Yotsu No Kaze - The Hengeyokai, Beasts That Dream Of Humanity

Carp Hengeyokai

Long time ago, when the world wasn't awaken, and when humans weren't but a fleeting idea in the minds of the kami, the forests of the world were filled with life of a different kind. Without a barrier in between the world of the spirits and the world of mortals, dreams were free to roam and thrive on their own, unbound to the constrains of our age. Shape meant little to the dwellers of such age, and life was suffused into all things alike, so there was no difference in between the beasts of the wilds, the creatures of the sea, or the soaring birds of the sky. They were all sons and daughters of the world, and the world was as alive as them on itself. But, in time, the world was awaken, and the dream of the first eras passed away into the west to never return. Much to their dismay, the old dwellers of the forests soon learned the world wasn't their own anymore and, the more the dream faded, the smaller and smaller their realm grew. Many bid their farewell to the world of mortals and parted, deeper into the realms of the kami, ungraspable to the feeble thoughts of the mortal kin, but some lingered and glanced upon this mortals. Possesed of a short life, they made the most of their time, achieving great deeds of courage and valor, attaining heights of wisdom and knowledge beyond the grasp of anyone before them, and making their memory eternal once they were gone. And so the hengeyokai grew enamored of such an inmortality, which trascended the existance of one to become many in the hearts of many to come, daring to dream of humanity.

Physical Description

Cat Hengeyokai (Hybrid & Animal Forms)

Notice how the patterns of her dress in
hybrid  form match the fur patterns of her cat

form. The 2 tails signify she is beyond 200 years

old, probably.

On it's real form, a hengeyokai is no different from a common animal. In fact, a hengeyokai is an animal whose soul has trascended its own mortality due a particular attunement to the spirit world, thus living way beyond the age limit for a normal animal of their kind. It is this extended life which grants the former creature an state of awareness and sentience similar enough to humanity to allow the metaphysical transformation into a humanoid form. A hengeyokai humanoid form is no different than a normal human of her corresponding gender; however, little details from it's real form translate in minor features such as the color of their eyes, hair, their facial features, or perhaps even the shape of their "trademark clothing". In addition, a hengeyokai can assume an hybrid form which blends, in roughly equal measure, aspects from its humanoid form and its animal form, which many scholars claim to be the hengeyokai's "real form", as they are animals no more nor humans either. It is this last appearance which has given birth to the provincial myth of the "kemonomimi", persons with animal ears on their head.

Cat Hengeyokai (Humanoid Form)

Notice the absense of cat-like features on her body,

thought the flower ribbons mark the spot where her cat

ears are located on her hybrid form as well as the pattern

on her dress, which preclude the real colors of her fur.

Due their diverse origin, the hengeyokai do not share a "common form" but rather a nature as partly metaphysical beings and, thus, hengeyokai of many different types exist, being those came from badgers, carps, cats, crabs, cranes, dogs, foxes, hares, monkeys, tanukis, rats, sparrows and weasels the most common. Despite this variety of backgrounds, all hengeyokais pass through a rather similar life cycle before acquiring their humanoid forms, struggling to survive for, at least, 100 years on their original forms before they gain their new form which, in most cases, resembles a human near it's 15 years. Once the new form is attained, a common hengeyokai can enjoy nearly the complete lenght of a real human life of 100 years, but some have been known to endure far longer. At this point, a hengeyokai begins the long process of transforming in a being more similar to the kamis themselves and, pretty much, beyond humanity, experiencing minor changes into their hybrid and animal forms, such as the appearance of extra tails, limbs, or heads. A common belief is that each extra tail, head, or limb, marks an additional set of 100 years survived by the hengeyokai, granting it unique mystical abilities.

