Azarel

Bipedal Form: In their bipedal form Azarel stand between 5'5-6'5 in height with a sleek long tail and slightly webbed fingers and toes. They are often slim-built with a bone structure akin to that of other sapients such as tieflings, elves or humans. They have wide-set eyes which are made more striking by the dark coloured sclera, and are typically black or brown in colour with a few variations of darker blues and greens. They look more akin to their seal form also in the appearance of their nose which is slightly flattened and they also have elongated canines. Their ears are long and downward tilted, like those of a faun, which can shift position to press closed when underwater.

Azarel are lightly furred across their whole body with colours ranging from grey tones and pale brown, and a wide variety of darker markings around their faces, shoulders and thighs. Their fur gives way to hair atop their head which they traditionally keep long with specific cultural traditions around the cutting of their hair.

Seal Form: In seal form they appear like a typical Grey Seal in overall shape but with markings and colouration that mimics that of their bipedal form. The face of the seal form is vaguely dog-like and long with large eyes,wide-set flat nostrils, and long whiskers. The overall body is around 2.5m in length and weighs between 400-500kg, appearing slightly larger than ordinary seals. Despite a bulky movement on land, the short front flippers and long tail manage sleek elegant movements underwater.

Azarel reproduce in the same way as other mammalian bipedal species, however they are more prone to multiple births than the average sapient and twins are very commonplace. A single child born without a sibling is often known as a kudoken child, meaning the lonely child.

The Azarel mature at a similar rate to that of humans and tieflings, reaching puberty in their teens where they first begin to access their seal form. They reach full maturity in their late teens to early twenties. Azarel have a longer lifespan than humans, but not to the extremes of elves, and so typically live to be around 170-200 years.

A vast majority of all Azarel in Tordronnen live in and around the Kaiskål Isles and along the nearest coastlines of Lake Aula. Although some individuals may travel out from this location they will always find themselves drawn back to the flowing waters of the salt-water lake and the open Cuanor Ocean.

By necessity of their close habitation with the water, seafood of various types makes up a large part of the diet for the Azarel. They are able to hunt and eat in either of their forms and still feel satiated. Only the larger of the Kaiskål Isles are of adequate size to grow crops, and so the Azarel frequently need to trade with the mainland for any greater variety of foods.

The Azarel are very social and loving within their own communities, but can be distrustful of visitors to the Isles. Their unique appearance often garners unwanted attention on the mainland and due to their isolated living situation, the Azarel find integrating into the mainland difficult.

Villages of Azarel live in a largely communal fashion where all work is shared out and everyone has a role to fulfill. Even those too old for any sort of manual labour will take on the responsibilities as teachers, storytellers and community leaders.

Azarel have distinctive facial features with large wide set eyes and a slightly flattened nose. They also have dental structure closer to that of their seal form with elongated canines on their upper and lower jaws.

In their bipedal form Azarel have above average vision to that of humans but excellent vision in the darkness. Their hearing is acute out of the water, however their sense of hearing when underwater in their bipedal form is hindered by the need to press the ear closed. It is an automatic reflex and so to not close their ears in water would take conscious effort and put them at risk of infection.

The Azarel keep the same naming structure of first and family names and the gaining of a middle name in their fifth year, in the same way as the rest of Tordronnen. However, as with may traditions and rituals, the Azarel still keep with the older version of the Second Naming Ceremony .

The Azarel have been living among the Kaiskål Isles for as long as can be remembered. Some of their stories even date back to events that pre-date the Time of the Tome.