Court of the Fallen - Guidebook

The guidebook is a comprehensive directory of all the information available on CotF.
Last updated 2024/01/01/

Before You Begin

Welcome to Court of the Fallen! Though there are quite a few guides and resources to read, it is helpful first to read through our rules and our races. CotF is set on the continent of Caido on a planet unlike the Earth. Home to a variety of mythical and mundane flora and fauna, characters and players alike have the chance to explore and make their mark on this new world in a variety of fun and interesting ways.

Join our discord server!

Regional Scores
Regional scores are a numerical indication of a region’s level of advancement. The higher the score, the ‘nicer’ it is to live and visit the region; it may also enjoy more societal advancements and/or upgrades. Click here to view each region's current score.

Certain types of threads completed within a region (in any board) may positively or negatively affect its regional score.

Completed PQ      +1
Completed PQ+      +5
Unsuccessful PQ+      -5
Successful KQ      +8
Failed KQ      -10
Completed RQ      +13
Invasion      -15
War      ?
Admin fuckery      ?

Regional Score Scale

0-10 | Lawless and wild. Spending the night here might mean death and even travelling through invites danger. There are no established pathways and the flora and fauna reigns supreme. It will take you longer than average to cross this area and wagons rarely make their way through.

11-20 | Untamed. This area has a few trails that can reliably be used as a means of transportation, but danger is always close at hand. Vigilance is recommended when spending the night here.

21-30 | Comfortable. Roads and rudimentary housing have been established, and wagons and other delivery services are regular thoroughfare. Crime and some dangerous fauna may still cause problems.

31-50 | A “nice” place to live. Some advancements and upgrades may have been made, and society is thriving. Fairly safe with a well established culture and widely available amenities.

51-80 | A region with plenty of advancements and conveniences, along with well-defined architecture and aesthetics. There is a low rate of crime and widespread access to medicine and/or magic if needed. Gain +1 luck as part of your regional feat.

81-100 | 10/10 would live. A region riding on the coat-tails of success, there are many notable advancements and citizens can enjoy an easy life free of poverty, crime and disease. People want to move to this region. Gain +3 luck as part of your regional feat.

101-130 | Practically paradise. The epitome of civilized life, people consider it a privilege to be able to live in this region. Technology may be extremely advanced, or there may be numerous magical benefits. Peace reigns and citizens enjoy a life of abundance and success. Gain a boost to your regional feat. Residents cannot be cursed at shrines within this region.

Traveling around Caido

Caido is roughly the size of China and is spread across several regions. Whilst we make use of liquid time on the site, below you can find some information on modes of travel to help you navigate the world realistically.

Skyships

Skyships are floating boats that can sail between established ports. Currently, there are skyports in Halo (in the Citadel), the Greatwood (in the Sidhe Village), Torchline (at the Kaiholo Port), and Stormbreak (the Skyport). Skyships can also land in King’s End (the Boondocks), and near the Climb (carefully, though!)

On Foot/Shifted

On CotF we assume that people can travel 30-50km per day (based on your END stat). With animal shifts this amount will change, so in order to make use of the map below, Google the average movement speed of your animal or how far they can travel in a day, and divide it by the distance you want to travel. Mythical animals are generally capable of 2x speed, and demigods or others who have maxed out their stats can push the upper limits of travel as well.

Note: The Draig Cordillera that bisects Caido is incredibly treacherous to cross. When trying to walk/fly through the mountains, triple the amount of time it would normally take. Wagons never cross through here.

By Wagon

You can assume that there are always various wagons going from region to region and within the Wilds. Frequency is based on that location’s Regional Score. You can triple walking speed to have an idea of how much ground these wagons can cover in a day.

Portals

During the Voice’s time on Caido, a number of portals were established across the continent that provided immediate and convenient access to the rest of the world. With her death, the portals went offline and no longer function as a means of travel. Stepping into a portal now does nothing.

Regional Assets

Once per season, a region's leadership can decide how best to utilize the time of its NPC citizens. Leadership (this includes rulers as well as any official positions like a council), must meet IC each season to determine where to allocate their NPCs. If all members of your leadership are not present, no decision can be made.

There are three different types of activities your citizens can perform:

Harvesting Resources

Each region comes with unique resources that can be harvested.
  • Halo: Eirachi's Tears | Curious, teardrop ice formations found on the loneliest reaches of the Tundra. They give off a soft glow. May imbue an item with ice damage.
  • Greatwood: Sentient Branches | Sacred branches that have naturally fallen from the boughs of the Mathair. May imbue an item with healing effects.
  • Torchline: Tumseashells | The shells of Tumseas which have washed up on Torchline's shores. May imbue an item with +2 LUCK.
  • Stormbreak: Dragonleather | Crafted by Stormbreak's master blacksmiths, this leather contains shed dragonscale from the companions of Dragoons. May add an armour element to an item.
  • Hollowed Grounds: Bottled Lightning | Painstakingly captured on the Levinsward each season, the container must remain sealed until use. May imbue an item with lightning damage.

Each region's harvested resource can be traded or combined to create a basic magical item. It takes two resources to create each item, and the items must be related to the resources used to create them. Want a wider array of options? Trade with other regions!
    Additional: 4 resources can create a medium item, and 6 can create a master item.

Soldier Training

Convert some of your NPCs into soldiers! Soldiers will automatically show up at any KQ or otherwise dangerous situation without your region to lend assistance.

It takes 2 seasons to train 1 level 5 NPC. Further training can either be used to train more soldiers to level 5, or to increase the level of the soldiers you already have. 4 seasons of training yeilds a level 7 character, and 6 seasons of training yeilds a level 10.

  • Soldiers can be killed during KQs.
  • It's up to you what race your soldiers are
  • Soldiers will be given a generic stat distribution

Regional Upgrades

Put your citizens to work upgrading your region! From fixing roads to house repair, having your NPCs dedicate their time to improving your region will increase your regional score by 5.

Death

As a general rule, your character cannot be killed without your permission. We want to keep CoTF as stress-free in that regard as possible. However ‘permission’ is implicitly given in certain situations such as joining drops or KQs. Though it’s much more likely in a KQ than in a drop, character-choices will always have ramifications even in the most peaceful of settings.

Common scenarios for when death is and isn’t possible are outlined below.

In Normal Threads

In a ‘regular’ thread typically your character cannot be killed without permission. You may give permission on a case-by-case basis, or if you like to live dangerously, can give carte blanche permission in your character’s signature. Do take into consideration character stats if you find you’re attacking or being attacked in a thread. At any time you can ask an admin to intervene and roll for success/damage in a regular thread if required. Even in these cases, unless permission is given, characters will simply be knocked unconscious once their HP goes below 10%

In Drops

Unless specifically stated, Drops will never kill your character. Based on IC interactions you might be knocked unconscious or harmed.For the most part if you act reasonably in a drop and pay attention to the prompts given, there won’t be any negative ramifications.

In PQ+/KQs

PQ+/KQs are the most dangerous threads we have on the site, with KQs offering a high risk of injury, permanent changes to your character, or death. Level-locked KQs that are meant to help those working on early-level requirements are not meant to be incredibly dangerous. However, just like with drops, the actions your character takes will have consequences, which might up the difficulty in a given situation and put your character at greater risk.

With REs/Spirits

Treat RE/Spirit encounters as you would a drop, where the likelihood for danger is context-dependent but that in the normal course of the thread death should not occur. You will be given an explicit OOC warning if your character is about to stray into more dangerous territory.

With Gods

Treat God encounters as you would PQ+/KQs. Typically the Gods are not written with the intention of killing your character, however with varying levels of patience, any thread with a god has the potential for permanent alterations or death.

When You Yield or Surrender

In any conflict (outside of a standard admin-led KQ or PQ+), if your character surrenders or yields, they cannot be killed. For example, if your character is being attacked in an army vs. army invasion, or is being kidnapped as a leader, if they concede, death is off the table for the defending side.

In Conflicts You Initiate

In invasion-type threads where you’re the aggressor, there is always the possibility of death. Normally these threads are labeled as KQs anyway, but even in cases where the other side has surrendered, the attacking side is always vulnerable because they initiated the conflict.

Companions

Companions can always be killed outside of normal threads. Their HP is equal to your character’s endurance level, which is usually quite low making them vulnerable. Your companion does not always need to be with you, and so if you don’t specify that they have followed you into a PQ+ or KQ, normally they are assumed not to be there.

Below you will find descriptions of all of the CotF's 'add-on's for you to utilize!

Account Switcher

The account switcher makes it easy to move between your characters with just one click. You can attach them to your OOC account by going to the UserCP > Account Switcher, and then enter in the information to attach your character’s account(s) to your OOC one. That way, instead of having to log into each character, you should be able to click on their names in the member panel and it will automatically log you in and let you post from there.

Table Plugin/Table Disable

The table plugin also makes it easy to post from, without having to copy and paste the table codes into each reply. Go into UserCP, and at the bottom it’ll have an option for Posting Tables. Here you can create new tables and enter in the name for said table, the speech color, header and footer codes. Then once saved, and you go to post, you can click from a drop down menu on the reply and choose which table to reply with! When it comes to using the speech color, the code is [say]”words go here for speech color!”[/say]

The table disable will remove the tables from posts for users that prefer to not have tables while threading. It only works if the other characters have their tables as a plugin! You can turn off tables by going to UserCP > Edit Options. On the righthand side under Thread View Options, you can check a box that says ‘Disable posting tables on the forums for me.’ Once that’s saved, all tables that are being used in the plugin’s will be disabled!


Collapsing Sidebar and Sections

You can collapse the Sidebar on the main home page by clicking the little tab on the top left of the member panel that has 3 lines inside it. This will make the rest of the board larger and will hide the c-box and info boxes.

You can also collapse sections of boards, such as all of Halo, by clicking the little white rectangle on the top right part of each board category.


Return to Top Button

There’s a button that will float to the bottom of the pages with you that has a small arrow. It’s on the right hand side, bottom of the page. This makes it easy to scroll back up if you’re pretty far down the page. All you have to do is click this button and it’ll scroll you up to the top of the page all on its own!

How to Archive

When you’re done with a thread, you have the ability to archive it yourself (and we heavily encourage you to do so!) You can accomplish this by going onto the thread you wish to archive, scrolling to the bottom of the page or the last post, and on the bottom right above the quick reply there’s two buttons. ‘Archive’ and ‘New Reply’. All you have to do is click archive and it’s done!

Switch User

Switch User is an easy off hand to swap between the accounts you have connected in the account switcher. If you’re posting a reply and realize you’re on a different character from the one you want to post with, you can change this a couple of different ways. I’ve found the easiest is to scroll down to the section that says ‘Post Reply’ ‘Preview Post’ ‘Save as Draft’, there should be a white box to the left of these with the character you’re posting with. All you have to do is click on that and choose the character you wish to reply with!

*** please note that if you do it this way, copy your post so it’s not lost, as the page has to refresh and you might lose it! ***


Unanswered Threads

Unanswered Threads can be found in the Member Panel. This shows a list of threads that have received no response, with information as to who posted it, their location (board they’re in), and when the threads were started. Some of them are open and you can post to them should you wish to, others might be waiting for someone.

Shortcodes for Tagging, Linking to Profiles, and Linking to Threads

To tag a character, all you have to do is @ProfileName.

Some names with punctuation can be weird, however, and in order to tag these characters you just need to add quotes around the name. @"ProfileName" Which will work on characters like @"Ru'in" for instance.

Likewise, if you want to link to a profile but don’t want to tagsaid profile, the code for this is: [ProfileName] This way it won't tag the profile, but will link it. The difference between them looks like this: To tag: @Skylark. To link: [Skylark]. Both will link to the profile, but only one will tag and send an alert to the profile!

Thread shortcodes are pretty simple, and all you need is the thread number that you can get from the page URL. An example would be looking at this URL: https://cotf-rpg.com/showthread.php?tid=99 The thread number would be after tid=99. So to tag, all you have to do is type [thread=99] and it will automatically change to link the thread and add the thread name. [thread=99]
Supporting Characters
In all great works, supporting characters exist to help build and move along a story without ever receiving time in the limelight. These characters can help advance the plot, play out interactions between your characters in a more in-depth way, facilitate quest or guild achievements or simply act as an outlet for one of your creative sparks that don't warrant the commitment of a fully-fledged character. They are different from NPCs in that they can be reoccurring characters who can play a fairly major role in certain events. However, they are not meant to be treated or thought of as 'main' characters.

Supporting Characters can be made by anyone. You do not receive MP for making a Supporting Character, and they cannot level, win drops, or have MP prizes used on them. That being said, Supporting Characters can be almost any level, have companions, be any race (other than demigod or god), so long as their abilities/advantages are only ever used in a way which doesn't border on PP or being OP.

Members who write Supporting Characters for a certain number of threads receive MP for their efforts (and the love and appreciation of the Admin/Mod team).

    Example: Your Supporting Character might have a dragon, to facilitate a dragon-interaction quest that a PC currently has. Your Supporting Character might be an attuned with a mythical shift, so long as that shift is not used to give unfair advantages/disadvantages to other PCs without prior approval.
These characters are going to be fairly variable in what they are allowed to do, so see below for a few examples to help bring context to this class of character:
  • A Supporting Character could be an Ascended who attacks one of the Fae, to try and instigate a war between the races. A Supporting Character could not be an Ascended who destroys The Voice's shrines.
    The point here, is that your Supporting Characters can aid or obfuscate current plots happening. What they can't do is act wildly out of 'character' for an established plot line.
  • A Supporting Character could have a mythical shift such that your character is able to test their strength against them. A Supporting Character could not have a mythical shift just to wreak devastation for no reason. The point here is that the mythical shift provides flavour for writing, rather than just an unfair advantage.

Supporting Characters can/cannots

  • CAN be in PQs and 'count' as an actual participant
  • CANNOT be in PQ+/KQ+s unless the point is for them to die in some relevant way that adds to the plot. They would not take up a 'slot'
  • CAN visit shrines, if approved with the admin team first (We're busy; if we have time for an LOL shrine thread we will, but if not, we don't want to redirect our efforts towards a character that 'doesn't matter')
  • CANNOT level
  • CAN help others level
  • CAN be in drops (either for LOLZ or drama, or character-building) but cannot win them
  • CANNOT vote when it comes to deciding new leadership
  • CANNOT lead a guild. They can be part of a guild.
  • CAN absolutely just be written for fun.
  • CAN be made just to be killed off or meet some other dastardly fate.

Admin Offered/Suggested Supporting Characters

  • A smuggler from TORCHLINE with a rare and valuable item to fence/sell/barter/trade. Who will you align with? Will things go well? It's up to you! Speak with an admin and we'll tell you what your super-secret item is to trade!
    Proposed Length: 1-2 threads.

  • A cannibal in HALO. Attack the gates! Your hoard is with you! Try and take as many down with you as you can!
    Proposed Length: Depends how long you want to wreak havoc. Have you taken hostages? Have you been captured??
  • A trader in the HOLLOWED GROUNDS. Not unlike Ianto Dea Arduinna, this wandering trader has wares and goods for sale! Are you easy to negotiate with? Will you only speak in riddles? Up to you! Speak with an admin and we'll tell you what super-special items you have to trade!

  • A Vi/Mort/Rae/Safrin/Ludo/Frey disciple sent off to do a specific task!
    Proposed Length: 1-6 threads, depending!

Member Offered/Suggested Supporting Characters

Want someone to steal from your character, beat them up, try and steal your girlfriend or help you with a God Quest that requires a certain type of interaction? Why not ask someone to write a Supporting Character for you! Click here to see all offered/suggested member Supporting Characters.

Making a Supporting Character

  1. Register your account as you normally would.
  2. You don't need to fill out your profile. Details are helpful, but not required.
  3. Submit your application thread as usual, selecting 'supporting character' along with your normal race. Do not add stats or other details. Do NOT include a faceclaim in your profile. You can have one, but the face won't be 'claimed' for this purpose.
  4. Go off and write! :D

Transitioning from Supporting to Main

Oh, you've fallen in love with your Supporting Character? Want them to be able to level and have a more active role in the site? No problem! Just make sure your profile is filled out, and edit your character-application. Your character understandably will lose any companions/shifts/magic/etc that you 'had' for them. Though perhaps if they've made enough of a mark on the world, we'll let you keep one? Who knows!

Transitioning from Main to Supporting

Have a character that just doesn't belong on your main string? No problem! Just message an admin/mod about it and we can take care of it for you. Depending on how far along your character is in their story-line, there might need to be some changes made so that they better fit the criteria of being a Supporting Characters (i.e., guild leaders would lose that rank and so on).
Rules
CotF is a creative writing site that is meant to facilitate a collaborative environment. As such we have a very strict no OOC drama policy. Dramatic behaviour is any which distracts or detracts from another member’s ability to enjoy CotF, such as badgering, whining, hate-speech, exclusivity, inability to separate IC events from OOC feelings, or any other actions or behaviours that infringe on a member's ability to have an enjoyable roleplaying experience. This extends to our Discord servers as well. The admin team reserves the right to add to, adjust and change the rules at any time if a fairness issue has been identified.
    NOTE: Given that the fantasy world of CotF is meant to allow you to investigate different tropes/personas/behaviours/etc, please be aware of how your writing might affect others OOC. This is not meant to discourage your written-investigations into what some of these experiences might be like (mental health issues, gender/sexual investigations, trauma, death, etc), but especially in places like the cbox and Discord, remember that these might be some of your fellow RPers lived experiences, and conduct yourself accordingly.
  • Power Playing (controlling other people’s characters), God-moding (knowing information that your character does not have access to) and metagaming (using OOC information in IC situations) are not allowed unless the character’s player specifically gave permission beforehand. Make a note in your post if such is the case.
  • Liquid time is used, however there are a few instances where we limit your capacity to alter your timelines.
    • You may not create threads that occur before Site-Wide-Events once the event has been posted.
    • You may not create threads post/prior to the season you are currently in.
    • You may not create threads that occur post a Key Quest that you’ve joined (given the chance of death or injury).
  • Due to the nature of the content on CotF you must be 18+ to join.
  • Please join our Discord Server; all plot and announcement-related information is communicated here. Join here.

    Repeated failure to adhere to these rules will result in a warning from the admin team. After three warnings, your posting privileges will be suspended.

    Account Creation

      On CotF you will have one main OOC ("out of character") account and individual IC ("in character") accounts. Your OOC account will be linked to all of your IC accounts making it easy to switch back and forth. Please make your OOC account first, as it is the one you will post your character application with.

    Character Creation

    • You may join as an Accepted, Attuned, Ancient, or Merfolk of any age, and with any face claim (please click here to view used FCs). You cannot join as a demigod or a hybrid without using the appropriate pass.
        Note, characters do not level until they reach 16 and have weak abilities at best if they are an Attuned/Abandoned.
    • Your username should be your character's first name. Enter your last name into the separate profile field; this makes tagging much easier.
    • All characters begin with 35 stat points to be distributed however you like.
    • Once you set your character's age, the system will automatically age them for you. In CotF, 8 months of real time = 1 year of site time.
    • Every character should have its own account; you may not write two characters from the same account (unless one is an infant, or in the case of one-off NPC interactions). For repeated uses of NPCs, we do have an NPC account you can utilize. The details can be found here.
    • We only track magical items on CotF; your character may join with whatever non-magical weapons, clothing, and items you choose.

    Posting

    • Our minimum word count is 100 words.
    • Please be respectful of posting order and confirm with your thread partners before skipping them.
    • Please mark threads as MATURE or TRIGGER WARNING when appropriate in the "Attention" line of your thread. Threads that deal with mature content and are not appropriately labeled will result in warnings issued to members involved in the thread.
    • We do not have a minimum number of posts that are required per week/month/etc. However if you are going to be away for a short period of time, please let us know, especially in the case of Leaders who have posting requirements.
    • The site allows the use of posting tables. When creating your tables, please use common sense when picking colours and graphics (lime green on bright yellow is hard to read, flashing animations are obnoxious, etc). In order to upload your posting tables, log in as your character and go to “User CP”. Under Miscellaneous at the bottom, you will see a link for "posting tables".
    • A character may only pray at a shrine twice a season.

  • Character Companions

    Occasionally characters can bond with wild animals! These bonds are often forged out of a need on behalf of the character or the companion. For example, a pack-less wolf might want to bond with a character for companionship. Companions can be gained by using your Merit Points to buy one, can be earned IC during a Random Event encounter, can be quested for, or can be gifted to you by a god!

    You may be bonded to three companions at any one time.

    All characters are capable of bonding to regular companions (any 'regular' species that is not mythical or magical): Dogs, cats, wolves, birds, etc. The bond comes with a number of benefits but also drawbacks. The companion and the 'bonded' share a very weak telepathy. They cannot communicate via words but can instead sense each other's feelings and project vague images into the other's mind. Due to the magic of the bond however, companions are always stunted. Regardless of species, they will be no more than the size of a medium-sized dog (any species that are naturally smaller than this will remain their regular size). Because of the bond existing between your character and its companion, the sense of loss if a companion dies is deeply wounding, and both companion/bonded can feel each other's pain to an extent. The mental bond between character and companion extends about 30m.

    Non Race-Specific Companions

    Non Race-Specific Companions are those in the guidebook that have magical abilities and are often mythical. Some species are Race-Specific (as outlined below). These companions are rare and hard to come by; some require a special set of circumstances to bond with (i.e., if your character would like a landshark as a companion, you would likely need a god-quest to achieve this and/or admin permission). Almost all animals in the guidebook can be bonded to, but speak with an admin to confirm!

    Race-Specific Companions

    Each race is capable of bonding to a racially-specific companion. These are much more rare and hard to come by.
    • Accepted: The Accepted have the ability to bond to dragons. These dragons are at most the size of a large dog (yours may be smaller if you like) and can take whatever shape/design you like (oriental, wyvern, etc). Dragons also have the ability to breathe one of the following: fire, ice, electricity, or blasts of air.

    • Abandoned: The Abandoned have the ability to bond to unicorns. Unicorns are the only full-sized companions which exist. They can appear with horns of varying shapes/sizes, with cloven or hooved feet in any colour. Unicorns also have the ability to EITHER move with exceptional speed OR their horns have minor healing abilities (healing abilities count as roughly 'upgraded healing' magic and is tied to the abandoned's endurance stat. .

    • Attuned: The Attuned have the ability to bond to griffins/chimera. These companions are at most the size of a large dog (yours may be smaller if you like) and can be the conjunction of whatever animals you like. These companions also have the ability to EITHER breathe fire OR are venomous.

    • Ancient: The Ancients have the ability to bond to darklings. These companions can take up at most the size of a 2ftx2ft sphere. Darklings have the ability to turn into a small whirlwind.

    • Merfolk: The Merfolk can bond to mudtigers. These companions are at most 4ft long (yours may be smaller if you like). Mudtigers have the ability to EITHER have a venomous bite OR shoot blasts of air.

    • Hybrid: Hybrids have the ability to bond to perytons. These companions are at most the size of a large dog (yours may be smaller if you like), and have the body of a deer and the wings of a bird. These companions have the ability to blend completely into their environments when they remain still.

    • Demi-Gods: Demigods have the unique ability to bond to any mythical animal. Because of their divine association, their companions may not have their traditional abilities; instead, they will take on qualities related to the individual's parent god.

    Deities
    All gods (besides Dygra) may facilitate the creation of the Attuned, and all view the Accepted very favourably whilst shunning the Abandoned. Dygra is responsible for the creation of the Ancients, viewing them all as her children.
    Old Gods

    Gods

    • VI - the God of Life
      • Vi is righteous, just, and mercurial. He believes in the sanctity of life over all things. He is in love with Mort.
        • Demigods: Amalia (Made a Demi), Noah (Made a Demi)
    • MORT - the God of Death
      • Mort is gentle, sweet, compassionate and caring. He believes in the value of death as eternal rest. In love with Vi.
        • Demigods: Delphia (Born as a Demi)
    • RAE - the God of Nature
      • Rae, appearing as a set of twins, are aloof, distant, and scientific. They believe in change and evolution as the driving forces of the world.
        • Demigods: Oia'i'o (Born a Demi), Kaimana (born a Demi)
    • CAIDO - the God of All
      • Little is known of the God of Gods. Caido is described as having eyes like the first taste of morning coffee, a body as vast as a desert shore with wings the colour of a thunderclap, and a voice like the sunrise.
    • DYGRA - the Goddess of Entropy
      • Dygra is a recently awakened goddess and is sensual, passionate and chaotic. She delights in working to undo the meticulously cultivated creation all around.

    Heralds

    • SAFRIN - herald to Vi
      • Safrin is vain, fickle, and manipulative. For those she favours, she will bring the stars down for them. Those who cross her? She will do everything she can to destroy them and all they have worked for.
        • Demigods: Ronin (Reborn as a Demi), Seren (Born as a Demi)
    • LUDO - herald to Mort
      • Ludo is a spoopy bundle of rags. It collects the souls of the deceased, shepherding them to Mort. No discernible features besides a white porcelain mask. Quite a trickster and enjoys toys. It is known to entice its followers into performing violent, traumatic acts.
        • Demigods: Remi (Made a Demi), Trinket (Born as a Demi)
    • FREY - herald to Rae
      • The herald of Rae has two aspects: sexuality and nature. Frey has no fixed physical characteristics: the aspect of sexuality appears as the pinnacle of whatever the viewer finds most sexually attractive, and the aspect of nature appears surrounded by the bounty of the earth. They usually appear naked.
        • Demigods: Phoebe (Made a Demi), Sunjata (Made a Demi).

    New Gods

    • THE VOICE
      • Had no fixed physical form, though often appeared almost child-like and composed of electricity or as a holographic projection. For all intents and purposes, the Voice seemed to mean well and cared deeply for her children (the Ascended). The Voice sacrificed herself at the end of the Second War as a sacrifice to Dygra and to preserve her children.
        • Demigods: Wessex (Made a Demi), Osozo (Born as a Demi), Azrael (Born as a Demi), Nate (made a Demi)
    • THE CORE
      • A mysterious deity that disappeared after the fall of the barrier around the Hollowed Grounds, they were later discovered embedded within Caido. Their removal from Caido caused the Core to explode.

    Seasonal Deities

    • EIRACHI - Deepfrost
      • The deity of Deepfrost cannot be summoned by any predictable means, but has a knack for appearing when her icy and manipulative nature will be most advantageous. She is almost always found in Halo.
    • TANAU - Longheat
      • The Longheat deity can mostly be found in the scorching depths of the Climb. He is elusive but sweet and kind, taking the form of a young, bronze-skinned man with black hair and golden eyes. Beware, however - his temper is a terrible thing.
    • GHILIO - Flowerbirth
      • The Flowerbirth seasonal deity can mostly be found in the Oerwoud. He prefers to be left alone and is not one for idle chit-chat. Ghilio takes the form of a large spriggan with earthen accents and a deep voice.
    • MATHAIR - Leafchange
      • Once thought to be nothing more than a tree, the Mathair in the Greatwood is actually the Leafchange seasonal deity. Appearing most often as a massive tree with roots that hold the Greatwood together, she can also appear as a dark skinned woman with mulch coloured eyes and a terrible lack of patience.
    Shrines

    Throughout the world, you may encounter a number of shrines. Some are dedicated to a specific god, while others appear to be general altars. Your characters are free to pray at these shrines. Whether or not a god will reply is based on your luck stat, your racial modifier, and any other character-related modifiers you might have (such as items, previous relationships with the gods, etc.). Keep in mind that your racial modifier plays a significant role in whether or not you will be answered!