Society

Different in origin from most common races and even amongst themselves, the hengeyokai do not have a common culture aside from a shared language, which is on itself a derivation (or perhaps the predecesor) of the druidic tongues which most simply know as "Hengeyokai", thought the hengeyokai themselves refer to it as "Shin'on" ("The Sound Of The Heart"). Different from druidic, however, this language cannot be taught to non-hengeyokais nor it has a written form, as it is comprised of a nearly unintelligible amalgam of onomatopoeias from diverse sounds found on nature and has diverse "sub-dialects" depending on the animal origin of the hengeyokai. In fact, upon attaining it's humanoid form, a hengeyokai intuitively knows how to speak this language, but only to a basic level, which means many hengeyokais learn to speak shin'on from hengeyokais of other kinds, thus blending together words from one or more dialects in a nearly undivisible tangle which, in occassions, ends being only understandable to the speaker itself. This particular "egotistic" tendency in the thought pattern of each individual hengeyokai has been blamed as one of the chief reasons behind them lacking a cohesive culture of their own, thus lacking any sort of hierarchy, organization, or sense of racial identity. Nevertheless, their instinctive respect for elder beings and, sometimes, zealotic devotion to nature as a living entity on itself is mostly universal among them.

In the opposite side of the spectrum, however, hengeyokais tend to feel a nearly unquenchable curiosity towards the cultures and lives of the mortal races, which they find fascinating, vibrant and alluring like nothing in the world. When asked about this, most hengeyokais will say that it is because, despite existing on the mortal world where everything is encased in strict rules and laws that define one thing as one thing and nothing else, mortals are capable of giving a single thing so many different meanings, each with a unique depth an trascendence. According to them, such a feature is non-existant on the world of kami, where the lines in between one thing or the other mean nothing and, thus, everything is a different expression of the very same truth which, despite appearing in innumerable forms, is always one and the same, thus rendering the value of the individual and its acts trivial at best and meaningless at worst. As such, most hengeyokais are eager to become part of human cultures the most they can, quickly grabbing human customs and highlighting their favorites in an effort to be as individual as possible. However, many grow dissillusioned in time after seeing how little respect humanity holds for nature as a whole and, after some time, many hengeyokai return to their natural lands, having learnt the lesson that humanity shows much promise but needs to remember from where it came. Because of this, many adult hengeyokai become druids, sages, or ascetics that dwell in the borderline between human settlements and natural areas, acting as both guardians and mediators between civilization and the natural world.

Relations

By default, most hengeyokai feel intrigued and fascinated with humans, to the point they may seem ubber friendly to them. However, some hengeyokai who trace their past to animals known for their mischieviousness might choose a less amicable way to approach humans by playing pranks on them that range from the absolutely harmless to the blatantly obnoxious. Despite this, most hengeyokais have no ill will towards the humans, unless they have been wronged or a beloved natural sanctuary have been profanated or destroyed. When such happens, a hengeyokai might quickly change from a harmless prankster to a murderous avenger, creating misery and even stealthly wiping out entire settlements with curses, plagues, or far less mystical methods. With this particular piece of lore being widespread among humans, is only natural that humans have a "based" fear for hengeyokais when they are found on their settlements and many hengeyokais are forced to leave a settlement once her nature is found out by the human population. Knowing this, other hengeyokai choose to "adopt" a community as their protegee and settle to watch over it from afar, working to keep it safe from external threats, from itself, and from abusing the local natural resources. Most human settlements that find themselves under a care of a hengeyokai never get to see their guardian, and attribute such "well fare" to the will of the kami, granting them offerings on food and other goods, which the hengeyokai humbly and stealthly accepts.

Hengeyokai and kitsune have a curious relation, as they are both distantly related. Legends from the earlier ages of the world hint that the ancestors of the kitsune were descended from the hengeyokai, which would explain kitsune's supernatural ability to gain a human form. Because of this, both respect and praise each other, as kitsune praise the strong bond the hengeyokai keep with the natural world, which has diluted a bit on them, while the hengeyokai admire the advanced and refined level of culture and civilization the kitsune have achieved across the ages while keeping a high degree of harmony with the surrounding natural enviroment. Nevertheless, they also "agree to disagree", as kitsune have become far more practical and mundane beings with a far more serious outlook on life than hengeyokais, for which life with humanoid sentience is more of an experimental state with little other purpose than the experience on itself.

