Sylph

## Overview

Sylphs are mortals who experience the influence of an air elemental on their ancestry through one of many ways. In many cases, sylphs are directly descended from djinn, air veela, belkers, or air mephits, or received a blessing or curse directly from them at birth that resulted in a transformation of their very essence. In others, the presence of an air wysp, mihstu, lightning weird, aerial servant, invisible stalker, tumblespark, or air elemental during the life of a forebear or their time in the womb may manifest in a sylph child. Finally, out-of-season weather patterns caused by the habitation or movement of groups of niln can occasionally give rise to sylph births in regions that they affect. Regardless of how a sylph comes about, they are almost always curious and secretive in equal amounts, chasing down facts and truths with a ferocity that borders on obsessive while ensuring that they remain as hidden and enigmatic as possible.

### Heritages

**Smokesouls (Fume)**: Smokesouls channel the obfuscating nature of smoke, focusing more on ensuring that their own identities and positions are hidden than uncovering truths. Their favored pastimes include blending so seamlessly into situations and environments that their presence goes entirely unnoticed, which makes them valued by those who would seek to trade in overheard information or smuggle sensitive items. Common stereotypes of smokesouls include sneaky ne'er-do-wells who get a sick joy from undermining honest efforts, perceptive wallflowers who have all the charm they need but prefer solitude, or endlessly creative performance artists who are always doing something new in the medium that is their life.

**Stormsouls (Lightning)**: Stormsouls channel the overwhelming power of storms, discarding subtlely entirely and seeking out whatever piques their curiosity with immediacy and fervor. Inimical to boredom, stormsouls are always on the move and chasing down the truth of some matter or another, especially if it involves one of their close friends or companions. Common stereotypes of stormsouls claim that they are foolhardy would-be detectives who exist to stick their noses where they don't belong, courageous investigators who won't let a mystery stand, or utterly focused hustlers who move from one job to the next without regard to the world around them.

## Mechanics

Standard Racial Traits

* **Ability Score Racial Traits**: Sylphs are quick and insightful, but slight and delicate. They gain +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence, and –2 Constitution.
* **Type**: Sylphs are outsiders with the native subtype.
* **Size**: Sylphs are Medium creatures and thus have no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
* **Speed**: Sylphs have a base speed of 30 feet.
* **Languages**: Sylphs begin play speaking Auran. Sylphs with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following: Aquan, Dwarven, Elven, Gnome, Halfling, Ignan, and Terran.

Defense Racial Traits

* **Energy Resistance**: Sylphs have electricity resistance 5.

Magical Racial Traits

* **Whispering Wind**: Some sylphs are especially thin and wispy, as though they were made more of air than flesh. Sylphs with this racial trait gain a +4 racial bonus on Stealth checks.

Senses Racial Traits

* **Darkvision**: Sylphs can see perfectly in the dark up to 60 feet.

Other Racial Traits

* **Air Affinity**: Sylph sorcerers with the elemental (air) bloodline treat their Charisma score as 2 points higher for all sorcerer spells and class abilities. Sylph spellcasters with the Air domain use their domain powers and spells at +1 caster level.

## Society

Sylphs do not do well living among each other, finding it difficult to function when burdened with both overriding curiosity towards all around them and an intense desire to not be scrutinized. They tend to make their way to larger mixed communities, especially towns and cities whenever possible, enjoying the bounty of information that is produced by so many lives interacting, as well as the security and stealth offered by crowds. As sylph curiosity applies to facts and figures over tales or emotions, many sylphs find a positive outlet for their desires by taking up roles as detectives, investigators, historians, or researchers in various fields. Those who don't often end up as spies, stalkers, assassins, or, funnily enough, conspiracy-pushing pamphlet authors and editors. It is rare that a sylph aims for fame or glory, as such things only put them in the spotlight and make it more difficult for them to remain comfortable, but those that are sure in the skills they possess for avoiding identification occasionally do so in order to test their abilities.

