Getting close to wrapping up my beasts of heraldry sketch project. Here are some human chimeras as approach the end, most of which will warrant a sketch series of their own down the line:
Centaurs: human/horse hybrid, with a very unique body plan, being basically half of a human being growing up from where the neck would be on a horse. With two sets of lungs, two hearts, and an enormous interconnected digestive system, they’re incredibly hardy chimeras.
Mermaid: human/fish hybrid, not to be confused with undines, which are fairy fish that imitate humans in form. Mermaids have beautiful singing voices and a penchant for dragging land dwelling animals to their deaths.
Harpy: one of MANY varieties of Arepyiai, the catch-all term for human/bird chimeras. Harpies are specifically a fusion of human and “garbage birds” - i.e. birds who have reputations for being annoying, dirty, or otherwise undesirable. Though often dim and boasting remarkably poor hygeine, most harpies are very loyal to those they consider friends and can make valuable allies or servants.
Gorgon: a complicated and dangerous chimera, there are many variations on the gorgon’s recipe, but a human and a venomous serpent must be involved for it to have the iconic ability to turn flesh to stone with its gaze. The original gorgons were a mix of human, basilisk, viper, dragon, eagle, and boar, though there are many other variations with different ingredients.
Melusine: a mixture of human and sea serpent, this chimera can actually hide its bestial side via illusion magic, though the glamour fades whenever it enters water.
Minocane: a spaniel with a human baby’s face. Real talk: I don’t know what European noble decided THIS was the monster he wanted on his family’s heraldry, that THIS is what needed to be on his flags, his royal seal, the shields and banners of all his knights, etc., but whoever he was, he was a bona fide freak. Truly unhinged. George R. R. Martin sat down and tried to think of what a true sicko would put on his heraldry and came up with a flayed man, and this proves he was a hack because the real fucking maniacs flew a goddamn minocane on their flag.
VERY close to the end of my list of heraldic beasts. Let’s go over this batch of misfits:
Crapard: a very large toad. Able to eat a horse whole large.
Emmet:an ant the size of a pony.
Bonnacon: a magical bovine. Some species breathe fire from their nostrils. Others expel it from, well, their other end.
Nebek: a strange trunked beast the size of a large hound. Omnivorous and voracious.
Lubolf: a magical hippo, and one of the most dangerous herbivores on Midgaheim.
Phoenix: arcane birds who are masters of fire, wind, and oddly enough, water magic. When a phoenix dies, its body combusts into magic flames that reforge its remains into an egg, which soon hatches into a new phoenix.
Phenex: aka the false phoenix, these birds sport the exact same magic powers as phoenixes, despite being distant relatives at best. It’s very confusing to the average human citizen of Midgaheim, who is likely only to read about these birds in bestiaries rather than seeing them in person - and made all the more confusing by a THIRD family of fire magic using birds, the aptly named Firebirds of Ruslovak, who also sport some similar powers as the phoenix and phenex. It is said Phenexes can be found on the continent to Midgaheim’s East, where they are known by a different name.
Cameleopard: a strange creature that, to the untrained eye, looks vaguely like a camel with a leopard’s coloration. Many have tried to make mounts of these strange, long-necked hooved animals, only to be bucked off to their doom thanks to the immense height of the beasts. They may have inspired the creation of the Questing Beast, a chimera that has many similarities to a cameleopard when they are poorly described by a person who has only heard of them from bestiaries.
Rukh: aka the kreutzet, the cornu, the hraesvelg, the bariuchne, or simply the very large eagle. There are several species of immense eagle around Midgaheim, with many names as well, but it seems bestiary writers have settled on rukh as the catch-all name, which is itself a loan word taken from the continent to Midgaheim’s South East.
Tytron: a goat with an extra pair of ram-like horns.
Monstrous fish that swim the wide open oceans surrounding Midgaheim, sea boars are so named for their large tusks and distinctive upturned nostrils. Despite being purely aquatic creatures, most sea boars possess rudimentary lungs, with many even vocalizing with loud roars and bellows. Sea Boars are typically omnivorous, though there are some exceptions.
The most massive fish to roam the oceans surrounding Midgaheim, leviathans account for some of the most terrifying sea monsters known to man, matched and surpassed only by the largest of sea dragons. They are a sister clade to the sea boars, many of whom also make up the bulk of the leviathans’ diet (and are included in our fun little scale chart).
Isaiah’s Leviathan - largest of the leviathans, and perhaps the only sea monster that can give a full grown Midgar Guivre a fair fight.
Job’s Leviathan - second largest of the leviathans and the most vicious, this enormous fish has a voracious appetite and a territorial streak that drives it to be a remorseless killer.
Jonah’s Leviathan - though still a maneater by nature, this leviathan is docile enough to be trained to an extent, though they have never been fully domesticated.
