Harpies

***“**Graceful yet savage. Beautiful yet deadly. Isolated yet widespread. Such is the way of the Harpy.**”***
— Amagoian Warning

**Harpies** are a sentient, partially avian race primarily found in the South. They are considered one of the Young Races, created by the Goddess of the Sky, Adyana, alongside their greatest enemies, the Evin. Originally intended to populate the mostly lifeless Gemstone Islands, the Harpies and Evin founded their own tribes. The Harpies and the Evin hated each other, and when Humans arrived on the islands, they further complicated the bitter rivalry. Ultimately, the Evin convinced the Humans to side with them, allowing for the defeat of many Harpy clans.

As a result of their defeat, most Harpies opted to abandon the Gemstone Islands in an event known as the Harpy Migration. Instead, they founded many tribes throughout the Southern Mainland, many small and isolated, though some major ones were carving out large amounts of territory for themselves. Many Harpy clans continue to rule over their lands today, despite the rise and fall of Human superpowers in the area.

Harpies are highly territorial, and many clans continue to instil a bitter hatred of Humanity into their young due to their supposed betrayal on the Gemstone Islands. That said, not all Harpies are violent, and some clans have been known to cooperate and integrate with Human societies, leading to the creation of Half-Harpies.

## Appearance

Harpies look vaguely Human, though telling them apart shouldn't be too difficult.

* Harpies are relatively short, with the males averaging around 120 cm and the females averaging around 100 cm.
* Harpies have a different skin tone than Humans, generally between pink and white as snow.
* Harpies have great wings on their back that vary in colour, allowing them to fly to great heights.
* Harpies have claws for hands with talons for feet, allowing them to be deadly without a weapon.
* Harpies have arms and legs covered in feathers that match the colour of their wings.
* Harpies have Human-like heads, though their heads are generally less rounded and much more angular and pointier in shape.

## History

### Creation

Sketching a united history of Harpies is notoriously difficult due to regional differences and the decentralized nature of their various societies. The Harpies were created by the Goddess of the Sky, Adyana, in 840 BW. They were created alongside the Evin to populate the Gemstone Islands, as Adyana sought to lay claim to these islands, which had been neglected by Ivos and Nyara.

The Harpies and the Evin founded tribes across the Gemstone Islands, though they often fought over territory and resources. A tiny minority of Harpy and Evin clans would go on to commit horrible atrocities, wiping out entire tribes. This was enough to fester widespread hatred between the groups, leading to the War of Talons between the two, which lasted for centuries.

When Humans began to arrive from the Southern Mainland, previously having settled in Lao Muji, the Harpies didn't care much for them. The Evin didn't shy away from bargaining with these Human arrivals. They promised the Humans land and safety on the islands if they aided in the War of Talons against the Harpies. Many Human settlers agreed to the deal, forming small Warbands known as Harpyhunters. These Harpyhunters were notoriously cruel, wiping out entire villages without a second thought. Slowly but surely, the Harpies began to run out of territory. As refugees flocked to lands still under the control of more powerful clans, overpopulation became a widespread problem.

Ultimately, with the writing on the wall, many Harpies began to pack up and leave. What followed was the Harpy Migration in the second century AW, where entire Harpy clans numbering in the tens of thousands crossed the Western Ocean and settled on the Mainland in present-day Amagoi, Yratessia, Daletia, Da'al Mon, and even as far as the Marenbach Mountains. Most of the harpies who remained behind on the islands met their end at the tip of an Evin or Human sword, though some isolated groups continued to live their lives hidden in the hills.

It is widely agreed upon that the War of Talons and the genocide of their people caused the Harpies to become as violent and territorial as they did. However, over the coming centuries, some Harpy clans would soften their stance on Humans, becoming largely non-violent. From this point onward, Harpies lack a unified history, with every clan going down a different path. Therefore, most historians tend to separate Harpies by the nature of their groups into four classifications.

### The Isolationists

The most common stance taken by Harpy Clans after their migration was one of violent isolationism, carving out a piece of territory for themselves and not allowing any other mortal into it without being attacked. The most powerful Isolationist clans were the Bloodbeaks in Amagoi, the Blacktalons and Maneaters in Da'al Mon, the Sunchasers in Daletia, and the Icewings in Marenbach. Each of these clans carved out a substantial amount of territory during the second century BW, which they continue to rule over today.

Isolationist clans are notoriously difficult to dislodge even when faced with overwhelming military might. Humans have tried to kill them or burn down their settlements, but the Isolationist Harpies would temporarily migrate somewhere high up and impossible to reach for any "landwalkers". From here, they would continue their guerilla war, staging deadly ambushes from the sky until their territory was recovered. The most notorious clan that used this tactic is the Icewing Harpy Clan, whose territory has been invaded dozens of times. They would weather the storm each time by spreading out high across the Marenbach Mountains. Each time they recovered their ancestral territory when the Humans became battle-weary and exhausted and abandoned the Icewing lands.

