An Advanced Creature Profile by Vincent Groth.
The Tengu are Spirits of Emotion, embodying mortal sensation and environments that connect to them.
-The Northern Tengu are highly civilized, living on the tallest mountain peaks. They embody Ambition and the lofty mountains. They have large wings, black feathers over red clay skin. Large tusks, short horns, ears like kama, big yellow eyes, and giant bulbous noses. Their faces are too smooth, giving them the false appearance of a mask.
-The Avenging Tengu are nomadic, traveling long, endless roads. They embody vengeance and the long, weary roads of the bloody journey. They have skin as red as fresh blood and feathers like the rust brown to black of dried blood. Their wings are kept mantled around them like a large cloak or poncho covering their heavy armor, scavenged from the dead or gifted by the Northern Tengu. Their plumage mimics a hood, shrouding all but their mirror-black, shiny eyes and long beak-nose.
-The Cloudwalker Tengu are civilized, majestic, living in moored cloud cities. They embody Pride and the Clouds above, even the mountain peaks. They wear beautiful, intricate robes, armor, and dresses. They take nothing that is not in of itself a work of art. They are the shortest of the Tengu and make up for this with long stilted shoes woven with enchantments to walk upon the clouds. They have long, rounded noses like an accusing finger, large, rounded ears, and skin in various reds and roses of wines. They have wings as black and shiny as a raven’s and hair as white as snow.
-The Southern Tengu are savage creatures living in the Ring of Fire. They embody Wrath and the rocky wastes and smoldering volcanoes. They have black furry bodies, long, ragged wings, wrinkled, blotchy red faces, short, hooked noses, and patchy hair.
-The Deepland Tengu are bestial creatures living in the resource-rich Deeplands of the far south. They are spirits of Greed and Fertile Oasis, where life gathers. They have bodies like monkeys, long arms, and shorter legs. They have long banana-shaped noses, long oval heads with short, pointed ears; short wings fit only to glide down from canopies to spring on prey.
The Tengu are spirits, making them more durable than strictly flesh creatures.
-The Northern Tengu are intelligent, wise, and often powerful wielders of arcana. They are equal parts master smiths and warriors, waging war against those who defy their authority.
-The Avenging Tengu are less intelligent than Northern and Cloudwalker Tengu but far more cunning. They are agile, inhumanly fast, and skilled at slaying, with few Tengu or mortals able to match their skill.
-The Cloudwalker Tengu are masters of craft, making legendary weapons, armor, and artifacts, every single piece a masterwork of craft and art. They are the least capable Tengu of war but hardest to wage it against.
-The Southern Tengu are numerous, the most physically imposing, and dedicated to killing, willing to throw away their own lives to end their enemy.
-The Deepland Tengu are strong, brutal, and deadly, practical, but are considered the least dangerous Tengu as a species, even if they are the most physically powerful.
Tengu are Creatures of Spirit and thus generally have set purposes.
-The Northern Tengu are creatures of Ambition, helping those they see potential in acquire weapons and armor. They enjoy shaping mountains, making them more difficult to climb, decorating them with well-tended bonsai trees, and building beautiful roosts.
-The Avenging Tengu are creatures of Vengeance and are drawn to those with burning desire for vengeance but lack the means to take it. They are mercenaries and avenging spirits, seeking causes to fight for. They help maintain roads by filling holes and ruts.
-The Cloudwalker Tengu are creatures of Pride and are craftsmen and artists. They tend to the clouds over Dodicerous where Eur Chara and her Shrouds are not overly welcome.
-The Southern Tengu are Wrath, and their antagonism keeps mortal men united against a common cause. They stoke the flames of volcanoes and build magma forges to build their cruel and twisted weapons. They pluck out any life that dares to grow in the rich volcanic ash that fills the Ring of Fire.
-The Deepland Tengu are Greed, and they tend to forests of fruit trees, greedily amassing food and raging when their fortunes rot. They ambush travelers and hoard anything that shines.
Tengu are spirits and thus are tied to the fae. Though as spirits they are mortal creatures, they share the banes of the Fairy.
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