Leshy

Guardians and emissaries of the environment, leshies are immortal spirits of nature temporarily granted a physical form. Leshies are “born” when a skilled druid or other master of primal magic conducts a ritual to create a suitable vessel, and then a spirit chooses that vessel to be their temporary home. Leshies are self-sufficient from the moment the ritual ends, and so they do not depend upon these druids for care, though it is not uncommon for leshies to maintain lifelong bonds with their creators.

Not all leshies have a strong enough spirit to strike off completely on their own, however. Weaker nature spirits can form only tenuous bonds that are just strong enough to animate Tiny bodies. These spirits become leshy familiars, acting as companions to their druid creators. Independent leshies are often protective of such leshy familiars, advocating for them to be treated with dignity and respect.

Leshies are as varied as the material used to create their vessels, usually appearing as a bizarre mishmash of various plants or fungi. Their bodies are vaguely humanoid in shape, with numerous characteristics of the plant or fungus from which they were made. A typical leshy is about 3 feet tall. Due to the nature of the ritual used to create a leshy, leshies begin their lives as adults. As spirits, they do not age, and a leshy could potentially remain in the same vessel forever—though leshies rarely consider this outcome to be desirable.

Though guardian leshies often congregate, traveling leshies are not naturally drawn to others of their own kind. To most leshies, the concept of family is not a matter of birth, but rather determined by bonds of loyalty and friendship. Leshies are dedicated allies, but they have little tolerance for those who would despoil nature. As much as they are happy to accept someone who earns their trust into their family, they expect family members to look out for them and their natural wards in return. A betrayed leshy might not directly attack those who slight them, but they might withdraw support at a critical moment or leave their betrayers to get lost in the wilderness.

Leshies are grouped into categories akin to ethnicities, but these are not connected to physical features; rather, they represent broad categories of characteristics of their spirits. Certain spirits are more likely to gravitate toward particular physical bodies, though those familiar with leshies know that this predisposition is far from absolute. Leshies often take pride in their own appearances and appreciate beauty of all kinds in others, but they rarely form judgments based on physical appearance. Leshies’ genders are determined by the spirits that inhabit their bodies. Leshies tend to gravitate toward plant bodies that match their genders. Some leshies are exclusively male or female, while many consider themselves both. Others, particularly fungus leshies, tend toward far more complex expressions of gender, or eschew the concept entirely.