Halika Fundamentals

This is a basic rundown of the species, magics, and other essentials of the setting. Brings together many of the basic articles.   There are many species in this world, but only about three species make up the majority of the population. Some species are extremely rare, while others are just regionally common. Just about any species can be found in any continent, even if they aren't common outside of a small region; travel is common enough that a person of any species can be anywhere.   Species in this setting are not organized into clearly species-divided factions and places. Most places are not like "Kingdom of the Elves" or "Dwarf city" - they tend to be a mixture of species that identify more by culture, religion, or country. There can be exceptions to this rule, but these aren't common. People identifying by species first and foremost is particularly rare ("I guess I'm a human, but more importantly I'm Hainish"), though some religions and factions do have attitudes about certain species.   So, getting into it, the three super-common species are:

• Humans. You know what a human is. Humans are everywhere. Most humans are just weird omnivorous hominids that love to migrate to even the most inhospitable climates.
• Dryads. Dryads are plantfolk, who eat a mix of insects, roots, leaves, and semi-detritus. They can root themselves in soil and eat like plants also. They have retractable claws and a strong sense of vibrations. They have flowers on their head that bloom when they reach adulthood. Dryads are the most common species in the world, outnumbering even humans. Places with a lot of plants are dryad central, from rainforests and jungles to temperate forests and swamps - but dryads, like humans, have that itch to travel.
• Prisms. Prisms are mineralfolk, made of living clay, stone, and gems. Prisms eat a mix of salt and stones (they have a natural sense for mineral composition to get the nutrients they need) and have echolocation. They also live for longer than humans or dryads (often around 200 years). Prisms are not as populous as humans or dryads either, despite being in the 'Big Three'. Prisms can be found anywhere, but tend to clump together (usually because of their different foods). Prism populations tend to be concentrated where there are mountains, but they aren't exclusively mountainous or underground people.

Those three species, mixed together, are the default. There are also Hybrids between these three species: while prisms, humans, and dryads can't usually reproduce together, Hybrids are in-betweens who can reproduce with multiple of the three main species. They are:

• Half Prisms: Human-Prism hybrids who are a mix of flesh and crystal.
• Half-Dryads: Human-Dryad hybrids who are a mix of flesh and plant.
• Choricals: All three combined. Flesh, plant, and mineral fused together. A fairly recent combination of the two hybrids, which has become more common around the world recently.

Hybrids are just about everywhere nowadays and are increasingly a large percentage of the population. Hybrids can look more "one part" than the others - they can be mostly-human, mostly-dryad, or mostly-prism depending largely on luck and magical genetics. There are also a number of regional species with their own stories. They can be found everywhere, but tend to be uncommon outside of their regions of origin or reserved spaces. These are:

