General:Uutak Mythos/Bestiary
- "Thought I'd get a new change of scenery; you know? I've fought a bit everything in In'eslae. I've fought a bit of everything in Esroniet. I've fought a bit of everything in Cathnoquey and Roscrea. Might as well go to Tamriel and fight a bit of everything there too." — Neikais, Echmeri Exul, Zoologist, and Tamrielic Adventurer
As one of the many things the Elder Scrolls is known for as a gaming franchise is its host of creatures that are unique and interesting takes on entities present in the fantasy genre, the Uutak Mythos also includes new beasts, monstrosities, nature spirits, lesser aedric & daedric beings, daemons, and much more that can be found inhabiting the island of Yneslea and other outer realms that are frequently associated with it (see Planes of Existence (Main) and Planes of Existence (Uutak) for more information). Each creature is documented alphabetically and by type, in order to better aid in locating them within the document.
Note: As of 04/18/2021, this page is largely considered to be incomplete. New information will be constantly added to it at later dates.
Contents
Daedra[edit]
The Daedra are extraplanar entities that dwell in the myriad realms of Oblivion, and generally exist in direct opposition to the Aedra of Aetherius; despite this, the actual differences, politics, and mutual reliance between these two groups are much more complex than what it appears to be on the surface. Daedric beings come in all shapes and sizes.
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Cervinaurs[edit]
Cervinaurs originate from the realm of Cervinus (officially recognized as DOP 5692-111a), a realm of beautiful autumn forests and deep-lakes of honeyed blood that is considered adjacent to the Hunting Grounds and is also believed to be the home-realm of the Scamps, Morphoid Daedra, and the Herne. They are powerful daedric beings that are rarely seen outside of the company of their lord and liege Hircine, the Father of Manbeasts. Scholars have long noted that they are incredibly similar appearance-wise to the centaurs that roam Tamriel's northwestern regions, except they have the lower halves of stags (or deer) and the upper halves of badly burnt but heavily muscled men and women, with jagged shoulder-horns and fiery antlers upon their heads.
A cervinaur rivals a Dremora in terms of intelligence and spellcasting ability, being a martial people that prefer using two-handed weapons and pyromancies in combat. Serving as powerful hunters for the Lord of the Hunt, the cervinaurs (like every other inhabitant of their realm) have a matriarchal society and venerate a feminine aspect of Hircine they call Hathrogha. Mortal researchers well-learned in daedrology believe them to be the final evolutionary form of scamps, who are essentially children when compared to the more ancient and regal cervinaur.
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Echoing Horrors[edit]
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Jaebarwahk[edit]
Even amongst Daedra, not many creatures are as feared and unapproachable as the legendary Jaebarwahk, who roams the planes of Oblivion in exile. No one knows exactly how it formed or where it came from, but the most popular tale of the Jaebarwahk proposes a startling theory: that it was once an unknown Daedric Prince that ruled a great and powerful realm, and had many strong and loyal subjects, before its plane was poisoned, corrupted, and sundered from its being during a climactic conflict lost to Oblivion's history.
The Jaebarwahk lost its realm and servants, and with them the majority of its former godhood and intelligence, becoming a nearly mindless entity of monstrous proportions and unquenchable rage. The Jaebarwahk is a hulking, hunchback creature with long tentacle-like arms that end in cadaverous hooked claws that leak acidic blood from open sores. Its legs are quadruped, goat-like, and covered in rusted scales shaped like screaming faces that end in slimy hooves. Its upper torso is humanoid enough, but covered in scars, chains, and archaic runes that shocks it painfully when it stands still; embedded in its back is a large key-like sword, rusted from bluish blood, that it will occasionally use as makeshift body armor. The head of the Jaebarwahk is the weirdest element of its body, being elongated and eel-like, with a reptilian maw and prehensile eyestalks that constantly look around it.
Although it largely relies on its colossal strength to hinder foes, the Jaebarwahk is deceitfully cunning in its rare lucid moments and is a master of possession and illusion magic, using painful headache-induced visions to take over the minds of mortals and other lesser daedra it senses.
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Rotwyrm[edit]
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Plague Atronach[edit]
Infectious with their jovial dispositions but unswerving in their loyalty, the rarely encountered Plague Atronach hails from DOP 28974p-cv, otherwise known as the Blighted Nexus, a realm consumed by oceans of odors and hurricanes of disease.
The realm of the Plague Atronachs was assimilated by the Daedric Prince Peryite untold eons ago, and although a few of their clans have no issue with serving other Princes, the majority of them remain some of the Blighted Lord's most unique daedric minions. They choose to manifest themselves as swirling masses of deadly bacteria, with their limbs composed of plasma-like dark green mucus that is disgusting to look at and even more disgusting to touch. Their eyes are light green orbs of light and they usually stand at the same height of their Storm Atronarch cousins (but have more slim, natural builds).
When in combat or performing menial tasks a plague atronach might split its being into multiple, lesser copies similar to how a contagion spreads itself amongst a mortal population, making them incredibly dangerous if left unchecked. Other Daedra tend to regard them as inferior and annoying, especially other atronachs, due to their foul-smell and disdain for materialistic need. When communicative with others, a plague atronach will reveal that their clan names generally start with the word "Fthar".
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Srakoo[edit]
Ugly, trifling creatures, srakoo are a type of daedric pest that inhabits the more sickly, bloody, and horrendous regions of Oblivion (meaning it is often found in the realms associated with Namiira, Peryite, Molag Bal, Hircine, and Sanguine). They do not have a home-realm according to the research of several esteemed daedrologists, and appear to form naturally from the chaotic creatia of planes that have been soiled with filth and other revolting substances.
Resembling raven-sized mosquitoes combined with jellyfish, dung beetles, and misshapen flesh, srakoo zip through the realms they inhabit in search of blood to suckle on. One or two srakoo are by no means dangerous, but a traveling swarm consisting of eight to ten can prove to be exceptionally fatal (just one srakoo can drain a mortal body completely of blood in fifteen minutes). When it encounters a being it can feast upon, a srakoo will immediately attempt to latch onto the back of the being's neck with its four tentacles unnoticed; if successful, that is when it locks its four needle-ridden legs deeply into the flesh of the neck before plunging its thin proboscis through the skin to begin drinking its fill. Once full the srakoo bloats considerably, and it hibernates for days at a time.
A srakoo is a mindless, unintelligent daedra. It knows hunger and nothing else.
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Voimon[edit]
Sweet as can be and lovers of sweets themselves, the Voimon are a low-ranking species of Lesser Daedra that can be found throughout Oblivion in the courts of high-ranking generals, lords, demiprinces, and the lords of misrule themselves. They hail from DOP 123890-7v, or the Flavor Fields of Jiina, a dark-realm of lantern-lit forests and bizarre cave systems where every conceivable spice, sugar, dough, and meat grows amongst the rocks like ore.
Unnaturally benevolent for daedra, these little critters possess a child-like wisdom and incredible skill in cooking (which they derive a large amount of joy from), with their magical abilities focusing on the restructuring and enhancement of dishes they discover or make. When kept from making food for a large amount of time, or trapped in an environment devoid of anything edible, a voimon will wither and whimper tragically until they collapse into a pile of fur and dust.
Voimon are rather small in stature for being spirits: they possess one large eye, two sets of ram-like horns, olive skin tones, and the hindquarters (and tails) of a raccoon. Their biology is similar enough to the mortal races in respect to gender and reproduction, and thanks to their kind natures, are able to frequently cross through the liminal barriers separating Oblivion and Mundus as the Covenant of Akatosh views them as nonthreatening. Professional chefs (mortal and immortal) like to keep them around thanks to their usefulness and creativity, and some are even properly employed in the kitchens of powerful aristocrats across Nirn.
