John Night was born April 11, AFS 051 on a stormy night in the then small city of Piston, Barboroy. From childhood the always enjoyed to watch, study, and observe the people and creatures of the world. By the age of twenty had had already reached world fame with the publication of his first book that explored the night creatures of the Western Kingdom. Though much of the material was speculative and opinionated from outside source, Night went on to study more creatures, places, and cultures throughout Xadune. He was quoted in June of AFS 076 that his life goal was to rewrite this first novel and with firsthand accounts and illustrations.
Shortly later he was drafted to serve in the War of 080 as a scout and corridor. Thankfully he survived, and with even more vigor and enthusiasm towards his love. Throughout the next 30 years Night traveled the world documenting the weird and mundane creatures, people, cultures, and societies that Xadune has to offer. In October of 099 his lifelong dream was answered as he was granted limited permission into the Western Kingdom. The reprint is highly sought after amongst collectors.
Currently Night is still doing what he has dedicated his life to doing. His latest goals include exploration and documentation of the Northern Frontier along with a write-up on a Gatherer. Night has had fourteen failed attempts to reach the Northern Frontier and has yet to witness first hand a Gatherer.
Below and to follow are excerpts from Night’s collective works throughout time. Most have been printed in some other form or fashion in local papers or event the Xadune Herald Tribune. Others might have been something skimmed over in a school or class, but most are what people now might consider common knowledge around Xadune.
Servlings
Throughout my years I have observed these creatures and their habits. In the beginning I believed them to be indigenous to Pha, but as I ventured the world I came to realize the they were indeed used all across the world. I say used because that all they are: a tool. In the wild these creatures normally dwell underground in borrows that are self-made. I’ve only come across three situations were “free-roaming” servlings have been observed. Most all other cases have been while in the servitude of a master, which is the meaning of their name, and seems to be the true nature and purpose for the creatures.
Servlings are relatively small humanoid creatures, standing at most at four feet tall if they stood up straight, but instead hunch over slightly placing them more at the three to three and a half feet tall. They are normally very lean in size; not once have I seen one that could have weighed more than fifth teen pounds. But this small size often takes most people off guard and they should not be underestimated. Three notable features about servlings are as follows: There faces normally appear smooched in, and they lack an actual nose. Instead they have a concaved open cavity where most all other humanoids have a covering that we refer to as a nose or snout. The second most notable feature is their yellow glowing eyes. Though not very notable during the day at night they are almost unmistakable. Though a few other creatures share this rare feature, one can almost always safely bet that if more than one set is seen in the night that they are servlings. Lastly is there skin coloration. I have recorded over 6 different colors of servlings in my travels: brown, black, gray, blue, green, and red. Though throughout the years these are the only colors I have seen, I do not believe it is the extent of their coloration. Skin coloration is most notable because it tends to reflect the true purpose of a servling. Each type has its own set of attributes and abilities special to them.
The apparent nature of their life is to serve. Normally their masters send them out on errands and whatnot to retrieve something or just generally cause a ruckus. Though often destructive along their course to achieve their set goal, one should never truly fear a servling unless they impede them in some way, taunt them, or are part of their preset mission. As mentioned before, they should never be underestimated. When in combat they typically use hoard tactics to outnumber a foe and deal with enemies one at a time, normally swarming one person until they are dead then moving on to the next. They are also very resourceful in looting their surroundings and victims for weapons and items. Their grunts, whines, and broken speak often also serves to confuse targets, but communication amongst each other seems to happen seamlessly. In the end however they are no more special then the next humanoid. Their skin is still soft and easy to puncture, and normally one or two well placed bullets can put one down. Though their natural defensive capabilities vary from type to type they all do have some type of vulnerability.
