Niacorn

==Niacorn==

Narwal-based Naiad from out in the ocean near an uncharted island.

Magical

During the Second Age, Telrunya went through The Sundering. The Guardians were unhappy with the pae, and to stop the constant war and infighting, they sundered the land, spreading chunks of it all over the world. Each chunk is as magical as the mainland.

Naiacorn are from pearls that fell from the island of Telrunya when the island was still in the sky looking for a place to land in the sea. Many pearly fell from the island over time, and each came to settle near a piece of the broken land of Telrunya. This magic cultivated life, and many new naiad were born, influenced by their surroundings.

Size: Naiacorn tend to be significantly longer and larger than other Naiads, not including the horn. Shape: Naiacorn tend to be more thickly built than the lithe lake Naiads, the females having pronounced curves and the males having barrel-like chests. Their fins tend to be thicker than other Naiads, rather than being frilly. Color: Naiacorn tend toward monochromatic colors like black, white, and grey, and mottled spots are traditional. However, like all races, variations are common. Naiacorn calves are typically white or light grey in color before developing their adult colors and patterns. Features: All Naiacorn possess a thick layer of subcutaneous fat to help them stay warm in the chilly depths of their home waters. They also have a single horn that is, on average, a third of their body length. Male Naiacorn have a very rare chance of being born with two horns. Naiacorn are bound to the waters, and nothing in their biology allows for them to walk on land. In fact, because they are larger and heavier than lake Naiads, becoming beached is very dangerous for them as it’s more difficult for them to maneuver back into the water without help. B. Mental Capabilities Naiacorn tend to be thoughtful rather than quick-reacting. Philosophy and spirituality are encouraged as career paths alongside subsistence careers such as hunting. Despite this, Naiacorn primarily communicate information orally rather than through writing, and upon arriving in the Lake virtually no Naiacorn knew Water Glyphs. They have exceptionally long memories. [5:08 PM] II. Habitat A. Geographic Location Historically, Naiacorn have lived in the deep ocean, far from land. Since being called to the Lake by Queen Tariel, they tend to live either in the more remote parts of the Lake, or else in the ocean surrounding the Isle. Naiacorn pods are traditionally seminomadic, having two or three places where they settle for parts of the year. B. Climate Needs Naiacorn are adapted to very cold water, and some find living in the Lake to be uncomfortably warm. C. Home Needs Since Naiacorn have their bodies extended by a third by their horns, their homes tend not to have ceilings or very many internal walls. In general they need lots of space to accommodate their horns. [5:08 PM] III. Life Behaviors A. Diet Obligate carnivores, Naiacorn primarily eat fish and traditionally don’t use any method to cook the meat; rather skinning and deboning the fish before eating it raw. (This creates lots of fish skins and bones which are used to make textiles and tools.) Some enterprising pae have taken to setting up fish farms, which they then harvest the eggs from. These cases are more common among current Lake-dwelling Naiacorn who are more likely to stay in one place to care for the farmed fish. The resulting roe is considered to be somewhat of a delicacy. When they can get it, Naiacorn also love shellfish, but it wasn’t a part of their traditional diet before coming to the Lake as most species aren’t found at the Naiacorn’s typical depths. B. Mating Naiacorn are strictly monogamous, and traditionally mate for life. Because of the pod’s structure, female/female couplings are rarer than male/female or even male/male couplings. Those females that couple with other females are more likely to leave their birth pods and create their own than to choose one birth pod over another. C. Raising Young Baby Naicorn, called calves, are usually born during the warmer months. Naiacorn are less likely than other Naiad variants to have more than two calves at a time, and thirds are seen as blessings from the Spirits. Thirds are more likely than other Naiacorn to enter religious occupations. Calves stay with their parents until adulthood, but after the calves are weaned, childrearing duties are shared among adult members of the pod. Young Naiacorn are educated by the adults in the pod, learning to hunt, gather, make tools, and commit the pod’s stories to memory. Storytelling is the duty of the oldest member of the pod. [5:09 PM] Upon coming of age, females will begin living in their own dwelling, and males will leave the pod. Male Naiacorn leaving the pod is seen as their sacred and joyful duty to the Waters as they seek out a new pod to join their bloodline to. Before leaving a pod, he is given a necklace strung with one shell chosen by each of his birth pod’s members in a sweet, loving ceremony. D. Sleep Pattern Naiacorn are generally diurnal, meaning they sleep at night and are active during the day, but in their traditional deepwater homes, it’s a little more difficult