## Religion

Sylphs worship both Jolein Composed of Desire and its Apparition, seeking knowledge of others and secrecy for themselves, as well as Petya Naumov whose constant travel towards new lands, people, and experiences speaks to their own inborn curiosity. They often offer lip service to Basang Ba but only stormsouls ever truly worship her, the majority instead turning to Fa'qamuu Twice-Heavenbound, whose domain of the celestial bodies of both day and night acts as a common metaphor used by sylphs. Sylphs who have many relationships with others of their race find themselves turning to Pahala Kadam or Zhihao Jin - sylph companions tend to treat their encounters as battles, with the winner coming away having learned the most about the other, and rely on both tried-and-true strategies and innovative new tactics in such social wars.

## Relations

Sylphs treat conversation as a game or competition to be won in many cases, which can make meetings with races who don't share this view rather strained. Aasimar and tieflings both find sylph questioning akin to interrogation and it tends to become quite invasive when their relationship with the divine is broached.

Aphorites enjoy sylph company when their curiosity is directed to their chosen field, resulting in a new subject for a sylph to learn and an opportunity for an aphorite to properly express themselves - in all other cases, aphorites quickly become uncomfortable. Ganzi feel the opposite, and eagerly explore their identities and individuality with any sylph willing to listen, though sylphs tend to become skittish and distressed when they become the subject of this exploration.

Changelings accept sylphs easily, knowing that their investigations are usually pure-hearted and not meant to expose dark secrets, while dhampir dislike such assumptions of intimacy on principle and avoid them.

Sylphs fit in well among the equally-curious drelmans, fetchlings, gnomes, parmans, ratfolk, and vanara.

Duergar tolerate sylphs exploring their settlements and culture, but rarely ever actually interact with them.

Dwarves, grippli, halflings, lizardfolk, kobolds, and oreads either grow quickly tired of chatterbox sylphs and their inquiries or tend to take offense due to an overstepped cultural or personal boundary.

Drow find sylphs to be excellent conversational partners, often able to connect otherwise disparate subjects with a clever leap in logic, and the two races often become great friends.

Elves claim to have an equal fondness for sylphs, but far more often, sylphs grow bored of an elf's unexplained answers and unexplored beliefs that are placed on a pedestal and never tested outside their insular settlements and simply move on.

Ghorans are usually glad to speak with a sylph as they rarely understand much about other races, and find the exchange of information to be quite satisfactory.

Hobgoblins and orcs find sylph talents in tactical thought and assassination, respectively, to be worthy of respect, but sylphs rarely keep up relationships with either race due to a perceived lack of depth in hobgoblin culture and knowledge and a simple fear of orcs.

Sylphs and ifrits do not get along regardless of their personalities, finding that something primeval results in the other being consistently irritating or unnerving.

Undines have an opposite experience, and sylphs find their placid expressions just as intriguing as undines find sylph questions and attempts at secrecy endearing.

Kitsune and sylphs tend to share much in their worldviews, although sylphs are often too disturbed by a kitsune's shapeshifting to stick around for long after they experience it, leading to many confused and offended kitsune in their wake. Sylphs, likewise, do not last long around kobolds or skinwalkers, as their questioning may cause a kobold to have a mental breakdown or reveal a skinwalker's identity to a settlement at large.

Both nagaji and suli respect sylphs for their powerful intellects and contributions to industry and academia respectively, but sylphs only return the respect to suli.

Tengu and vishkanya both hate sylphs for different reasons - tengu think that the sylph desire for facts and figures ruins the emotionally moving power of tales and legends, and more than a few vishkanya have had their cover blown or manipulations revealed when a sylph put together too many contradictions in their lies.

Goblins and sylphs often entertain each other by asking various questions about inane or random subjects, switching between totally disparate fields in a frenzied, joyful rush due to the sylph's practical knowledges and quick associations and the goblin's complete lack of consistency or attention.