Jasconius - more docile than its kin, this massive fish has been fully domesticated in the past, with some even being trained to escort human vessels. Jasconiuses can hibernate for decades at a time, to the point where their inert and curled up bodies can be mistaken for islands. Though they don’t actively prey on humans like other leviathans, the Jasconius is viciously territorial when presented with similarly sized sea monsters, which, combined with its otherwise ambivalent temperament, makes it an excellent protector for sailing ships.
Murex - the second smallest of the leviathans, this sharp-fanged fish is just as vicious as most of its kin, and has proven adept at tearing boars apart board by board to get at the tasty humans within.
Dwarf Leviathan - bred by wizards to be amiable, survive in freshwater, and grow to a more manageable size, this beast is to other leviathans what the catoblepas is to behemoths: the stunted, domesticated version of a monster that was originally a nigh-unstoppable force of nature. They do make excellent guardians, though, patrolling moats and lakes for their human masters and keeping them free of the many, MANY lake and river monsters that might otherwise roost there.
Been meaning to ask this: How exactly did somebody manage to tame a Leviathan, much less domesticate them?
Myth: There were many Uwabami in mythology, with one story telling of a snake spirit who fell in love with a human woman. The father of the woman tricked the snake out of the marriage, and in anger the spirit flooded the region, only stopping when the woman sacrificed herself.
Facts:
Uwabami were gluttonous creatures, devouring great amounts of food and alcohol.
Uwabami have the power to shape shift.
Uwabami had control over waters, wind, and rain, and in some accounts could fly despite being wingless.
Some accounts state that Uwabami, like all serpents, are part of the dragon species.
[Monster 1000, everyone! I think! In updating my indices, I found that that’s harder to pin down than I had thought, what with templates, multiple monsters in one entry, and non-monster but game mechanics posts. But I’ll be treating this as Monster 1000 because even if it isn’t officially, it’s darn close.
I figured I would commemorate the milestone with a monster that embodies the Codex somewhat. I’ve been thinking about how to do it for a while (since around monster 900 or so). I was eventually inspired by some of the major themes of the blog. There’s a lot of dinosaurs and a lotoffiends around here. So here’s a patron for them both. The Supreme Monstrosity originally appeared in the Dinosaurs Attack! series of super-violent trading cards (seriously, be aware if you’re going to click through the source link) as the leader of an army of time-displaced, ferociously murderous prehistoric beasts.]
Infernal Duke, Saurafer CR 26 LE Outsider This orange scaled horror is a bipedal reptilian humanoid taller than a giant. Its skull is swollen and features a crown of horns and six eyes. Its arms end in muscular paws, leathery wings grow from its back, and its tail ends in an immense spiked club.
Saurafer Devil Dinosaur, the Supreme Monstrosity Concernsdinosaurs, competitions of strength, savagery DomainsEvil, Law, Scalykind, Strength SubdomainsDevil, Ferocity, Judgment,Saurian Worshipersevil druids, reptilian humanoids, gladiators Minionsfiendish and half-fiend dinosaurs, horned devils, stygionyx Unholy Symbol a fanged maw biting a globe Favored Weapon heavy flail (or natural weapons) Obediencewin a competition of strength. If you are alone, spend 1 hour writing an argument about why one individual or creature would win in a fight with another one. Gain a +4 profane bonus on Intimidate checks, and add 4 to the DC needed to successfully intimidate you. Boons1:rage1/day; 2: mass bull’s strength 1/day; 3: extended frightful aspect1/day
Saurafer, the Supreme Monstrosity, is an infernal duke who rules over violent competitions of strength. He is perhaps the physical embodiment of the doctrine of “might makes right”, and seeks forever to test his power against other creatures. His chosen species are dinosaurs, which he sees as emblems of ferocity and power. Saurafer delights in pitting creatures against each other, especially dinosaurs against creatures of other eras and worlds, in order to see who is the superior. He is a sore winner, but an even sorer loser. He despises birds, as they are a reminder that in many worlds, dinosaurs succeeded not by becoming larger and stronger, but smaller and more intelligent.
As to be expected of the patron of savage combat, Saurafer is an absolute terror on the battlefield. He toys with weaker foes, using his fear abilities to send them scattering and then picking them off one by one. Those that resist are blasted with spells and breath weapons. If all else fails, Saurafer flies into a savage rage, which rarely ends until either he or his enemies are slain. Although he delights in one-on-one battles, if he fights multiple foes at once, he evens the odds by summoning devils and dinosaurs to aid him, or even uses animal shapes to turn devils into dinosaurs and improve their melee abilities.
Saurafer stalks the blighted realm of Avernus, single-handedly destroying armies that attempt to make a foothold in Hell and testing the forces of other infernal dukes. He is an example of a malabranche promoted, as he was successful in dragging an entire planet into the clutches of Hell. He hopes to someday repeat this performance, and is looking for ways of summoning and controlling enough dinosaurs at once to invade a whole world. Although he is not terribly intelligent by the standards of the hosts of Hell, he does not tolerate condescension, and is a shrewd judge of character. He has eaten at least one malebranche who did not show him proper respect.
