Yekin

Among the earliest of Nix legend, titans roamed their great home country. Their awesome power was felt in stories, said to have literally moved the glaciers around them. They brought awe and wonder to the children and men alike. But wonder was fleeting. Their grand size and power went from wonder to fear, they believed that they were a threat to their burgeoning people. So, as man does, they removed the threat. The titans were slain in their tens of hundreds. With them the wonder left the valley. Today only one group of titans remains, the last of the Yekin.

#### Physiology and Anatomy

Yekin are primordial mammalian giants, a distant cousin to the other goat species found on the continent. Their enormous hooves function like snowshoes so as to not get stuck in the snowfall, allowing them to walk with ease upon a frigid landscape. Their long stride, while slow, can carry them a great distance in a single step. Like their smaller cousins, Yekin are modest climbers. They can scale the inclines of their mountainous ranges far more effectively than other animals. The only thing that can best them in this art are Rockers and the flightful Avians. Their long legs also make for impromptu weapons, a kick will almost certainly knock a grown man over and a few yards backward.

While others would freeze in the cold, the Yekins march on. Their fur is exceptionally thick and insulates their whole body. When worn, it can allow the wearer to survive in Ludwag’s mountainous zone without fear of frostbite. But they don’t just survive in the cold. They’re part of the cold. Along their back and shoulders is a fleshy pad which drapes over their fur like a cape. Through this, they channel vitor to manipulate the cold against their skin. They can create jagged spines of ice along this fleshy pad to serve as defensive tools against predators. At their largest, an ice-spike can grow to be as long as a human arm and functions more or less like a shortsword.

Though they grow horns, they’re not for defense. These structures are specifically for fights between males. They do not ram each other as their cousins do, instead standing side-by-side to gore one another with their sharp ends. These battles often leave Yekin with grievous wounds and may even kill a less experienced bull. Females by contrast have smaller horns and do not battle in such ways. Typically, the longer the male’s horns the better off he’ll be. These bouts of fighting occur during the dry season when the females calve. She will only have one calf, which itself is the size of a dog, every five years. Babies are often too slow to keep up with their mothers so stick themselves to her underside using their ice manipulation.

#### Psychology

Yekin are not aggressive or territorial but will defend themselves if provoked. They avoid areas like sapient race settlement as they cannot handle being overwhelmed. Experiencing stress can cause lasting health effects on the Yekin, leading to poorer survival rates. The entire species is distrusting of sapient races, a hereditary trait brought on by years of overhunting.  This may have also impacted their social behavior. Yekin exhibit the ability to be sociable but typically only reside alone once they’re fully grown. There’s not enough food in the mountains to support their previous demeanor. As such, Yekin lazily drift from one outcrop of sparse vegetation to the next.