Aven

Bird-Of-Prey Aven possess relatively human bodies; with feathers mixed into the hair on their heads, two arms that end in clawed hands, and two legs that end in taloned, bird-like feet. They also have a pair of feathered wings growing from between their shoulder blades that begin being too small to allow flight. By the time the Aven is past adolescence they are able to glide with their wings, using updrafts to remain aloft up to an hour. Bird-Of-Prey Aven are considered adults when they are able to fly under their own power for longer than two hours.

Bird-Of-Paradise Aven are much more avian in appearance. They have feathers covering their entire bodies, and their mouths are actually small beaks. Despite this, they are still relatively humanoid, though they have long flight feathers that grow in under their arms during late adolescence rather than having wings as separate limbs. These Aven universally develop magical ability around the time their flight feathers come in, and are considered adult when they are able to fly and wield magic simultaneously. Bird-Of-Paradise Aven are, paradoxically, better equipped to handle inclement weather or extreme temperature with their full coat of feathers.

Bird-Of-Prey Aven give birth to live children after a ~3-4 month gestation. Birthing-Age female Aven will generally have two children a year for several years if they have a mate.
Female Bird-Of-Paradise Aven lay clutches of 4-7 eggs, normally once per decade and only two or three times in a lifetime. These eggs take ~10 months to hatch. These eggs will not begin to be formed unless the Aven has a mate; male sex pheromones, regardless of race, trigger the female's cycles.

[The Grace Of Psyche] allows for Aven to also mate with other races. Any resulting children will be the same race as the mother, regardless of the father. This is uncommon, as Bird-Of-Prey Aven are so short-lived that other races will often try to avoid making connections with them; Meanwhile, Bird-Of-Paradise Aven, while physically compatible with other humanoid races, are rarely appealing to them in that way. Aven are the most closely-knit Sylvan race, due to this, and each variety tends to prefer their partners only be of the same type of being as themselves to avoid problems.

Bird-Of-Prey Aven grow rapidly. They are generally able to begin gliding with their wings, also the time they are taught to hunt, by 7 years of age; and most earn their status as adults, when they can fly under their own power, by the age of 12. Their physical maturity outstrips their mental until they reach adulthood; so young Aven often appear exceptionally naive or rowdy to other races, depending on the situation. They reach sexual maturity around 10 years of age, and females lose the ability to reproduce around 25. Between the ages of 25 and 30, the wings will begin to weaken; and by 30 most are no longer able to fly for more than a few minutes at a time. The average lifespan of a Bird-Of-Prey is ~35.

Bird-Of-Paradise Aven grow slower by comparison. After hatching, they are helpless and require constant attention from one or both of their parents for more than 2 years. During this time, the young Aven's mental faculties develop faster than their physical ones; being able to speak and understand before they are able to walk on only their legs. By 10, they should be able to walk on two legs with a hunched posture that all their people share; and the young Aven's flight feathers will begin to grow in around the age of 15. This process takes ~10 years, and the longer it takes the more magically gifted the Aven is. When the Aven is able to cast at least "first tier" spells while flying they are considered legally an adult in their culture. Female Bird-Of-Paradise Aven are fertile from ~50-125 years of age before they stop being able to lay eggs. This variety of Aven do not slowly atrophy as they approach old age, they will often lose their sight, hearing, and flying ability all in rapid succession within the space of a couple years leading up to death by age. Birds-Of-Paradise can live to between 175-250 years, depending on how magically powerful they are.

Aven towns are generally built atop hills, plateaus, or other high places that also have plenty of trees. Rarely, they will create more primitive structures onto the side of cliffs or mountains. Such settlements will usually be a mix of Bird-Of-Prey and Bird-of-Paradise, with leadership split between them to avoid conflict.

Aven settlements are lead by a council of elected leaders that are split between the two varieties of Aven. Bird-Of-Paradise Aven tend to be highly conservative in their dealings, while Birds-Of-Prey are more free and open to change. As a race, the two groups understand that they need each other, and they seek to find a balance between the two general philosophies.
Families for Birds-Of-Prey usually only last for a couple years before the partners move on; often after having one or two children together and breaking up when both are physically mature. Conversely, Birds-Of-Paradise will choose one partner for life, and will not take a new mate even after their partner dies.