April Fools, everyone. This week, we’ll be covering commissions from @glarnboudin, who requested a variety of monsters from different incarnations of Scooby-Doo. Honestly, I was kicking myself that I’d never thought to do Scooby-Doo monsters before: as a young child who loved monsters but was a huge coward, Scooby-Doo was an excellent training-wheels way for me to get my creature fix.
The Creeper is perhaps one of the most iconic monsters from the original Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? series. He regularly appears in spin-offs, reboots, even a State Farm commercial. I’ve seen him referred to as a take on Frankenstein’s Monster, but I think he’s more a melange of multiple hulking brute killers from B-horror movies. The name is derived from Rondo Hatton’s character from House of HorrorsandThe Brute Man, and I feel like his look owes more to Lon Chaney Jr. in Indestructible Man than it does to Frankenstein]
Spectral Creeper This muscular humanoid is hunched over, with a dull, dead gaze and hands clenched. His skin tone is a gray-green, and he has clearly been dead for some time.
Spectral creepers are the reanimated corpses of cat burglars, pickpockets, and other non-violent thieves. Typically, a spectral creeper forms when one of these criminals dies with unfinished business—with a major heist planned, but not executed. If the creeper achieves this goal post-mortem, it continues with even bigger and bolder heists. A spectral creeper is never satisfied with the wealth they have, accumulating riches upon riches. A few creepers will even allow their treasures to be reclaimed just so they can steal them a second time.
A spectral creeper is most notable for its ability to pass through locked doors, solid walls. It can empty chests or lockboxes without opening them by reaching through their sides. They cannot do this endlessly, however. Most spectral creepers still carry thieves’ tools to help them disarm traps or open locks in case of emergencies or to assist their minions. Spectral creepers are also skilled in disguises, and may masquerade as the living in order to case a target or evade detection. Regardless of whether or not the spectral creeper was violent in life, all of them are willing to kill in pursuit of a mission. Their fists are heavy and their grip tight, but they still cannot resist rifling through the pockets of their victims even as they crush them.
The convoy has arrived at the location of the vampire roost.
St. Gabriel Church [condemned] located on the outskirts of Franklin ave. Vampires are drawn to religious objects, which is why they mostly hide in abandoned houses of worship.
Preparations are made to facilitate over two dozen large mirrors inside the main entrance of the church. Vampires don’t attack groups, so everyone is advised to stick around more than 2 people at all times.
Noah is the main vampire hunter for tonight and coordinates the setup.
Mia overlooks the entire process and will serve as Noah’s eyes for the vampire slaying.
: Lucky tonight. Usually, we barricade the windows ourselves, but this church is already reinforced.
Contrary to legend and folklore, vampires have a physical body, but it is only perceivable through reflective surfaces. With this many mirrors, we get a better chance of seeing the vampire.
The loves of my life, god weirdo Rho (mine, white hair) and his mortal husband Stellio ( @bittertowncowboy ‘s, drow). I’ve been really artblocked lately so I went for my emergency protocol of DRAW CUTE CHEEBS. It worked!! Except i have work in like 5 hours and I haven’t slept. Oops.
[Commissioned by @justicegundam82. An Italian giant, one said to cause earthquakes. Not a lot is available in English, and most of the readily Google translatable material I could find were about earthquakes, not giants.]
Orcolat This immense giant has gray, craggy skin, a furrowed brow and a maw full of jagged teeth. It wears merely a loincloth, and carries an enormous spiked club. The ground trembles under its feet.
Orcolats, called earthquake giants by some, are enormous and ill-tempered giants responsible for many temblors and avalanches. They live in high mountain caves, hunting rocs, megafauna and other massive creatures for food. Orcolats are cannibals of a sort, and they will gladly prey on smaller giants if they get the opportunity. They are large enough to shake the ground around them as they walk, but can create even more intense earthquakes through magical means.
An orcolat is a dim and stupid creature, and has little culture beyond crafting of simple weapons. They have an inborn sadistic urge, and enjoy hurting creatures smaller than themselves (which is almost everything). Cleverer giants frequently manipulate them with gifts and food, getting them to provide security for cloud castles and other remote strongholds. According to giant lore, the orcolats are the products of a divine curse—their ancestors wished to be even larger and stronger than they were, and as their bodies swelled, their brains atrophied.
The average orcolat stands sixty feet tall. They speak Giant in halting voices, and rarely have vocabularies more than 100 words.
Hello everyone, I finally got in all my supplies to let you know I have made stickers!!!
This is my first time using a manufacturer to make stickers, so I’ve only got a little batch of these and there’s a lot of stuff I’d change if I do a reprint, but I’m still so happy with how they came out. \o/!!!
