《Slayerbat's Monster Manual》


 Prologue and General Overview

    It is truly a wonderful thing to be told that people enjoy your monsters enough to want to use them. This book is for those of you that wish to use them in your campaigns, or perhaps even your own stories. It is more of a guide than anything else, and you are free to change things as you see fit. Every chapter, save for this one, will feature a monster or specific subspecies of a certain monster. It will explain where they are found, their diet, and so on. The author notes will provide ideas for how to use them in your campaigns. You do not have to read this book if you do not want to, as everything within it will be in other series that I plan on writing. Though this book marks the end of Oswald''s overviews.


    I plan on updating this book monthly with fan suggestions as to what the next monster will be. The first actual chapter will feature the Harper Spiders, as that was the one most well received. Some of the depictions within this book will be very graphic, and otherwise disturbing. Especially when we get to the Banshee. I will put a warning at the top of those chapters, but they will not be spoilered. With all that said, and the fact that I feel this more properly summarizes what this book is about. I will begin by explaining how the general multiverse works, as well as the pyramid of power. These are general guidelines that everything in my worlds follow.


    To properly explain the pyramid, I figured I should start from the top down, and explain the creatures there. If you have a problem with religious stuff, or find your own faith lacking after reading these words; I bear no responsibility, and you must understand this is merely something made for my worlds. That everything written here, should hold no sway over your real life.


    At the top of the pyramid, is the beginning and the end. The Alpha, and the Omega. That which exists, and does not exist. For all intents and purposes it is, "God." As someone running campaigns you can consider yourself this entity if you would like, or you can accept there are things you do not want to touch. As a rule of thumb, this figure should never become a part of any campaign or setting. It is literally within everything, and does not exist at the same time. It''s goal is simply to expand, and continue existing. It does not care for any hero''s plight. It does not care for any villain about to commit a heinous deed. It simply is, and it creates universes based on the actions of others.


    The whole of everything is a multiverse, that separates and grows based on the actions and reactions of others within it. If an entity were to destroy a universe, then there would be five separate universes; one where it was not destroyed, one where it was damaged, one where the device or entity could not destroy it, one where the universe overcame the entity/device, one where heroes saved the universe, and one where villains saved the world against a worse threat. Naturally there are infinite possibilities for every outcome, but the point is established. The one at the top will make no moves, because it simply does not care. It is content, because more universes have been made, and more stories are to be told.


    Below the top, are thirteen entities known as the TWINs. TWIN is a word that turns into more words in a scrawling matrix to properly define what they are. They are entities that feed off any creature capable of thought, as well as the concepts behind them. They exist in the void, with vessels that move through existence and multiple universes. They are entities too powerful to exist in a universe without breaking it, but they can also create new universes and destroy them at will. Their vessels are marked with their color, and their forms can be changed as they desire. Though you only need to look for the color that marks them. Naturally they deserve their own little chapter in the monster manual, but the general idea is they cannot be defeated. Even if you are to defeat them, that is because they allowed you to, or they seek to make you into their next vessel.


    There is one TWIN that stands above the others, and they are known as the second. This reflects the fact that there is always a mingling between the levels even on the highest scales. As for what happens when one vessel fights another, well universes are rapidly destroyed and recreated with slight alterations. These vessels will always fight on par with whatever they are fighting with. Essentially a level lock where they make it a very difficult battle. The one with more experience will win, including any player fighting them one on one. Naturally they can flare up and show more power, but honestly they work behind the scenes as the true puppet masters making everything work.


    Below the TWINs, are the void dwelling horrors. Your eldritch universe eaters, your dark kin, your light kin, true angels, and true demons. While TWINs are able to destroy entire multiverses at a time, yes there are more than one, these creatures are only able to destroy or create what they are directly connected to. As an example, let''s suggest that there is a universe completely devoid of life, versus one that is teeming with life. These void dwelling horrors can kill either, but they cannot kill both because they are too far removed from each other. Whereas a TWIN can easily destroy/corrupt, or whatever have you, to either.


    The void dwellers need to come into contact with that which exists, to survive. The TWINs do not need anything, as they can subsist on themselves alone. Void dwellers are those that can exist without existence surrounding them. They can pop up anywhere in the void, and typically move from universe to universe to either create more, or destroy. They care no more about what might be inside a universe, than you care about the bacteria on your food.


    These creatures number in the hundreds, and have offspring in the thousands. These offspring make up the next level down, and are met with true gods, and other such things. The true gods, and void dweller offspring exist in more than one universe at a time and are able to shape it as they see fit. This is as far as any sentient creature we can understand goes. Even if a person were to become a vessel, their perspective would change a lot with all that power. Their soul replaced by a core, from the TWIN itself. The creatures on this level need universes to exist, and can travel through the void to get to other universes. While in the void between said universes they are at their weakest. They typically are the ones attempting to fight off void dwellers, and establish how a universe itself works.


    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    True gods do not need the worship of followers in order to do what they want. Their entire being cannot be summoned on one universe, without the universe breaking apart. Summoning one of these creatures will destroy the universe, while only really wounding the entity in question. They will move to other universes, but repeatedly doing the same thing to them is the best way to completely destroy them. At least without getting something higher up on the pyramid involved.


    What lies below baby void dwellers, and true gods, are the ones that influence the universe or worlds within it. These are entities that cannot exist in the void without some form of protection. They will cease to be otherwise, and are considered dead for all intents and purposes. These creatures are known as gods, demons, and angels. There are lesser and greater versions of each. Angels and demons can be created by their respective gods, with their own archangels holding power enough to rival the god that created them. Gods can create something from nothing, or use something in the area to create or recreate almost anything that was a part of the universe.


    The gods within a universe typically have domains in which they can affect what they will. Their angels or demons are more powerful within their domain. They are able to do anything a force of nature can do, but they do require worship to be able to actually affect a singular world or area upon that world. Otherwise they are sending the appropriate entities to act on their behalf. The gods and such on this level do need worship in order to actively change an area or affect certain people. To them the passage of a life is only a mere blink away. Most would sleep, and steadily grow their power through such, only waking to fight threats from outside their domain. What defines this level on the pyramid is the ability to create from nothing besides one''s own power.


    There is a lot of overlap going further down, as we reach the level of demigods, lesser gods, forces of nature and so on. Where there is only one at the top, thirteen beneath, hundreds below, thousands more down, and billions farther still. You reach the point where the number is virtually infinite, as there are infinite universes. These entities are able to move mountains, destroy planets, or even harness the power of a black hole without destroying the universe no matter how hard they try. They cannot create from nothing, but they can usually transfer their powers. They can encompass an idea, or otherwise begin the steps towards becoming an actual godly figure. If they die, typically that will be the end for them, unless they have the powers to keep themselves from dying.


    Naturally anything on this level and below will just cease to be without protection if they try to move from one world to another. Usually with the help of something higher up, or a very clear understanding of how to keep existing. The power of these beings can be buffed with the worship and beliefs of others. This is where the, ''gods,'' of Xentos are on the pyramid.


    Below the demigods, forces of nature and so on. We have the Supernatural. This is where most entities lie in Xentos. From the King all the way to Richard. If you are able to do magic, or use some kind of force beyond physical might, you are a supernatural entity. The limit of these powers naturally rely heavily on not being able to move mountains by yourself or yelling loud enough. If you can fly without wings you are super natural. If you can scream and kill people, you guessed it! Supernatural! It doesn''t have to make sense, you have an advantage beyond your physical strength and so you are here.


    Below supernatural is anything that has sentience. Can be aliens, people, smart robots, and so on. Sentience itself is an advantage, as you are able to perceive the world, and react in ways beyond simple movements. You can plan ahead, and use the resources around you to carve tools. You are technically on the same level as those beasts with sharp claws and venom, but at least you can think!


    Then you got your apex predators, prey animals below them, all the way down to single celled organisms. Lots of back and forth play on the lower levels of the pyramid. The most important thing, is the fact that someone is where they are because they can do this without weapons. If you pick up an axe that can slay demigods, that doesn''t put you on their level. The axe is just on their level and you are using it as a tool. The pyramid reflects what you can do on your own, without being in a special bubble that makes you more skilled. Sentience does grant you the benefit of being able to outsmart your opponent, but it doesn''t actually make you more capable if you can''t use it properly.


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    Below is the general template I''ll be using going forward for the monsters. As well as an explanation towards what it means.


    Name: (The name of the species of the monster or creature in question)


    Race: (Beast, Monster, Person essentially)


    Sub-race: (Insect, Mammal, etc.)


    Biology: (How they look, and what they can do)


    World: (The worlds they tend to appear in. Such as Derthune, or Xentos)


    Habitat: (Where they can be found on such worlds)


    Diet: (What they eat)


    Relationships: (What factions are associate with them within the world at large)


    Creation: (Lore on how they were made and why.)


    Purpose: (Their goals in a sense, what they seek to do)


    Lore: (Will have some overlap with the above, but will generally explain what they have already done as a race.)


    Naturally I will add more, or take stuff away as people make suggestions. I''m posting this prologue to get some last minute helps before fully fleshing out everything going forward. I''ll also take suggestions from people based on polls and what I read in the comments. These suggestions can be vague, but I would appreciate those that are more to the point.


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    As for how the worlds all work together. I just mentioned Derthune above. Essentially Derthune is something known as a nexus world. Basically a universe that establishes links to other universes. They have dungeons, and I plan on explaining that much later and in more depth after I finish with Xentos. Xentos itself is anchored to Derthune through their true god''s abilities, and other plot related reasons. Xentos is a normal universe that is on the lower end of power, without any actual gods to properly protect it.


    I won''t say much more, given that it gets into spoiler territory for the other stories, but know things will get pretty far out there. I realize this overview is rather lacking in that it doesn''t properly explain how the worlds work and leaves more questions than answers. Feel free to ask them in the comments below, and I''ll update this overview with important questions and answers.

 Harper Spiders

    Name: Harper Spiders (Also go by Harpoon legs, gentleman spiders, and anything else you want to call them so long as it is friendly and pertains to them being spiders.)


    Race: Beast


    Sub-race: Insect


    Place on the Pyramid of Power (PPP): Predator (cannot do magic without talents, or direction. Not super smart, but committed to their purpose)


    World: Xentos


    Habitat: Cities, towns, villages, much less common in the wild. Harpers are typically found in the kingdom of Eclipse, but small groups have made their way to the Northern Kingdom, and Kingdom of Light. While the kingdom of Fire has not accepted them, the pirates of the sea have. They can be found in villages on the border between the kingdoms.


    Concept: The males are generally cat sized, while the females are typically kitten sized. The Don Harper, aka the Queen, is merely the biggest of the three sitting around the size of a small dog.


    It is important to note, that Harpers will generally reflect their surroundings. A Harper gang in the city will typically have little black bumps on their heads to reflect caps. Their fur or chitin will reflect their surroundings, in that they will be the most abundant color in their area. Harpers living in a winter village will typically be white and blue with silk caps and fuzz attached to their bumps. Harpers living in a barn will be more yellow or green depending on the crops. Some of them will even carry tiny little pieces of grass or straw in their fangs to reflect the farmers they are around. Don''t expect every Harper gang to be the same, make them different if a key figure in the community is different. Harpers should be like a mirror to reflect the best parts of the area your characters are going into.


    You can have an entire Harper gang missing a single eye, because the local fisherman that runs the show only has one eye. They will likely help give each other those scars, because they are like parrots in that sense. Instead of repeating words and sounds they hear, they try to endear themselves to the perceived leader of the area. The slum Harpers don''t really have a leader to reflect, because the slum leaders are all in the Underground. Thus they copy the general idea that people want to go to bars, collect coin, and party when they have the chance. The key thing is that they should be little helpers, that add flavor to an area.


    At best, Harpers should have the intelligence of children. If they live in a library, they can have little monocles and top hats, but they cannot actually read. They cannot write, but they can express themselves through song. They can play music with their strings, and are attracted to people that can sing or play different instruments. They will happily join in street performances, offering a sense of free ambiance. If asked questions the Don might direct the other Harpers to reply with the appropriate tone, and notes. Though they cannot offer anything very meaningful.


    If you have someone in the party that can talk to bugs, or creatures. I''d say let them be able to talk to the Harpers. Though their answers should be appropriately silly, and slightly unhelpful. Like say there was a guy running away from the guards. They would describe him just as a guy carrying a large egg sac. It would take some very clever questioning to get more details.


    Player: "Did he have any distinguishing features?"


    Harper: "Yes, he had features. Pretty sure it was a he." Scratches head.


    P: "How about a cape?"


    H: "He fluttered, but couldn''t fly." (You get the idea.)


    The most important thing is to have fun with the Harpers. They are supposed to be comic relief in a game, as well as hinting at who might be leading an area. They can even be around a bad guy''s lair, to suggest he might not be so bad after all. Harpers are never to be evil outright, and they genuinely don''t like hurting things bigger than them.


    Biology: Honestly, better to read the spoiler for this one. A typically Harper will take two months to mature to their adult form. During this time, they will take on the local colors, and imprint on the behaviors of the local race.


    Male Harpers are completely covered in bristle hair, much like a tarantula. With a different shade for their fangs to make it appear as if they have a mustache. All Harper males lack venom sacks, but make up for it with powerful fangs that can bite into bone. The male Harper has hollow fangs, that will allow them to drain the blood of whatever they bite into. Though they typically only do this to their prey. They will not attack people with this method, unless they are actively harming a child or disabled. The males are typically darker than the females.


    Unlike female Harpers, the males cannot spin webs too well. That said, they are able to rapidly expel their threads in a large clump to bind prey, or enemies for up to five minutes. Their webs are extremely sticky to the point that water will not wash it away. The males can only do this once per day, and the amount is enough to engulf a person''s fist. They tend to not do this inside their homes, since it is messy and a hassle to clean up.


    Female Harpers are sleek, and smaller than the males. They have softer bristles at the end of their legs, kind of like wisps of fur. This essentially makes it look like they have pom poms on their feet. The females are typically lighter in color compared to their male counterparts. They also have smooth silk for their webs, and can change the stickiness, durability and so on. This is slightly better than a real life spider''s webbing. Females will work in groups to build the actual nests of these spiders. These nests are typically elevated, or located in the roof of a building. Harpers sleep in small cubbies, in pairs.


    The females also take care of the cleaning that is required. Often they can be seen picking dirt and debris from their webs, fixing frayed bits here and there. They will set up traps as directed by their don, but otherwise are content to just roam around the area tidying up everything. They are compulsive cleaners, and will even clean people if they hold out a hand for them to crawl on. Typically the females are just a little smarter than the males. Females also have paralyzing venom sacks. A bite can make a person feel numb, with the affected limb becoming difficult to move.


    The Don is essentially the alpha female of the gang. They grow to be the biggest, and smartest of the group. The don will most accurately reflect the leader of the community, and might even follow them around to copy their habits. There will always be a don, where there are 20 Harpers in an area. The largest an individual gang will get is 100 of them. After that, they break up and split apart to spread out as different gangs.


    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    As for the process of a female becoming a Don, it boils down to an elaborate dance and song competition. Essentially the female in question has to play the best song, to gather the support of the males. The dance is to gather support from the other females. The one that wins will gain their ''crown'' over the course of three days. They will eat more, and start to molt and grow bigger over the course of weeks.


    The Don has many jobs to do, from guiding females to setting traps, to directing how food is split among the group. If a Don is unable to perform their task anymore, they will retreat into the wild on their own. Even if they grow old, they will simply disappear from the gang after telling a few females they won''t be coming back. The Don has a more potent venom, that can paralyze a healthy person with one bite. It will not harm them, but as with other females they can only do this once or twice a day.


    Diet: Carnivore (Pests, strays, very rarely terrible people)


    Relationships: Harpers should not be aligned with any specific faction, as they are unable to critically think about the future. They serve as a neutral faction themselves, that merely exists to safeguard the youth and disabled of a population. Naturally this serves to put them in the good graces of any faction they come across. It means less currency is needed to properly police a population, since these spiders will handily take care of certain issues.


    They also serve as a form of pest control, since Harpers will only eat small creatures, and avoid eating pets. That said, they will eat strays which helps to keep that population down as well. Because of this, they are most likely to be found in cities.


    Harpers will form individual gangs, and they will fight over territory or resources. That said, these ''brawls'' will typically consist of their respective Queens ''fighting'' each other. They get a set number of each type of Harper, and move as a unit to ''assassinate'' the enemy Queen. To onlookers this will appear like a crude form of chess mixed with American football. The enemy queen is considered ''assassinated'' when the other Queen and a male, or two females are able to pounce on them. Naturally no actual injury is given to either party.


    These same gangs will recognize one another, and if one is in trouble, they will move into their territory to help each other out. After all, to Harpers, it is better to have more friends than enemies. If there is a famine, or some sort of resource deficiency in an area. Gangs will have another brawl. The loser will be forced to move out, and find a new place to stay. Which works both ways, since there are some cases where it is a bigger benefit to move on. In either instance, both gangs will exchange their members with an understand on how many could reasonably stay in the worst case. This often ends up with the ''victor'' getting a much smaller gang at half it''s original size.


    Harpers have a life span of five years for males, six for females, and ten for the Don. They do not live long, but will imprint on people that treat them well. It is not uncommon for gangs without a Don, to follow around a child that feeds them or otherwise provides them with care. They will also follow adults, or others that treat them well, provided they are not completely evil in nature.


    Romance: Bashful males, and gentle females. The Harper cannot reproduce with other races, or beasts. There are exceptions with certain monsters that kind of overlook certain issues however. That said, the mating ritual of the Harper involves the male offering something precious to it, to the female he wishes to court. This offering can be anything from a piece of glass, to their favorite blade of leaf.


    The female will either reject it by gently nudging it back towards their suitor, or accept it. They will spend a night together in the same cubbie, before asking the Don to accept their union. Harpers only have a single mate in their short life spans, and will only mate when the Don plays a love song. This is the signal that they will accept to breed, with their partners, and move as a gang to lay their eggs somewhere secure.


    Depending on the location, or nature of the community. The Harper''s may either choose to protect their eggs until they are a day away from hatching, or trust the locals to protect them. Unlike other species of insects, the Harper will not die after laying their clusters of eggs. Each Harper female will lay up to 10 small eggs, and wrap them in webbing together. These new Harpers will work together to eat their way out of the webbing, bonding with each other as family members.


    Young Harpers will move as a single family to join another family to create a small gang. This small gang will seek out another older gang for guidance.


    Creation: Harpers were created with the death of a man named Bo''chi. Bo''chi himself was a man with the talent known as ascension. He became a spirit, rapidly rising to the level of a lesser god. He chose to use the powers he gained, to create a new race known as the Harper spiders. Due to the hardships Bo''chi had in life, he decided to become a spirit of protection. He sought to help those like him, with his creation. Yet, because he was a young god he used all of his strength on this task. Now the Harpers follow their purpose, and seek to restore enough faith in Bo''chi to help him finish ascending.


    Purpose: Due to their creator being abused as a child, to the point that he himself became disable. Harpers seek to rid the world of such plight. Due to this desire on their creator''s part, all Harpers will work together to keep children and the disabled safe. If their creator ascends further, it is likely they will also be gifted with more power to protect others better. They wish for guidance from their creator, and so they strum songs on their strings asking for such. Yet, Bo''chi is asleep, and so they carry out the order he gave them. One day, they hope their creator shall awake and guide them.


    Lore: Harpers are very common in Eclipse, given that they are protected by the law to some extent. It is not uncommon for nobles to pay Entomancers to guide new families of Harpers to their homes. This is because they are seen as a sort of status symbol among the more reputable noble families. Given how impressionable Harpers are, and how easy it is for them to adapt to most locations, you can see a large variety of them.


    The King of Eclipse uses Harpers as a gauge to know what nobles he can really trust to at least be decent. He especially watches those that have tried to acquire Harpers, but those same spiders either died or left the estate. Given that the King considered himself a friend of Bo''chi, he allows the Harpers mostly free reign over the city, and they have since spread out because of this. The Harpers have been around since the founding of Eclipse, after the fall of Dark Fell.


    While it is rare, Harpers can be found in the wild. These groups are typically pushed out due to other gangs, or were passengers aboard a caravan that dropped them off. It is equally likely that they were discovered as egg sacks and just left out in the forest, or wherever they were discovered given the fact that they are spider eggs. It is not impossible for these Harpers to be raised by wolves, trolls, or other such creatures and act more tribal in a sense. Though the iron clad rule of not hurting children or the disable still remains within them.


    Fun Ideas: Pirate Harpers, enough said.


    Subtle plot twist that bad guy is actually really nice guy.


    Cowboy Harpers using little lasso threads.


    Fisherman Harpers that help an old fisherman come to terms with his wife passing on.


    Feel free to use them to write your own stories, or even in campaigns! You can change them as you want, since they are supposed to be versatile. Though they aren''t Harpers if they don''t protect the children and disabled!

 Mimics, Doppelgangers, and Piklins!

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    Name: Mimics (AKA every dirty name and slur)


    Doppelgangers (AKA the name of anyone you know. Maybe even... you!)


    Piklins (They do not go by any nicknames yet)


    Race: All: Monster


    Sub-race: All: Shape Changers


    Place on the Pyramid of Power (PPP): Mimics Predator (Cannot do magic, or hold talents given their lack of soul.)


    Doppelgangers Completely dependent on host/ Prey by itself (Can perform magic based on who they have infected, and capable of performing feats based on that same body. However, the doppelganger is incredibly weak and useless without a host)


    Piklins Supernatural (very few can do magic, but all of them can pilot suits of armor and golems like magic mechs. The older the get, the more likely they are to be able to do magic, or gain such from eating a doppelganger)


    World: Xentos


    Habitat: Only the tunnels of the Northern Kingdom


    Concept: Mimics: Everybody knows what a mimic is. They are the bastard monsters that keep you from getting loot, because they pretend to be chests. They are creatures that disguise themselves as something cool, so they can ambush you when you are low on health. The apex of ambush predators. I will say that mimics vary from world to world, but I''ll talk about the creatures from Xentos specifically here.


    These mimics are different, mainly because of their black blood. Anyone that ends up attacked by these monsters will unfortunately have a few puncture wounds and scratches. If you manage to get away that''s fine, but if you injure it back; well you can expect a case of the skull shivers. While not an actual threat to most monsters, these creatures are in the tunnel system of the dwarves. Which means that what they attack and get their blood on, can become infected, or outright turn into a monster if it survives.


    To make matters worse, these mimics only take on the texture and durability of what they eat. If they find an old chest covered in holes, they can eat pieces of that. After they get their mouth full, their skin changes to the texture, and they mold their flesh to the proper shape or size. Which means they can take on the appearance of clothes, armor, the treasure inside the chest, the chest itself, anything smaller than a person really. You can check a chest, and find out it isn''t a mimic. Then you open the chest, to find a super cool looking sword, only to hold it up to see your reflection. Then the sword attacks you.


    Mimics by themselves have no souls, and very basic minds. Which makes it extremely hard to locate and deal with them with a magic sense. Not to mention that they cannot do magic themselves, but can be enchanted by eccentric people to act as guards. While it isn''t properly covered in the story, a mimic could be raised and fed. They could also be tamed, and enchanted to make very low cost, very convincing guards to keep the real treasure safe.


    Most mimics never grow beyond the size of a large chest, but that changes with their queen. The queen will send out a hypnotic signal to all other mimics in the area. They start to gather, and cover whatever their queen has chosen to make as their nest. They eat out the insides of columns, make pockets in tunnels, follow along open spaces inside of rooms, or even take over coffins. The queen will take over any space large enough to fully hide a person for making doppelgangers.