    Reminder: Shrines are not included for exploration. If your character wants to 'pray but not actually call for a god', please have their post be in the 'parent' board of whatever shrine you're intending to pray at. Posts in an actual shrine board will always be rolled for.

    Keep in mind that the gods are not the only ones who might answer a prayer, so pray at your own risk! Fickle spirits have been known to answer shrine prayers as well. Based on your roll, you also might receive a curse or a visit from one of the Big Three gods (Mort, Vi, or Rae)

    Using a god-quest pass or god-talk pass always guarantees a response from your intended god. If you are using a pass, post this at the bottom of your thread.

    You may only pray at a shrine twice a season (this is subject to admin discretion). Keep in mind that communing with the gods should be looked upon reverently, and is not something which should be abused. Your original prayer thread must be completed before praying again. Failure to do so or repeated abuse of shrines will result in IC consequences for your characters!

    Prayers at a shrine should be for a specific purpose. Prayers should not be to 'chat' with a god, ask if you can help them with something, or otherwise be undirected. Good reasons to pray might be: to ask for an item/new attuned-shift/companion, asking how to prepare for upcoming plot events (LongNight, for example), or asking for specific information. Remember that the gods cannot give out magic, so all requests for abilities should be in the form of items.

    At higher levels, once your character has organically developed a relationship with a god there will be opportunities for character-development and 'chat-time' with a god. While we appreciate that most players want meaningful and unique god interactions, please be aware that there are many of you, and only two of us. Characters who approach the god with good/organic reasons will almost always develop meaningful (and advantageous) relationships with the gods over those who choose quantity over quality.

    Compiled below are a list of commonly asked questions. These are taken from our Discord server and from other members’ questions. If you have anything you'd like to add, please PM an admin.
    IC FAQ

    The World

    • Where can my character live?
      Your character can live anywhere! The world is broken up into the cities (The Greatwood, Halo, The Hollowed Grounds, Stormbreak and Torchline), and the Wilds. The Wilds are far less hospitable than our established cities.

    • How big is Caido?
      It’s about the size of China (aka really fucking large).

    • What is the currency system in Caido?
      It's a barter system (for OOC simplicity).

      Hollowed Grounds

      • What are people from the Hollowed Grounds called?
        They are referred to as ‘Grounders’.

      • Roughly how big is the Hollowed Grounds?
        The Hollowed Grounds is roughly 1000km2, or the size of Texas.

      • How big is the Inner Quarter?
        The Inner Quarter is about 20km2 (The size of a ‘good-sized’ city)

      • How deep is the Oasis?
        No one has ever reached the bottom of it.

      • How many people live in the Hollowed Grounds?
        The population of the Hollowed Grounds is roughly 500 people (though prior to the Second War, this was closer to 2000).

        Halo

      • What are people from Halo called?
        They are referred to as ‘Halovians

      • Roughly how big is Halo?
        Halo is about 800km wide and 1000km tall. Walking from one end to the other would take just over a month on foot. It’s basically like walking from the top of Scotland down to the bottom of Wales, though only about 10% of this is actual habitable space.

      • How big is the Citadel?
        Roughly 11km2 (The size of a ‘small’ city)

      • How many people live in the Citadel?
        Under 500.

        Greatwood

      • Roughly how big is the Greatwood?
        The Greatwood is roughly 500km from end to end, and not that you can walk it anymore, but it would take about 20 days if you could. It’s like walking from the top of Ireland to the bottom.

      • How many Fae live in the Greatwood?
        This number is hard to tell given how large the Greatwood is and how secretive the fae are. Likely 1500 or so.

      • Is there more than one village of Fae?
        The fae only have Sidhe Village.

      Torchline

    • Roughly how big is Torchline?
      In terms of geographical size it’s about the size of Texas, though in terms of actual landmass it’s about ⅓ of the size. It would take you almost two months to go from one end to the other.

    • What are people who live in Torchline called?
      They are referred to as “Torchers”.

    • How high up is the floating portion of the city?
      About 1km from the ocean. p>
    • Where is the Merfolk city?
      Almost directly beneath the floating portion of Haulani, and several hundred meters down.

    Portals

    • Wait, what happened to the portals?
      After the Voice sacrificed herself to save her children, all of the portals went offline.

    • What happens if I walk through a portal?
      Nothing! It’s just like walking through an archway.

    Companions

    • How far apart can a character and Companion be and still feel their Companion's thoughts/feelings?
      In general, you can communicate with your companion roughly the distance that you could yell to them (around 10m).

    • How far can dragons and griffins breathe fire/elements?
      Around 10ft.

    • What is the most serious wound that a Unicorn can heal?
      Unicorns can heal at an “Upgraded” level.

    • How many times can a companion use their breath weapon/healing ability in a thread?
      Companion stats match their bonded’s base stats, so the stronger the character, the stronger their companion. During a KQ they may be rolled at a disadvantage if they continue to use their abilities.

    • Can companions be hurt or die in KQs like characters?
      Yes they absolutely can. A companion’s health is whatever their bonded’s END stat is, which often makes them extremely vulnerable.

    • Can I have a companion that isn’t listed?
      Possibly! Speak with Honey/Odd about what companion you would like (especially if it is mythical/uncommon in the guidebook).

    • How is a companion different from a pet?
      Unlike a pet, a companion is soul-bonded to your character. You can feel their emotions and communicate through images and feelings with them. When they die, this loss should be felt keenly by your character as if a piece of their soul is gone too.

    Gods

    • How common is knowledge about Gods?
      Extremely common.

    • How can my character learn about the Gods?
      Regardless of where in Caido you are, a basic understanding of the Gods is relatively easy to acquire and does not need to be done IC. To gain a deeper knowledge requires speaking to other characters, or visiting boards dedicated to learning (libraries, guilds, etc.)

    • Who are the Gods?
      The Old Gods are: Caido - God of All, Dygra - Goddess of Entropy, Vi - God of Life, Mort - God of Death, Rae - God of Nature. Safrin - Herald of Vi, Ludo - Herald of Mort, Frey - Herald of Rae. The New Gods were: The Voice and The Core.

    Magic

    • Can Summoned animals feel pain or get sick?
      No. Summoned animals have no real souls and thus no dispositions or preferences apart from their basic instincts.

    • Does my character have to know how to create something, in order to make it with creation magic?
      No. However they do have to have an idea of it. A character who had never seen a zipper before wouldn’t be able to make one.

    • How does combining magics work?
      Combining magic will be different based on what magic is combined and at what level. Most magics need to be combined at a mastered level in order for any real benefits to be had.

    • How long can my character use their magic for?
      Magic-endurance is determined by the endurance stat. Characters with END values from 0—10 can maintain simple spells for a few minutes at a time; 11—15 Can perform most spells for under an hour; 16—25 Can perform multiple spells for under an hour, 26—30 Can perform any spell limitlessly.

    • How do I know how ‘strong’ my mage is?
      Magical strength is indicated by the user's base-ability level (basic, upgraded, mastered). This means that a level 1 user and a level 10 user who both possess upgraded fire magic will possess the same control in regular threads. What does change per level is the endurance stat. Endurance for magical users is basically a gauge of how long they can use their powers for. This is what makes a character 'stronger' when it comes to their magical abilities: they can use them much longer than someone with a lower endurance stat, and can output more damage.
        IC Flavour: At any point, feel free to have your characters be weaker than they are! Just because objectively you could cast magic for x amount of time doesn't mean you have to!

    Items

    • What items can my character have?
      Your character can have as many non-magical items as they want. These are not listed on your profile.

      • How do magical items work?
        Magical items can be upgraded the way magical abilities can, from basic, to upgraded, and then to mastered. The strength of your item is character-dependent and can be found on your profile under the ability tab.
        Usually magical items have the following format: [magical ability] [AOE/distance] [ restrictions]. When upgrading your item, you can either upgrade the strength of the magical ability, the distance, the restriction, but not all three. Items typically go from 10ft, to 20ft, to 30ft in terms of AOE/distance, however, items that are on the ‘stronger’ side of the scale might be tempered by a smaller AOE (i.e., an item that nullifies magic around you might only have a radius of 2ft). Note: Shields vs Armour: Items (like armour) which are not typically “activated”/require an action to use, will always come with a cool-down. They will block incoming damage automatically, before requiring a cool-down. Items like shields do not require a cool down, but do take a full action to use in PQ+/KQs.

      Races

      • How common are the various races in Caido?
        Abandoned, Attuned, and Accepted appear in roughly equal numbers across the continent. Ancients are about ¼ of this number as are the Merfolk, and hybrids are even fewer. Demigods are rare.

      • How did the races get their names?
        The races are named based on their relationship with the gods. Because of the cataclysmic war between the Old Gods and the New Gods, the Abandoned are called as such because they are viewed in this way by both the Old Gods (for being too close to the cause of the conflict, i.e. mortals becoming deities) and the New Gods (for being a potential usurper of their power). The Attuned are called such as they are in tune with nature and the raw, elemental forces of the world subsequently controlled by the Old Gods. The Ascended were called such as they had biologically been made superior by the New Gods. The Ancients are called such as they are the oldest race on the continent, despite having only recently been “awoken” by their parent Goddess, Dygra. The Accepted are called such because they are accepted by all pantheons. Fae, Merfolk, Hybrid and Demigod should be self explanatory.

      • Which races are born and which can you become later on in game?
        The Merfolk, Abandoned and the Accepted are always born and can never be ‘made’ later on. An Accepted can become an Attuned or an Ancient by praying to the appropriate God/dess respectively. When it comes to hybrids the water gets a bit murkier.
        An Attuned can be cursed by a god, and become an AttunedxAbandoned hybrid. If your character is wanting to go this route, keep in mind that their ‘favoured’ god would likely not be the one to curse them, and it would have to be one of the others. If a character is already an Abandoned and wants to become an AbandonedxAttuned hybrid, they would need to be blessed by a god.
        Both routes take a lot of IC foundation to happen.

      • How do the races balance against each other?
        Not all races are created equal, though they each have their drawbacks.
        Accepted receive more stats as they level than any other race and roll with advantage when interacting with shrines. They are the only race that can purchase magical items with MP.
        Attuned are not the only race who can shapeshift into animals, but they are the only race who can use Attuned telepathy unshifted, who can call on animals for support, and who can shift into mythical creatures. They receive a small rolling bonus when visiting shrines and receive an average amount of stats as they level.
        Abandoned are not the only magic-users when it comes to race, but they are the only race that can have or purchase custom magic with MP. They receive the lowest amount of stats as they level, but are rewarded with the most amount of abilities. They roll at shrines with disadvantage.
        Ancients are not the only race who have both magic and the ability to shift, but as a race the Ancients possess more racial features and passive abilities. To balance this, they receive slightly fewer stats, must regularly satisfy their bloodlust, and are limited to a small number of approved shifts and base magics. They roll with no modifiers at shrines.
        Merfolk are not the only race who have both magic and the ability to shift, but as they level the merfolk receive a wider array of abilities than the Attuned or Abandoned do. To balance this, they receive slightly fewer stats, the early stages of their levelling is more difficult, and they are limited to aquatic-based shifts and only a few base magics. They roll with a slight advantage at shrines.

      Attuned

      • How does partial shifting work?
        Please try and use some common sense when writing about your partial shifts. Obviously a bit of magical/organic ignorance will have to take place, but do try and keep things as realistic as possible. For instance, an Attuned with a bird-shift cannot shift their arms into wings and fly (their wings could not support their bodily weight). Similarly someone with a rhino shift who partially shifted to have their horn on their face would likely suffer fairly severe facial bone damage as a result. The most appropriate use of shifting is normally shifting some small portion of your body to your advantage: shifting your eyes or ears to have heightened senses, giving yourself claws, shifting your skin to be stronger (as in the case of the rhino), etc.

      • How many shifts can an attuned have?
        There is no upper limit.

      • Can my shift be something extinct?
        For a regular shift, no. For a mythical shift, yes.

      • How does the Attuned bond work? Can it be blocked out? How much can be shared?
        The Attuned bond is like telepathy with added emotions. Attuned mental-speech sounds like the character’s normal voice, but can be accompanied by the character’s emotions and basic imagery. The bond typically works two-way between the two characters. It is possible through concentration to prevent one’s emotions from being ‘felt’ by other Attuned, however it isn’t possible to block out an Attuned’s mental voice.

      • How far away can an Attuned be heard?
        In general, you can communicate with other Attuned roughly the distance that you could yell to them (around 10m).

      • What animals can Attuned compulsion affect on the flora/fauna list?
        The Beastmaster ability works on any sentient animals not marked with a for assistance

      • Can Attuned/Abandoned Hybrids use magic while in animal form?
        No.

      • Do items shift with an Attuned?
        Very small things like rings or bracelets do, as well as clothing. Bags and weapons do not.

      Merfolk

      • What boards can't my mer post in?
          Hollowed Grounds
            Domiciles, Levinsward

          Greatwood
            Everywhere!

          Halo
            Citadel, Palace, Snowcloak, Frostfields

          Torchline
            Everywhere!

          Stormbreak
            Nowhere! (can water-transport into the Eye of the Storm)

          Hak Etme
            Sunshine Pools, Sea of Dreams, Furnace, Boneyard

          Oerwoud
            Leap of Faith (can water-transport here)

          The Climb
            Nowhere! (can water-transport into Frey’s breath or the Mountains Roar)

          King's End
            Meadowreach, Last Step, Mourn, Dreaming Well, Queen's Gambit, Eye of fire

          The Feverlands
            Tar Pits, Hanging Tree

          Draig Cordillera
            Nowhere! (can water-transport into the Weightless Waterfall)

      Ancients

      • Can any race become an Ancient?
        Yes, however adjustments will be made to abilities. There are no Ancientxanything hybrids. <

      • What does it feel like for an Ancient to touch fire/be in fire?
        A bit like dipping your hand or body into a nice warm bath.

      • What does bloodlust feel like?
        Though bloodlust will feel unique to every character, there are some characteristics that apply to all Ancients. All Ancients will feel a carnal hunger which, if ignored, will consume their senses and eventually turn them into stone. Bloodlust can never be ignored permanently.

      • If an Ancient turns to stone because of a lack of satisfying their bloodlust or because they get too cold, what does it feel like?
        When in 'stasis' some describe the experience as a long sleep, while others vividly dream.

      • Do Ancients get the same abilities that attuned have?
        No. Ancients cannot partially shift regardless of level, have no Attuned-telepathy, and cannot call on animals for assistance.

      • What do Ancients look like?
        A bit like tieflings in terms of their racial traits.

      • How do the Ancients feel about Dygra?
        Dygra is the pack alpha and unless your character has very good reason against doing so, all Ancients should have a fairly healthy respect for her.

      Stats

      • How do stats work?
        Roughly, your stats are applied as follows:
        ENDURANCE: This stat is tied to your HP, and for magic-users, affects your magical strength.
        STRENGTH: This stat is tied to your unarmed strike damage output and your effectiveness with physical weapons.
        DEXTERITY: This stat is tied to how easily you can hit/be hit.
        LUCK: This stat is tied to how easily you can hit/be hit, as well as your success at shrines.

      Quests

      • How are Plot Advancing PQs different from normal PQs? How do I go about setting one up?
        Plot Advancing PQs are meant to explicitly advance the site’s plot and can only be done to fulfill a levelling requirement. All available Plot Advancing PQs are listed here.

      • What happens if someone disappears/drops out of my PQ halfway through and there are only 2 characters left? Will it still count for MP/leveling if I finish it?
        In order to complete a PQ there need to be two other characters in addition to your own, and four ‘rounds’ which have been completed. Unfortunately if someone has dropped out in the middle, the PQ cannot be used for MP/Levelling. However if there are extenuating circumstances, speak to an admin.

      • Can anyone join a KQ?
        Technically yes, however given the danger we recommend waiting until your character is level 3–4. Keep in mind that even if you have the attitude that you don’t mind if your low-level character dies in a KQ, you may be hindering the success of the group as a whole.

      Drops

      • What is a drop?
        A drop is a thread hosted by the [Random Event] or [Serendipity] account. It normally entails an intro post, a series of tasks for your character to complete, and then a ‘winner’ is selected (based on a dice roll and your character’s actions during the thread). At the end of a drop a prize is awarded. This can be an item, magic, a companion, a new shift, bonus stats, etc.

      • How often do drops occur?
        Drops typically occur 1-2 times per season

      • Are drops dangerous?
        They certainly can be. Any Random Event or admin-led thread never guarantees safety.

      OOC FAQ

      I’m new!

      • How much should my character ‘know’ about things?
        Your character should have knowledge of all the God’s names and roughly who they are regardless of their level of devotion. You would also know the names and titles of the ruler in your chosen place to live, and a bit about that land’s history. As for broader geography, religion, names of demigods and such, that is going to depend on your character’s backstory (i.e., a scholarly-type character would have a broader knowledge of other lands than a rogue might). This is very flexible, but just remember that even if a character is new to you, they aren’t new to this world.

        • Where should my first post be?
          Anywhere at all you like! No boards are specifically off limits. That being said there are a few places it might not make sense to be. For instance, the Draig Cordillera is a very dangerous and deadly place to post and should probably be avoided at the start. Likewise, if your character lives in Stormbreak, it might not make sense for you to pop up in Hak Etme which is across the continent.

          Our recommendation is to post in one of the boards of wherever your character has decided to live in order to get your feet wet.

          • Do I have to join the discord?
            You don’t, but it’s certainly a good idea! We set up each member with an admin-chat so we can answer character-specific questions, have a help-desk and IC-updates channel, race and region-specific chats, and more.

            General

            • How does combat work?
              When combat occurs in a regular thread (i.e., not an admin-managed thread), you are free to interpret the damage and uses of your magic within reason. While you cannot make yourself more powerful than you are, you can make yourself weaker. For instance, if for narrative flavour you want to take more damage from a blow, have someone who is not normally stronger than you are overpower you, you are more than welcome to do so.

              If you are going to engage in combat where you would like objective management of your rolls/damage, please contact an admin. Note: This is very time consuming for us. If you can work things out IC (i.e., relying on creativity) that would be our preference. However we realize that there are instances where an outcome needs to be decided apart from the characters involved. In these cases, dice rolls will be made by the admin and outcomes will be posted.

              KQ combat and admin-rolled combat In dice-roll settings your stats are taken into account when using magic, weapons, abilities and feats. We will not reveal the exact formula used (no min-maxing!); I can tell you damage is not based on level, but on the strength of your item/magic/feat/upgrade and the corresponding stat.

            • How many professions can a character have listed in their header?
              At most three, however only one is preferred. Characters may have things they specialize in, but normally someone only has one profession regardless of what they do in their spare time.

            • How do seasons work here?
              Each season lasts 2 OOC months, making 1 year of site time = 8 months of real time. The seasons are named: Flowerbirth (Spring), Longheat (Summer), Leafchange (Autumn), and Deepfrost (Winter)

            • Is violence/sexual content allowed?
              Yes. The site has an RPG rating of 3-3-3.

            • How wide can table dimensions be?
              750 px or less is preferred. Any tables that stretch/break the boards will be removed. Using variable width coding (80% vs. ‘600px’) is also preferred. Click here for some resources to help with this!

            • How do I style my profile?
              All profile fields are entirely made up of HTML text areas. What this means is that if you hit enter twice on your keyboard to try and put space between two lines of text, nothing will happen. Click here for some resources to help with this!

            • What's a Legend Title and how do I get one?
              Legend Titles are meant to recognize IC important characters who have made themselves infamous or done something substantial in the world. Ways of achieving a LT might be: starting (and finishing) a revolution, creating/leading a kingdom, becoming known across the continent, etc. Admins may also award LT at random based on IC actions!

            • What does PC stand for in the date?
              "Post Cataclysm". The time before now being known as “Before Cataclysm” or BC

            Leveling

            • Where do I post my levelling requirements?
              Levelling updates should be posted here.

            • Is there a minimum post count in a thread to fulfill leveling requirements? i.e. should a thread be 3 posts long, 5, 10, etc?
              While there is no minimum, given that this is a writing site we encourage you to focus on the quality and content of any given thread, rather than rushing to finish it for levelling purposes. If a member of the admin or moderator team notices that threads seem to lack effort and are simply being posted/replied to for levelling purposes, a warning may be issued.

            • How many posts in a thread should be dedicated to fulfilling a specific requirement (hunting, helping, harming, etc)? Is just one post enough, or should it be 2-3 posts?
              As above, this will vary based on the task, the characters in the thread, and the context. We ask that you ensure a certain amount of writing integrity when deciding how ‘long’ a thread should be, and do not rush through things simply for levelling/MP purposes.

            • What counts as 'Contrasting Magic' for Abandoned leveling? Is it more general, like Light vs Dark, or more specific, like Fire vs Water? What would contrasting magic be for types like Illusion and Summoning?
              Contrasting should be specific, such as Fire vs. Water. For some magics such as illusion, there is no base contrasting magic type (though there might be custom magics).

            • Do governments count as organizations for the level 8 'assist/hinder an organization' requirements?
              No, a government is not an organization the way that guilds and the like are.

            • Can you pray at shrines more than twice a season for levelling requirements?
              Yes, but sparingly. It’s best to check in with an admin first to see if they have capacity for additional god threads.

            • Can the same thread complete multiple levelling requirements?
              This depends. The same action cannot be used to complete the same levelling requirement. For example, an Attuned must “hunt or be hunted as their animal” and also “be in x number of threads entirely shifted”. Because both of these requirements involve shifting, the same thread cannot satisfy both. However the “meet another Attuned” requirement and the “be in x number of threads entirely shifted” can be simultaneously accomplished in one thread as the action required is “being shifted” and “meeting someone”.

            OOC

            • Is MP tradeable?
              Yes! MP can be traded or given away.

            • How do I hand in my MP?
              MP can be submitted via your user cp, by clicking here. Note: You can only access this form from your OOC account.

            • How do I spend my MP?
              Email the Moderator account.
            • What do the prefixes on threads mean?
              Prefixes:


              Mini Event – Usually used for big gatherings of people. Things like weddings, grand openings, get togethers that are player made. These don’t require post orders or anything of the like; they are usually a starting point before players can split off for private threads during said event.
              Training – Exactly as it sounds! When characters are training with one another, put this as the prefix. This should be the main focus of the thread. In order to fulfill training levelling requirements or receive MP, there must be 4 attack/defence posts per character.
              PQ – Personal Quests are self-directed, goal-oriented quests that are led ICly by players. Things like putting together a space, hunting in a group, something that has some sort of ‘important goal’ that can be accomplished with your characters.
              PQ+ – Plot Advancing Personal Quests are usually admin led. These can come in varying difficulty levels and require sign ups to embark on them. Essentially, they’re made to help advance the plot by gaining information or helping the story as a whole in one way or another which is why they’re admin run.
              SWE – Site Wide Events are typically held once per season that have a variety of different smaller things for your characters to do. Examples would be: Fiat Lux, Festival of Lights, etc.
              God Quest – God Quests are quests given to characters by a god. This prefix is added by a member of the admin-team.
              Drop – Drops are random threads that have the option of granting your character something should you ‘win’ it. These can be anything from companions to magic/shifts/upgrades/items etc.
              KQ – Key Quests are staff-run and pose a danger for those that aren’t levelled enough yet. These do have the potential of killing characters (and have in the past) but usually provide some sort of addition to the plot and world around your characters.
              RE – Random Events are essentially like they sound. These can occur from random sightings of rare creatures, the world shifting to reveal something new that wasn’t there before, some kind of blessing or curse upon the characters that come into contact with it.
              SE – The Seasonal Event prefix is used to denote threads which fulfill a Seasonal Event requirement.

              Icons:


              Blue Icon – Mature warning
              Red Icon – Trigger warning

            Character

            • Can my character be gay/bi/trans/etc?
              Absolutely!

            • What if my character doesn’t have a last name?
              No problem, don’t list one!

            • Does my character need to have a profession starting out?
              No!

            • Do I have to use an actual ‘face’ for my character’s FC? Can I use art that I’ve made/commissioned, or none at all?
              Absolutely! There is no need to use a real world person for your FC. Some members have used their own faces, art, or simply haven’t had one at all.

    The Settled Lands

    The Hollowed Grounds

    Click here to learn all about the Hollowed Grounds.

  • The Hollowed Grounds are where characters were trapped for 300+ years in a barrier. This barrier fell in Flowerbirth 309 PC.
  • The Hollowed Grounds is a 'large' sized area; it’s about 1000km2 but since it’s broken apart it feels much larger. It’s just under the size of Texas and would take you 40ish days to walk the entire length.
  • The Hollowed Grounds is typified by its rolling hills and farmland and experiences average weather.

  • The Greatwood

    Click here to learn all about the Greatwood.


  • Once the Greatwood was a single piece of land, but after the events of the Second War, split into a series of islands held together by the Mathair's roots.
  • The Greatwood was once inhabited primarily by the Fae who did not welcome anyone into their home. Gradually, the Greatwood has opened up.
  • The Greatwood is a 'medium' sized area; it spans about 500km from end to end, taking up to 20 days to traverse on foot. It’s like walking from the top of Ireland to the bottom.
  • Movement is tricky within the Greatwood: the forest tends to repeatedly spit out newcomers (the trees will move and you will find yourself outside of the forest).
  • Ascended/Ascended-Demigods cannot enter the Greatwood.
  • The Leafchange seasonal deity, Mathair, can be found here.
  • The Greatwood can best be thought of as your typical magical forest.

    Halo

    Click here to learn all about Halo.

  • Compared to other regions, Halo is a largely uninhabited land because of its dangerous wildlife and treacherous climate.
  • Halo is a 'medium' sized area; walking from one end to the other would take just over a month on foot. It’s basically like walking from the top of Scotland down to the bottom of Wales.
  • Halo is always cold. Expect temperatures of around -30 C in enclosed spaces, and upwards of -50 C in the tundra
  • The Deepfrost seasonal deity, Eirachi, can be found here.
  • Halo is best thought of as an arctic-type biome that is extremely dangerous both due to the climate as well as its fauna.

    Torchline

    Click here to learn all about Torchline.


  • Torchline is a 'large' sized area; including the water, Torchline is about the size of Texas, though in terms of actual land it’s about ⅓ of the size.
  • Torchline is the primary home of most Merfolk, who live in the Underwater City.
  • Torchline is a tropical and lush coastal paradise.

    Stormbreak

    Click here to learn all about Stormbreak.

  • Stormbreak is a 'medium' sized area; it is about 800km across, or the size of Iceland. It would take just over a month to walk the entire length.
  • Abandoned and Abandoned-hybrids cannot enter Stormbreak, nor can any of the remaining Ascended/Ascended-hybrids/Ascended demi-gods
  • Stormbreak is a city with gothic-architecture that floats 5km above the ocean. It can only be reached by flying, skyships, or teleportation.

    The Wilds

    Hak Etme

    Click here to learn all about Hak Etme

  • Hak Etme is a 'small' sized area;
  • Hak Etme is a vast desert that was rumoured once to be a lush paradise.

    The Oerwoud

    Click here to learn all about the Oerwoud.