Daemons[edit]
Daemons (sometimes referred to as daimons or traditionally as zaoraki, a word in Ek'hi) are aberrations that come from Har-Gaun, the Nether Realm that lies underneath all parts of the universe. As the Nether-Realms, according to eastern myth and fable, are a gestalt of corrupted soul residue and memories born from the murderous anguish and rage of the first gods, it is seemingly alive in the oddest sense of the word and seeks to consume all life (mortal or immortal, living or dead) into itself; daemons are therefore the remnants of those that have been absorbed into it, having been ushered into a new existence filled with pain. As the Nether Realm is a technological realm where everything is built from flesh, bone, and blood, its inhabitants are also composed of such materials and strange arcane powers & elements unlikely to be the same elemental and magical energies commonly used by other creatures.
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Avatar of Cǎnjù[edit]
Mistakenly referred to as newborn Knehts by many, Avatars of Cǎnjù are created when a living mortal being knowingly or unknowingly gives themselves to the gestalt necro-conscious of Har-Gaun. Their name originates from an urban legend of the Deepseekers, of a tortured god called Cǎnjù born from nether energy whose sphere is heroic tragedy and divine comedy.
A person who gives of themselves to Har-Gaun maintain the majority of their natural appearance and intellect, but on closer inspection they are physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually eaten away. They become obsessed with the pleasures/displeasures of flesh, and every high point and virtuous aspect of their individualism slowly warps into negative motivation and pneumatic hunger. Physical indicators of an Avatar are pronounced veins that have rearranged themselves to look more like industrial pipes, pale eyes, the blood remaining dark blue despite being exposed to air, and painful reactions to mana particles.
The Avatars, despite condemning themselves to the Nether Realm, are rarely found there - otherwise they'd be horrifically mutated. Instead they wander the world, mostly the sea, as they become more demonic as their soul is cannibalized. With enhanced physical and mental attributes & rapid regeneration, they can be formidable foes and dangerous adversaries (especially since they are not only more than capable of mortal mannerism, but unconsciously use nether energy to fuel their weapons and arcane techniques).
Netherologists often liken them to being Har-Gaun's equivalent to Revenants of the Mundus.
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Crucificubus[edit]
Not many daemons are as terrifying or as disturbingly intelligent as the Crucificubus, and that is for good reason; these entities are the result of a being of non-mortal origin (e.g. a lesser daedra or nature spirit) being lured into Har-Gaun and embracing its corruption, becoming something akin to wandering figures of authority. Crucificubii are capable of flight, possessing four pairs of bloodied raven-like wings, and their 'souls' and bodies have been forced to grow multi-layered plates of bone and eyes to function as heavy armor, before being intertwined with metallic like thorns. What makes Crucificubii so interesting, however, is also the reason why they have their names. Their legs are intertwined together almost like braided rope, and their arms are forced outwards in a position leveled with their shoulders in a mock crucifixion. It is unknown why these daemons are forced to have these physiques, but Deepseekers theorize that it is Har-Gaun's way of ensuring they do not try to flee or manipulate the Underworld for other greater powers.
As all of their limbs aside from their wings are permanently immobile, the Crucificubii attack Deepseekers, lesser daemons, and any unfortunate adventurers that managed to get trapped in the Nether Realm with the multitude of eyes they possess all over their bodies; the backside eyes cause petrification on those that they gaze upon, the left and right eyes discharge bolts of nether-lightning at enemies, and the front eyes emit a soothing wave of nostalgic light that causes those that see it to become entranced and wish to enter it.
Curseling[edit]
One of the native creatures of the Nether Realm that doesn't manifest naturally within it, the Curseling is instead a being born from pursuits into vengeful magic. Utilizing dark ritualistic blood magic, a person offers themselves up (body and soul) to be consumed by the Nether Realm, which leaves a permanent brand upon the soul of the target. Once the target of the curse perishes, both souls are conjoined in the Nether Realm as a single, malformed monstrosity with two heads—one of rage and one of anguish—for all eternity. This union is an eternal punishment that both must suffer together.
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Dreg Bogger[edit]
The Dreg Bogger is a mounding pile of churning gears, mud, and rock given life, but easily can be mistaken for rubble and debris. Perhaps an externalization of a person given too much to gluttony in mortality, Dreg Boggers are consumptive daemons that spread like a festering sore, eating away at anything that comes in unfortunate contact with it. If ever allowed to exist longer than a minute on Nirn, it is said that a single droplet of a dreg bogger could expand to consume the entire world in a matter of years.
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Fleshy Weird[edit]
As their name suggests, the Fleshy Weird are the nether realm equivalents to water weirds, where the daemon is barely structured and can almost liquefy itself at will. Said to be the daemonic manifestations of former traitorous souls consumed by the Underworld, they hold no rigid structure, just as they held no firm convictions within the mortal coil. Perhaps their physical forms are sadistic jokes of whatever entity controls Har-Gaun, or the Underworld allowing their true natures to be finally exposed, but they are without question as vile as their descriptions imply.
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Gallowscorned[edit]
Large, hulking, and brutish in a way an Ogrim might find barbaric, the Gallowscorned—these massive behemoths—are the vile manifestations of those who proudly professed their innocence before the heads man's block. This profession, before the gods, is considered impertinence to them, and as such, they deliver retribution on behalf of those whom they have wronged in life. Ever malicious, ever vain, the gallowscorned are the embodiment of malcontent and self-perceptive indignation.
Graverotter[edit]
Said to be the daemonic spawn of mortal grave robbers, Graverotters are amalgams of rotting flesh, dirt, soul, treasure, with what appears to be a headstone as a makeshift shield for an arm. Given to greed in life, these daemons continue to search for wealth out of pure instinct, and they collect of value thar they come across, no matter have trivial. This loot is then added to their bloated forms until they no longer are capable of movement. As parting with any of its ill-gotten gains would be unfathomable to its limited sense of instinct.
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Idle Lecher[edit]
An Idle Lecher is oftentimes found to be an immobile obelisk that appears akin to a shoddily constructed clock tower, these structures are in fact daemons. A closer look will reveal its organic nature, albeit corrupt and vile as it is. Although, curiosity is oft the downfall of those who inquire about these stationary obelisks. Exuding an aura of sloth, malaise, and lethargy, a creature that draws too near to an idle lecher will fall prey to its indolence. As if capable of slowing the sands of time within its presence, idle lechers are inexplicable in the origin of their powers. They are often considered to be the remnants of people who have given into slothfulness in life, thus retaining this trait in the Nether Realm. A creature that falls prey to the idle lecher soon loses all sense of time, self, identity, and eventually, is fed upon until nothing of them remains.
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Knetht[edit]
Whereas the Orphanim or the Crucificubus, both equally intelligent in their own ways, are native denizens of the Nether Realms, the oddly elusive but planar walking knethts are the product of unfortunate adventurers who wandered into Har-Gaun and were deemed adequate in their skills for other uses beyond additional meat. Stripped of their skin, eyes, nose, mouth, and ears (the resulting exposed muscular system fusing with the rusted remnants of the equipment they bore in life), the Knetht is disturbingly cunning and has a telepathic bond with blood, which is how it navigates through its environment.
A knetht that has sensed an individual that reminds it of its former life will stalk that person relentlessly across the Nether Realm and any other outer plane by contorting its ruined vessel into bizarre angles that slip through the fabric of space, before rearranging itself in order to attack. Some Knetht are capable of "speech" through a gnawing sort of gurgling known to drive lesser mortals insane.