• Solars: wandering, long-lived beings of light and crystal who have wandered the planet chasing sunlight for millennia. Solars are ancient beings (lifespans around 500 years) who have little use for most material things. Many dabble in magic over their long lives. Solars are everywhere, but most tend to travel together in large nomadic caravans. There are a few sedentary places for solars, notably the Empire of Shirpatra and Odija, City of Lights.
• Selkies: Selkies are magically altered humans with sharper canine teeth and webbed feet and hands. Selkies can undergo a magical trial in the Khilaian Isles to earn their pelts, which let them turn into giant otters. Many selkies who have their pelts belong to a massive federation of world-travelling ship-sailing ocean nomads known as The Khilaia. While those are the 'stereotypical selkies', there are plenty of selkies who don't live that ocean-bound life.
• Walking Cat: All cats in this world are sentient, but only a number of blessed felines can walk and talk as a humanoid. Think "Puss N' Boots" - these are still shorter folk. Walking Cats are typically from the continents of Desmia, Izekra, and Sonev, but some are born abroad by magical anomaly or the will of the Cat Heavens.
• Kobolds: Not the little dragonkin! These Kobolds are rather goat-opossum-monkey people, with ram horns and sharp teeth. Kobolds are longer-lived (150 year lifespans) obligate carnivores (meat only!) who are immune to magical radiation and transformation magic. They can magically reproduce with any species (though the resulting offspring's species is randomized). Kobolds began in Stildane and those who remain there have a religion catering to them (called Kivishta).
• Haltia: Haltia are gnomes. Some look like little humans, while others have cartoony or animalistic features. They occupy the space between people and nature spirit, with their goofy appearances and affinity for animals. Haltia began in the island of Traya but now live in small numbers around the world.
• Vespers: Vespers are short bat people, who can't fly but can mimic sounds perfectly. They eat fruits and insects and see well in the dark. Vespers began in the Feywilds of Desmia but live in small numbers just about anywhere now.
• Pearl Pangolins: Large sentient pangolins with opalescent scales, who thrive in cold temperatures. Pearl Pangolins eat bugs (and, in the poles, can burrow into the ground to consume nutrients in the permafrost). These guys can teleport small distances with a slow recharge, but are otherwise fairly slow. If they eat Fire Termites they can breath fire. They have natural armor. And they go to the moon when they die. Most Pearl Pangolins live in the frozen wastes on the poles, but they have a hearty adventurer's spirit fit for travel. Some rare Pangolins are chosen by the moon to become giant. Odd fellows, but people like anyone else.

Technically, there are dozens to hundreds of other sentient species with extremely low populations. They simply exist, subsumed into the diversity of the world - most lack significant representation or reputations. These are almost all Starspawn: species mutated into entirely new shapes by the chaos magic of Stildane.   This article goes through the class "Dungeons and Dragons" species that exist in this category - stuff like Elves and Dwarves.   There is no list of rare species - the field is open for player and DM creativity. There are undersea sentient species that also live in this world. These are usually less narratively relevant, but they are part of the world. These species tend to be short-lived and somewhat insulated from the surface world, but the underwater and surfacegoing worlds do trade and can influence each other.

• Octopeople: Octopeople are big smart sentient octopi, with a knack for inventiveness. Live in reefs.
• Squiddles: Squiddles are fast stealthy sentient squid, who herd big crabs across the ocean floor.
• Cuttlefolk: Musically magical little sentient cuttlefish, the black sheep of the cephapeople.
• Sentient Sharks: Sentient sharks. Few people know sharks are sentient. They don't even have hands.

There are also rare species underwater, just like the surface. As many settings for tabletop, Halika has a diverse range of magical arts. Given the intended D&D compatability, many of these should be familiar for players of that system. That is "Class Magic". Craft Magic are other forms of specialized magical arts that don't fit the sort of individual power and progression of class magic. Environmental magic refers to magic that isn't controlled by people at all - it is just out in the world.

