Your Own Fantasy Creatures

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

So I’m interested to see what fantasy creatures you guys have come up with (or can come up with, if you want to give it a try). I have a good number, but I’m only going to share two to start.

Spoiler

 

[Lunamor she/her]

Here's two of the ones for the world I'm currently building that don't require too much background info. Creatures named [verb]ers are the results of experiments using the magic system that have various degrees of success.

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Shifters:

• Vulnerable while moving but hard as stone when still
• Very fast
• Territorial and highly aggressive
• Amorphously shaped, but form claws for attacking
• Able to change colors. Combined with the variable shape, they can camouflage themselves very well.
• Retains a glossiness regardless of its form, which can be used to spot it when it is trying to conceal itself
• Prefer ambush tactics
• Sometimes used as guards, but more for when you want to keep everyone, including yourself, away from somewhere
• Rare, so sometimes thought of more as creatures from spooky stories
• Small wild population in very remote areas

Blabbers:

• Small, cute creatures. Think of a cross between a small monkey and a fox.
• Floppy ears, long tails they curl around their bodies when at rest/sitting
• Capable of saying a single word only (ex. can only say the word "shoe"). Seemingly no rhyme or reason as to what that word ends up being.
• Failed attempt to create a servant creature, so they were repurposed as somewhat useful pets
• Typically owned by those in the upper class (Upfolk) but occasionally someone in a lower class (Midfolk or Downfolk) might have one
• Their circumstances of creation means that they have differing personalities, so there is not a consistent temperament apart from a need to find and serve one specific person
• No wild population
• One protagonist will have a very friendly and cheerful one that just says "die"

 

Edited June 4, 2024 by Lunamor

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

That’s interesting. Are there more types?

Heres another one of mine.

[Quantus he/him]

I had a whole (modern fantasy) setting where mythical creatures where all spirit beings (I was calling them Djinn) that either possessed some appropriate flavor of matter to exist in the mortal world (they were native to the a Sprit Dreamworld).  They all were classified by their development along three axis: Primal energies, Nature, and Abstracts. So like beings of Fire or Smoke where purely Primals, a Deer Forrest Spirit would a a Natural but an Ice Deer is more of a hybrid of the two, and like Greek gods of Art or Death or Family are abstract;  Dragons would be all three.  I was trying to build one of those All Myths Exist settings with a flexible framework to incorporate real world myths. 

Recently was noodling a fanfic Hemalurgic Vampire: A former person that become a Cognitive Shadow through plot shenanigans, it has Nicrosil Spikes for fangs and survives by draining and consuming the Feruchemical Traits of it's victims. It cannot (re)Generate those attributes naturally anymore (reason left open for plot hooks) and needs to steel the traits regularly, then ration out Tapping them to remain alive.   I figure the traits get stored in either some number of Metalminds that becomes a sort of traditional Lich Phylactery, or else maybe a Nicrosil Linchpin Spike.   You could also replace Nicrosil with Atium if you wanted it to become more rare and godly. 

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

2 hours ago, Quantus said:

I had a whole (modern fantasy) setting where mythical creatures where all spirit beings (I was calling them Djinn) that either possessed some appropriate flavor of matter to exist in the mortal world (they were native to the a Sprit Dreamworld).  They all were classified by their development along three axis: Primal energies, Nature, and Abstracts. So like beings of Fire or Smoke where purely Primals, a Deer Forrest Spirit would a a Natural but an Ice Deer is more of a hybrid of the two, and like Greek gods of Art or Death or Family are abstract;  Dragons would be all three.  I was trying to build one of those All Myths Exist settings with a flexible framework to incorporate real world myths. 

Recently was noodling a fanfic Hemalurgic Vampire: A former person that become a Cognitive Shadow through plot shenanigans, it has Nicrosil Spikes for fangs and survives by draining and consuming the Feruchemical Traits of it's victims. It cannot (re)Generate those attributes naturally anymore (reason left open for plot hooks) and needs to steel the traits regularly, then ration out Tapping them to remain alive.   I figure the traits get stored in either some number of Metalminds that becomes a sort of traditional Lich Phylactery, or else maybe a Nicrosil Linchpin Spike.   You could also replace Nicrosil with Atium if you wanted it to become more rare and godly. 

That first one is pretty interesting. What other traits do the creatures have? Are they generally immortal? Are they rare or common? Do they grant abilities or anything?

And the hemalurgic vampire is cool. I think it might be better suited to use like claws of different metals rather than just nicrosil fangs, because I’m not sure you can pick an attribute to steal as easily and it’s easier to pinpoint the bind points with fingers. Not that I’m that well versed in hemalurgy.

[Lunamor she/her]

8 hours ago, TheSurvivorofDeath said:

That’s interesting. Are there more types?