    Needless to say, queen mimics are smarter than the others. The one weakness that can easily be exploited for normal mimics, is that they are super easy to affect with hypnotic suggestions, or direct mental impulses. Normal mimics simply have no resistance to such, and you can find them by simply suggesting, ''attack.'' That order will cause most to burst open, thinking there is prey in front of them. Queens on the other hand are immune to such suggestions, and will often hide themselves in the presence of another queen (thinking the one doing the suggestion is such). They are immune to hypnotic suggestions, or mental attacks, which makes them even harder to find.


    Why queens are immune to hypnotic suggestions, and mental attacks will be covered in biology. It is important to note that queens start off roughly as intelligent as normal mimics. This intelligence increases in proportion to the doppelgangers they take in. They learn what the doppelganger has learned, and if the soul still lingers, they now can use that same doppelganger to do magic. So yeah, mimics are a little more terrifying in this world.


    Doppelgangers: Probably a little more terrifying, compared to the mimics. Doppelgangers tell you that there is a queen somewhere. Though really, good luck figuring out if there are any nearby. These monsters lack souls, but make up for that by trapping the souls of their hosts in their own bodies. They also form a sort of symbiotic relationship with their host''s body, by making it immune to black blood. Given that their own black blood will be filtered out by themselves, and everything else just processed naturally.


    Definitely not a mutualistic relationship for any living creature, that would like to control its body. They are monster parasites, that seek to benefit their queen and continue their race. They go out and mingle with those closest to them, who are well generally well received given they were missing for up to three days. The doppelganger will blend in with their friends and family, like a duck taking to water. Using the memories of their host, and even using magic. The hardest part for them, is coming up with a viable explanation as to why they were gone for so long. Though given the nature of how people welcome their own back in, this is often overlooked, or just flat out not asked in some cases.


    Over the course of a couple weeks, the doppelganger will assume the life of their host completely. Acting as if everything was just like it was before. In more toxic environments, they will try to make it seem as if the experience made them a better person. Which is generally accepted as a positive thing, over thinking it was something bad. The doppelganger will slowly peel apart individuals in a group, expressing interest in wanting to show them where they had been for that time they were gone. Which as you may have guessed, just so happens to be the place where their queen is located.


    The queen will grow larger during the first wave of doppelgangers, making more as the two communicate via telepathy. Once a doppelganger feels it cannot provide information or more prey for their queen, they simply move on to the next phase. Which involves said doppelganger being taken in by the queen and their host digested. The doppelganger itself, will became a brain and spinal cord acting on behalf of the queen. Slowly it will be taken over by the queen, and its memories become part of a network with others within the queen. This is when the queen itself will gain intelligence and the ability to plan and act in proportion to who they have taken in.


    This is not a hive mind creature, but a ruling type. The queen gives orders to their doppelgangers, and gains more memories and magic based on that. The doppelgangers themselves lose their individuality once they become a part of the queen, merely becoming that, another part of the queen. The black slug that they are, is slowly replaced with the flesh of the queen as they themselves are digested. The souls that were trapped can be released, if holding onto them might cause problems. Otherwise they stay there so the queen can do magic, as all useless memories are forgotten and the brain is transformed to control parts of the wall.


    It should be noted that doppelgangers are not picky about their hosts, since the queen is the one putting them inside such bodies. They cannot take over most monsters, but people and beasts are all fair game. There is a size limit, and if a soul is too strong, it will destroy the creature. Which is why they tend to avoid dragons, heroes, and so on. Which works well enough, because such figures are typically having their movements watched and tracked by others.


    Piklins: Piklins are what happens when mimics are given a soul, and mind. With comprehension, comes understanding. With understanding, comes morals to some degree. Due to very unique circumstances, this new iteration of the mimic race came about. They have lost the ability to hide from soul sensing, and mind sensing magics. What they have gained, is a very unique interaction with magic, and magic equipment.


    Piklins are fleshy creatures that are unable to eat and digest anything that isn''t organic matter. To make up for this, they tend to enter suits of armor, chests, or anything that is suitable enough. They move inside like hermit crabs, and their blood and fluids make a network of magic circuits to make it move with minimal energy.


    As a race, they are designed to be super helpful to those around them. They are untainted by the monster king''s influence given that they developed well outside his kingdom. Which means these guys are a look at how some monsters might have acted before. It also helps that their blood and fluids are able to counteract the volatile nature of magic by stabilizing it. Which means that they are the ideal race for advancing technology and potentially creating magitech on Xentos.


    It''s because of this fact, that the Dwarves waited so long to inform or seek help. Piklins are helpful creatures, their blood is inert on others meaning they can''t infect or turn others into monsters. Not to mention that they can figure out who is a doppelganger or not, by just being around them.


    The main concept is magic mimics that pilot mechs, and that''s just neat. They can''t actually be mimics, since they have to be fleshy monsters, so it is the next step for them.


    Biology: Mimics: Your average mimic starts its life hatching from an egg, inside the mother mimic. They will linger there for up to a month, as the mother moves to drop them in a spot with material for them to eat, and take the shape of. While they start small, they are able to make themselves look larger than they are, by ballooning up, or just slowly compressing air inside their. Depending on what they eat, they will change the top layers of their skin to a copy of the material in question.


    This top layer is for all intents and purposes, an organic version of the dead material they have eaten. If you strike a sword mimic, it will ring and act like a sword. The strength of their organic metal is on par with the material to a certain point. It will not be able to puncture or pierce anything but leather. If the mimic itself dies, that same top layer can be put back into its ''resting'' position to fool others into believing it is the real thing.


    That said, mimics can be enchanted with magic and runes. They are essentially just mindless bunches of flesh that will forget ever being enchanted. Which makes this a great way of dealing with their queens, since the runes will explode when they try to merge, potentially taking such out. As for the runes that can be put on them, such follows the same principles as putting runes on anything else. They can only carry one less rune than the material they are pretending to be. So if you have an iron dagger that can carry one rune, mimics that pretend to be such cannot carry runes.


    Mimics will grow larger from the time they are born, until they reach a certain point. They start off as the size of a dagger, but can balloon up to the size of a ball. After a few seasons, if they are able to eat enough, they will grow to the size of a sword. Give them a couple years, and they can become the size of the surface area of a chest. They weigh roughly as much as an average adult human male. Starting off at maybe two kilos (four pounds). It''s important to know that a mimic disguised as a chest, will be empty inside, whereas a mimic disguised as a weapon will be rather solid.


    Mimics themselves are highly suggestible creatures that you just need to communicate with very simply. Their species has evolved to have a queen capable of organically speaking to others through telepathy. A sort of mimic wavelength that came about without magic. These queens have a specialized brain that helps them find other mimics, and order them to gather and become a part of themselves. Due to its organic nature, and not being magic, these queens pick up the wavelength from people using magic. To the queens, a person using telepathy is no different than another queen. They ignore all commands and orders, but merely hide until the enemy queen passes.


    There can only be one queen, and mimics will seek to destroy other queens of their kind. After all, their goal is to constantly grow and expand. Naturally queens can only make doppelgangers, and will do so when there are enough mimics in one area for them to call a gathering. A gathering is when a queen sends out a singular commend to all mimics in the area, because they feel there is enough mass between them all to fill such an area. The mimics will gather, as ordered towards the source, which is the queen. Then the queen will absorb the mass of the others, and stretch it over the area it intends to use.


    At this point, they do something clever. Since there is no telling what the other mimics have eaten, or can disguise themselves as. The Queen will use the first few mimics to bore into whatever they are about to take over. Seeping through cracks in stone, slowly carving out a hole to comfortably fit a person. They carve their way behind the material and hold onto a thin layer to keep the disguise as all the mimics are reset while slowly becoming a part of the queen.


    A new queen will have a pocket large enough to hold your average person. The queen will even leave out a little cache of treasure from what the other mimics held onto. This acts as bait to lure anyone to their small pocket. Most people, or even creatures would be surprised by a pile of rubbish in an area. Once they check it out, the individual is grabbed by a tendril, and pulled in when the wall opens. Pressure is put on them, as the wall of flesh stops them from moving properly, and they are slowly deprived of air. The queen will insert a doppelganger slug into the ear canal of their victim. They will wait until the doppelganger has taken over its host, before releasing them, taking care of the body the entire time.


    After that, people will notice a sharp drop in mimic sightings in one area, as the Queen continues to gather more and more of her kind. Expanding the chamber, while the doppelganger does its job. Depending on how smart the individual was, the queen will gain that knowledge and use all relevant information to continue to grow.


    It is important to know that any mimic can spawn a queen, but queens can only spawn doppelgangers. The queen will increase in intelligence in relation to who or what they eat. Meaning they can take over whispering wolves, and not get any smarter, except when it comes to pack tactics. Any creature or person is fair game so long as they can fit in the queen''s ''chambers.'' Though entities with souls that are too powerful will be able to resist the doppelganger infection, and now know where the queen is.


    Doppelgangers: A doppelganger without a host merely looks like a disgusting black slug. An oily creature of shifting flesh, and seeping black blood into a puddle. They are parasites created by their queen to take over a host. They are unable to reproduce, given that they are essentially part of the queen herself. A doppelganger is not the egg or sperm of a queen, since queens are not fertile, but the repurposed brain matter of the other mimics that went into the queen. To them they are effectively a part of the queen.


    When inserted into an individual, they will seek out the brain of their host. Upon finding it, they will wrap around it, soaking it with their monster blood. Their blood is constantly filtered by themselves, to keep the rest of the body from suffering from their blood. After wrapping around the brain, and soaking it with their blood, they begin the very long process of breaking the individual. Their nerves as a mimic brain, start to connect and control the nerves of the body. They grow from the nutrients fed to the body by the queen, keeping the host brain alive, and traveling down the spinal cord.


    With the connections made on the first day, the second and third days are spent fighting for control over the body. The host may experience their life flashing before their eyes, dread, memories. If they are cowards to their core, they will not struggle, and the process will be relatively painless. If they do struggle, they will have all the memories of their past mistakes relived. They will feel absolute hunger, the worst pain they could possibly feel and so on. The mimic brain will throw everything it can at them, to try and force them to submit. This is because the doppelganger is immensely weak. The host can reject it through enough will power, and simply not wanted to become one. They just have to overcome the worst experiences of their life.


    If a host does successfully reject the parasite, it will still be connected to the queen. They can pretend to work for such, but have full control over themselves. They gain an immunity to monster blood, the ability to sense mimics in an area, and the ability to detect other doppelgangers. If the queen is still young, then the individual could potentially take over the queen when they go back to become a part of them. Though that is much harder, and very unlikely. Roughly five percent of a population might be able to make it through the doppelganger infection. Which doesn''t really help if the queen is already established and smarter than you. So those that do survive, likely try to find others to work on a way around it.


    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    Naturally, given the low chance of somebody actually overcoming a doppelganger, their queen is typically safe. They of course share the benefits of what would have happened if the host had won out. The connection to the queen doesn''t mean anything much at the start, besides a nagging order to ''gather.'' After the first doppelgangers have gone back however, it becomes a stronger connection that can give orders that can be understood.


    It should be noted that doppelgangers will die if their host is killed. Specifically if the soul leaves their body. This is because the illusion falls apart when someone with magic can no longer do magic. After the host is pacified and no longer a threat, most doppelganger will put them to sleep. If the host was a mind mage, they might get to enjoy living in their dream world. Otherwise, it''s just sleeping until the day comes that they die.


    If the host was a particular bastard during the exchange, or if the doppelganger just doesn''t like said host for whatever reason. Well, they get to enjoy a front row seat to watching everything that happens while not in control of their body. Unable to do magic, unable to warn anyone, just the silent screaming of a person trapped inside their own body.


    When a doppelganger has fulfilled their use, they will return to their queen. The body will be digested and the doppelganger brain extracted. It will be put in it''s own chamber room, to make more doppelgangers. Effectively becoming one with the queen again, and forgetting everything else. They are flesh walls, with the singular purpose of making more doppelgangers. They will defend their chamber with the magic they can muster, and the flesh they have access to. After all, there is only growth.


    Piklins: All Piklins are princesses, with a queen guiding them. They are able to eat other mimics, and inject doppelgangers into prey if needed. Piklins can make more of themselves given that they have both parts like all mimics. Though most do choose to take on a semi-person form based on who they are interacting with. Essentially a show of trust, since their flesh is weak and easily harmed.


    Doppelgangers that Piklins make, are essentially controlled by the group, unless given orders by their queen directly. Even then the doppelgangers they control are more focused on the will of the host. The host has some small level of control, so long as they do not actively try to bring harm to Piklins, and those that were turned to doppelgangers were the ones that tried to hunt or hurt them in the first place. Doppelgangers made by Piklins will not be eaten by them when their use is over. Instead they will be asked to do something else, until their body withers away, or the host itself makes the request to be eaten. A much ''nicer'' alternative to being controlled by a queen mimic.


    Piklin offspring differ in that Piklins lay their eggs in a nest of treasure/ mimics. The newborn Piklin will either seek to enter armor, or latch onto a mimic to become a parasite itself in some sense. As they get bigger, they will begin to gather materials they can connect with and make small golems, or even bits of armor.


    Those that build small golems for themselves will move around on their own, learning how to better control what they are inside. While those that go to make armor, will become a sort of living armor that the doppelgangers wear. Because of how Piklins work, and the fact that their blood naturally strengthens armor, the living armor made with Piklins still inside is arguably the best. Such armor is able to support itself and move on its own, as well as adding strength and protection given that the Piklin acts as a shock absorber.


    Piklins themselves can tolerate a high amount of heat, before it starts to hurt them. The general rule is that once it is hot enough for water to start boiling, it begins to hurt them. Piklins are mostly fire proof given that they ''sweat'' more, but the material they are inside can catch fire if such was possible. Even though their blood is oily in nature, it is not flammable, which makes it an excellent lubricant.


    A Piklin will spend ten years before it reaches sexual maturity. They typically will make between five and ten eggs, once every two years. Piklins do not stop growing, even after reaching their adult phase. Instead, they continue to grow until they are killed, or die from natural causes. When a Piklin becomes too large to fit in a suit of armor, or anything like that, they will instead try to construct their own with other materials. When they become too large to be supported by such, they will move into a mountain or castle to try and move that about. An important thing to note, is that only the Queen will continue this growth, while the others will stagnate in their growth at an acceptable level.


    The maximum size of a Piklin is that of a giant that can move a single mountain, or a cluster of small hills. It will take around five hundred years for that to happen, which in terms of the queen presented in Ebony''s story, she is about half way there.


    Diet: Mimics: Omnivore (Anything they can eat pieces of to change into, and anything they can get ahold of)


    Doppelgangers: Completely dependent on what their host ate before infection.


    Piklins: Organic matter (Cannot digest inorganic matter, but will separate it into piles to be worked later)


    Relationships: Mimics: Not very well received, and generally hated. Mimics are the stuff of nightmares, and do not particularly care how others look upon them. While the queen mimic can become smart enough to attempt cultivating relationships, this usually ends poorly for those involved. Specifically because the queen''s end goal is to turn whoever they meet into another bit of flesh for themselves.


    Queens may lie because they are smart enough, but when they feel they have the upper hand, they will happily make moves to drag those foolish enough to trust them into their chambers.


    Doppelgangers: Depending on how well received the person was when they came back, it can vary a lot. Their main goal is to not be noticed, and to slowly grow their numbers for their queen. Save in the instance of Piklins, who are asked not to make more. They can be considered diplomats for the mimics, and Piklins.


    They really are not liked by most, except in situations where they pretend to be one of those that overcame the parasite. It gets complicated, rather quickly, so it''s better to think of them as all being spies. No body really likes the guy that is willing to betray trust and everything that was built up. Though you expect it in some sense, so you keep them at a distance if you can help it.


    Piklins: Generally well received given the benefits they offer. That said, in the current story the Beard Cutters want to enslave them and keep them hidden. Other families under the Beard Cutter''s rule, are more receptive wanting to aid them. These guys have been aiding in the war against mimics for decades, but are still monsters. Mimics hate them, and Dwarves want to use them to get ahead of Eclipse on something. It really isn''t the best relationship for them, but they swallow it because of their history, and to survive.


    Romance: Mimics: Good luck? While they can self fertilize and are more prone to going with other mimics, they don''t exactly have the tools to reproduce with other species. They don''t have predator eggs or sperm, and as monsters they are immune to reproducing with other races. The only exception would have to be the splicers. Besides the only interest they hold towards what is in your pants, is how much they can chew on it.


    Doppelgangers: Depends on the host, but generally most are very accepting towards reproduction. After all they just have to feed the offspring and grow it until it joins them. It is healthy for the queen, so there are no qualms about arranged marriages or even sex slaves. If a doppelganger''s body becomes pregnant, it will produce a perfectly healthy child of its host body. No one would notice anything amiss, and even pregnant women can be turned into doppelgangers without it affecting the child in their belly.


    They are totally down for orgies, or sex clubs. They know just the place to go even. Just don''t worry if the walls start to move, that''s how raves work right?


    Piklins: Kinky. While they aren''t able to actually reproduce with others, they are willing to try. Given the nature of their blood, there is a very slight chance for their eggs to be fertilized, but they won''t be getting any other race pregnant any time soon. They would be perfect for people that like light vore, since they would invite a potential mate into their personal space and surround them with flesh. Many would even take on the extra effort to take a form or shape based on what was requested.


    Not only that, but they are sweaty creatures, that enjoy staying moist. They will smell like someone that has exercised or worked hard, so if smell is your thing well they have it. Their body temperature is warmer than most. Not to mention they have a tendency to want to completely satisfy anyone they are willing enough to do such with. While niche, they are likely perfect for some groups with very specific preferences.


    If a crossbreed was to occur, from their eggs being fertilized by another race, it would result in a hybrid rather than a crossbreed. The hybrid itself would have traits based on both races. Making a kind of shape shifter, in the form of the parent creature that helped create them. Such a hybrid would be able to become its own race, as it reproduced with others, or it would simply die out.


    Creation: Mimics: Created by the mad god, just because why not? They were made as a proof of concept, to see if flesh can survive with minimal perception, and no soul. Turns out they have very simple and effective solutions and adapt rather quickly.


    Doppelgangers: Why think, when you can get others to think for you? Take over the brain of a host, and suddenly you have the tools you were lacking before. It took a couple of tries before the mad god got around to this iteration. The others went extinct, but the entire concept of a mimic queen suddenly left mimic brains laying around. Better put that to use, and make them into real monsters.


    Piklins: Created when one of the mimics that escaped, ate someone with a special talent. The first Piklin was a mimic, that did not understand what was going on. It thought itself a queen, but died when trying to gather others under it. It gave its soul to the first and only egg it was able to lay. This egg would grow to become the first Piklin, as the race evolved in a way that would make the mad god proud. (This is going to be a whole short story for the lore section. Hope you all enjoy.)


    Purpose: Mimics: Eat, grow, and make more. Very simple creatures, with no greater direction or sense of purpose. The queens can assign and claim that their purpose is grand, but ultimately they are a cancer that wishes to grow and consume all that they can. A smart enough queen will use religion on some races, suggesting that they are entities worthy of worship. That their goal is to unify and unite all races under their doctrine. Which that same claim falls apart when you remember that they just erase all memories from those doppelgangers they take in. A queen''s ideal world would be a world covered in flesh with doppelgangers reproducing with their bodies, to make more flesh to be taken in.


    Eventually such a world would die from lack of food, or diversity. Just drifting through space, unchanging. If life is observed outside of their planet, they will not try to pursue it, because that would mean another potential queen that might try to fight them. An unfortunate end to any civilization or world.


    Doppelgangers: Everything they do, they do for their queen. They study, research, and explore subjects that their queen deems important. Beyond that, there is nothing else to do. Nothing that they would actually want to do. They are parasites that were created for the growth and health of their queen. They will die fighting to protect her, or if she is lost, they will typically end themselves.


    They can defect to other queens however, though such a move is usually known by their queen ahead of time. These are typically calculated moves to learn the location of the other queen''s chambers, or a last display of pride since doppelgangers are considered a part of them. If the doppelganger defects then it is so their queen can live on, and they were ordered to do such.


    Piklins: The realization of the world that might be left behind by their own mother race, they seek to destroy the queen mimics. Ultimately they wish to live, and grow their own civilization as their doppelgangers have told them about. To create a society and culture based on their unique views. Each piklin can be considered a princess, that all follow under the most successful one that they view as the queen. They are still a young race, that have a lot to learn, and merely wish to live long enough to be viewed and respected by the others.


    Lore: Mimics: Created by their mad god, they were plunged into the depths of the Ankin colonies (basically humanoid ant monsters, that line the southern borders of Dark Fell). The first mimics would disguise themselves as their eggs, within the nests. They would kill and eat the eggs, as well as any weakened worker they could manage to fight. Sadly, they were unable to make the first doppelgangers with these workers. The first Queen becoming an egg chamber for their eggs. As time went on, the colony would grow, and go on to take people as their slaves.


    These slaves would become the first doppelgangers, and with their aid, they would slowly begin to take over the colony. Decades would go by, before others started to take notice. Seeing the potential future that might come from such a colony, the black guard was dispatched. The colony was burned to ashes, killing the colony and the mimics.


    Or so it would have been, if not for a doppelganger soothsayer. They learned of such a future, and told their queen. The queen did not know how to stop such, and so opted to send doppelgangers, and mimics disguised as saddles, out into the world. Towards the northern kingdom where there could be more tunnels and places to hide. Unknown to anyone involved, there was a slave with the talent to give their soul onto another living creature.


    Doppelgangers: The first doppelgangers were slaves to the Ankin. People that were bound and kept in captivity, to be eaten, or used for amusement. The first doppelgangers merely wanted the bodies, while the slaves sought to be freed from their pain. Their solution was to simply take over the body, and keep them from feeling pain. To soothe the struggling individuals into a slumber from which they could not wake up. To use their souls and memories to slowly work their way through the Ankin.


    Decades would pass, before their forces became strong enough to put the Ankin on the defensive. Their queen silently biding her time while more were doppelgangers were produced. A silent war waging beneath the hills of the Ankin colony, as two queens of different races fought for their survival. The doppelgangers were the ones to slay the last of the Ankin queen''s elite guards. They were the ones to drag her before their queen. Ankin were finally food to the doppelgangers, and mimics.


    The golden age had come for their race, as all new queens were slain before they had a chance to root themselves into the tunnels. Slowly but surely the walls of the tunnels were lined with the flesh of their queen. Ankin were used to defend the outside of the nest, and as food since doppelgangers allowed their hosts to eat meat with black blood.


    Finally it were these same doppelgangers that foretold the future of the black guard coming to slay them. To burn their colony to ash, while stopping any trade from coming in or going. A desperate move was made by their queen, and a caravan was sent out to secure their future. Most would die on the journey, but ultimately they made it to the mountains of the Northern Kingdom. They dug tunnels, that would come to connect into those of the Dwarves, while waiting for a new queen to guide them.


    Piklins: A queen did come, but was unstable due to the soul it was given. The order was given for mimics to gather, but as more came to her, the more she was strained. Mimics were ordered to reproduce, while the doppelgangers that remained, were ordered to take away the mimics. The mimics were placed and spread out in all the tunnels their doppelgangers could find. Many were slain by wandering tribes of Dwarves, but that meant nothing since those that did survive would be able to produce their own queens in time.


    With her strength failing, and her body withering, the mimic queen used the talent she was given with the soul. She laid her own eggs, feeling pain as they withered and died. She gave the smallest egg, her talent and soul, before succumbing and dying herself.