Class Magic

These are the classic D&D magical arts for spellcasting classes. Like any setting, Halika has its own place for these classes:   Bards are arcane spellcasters, who use expressive traditions to bend reality and perception. Not all artists are innately magical, but bardic magic is a specific set of magical rituals and esoteric arts that can be channeled and replicated through performance and creation. Most bardic magic is learned in a formal setting - it is a powerful and respected art, hoarded by the upper classes just like other magical arts. Many bards are powerful court mages, mystical healers, or magical warriors. The classic goofy scrappy lower-class bard who works as a silly minstrel can (and does) exist here, but they aren't the standard bard of the setting. Bards specialize in magic relating to people, things like healing, mind control, illusions, and psychic attacks.   Barbarians of the more mundane subclasses are present around the world, in many cultures. Some of the more magical features represent adaptations of bits of other related magic systems - not a comprehensive knowledge, but specialized scraps integrated into warrior traditions.   Clerics are basically not present by default in the setting. Solars devoted to the creator Halcyon can be clerics, but these are rare and poorly understood. Clerics can exist outside of this context in extremely rare instances, but these are strange, mysterious anomalies often tied to times of great change.   Druids are the default divine spellcasters of the setting. Druids hail from many religions and are empowered not by a connection to a God but through a spiritual connection to life itself. This can be a naturalistic connection to ecosystems, a spiritual connection to the heavens, an ritual connection to the foundational elements, or a basic connection to the world beyond oneself. Regardless, one doesn't stumble into Druidic magic - the connection is forged through meditative and mystical secrets. Access to a mentor or institution is generally necessary to be a Druid. While not all Druids are part of religious groups, that is the most common type of druidic group. Druids use their connection to life energy to shapeshift, heal others, summon spirits, and conjure magical attacks.   Dhampires are like energy vampires that feed by committing acts of violence (typically through punching). Dhampires can infect a target with Dhamprisim on purpose during feeding. Dhampirism overwrites one's prior skills and many memories; many consider it a curse. Others embrace the powers the curse grants, honing them to better do violence on their own terms. If playing D&D, this can be an alternative source of monk powers - but it wouldn't be against the spirit of the thing to be a different class with melee-based magic.   Fighters are generally a mundane class, but Eldritch Knights represent an integration of sorcery or wizardry into fighting. Same for rogues.   Meako Rangers are Rangers - magical warriors with ties to nature and life magic. While some Rangers are basically Druid-Warriors, Meako Rangers are specifically Rangers who tie themselves to a Meako bird (moa or giant eagle), usually found in remote Loanua.   Monks, or Open Palm Warriors, carry and express magic through physical action. Martial arts, meditation, and mastery of the body serve as channels to turn soul energy from within into minor miracles: things like impossible feats of athletics, healing others, and traveling to the Astral Plane. Some unique traditions even create more overtly magical expressions, like controlling the elements or travelling through shadow. These practitioners come from a variety of cultural backgrounds - while the discipline of the art is best passed through institutions or mentors, it has many expressions and institutions across many cultures.   Paladins are those who receive fighting training and powers from one of the ten spirits of the Lunar Pantheon. Paladins derive power from their oaths, which they swear to one of these ten Lunar Gods - the God must accept the oath and then serves as the ultimate judge on whether the Paladin upholds it. Paladins do not need to worship their Lunar God or even regard them as a God. There is typically some kind of ideological overlap or shared set of goals, but even this isn't necessary. It all comes down to oaths and obligations. Paladins channel their energy for feats of physical prowess, the power to heal, the power to embue weapons with holy energy, and a number of protective spells. Paladins can have institutional mediation, but many are chosen by their Lunar Gods individually.   Sorcerers are people who either were born with or acquired an innate connection to arcane magic. They can articulate powerful spells as expressions of their inner self. Many societies elevate sorcerers into positions of power, but some people stumble into it. Here are some of the main forms of sorcery:

• Dragon sorcerers, who are infected with magical parasites from a Dragomander (a small dragon-salamander) and then form a magical and emotional bond as its caretaker. Governments cultivate these Dragomanders, but you can also find them at active volcanos or around colonies of explosive Fire Termites.
• God-blooded sorcerers, who are descended from the ancient God known as the Tishel or the Chimera. Divine-blooded lineages are often curated by aristocracies - famously in the Empire of Calazen, which is ruled by sorcerers of this type. God-blooded mages exist all around the world, though.
• Chaos sorcerers, who have mentally or physically been touched by Ederstone (raw chaos magic in physical form). Most originate in Stildane (where almost all Ederstone physically is), but some may be chosen through fate, random chance, or the choice of a far-flung monster.

