Softpaw
Freed Familiars Finding Their Footing
Softpaw are small, expressive humanoids who resemble mice, rabbits, ferrets, and other woodland creatures, born from arcane experiments by the long-fallen mage guild known as the Lorian Ascendancy. Once familiars created to serve powerful spellcasters, they have since evolved into a true species capable of independent thought, reproduction, and cultural growth. Playful, clever, and deeply loyal, Softpaw value friendship, personal stories, and living in the moment, often forming tight-knit burrow communities filled with laughter, lore, and charm.
The Lorian Ascendancy was a prestigious arcane guild of scholars, researchers, and tethering specialists who looked to master the interconnection between soul and spell. While most mages relied on traditional familiars bound through temporary magical pacts, the Lorian Ascendancy sought to create sentient, evolving familiars that could grow alongside their masters. These creatures were not mere tools but partners imbued with arcane intelligence, personality, and the capacity to learn and adapt over generations.
By merging sophisticated rituals with enchanted genetics, the guild successfully created the first Softpaw, an intelligent, rodent-like familiar able to bond permanently with a spellcaster, share magical energy, and grow in power. Each Softpaw reflected its master’s temperament and arcane school, making every bond unique. In time, the Softpaw were not only assistants but beloved companions, deeply tied to the guild’s identity.
Conjured with Purpose
Softpaw were designed as magical extensions of their bonded mages, able to assist in complex spell work, scout dangerous ruins, and serve as arcane interpreter. They acted as trusted confidants and advisors, often passing on insights gained through their unique sensory perceptions and arcane awareness. Their cheerful personalities and inquisitive natures made them natural diplomats, and many served as emissaries for the guild in sensitive negotiations.
In addition to magical support, the Softpaw had another purpose: preservation. Each Softpaw was inscribed with arcane coding that could record magical research and personal knowledge. In theory, should a Lorian Ascendancy mage perish, their familiar could carry their findings back to the guild. Over generations, this created a living archive of magical understanding that was independent of other magical universities of its time.
Fall of the Lorian Ascendancy
The fall of the Lorian Ascendancy stays a matter of sorrow and silence among the surviving Softpaw. Though details vary depending on the storyteller, most agree that the guild overreached in their ambition. Seeking to bridge the boundaries between planes, the Ascendancy attempted to open a permanent gateway between the Material World and the Trance. What was intended as a means of eternal enlightenment quickly unraveled into catastrophe.
After holding for mere minutes, the gateway collapsed in on itself. Buildings twisted into impossible geometries. Time fractured. Spellcasters lost control of their own magic. In the final moments, many Softpaw were severed from their bonded partners and scattered across Erenel as their home collapsed into magical ruin. Yet from that ruin, the Softpaw endured, no longer bound to a master, but free to choose their purpose.
Evolution Since the Fall
In the centuries following the collapse of the Lorian Ascendancy, estimated to be the 184th year of the Era of Inner Flame, the Softpaw have undergone a remarkable transformation from conjured familiar to a fully realized reasoning species. Severed from their masters and left to navigate the world alone, early Softpaw found themselves scattered across Erenel. Some clung to the ruins of the Lorian Ascendancy, mourning their lost mages. Others wandered into nearby settlements or hidden corners of the wilds, drawn by curiosity and instinctual memory.
by Dean Spencer
Over generations, the latent arcane design that once tethered them to spellcasters began to shift. No longer defined by the will of a bonded mage, Softpaws developed the ability to reproduce and pass on the arcane memories originally encoded within them. These threads, once a record of magical insight, evolved into a form of cultural inheritance as soft echoes of spellcasting ability, and emotional intelligence passed from parent to child.
With each new generation, the Softpaw grew further from their origins. Physical variation expanded as their forms subtly adjusted to different regions, climates, and communities. Some became more rabbit-like, others ferret-shaped or mouselike, their appearances shaped by personality, emotional resonance, and ancestral memory.
Today, they are no longer familiars, they are the Softpaw, a fully sentient people with agency, heritage, and a future they now shape for themselves. Though the guild that created them has long crumbled into dust, the Softpaw continue to honor the memory of the Lorian Ascendancy in quiet ways. A spiral etched into a walking stick, a lullaby passed down through generations, or a carved rune on a doorway. Reminders that they were born of purpose, survived loss, and now live by choice.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Softpaw are small, lithe humanoids that stand between 3 and 4 feet tall, with delicate, expressive features and fur-covered bodies that mirror various small woodland creatures. Though commonly mistaken for halflings or beastfolk, Softpaw are distinct in both origin and charm. Their physical forms are believed to reflect their ancestral line and the emotional resonance of their soul, resulting in a diverse spectrum of rodent-like appearances. These appearances include bright-eyed mice with twitching whiskers to sleek-furred ferrets and long-eared, broad-footed rabbits.