Similar to the kitsune, the vanara have a great degree of respect for the hengeyokai because their greatest heroine and founder, Anja Neya, was a monkey hengeyokai according to their legends. Nevertheless, aside of letting them come and go from their cities whenever they please, and hearing any sort of advice they might impart regarding the care of the natural world, there is little the two races can actually share. While deeply mystical, the vanara are far more distracted dissecting and understanding the intrincacies of the world as a mechanism of unsurmountable complexity, which is a way of thought mostly alien to the hengeyokai, far more concerned with the sweetness in the chimes of a clock rather than the hours, minutes, or seconds it is announcing.

While bereft of ill-will towards them, the mithra do not get along too well with the hengeyokai, as their deeply religious nature and strive for enlightenment finds a diametral opposite on the, usually, carefree and chaotic nature of the hengeyokai. Hengeyokai, on their part, find it puzzling that the mithra strive so hard to repress and "tame" their unruly nature as tricksters, seeking enlightment in constraining monasteries and enduring troubled existances when there is nothing pushing them to suffer such disscomforts. This mayor lack of understanding stems from the fact that, while the mithra seek to trascend materiality through enlightment by denying and taming their material selves, hengeyokais seek to become more material by indulging in the vibrant and colorfull experiences that the material world has to offer. Nevertheless, now and then, a hengeyokai grows sincerely interested in the pursuit of enlightening and the mithra monks have no problems in accepting such a unusual student on their ranks; in fact, they seem rejoyced.

Hengeyokai find nezumis distastefull because, while sharing their interest in humanoid civilizations, they can't understand the constant urge and crave of the ratfolk for amassing material wealth of all sorts in such a desperate and haphazard way. More even, the short life span of the nezumi and their scavenging life style make them mostly incapable (and unwilling, in most cases) of understanding the idea of long term consequences when exploiting a natural resource, as the ever busy ratfolk are way too invested in seeking new ways to feed their ever growing numbers, which puts them many times at odds with the nature protecting hengeyokais.

Finally, while akward, hengeyokai have a complex relation with the Senso-Tanso, as the warforged are beings that, mostly, lack any connection with the natural world and come into being by "destroying" and "twisting" nature into a mimic of humanoid life, which the hengeyokai find abhorrent. Nevertheless, some hengeyokai sages have reached the conclussion that the warforged aren't so different from their own kin as, thought came to exist in a different fashion, they could be representing the will of the sixth element in creation, metal, trying to express itself into individuality, as it is the case of hengeyokai themselves, who feel indentified with the fifth element, wood (which represents all kinds of natural life for some sages). Nevertheless, the proponents of such an idea also say that, being in diametral opposites of the elemental spectrum, the senso-tanso and the hengeyokai are destined to antagonize each other until the end of times, as each represent a completely different dinasty, anathema to each other.

Alignment & Religion

Hengeyokai see life as the collection of experiences brought by the actions one takes day by day rather than preordained fate, but also understand that the world, specially the natural world is neither good nor evil on it's most pristine state. Having a "past life" as mundane animals, such thought pattern comes natural to them, making most hengeyokais Chaotic Neutral, as they value their individuality over anything and are less concerned with the concepts of good and evil that mortals have developed to give label and shape to things that not necesarily have a fixed shape or sense.

Since they lack a cohesive culture of any sort, the hengeyokai do not have a fixed pantheon of gods or spirits they revere. More even, they consider themselves as much spirits as the greater kamis and see little to no difference in between themselves and they except for the time they have existing and the natural limitations such a lack of knowledge and wisdom brings. In any case, the hengeyokai pay reverence to nature as a whole as if it were their forebearer, since they lack any sense of family ties. Many who blend far more into human societies, however, are quick to grab the religious tendencies of their adopted settlements, finding fascination in all the mystical parafernalia associated to human religions.