    That egg would become the first Piklin, who would spend it''s first few months calling for help. No one would come, while she ate the flesh of her mother. Finally a Dwarf of a nomadic tribe would stumble upon this first Piklin. A member of the Moss Beards, with the talent: Do No Harm. They were a spirit caller, a rare magic that allowed them to commune with the spirits of nature, and see the souls of others. This Dwarf would adopt the first Piklin, taking them out into the wide open world beyond the tunnels.


    This Piklin would see the beauty of the world, while growing up with this strange tribe. They would roam along the borders of Dark Fall, walk the forests that would become Eclipse, explore the great sea, and witness the friendly elves, over the course of ten years. This tribe would return to where they found the Piklin, only to run into one of the first hordes the monster king sent to the Northern Kingdom. They would die, while protecting the first Piklin, and the other Dwarves. They collapsed the tunnels, successfully ending the first horde. Though the second came a year later, and was able to infiltrate the tunnels and make nests for themselves.


    The mimic queens that had grown in those tunnels welcomed the fresh flesh. Killing most of the monsters, while a few queens fell themselves. The tribes that roamed the tunnels would see these battles, and go on to tell stories of how mimics were protectors. Those queens that were still alive, would use this to their advantage to claim dwarf towns. Monsters were allowed to nest in the tunnels, to give these queens a sense of purpose among the dwarves, as some even began to worship them.


    The first Piklin saw what was going on with horror, and prayed for a way to help. The Dwarves she loved so much were gone, as new tribes and kingdoms began to move against each other. She would have her own children, and slowly they began the thankless task of closing more tunnels, to prevent the monsters and dwarves from fighting. Mimic queens would take credit for this, and turned the dwarves against each other.


    The grudges mounted, and cities became more isolated as a result. Kingdoms slowly falling apart, as their population are turned into Doppelgangers. Even when the books finally came, there was no passage about such creatures. Which galvanized the zealots, as they were a gift to protect them from other monsters. Finally it was discovered how Piklin blood could be used, and they were starting to be hunted by the other cities. Everyone wanting to use them to their own ends, to create new technology to best their enemies.


    The Piklins themselves have gone into hiding, while using those tribes that wandered the tunnels. Their Queen still hopes to somehow save the others before it is too late. To make the world as wonderful as she thinks it used to be. She is aware that Oswald is coming, and he will bring either death or salvation for them. Because the soothsayers speak the truth as the future will come.


    Fun Ideas: While people certainly have ample reason to hate these monsters, I find them oddly cunning and beautiful. They fill a niche, and have adapted to fulfill that.


    Mimics and Doppelgangers are certainly fuel for horror tropes. If you''re completely sadistic, you might fill an entire town up with these guys and let your party suffer. I personally wouldn''t recommend this, since any group you are playing with will likely try to find someone else to lead their campaigns. That said, if the party wants to die, they are effective for that.


    Not only that, but the doppelganger can certainly be used to sow paranoia in a group. Like just imagine one of your friends being one in a party, and suddenly you have a game focusing on the party itself trying to figure out why the warrior suddenly wants to go into a cave they just scouted. Naturally you''d have to make sure your players are on board with that, but it is an interesting story.


    As for the Piklins, well they can fit any host of stories and settings. They can be aliens that have adapted to zero gravity environments. They can be living suits of armor that join the party as a companion to help on quests. They can even be engaging enemies to fight against, given their intelligence and strength.

 Dwarves and the Holes They Dig

    Name: Dwarf (And the important tribes and distinctions that come with them)


    Race: People


    Sub-race: Dwarf


    Place on the Pyramid of Power (PPP): Sentient to Supernatural


    World: Xentos and many others (Though we are focusing on the Xentos ones in particular)


    Habitat: Mainly the Northern Kingdom, though there are small tribes that have moved to Eclipse, and the Eastern Kingdom


    Biology: Everyone has an idea of what dwarves are, in that they are a short race that typically lives in mountains. Typically hearty, and resilient, they dig holes to expand their homes and wealth. Because of their lifestyle and the dust of the mines and stone they dig through, dwarves have evolved to thrive in their homes. To that end, I''m going to identify the traits all dwarves have, and explain what happens if they turn into monsters.


    All dwarves have beards, and this includes the females. From the shortest beards of the Beard Cutters, to the longest of the Abyss Walkers, all dwarves have a beard. Even the babies of dwarves have beards that are developed enough to protect them from dust and fine particles in the air while they breath. To shave a dwarf''s beard off is the ultimate humiliation, and has very real health consequences for them.


    A dwarf without a beard doesn''t look exactly human either. Firstly, their facial features are more angular in shape, with sharp chins pronounced cheek bones, and large bulbous noses. Without any hair, you would notice that their heads appear larger, if slightly thicker compared to a human the same size. As you go lower towards the neck, you immediately notice three different slits that would be completely covered and surrounded by their beard.


    Dwarves in this world have two different sets of lungs. The first one is smaller and attached to the trachea. This little lung about the size of one of their fists, is in charge of getting enough air to speak, pulling in air through the nose for smell, and even releasing a mucus when fine particles get inside it. Essentially the sacrificial lung, that doesn''t provide the body with oxygen. It will close while a dwarf is eating, drinking, or even drowning itself in mucus to get rid of blockages.


    The real dwarf lung is the reason for the three vertical slits that traces along the top of a dwarf''s neck, to the center of their chest. The lung itself has the three shoots stretch out and merge behind a layer of fat and muscle. The lung itself encompasses the entirety of a dwarf''s stomach, which is why a dwarf always appears to be sucking in and releasing his gut. The act keeps their muscles strong, and promotes breathing. Not a lot of people know about the slits, or the two lung system even in the world of Xentos.


    As a consequence, many dwarves in foreign kingdoms can be killed because of a single stab wound. Healers that are not aware of dwarf biology will assume the slits are something unnatural and knit the flesh together to close such. Which again, leads to death as the dwarf struggles to breathe through the sacrificial lung and it becomes inflamed and they die. That said, even if a dwarf is stabbed and it pierces the lung itself, they can cause themselves to bleed out from the wound opening and closing, leading to bubbling blood. The best thing for dwarves in that situation is to cauterize the wound shut, as the fat will react to heat and close it naturally. This lung will not drown, as it has complex drainage tubes that allows them to filter out material to be digested or excreted.


    Dwarf blood is red, much like most other people races. That said, their blood is typically more oily and slick. This is because dwarf blood can dissolve and carry body fat, to even distribute it along their limbs. The fat itself acts as a sealant, and with the application of heat will expand to close wounds. This fat has evolved to resistant to catching on fire, and will break through the skin if the beard itself catches on fire. While painful for the dwarf in question, a sudden decrease of fat will cause the body to go into shock and they suddenly lose feeling in the afflicted area. Giving them time to try and run, or finish a fight.


    Due to their unique blood, dwarves can typically accept blood from elves and other red blooded races so long as the amount is a pint at most. Their immune system will make them feel sick as the new blood cells are destroyed slowly. This immune system mainly comes from the alcohol they consume. In that their bodies make unique compounds which aids in their blood carrying fat and oxygen through their system without issues. Hence why dwarves need a lot of alcohol to truly feel drunk.


    Dwarf bones are incredibly dense and resilient things. They will bend before they break, and often have a spring like effect snapping them back into place. If a dwarf bone does break, then that bone will become tainted by the blood, as the marrow dissolves into it. Which will cause the thing to become frail and amputate the body part in question. Though in the case of ribs, they will fall apart and slowly grow back. It''s more a matter of how much marrow was lost, since the places on the human body with thick marrow aren''t the same as dwarves. That said a sure fire way to kill a dwarf is to break their hip, which requires a massive amount of force to actually succeed in.


    Dwarf muscles are also uniquely dense and compact. Which gives them more strength than an average human. That said, their strength cannot really be improved upon even with ample exercising. Instead because of their biology and how they can actively digest certain rocks, soldiers and warriors are made stronger by ingesting certain minerals. These minerals in question will make the muscles even denser, although it is a rather painful process to endure. That said, it should be noted that no dwarf can actually float on water, and all of them will sink without something to aid them.


    All of these are traits that the dwarves evolved for dealing with an environment rich in blunt force trauma or being crushed. A dwarf is more than able to take multiple concussive strikes to the face, and shrug it off, while other races would be down for the count. If their leg or arm is caught in a cave in, as long as the bone doesn''t break, they can call for help or hack it off and use oil and fire to seal the wound. If the Dwarf''s entire body is caught in a cave in, and they aren''t crush, they can sit there for as long as air filters to where they are. They can effectively take blows from any blunt object as long as it doesn''t hit them in the head too often and the skin remains unbroken.


    As for the beards themselves, they are a mixture of fine and thin hairs that naturally weave themselves together to make a sort of mesh. Typically dwarves have different critters running around inside their beards. The kind that are lice, spiders, or even unique bugs. This is a symbiotic relationship as the dwarf lets the things eat whatever falls into their beards, or even other bugs that they catch or squish from time to time. These bugs will pluck out hairs that are frayed, or outright eat such, and allow new hairs to grow in. Most beards actually connect with the chest hair, or even stomach hair, to allow it to grow longer. Giving the illusion that the beard itself stretches past their waists, though that varies based on tribe.


    Dwarf eyes are typically beady things, looking smaller than they should. The pupils are larger, with their irises being thinner. Most dwarves typically wear glasses when dealing with other races to hide such. These eyes are able to see decently in the dark, allowing a crude sort of dark vision. Though dwarves themselves cannot see very far away, and are rather short sighted beings. Typically anything past 110 meters (360.84 feet/ the size of a football stadium), they cannot actively see. When in the dark, their vision is roughly half that amount. Which is a lot less than humans who can apparently see up to 4.83 kilometers (3 miles) away with light. Though I''d argue a lot more than humans can see in the dark. This naturally comes without the light sensitivity that most other races with dark vision have. Specifically dark elves in this case.


    Dwarves can hear better in loud environments, their brains actively filtering out background noises. Their eardrums are padded to allow them to keep their hearing despite intense noise, but also sensitive enough to pick up on the talking of others around them. They can be hard of hearing in a silent environment, given that they need ambient noise to help them hear the other sounds around them.


    With all that in mind, Dwarves are a race that can become monsters if they are infected with black blood, or eat tainted meat. When a dwarf becomes a monster, they typically become gnomes (which I will put in a poll to explain later with the other monster types). Which essentially makes them smaller and more compact, but increases their magic. Gnomes reject living in tunnels and chose to spread out above ground, which means other races have to deal with them. Dwarf women are subject to the wails of the youngest banshee, which means that dwarves can become other types of humanoid monsters as well. Though it is far more likely for them to become a gnome.


    Diet: It was mentioned that dwarves could eat certain rocks and minerals. This is very true, their bodies have stronger stomach acid. Most dwarves would prefer meat and even the green stuff to minerals, but the deeper you go the less likely you are to get that. Hence why they are able to subsist on such. The most important thing to them is that they get ale. Ale is like water to a dwarf, in that they will die within a week without any to drink.


    Concept: With the biology handled, I''ll use concept to throw out the tribes we''ll be seeing. Which will follow and build their culture. I should mention that dwarves typically live between 150 and 300 years old (with the exception of metal beards). This will also cover some key biological differences between the tribes, as well as some other neat little facts.


    Beard Cutters: Starting with the most notorious of the kingdoms, and the one that outsiders deal with the most. The Beard Cutters are a tribe of dwarves that have shorter beards, just barely covering their three air flaps. Naturally they take beards from families that join them, rekindling those bonds when a new chief takes their place, by having those same or new leaders of such families give a fresh lock to them.


    These are the guys that we based most of the dwarf physiology on. If you see a dwarf tribe wandering the tunnels, or even in other kingdoms, chances are they came from this tribe or it''s kingdom. They are the most adaptive of the other dwarfs, typically only needing a couple generations to adapt to a new environment. All tribes were born from the Beard Cutters, despite revolutions leading to lost history and other tribes disputing such.


    Frost Beards: The kingdom of ice, the tundra hunters, the snow''s fury. This kingdom has claimed a trio of mountains and have adapted to survive hunting in below zero climates. Their entire body is typically covered in insulating white hair that helps them hide in their hunting grounds. They thrive in colder weather, and typically dwell inside their mountains with gaping holes to let the cold in. They do not dig very deep, only having a few tunnels to connect with other kingdoms.


    Thanks to their location, and unique body structure, they are the only true masters of ice magic. While extremely rare for anyone to actually encounter them, they are often confused for yeti children by other races. Which doesn''t help with the fact that they will tame wild yeti and other creatures to help in their hunts. They typically provide the other kingdoms with water from the snow around them, and fresh meats when hunts are good.


    Lately there have been monsters moving about the snow, and the meat is becoming tainted with black blood. The first gnomes were ice gnomes that came about from an unfortunate group of hunters that chose to eating tainted meat, versus cannibalism.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Abyss Walkers: These dwarves have their kingdom to the Northwest of the Beard Cutters. Which puts their area right in the thickest part of the mountains, on the border of the black cloud. They have long black beards, and are the most powerful compared to the other kingdoms. They keep many secrets, while digging the deepest.


    They tend to keep to themselves, rarely sending one of their dwarves to commune in the council once every fifty years or so. In truth they have slowly adapted to eating tainted flesh, by draining all the blood out of a monster''s hide. While it doesn''t taste good, they are one of the few creatures that can eat monster flesh without risk of turning, or suffering from disease.


    They also know a lot about dark magics, and bloody rituals, which keeps the other kingdoms from wanting to do much with them. They were the first kingdom to go silent before everything with the mimics happened, and while many suspect they died, the truth is quite the opposite. They are slowly but surely carving their way back up and working to secure tunnels to go back to trading as if nothing happened.


    Metal Beards: The dwarf kingdom that dug into the magma chambers and developed a unique way of creating weapons. They are the ones that discovered soul crystals, and how to use a ritual to bind a soul to such. Their tribe is essentially made out of golems that move thanks to the magic of these crystals. Naturally they cannot reproduce naturally, and accept all unwanted children, and even criminals into their midst. Back in the days before Eclipse, criminals were often given the choice of joining the metal beards, or taking their chances with the monsters in Dark Fall.


    Thanks to their numbers not actively dying to age, they''ve had quite a long time to hone their craft and do not actually have any monster problems, save for the fire worms that swim in magma. They are working with the Abyss walkers since their tunnels were the first to be reclaimed, due in part to both knowing how to deal with monsters in their own ways.


    These guys are also the reason homunculus exist, since they did trade soul crystals and instructions on how to use them. The idea being a simple one, in that other races could join them as well. This also helped to kick start the magic to make golems, as well as people discovering how to make such magical constructs with their own power. Which fuels rumors about the dwarves having an army of golems at the ready, and can probably deal with the fire kingdom themselves. Which in turn made the dwarves public enemy number one to said kingdom. Now they just keep their runic knowledge and fancy weapons to themselves.


    Wet Beards: This kingdom is located below the Beard Cutters to the South, while the Metal Beards are located to the North and a bit deeper. These guys have set up around the start of the Underneath tunnels. Originally they wanted to keep monsters and creatures out of such a place, but over generations they were unable to, and with a horde of monsters making their way inside, more beasts were allowed in. Which resulted in the largely untamable lands, that then pushed the Wet Beards further to the surface, and below the massive river itself.


    Currently they are being guided by a mimic queen, and are kind of working together to keep the monsters of the Underneath from swarming back out or attacking them. Because of this, the most dangerous stuff tends to be right where the river carves into the tunnel, versus hanging around and going under Eclipse.


    Wandering Tribes: The rest of the tribes are basically a loose collections of different dwarves. They technically qualify as their own kingdom to the East, and Southwest, and are made up of various families and towns without any real cities. From tribes like the Ember Beards, to the Moss Beards themselves. They pretty much covered the top side around the Beard Cutters in all directions, and made up roughly half the dwarf population.


    With two mimic Queens pitting them against each other, most of the single tribes have gone extinct or flat out have all been turned into Doppelgangers. The Moss Beards did try to stop such a fate, but by the time anyone realized such, it was too late for them. A good number of them have fled to the larger cities, placing a strain on resources, while doppelgangers also followed them. Monsters have turned small towns into breeding grounds, and really it''s all just one big mess that needs to be cleaned up and will take years to do so properly.


    Relationships: With the presence of mimics, and their queens. All dwarf tribes are essentially at war with each other. Some are to the point that they will attack on sight, while others will at least try to hear the other side out. Given the fact that the Beard Cutters have made airships, and the Moss Beards traveled the world in caravans; most kingdoms have decent views on the race as a whole.


    Eclipse: The people running Eclipse are aware of the multiple tribes in the Northern Kingdom. In general the people of Eclipse like dwarves because they make really nice weapons and armor. The average person knows that they always need food, and it makes sense to them since mountains aren''t a great place to farm. On the other hand, the dwarves trade for knowledge, runes, and just about anything they can use. If the dwarves didn''t have a wealth of precious metals and ores that were needed, they would be much worse off.


    Still given Oswald''s reputation and how he''s a prominent figure from the Northern Kingdom. The dwarves and Eclipse have a trusting relationship with each other. Multiple treaties are in place, and the Northern Kingdom gets the best prices on food, and other supplies. While Eclipse gets exclusive trade deals, and has groups of guards and other services bought or rented as needed. If the Eastern or Western Kingdoms attack, Eclipse will move to flank and dispose of such invaders.


    Kingdom of Light: The elves running the Eastern kingdom are on tense terms with the Northern Kingdom. While not openly hostile to each other, many elf leaders view the dwarves with disdain for not even trying to see the difference between all the tribes. It also doesn''t help that envoys from the Beard Cutters tend to call their envoys ''beast fuckers,'' whenever it suits them. Especially when trying to make deals in a room full of Eclipse nobles.


    Because of the various grudges both have towards each other, the two typically take actions that might hinder the other party out of spite. For the most part the Moss Beards were an exception to elf hostility, but since their tribe was wiped out, the situation has only gotten worse. Thankfully the elves are more than happy to wait out a few generations of dwarves, hoping someone more agreeable might come along. Plus they have the fire kingdom to deal with, so a war won''t be started unless the dwarves attack first. Which is unlikely to happen anytime soon.


    Kingdom of Dark Fell: Ruled by the monster king that wants to kill anything that isn''t a monster. The dwarves are effectively at war with the Western Kingdom. That said, numbers do not amount to much when flesh and fang are forced down narrow tunnels, and trapped spaces waiting to cave in. If not for the first hordes failing at Eclipse, the Northern Kingdom likely would have fallen themselves under the amount of forces.


    Ironically, the monster king was not responsible for the current issue in the Northern Kingdom. Granted he aggravated it with his hordes, but the mimics were already there and repelled such without his knowledge. To that end, the monster king is slowly allowing his monster armies to raise their numbers for a massive attack on the dwarves in the future. He is hoping to take the mountains and use them as a breeding grounds in turn for future attacks on Eclipse and even the Kingdom of Light.


    Kingdom of Fire: While most of the time the dwarves trade exclusively with Eclipse and the Kingdom of Light, they will head further South to the kingdom of Fire. Here, they are protected and welcomed by the best of the fire kingdom. Pirates are forbidden from attacking the dwarf air ships, with the threat of their entire bloodline being hunted down. The relationship is best described as the Fire lord trying to get the dwarves to attack Eclipse, or form exclusive deals with them; while the dwarves just appreciate that their gear sells for a lot more in such a kingdom.


    Naturally they haven''t forgotten the propaganda about the Fire Kingdom being the best kingdom, or how dwarves were the ones coming down in their airships to steal jobs from humble blacksmiths. Even if it was a couple generations ago for the humans since Eclipse sprang up and became their number one enemy. Which effectively means that the Dwarves have no real intentions of every actually allying with such a volatile kingdom.


    Romance: Dwarves follow the rules that other races adhere to. They can mate with other races that are not monsters without any issues. They cannot reproduce with beasts, and many dwarves look down on the elves for creating the beast tribes. Even the beast tribes that were around before the elves, have been blamed on the debauchery of elves mingling with beasts. Because of that, you rarely find dwarf and elf pairs.


    Beyond that, they typically like to court for a decade or two before committing to a relationship. Most dwarves will often put up with whatever human they enter a relationship with, since the human will die long before it becomes an issue to a dwarf. It is not uncommon for them to make arranged marriages to gain exclusive deals with certain human groups, just because of this fact.


    For a dwarf, nothing is more relaxing and pleasurable than the sensation of their breath flaps being lightly stroked or even massaged. While typically silent, when a dwarf is properly enjoying themself, they will make a sort of purring for their partner to enjoy with them. Which is why they view intricate works of art and carvings so highly. They aren''t in it for the looks, but how deft and practiced those fingers are. A dwarf''s beard will even twitch at the end if they are properly aroused by such a work or gesture.


    Creation: You may want to skip this one if you don''t want spoilers.


    The earliest records of Dwarves can be found in the ancient tomes. The same tomes that speak of ships that sailed among the stars, and impossible machines that could create fake worlds with a line of code. In truth, Dwarves were made as a race based off the genetics of multiple creatures in a civilization advanced enough to know what every bit of genetic code could and would do. They were made synthetically by the ''gods'' of Xentos to be a subservient race that mined ore and resources for their masters. They were supposed to be expendable, and procreate so that they did not have to be remade.


    Then the darkest night happened. The influence of the abyssal king collided with the magic of Xentos, creating the first demons that sought to serve their creator. The machines that had not yet failed, suddenly became silent and buried during the fight with the abyssal king. The dwarves were given freedom with the elves, and synthetic humans. The beasts that were created fled to the East, while the Dwarves took about their tasks as they always did. This time for themselves, unable to parse the idea of an abyssal king. Such a figure was forgotten save for the monoliths that told the story of such a fight.


    To this day, there is no dwarf ''god,'' as they believe themselves to have been carved from the stone itself by ancient lost magics. The mountains of the North was where they were born, and they will defend it until they die. Even if the gods themselves ordain to come, they will be ready.


    Purpose: Masters of their own fate. Dwarves are free to chose what they wish to do with their life, and how to go about such. Not all dwarves have the luxury of such a choice, but the majority certainly do. Even if the choice leaves them starving in the tunnels with empty bellies, and monsters breathing down their necks.


    Ideally the dwarf in question would chose to serve their family, by becoming a productive member of their family. They will try to unite other families under them, and slowly become prominent enough to take over the kingdom itself. To that end, every dwarf seeks to somehow do something amazing in their field, or work hard enough to keep their families fed. Life is hard in the tunnels, and they can only survive by working together.


    Lore: Few tribes have actually had much impact on the lore of Xentos as a whole. While the tribes themselves can each be considered to have their own unique lore and backstories, I feel such is better examined through the story naturally. If you want to talk about who had the most impact, it would definitely be the Metal Beards in introducing golems and such other magics to the world. Followed by the Moss Beards and other wanderers, who traveled the world in caravans and traded with other races to spread their ideas. The Beard Cutters would be a good third place, especially if you consider that Oswald technically came from them.


    Beyond that, they really haven''t influenced the world that much. They are content to dig their holes, and protect their lands. They trade for the things they need to survive, and are more interested in disputes between their chiefs versus the world outside at large. While they could have created farms on the mountains and grew crops on the plains around such, or even moved earth and such to try and sustain the idea. They ultimately feel the time spent towards such an endeavor would only make them weaker as a race. Hence why wanderers like the Moss Beards were looked down on, and they refused to actually ask for help long before everything got covered in shit.


    Fun Ideas: Dwarves are unique and you could put them just about anywhere. The idea is that they are survivors that will adapt to just about any environment. Want them in space? Make Space beards, a race that no longer needs to breath, but has thick skin and can absorb energy from the stars and radiation around them. Just imagine setting sail in a space ship and hitting one of those fuckers, only to have it slowly shamble on board and start using sign language.