Pyglins
I have seen many incredible creatures in my travels and I make full note of each and every new being I come across. There was one particular incident that I recall when I was fairly young in my travels. It was a rainy evening and quite cool, so I decided to take residence in a cave I found right on a cliff of the Nigean Mountains. When I wandered to the back I heard a serious of small noises, curiosity got the best of me and as I crouched down in the back of, what I thought was a bear cave, I watched a most peculiar small creature.
From what I could tell they resemble goblins in every way, standing approximately 2-3 feet in height and they have pale yellow skin instead of green… Also they are extremely barbaric and tribal in nature, they seem to always be in packs. When they speak, it is in grunts and chirps, never really anything comprehendible or so I believed. They always wear elongated masks, colored very oddly, with long eccentric noses covering their own pointy noses.
They seemed to be stalking a Quittle, or cave cow, as they are commonly referred to, at that very moment I was observing them. Some carry with them javelins and others blow dart guns. Most of them carry small rusty daggers, though, and don’t seem very strong while they are alone, but, when they attack it is with the entire pack, and they seem to take down larger creatures quicker than they should. I shall refer to these as Maulers. There were a few that were larger than the others, standing closer to 3 1/2 feet and they seemed to be bulging with muscles and appeared to be very strong, these I call Brutes. Then came the Spitters, 2 very small Pygmy like goblins… Pyglins if you will, and one carried a torch. OH MY! He just spit on the Quittle and its flesh is searing! OH BY THE POWERS!!!! The other spit through the fire and ignited his own saliva! I left shortly after, fearing my own safety. This is indeed has been most fascinating thing I have ever witnessed….
Hawksray:
Getting into Darken Wood was hard enough but word travels fast of those who are involved in education and discovery. Once the peoples of this place learned of who I was they accepted me easily enough. The look of amusement on their faces was enough to unsettle any man’s heart. Regardless, I look forward to the adventure!
The first creature I had come across what was referred to as the “Hawksray”. It is near impossible to get close to this creature to get precise documentation while it is alive and during the day – as they are nocturnal creatures. Coming across a carcass of one I took measurements myself, but I had to do so quickly to keep from being in harm’s way in these woods. This massive bird stood as tall as a human, about 5.5-6.5ft.
The species has stout, strong legs and large feet which allows it to walk with ease. The bill – large, rather slender, and had a hooked tip with a wide gape. The wingspan of this monster was between 19 – 26ft in length! The length of the body itself was around 11 feet, give or take and I imagine the weight of it to be around 150lbs.
What I have noted about this creature while alive and still breeding is they flew mainly by soaring, using flapping flight only during short periods. They are carnivorous beasts and will feed on anything of lesser size than themselves. They can often be detected through the night by their screeching bellow. Their shrieks echo through the night to make any man’s or animal’s skin crawl. It sounds as if the world was being ripped open by the means of magic or some other dying force of nature.
With all of these things in mind, I am sure that I will never take to venturing in Darken Wood alone from this point on. As I would hate to be whisked away by this bird before my studies are complete. What an animal!
Pigmys:
Now that I have acquired a team of sorts to go through Darken Wood, I feel better about proceeding with my studies. The creatures I have been excited to cover in the woods are the Pigmy. Truly something that was only told about in stories but never documented. Although hardly an animal, they are small humanoid-like creatures that stand three feet tall. They travel in packs or sometimes even alone. They are frail looking things that are debatable whether they are indigenous to Darken Wood or if they travel here like every other race on Xadune to escape the world.
To look upon them without being outright attacked is a difficult in-itself. So to gather any information on these creatures was a task. I decided to approach cautiously from stilts made of bamboo, which is found around some parts of Darken Wood and is great material for many things. That was a failed attempt as they merely hacked at the stilts and easily maneuvered around, even started up the stilts to try to get to me. I unlatched myself and while in safety conceived another plan. I had never thought that they would be so agile and strong to make it up so high in such a short span of time!