Knetht Tyrant[edit]
According to a popular Deepseeker parable, ancient knethts - those that have managed to kill and devour the souls of others throughout the ages - will become entities with skills and powers akin to a minor Daedra Lord. These Knetht Tyrants, or Deiknethts, are capable of true speech by manipulating the souls it has devoured to give it a voice it adores, actively constructs residences of influence in First Hell, and will manipulate lesser daemons into makeshift garrisons in order to lure adventurers to its abode for conversation before feasting upon them as sick sport. A Knetht Tyrant that amasses even more power (perhaps by devouring and/or murdering other daemons) will achieve the mythical state of Archknetht, of which only one has ever been recorded in the Archives of Calamity maintained by the Deepseekers.
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Ophanim[edit]
Considered one of the few, if any, intelligent daemons of Har-Guan. Appearing as a series of inter-revolving fleshy, eye-coved wheels, winged, with a singular burning core, the Ophanim' is ostensibly considered a commanding force among the daemons of the Nether Realm. Few have ever been witnessed, as they are said to have been creatures born from the souls of corrupted politicians who sought dominion over their peoples in life. While it is not understood how ophanims are able to communicate, let alone command other, more mindless daemons, there are two major theories that have been suggested by Deepseekers and Deepfinders: telepathy, or (worse) a form of phenomenal excretion, like that of hive-minded insects. Whatever the means, the Ophanim's ability to command daemons is undoubtedly one such trait that places it as one of the greatest threats of the Nether Realm.
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Wickermen[edit]
Wickermen are a type of daemon that comes from the terrifying hell-realm of Har-Gaun, a place that embodies the complete corruption of mortal and divine life. They are perhaps one of the more common types of daemon encountered by the Deepseekers and the Deepfinders during their constant crusades into the Underworld from their fortress of Portentous Whelm, and are believed to be spontaneously spawn every time an adult from the civilized races die from immolation.
Like all daemons from the Nether Realm, the Wickermen shares its plane of existences' traits of being composed of coagulated pipes, gears made from flesh, pistons of bone, and disturbingly thick blood-like oil that is actually condensed and spoiled souls. Its main physical alteration that it is covered in 'branches' that are both threaded together and porcupine quill-like, and its unusually long neck has been decapitated; instead, it hosts a large open chest cavity where a rotting machine-like skull is held in place by more 'branches'. And of curse, its body is enveloped in spectral nether-flames.
Dragons & Dragonkyn[edit]
Dragons are the children of the Dragon God of Time, Akatosh, and have existed for as long as time has existed. Although the Tamrielic races are only familiar with certain types of dragons, the races of the east are much more knowledgeable about these divine beasts of creation and believe there to be four different breeds of dragon, each representing a different state of time and fulfilling different roles for their father and creator.
However, we cannot deny the existence of creatures that have draconic features or sources of origin that have removed them from the gaze of Akatosh. Easterners refer to these sentient and sometimes semi-intelligent beasts as dragonkyn, or dragon-kin. To be fair to most adventurers, who only hear the term and believe themselves to be hunting true dragons, most scholars can agree that the origins for most dragonkyn are shrouded in unreliable myth, parable, and folktales. But some (e.g. Daedric Titans, Dragon Frogs) do have reliable records linking them to actual dragons, even if the records themselves owe their deviant forms to magical experimentation or godly interference.
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Dovah[edit]
The most common type of true dragon, and the one most civilized races think about when the concept of dragons is discussed, is the dovah (or drake). Known as the "dragons of the present", they are the scions of the Nordic god Alduin, who is known as Duiiad'al among the bat elves of Yneslea. Drakes are incredibly reptilian, the most reptilian of true dragons, although a few of their breeds have the physical attributes of snakes and amphibians as well. They are masters of the Voice, which they taught to northern men, and are as haughty as they are powerful.
Like their divine father, who is said to represent the end times and eats the world, the dovah seek to dominate others (just as their grandfather Aka dominates the heavens) and be all-powerful. They have a tendency to disappear from physical history for long periods of time, making others believe they are extinct, before returning en masse time after time again. To learn more about them, please read their lore article here.
Dragonlings[edit]
Dragonlings, also called Paerans in certain circles, are lesser dragon-kin that are not homogeneous as a species; there are several varieties of dragonling, some of which directly conflict with each other in regards to lore, which has caused immense frustration to all learners of dragonology. Common folk tend to refer to them as "baby dragons" due to their diminutive size and cute appearances; as most dragonlings possess six limbs instead of four like true dragons, it is obvious to tell their distant nature to their trueborn kin.
The most common dragonling, or "true dragonling", is a small draconic reptile capable of limited flight and short burps of fire. They are common sights within eastern forests, as well as northwestern Tamrielic forests, having been brought over to that continent by Akaviri pirates in the past. These dragonlings are believed to have been created by Peryite or Molag Bal as a way of balancing out the immortality of drakes and to spite Lord Akatosh, and are the ones capable of speaking a strange language only known as Dragonish (that has no linguistic ties to dovahzul).
Another common type of dragonling that adventurers can encounter are "dragon-imps", which are imps that have been transformed or transformed themselves into having dragon-like forms. Unlike true dragonlings, dragon-imps have the same amount of limbs as actual dragons. They are also capable of breathing different types of elemental blasts, but this is not thu'um, but imp spellcasting. Dragon-imps do not speak Dragonish.
Rarer dragonlings are creatures like the "tiny dragon", of which little is known, although they are believed to be some kind of fairy or fairy creation. There is also the "quasidragon", created by ancient wizards to serve as familiars, that have eight limbs (six legs and a pair of wings) and a more chameleon-like body; these are exceptionally rare to encounter, but are often used as library pets due to their fondness for language and learning.
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Echoes of Aka[edit]
When a true dragon (a hydra, a drake/dovah, a jill, or a khimera) dies, that is not the end for it, for a true dragon is the child of the Time God himself. As pieces of his divine soul given will and life, the very essence of a dragon is eternal and bound to the linearity and non-linearity of time, making them more or less immortal.
After a true dragon or a being that possesses a true dragon's soul is slain, its physical body will immediately begin to rot away, but its soul will stay within the bones of its carcass unless retrieved by a more powerful living dragon or by Akatosh himself. Once in this state, the soul of the slain dragon will slumber amongst and coalesce into the rivers of time as a chronological elemental, free of materialistic entrapment and mortal conundrums.
But if the skeleton of an incredibly ancient or powerful true dragon is disturbed (whether that be by necromantic art, an obscure ritual, or some adventurer disturbing its remains), the soul slumbering deep inside of the bleached bone and marrow may temporarily awaken through a combination of powerful magical talent, exceptional thu'um mastery, and the will of Akatosh himself. Considered to be the closest thing to a "ghost dragon", these Echoes of Aka (sometimes called Draconic Fragments or Spirits of the Voice) will temporarily manifest in an incorporeal version of its former physical form, radiating uncontrollable levels of magical power and spiritual energy, to communicate (or more likely, combat) with whoever intrudes upon its fateful mound of rest.
An Echo of Akatosh cannot be easily dispelled, and is completely immune to spells like turn undead or banish, as it is not a traditional spirit. Although it cannot use the thu'um in the conventional sense due to its ghostly nature, all dragon shouts that an Echo uses against its foes do psychic and necrotic damage instead, causing fear and hallucinations.
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Hiraka[edit]
A fierce predator of the In'eslaen wilds, a hiraka (which translates into "hunting dragon") is a reptilian creature the size of and possessing similar physical traits to large felines like sabretooth cats and panthers. They are agile, stalking beasts with four lean legs meant for running that end in padded paws and hooked claws for burying deep into the earth and their prey. While the majority of their bodies, as stated previously, have feline-like qualities, the ridges of their backs have spinal splits that betrays the trait of some members of the species to grow minuscule, useless wings. The tails of hiraka are also prehensile to a certain degree, with the last four inches of the tail spreading out to create a flipper-like appendage that helps them make sharper turns and navigate the waters easier.
