Difference between revisions of "Fauna9"

Latest revision as of 13:36, 1 September 2014

General content: | Felaryan fauna | Felaryan flora | Races | Characters | Locations | History and Lore | Science and Magic | Culture and Customs | List of all available articles

The Felayan fauna is composed of many species from many worlds which makes it very varied and unpredictable. See also carnivorous plants and plant life. These pages feature mostly dangerous or remarkable creatures. There is many many others, from small animals to harmless herbivores, or unreported species that aren't listed here but exist and are part of the great Felarya food chain.

• Jungle fauna - page2 - page3

• Marsh fauna

• Aquatic fauna

• Rough terrain fauna

• Dungeon fauna

• Plains fauna

• Ice terrain fauna

• Dimensionally unstable terrain fauna

• Underground fauna

Threat Ranking:

• Minimal: A totally harmless being such as a mouse or a rabbit.
• Very Low: Mostly herbivores but who can still strike back if attacked.
• Low: Various animals such as felines.
• Moderate: A moderately dangerous Felaryan creature can still be very dangerous in another world. For example a great white shark would rank between Low and Moderate here...
• Medium: A predatory, dangerous and often man-eating creature.
• High: A great predator. Crisis is in this category.
• Very High: A top predator. This creature could take on a small army.
• Critical: In Felaryan scales, very few creatures reach this rank.
• Extreme: A guardian or a mythical creature. Only a god can hope to survive a confrontation with one of these.

Note that threat ranking is based on the threat that the creature represents for a normal human. It's not necessarily linked to the strength of the creature. For example the dryad Cypress would rank very low because she is very friendly to humans, yet she is a powerful being.

Dimensionally unstable terrain fauna

In Miragia forest

Mirror Bird

Size: 25 inches
Threat: Very Low

A bird with shimmering orange and blue feathers, famous for its ability to create replicas of itself when it feels menaced. The illusions look incredibly real and mimic the exact movements of the bird. It can create up to ten replicas, depending on the specimen. Mirror birds can also cast minor magic missiles. The small creature is cranky and rancorous. If you annoy it, it will chase you out of its territory while blasting at you all the time.

Duplicator Gecko

Size: 30 feet
Threat: Moderate

These bizarre reptilian creatures lay in wait in a semi-spiritual state, half-way in Lydus, half-way in Felarya, rendering them almost invisible to normal eyes and impervious to physical attack. Their name comes from a strange ability they have: when they find a prey they surround it with an array of duplicates of the prey, in order to confuse it. The doubles look incredibly real: they breathe, their muscles moves, their eyes shine and you can touch them. They have no intelligence of any sort though, and they can't speak. Still, surrounding a prey with clones of itself usually confuses it long enough for the gecko to sneak from behind, phase in, attack and gulp down its unaware victim in the blink of an eye. And if it's not enough, the clones can help block the prey and prevent it from escaping. Once satiated, the creature phases back out to quietly digest its meal.

Void beetle

Size: 3 inches
Threat: Very Low

A small blue beetle that lives primarily in the Miragia forest. It resembles a longhorn beetle to some degree, with a narrow body, no pincers, and a set of long, thin antennae, but it has a line of spikes running down its abdomen. They are herbivores that pose no real threat to anything besides vegetation, at least until provoked. If threatened, the void beetle will curl its abdomen, the spikes on its belly scraping together. The spines are actually triggers that activate a small, hard, bead-like organ inside the beetle through a network of nerves. This organ can create a five to eight foot field around the beetle that is basically an airless, magic-less vacuum. While the beetle can go into brief suspended animation and thereby avoid suffocating, anything caught in the vacuum will be unable to breathe or use magic while in the field. Not a perfect defense, however, as anything with a closed, alternate source of oxygen or the ability to hold its breath for a while would be unaffected, but it still can makes for a nasty surprise. The field lasts for about ten minutes, and can only be done once every few hours. The void beetle eats most types of plant life, but favors Planar Chorydium as it is an endless supply of food. Some beetles can go for their whole ten week life cycle staying on a single chorydium. Mirror birds are their main predator, usually getting the beetles after the void defense had been dropped and is recharging.

Torkudas

Size: 50 feet
Threat: Medium

A sort of giant tortoise with a shell made of pure diamond. These dangerous creatures can only be found in Miragia forest. They are slow but almost unkillable due to their shell which is not only unbreakable, but also reflects any magic back towards the caster. Still, in spite of the difficultly in killing them they are actively hunted, being often seen as walking treasures. Slaying a Torkudas would indeed grant an adventurer a fortune large enough to make even most kings jealous. Very few have ever achieved this feat though, and many hunters became the hunted instead. Torkudas are clever creatures, voracious and good spell casters. They are especially feared for their very effective sleep spells. Many adventurers wake up after the fight only to find themselves slowly digesting within the large stomach of the beast.

