Bestiary:Vailkrin

A Bestiary

OOC Note: This bestiary is reserved for non-mob creatures. For mobs, please see the main Vailkrin Creatures listing.

Vailkrin, land of the Undead, is home to a variety of different species of animals and plants, and ... other things, not so easily defined.

Animals

Gravewyrms

Somewhat akin to a hagfish in appearance, the gravewyrm was thought to be extinct for the past several centuries. Recently, however, a single remaining nest was excavated and the species is being carefully nurtured toward survival.

Most recently the cause of this vicious flesheater has been taken up by a Scleratus of the Necromancer's Guild, Valentin, who describes the creatures as follows:

"Jus' imagine somethin' that looks like th'cross between a leech an' a maggot, and add lots o'teeth. I like 'em on account o' th'fact they'll eat any meat you put their way - y'got yourself garbage disposal an' bonecleaner all in one. It's a handy combination, innit. Little blighters can grow t'be the size of a dog if fed enough. I know this, right, as it were one o'that size what took a hole out o'my leg when we first found 'em"

Valentin has appropriated a small swarm of Gravewyrm larvae for breeding, and other, purposes.

The Chitterling

Properly the larva of the exceedingly rare Giant Sandwyrm (a lesser wyrm, and not to be confused with any dragon species), the Chitterling (named for the sound it makes) is the only one of its species to be found in Vailkrin. It is not native, but has earned its place in the Bestiary via its rarity and sheer persistence in surviving an environment completely alien to it. Unable to complete its life cycle outside the desert regions of its native home, the Chitterling has remained in larval form far longer than it normally would and has grown to a relatively gigantic proportion compared to those which enter normal pupation, a phenomenon not observed before due to the fact that nobody prior to Joliette Thorne was ever deranged enough to want to try to capture one alive, let alone relocate it.

Equipped with a mouthful of saw-like teeth, the Chitterling is capable of burrowing through just about anything including timber, flesh, dragonscale and even stone given enough time. Its preferred food in the Dark Lands appears to be giant spiders, which it consumes in vast amounts when it can. However, when hungry, any organic material will do and in the case none is available, the Chitterling can subsist on inorganic materials for a short time. It has also been observed to be quite partial to vampire- and elf- flesh, and it is thought that a vampiric elf, being a combination of the two, gives off some odor that the larva finds quite irresistible. Ongoing reaserch is being conducted into this theory.

It is exceedingly foolish to approach this creature when it is hungry. It ought to be noted: the Chitterling is always hungry. Reports indicate that it has not been sighted in the city for some time. Some claim to have spotted it in various caverns leading to the Underdark most recently.

Plants

Hemlock Trees

These melancholy and graceful trees are common in Vailkrin and are considered by many to be Vailkrin's national plant. Toxic to the extreme, its leaves can cause violent convulsions, paralysis and death to the living when ingested. Often used as an ingredient in spells, potions and poisons, the hemlock is said in legend to have a kind of vegetable sentience.

Angel Trumpet Lily

Aptly named, the angel trumpet lily is an important ingredient in incenses used during necromatic rites, particularly those to raise the dead. In addition to this, the plant is toxic in all parts, the flower being only slightly moreso than the root, though it is the flower that is of greatest assistance to magical works. The root is sheerly poisonous and likely to be fatal if ingested, while the powdered root mixed into a paste has proven to have powerful soporific and hallucinogenic qualities when applied topically to either the living or the dead.