Harpies
Much is misunderstood about the harpies of Erlyse. They’ve been hunted down over the centuries to the point they are practically endangered, but most races are unaware of the important role the Harpies play in their world. Harpies on Erlyse are, in a way, the world’s “vampires”. They are known to be drawn instinctively towards the hearts of corrupt mortals, and thus seem to serve as vessels of punishment on occasion, or at the very least, a potential deterrent for those with ill meaning ambitions. They are almost entirely female in gender, and what makes this so is not known. Although a few males have appeared in the past, when they have, they wrought utter havoc on the regions where they appeared. Legend has it they are incapable of being wounded in battle, and what prevents their injury is not documented in history. Their wings (and thus their feathers) are believed to stir the winds of fate, which is one of many reasons they have been hunted over the millennia. Though, should their race disappear completely, there’s no telling what could result for mortal races...
Basic Information
Anatomy
The harpies of Erlyse are relatively humanoid in shape, but have vastly different features than humans, Altum or Wylde Trybe. Their upper appendages, where arms would reside, are large wings with a variety of traits that make them hard to classify. The wings are feathered, and generally take a somewhat similar shape to a human arm up to the wrist, where two more extended joints continue to further extend the reach of the wing. The hands where the human hands would reside have exceptionally long, muscular fingers with obsidian colored talons at the ends of the digits that are equally used for slashing, grasping or digging. The extended sections of the wings, the metacarpus, and deltacarpus, are decorated with bony shards that turn those parts of the wing into edged blades that can be used to slice or stab, or aid in grasping a victim when ambushing them from above.
Harpies tend to have slight hunches to their spines that make them forced to walk with their wings at times if in need to run without flight. This is caused by a grouping of feathered antlers that grow similar to bramble around their necks, resembling a collar, which is an evolutionary trait developed to help prevent harpies from feeding off their own kind, a behavior that is long lost to time. Their legs are slender, but highly toned, and while flesh like a human's, are jointed like a bird's, ending with feet equally as meant for grasping or slashing as their hands, but with longer talons.
Female harpies have elongated ears, similar to an elf-like Wylde Trybe, and generally are a sign of status. Females with shorter ears, or ears that are more down turned than the typical horizontally spread ones, are often seen as those more shrewd and cunning, and thus seen as potential leaders of harpy communities, known as "Curses". Male harpies have pointed ears, but they are much shorter, and more resemble a human's. Both genders have mouths full of sharp teeth, set in two rows. The front set are long, and narrow, meant to grasp a victim, and are retractable. The second set are jagged, similar to that of a shark, and are used for shearing and tearing open a wound from which to gorge themselves at the victim's expense. Typically, the Harpy will bite down with their long, piercing teeth to keep them in place in case the victim struggles, until they have subdued them enough to retract them and eviscerate the target with their more brutal second, but primary teeth.
Genetics and Reproduction
Female Harpies lay eggs that are almost chromatic in appearance (and harpy egg shell is actually an expensive item sold by merchants). They can either be fertilized by a male through intercourse, or they can “blood foster” their offspring by fertilizing it solely through genetic material via gorging themselves on enough blood (almost like mosquitoes). Harpy eggs continue to mature and grow for six months, and hatch into what could be considered the equivalent to a toddler to humans.
Growth Rate & Stages
Harpy females mature rapidly, reaching a general young adult level of maturity in just a year after hatching. Here, their aging slows down to a crawl, as they remain in this stage of aging process for over a decade, giving the young harpy plenty of time to learn the tactics of their elders and the details of their environment while they are still in a more developmental stage of mental acuity. Once they reach sexual maturity, their aging process slows down even further, and a female harpy often is capable of reaching three to four hundred years old if they are not hunted down by the various races who see them as a blemish on their hopeful peaceful world.
Male harpies, however, mature differently. They age slower after hatching, requiring much more involvement from the flock to raise, and tend to require almost half a century to mature. Once they are adults, however, they are practically at half their lifespan, as male harpies only live around a third of the lifespan of the females. Given the rarity of sightings of male harpies on Erlyse, most educated scholars who know about them believe this may be due to a protective nature towards them, created from the relative uncommon occurrence of them from clutches and their shorter lifespans, may cause the females to not wish risking them during assaults on other species for food, despite the male's perplexing invulnerabilities.
Additional Information
Uses, Products & Exploitation
Harpy egg shell is a precious commodity among some cultures of Erlyse (specifically in Uxsager and Ishtos), and is used in many decorative items such as clothing or furniture. Generally, items made with it are exorbitantly expensive due to the risk involved in acquiring it.
Their feathers are also sought after, but are less lucrative unless attained from a male. Male harpy feathers are unique in their ability to be used as weapons, as they turn rigid, sharp and stronger than steel during certain lunar cycles.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Harpies have always been relatively rare, but up till the last three centuries of Erlysian history, they were still worldwide. The rampant demand for harpy egg shell as a commodity by the various cultures of 'civilized' races in the world has resulted in a drastic decline in their population, and the vindictive natures of wealthy individuals who believe it to be their birthright to be as corrupt as they decide to be having hired mercenaries to practically genocide the harpies in order to prevent themselves from being hunted down has also managed to thin their numbers. With this 'culling', harpies have had to force themselves into further hardship in order to make it more difficult for those who wish them harm to find ways to hunt them, and thus they have taken to making their nesting grounds in regions that are difficult for anyone who cannot fly to reach, or in otherwise dangerous regions that the civilized races usually avoid out of concern for their own safety or out of superstition.
The largest Curse of harpies on Erlyse now resides in the unexplained Feyscar of Uxager, but would pale in comparison to populations of a "strong" group of harpies in the past before the genocide began. Other notable Curses reside on Mt. Decimation in Ishtos, the Cliffs of Camartahr in Burrikan, the Spire of Kolozan in Vonskaya, Ophon's Underbelly in Ketarais, and a few unnamed locales in the frigid wastes of Kivorem. While other groups of harpies do exist elsewhere in Erlyse aside from these locations, typically they are in disarray and often in poor health, and rarely last long due to their desperation since often they may raid a village and end up hunted down by a member of R.I.S.E. that respond to the incident, or are tactically baited in by a nation's military and ambushed once their presence has been confirmed.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Harpies have a rather elaborate echolocation capability. While the majority of their range of pitches and tones reside outside the hearing ability of Humans, Altum and Wylde Trybe, the Nal'tua have been able to identify numerous methods that the Harpies use this ability to their advantage. In many circles of scholars, it is believed that the Harpies have a form of second language they utilize through their sonic senses, which is how they likely communicate so well with Hag Hounds.
Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms
Harpies are partially symbiotic in nature with a species of animal that other races have called Hag Hounds. Both species can exude a type of echolocation frequency, that they can alter to use as a form of communication between each other, as well as hypothetically share each other's senses. The latter is unverified, and may remain so indefinitely.
Civilization and Culture
Major Organizations
Harpies do have a religion. The name of their belief is unknown to the humanoid races, but their deity is known as Ethonti, a goddess of Fate incarnate. Since there seems to be a fairly mystical, but natural ability of the harpies to hunt down 'evil' souls among other mortal races, scholars believe that Ethonti may actually exist. Just potentially in a manner different than mortal kind can comprehend.
Lifespan
Females: 330 - 400 years. Males: 105 - 135 years.
Average Height
5' 10" - 7' 0" regardless of gender.
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Harpies can take the same skin tones as humans, with the addition of more true shades of pinks and reds.
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