Harpy

### Overview

A harpy is a carnivorous, cannibalistic humanoid creature with an avian lower body and a pair of wings. It subdues its prey with its ability to magically sing, inducing a trance in those that heard, drawing them closer, and then attacking them.

### Appearance

A harpy has the upper body of a female humanoid and the lower body of a great bird, with scaly talons and clawed hands. They have filthy, tangled hair on their heads; black eyes; and possess wings that render them capable of flight.They generally have grotesque, avian features, but can actually be quite attractive sometimes. They tended to wear little or no clothing, so as to not restrict their flying mobility, and what little they did wear usually consisted of baubles and tokens stolen from the corpses of those whom they have slain. The feather coloration of a harpy varied according to the region of Aeglion that they are native to. Rumors even abounded of beautiful harpies found in tropical lands that boasted the colorful plumage of parrots or other birds of paradise.

### The Harpy's Song

Despite their savage minds and appearances, harpies are able to sing beautifully. A harpy's song, once heard, acted like a charm, inducing a trance-like state in which the victim was compelled to move towards the harpy, regardless of any dangers that might obstruct his or her path. Once the victim was right next to the harpy, it was at the harpy's whim, and the harpy would often carry its prey back to its lair or drop the victim from a height to be smashed on the ground far below. It was possible, but difficult, to resist the magical song of the harpy, and creatures who could not hear were relatively safe.

### Behavior

Harpies made homes in groups of six or more individuals within marshlands or in caves near shorelines, preferably near well-traveled routes. An entire tribe (known as a "scream"), although very rare, could be as large as one hundred. Harpies ventured out to hunt, and their victims were often brought back to the lair to be killed and eaten. Harpies bit and raked with their claws. They had no preference over their victims, and enjoyed the killing and torture of any creature. They are almost exclusively carnivorous, but if meat was unavailable, they would resort to eating vegetation. There was no social structure to harpy life, and there are constant quarrels as a result, sometimes resulting in a fight to the death. If a death should indeed occur, harpies are quite content to be cannibalistic and eat their own kind. The lifespan of a harpy typically ranged anywhere between twenty-five and fifty years old.

Harpies are able to mate with a vast range of species, and often have infernal, nonviable brood. Females are able to lay as many as twenty eggs, but only around three of those would successfully hatch, and any deformed young are killed and eaten by the mother. Similarly, when old age weakens a harpy, it is killed and eaten by its kin.

Harpies did not wear clothing, but would adorn themselves with jewelry or trinkets from their victims. They would always take at least one possession from a victim back to their lair as a symbol of their kill, but are otherwise uninterested in treasure or wealth. In line with their sadistic nature, some harpies don the skulls of their kills around their hips.

They are not particularly intelligent creatures, and are prone to cowardice in the face of superior power. They often communicate with a language of shrieking and cackling, which dramatically contrasted with the beauty of their magical singing.

It is not unusual for harpies to cooperate with other evil humanoids if it served their interests