Paranormal

After the Ferros Exodus, magic and monsters were brought into the world. Most of these are non-sentient creatures, and many of them are hostile.

(Note: Paranormal creatures are either non-playable or highly restricted classes.)

## Undead

Undead were once sentient beings (either human or ferron) re-animated by magic. Most commonly created by environmental magic, such as flux or the effects of a Blood Moon. Rarely, a magic user will be able to summon and crudely control the undead.

### Ghosts

The mortal soul of an individual living thing bound to the mortal plane by purpose. Not all living things produce a ghost; their lifeforce simply dissipating anywhere from seconds to days after death.

Most ghosts are nothing more than a mindless spectre. Some retain their form, and may go through the motions of something important to them or the last few moments before their death, but are impossible to communicate with. Very, very few may remember who they were and are capable of limited communication. Extremely rarely, they may be close to fully aware.

Most ghosts are nearly or fully imperceptible to a human, unless they are able and willing to reveal themselves. Some humans and Ferrons, however, are naturally able to perceive and communicate with ghosts. Temporary death, near death experiences, proximity to death, and possession can all lead to this ability, though the degree of effectiveness varies wildly between individuals. Dogs are naturally able to see ghosts.

All ghosts are tethered to something. Usually the place of their death, or their remains. Most ghosts can possess objects. More powerful ones can possess living things, though this can be harmful to them.

All ghosts deteriorate over time. If they are able, a ghost can postpone this somewhat by consuming lifeforce from any source.

Some ghosts are capable of possessing objects or living things. The stronger will a living thing has, the more difficult it is to possess and the more likely the ghost will be damaged by attempting it. However, fighting back against possession can also be harmful to the vessel. It is a battle of wills, and inevitably results in harm to one or both parties. Most witches and mages wear protective talismans or wards to stave off potential possession.

#### Poltergeist

A ghost able to interact with the physical world to some degree. These are usually vengeful spirits and are tethered to either their body/place of death or something meaningful to them.

Compared to the majority of ghosts, poltergeists are extremely powerful and take far longer to deteriorate naturally.

### Spirits

A collection of lifeforce bound to an object or purpose. Spirits have no identity or personality to speak of, and were not any one human or animal consciousness in the past, nor are they strictly sapient. They generally take a form befitting the lifeforce they are mostly made of, or their surroundings. There is no set pattern for the form a spirit takes.

Spirits may appear on their own in places such as battlefields or natural burial grounds, or may be summoned by a magic user for a specific purpose.

#### Spectral Familiar

A familiar that can be summoned by witches to do simple tasks such as find precious materials, usually in the form of a truffle-finding pig. When given an item (such as a diamond), the familiar will seek out and direct it's master to the location of the ore in question.

### Zombies & Skeletons

Mortal remains, reanimated by lifeforce or magical influence. Wisps bearing the Exanimis aspect may raise undead around them. These are almost always completely mindless, and typically hostile. They can occassionally be summoned or directed by those who have studied necromancy.

It is notable that the victims of Zombies have a high chance of turning into Zombies themselves after death. An experienced mage or alchemist can attempt to cure some individuals of the corruption if it hasn't set in deeply, but this is not an easy or cheap task.

## Fae

A catch-all term for creatures born of powerful magic rather than biological means.  These many of these new creatures did not exist on Ferros (with the exceptions of the classification of Spirits) but rather were spawned by the excess magic that flooded Terra after the Exodus. Fae are thought to be magic itself, shaped into form by superstitions and local mythology. The most common are will-o-the-wisps and fairies, but such things as Kelpies may be seen.

 All fae are thought to be shapeshifters, since the forms they take are always a copy of something that already exists. It is worth noting that this is because fae cannot be creative, even though they are excellent at mimickry.

 Fae are typically hostile with some exceptions, while some species are cultivated by practitioners of magic for useful resources. Not all species of fae are known, however, there are some that are commonly found in the wild.

### Wisps

The most common type of fae, also sometimes called a "spirit". Essentially a jellyfish-like manifestations of magic, without sentience. They can be hostile and attack with small bolts of lightning when they feel threatened. Killing wisps is challenging due to their flight and ranged attacks.

#### Elementals

A sub-class of wisp. Ranging from small and relatively weak spirits with a link to a natural force, to god-like beings in control of the base elements, Elementals are a diverse and dangerous group of physical spirits. They are power-houses of magic, with even small ones being capable of serious damage.

Generally elementals keep to themselves, and communicating or attacking them is not a good idea for even experienced mages. They are however, incredible sources of essentia, and therefore a coveted mark for bounty hunters.

