A Hometown is a zone specifically designed and written for new players to start their adventures in the realms of Duris. Most races have their own hometown, though some hometowns are shared by a number of races. During some periods of Duris' history, each race had its own hometown while at other times most of the races had become holed up in a minimum number of towns.
Depending on which side of the racewar a hometown is you will find it loaded with stores to outfit you with armor, weapons, other items of kit, bandages, potions, and in some towns actual doctors. Evil towns tend to be overrun with aggressive mobs, making them a bit harder to survive in than their good-aligned cousins.