Bestiary

During the pre-history of the world the dagapesh created a complete ecosystem not dissimilar to that of old Earth full of plants, animals, insects, and all the myriad creatures that make an ecosystem sustainable. Then the dagapesh created the ilthura to shepherd the world. Finally the dagapesh retired to a perpetual sleep in the middle of the Tempest Sea.

In time the ilthura became ambitious and lazy and created many races of creatures to serve them. Some of these were creative and clever, some were slow and dumb. These thrall races were each created to serve a specific purpose and their physiology reflects that.

When the ilthura factions erupted in conflict they began creating beasts designed for war. Many of these beasts still exist, left behind and abandoned by the ilthura. These beasts also have physiology that reflects their purpose; many are designed to seek out and destroy magic.

Only a small sample of these creatures are described here below.

Animals

Most of the animals on Asmythe are similar to what you would find on any habitable planet with a healthy ecosystem. There are, of course, variations and magical influences.

• Cats are considered good luck by all sentient species. Cats seem to be able to avoid almost any disaster and scare away elementals. Uneducated people rumor that cats form a secret society that are the true rulers of Asmythe. No cat would ever admit to this.
• Dogs also have a special place in Asmythe but while cats are expects at avoiding danger, dogs are expects at finding it. A cat will alert you to danger only by its disappearance, but a dog will confront danger loudly and directly and seem to have a "sixth sense" for detecting hidden and ineffable dangers.
• Yaks are the standard herd beast for most human and orc civilizations. They are large and slow but their thick hide, long fur, and long sharp horns allow them to survive most night dangers. Yaks are too slow to be good riding animals but are strong and can carry heavy loads.
• Roan are riding animals similar to wildebeests; like horses with short horns and high shoulders. Roan are very fast when unloaded and can carry a person with gear at decent speed. Roan will bond to a single person for life.

Thrall Races

Thrall races were created as laborers and beasts of burden. They tend to be very strong and not very intelligent.

• Githxa were the managers of ilthura society, they took orders from the ilthura and assigned tasks to the fae. The githxa are now extinct.
• Fae were the craftsmen and personal servants of the ilthura. When the githxa empire fell they split into the delver, sylvani, and other races.
• Umybozu are aquatic semi-humanoids that destroy anything entering their territory. They are very clever and have powerful magical ability, perhaps even on par with the ancient Githxa. If true, that would make them the oldest and most powerful creatures on Asmythe.
• Trolls were created as beasts of burden and hard labor. They are large and strong and dumb and regenerate from damage very quickly.
• Ettercap are humanoid spiders able to create strong cables and webs. Although the purpose of their creation is uncertain they are often known to lay traps and capture creatures in their webs, leaving them unmolested until they die of natural causes.
• Slimes are amorphous creatures apparently designed as garbage collectors. They come in many varieties specific to an environment and "eat" everything they come across. Once an area is clear of debris they will hibernate or move on to a new area.
• Morlocks are subterranean troglodytes who collect and hoard valuables. They are about the size of sylvani but adapted to the underground. They are incredibly stealthy and are able to take a shiny sword out of an adventurer's scabbard without anyone noticing.
• Nymphs are to the overworld as Morlocks are to the underdark. They are able to blend it to their environment, making them nearly undetectable even in broad daylight.

Beasts

Beasts were created in many varieties, each designed to attack and destroy rival ilthura or their servitors.

• Wyverns are the greatest of the monsters, designed to hunt out and destroy all magical energy.
• Basilisk are horse sized beasts with tough skin and deadly venom that they can project with great accuracy. A flying basilisk is called a cockatrice.
• Hydra are large and voracious snakes which can split themselves into multiple hydra after consuming magic. A single hydra can quickly overrun and consume a population.
• Dopplegangers are able to change their shape and color to mimic almost any other medium sized creature in order to infiltrate and assassinate. They have no true shape, always taking on the appearance of something else.
• Kraken is a massive beast of the sea. Although rare they are powerful enough to destroy a fleet of ships.
• Manticore are ferocious winged lion-like reptiles that fly in small packs, attacking and destroying any groups of creatures they find.
• Sphinx is a beautiful creature usually described as a winged lion with a sylvani face and features of ineffable beauty. Any creature that sees it or hears it is overcome with calm and peace and loses all desire to cause harm, even in its own defense.
• Tarrasque lives in the vast deserts of Babalar. It is a huge creature that destroys everything in it's path; none who have seen it nearby have lived and none that have seen it from afar are able to describe it. Nothing can stop it.
• Dragons are beasts found rarely all over the world. These dragons are huge creatures with appearance similar to the classical western dragon. Each has a vast territory, spanning many hundreds of miles. Dragons are non-magical and completely immune to all kinds of magic. They do not hoard wealth, but may "terrorize" settlements in search of food. Such dragons are revered in most cultures and seen as emissaries of the dagapesh (though they are not). Once a year all the dragons migrate to the Dragon Isles to mate; the departure and return of the dragons is a common holiday in delver and sylvani culture.

Necromacy

About a hundred years ago Faelltor discovered a way to combine arcane and primal magic to move an animal's soul from a living body to a dead one and used this to create an army of "zombies" to try to overthrow the Armada Empire.

The empire has outlawed all forms of necromacy and other races are similarly horrified by this practice. Even goblins abhor the idea.

Fortunately, and hopefully, the methods Faelltor used were lost with him. If such methods were ever rediscovered there is not telling what kind of horrors would be created.