Post by Varos Talantos on Nov 10, 2011 23:39:03 GMT -5
Mermaid Sirens/Selkies, Nixies Overview Unlocked by Stilia Medusa, Rennia Trayvold, and Solemn Creed. Mermaids are humanoids that live in the ocean. Instead of legs, Sirens have a long, powerful fin, though their torso is akin to a human's. These fins are generally bluish, but the color does vary. The extent of the fin up the torso is also undefined as some Sirens have them go almost up to their arms and other Sirens' fins don't begin until below the waists. Nixies, on the other hand, tend to have webbed feet, and are covered in scales. Mermaids are male or female, but can actually change genders, including reproductive features, similar to creatures like the clownfish. The powerful fin and webbed feet they possess allows them to swim at speeds exceeding 40 miles per hour. Typically, Mermaids consider their habitat a holy place that should never be polluted and have taken the responsibility of 'Guardians of the Oceans' (as they tend to think of themselves). Mermaids can breath underwater by gills they possess, though they also have a functional set of lungs (although they are not as strong as Human lungs and they breathe much more easily in the water than out of it). It is for this reason that although Sirens and some Nixies can transform their fins into legs that they only do so for brief periods of time. They can stay out of water for 4-5 hours before they begin feeling dehydrated and weak from being out of their natural habitat and after 7-8 hours (depending on the constitution of the Mermaid), they will die if they do not fully submerge themselves in a body of water from asphyxiation and dehydration. A Mermaid must have been in water for a minimum of 5 hours to enter land again. Mermaids have been in existence for a long time and have considered themselves Guardians of the Oceans since almost the beginning of their race's existence. Many famous Mermaids have ruled including the oldest of their rulers, Neptune. Other noteworthy Mermaids include Triton (whose reckless daughter had a film made about her as a children's animated movie), and Ursula. Ursula was also present in the film as a force of evil, though really she was trying to keep Triton's careless daughter from revealing the race's secret existence to Humans. After her failure there, she lost trust in her fellow Mermaids and decided that the job could be done by an individual as effectively as a group and imprisoned her fellow Mermaids in an underwater cove where they were kept alive and well by their misguided, misrepresented friend Ursula. Most Mermaids don't view her as a bad Mermaid, simply going about things in a poor fashion. Mermaids have also learned to communicate rather effectively with dolphins, influencing their intelligent friends to save Humans from shark attacks spontaneously at times and other such noble, protective acts. They can also manage very basic communication with other sea creatures, as long as they reach a certain level of intelligence. Sirens in particular can sing an enchanting melody that has been known to lure ships and other waterborne vessels to their demise on submerged rocks. Mermaids do not have any natural predators and if a shark or some other aquatic creature kills one of their number, they take it as a risk of the job and will not punish the creatures that have performed the killing. All parts of the ocean rely on the rest and to punish one part for performing it's duty is a ridiculous concept to them. The tend to eat seaweed and fish they hunt for food, using sonic hearing that works for up to three leagues away in a fashion similar to a bat's hearing to help them locate potential meals. Because of their sensitive hearing, they will often wear something over their ears if they come ashore to protect themselves from the harsh noises of land. They also have the ability to see through the dark, their eyes having adjusted to the darkest depths of the sea. Mermaids are known to live up to 300 years old, and reach maturity around 16. Note: Although Mermaids can enter land, does not mean they like to. Most Mermaids live their whole life without setting foot on dry soil and typical Mermaids do not cherish the thought of leaving their natural habitat. Subspecies Sirens - The generic mermaid, they are the most common form of mermaid. Sirens, as mentioned earlier, have the fins of a fish. These fins are generally bluish, but the color does vary, and some reflect different species of fish. The extent of the fin up the torso is also undefined as some Mermaids have them go almost up to their arms and other Mermaids' fins don't begin until below the waists. Some sirens will even develop fins on their arms, and even possibly their backs, as sirens can mimic the shark. Another variety of Sirens are known as selkies. Selkies are Sirens, however they are able to withstand much colder waters and live in Artic areas. Instead of a fish, the selkies’ lower half resembles that of a seal, and is covered in warm, slick fur. Otherwise, they have no difference, and some selkies will simply identify themselves as a siren or a mermaid. Nixies - Nixies are mermaids who are completely covered in scales except their face. Their hair is almost always green, as many hide among the seaweed while hunting for food. Their skin also comes in camouflaging shades such as greens and blues, although the occasional mixed breed of a nixie and a siren will reveal regular mermaid skin tones. Nixies have webbed fingers and toes, although the mixed breeds will sometimes develop a siren’s tail instead of legs. Their nails are quite sharp, used for tearing apart their meal- due to this some believe that Nixies are actually an aquatic descendant of the Pi fae, however if this is true is unknown. Like the siren, nixies may develop fins in other locations on their bodies. Innate Abilities Sirens can lure others with their beautiful voice, known as 'Enchanting Melody'. They can also gain legs with 'Humanoid Transformation'. Nixies can manipulate their environment with 'Water Control'. They can also cause harm to others with 'Sicken'. Strength – 4- 25 Speed – 5- 25 Intelligence - 4- 20 Endurance – 7- 30 Agility – 4- 20 For more information on stats, view our stat page. For more information on magical abilities, view our supernatural ability page. |