  • The Oerwoud is a 'small' sized area, and would take just under two weeks to walk across.
  • The Oerwoud is a lush magical jungle.
  • The Flowerbith seasonal deity, Ghilio, can be found here.

    The Climb

    Click here to learn all about the Climb.

  • The Climb is a 'medium' sized area, roughly the size of Nova Scotia, and would take you about 24 days to walk across.
  • The Longheat seasonal deity, Tanau, can be found here, as can the goddess Dygra.
  • The Climb has a rocky and volcanic crust, with rivers of lava. Below it are a series of intricate caves with rare gems, healing waters, and all sorts of weird flora/fauna.

    King's End

    Click here to learn all about King's End.

  • King's End is a 'medium' sized area; it is basically the size of Wales and would take you 12 days to walk across.
  • King's End is typified by lush, rolling hills and a fertile climate.

    The Feverlands

    Click here to learn all about The Feverlands.

  • The Feverlands are a 'small' sized area; roughly the size of Connecticut. It would take you a week to walk across.
  • A swamp/bog where the majority of the flora and fauna is out to kill you in some way, shape, or form.

    The Draig Cordillera

    Click here to learn all about The Draig Cordillera.

  • A deadly mountain range, home of Caido, the god of gods.
  • The Draig Cordillera is a 'large' sized area; the length of the Draig Cordillera is the same as the Rocky Mountains (3000km). You cannot walk this because it’s too rough, but if you could, it would take you 4 months.
  • Movement is not restricted, but due to the dangers of the dragons living here, death is extremely likely to any who venture in.
  • NPC Account

    The NPC account can be utilized for NPC interactions that are not appropriate to write from your own account. Passing by a merchant and bantering for one post in a thread is acceptable, but having a multi-post fight with someone is not. You can also use the NPC account for write out random animal attacks, to add background setting/flavour, or otherwise help set the stage for your thread.

    The NPC account can be accessed by anyone (please do not send PMs from this account for this reason)

    • Account Name: NPC
    • Password: NPCaccount1
    Character Stats

    Your character begins with 4 basic stats that you can add points to: Endurance, Strength, Luck, and Dexterity. Currently each stat has an upper limit of 30*. You will notice that common stats such as wisdom, intelligence, and charisma are missing from this list. This is where your writing comes into play!

    When you join with a new character, you have 35 points to distribute however you see fit. Though take note of the ranges below! While it might be tempting for one of the Abandoned to dump all of their points into endurance for maximum spell casting, that would mean that your character is so feeble they can hardly move!

    Your stats are used to determine your character’s HP, damage output, and contribute to your success/failure in PQ+s and KQs. When distributing your stats it’s important to take into account how your character might function in dice-based situations. For instance, a character with a high END stat may have lots of HP, but might not be able to do much damage or avoid being hit. A character with high DEX will be hard to hit, but may have a lower HP to soak the damage if they are struck. A character with high STR will deal a lot of physical damage, but may be slow.

    Training: Twice a season characters may train to increase their stats. A training thread must use the [training] prefix, must include one other character (not belonging to you), and must have 4 attack/defense posts each. Regardless of who the 'winner' is, both participants will receive +1 stat points to be distributed to either strength, dexterity, or endurance. Threads must be started, completed, and submitted in the same season to count for stats.

    * Once all four stats have reached 30, you may then increase your stats above the limit resulting in feats of superhuman strength, dexterity, and endurance. Unfortunately this may mean that when winning stat prizes from OTMs, drops, KQs etc., these may not apply if they push a stat above 30 before the others. Stat prizes are applied automatically and may not be added at a later time - this is to keep things fair for the admins as well as for everyone else!

    Strength

    Your character's strength score is a measure of raw physical strength.

    • 1-3: Knocked off balance by swinging something dense, very weak
    • 3-5: Difficulty pushing an object of their weight
    • 6-7: Has trouble even lifting heavy objects
    • 8-11: Can literally pull their own weight
    • 12-13: Carries heavy objects for short distances
    • 14-15: Can throw small objects for long distances
    • 16-17: Carries heavy objects with one arm
    • 18-20: Can sprint with small to medium sized objects
    • 21-22: Can break objects like wood with bare hands
    • 23-24: Able to out-wrestle a work animal or catch a falling person
    • 25-27: Can pull very heavy objects at appreciable speeds
    • 25-28: Can throw heavy objects for long distances
    • 29-30: Pinnacle of brawn, able to out-lift several people

    • Stat barriers can only be broken once all stats have reached 30/30
    • 31-35: Can lift several times own weight with absolute ease
    • 36-39: Strength enough to scale buildings or uproot trees via their roots
    • 40+: Near hurculean strength.

    Dexterity

    Dexterity is a measure of your character's agility.

    • 1: Barely mobile, probably significantly paralyzed
    • 2-3: Incapable of moving without noticeable effort or pain
    • 4-7: Significantly klutzy or very slow to react
    • 8-9: Somewhat slow, occasionally trips over own feet
    • 10-11: Capable of usually catching a small tossed object
    • 12-13: Able to often hit large targets
    • 14-15: Can catch or dodge a medium-speed surprise projectile
    • 16-17: Able to often hit small targets
    • 18-19: Light on feet, able to often hit small moving targets
    • 20-21: Graceful, able to flow from one action into another easily
    • 22-23: Very graceful, capable of dodging a number of thrown objects
    • 24-25: Moves like water, reacting to all situations with almost no effort
    • 26-28: Can move nearly soundlessly, avoiding almost all obstacles
    • 29-30: Is almost never physically-upset by the environment

    • Stat barriers can only be broken once all stats have reached 30/30
    • 31-33: Able to dodge sword-swipes, thrown rocks/weapons, or other swift attacks
    • 34-35: Can move almost soundlessly in all environments
    • 36-40: Reflexes fast enough to be almost invisible

    Endurance

    Endurance is a measurement of the duration with which tasks can be performed. For the Abandoned this stat crucially measures their spell-casting abilities. For all other races it is a measurement of how long specific feats can be performed.

    • 1: Minimal immune system, body reacts violently to anything foreign. Abandoned cannot maintain a spell for more than a few seconds.
    • 2-3: Is winded by walking up stairs
    • 4-5: bruises very easily, knocked out by a light punch
    • 6-7: Unusually prone to disease and infection
    • 8-9: Easily winded, incapable of a full day’s hard labor
    • 10-11: Occasionally contracts mild sicknesses. Abandoned can maintain basic-level spells for minutes at a time.
    • 12-13: Can take a few hits before being knocked unconscious
    • 14-15: Able to labour for twelve hours most days. Abandoned can perform most basic spells for a duration of less than an hour, upgraded spells for a few minutes, and mastered spells for a few seconds (prior to this mastered-magic is uncontrollable and brief).
    • 16-17: Easily shrugs off most illnesses
    • 18-19: Can pull an all-nighter with minimal adverse effects
    • 20-21: Very difficult to wear down, almost never feels fatigued. Abandoned can perform most basic spells for under 5 hours at a time, upgraded spells for up to an hour, and mastered spells for a few minutes.
    • 22-23: Never gets sick, even to the most virulent natural diseases
    • 24-25: Can take a considerable number of hits before being knocked unconscious. Abandoned can perform basic spells limitlessly, upgraded spells for under 5 hours, and mastered spells for up to an hour.
    • 26-28: Able to stay awake for days on end
    • 29-30: Tireless paragon of physical endurance. Abandoned can cast basic and upgraded spells limitless, and can maintain mastered spells for under 5 hours.
      Stat barriers can only be broken once all stats have reached 30/30
    • 31-35: Basic poison resistances
    • 36-40: Upgraded poison resistances. Abandonded can use their magic limitlessly.
    • 41-45: Almost never needs to sleep.

    Luck

    Your character's luck stat is taken into account during god interactions, during Key Quests and during Random Event encounters. The higher your luck stat, the more likely you will find yourself in favourable situations!

    Intuition

    Intuition or INT, is a stat that can only be attained through levelling or via a prize. The INT stat works the same way certain types of checks do in systems like D&D. During a PQ+/KQ, you can use your turn to 'consider' the situation. Based on your INT level, your character will be given information about your surroundings, the creature you're fighting, what offense/defense is best, etc.

    Quests come in four broad formats: personal quests, key quests, god quests, and regional quests.

    Personal Quests

    Personal quests are self directed, goal-oriented quests that are led IC by players. In general these quest lines should not have the potential for death or serious harm to befall characters (unless explicitely stated), small bumps and scrapes or otherwise low-impact harm is perfectly acceptable without requiring prior permission (joining a personal quest is considered consent).

    • Personal quests require a host and at least 2 other characters.
    • Personal quests should have at least 4 'rounds', but may have more depending on the circumstance of the quest.
    • Personal quests should have a goal. Examples of personal quests might be establishing a new business/shop, fighting/researching local flora/fauna, investigating a new or deadly area, setting up for a large event, etc.
    • Personal quests can utilize dice-rolling mechanisms, character-stats, or any other system to implement and adjudicate outcomes. This isn't always necessary, however it is up to the host of the Personal Quest to guide the events.
    • Personal quests can be started at any time; there is no limit to the number of personal quests that you can host or be in.
    • Please use the "Personal Quest" prefix for all PQ threads.
    As hosting and participating in personal quests fulfil levelling requirements, the admin-team reserve the right to decline a quest if it fails to meet any of these criteria.

    Personal Quest Example


      After the initial chaos around the Spire, the ragtag group of Northaveners had eventually - in dribs and drabs - made their way to the jumble of ruins just beyond the obelisk. Within, it seemed, there might just be scope for them to get a roof above their heads and organise a central hub of operations. Ronin was still utterly perplexed by the fact that he had woken up in this grey and seemingly barren hellscape, but since it didn't look as though he was going to wake up behind the Wall again any time soon, he may as well do what he was good at - keep his people safe.

      The former Captain of Training was positioned at the ruinous walls of the Sanctuary with those who had decided to come and help, scouting out what would need to be done. Eventually, he nodded and turned to address them.

      "The parameter needs to be scouted, and these walls need to be built up and reinforced. There's a gate but that needs to be repaired desperately, and we'd benefit from some rudimentary defences. Any ideas would be welcome."


      1. Celosia Ayelet
      2.
      3.

      As you can see, there are three free spaces in this PQ - it's on a first come, first serve basis! Please post below to claim your space. In your first post, please also mention whether you will be scouting the parameters, reinforcing the walls, repairing the gate or searching for defensive weaponry. Ronin will take whatever is left.


    The opening is clearly defined as to what is trying to be achieved. The purpose of the quest is clearly stated and the danger is not trivial but nor does it appear life threatening.

    The next posts made by the host should guide characters through their tasks. If you are leading a PQ you should have already determine what actions would count as a success/failure, or have some mechanism for deciding this (dice rolling, question/answer, etc). PQs should not be treated like regular threads were characters simply act on their own: as the leader of the PQ you are expected to shape the encounter and provide IC direction for each character involved. 'Shaping' can be anything from placing obstacles in the way of the characters involved in the PQ, giving characters new tasks to perform, or anything else that helps guide them through the quest that you have constructed.

    This should also be character specific. So you should have a seperate sentence/paragraph for each member of your PQ outlining what is happening to that character.


    Plot Advancing Quest

    Plot Advancing Quests (PQ+s) can be thought of as ranking higher in difficulty and importance than a regular PQ, but lower in difficulty and danger than a KQ (though not always!). PQ+s are always admin-led or admin-approved. Because PQ+s are a difficult levelling requirement to meet, we ask that members who don’t need a PQ+ for their current level wait for those who do, before joining a PQ+.

    As the name suggests, PQ+s must have something to do with the plot of the site. Because of its changing and contextual nature, we cannot tell you ahead of time what this might involve. Past PQ+s have been about exploring new areas, fighting off flora or fauna, establishing new skyports, etc.

    Click here for a list of current admin-suggested PQ+s.


    Key Quests

    Key Quests are always admin-run. Sometimes they will be open to the site at large, other times a small group will be chosen based on IC interactions or plots. Key Quests are always plot-driven, require active participation, can be dangerous or even deadly, and utilize your character's stats in evaluating and adjudicating outcomes.

    KQs are one of the more difficult aspects of the levelling system as they occur sporadically and are usually quite dangerous. For this reason, characters below level 3 are not encouraged to join because of their lower HP and subsequently higher chance of death. Think of KQs like boss fights in video games - some bosses are simply not meant to be fought by lower level characters. Of course there may be instances that your low-level character might feel driven to participate in one ("oh no! my best friend has been taken by that monster! Of course I will help fight it off!") but keep in mind the dangers. Further, because KQs are normally plot-advancing, having an unsuccessful KQ (i.e., failing the quest) might result in delays that halt the site's plot-progression forward! The general rule of thumb is that characters in KQs should be there because 1. they need it (immediately) for levelling, and 2. because it makes sense for them to do so.

    KQs are run like mini D&D encounters. If you’ve played D&D (or any other similar game), you’ll pick up on things rather quickly. The mechanics we utilize on CoTF to keep in mind are:

    1. Your opening KQ post should include any and all items your character has with them. This is to prevent characters ‘suddenly’ having the exact item needed half-way through a KQ.
    2. You will be given a randomly assigned ‘initiative order’. This is the order you post in. Sometimes it isn’t in your favour, but this is all part of the challenge. Your order will not be changed, and you may not post out of order.
    3. You may not edit your post once you have submitted it.
    4. Your ‘turn’ (aka your post) is only about 6 seconds long. This should be top of mind when you consider how much you’re realistically able to do with a single turn.
    5. The general rule is that you’re able to do one action (one offensive/defensive strike), and then move during a single turn. It is possible to do more than this on a single turn (as some actions can be done faster than others), but it is up to admin discretion what is realistic. If a character is judged as trying to do too much in a turn, (“Billy uses her magic at the creature, then creates a defensive dome and shouts for everyone to come under it!”) subsequent actions will be rolled at disadvantage, or be ignored altogether. Characters who continuously do too much will be given an official warning.
    6. KQs are completely action driven. When writing your KQ post, remember that your writing partners don’t have access to your character’s internal thoughts and feelings. The best KQ posts are ones that describe how your character reacts to the situation, and what they do. Save the introspection for later!

      Realistically, KQ posts shouldn’t be any longer than 400 words.

    7. You must include a summary of your actions at the bottom of each post. Actions mentioned in the post, but not the summary, will be ignored.
    8. Any items/magics/feats/etc. used in your post must have their descriptions pasted below/in your summary.
    9. Though we won’t ever tell you the formulas we use on the back end, whether or not an attack hits, how successful your character is at something, etc, is all determined by dice roll + your character’s stats.
    10. Your character may leave a KQ at any time unless otherwise specified. They might not always be successful in leaving.
    11. Avoid meta-gaming with the other KQ participants. While it's tempting to talk strategy over discord, part of the challenge is limiting yourself to what your character knows and thinks in the moment!


    Plot Advancing Quests


    God Quests

    God Quests are always administrator-run. Typically they only involve one character at a time, and their occurrence can either be random or can be the outcome of a personal or key quest. God interactions and quests are rare and usually involve the opportunity for significant character development. While certain gods have personalities that the majority of those in Caido are aware of, some are utterly mysterious! Remember this when dealing with a god interaction, as their presence among your characters could confer a benefit or a significant harm!

    God quests vary depending on the god issuing the quest and what is being sought. Some gods offer benevolent character-building quests, while others demand sacrifices. The completion of a quest usually results in some sort of boon (a custom item, a magical slot/upgrade, an animal shift, increased stats, etc).

    God quests pop up randomly! I wonder if praying at a shrine or trying to appease one of the gods might trigger one? Who knows!


    Regional Quests

    Regional quests are a special type of god quest. These quests can only be initiated once every two seasons (so a total of two per IC year), and are meant to target some aspect of a ruler-led region. For example, quests may be to incorporate aesthetic elements to a board (shadows that appear to dance, the air always smelling sweet, glowing lights at night, etc), to add protection (the Greatwood trees that leave those who haven't been shown the way wandering in circles is a great example of this, or the labyrinth in the Hollowed Grounds), or even to add a new board!

    Every regional quest should be approved by the admins beforehand, given how unique they are.

    How to trigger a regional quest

    1. Regional quests can only be triggered by the leadership of a region. Others are welcome to join the thread, but part of the burden/responsibility/privilege of being a leader is negotiating with the gods on behalf of the lands.
    2. Leaders should trigger the regional quest at a shrine where the god they believe is best equipped to help them would be. There is no roll for an answer, your god will always appear. They might not always grant a question however; be mindful of which god you call and how you go about asking for things!
    3. Leaders should have a clear outline of what they want and shouldn't ask the gods for their opinions or suggestions.
    4. Regional quests will require a number of tasks to be completed. This will require participation from everyone within a region. Prior to your regional quest the admin team will remove inactive characters from your region. Depending on the level of difficultly, anywhere from 50-90% participation will be required.
    Things to do in the world
    To keep CotF as sandboxy and open-world as possible, there are very few limits on what can or can’t be done here. If there is something that you would like to do, want to know about, or have questions about, please chat to the admins. This site was created to be as member/character driven as possible. If there are ways you would like to sculpt the world, we are eager to help you do that!

    Building things

    If you would like to own a house, have a shop, or create something property or building related, this will probably require the completion of a Personal Quest. You do not need to ask for permission, however there are a few notable points to keep in mind.
    • Houses and shops cannot be built in the Wilds without admin permission. This is because of how low the Regional Score is in those areas.
    • In established cities you can always assume there is a house/shop your character can move into or take over as their own.
    • Things built during PQs will very rarely be made official. The only way to have your shop or house become a permanent board to post in is by having it gain overwhelming popularity IC or by using a Custom Board OOC prize.

    Start or join a guild

    If you would like to establish an ongoing group that has a goal or focus (bounty hunters, mercenaries, thieves, etc), we'd encourage you to do so! Click here to see a list of current guilds available to join. Typically you need to speak with the Guildmaster in order to join.

    Get a job!

    Currently you may create any profession for yourself that you want, save for things that require IC tasks to accomplish (leader of a guild, king, etc). To become a professional (denoted by a ✓ next to your character's profession), you must have a PQ establishing your business and 5 threads dedicated to your craft. This is what lets other characters know you are established/an expert in your field, rather than someone who has just started out.

    Write!

    Because this is a writing site…go write! As you explore the world you might encounter random events that pop into your threads that lead them in unexpected directions. You can get involved in the plot, support or overthrow leadership in an area, train, or work on your levelling requirements.
      Leadership
      Leadership on CotF can be (almost) anything you want it to be! Want to start a monarchy, divine or otherwise? Go for it! Be a benevolent dictator (or not!) or form a democracy! There are only a few rules for structure and the rest is up to you! If you have a question or an idea, please speak with the admins.

      Rules for invasions and leadership acquisition are a constant work in process. If you have a scenario you'd like to run by the admin team or want to suggest something not listed here, please chat with us!

      General Information

      Each region may be ruled by a leader or leaders and their associated cabinet, however not all regions can be ruled. Some are too hostile or do not have enough resources to sustain a population (such as the Wilds).

      Ruling parties are made up of a maximum of 3 leaders, a cabinet of no more than 5 and appointed positions of no more than 5. Leadership positions can be titled whatever you like (King, President, Prime Minister, etc), and cabinet designations can be titled and cover whatever best fits your system of government! Examples might be an Overseer who manages 4 branches/positions (minister of agriculture, minister of defence, minister of education, and minister of politics), with a Captain of the Guard being the cabinet designation that falls under the Minister of Defence. Ultimately however how you chose to rule and what positions you create is up to you!

      Leaders will be denoted by a crown icon and will receive +5 stat points to be distributed however they set fit, while they are in position.

      • Leaders must post at least once a week within their region. Failure to do so twice in a row or three times in total will result in removal of a leader (barring short-term absences). In these cases, if there is not a co-leader, the ruling party will lose their claim on the region. For this reason it is recommended that only active characters seek leadership, and that more than one leader is appointed.
      • Leaders must appoint all members of their cabinet and can select appointed positions.
      • Leaders can be removed if a 2/3 member-majority of their ruling party IC vote them out

      Cabinet members will be denoted by a medallion and will receive +3 END while they are in position

      • Cabinet members can also select appointed positions.
      • Cabinet members can be removed by leadership

      Appointed Positions will be denoted by a fist and will receive +2 LUCK while they are in position

      • Appointed positions can be removed by leadership and cabinet members

      How to become a leader

      Establishing leadership in an unclaimed region

      To become a leader in an unclaimed region of the map you must

      • Be at least level 1
      • Have explored 3 boards within that region
      • Have engaged 5 times with the region (joining/starting a guild, encountering the flora/fauna, assisting someone)
      • Have completed 2 PQs (hosted or joined) in the region that help to better the land (creating a shop, taking care of a problem, etc)
      • Thread with every member of your cabinet at least once (3 or fewer in a thread)
      • Host a PQ with your entire cabinet setting up your base of operations and establishing positions

      Establishing leadership of a claimed region

      There are three ways of taking over an already claimed region: either as an invading army from another established region, as an unaffiliated group, or trial by combat.

      If you are an unaffiliated group, to try and take over an already-ruled region you must create a mini-governing system within that region. In order to begin there should be one person in charge of your invading force. This person must:

      • Be at least level 1
      • Have explored 3 boards within that region
      • Thread with every member of your cabinet at least once (3 or fewer in a thread)
      • Host a PQ with your entire cabinet setting up your base of operations and establishing positions
      • Try to take over!

      With that done, you can either invade as an army, or try to capture the current leadership to dissolve the current governing structure.

      If you are an invading army from an established region, these same two options are available to you to take leadership.

      Army vs. Army: (Can be an internal conflict, or region vs. region) The invading army must post an (Invasion) thread. All the members of their cabinet must post, as must all of the invading participants within 24 hours (it is recommended posts be written ahead of time to ensure that all members are able to meet this deadline). Any additional information that is relevant to the invasion should be given (previous threads trying to weaken defences, additional fortifications made to weaponry, etc).

      The defending region's forces has 48 hours to reply. It is recommended that the cabinet and leaders post, but it is not required, and citizens of the region may post as well. Any additional information that is relevant to the defence should be given (previous fortifications, additional fortifications made to weaponry, etc). The admin team will then intervene using the information provided, your army's stats, and our dice-rolling system.

      If successful, the region will have been taken over and all members of the leadership, their cabinet, and their appointed positions will be removed.

      Capturing a leader: Because leader's must post every week in their region in order to maintain rule, capturing a leader or leaders is an effective way of crippling their control. To capture a leader, the invading party must contact the admin team to initiate a KQ in a place the leader is likely to be found (main residence, a board they frequent, main work-building, etc). The leader and whatever guards they have will be contact by the admin team to see what defences are at their disposal. The KQ will continue based what already established resources the defending leader as to protect them, as well as rolls based on stats). Whether or not the leader is successfully captured and whether it has gone undetected will be a result of this KQ.

      If completed successfully the leader will have been captured. If there is not another leader in place, the invading party will have gained control. If there are other leaders their hold over the government will have been weakened and will make it easier to seize control.

      Trial by Combat The third way of over throwing a leader is by issuing a trial by combat. In this case there must be IC dissent towards the leader and a notice must be placed on the Notice Board with the names of the opposing party.

      In order to issue a Trial by Combat characters who intend to replace the current leadership must
      • Be at least level 1
      • Have explored 3 boards within that region
      • Thread with every member of your cabinet at least once (3 or fewer in a thread)
      • Host a PQ with your entire cabinet setting up your base of operations and establishing positions
      • Post a notice on the Notice Board giving the current leader 1 week to respond to the challenge by choosing their champion (or fighting themselves).
      • Resistance-challengers must be at least 1/3 of the leader's current level.

      If the challenge by combat is successful, all current leaders and their party will immediately be removed and replaced by those who have issued the challenge.

      During these challenges, a leader must assign a champion (or fight themselves). Challenges will be admin run, will include dice rolls based on character-stats, and will be arbitrated by the admin team who will declare a winner. The challenge continues until the current leader defeats (read: kills, forces their opponent to concede defeat), or the opposite happens. Your character may die in these situations.

      Because of the timely nature of these challenges, each writer must respond to their opponent within 24 hours, or they will forfeit the challenge.

    Flora and Fauna of Caido
    Below is a non-comprehensive and always expanding list of the flora and fauna found on this strange continent! As characters discover new areas, new entries will be made here. Species marked as (common) can appear in any thread and can be known about by any character. Creatures marked as (uncommon) should not be mentioned often. Species marked with (rare) always require admin permission to see and are usually only known of by the locals or by actual IC transmission of information. Species marked with a count as mythical for the purposes of attuned-levelling/abilities.
    The Climb

    Spilling across the land and water south of Halo, the Climb's name is ironic given the volcanic collapse of its loftier areas. Navigating the region takes some 24 days on foot, and is made all the more challenging by the sweltering pools of lava that bubble across the region's surface. The intricate cave systems beneath the Climb are home to many natural wonders, but the true marvel at its core is that of the bejeweled goddess, Dygra. The Climb is the birthplace of the Ancients, and Dygra is an attentive mother to her children.

    Temperatures are almost constantly over 40C save for the few places beneath the surface where rooms of respite can be found.

    Not much can survive the warmth and harsh climate of the Climb, but those that do are vicious and often small. Insects of a sort, like scorpions, spiders, fire ants, and centipedes can all be found, as well as smaller reptiles like poisonous snakes and lizards.

    The Climb's Pinterest board.

    Rae's Lilies (rare): Purest white and veined with turquoise and gold, these lilies may only be found along the edges of the Frey's Breath hot springs. Rumoured to contain all the healing power of the springs and more, they are a mythical find indeed.

    Black Dragon (uncommon/mythical) - Black dragons of average size. Highly aggressive with fiery breath that can instantly melt most substances.

    Darklings (uncommon/mythical) - A darkling is a cloud of dark fog or mist that can roughly alter its shape as it chooses, often appearing as a cloud with vague facial expressions. When angered, darklings can turn themselves into a screaming cyclone of teeth.

    Gore Crow (common) - Twice the size of their more common brethren, gore crows boast wickedly sharp beaks and talons that could pierce even the hide of a dragon, and even sharper wit to boot. Preferring human meat, their inky black feathers often glisten red with their most recent feast. Traveling in small groups, their eerie caws of words like "Eyes!" and "Meat!" can be heard echoing across battlefields or haunting a hunter's trail. These fearsome birds with gleaming red eyes are not to be trifled with, for it is not uncommon for a gore crow to finish off injured prey.

    Lava Wyrms (uncommon): These draconic wyrms appear most often as puddles of lava that seem to drip from place to place. Rarely do they amalgamate into a recognizable wyrm-form, though when they do, they are only about the size of a small cat. Fiery in temperament and temperature, they are more of a nuisance than an actual threat.

    Lials (uncommon): One of the few creatures that can stand the heat of the underground lava flows, lials are vicious, movement-driven hunters. Appearing to be what you might get if you imagine a crocodile made completely from volcanic rock and lava, these creatures can grow to be upwards of 5 meters in length. With incredible speed, lials rely on their super-heated bodies to kill their prey simply by throwing themselves at them. Lial blood is used as one of the ingredients for a drug known as Snapdragon - an intoxicating stimulant causing feelings of euphoria and lowered inhibitions.