During the Darkest Decade and the rampage of the Sapphire Inquisition, Isolationist Harpies would choose to fend for themselves, not cooperating with other non-Human resistance groups. Overconfident soldiers of the Inquisition would receive torturous deaths in the thousands, being ripped to shreds slowly by talons and claws, leading to the Inquisition backing off from Isolationist territory entirely. Some Isolationists would even take the collapse of the Sapphire Empire as a sign of weakness and go on the offensive, carving out more territory for themselves. For example, the Bloodbeaks captured a large amount of land in the Great Sand Sea and founded the Red Sands Harpy Clan.

Even today, the Isolationists hold onto their territory, ignoring the Great War and Epilogue Wars raging around them. Some foolish rulers from all sides sent envoys to Isolationist Harpies to recruit them to their side of the Great War. None of these envoys came back in one piece.

### The Zealots

A smaller but significant group of Harpy Clans became Zealots. They interpreted that their defeat in the War of Talons was a sign of Adyana's displeasure with them. These clans sought to mend their supposedly broken relationship with Adyana by constructing temples, monoliths, totems, altars, and whatever else they could think of as far and wide as they could.

The Zealot clans are still heavily territorial, though not outright hostile. They will defend their territory to the death but won't immediately kill anyone that wanders into their "sacred grounds" by accident. More likely, they will escort you out while simultaneously informing you about the greatness of Adyana. The most notable of these clans are the Skykeepers and Cloudwatchers in Yratessia and the Windwielders in Da'al Mon.

Zealot Harpy groups, while not fully integrating with Human societies, are at least open to negotiating and cooperating where necessary. They have survived mostly through diplomacy, crafting shaky peace treaties with Human communities that rose and fell around them. That said, many Zealots are expert Anemomancers who can most definitely defend themselves if threatened. Their fighting style is generally less savage than the Isolationists, though they are incredibly deadly in different ways. Most clans survived the Darkest Decade by cooperating with other non-Human resistance groups.

### The Survivors

The Survivors are broad groups that have thrown all morals and tradition to the wind and will do anything to continue the existence of their offspring. Most Survivor Harpy clans no longer worship Adyana or any deity. Instead, they rely totally on themselves for their survival.

The majority of Survivor clans are nomadic, constantly migrating throughout the South, living off the land and lacking a permanent place of residence. They care little about cooperating with the states they happen to be in or any other group, even each other. There are generally no major Survivor groups, as upon reaching a specific size, the clan will split into two smaller entities to prevent overpopulation. Survivors have endured events such as the Divine War, Darkest Decade, and Great War by simply evading trouble and constantly staying on the move. This makes them nearly impossible to track down, as they often cross vast distances and borders, being able to reach the other side of the continent in the span of days.

### The Diplomats

Diplomatic Harpy clans, as the name implies, tried to carve out their place in the world by negotiating with surrounding communities and states, not so much relying on warfare or strict territorialism. The most notable Diplomatic Harpy clans are the Whitefeather and Greentalon clans in the Republic of Fühlgart, the Skysingers in the Third Union of Clans, and the Northfliers in the Green Grove.

While most Diplomatic clans are located in the North, they were initially located in the South and are often breakaways. Most of these clans were founded by Survivor or Zealot clans looking for land unclaimed by other Harpies. They flocked to the North, settling new lands peacefully. These new clans found the Humans of the North more willing to negotiate due to the lack of violent Isolationist groups this far to the north. Instead, these Harpies opened their borders and welcomed diplomacy and trade with Human states with open arms.

After centuries of cooperation, some Harpies began to live in Human cities. Offspring between the two races created Half-Harpies. Ultimately, many of the Diplomatic clans started to fade from existence due to integrating with Human societies, and Half-Harpies rapidly began to outnumber regular Harpies in the North. The remaining clans are pure-blooded Harpies in separate settlements, though they are still highly dependent on Humans. Diplomatic Harpies survived the Darkest Decade and Great War by keeping their nose clean and relying on Human benefactors for their protection.

## Harpy Nations

* None

Sizeable Harpy Presence

* Kingdom of Amagoi
* Empire of Da'al Mon
* Republic of Da'al Mon
* Empire of Daletia
* Legionary Daletia
* The Desert Lords
* Republic of Marenbach
* Free City of Rosendorf
* People's Republic of Southern Daletia
* Kingdom of Yratessia