to tell what time of day it is, so they usually just sleep whenever they get tired. They have excellent dark vision. E. Movement Naiacorn swim by pumping their tails up and down, keeping their arms to their sides. They are slow but powerful swimmers. Dexterity isn’t their strong point, unable to execute tight turns quickly and instead swimming in wide, banking curves. F. Sound In addition to speech, Naiacorn communicate with a variety of clicks, whistles, and knocking sounds. These sounds carry further than speech sounds, which allows them to communicate over long ocean distances. Singing is also an important part of Naiacorn culture, and each pod is known to have several songs they sing together. This helps solidify the pod’s cohesion, and singing together is considered a fun hobby. Other Naiad variants would agree that Naiacorn have beautiful singing voices, though the inclusion of the clicks and whistles can sometimes be jarring if you aren’t expecting it. [5:09 PM] G. Mannerisms Contrary to its appearance, the Naiacorn’s horn is not for fighting or hunting as it is highly sensitive. The horn’s appearance is a source of pride, and much time is dedicated to polishing. Female Naiacorn often paint their horns in bright colors and spiraling patterns, and males enjoy applying a decorative cap to the tip of their horns. Naiacorns typically rub horns briefly in greeting, similar to a kiss on the cheek. This gesture is done across genders, and signals a positive relationship between the two pae. It’s very awkward when someone tries to rub horns with a pae who doesn’t feel that their relationship is sufficiently developed for it, and Naiacorn living among other Naiad variants sometimes aren’t sure what to do to greet their hornless friends. While individual personalities vary, Naiacorn are easygoing, spiritual, and touchy-feely by nature. They’re not naturally given toward fighting or aggression, and their natural defense is thick skin and that layer of fat that protects their underlying organs. [5:09 PM] IV. History A. Leadership Naiacorn have no central leadership, but rather are organized into family groups called pods. Naiacorn are matriarchal (meaning females have the power) and matrilineal (meaning bloodlines travel through females), and each pod is headed by the oldest female and her partner. Pods are further comprised of adult daughters and their partners, and any children. Male Naiacorn join the pods of their partners, and in the event of a male/male coupling, that pair would find a pod neither of them were born in to join. When a pod reaches around twenty adults, the oldest and youngest partnered daughters with no children will take their partners and split from the pod, creating a new pod. B. Social Naiacorn are very social, and isolation is very detrimental to their mental health. Pods are very close-knit, and privacy just….isn’t a thing. It can be very hard on young adult males to leave their pods, and for this reason it’s not uncommon to see “bachelor” pods of single males who cling to one another before finding a partner and joining their pod. Lake-dwelling Naiacorn may be attracted to Palace life for its constant social buzz. Once a year, right before the weather begins to warm, Naiacorn pods come together in a large gathering to celebrate the passing of the cold season and thank the Spirits for the warm weather and babies that are to come. This is an opportunity for single Naiacorn to meet one another, for pae who have left their pods to catch up with their birth families, and to share the songs and stories that are so important for their histories. There’s always lots of food, singing, storytelling, kids playing together, and inevitably pairing off which everyone politely pretends not to notice. [5:09 PM] C. Religion While there isn’t an organized form of religion, spirituality threads through all aspects of life for Naiacorn. All things are seen as being aspects of the Spirits, so all things are deserving of the same reverence. When fish are killed as food, for example, nothing is wasted if possible out of respect for the animal. Dedicating one’s life to the service of the Spirits is seen as a worthy pursuit in pods large enough to have one pae as the spiritual leader. D. Journey to the Lake When Queen Tariel called all the ocean Naiad variants home, the Naiacorn pods close enough to hear (which was most of them, as they can hear very well over long distances) heeded that call and went to the Lake. Not all of them settled there, though. The traditional Naiacorn lifestyle is very simple compared to the modern Lake culture, and many struggled to fit in or find a place. Many Naiacorn returned to the ocean depths, though most have stayed closer to the Isle than they have historically. They respect Queen Tariel’s deep connection to the Spirits, and as technically the oldest female on the Isle they respect her authority. But Naiacorn don’t really do centralized leadership, so they’re unlikely to become Court members. [5:09 PM] @Antidia

Menenene (doo dooooo do do do) — Yesterday at 5:35 PM Racial Abilities Naiacorn have enhanced pressure and cold tolerance even compared to other Naiad. Naiacorn have thick skin for enhanced defense. Naiacorn can hear across long distances.