Rusalka (roos-AWL-kah)
Legend tells us of the temptresses of the ocean, Maro who lure sailors to dash their ships against the rocks and hurl themselves overboard to their doom. Truth, however, diverges from these cautionary tales told on deck and in dockside taverns. The Maro are just a scapegoat fro the true monsters beneath the surface: devious Fey known as the Rusalka.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Genetics and Reproduction
Rusalka reproduce from the very spirits of the world. Born from the water and the shoreline mud, infused with the elemental energy of nearby Ley Lines through the song of another rusalka. This process takes roughly seven days, at the end of which the shaped mud comes to life.
Rusalka are also able to copulate with Humanoids, and while offspring of these unions are rare, they result in Fey-blooded members of the father's species. These individuals tend to be capricious and cruel, unless they are raised away from their mother's influence.
Growth Rate & Stages
True rusalka come into being as adults and have no maturation stages.
Fey-blooded offspring mature at a rate similar to that of their paternal species. Once they reach the age of maturity, their aging slows significantly, their fey blood giving them an abnormally long lifespan. For more information, see the Fey-blooded article.
Ecology and Habitats
Rusalka thrive in the waters close to shore, ranging anywhere from the Outfair Ocean to the various rivers, ponds, and lakes in Omath and Orela. They prefer to settle within one mile (1.61 km) of settlements, close enough to prey upon them but not so close as to draw a violent response.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Rusalka are carnivorous, preferring raw fish and raw meat. Rarely, a rusalka will indulge in prepared meals, typically offered by their thralls or those seeking their favor.
Biological Cycle
Rusalka, like most Fey, are functionally ageless. They can live for centuries without showing the passage of time, and most die only from violent deaths, typically brought on by mercenaries hired by their prey or by another rusalka.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Rusalka tend to be solitary creatures, though they will often charm nearby animals or humanoids into protecting them. Occasionally a group of rusalka will band together into a small clutch known as a shoal, often driven by a common goal or threat. Unfortunately, this is rarely a stable arrangement, and rusalka will vie for control of the group. Quite often, this results in killing or chasing off rivals, and will often break up the shoal in the process.
Domestication
Rusalka cannot be domesticated, but their love of flattery and tribute will often placate them into a negotiated peace with their neighbors, so long as their home is not despoiled.
Facial characteristics
Like the Nuaira and Valaira, the rusalka have wide, almond-shaped eyes and high, sharp cheekbones. Some rusalka appear more Human in nature, with a softer, more rounded face.
No matter their appearance, rusalka have pale, icy-blue eyes and alabaster skin. Each rusalka has sharp, shark-like serrated teeth.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Average Intelligence
Rusalka are cunning, devious creatures with intelligence slightly higher than the common individual.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
The rusalka are extremely perceptive, capable of seeing twice as far as a human in low light conditions.
Civilization and Culture
Common Etiquette Rules
When dealing with a rusalka, it is wise to offer tribute and flattery. They are vain creatures, who enjoy shiny things and things of value. They prize tributes won through deception, so be mindful the words you use and the words they say.Rusalka are capricious, but thrive on tribute. They often collect treasures and other trinkets given to them by charmed victims, and especially find themselves most proud of those gifts they earned through duplicity. They will often utilize their charmed victims to spread the rumor that the 'restless ghost' can be placated with certain things, collecting these tributes from their neighbors regularly.
Common Dress Code
Rusalka rarely wear clothing, save to further propogate the myth that they are a drowned spirit. They will often take a white shift or dress from one of their previous victims, wearing that to lend weight to the belief that they are the spirit of that woman.
Rusalka, like most fey, are comfortable in their nudity, and see little reason otherwise to cover themselves.
Common Myths and Legends
In the village lived a beautiful woman, the daughter of a butcher, with eyes as bright as diamonds, with long golden hair. Long in love with a boy from the market gone to war, the butcher's daughter awaited his return. Sadly, her beauty had caught the eye of a county-man, who saw her as a prize to be won, a decoration for his arm and a mother for all the many children he wanted. The county-man offered a handsome sum to her father, who called her out again and again to present herself to her suitor, but again and again she rejected the offer, waiting for her true love to return. Over and over, the county-man requested her, and her father called her out, and she refused, even as the offers increased in value. Finally, the county-man grew impatient and demanded her hand in marriage. With little recourse against the threats of imprisonment, the butcher agreed and promised her the next morning. When the butcher told her, she flew into such anger that she seemed ready to strike her father down, saved only by the arrival of her true love, home from the war. No small village holds a secret for long, and the county-man knew within the hour that they had been reunited. He stormed up to the butcher's home, hammering on the door and windows, demanding the daughter come forth at that moment. He did not see the lovers flee out of the back of the home, rushing through the tall grass for freedom. As they reached the bridge that would carry them out of the village, the county-man caught up to them. He grabbed the woman's lover by the arm, and as valiantly as the young man fought, he was no match for an armed assailant. The county-man ran him through and cast his body into the stream. He called to the girl, giving her no option. Her lover was dead, and her father would die if she did not marry him. But there was a choice the county-man had not considered. The beauty lept from the bridge after her lover, away from the cruel man who had taken him away. Alas, she did not know how to swim, and drowned there with her love. ~The Drowned MaidenMost consider the rusalka to be a restless spirit, a drowned maiden or a murdered innocent, and the rusalka do as much as they can to continue this deception.
Thought to be the origin of the first rusalka
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Origin/Ancestry
Reference Race: Rusalka
Lifespan
500-1000 years
Average Height
5'1" to 5'9" (1.34 to 1.55 meters)
Average Weight
85 lbs to 110 lbs (38.5 kg to 49.89 kg)
Average Physique
Rusalka tend to be slender, with femanine bodies. They have no true gender, but take the female shape so as to confuse their prey and further the misinformation that abounds about them.
Geographic Distribution
Related Myths
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