    Molten Tigers (uncommon): Similar to any other kind of tiger in terms of size and build, these fierce predators are also metallic. Their stripes aren't just stripes, but appear to be made of liquid metal. They can come in all different kinds of hues, copper, gold, silver. If they remain in place for too long, the liquid begins to drip into small pools.

    Blind Swamp Rat (common): A vicious rodent with large fangs. This aggressive monster hunts in family groups of five to ten, and though at first glance they don't appear particularly frightening (save for their massive size of roughly 3ft at the shoulder), the danger lurks in their putrid saliva. Even a graze from their teeth can lead to a swift infection and lethal septicemia.

    Fyrhund (uncommon): Elemental creatures of earth and fire, fyrhunds make their nests and lay their eggs in shallow pools of lava within active volcanoes. Roughly canine in appearance, they are the size of small bears. Though their outer skin is covered in black, rock-like armor plating, they bleed viscous lava in place of blood. They are fierce carnivorous hunters, though only the very young eat meat. Older fyrhunds eat stone and even metal, which helps to harden their natural armor. They tend to be solitary unless raising a family, in which case they are extremely territorial and aggressive. These hellish creatures have the ability to unhinge their jaws and either breathe fire or spit heated acid.

    Rock Slider (common): an enormous, toothless serpent (no less than three full-sized humans in length), with small, flightless-wings where one would presume its ears to be. This creature hunts along rocky mountain paths where it lies, well-camouflaged, before ambushing large prey. It has no venom, instead coiling its length around the victim and strangling it.

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    Spinebloom (Common): Once a vibrant flower with razor-sharp petals, the Spinebloom has succumbed to the influence of void energy. The petals now emit an eerie, dim glow, and their edges have become even sharper. Touching the Spinebloom now can cause an unsettling numbness, and the once sweet fragrance has turned into a foul, otherworldly scent.

    Shadow Serpent (Uncommon): Once a Rock Slider, the Shadow Serpent now moves with an eerie grace, its scales tainted by void energy. It lurks in the shadows, ambushing prey with a venom that induces hallucinations and despair.

    Void Dragon (rare/mythical - Torchline, Draig Cordillera, The Climb): The Void Dragon is a creature of ethereal darkness and cosmic malevolence. It has the ability to move through any terrain (including mountains) as if it were pressing itself through a stiff breeze. As it moves, tendrils of void energy trail behind it, distorting reality and leaving an unsettling emptiness in its wake.

    Voidforged Fyrhunds (Uncommon): The once molten vitality of Fyrhunds is now tainted by the void, transforming them into Voidforged Fyrhunds. The black armor plating that once protected them takes on a shadowy, ethereal quality, and their eyes burn with an otherworldly flame. Instead of breathing traditional fire, they exhale void-touched flames that can consume not just physical matter but also the essence of magic itself. Their territorial nature becomes more pronounced, and they guard their nests with a malevolent intensity, threatening both the physical and magical balance of The Climb.


    The Draig Cordillera

    A mountain range as vast and deadly as it is beautiful. Alpine meadows, natural amphitheatres, and glacial waterfalls that have never been seen by human eyes are interspersed among deadly cliffs and insurmountable peaks. Guarded by dragons of every shade, these mountains serve as a boundary to the home of the god of gods: Caido. No one who has ever tried to find Caido's home has ever returned.

    The higher in elevation you get, you'll find creatures built to withstand it. Those such as mountain goats, alpine goats, ibexes, lynxes, brown bears, wolves, wild boar, bearded vultures, eagles, partridges, red deer, roe deer, mountain hares, shrews, chinchillas, snowshoe rabbits, marmots, grasshoppers, beetles, and butterflies.

    Draig Cordillera's Pinterest board

    Memory Snow (Common - higher up): When shaped, the snow that falls during Deepfrost seems to retain a memory of that shape and will reform if disassembled (snowmen who are knocked over or who melt will immediately reform when possible)

    Alpinas (common) - Alpine sheep that have magical fur. It never gets dirty and always keeps the wearer the perfect temperature. Though these creatures are not very smart, their curling horns and headbutt-first think-later attitude has knocked many and adventurer off a mountain.

    Dragons (common/mythical) - Dragons of all sizes, colours, and temperament live in the mountains. Many do not like to be disturbed and most will attack on sight. Ranging in size from small dog to nearly the size of a bus, these creatures are formidable regardless of their appearance.

    Frost Giants (Uncommon/mythical): Standing 6m tall, these creatures are largely nomadic because there is often not enough food for them to live in groups. Clothed in animal hides or sometimes nothing at all, these giants have skin like leather that protects them from the elements. Capable of tearing humans in half with their hands, they attack anything that moves and can rarely be reasoned with.

    Gossipflys (uncommon) - Butterfly-like creatures with the face and voices of a human. They only speak in song-lyrics and offer notoriously unhelpful answers to questions when asked.

    Rock Slider (common): an enormous, toothless serpent (no less than three full-sized humans in length), with small, flightless-wings where one would presume its ears to be. This creature hunts along rocky mountain paths where it lies, well-camouflaged, before ambushing large prey. It has no venom, instead coiling its length around the victim and strangling it.

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    Abyssal Alpina (common): Known originally for their magical fur, anything made from the wool of an Abyssal Alpina will immediately cause feelings of claustrophobia and severe rashes will develop. Their headbutts, once a comical hazard for adventurers, are now infused with void energy, capable of disorienting and unsettling those who dare to approach.

    Void Dragon (rare/mythical - Torchline, Draig Cordillera, The Climb): The Void Dragon is a creature of ethereal darkness and cosmic malevolence. It has the ability to move through any terrain (including mountains) as if it were pressing itself through a stiff breeze. As it moves, tendrils of void energy trail behind it, distorting reality and leaving an unsettling emptiness in its wake.

    Void Echo (common): The Memory Snow, tainted by the void, now retains memories darker than winter's chill. When disturbed, the snow reforms not into innocent shapes but into haunting echoes of past void-touched events. These echoes carry a sense of foreboding, glimpses of void-tainted occurrences that whisper cryptic messages to those who witness the unsettling reformation.


    The Feverlands

    A ghoulish swamp, thick with the smell of death and decay. From the ground up to the knees, a putrid yellow fog clings to every available surface. Rife with bogs, mud-like quicksand and fearsome creatures that linger in the dark, this place is also home to some very interesting flora. It takes about a week to cross the Feverlands on foot.

    The swamp inhabits many amphibious creatures and long-legged birds and insects, not limited to: alligators, snapping turtles, cottonmouth snakes, anacondas, otters, ibis, sparrows, ducks, herons, kingfishers, lunes, cranes, toads, bullfrogs, treefrogs, mosquitoes, marsh flies, water striders, dragonflies and damselflies, ladybugs, beetles, and butterflies.

    The Feverlands' Pinterest board

    Devil's Klaw (uncommon): A near-sentient species of plant that resembles a white decaying hand, the Devil's Klaw lives on the swamp-floor hidden by the mists. Using legs which appear like long fingers, it pulls itself along the ground though only moves when it isn't being looked at. It follows wanderers through the swamp waiting for them to make camp and fall asleep. When they do, it attaches itself to their faces, secreting nightmare hallucinogens into their minds until they die from a heart-attack.

    Magic Mushroom. (rare): A mushroom that glows like a beacon once plucked, it appears like any other mushroom until its stem has been severed.

    Toad Stools (common): Appearing like slightly bumpy but serviceable stools, Toad Stools using this form of natural camouflage and trickery to trap their prey. Waiting for someone to grow tired and sit upon them, the four 'legs' of the 'stool' swiftly snap upwards binding their weary target while poisonous enzymes slowly break their bodies down.

    Veil Fungus (uncommon): A white net-like fungus that grows in the trees. It captures its prey by dropping down upon them and slowly digesting them. It is one of the best substances to use for creating nets, as once it is removed from the swamp it ceases to digest what is held within and instead renders them nearly-paralyzed.

    Blind Swamp Rat (common): A vicious rodent with large fangs. This aggressive monster hunts in family groups of five to ten, and though at first glance they don't appear particularly frightening (save for their massive size of roughly 3ft at the shoulder), the danger lurks in their putrid saliva. Even a graze from their teeth can lead to a swift infection and lethal septicemia.

    Bogwump (uncommon) - More often heard than seen, the bogwump is a clever mimic that imitates the hunting cries of larger swamp predators to startle its prey into flight. Working from the shadows, it drives its quarry into quicksand mires with its calls and waits for them to become exhausted before revealing itself and moving in to feed on its still-living dinner. Bogwumps are otter-like creatures that stand two feet tall at the shoulder with deep chests, wide, webbed feet, and hollow bones that let them scamper across treacherous surfaces. Most unlucky travelers only see a bogwump's true form once, and it ends up being the last thing they see.

    Ceffyl Dŵr (uncommon) - A water horse, said to mostly inhabit mountain pools and waterfalls. Even if it appears corporeal, it can evaporate into mist and fog. Some legends suggest it entices unwary travelers to ride them, and when they fly into the air, they evaporate, dropping the rider to their death.

    Gilled Musk Deer (uncommon): A relatively harmless creature, these musk deer are thought to have the ability to breathe underwater, due to the set of gills on their muzzles. They might be seen diving below marshland, eating away at the vegetation.

    Gore Crow (common) - Twice the size of their more common brethren, gore crows boast wickedly sharp beaks and talons that could pierce even the hide of a dragon and even sharper wit to boot. Preferring human meat, their inky black feathers often glisten red with their most recent feast. Traveling in small groups, their eerie caws of words like "Eyes!" and "Meat!" can be heard echoing across battlefields or haunting a hunter's trail. These fearsome birds with gleaming red eyes are not to be trifled with, for it it is not uncommon for a gore crow to finish off injured prey.

    Lamplighters (uncommon): Giant fish that swim through the spectral fog, lamplighters sing songs from the memories of those around them and lure them into the deep and darkest places of the swamp with promises of a way out. With hallucinogens in the light they emit, many a wanderer has found themselves hopelessly lost in the swamp. The Lamplighters wait until their prey has died of exhaustion before eating their bones.

    Penolaeth (common): Ranging from the size of pebbles to large boulders depending on the type of skull they inhabit, these black crab-like creatures roam the swamps eating decaying flesh from discarded carcasses. Most often found lurking around piles of bones to camouflage their 'shells', the penolaeth are typically docile until one of two things triggers them: 1) If their skull-shells are threatened they will attack with their 8 razor-sharp legs, capable of cutting off fingers or decapitating heads in larger penolaeths; or 2) If a more enticing skull comes along (even if it is attached to something still living), they will stop at nothing to try and claim it for themselves.

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    The Greatwood

    The Second War has fractured this dense woodland into a conglomeration of islands, threaded together by the roots of the great mother tree, the Mathair. The magical devastation of the war has gifted the Greatwood some strange new properties, allowing it to defy physics and creating true wonders to behold. Better suited to those who can swim or fly from island to island, this drowned forest now spans about 500km from end to end, taking up to 20 days to traverse on foot. (Not that you would want to, any more!)

    Regular forest animals can be found in abundance here (animals normally found in temperate deciduous/coniferous forests, such as deer, moose, porcupines, eagles, crows, foxes, woodpeckers, wolves, cougars, etc). Given that very few travelers other than the Fae find themselves in these woods, most of the animals are quite friendly and have lost many of their flight instincts when it comes to strangers.

    The Greatwood's Pinterest board

    Giant Mushrooms (common): These giant mushrooms grow to be nearly 10ft across and have a surface that is so flexible, many of the Fae use them when learning to fly as they can bounce a small human up to 20ft in the air.

    Peppermint Bark (common): Not made out of chocolate, the bark of the poplar trees within the forest actually have a minty taste. Though you would never know it simply by just walking by, to nibble on the bark invites a wonderful sensation in your mouth.

    Preying Orchid (uncommon) - If looked at from far away, it simply looks like a flower. However, upon closer inspection, instead of a pistil, it has a mouth with sharp teeth, and its stamens are replaced with eyes on tall stalks. However, by the point most notice, the Preying Orchid has already attacked them and ran away on its roots. When its roots are in the ground, the flower is less than 1 ft. tall. However, when standing on its roots, it becomes around 3 to 4 ft. tall.

    Red Lichen (common): Found in the pools of water beneath the falls, this lichen is safe to touch but toxic if consumed. It will attach itself eagerly to any surface and multiplies quickly.

    Ringing Algae (common) - A species of massive algae that grows in the underwater caverns of the Stone Symphony. Due to its size, the air bubbles it produces are large and sturdy enough for a human to stick their head into and breathe for a time, however doing so will cause a period of tinnitus to follow.

    Snow Moss (common): This species of moss appears at the base of many trees in the Woodland, possessing one very interesting trait: it is almost always cold. Creatures can be seen laying on it during the warmer months to relieve the heat, and it has been used as a compress by weary travellers more than a few times.

    Sweetgrass (common) - A tall green grass that lines the banks of the Stone Symphony. It produces a slightly sweet, vanilla smell that attracts bugs to pollinate its light purple flowers. It is a common substitute to sugar in baking and can be found in many teas as well for its calming effect.

    Vi's Roses (rare): A beautiful crimson flower with thorns of deep gold, it is rumoured that these roses are coloured with Vi's lifeblood. When planted, they have the ability to cleanse the area around them.

    Wicker Woman (uncommon/mythical): Whilst the name suggests a person, this is actually a species of tree. The Wicker Woman has gnarled and twisted branches which will fold gently around anything that brushes past it. Whilst it causes no harm, it is incredibly difficult to escape its embrace, and travellers have starved to death in the past after becoming snared by it. The sap of the Wicker Woman is rumoured to be a potent hallucinogenic.

    Afanc (rare/mythical): A horrific beast rumoured to live at the bottom of the Drop, the Afanc is unaffected by its raging current. Very little is known about it, other than it resembles a large octopus and that its teeth rival the size of the stones that border the Drop.

    Cat Sith (uncommon/mythical): A terrible omen in the woods, the Cat Sith takes the form of a black feline with a white spot upon its chest. It lingers nears the gravemounds of the freshly buried. Fae myth dictates that the creature will try to steal a soul away from its intended route, so that it might never reach the gods.

    Echo Shark (common) - A dwarf species of shark known for hunting in packs, the Echo Shark can live in both freshwater and saltwater. They are able to mimic any sound they've heard and band together to increase their range of vocals. The sharks use the words and sounds they've learned to lure unsuspecting prey into the water, where the sharks will then leap up and drag them into the waves.

    Elephant Beetle (common): A relatively unintelligent, giant black beetle that cannot fly. Males grow long tusks and both adult genders grow to around 4 foot. Though their brains are particularly small in proportion to their size, they are capable of carrying several times their own body weight and are commonly found around Fae villages where they labour in exchange food. These beetles can shift objects with their tusks and though slow, can be ridden or pull carts.

    The Fe-Fiada (rare/mythical): A supernatural mist which, whilst rare, will blanket the entire forest when it does appear. Voices and visions can appear in the mist, and magic users will find their abilities... unreliable.

    Glotters (common) - These massive otters love to adorn themselves with the shiniest, glitteriest things they can find. As people so often lose shiny valuables in the river, the Glotters have found this the perfect place to call home. Following one might either lead you to treasures of your own, or result in you getting your toes bitten off.

    Goldfish (common): Swimming in huge shoals and growing up to half a metre in length, these fish are prized for their meat and gleaming scales. They often swim downriver, presumably heading for the sea.

    Hanging Snakes (common): A fairly curious and intelligent species of snake that hang from branches such that they often look like vines. Beware, though - they are fond of slithering down innocuously to lay themselves over the shoulders of those who wander through, like to curl up inside of bags, and otherwise participate in exploring through the woods.

    Morgen (rare/mythical): A bad omen, Morgen is often blamed when the Stonesong bursts its banks. She likes to prey on men, in particular, and can be seen by moonlight in the reflection of the river. A creature of ethereal beauty, she will beckon onlookers to join her in the water. But beware any who do - at the first chance Morgen will snag and drown her victims, dragging them to the bottom of the river to feast upon their flesh.

    The Naiad (uncommon/mythical): A title given to a young Fae at birth, the Naiad is said to bring luck and fortune to the Sea of Branches. Visitors to the village will often see the Naiad being carried upon a litter - tradition dictates that their feet must never touch the shore, else ruin will come upon the settlement.

    Papermoths (common): These moths are roughly the size of a piece of paper, and when their wings are relaxed and flat, words from actual book pages can be clearly read. This is a defense mechanism which has evolved from all their years living in the Undercroft; if they land on an open book, their wings mirror the words on it for up to 3 days. These creatures are totally blind, and the dust from their wings serves as a natural preservative for the pages of the books.

    River Stars (uncommon) - About 3ftx3ft, River Stars look like giant starfish, though are more commonly found out of the water. Carnivorous in nature, River Stars wait until an animal has walked onto their centers before rocketing themselves straight into the air where they will hang some 20-30ft above the ground for days on end until their prey has died from starvation, at which point they will slowly be digested. Once this is done, the River Star will fall back to the ground, scattering bones and other indigestible parts as it falls.

    Star Whales (rare/mythical): Visible only from the tops of trees, these giant creatures typically travel alone as there are so few of them remaining. They have exceptionally poor eyesight which is why they are drawn to bright objects (like comets and can reliably be seen during meteor showers). They float through the heavens leaving a trail of stardust in their wake. The Fae believe that, if read properly, the stardust gives details about the future.

    Tudalopus (uncommon) - Resembling a small octopus, these strange, semi-translucent creatures have made their home in the sunken levels of the Undercroft. Having dined upon the pages of disintegrating books, these cephalopods have unknowingly stored the words in their pigment sacs. When sung to, these creatures become docile and still and their chromatophores are engaged such that their skin suddenly becomes a fully legible book. The larger the book consumed, the larger the Tudalopus. If these creatures are removed from the water, they will die and their knowledge will be lost.

    Tulmhainar (rare/mythical): Its name means earth and world and turtle and it is just that. A gigantic turtle so large that it has its own gravitational pull, the tulmhainar looks like a mountain given life. With earth and illusion magic, there is currently only one tulmhainar in all of Caido. It feeds off of memories, usually creating an illusory world where it in human-form and its 'storyteller' can talk.

    Undine (rare/mythical): A creature rumoured to live behind the waterfall, its voice can be heard singing sweetly on clear nights when the moon is new. Shy and reclusive, it hasn't been seen for years.

    Whisper Fish (common/mythical): This strange species of fish live in the river that winds around the Bodega. With a vocal range that is not unlike a parrot's, these fish can be heard telling fragmented versions of Fae stories and lore, often gathering in small groups and performing strange one-word story monologues with each other.

    Will-O-Wisps (common): Glowing orbs of light that dance and weave between the branches, despite their usefulness, these creatures are not to be trusted. Mischievous and loyal to no one, they will lead travellers astray at a moment's notice.

    ??????? (Flowerbirth/common): Affecting no species of flower in particular, during Flowerbirth many flowers appear ... larger. Growing up to 10x their regular size, the affected flowers have also developed teeth and the ability to move up to 5ft. Luring in animals and humans alike, these newly-carnivorous plants will happily eat fingers who try to pluck them or noses that try to sniff them

    Memory Mud(Flowerbirth/common): What happens when memory snow melts into a muddy puddle and Rae feels sorry for it? Voila! Memory Mud is unintelligent and largely harmless, squelching its way into the most inconvenient places! More annoying than dangerous, it might play fetch with you. But probably not.

    Memory Snow (Deepfrost/common): When shaped, the snow that falls during Deepfrost seems to retain a memory of that shape and will reform if disassembled (snowmen who are knocked over or who melt will immediately reform when possible)

    Wonder Puddles (Leafchange/Common: After a long rain, rather remarkable puddles form in the Greatwood. When they are looked into they do not reveal one's reflection, but something else entirely. It might be a nightmare, a silly vision of you doing something strange, a wish you want to come true, or anything else! They last but mere moments, though the fae believe that these puddles have great prophesying properties when interpreted correctly

    Bloatbeetles (LongHeat/common): A metallic blue in colour, bloat beetles have been known to save lives during LongHeat as their bodies store nearly a litre of water inside of their hard shells. Docile and slow, bloatbeetles are typically found in shady and cool areas, lest the water within them boils in the sun and kills them.

    Burros (LongHeat/common): Burros are a species of mole that dig prolific tunnels beneath the soil. Only coming to the surface during LongHeat when the ground is dry and there is little risk of their tunnels being caved in by moisture, these platypus-looking species can often be bribed to help till soil and aerate agricultural areas with berries and sweet cream.

    Chorus Bees (Flowerbirth/common): Always flying in a swarm, these bees have developed the ability to buzz in harmony. Docile for the most part, as long as they aren't disturbed this gigantic swarm will leave you alone and seems happy to have their melodies listened to. When disturbed however they can become incredibly aggressive and will attack as if they are one large entity.

    Luxere (Deepfrost/uncommon): Luxere are a species of reindeer who through genetic mutation have developed bio-luminescent antlers. Their antlers glow a soft golden colour and they seem to naturally repel dark magic as well as magical darkness. This kindhearted species of deer can only be found during cold months, and they seem to travel down to inhabited areas for the sole reason of providing light to those who cannot see during the LongNight. Though they are kind and gentle, they are also rather skiddish, dislike loud noises and tend to avoid dark-magic users and favour light-magic users. They like fresh fruit, hay, and singing.

    Magna Vermis (Flowerbirth/common): The Magna Vermis are, simply, gigantic earthworms (ranging from 1 foot up to 10 feet). Unlike regular earthworms, rather than suffocating when it rains, these worms congregate en masse during Flowerbirth showers. They taste like chicken and provide excellent protein if eaten. Be warned however, they can be extremely protective of puddles that they find...

    The Whispershore Wader (Leafchange/Greatwood/Uncommon): is a long-beaked bird, not unlike a domestic chicken in stature and it is named for its beautiful, thick feathers which are coloured like the gemstones of Whispershore. They are most commonly found in the reeds along The Stonesong during LeafChange and are intelligent, persistent, and cursed with an insatiable appetite. This greedy creature is easily charmed with freshly caught fish and has a tendency to follow fisherman (or anyone), and raid their catch.

    Cursed Daisies (Common): Once the calming Sweetgrass, these void-corrupted daisies emit an unsettling aura. Instead of attracting pollinators, they draw in void insects that feed on the life force of anything nearby. Their sickly-sweet scent now conceals the stench of void decay.

    Echo Ferns (common): Originally vibrant and harmonious, the Echo Ferns now resonate with void energy. Their once-green fronds have withered into darkened silhouettes, and each rustle of their leaves emits an unsettling echo. Touching the Echo Ferns not only causes physical discomfort but also triggers haunting whispers that echo through the depths of the Greatwood.

    Enshadowed Delphinids (common): Once playful Encantados, touched by the void, transform into Enshadowed Delphinids. Their vibrant pink hues now give way to an inky blackness that seems to absorb light, rendering them nearly invisible in the depths of the ocean. The mischievous nature remains, but their water magic takes on an eerie void-touched quality, capable of stirring storms and unsettling the balance of the sea. The Enshadowed Delphinids dance on the boundary between whimsical chaos and the darker currents of the void.

    Void River Stars (uncommon): The carnivorous River Stars, tainted by void energy, have become even more sinister. Their once vibrant appearance has faded into shades of deep black and purple. Now, instead of waiting for prey to step onto their centers, they actively seek out creatures, using void-infused tendrils to ensnare and drain the life force from their victims.

    Void Vipers (Common): Once inquisitive Hanging Snakes, touched by the void, transform into Void Vipers. Their slender bodies now bear patterns that seem to absorb light, making them almost imperceptible in the shadowy depths of the woods. Instead of curiously exploring, they now slither with a purpose, seeking to entwine themselves around unsuspecting wanderers and imbuing them with a void-touched presence.

    Voidroot Wickerwomen (Rare/Mythical): Once guardians of the forest, these trees have succumbed to the void. Their once-benevolent nature twisted, their bark is now dark and covered in void runes. Instead of nurturing the Greatwood, they drain the life force of the surrounding flora, spreading void tendrils that corrupt the land.

    Whispering Will-O-Voids (Common): Corrupted versions of the mischievous Will-O-Wisps, these entities now lead travelers not astray, but into the heart of void-infested groves. Their eerie lights hypnotize, luring unsuspecting wanderers into the grasp of lurking void creatures.


    Hak Etme

    Flat and arid as far as the eye can see, the desert is interrupted only by the presence of hulking skeletons from creatures long extinct, along with rolling expanses of sand dunes. Devoid of life and colour, the world is bleached white and beige... that is, until it rains. During these rare times, Hak Etme comes alive in a shocking display of vibrancy. Flowers bloom across every available surface, and the sands ripple with rainbow hues. It takes about a week to cross Hak Etme on foot.

    All kinds of desert animals can be found here, such as tortoises, horned lizards, bearded dragons, rattlesnakes, vipers, pythons, scorpions, dung beetles, spiders, tarantulas, camels, fennec foxes, kangaroo rats, roadrunners, coyotes, foxes, wrens, sandgrouses, kestrels.

    Hak Etme's Pinterest board

    Dream Cacti (common): These cacti are like any others seen in other worlds at first, their flesh full of water and nutrients. however, their barbs are different, the spines that cover the plant can cause extreme nightmarish hallucinations. Extracts from these spines can be used as one of the ingredients to make a drug known as ThirdEye - a powerful if not unpredictable psychadelic.

    Preying Orchid (uncommon) - If looked at from far away, it simply looks like a flower. However, upon closer inspection, instead of a pistil, it has a mouth with sharp teeth, and its stamens are replaced with eyes on tall stalks. However, by the point most notice, the Preying Orchid has already attacked them and ran away on its roots. When its roots are in the ground, the flower is less than 1 ft. tall. However, when standing on its roots, it becomes around 3 to 4 ft. tall.

    Cloud Spider (uncommon) - Cloud spiders are truely a strange sight. Their gas filled abdomens allow them to float slowly across the desert. Cloud spiders hunt by launching their webbing to ranges up to 600 feet. Although each strand is as thin as silk, they are as strong as a steel cord. Strong enough, in fact, that careless cloud wyrmlings have been entangled in cloud spiders' webs.

    Cloud Wyrm (common) - Cousins of the dragon, these small and serpentine creatures boast no wings or destructive breath. Rather, they breathe clouds. Their four-legged white bodies can be seen slithering through the air, puffy clouds streaming from their mouths to ease the intensity of the sun on the plains. They never get any bigger than a weasel, and are known as docile, playful creatures, and they seem to enjoy collecting shiny things.

    Cygnata (uncommon) - Cygnata have inspired many poets with their easy grace and beauty. These giant bird-like snakes seem to swim through the air instead of fly. With elongated bodies, lizard-like appendages and small wings, these creatures appear more like oriental dragons than birds. The crests on their heads are made of a hard almost stone-like material and are extremely valuable. Given the heights they fly at, it is extremely rare to be near enough to one to harvest its body. When they die, their bodies explode into a ball of light.

    Land Shark (common): This creature rarely moves to the surface from its home deep beneath the terrain. It rises up only to feed, snatching all who walk upon the sands.