This time I decided to head for higher ground at a distance. Sitting in a convenient spot in a tree, some distance away, I could see the on goings of their “tribe”. They spoke in a broken language that sounds as if it could be related to our common tongue. Pigmys come in different types, but they are hard to distinguish from each other. Maybe with more investigation we can uncover the hidden truth behind these creatures. They are a site to behold that is sure! They have narrow faces, much like the dying breed of Elves, squinted eyes and slightly pointed ears that look worn as if a moth got to them. Their bulbous nose reminds me of a dwarf and has me wondering about the genetics of these creatures. Are they of either species of Dwarf or Elf? Or are they merely a resemblance of either and they are a different breed? Is this another race on Xadune? Can they truly be cultured enough to be civil?
From the looks of their actions, I think not. They quarrel with each other, don’t speak civilized tongue, they take what they want without any question or regard, run about naked and hunt anything that moves. They are truly one wild race.
Ottmorrow Stinger
They warned me not to venture off without a guide. The Western Kingdom is nothing less of an unforgiving maze of what seems to be shifting trees and ground. I had come from the Eastern Faction, I now find myself in the Southern Faction, also known as Silent Wood. I was about to settle down for the night, it had been a long day of adventuring and data logging, then I heard the terrifying howl of something. I quickly stumbled to my feet and hid inside one of the large trees near by. I watched nervously as the sounds got closer and closer. Then I saw it, standing nearly 15 feet tall when not on all floors; black coarse hair with purple stripes here and there. Quills sprout from its back 1-2 feet in length, they look extremely dangerous. Tusks protrude from its jaw, curling back wards, as do its 4 horns that sprout from its head. Its paws could easily cover my entire upper body and the claws to match could effortlessly shred my flesh. A leather like webbing stretch from its elbows to its waist, I am unsure as to why those are there, please tell me this thing cannot glide or fly. Lastly, the feature that stood out the most was it’s tail. About 10 feet in length, its tail is covered in purple flowers that change to the color orange as it reaches the center of the flower projecting from the middle is a thorn, red in color, almost throbbing it seems. I better stop writing, its heading this way.
Sharktopus:
I once had the pleasure of swimming with the elegant and beautiful Water Elemani and through one of their alchemists I was able to gain the ability to breath underwater. I had a pair of engineered fins made for me by a gnome friend of mine, so I was able to keep up fairly well with these beautiful creatures of the sea. Their colony was located off the coast of Pha in the Raspin Ocean and I saw many beautiful creatures of note while in the depths of the sea. But it was when I noticed the elemani signaling me to surface and they had a look of panic about them that I began to really look around. I was unsure of what was going on… and then I saw it as it swam directly under me. It was about 30 meters in length, longer than most airships, and probably weighed close to 150 metric tons. It was beautiful, and I was frozen in aw as this beast glided through the sea. It had the head and upper dorsal fin of a shark, but the body of an octopus. The main tentacle, which formed just past the dorsal fin, was where most of the length of the beast came from, it was probably close to 20 meters in length, and on the end of it was the tail fin of the shark… quite peculiar, I thought to myself. The other 7 were much short in length, around 10 meters each, and moved the beast through the water at surprising speed.
I looked around and saw the elemani tribe floating in place, trying not to bring any attention to the beast. It was here that we saw a chance of escape, a large whale was off in the distance, it was about half the size of the beast under us, and a companion water elemani began to cast a spell, which in its own, underwater, is a sight to witness. He fired a projectile through the water and it struck the whale, we could see traces of blood seep into the water in a cloud like effect. This definitely got the beasts attention; it veered its course and bolted towards the doomed creature. As it got close it surprisingly flipped its body and began to wrap the beast with its much longer tentacle fin, much like that of a large snake. The whale struggle in a futile effort, but was no match for the oversized beast. As the tentacle fin squeezed the life out of the beast, the head began to rip the flesh away and devoured it. It was quite a fascinating sight, I thought to myself as we swam back to the colony, definitely a memory I will not forget, especially when I sail the open seas.