Bestiary

This is a compendium of animals and beasts found on the world of Kai'lar. Most of the information is focused more on the relative game world of the continent of Athera, and the Kingdom of Solamir. All of this may be considered common knowledge.

Amphibians

Amphibians on Solamir range from tiny cave and tree frogs to larger salamanders. They dwell primarily in wetlands and around lakes or rivers with distinctly different species having evolved around any large body of fresh water. Amphibians lay eggs, and many go through a tadpole stage, changing in shape and function at various points in the growth process including the formation of legs to support the body on land.

Bullfrog

The baritone call of the bullfrog is so deep and resonant, it resembles the mooing of a cow, hence its name. Only males emit this trademark bellow, and their choruses can be heard during the day and night. Bullfrogs are the biggest of the frog species, and are typically green or grey-brown with brown spots.

Skreek

This species of frog is a social animal, living in groups of up to six individuals; however, captive skreek frogs can live in much larger groups, but eventually lose their toxicity. It is one of the most poisonous animals on all of Kai'lar, with a deadly toxin that coats the skin, and when touched, causes the muscles to contract to an inactive state, and lead to heart failure or fibrillation. They are found in moist areas of the Solvalore and are extremely hard to find, despite the bright color.

Yumphi

This species of frog is another that can be difficult to find within Solvalore. The Yumphi spends a major portion of its lifespan in trees, and do not normally descend to the ground, except to mate and spawn. They can change their color for better camouflage, ranging from greens to greys. They are tiny, as their weight has to be carried by the branches and twigs of their habitat. Their legs are a delicacy for the rich.

Ember Ants

Small red ants that generate heat through rapid movement. Colonies are used by some smiths to keep embers alive overnight.

Glasswing Locust

Translucent-winged insects whose swarms strip fields bare in hours. Their wings are used in fine jewelry and arcane focusing lenses.

Glowbelly Newt

A palm-length amphibian found in the marshy edges of the Narothen. Its translucent underbelly emits a faint blue-green glow when threatened, believed to be a defensive reaction that warns predators of its mildly toxic skin. Alchemists prize dried glowbelly glands for night-vision draughts.

Mudskulk Toad

A squat, warty toad that buries itself beneath riverbanks with only its eyes exposed. When startled, it emits a sharp croak that can startle horses and spook mounts. Common near rural crossings and blamed for many an overturned cart.

Birds

Birds are bipedal, warm-blooded animals characterized primarily by feathers, forelimbs modified as wings, and hollow bones. There are many dozens of different varieties of birds found throughout Athera that range in size from tiny songbirds to eagles. Some birds feed on seed or insects, while others are birds of prey that hunt rodents and small mammals. Birds vary by region.

Ashwing Crow

A coal-black crow with faint grey mottling on its wings, common near battlefields and old ruins. Farmers claim they gather before death, not after. Often associated with Mor'tael cult superstitions, though no proof exists.

Suncrest Heron

A tall, golden-feathered wading bird found along rivers and floodplains of Solvalore. Its plumes are considered symbols of patience and vigilance. Killing one is seen as poor luck among riverfolk.

Terrador

The Terrador is a colossal red eagle, one of the largest birds of prey on Athera and rivaled only by dragons in the skies. With long, broad wings built for power and speed, it can soar for leagues on the high winds. Its talons are strong enough to crush a human skull, and its hooked beak tears effortlessly through flesh and hide. Terrador build vast nests, called eyries, upon the tallest trees or the sheerest cliffs. Their eggs are prized as delicacies, and their feathers are sought after for the finest fletching in the realm.

Domestic Animals

There are numerous types of domestic animals found in Athera that range from cats and dogs, which are kept as pets, to pigs, chickens, and cows which are raised for meat and/or dairy use. Each Solamirian village has its own unique domestic animals depending on the local fauna and past trade with other villages that has introduced sometimes rare or exotic animals into a foreign ecology.

Eels

Eels are predators that dwell in the shallow waters of the Narothen and in various other swampy areas of Athera. Depending on their species, eels can range from the size of a human's hand to almost nine-feet in length. Colors vary greatly by species, but it can generally be assumed that eels of bright colours or extravagant patterns are poisonous while those of a more drab appearance are not. The fishermen of Costigan are excellent eel hunters, harvesting eels out of the Narothen and exporting the meat and skins throughout Athera. Eel skin leather is highly prized. It is very smooth and exceptionally strong.

Hagfish

Notorious for it's slimy skin, which oozes from its glands in times of stress and danger. They are the garbage collectors of the marshes, eating dead and rotting animals, being very unsavory to other predators. Swarms of slimehags have been known to eat a carcass from the inside out. The slime is notoriously difficult to remove for those who wish to harvest the leather or meat, hence the nickname the slime eel.