### Hobgoblins

Small imp-like creatures who have their own culture and deities. Witches have been known to trade with them for Koboldite, a rare metal that can be used for magic and tools. Hobgoblins can become hostile when under attack, and have been known to decimate villages, but most are general peaceful and uninterested in humans.

### Ents & Dryads

Magically animated plant-spirits, unrelated to Verdicytes, with animal-like sentience. Dryad is a catch-all term for them, with Ents being the term for the stereotypical "walking tree".

Ents are known for being hostile, and often seek out unwitting witches in a vengeful rage for felling magical trees. Those growing Alder, Rowan or Hawthorn trees should be cautious when chopping them down, lest they get caught unawares by an angry Ent.

### Mandrakes

Technically relatives to the dryad, these plants have human-shaped roots, which awaken with ear-piercing screams when disturbed. Their bite causes nausea and dizziness. Experienced witches will harvest Mandrakes at night, with protective ear-muffs.

### Kelpies

Horse-like amphibious creatures with many sharp teeth and un-hingeable jaws. They are known for drowning and eating people who try to ride them, and are considered hostile. There are rumours that Kelpies can shapeshift into the form of their victims.

### Fairies

A catch-all term for small humanoid winged fae. They typically look like insects or flowers, and use glamour to make themselves appear cute. Fairies are mischevious, and considered pests as they have a penchance towards mayhem and small theft. They are comparable to mice in terms of intelligence, being able to learn and comprehend simple patterns.

## Demons

Demons are formed from living souls bound together by The Aura, unlike Fae which are purely magical. Demons are sapient and fully capable of affecting the physical world. They are also capable of a range of elemental abilities as well as possession of objects and living things. Demons have their own society and social customs, although they are not well known to outsiders.

Demons exist to harvest the souls of living creatures, using their energy to sustain themselves. It is said that demons were originally similar in purpose to the Grim Reaper, guiding souls to the next life, but became power hungry instead and consumed the wayward souls to gain power.

All demons have a "core" soul, and these vary in power. Some demons are only made of one very powerful soul and have a sense of entitlement due to that. Some of these even remember who they were. Most demons didn't form on their own and instead were constructed from a large number of weaker souls. These never know who they were, but may catch snippets of memory from various souls depending on how much is left of them.

Some demons are 'soul constructs', a demon created from a conglomerate hundreds of souls. They have no connection to any one soul, and thus have no memory of the souls that compose them.

### Vampires

*"Vampirism is an affliction that is acquired after a body has had demon tainted blood transfused into it. Burned by sunlight, stigmatized by mortals, and thirsting for blood, most vampires go to extreme lengths to hide their ailment or entire presence from the world. Others revel in their infamy."* - Witchery Wiki

Some time since the Demon realm was brought into contact with humanity, the first vampires were created by the demon Lilith. Written accounts of vampires have been found, most of them incomplete and shrouded in mystery.

For most people, vampires remain the stuff of fantasy and horror fiction. If there are any vampires at large, their whereabouts and identities are unknown, though some Witch Hunters consider themselves experts on the matter of killing vampires.

## Chimerae

Chimerae are artificially created hybrids of human and magical beings. Chimerae are extremely rare and volatile in nature, with many physical and mental health issues in the healthiest of specimens. There have only been a few successful chimera created in the last decade, within secretive research facilities.

It is probable that there have been many attempted chimerae, who died in the process of their creation. This is speculation, since all files on chimerae are highly classified information. Most of the general populace believe chimerae to be the subject of conspiracy theories, or science-fiction.

### Werewolves

Early after the Exodus, scientists attempted to create a method of artificially implanting magical properties into native Terran species by injecting the extracted essentia of a spirit.

Service dogs were used in testing, in the hopes that this would allow for the tracking and control of Taint and other contraband magical substances.

While overall the testing resulted in mixed success, an unforseen reaction occured and one of the dogs was possessed by the spirit - turning it into a chimera. It became hostile and virulent with magic, resulting in the severe injury of several technicians. The bites received from the possessed dog resulted in an illness that violently transformed the victims into beastly creatures. Two of the victims died within months of the incident.

The virus was dubbed 'lycanthropy', named after the folkloric affliction that transformed humans into wolves. Symptoms include compulsive canine-like behaviour, extreme hunger, and involuntary shape-shifting into wolf-like creatures at full moon.

Very little information about this has been released to the public, but it is speculated that the study of werewolves is still on-going in secret.