    Mirage Crab (uncommon) - The mirage crab has a large, flat body, over 5 ft in diameter. It has six legs, and two 10-ft long tentacles. It can be found on beaches and in desert regions, where it burrows under the sand to wait for its prey. The mirage crab can create a minor illusion around itself, making itself appear like any naturally occurring creature or object. lts preferred mirage is that of a small oasis, with the appearance of a pool of water over its mouth, and its tentacles appearing like two tall Palm Trees. When potential pray comes over to investigate or drink the water, the illusion fades away and the mirage crab latches on with its tentacles and consumes its prey with its sharp mandibles.

    Qilin (rare): A mythical, one-horned creature meant to symbolize the arrival or passing of an imminent ruler, luck, protection, pr success, and are revered as generally good omens. They are a rare sight - one would have to be privileged to ever come across one. Seeing one in the desert likely signals a hallucination though, rather than the real thing.

    Shangyang (uncommon) - The Shangyang or 'Rainbird' is capable of predicting the rain. Stories say that if one is found dancing upon one leg, that terrible downpours and storms are imminent. Used as a way of detecting flash-floods, these pale birds are signs of terrible things to come.

    Sunstreak (rare) - Thought by some to be distant cousins of the Firebird, sunstreaks are desert creatures with vibrant plumage in yellows, reds, and oranges. False sparks dance across their backs and wings when they move and scatter behind them in flight, glittering in their trailing tail feathers. Slender heads balanced on long, graceful necks tipped with long, sharp beaks bear crowns of golden display feathers. Half the height of a human, sunstreaks are more often seen racing across the sand on their broad-taloned feet, but are thought to be a sign of good luck when seen flying, especially at dawn or dusk.
    Sunstreaks are almost always found in pairs; when seen alone, especially outside of Hak Etme, they are often omens of drought or plague soon to come.

    None!
    None!

    Abyssal Leviathan (Rare/Mythical): The subterranean lair of the Land Shark echoes with void energy, transforming unlucky sharks into the Abyssal Leviathans. Rising from the depths with an otherworldly hunger, this creature now possesses a shadowy, void-shrouded exterior. Its hunts are not merely for sustenance but to absorb the essence of those it captures, bringing the taint of the abyss to the surface as it returns to its lair to sleep in the void's embrace. The land above quivers with the unsettling presence of the Abyssal Leviathan, a creature that bridges the realm between the subterranean and the void-touched darkness.

    Eclipsed Qilin (rare/mythical - Hak Etme) - This mythical, one-horned creature, once revered as a harbinger of good luck and protection, now embodies an omen of impending darkness. Its horn, once a beacon of hope, now casts an eerie void glow, and its presence is no longer a promise of success but a harbinger of misfortune. Encounters with the Eclipsed Qilin in the desert no longer bring blessings but rather induce hallucinations, blurring the line between reality and the void's twisted illusions. Beware those who seek the once-auspicious creature, for in the desert, its appearance now foretells a shadowed fate.

    Void Lotus (uncommon): Once a symbol of purity and enlightenment, the Void Lotus has been tainted by the void. Its petals, once pristine white, now shimmer with ominous shades of deep purple and black. The serene fragrance has transformed into a haunting scent that induces a sense of unease. Those who linger too close risk being drawn into a nightmarish dreamscape.


    Halo

    Battered by magical disaster and shattered from the mainland during the Second War, this former glacial desert has finally begun to thaw. Around 800km across and 1000km tall, Halo is no longer caged by mountains and instead boasts sprawling beaches of black sand which fade into greenery and woodlands. However, not all forests are created equal. A dense spray of strange, dead trees leads to Halo's heart of ice; a frozen gem settled against the shores of an inland sea, the Citadel stands as a proud bastion of civilisation amid a sudden spray of northern greenery. Travelling from one end of Halo to the other on foot takes just over one month.

    A variety of animals that thrive well in cold climates can be found here (arctic types, such as reindeer, moose, polar bears, wolves, salmon, whales like orcas and humpbacks, seagulls, ravens, eagles, seals, arctic shrews, arctic hares, and arctic foxes.) Flora and Fauna found in regions like Norway or Iceland/Greenland would be common here.

    Halo's Pinterest board

    Blood Birch (common) - Found within the Hollow Forest and mutated by magic, these trees have white trunks striped with silver, and white, semi-translucent leaves that are replaced each Flowerbirth. The sap within the trees is warm, bright crimson and tastes faintly metallic, almost like blood.

    Memory Snow (Common): When shaped, the fallen snow seems to retain a memory of that shape and will reform if disassembled (snowmen who are knocked over or who melt will immediately reform when possible)

    Moonshrooms (common) - Delicious mushrooms with bio-luminescent properties. Able to grow in crevices and fissures in the ice, at night these mushrooms look like small lanterns scattered across the Fangs.

    Breath Snatch (uncommon) - A minor Halo nuisance, the Breath Snatch is a small elemental spirit that lingers in open areas on cold days. They're easiest to notice on bright days, a concentrated cloud of glittering frost lingering in the air, but if not noticed and walked into, the elemental will disperse in a puff of freezing air, often freezing the breath in the lungs of whomever was unlucky enough to come across it. It doesn't seem to possess enough sentience to be truly malevolent. Large groups of the spirits are rare, but potentially deadly if walked into unknowingly.

    Crystal Spiders (uncommon) - Living within the Hollow Forest, these man-sized, eyeless arachnids have perfectly clear chitin allowing their last meal to be seen within. They spin thin filaments of webbing between the trees to alert them when creatures are passing through, waking them from their long hibernations to stalk their prey. They have long, slender legs, a thick abdomen, and fangs that release a paralyzing toxin that lasts for several minutes in an adult human. In the light of fires or lanterns, they are almost invisible.

    Frost Fox (uncommon/mythical) - After generations of ingesting small amounts of mageglass, these fox descendants have undergone magical mutations. Always cold to the touch and impervious to Halo's freezing conditions, their fur always has a bit of frost clinging to it. Instead of yipping, their calls can be likened to the sound of ice creaking and cracking.

    Frost Giants (Uncommon/mythical): Standing 6m tall, these creatures are largely nomadic because there is often not enough food for them to live in groups. Clothed in animal hides or sometimes nothing at all, these giants have skin like leather that protects them from the elements. Capable of tearing humans in half with their hands, they attack anything that moves and can rarely be reasoned with.

    Luxere (Common): Luxere are a species of reindeer who through genetic mutation have developed bio-luminescent antlers. Their antlers glow a soft golden colour and they seem to naturally repel dark magic as well as magical darkness. Though they are kind and gentle, they are also rather skiddish, dislike loud noises and tend to avoid dark-magic users and favour light-magic users. They like fresh fruit, hay, and singing.

    Ningo (common): A fat all-white bird that produces high-quality meat. Its feathers are often used to line jackets and hats because of its insulating qualities.

    Ursur (Common): These gigantic polar bear-esque creatures boast thick woolly coats and long serrated tusks. They feed primarily on luxere and wayward explorers, but will eat anything that once had a heartbeat.

    Water Elementals (Uncommon/mythical): Not much is known about these creatures other than that they appear during particularly nasty storms. With the ability to manipulate the water in the icy-landscape as well as that within your body, water elementals range from incredibly dim-witted to quite clever.

    White Dragons (Rare/mythical): Living in underground tunnels that are warded with ice and snow, white dragons hoard treasure and anything they deem beautiful. Often this means that one might find gold, gems, and frozen humans stored in their caves. They can speak the basic common tongue and can communicate telepathically with the attuned, though they are secretive, vain, and usually aloof and unhelpful.

    Goch Mould (Leafchange/common): A red mould carried from The Climb by the Leafchange winds. It coats the top layer of the tundra

    Memory Mud(Flowerbirth/rare): What happens when memory snow melts into a muddy puddle and Rae feels sorry for it? Voila! Memory Mud is unintelligent and largely harmless, squelching its way into the most inconvenient places! More annoying than dangerous, it might play fetch with you. But probably not.

    Heb Lygaid (Deepfrost/Rare/Mythical): An eyeless creature that looks vaguely human-shaped, but with extraordinarily long limbs. With pale flesh and a complexion that seems permanently damp, the Heb Lygaid resides deep within the Fangs of Halo. During the year the creature sits motionless at a table made of ice, and only during the darkest and coldest nights of Deepfrost does it come alive, covering its table with succulent foods and mageglass pendants to tempt wanderers into its lair. Should anything be touched, the Heb Lygaid suddenly springs to life, killing with a single touch.

    Ice Lights (Deepfrost/common): A small bug that lights up the skies of Halo during Deepfrost when the sun doesn't rise. With bioluminescent wings, these creatures gather in the thousands, swaying across the horizon. Beware though, Ice Lights have a tendency to swarm on fresh meat left out, and can dissolve an ursur carcass with the toxins in their feet, in a matter of hours.

    Ethereal Frostbloom (Common): Once a delicate and otherworldly flower that thrived in the icy landscapes of Halo, the Ethereal Frostbloom has fallen victim to the encroaching void. Its petals, which once sparkled like freshly fallen snow, now emit an eerie, pulsating glow. The frosty fragrance has twisted into a chilling scent that seems to pierce through the coldest winds. Encountering the Ethereal Frostbloom sends a shiver down the spine, as it draws energy from the void, freezing the surrounding environment and everything in its vicinity.

    Void Echo (Common): The Memory Snow, tainted by the void, now retains memories darker than winter's chill. When disturbed, the snow reforms not into innocent shapes but into haunting echoes of past void-touched events. These echoes carry a sense of foreboding, glimpses of void-tainted occurrences that whisper cryptic messages to those who witness the unsettling reformation.

    Void Foxes (Uncommon): Corrupted Frost Foxes, Their forms are now purple, and their frost-laden fur glows with an otherworldly cold. Instead of yipping, their calls resonate with ghostly whispers, capable of freezing the hearts of those who hear it

    Void Luxere (Common): Their once glowing antlers now emit an unsettling void-glow, repelling light magic and casting a shadow over the icy landscape. Extremely aggressive. If killed, they yield rotten meat.

    Voidshade Ursur (Common): These once majestic Ursurs, coated in thick, shadowy fur, now roam the icy wastelands of Halo. Void tendrils protrude from their mouths, and their once-intelligent eyes are now soulless voids. The touch of a Voidshade Ursur drains the warmth from living beings, leaving them frozen in despair.

    Voidweaver Spiders (Common): The once-useful Wine Spiders have become Voidweavers, their once-drunk demeanor replaced with a malevolent hunger. They spin webs of void energy, ensnaring anything that comes too close. Their venom induces nightmares, trapping victims in a perpetual state of terror.


    The Hollowed Grounds

    Whilst not suffering the flooding devastation of the nearby Greatwood, the Hollowed Grounds - a previously large expanse of territory - has now fractured into a series of islands. Connected by bridges of bleached bone, the islands feel larger than they are, taking up to 60 days to traverse their full circuit by foot. Previously home to the Voice and her Ascended, the Grounds have had little need for lighting or food production, so much of the area is still wild.

    That being said, you can expect fairly rural animal species such as mice, squirrels, various species of birds (magpies, robins, crows, etc), small game such as foxes, gophers, porcupines and badgers, to larger game such as deer, elk, and the odd moose. Large predators such as cougars, wolves and bears can occasionally be found.

    You will find both deciduous and coniferous species of tree and a few fruit-bearing ones as well.

    Hollowed Grounds' Pinterest board

    Efas Herb (uncommon): The Efas herb can be found close to the heart of the Labyrinth and possesses quite extraordinary medical properties. It serves as a panacea for most minor ailments, can reduce bruising and swelling, is an anti-inflammatory, can decrease pain, and can settle stomachs. The herb grows on small green stalks of grass and looks like a small cluster of brown protrusions.

    Glow Stones (common): Appearing pale white in the daytime, as the sun sets these regular-appearing stones suddenly emit a soft blueish-white, or pale yellow light, casting the Glade in a welcoming haze of colour. If the stones are removed from the glade, they cease to continue this strange phenomenon.

    Labyrinth (common/mythical): Whether or not the Labyrinth itself is sentient is hard to know. What is well documented, however, is how often some of the hedges seem to move. The only problem is that it happens so quickly and quietly that the most likely explanation is simply that explorers have mistaken things. Right?

    Peppermint Bark (common): Not made out of chocolate, the bark of the poplar trees within the forest actually have a minty taste. Though you would never know it simply by just walking by, to nibble on the bark invites a wonderful sensation in your mouth.

    Snow Moss (common): This species of moss appears at the base of many trees in the Woodland, possessing one very interesting trait: it is almost always cold. Creatures can be seen laying on it during the warmer months to relieve the heat, and it has been used as a compress by weary travellers more than a few times.

    Sweetgrass (common) - A tall green grass that lines riverbanks. It produces a slightly sweet, vanilla smell that attracts bugs to pollinate its light purple flowers. It is a common substitute to sugar in baking and can be found in many teas as well for its calming effect.

    Tangleweed (common): Appearing like nothing more than an amalgamation of sticks, the Tangleweed is actually an arguably sentient creature. For the most part it appears spherical in nature, keeping its many limbs tightly pulled against itself to form a round shape. It moves as if blown by the wind, suddenly rolling forward on the hard packed earth and then stopping just as suddenly. Having almost no natural predators, these creatures are found in great numbers especially close to the magnetic field. It is often impossible to tell if a Tangleweed is dead or alive unless they are touched. If interacted with, the branch-like limbs will lash out and close quick effectively on whatever they can grasp, at which point a poison is released which causes the skin to numb. Then, quite like other species of carnivorous plants, the Tangleweed slowly begins to digest its prey.

    Wicker Woman (rare/mythical): Whilst the name suggests a person, this is actually a species of tree. The Wicker Woman has gnarled and twisted branches which will fold gently around anything that brushes past it. Whilst it causes no harm, it is incredibly difficult to escape its embrace, and travellers have starved to death in the past after becoming snared by it. The sap of the Wicker Woman is rumoured to be a potent hallucinogenic.

    Allogator (uncommon) - An allogator is a crocodilian creature that evolved to take the appearance of a normal log. When it spots its prey, it remains motionless as it hides in plain sight, waiting for the prey to come to it, before attacking by surprise.

    Banshees (rare/mythical): They take the form of a skeletal lady wrapped in rags. Some wander the woodlands, singing a haunting melody. Others sit near streams and weep. Either way, disturbing these creatures will cause them to become very aggressive. They can pursue their prey seemingly without need for rest, and will strangle all those that they catch.

    Boggart (???/mythical): The boggart can take nearly any form that it can pull from your mind. As such, it's almost impossible to know just how many reside within the Labyrinth. What is known however is that they usually hunt in pairs, with one trying to frighten an intruder towards the other where they can be devoured and dragged back to their lair.

    Chunk (deceased/mythical): Chunk was an incredibly old, incredibly fat black and white cat that lived in the Rathskeller. Despite his laziness he appeared to have been able to feed himself before humans arrived, though he did appreciate when others did this for him. Often found lazing around on the bar (sanitation department be damned), Chunk seemed to possess the uncanny ability to detect poison in food and drink. He would go from sleeping 20 hours a day and appearing all but dead for days on end, to moving with such sudden swiftness when he detected poison as to be absolutely shocking. Chunk was missing one eye, wore an eye patch, and none of his legs appeared to be quite the same length. He was killed when Loren Launceleyn burned down the Rathskeller during LongNight 309PC.

    Dream Bird (uncommon) - The dream bird is a small bird with 6 pairs of wings and is an aray of bright blues, yellows, reds, pinks and purples. It has a red beaks with sharp teeth and pure white eyes; truly a horror to behold. A dream bird typically builds its nest high up in a tree on the outskirts of a city where it can hide from the townsfolk but still mess with their dreams. If you can find a nest and leave out food for the bird living there, they might take a liking to you and give you nice dreams. Should you try and chase them away, you can expect nightmares.

    Dream Fish (uncommon/mythical): The Dream Fish is a species of pearly-white fish that lives deep at the bottom of the Oasis';s pool. Only rarely do they surface and they are almost never caught by animals or by fishing rods. Instead they choose to appear to those who are internally conflicted or are not at peace. By touching one of their scales the Dream Fish can induce a self-aware dream state within an individual and help guide them through their subconscious to let them work out some of their inner troubles.

    Echo Shark (common) - A dwarf species of shark known for hunting in packs, the Echo Shark can live in both freshwater and saltwater. They are able to mimic any sound they've heard and band together to increase their range of vocals. The sharks use the words and sounds they've learned to lure unsuspecting prey into the water, where the sharks will then leap up and drag them into the waves.

    Hanging Snakes (common): A fairly curious and intelligent species of snake that hang from branches such that they often look like vines. Beware, though - they are fond of slithering down innocuously to lay themselves over the shoulders of those who wander through, like to curl up inside of bags, and otherwise participate in exploring through the woods.

    Humming Bats (common): A large colony of bats live in the rooftops of the domiciles. Coming out only at night as they are wont to do, this species of bat uses both echolocation to determine their surroundings as well as an oral phenomena that sounds to human ears like humming. They are roughly hand-sized, are easily frightened, and happily eat away the bugs that would otherwise linger near your doors and windows.

    Kappa (rare/mythical): The Kappa is a mythical beast that has the body of a turtle, the limbs of a frog and the head of what looks like a scaled bird. It is a relatively passive creature unless it is startled or threatened and spends much of its time flying through the mists beneath the Bone Bridge. Legend says that it has a cave somewhere in the gorge, though no one has ever been able to find it.

    Land Shark (rare): This creature rarely moves to the surface from its home deep beneath the terrain. It rises up only to feed, snatching livestock or other animals (or people) before returning to its lair to sleep, sometimes for months.

    Paper Wasps (uncommon): Paper wasps are roughly the size of a clenched fist. They are insects that lay their eggs in books. The pages are absorbed by the developing eggs and form the bodies of the wasps, and they use the covers of the books to build their hives. They harvest the ink from written words to feed their larvae and colored ink is fed to their large queens. They can go into a dormant hibernation state for decades if there are no books to be found, but eventually dry up and crumble to dust. Although they are highly flammable they do not burn quickly, so be careful about setting them on fire if you won't want the flames spreading as the wasps continue flying. Their stingers do considerably more damage than a paper cut, and inject a venom that can cause fevers and migraines.

    Quicksand Moss (uncommon) - Quicksand moss has the appearance of dead moss, although in reality this brown colour is due to it consuming animals instead of sunlight. It grows anywhere a regular moss or lichen would, but grabs any creature foolish enough to come near and quickly digests them.

    ROUS (uncommon): These large rodents are entirely blind but have increased olfactory senses. They gnaw on the stone walls to sharpen and help trim their long teeth and eat mostly garbage. Humans are a delicacy that these creatures like to hunt in packs.

    Seed Ghosts (uncommon): Named as their bodies are almost entirely transcluscent, the Seed Ghosts are a pest that feed off of the sweet flesh of the apples. Roughly the size of a quarter, the Seed Ghosts have both pinchers on their face and a stinger with which to irritate their prey. Though they aren't deadly, their bite/sting will leave quite a welt that can last for up to a week. The Seed Ghosts get their name as they can often burrow into the core of an apple and stay there. Eating the seeds first, if/when they do attack someone who has mistakenly grabbed the apple in which they reside, residences at one point chalked this up to some sort of retaliation on the part of the apple tree and, noticing the missing seeds, labeled the strange phenomena (and later the creatures themselves) Seed Ghosts.

    Sentient Books (uncommon): Occasionally books may move about the atheneum on their own. If opened, these books can transport a group of no more than three into whatever tale is written inside of them. No lasting damage can be done while inside this story-like world and nothing can be transferred back and forth.

    Spark Bird (deceased/mythical): The Spark Bird, often thought of as merely a myth, was a magical creature that dwells deep in the heart of the Glade. Not native to the Hollowed Grounds, the creature had sought out the lushness of the Glade as a precaution. When the bird flew, sparks were emitted from its wings which have the ability to cause fires in drier locations. Thus the bird stayed where the foliage was normally quite green and moist to prevent this. However, that forced the creature into a deep depression, as it could no longer fly as often as it would like for fear of damaging the environment. A kind creature by nature, the Spark Bird grew tired of being used year after year to chase away the darkness of LongNight, and during the second war, it burned most of the Hollowed Grounds down.

    Speaking Squirrels (common): Appearing like a slightly larger version of a common ground squirrel, the speaking squirrels - as their name suggests - can speak. Or they appear to. Their vocabulary is limited to "yes!"< "no!", and "follow me!" Though it is entirely unclear whether or not they understand actually speech and the words they are saying, they nonetheless will answer questions and will lead wayward souls around the Labyrinth. Calls of "follow me" have led a number of victims to their death, as the squirrels have absolutely no idea where they are going.

    Spire Demon (deceased/mythical): Not much was known about this creature other than it appeared constantly close to death and yet never died. It did not seem to eat, sleep, or age, and hovered near the base of the structure, only making an appearance when inhabitants tried to access or investigate the Spire. If it had a language, it isn't one you understood. It was killed by Roana/Remi/Ashetta/and Ronin during a KQ. When it died, it exploded killing Ronin as well.

    Stone Golems (uncommon/mythical): Large, rocky constructs, these clumsy creatures aren't too bright, and instinctively will attempt to batter or smash anything that disturbs them. They can be found lurking sometimes in abandoned domiciles. They are very vulnerable to daylight, collapsing to dust under the rays of the sun.

    Tumbleweed Golem (rare) - A big, hulking mass of sentient tumbleweeds that is extremely aggressive.

    The Prince (rare/mythical): Its name is an insult. The Prince is no such thing. A horrifically mutated creature, the Prince is actually an ascended-experiment gone wrong. Reptilian in nature, and probably once a frog, the Prince has 6 eyes, though only 3 of them are functional. The remainder are covered in a thick white film. With a distended stomach, horrifically webbed feet that stick unhelpfully to every surface and a number of open sores covering all of its body, the Prince does its best to stay hidden deep in the Underground where no one will have to look upon it.

    Wine Spiders (common): These friendly arachnids can grow up to the size of a small housecat. With fuzzy bodies and spindly legs, they are often found lurking around wine racks or kegs of beer. They are almost always drunk, hiccuping and stumbling about. It is said that finding a baby wine spider in your drink is a lucky omen!

    Memory Mud(Flowerbirth/common): What happens when memory snow melts into a muddy puddle and Rae feels sorry for it? Voila! Memory Mud is unintelligent and largely harmless, squelching its way into the most inconvenient places! More annoying than dangerous, it might play fetch with you. But probably not.

    Memory Snow (Deepfrost/common): When shaped, the snow that falls during Deepfrost seems to retain a memory of that shape and will reform if disassembled (snowmen who are knocked over or who melt will immediately reform when possible)

    Vampire Gourds (Leafchange/common): These nasty gourds have sharp teeth and sentient minds focused solely on one thing: biting and eating. They are relatively easy to kill but come out in a great number during the end of Leafchange.

    Bloatbeetles (LongHeat/common): A metallic blue in colour, bloat beetles have been known to save lives during LongHeat as their bodies store nearly a litre of water inside of their hard shells. Docile and slow, bloatbeetles are typically found in shady and cool areas, lest the water within them boils in the sun and kills them.

    Chorus Bees (Flowerbirth/common): Always flying in a swarm, these bees have developed the ability to buzz in harmony. Docile for the most part, as long as they aren't disturbed this gigantic swarm will leave you alone and seems happy to have their melodies listened to. When disturbed however they can become incredibly aggressive and will attack as if they are one large entity.

    FlintHoppers (LongHeat/common): A particularly aggravating species of grasshopper that is rumoured to have been created by the Voice. With rear legs made out of a material not unlike flint, when these creatures rub their legs together they create sparks that during the Longheat drought can cause devastating wildfires.

    Luxere (Deepfrost/uncommon): Luxere are a species of reindeer who through genetic mutation have developed bio-luminescent antlers. Their antlers glow a soft golden colour and they seem to naturally repel dark magic as well as magical darkness. This kindhearted species of deer can only be found during cold months, and they seem to travel down to inhabited areas for the sole reason of providing light to those who cannot see during the LongNight. Though they are kind and gentle, they are also rather skiddish, dislike loud noises and tend to avoid dark-magic users and favour light-magic users. They like fresh fruit, hay, and singing.

    Abyssal Leviathan (Rare/Mythical): The subterranean lair of the Land Shark echoes with void energy, transforming unlucky sharks into the Abyssal Leviathans. Rising from the depths with an otherworldly hunger, this creature now possesses a shadowy, void-shrouded exterior. Its hunts are not merely for sustenance but to absorb the essence of those it captures, bringing the taint of the abyss to the surface as it returns to its lair to sleep in the void's embrace. The land above quivers with the unsettling presence of the Abyssal Leviathan, a creature that bridges the realm between the subterranean and the void-touched darkness.

    Enshadowed Delphinids (common): Once playful Encantados, touched by the void, transform into Enshadowed Delphinids. Their vibrant pink hues now give way to an inky blackness that seems to absorb light, rendering them nearly invisible in the depths of the ocean. The mischievous nature remains, but their water magic takes on an eerie void-touched quality, capable of stirring storms and unsettling the balance of the sea. The Enshadowed Delphinids dance on the boundary between whimsical chaos and the darker currents of the void.

    Void Tangleweed(uncommon - Hollowed Grounds): The normally spherical and sentient Tangleweed has been corrupted by the void. Its limbs, once resembling branches, now writhe with shadowy tendrils. Touching the Void Tangleweed not only induces numbness but also opens a temporary connection to the void, causing unsettling visions and hallucinations.

    Voidroot Wickerwomen (Rare/Mythical): Once guardians of the forest, these trees have succumbed to the void. Their once-benevolent nature twisted, their bark is now dark and covered in void runes. Instead of nurturing the Greatwood, they drain the life force of the surrounding flora, spreading void tendrils that corrupt the land.

    Voidweaver Spiders (Common): The once-useful Wine Spiders have become Voidweavers, their once-drunk demeanor replaced with a malevolent hunger. They spin webs of void energy, ensnaring anything that comes too close. Their venom induces nightmares, trapping victims in a perpetual state of terror.

    Void Whisperer(Uncommon - The Hollowed Grounds, Stormbreak): Originally a sentient book, the Void Whisperer has been tainted by the void. Instead of transporting people to fictional worlds, it now traps them in nightmarish realms filled with distorted realities and haunting echoes. Those who venture into its pages may find themselves lost in the twisted corridors of their own fears.


    King's End

    A peninsula of fertile, rolling hills. Spanning some 300km, the uneven terrain makes travel across this relatively short distance a lengthy affair, taking up to two weeks on foot. Nestled among the slopes, strange monoliths mark the existence of crypts buried deep beneath the soil. It is rumoured that this is the burial place of former gods, though this has never been proven.

    Similar to flatlands and meadows that edge toward mountainous regions, the types of animals that can often be found here are creatures like deer, leopards, cloud leopards, sloth bears, pandas, cranes, golden pheasants, Pallas' cats, pangolins, goats, boars, yaks, cows, Asian elephants, ants, giant hornets, caterpillars, snails, praying mantis, catfish, pondskaters, river turtles, long-eared owls, magpies, monitor lizards, water dragons, etc.

    King's End's Pinterest board

    Moushroom (common) - A small species of mouse that seems to have a mushroom growing out of its back. It's unknown if these are a singular organism or a case of symbiosis. Moushroom come in a variety of browns but mostly favor light brown or white. Delicious to eat.