Stingus

The Stingus is the alpha of the eel world. Besides the crocodile, they have nothing to fear in the Narothen besides each other. While not the biggest, or the fastest, they certainly have the deadliest bite. They are rather territorial, and are loners except when it comes time to breed.

Elk

Solamirian elk are large herd animals similar to common deer though their coloring is much darker, their size more formidable, and they have a shaggier mane of hair around their head and neck. Elk are hunted throughout the hills and the mountains of Solamir. They have impressive racks of antlers, and a unmistakable call, and a cautious nature. Elk are more commonly found at night due to their nocturnal feeding habits. Elk meat, while tougher and stringier than beef, is commonly eaten on Solamir and elk hides are very soft and supple. Many a huntsman dabbles with antler carving, and it is quite common to find elk heads or antlers mounted on a wall where a good kill is seen as a trophy of sorts.

Fish

Fish are your typical gill-bearing aquatic animal, and are abundant in most bodies of water. There are many different types, and some have evolved into dangerous marine predators.

Ambertail

The ambertail is a type of freshwater cod that is known throughout Solamir as the largest fish in Athera, and the longest living. It is a carnivorous fish that mainly eats other fish. A single catch can often feed a common family.

Ghostsnapper

The ghostsnapper is a freshwater trout found exclusively within Lake Bhan and its feeding rivers. It is a game fish, for it is extremely difficult to catch due to it's fast swimming speed and it's elusive ability to steal bait and not get caught.

Ironjaw Pike

A long-bodied freshwater predator with bony ridges along its jawline. Known for snapping fishing spears clean in half. Their teeth are sometimes mounted into daggers or charms.

Flecklefin

The flecklefin is a type of freshwater trout that has earned its way into the diets of many commoners in Solvalore due to their unfishy taste, decent size, and the fact that the meat is easily filleted. Flecklefin trout are found exclusively in Widow River.

Hedgehorn

The hedgehorn is a rhinoceros-like herbivore with a thick, dark brown hide upon which grows the parasitic stranglethorn vine. This gives the hedgehorn an odd form of natural camouflage through the years that the vine remains immature, yet is regrettably lethal to the animal when the strangleweed finally reaches the point in its growth cycle that it devours its host using the corpse as fertilizer so that it can grow and turn to seed. Hedgehorn are timid animals unless provoked, at which time they can become quite dangerous. While hedgehorn are hunted throughout Solamir, it is the need to destroy the dangerous plant that they unknowingly help to spread that makes them prey to mankind. The meat and hide of the hedgehorn are useless, and upon making a kill most good-natured hunters quickly burn the corpse to prevent the spread of stranglethorn.

Lizards

Lizards are the dominant life of Subterranea. They are cold-blooded reptiles that thrive in the warm thermal subterranean tunnels and many have either adapted to life without sight or gained the ability to see in perfect darkness. There are thousands of varieties of lizards found in Subterranea ranging from the stilt lizard which is about the size of a human's finger to the giant garanu which is the ultimate subterranean predator. For the Haed, lizards are a common part of life. They are used for food, for their skins, and as mounts.

Garanu

Garanu are a long, carniverous, six-legged creature, remote to the depths of Subterranea. They are carnivorous, and eat everything. Their tough hide, if skinned and worked properly can prove to be an exceptionally tough piece of armor, and their tender white meat is considered a delicasy. They can climb and swim rather quickly, though are unable to outrun a human on foot, and their razor-sharp teeth and spikey tails are used as deadly weapons.

Mountain Lions

Mountain lions are a large, long-tailed, unspotted cat with a long lithe body. They are sleek and golden in color with darker markings present on their feet and a black-tipped tail. Mountain lions are also referenced by the names cougar in the north of Solamir, and pumas in eastern Solamir. Mountain lions are present everywhere there are deer at high altitudes as deer form the staple of their diets. Contrary to popular belief, mountain lions do not commonly attack man unless they are suffering from a shortage of food, and they do not make their dens in caves, choosing instead to shelter under overhanging ledges, cliff crevices, and dense thickets. Mountain lion meat is not commonly eaten outside of Armstad where "the men's men" enjoy chewing on anything that might have chewed on them under different circumstances.

Rabbits

Rabbits are small mammals found throughout Solamir, and they are also referred to as bunnies by children. There are several different breeds of rabbit in Solamir, which vary geographically and lend slightly differing appearances. The rabbits of the mountains are generally larger and lankier than those of the prairie, for example. Rabbits are hunted for their pelts and meat, raised domestically, and rabbit milk is commonly used in a medicinal draught for the purpose of nursing malnutrition.