    You can even make Fire Beards, who are dwarves with beards literally on fire. The world is your oyster, and if you want a special kind of dwarf for your campaign, then just do it! They can be bad guys, good guys, anything your heart desires. They are a perfect race for supply depots, cities in otherwise uninhabitable places, and even small towns or villages. As with the Abyss walkers they could be on the verge of becoming monsters, and with those breathing flaps on their necks you suddenly have horror.

 The First Piklin Pt I

    Mother Mimic


    The burning hasn''t stopped since I ate that woman. Every night we drank the blood of the horses, but that woman found out. She had to be eaten, and now everything burned. The others did not seem to understand what was going on. Still we continued further and further away from our home. Eventually we arrived at the first dark place, that reminded me of my tunnels, the burning sensation never going away. I could hear the words of the doppelgangers, as they spoke. We were safe here?


    They carried us through the tunnels, some of the doppelgangers being attacked. We hid, eating the bodies, while others had children. I needed to make my own child, but I was not like the others either. After the eggs were laid, I called the others to me, to try and regain the glory of our kingdom.


    Something was wrong, joining with the others caused them to burn and wither. We barely managed to dig enough into the wall before it was clear I was not a queen. The others dead, or dying while the doppelgangers carried the eggs away. They would not let our race die out, not like this. There was so much more we had to do, we were created by our god to make the world beautiful. For the first time, I knew despair, the pain of extinction and it''s meaning. The weight of my race bearing down on me, and crushing me. My own body finally starting to wither, as I was a failure.


    I felt the egg inside of me throb, as I realized I hadn''t even managed to lay it properly. I could hear the dwarves just outside the crevice we dug. They were burning the other saddles and mimics. The eggs left here were destroyed, and so I couldn''t lay my offspring. I will never know if any of the other eggs survived, or if they suffered the same fate. I wrapped my flesh around my egg, to keep it warm, wishing for the first time that someone might save us, that someone might save our race.


    Our god was silent, our creator abandoning us to likely start again after he woke up from his slumber. I did not know language, or even these feelings. I was not able to handle them all, but soon I would die. I turned my attention to my egg once more, the life pulsing inside me. The loneliness of being the only one left, the future I did not want for this child. I could only apologize to it, giving the thing that burned me so much. The egg took such a cursed thing, as my thoughts became slower. My only hope being that such a curse might make it stronger. My body withered inside the crevice, ample flesh for the little one to eat and continue our race.


    <hr>


    Father Ivern, Moss Beard


    The spirits were howling through the tunnels, as they softly cried in pain. I had been through these tunnels many times before, walking them with the others. The moss on my beard glowing dimly and casting a gentle light as I continued for the source. We had stopped to drop off supplies for the different tribes, and now everyone was handling the resupply. Which meant I had time to myself, to explore as I saw fit. I gently stroked my beard, the tangled vines lightly hugging my thick fingers while the flora spirits giggled.


    As a spirit caller, I could see all the wonderful little nymphs and spirits that made up our world. The tiny little things that moved the air, the ground, the fire, and everything else. It was because of them, that I could generally guide the caravan to safety. If the spirits were fleeing, then death was near. If they were singing, then people were happy. If they were crying, then someone was hurting. Still, as I continued down the tunnels, I saw no signs of anyone or anything that was alive.


    I stumbled upon some horse bones, and a few elf bones from the looks of it. A death spirit hiding under its skull. What was truly out of place was the fact that elf bones were even here to begin with. The pure white things turned black after a few weeks, and judging by the dust these bones had been here for probably a month or two. Something ate the flesh away, but there were plenty of scavengers more than happy to eat anything dead.


    I piled the bones, taking a moment to rest on my knees and prayed for the lost soul. While the elf had already moved on, it was proper to pay respects to them. I spoke the elf tongue and recited the verse of mourning for a stranger. If their soul had cursed those that killed them, hopefully this would be enough to appease them. Thankfully it did not seem the elf in question wanted to spite their killers, and after an hour I finally drank some refreshing water from my flask. The water nymphs inside happily singing and keeping it cool and clean for me. I gave them my thanks, before resting beside the forgotten bones.


    This elf may have been a spirit caller themselves, which would explain why they were currently crying. Though it had been a month at least, and the spirits were terrible at remembering things unless they had an elder guiding them. I closed my eyes to rest, hoping that the spirits could calm down soon enough or at least lead me to their elder. I felt something move to my side, and opening my eyes I saw a tiny fleshy hand reaching for my shoulder.


    The hand had sharp rocks clinging to it, making a sort of tiny little claw about the size of my finger. It was attached to a fleshy arm, that connected to some kind of mix between a slime that took on human form, and a tiny ball of flesh. The thing looked incredibly weak on its own, falling short from actually reaching my shoulder pad. It didn''t seem to have the strength to fight. I looked at the creature''s soul, frowning deeply while I looked her over.


    It froze, as I reached a hand towards it, but quickly retreated back into a crack that I barely saw. Now that I knew it was there, I could feel its fear, and pain. The longing and loneliness, as it tried to call out for others. The spirits started to cry again, confirming my suspicions. This little one was making the spirits cry, because her soul was calling for help. These were good spirits, so they wouldn''t cry if the creature here wasn''t innocent.


    I moved towards the crevice, trying to peer inside, only to find the creature hiding further behind the rock. The poor thing was shaking, but clearly malnourished. I could see that it was on its last legs, and I could just leave it here to finish withering. I felt my flask, taking another sip of the water. The little bugger watching me, its eyes going wide while I swallowed my drink. I could sense curiosity coming from its soul, the wonder of watching something bigger than it moving.


    I let out a small sigh, she clearly had a curious mind. Like that of a child, it would be wrong just to let her die. I poured some water into my hand, holding a small bit on my palm. I knelt before the crevice, smiling at her gently. She took a few moments looking between my hand, and myself. The little thing that could comfortably fit in my palm. She was so afraid of me, and far too weak to resist if I harmed her in any way. She understood it, and kept her distance.


    There was one last thing to try, and if she couldn''t accept my help, then it wasn''t meant to be. I took a small breath, feeling the pulse of my own soul. The things I''ve endured in this life, the wonder of the world, as both good and bad memories swirled inside me. I smiled at the little one, before softly singing:


    "I''ll show you mountains, and the clear blue skies.


    I''ll show you rivers, and how the birdies fly.


    So won''t you come with me?


    This world is a-mazing, with all its sights and sounds~"


    A pure song, displaying my intentions. One born from the truth I felt, that I sang to the young ones that traveled with us. The spirits around us slowly stopping their tears, as I continued:


    "I love the whole world, it''s such a lovely place~


    From all the small worms, to the giant drakes~


    I''ll show them all to you.


    So please just dry your tears~


    Say you''ll come along with me~"


    The spirits started to sing their own little chorus, their soft hums making the tunnel feel just a little less dark. The little one watched me with wide eyes, inching closer as I softly lowered my voice.


    "There''s just so much, I need some company~


    Someone to lean on, and to love and trust


    I''ll take you in~, to join our family~


    You have no-thing to fear


    So won''t you join us? To see the sights and sounds?"


    My voice carried along the walls, the echoes lingering longer as the spirits hummed and sang happily. The worry of the little one slowly fading, as she softly grabbed my thumb, about to climb onto my palm. She was so thirsty, as she drank all the water she could, even licking my palm for just a few more droplets. I poured a little more for her, not wanting her to become sick.


    "So here we both are, about to leave and then~


    We''ll go on a jour-ney, and some more~


    From the salty sea, to the sandy shores~


    So won''t you join us? To see the sights and sounds?


    We''ll walk this whole world, we''ll even laugh and cry


    This world is so big~ and oh so beautiful~"


    She was starting to fill out a bit, the water helping her a lot. The folds of her flesh slowly puffing out to make her a little bigger. The poor thing must had been dying of thirst. It curled on my palm, softly falling asleep before I could finish the song. The spirits no longer crying, while I carried the little one away from the crevice and bones. There was no way she was responsible for the death of the elf, if anything she was probably protected by it, one of the magical creatures brought from the forest.


    I resolved to keep her safe, and return her back to the woods from which she came. Surely one of the elf tribes knew just what she was. It was just a shame it was going to take a few years before we made it back to the forest. We couldn''t exactly take a special trip to return her. I made a small hole in my beard, asking the spirits inside the plants to keep her comfortable as I gently placed her inside the small nest. I left the tunnels to tell the others about the new friend we made.


    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    On my way out, I found a tag that was used to mark slaves. Picking up the ruined thing I could barely read any of the letters on it. A thought floated across my mind, from how silly the name was. If this little one was a new species, they would be called Piklin.


    <hr>


    My First Year


    My memory is quite hazy for those first months I lived. Even until today, all I can remember was crying for help, drinking the blood from my mother, and eating her flesh. I don''t know if I killed her or not, but I was saved by the Moss Beards. Father Ivern always sang such wonderful songs, and through these songs, I started to learn his language. Slowly we traveled along the borders of the black sand kingdom. No matter how much like home it felt, something kept me from every wanting to go there. At the time I was certain I would die.


    The weeks I do remember, were spent with the tribe of fifty walking back and forth between the sands, and the forests. They would gather seeds, nuts, berries, and even hunt for pelts. They did what they could to ease the creatures they caught into death. At the time it scared me, because I always wondered when I would be next. I clung to my father, and the safety of his beard.


    To me the people that I was surrounded by were untouchable. Father Ivern always charged head first against the monsters, which scared me while I hid inside his beard. The monsters would lash out against him, but even their mightiest blows could not harm him. The force seemed to dissipate just before he was struck. Even rocks and other debris thrown at him would lose their momentum once they reached a certain point. He was an untouchable fortress of safety and comfort.


    Those monsters or beasts that saw his displays were always terrified and fled deeper into their grounds. Those that weren''t, were touched by Vile Plume. A young dwarf that could touch others and kill them. He was always a sad one, having killed those he loved before being saved by our Father himself. Many of our members were saved by our father, to the point that our tribe wasn''t only dwarves, but a couple dark elves, around five humans, a few wood elves, and even a fiendling named Adam. Still the majority belonged wholly to the dwarves.


    That first year, I learned basic words and concepts. While I couldn''t walk, I could crawl and move my flesh to somewhat slither. I took to using stones and pebbles with bits of splinters to try and make legs, so I could be like those around me. I wanted to be stronger, and Father Ivern let me hide my favorite stones in his beard. We still continued to travel South, even while the seasons changed.


    <hr>


    My Second Year


    From the full cycle of seasons that moved, it was declared that I was a year old. I was learning numbers, and how they worked. Games of cards were played, during star filled nights. Shimmer would show me the stars above us, when she caught me gazing at them one night. She showed me all the constellations, teaching me how to find my way if I got lost. The stars were always the same, and they would be there to guide us. She explained the concept of gods and goddesses, and how we gave them their own stars.


    I would sneak out from Father''s beard on clear nights to listen to Shimmer talk. Looking back, I think Father Ivern always knew when I left his beard. Though I feel he was just happy to see me becoming a little more independent. We were still traveling South, moving along the border of black sand and the woods and forest the surrounded us. Walking along the path were few trees grew. I noticed the subtle changes, which prompted Shimmer to explain the maps she made.


    To my disbelief, the forest was made up of many different forests, with trees growing more sparse in some places to mark the borders of any given forest or woods. The woods and forest along the borders of Dark Fall had strange properties. From the forest of whispers, where birds seemed to sing your thoughts, and doubts. To even the forest of cinder, where instead of leaves the trees sprouted thick branches that emitted fire.


    The forests were dangerous, but a skilled hunter or traveler was able to navigate the edges and secure food for their tribe. I learned this was the reason why we walked the boundaries of Dark Fall. The occasional monster was far better than the king or queen of a respective forest. The wonderous beasts that held talents, and repelled monsters on their own. We met crying wolves (what would later become whispering wolves), manticore, and even a couple of the kings who allowed us to continue on our journey after a small offering was made.


    This was the year I learned that my family wasn''t invincible. It was a dark night, and a couple humans had gone outside of camp to relieve themselves. One of them died to a Snore (A boar with three snake tails, and typically the size of an adult). The other was impaled and dragged towards the campfire, while the beast used it''s crystal tusks to split the poor human in half while throwing a tent like it was paper. Adam was the first to react, as he slammed into the side of the creature with the strength of a fiend.


    The two were about the same size, and circled each other, while every woke up preparing to counter the Snore in question. The fight was over the minute the Snore decided to charge Adam. With incredible reflexes he grabbed the tusks, the sharp things slicing into his hands. He tossed the screaming thing into the air, and it fell breaking bones and ribs alike. Vile Plume touched the creature, and it died a few seconds after, while Adam beat his chest.


    After it was all over, the two humans were buried and the tribe grieved their loss. Seeds and flowers were planted with the two, and we had meat that tasted terrible that night. I was left with so many questions, and since Father Ivern could see souls, I asked them what happened. Despite the tears in his eyes, and the way his voice cracked, he held me close, telling me that the spirits of death gently helped the souls out of their bodies. From there figures serving death ushered the two away, to be judged and placed where they would rest eternally.


    I was afraid, because I didn''t want to die. I finally understood that what happened that night could happen to anyone. That at any moment everything and everyone we cared about could just be taken by something. I cried with my family, not wanting any of them to be hurt. After that, I tried to follow others whenever they got away from the group, hoping I could help them somehow, if anything happened. In the end, I was attacked, and for the first time I bled. My blood was black like Adam''s, and I couldn''t remember what attacked me, but one of the wood elves saved me.


    I didn''t understand how bad black blood could be at the time. Everyone panicked while the wood elf complained of how my blood burned their sap. We saw veins growing on their hand, and everyone feared the worse, while Adam tended to my wounds. He explained why our blood was cursed, and how it could hurt those we cared about. That I was lucky it only hurt a wood elf, since their blood was sap. It took Red a couple days to recover, but they were never upset with me. Everyone was just happy that he did recover.


    Adam took to whittling, because those veins on Red didn''t go away for months. We had to test just what my blood could do. How it could hurt those I cared about. Those tests revealed what my race was capable of. Our blood burned organic matter in a kind of antiseptic way. Great for cleaning wounds, with no risk of infection through black blood. The issue was that wood, rock, and metal would develop veins similar to what I gave Red. Those veins would link to my flesh, and I could channel my thoughts through such.


    The tests took months, happening at their own slow pace. The tribe didn''t feel any fear towards me, instead they loved me as if nothing changed. I was scared, but Adam himself took me aside explaining why he was far scarier than some little ball of flesh like me. With a smile, he gave me a hollowed out wooden fiend. When I entered it, everything made sense. While the toy only came up to Father Ivern''s ankles, I was so excited. For the first time, I could climb, and move, and not have to be carried everywhere.


    The veins allowed me to feel through the wood itself. My body would weep out a little blood here and there to keep everything going just right, as joints developed naturally. I could finally play with the other children, and I was able to bring their toys to life. While I couldn''t protect anyone, I no longer had to be hauled to safety if something scary came along.


    <hr>


    My Third Year


    Things seemed to continue to get better as we continued our journey South, still following the natural borders. I became more aware of what was going on around me, my mind becoming sharper. Simply playing with the others was starting to lose it''s joy. I was treated as just another of the five children we had with us. I wanted more, to help the adults somehow. My body was getting bigger, and I was no longer able to use Father''s beard. Outside of the little wood golems I came up to the waists of the dwarves. I was still the size of a small child, but I could move and control something twice my size.


    We found out that wood was extremely useful for me to use, since my blood could soak through it just fine, making the veins creep further. To that end, I finally got a large log with ball joints from Adam. I was a walking, talking wood golem, much to the amusement of those around me. I couldn''t lift more than a dwarf, but my wooden body never got tired. I worked for hours without rest, slowly becoming more accepted by the adults.


    Finally we reached the land bridge of the West. It was there that I came upon the first town I ever saw. The town was called Tol''sun, and it belonged to the fire kingdom. An outpost town, mostly run by the military types, and designed to be a sort of choke point if the monsters of Dark Fall tried to run into the kingdom of Fire. Its walls stretched from the ocean to the sea itself, even if the town was far too small to follow those walls.


    We were allowed to trade with the humans there, but evidently dwarves were looked down upon. It was new to all of us, and the captain of the town explained that their lord of fire had decreed that the kingdom of the North was not being a proper ally to them. Many of the goods we brought were sold for cheaper than expected, despite the guard captain thanking us for them. He seemed to understand that such a decree was madness, but only spoke about such in private.


    It was there that I learned about politics and policies. The taxes that others had to pay in kingdoms, and just how unfair everything could be if someone with power was allowed to use it based upon their own whims. Thankfully the old captain felt the same way, and while it was not a good idea to go to Cal''Sol, he promised that we could spend a few months along the borders and get us a few ships to sail along the harbor towns that were cropping up. Father Ivern agreed, since the sea was safer than following its shores through the woods.


    The months we spent outside of Tol''sun were a bit pleasant. We harvested lumber, selling such to the captain. We were able to keep ourselves fed, even harvesting berries and hunting while we waited. Winter came before we got those ships, but it was noticeably much more mild compared to how cold it could get further North. The few months turned into an entire season and a half, starting my next year. Please give me a moment to rest, since that fourth year was a difficult one. I promise to tell you more when I am ready.

 The First Piklin Pt II

    My Fourth Year


    Let me start off with apologizing for the wait. I''m afraid my children, and myself are to blame for the constant flux that the mimic queens are in. Though that can wait until the end of the story. When we left off, we were going onto my fourth year. The time that gave us so much trouble. After waiting for longer than we were promised, a ship finally came. Ivern and others were understandably upset, since we were promised ships, yet given the alternative we had no other choice.


    We ended up selling most of the wagons, deciding to use the local lumber past the port we were going to dock at. It would add time to our journey, but it was better than leaving anyone to travel the shores. We bought supplies to keep ourselves fed, while the old captain apologized once more to us in private. From what I understood, most seafaring vessels were being used for a war against the elves of the East, as they battled over the land bridge in that area.


    Thankfully, the ship was led by an young captain who had heard tales of Father Ivern, and his travels from his father. Everything was looking up, and we set sail. The Dwarves tended to stay below deck, since the sight of so much water made them uncomfortable. It was clear they couldn''t swim in any water, which they took the time to explain to me. Even Adam was not fond of traveling by sea, which made me wonder just how terrible traveling along the shores could truly be. The Young captain would pry everyone for tales of our adventures and what we had seen while walking along the lands. Those that enjoyed telling stories, kept him company, while I listened alongside him.


    At the time, I had taken to keeping a shapely form when outside of my wood golem. The captain had been walking around, the deck while I merely wanted to watch the stars. I did not hear him, when the ship rocked from an errant wave. He called me beautiful, and we spent more time together. He told me the stories his father told him, he taught me how to navigate the sea by the stars in the sky. How to read the waves, and the clouds, and how to spot monsters.


    It took a month to sail from Tol''son to the port village of Dus''kon. During our travel, I had my first kiss, and learned more about how human bodies worked. The captain was reluctant to see us go, and I was sad to see him off to war. We made promises to see each other again one day, but humans do not live this long. Spring was still in season, and we were left to explain our situation to the people of Dus''kon.


    Little did we know, this new village was consorting with a powerful monster. It attacked Adam in the dead of night, believing that I was only a simple golem. It was on that night, that Adam experienced his first death in front of me. The large serpent slammed my suit against a tree, knocking parts loose and breaking an arm. Thankfully I was unharmed inside the thing, and I just stayed still hoping it would leave me alone. It did, returning to its den, but not before speaking of how it would poison everyone''s food the next night. Adam and myself were left to rot that night, and it wasn''t until morning that I finally worked up the courage to move.


    People had come to either break apart my body, or reclaim the golem to use for whatever purposes they had. I ran past them, back to the others. Screaming and crying out when I saw the wooden fence made to keep out the beasts. The villagers screamed that I had gone berserk, and killed Adam. I was so afraid, screaming as I was unable to even make words. I just blew into the small horn inside my wooden suit, trying to warn everyone we were in danger.


    I cried when Father Ivern had everyone take up their weapons, still blowing the horn to warn them. A fire elementalist from the village finally struck my suit, catching the splinters on fire. That was when everything happened. A third of my family died that die, but we killed everyone in the village, and the serpent. Father Ivern lost an arm, and no one escaped without some kind of scar. The children we had with us, were dead. We spent months mourning, while Father Ivern tried to console everyone.


    Adam was furious, but his anger was more directed purely towards himself. He broke houses apart in his anger, which didn''t help much, but ultimately he and Father Ivern decided to use the wreckage to build wagons and carts. There was plenty of food and supplies to last us for the months we were there. We took everything that would perish, and a good deal of tools and other necessities. We left that dark place with enough supplies that another village could be built on top of its remains.


    For the first time, we had extra suits made for me. I was still young, but there weren''t many of us left and fewer were still able to properly fight. If we stayed there, the yearly tribute vessel would eventually find us. We had to leave, and risk the dangers of the forests and woods. Adam taught me how to fight, sparring with me every day, tearing open my suit if I froze up like I did before. He would roar that I was dead, but always left me with two suits to use and move between.


    More of our tribe perished to the wounds they received from that village. Not because of illness, but because the various creatures in the forest could smell their blood, and sensed weakness. We continued on our death march. Our numbers fell to just below thirty, and it took almost an entire year to reach the trade city of Eclipse.


    <hr>


    My Fifth Year


    We arrived there towards the end of Summer. The walls were high, but Adam himself could have easily jumped over such. There were people from the Black March from Dark Fall building houses for some unknown reason. The city guard leader welcomed us, and put us to work with the Black March since they were more than happy to pay for our labor. There were so many different people in Eclipse, but it appeared that a good number of them were rougher than most people we met. The city itself had districts, and was more like a melting pot of different towns mixed together, than a true city.


    It was frequent for gangs to form and take out spots within the city walls. A lot of the gangs tended to revolve around one race, or mixed with a different one to go against some other race. Thankfully they didn''t care about golems, or monsters that could talk. Though a few human led gangs were not on friendly terms with dwarves, so we had to avoid them.


    During our stay, the weather grew colder, and we decided to stay for the incoming winter. I learned new things, like what bandits were and how the captain of the Guard was considered the bandit Queen. Somehow she kept order in the city. I also learned that Eclipse had a very dark past, in which it was the final stopping point criminals being taken to Dark Fall as sacrifices to the Kingdom there. The most important thing I learned, was that one does not simply fuck with the Black March.


    Though their numbers were twenty, and they always kept their armor on. The Black March was clearly made of the different races. They rarely talked, but when they did their voices were like whispers. A gang of one hundred decided to try and claim the houses built outside the walls for their base. Describing what happened as a battle would be incorrect. It was a slaughter for the gang, as their numbers were reduced to zero within a single night. Their leader openly gave coin to the captain of the Guard, and that was the end of it. It always was a mystery as to where those coins came from, but they never did run out.


    <hr>


    My Sixth Year


    We made enough coin by working with the Black March to buy proper supplies, and keep our bellies fully. It was hard work, but no body asked questions, and all workers under the Black March were protected. Once the new year and Spring came, we prepared ourselves to leave. Some of the other workers decided they wanted to come with us to the Eastern Kingdom. The remnants of broken gangs, or those that escaped Dark Fall''s sacrificial march. We needed more people, but Father Ivern made certain to only take those he could trust. He was able to determine if someone was speaking from their heart or not. Which meant he was able to tell if someone lied to him.