    Blink Hares (common): A species of small fat rabbits, usually with piebald colouring. At first glance, they seem helpless, being clumsy and poor at running, but when they are in danger they can teleport short distances to evade hunters. Usually no further than ten feet, but they are tricky, often reappearing in different directions than the ones they disappeared into.

    Cockatrice (uncommon/mythical) - The cockatrice looks like a hideous hybrid of lizard, bird, and bat, and it is infamous for its ability to turn flesh to stone. These omnivores have a diet that consists of berries, nuts, flowers, and small animals such as insects, mice, and frogs—things they can swallow whole. They would be no threat to anything else if not for their fierce and frenzied response to even a hint of danger. A cockatrice flies into the face of any threat, squawking and madly beating its wings as its head darts out to peck. The smallest scratch from a cockatrice's beak can spell doom as its victim slowly turns to stone from the injury.

    Daemon (uncommon) - These are the restless spirits of companion creatures of myth: dragons, unicorns, griffins, and the like. They haunt the barrows, protecting the tombs of their bonded people, often reacting with hostility and violence against those who stray too close where their masters rest. Wounds from a daemon are deadly, poisoning the victim with the ether of the afterlife, and death will find them if they are not treated quickly.

    Dream Bird (uncommon) - The dream bird is a small bird with 6 pairs of wings and is an aray of bright blues, yellows, reds, pinks and purples. It has a red beaks with sharp teeth and pure white eyes; truly a horror to behold. A dream bird typically builds its nest high up in a tree on the outskirts of a city where it can hide from the townsfolk but still mess with their dreams. If you can find a nest and leave out food for the bird living there, they might take a liking to you and give you nice dreams. Should you try and chase them away, you can expect nightmares.

    Enenra (rare/mythical) - Cousins of the Banshee, Enenra are creatures of smoke and vapor who possess a shapless form, when the attack they generate a physical body of any appearance they like.

    KingMaker (Deceased/Mythical) - A chimera, with the heads of an elephant, bear, and swan. Legend has it that this beast was the companion of Caido, before going entirely mad. It is then said Rae made King's End just so that the creature could live its life in peace, where it would pose no threat to anyone.

    Quicksand Moss (uncommon) - Quicksand moss has the appearance of dead moss, although in reality this brown colour is due to it consuming animals instead of sunlight. It grows anywhere a regular moss or lichen would, but grabs any creature foolish enough to come near and quickly digests them.

    Unicorns (uncommon): Often seen in pairs, unicorns can come in a variety of different coat colours. Some have leonine tails, several horns, and cloven feet, but all are easily recognizable by their equine-appearance and their abilities to either heal or move with incredible speed.

    Villi (uncommon/mythical) - Often found haunting the tombs, Villis are the spirits of young lovers who died of heartbreak after being stood up at the altar. Usually appearing in groups of three, Villis are unable to rest quietly in their graves, and seek vengeance against those they perceive as being the source of their distress. They vanish at dawn and cannot appear during daylight hours.

    None!
    None!

    Corrupted Unicorns (Uncommon/mythical): Once beings of purity and grace, the Unicorns have become corrupted vessels of the void. Their coats, now darkened with shadows, conceal a malevolent power. Instead of healing, the touch of a Corrupted Unicorn spreads void taint, infecting wounds with the darkness of the void. These once-majestic creatures now roam the land, their hooves leaving behind echoes of void-laden despair

    Cursed Daisies (Common): Once the calming Sweetgrass, these void-corrupted daisies emit an unsettling aura. Instead of attracting pollinators, they draw in void insects that feed on the life force of anything nearby. Their sickly-sweet scent now conceals the stench of void decay.

    Spectral Villis (Uncommon/Mythical): These spirits, once seeking vengeance, have become void-infused specters. Their wails echo with the void's malevolence, and they manifest in shadows to terrorize the living. Those touched by a Spectral Villi are left with a void mark, a curse that attracts further void corruption.

    Void River Stars (uncommon): The carnivorous River Stars, tainted by void energy, have become even more sinister. Their once vibrant appearance has faded into shades of deep black and purple. Now, instead of waiting for prey to step onto their centers, they actively seek out creatures, using void-infused tendrils to ensnare and drain the life force from their victims.

    Voidquicksand Moss (Uncommon): The Quicksand Moss, now tainted by the void, exudes an even more ominous aura. Its brown appearance, once a result of consuming animals, now harbors an unsettling void energy. The moss not only grabs and digests unsuspecting creatures but also ensnares their souls in void-infested torment. Encountering Voidquicksand Moss means facing the dual threat of physical consumption and spiritual corruption.

    Void Vipers (Common): Once inquisitive Hanging Snakes, touched by the void, transform into Void Vipers. Their slender bodies now bear patterns that seem to absorb light, making them almost imperceptible in the shadowy depths of the woods. Instead of curiously exploring, they now slither with a purpose, seeking to entwine themselves around unsuspecting wanderers and imbuing them with a void-touched presence.


    Oerwoud

    Soft sands and bright skies bleed into lush greenery brimming with life. Humid and hazy, the Oerwoud jungle is never quiet, never dull. Bursting with life and colour, all manner of creatures and plantlife may be found here. Ever evolving, it is rumoured that Oerwoud is one of Rae's favourite playgrounds.

    The jungle inhabits quite the diverse and colorful arrangement of creatures, not limited to jaguars, tigers, clouded leopards, ocelots, crocodiles, caimans, tapirs, lemurs, monkeys, sloths, coatis, quetzals, macaws, toucans, hummingbirds, chameleons, basilisk lizards, tree frogs, vipers, rhinoceros beetles, tailless whip scorpions, leafcutter ants, etc.

    Oerwoud's Pinterest board

    Blushberry Bush (common): A smallish bush with bright blue flowers and clusters of bright yellow, edible berries. When eaten, a chemical in the berries causes cheeks to blush and obvious bashfulness in behaviour.

    Preying Orchid (uncommon) - If looked at from far away, it simply looks like a flower. However, upon closer inspection, instead of a pistil, it has a mouth with sharp teeth, and its stamens are replaced with eyes on tall stalks. However, by the point most notice, the Preying Orchid has already attacked them and ran away on its roots. When its roots are in the ground, the flower is less than 1 ft. tall. However, when standing on its roots, it becomes around 3 to 4 ft. tall.

    Sentient Vines (common) - It is rumoured that a seedling from the Oerwoud is what grew into the Greatwood. Regardless, both share similar sentient vines that are fond of disrupting travels and obscuring pathways. Often working with the local fauna to help trap prey.

    Walking Palm (uncommon) : Named 'walking palm' due to its wandering, many-legged root system, one would hope that these large trees weren't capable of actually meandering their way to water - except they most definitely are. Most likely to be spotted moving during sunset or sunrise, any individual noticing these trees maneuvering may also be caught or trapped by those freaky roots.

    Ceffyl Dŵr (uncommon) - A water horse, said to mostly inhabit mountain pools and waterfalls. Even if it appears corporeal, it can evaporate into mist and fog. Some legends suggest it entices unwary travelers to ride them, and when they fly into the air, they evaporate, dropping the rider to their death.

    Chebis Slug (common) - An orange slug with black spots that can grow up to 1ft in length. Facial markings make it appear to be constantly frowning. Shockingly fast.

    Dreamwalker (rare/mythical) - This Lord of the Oerwoud is only ever seen beneath a full moon and is a herald of great changes soon to come in the world. Its form flows like water, ever-shifting, as it takes on various traits of jungle creatures; sometimes furred, sometimes scaled, sometimes winged, sometimes walking on paws, or hooves, or talons as its body reflects the fauna of the Oerwood in rippling combinations. Its size stays roughly that of a great elk, and a pair of long, curved antlers wrapped in bark and adorned in glowing flowers that are constantly blooming, dying, and regrowing sprout from its forehead and spread back and up, no matter what other traits it has at the moment. Wherever it steps a profusion of flowers, mushrooms, ferns, and grasses spring up from the ground around its feet, lush and vibrant. When it steps out of the moonlight and into shadow its body fades into the darkness, only the glowing flowers of its antlers remaining visible for a few more moments before it vanishes entirely once more.

    Encantados (uncommon): A bright pink species of dolphin that are as mischevious as they are helpful. With water magic and the ability to both create and soothe storms, these blush-coloured creatures can help or hinder on a whim.

    Modilu Flies (common) - A bug that looks similar to a dragonfly, with larger, more elaborate wings. They feed on emotional energy, and the colours of they wings change in accordance with the mood they're currently sensing

    Molten Tigers (uncommon): Similar to any other kind of tiger in terms of size and build, these fierce predators are also metallic. Their stripes aren't just stripes, but appear to be made of liquid metal. They can come in all different kinds of hues, copper, gold, silver. If they remain in place for too long, the liquid begins to drip into small pools.

    Treeflits (common) - Jewel-toned, rainbow feathered creatures the length of a human arm, treeflits are legless lizards that can extend two small pairs of feathered wings to flutter and glide between branches as they seek out their favourite foods of insects and flowers. They have bright black eyes and communicate by songs. A treeflit can harmonize with itself and can mimic a vast array of sounds from its environment. They are clever and mischievous creatures that will steal shiny objects from travelers and replace them with tasty beetles in a form of trade. It is thought that they can see through illusions.

    Zhenniao (uncommon): Renowned for being poisonous birds, coated with a purple abdomen and green-tipped feathers, a long neck, and a crimson beak. They acquire their venomous attributes due to consuming poisonous snakes, especially vipers. Some have caught these birds to use their feathers in deadly toxins.

    None!
    None!

    Cursed Daisies (Common): Once the calming Sweetgrass, these void-corrupted daisies emit an unsettling aura. Instead of attracting pollinators, they draw in void insects that feed on the life force of anything nearby. Their sickly-sweet scent now conceals the stench of void decay.

    Nether Vines (uncommon): The once-sentient vines of the Oerwoud have succumbed to the influence of the void. Instead of playfully disrupting travels, the Nether Vines actively seek out unsuspecting prey. Covered in shadowy tendrils, these vines ensnare creatures and drain the life force from them. The air around them is thick with an oppressive darkness, making it challenging to navigate through the once-vibrant Oerwoud.

    Void River Stars (uncommon): The carnivorous River Stars, tainted by void energy, have become even more sinister. Their once vibrant appearance has faded into shades of deep black and purple. Now, instead of waiting for prey to step onto their centers, they actively seek out creatures, using void-infused tendrils to ensnare and drain the life force from their victims.

    Void Vipers (Common): Once inquisitive Hanging Snakes, touched by the void, transform into Void Vipers. Their slender bodies now bear patterns that seem to absorb light, making them almost imperceptible in the shadowy depths of the woods. Instead of curiously exploring, they now slither with a purpose, seeking to entwine themselves around unsuspecting wanderers and imbuing them with a void-touched presence.


    Stormbreak

    Nestled in the clouds some 5km above sea level, the capital city of Caido is just as lofty and grand as one might imagine. Everything within has been created by hand or with godly-assistance, and magical individuals are forbidden to set foot in the city. Indeed, statues line nearly every archway and road, crafted from sentient marble that can detect magic and will immediately turn all Abandoned to stone. Skyships dot the heavens all around the region, which spans nearly 800km across. It would take an individual just over one month to cross Stormbreak on foot.

    Stormbreak's Pinterest board

    Hand Mines (common): Living below the soil, hand mines are sentient bites of stone. Any abandon who walk over one are immediately grappled in an unbreakable grasp.

    Singing stones (common): Carved into the shapes that they are by the constant rubbing of starwhales and ghost whales, the singing stones emit an eerie and haunting melody when the wind rushes through them. It is a sound that the locals have come to love, but one which often strikes fear into the hearts of those who have not heard it before.

    Blink Hares (uncommon): A species of small fat rabbits, usually with piebald colouring. At first glance, they seem helpless, being clumsy and poor at running, but when they are in danger they can teleport short distances to evade hunters. Usually no further than ten feet, but they are tricky, often reappearing in different directions than the ones they disappeared into.

    Cloud Wyrm (uncommon - Cousins of the dragon, these small and serpentine creatures boast no wings or destructive breath. Rather, they breathe clouds. Their four-legged white bodies can be seen slithering through the air, puffy clouds streaming from their mouths to ease the intensity of the sun on the plains. They never get any bigger than a weasel, and are known as docile, playful creatures, and they seem to enjoy collecting shiny things

    Dream Bird (uncommon) - The dream bird is a small bird with 6 pairs of wings and is an aray of bright blues, yellows, reds, pinks and purples. It has a red beaks with sharp teeth and pure white eyes; truly a horror to behold. A dream bird typically builds its nest high up in a tree on the outskirts of a city where it can hide from the townsfolk but still mess with their dreams. If you can find a nest and leave out food for the bird living there, they might take a liking to you and give you nice dreams. Should you try and chase them away, you can expect nightmares.

    Ghost Whale (Rare): Ghost whales are enormous whales that inhabit the sea around the cliffs. From a distance, they appear like any regular whale might, but as they come nearer the illusion of skin fades away and their true form can be seen: a mere skeleton held together by ghostly sinew. Highly aggressive, these creatures swallow their prey whole leaving them to drown within the literal jail of their rib-cage, depositing their bodies in heaps on the ocean floor. Usually accompanied by strange birds and fish (perhaps they are dead too?), locals say the whales bring misfortune to the area it's spotted within.

    Mata Mata (uncommon) - Mata Mata are small black snakes with raven's wings. They dwell in the Grotto and enjoy spying on those who would use Stormbreak's root system as a means of hiding treasure or fencing items. Sometimes they can be persuaded to deliver messages, but typically they're just a nuisance.

    Rock Slider (common): an enormous, toothless serpent (no less than three full-sized humans in length), with small, flightless-wings where one would presume its ears to be. This creature hunts along rocky mountain paths where it lies, well-camouflaged, before ambushing large prey. It has no venom, instead coiling its length around the victim and strangling it.

    None!
    None!

    Abyssal Mata Mata (Uncommon): The Mata Mata, twisted by void corruption, have raven's wings of inky darkness. These Abyssal Mata Matas dwell in the void-laden Grotto, their eyes glowing with the shadows of the abyss. Encounters with Abyssal Mata Matas bring an unsettling aura of void-wrought foreboding.

    Shadow Serpent (Uncommon): Once a Rock Slider, the Shadow Serpent now moves with an eerie grace, its scales tainted by void energy. It lurks in the shadows, ambushing prey with a venom that induces hallucinations and despair.

    Void Messenger (uncommon): Feathers as dark as the void they traverse, these ravens serve as messengers for the infected, carrying whispers tainted by the void's influence. To the uninfected, their cawing echoes with an otherworldly dread, an unsettling harbinger of impending darkness. Where their 4-wings cast shadows, anxiety follows, a manifestation of the void's unsettling grip.

    Void Whisperer(Uncommon - The Hollowed Grounds, Stormbreak): Originally a sentient book, the Void Whisperer has been tainted by the void. Instead of transporting people to fictional worlds, it now traps them in nightmarish realms filled with distorted realities and haunting echoes. Those who venture into its pages may find themselves lost in the twisted corridors of their own fears.


    Torchline

    A vast archipelago, so named for the lights that burn along its shores, this cluster of islands is deceivingly large (including the water, almost 1200km wide, in fact!) Crossing the entire area would take just over 60 days in total. The region is home to Caido's busiest port, Kaiholo, famed for its shipmakers, fishermen and smugglers, as well as the remarkable, semi-floating city of Haulani. Beyond the coast, ships dropping anchor can make trade with the merfolk, or merely admire their shimmering city deep below.

    With a climate and flora/fauna similar to a tropical island, Torchline boasts some of Caido's most diverse flora/fauna. The beaches are littered with arecaceae (palm) plants of all varieties. Tropical fish can be found in the waters, as can dolphins, turtles, sharks, barracudas, and whales. Massive dragon-like lizards prowl the shores, sharing the sands with crabs, gulls, sealions, snakes, and monkeys. Bioluminescent algae make the beaches sparkle as if starlit at night. Closer to the ocean, you'll find sea turtles, seagulls, dolphins, iguanas, and seals. Whales like orcas, sperm whales, and humpback whales. Tropical fish found in coral reefs, and sharks. More inland you'll find mongoose, fire ants, tailless whip scorpions, macaws of all varieties, tree frogs, toucans, flying foxes, fruit bats, the odd sprinkling of cattle, geese, chicken.

    Torchline's Pinterest Board

    Molten Pineapple (common): These pineapples have adapted to Torchline's environment, developing a protective layer that withstands extreme temperatures. When harvested, their juicy, heat-resistant flesh is a favorite treat among the locals.

    Preying Orchid (uncommon) - If looked at from far away, it simply looks like a flower. However, upon closer inspection, instead of a pistil, it has a mouth with sharp teeth, and its stamens are replaced with eyes on tall stalks. However, by the point most notice, the Preying Orchid has already attacked them and ran away on its roots. When its roots are in the ground, the flower is less than 1 ft. tall. However, when standing on its roots, it becomes around 3 to 4 ft. tall.

    Reef Reaver (rare) - A Reef Reaver is a sentient collection of sand, stone, coral, and often some sea creatures. It stands anywhere from 13 to 18 feet tall, encompassing a total area of 10 to 15 feet on the ground.

    Aqueix (uncommon) - The Aqueix appears as a large turquoise bird with scales instead of feathers, and wings that act like fins. The body of the Aqueix is in constant flux between physical form and a liquid state. The Aqueix prefers to reside in rich coral beds or thick kelp forests. Wherever it chooses to create a home, the area is enriched and flourishes with flora and fauna that act as a defensive barrier for the Aqueix.

    Cloud Mantas (common/mythical): These plantimals have flattened, ray-like bodies, narrow, delicate heads with two large dark eyes, and flowing-finned or leaf-like tails similar to bettas. They're equally comfortable underwater and flying through the air. Large green splotches across the upper surface of their bodies are filled with chlorophyll and photosynthesize both food and oxygen. They also make meals of mosses and lichens. As they age a colorful crystal grows in the middle of their foreheads, comprised of excess minerals that they purify out of their bodies. If worn pressed against the throat these crystals are rumoured to allow someone to breathe underwater.

    Cloud Wyrm (uncommon/mythical) - Cousins of the dragon, these small and serpentine creatures boast no wings or destructive breath. Rather, they breathe clouds. Their four-legged white bodies can be seen slithering through the air, puffy clouds streaming from their mouths to ease the intensity of the sun on the plains. They never get any bigger than a weasel, and are known as docile, playful creatures, and they seem to enjoy collecting shiny things.

    Encantados (common): A bright pink species of dolphin that are as mischevious as they are helpful. With water magic and the ability to both create and soothe storms, these blush-coloured creatures can help or hinder on a whim.

    Ghost Whale (uncommon/mythical): Ghost whales are enormous whales that inhabit the sea around the cliffs. From a distance, they appear like any regular whale might, but as they come nearer the illusion of skin fades away and their true form can be seen: a mere skeleton held together by ghostly sinew. Highly aggressive, these creatures swallow their prey whole leaving them to drown within the the literal jail of their rib-cage, depositing their bodies in heaps on the ocean floor. Usually accompanied by strange birds and fish (perhaps they are dead too?), locals say the whales bring misfortune to the area it's spotted within.

    Hels (uncommon): Hels look vaguely like a species of seagull, but are quite friendly. Should one sit on your shoulder, you will find yourself suddenly able to walk on water! Be careful though, these birds are easily bored. Should they abandon you during an ocean-stroll, you will find yourself sinking into the water potentially hundreds of feet from the shore!

    L'ma (rare/mythical) : A massive roc that legend says was cast into the sea without its wings. Now it suffers a flightless life, forced to swim through eternity rather than fly.

    Mudtiger (uncommon/mythical) - A mudtiger resembles a cross between a shark and an aquatic lizard. It has a sinuous body covered in scales, a pair of triangular ventral fins, a blunt snout with a toothy maw, and a pair of thick, stubby forelimbs tipped with broad, rayed fins. A mudtiger's body is iridescent green with blue-green stripes. On land, a mudtiger slithers and hunches along, occasionally pausing to hold itself erect on its forelimbs. In the water, a mudtiger wriggles its body and steers with its forelimbs. A mudtiger also can burrow through soft or loose material such as sand, ooze, or mud.

    Ramphire (uncommon) - These four-legged herbivores have heads shaped very similar to a toucan, except they also have a pair of ram-like horns. Only about the size of a deer, they fall prey to many other animals so they travel in small herds, often accompanied by small birds or other prey animals. They're covered in soft downy feathers in bright pinks, purples, and yellows. Their horns are usually a pale shade of green, ending in a more purple tone but this varies on the amount of sun and the general health of the Ramphira. Their horns and feathers are often used for their medical properties.

    Sea Panther (rare/mythical) - Sea Panthers are rare creatures of monstrous size. As one might think, they have many feline features, including a long tail, paws, fangs, and eyes with vertical pupils. But per their aquatic nature their paws are webbed and wide, everything streamlined, and without fur. Their most notable features are their horns, one on each side in front of their ears. Lore has it these were created by Mort as a gift for Ludo, and as such Sea Panthers are thought to gather the souls of sailors lost at sea. Encountering one is considered an omen of death to come or a blessing from Ludo, depending on circumstance

    Sear Cats (uncommon/mythical): Cousins of the Cat Sith, Sear Cats appear to be large, generally fluffy house cats. However, they are blessed with the ability of limited-speech and precognition. Believed to have the power to amplify Abandoned spells they are a highly sought after companion - but good luck with that or getting straights answers. They are cats after all. They are found most often on ships due to their ability to predict oncoming storms.

    StarKnight Swordfish (common): Swordfish with tails that leave a trail of bioluminescent sparks as they swim. They navigate the warm coastal waters in groups, often interacting with sailors and guiding them safely through the seas or offering protection to swimmers.

    Star Whales (rare/mythical): Visible only during certain times of the year, these giant creatures typically travel alone as there are so few of them remaining. They have exceptionally poor eyesight which is why they are drawn to bright objects (like comets and can reliably be seen during meteor showers). They float through the heavens leaving a trail of stardust in their wake.

    Tide Jaguar (uncommon) - A distant cousin of the sea panther, the tide jaguar can be found in the forests and coasts of Torchline. The rosettes on these cats are bioluminescent, often a shimmering green, purple, or blue. Other colors are possible, but less common. Due to how visible their coats are at night, these cats are diurnal and can be found hunting on the rocks along the water, or lounging in a tree, at any point in the day. Said to be a favorite of Safrin's for how their coats resemble the starry sky at night.

    Tumseas (rare/mythical): Smaller cousins of the Tulmhainar, Tumseas are like moving ecosystems all unto themselves. With shells of brilliant blues and earth browns, these turtle-like creatures can grow to nearly 4ft in diameter and can hold their breath for decades at a time. Bringing vibrancy and health to all the underwater trails they follow, Tumseas are thought to be good omens and are often followed by schools of fish encantados

    None!
    None!

    Abyssal Geckoloth (common): Formerly vibrant geckos, these creatures now bear darkened scales that absorb light. They move in eerie silence, and their eyes glow with void energy. Locals consider them harbingers of impending void events.

    Cursed Embercat (uncommon/mythical): Descendants of the Sear Cats, the Cursed Embercats bear the mark of void corruption. Their once mystical powers of precognition are replaced by ominous visions, foretelling doom and darkness. They prowl the ashen landscapes, their eyes glowing with an unsettling void radiance.

    >Nether Veil Palm (uncommon): The once resilient palm now stands twisted, its fan-shaped leaves tainted by shadows. Dark tendrils reach out from its bark, creating an unsettling contrast to the once vibrant landscape. Touching the bark induces an unsettling feeling of coldness.

    Shadowed Pineapple (common): The molten pineapple's protective layer now harbors a dark energy, and its once juicy flesh is replaced with an unnaturally cold substance. Consuming it is rumored to bring vivid nightmares and a lingering sense of dread.

    Shadow Serpent (uncommon): Once a Rock Slider, the Shadow Serpent now moves with an eerie grace, its scales tainted by void energy. It lurks in the shadows, ambushing prey with a venom that induces hallucinations and despair.

    Void Dragon (rare/mythical - Torchline, Draig Cordillera, The Climb): The Void Dragon is a creature of ethereal darkness and cosmic malevolence. It has the ability to move through any terrain (including mountains) as if it were pressing itself through a stiff breeze. As it moves, tendrils of void energy trail behind it, distorting reality and leaving an unsettling emptiness in its wake.

    Voidshell Tumsea (uncommon/mythical): The once magnificent tumseas now carry shells covered in shadowy patterns. Void energy pulses beneath their ancient hides, and they are drawn to areas where void rifts are more prevalent, leaving a trail of corrupted energy in their wake.

    Voidbark Dudes (common): Twisted versions of the Walking Palms, these trees are void-infested horrors. Their roots writhe like serpents, seeking out the life force of anything they touch. The whispers of the void wind through their branches, echoing the demise of those ensnared by their shadows.

    Voidbound Hels (common ): The once friendly Hels now bear the taint of the void. If a Voidbound Hel chooses to land on you, a suffocating void aura envelops you instantly. It's no longer a matter of a leisurely stroll on the ocean; the void energy they bring becomes a relentless force, stealing your breath and plunging you into a desperate struggle for air.

    Void Messenger (uncommon): Feathers as dark as the void they traverse, these ravens serve as messengers for the infected, carrying whispers tainted by the void's influence. To the uninfected, their cawing echoes with an otherworldly dread, an unsettling harbinger of impending darkness. Where their 4-wings cast shadows, anxiety follows, a manifestation of the void's unsettling grip.