Adventurers

Since hengeyokais begin their existance as sentient humanoids with the innate drive to explore this new state of experience, most of them become adventurers little after they awake from their animal mentality. The primary adventuring drive of young hengeyokais is to experience what means to be a human by puting their personal mark on the minds and hearts of others through meaningful deeds, regardless if they are good or evil nature. On the other hand, most hengeyokai who, somehow, managed to reach past their 240 years, have chosen in between two very different ways of life as they have either become too human or are already turning back towards nature. The first are likely to adventure with the intention of propelling the civilization they have grown to love and cherish towards a more balanced and harmonious relation with the natural world or, in the opposite, seek to distance themselves as possible from their mystical origins by actively seeking to drive civilizations into states of advancement less dependent and more dettached from the natural world, trying to make them forces equal or even superior to nature which can exist on their own. The second, having grown dissillusioned with civilization, adventure with the goal of protecting the natural world from the depredations of expanding cultures, while others see technology and civilization as the very reason behind the division between the two worlds, putting now their efforts into twarting the attempts of humans and other cultures into unraveling and mastering the mysteries of the natural world for their own use, seeking to return the world to its "original state".

Standard Racial Traits

* Ability Score Racial Traits: Comming from an animal existance, hengeyokai are deeply emotional, but find themselves distracted by their own thoughts, cavilations, and interpretations of the humanoid experience. As such, they gain a +2 bonus to Charisma and -2 penalty to Wisdom.
* Size: Hengeyokais are Medium creatures and thus receive no bonuses or penalties due to their size while they are on their humanoid and hybrid forms.
* Type: Hengeyokais are Humanoids with the Hengeyokai and Shapechanger subtypes.
* Base Speed: Hengeyokais have a base speed of 30 feet while in humanoid form.
* Languages: Hengeyokais begin play speaking Common and Hengeyokai. Hengeyokais with high Intelligence scores can choose from Aquan, Auran, Ignan, Sylvan, Terran and Yu-Jian.

Feat & Skill Racial Traits

* Survival Instincts: While the memories of their existances as simple animals are vague and distant once they acquire sentience, hengeyokais still retain their primary survival instincts, granting them +2 bonus on all Survival checks and Survival is always considered a class skill for them.

Magical Racial Traits

* Henyo: As the hengeyokai are animals whose egos have achieved a human-like state, they gain the supernatural ability to "proyect" this ego into the physical world by altering their physical shape into a half-human-half-animal form, and a completely human form. Keep in mind that, while not the "real" form, these alternate forms aren't illusions or figments but a proyection of a mental state into a physical reality through metaphysical means, more akin to an spell than to an actual biological transformation (particularly apparent at the moment of death, in which a hengeyokai reverts to its original animal form).

For game purposes, the rolled ability scores and their adjustments work for the main humanoid form, which is considered the default one. When in hybrid form, the hengeyokai may gain some bonuses to his physical ability scores as well as some other minor skill bonuses and other enhancements as listed on the list below. When in animal form, the hengeyokai physical ability scores, speed, Armor Class, and natural weapons change to those listed on the list below. As would be common sense, a hengeyokai can only change into the forms associated with the animal from which it originated, chosen during character creation. A hengeyokai can use henyo a number of times per day equal to 1 plus character level (thus an 1st level hengeyokai can change from humanoid form into either hybrid or animal forms and change back into humanoid form in the same day). Usion henyo is a full-around action that provokes attacks of opportunity. Both humanoid and hybrid forms can wear equipment normaly, but the equipment blends and dissapears into the body of the animal form when this form is taken (and magic items cease to function while in this form until going back to either hybrid or humanoid form). When in animal form, a hengeyokai gains a +10 bonus on disguise to make others believe he is a regular animal of it's kind. Both animal form and hybrid form gain low-light vision and the supernatural ability to communicate with other animals of the same kind as the original animal form.

Badger
Hybrid Form: +2 Con, Speed 20ft., Burrow 10ft.
Animal Form: Tiny Size; Speed 30ft., Burrow 10ft.; AC 15 (+2 Size, +3 Dex); 2 Claws (1d2-1), Bite (1d3-1); Str 8, Dex 17, Con 15.

Carp
Hybrid Form: +2 Dex, Speed 10ft., Swim 30ft.
Animal Form: Diminutive Size; Swim 10ft.; AC 19 (+4 Size, +5 Dex); (No Attacks); Str 1, Dex 20, Con 10.

Cat
Hybrid Form: +2 Dex, +4 Acrobatics.
Animal Form: Tiny Size; Speed 30ft.; AC 14 (+2 Size, +2 Dex); 2 Claws (1d2-4), Bite (1d3-4); Str 3, Dex 15, Con 10.

