Merfolk Bioform
Merfolk were the native inhabitants of Pandora before the rise of the Viking Clans. They live in small hidden tribes scattered across the jungles, rivers, and sea.
They communicate with one another not with words, but instead with sign language allowing them to signal each other underwater where sound isn't a realistic option.
Merfolk are welcomed aboard most pirate crews for their natural affinity to the sea and ability to act as guides of Pandora to the foreigners. Many embrace the pirate traditions and wear human clothing, use metal weapons, and learn to fire guns.
Merfolk find their way into Viking settlements either as mercenaries, guides, pit fighters, or enslaved thralls. Some embrace the Viking culture but most stick to their Merfolk naturalist ways and avoid metal. They are a common sight in the Mountain Clan Circle order.
These Merfolk accept their exile and live as hermits in the jungle wilds alone and continue to tend to nature as they did in the Merfolk tribes. They are simply a tribe of one now, and some act as guardians to a section of jungle, ocean, or even ancient temple as an act of atonement.
Amphibians and the Life Cycle of the Merfolk
Merfolk can breathe air and breathe underwater. Their fingers and toes are webbed and they have fins across their arms, legs, and heads that allow them to swim in water with ease. All Merfolk are born from eggs and start off with fish like tails like a classic mermaid. Around 5 years of age they shed their tail and develop legs that allow them to walk on land while still being agile swimmers in water. Unlike Human females who get 1 egg per month over the course of 20+ years, Merfolk females get all their eggs at once in a batch of roughly 50 eggs that must be fertilized by a male. Of the 50 eggs on average 4-6 become properly fertilized eggs and develop in Merfolk. Females must be very selective on the father of their children and the safety of their eggs as they only get once chance in life to procreate. Males can technically procreate with multiple females but is considered a crime that results in banishment for couples that successfully produce children are considered married for life even if there was no official ceremony.Salt Water vs Fresh Water
Merfolk who are born in fresh water hate swimming and breathing in salt water and those born in salt water hate fresh water. They can still move and breathe in either, but it leaves a horrible taste in their mouths and some even vomit afterwards.
Merfolk Sign Language
They communicate with one another not with words, but instead with sign language allowing them to signal each other underwater where sound isn't a realistic option.
Appearance
The merfolk of Pandora are visually striking bipedal human-fish hybrids. Their fins are colorful and bright like tropical fish and some are known to even have a hair that resembles seaweed, tentacles, and even human like hair. Some have more human like faces and others have more beastial fish like facial features.Meditation
Their meditation techniques are based on heartbeat rather than breath, as they need to stay in focus both above and underwater. They believe a calm mind and a clear focus is the key to success.Fashion
They don't wear much clothing and many walk around nude except for jewelry of necklaces, bracelets, anklets, tiaras, and earrings. They make most of these out of Jade, sea shells, pearls, flowers, and other natural materials like leather and vines. They hate metal, and make their shields, armor, and weapons out of bone, stone, shell, hide, plants, and insect chitin.Worship Nature
They don't believe in gods and goddesses like the other factions do. Instead they worship the planet and see themselves as gardeners who must tend to the upkeep of nature and the natural order of the world.The Natural Order
Predators eat prey, prey eat plants, and the corpses of predators and prey alike feed the plants. It's a delicate balance that must be protected or else the cycle breaks and everything will die as a result.Elemental Spirits
Using Jade, the Merfolk have found ways to bind elemental spirits to locations to act as guardians. Vikings and Gerblins know to avoid jade statues in the jungle in fear of awakening the mighty creatures.Views on the Ancient Ruins and Artifacts
The Merfolk believe the artifacts and ruins were built by their ancestors they refer to as "the Elders" who used metal and other unnatural materials to build a powerful empire in mockery to nature. Their greed for power eventually went into them trying to create a poisonous blight to destroy their rivals but instead they ended up destroying themselves and almost all of Pandora with them. The few survivors of the horrible blight took an oath to abandon the old ways and instead focus on preserving nature and life on Pandora for it came too close to be erased from existence. They became the first Keepers and destroyed all the dangerous ancient technology that they could to prevent history from repeating itself.Merfolk Factions
The Keepers
Merfolk who have taken an oath to preserve the security of Pandora the land. They hunt and destroy the most dangerous artifacts, monsters, plague, and anything else that threatens Pandora's survival. They care not for politics but are willing to work with other factions towards the safety of Pandora.The Reclaimers
Merfolk oath breakers that want to reclaim Pandora for the Merfolk using the power of the artifacts the Keepers would normally have destroyed. Humans don't care about balance, Humans try and bend nature to their will. They breed uncontrollably, eat and ravish the landscape, cut down trees to build their constantly expanding cities, and cultivate prey and slay predators. They are a disease to Pandora and the Reclaimers will remove by any means necessary.The Exiles
Marked with a burned handprint on their face these merfolk have been banished from their tribes for crimes against the merfolk or nature. Merfolk are forbidden to speak to exiles in fear of being marked as one themselves.
Pirate Exiles
Merfolk are welcomed aboard most pirate crews for their natural affinity to the sea and ability to act as guides of Pandora to the foreigners. Many embrace the pirate traditions and wear human clothing, use metal weapons, and learn to fire guns.
Viking Exiles
Merfolk find their way into Viking settlements either as mercenaries, guides, pit fighters, or enslaved thralls. Some embrace the Viking culture but most stick to their Merfolk naturalist ways and avoid metal. They are a common sight in the Mountain Clan Circle order.
Hermit Exiles
These Merfolk accept their exile and live as hermits in the jungle wilds alone and continue to tend to nature as they did in the Merfolk tribes. They are simply a tribe of one now, and some act as guardians to a section of jungle, ocean, or even ancient temple as an act of atonement.