Malkabe

Size: 30 inches to 1 feet
Threat: Very Low

This strange creature looks like a sort of golden Armadillo with long antennas and a slightly glowing and pulsating armor shell. A small, timid and herbivorous creature, Malkabes would pose absolutely no threat whatsoever if it wasn't for their strange defense mechanism: any creature eating their delicious flesh will experience bad luck for a certain amount of time. It isn't just a superstition, it has been scientifically proven that probabilities for the offending creature will always lean on the wrong side during that period. That exact duration varies, apparently depending on the quantity of Malkabe flesh consumed, but it usually lasts around a few hours. The cause remains utterly unknown. This ability have become famous and gave birth to the popular adage "to offer Malkabe stew" meaning tricking someone into a seemingly attractive but very bad deal.

Senmuil

Size: 2 to 3 feet
Threat: Moderate

The senmuils are distant cousins of the skunk and look very much like them, save for their characteristic, slightly leafy green fur. They are very timid and gentle creatures but are by no means helpless. The cowardly senmuils are among the most feared little critters in Miragia forest because they will spray a perceived threat with a strong smelling liquid that spells certain doom for the target. While the liquid in its normal state has no smell, when exposed to air for more than a minute its scent intensifies to the point that it can be smelt from kilometers away. This scent is said to be absolutely irresistible to predators and actually trigger their instincts to hunt, meaning that even disciplined predators can become overwhelmed by the mouthwatering aroma. It won't be long before small predators and giant predators alike will be closing in, looking for the source of the appetizing smell. If a member of a exploration team is sprayed by a senmuil, the team will find themselves having to make quickly a difficult decision concerning the sprayed person.

Planar Mole

Size: Special
Threat: High

These bizarre creatures literally dig tunnels through dimensions, from a plane to another. They dig mostly through unstable dimensions where it is easier, and Miragia forest on Felarya happens to be quite easy to dig through. Planar moles are extremely dangerous: They advance by mindlessly "eating" reality so this means that if something is in their way, it will most likely be eaten as well. What makes them especially terrifying is that, rather than eating you directly, the mole eats the chunk of reality where you stand, meaning that your size matters little. If a giant naga happens to be there at that moment, she would be devoured as well! The naga Katrika is especially suited to hunting in Miragia forest, because she can sense disturbances through dimensions and can immediately detect if a mole or something dangerous is approaching.

Zizzerugh

Size: Varies
Threat: Very Low

Sometimes seen in Miragia forest, the Zizzerugh or "Shambling Polyp" is little more than an oozing, quivering, undulating lump of semi-liquid flesh that crawls aimlessly through its surroundings and seems to exist in a state of bewildered excitement, as if delighted and curious about everything it sees. Lacking any recognizable features other than two fan-like appendages (which might or not be sensory organs) and boneless "arms", it is not known what it feeds on, but any creature it stumbles upon is promptly "swallowed" only to be expelled seconds later, hairless (or featherless) but otherwise unharmed. Sapient individuals report a brief feeling of being violated on the deepest level, and tell of non-sensical concepts such as "crawling colors" and "smiling eyes". Zizzerugh have never been observed to reproduce or recognize others of their kind for that matter. Some have theorized they might be nothing but "fragments" of a much larger extra-dimensional entity, leaking into Felarya in order to study it

In Silverfell

Myliob

Size: 3 to 6 foot wingspan
Threat: Low

Myliobs are aerial creatures found only in very dimensionally unstable places such as Silverfell. They resemble silver bat rays in appearance, with bioluminescent markings on their bodies that glow red at night. Herbivorous, they feed exclusively on Planar Chorydium, grazing on these silvery fern-like plants and keeping their growth in check. Apparently immune to the dimensional instabilities and vortexes that plague the region, they are one of the few creatures that not only survive here, but thrive as well. "Flocks" of myliobs are not entirely uncommon inside the hollows and will generally avoid contact with humans and such. If threatened, however, they are capable of launching the stingers at the end of their tails at them. While not fatal, the poison they possess seems to increase the chance of dimensional instabilities occurring around the stung individual, an ability that seems to stack with every subsequent sting.

In deeper Felarya

Dimensional Trapper

Size: Unknown
Threat: Moderate

A dimensional trapper is best thought of as a more advanced angler fish... and far uglier too, according to those who have had the rare occasion to see the creature itself. The trapper hunts by opening a portal to a paradise world and lurks in Lydus between Felarya and that world, eating anyone foolish enough to step through. Dimensional Trappers are dangerous to unwary adventurers because the creature isn't physically here, and the world it shows to its victim is incredibly beautiful. However, they are not very clever, and always open a portal to a part of the same, abnormally fantastic world, so fantastic that it looks out-of-place even in the most beautiful parts of Felarya.

