Sirènes
| Name | Sirènes |
|---|---|
| Classification | Mortal |
| Age Expectancy | Approx. 400 Years |
| Average Height | 5'0-6'0 |
| Average Weight | 130-180 lbs |
| Body | Normal |
| Spirit | Enhanced |
| Soul | Enhanced |
| Preferred Weapons | Elemental Energy, Tridents |
| Owner | Kristen |
Overview
General
Sirènes are illusive creatures. They live in the Earth’s oceans, rarely surfacing. They exist as a nomadic society. They form clans of 50-200 sirènes and move around together. Each clan governs itself by a set of laws, and each clan has claimed a section of territory. Larger clans having larger territories, smaller clans smaller. They move around their set territories. There are occasionally fights that break out along boarders, if hunting gets scarce and another clan encroaches on someone else’s territory.
Types
Two types of sirène exist. One type looks very much like what you would imagine a creature of this nature to look like. The bottom half of their body is a fish tail, while the top is vaguely human. They have a dorsal fin on their back, and scaled arms with side fins, and webbed fingers to give them a more fluid motion in the water.
The second type of sirènes is believed to have evolved from a small group that had, at one point, mixed with some land races. These members have a unique ability that allows them to live both under the water, and above. This ability stems from their body's natural ability to adapt to breathing air with lungs, to taking in oxygen through gills that exist on either side of the neck. They also are born with two legs instead of a single fish tail. They are still covered in scales, but they still allow for walking on land. Their feet have a shape not dissimilar to flippers, though not as large.
When on land for more than a week, their body goes through a curious transformation. The flippers on their feet become smaller, adapting to a walking motion rather than a swimming one. After a week, the scales on their legs dry out, though do not fall off. They maintain a small dorsal fin on their back, their hands remained slightly webbed, and they keep their gills. In order to regain the ability to breathe under water, they must completely submerge themselves in water, and in order to breathe on land, they must be in a situation where less than 50% of their environment is water. If only half of there body is submerged, and they were in an underwater state, then they would suffocate unless they either get out of the water, or submerge their head.
Appearance
Men and women look very similar. Neither gender develops hair while living under the water. If a sirène was born with the ability to survive on land, and they are on land for a period of time, they will begin grow hair. However, whether it is chemical composition of their bodies, or how they mix with the air, their hair tends to grow in unnatural colours. Blue is the most common, followed by violet, though any colour is possible. If the sirène changes locations, it is not unheard of to have their hair colour change during their travels, giving them a striped appearance, or natural highlights. If a sirène moves back into the ocean, it can take up to a year to lose hair once it has grown.
Women do develop breasts, though generally only when giving birth to a child. Women capable of surviving on land will occasionally develop breasts similar to the way human women do. The second type of sirène also has more of a traditional figure, having some formation of hips, though they tend to be small and not very pronounced.
While underwater, all sirène have a light blue tint to their skin. Those that can go above, while above, will develop shades. Some will become darker skinned, in this case the blue tint will be lighter, and some will develop lighter skin, resulting in a heavier blue tint. Scales can be a myriad of colours, ranging from blue, to green, to violet, to silver. Scale colours do not favor one gender over another.
Society
Religion and Language
Sirènes hold the same religious beliefs that Nymphs and Faeries do, in so far that they believe in all four of the elemental spirits. However, they view Varik (the spirit of water) as being the all powerful of the four, and consider themselves beholden only the this spirit. Another similarity between the three races, is that they all use a similar form of elemental magick. Sirènes, like their cousins on land, are capable of manipulating the elements, though only water.
The language of the sirène is Fae. This makes it possible, though rare, for them ot communicate to the other fae races that live on land. They also share a written language, though it is now used so rarely that almost all have forgotten it.
Diet
Unlike their cousins the nymph and faerie, sirène society does not frown upon the consumption of meat. The main diet for a sirène consists mainly of fish. Hunting is an extremely important part of society. Joining a hunting party is considered to be a great honor, and only those who are truly skilled in hunting are invited. Seaweed is another common staple. Kelp or algae is also not uncommon. Most things are eaten raw, as such sirènes have surprisingly good immune systems and they rarely get ill.
Commerce and Education
Trade is very common between groups, and communication is not difficult to come by. There is always a more inquisitive sirène willing to act as a messenger of news. It is in this way that it is possible for news, as well as discoveries to be communicated between groups.
Education is generally handled by an older member of the clan. Most everything is taught orally. Due to the lack of any form of surface that is both waterproof and able to hold any form of ink, it is rare for a sirène to know how to write. They have no comprehensive written history, only stories that are passed down through the ages. They do, however, have a system for keeping track of commerce, population, and other things. A chisel and slab of stone is used for record keeping. Each clan has at least one person to keep track of such information. Such an individual will have multiple apprentices, one of whom the former record keeper will choose to take his or her place among the group.
Fashion
Clothes are rare in the clans, what is extremely common, and very desired, are adornments for the body. Any type of jewelry is widely popular. It is not unusual to see women with piercings in fins and tails. Shells, any precious stones, metals that are scavenged. Clothes will be fashioned out of scraps, generally any netting, or cloth that falls from the surface. It is also not entirely unheard of for animal skin, from animals such as sea otters, to be used. There are some sirènes that earn a living drying pelts on rocks on the surface and then fashioning clothing out of it.
Racial Passives
Spirit of the Sea (Racial Passive): You are a child of the sea, and go whereever the tide takes you. You are fiercely loyal to kin, and are difficult to sway one you have reached an opinion. You are attuned with your surroundings while in water, and are able to sense when large bodies of water are nearby, and are able to tell the difference (even from a distance) between salt and fresh water.
Positives: Start with Knowledge:Nature for free, -5 PLM damage taken from water affinity energy weapons. +10 to Willpower rolls made against social skills. Start with the Universal Passive "Instinctive Swim" for free. May also take on one sub-racial passive.
Negatives: -5 Charisma. +5 PLM damage taken from techniques with the Lightning element.
Sub-Racials
In addition to the normal racial passive, all Sirènes receive one of the following sub-racials.
Underwater Prowess (Sub-Racial):
Effects: You are a sirène who can survive on both land and sea, giving you the unique ability to breathe underwater. For a quick action, you may transform to a your water breathing form, canceling out all drowning penalties. While in the water, whether on the surface or submerged, you do not suffer movement penalties. However, leaving the water still requires 2 spaces of movement. While helping an ally in the water, you're still limited to half movement. Underwater, you maintain the ability to perform social skills. You have access to Quick Action: Transformation (5 STM), used to switch from air to water breathing, and also required to switch back to air.
RP Effects: This grants you a natural ability to swim, and the transformation can be done after 1 minute of being submerged.
Grace Beneath the Waves (Sub-Racial):
Requirement: NPC Only.
Effects: Unlike your kin who can survive on land, you have a fish tail, and are strictly only able to survive beneath the seas. If you do surface, you suffer the same penalties that come with drowning. While stuck underwater, you are still able to fight those on land, provided they are adjacent to a water space, and you are equipped with a ranged weapon. Water energy weapons have +1 added to their range. As a permanent member of the sea, you have your own unique ability known as Breath of Life. You are capable of saving a drowning person, and giving them not only the breath they require, but also partially transforming them and granting them the ability to breathe underwater. Breath of Life can be used as a quick action for 15 STM in battle to save a drowning ally. Transformation lasts for 5 hours in RP, and 1d2 rounds in battle. During a full moon, +15% to all battle stats.