Ripaladon

The Ripaladon is rumoured to be the largest predatory marine creature within Athera. Many of the facts about the Ripaladon are tales spun by ship wrecked sailors, with the only real proof that finds its way into public hands are razor sharp teeth that reach a length of about half a foot long.

Siltlamp Minnow

Tiny schooling fish that emit faint bioluminescence. Used by swamp-folk as living lanterns when kept in glass jars. Short-lived outside water.

Shellfish

Shellfish is a term used to describe shelled mollusks and crustaceans used as food throughout Athera, such as oysters, scallops, shrimp, lobsters, and crab. Shellfish are typically the domain of the citizens of Solan Ros who are skilled at plucking these delicacies from the seas and coastline. With such a limited supply of shellfish, they are a delicacy throughout Solamir.

Stormfin Whale

A coastal leviathan rarely seen but often heard. Sailors claim its passage calms storms rather than causes them. Bones occasionally wash ashore and are used in temple construction.

Fox

The gray foxes and ringtail foxes of Solamir stand a little over a foot tall at the shoulder, with ringtails being slightly larger and heavier than the grays who average about 15 pounds. Both breeds of Solamirian fox are resourceful and agile, and they are able to scurry up and down trees with relative ease. Fox are mostly nocturnal and crepuscular woodland creatures found in all forests. Fox are carnivores, eating other small animals, but they are also fond of Niva Berries which grow in abundance in Solvalore.

Glassstep Deer

A rare breed of deer found near mist-heavy valleys. Their hooves make almost no sound on stone, giving rise to folklore that they "walk between moments." Highly prized but rarely caught.

Gravehorn Ram

A massive mountain ram with blackened horns. Said to sense death nearby and flee days in advance. Shepherds follow their migrations as omens.

Skunks

Skunks are small carnivorous animals with a bushy tail, black fur with white markings and the ability to eject a foul-smelling oily liquid when they are frightened or in danger. Skunks are nocturnal, and they are generally solitary animals that shelter by day in burrows that they dig with their powerful front claws. Occasionally, they choose to seek out the burrows of other animals. Most natural predators, including men, avoid attacking skunks for fear of being sprayed. The only exception to this are large owls which occasionally do attack small skunk because, being birds, they have virtually no sense of smell.

Stoneback Badger

A burrowing mammal with thick, plate-like fur along its spine. Extremely aggressive when cornered. Trappers value its hide for reinforcement linings in armor.

Suncoil Adder

A desert-adapted snake with metallic-gold banding. Venom causes hallucinations and heat delirium rather than paralysis. Occasionally milked by Meltarran poisoners.

Rockscale Tortoise

A slow-moving reptile with a shell so hard it must be cracked by hammer or fire. Some grow moss and lichens, making them resemble boulders when resting.

Subterranean Panther

Subterranean panthers are a giant cat species found only in Subterranea. They are able to see clearly in the dark subterranean passageways and their dark coats blend perfectly into the native stone to give them camouflage that is ideally suited to their environment. Subterranean panthers are lone hunters who are very territorial about the caverns that fall within their hunting ground, and a single large panther may lay claim to several miles of tunnels. Like most of the predators of Subterranea, subterranean panthers do prey on man.

Tunnel Grazer

A massive, blind herbivorous lizard that feeds on fungi and root-masses. Non-aggressive, but stampedes have collapsed entire tunnel networks.

Whisperleeches

Pale, finger-length parasites that attach to warm-blooded creatures. Their presence causes faint auditory hallucinations over time. Common nuisance for Haed travelers.

Wild Boar

Wild boar are the ancestors of domestic pigs. They live in thick woodlands across Solamir. Wild boars can grow up to six feet long and they have thick, short, bristly coats ranging in colour from brown to black. Male wild boar have sharp tusks that stick out around their snouts and these are used in hunting to snare and rip their prey. Solamirian wild boars are carnivorous and they prey on anything smaller that they are able to kill. The meat of wild boar is commonly served in Armstad, where wild boar is a dinner staple.

Wolves & Wargs

Wolves & Wargs are social predators found throughout Solamir, hunting in packs governed by strict hierarchies, with larger and more aggressive wolfhulks often rising as alphas. Rarest of all are Wargs, immense black-furred wolf-kin whose intelligence and presence unsettle even seasoned huntsmen; where one prowls, packs grow unnaturally disciplined, bold, and relentless. Wargs are widely believed to recognize traps, weapons, and weakness, and their appearance is often taken as an ill omen tied to war, famine, or great bloodshed. Most folk know only that Wargs cannot be truly tamed and that attempts to collar or break them end brutally, leaving scars on land and men alike. Stories persist of distant peoples who ride them and others who chain them, but such tales are half-whispered and poorly understood by common Solamirians, who have learned one hard truth instead: when wolves stop fleeing and begin hunting with purpose, something far worse than hunger is driving them.