Vortex Tiger

Size: 7 feet but varies a lot.
Threat: Medium

A large white tiger with a curious pattern on their fur, and antenna on their head. Their method of attack is as unique as it is dangerous: when attacking, they somehow become a tiger-shaped black hole, powerfully vacuuming everything nearby into them, and then becoming normal again. They are very dangerous when in this form. Not only do they suck everything up, but they can still move and even change their size. When in black hole form they are not solid, and shooting them is completely useless. They are intelligent creatures and, while unable of any language besides growls and snarls, they appear to understand basic concepts and simple injunctions.

Flying Squid

Size: 300-500 feet
Threat: Moderate

They are very rare, immense squid-like creatures that slowly and majestically float in the air, far above the jungle canopy. They usually are so high in the sky that comprehending their size is difficult. They feed by hovering lower over the jungle and letting their long tentacles sweep down into the tops of the trees, capturing any large creatures they can find. Each tentacle is several feet thick and extremely strong. Captured prey are hauled up to the enormous mouth of the squid and swallowed whole. Despite their titanic size, these behemoths are relatively harmless to humans, who are too small to bother and can't be properly held in their large tentacles.

Archmantis

Size: 50 to 80 feet
Threat: High

A gigantic, predatory, and very dangerous insect, found deep in the northern part of Felarya. It possesses six thin but strong legs, a long arched neck, and small-sized wings; allowing it to fly and glide over short distance, although it prefers to run. Its body is generally blue or purple and bulkier than that of an actual mantis, though it possesses the same type of scythed forelegs. It's hard to describe just how sharp and deadly those are. The archmantis can slash them in a flash, the scythes being too fast for the eyes to see, and they are very capable of cutting a large tree to ribbons. Archmantises are fearsome hunters who will aggressively attack any available prey, including large hybrids such as giant nagas if the archmantis is one of the larger specimens, and will relentlessly pursue it. Their large compound eyes are able to detect and analyze the faintest moves, making it very hard to hide from them as well. A party of seasoned adventurers in full gear can be wiped out in mere seconds by one of those. They are thankfully rare.

Dimensional Dragon

Size: 90-110 feet
Threat: Moderate

Natives of the world of Sandrag, dimensional dragons are able to navigate through dimensions, and some of them ended on Felarya where they set up residence. They are aggressive and bellicose creatures that attack anything they think can put up a decent fight, or that looks edible. They are rather friendly to humans though, mainly because humans are present on their home world as well, but that doesn't mean that they won't devour one now and then. Dimensional dragons have a spiked back, sharp claws, razor-sharp teeth and strong tails. Males have dark blue scales, while females are a lighter shade of blue, with smaller spikes on their back. Dimensional dragons are quite intelligent and have some magical abilities and magical resistances. They do not have wings, but with the help of levitation magic, some of them can fly anyway. They can breathe a white flame imbued with magical powers of their own choosing. For example, they might enhance their flame with the ability to damage the body and soul of their foe, or temporarily paralyzes their victim. These great beasts make tough opponents, very hard to kill.

Dimensional Dragon belongs to Wolf98456. This idea have been submitted before the November 15th, 2009 and their author didn't approve the disclaimer. Thus you must ask their permission before any use.

Saslenoth

Height: 12 feet head-to-bottom.
Threat: Very Low

Saslenoth can be found in many forests in Felarya, including Chidokai forest, the Forest of whispers, and Deeper Felarya. They could be best described as six-legged three-toed sloths. They spend most of their days hanging from trees, moving as slow as a sloth could move, eating leaves and bark from the trees they inhabit, and the moss and fungus that seems to grow in their fur. Their slow speed could make them easy targets for hungry predators, but it's usually a great test of will to withstand their foul stench.

Eisner

Size: Varies
Threat: High

Eisners are gigantic blobs of organic mass that slowly and mindlessly ooze through the forest. They can burn things such as rocks and trees simply by touching them, and they use this ability to digest their prey when they envelop them. The larger eisners are big enough that they have few problems eating large creatures such as nagas. They have a limited intelligence and can alter their shape, forming tentacles and pseudopods. Eisners are slow, but they relentlessly pursue food for as long as they can sense it. Moreover, their globular eyes have dangerous hypnotic powers that render their prey unable to move, making eisners fearsome creatures indeed. These eyes are their weak point, but they are protected by a thin layer of slime that is very hard to pierce, though acid eats right though it. When an eisner has consumed enough prey it will divide itself in to several smaller creatures. Fortunately the flame of dimensional dragons is lethal to them or they would quickly overrun the region.

Credits to:

• TheLightLost for the Senmuil
• Servomoore for the Eisner
• Jasconius for the Myliob
• MrNobody13 for the Void beetles
• Slimetoad for the Zizzerugh
• AisuKaiko for the Saslenoth
• Archmage Bael for his help on writing some entries, and Oldman40k2003 and French-snack for their great help at editing. ^_^

Dimensional Dragon belongs to Wolf98456. Those are ideas that have been submitted before the November 15th, 2009 and their authors didn't approve the disclaimer. Thus you must ask their permission before any use.