I actually just started creating the creatures for my world last night, so I've only got one other at the moment. The magic system revolves around changing limits- physical, intellectual, and metaphorical. Physical is obvious. Intellectual increases the capacity for certain types of thoughts. Metaphorical allows messing with abstract concepts. Physical is easiest and metaphorical is hardest. Shifters have an extreme physical change and Blabbers have a limited intellectual change (they didn't achieve full sentience because that would require increasing the capacity for all thoughts). Another one I made are Finders. They are like bloodhounds, but were metaphorically altered to be able to find things like emotions. More info on them in the spoiler box:

Spoiler

Finders:

• They look like scaled wolves
• Sharp ridges on the sides of their faces curling up from the teeth and ending in two points just above the top of their heads. Thought to be antennas of sorts to enhance their abilities, but no one knows their purpose for sure (changing limits can cause unexplained additional changes)
• They require a "sample" of whatever they need to find next (ex. someone terrified to find fear, someone in pain to find pain, someone hiding to find someone currently hiding)
• It sounds like they are constantly hissing but that's actually them "sniffing"
• Quick and agile, good at chasing
• Once they identify a target, they will stop at nothing to find and corner it
• They aren't terribly effective in areas where many emotions are concentrated, but if they pick up their scent from someone similar to the target (physically, emotionally, a family member) they can narrow their search
• Their handlers are trained to "blank" their minds of anything but their current mission to avoid accidentally drawing the Finders

 

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

That’s very interesting. I’d be interested to hear more about the mechanics of that magic system. In the meantime, here’s yet another one of my creatures 

Spoiler

 

[Lunamor she/her]

This thread is great motivation for making things Here's a pest:

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Flitters:

·       A novice made some bugs invisible but couldn’t figure out how to turn them back

·       Very, very annoying

·       They make a loud buzzing noise because the novice tried to compensate for the invisibility after being unable to make them visible again

·       Enjoy clustering/flying in clouds that people occasionally run into

·       Seem to have no fear of being around people

·       An unintended additional physical change made them squash-resistant

·       People try to use large nets to catch/relocate them. Occasionally people may revert to wildly flailing kitchen knives around.

·       They don’t bite, thankfully. They probably would if they could, though.

 

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

14 minutes ago, Lunamor said:

This thread is great motivation for making things

That’s what it’s for. You got any ideas for something I should make? Like a broad idea I can work with? 
Here’s another one I’ve got(I’ve only got a few more don’t worry)

Spoiler

What do you think (of any of these)?

[Lunamor she/her]

2 minutes ago, TheSurvivorofDeath said:

That’s what it’s for. You got any ideas for something I should make? Like a broad idea I can work with? 
Here’s another one I’ve got(I’ve only got a few more don’t worry)

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What do you think (of any of these)?

I like them! The Hollow is my favorite, it sounds terrifying. Does each world have a different ecosystem or do they generally have the same weather/terrain?

I think an idea of something to make could be an animal that's harmless and non-intimidating, if that works with your setting. Maybe something characters have gotten used to (in-world equivalent of pigeons, basically) but is foreign to the reader.

Also, here's Criers.

Spoiler

Criers:

·       Vocal range and preciseness raised

·       Throat is permanently enlarged and swollen to make room for its massive larynx

·       Think large frogs but wider with tougher, dry skin and even larger mouths

·       Able to imitate any sound perfectly, ability is used for hunting

·       Prefers to make a strange crying noise that sounds like a young woman sobbing. Origin is unknown but the sound is identical in each individual, syncing up exactly

·       The crying prevents them from being good pets, but they aren’t aggressive towards humans

·       Eyeless, but that doesn’t seem to impact its ability to navigate

·       It is one of the only creatures that can “see” flitters and uses its frog-like tongue to eat them, so it is sometimes used as a crude form of pest control (if you can handle the crying)

 

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

1 minute ago, Lunamor said:

Does each world have a different ecosystem or do they generally have the same weather/terrain?

Yeah. I have four worlds so far, though I’m going to make some more, and they’re all different. Nexum is fairly similar to Earth, though it’s got more land than we do. Asema has a supercontinent, deep oceans, high mountains in the northeast and southwest (at least I think that’s where I have them), and big forests towards the middle of the continent. Plus some crystal stuff going on that’s a major feature of the landscape. Laetus is earth like too, but I think I’m going to put several inland seas as the main geographical features, plus a decent mountain range and big forests, but I don’t have much on that world yet. And Becrux is a world of stone and sand and fire, full of deserts and volcanoes and the occasional dry forest with trees that can kill you. It’s a very deadly world. 
 

7 minutes ago, Lunamor said:

I think an idea of something to make could be an animal that's harmless and non-intimidating, if that works with your setting. Maybe something characters have gotten used to (in-world equivalent of pigeons, basically) but is foreign to the reader.

I have one of those, but I could make more for more worlds. Nexum has some unique fauna but they don’t have fantasy features really, they’re just a little different.

Spoiler

This isn’t quite a common thing with fantasy elements but it’s the closest I’ve got. I’ll make some more soon.