    The plan was to spend a couple years among the Tribes, after getting through the forest again. Thankfully the Eastern path was well maintained, with elf camps and beastman tribes littered between the different woods and forests. Father Ivern joked about how the beastman tribes were made to slowly take over Eclipse after generations. When I asked where the Beastmen came from, he laughed it off saying that Elves are very close with nature.


    It wasn''t until we got to the first wood elf tree, the blood wood tribe, that I got my answer. Evidently the wood elves would bring dangerous animals to their mother tree, to soak them in a sap and put them to sleep. After a few years the beast in question would have wood elves to mate with. The beastman tribes were most often made this way, but there were rumors of the other elves making their own beast tribes, but the majority came from wood elves. Said beastman tribes were allowed to expand away from their mother tree, thus ensuring their tree was safe and having capable guards.


    It was disturbing to see no elf children for the wood elves, but they just spawned fully grown. Naturally I wasn''t allowed anywhere near those chambers that the new ones would come out of. No one was, but it was perfectly understandable. A lot of the wood elves were friendly towards us, and they explained that Father Ivern''s presence soothed spirits, and calmed the saplings of their grove. We were able to freely trade with them, and oddly enough they usually wanted other types of wood. They would often ask us to carry and deliver special logs to neighboring groves. A sort of acknowledgment of the tribes nearby, and forging an agreement for trade, and territory. It was also a way for them to get to know each other, if they didn''t before.


    There was a lot of back and forth, as we went deeper into the Eastern Kingdom. Our wagons were remade with stronger wood, and we acquired enchanted weapons. We met elf tribes and most were not openly hostile, those that were quickly saw our wood elf wagons and negotiated instead of fighting. It was incredibly peaceful besides the fact that I was still growing.


    Adam had to make me larger and larger suits, until they were almost his size. Thankfully once I reached that point, I seemed to stop growing.


    <hr>


    My Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Years


    Our progress was pretty much reduced to a crawl. Every elf tribe we met, expected us to stay there for at least a couple weeks or a month. It didn''t matter if they were a light elf, or a wood elf. The wood elves were probably worse, since they always wanted us to carry a log with to the other tribes. The trip was extremely safe, but I really started to understand why humans only stuck with a single tribe to trade with, and merchants rarely traveled through elf lands. We stayed along their borders, and even that was almost too much.


    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Just the repetition of seeing the same tribe three times in a row, staying there for weeks while they carried about their lives. It was extremely boring. If they weren''t hunting, they were doing a different designated job that they spent years honing their craft on. I made the mistake of asking one how to weave better, and what followed was every waking moment being about how to weave. The elves didn''t really need to sleep unless they were exerting themselves physically. Some would stay awake for three days at a time before sleeping for an entire day. They were just able to push their schedules around however they felt like.


    I was equal parts jealous, and frustrated with them. They couldn''t understand short lived races, unless it was their caretakers who often were the ones making the trades. At least as far as wood elves went, they had special elves for each task, including faster trades. Trading with other tribes usually meant entering camp with the trade deal in mind, writing it down so you wouldn''t forget it, then asking once every two days to remind the elf in question about it. Only for the deal itself to be completed as we were about to leave.


    It was completely pointless to say no to their counter offer, since it would make them take another week to consider it. They would happily explain why, spending hours telling you how it was fair on their part. Then I also learned that this longevity and slow way of moving extended to everything they did. The elves wanted to spend days on a single thing. If they decided to do laundry, they would spend weeks doing everyone''s laundry. If they went hunting, they would spend months just enjoying the feeling outside. They were very skilled at what they did, but it was an unspoken taboo to stop them.


    Then we were forced to stay months because a wood elf carpenter saw my suit, and decided to make me one out of wood from their grove. I wanted to cry because we couldn''t leave, and we didn''t want to offend them. It also meant the wood elf in question had to learn every inch of my body, and how I moved my suit around. Which made him more interested, and other carpenters got involved. A few even begged me to put veins on their arms and hands just to see if I could control their arms as well. Which I could if I was touching them, but otherwise it was painful. The warriors did look at me funny, but the carpenters explained what they felt was happening.


    By the end I wasn''t allowed past a certain distance in their groves. They were happy enough to give me more of their logs and such as compensation. By the end it became some kind of competition between the tribes to see who could make the best golem suit for me. Which still makes no sense to me to this day. I promised to return to tell them which one I liked the best, but well things happened and I couldn''t.


    <hr>


    My Tenth Year


    We finally made it out of the elf tribe lands, out of their borders, and arrived back at the mountains. We traded with the Wet Beards, other wandering tribes, and finally ended on the Beard Cutters. We were about to start another journey around the world, more wood elves coming with us this time, while our numbers were roughly about the same as last time. Then it happened, Adam was scouting ahead towards the forest when he said he felt a rumbling.


    Father Ivern went pale, as he yelled that the spirits themselves were fleeing from the direction of the source. We were told to run as fast as we could into the closest tunnels. Everyone that could fight, carried weapons, while the others took the tools we needed. We rushed into the tunnels my suit not quite able to fit, while Adam himself was forced to stay outside. Adam gave me a knowing smile, and rushed back out, as the first of the horde came into view.


    Monsters with black tears on their faces, all screaming and crying while they surged forth out of the forest. Banshee screaming, Fiend faces twisted with rage and malnourishment. So many different monsters all looking like they were in pain, and driven towards the tunnels. I didn''t even know half those monsters at the time. Still Adam himself charged to grab a smaller suit for me, chucking it to the tunnel while I spent precious seconds getting inside it.


    Adam would not die, but he roared as the horde surged towards him. They tore at him like undead, digging everything they could into his flesh and fur. He sacrificed himself for us again, while they bit into his flesh eating every piece of him. I ran into the tunnels, with the rest of the family where Father Ivern was screaming orders to prepare us for the fight ahead. Everyone was asking what happened, asking why, but Father Ivern told them it didn''t matter. He saw their souls were tainted by some kind of disgusting force that forced the monsters to act that way.


    We didn''t know if it could infect me or Adam, but Adam himself probably wouldn''t come back for a week after something like that. Father Ivern needed time to prepare the spirits to close the tunnels and protect the tribes further in. We heard the screams of Banshee and all other kinds of monsters. They were trying to force their way in, but they were not coordinated. Father Ivern muttered that their souls were crying out in pain, that it felt like they wanted to die, rather than hurting others. The sins of terrible crimes clung to them, as black thorns drove them forward.


    I was ordered to go deeper, to warn the tribes ahead of time so they could prepare. Other groups were spread out, and I could hardly make out their words. There was some more screaming, as I heard Father Ivern sing once more, a sad song coming from the depths of his soul. One with the resolve for what had to be done. I continued running, as the tunnels kept getting smaller. Then something shook the mountain itself. I turned around, my suit stuck. I crawled back towards the others as rocks started to move and follow me. I felt kinship with these moving rocks, and cried out on instinct.


    More rocks came, gathering around me, making a longer suit out of their flesh. We half slithered, half crawled back towards the others, only to find the tunnels collapsed. I heard nothing on the other side, and I still don''t understand why they chose to collapse the tunnels on themselves like that. I cried and begged them to not leave me alone. Hoping that someone would reply, while I dug into the stone. What I found was bones covered in half dissolved flesh, crushed bits of wood still leaking sap, and nothing else. Some monster among monsters must had appeared and forced them to take such measures. The other groups hardly had the chance to get into their tunnels, but still I tried to save them.


    <hr>


    Everything After


    I had spent my first months digging and asking for as much help as I could. The mimics were listening to me and did everything I asked. I honed my instincts, and laid my first clutch. The grief was too much, that I hardly even noticed, and I still do not know if it was one of the mimics, or myself. The entire front of the mountain was sealed, and I had managed to recover what was most important, the bodies of my family. I laid them to rest where they died, before leaving mimics around the eggs so they could be protected.


    With my mimic suit, I continued down the tunnels to try and warn the other tribes. I was afraid that they might attack me, so I stuck to areas with plenty of mimics. I met my first doppelganger, and realized he was about to kill himself. I called out to him, staying his hand. My presence was apparently powerful, and very clear. Doppelgangers and mimics were compelled to obey me. I managed to free the mind underneath the doppelganger''s influence. They cried, thanking me, before explaining what happened to them.


    I listened to their life story, before telling them what happened in the tunnels. Evidently the monsters found another way in, or perhaps a way was opened because of the cave in. Regardless the mimic queens were already at war with each other, and rather than serve the victorious queen, who won because of a pincer attack between it and the monsters. The doppelganger controlling this dwarf would rather kill itself, than serve the other. There were many like the poor dwarf, and he led me to them. I freed them, while he was left explaining everything that happened. They were a wandering tribe like the Moss Beards, but specifically were a tribe that tended to the tunnels to prevent them from caving in.


    After saving everyone I could, I told them my story, and how the Moss Beards sacrificed themselves. That I was their last surviving member, and that they had to tell the others about the monsters coming. They agreed, traveling in groups to head back. There were a lot of mimics in the tunnels located where I was. With the threat of monsters, and mimic queens that would actually try to kill me, I went back to my family. Months turned into years while I ate monsters that the mimics killed, or even the mimics themselves. The tunnels were too small to use a proper suit, and I had to use the mimics to move around. They were slowly becoming a part of me, and my body needed to lay a clutch of eggs yearly.


    I could speak to my little ones, and I taught them the wonders of the outside world. Telling them the stories I had during my travels. To remember the wonderful tribe that took me in, that taught me so much. I told it to the dwarves that I freed from their Doppelgangers, and slowly we managed to kill another mimic queen so that I could grow. My flesh took more mimics, growing into the tunnels like the other mimic queens. This scared the dwarves I had freed, and so I offered them my heart. I allowed them to make the choice, to kill me here and now, or to give me the chance.


    I sang them the song that Father Ivern always sung to me when I was little and in pain. The one that I sang myself, from my very soul. A magic dwarf looked into my very soul, and realized my talent; My Soul Unto You. For whatever reason, it meant that I could touch the souls of others with my own. That I could sing my feelings and reach them, to let them know what I wanted, and the truth. I sung to those that were afraid, able to feel their pain since I could touch their souls. I sang, and sang letting them know my sadness and grief. Letting them know that I did not mind dying by their hands, to join the family I lost.


    I moved them with my songs, my children crying with me, as we grieved together. I made a new family among the doppelgangers of felled Queens, and my own offspring. We worked tirelessly preparing the tunnels for more hordes. We would collapse them to take out armies, while the mimic queens claimed they were responsible. They would start religions in the tribes they were closest to, dealing with a fraction of what we had to fight. Letting monsters through to breed and multiply and endanger the others to rule them through fear.


    Years turned into decades, as I got my first young mimic queen. I forced it to obey, so that we could make doppelgangers and protect those under me. The solution wasn''t perfect, but they at least had a choice. Those that were afraid were allowed to mine in the safety of tunnels, finding deposits of minerals that would keep them going. Those that were brave enough, were given my blessing to do what they felt had to be done to protect the other tribes. We stole doppelgangers from the other queens, returning freedom to them, but for every person we freed, the queen always seemed to gain two more.


    The Queens themselves were not aware of my presence, always believing that one of the other Queens were attacking them. Then we finally made contact with the Beard Cutters. I was unable to move by this point, and so my children went to meet them. They returned, and we established connections with them. We tried to help them for years, and it worked, until they discovered our blood worked for tools. It has been fifty long years since I have seen a few of my children, and I know they are held in that cursed vault. I know they are being used, their blood harvested as they experiment with the ancient texts.


    What the Beard cutters are suffering now, is the result of their lies and using my family for their own end. It''s so easy to do nothing, and let evil grow and fester. It was foolish to cling to the belief of my younger self, and hope that I could change the world for the better. With every passing decade, I find myself waning, and struggling to continue my crusade. The mimic queen closest to the Beard Cutters knows of our existence and wishes to exterminate us, while the Beard Cutters want to capture more of my children to enslave us.


    My soul has brushed against your own Oswald, and though we are both hurting, you know our entire history. Everything we have done, and so I offer you a choice. Will you help us, and free the other Dwarves; or will you kill me and continue on your own without our aid? My children will make their choice, because I could never show them the mountains, or the clear blue skies. If they fight you without my presence, then it was because they held the freedom to do so. Please, sleep on your answer, and make your decision when you are better.

 Harpies, and Jub-Jubs

    Name: Harpy and Jub-Jub


    Race: Harpy: Beastman (A race between people and beast, that can function on instincts alone, or be civilized depending on them)


    Jub-Jub: Monster


    Sub-race: Bird People


    Place on the Pyramid of Power (PPP): Harpy: Sentient to higher Supernatural


    Jub-Jub: Supernatural to minor Force of Nature


    World: Xentos and many others (Though we are focusing on the Xentos ones in particular)


    Habitat: Mainly the Islands in the ocean. There are small tribes that move about the mainland and trade


    Biology: Harpies: Most of what you are aware of what Harpies are. They are typically winged women, and depending on the setting they are fairly gross or nasty. I am pleased to inform you that these aren''t your typical harpies. There are both male and female harpies, and they are the only race that is outright immune to almost all types of monster blood.


    Starting off with their hair, well they simply don''t have any. Instead what they do have is a plume of feathers that will trail from their heads, all the way to their tails. They also have a tiny set of wings that rest on the back of their heads. These wings can be used to cover their faces, acting as filters or shades for breathing or flying. Their eyes are incredibly sharp, with double irises giving them a sort of natural scope vision. While their faces appear human in structure one would easily notice that they do have beaks, where the nose and jaw form together.


    To make their beaks stranger still, if their mouths are open you will notice a row of grinding teeth just in front of the tongue. The beaks are powerful, and specialized for their area or diets. While the teeth behind them function as a sort of crude gizzard for reducing what they eat into paste. Because of their unique mouths, they are very adept at changing the range of their voices, making them excellent singers.


    All harpies are lithe creatures, given that even without magic they will be able to glide along strong winds. Though they physically cannot fly without magic, they are still able to glide with the best of them. Harpies are a race without actual arms and hands, and as such they rely on their powerful talons, and others in their community or tribe to help them with daily hygiene. It is actually rather common for humans or elves to be taken by harpies outright, or traded as slaves with them. If only because those hands they lack and the need for them to build structures for them.


    To make up for their lack of hands, all harpies are very capable runners and gliders. Their thighs are covered in their softest feathers, and from the knee down they have scaled shins and unique bones. The muscles and scale of their legs actively reduces the damage from falling. A harpy can reach terminal velocity or even exceed such, do a flip and use their talons to transfer all of the force into their opponent. While the harpy itself would break their leg doing such, whatever they hit by turning themselves into a missile will typically be dead, or broken.


    They tend to do this as a last resort, and if they intend on dying with their enemy they will use magic to accelerate. Harpies are not afraid of dying as they were created to be a proud warrior race. They were there when the lands were barren, dying repeatedly to spread the seeds of life, and dropping the first fish into the ocean. Their faith is absolute towards their creator.


    As a general rule, you can tell if a harpy is male or female if they have plumage on their chest. Males will not, while females will, with such covering their chests. Harpies will also tend to sleep in a sitting our crouching position because of how their bodies are formed. On the ground they will look like hunched over humans with beaks for faces, stooping while they walk or run. This makes them take up as little space as possible when sleeping in a nest or home. The typical harpy will only live to forty years of age, maximum.


    Jub-Jubs: Harpies are a matriarchal culture given that only their female members will become Jub-Jubs. The plumage on their chest will become more vibrant and merge with the feathers on their back making a sort of mane. It is very rare for people to actually see a jub-jub, given they are the leaders of their tribe. Beyond the mane of feathers, jub-jubs are typically taller than the other harpies, and will have three longer feathers running down their necks. These feathers are typically one on the top of their forehead with one on either temple. Though they can change position depending on the tribe.


    Jub-Jubs are essentially harpies, but better, and with black blood that identifies them as monsters. Their skin is typically paler, and the whites of their eyes are black. They still have the double irises, but they also have specialized nerves embedded inside such. These special muscles typically make it appear as if the Jub-Jub has crosshairs centered around their pupil, but it just makes their eyesight much more powerful. A sort of natural sniper''s scope in a sense that they can see perfectly for miles, and block out blinding flashes and glare due to the specialized nerves. They have the best physical eyesight of all the creatures on Xentos, and will see anyone, well before they themselves are seen.


    Jub-Jub feathers are also typically longer than harpy feathers, with metal edges, effectively turning them into tiny knives. It is not uncommon for Jub-Jubs to use wind magic to launch loose feathers at their prey from up above, or with a flap of their wings. These feathers are also quick to regrow as the Jub-Jub holds a decent regeneration. While it cannot regenerate limbs, she won''t bleed out. Jub-Jubs will use their wings and the metal tipped feathers to defend themselves from attacks. Which works well against blunt objects, but not so much against slicing and piercing strikes.


    What really separates a Jub-Jub from a harpy however is how well they can fly. A Jub-Jub has incredible muscles, allowing it to fly naturally and swiftly even without magic. Not only that, but the Jub-Jub actually has dragon scale talons which can actually tear through a dragon''s hide. It is not the dragons that rule the skies of Xentos, but the Jub-Jubs that force them to stay in the Southern Kingdom due to previous feuds. The Jub-Jub can exceed terminal velocity and strike the ground with much more force than a harpy, and walk away from it with slight bruising.


    One last important thing, jub-jubs do have a set of arms, unlike harpies. These are completely human hands, with just a little less strength than a fiend. The physical might of the jub-jub isn''t that they are strong, but that they can take a lot of damage and keep on going. Blunt damage does almost nothing to them. While their talons have strength on par with a full grown dragon. These are very resilient and dangerous monsters, with the cunning to match. Jub-Jubs can live up to one hundred years after they become such.


    Diet: Both: Harpies and Jub-Jubs tend to eat the same things, and their beaks reflect what their diets tend to revolve around. Sharp curved beaks will suggest a life of catching and devouring prey, while stouter beaks might mean they eat fruit and nuts. They are omnivores, but their preference means a lot to them. That said, they are one of the only creatures that can eat untreated monster flesh and walk it off. The Jub-Jubs however, can eat any flesh without issue.


    Concept: The first beastmen race to ever walk Xentos. More about that will be revealed further down. Because of how they were made, and who made them, they kind of break the rules about one magic per character. Harpies and Jub-Jubs both have excellent wing magic. They need it to fly, and it helps them actually survive. What I mean to say is that every single member of their race has wind magic, with a secondary magic type.


    Now, I know what you''re thinking. I said many times before that usually most creatures, people, or monsters can only use one type of magic. The exceptions of such pertain to talents, and such. You''re absolutely right! That rule remains unbroken, but here''s the catch. Religious magic users can use magic based on what their god can do. Making priests very versatile. Why bring this up? Well the harpies are all blessed by the Mad God, who once upon a time was the God of Magic. (Still technically is, despite the ''new'' title)


    Due to events in their past, the harpies were blessed by the Mad God, and the first Jub-Jub was created after the Darkest Night. There are too many different individual tribes to go through, since there is typically one tribe per type of magic. I say typically because some tribes over their long history, have split making other tribes. Because of this, the Mad God and harpy tribes sort of mirror each other given how close they are. Each tribe is a reflection of one of the Mad God''s different personalities.


    The wind that every tribe has, reflects the Mad God''s love for his harpies. The tool they need to survive and exist on Xentos. One that allows them to grow stronger since they can use the other magic they are born with. The tribes intermingle a lot, because of this. Harpies born able to use water magic, despite being in a fire wielding tribe will be allowed to mature until they can hunt for themselves. Then they are expected to find the water tribe and become a part of them.


    Harpies use wind magic in every part of their life, and as such they are all masters when it comes to using such. They don''t use it to just fly, they use it to carefully pick up food and put it into their mouths, they clean themselves with it, just about anything wind can be used for they have done it and passed it on to other tribes. Especially if something new was discovered, or shows promise.


    It should also be noted that while their culture is very open with teaching each other, they tend to keep what they learn from other races. Typically they will make deals with talented individuals if they are aware of such, offering fair trades for new insights or even their own knowledge if needed. The trade itself can be pretty open, such as an elf that discovered how to tell blood types gaining the protection of the harpies for his tribe. They do not forget deals, and they pass down their history by constantly speaking to each other.


    I suppose it might be for the best to mention a couple notable tribes. Though I''m more interested in actually getting some questions to answer. So feel free to ask about any tribe related to any magic, and I''ll give you those answers.


    Relationships: Both: Since most tribes are lead by a Jub-Jub, they tend to get along well with each other. They haven''t forgotten their purpose, or the choice they made on the darkest night. They are unified in that if one tribe is threatened to become extinct, the others nearby will do their best to save them. Spats have been had, and will continue to happen, but at the end of the day if something threatens them they will act and move as one. Probably the most unified race on Xentos actually, even including hive minds, and ruling monsters. Just because of their numbers and how long they''ve been around.


    Eclipse: Generally no harpy tends to make it that far, nor do they seek to go that deep inland. If they do make it there, it''s typically with others to just keep an eye on what''s going on. It isn''t uncommon for traders to exchange unbiased information with them, as well as making dead drops with each other. Though that has more to do with the king keeping them on friendly enough terms.


    Kingdom of Light: The elves running the Eastern kingdom are on decent terms with the harpy tribes neighboring their borders in the ocean. While the oldest elves remember their decision, the younger generations aren''t even aware. Some tribes hate them, others adore them. Generally it''s a mixed bag of politics and policies depending on what a harpy tribe did to an elf tribe, or what agreements were made. The elves can''t really sail out to sea with the harpies ready to pelt their ships with all manner of things, and the harpies can''t really settle onto the mainland with elves trying to hunt them. Though there are a couple harpy tribes that have done just that.


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    The harpies themselves make certain that every one of their tribes recall just who they serve. They will trade with the elves, but typically they also steal from them. This leads to a sort of imbalance in the relationships as their leaders change more often, while the same elf stays in charge for centuries. Harpies are more prone to looking down on elves however, because of their history.


    Kingdom of Dark Fell: The monster king absolutely hates them, but there isn''t anything he can do about them. Most monsters are instinctively afraid of the harpies thanks to their true creator. That fear cannot be taken away, but there are land based monsters more than happy to eat harpy flesh. Because of such, the monster king has kept any monster that can fight against harpies close to his castle, ready to defend if they move to end him.


    The Harpies themselves absolutely despise the monster king, given that their leaders aren''t immune to his talent. Because of this, they typically have festivals where they gather refuse and just drop it all over the monster king''s castle. Normal harpies are immune to his talent, and by the time said king can react the same harpies are already flying home.


    Kingdom of Fire: The Kingdom of Fire has treaties and relationships with dragons. The dragons hate the harpies, thanks to their draconic pride. The people of the Fire Kingdom do not mind the harpies too much so long as they aren''t affected by them. Most humans try to befriend the tribes for protection and food, while small villages might perform rituals, or give offerings to appease them. Even the Fire Lord isn''t above enlisting harpy aid through gifts of metal and slaves to protect the land bridges.


    The tribes themselves are generally nicer to humans, because their creator admitted to being one before becoming a god. Most tribes see it as their duty to help the humans that do respect the Mad God. To that end, they typically end up kidnapping preachers or other individuals that speak of the Mad God''s graces. While those left behind fear the worst, these people are actually treated rather well, and are cared for.


    Northern Kingdom: The Dwarves are watched by the Harpies that have made their home among the coldest mountains. While the Dwarves do not know they are there, said harpies prevent them from finding the cradle of life as ordered by their creator. The other gods are not allowed access to the cradle, and if heralds are around they create blizzards and hide among the freezing temperatures.


    Romance: Harpies: You can, but don''t expect anything unique to happen. Harpies will lay fertilized eggs in clutches of 2-4, and such will always result in more harpy offspring. It should be noted that there will not be any hybrids, or crossbreeds, and that all offspring made by harpies will either be their race, or the female race if the mate was male. That''s just how they work.