Hiraka have comically large jaws filled with serrated teeth, which has led some zoologists to believe they are distantly related to guar and wormmouths, and they can be found living on most of the landmasses within the Padomaic Ocean. On In'eslae at least the hiraka are eternally at odds with the native haogak, a cousin of the western durzog, and will fight over territory with them often.
Classified as cooperative ambush predators, hunting dragons roost on isolated beaches in the sun for hours at a time until their stomachs begin to rumble. It is then that they proceed to roam the inland in groups of four, communicating through growls and snappy whines, until they spot an animal that would make easy prey for them. Encircling their quarry from a distance, they will wait for one of their number to create a distraction before the other three lunge at their unfortunate prey together, clamping their powerful jaws around its body and forcing it down to the ground. All four hiraka will then proceed to share the meat equally, eating one at a time as the others stand guard for other predators, before returning to their beaches to sun themselves and digest their meals lazily.
Hydras[edit]
The gargantuan hydra is one of the four true dragons, sired by one of the children of the Time God in primordial times. Carugharughurac, the Echmeri/Maormeri god of sadness, drowned time, tsunamis, and the seas, is their divine progenitor and the very apex of their kind; a being so large that he wraps around Nirn three times, and has twenty-five heads with which he commands twenty-five storms.
Normal hydras are made in the image of their father, and are the grandchildren of the Dragon God. They have large serpentine bodies that have four appendages that end in mighty fins they use to navigate the watery depths and possess nine eel-like heads that have beady, greedy eyes and razor sharp teeth. It is a common mistake to believe that each hydra head is host to its own individual intelligence, but that is not actually the case. Hydras are singular minded entities of great wisdom and knowledge, recorders of everything that sinks below the ocean's depths, and they tend to speak with all of their heads in unison to create an ethereal choir of voices to intimidate and bewilder mortals.
The scaled hides of hydra are often encrusted with layers of coral, barnacles, seaweed, and dirt that will often harden to the point that it becomes a protective shell that masquerades as dry land to surface races. Most hydra are rarely seen or encountered by others, as they prefer to live solitary lives dominating the other creatures of the sea. Some sea elves humor themselves with the idea of taming one as a mount, although the very idea is maddening and dangerous to consider.
As long as one of the hydra's heads remains intact, it cannot physically die; the other heads will just regenerate over a long period of time, a trait that other true dragons are envious of. Hydras are also capable of using a variant of the Voice, or thu'um, that other dragons utilize but in a strange dialect that is nearly impossible to learn. A favored past-time of hydras is to collect hordes of sunken treasure, broken ships, and forgotten artifacts in their underwater lairs to keep them company in their solitude to avoid becoming mad.
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Jills[edit]
Rarely ever encountered but noted to be blindingly beautiful, the jills are the dragons of the past that exist outside of linear time. Like their mother, the goddess Jasihai, the jills are strictly referred to with feminine pronouns and are therefore characterized as female. As beings associated with lost time, the jills are charged with handling events where time becomes unraveled or unorthodox, and keep largely to themselves.
Jasihai is described as being more avian-like than reptilian in appearance, having three pairs of great feathered wings and a hide decorated with clear as crystal scales that reflect all the colors gifted to the mortal realm by the gods, as well as a wreath of pearls like a crown levitating around her head. Normal jills share most of these characteristics, with their scales being more like shined gemstones and having only two pairs of wings instead of three. Both the mother and her daughters have one pair of long, strong arms with which they manipulate the threads of time.
Like all true dragons, jills can use the thu'um and Shout their wills upon reality. Most of the time they are too busy to deal with mortals directly (unless said mortals have caused a major breach in the time/space continuum), and can only be contacted through hermetic rituals and divination by powerful sorcerers.
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Khimera[edit]
Elusive, foreign, and dangerously majestic, the khimera (or khimerae) are the most speculative and poorly archived of the true dragons sired by Father Time. Known as the dragons of the future to mystics, they practically never leave the far corners of the eastern hemisphere of the world and are said to constantly guard and observe every alternate and multiversal outcome that branches out from every decision made from mortal thought. They are said to be the children of the proud Teshi'raki-ral, last child of the Dragon God of Time.
Khimera may appear scaled to onlookers, but in reality their six-limbed and extremely long, worm-like bodies are covered in matted fur as hard as steel. They tend to have a more feline/canine appearance on top of their more obvious reptilian/dragon-like physical attributes, including having long wispy whiskers and ponderous beards. When bored or when performing errands or their divine parentage, khimerae will often use their incredible shapeshifting powers to blend in with common folk.
Kurivel[edit]
Possessing high intelligence, but unable to communicate with sapient races, the freedom-loving kurivel can be found in flocks of twenty to thirty members in the central-northeastern islets of the Padomaic. Kurivai (their plural pronunciation) are some of the largest and most dragon-like dragonkyn, being creatures of pride and honor that dislike bending to the wills of others; in spite of that, however, every kurivel flock is naturally curious of the human races and is smart enough to understand the concept of need, so when treated respectfully and well-fed, a kurivel will more than likely become a lifetime companion and mount of a good-natured individual.
Kurivai are large reptiles that grow to be the size of horses, and have three pairs of limbs (four legs, with their hind legs being more muscular and powerful than their front legs, and a large set of bat-like wings). Their skin tends to be a mottled green, thick and leathery, that's interspersed with iron-like white scales. Their front legs end in three-fingered claws with a weak thumb they can use to snatch fish from the sea or grab light objects (like freshly laid eggs); most of the time kurivai do not use their claws, however, instead preferring to use their beak-like mouths and unnaturally long necks in conjunction as their main grasping appendage. When startled, enraged, or trying to gloat and look impressive, a kurivel can unleash a breath attack consisting of a mixture of steam, lightning, and bad breath; the last remnants of their long lost thu'um.
The kurivai are incredibly social creatures. Both male and female kurivai can lay eggs, although the exact process behind this is strange and undocumented, and some adventurers have even claimed to see a kurivel give birth to live young in a similar manner to cattle. Many attribute the kurivel's ability to have offspring no matter what to the legends surrounding their origins, which state that a drake known as Aldurnlaar lamented his existence during the Dawn Era. Unpleased with Father Time's decision to remove the ability for dragons to have true children of their own, Aldurnlaar desired to have a family above all else, to the point he bargained his immortal soul with the goddess Mara. Mother Mara, naturally, took pity on the drake and used her divine energies to transform Aldurnlaar into an egg that perched upon a cliff until the very start of the Merethic Era, where it hatched and gave birth to the first kurivel.
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Lynwyrm[edit]
The obsessively compulsive lynwyrm is an uncommon member of the dragonkyn family, usually encountered in hollowed out trees, cliffside ruins, abandoned mine shafts, and rocky pits. They are small creatures (around the size of house cats) of various green hues, curious demeanor, and calculating intelligence. Most of them prefer heavily forested climates, although some variants have adjusted to living in desolate wastelands.
To any dragonologist, it is clear that the lynwyrm species have a divine connection to Peryite, who is believed to have spawned them as he pitied the earth for not having dragons of its own and humorously rectified that error to show his shared dominion with his god-sibling Akatosh. Lynwyrms are very snake-like, with draconic features (curving horns, droopy leathery whiskers, sharp teeth, and forked tongues), a pair of bat-like wings that allow them to glide through the air, and two front arms with hooked talons that allow them to latch on to rough surfaces and hold onto wiggling prey. They tend to range from light green, murky brown, and dusty gray in coloration. Males are generally bigger than the females, and outside of pack hunts, guard the egg-clutches while the females search for berries and small game; female lynwyrms can lay five to six eggs two-and-a-half weeks after mating.
