Padjal are just midlander hyur who have been chosen by the elementals as children though to serve as their emmisaries, becoming ageless and highly aetherically sensitive. And because of that, there actually isn't that many of them, and because of their emmisary/liason role with the elementals, they're kind of stuck handling affairs in the forest - most of them are out of sight because they're out in the Black Shroud in constant communion with the will of the wood, and so don't have time for trivial things like adventuring, it's why the likes of E Sumi Yan or the Senna siblings actually get you the player to do things for them, because as padjal they simply are not in a position to handle it themselves.

So that's pretty conclusive padjal will never be playable I'm afraid (to say nothing Yoshi has already stated that the hrothgar and viera are the last playable races added to the game and they will not introduce any new ones from now on which is the final nail in the coffin for playable padjal I'm sorry to say).