Imps

*The Imps are a small and mischievous race, most of whom are pacifists. Their skills in medicinal alchemy are unrivaled in the land and they surpass even the Silvic in alchemical prowess. Known for their ingenuity and kindness, the Imps are caretakers by nature. The Imps have stayed in the jungles of Ludwag for over a century. Many of them are simple people, who enjoy gardening and practicing herbomancy.*

## ***Anatomy***

As an adventurer would walk through the jungles of Ludwag, many of them would never even realize that they were being watched. The Imps of Ludwag are very small creatures, and will only reveal themselves if they wish to do so.

Imps usually reach the common height of 2’5, however, as for any species isn’t the standard. Imps are a diverse group of beings that have large heads and pointed ears. Their bodies are covered completely in a short fuzz. Imps are also known for their very large horns that grow longer the older they are. Almost all Imps have two horns that start on top of their head and point up or backwards, but some are born with other configurations such as one horn or even three or four. There are many shapes to these horns, and the different style of horns is usually based on what the mother’s horns were like. Imps who have lived for very long periods of time will often have extremely large and overbearing horns, sometimes making it difficult to move. The imps, however, associate large horns with long life, wisdom, and happiness. Imps are also known to have large bulbous, fully black eyes.

All Imps also possess all five senses, taste, touch, hearing, sight, and smell. However, Imps have improved hearing, which is due to the size of their ears and the fact they naturally adapted in order to survive the harsh predators of the Silvic Jungle.

It is also a common fact that the larger an Imp’s horns are, the longer they have been alive. The most respected elders in imp society have extremely large or long horns. Imps are also known to decorate their horns with flowers or ornaments, shown as symbols of beauty. Female imps are known to be attracted to the horns with the most decoration on them. Imps do not have enhanced lung capacity, meaning they can drown. However, due to their life in the trees, they have developed a relatively lightweight bone structure, which allows for leaping from branch to branch easily. Imps, however, are physically restricted, and in order to wear armor, it must be specially made and extremely lightweight. Imps are also known to speak a special language of whistles called Impish, which are produced deep in their vocal cords. To passersby, it may sound like an imp is singing, but in reality, they are speaking to another imp. Imps are also able to attune to become mancers, summoners, or runecasters at the age of 55, as that is when they mature. Imps are not typically very good with combat, however their unusually impressive knowledge of plants and animals makes them excellent at crafting alchemical solutions for tossing or trap-making, and their small but quick bodies are excellent at escaping dangerous situations. If they need to sacrifice an animal or plant for alchemy, they always thank the organism.

Imps have a strange biology allowing them to adapt rather quickly to their environment. This takes around two to four months. Imps come in every color of the rainbow, however, their skin and fur most often adapt to their region. There are small groups of ‘Snow Imps’ and ‘Desert Imps’ around the land. The snow imps live in caves and huts in the mountains, with much thicker full-body fur. They are poorly suited for cold environments, so snow imps often have incredibly thick fur or wear an almost comical amount of clothes. Desert imps, or ‘bald imps’, tend to lose their fur completely while they’re in the environment, and turn a dark sandstone color. There are imps in other regions, however these two are the most common variants.

## **Life Cycle**

Imps are known to have an extremely long lifecycle, rivaling that of the dryads and elves. Imps are known to live to 200-300 years if they are to die from natural causes. Imps generally reach maturity at 55 years old. However, imps can be killed just like any other being. When an imp is killed, their body disintegrates, the remains sinking into the soil, and creating new plant life. This is due to the fact that the imps have such a connection with nature, that they are embraced by it in their final moments. Imps who die naturally generally return to the Great Tree when they reach the end of their lifecycle, using their remains to help supply the Great Tree with nutrients. Due to the imps' special relationship with nature, it is common to see an imp “speaking” with a flower or nearby plant life. Most Imps stay within the wooded regions and help protect their domain, but some travel far and wide in search of greater goals. These ‘traveling Imps’ are generally looked upon with mild confusion and skepticism from other woodland Imps, but aren’t shunned. A significant portion of young Imps become traveling Imps, and a small portion of that group never moves back to the Great Tree.

## ***History***

For centuries, the imps have peacefully coexisted alongside the Silvic Elves and the Guardians of Antem, trading regularly with them in order to help gain supplies they cannot naturally produce. The Imps have lived in various Great Trees over the centuries, the previous one being at the Southern tip of the Jungle before it became the Corrupted Lands. When the Corruption arrived, most Imps fled South of the Great Shield before it was activated, however some were unwilling or unable to abandon the Jungle. Some Imps still live in the Corrupted Lands, either as surviving nomads living off the land or as Corrupted Imps. These un-corrupted imps living in the Corrupted Lands have adapted an unfortunate dark gray or even dark sandy-purple fur. The Imps only involved themselves in conflict when it destroyed significant portions of the forest or jungle, at one point even having a small battle against the Silvic elves as they attempted to harvest trees near the Great Tree, ending in the death of one horse and a toad, as well as the Silvic withdrawing relatively peacefully shortly thereafter, opting to trade with the Imps instead. The Imps have played some part in a significant portion of battles that the Silvic have been involved in, mostly supplying alchemical solutions and environmental assistance but sometimes being directly involved in combat. The Imps have historically spoken Impish and simple Silvic, although most also now know Monic.