Warlocks receive their powers from a strange and otherworldly patron. Most patrons are Leviathans, sea monsters who reach out to dreaming minds and seek to manipulate them into doing their bidding. Most prolific are the Elder Leviathans - fifteen Leviathans of immense age and power who grant powers to those who embody their elements (which range from paranoia to trickery to domination). Others have patrons like Cosmic Lord Brambleshanks or the Dark Will of Purgatory, or other rogue godlings. These patron relationships are quite unlike the oathbound Paladins - instead, these are ambiguous relationships. Some warlocks are cursed by their patrons, other warlocks are active servants, others just kind of get powers and go with minimal interaction or guidance. Regardless, warlocks have very consistent but focused powers that typically are rather aggressive (warlocks being excellent at launching persistent and powerful magical attacks) but often include telepathy, illusions, and similar things.   Wizards use the great puzzle runes left behind by the Architects to create logical formulas and arcane rituals to cast versatile magical spells. Wizards, with the right resources and preparation, can do anything - but wizardry can be expensive and depends a great deal on accurate knowledge of what to prepare for. Wizards need no ideology, spiritual connection, personal expression, or patron: just intense academic training, rich resources, and a very good mind for arcane engineering. Not all magical arts are these professional, individualist, personal expressions - some are more craft-based or instance-based.   Hedge Magic is a magic that is commonly connected to local folklore and folk-magic, which requires less research, training, and materials to practice. It is still a skill that is not universally known and practiced, but it is not a rigid discipline that requires a career path or access to static sacred knowledge. Hedge Magic is adaptive, worming its way into other folk ritual and skills; it blends local medicine, crafts, tradition, and storytelling. Hedge magic is not unique to poor people either - some elite cultures are dismissive, cultural attitudes vary. There are three kinds of hedge magic:

• Comedy Magic, which allows for magical illusions and minor transfigurations as part of pranks, jokes, and stories. Comedy magic can, for example, create obvious illusions, instantly light or extinguish flames, create smells, make plants bloom, shake objects, change voices, clean or dirty objects, open doors, or recolor items.
• Curse Magic, which allows for a person to use a material possession from someone else to inflict a curse upon them. The skill and intent of the practitioner determines the scope of harm done - and the curse-giver always suffers three times worse whatever curse they inflict.
• Tragedy Magic, which allows the practitioner to, only once in their lives, call for a miracle. Unless someone is in the worst moment of their life (as judged by a spirit ) there is only a tiny chance that the miracle will be granted. Tragedy magic is very rare.

