a specific caste at birth, or be brought up in batches by communally assigned nursers or teachers. In these cases it is unusual for an offspring to have any familial ties to their blood-relatives, and are instead brought up by the community as a whole.
In scaleshaped cultures, hatchlings are born in batches and then taken care of by groups of Spawnmothers. In the kafari clans, all the adult females of the local clan take care of each others' offspring equally, while in most other cultures (especially human, zjindri or elven), children are born into families that bind them to that family's name and blood for the rest of their lives.
Depending on the community, the upbringing of a child is usually the responsibility of a parent or general guardian. As such these upbringers maintain rights of certain ownerships of such children, until the child is old enough to be considered an adult, and can begin to make their own life decisions. Granted, of course, that the local culture doesn't have certain familial expectations, or restrictions of caste or similar.
In cultures where familial blood and relations are tied to laws, offspring born outside of marriage or couples are considered illegitimate children; or more commonly called bastards. Laws and societal opinions regarding bastards are especially common and relevant in highborn societies, where there is always a question of birthright or bloodright, as well as the concern of lineages and inheritance.
Offspring abandoned by or otherwise separated from their blood-related parents are known as orphans, and have no familial ties, or at least not any familial ties that are blood-related. In cultures where it is common for children to be communally raised, or in certain caste societies, the idea of an orphan is less common, as they more or less didn't have any parents to begin with.
In most societies, children are generally brought up (be it in families or in communities) to inherit a trade or certain responsibilities. In castes it is common for the offspring to be trained for their entire juvenile life to learn one or two assigned jobs, while in typical family-focused societies they inherit their parents' trade, or are brought up to fulfill familial responsibilities.
In various cultures, there might be different rights, expectations or societal perceptions between a male or female offspring. Some places, especially tribal and even feudal societies, it is common for girls to grow up to perform tasks related to sewing, cooking and babysitting, whilst boys learn to hunt, fight, or do harder labour. There are even societies, like those consisting of all-male or all-female members, where a child of an opposing gender will be killed or sent away; to preserve that society's way of life and adhere to local laws.
To some races the likelihood of a certain gender over the other is more assured. Scaleshaped races tend to see more male hatchlings, and trolls as a whole have allegedly never seen a female child in thousands of years; leaving very few female trolls still living. It is otherwise 50-50 across the average race as to whether a boy or girl is born.