Farmers, treasure hunters, and archeologists are especially fond of lynwyrms due to the species' love of finding, counting, and hoarding trinkets. No lynwyrm is alike in regards to the particular type of items it obsesses over, and one of the main motivations for young lynwyrms to branch out of their birth-nest is to find a suitably sized burrow of their own to start a private collection of interests. Lynwyrm owner's claim that the dragon-kin are quite smart, and are able to learn numbers and tricks.
Although they do not possess a traditional breath attack like other dragonkyn, lynwyrms are able to spit acid from their mouths to make clawing through rock and dirt easier for them (or to deter foes).
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Sea Serpents[edit]
Whenever a hydra loses a head, it is said that there is a chance as it dematerializes for the head to fight desperately for life and create a body from sheer willpower. This popular rumor is where the sea elf origin for sea serpents (or wyrms) comes from, and its possible there is some truth to that tale, although archivists of dragonology have never witnessed this phenomenon in person.
Sea serpents are huge but dimwitted dragonkyn that serve as messengers to hydras, and as mounts or cattle for aquatic races like the sea elves and Broh-Kah. They are generally fearsome and vicious creatures that love a good fight, and are capable of breathing a blast of concentrated hot water from their mouths at their foes (a remnant of their Shouting ability). Mating season for sea serpents occurs during the spring months, and their eggs hatch during summer, allowing the newborns time to hunt during the fall before most of them hibernate their way through the winter months.
Dwarven (Noraken) Animunculi[edit]
Noraken Animunculi are the mechanical constructs that the Noraken Clan of Deep Folk built during their time in the Ice Cream Isles, borrowing the traditional design of traditional Animunculi but boasting several key differences. A major diverging point for the Noraken in particular is that while the Skyrim/Hammerfell clans utilized steam and soul gems as a power source, and the Morrowind clans made use of the Heart of Lorkhan, they instead built great oil refineries off the coast of In'eslae and mined the oceans for a liquid substance they came to call ythan, or gala; as the Noraken were interested in genetic mutation and evolution, they felt that the studying of the near-fossilized blood of the gods and original spirits deep within the world held power, and used it as a basis to create Dwarven oil. Noraken Animunculi are also more humanoid and built for aquatic environments as well, due to their environment and obsession with mortal life.
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Noraken Diver[edit]
A large, humanoid animunculi made to scour the ancient Dreugh kingdoms that lie beneath the Padomaic Ocean in In'eslae's jurisdiction, of which the Broh-Kah and Terenjoe have taken up temporary residence. Its appearance is inspired by tortoises and ancient blueprints for Rourken powered-armor found in Hammerfell ruins, with its arms ending in a variety of attachments (electrical wave cannons, powered claws, drills, and hands). Its "head" is actually a complex helmet containing its arcane power, from which it shines a light that illuminates its surroundings and paralyzes those it is cast upon.
Noraken Fluctspear[edit]
The Fluctspear is a bizarre variant of the typical Sphere Animunculi. It speedily rolls across the ground in hot pursuit of potential targets, before lifting itself off the floor with mechanical arms where its legs should realistically be; at this point the circular body will deconstruct itself in order to resemble a sullen face, from which the blade of a dwarven-ore halberd will emerge from its mouth in order to skewer foes.
Noraken Triangulite[edit]
Odd, skeleton-like animunculi that unfold out of large pyramid-shaped devices found frequently around their ruins and other places of high importance, usually scuttling around on high surfaces or attempting to pass themselves off as interior decoration. Both of the Triangulite's appendages function like unconventionally advanced crossbows, which they use in conjunction with their magical life sensors to immediately spot intruders and attempt to skewer them with bolts upon noticing their harmonic fluctuations are not permitted in a secure area.
Echmeri (Nemeric) Auralmata[edit]
Taking cues from their Begetters, the Nemer (and eventually their Echmeri descendants) took a massive liking to golems and marionettes but were unable to fully understand or replicate the Dwarven automaton process. This led to their further advancement in puppetry magic, as well as their discovery of ythan and how they could use it in order to enhance the golems they had become proficient at creating. Auralmata are largely nothing more than golems of dirt, stone, and/or porcelain (and sometimes weak, invaluable metals) reinforced with simple alloys, from which precision-pipes are installed and circulated through the golem's inner anatomy; from this then is refined ythan pumped through the golem to the creatures "heart", giving it life and simple-thinking that does not require an individual's personal mana pools. These quasi-mechanical constructs constantly hum noise due to the magical technology within them that transmutes the oil into magical energy, and while vastly inferior to their Dwarven counterparts, can still prove to be quite formidable in combat.
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Paragons[edit]
Zaida'han Paragons are ancient, sleeping golems that can be found scattered across In'eslae, having been built by the fallen Zaida khao'gunate using powerful and obscure magicks. Built in the shape of large Nemer ronins armed with krakenite weaponry, armor, and/or shields, these magical constructs once served as the last line of defense for Zaida when it warred with the other kingdoms during the Null Epoch. Now they have become nothing more than ornaments of nature, and can be found submerged, entrenched, or otherwise overgrown by shrubbery within the local landscapes. It is believed that at least some of them are still active, but must have their spectral cores relit by some form of energy source in order to revive them. Reports of fully functional Paragons are rare but a few them are truthful, with the last reputable sighting have been in the early Third Era by the Tamrielic reckoning.
While it is unknown how progressive the Zaida'han were with their golem-craft, old tales of the Paragons claim they were so mighty, one was able to rip a Noraken Diver in half and use its shattered body to kill a rampaging band of Broh-Kah.
Fey[edit]
Fey, commonly known by the titles of faeries and nature spirits, are spiritual entities that coexist within the Mundus with mortals and often more times than naught are characterized by elemental attributes. Some might have originated in the Nature Realm or even Aetherius, before becoming native to the planet of Nirn. The majority of Fey are nice and impartial, but there are several exceptions to this rule.
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Laolikan[edit]
Laolikan are fox spirits that bear a superficial "existential" similarity to indriks, in the sense that they definitely have divine roots despite having physical forms and living in the mundane world. The more tails that they have symbolize their age, elemental power, and intellect, with the nine-tail laolikan symbolizing the creation of the world and being capable of speech when they choose to converse with regular people. They were brought over to Yneslea by Lilmothiit survivors of the Knahaten Flu who abandoned their home of Black Marsh and sailed to the east in order to find refuge. The Ek'lilith, the more vulpine bat elves of the Yneslean archipelago, are the descendants of Lilmothiit-Echmeri marriages that occurred as a result of the fox folk's exodus; the laolikan tend to be found guarding the ek'lilith, or at the very least, guiding them when they have lost their way in the Yneslean wilderness.
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Pegaeae[edit]
Pegaeae are emotionally unpredictable water spirits found in ponds, streams, and fountains; they have some physical traits akin to fish, but are incredibly intelligent. Despite being fond of jokes and pranks, they appear to be depressed due to feeling inferior to their much stronger and reliable sisters (the nereids and leimenids), and are quick to disappear into the darker recesses of their aquatic abodes when they feel slighted or excessively picked on by others.
Pixies[edit]
Pixies are small, whimsical elf-like creatures that use magic to make themselves look like balls of puffy light that are considered to be Fey or Faerie Folk. They have unclear origins, and mostly shy away from the civilized races unless provoked. Most pixies live in barely noticeable communities inside of large gardens, secret groves, or the walls of regal estates, and are notorious tricksters and thieves who like to 'borrow' shiny and/or important trinkets from others and keeping them indefinitely.
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Sylphs[edit]
Sylphs are feminine wind spirits that can be found in windy valleys, the eyes of storms, or on the top of sacred hills to the god Stendarr and goddess Kynareth; the word "Sylphim" was adopted by westerners to refer to minor fey, which they find to be irritating due to their powers and abilities being comparable to Spriggans. Unlike the normally hostile Spriggans, who the sylphs look down upon as nuisances and distasteful cousins, Sylphs are generally nice beings who prefer to be left alone by mortals but use their magical powers to passively draw less attention to themselves. They are organized in covens led by Storm-Mothers and Gust-Matrons, where they spend their time worshipping their deific patronage and the gift of life itself. When beseeched correctly, sylphs will willingly aid adventurers and passerbys anyway they can (even attacking other nature spirits if they are proving to be problematic). Sylphs and Pegaeae tend to get along, having a big sister/little sister dynamic.