    Depending on the tribe, things in bed can get rather interesting. Plus more than a few of them are happy to fly and engage in intercourse at the same time. Plus most tribes have soft feathers, so if you''re into cuddles well there you go. Though kissing isn''t exactly something that can be done, given their beaks.


    Jub-Jubs: Oddly enough, they are just like harpies. Though they tend to be much more dominant, and might prefer struggle snuggles.


    Creation: Technically the first creatures every created by the one that would become the Mad God. They were made to bring life to the barren planet that would become known as Xentos. Through their creation, they gave the Mad God hope for the future, and a stronger will to settle on this unknown galaxy.


    Purpose: They made their choice to serve the Mad God, even fighting him to share his burdens. A display that gave him a fragment of a true god, and elevated the former man to an actual godly state. They love their creator, and they can feel his unending love in return. They weep with him for what has become of Dark Fall, and plead for the order to take down the Monster King. The Mad God consoles them, as he does not wish to see his children fight among themselves. He does not wish to see the Jub-Jubs turned against their own tribes. Instead they watch the false gods, keeping them from finding the cradle of life, as asked by their creator.


    They wait, and learn, watching and singing long forgotten histories and stories. They listen for rumors of talented individuals and offer deals. They grow stronger with every generation, honing their craft and attempting to learn all they can for the day their creator needs them. They hunt down disgusting talents, offering them to their lord, who then bestows their kin with more love in whatever form it takes. The Mad God''s goals are their own, and so they wait for the day he will freely create more children.


    Lore: The first race to walk the barren wastes of Xentos. Before the first dwarves, before the first elves, there were harpies. A race created while the humans slept in their pods. The captain that would become the first true god guiding them. No one could have expected that a different galaxy would adhere to it''s own physics and sciences. When the space ships were forced to crash onto Xentos by some invisible unknown rule, the AI and the captain had to restructure the basic code of how the ships and everything actually worked. The Captain himself losing function in his mechanical parts before finally creating another AI to aide them.


    With the new aide, everything moved faster, and they were able to use technically impossible formulas to allow the AI to continue working. After studying his own cells, said Captain discovered the double helix was becoming a quasi-triple helix mesh as the rules of the galaxy changed him and the others at a molecular level. Decades would pass before proteins and other artificial cells were manufactured. Vats and pods would work so long as the technology was sufficiently advanced. The parts that burned out during the initial crash and even after were salvaged and rebuilt according to projections.


    The first batches failed, then the next, and so on until the third day where finally multiple tests succeeded for seemingly no reason. New theories were cataloged, as a serum was administered to the crew still in their pods. Something to allow their DNA to change and adapt to the rules of this galaxy. A painful process that the Captain had to endure first hand. The barren planet itself held no life, but with the first artificial cells and templates for DNA codes, he was able to construct the first proto-harpies.


    The first batch failed, as did the second. The third however worked, confirming a few suspicions. Energy was no issue, as generators were built according to the third attempt. The ambient energy of the galaxy appeared to multiply based on itself and the interactions with such. It would take three whole years for the first harpy to be brought out into the desolate world. Sent out in groups of three, they were to plant the first, second, and third strains of seeds, algae, and life unto the planet itself. The first steps of terraforming Xentos began.


    Centuries passed as more and more harpies were sent out to die, their flesh becoming fuel and compost for the planet''s first plants. The Captain took to naming them, first with superficial names, then ones that held meaning to him. The galaxy itself responded to the intention of one''s words, and the feeling behind them. It did not care for the meaning, as it was observed the more one felt towards the harpies, the more animated they would become in turn.


    The harpies became more human in appearance, their feathers becoming softer, their features less ugly to the eye. With such changes, they started to come back from their missions more and more. Their forms evolving over millennia. Slowly, but surely a third of the plants would take root, slowly forming a protective layer of ozone, and the air became more breathable. The time he spent could not be slept through, for fear of never waking up, and the AI needing his orders to continue. The Captain poured over texts of his world''s history, and how his home galaxy was conquered before they turned their attention to their closest neighbor. He played ancient games, solved puzzles, and generally kept himself occupied. His mechanical bits were replaced with newer parts, while his organic body had to be reconstructed every couple of decades to maintain proper health.


    Soon he was able to walk upon the first patch of grass, breathing the thin air thanks to his mechanical lung. Yet, he was unable to take the first step off the ship and onto the grass, watching the red sun set. He walked back inside realizing he needed someone, anyone to witness this with him. The humans were not ready, and to test a few theories he decided to create the perfect harpy, whom he would name Sera. Her line named and modeled after the angels themselves. Designed with increased intelligence, and perception, he had chips installed so that if one body might perish she could be replaced.


    Three more years passed while he showed her what he could through the transmitters that a few harpies carried out to show them how the world was finally growing. The wild flowers and edible plants growing without any animals besides the harpies to touch them. Self pollinating plants, before the first, second, and third line of bugs were spread across the world to enforce more plant growth and different types. The two finally stepped off the ship, and onto the grass, as Sera''s previously dull eyes gained some light to them. The world was not yet ready for those that were asleep, but it was ready for the first elves and beasts to spread out and prepare for the coming of man.


    These creatures were truly modified from the human genome, made after the fantasy races of old. Their purpose to mine for precious metals, and cater to their masters. Yet, unknown to the Captain, they would create a feedback loop as emotions developed. Thousands of years would pass, and they would slowly become their own races, with their own desires. They sought to oppose their creator, while the harpies continued to carry about their task.


    It was far too soon, for the humans had to be woken up. Even after one cluster of elves broke the pods in the area they were living in. The AI would bestow the formula and theories upon the Captain, and Sera, as they were the first to learn magic and how to use it. In it''s raw primal form, it was an energy that could be used for anything. The limits were simply one''s imagination, and the strength of their will. The Dwarves were left alone to fester as they hoarded minerals and ores, slowly becoming magical themselves.


    The Elves that destroyed the pods holding their humans were eradicated. The pods themselves were moved about the world as a new line of elves were created. The same issue would crop up again, as if it was merely meant to be. No matter how the elves were tweaked or adjusted, they always came to the conclusion that the pods were wrong, and that such had to be destroyed. Finally the Captain had had enough. The remaining hundred humans of the thousand they started with, were awoken and given lesser versions of the formula.


    The Elves were wiped out, this time replaced with the final attempt, the third and last. Everything was calm for a few centuries while the Captain and his crew were cared for. Sera was always there by his side, helping him as he watched the human numbers begin to swell past the dwarves and elves. The Captain became known as a god, while his most loyal crewmates were to ascend with him. They would take Xentos and move out to conquer the galaxy as originally planned. That was, until the Darkest Night came.


    A true god descended that day, kicking off a battle that would shape Xentos into what it looks like today. The God of Magic punished for his hubris, and forced to accept a fragment of a true god of magic. The galaxy itself marred by such a powerful object, as the captain began to lose himself to the power. Yet, he was not alone. Sera died that day, crying out to him, taking his pain, and helping him to remember who he was supposed to be. There were no more bodies for her, not one chip left with her memories. She was gone, and so the Mad God came unto being through grief and sadness.


    The Dark God returned to the portal he came through, leaving an omen of his return should his monoliths be broken. The demons he revealed to linger on Xentos, moving to protect them as ordered by their king. The Mad God saw his crewmates, that looked so foreign to him now. They were bickering amongst themselves, vowing to build a trap for that monster. With his new found power he scattered the remnants of the space ships, hiding the lost knowledge of their galaxy across Xentos.


    How quick the fools were to turn against him, forgetting about their crusade against the elves. Everything made so much more sense, with so much knowledge bestowed upon him. Still he felt himself slipping as more voices wormed their way into his head. He would never be whole again, so as the final act of who he was he asked what the races he created wanted to do. He split himself to ask them, feeling their desires down to the very bottom of their souls.


    The Mad God announced that the Elves, and Dwarves were to be allowed to go free, and build their lives as they saw fit. The Harpies chose to serve, and so they would serve him because of Sera''s sacrifice. He stripped the others of their magic, allowing them to turn worship into power so that they might ascend and understand that such power was not meant for anyone to hold onto.


    Fun Ideas: Honestly, I can''t think of any super fun ideas to do with them. They are harpies, but kind of bad ass. They have a lot of potential for stories, and jub-jubs just scream final boss material, or high powered campaign character to play as. They are strong, and you can do whatever you want with them really.


    Harpies can play a side role in just delivering messages and telling characters what is going on outside of their little campaign. Though the variety of the tribes leaves a lot of potential for suiting your needs. Heck if one of your players wants to adopt a harpy, why not have such fly away in teenage angst, forcing the players to trail after to explore new things? They are great for adventure type games.

 Fukuma and Cheshire

    Name: Fukuma (Including the Alpha), and Cheshire


    Race: Fukuma: Beast


    Cheshire: Monster


    Sub-race: Big Cats


    Place on the Pyramid of Power (PPP): Fukuma: Apex Predator to Supernatural


    Cheshire: Supernatural


    World: Xentos and Derthune


    Habitat: Both: Jungles, Forests, Alleys of the Underground, and even the Caves of the Underneath. They prefer spaces that can be hidden behind with decently open areas for them to teleport around.


    Biology: Fukuma: Teleporting panthers, with big saber teeth might be the best way to describe a Fukuma. A mix of tiger, lion, and puma to make such a strange and almost regal creature. They are pack hunters by nature, that tend to roam in prides between five and twelve members. Each pride led by a single alpha, that shall be better described after explaining what a normal Fukuma is.


    The fur of the Fukuma is generally well kept, as it is a source of pride for the creature. Most of their days are spent grooming themselves, and other pack mates. Which tends to leave the red fur, with purple stripes, with an almost glossy appearance. Grooming is so important to them, that it is the first thing that their cubs are taught. It''s to the point, that a Fukuma kicked out of its pack, will approach sapient creatures or tamers just to keep their fur groomed properly. Which ironically is how most of these creatures are bonded with such tamers.


    The intelligence of the Fukuma is like that of a near sapient beast. Clever enough to lay traps, to hone their skills, and even crudely communicate with each other. Though they are still guided by their instincts to hunt, kill, and eat their prey. This also lends itself to interesting interactions between different prides. They are clever enough to understand when they are outmatched, and need to work together.


    Fukuma can form a sort of great pack, or large pride if properly threatened. In a hostile environment, they will gravitate towards each other, working together to carve out territories that can be defended. Other packs will not enter the territory of an established pack, unless their leader sounds the call for help. Something that generally isn''t done unless the cubs are threatened, or some extremely powerful creature arrives.


    Fukuma are prideful beasts, with sleek and powerful bodies. They tend to stay within their territory, only leaving to go hunting. Even if they form a large pride. In those instances, the Alpha is the one leading them along the boundaries of the other territories. Teleportation is usually done while others watch, and it is very uncommon for prides to attack others in such a setting.


    A Fukuma typically hunts, using its ability to teleport wherever its eye can see. Due to this habit, Fukuma have striking cat eyes, that are very honed. In most cases, a Fukuma will teleport in front of the prey animal, or beast, and swipe at them. This is to direct attention towards them, while they prepare to teleport away. The goal is to either distract the prey, and have another Fukuma deliver a finishing blow from behind, or test the defenses of said prey.


    Fukuma claws are sharp enough to rend hardened leather, and gouge metal armor. Their saber teeth are capable of puncturing through metal armor, and tough hide. They prefer to attack vital spots, and end fights quickly. They are prideful after all, and a good kill to them is one where not even a drop of blood lands on their fur.


    It should be noted that Fukuma have two tails. These tails are actually sensory organs, that have adapted to sense space in a sense. To cut off a Fukuma''s tail, is to remove their ability to teleport. Though naturally such a thing is largely unknown by most denizens on Xentos, given that Fukuma are very keen on not having their tails touched.


    While the displacer fluid inside a Fukuma''s organ is what allows them to teleport. The tails do the fine work of using minimal amounts, while actually doing such. Both are needed to teleport, and if you pull out the organ, chances are the Fukuma is already dead. The displacer fluid itself will break down within hours after death, and is organic in nature.


    Out of everything you can get from killing a Fukuma, the displacer fluid is the most valuable. Which is why a lot of alchemists commission hunts through the Guard, or guilds to stabilize it if a safe Fukuma den is discovered. The pelts are prized possessions of many nobles, and even the iconic teeth make decent trophies or mugs. (I know I never actually did a drop section before, but it fits in the Biology, plus the other creatures didn''t really have anything too useful to pick off their bodies)


    Alphas have three tails. They have a bigger chest, with more powerful lower claws. The upper claws are different by virtue of being sharper. Alphas have a darker striped mane, that trails along their back. The middle tail is the thickest, with duel colors, while the other two are more slender and have one of each color.


    The main difference between a Fukuma, and the alpha of the pack, is the fact that the third tail allows it to teleport without being able to see. Despite that advantage, it is rare for the alpha to actually hunt. They are more like powerful baby sitters, whose job relies on making more cubs, and protecting them. The alpha will run off members of their pack so they can join other packs, or make their own. They will watch over hunts, and if too many members die they will call the retreat if needed. Which is why it''s rare for such to actually attack.


    Cheshire: A contrast to how the Fukuma are, they are solitary creatures, due to the circumstances of their creation. A Cheshire is made whenever a pack of Fukuma have fallen, and the Alpha is left alone. When it feasts on the flesh of a monster, it''s saber teeth fall out, it''s muzzle becoming flatter. The face of the creature grows more round, the whiskers zigging and zagging. The unnatural smile of its razor sharp teeth, glowing.


    A cheshire looks more like an overgrown cat, versus the more slender frame of the Fukuma. Cheshire are more round, their tails splitting into five, with four of them spiraling around the main one. They are able to actively manipulate the space around them, and teleport much further than the Fukuma. Naturally their bodies are also a little stronger due to the monster blood, but their strength isn''t noticeably different. Their fur turns from red with purple stripes, to an ashy blue with purple stripes.


    What is truly different, is the overwhelming control a Cheshire has on the space around it. It can bend the space to take on any form it desires, often choosing to just appear invisible. Though if they are not invisible, they will either be lazing about in their desired form, or even practicing their appearance. They are vain creatures, and adore spending hours just shifting what space they feel on themselves to better enjoy themselves.


    When I said they can take on any form, I meant within reason. A Cheshire cannot become more than three times it''s actual size, but beyond that they are able to do as they want. Quite a few enjoy taking on humanoid forms, just to enjoy the luxuries that thumbed creatures can offer. They are solitary by nature, but that doesn''t mean others can''t work under them after all.


    Cheshire do have intelligence, and the longer they live, the smarter they get. They very often refrain from outright killing, since that isn''t fun to them. They can just bend the space around them, as they walk to a prey, and slice open unguarded flesh. If there is a slight gap in any armor, a cheshire claw can find its way in that gap and do damage. What they enjoy instead, are bouts of wit and intrigue. They are still prideful creatures after all, and the kill needs to be a game.


    They will drive individuals that have earned their scorn to suicide. They will spend decades guiding human families to interbreed to keep the bloodline ''pure.'' (Something they learned from elves mind you.) They will steal documents, and other things, all to plant evidence and bring down families or sow discourse. How they go about it varies as much as the individual, but they all have rules that they will not break. If that rule is broken, then the game is lost, and no longer fun. If a Cheshire has to get its hands dirty, then they just leave, since that isn''t fun to them.


    Naturally killing a Cheshire reveals what it actually looked like. They do have displacer fluid, but it is tainted and black. Which means that only monsters can use such a thing. Still the Fire Kingdom enjoys mounting their heads in the houses of nobles, and their pelts can be used as rugs often times.


    Diet: Both: Raw meat, as they are predators that hunt. Though Cheshire can eat cooked foods, and veggies which they will not enjoy.


    Concept: Fukuma: Noble, arrogant, and clever big cats. The Fukuma are magic beasts that can teleport, and use that ability to hunt their prey. The concept behind them has less to do with what they are, but more how they hunt. The kind of threat they can pose to other creatures. They are supposed to be smart enough to understand not hunting towns, but are fine with hunting villages. They are predators, clever enough to know when they need to run away or set up a trap.


    Essentially they are supposed to be a creature adventurers fear. It isn''t that they are tough, they can''t take much damage after all, it''s that they can move around and not be hit. A pack that is being hunted, will require the hunters to be clever. Good hunters will release flares, or sparks to blind the beasts. Others might notice a pattern to how they teleport.


    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    The point is, that they are a good encounter to help others think more about their environment and how it can be used. They are supposed to be engaging fights, and also interesting creatures. Basically a tiger, but better.


    Cheshire: Cheshire make wonderful hidden villains. They can be anything or anyone, but they choose not to. The rules of their games tend to follow these set rules for all of them: Do not kill with your own hands. Do not change your form. Do not reveal what you truly are.


    Beyond those rules, anything goes. They are clever and cunning, prideful but patient. If it is a matter of life and death, then they already lost their game, and will break their rules to survive. Though, losing their game is roughly the same as dying to them, with how bad it makes them feel.


    Most Cheshire start off brooding, and lamenting their fallen. You could start a campaign around the party stumbling upon one. Then as the adventure goes on, they might catch it changing their form, and eventually declaring to get revenge. Perhaps someone else might tell the party such a thing? Naturally the monster decides when the game truly starts, which is usually when they settle on the form they will use.


    Relationships: Fukuma: Oddly enough the two creatures are viewed and treated differently in the different kingdoms.


    Eclipse: More like pests to the people in the Underground. Gangs will hunt them down, but it is typically costly. They are generally left alone, since they can''t do much inside the city itself. So long as they are in the dead-zone, or outside the walls the are tolerated. Though more than a few tamers do pay coin to get their own Fukuma to raise or care for. They are decent, if a bit arrogant, companions after all.


    Kingdom of Light: The elves running the Eastern kingdom are rather content with the Fukuma. They even have a beastman tribe that wasn''t run off by the bigger cities. Fukuma tend to shy away from eating elves or wood elves, and they are more commonly tamed here than any other kingdom. Eclipse on the other hand likes their whisper wolves, over Fukuma and is a small source of tension between the nobles that argue which is better.


    Kingdom of Dark Fell: Fukuma rarely go that, and there isn''t much to eat. The Monster King likes them, but even the few he does get do not live long. What he really wants, is to figure out what he needs to do to make more Cheshire.


    Kingdom of Fire: They were fine with Fukuma for a while. Then one of them bit the Fire Lord, and so he decided to banish them from the kingdom. They were hunted, with many Alpha fleeing and starving by the end of it all. This gave rise to many Cheshire, and one of the kingdom''s many problems.


    Northern Kingdom: Far too cold for the Fukuma to enjoy, and the tunnels are too cramped for them. A few packs were tamed, but the mimics did their thing, and the bonds were severed when a tamer became a doppelganger. Most of them fled into the Underneath, before ending up in Eclipse.


    Cheshire: Other kingdoms are aware of Cheshire mainly thanks to Oswald''s manual. Though they are very difficult to discover and pin down without someone able to sense spatial magic themselves.


    Eclipse: They are required to show themselves, and are tested before being allowed to become citizens. The test mainly revolves an eldest banshee sniffing for the monster king''s taint, before they are allowed to do as they wish. There are a couple Cheshire nobles kept happy and well fed. This is mainly to facilitate an engaging dynamic between the nobles.


    Others become gang leaders in the Underground, just to keep the dead-zone dwellers in check. A couple even became rune smiths just to impart knowledge of spatial runes to the King as thanks for taking them in. The Cheshire in Eclipse know about the origin of the hordes, and what the monster king does to their ilk.


    It was actually a Cheshire, that helped make the matrix for the runic inner most walls. The thing that nullifies magic, while also bending space so that it is bigger on the inside. A lot of Cheshire are loyal to the king of Eclipse, thanks to everything he did for them. After all, it just wouldn''t do to repay kindness with their own after they can play their games as much as they want.


    There are naturally other monster types hidden around Eclipse, the ones that escaped the taint of the monster king. They linger just below the surface of everyday life, hiding themselves for the day their true king destroys the monster king.


    Kingdom of Light: A few have made their way into the kingdom of light. They mostly work as ambassadors, since elves take things too slow for their liking. The Cheshire do what they can to make sure certain tribes, or cities, aren''t bringing in anything too dangerous. There is a network in place, to make sure no rogue Cheshire is trying anything that might aid the monster king.


    Kingdom of Dark Fell: The monster king actually adores them, since they are very capable minions. Whenever he gets his hands on one, he invites them to meet him personally. This is all so he can taint them, and make it their life''s mission to bring about the ruin of other races. Which with a Cheshire''s cunning and abilities, is easier than just charging at the enemy all the time.


    The Cheshire themselves do hate the monster king for this fact, and a few will even work together to end the pitiful existence their fellow has become.


    Kingdom of Fire: Pretty mutual hatred from both parties. Most Cheshire were created, because the old fire lord ran them off. Which means most of them were made because their packs were hunted down while they were Fukuma. A lot of Cheshire tend to hang around the Fire Kingdom, exacting revenge on the specific families that hurt them. Most of them leave for Eclipse after they are satisfied, while others stay to make new packs or continue messing up an area.


    New packs for Cheshire tend to revolve around leading villages, or small outposts. A place where they can laze around, without having to do physical work, but they do enjoy paper work.


    Northern Kingdom: They can pull of being a dwarf rather well, but a lot prefer not to. Dwarves work hard a lot of the time, and the food they eat isn''t that good. When a Cheshire does make their way to their kingdom, it''s usually to deal with the wet beards. Essentially hermits that trade for fish, or just enjoy killing monsters in the Underneath.


    Romance: Fukuma: Really ask yourself if you want to contemplate it. They aren''t sapient, and they are walking on four legs. I suggest not pursuing this unless you want to be ostracized. Keep the thoughts to yourself, unless you really want to stick a talent on them that makes them humanoid and sapient. Still weird, but hey, I won''t judge you.


    Cheshire: They can bend space, and are sapient enough. Their forms can be altered, but you read what came before. Keep the horny out of your games, and those around you will enjoy it more.


    Creation: Fukuma: Created by wood elf trees, that acted as incubators for creating predators. They were made to round out the ecosystem, and keep herbivores from attacking the trees themselves. (Hey guys! Something not made by the mad god!)


    Cheshire: (He took it personally xD) Created by the mad god, when he saw the Fukuma crop up in the area near Dark Fall. He thought it would be cool if he made a tragic monster type, setting the conditions. The irony is that these conditions were easy enough to create more of them, especially when the hordes came. Though it also allowed them to be free of the Monster King''s curse. Since none of them really go to Dark Fell.


    Purpose: Fukuma: They don''t have sapience, or a real reason for being. They are beasts that were created for the purpose of hunting other beasts. To make an ecosystem that was more viable and stable. They naturally spread through the world, settling into places they can survive. Their purpose is simply to live life as a beast would. Eat, breed, and die. No real semantics, no overly dramatic opinion on how noble they are. They just are, until they aren''t.


    Cheshire: Given how they are made, a Cheshire tends to keep to themself. They don''t worship the mad god, for giving them sapience or life. Instead, they understand their existence is one mired in brooding. They are content to laze in their caves, or whatever dark corner they crawl into. They spite the tragedy that created them, and scorn the god that made them. They seek to use their knowledge and learn what they can about the world around them, but often push of any grand plans to the next day. They are lazy by nature after all, and prey are fairly easy for them to find.


    When a Cheshire sees fit to take action, they are very cunning and dangerous. They are subtle, and guide things from behind the scenes. Most don''t even know that a Cheshire or two, are working to make certain events play out.