Alchemy is the art of brewing magical potions using a combination of divine rituals, careful practice, and rare herbs. The default potion produced by alchemy is the healing potion, which is a magical medicine that can instantly mend wounds. Potions imbued with other effects are far rarer. The secrets of alchemy are well-kept by a small group of globe-trotting organizations - notably the Healing Church, but also including the Borim Healing Circle.   Monstercrafting is the art of turning the corpses of slain monsters into magical items or substances. Monstercrafting is a rare art and a challenging one - monsters are rare, their biologies are alien, and their properties fade easily without very careful and effective preservation treatments.   Dragon Forging is an art unique to the continent of Garadel, as it requires access to magical volcanic forges in that continent's mountains. These massive and arcane forges are challenging to operate, but they produce wondrous magical items capable of putting magic in the hands of anyone who uses them. The skill of the smith and the investment of time and effort into the item directly correlate with the resulting item's power. Master dragon-smiths are sought after by the richest emperors, to commission fantastical items of power for princes and generals.   Artificery or Construct-making is the creation of autonomous constructs known as The Empty. The Empty are basically moving statues are paired with magical amulets. Whoever holds a statue's amulet can issue the statue commands, which the construct will follow for as long as it is able to. These constructs are quite strong and durable and they never tire - they make perfect workers for difficult and repetitive tasks. Expert artificers can manipulate the statue shapes, using them to power clockwork engines or shaping them into amazing specialized forms. Artificers are extremely rare and almost exclusively live and work in the continent of Maradia. The Maradian Enforcers, elite warriors who use the most innovative magical technologies denied for general use, hunt down any artificers who leave the special workshops that all artificers are meant to stay in.   Most magic doesn't come from people, but exists in the world - working by the will of the Architects creating change.   Ambient Magic is the magic infused throughout the world that makes it work. Most of this ambient magic is quiet, invisible, and subtle - it enables tiny miracles (such as impossible biology) that would take advanced scientific measurement to spot. Ambient Magic is more powerful than any other kind - it represents the most fundamental wills of the Architects and is the connective tissue of all other magic sources. Ambient Magic cannot be suppressed, contained, or distorted by any known means. Hell, almost no one even knows about it - those who do mostly theoretically know about it and haven't even been able to physically prove its existence.   Chaos Magic is the powerful, explosive, transformative magic that emanates from Ederstone. Chaos magic is all about constant change; it mutates any living thing exposed to it. Intense exposure to chaos magic often turns people into monsters, spirits, or other overtly magical phenomenon - it takes one part of a person (their dreams, hopes, fears, desires, etc) and expands it until the rest of the person is gone. Chaos magic technically goes wherever Ederstone goes, but that is almost exclusively in the continent of Stildane. A handful of demigods can resist chaos magic, as can Kobolds, but little else can. Chaos magic is one of the most intense and important kinds of magic, in that it has nearly no limits and can create new magical abilities in those that it touches.   Spirit Magic is the magic of Ghosts and a handful of other spirits such as the Ruxa (forest spirits in South Suneka) and the Gluttonmaws (cannibalistic cryptid spirits) . Spirit magic is rather minor, a mix of spooky and whimsical effects ranging from possession to corpse animation to other minor local effects. Ghosts are everywhere, therefore spirit magic is everywhere.   Leviathan Magic is the magic of Leviathans - great sea monsters whose consciousnesses extend into the Astral Plane. Leviathans can warp things and places with their influence, often in ways that even they can't fully control. Rare and more common near oceans, but not unheard of inland.   Cat Magic is the will of the Cat Heavens (and Cat Hells) manifesting on the material plane. Typically, cat rituals and cat sacred sites serve as portals through which divine cat influence can spill into the world of the living. Cat Magic usually comes in the form of individual blessings on cats, but it can enchant places or items as well.   Infernal Magic is the magic of Purgatory, which isn't supposed to be present on the material plane but can spill over through magical experiments or rituals gone awry.   Demigod Magic is the magic of powerful demigods, who can work miracles unlike those of mortal mages.   Sanctuary Magic is the magic of one of the powerful magical locations created by The Architects, which can spill outside of where they are supposed to be to create unique magical effects. These include:

• The Vault of Nightmares, which can create fear-phantoms and turn people's fears into reality. People who survive entering the Vault get special powers. Artificially opening the Vault too wide can release fears into the world.
• The Asalay Underworld, which is a near-infinite magical dungeon full of magical items, puzzles, monsters, and phenomenon. Monsters and magic from underneath can be brought (or escape) into the surface world.
• Halcyon's Pyramids, an underwater magical dungeon also full of magical items, puzzles, monsters, and phenomenon. Monsters and magic from underneath can be brought (or escape) into the surface world.
• Sorosko Island, an Antarctic island of trials that creates magical monsters and hardships. People who survive living on the Island get special powers. The things here don't typically escape but can be lured off the island.
• The Sages' Labyrinth, an underground maze of magical puzzle rooms. Puzzles from these rooms have been excavated and taken throughout the world, where they retain their enigmatic magical properties.
• The Feywilds, a region that magically twists and extends the bodies and minds of living things - preserving them while growing them and making them strange.
• The Isethra Tree, a giant healing tree that is imbued with powerful healing and reviving magics.

  This isn't every form of environmental magic, but it should hopefully capture a number of the big things that could create magic outside of mortal individuals or groups casting spells. This is a brief rundown of the sorts of phenomena, demigods, magical beasts, and the like that exist throughout the world. What even is a God? There are a number of God-like beings in this setting, many of which are worshipped or revered in some capacity. If you are here looking for a 'God' to put on a character sheet, it is recommended to check out religions instead - see the Religion Index or Mortal Religions pages.   The Architects, the four beings who created all magic and most of the world, are probably the closets to "true Gods" that exist. However, the Architects haven't been around for thousands of years and weren't really very public even when they were around. So, most religions don't recognize the Architects as the main Gods (or rename and reinterpret them to fit into their own mythologies).   The Lunar Pantheon are the next big contenders: ten ascended mortals who have given mortals advice and paladin powers for thousands of years. Each Lunar God has its own ideological bent and focus, but they don't have strict material domains. Lunar Gods are commonly known, though different religions relate to them differently. Most revere the Lunar Gods in some capacity, but not all consider them equally significant.   Then, there are the Immortals, demigods who have a physical body and interact with the material world directly.