    Alphabetical

    Abyssal Alpina (common - Draig Cordillera): Known originally for their magical fur, anything made from the wool of an Abyssal Alpina will immediately cause feelings of claustrophobia and severe rashes will develop. Their headbutts, once a comical hazard for adventurers, are now infused with void energy, capable of disorienting and unsettling those who dare to approach.
    Abyssal Geckoloth (common - Torchline): Formerly vibrant geckos, these creatures now bear darkened scales that absorb light. They move in eerie silence, and their eyes glow with void energy. Locals consider them harbingers of impending void events.
    Abyssal Leviathan (Rare/Mythical - The Hollowed Grounds, Hak Etme): The subterranean lair of the Land Shark echoes with void energy, transforming unlucky sharks into the Abyssal Leviathans. Rising from the depths with an otherworldly hunger, this creature now possesses a shadowy, void-shrouded exterior. Its hunts are not merely for sustenance but to absorb the essence of those it captures, bringing the taint of the abyss to the surface as it returns to its lair to sleep in the void's embrace. The land above quivers with the unsettling presence of the Abyssal Leviathan, a creature that bridges the realm between the subterranean and the void-touched darkness.
    Abyssal Mata Mata (Uncommon - Stormbreak): The Mata Mata, twisted by void corruption, have raven's wings of inky darkness. These Abyssal Mata Matas dwell in the void-laden Grotto, their eyes glowing with the shadows of the abyss. Encounters with Abyssal Mata Matas bring an unsettling aura of void-wrought foreboding.
    Abyssal Shroud (Uncommon - Feverlands): The once-useful substance for creating nets has turned into a sinister tool, rendering anything caught within its tendrils not just nearly paralyzed, but also veiled in an unsettling void energy. The Abyssal Shroud drifts through the void-swamps with an insidious hunger, ready to ensnare and corrupt anything that crosses its path.
    Allogator (uncommon - Hollowed Grounds, Oerwoud, Feverlands) - An allogator is a crocodilian creature that evolved to take the appearance of a normal log. When it spots its prey, it remains motionless as it hides in plain sight, waiting for the prey to come to it, before attacking by surprise.
    Alpinas (common - Draig Cordillera) - Alpine sheep that have magical fur. It never gets dirty and always keeps the wearer the perfect temperature. Though these creatures are not very smart, their curling horns and headbutt-first think-later attitude has knocked many and adventurer off a mountain.
    Aqueix (uncommon - Torchline) - The Aqueix appears as a large turquoise bird with scales instead of feathers, and wings that act like fins. The body of the Aqueix is in constant flux between physical form and a liquid state. The Aqueix prefers to reside in rich coral beds or thick kelp forests. Wherever it chooses to create a home, the area is enriched and flourishes with flora and fauna that act as a defensive barrier for the Aqueix.
    Afanc (rare/mythical - Hollowed Ground): A horrific beast rumoured to live at the bottom of the Drop, the Afanc is unaffected by its raging current. Very little is known about it, other than it resembles a large octopus and that its teeth rival the size of the stones that border the Drop.
    Banshees (rare/mythical - Hollowed Ground, Greatwood): They take the form of a skeletal lady wrapped in rags. Some wander the woodlands, singing a haunting melody. Others sit near streams and weep. Either way, disturbing these creatures will cause them to become very aggressive. They can pursue their prey seemingly without need for rest, and will strangle all those that they catch.
    Black Dragon (uncommon/mythical, The Climb, Draig Cordillera) - Black dragons of average size. Highly aggressive with fiery breath that can instantly melt most substances.
    Blind Swamp Rat (common - The Climb, The Feverlands): A vicious rodent with large fangs. This aggressive monster hunts in family groups of five to ten, and though at first glance they don't appear particularly frightening (save for their massive size of roughly 3ft at the shoulder), the danger lurks in their putrid saliva. Even a graze from their teeth can lead to a swift infection and lethal septicemia.
    Blink Hares(common - Oerwoud, Stormbreak): A species of small fat rabbits, usually with piebald colouring. At first glance, they seem helpless, being clumsy and poor at running, but when they are in danger they can teleport short distances to evade hunters. Usually no further than ten feet, but they are tricky, often reappearing in different directions than the ones they disappeared into.
    Blood Birch (common - Halo) - Found within the Hollow Forest and mutated by magic, these trees have white trunks striped with silver, and white, semi-translucent leaves that are replaced each Flowerbirth. The sap within the trees is warm, bright crimson and tastes faintly metallic, almost like blood.
    Blushberry Bush (common - Oerwoud): A smallish bush with bright blue flowers and clusters of bright yellow, edible berries. When eaten, a chemical in the berries causes cheeks to blush and obvious bashfulness in behaviour.
    Boggart (???/mythical - Hollowed Ground): The boggart can take nearly any form that it can pull from your mind. As such, it's almost impossible to know just how many reside within the Labyrinth. What is known however is that they usually hunt in pairs, with one trying to frighten an intruder towards the other where they can be devoured and dragged back to their lair.
    Bogwump (uncommon - Feverlands) - More often heard than seen, the bogwump is a clever mimic that imitates the hunting cries of larger swamp predators to startle its prey into flight. Working from the shadows, it drives its quarry into quicksand mires with its calls and waits for them to become exhausted before revealing itself and moving in to feed on its still-living dinner. Bogwumps are otter-like creatures that stand two feet tall at the shoulder with deep chests, wide, webbed feet, and hollow bones that let them scamper across treacherous surfaces. Most unlucky travelers only see a bogwump's true form once, and it ends up being the last thing they see.
    Breath Snatch (uncommon - Halo) - A minor Halo nuisance, the Breath Snatch is a small elemental spirit that lingers in open areas on cold days. They're easiest to notice on bright days, a concentrated cloud of glittering frost lingering in the air, but if not noticed and walked into, the elemental will disperse in a puff of freezing air, often freezing the breath in the lungs of whomever was unlucky enough to come across it. It doesn't seem to possess enough sentience to be truly malevolent. Large groups of the spirits are rare, but potentially deadly if walked into unknowingly.
    Cat Sith (uncommon/mythical - Greatwood): A terrible omen in the woods, the Cat Sith takes the form of a black feline with a white spot upon its chest. It lingers nears the gravemounds of the freshly buried. Fae myth dictates that the creature will try to steal a soul away from its intended route, so that it might never reach the gods.
    Ceffyl Dŵr (uncommon - The Feverlands, Oerwoud) - A water horse, said to mostly inhabit mountain pools and waterfalls. Even if it appears corporeal, it can evaporate into mist and fog. Some legends suggest it entices unwary travelers to ride them, and when they fly into the air, they evaporate, dropping the rider to their death.
    Chebis Slug (common - Oerwoud) - An orange slug with black spots that can grow up to 1ft in length. Facial markings make it appear to be constantly frowning. Shockingly fast.
    Chunk (deceased/mythical - Hollowed Ground): Chunk was an incredibly old, incredibly fat black and white cat that lived in the Rathskeller. Despite his laziness he appeared to have been able to feed himself before humans arrived, though he did appreciate when others did this for him. Often found lazing around on the bar (sanitation department be damned), Chunk seemed to possess the uncanny ability to detect poison in food and drink. He would go from sleeping 20 hours a day and appearing all but dead for days on end, to moving with such sudden swiftness when he detected poison as to be absolutely shocking. Chunk was missing one eye, wore an eye patch, and none of his legs appeared to be quite the same length. He was killed when Loren Launceleyn burned down the Rathskeller during LongNight 309PC.
    Cloud Mantas (common/mythical - Torchline): These plantimals have flattened, ray-like bodies, narrow, delicate heads with two large dark eyes, and flowing-finned or leaf-like tails similar to bettas. They're equally comfortable underwater and flying through the air. Large green splotches across the upper surface of their bodies are filled with chlorophyll and photosynthesize both food and oxygen. They also make meals of mosses and lichens. As they age a colorful crystal grows in the middle of their foreheads, comprised of excess minerals that they purify out of their bodies. If worn pressed against the throat these crystals are rumoured to allow someone to breathe underwater.
    Cloud Spider (uncommon - Hak Etme) - Cloud spiders are truely a strange sight. Their gas filled abdomens allow them to float slowly across the desert. Cloud spiders hunt by launching their webbing to ranges up to 600 feet. Although each strand is as thin as silk, they are as strong as a steel cord. Strong enough, in fact, that careless wyrmlings have been entangled in cloud spiders' webs.
    Cloud Wyrm (uncommon/mythical - Torchline, Stormbreak, Hak Etme) - Cousins of the dragon, these small and serpentine creatures boast no wings or destructive breath. Rather, they breathe clouds. Their four-legged white bodies can be seen slithering through the air, puffy clouds streaming from their mouths to ease the intensity of the sun on the plains. They never get any bigger than a weasel, and are known as docile, playful creatures, and they seem to enjoy collecting shiny things.
    Cockatrice (uncommon/mythical - Oerwoud) - The cockatrice looks like a hideous hybrid of lizard, bird, and bat, and it is infamous for its ability to turn flesh to stone. These omnivores have a diet that consists of berries, nuts, flowers, and small animals such as insects, mice, and frogs—things they can swallow whole. They would be no threat to anything else if not for their fierce and frenzied response to even a hint of danger. A cockatrice flies into the face of any threat, squawking and madly beating its wings as its head darts out to peck. The smallest scratch from a cockatrice's beak can spell doom as its victim slowly turns to stone from the injury.
    Crystal Spiders (uncommon - Halo) - Living within the Hollow Forest, these man-sized, eyeless arachnids have perfectly clear chitin allowing their last meal to be seen within. They spin thin filaments of webbing between the trees to alert them when creatures are passing through, waking them from their long hibernations to stalk their prey. They have long, slender legs, a thick abdomen, and fangs that release a paralyzing toxin that lasts for several minutes in an adult human. In the light of fires or lanterns, they are almost invisible.
    Cursed Daisies (Common - Greatwood, King's End, Oerwoud, Torchline): Once the calming Sweetgrass, these void-corrupted daisies emit an unsettling aura. Instead of attracting pollinators, they draw in void insects that feed on the life force of anything nearby. Their sickly-sweet scent now conceals the stench of void decay.
    Cursed Embercat (uncommon/mythical - Torchline): Descendants of the Sear Cats, the Cursed Embercats bear the mark of void corruption. Their once mystical powers of precognition are replaced by ominous visions, foretelling doom and darkness. They prowl the ashen landscapes, their eyes glowing with an unsettling void radiance.
    Corrupted Unicorns (Uncommon - King's End): Once beings of purity and grace, the Unicorns have become corrupted vessels of the void. Their coats, now darkened with shadows, conceal a malevolent power. Instead of healing, the touch of a Corrupted Unicorn spreads void taint, infecting wounds with the darkness of the void. These once-majestic creatures now roam the land, their hooves leaving behind echoes of void-laden despair.
    Cygnata (uncommon - Hak Etme) - Cygnata have inspired many poets with their easy grace and beauty. These giant bird-like snakes seem to swim through the air instead of fly. With elongated bodies, lizard-like appendages and small wings, these creatures appear more like oriental dragons than birds. The crests on their heads are made of a hard almost stone-like material and are extremely valuable. Given the heights they fly at, it is extremely rare to be near enough to one to harvest its body. When they die, their bodies explode into a ball of light.
    Daemon (uncommon - Oerwoud) - These are the restless spirits of companion creatures of myth: dragons, unicorns, griffins, and the like. They haunt the barrows, protecting the tombs of their bonded people, often reacting with hostility and violence against those who stray too close where their masters rest. Wounds from a daemon are deadly, poisoning the victim with the ether of the afterlife, and death will find them if they are not treated quickly.
    Darklings (uncommon/mythical - The Climb) - A darkling is a cloud of dark fog or mist that can roughly alter its shape as it chooses, often appearing as a cloud with vague facial expressions. When angered, darklings can turn themselves into a screaming cyclone of teeth. https://imgur.com/uV65dhF.jpg
    Devil's Klaw (uncommon - The Feverlands): A near-sentient species of plant that resembles a white decaying hand, the Devil's Klaw lives on the swamp-floor hidden by the mists. Using legs which appear like long fingers, it pulls itself along the ground though only moves when it isn't being looked at. It follows wanderers through the swamp waiting for them to make camp and fall asleep. When they do, it attaches itself to their faces, secreting nightmare hallucinogens into their minds until they die from a heart-attack.
    Dream Bird (uncommon - Stormbreak, King's End, Hollowed Grounds) - The dream bird is a small bird with 6 pairs of wings and is an aray of bright blues, yellows, reds, pinks and purples. It has a red beaks with sharp teeth and pure white eyes; truly a horror to behold. A dream bird typically builds its nest high up in a tree on the outskirts of a city where it can hide from the townsfolk but still mess with their dreams. If you can find a nest and leave out food for the bird living there, they might take a liking to you and give you nice dreams. Should you try and chase them away, you can expect nightmares.
    Dream Cacti (common - Hak Etme): These cacti are like any others seen in other worlds at first, their flesh full of water and nutrients. However, their barbs are different, the spines that cover the plant can cause extreme nightmarish hallucinations. Extracts from these spines can be used as one of the ingredients to make a drug known as ThirdEye - a powerful if not unpredictable psychedelic.
    Dream Fish (uncommon/mythical - Hollowed Ground): The Dream Fish is a species of pearly-white fish that lives deep at the bottom of the Oasis's pool. Only rarely do they surface and they are almost never caught by animals or by fishing rods. Instead they choose to appear to those who are internally conflicted or are not at peace. By touching one of their scales the Dream Fish can induce a self-aware dream state within an individual and help guide them through their subconscious to let them work out some of their inner troubles.
    Dreamwalker (rare/mythical - Oerwoud)) - This Lord of the Oerwoud is only ever seen beneath a full moon and is a herald of great changes soon to come in the world. Its form flows like water, ever-shifting, as it takes on various traits of jungle creatures; sometimes furred, sometimes scaled, sometimes winged, sometimes walking on paws, or hooves, or talons as its body reflects the fauna of the Oerwood in rippling combinations. Its size stays roughly that of a great elk, and a pair of long, curved antlers wrapped in bark and adorned in glowing flowers that are constantly blooming, dying, and regrowing sprout from its forehead and spread back and up, no matter what other traits it has at the moment. Wherever it steps a profusion of flowers, mushrooms, ferns, and grasses spring up from the ground around its feet, lush and vibrant. When it steps out of the moonlight and into shadow its body fades into the darkness, only the glowing flowers of its antlers remaining visible for a few more moments before it vanishes entirely once more.
    Echo Ferns (common - The Greatwood): Originally vibrant and harmonious, the Echo Ferns now resonate with void energy. Their once-green fronds have withered into darkened silhouettes, and each rustle of their leaves emits an unsettling echo. Touching the Echo Ferns not only causes physical discomfort but also triggers haunting whispers that echo through the depths of the Greatwood
    Echo Shark (common - Greatwood, Torchline, Hollowed Grounds) - A dwarf species of shark known for hunting in packs, the Echo Shark can live in both freshwater and saltwater. They are able to mimic any sound they've heard and band together to increase their range of vocals. The sharks use the words and sounds they've learned to lure unsuspecting prey into the water, where the sharks will then leap up and drag them into the waves.
    Eclipsed Qilin (rare/mythical - Hak Etme) - This mythical, one-horned creature, once revered as a harbinger of good luck and protection, now embodies an omen of impending darkness. Its horn, once a beacon of hope, now casts an eerie void glow, and its presence is no longer a promise of success but a harbinger of misfortune. Encounters with the Eclipsed Qilin in the desert no longer bring blessings but rather induce hallucinations, blurring the line between reality and the void's twisted illusions. Beware those who seek the once-auspicious creature, for in the desert, its appearance now foretells a shadowed fate.
    Efas Herb (uncommon - Hollowed Ground): The Efas herb can be found close to the heart of the Labyrinth and possesses quite extraordinary medical properties. It serves as a panacea for most minor ailments, can reduce bruising and swelling, is an anti-inflammatory, can decrease pain, and can settle stomachs. The herb grows on small green stalks of grass and looks like a small cluster of brown protrusions.
    Elephant Beetle (common - Greatwood): A relatively unintelligent, giant black beetle that cannot fly. Males grow long tusks and both adult genders grow to around 4 foot. Though their brains are particularly small in proportion to their size, they are capable of carrying several times their own body weight and are commonly found around Fae villages where they labour in exchange food. These beetles can shift objects with their tusks and though slow, can be ridden or pull carts.
    Encantados (common - Torchline, Oerwoud): A bright pink species of dolphin that are as mischevious as they are helpful. With water magic and the ability to both create and soothe storms, these blush-coloured creatures can help or hinder on a whim.
    Enenra (rare/mythical - King's End) - Cousins of the Banshee, Enenra are creatures of smoke and vapor who possess a shapeless form, when they attack they generate a physical body of any appearance they like.
    Enshadowed Delphinids (common - Torchline, The Greatwood, Hollowed Grounds): Once playful Encantados, touched by the void, transform into Enshadowed Delphinids. Their vibrant pink hues now give way to an inky blackness that seems to absorb light, rendering them nearly invisible in the depths of the ocean. The mischievous nature remains, but their water magic takes on an eerie void-touched quality, capable of stirring storms and unsettling the balance of the sea. The Enshadowed Delphinids dance on the boundary between whimsical chaos and the darker currents of the void.
    The Fe-Fiada (rare/mythical - Greatwood): A supernatural mist which, whilst rare, will blanket the entire forest when it does appear. Voices and visions can appear in the mist, and magic users will find their abilities... unreliable.
    Frost Fox (uncommon/mythical - Halo) - After generations of ingesting small amounts of mageglass, these fox descendants have undergone magical mutations. Always cold to the touch and impervious to Halo's freezing conditions, their fur always has a bit of frost clinging to it. Instead of yipping, their calls can be likened to the sound of ice creaking and cracking.
    Frost Giants (Uncommon/mythical - Halo, Draig Cordillera): Standing 6m tall, these creatures are largely nomadic because there is often not enough food for them to live in groups. Clothed in animal hides or sometimes nothing at all, these giants have skin like leather that protects them from the elements. Capable of tearing humans in half with their hands, they attack anything that moves and can rarely be reasoned with.
    Fyrhund (uncommon - The Climb): Elemental creatures of earth and fire, fyrhunds make their nests and lay their eggs in shallow pools of lava within active volcanoes. Roughly canine in appearance, they are the size of small bears. Though their outer skin is covered in black, rock-like armor plating, they bleed viscous lava in place of blood. They are fierce carnivorous hunters, though only the very young eat meat. Older fyrhunds eat stone and even metal, which helps to harden their natural armor. They tend to be solitary unless raising a family, in which case they are extremely territorial and aggressive. These hellish creatures have the ability to unhinge their jaws and either breathe fire or spit heated acid.
    Ghost Whale (Rare - Torchline, Stormbreak): Ghost whales are enormous whales that inhabit the sea around the cliffs. From a distance, they appear like any regular whale might, but as they come nearer the illusion of skin fades away and their true form can be seen: a mere skeleton held together by ghostly sinew. Highly aggressive, these creatures swallow their prey whole leaving them to drown within the literal jail of their rib-cage, depositing their bodies in heaps on the ocean floor. Usually accompanied by strange birds and fish (perhaps they are dead too?), locals say the whales bring misfortune to the area it's spotted within.
    Giant Mushrooms (common - Greatwood): These giant mushrooms grow to be nearly 10ft across and have a surface that is so flexible, many of the Fae use them when learning to fly as they can bounce a small human up to 20ft in the air.
    Gilded Lily (uncommon - Hollowed Ground): These beautiful blossoms are wondrous to behold, but should never be picked. Possessing long white petals bearing exquisite black spots, this species of lily is not only poisonous to eat, but to touch as well. As soon as one is picked, immediately the sweet aroma of the flower increases. As it does so, the toxins it releases go to work on the nervous system rendering anyone in a 5ft radius suddenly incapable of moving. Slowly their heartbeats will slow and their cardiovascular system will shut down entirely. Pollen from the flower, carefully extracted, can be used as one of the ingredients to make a drug known as Dreamdust - a powerful depressant providing sedative effects.
    Gilled Musk Deer (uncommon - The Feverlands): A relatively harmless creature, these musk deer are thought to have the ability to breathe underwater, due to the set of gills on their muzzles. They might be seen diving below marshland, eating away at the vegetation.
    Glotters (common - Greatwood) - These massive otters love to adorn themselves with the shiniest, glitteriest things they can find. As people so often lose shiny valuables in the river, the Glotters have found this the perfect place to call home. Following one might either lead you to treasures of your own, or result in you getting your toes bitten off.
    Glow Stones (common - Hollowed Ground): Appearing pale white in the daytime, as the sun sets these regular-appearing stones suddenly emit a soft blueish-white, or pale yellow light, casting the Glade in a welcoming haze of colour. If the stones are removed from the glade, they cease to continue this strange phenomenon.
    Goldfish (common - Greatwood): Swimming in huge shoals and growing up to half a metre in length, these fish are prized for their meat and gleaming scales. They often swim downriver, presumably heading for the sea.
    Gore Crow (common - The Climb, The Feverlands) - Twice the size of their more common brethren, gore crows boast wickedly sharp beaks and talons that could pierce even the hide of a dragon, and even sharper wit to boot. Preferring human meat, their inky black feathers often glisten red with their most recent feast. Traveling in small groups, their eerie caws of words like "Eyes!" and "Meat!" can be heard echoing across battlefields or haunting a hunter's trail. These fearsome birds with gleaming red eyes are not to be trifled with, for it is not uncommon for a gore crow to finish off injured prey.
    Gossipflys (uncommon - Draig Cordillera) - Butterfly-like creatures with the face and voices of a human. They only speak in song-lyrics and offer notoriously unhelpful answers to questions when asked.
    Hand Mines (common - Stormbreak): Living below the soil, hand mines are sentient bites of stone. Any abandon who walk over one are immediately grappled in an unbreakable grasp.
    Hanging Snakes (common - Hollowed Ground, Greatwood): A fairly curious and intelligent species of snake that hang from branches such that they often look like vines. Beware, though - they are fond of slithering down innocuously to lay themselves over the shoulders of those who wander through, like to curl up inside of bags, and otherwise participate in exploring through the woods.
    Hels (uncommon - Torchline): Hels look vaguely like a species of seagull, but are quite friendly. Should one sit on your shoulder, you will find yourself suddenly able to walk on water! Be careful though, these birds are easily bored. Should they abandon you during an ocean-stroll, you will find yourself sinking into the water potentially hundreds of feet from the shore!
    Humming Bats (common - Hollowed Ground): A large colony of bats live in the rooftops of the domiciles. Coming out only at night as they are wont to do, this species of bat uses both echolocation to determine their surroundings as well as an oral phenomena that sounds to human ears like humming. They are roughly hand-sized, are easily frightened, and happily eat away the bugs that would otherwise linger near your doors and windows.
    Kappa (rare/mythical - Hollowed Ground): The Kappa is a mythical beast that has the body of a turtle, the limbs of a frog and the head of what looks like a scaled bird. It is a relatively passive creature unless it is startled or threatened and spends much of its time flying through the mists beneath the Bone Bridge. Legend says that it has a cave somewhere in the gorge, though no one has ever been able to find it.
    L'ma (rare/mythical - Torchline) : A massive roc that legend says was cast into the sea without its wings. Now it suffers a flightless life, forced to swim through eternity rather than fly.
    Labyrinth (common/mythical - Hollowed Ground): Whether or not the Labyrinth itself is sentient is hard to know. What is well documented, however, is how often some of the hedges seem to move. The only problem is that it happens so quickly and quietly that the most likely explanation is simply that explorers have mistaken things. Right?
    Lamplighters (uncommon, The Feverlands): Giant fish that swim through the spectral fog, lamplighters sing songs from the memories of those around them and lure them into the deep and darkest places of the swamp with promises of a way out. With hallucinogens in the light they emit, many a wanderer has found themselves hopelessly lost in the swamp. The Lamplighters wait until their prey has died of exhaustion before eating their bones.
    Land Shark (rare - Hollowed Ground, Hak Etme): This creature rarely moves to the surface from its home deep beneath the terrain. It rises up only to feed, snatching livestock or other animals (or people) before returning to its lair to sleep, sometimes for months.
    Lava Wyrms (uncommon - The Climb): These draconic wyrms appear most often as puddles of lava that seem to drip from place to place. Rarely do they amalgamate into a recognizable wyrm-form, though when they do, they are only about the size of a small cat. Fiery in temperament and temperature, they are more of a nuisance than an actual threat.
    Lials (uncommon - The Climb): One of the few creatures that can stand the heat of the underground lava flows, lials are vicious, movement-driven hunters. Appearing to be what you might get if you imagine a crocodile made completely from volcanic rock and lava, these creatures can grow to be upwards of 5 meters in length. With incredible speed, lials rely on their super-heated bodies to kill their prey simply by throwing themselves at them. Lial blood is used as one of the ingredients for a drug known as Snapdragon - an intoxicating stimulant causing feelings of euphoria and lowered inhibitions.
    Luxere (Common - Halo): Luxere are a species of reindeer who through genetic mutation have developed bio-luminescent antlers. Their antlers glow a soft golden colour and they seem to naturally repel dark magic as well as magical darkness. Though they are kind and gentle, they are also rather skiddish, dislike loud noises and tend to avoid dark-magic users and favour light-magic users. They like fresh fruit, hay, and singing.
    Magic Mushroom. (rare - The Feverlands): A mushroom that glows like a beacon once plucked, it appears like any other mushroom until its stem has been severed.
    Mata Mata (uncommon - Stormbreak) - Mata Mata are small black snakes with raven's wings. They dwell in the Grotto and enjoy spying on those who would use Stormbreak's root system as a means of hiding treasure or fencing items. Sometimes they can be persuaded to deliver messages, but typically they're just a nuisance.
    Memory Mud(Flowerbirth/common): What happens when memory snow melts into a muddy puddle and Rae feels sorry for it? Voila! Memory Mud is unintelligent and largely harmless, squelching its way into the most inconvenient places! More annoying than dangerous, it might play fetch with you. But probably not.
    Memory Snow (Common - Halo, Draig Cordillera): When shaped, the fallen snow seems to retain a memory of that shape and will reform if disassembled (snowmen who are knocked over or who melt will immediately reform when possible)
    Mirage Crab (uncommon - Hak Etme) - The mirage crab has a large, flat body, over 5 ft in diameter. It has six legs, and two 10-ft long tentacles. It can be found on beaches and in desert regions, where it burrows under the sand to wait for its prey. The mirage crab can create a minor illusion around itself, making itself appear like any naturally occurring creature or object. lts preferred mirage is that of a small oasis, with the appearance of a pool of water over its mouth, and its tentacles appearing like two tall Palm Trees. When potential pray comes over to investigate or drink the water, the illusion fades away and the mirage crab latches on with its tentacles and consumes its prey with its sharp mandibles.
    Modilu Flies (common - Oerwoud) - A bug that looks similar to a dragonfly, with larger, more elaborate wings. They feed on emotional energy, and the colours of they wings change in accordance with the mood they're currently sensing
    Molten Pineapple (common - Torchline): These pineapples have adapted to Torchline's environment, developing a protective layer that withstands extreme temperatures. When harvested, their juicy, heat-resistant flesh is a favorite treat among the locals.
    Molten Tigers (uncommon - Oerwoud, the Climb): Similar to any other kind of tiger in terms of size and build, these fierce predators are also metallic. Their stripes aren't just stripes, but appear to be made of liquid metal. They can come in all different kinds of hues, copper, gold, silver. If they remain in place for too long, the liquid begins to drip into small pools.
    Moonshrooms (common - Halo) - Delicious mushrooms with bio-luminescent properties. Able to grow in crevices and fissures in the ice, at night these mushrooms look like small lanterns scattered across the Fangs.
    Morgen (rare/mythical - Greatwood): A bad omen, Morgen is often blamed when the Stonesong bursts its banks. She likes to prey on men, in particular, and can be seen by moonlight in the reflection of the river. A creature of ethereal beauty, she will beckon onlookers to join her in the water. But beware any who do - at the first chance Morgen will snag and drown her victims, dragging them to the bottom of the river to feast upon their flesh.