Their fur varies in both color and texture, ranging from snowy white, soot gray, and cinnamon brown to more unusual hues that include soft lavender or mossy green. Some have tufted ears, while others have longer snouts or puffed cheeks. Their eyes are large and glistening, often appearing glassy or jewel-toned, giving them a wide-eyed look of curiosity and warmth.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Softpaw names are whimsical, melodic, and often carry a hint of charm or mischief. Their names are meant to be pleasant to say, easily remembered, and reflective of their expressive personalities. Softpaw do not typically use family surnames. Instead, they collect nicknames throughout their lives and may take on a warren title to indicate their origin or chosen community.
Masculine Names
Briv, Merrick, Ollop, Tibbin, Whittock, ZibberFeminine Names
Elorra, Junibelle, Luma, Nima, Tansy, VessaNicknames
Sootnose, Tumbletail, WhimwhistleWarren Titles
from Glimmerburrow, from Hearthlight Hollow, of the Briarborn, of the DappledawnExample Full Name
Junibelle Spellploom of the DappledawnCulture and Cultural Heritage
Softpaw society thrives on cooperation, kinship, and emotional resonance. Lacking rigid hierarchies or centralized governments, Softpaw organize themselves into burrows. These close-knit communities can range from extended families to bustling woodland villages or cliffside tunnel networks. Each burrow runs with a communal mindset, placing emphasis on shared responsibility and collective joy. Leadership is informal and rotational, often granted to the individual who best suits the moment’s need: a clever planner during times of travel, a gentle voice during times of grief, or a bold heart when facing danger.
Wisdom is passed through memory keepers, elder Softpaw who have inherited strong arcs of arcane memory from their ancestral lines. These figures are respected not for dominance or political power but for their deep insight and knowledge of Softpaw history, old mage guild phrases, and half-remembered spells. Memory keepers often act as mentors, storytellers, and ritual guides, ensuring each generation honors their evolving identity. Rather than wealth or conquest, relationships and experiences are the heart of status in a Softpaws life. A Softpaw who’s journeyed across continents, befriended a shipwright, and returned to the burrow with stories is revered not just for bravery, but for enriching the entire community.
Softpaw often form lifelong bonds or triads built around shared dreams and compatibility. Parenting is usually a collective effort, with entire burrows involved in the upbringing of young ones. Despite their whimsy and joy, Softpaw social dynamics are surprisingly resilient, having weathered centuries without formal law by relying on shared purpose, unspoken empathy, and a deep-rooted memory of what it means to be lost, and found again.
Lifespan
Around 150 years
Average Height
Small (about 3-4 feet tall)
by Nathanal Roux
Whisper Burrow Network
Throughout Erenel, in forest glades, under stone bridges, behind bookshelves in crowded libraries, and beneath tavern floorboards, lie the hidden entrances to the Whisper Burrow Network. This clandestine system of message drops and underground paths are known only to the Softpaw and a trusted few. These enchanted alcoves and hidden passageways form a loosely connected network where messages can be left, retrieved, or even magically ferried from one burrow to another through arcane sigils.
Though the Whisper Burrow Network appears spontaneous and informal, its formation is anything but accidental. The first Whisper Burrows were established shortly after the fall of the Lorian Ascendancy, when early Softpaw banded together to survive. Lacking centralized leadership but rich in shared purpose, they wove arcane threads from their familiar ancestry into the earth, infusing the network with protective wards and secret keeping glyphs. These burrows became lifelines during times of hardship and remain a vital communication tool to this day.
To access a Whisper Burrow, a Softpaw must know the local Whisker Code, a short phrase or tune that acts as a magical key. Once spoken aloud near the burrow entrance, it opens for a brief moment. The messages found within range from harmless gossip and recipes to cryptic riddles, travel warnings, or even bounties. Occasionally, a Whisper Burrow whispers a faint warning, indicating a rare Convergence, when multiple burrows activate in unison to pass an urgent message across great distances.
The Whisper Burrow Network embodies the ingenuity and adaptability of Softpaw culture. It is part postal system and part communal memory, binding scattered Softpaw together not by borders, but by shared secrets, cleverness, and the comforting certainty that wherever they wander, someone nearby is listening.
by Dominick
Plaguefoot
A Plaguefoot is not born in the traditional sense. Instead, they change. Most were once typical Softpaw, beloved by their community, until something triggered a collapse within their magical structure. Scholars believe this corruption can occur from tampering by powerful magic users or prolonged contact with the hellish Below. When the change begins, their eyes lose their shimmer, their fur grows coarse, and a sour-sweet rot clings to their scent.
Feared for their cunning and bitterness, a Plaguefoot tends to isolate themselves before turning fully, emerging with a new, cruel purpose. Some spread misinformation through the Whisper Burrow Network, others sell their knowledge for unsavory powers. There are even tales of Plaguefoot forming covens in the shadows, experimenting on their kin in an attempt to rewrite their own dark nature.
by Alec Adams
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