Mad sorcerers or daedric mages are capable of corrupting sylphs into creatures called zephyrs, violent manifestations of murderous hurricanes and tornados that can be commanded to attack and kill others. Interestingly enough, some sylphs imply that zephyrs are what their kind used to behave like in ancient times, meaning that they overcame their overly hostile natures through force of will.
Humanoids[edit]
Although the exact terminology and definition of the word "human" can vary between the races of Man and Elf due to religious biases, most can agree on one important thing: that any culture that can form a powerful civilization, can learn language, can initiate trade, and can acknowledge the powers that be in the heavens deserves to be considered human. It is through this crucial distinction that races like the Argonians, Khajiit, and Echmer are legally human as uncivilized members of their societies are exceptionally rare specimens, while other species (examples being minotaurs and giants) are the opposite; intelligent members willing to communicate with other races are the outliers, not the rule.
Therefore when it comes to classifying minority races on Nirn that possess culture but not civilization, most are called humanoid (although in some strange cases, humanoids can also be considered to be a type of beast-folk). Humanoid creatures are generally protected by the regional laws of the local government in some capacity (re: hunting them for sport is universally frowned down upon, but protecting yourself from them if found hostile in the wilderness is fine) and in some cases even venerated by specific ethnic groups due to a mixture of awe and myth.
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Broh-Kah[edit]
The Broh-Kah are a race of amphibious, four-armed, and hairy frog-folk that dwell in the Yneslean Directorate (both below its waves and upon its land). A chaotic, warring race so deeply devoted to their last surviving god that they possess little to no intelligence outside of it, they are considered a nuisance and barbaric by other races. To learn more about them, please see their lore entry on the race page.
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Fire Giants[edit]
Having settled in the Padomaic Volcrags, a dense collection of islands and archipelagos constantly expanding thanks to yearly volcanic eruptions, in yesteryears, the fire giants are the eastern cousins of the common giant, frost giant, and sea giant races. Unlike the rest of their brethren, who still have ancestral bonds with the Starry Heart and the gods that dwell there, the fire giants prefer to live as far away from other folk as possible due to some primal fear of alliances; they can communicate exceptionally well, yes, and even trade with other Padomaic peoples' often, but many refuse to leave the safety of their shores outside of the occasional sea-pasturing and piracy.
Fire giants stand around eight to ten feet tall, have burnt orange to dusty crimson skin tones, charcoal black hair, and one large solitary eye that is usually yellow or bright red in hue. They build huts from clay and stone on the beaches or along the sides of the volcanoes of their territory, and tend to live by themselves or in units of three outside of mating rituals. They tend to herd schools of manatee & volcran sheep for food and resources, the latter of which being a rare breed of omnivorous red sheep indigenous to the Volcrags.
Unlike other giants, who prefer totemic religions and obscure rituals that make understanding their belief systems difficult, fire giants have a complex language of warped Ehlnofex, throat-singing, tongue-clicks, and eye winks in addition to totems that makes their practices slightly more understandable. Scholars have discovered that they worship a being they refer to as the Eyeless Son, a deity of heat, light, and creativity, that seeks appeasement from volcanic sacrifice and artistry. Because of this, fire giants are masters at metalworking and love trading the trinkets they make with other people; banded steel implements are common with their arms and armor, although they are also experts at creating "braided" obsidian instruments.
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Onagi[edit]
Often considered to be nothing more than eastern fables, the black and blue-skinned onagi are in fact very real creatures that haunt the night in search of adolescents to prey upon. Devoid of a true home, the sages of Mustikos'arcere and other places believe they originate from a joint man-mer community that fell to a shadow magic curse long ago due to their own penchant for evil.
Onagi have the rough, burly muscular structure and raw strength of Men combined with the delicate, angular, and acute facial features, joints, and bone structures of Elves, giving them an uncanny and disturbing physical appearance. Their eyes, long nails, and wreaths of horn-like bones circling their otherwise bald heads are pure white in color, and their bodies tend to be decorated with alchemical symbols in a forgotten language. Both male and female onagi tend to be around seven feet tall, with powerful square jaws full of rows of sharp teeth.
No one knows exactly what happened to make the Onagi what they are today, but it is known that they are trapped between planes of existence and exist semi-corporeal within the Mundus; their souls and physical forms are bound to the eternal labyrinths of the Shadow Realms, but their minds and astral bodies are able to interact with Nirn to a limited extent. Onagi feed on youth, which strengthens their ties to the physical plane, which is why they hunt down children and teenagers but are deathly afraid of adults and the elderly.
Nighttime is the only time of day that an Onagi can be encountered, as the doorways to the Shadow Realms open easier in the dark, allowing them to roam freely to feast to their heart's content. If an Onagi can be captured before the sun comes up, the blinding light will sever its link to its soul and
Monstrosities[edit]
Monstrosities are creatures that are deemed too physiologically different from standard animal biology to be considered common creatures, and often tend to have behaviors that are observed as deviational. Not all monstrosities are terrifying or violent monsters as the name suggests, but a lot of them are, so adventurers should be on their guard when finding them in their travels.
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Bruorl[edit]
In Tamriel, trolls are savage mammals with ape-like characteristics. In Yneslea, however, the Bruorl have taken a much more different evolutionary path. While still noticeably ape-like, these tenacious creatures also have the physical characteristics of geckos and moles, and tend to live underground in shallow pools and isolated caves. They tend to have black fur interspersed with patches of dark red scales (although they are originally blue-greenish in childhood), milky orange and bulbous eyes (for they are blind) and have claws as sharp as steel which they use to slash potential prey creatures first and burrow their way through dirt and rock second. Bruorl navigate the general darkness of the Dweech through the small tendrils on their feet and nose that alerts them to seismic activity as well as echolocation. The Bat Elves believe that while the creatures are deplorable due to constantly drilling through the walls of the Urb-Districts or causing terror on the surface, they may possibly be wise and adaptive, as they have developed the odd habit to run away from most engagements with beast-hunters and will often wait until newly born livestock are left lone to steal them away when farmhands aren't paying attention.
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Geri[edit]
A Gheri is a type of amphibious reptilian native to the Yneslean archipelago, resembling large but stubby anacondas with two powerful forearms that it uses to climb trees, burrow nests, attain unwashed fruits & vegetables from gardens, and traverse the distance between itself and its prey quickly (or, likewise, run away from a predator) when in desperate need of a speed boost. Because their mouths are positioned downwards (almost where their chest would be), they usually trample down their prey, use their serpentine bodies to constrict themselves around it, and then throw it to the ground brutally before positioning themselves on top of it so that they may bite its neck and slurp them up whole; afterwards, a gheri typically needs to wait a few hours to properly digest their meal, becoming sleepy and lethargic. Surprisingly, gheri are rather skittish around the mortal races and seem to fear their tools, causing some scholars to suggest they have had higher intelligence before being beaten into feral monsters.
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Haogak[edit]
The Haogak are cousins to the western durzogs, and are descendants of the creatures the Hyu-Ket brought with them to Yneslea in ancient times. They too ingested the fungus that transformed the Hyu-Ket into the bug goblins of today, causing them to look like a weird mixture of lizard-beetles with the mannerisms of canines (meaning they can be both equally playful and loyal in conjuction with violent and feral, depending on how they are raised or found in the wild). Because of their antler-like antennae, they are sometimes called "horned" or "antlered" wolves.