    Moushroom (common - Oerwoud) - A small species of mouse that seems to have a mushroom growing out of its back. It's unknown if these are a singular organism or a case of symbiosis. Moushroom come in a variety of browns but mostly favor light brown or white. Delicious to eat.
    Mudtiger (uncommon/mythical - Torchline) - A mudtiger resembles a cross between a shark and an aquatic lizard. It has a sinuous body covered in scales, a pair of triangular ventral fins, a blunt snout with a toothy maw, and a pair of thick, stubby forelimbs tipped with broad, rayed fins. A mudtiger's body is iridescent green with blue-green stripes. On land, a mudtiger slithers and hunches along, occasionally pausing to hold itself erect on its forelimbs. In the water, a mudtiger wriggles its body and steers with its forelimbs. A mudtiger also can burrow through soft or loose material such as sand, ooze, or mud.
    The Naiad (uncommon/mythical - Greatwood): A title given to a young Fae at birth, the Naiad is said to bring luck and fortune to the Sea of Branches. Visitors to the village will often see the Naiad being carried upon a litter - tradition dictates that their feet must never touch the shore, else ruin will come upon the settlement.
    Nether Veil Palm (uncommon - Torchline): The once resilient palm now stands twisted, its fan-shaped leaves tainted by shadows. Dark tendrils reach out from its bark, creating an unsettling contrast to the once vibrant landscape. Touching the bark induces an unsettling feeling of coldness.
    Nether Vines (uncommon - Oerwoud): The once-sentient vines of the Oerwoud have succumbed to the influence of the void. Instead of playfully disrupting travels, the Nether Vines actively seek out unsuspecting prey. Covered in shadowy tendrils, these vines ensnare creatures and drain the life force from them. The air around them is thick with an oppressive darkness, making it challenging to navigate through the once-vibrant Oerwoud.
    Ningo (common - Halo): A fat all-white bird that produces high-quality meat. Its feathers are often used to line jackets and hats because of its insulating qualities.
    Paper Wasps (uncommon - Hollowed Ground): Paper wasps are roughly the size of a clenched fist. They are insects that lay their eggs in books. The pages are absorbed by the developing eggs and form the bodies of the wasps, and they use the covers of the books to build their hives. They harvest the ink from written words to feed their larvae and colored ink is fed to their large queens. They can go into a dormant hibernation state for decades if there are no books to be found, but eventually dry up and crumble to dust. Although they are highly flammable they do not burn quickly, so be careful about setting them on fire if you won't want the flames spreading as the wasps continue flying. Their stingers do considerably more damage than a paper cut, and inject a venom that can cause fevers and migraines.
    Papermoths (common - Greatwood): These moths are roughly the size of a piece of paper, and when their wings are relaxed and flat, words from actual book pages can be clearly read. This is a defense mechanism which has evolved from all their years living in the Undercroft; if they land on an open book, their wings mirror the words on it for up to 3 days. These creatures are totally blind, and the dust from their wings serves as a natural preservative for the pages of the books.
    Penolaeth (common - The Feverlands): Ranging from the size of pebbles to large boulders depending on the type of skull they inhabit, these black crab-like creatures roam the swamps eating decaying flesh from discarded carcasses. Most often found lurking around piles of bones to camouflage their 'shells', the penolaeth are typically docile until one of two things triggers them: 1) If their skull-shells are threatened they will attack with their 8 razor-sharp legs, capable of cutting off fingers or decapitating heads in larger penolaeths; or 2) If a more enticing skull comes along (even if it is attached to something still living), they will stop at nothing to try and claim it for themselves.
    Peppermint Bark (common - Hollowed Ground, Greatwood): Not made out of chocolate, the bark of the poplar trees within the forest actually have a minty taste. Though you would never know it simply by just walking by, to nibble on the bark invites a wonderful sensation in your mouth.
    The Prince (deceased/mythical - The Prince): Its name is an insult. The Prince is no such thing. A horrifically mutated creature, the Prince is actually an ascended-experiment gone wrong. Reptilian in nature, and probably once a frog, the Prince has 6 eyes, though only 3 of them are functional. The remainder are covered in a thick white film. With a distended stomach, horrifically webbed feet that stick unhelpfully to every surface and a number of open sores covering all of its body, the Prince does its best to stay hidden deep in the Underground where no one will have to look upon it.
    Preying Orchid (uncommon - Greatwood, Hak Etme, Oerwoud, Torchline, Feverlands) - If looked at from far away, it simply looks like a flower. However, upon closer inspection, instead of a pistil, it has a mouth with sharp teeth, and its stamens are replaced with eyes on tall stalks. However, by the point most notice, the Preying Orchid has already attacked them and ran away on its roots. When its roots are in the ground, the flower is less than 1 ft. tall. However, when standing on its roots, it becomes around 3 to 4 ft. tall.
    Qilin (rare - Hak Etme): A mythical, one-horned creature meant to symbolize the arrival or passing of an imminent ruler, luck, protection, pr success, and are revered as generally good omens. They are a rare sight - one would have to be privileged to ever come across one. Seeing one in the desert likely signals a hallucination though, rather than the real thing.
    Quicksand Moss (uncommon - King's End, Hollowed Grounds) - Quicksand moss has the appearance of dead moss, although in reality this brown colour is due to it consuming animals instead of sunlight. It grows anywhere a regular moss or lichen would, but grabs any creature foolish enough to come near and quickly digests them.
    Rae's Lilies (rare - The Climb): Purest white and veined with turquoise and gold, these lilies may only be found along the edges of the Frey's Breath hot springs. Rumoured to contain all the healing power of the springs and more, they are a mythical find indeed.
    Ramphire (uncommon - Torchline) - These four-legged herbivores have heads shaped very similar to a toucan, except they also have a pair of ram-like horns. Only about the size of a deer, they fall prey to many other animals so they travel in small herds, often accompanied by small birds or other prey animals. They're covered in soft downy feathers in bright pinks, purples, and yellows. Their horns are usually a pale shade of green, ending in a more purple tone but this varies on the amount of sun and the general health of the Ramphira. Their horns and feathers are often used for their medical properties.
    Red Lichen (common - Greatwood): Found in the pools of water beneath the falls, this lichen is safe to touch but toxic if consumed. It will attach itself eagerly to any surface and multiplies quickly.
    Reef Reaver (rare - Torchline) - A Reef Reaver is a sentient collection of sand, stone, coral, and often some sea creatures. It stands anywhere from 13 to 18 feet tall, encompassing a total area of 10 to 15 feet on the ground.
    Rock Slider (common - Draig Cordillera, The Climb, Stormbreak): an enormous, toothless serpent (no less than three full-sized humans in length), with small, flightless-wings where one would presume its ears to be. This creature hunts along rocky mountain paths where it lies, well-camouflaged, before ambushing large prey. It has no venom, instead coiling its length around the victim and strangling it.
    ROUS (uncommon - Hollowed Ground): These large rodents are entirely blind but have increased olfactory senses. They gnaw on the stone walls to sharpen and help trim their long teeth and eat mostly garbage. Humans are a delicacy that these creatures like to hunt in packs.
    Ringing Algae (common - Greatwood) - A species of massive algae that grows in the underwater caverns of the Stone Symphony. Due to its size, the air bubbles it produces are large and sturdy enough for a human to stick their head into and breathe for a time, however doing so will cause a period of tinnitus to follow.
    River Stars (uncommon - Greatwood, King's End, Oerwoud, Torchline) - About 3ftx3ft, River Stars look like giant starfish, though are more commonly found out of the water. Carnivorous in nature, River Stars wait until an animal has walked onto their centers before rocketing themselves straight into the air where they will hang some 20-30ft above the ground for days on end until their prey has died from starvation, at which point they will slowly be digested. Once this is done, the River Star will fall back to the ground, scattering bones and other indigestible parts as it falls.
    Sea Panther (rare/mythical - Torchline) - Sea Panthers are rare creatures of monstrous size. As one might think, they have many feline features, including a long tail, paws, fangs, and eyes with vertical pupils. But per their aquatic nature their paws are webbed and wide, everything streamlined, and without fur. Their most notable features are their horns, one on each side in front of their ears. Lore has it these were created by Mort as a gift for Ludo, and as such Sea Panthers are thought to gather the souls of sailors lost at sea. Encountering one is considered an omen of death to come or a blessing from Ludo, depending on circumstance.
    Sear Cats (uncommon/mythical - Torchline): Cousins of the Cat Sith, Sear Cats appear to be large, generally fluffy house cats. However, they are blessed with the ability of limited-speech and precognition. Believed to have the power to amplify Abandoned spells they are a highly sought after companion - but good luck with that or getting straights answers. They are cats after all. They are found most often on ships due to their ability to predict oncoming storms.
    Seed Ghosts (uncommon - Hollowed Ground): Named as their bodies are almost entirely transcluscent, the Seed Ghosts are a pest that feed off of the sweet flesh of the apples. Roughly the size of a quarter, the Seed Ghosts have both pinchers on their face and a stinger with which to irritate their prey. Though they aren't deadly, their bite/sting will leave quite a welt that can last for up to a week. The Seed Ghosts get their name as they can often burrow into the core of an apple and stay there. Eating the seeds first, if/when they do attack someone who has mistakenly grabbed the apple in which they reside, residences at one point chalked this up to some sort of retaliation on the part of the apple tree and, noticing the missing seeds, labeled the strange phenomena (and later the creatures themselves) Seed Ghosts.
    Sentient Books (uncommon - Hollowed Ground): Occasionally books may move about the atheneum on their own. If opened, these books can transport a group of no more than three into whatever tale is written inside of them. No lasting damage can be done while inside this story-like world and nothing can be transferred back and forth.
    Sentient Vines (common- Oerwoud) - It is rumoured that a seedling from the Oerwoud is what grew into the Greatwood. Regardless, both share similar sentient vines that are fond of disrupting travels and obscuring pathways. Often working with the local fauna to help trap prey.
    Shadowed Pineapple (common - Torchline): The molten pineapple's protective layer now harbors a dark energy, and its once juicy flesh is replaced with an unnaturally cold substance. Consuming it is rumored to bring vivid nightmares and a lingering sense of dread.
    Shadow Serpent (uncommon - Torchline, The Climb, Stormbreak): Once a Rock Slider, the Shadow Serpent now moves with an eerie grace, its scales tainted by void energy. It lurks in the shadows, ambushing prey with a venom that induces hallucinations and despair.
    Shangyang (uncommon - Hak Etme) - The Shangyang or 'Rainbird' is capable of predicting the rain. Stories say that if one is found dancing upon one leg, that terrible downpours and storms are imminent. Used as a way of detecting flash-floods, these pale birds are signs of terrible things to come.
    Singing stones (common - Stormbreak): Carved into the shapes that they are by the constant rubbing of starwhales and ghost whales, the singing stones emit an eerie and haunting melody when the wind rushes through them. It is a sound that the locals have come to love, but one which often strikes fear into the hearts of those who have not heard it before.
    Snow Moss (common - Hollowed Ground): This species of moss appears at the base of many trees in the Woodland, possessing one very interesting trait: it is almost always cold. Creatures can be seen laying on it during the warmer months to relieve the heat, and it has been used as a compress by weary travellers more than a few times.
    Spark Bird (deceased/mythical - Hollowed Ground): The Spark Bird, often thought of as merely a myth, is a magical creature that dwells deep in the heart of the Glade. Not native to the Hollowed Grounds, the creature has sought out the lushness of the Glade as a precaution. When the bird flies, sparks are emitted from its wings which have the ability to cause fires in drier locations. Thus the bird stays where the foliage is normally quite green and moist to prevent this. However, this has forced the creature into a deep depression, as it can no longer fly as often as it would like for fear of damaging the environment. A kind creature by nature, the Spark Bird now hides from those that would seek to find it.
    Speaking Squirrels (common - Hollowed Ground, Greatwood): Appearing like a slightly larger version of a common ground squirrel, the speaking squirrels - as their name suggests - can speak. Or they appear to. Their vocabulary is limited to "yes", "no", and "follow me!" Though it is entirely unclear whether or not they understand actually speech and the words they are saying, they nonetheless will answer questions and will lead wayward souls around the Labyrinth. Calls of "follow me!" have led a number of victims to their death, as the squirrels have absolutely no idea where they are going.
    Spectral Villis (Uncommon/Mythical - King's End): These spirits, once seeking vengeance, have become void-infused specters. Their wails echo with the void's malevolence, and they manifest in shadows to terrorize the living. Those touched by a Spectral Villi are left with a void mark, a curse that attracts further void corruption.
    Spinebloom (Common - The Climb): Once a vibrant flower with razor-sharp petals, the Spinebloom has succumbed to the influence of void energy. The petals now emit an eerie, dim glow, and their edges have become even sharper. Touching the Spinebloom now can cause an unsettling numbness, and the once sweet fragrance has turned into a foul, otherworldly scent.
    StarKnight Swordfish (common - Torchline): Swordfish with tails that leave a trail of bioluminescent sparks as they swim. They navigate the warm coastal waters in groups, often interacting with sailors and guiding them safely through the seas or offering protection to swimmers.
    Star Whales (rare/mythical - Greatwood): Visible only from the tops of trees, these giant creatures typically travel alone as there are so few of them remaining. They have exceptionally poor eyesight which is why they are drawn to bright objects (like comets and can reliably be seen during meteor showers). They float through the heavens leaving a trail of stardust in their wake. The Fae believe that, if read properly, the stardust gives details about the future.
    Stone Golems (uncommon/mythical - Hollowed Ground): Large, rocky constructs, these clumsy creatures aren't too bright, and instinctively will attempt to batter or smash anything that disturbs them. They can be found lurking sometimes in abandoned domiciles. They are very vulnerable to daylight, collapsing to dust under the rays of the sun.
    Sunstreak (rare - Hak Etme) - Thought by some to be distant cousins of the Firebird, sunstreaks are desert creatures with vibrant plumage in yellows, reds, and oranges. False sparks dance across their backs and wings when they move and scatter behind them in flight, glittering in their trailing tail feathers. Slender heads balanced on long, graceful necks tipped with long, sharp beaks bear crowns of golden display feathers. Half the height of a human, sunstreaks are more often seen racing across the sand on their broad-taloned feet, but are thought to be a sign of good luck when seen flying, especially at dawn or dusk.Sunstreaks are almost always found in pairs; when seen alone, especially outside of Hak Etme, they are often omens of drought or plague soon to come.
    Sweetgrass (common - Greatwood, Hollowed Grounds, King's End, Oerwoud) - A tall green grass that lines riverbanks. It produces a slightly sweet, vanilla smell that attracts bugs to pollinate its light purple flowers. It is a common substitute to sugar in baking and can be found in many teas as well for its calming effect.
    Tangleweed (common - Hollowed Ground): Appearing like nothing more than an amalgamation of sticks, the Tangleweed is actually an arguably sentient creature. For the most part it appears spherical in nature, keeping its many limbs tightly pulled against itself to form a round shape. It moves as if blown by the wind, suddenly rolling forward on the hard packed earth and then stopping just as suddenly. Having almost no natural predators, these creatures are found in great numbers especially close to the magnetic field. It is often impossible to tell if a Tangleweed is dead or alive unless they are touched. If interacted with, the branch-like limbs will lash out and close quick effectively on whatever they can grasp, at which point a poison is released which causes the skin to numb. Then, quite like other species of carnivorous plants, the Tangleweed slowly begins to digest its prey.
    Toad Stools (common - The Feverlands): Appearing like slightly bumpy but serviceable stools, Toad Stools using this form of natural camouflage and trickery to trap their prey. Waiting for someone to grow tired and sit upon them, the four 'legs' of the 'stool' swiftly snap upwards binding their weary target while poisonous enzymes slowly break their bodies down.
    Tudalopus (uncommon - Greatwood) - Resembling a small octopus, these strange, semi-translucent creatures have made their home in the sunken levels of the Undercroft. Having dined upon the pages of disintegrating books, these cephalopods have unknowingly stored the words in their pigment sacs. When sung to, these creatures become docile and still and their chromatophores are engaged such that their skin suddenly becomes a fully legible book. The larger the book consumed, the larger the Tudalopus. If these creatures are removed from the water, they will die and their knowledge will be lost.
    Treeflits (common - Oerwoud) - Jewel-toned, rainbow feathered creatures the length of a human arm, treeflits are legless lizards that can extend two small pairs of feathered wings to flutter and glide between branches as they seek out their favourite foods of insects and flowers. They have bright black eyes and communicate by songs. A treeflit can harmonize with itself and can mimic a vast array of sounds from its environment. They are clever and mischievous creatures that will steal shiny objects from travelers and replace them with tasty beetles in a form of trade. It is thought that they can see through illusions.
    Tide Jaguar (uncommon - Torchline) - A distant cousin of the sea panther, the tide jaguar can be found in the forests and coasts of Torchline. The rosettes on these cats are bioluminescent, often a shimmering green, purple, or blue. Other colors are possible, but less common. Due to how visible their coats are at night, these cats are diurnal and can be found hunting on the rocks along the water, or lounging in a tree, at any point in the day. Said to be a favorite of Safrin's for how their coats resemble the starry sky at night.
    Tulmhainar (rare/mythical - Greatwood): Its name means earth and world and turtle and it is just that. A gigantic turtle so large that it has its own gravitational pull, the tulmhainar looks like a mountain given life. With earth and illusion magic, there is currently only one tulmhainar in all of Caido. It feeds off of memories, usually creating an illusory world where it in human-form and its 'storyteller' can talk.
    Tumbleweed Golem (rare - Hollowed Grounds, Hak Etme) - A big, hulking mass of sentient tumbleweeds that is extremely aggressive.
    Tumseas (rare/mythical - Torchline): Smaller cousins of the Tulmhainar, Tumseas are like moving ecosystems all unto themselves. With shells of brilliant blues and earth browns, these turtle-like creatures can grow to nearly 4ft in diameter and can hold their breath for decades at a time. Bringing vibrancy and health to all the underwater trails they follow, Tumseas are thought to be good omens and are often followed by schools of fish encantados
    Undine (rare/mythical - Greatwood): A creature rumoured to live behind the waterfall, its voice can be heard singing sweetly on clear nights when the moon is new. Shy and reclusive, it hasn't been seen for years.
    Unicorns (uncommon/mythical - Oerwoud): Often seen in pairs, unicorns can come in a variety of different coat colours. Some have leonine tails, several horns, and cloven feet, but all are easily recognizable by their equine-appearance and their abilities to either heal or move with incredible speed.
    Ursur (Common - Halo): These gigantic polar bear-esque creatures boast thick woolly coats and long serrated tusks. They feed primarily on luxere and wayward explorers, but will eat anything that once had a heartbeat.
    Veil Fungus (uncommon - The Feverlands): A white net-like fungus that grows in the trees. It captures its prey by dropping down upon them and slowly digesting them. It is one of the best substances to use for creating nets, as once it is removed from the swamp it ceases to digest what is held within and instead renders them nearly-paralyzed.
    Villi (uncommon/mythical - King's End) - Often found haunting the tombs, Villis are the spirits of young lovers who died of heartbreak after being stood up at the altar. Usually appearing in groups of three, Villis are unable to rest quietly in their graves, and seek vengeance against those they perceive as being the source of their distress. They vanish at dawn and cannot appear during daylight hours.
    Vi's Roses (rare - Greatwood): A beautiful crimson flower with thorns of deep gold, it is rumoured that these roses are coloured with Vi's lifeblood. When planted, they have the ability to cleanse the area around them.
    Voidbark Dudes (common - Torchline, Oerwoud): Twisted versions of the Walking Palms, these trees are void-infested horrors. Their roots writhe like serpents, seeking out the life force of anything they touch. The whispers of the void wind through their branches, echoing the demise of those ensnared by their shadows.
    Voidbound Hels (common - Torchline): The once friendly Hels now bear the taint of the void. If a Voidbound Hel chooses to land on you, a suffocating void aura envelops you instantly. It's no longer a matter of a leisurely stroll on the ocean; the void energy they bring becomes a relentless force, stealing your breath and plunging you into a desperate struggle for air.
    Void Dragon (rare/mythical - Torchline, Draig Cordillera, The Climb): The Void Dragon is a creature of ethereal darkness and cosmic malevolence. It has the ability to move through any terrain (including mountains) as if it were pressing itself through a stiff breeze. As it moves, tendrils of void energy trail behind it, distorting reality and leaving an unsettling emptiness in its wake.
    Void Echo (common - Halo, Draig Cordillera): The Memory Snow, tainted by the void, now retains memories darker than winter's chill. When disturbed, the snow reforms not into innocent shapes but into haunting echoes of past void-touched events. These echoes carry a sense of foreboding, glimpses of void-tainted occurrences that whisper cryptic messages to those who witness the unsettling reformation.
    Voidforged Fyrhunds (Uncommon - The Climb): The once molten vitality of Fyrhunds is now tainted by the void, transforming them into Voidforged Fyrhunds. The black armor plating that once protected them takes on a shadowy, ethereal quality, and their eyes burn with an otherworldly flame. Instead of breathing traditional fire, they exhale void-touched flames that can consume not just physical matter but also the essence of magic itself. Their territorial nature becomes more pronounced, and they guard their nests with a malevolent intensity, threatening both the physical and magical balance of The Climb.
    Void Foxes (uncommon - Halo): Corrupted Frost Foxes, Their forms are now purple, and their frost-laden fur glows with an otherworldly cold. Instead of yipping, their calls resonate with ghostly whispers, capable of freezing the hearts of those who hear it.
    Void Lotus (uncommon - Hak Etme): Once a symbol of purity and enlightenment, the Void Lotus has been tainted by the void. Its petals, once pristine white, now shimmer with ominous shades of deep purple and black. The serene fragrance has transformed into a haunting scent that induces a sense of unease. Those who linger too close risk being drawn into a nightmarish dreamscape.
    Void Luxere (common - Halo): Their once glowing antlers now emit an unsettling void-glow, repelling light magic and casting a shadow over the icy landscape. Extremely aggressive. If killed, they yield rotten meat.
    Void Messenger (uncommon - Torchline, Stormbreak): Feathers as dark as the void they traverse, these ravens serve as messengers for the infected, carrying whispers tainted by the void's influence. To the uninfected, their cawing echoes with an otherworldly dread, an unsettling harbinger of impending darkness. Where their 4-wings cast shadows, anxiety follows, a manifestation of the void's unsettling grip.
    Voidroot Wickerwomen (Rare/Mythical - Greatwood, Hollowed Grounds): Once guardians of the forest, these trees have succumbed to the void. Their once-benevolent nature twisted, their bark is now dark and covered in void runes. Instead of nurturing the Greatwood, they drain the life force of the surrounding flora, spreading void tendrils that corrupt the land.
    Void River Star (uncommon - Greatwood, King's End, Oerwoud, Torchline): The carnivorous River Stars, tainted by void energy, have become even more sinister. Their once vibrant appearance has faded into shades of deep black and purple. Now, instead of waiting for prey to step onto their centers, they actively seek out creatures, using void-infused tendrils to ensnare and drain the life force from their victims.
    Voidshade Ursur (common - Halo): These once majestic Ursurs, coated in thick, shadowy fur, now roam the icy wastelands of Halo. Void tendrils protrude from their mouths, and their once-intelligent eyes are now soulless voids. The touch of a Voidshade Ursur drains the warmth from living beings, leaving them frozen in despair.
    Void Tangleweed(uncommon - Hollowed Grounds): The normally spherical and sentient Tangleweed has been corrupted by the void. Its limbs, once resembling branches, now writhe with shadowy tendrils. Touching the Void Tangleweed not only induces numbness but also opens a temporary connection to the void, causing unsettling visions and hallucinations.
    Voidshell Tumsea (uncommon - Torchline): The once magnificent tumseas now carry shells covered in shadowy patterns. Void energy pulses beneath their ancient hides, and they are drawn to areas where void rifts are more prevalent, leaving a trail of corrupted energy in their wake.
    Voidquicksand Moss (Uncommon - King's End, Hollowed Grounds): The Quicksand Moss, now tainted by the void, exudes an even more ominous aura. Its brown appearance, once a result of consuming animals, now harbors an unsettling void energy. The moss not only grabs and digests unsuspecting creatures but also ensnares their souls in void-infested torment. Encountering Voidquicksand Moss means facing the dual threat of physical consumption and spiritual corruption.
    Void Vipers (Common - King's End, Oerwoud, Torchline, Greatwood): Once inquisitive Hanging Snakes, touched by the void, transform into Void Vipers. Their slender bodies now bear patterns that seem to absorb light, making them almost imperceptible in the shadowy depths of the woods. Instead of curiously exploring, they now slither with a purpose, seeking to entwine themselves around unsuspecting wanderers and imbuing them with a void-touched presence.
    Voidweaver Spiders (Common - The Hollowed Grounds, Torchline, Halo): The once-useful Wine Spiders have become Voidweavers, their once-drunk demeanor replaced with a malevolent hunger. They spin webs of void energy, ensnaring anything that comes too close. Their venom induces nightmares, trapping victims in a perpetual state of terror.
    Void Whisperer(Uncommon - The Hollowed Grounds, Stormbreak): Originally a sentient book, the Void Whisperer has been tainted by the void. Instead of transporting people to fictional worlds, it now traps them in nightmarish realms filled with distorted realities and haunting echoes. Those who venture into its pages may find themselves lost in the twisted corridors of their own fears.
    Walking Palm (uncommon - Oerwoud) : Named 'walking palm' due to its wandering, many-legged root system, one would hope that these large trees weren't capable of actually meandering their way to water - except they most definitely are. Most likely to be spotted moving during sunset or sunrise, any individual noticing these trees maneuvering may also be caught or trapped by those freaky roots.
    Water Elementals (Uncommon/mythical - Halo): Not much is known about these creatures other than that they appear during particularly nasty storms. With the ability to manipulate the water in the icy-landscape as well as that within your body, water elementals range from incredibly dim-witted to quite clever.
    Whisper Fish (common/mythical): This strange species of fish live in the river that winds around the Bodega. With a vocal range that is not unlike a parrot's, these fish can be heard telling fragmented versions of Fae stories and lore, often gathering in small groups and performing strange one-word story monologues with each other.
    Whispering Will-O-Voids (Common - Greatwood): Corrupted versions of the mischievous Will-O-Wisps, these entities now lead travelers not astray, but into the heart of void-infested groves. Their eerie lights hypnotize, luring unsuspecting wanderers into the grasp of lurking void creatures.
    White Dragons (Rare/mythical - Halo, Draig Cordilerra): Living in underground tunnels that are warded with ice and snow, white dragons hoard treasure and anything they deem beautiful. Often this means that one might find gold, gems, and frozen humans stored in their caves. They can speak the basic common tongue and can communicate telepathically with the attuned, though they are secretive, vain, and usually aloof and unhelpful.
    Wicker Woman (rare/mythical - Hollowed Ground, Greatwood): Whilst the name suggests a person, this is actually a species of tree. The Wicker Woman has gnarled and twisted branches which will fold gently around anything that brushes past it. Whilst it causes no harm, it is incredibly difficult to escape its embrace, and travellers have starved to death in the past after becoming snared by it. The sap of the Wicker Woman is rumoured to be a potent hallucinogenic.
    Will-O-Wisps (common - Greatwood): Glowing orbs of light that dance and weave between the branches, despite their usefulness, these creatures are not to be trusted. Mischievous and loyal to no one, they will lead travellers astray at a moment's notice.
    Wine Spiders (common - Hollowed Ground, Torchline, Halo): These friendly arachnids can grow up to the size of a small housecat. With fuzzy bodies and spindly legs, they are often found lurking around wine racks or kegs of beer. They are almost always drunk, hiccuping and stumbling about. It is said that finding a baby wine spider in your drink is a lucky omen!
    Zhenniao (uncommon - Oerwoud): Renowned for being poisonous birds, coated with a purple abdomen and green-tipped feathers, a long neck, and a crimson beak. They acquire their venomous attributes due to consuming poisonous snakes, especially vipers. Some have caught these birds to use their feathers in deadly toxins.


    RPG-D