Birds-Of-Prey have human-like faces, though their features are rather angular. Their cheek bones evoke the image of a beak, though they do not have one.

Birds-Of-Paradise have avian faces, though much flatter and more human than a regular bird. They have beaks that are generally short and flat, though very strong.

Most Aven live on the Islands of Atlantis and Atlanta, with a small group of settlements on the Isle of Chivetna. The craggy, sparse land of Autoch is not conducive to their way of life.

Few Bird-Of-Prey Aven develop beyond the level of an average human teenager, though this is a consequence of their short lifespan.

Bird-Of-Paradise Aven live for up to 2.5 times the length of a human life; and thought they develop slightly slower than them initially, older Birds-Of-Paradise are almost always highly intelligent.

All Aven possess incredibly sharp eyesight, Bird-Of-Prey more than the other, that allows them to see what is happening on the ground when they are flying high in the sky. Bird-Of-Prey Aven also possess uncanny hearing to help with hunting. Bird-Of-Paradise Aven are universally gifted in Star Magic, and tend to be exceptional at magic which alters the weather.

Aven do not go by family names, preferring instead to identify themselves as "Son-or-Daughter of" their opposite-sex-parent's name when asked.

Bird-Of-Prey parents go out of their way to find interesting and unique names. They will often invent names wholesale, always in an attempt to have their newest child have the most interesting name among all the young of their home settlement. This leads most Birds-Of-Prey who commonly interact with other races to taking a nickname when dealing with them.

Bird-Of-Paradise Aven prefer to give their children the names of other people that Aven has met. Bird-Of-Paradise parents will wait to name their children until their personalities have developed and generally give them the name of a friend, often a non-Aven, who their chick reminds them of. It is considered rude in their society to attempt to seek out your namesake if they do not live in your home settlement.

Bird-Of-Prey Aven consider themselves more handsome or pretty in direct proportion to how human they look. The only exception to this aesthetic is their talons. Male Birds-Of-Prey will actively cultivate longer and sharper talons on their feet to attract attention of the opposite sex, as well as a show of how effective they are at hunting. Females who are looking for a new mate will spend large amounts of time and effort on their hair and makeup to attract male attention, but tend to let such things go while they are with a partner.
Birds-Of-Paradise of both sexes are attracted to bright colours in their mates, something that is a mark of more powerful magic in their race. Longer flight-feathers and plumage are also beautiful, being indicators that an Aven is either magically or politically strong to not lose or damage feathers during work.

Among Brids-Of-Prey, females are effectively barred from any work that isn't simple agricultural endeavors. Aven are already slight of build, and females are mostly too slight and fragile to hunt or defend their homes; they are usually in charge of farming or foraging as the case may be.
The gender disparity between Birds-Of-Paradise is much less pronounced, as magic is the great equalizer among them.

Courtship among Birds-Of-Prey is fast and competitive. With men fighting in mid-air with their talons over females that they are both interested in, though this only happens if the female expresses interest in both. If she isn't into one of the males chasing her, a female will simply dismiss them. Because protecting the fragile female members of their community is ingrained into their culture, no Bird-Of-Prey would force themselves on a woman they were attracted to.   Birds-Of-Paradise will often choose their mates based on who will be most likely to provide a magically powerful clutch of eggs. A large percentage of their families will arrange marriages with scions of powerful families from other villages to try and ensure that the magic of their bloodline increases. Birds-Of-Paradise who find a non-Aven partner are looked down upon in their society, though there is no evidence that children of such a union are at all less magical.

Birds-Of-Prey wear mostly leather and hide clothes that covers their torso and legs to prevent getting cold while flying while also not interfering with their wings. Women will sometimes wear cloth garments while around the village to express herself or attract male attention; but loose clothing is a danger while flying, so it is only worn during down time.

Birds-Of-Paradise might wear jewelry, occasionally; particularly enchanted items. They almost never adorn themselves otherwise, preferring to show off their sleek feathers instead.

Aven are the eternal enemies of their monstrous cousins, the Harpies and Sirens.