Mapache

Not native to Eastern Vreathe, the Mapache is a strange little creature. The Naturalists in the Empire of Irellith have given it the name Procyon Lotor due to its habit of dipping its food in water before eating it and because it resembles a dog. But...is it a dog? Personally I think it looks more like a miniature bear or a much more relaxed variety of badger.

But as I said, they are not native to Vreathe. The Mapache was actually brought over to Cassel roughly four hundred years ago, in the year 2592 I.A.. In this year, the famous Irellithian explorer Karos Kole sailed further east than anyone ever has, reaching the Dark Lands, or those lands not touched by the light of the Tower of Heaven. When he returned, he brought over various gems, seeds for plants not native to Vreathe, as well as some animals, including twelve Mapaches.

The people of the Elf-Kingdom of Ledo quite liked these animals and carefully bred them in great numbers. Nearly all of them became pets but due to the crafty nature of these creatures, many of them escaped into the wilds around Ledo. Within a few hundred years they spread enough that they are found everywhere in Cassel except the Elf-Kingdom of Lyonne.

Humans consider them crafty pests due to their ability to open doors and latches to steal food. They have been known to break into chicken coops and steal eggs. They also approach people in a friendly manner hoping to be fed, sometimes pretending to be a cat or dog. They remember who fed them in the past and act friendly towards them, but they also never forget who shooed them away, and target their food stores and livestock to steal from.

One important note about the Mapache is that because they aren't native to Vreathe, they can't be affected by the Aether corruption here. There are no dangerous fire varieties corrupted by the Dragon Lord Xiralgus the Nova, nor are there any that phase in and out of existence like animals Corrupted by Maeos. If a Mapache was ever corrupted like that, imagine just how much more pesky these creatures would be!

- Salika