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Lahoo[edit]
Just as the surface of the archipelago has its own unique flora and fauna, the vast subterranean cavern known as the Dweech also boasts its own distinct plants and wildlife. The worm-like, translucent Lahoo (which literally translates into "revolting burrowers" from Ek'hi) are one such species of wildlife, and can only be found underground to the relief of the surface-dwelling Exul. Some believe they have supernatural origins thanks to their ability to secrete ectoplasm (a substance usually only found in the aftermath of a ghost).
Lahoo are disgusting yet incredibly lethal creatures that dwell within the Dweech; however, a few of their nests can be found within some of the surface caves on rare occasions. They can grow up to be ten feet in length and travel along the cavern floors and ceilings by strings of ectoplasm secreted from their skin. Lahoo larvae hang from the ceilings in what is called a Lahoo Garden, which can consist of ten to twelve thousand Lahoo. They live mainly off of dust particles carrying flesh, feces, and other disgusting matter that drifts through the air within the Dweech, but as they mature they grow to need actual flesh in their diet.
Three years out of the Lahoo's five-year lifespan is spent in its immature state and at the end of the third year the Lahoo goes into an incubation period where it surrounds itself in its own ectoplasmic spit. Over the course of the next several months this ectoplasm grows and the Lahoo within it begins to evolve. It is in the last month, the fifth, that the fully adult Lahoo Alpha hatches. Lahoo Alphas are incredibly strong and monstrous beings; whereas the larvae are small creatures about the length of the average male human's finger, the alphas are on average eight feet in length and four feet in diameter. It no longer secretes ectoplasm, but a sweat-like fluid that allows it to move with an unnatural speed; this "sweat" is also harmful to all known races due to a high toxicity, and has an extremely foul aroma. Dweech travelers often try to destroy Lahoo cocoons before they hatch whenever they stumble across them.
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Myriapods[edit]
While they look somewhat menacing to foreigners, myriapods are actually quite docile and timid when looks pass their rather large size and observes their habits. They are essentially millipedes, that spend their days constantly looking for smaller insects and plants to devour as their extremely high metabolism will cause them to starve to death if they go more than two hours without eating. While not particularly threatening when angered, their tough carapaces can often prove annoying to lone adventurers and can distract them long enough for a well-placed bite to take them out of the action.
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Peine[edit]
Peine are monstrous, arachnapod-like humanoids that have the traits of spiders, scorpions, thorns, and wasps. But what makes them truly terrifying is their inhuman cunning and alarming intellect. Some believe they are what the Kítapoe became after their service to the Tenebrous God and its un-star servants had no other use for them. No one knows exactly how the Peine reproduce, although it is commonly believed to be through egg-laying, as caves filled with petrified larvae of some unknown species have been found within the Dweech and on the surface of Yneslea in the past. Once, there were hundreds of Peine before the Echmer and Hyu-Ket managed to drive them mostly to extinction several centuries ago, but it appears that a few specimens have survived into modern times if the stories of common folk can be believed to be truthful; several zoologists believe that these survivors have adapted to their situation by only having one of their number active at any given time, while the other Peine hibernate in secrets lairs far away from mortal societies. In the old tales, Peine have a tendency to lumber their way into villages under the cover of the night and make off with two to three victims while leaving at least one partially devoured as some form of animalistic terror tactic (suggesting the fact they are disturbingly sapient).
Sea Life[edit]
The massive bodies of water that exist on Nirn (from the Eltheric to the Padomaic) are host to an abundance of surface and deep sea creatures that many land-lovers have never seen before.
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Acoustic-Shelled Crabs[edit]
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Dendoa[edit]
Dendoa are large, crustacean-like bugs that dwell underwater, and might be in the same family as shellbugs and mudcrabs. They are huge creatures, often called "aquatic beetles" or "crab-bugs", that feed using their hundreds of needle-like tongues to scrape up tiny life forms off the ocean floor or beach sand. They usually migrate every few weeks to the surface in order to shed their luminous shells, which people can make armor out of or strip for materials; otherwise, attaining these shells would be close to impossible (as they are practically impossible to penetrate with anything shy of ebony or solarite equipment).
Drechirae[edit]
Fear the shores of barren islands, especially the ones where salmon-skinned and milky-eyed folk in the nude can be seen dancing around the hardened husks of engraved cephalopods in the distance, for that is where the drechirae lie.
Strange, fey-like humanoids that can only be encountered in deep waters, drechirae are as their name suggests: beings that use powerful illusion magic to appear as uncannily beautiful to passing sailors and shipwrecked pirates, when in reality they are merish men and women of barnacle-encrusted skin and pincer-like fingers with the lower halves of octopuses. It is unknown if the elusive drechirae has a true biological connection with the more common and storied dreugh, but the two species share a fascination with devouring human flesh and speaking in guttural dialects other intelligent creatures aren't able to learn or replicate. Drechirae do seem to worship dreugh, however, whenever they come across them. Meanwhile, dreugh that encounter drechirae immediately become aggravated, implying the former care little for the latter.
In combat, drechirae will attempt to latch onto an enemy they have ensnared through mind tricks before quickly ripping out major organs to feed to their young. If unable to catch a foe by surprise, they will instead result to casting very weak shock spells or generating a cloud of murky, toxic ink from their lower tentacles to blind opponents. Drechirae hair and eggs are highly prized as ingredients in alchemy.
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Faa'gleidons[edit]
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Iron-Shelled Snails[edit]
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Sovereign Clams[edit]
Not many creatures are as rare or as endangered as the sovereign clam, also known as the giant clam. Back when Nirn was all water and the dreugh kingdoms thrived, the sovereign clams were plentiful and migratory, being seen as creatures of arcane wisdom and authority. In the centuries since most of their numbers have been hunted down by poachers seeking to harvest their deeply saturated with magicka giant pearls and by emperor crabs (now also nearly extinct) searching for food.
Sovereign clams can weigh more than 350 kilograms (771.618 lbs), be around 200 centimeters (78.7402 inches) across, and live on average to be two centuries old. As they age their shells become entrenched within massive coral reefs, where they devour small fish and drifting plants that pass through their semi-open maws. Like all clam species the sovereign clam is nonviolent, choosing to use its natural ability to absorb stray magicka particles floating along the oceanic floor to fuel its power to camouflage itself with nearby colors, or become completely invisible.
Giant pearls formed from sovereign clams are highly sought after alchemy ingredients, although powerful wizards or soothsayers can fashion them into recollection orbs that can feed on the memories of others. It takes a sovereign clam twenty to twenty-five years to form a giant pearl, and one sovereign clam can create around five in its lifetime.
Undead[edit]
While largely being contributed to the machinations of those who practice Necromancy, the Undead have existed on the face of Nirn ever since the first death came during the Dawn. Some creatures stricken with Undeath are naturally occurring (in the sense that they have the power to rise from the grave on their own accord), while others require outside awakening and/or summoning; some Undead are even extraplanar spirits like Daedra or Aedra masquerading in mortal corpses in order to put on nightmarish visages. There are also intelligent Undead, like Vampires and Liches, but these pathways to eternal life usually require a hefty cost.
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Iokuk-ek[edit]
The Iokuk-ek are the highly respected but nevertheless thought of as cursed burial ground guardians of the Hyu-Ket. Each burial ground is tended to by at least four of these strange entities, who are chosen from the greatest hunters of each tribe and blessed with sacred rites. The process to become a Iokuk-ek is noticeably similar to mummification, except it involves the removal of the eyes (and replacing them with drake-oak acorns) and the individual being cocooned alive by hundreds of silkworms before being placed within a stone coffin filled with obscure brews and poisons; once the silken-corpse has become deeply saturated, it is burned to a near-crisp, and then buried deep underground for a period of three days as two shamans perform a ritual during the No-Moons Festival.