• Haru is both a physical immortal and a Lunar pantheon member - the only one to be both! They are an ascended Solar, a wandering God of healing and forgiveness. Haru is a keeper of wisdom and is well respected virtually all places. Haru is a great spellcaster capable of bestowing powers and great blessings.
• Bobito is a big teleporting humanoid sugarglider with an unmatched mastery of monastic fighting. He is also the guardian of the Isethra Tree, or tree of limitless healing. Bobito is kindly old prankster who likes pretending to be ancient, senile, and weak. He enjoys the little acts of compassion and joy that flow from the tree he defends. He has no magic to give to others outside of the magical warrior training his apprentices receive. Bobito is not well known, but those who know him like him.
• Aysha is a Goddess imprisoned in her Lighthouse body. Her body has expanded through many connected buildings to become the holy city of Suwirsha. Aysha has her own religion , which rejects all other Gods. Aysha is a rationalist, idealst, and atheist who seeks to inspire reason and learning among her followers. She can grant powerful magical blessings but tends to exercise restraint for blessings that could cause harm. Aysha and her followers are disliked in many places for their obnoxious attempts to disprove other religions and their hostility towards what they view as blind faith.
• Suwota is a Goddess who inhabits a giant sprawling plant body (as well as a number of carefully prepared vessels) in the Empire of Runeva. Which is also the Empire she runs as God-Empress. Suwota is a brutal and controlling person who uses black and white thinking as a cudgel. This goddess is far more generous with her blessings, but has a way to twist her blessings into chains that bind the "blessed" to her will. Suwota is more than disliked; she is feared and hated.
• Mavara is a Goddess who is imprisoned in a giant crystal body in a large palace devoted to her. Mavara is a jaded hedonist and cynic who just wants to have a good time; she avoids doing harm but is not called to do active good. She is surrounded by an eternal party, and she is happy to use her blessing powers to give great power to those who amuse and support her. She lives in the Kingdom of Sonisha.
• Ustav is not an original immortal, but has ascended through magical might. Ustav was once the greatest Chaos Sorcerer who died, became a ghost, and then became a land spirit for Stildane. He is widely worshipped there and is, in all practical purposes, the God of the land and nature there.
• Kemegi is a giant dragon that is immortal, sentient, and magically very powerful. Kemegi is capricious, arbitrary, and elusive - he doesn't really like people and he hates obligation. Kemegi hasn't been seen in giant dragon form in a while now, but he is still out there.
• Ruko is a giant dragon-turtle who carries a city of ghosts on his island-back. He guards and ferries the place where Exorcists can complete their permanent destruction of ghosts.
• Shinikem is a huge sentient mantaray with an island on its back. Shinikem is telepathic and empathetic; it is very protective of the residents on its back. Shinikem has been hurt by outsiders before, and wanders the seas avoiding people. 
• Kailio is an enormous otter that lives under the Khilaian Isles. It is sentient and enjoys a friendly and lazy relationship with island residents. It protects the island from harm, but spends far more time sleeping on the sea floor or eating feasts worth of food given by supplicants. 
• Moksetar is a non-sentient immortal, a huge underwater monster with great strength and power. 