    Lore: Fukuma: The Fukuma started off as a species in the Eastern Kingdom with the wood elves. They were able to hunt, and grow instead of dying out. Which meant that they were able to spread around Xentos. In some villages they are revered as guardian beasts, in others they are at the center of stories meant to scare children. A few nobles appreciate their temperament, and keep them around as pets.


    Technically, these beasts are responsible for a couple of beast tribes, thanks to the elves. The most notable one, would have to be the panther tribe in the Underground. The Fukuma tribe is a small one in the Eastern Kingdom, but it does exist around the blue wood elf tribe. As for how the Fukuma are responsible for the panther tribe, well they kind of hunted panthers and the like to extinction. Some elf tribes sought to preserve and protect the beasts, which given how elves are, you can fill in the rest.


    Cheshire: Given the cleanse of Fukuma in the Fire Kingdom, happened roughly fifty years after the fall of Dark Fell. It should come as no surprise that the Cheshire that wanted revenge, are the ones guiding monsters towards the kingdom through the western land bridge. Their influence is subtle, and most nobles along the outer walls rarely even noticing the Cheshire moving about their lands.


    They aren''t afraid to shift their forms to something more agreeable with the local people. They will even play roles that they feel like playing in a village, town, or even city. If they are happy, they will continue playing along. If they are angry, they will simply wait for the right moment to strike. Though the population of Cheshire can be measured in the low thousands, so they aren''t a very big issue.


    Fun Ideas: Fukuma: Plenty of ideas for these guys. You can have a beastman race that are able to teleport. Which is great for stronger leveled campaigns. They can be the experiments of some mad scientist, coming out of a vat and making a very dangerous fight. They can even be a group''s bane, where one dedicated Fukuma is tracking down the party for some unknown reason. You don''t even have to make them pure beasts. You can have a group, with one that knows how to talk and so much more.


    I think they can be a different kind of Spinx if that makes sense. You find an ancient tomb in the jungle or some kind of forgotten temple. Your party feels eyes on them from different angles, and a low rumbling voice asks why they are trespassing on their land. It lends multiple ways to get what the party wants, and it doesn''t even have to be riddle based. Maybe they just want the temple cleaned up a bit, or maybe they want offerings of fish and meat. Sky really is the limit, and it adds local flavor and mystery. After all in a campaign where everything is typically the same. A talking red big cat, with purple stripes will stand out.


    They are great for most genre, though they would probably struggle in a science fiction setting. Even as a test subject with a chip installed to allow them to teleport. They won''t be crazy good against people with guns or explosives. They are supposed to feel mystical, or even strange. They are dangerous because they are in groups, and having a whole pride of them in some research facility kind of seems forced. You can do it, but maybe ask whether you should?


    Cheshire: How much do you hate your party? Joking aside, they can be anything you want. Most of the inspiration did come from Alice in Wonderland. Though I figured such a creature could be very dangerous. They aren''t meant to be fought, but if you feel like it they can. I am posting stats in the post author notes.

 Whispering Wolves

    Name: Whispering Wolves, Whispering Hounds, (Both formerly known as Barghest)


    Race: Beast


    Sub-race: Wolves/Dogs respectively


    Place on the Pyramid of Power (PPP): Whispering Wolves: Predator to Forces of Nature


    Whispering Hounds: Predators


    World: Xentos


    Habitat: Whispering Wolves: Jungles, Forests, very few dead-zones in the Underground, and the plains of the kingdom of Fire. They prefer warmer weather


    Whispering Hounds: Wherever there are settlements and a race willing to domesticate them.


    Biology: Whispering Wolves:


    Oswald did a really good job of describing these beasts. From the sleek arrow-like heads to the burly chests and their digestive system. It''s really detailed stuff. It kind of makes the biology section redundant. That said, I will clarify a few misconceptions that he leads people towards.


    All whisper wolves have pitch-black fur. It can be called shade fur, and other names depending on the local dialect. This is one of the main differences between whisper wolves and hounds. All whisper wolves start with yellow-tipped ears. The fur on the tips of those ears is a sort of status symbol among them. It also serves as a very simple warning for those that know what they mean.


    The paws of these creatures are sharp, but they really aren''t powerful. Sure it could kill someone by scratching if it got enough in, but the tongue is and will always be its main method of attacking. That aside, that Oswald journal was probably the best I ever put together. Which kind of makes it hard to pick apart. It must be done, and so here we go.


    Whisper wolves are pack hunters, making it very unlikely to just encounter one. They outright refuse to attack unless they are in pairs, which makes taming them one at a time very easy. The weakest are of course the yellow tips, and I''ll explain more about them as the tiers develop. Since they all build up from what was below them.


    All whisper wolves (simply going to call them wolves from now on) have special muscles that allow them to build up pressure and release it. Almost like a spring made out of organs that launches the tongue. These same tongues are segmented with more fine-tuned organs that make it function like a snake. They have barbs at the tip and are hollow with those same organs creating a suction force to drink blood through it like a straw. If a wolf loses its tongue it will die for obvious reasons, meaning they very rarely will ever lash anyone with them.


    In fact, they only use their tongues to lash each other or perform a sort of mating dance. These wolves mate for life, forming a monogamous relationship with each other. They will of course move on if they discover their mate is dead, but they are creatures with simple intelligence. They are clever, but not sapient. They can plan an ambush, but that stems more from their pack and how they hunt. They are weaker creatures, so they need to be ready to work together to take on the bigger stuff.


    A pack isn''t really a pack until there are eight or more members. Every pack needs an alpha, a leader to guide them. As Oswald mentioned the yellow tip will become red. The alpha is bigger and stronger than the others. The muscles are more developed in its tongue, the tongue itself is sharper, just like its wit. What Oswald didn''t mention was that the pack mates become ''smarter'' as well. The death of the alpha will result in another taking its place a week or two after it has passed.


    When the pack grows to twenty-plus members, it will develop a purple-tipped alpha. The muscles become denser, and no bulk is gained, though it is much stronger. That''s right, the alphas sort of evolve with the number of pack mates under their control. Not only that, the others in the pack will start to develop red tips. Since redundancy is a thing, and if the alpha falls one of the reds will become the new alpha. It was mentioned that the tongues of the purple tips could punch through all but the best armor. Meaning the metal itself, and did not take runes into account.


    If five packs of twenty meet, then something magical happens. The alphas will fight for dominance, and the true alpha will develop silver tips. (This was a plot point for the first story where Oswald''s journal came from.) At this point, the silver-tipped alpha will hear words from their goddess (their one true master). The tongue will grow thicker with more barbs. The muscles will develop, even more, allowing it to lash and tear through heavy armor. Red tips will turn purple, and it will be a proper horde by that point. The tongue of the silver tip is able to pierce through runic walls and good armor with decent runes.


    The tongue itself will take on a metallic tint, and parasites will develop inside it. Causing those to be grazed to suddenly find themselves having their hearts attacked by silver worms. To make it worse, they also gain regeneration and their pack is even more intelligent. The silver wolf now has the intelligence of a child, and will most often do whatever the goddess tells them to do.


    Once the numbers grow to three hundred, all silver tips will fight once again. If they do not submit, they will die and be replaced. There can be only one blue tip after all. The blue tip''s size swells making them twice as big as the others in their army. The tongue becomes cobalt, and the fur begins to develop shadows that fall off its frame. It is finally revealed what the whisper wolves were before they turned into what they are now.


    Four orange eyes open along the snout, the chest bearing the crest of their goddess. A creature spoke of in ancient legends, a monster thought to be extinct. The blue tip becomes a Barghest, and can now use magic. It now has black blood and can drink from any creature it needs to. The tongue itself splits and becomes two while it is capable of speech and has intellect matching that of a genius human. These creatures were few, but their thirst for knowledge always led them to the most dangerous places.


    You may be wondering where all of this suddenly came from, but I had plans to hint at it for a long time. I''ll explain the lore in the proper section, so bear with me. After all, there is one final step.


    After the conditions are met, the Barghest may develop white-tipped ears. These become the true servants of their goddess (an actual god). They will have the other silver tips rise to blue, and lead an actual army under their goddess'' orders. They will simply be called ''Jack'' instead of Barghest. Naturally, they are much stronger than the blue tips and are the true final form of whispering wolves.


    Whispering Hounds: All hounds are born with completely gray fur and white ear tips. Though recently domesticated wolves will develop those streaks as Oswald mentioned before. Should enough hounds be gathered under one tamer, those tips will turn blue. Many people consider it a strange occurrence, but it has its purpose.


    You may have noticed that we''re going backwards from the whispering wolves'' evolution, and you are correct. Except, the hounds don''t actually get stronger until after the silver stage. Even at the silver stage they only get to be as strong as red tips found in the wild, which is considered to be unimpressive. It kind of makes the hounds only good for hunting, and guarding places. An event that was foreseen and they were made to be that way.


    Very rarely has anyone ever gotten a tamed hound to the silver stage, most often thinking the creature was simply getting old. The hounds need half the amount of each other compared to the wolves, but they also need the tamers to help elevate them. So far, no one on Xentos has managed to get the silver hounds to the next stage.


    If a hound were to be elevated to purple tips, then it would suddenly find its mind expanded to that of a Barghest. While unable to use magic, it will be able to perform miracles on par with bishops in the Golden Circle. Their connection to their goddess is stronger than their wild counterparts. Both they and their tamer will be tested along the paths.


    Should they endure the trials, and the goddess accepts the tamer, based on what path was taken the hound will actually evolve to a red tip of different forms. (More on that in the lore/concept)


    The different forms should get their own entries, but do know that the final step is the gold tip. It requires certain conditions to be met, and it''s something I see myself doing in Ivory Wings. Hope it makes you guys curious and hungry for more.


    Diet: Both: Small bits of raw meat, but mostly blood that doesn''t come from monsters.


    Concept: Whispering Wolves: Clever, sneaky, cowardly. These wolves tend to avoid fights unless they are certain they can win. They are more likely to attack a sleeping group or caravan guards while they are by themselves than linger around and fight groups or even pairs. I''d highly recommend using them if you have one person in your party that always wants to wander off.


    The main concept behind these predators is that they are glass cannons. A sort of ''spot check'' that teaches players the value of their armor. They are supposed to be easily defeated (hence their main attack being their tongue and how they''ll run away if that is cut). Loud sounds are supposed to scare them off, opening new ways for the game to be played and showing that the players themselves can be clever.


    Not every battle needs to end with the death of the enemy, and not every battle needs to be life or death. They really are supposed to be warm-up beasts. They are supposed to be creepy, and become guerilla bastards using hit and run tactics. Though that changes as they get stronger, with the silver tips able to just shred through most armor. The fact that the silver tips are supposed to be connected to their goddess/god might drive the stakes higher in a campaign. What cults want the party dead? Why are they using such weak creatures to carry such out? How did they make these formerly pathetic creatures so strong?


    There is a lot of playroom for these beasts. Plus at the end of the day, the Barghest just sounds scary as heck. The overall idea behind these guys in the story is that they are just natural predators that appear weird at first. A kind of shock to let people know things are different in this strange world.


    They also serve as a good reason for caravans to travel in large groups and have walls around every village. After all, who would want such things to come in the middle of the night and quietly drink the blood of all the cattle?


    Whispering Hounds: Clever, sneaky, loyal. They are largely considered the best beasts for a tamer to bond with, initially. Any tamer with coin will buy a whispering hound or two. Even hunters will purchase them since you don''t really need to be a tamer to train these creatures. They are effectively the dogs of Xentos while being slightly more clever than real-world dogs. A few can even be trained to play games like chess, and other such stuff.


    Sadly they are also regarded as something only people with low status have. The worker''s beast, just barely better than a farmer taming their Bew. They are known for herding and protecting farmlands in the Kingdom of Fire. They tend to see their masters as their alpha and go the extra mile to actually learn phrases to better fulfill their duty.


    In game terms, that means these guys make excellent companions if one is trained up. Plus they are supposed to look really cool, even if the tongue kind of makes them creepy. Damage wise they''d be on par with the yellow-tipped wolves until they hit silver. Then they''d be on par with reds. Something that prevents them from being too game-breaking, and if people really want, the paths make excellent character arcs.


    They are blind dogs with long ears. Go the extra mile and have them act silly. They are supposed to be the good boys, as opposed to the wolves being the bad ones. They''ll die so the party might live, and they''ll die so that their master''s flock is safe. They are everything good about dogs, in a weird alien body.


    If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    Relationships: Whispering Wolves: Whispering wolves are tolerated for the most part since they do keep worse things away. Typically it''s more about population control.


    Eclipse: Yellow and Red tips are easy to defeat and serve as a very good reminder that one should always be aware of their surroundings. The forests tend to have a lot of different packs, and their movements are tracked to know when something bigger is coming. As far as the Underground is concerned, there aren''t really any that aren''t domesticated. They have been used in the Arena for fights against gladiators, though generally, such things are rather cruel.


    Kingdom of Light: The elves of the East prefer Fukuma over whisper wolves. It is a point of tension between the nobles of the two kingdoms. It also doesn''t help that the wolf tribes of the Underground are not fond of the elves either. Whisper wolves can be found here, but only among the poorest or most feral of the elf tribes. In the cities, it''s all about the strongest most unique beastmen. (Their loss really)


    Kingdom of Dark Fell: No hounds or wolves tread within these borders. The blood does not agree with them, and the monsters are much too dangerous. The Monster King himself doesn''t like these creatures, often considering them to be ugly. It doesn''t help that they don''t have a monster form, no matter how many records he looks through. Utterly useless to him.


    Kingdom of Fire: Tolerated by the kingdom of Fire, with the majority of their numbers on the Western landbridge. Mainly considered to be protectors, since the packs in the whispering valleys alert the kingdom if the Monster King is making any moves towards their lands.


    Northern Kingdom: Dwarves are too loud, and the tunnels are too cramped for the packs. Most of them never go North because of the cold, so it just isn''t a place they enjoy going to. Few wolves actually manage to make it there, but for the most part, the dwarves think they are neat oddities.


    Whispering Hounds: Rather neutral, given that most realize they are great creatures to practice taming for the first time.


    Eclipse: The king is more of a hound person than a Fukuma person. This can make some gatherings a little awkward considering there are Cheshire nobles that are very aware of this fact. The sentiment is largely shared with the population since the tamers on the Guard happily breed these hounds to take on patrols with them. Typically the tamers scout an area out before the new recruits get to do their patrols.


    It is not uncommon to see children walking the streets with their family hound making sure they are safe. Which only serves to endear them more into the hearts of the people.


    The Underground is a contrast to that however since most hounds are put in cage matches with the results being gambled on. The Raven had a large amount of them, that he used for his plan to enter the Hole. After that was done and he left, there were too many, and not enough tamers to take care of them all. Which led to a lot of bad things happening.


    The hounds of the Underground have it rough, but they endure. Who knows what will happen?


    Kingdom of Light: The hounds represent everything wrong with ''civilization.'' They are outright slaughtered and eaten by the tribes, while the more civilized places regard them as too weak to be worth protecting. It is extremely rare to see a hound in this kingdom, which makes the wolves more common to see outside. For the most part, the wolves are left alone to let nature run its course.


    Kingdom of Dark Fell: Just like the wolves these beasts do not turn into monsters. They can die to black blood, but not a single one he has captured has changed. What he doesn''t understand is why so many gather in the Whispering Plains and attack his monsters. They flee with the wolves, but they seem to be united by some force.


    To that end, the monster king has experiments being run on these creatures in particular since they are weaker than their wolfkin. He doesn''t particularly hate them, since they only manage to slow down the hordes he sends through their lands, and they serve as food for such. Though he doesn''t like them. Especially with how defiantly they all snarl at him in particular.


    Kingdom of Fire: Adored by the Fire Lord, and beloved by the people. The nobles aren''t too fond of them, but the general population really likes them. Most tamers in the kingdom typically keep a couple of hounds in their group, regardless of what other creatures they have with them. Cities tend to have one in four families with a hound so long as they aren''t going through a famine.


    The hounds are very common to find in the plains of this kingdom. Just as the wolves are very common to run into along the roads. They are seen as guardians, with a few churches even dedicated to the hounds and wolves.


    Northern Kingdom: Hounds don''t last long in the kingdom of dwarves. The constant noise of iron striking stone, or more iron, makes it very hard for them. It tends to result in them going deaf sooner than later. Not only that, but they are one cave in away from becoming emergency rations. The dwarves want to like them, but they just aren''t compatible as a species.


    Romance: Whispering Wolves: Really ask yourself if you want to contemplate it. They aren''t sapient, and they are walking on four to six legs. I suggest not pursuing this unless you want to be ostracized. Keep the thoughts to yourself, unless you really want to stick a talent on them that makes them humanoid and sapient.


    Even if they turn into a Barghest, they aren''t exactly much better. Though hey at that point they are smart enough to understand consent and give it. Still weird, but hey, I won''t judge you.


    Whispering Hounds: Just like the above, though depending on the path chosen it gets a lot better.


    Creation: Whispering Wolves: Barghests were made by the mad god, and then one got a talent that allowed them to become a goddess. This goddess moved to the kingdom of Fire to record their history (as many Barghests do), where she met a person named Jack. Things got romantic between them, and different ideas were laid out before them.


    Thing is, Jack got around and had a lot of kids. There was some jealousy, which led to some tense moments between the two. In the end, the father of Charles (now King of Eclipse) sacrificed himself when the monster king came to be. He led an army of whisper wolves, with a grin on his face. The time he bought allowed the goddess to turn all other Barghests into such wolves so that they may live and not be forced to fulfill the monster king''s terrible command.


    One day the time will come when the Barghests may once again record the history of the world, but until then they are trapped in slumber they cannot comprehend.


    Whispering Hounds: The hounds were made after the whisper wolves, after the goddess managed to set her grief over Jack''s loss aside. She then set out these varients to search for the children of her beloved. Through the decades she found that his bloodline was thinning. She could feel them dying. Some kind of tragedy was playing out and she didn''t know the cause.


    The hounds were meant to find the bloodline, but she didn''t know the scents of Jack''s children. She could no longer visit the world of Xentos, lest she brings all the Barghests with her. The goddess watches, in despair, caught between saving the last of her beloved''s bloodline and fulfilling the original mission she assigned to herself.


    Purpose: Whispering Wolves: Given the reason they came about, they have a few purposes to fulfill. The first is that they should not die. Their total population cannot fall below the number of Barghests waiting to return to Xentos. That is the main goal of their existence. The second purpose is to prevent the monster armies from finding the final remaining member of Jack''s bloodline. Jack was born in the Kingdom of Fire, so it makes the most sense that the last of his kin is more than likely going to be there.


    It is all one huge conspiracy that nobody really knows about. Gods are able to prevent the use of magic from scrying their future or even determining their goals. Many can''t even agree on where these beasts came from exactly.


    Whispering Hounds: These were made in place of the children she could never have with her beloved. The hounds are living well, and yet their purpose is to find that last remaining member of the bloodline. The Wolves protect and mislead, while the hounds search to find. The goddess just needs them to find a single drop, and taste it. That is what she is waiting on.


    Beyond the goal of finding where the last child of Jack''s kin might be, they are meant to bond with their masters. This makes it extra sad, that the highest any of these hounds ever got was silver-tipped. The goddess wants to elevate one to a herald of her own to more directly influence the world. Yet, through circumstance, no one has ever gotten farther. Typically accidents happen, or promising tamers are tempted by a more powerful beast before the hound has a chance to bloom.


    Lore: Whispering Wolves: The creation section gave most of this away. So here are some fun little facts. Whispering wolves can be called laughing Jacks. They are commonly referred to as such due to how they laugh quietly to communicate, at least within the Kingdom of Fire. The tribe of beastmen that came from these creatures are able to commune with their goddess. Though the requirements haven''t been met for any of them to become a herald. Which through the intention of the goddess, just means they need to get really close to a human.


    Sadly the whispering wolf tribe isn''t guided by the goddess very well and is largely ignored. As for lore stuff, well the wolves to guard the Western landbridge. It''s going to sound like I''m repeating myself by saying they are regarded as guardians, so I won''t.


    It is worth noting that wolves and hounds despise Fukuma and Cheshire. Mainly because the Cheshire are the ones leading monster hordes through the Whispering Plains, and into the Kingdom of Fire. You know, standard cats vs. dogs stuff.


    Whispering Hounds: I spoke of the paths the hounds could take to evolve. Much like the wolves repeating what has already been written would be silly. So here are the paths tamers and the hounds can follow. If any of them manage to get that far. Do keep in mind that these trials don''t start immediately after a silver tip becomes purple. Both the tamer and the hound need to want to move forward.


    Once the silvertip turns purple, one of three trials will eventually come. Often during a dream where the hound and the tamer are separated. Both are judged by Barghests and asked questions accordingly. Less a trail, but the start of the path that they will take. There are three starts, that lead to three different ends.


    The path of Power, which is offered first by the Barghests. One that is accepted when either the hound or tamer accepts it. It is to be offered thrice with better benefits added to each one. Hinting at the potential that is to come in a potentially misleading way. This path locks both parties into it. (Path of Cerberus)


    The second of the first paths comes after the offer of power has been declined three times. It is the path of knowledge. In the beginning, it must be stated by the Barghests that there are two paths. This is the second one, and both paths are now open. Both the tamer and the hound must ask if there is a third path to have a chance at that. Both parties must agree to pursue this path. (Path of Barghest)


    The final starting path and the one that can only be reached if both ask the right questions. It will be revealed to them both and offered with the other two until one is chosen. It is the path of loyalty. Both parties must agree to pursue this path as well. (Path of Adlet)


    Every journey starts with a single step, and both parties may decline any of the three paths. Though they may change their minds when they are ready to begin such a thing. Once they are on a specific path they cannot leave it and are locked in until death. Any path chosen will ''ascend'' the hound into a monster. All of them will have long ears with purple tips at this stage, despite what monster they end up becoming.


    The path of power molds them into a hellhound, which is why it is called the path of Cerberus. The path of Barghest turns them into a Barghest at this stage. The path of loyalty turns them into an Adlet (basically a beastman, but stronger than the ones found in tribes.) Each of these paths has three answers in how they will end. I''ll type out more since they do deserve their own entry.


    Fun Ideas: Whispering Wolves: A lot of ideas were already given earlier. Though I do recommend providing your own nuance to these guys. They are clearly alien in appearance and might be considered very strange. Which makes them perfect for most genres. The best part is they have a reason to be smart and get stronger as the party grows. So they can always be a good soft check to help your party consider where they stand in terms of defense.


    Where they really shine is horror, of course. Just imagine venturing into an abandoned lab and hearing whispers and laughter. Then you see a dark vaguely shaped dog creature dart around one corner. Then the party sees another run down the halls behind them. Never lingering, but letting the players know they are there. Probably the best way to start a dungeon delve with these guys just being hungry enough to start hunting a party. They got the body horror down, and their hit-and-run mentality will really get players unnerved for whatever else you plan on throwing at them.


    On the other end, you could have the party''s druid talk to one of these creatures out in the wild. They are smart enough to explain they want to see their pack. If they are led to such, safely, then perhaps the pack might pop up later and help the party escape a bad situation with goblins or something. Making them misunderstood creatures, that look strange, but are nice. Which leads to them getting tamed and becoming hounds.


    Whispering Hounds: Who doesn''t love companions in their group? These guys can make things more interesting, as well as round out the average damage that can be done. I''d say that two of them probably make a player member and you can add more to keep their damage on par with the party. How you choose to have them interact with the party will define how well received they are. If you can''t find a good way to use the goodest boys in your campaign to help your party succeed, then you might be struggling with campaign ideas. Just take a step back and think of what you really want from your story. Then remember that any story you make will be gutted by the party.