Upon the morning of the fourth day, the resurrected Iokuk-ek will dig its way out of its tomb and walk its way to his or her chosen burial ground, which it will guard for the rest of its unnatural duration in the living world. Most of these "Silk-Mummies" (as the Echmer like to call them) will naturally deteriorate in a period of three to five years, but during that time maintain a strong magical connection to their burial ground and its immediate environment, and will attack any humanoid individual it senses approaching with malcontent. They are known for magically commanding great swarms of insects outside of their great martial capabilities.
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Ghost-Vampires[edit]
As stated in this book written by members of the Ravenwatch, the Ghost-Vampires of Yneslea are an unique strain of vampirism that originated within the Yneslean archipelago (although it can be found in Tamriel as well now due to the years of trading the two landmasses have had with each other now). After the Echmer were unable to convince Molag Bal to gift them with vampirism, two other importants gods in their culture—Peryite and Namiira—answered their prayers and inflicted them with phantasis chiroaeris.
Befitting a disease created by the gods of equivalent exchange and decay, respectively, ghost-vampires are blessed with innate abilities of astral projection, spiritual sixth sense, and an interesting ability to inflict soul curses upon living things that allows them to track them over great distances, but are cursed with a strange condition that causes their bodies to wither and petrify into stone (with the average ghost-vampire always having a decent degree of petrification). Feeding on blood reverses the petrification to an extent, but it also causes their spiritual powers to weaken or become unusable; likewise, a ghost-vampire that doesn't feed will become completely petrified and immobile, but their astral capabilities and soul magic will become enhanced beyond measure.
The biggest weakness of a ghost-vampire is still the sun, but they can also have their soul magic temporarily sealed off from them if a beautiful flower like a rose or petunia is placed upon their bodies while they are in stone form or simply resting. They are also one of the only vampire-types noted to be terrified of and actively avoiding sources of running water, as their naturally heavy bodies due to the petrification process makes drowning a dangerous (and potentially lethal) reality for them.
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Revenants[edit]
A Revenant, often titled Spirits of Vengeance or Avengers of the Damned, are rare Undead that can be encountered anywhere on Nirn and consist of two different types. A Wrathful Revenant is one born of personal anguish and negativity, possessing cognitive thought, and has only one desire: seeing the object of their hatred and pain joining them in this undeserved departure from the living world. In general Revenants are agreed on being hostile and negative memories, usually the last thoughts a person has right before they die, still being fueled by the vestigial remnants of their soul & mana inside of their brains and bodies, resulting in these negative thoughts creating the shell of a soul that refuses to leave the body and takes control of the corpse.
Likewise, a Spiteful Revenant is similar to a Wrathful Revenant except it is born from communal negativity (for example: a group of legionnaires die together in an ambush, generating great amounts of emotional pain, that warps together alongside bits and pieces of each other's souls inside one of their bodies) and don't really have a singular consciousness. Whereas a Wrathful Revenant tends to be communicative, free-to-move, possesses personal motives, and will often naught attain true peace when the object of their vengeance is dealt with, a Spiteful Revenant tends to be slightly mindless, stays in one particular area (usually the place they experienced their pain and/or death), becomes outraged when others intrude upon its grave or bear resemblance to its killers, and will often live forever unless properly dealt with. Interestingly enough, however, is that both Wrathful and Spiteful Revenants seem to be aware they are simply hollow reflections of deceased people and are only manifestations of outrage that do not properly belong in this world.
Revenants, especially the Wrathful kind, tend to not use magic as it weakens the link their corpses have to their manifested pain (but do not believe that they can't use spells against another). They do not get along with other Undead, especially manipulative ones like Liches or Vampires, but can be manipulated into serving something or someone as long as the partnership leads to the destruction of their target for revenge.
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Sch'aarde[edit]
Due to the benevolence of their god-hero, Hrahndeyl, the Echmer do not move onto a spiritual afterlife when they die; instead, their souls enter the Void and cease to exist while their memories become one with the waters of Nirn, allowing them to escape from the Aurbic Prison that they hate and fear. When new Echmer souls are created, they are believed to be generated from Nirn's oceans thanks to the godly powers of Hrahndeyl. Unfortunately, because of this magical process a new nightmarish situation has occurred – the negative memories of disgraced, violent, or insane Bat Elves are known to arise from the sea in order to wreak havoc upon their descendants in the form of watery, vaguely humanoid entities; the closest things the Echmer have to traditional Undead in this modern age.
These creatures of sludge, ectoplasm, water, and fury are called Sch'aarde (which translates to '"memory-wraith"' or '"spirit of sorrow"' from Ek'hi) and they are incapable of knowing peace. Because of their semi-solid state they can be incredibly hard to physically fight and most exorcists (and other votary groups) rely on magical spirits and holy wards to fend them off; however, memory-wraiths feed on anguish and become more solid the more negativity they devour. A Sch'aarde will often taken on a form reminiscent of their appearance they had in life, although due to their nature as twisted incarnations of memory will be far from perfect realizations, and some will even collapse into soul-chilling residue on their own due to this fact. Things saturated with great memories of death (like burned down homesteads, shipwrecks, battlefields, and even guilt-ridden people) attract Sch'aarde, who will form lumber their way to these damned things in order to lament together. A common but terrifying tactic of Sch'aarde is liquefying themselves and then forcing someone to digest them through some way, shape, or form and through whatever cavity is accessible, resulting in rapid possession; the sudden and overwhelming mental anguish will often lead the possessee to killing themselves (allowing the spirit of sorrow to feed on their soul).
Sirens & Banshees[edit]
Sirens are the spirits of women who died at sea in way or another (hurling themselves from cliffs due to lost loves, sailors and/or warriors who drowned in battle, unfortunate villagers caught in the pathway of a tsunami, etc) and were unable to truly live a fulfilled life, resulting in them lingering in the mortal coil as slightly malevolent entities. They tend to take on the appearance of pale shades sitting on the edges of beaches, the banks of streams, or on the faces of barren rocks jutting out of straits that sing in the most beautiful voices mortals will ever hear, to the extent that sailors and marines alike will fall in love with them before throwing themselves overboard and swimming their way to them. From faraway Sirens appear to be majestically beautiful, but this all just a trick of a light and hallucination born from the very songs they sing; in actuality they are grotesquely decaying and skeletal maidens, who immediately begin ripping to shreds any and all enchanted individuals they managed to ensnare. It is unknown why they brutally kill those that hear the Siren's Song, but some believe it is because it allows them to gobble up parts of their spirits in order to maintain their power.
Banshees[edit]
Banshees, however, are a type of Siren with more cultural-importance to the Echmer but can still be created by Tamrielic souls as well. In the Western (and slightly Eastern view, as well), Banshees are formed when a person manages to escape from a Siren and return to land; this infuriates the Siren, who attempts to follow the person back to their home. This causes the spirit to change, however, and if the Siren is successful she is no longer bound to the watery wastes and is driven mad by her newfound shackles to the earth. The Siren's features become aged and wizened, and she becomes much more physically violent & territorial, generally preferring to make her lairs in high caves or cliffside ruins where the ocean breeze can reach her. What completes this spiritual transformation is the effect being land-locked has on the Siren's Song, as it causes it to become so ugly and visceral that its vibrations can skewer flesh and break bone; now capable of the Banshee's Scream, a true banshee is born.
Yneslean banshees can also be of similar origin, although the bat elves denote that banshees born from the souls of ancient Nemeric women tend to have the ability to visually echolocate their screams and use them as magical projectiles, which is something normal banshees seem incapable of doing. This could easily be due to the bat elven banshee being spiritually influenced by the bodily traits she once had in life, but if this is the case then that would be quite bizarre, as most intangile Undead do not have this type of behavior.