[Lunamor she/her]

1 hour ago, TheSurvivorofDeath said:

Yeah. I have four worlds so far, though I’m going to make some more, and they’re all different. Nexum is fairly similar to Earth, though it’s got more land than we do. Asema has a supercontinent, deep oceans, high mountains in the northeast and southwest (at least I think that’s where I have them), and big forests towards the middle of the continent. Plus some crystal stuff going on that’s a major feature of the landscape. Laetus is earth like too, but I think I’m going to put several inland seas as the main geographical features, plus a decent mountain range and big forests, but I don’t have much on that world yet. And Becrux is a world of stone and sand and fire, full of deserts and volcanoes and the occasional dry forest with trees that can kill you. It’s a very deadly world. 
 

I have one of those, but I could make more for more worlds. Nexum has some unique fauna but they don’t have fantasy features really, they’re just a little different.

  Hide contents

This isn’t quite a common thing with fantasy elements but it’s the closest I’ve got. I’ll make some more soon.

I like the unique take on phoenix resurrection! Does the two egg limit reset when they get resurrected?

Joiners:

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Joiners:

·       The bottom limit of a larger animal’s unity was lowered, the more abstract version of unity was altered so that was a metaphorical change. Afterwards, a second intellectual limit of the ability to communicate subconsciously with other loose Joiners was raised since the first change split the original creature’s cognition as well.

·       Tiny, elongated hexagonal shape

·       Six legs, one on each edge

·       Incredibly hard, smooth and flat shell on the top, nearly impenetrable

·       Soft underbelly on the bottom

·       Join together to make a single creature, each one appears to be a scale when flush together

·       Conjoined version is featureless and resembles a fat snake, shape is somewhat variable, size depends on the number of Joiners making it up

·       Constricts prey and breaks apart into individual Joiners to eat it

·       Groups of them rest connected together in a flat sheet in the sun

·       Can split apart again if needed, will do so to flee quicker from a losing fight or when not hungry

 

Edited June 5, 2024 by Lunamor
Joiners feels like a better name

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

12 minutes ago, Lunamor said:

Does the two egg limit reset when they get resurrected?

I hadn’t thought about that. I suppose it would since they revert to juvenile

Here’s another one 

Spoiler

What do you think?

(I swear I’m almost out of these)

[BlueWildRye he/him]

4 minutes ago, TheSurvivorofDeath said:

Here’s another one 

  Reveal hidden contents

What do you think?

(I swear I’m almost out of these)

Kandra?

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

5 minutes ago, BlueWildRye said:

Kandra?

Pretty much 

[Lunamor she/her]

1 hour ago, TheSurvivorofDeath said:

I hadn’t thought about that. I suppose it would since they revert to juvenile

Here’s another one 

  Reveal hidden contents

What do you think?

(I swear I’m almost out of these)

It's cool! Are there any tells that someone could use to see if they are a Faceless or ways to revert them back to their original form forcefully?

 

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

9 hours ago, Lunamor said:

Are there any tells that someone could use to see if they are a Faceless or ways to revert them back to their original form forcefully?

I was thinking intense heat might make them kinda melt like wax, and enough heat could make them sort of liquify, though they don’t really have an original form exactly.

[CuratorOTL IG]

Ooh, fun. I have a lot of species, but I'm going to show one.

Quote

Ayreels 

• In shape and size, very similar to humans. However, they are plants. Whereas humans are essentially a more intelligent animal, Ayreels are a more intelligent plant.
• Their hair is made of vine, and their skin is made of wood.
• Their eyes have one pupil surrounded by four irises, shaped like a flower. Just cause.
• They reproduce asexually. When they do reproduce, a seed begins to grow in their throat, which they will then regurgitate and plant, and after several months, an infant will be born, which they have to pull up out of the ground.
• They don't eat like humans, but use photosynthesis through flowers that grow over their body. A good way to starve an Ayreel is to cut off their flowers.

 

[TheSurvivorofDeath]

6 hours ago, CuratorOTL IG said:

Ooh, fun. I have a lot of species, but I'm going to show one.

 

That’s pretty cool. I’d be interested to hear what else you have.

Here’s another one of mine.

Spoiler

 

[Twice]

Creature idea, a dragon with six petal like wings that fold in smoothly, they have very soft scales and their spine has petals running down it, their horns are vines and their tail has a flower on it that can be used against enemies or for healing. They are the size of a pony. They have small control over plants and live in small villages, very peaceful.

[Tinwatcher I don’t mind]

5 minutes ago, Twice said:

Creature idea, a dragon with six petal like wings that fold in smoothly, they have very soft scales and their spine has petals running down it, their horns are vines and their tail has a flower on it that can be used against enemies or for healing. They are the size of a pony. They have small control over plants and live in small villages, very peaceful.

Ahh necro 

 

Spoiler

I think it should be fine