There are also powerful entities that mostly exist in other dimensions, whose power and influence only occasionally seeps into the material world:

• The Cat Heavens, which exist as a series of cat hiveminds that cats go to when they die. The Celestial Heaven is the mass of traditionalist cats who did not break their sacred laws. The Arboreal Heaven, or Heavenside Layer, is the mass of Jellicle cats who succeeded in being good and artful cats. The Twisted Heaven is the heaven for strange, mutated, and heretical cats who were nonetheless good by the standards of their kin. And lastly, there is the Cat Hell, which is where the tortured souls of cats who broke their cat laws are entangled in misery forever. All four can commune through sacred sites and rituals on the planet (though Cat Hell rarely does).
• Purgatory, human Hell, does have its own hateful will. It often calls itself God. Few interact with this "God", but it can happen.
• The Masked One Automata is a powerful God-machine built in the image of one of the Architects, who interprets spell meanings and helps decide who becomes a Ghost. The Automata appears on the material plane only to welcome the dead to their afterlives - though it can speak to those facing a near death experience or magical resurrection. 

  And lastly, there are the Elder Leviathans, which are mostly warlock patrons but can certainly be worshipped. Some really like being worshipped, in fact.  There are a lot of magical beasts and creatures that live in Halika. Most are regionally specific rather than universal. On land, there are:

• Giant Lobsters, which are just about everywhere. Freshwater Giant lobsters grow to dog-size; Saltwater giant lobsters can grow to elephantine sizes. These are, as the name suggests, lobsters that can grow really big.
• Dire Hounds, enormous dogs that are native to Garadel and Ibith. They come in many breeds, but notably the Ghosthounds (greyhounds that appear glowing and ghostly in the dark) and Longhounds (which are like Borzoi that grow and stretch to unnatural extent).
• Sudraco, crocodile-horses that serve as speedy and vicious mounts for many warriors. Native to Inahng.
• Dragomanders, cat-sized giant salamanders that breath fire and eat volcanic fumes and Fire Termites. Magical and able to connect with people to grant them sorcery.
• Karbeetles, which are enormous dust-eating beetles shaped like cars. Steel-plated and rubber-wheeled, but living inside. Native to Samvara.
• Flowyrms, little butterfly-dragons that grow from agave-like plants.
• Blinkgliders, teleporting sugar gliders native to Ibith.
• Vegan Shrews, little rodents that smell and taste like plants.

  Underwater, there are:  

• Leviathans, enormous sentient sea monsters that are generated in the depths. Leviathans are sentient and magical, but also often aggressive and territorial.
• Crabcows, huge docile crabs that move along the ocean floor
• Merfolk, human-appearing fish predators that lure people into the water to devour. Queens are akin to huge angler fish with humanoid appendages. Not sentient, but able to mimic humanoid body language and some sounds (such as song).

These aren't the only magical beasts in this setting. In Stildane (or wherever there is Ederstone), there are countless magical animals and plants, and there are always new species being born. While most of these creatures stay in their local areas, some form breeding populations and can spread elsewhere.   Plants of this world include:

• Suntail Grass, glowing cattails that can be processed into glowing oil
• Wanderbloom, a floral edible contraceptive that is common just about everywhere. Hyper-effective and part of most cultures. Works regardless of species.
• Halpara Mushroms, glowing mushrooms that help non-Prisms live underground comfortably.
• Sintrees, big semi-magical trees made from the bodies of druids who committed terrible sins 

Minerals and metals of this world include:

• Moonstone is a metal that becomes invisible at night
• Kilusha is a rock that tastes like meat that has amazing medical properties. 
• Adamantium is very heavy and very durable metal.
• Starmetal is light, hyper-durable, and easily enchanted meteoric metal. Very rare. 
• Ederstone is chaos magic incarnated as stone. Mutates and distorts anything near it. Extremely dangerous. 
• Snakegems are steel-hard gemstones that can be worked like metal

And new diseases include

• Gem Plague, a disease transmitted by snake bites and snake exposure. Slowly turns your lymph nodes into snakegems, painfully killing you over years
• Corpseblight, a terrible and lethal disease that afflicts Dryads. Mostly spread through contaminated food.
• Mageplague, a horrific and very lethal disease able to afflict any species

Plants, minerals, and diseases can also be magically mutated into new forms, just like animals.