    Being a storyteller for any group involves a lot of improvs, being able to gauge those you are interacting with. If you aren''t playing to have fun, then why are you there? The players dictate where the story will go, and it''s up to you to determine the overall arc and keep them on some kind of track. I''ve seen people have more fun with playing this huge character, who then proceeds to sneak behind chickens and snatch them up. Just the idea alone of this huge looming figure failing to sneak behind these small birds, and just picking them up and carrying them in their arms is all it takes sometimes.


    Embrace the silly, communicate with those you are telling a story to, and come to some agreements. Without your players, there is no campaign, and without you, there is no story. Negotiate, and treat them as friends. Don''t be afraid to ask them where they think the story should go and build upon that. I just can''t think of a party that wouldn''t want these goodest boys running around with them.

 Vampires and Their Bloodlines!

    Name: Vampire


    Race: Monster


    Sub-race: Cursed Undead


    Place on the Pyramid of Power (PPP): Predator to Forces of Nature (Could go higher for specific individuals and bloodlines)


    World: Xentos and many other worlds


    Habitat: Wherever their prey tends to be


    Biology: The biology of vampires largely depends on the bloodline. There are so many different types of vampires, that it would be silly to list them all off. Vampires are proof of the ''exception'' to rules, versus the black-and-white dichotomy. What that means is, that anything could be a ''vampire.'' ''Righteous knights cursed to feed nightly. Vile people that only care for their own power and hunger. Even a wood elf tree, if the talent permits it.


    Yet, this is biology. How does a vampire tick? It''s quite obvious that they need blood/ life essence to linger upon the mortal plane. How does it all work? Well, let''s st''art with the human vampires since they make up the majority of bloodlines, and all function roughly the same. We can even start with the embrace that leads a human to become one of their ilk.


    All normal vampires start as humans. They live their lives, until one day, they are embraced. Their bodies are drained of blood, then the vampire puts some of their own blood back into the dying body. This process gives the body a choice, if it rejects the blood it dies, if it accepts the black blood, then they rise anew.


    Such a process is fairly straightforward. Some bloodlines require extra steps, but a part of the vampire is always required, from fang, to a heart transfer, to just the black blood injected after certain conditions are met. The former entity will now become a vampire upon acceptance of the blood. It is less an acceptance of blood than the curse itself in this regard. The new fledgling will come to understand such in time.


    All vampires are undead, even those that have beating hearts. They can enter a dormant state and slumber anywhere between weeks to centuries. To stir a vampire, all one needs is a catalyst to resurrect them. Such naturally depends on the bloodline. Though quite a few are harder to put down than simply going out into the sun and scattering the ashes along a river. They are magical creatures, after all.


    Given how they use magic by burning their blood, you might ask what happens when they run out? Well, they simply can''t use magic anymore or burn it. That said, they do become incredibly hostile to everyone nearby. Similar to a group of sharks going into a feeding frenzy, all vampires will lash out when their thirst reaches an unacceptable level.


    The main way to kill almost any cursed individual is a silver stake through the heart. Preferably one gilded about a stake of elf wood, soaked in the blood of a saint. It''s the one thing all cursed entities kinda succumb to, even if it just forces a vampire into their ''death'' state. You cannot ''kill'' most vampires by doing just that, but it''s a ''''start.''''


    ''Sure, vampires are speedy. It''s kind of their thing, where they aren''t t''he strongest supernatural, but they are probably the quickest. If you''ve been following the story, you''ll know th''at there''s always something out there that might be just a bit better. Vampires and their bloodlines are utility knives. They''re good at what their bloodline s''uggests they should be good at.


    This is a long-winded way of saying that there isn''t a universal biology between them beyond how they burn blood. Some need to feast on virgin blood, others need the blood of those that killed their family, while a few can only drink blood from the recently deceased. I''d say that the majority are mostly human, but it just means their muscles are stained black instead of their blood. It does''n''t need to be pumped because they are dead, and they can burn blood to have natural functions to appear human enough.


    Yes, most vampires can eat and drink regular food, but that only makes them more hungry. They need to burn precious life essence to process it and excrete waste. Only spies and those that wish to reminisce about the lives they once had will do such. Granted in both cases their supply of vigor would be accounted for.


    As for how well they can hear, see, and smell? It varies; given that they are blood users. They can control the blood in their ears to help amplify what they might hear, making their hearing much sharper. They can constrict or relax the vessels around their eyes to help them see further, the more clever ones even make a lens of blood to scope out things from afar. Even when it comes to smell, they can use how reactive their black blood is to other blood to track anything that bleeds.


    Vampires are ''predators'' as such, it only makes sense that their control over blood allows them to do more. ''''''


    Diet: Often the blood of their original race before turning. Otherwise, they have to jump over a few hurdles for a proper meal.


    Concept: There is so much to be said about writing down a ''concept'' for these creatures. Given how almost every culture in our world has some form of undead that needs the flesh of the living to continue, it''s just easier to say they are vampires because of a ''curse'' that the world itself imposes.


    These monsters are certainly one of the hardest to explain a concept for, let alone the biology above. Writing this has definitely left me scratching my head, as to what to say about them. It just means that it''s better to point out the similarities between the bloodlines that encompass the majority as a ''concept,'' even if it does not apply to all of them. So, don''t take these very paragraphs as scripture for the whole concept, as there are always exceptions.


    For the most part, all vampires get stronger as they get older. The expression is that they age like fine wine. When an individual is embraced, they are brought into the fold at their weakest. Young vampires are easier to kill since they haven''t been around long enough for their blood to ''age.'' In most cases, all someone needs to do is behead the fledgling, or just stake their heart. They''ll even die if they don''t eat after a month.


    Love is tough, as it is rare for a sire to look after their offspring after the embrace. Almost all new vampires are made to fend for themselves. In some cases, it is because the sire doesn''t have the time, or outright don''t know they ''embraced'' someone. In others, it''s to protect who they brought into the fold, after all living a long time allows feuds and animosity to fester. It could be better to be an ''orphan'' than with a sire whose name might get you killed.


    It creates a dichotomy, that establishes that the biggest threat to vampires is other vampires. Much like how the people of any nation are the biggest threats to themselves. Sure the monsters outside the walls are scary, but most deaths come from the people around each other. Even in places where they pretend to play nice, it''s a cutthroat stage. One less vampire means more blood for everyone else, thus the young are often culled and need backing from other stronger vampires.


    Typically, a young blood will not get any kind of aid until after they manage to survive for an entire year with minimal help. This is to ensure that time and effort won''t be wasted on someone without any kind of restraint. Granted, they might get help sooner if they are a rarer strain, but the most common vampires all experience some form of isolation.


    Usually, it takes about twenty years for a vampire to no longer be called a young blood/ fledgling. At that point, they are truly accepted into the fold and have a ''job'' within the mascarade. By this point, they''ll have had time to become intimately familiar with their blood magic and bloodline. They''ll have had opportunities to establish relationships, and gain allies as well as enemies. It''s at this point that they''re allowed to call themselves a vampire.


    Depending on the job they have, often given to them based on their blood and abilities, the vampire should be more capable than most humans. Because of their blood, their magic matures slower. Their vessel is tainted by the curse, which means they have to be clever with how they use their magic. If too much blood is used they''ll start to starve and become weak. They might even frenzy, causing other vampires to potentially put them down. Every vampire that has the right to call themselves such, understands what it means to restrain themselves. For the most part, they understand they have a part to play, wherever that may be.


    In a world of monsters, the vampires are often the secret guardians that help guide small towns and cities. They will live for centuries if no one can kill them. They will work to ensure trade between populations is established and continue to ply such. It''s the vampires that stalk the night that notice monsters approaching and manage to make a guard sound the alarm. While they are perhaps slightly more powerful in terms of magic than average people, the ones that continue to live are those that realize how fucked they are if the blood runs out.


    It sounds silly, but that''s what helps determine if a vampire might make it to a higher position. They need to survive a ''drought'' of blood and live for one hundred years. Other vampires won''t accept anyone that thinks it''s okay to fuck over their enemies by culling a population of its vigor. After all, every village, town, and city is connected in some way. A drought in one area can quickly spread, as the local vampire population goes to other places with more blood. Just like economics really, a nation laughing at another going through a depression for some reason, quickly finds themselves suffering from the same thing a few years down the line.


    That might just be the concept behind a ''real'' vampire in Xentos. From the fact that the stronger vampires take titles to bring themselves closer to peasants, to how even if they''re sketchy the local vampire in charge of a place is a fairly reasonable monster. They aren''t brooding psychos that feast on blood and only care about their strength and how they can grow. They''re economists that are very tired of how the fire lord keeps fucking their people over. Sure, they''re prone to the edgy display now and then, but they are acutely aware of how weak the people races truly are.


    Ingrained in their culture from the start, they learn that the biggest threat is those around them. It''s not to teach young bloods to become selfish and to only get by on their own power. It''s to help them realize that it really fucking sucks to be alone. Their prey aren''t stupid, they have connections and form groups. A mob can and has killed quite a few vampires because numbers are a quality that can overwhelm something better than itself.


    Becoming a vampire means being cursed to watch those you cared for in life die while you don''t age. To potentially feed on your family, long after they have forgotten you. That you may in turn have to protect them and others from something more dangerous in the moment, while still needing to not lose yourself. It''s the concept of a vampire at its core, and one that can''t be truly understood until a vampire finally lived all that time and witnessed it personally.


    Once they realize what they are, they will be able to become a ''real'' vampire. Everything before that epiphany is much like them being a young adult. After the realization, they''re more like a parent coming to understand that their child is more important than themself. With that understanding, the world acknowledges them and waits for their choice.


    The precipice offers them three paths. They may sleep and dream until they are ready, they may accept their curse, or they may reject it and die on the spot. Sleeping means they''ll drink their fill of blood before finding a secure place to rest for decades or even centuries. Death means they just turn to ash on the spot, as if struck by the sun itself. A final mercy for someone that lived so long.


    Upon acceptance of the curse and their purpose (which may be unique to the individual), the vampire steps into their magic''s next phase. Kind of the equivalent of how a pyromancer becomes a fire lord, then a fire monarch. The vampire goes from a simple vampire into a ''real'' vampire. After all, they have that flair for making things complicated. Any vampire can have any title before this point, and the only way to tell if a vampire is a ''real'' one is by how much stronger they are.


    Accepting the curse means the vessel has fully become a monster. Heart and soul, the vampire knows that their humanity meant nothing. Their soul has become that of a vampire instead of a person that thinks they still aren''t a monster. One might think that becoming a monster conflicts with guarding humans, but it''s more of the idea that people are cattle to protect and nurture. Again, how they interpret the curse is based on the vampire''s personal ideals and so on. Some do want to protect a city to keep other vampires safe, some want to just see how far the people races can climb, while others never want to feel the thirst again.


    The main thing is that they acknowledge themselves as a monster and have a purpose that they will see fulfilled. They will make decisions that people might consider cold or downright evil. They''ll be seen as charismatic or unsettling as they have a purpose. Their ability to dominate minds will become stronger. At this step, they can dominate their lesser kin as well as people in the lord realm of magic (second stage). There are exceptions of course.


    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    As for how their control over blood develops? Well, it has strength and precision. They''re able to rupture blood vessels in normal magic users. This could lead to aneurysms, heart palpitations, and other nasty things. The truth is that vampires on this level can bypass the spiritual field and do minor damage with their magic. Small problems can become major when magic is involved. It is a shame it doesn''t work on other monsters and those with stronger souls.


    Past the real vampires, you will find the ''true'' vampires. At a minimum, they have to live at least five hundred years. Not that the amount of time truly matters, so much as the experience and the growth of their soul. Whereas real vampires are hard to kill, true vampires are harder. A real vampire might dissolve to ash in the light of the sun and be raised by the blood of a virgin. A true vampire can just come back like that one ex you wish you never gave a key to.


    The real vampire has designated steps to make sure they stay dead; from getting a demon they once made a pact with, to stabbing them with the sword they wielded whilst they were alive. It''s a quest to kill a real vampire while killing a true vampire is akin to salting the ground after burning down a forest. It isn''t impossible, but the steps needed to ensure absolute death are enough to make someone consider just moving away.


    Why am I talking about the two at once? Well, the only difference between the two is experience and the strength of their soul. It''s like comparing lords and monarchs, you expect that difference to be there. One''s just harder to kill and has centuries of experience to back up their actions. A true vampire can''t really dominate a real one, but they can force the lesser to kneel as a show of strength. A humiliation often used in place of killing someone that actually made it that far.


    True vampires are content with letting the ''real'' ones run the masquerade, while only interfering when they need to. They''ll often pop up as advisors, appearing weaker until something needs to be taken care of discreetly. The real vampire gets someone that knows what they''re doing to help with the work, while the true one gets to take a break from all the politics and ego stroking. If someone is more afraid of a vampire''s underling, you''ll know you found the true vampire.


    Relationships: Vampires: The older vampires are the stuff of nightmares, as they simply don''t die. Most ''sane'' populations kill the younger ones. Yet, vampires will always have that air of mystery around them.


    Eclipse: Given the Count is the right hand of a certain king, they are known to be within the walls of Eclipse as well as in the Underground. As for how the relationship between the people and vampires goes? Well, there is a gang of them in the Underground that sorta runs the masquerade and functions as a semi-daycare for young bloods. People are turned, and it''s almost tradition for gang members to kill those they cared for. Within the kingdom, there are rumors about some of the nobles in the court being vampires besides the Count. Other kingdoms see this as colluding with the monsters to the West.


    It actually goes much deeper, since Charles was the one who helped the Count get all of his ''children'' out of Dark Fall before the Monster King took over. More of that will be in the lore part of this. The majority of vampires live in the sewers of Eclipse though.


    Kingdom of Light: The elves want vampires so badly. It''s hard to find protectors of the night, and young vampires are perfect vessels for spirits to possess. There is a secret slave trade going on between the kingdoms to get the bloodsuckers to them for special rituals to manifest the spirits. Vampires are also seen as noble, which means displaying one as a pet allows those in the city to have a better reputation. It''s kind of like saying they have the influence, wealth, and power to get a noble monster and display them for all to see. Granted it''s more common in a few cities, but some vampires do escape and end up with local tribes.


    Kingdom of Dark Fell: Almost all the resident vampires left because of the Count. Some were stubborn, while others refused to let anything terrible happen to their homeland. The vampires that can control themselves hate the Monster King, while the king himself enjoys using them as spies and enforcers. Usually, monster raids are sent out to retrieve vampires, or ''negotiate'' with traders to ''recruit'' some to the cause. The lowest amount of vampires can be found here, given dark elves kill them on sight. In some rare circumstances, a vampire might allow a demon to take over their body for a few decades to rid themselves of the Monster King''s influence. It may take years for the ritual to be performed, but it is how most demons walk among their dark elves.


    Kingdom of Fire: It really depends on where one is within the kingdom. The cultivators fight against vampires coming through the plains, while there are special sects with them at the helm. Vampires have a healthy fear of ocean travel so stick to land, which means any found on the islands are enslaved and to be traded. Some courts have a vampire advisor because the king of Eclipse uses one, while most villages hunt them in mobs. It''s a very mixed bag and depends on how the locals feel.


    Northern Kingdom: Dwarf blood is a bit too high in alcohol content for most vampires to enjoy. Some vampires do live there, but that''s mainly because the abandoned tunnels are a great place for a safe house. Mainly it''s where exiles and other vampires run away. The tunnels were largely safe until the mimics took over. If they were found sleeping, well vampires can be turned into doppelgangers. They can''t join the mimic queen, but they are useful. Though that only applies to fledglings, real vampires don''t get turned since their minds are too powerful to be controlled like that. It just isn''t too great a place for them, despite the shelter.


    Romance:  Absolutely nothing wrong with cracking into a cold one. (Raunchy joke ho!)


    Creation:  A certain Count was the first vampire to exist. In a way, vampires are the first monsters of Xentos. Back before talents came into being, back before the darkest night. The Count was there when Dark Fall was marred by eternal darkness. Yet, I''m getting ahead of myself. This is the section about how vampires were created. How did the bloodlines come about?


    Well, the mad god became what they are now after that darkest night. The taint that afflicted them spurred them into creating beings with blackened blood. These first monsters are extremely rare, and incredibly powerful. What was needed to create these monsters, was the blood of the mad god.


    In a way, it''s because of this blood that the Count has been able to adapt to the new magics. He''s effectively a demigod, and the children under him have thinner blood but can adapt as well. The Count had been human before being turned by divine blood. He needs it because without blood his humanity starts to slip. Just as other vampires begin to become feral when they grow hungry. When the Count ''embraces'' someone, he gives them a drop of that divine blood allowing them to become the first of their bloodline, under him.


    Each bloodline is started because of the Count, who in turn started because he was infected by the tainted blood of a god. Now that that has settled in, I should add that every new bloodline the Count creates will sync up with him. In other words, this is me telling you, my dear reader, that he has access to every bloodline power. So long as the bloodline exists and hasn''t undergone a ritual to unshackle themselves, he can use their strength.


    The Count is the creator of all vampires, and because of the mad god''s blood, those he turns can come out with strange alterations. Something you might imagine that comes from an insane god''s chaotic blood.


    Purpose:  Kinda pointed it out in the concept. At least what they''re supposed to do, but I should probably put a summary here and make it clearer. Very well.


    Vampires were formally people, and as such their goals and ideals vary. It is through existing for some time and becoming stronger, that they are able to mold themselves into vessels for carrying out said ideals. They are cursed beings that are unable to hold onto their humanity, save for the scrap that becomes their goal. They are meant to become protectors of the sapient races, but that can all too easily enable them to become tyrants.


    It''s hard to say they were created with that purpose in mind, given the count was tainted during the mad god''s earliest years. Their purpose is to exist and pursue whatever they need to achieve. After all, they are immortal. Their habits and traits will manifest as an overripeness that peeks out in most things they do. Without a purpose or goal to chase, they just kinda sit there. It is all too easy to keep pushing things back by the day when you know time won''t run out for you.


    Lore: In the early days of Xentos, after it was built on the bones of harpies. The Elves and Dwarves were created as proto-humans. The new galaxy had different rules and so everything had to be balanced in the right way to not cause these races to break down. Xentos finally became inhabitable by regular humans to some extent. Sure, they had extra knuckles so they could have five fingers, all of them could wiggle their ears since it would count as an additional set of limbs, and there were extra small sacs inside the body to help the organs be counted in groups divisible by three. At the end of the day, humans were recreated to fit into this world.


    There is no polite way to state this, the ''gods'' from another galaxy that had once themselves been human, had awoken. They created organic slaves in the form of elves and dwarves, while humans were to be the rulers of those two races. It was a caste system; with gods at the top, the recreated humans second, and everyone else below them. With such a clear-cut system, it shouldn''t come as a surprise that some rather atrocious things were able to take place.


    The kingdoms of man started to pop up, built on the backs of dwarves and elves. Generation after generation of humans came and went, while the lesser races were forced to work their entire extended lives. Xentos became more inhabitable, while the gods left the mortals to sort out the hard work of expanding. It took a few centuries before the Count was born.


    With that overview done, we start with Ivan''s birth as an heir to one of the first human kingdoms. He lived his life as your typical privileged child from a wealthy home. He had maids, stewards, and so on. He was a noble brat. Only to have that changed at the age of eight when he was saved by an elf maid he had treated poorly. A young boy that had been raised to see those servants as nothing more than disposable pawns was rocked to his core when they died smiling after protecting him from an assassination attempt. He wanted to give her a proper burial, yet it was too much for his people to accept.


    It was on that day that Ivan learned just how messed up the caste system was. He became a troubled youth, seeking counsel from the servants that allowed the humans to live in luxury. He learned how they worked, how they survived, and the terrible conditions they were faced with. As he grew older, he''d go to the mines to truly understand the scope of the world the gods above had created. Everyone had their purpose and those that refused it were slain by heralds and holy men. Even kings and queens were not immune to such, as every noble was a puppet. At best, they were pets to the gods, that had taken an interest in their creations.


    Ivan began spreading ideas among the lowly servants, trying to improve their lives. He sought to keep them fed so that they would not starve. He made friends that came to respect him as a true leader, as he improved their condition throughout his life. It was easy for the young man, as no one paid mind to what they said around the servants. His spy network became vast, as factions slowly started to revolt against the humans. It had not been his intention, but once the embers of rebellion took, they started to spread.


    The oppressors doubled down, making conditions even worse for those serving them. The gods refused to act, seeing the rebellion as nothing more than entertainment, or stopping others from doing such. Ivan was a full-grown adult when the first kingdom fell. A castle reduced to smoldering ruins. It was then that the darkest night happened.


    A single man had fallen from the sky itself, his skin a dark copper. An absolute unit of an individual, that came from a place called Derthune. With their presence, the light of the world dimmed. The gods were spurred into action as an epic battle took place. One in which the invader had won. The king of Derthune stated his home of origin, before infecting the first god with taint.


    The Count was born that day. He embraced his thirteen closest friends, starting the vampire race as a whole. As the years went on a few of the first vampire bloodlines would fall. The Darkest night had left its mark on the world, casting eternal shade over Dark Fall, and the gods weren''t exactly happy with that. Rends in the sky would cast light and kill the monsters that started to infect the world, including these young bloodlines. With the constant need for human blood, the vampires would abduct humans and start to treat them as cattle.


    In a twist of fate, they kind of became what they sought to fight against. The common idea among them was that they had no other choice. This idea would make the vampires complacent. All of them would sire more, while not keeping track of their supplies. Everything started to fall apart when the number of vampires outnumbered their cattle. They fought each other for blood, friends turning on friends. Because of this, the first vampires split and sought to create their own places in Dark Fall.


    Only a few hundred years had passed, yet most of the original vampires had died. A forgotten king was surrounded by the descendants of his closest allies, those he would have died for. Yet, each time the same problem kept coming up. There was never enough blood, and the human settlements were too far away to reach in a night. The world had changed from the fight and the passage of time, so he didn''t know the land outside Dark Fell. New monsters were being made, and multiple times the vampires would cull themselves to survive.


    Within five hundred years after the darkest night, the vampires had separated themselves even more. They attacked those that were not of their bloodline, kicking off the first and only true vampire war. It got so bad that the only vampires ''alive'' were in the hundreds. Territories were established, as the Count was left with very few first vampires. His closest friends were almost all gone, as they adopted a more political stance.


    The Count had his own territory, with a castle and some survivors from the war. He managed to keep it running for hundreds of years as others fell around him. Yet, even despite his best efforts, he realized he was going to fail. The young bloods were making new vampires, and even despite his strictest rules, the cattle he had were not reproducing fast enough. It was a slow thing, as edible food dwindled with the fall of other territories. Ivan saw his demise coming in a few hundred years and sent out the best of those in his territory.


    He was ready to die, feeling that there was no reason to continue on. The Count had fallen in love and lost them. Everyone he cared for had changed, or died, and so he simply sent off the best of the bloodline to continue on without him. It would have ended there, had it not been for a time mage that convinced him otherwise.


    Naturally, the entire history of such a long-lived monster race can''t be expressed in a few thousand words. There is more to it, but I hope you enjoyed this quick summary.


    Fun Ideas: With all of that out of the way, feel free to use these guys however you see fit. There is so much vampire lore out there and the ones presented in the story are merely ideas. I enjoy the idea of pumpkin-headed vampires rising from beneath a field of fertile soil. Only to combust themselves while screeching, before drinking the blood of a poor party. Adding some variety to the vampire besides sparkles and more fangs is the right way to go. Make them weird, make them freaky, just don''t make them edgier.