Crab
Hybrid Form: No ability score adjustment, +1 Natural Armor, +4 Swim.
Animal Form: Diminutive Size; Speed 15ft.; AC 18 (+4 Size, +3 Dex, +1 Natural Armor); 2 Claws (1d2-5); Str 1, Dex 17, Con 10.

Crane
Hybrid Form: +2 Dex, Speed 20ft., Fly 20ft.
Animal Form: Small Size; Speed 5ft., Fly 60ft.; AC 14 (+1 Size, +3 Dex); Bite (1d4-2); Str 6, Dex 16, Con 10.

Dog
Hybrid Form: +2 Con, +4 Survival when using scent to track.
Animal Form: Small Size; Speed 40ft.; AC 14 (+1 Size, +3 Dex); Bite (1d4+1); Str 13, Dex 17, Con 15.

Fox
Hybrid Form: +2 Dex, +4 Escape Artist.
Animal Form: Small Size; Speed 40ft.; AC 15 (+1 Size, +4 Dex); Bite (1d4); Str 11, Dex 19, Con 11.

Hare
Hybrid Form: +2 Dex, Speed 40ft.
Animal Form: Tiny Size; Speed 40ft.; AC 16 (+2 Size, +4 Dex); Bite (1d3-5); Str 1, Dex 19, Con 10.

Monkey
Hybrid Form: +2 Dex, +4 Climb.
Animal Form: Tiny Size; Speed 30ft., Climb 30ft.; AC 14 (+2 Size, +2 Dex); Bite (1d3-4); Str 3, Dex 15, Con 10.

Tanuki
Hybrid Form: +2 Str, +4 Survival when using scent to track.
Animal Form: Small Size; Speed 30ft.; AC 13 (+1 Size, +1 Dex, +1 Natural Armor); Bite (1d4+1); Str 12, Dex 13, Con 12.

Rat
Hybrid Form: +2 Dex, +4 Stealth.
Animal Form: Tiny Size; Speed 15ft., Climb 15ft.; AC 14 (+2 Size, +2 Dex); Bite (1d3-4); Str 2, Dex 15, Con 10.

Sparrow
Hybrid Form: +2 Dex, Speed 20ft., Fly 20ft.
Animal Form: Fine Size; Speed 1ft., Fly 50ft.; AC 24 (+8 Size, +6 Dex); (No Attacks); Srt 1, Dex 23, Con 10.

Weasel
Hybrid Form: +2 Con, +4 Stealth.
Animal Form: Tiny Size; Speed 20ft., Climb 20ft.; AC 14 (+2 Size, +2 Dex); Bite (1d3-4); Str 3, Dex 15, Con 10.

While on it's different forms, the hengeyokai only changes the scores mentioned here. All other stats work exactly the same as its humanoid form. In addition, when a hengeyokai manifests her humanoid form, it can also do so with a set of clothes which properly matches the sense of fashion and style of the hengeyokai and also hints to it's original form. This clothes can be removed, but once they leave the posession of the hengeyokai, they quickly transform into natural debris such as dry leaves, disscarded fish scales, feathers, animal hair, sand, or similar stuff if they aren't picked up by the hengeyokai within 1 minute. Losing this clothing does not harm the hengeyokai but, when lost, they can't be generated again until 24 hours have passed. A hengeyokai cannot generate armor, weapons, or any other kind of item except clothing or fashion garments, nor they can be used as weapons in any way (for example, a hengeyokai posing as a geisha or other similarly ornamented female would not be able to use the needles on her hair as weapondry: they would instantly dissolve into the mentioned fashion upon being used as weapondry without causing any harm to the target). By the same token, a hengeyokai's clothes does not offer any real kind of protection as they aren't real clothes per sé and, thus, no matter how thick or furry they look, they offer 0 protection against cold or hot enviroments.

- The Writer.

Homebrew Rules & Expansions: Tunnels/Catacombs (Building Conversion for Pathfinder's Downtime System)

Create: 1026 Goods, 912 Labor (38,760 gp)
Rooms: 114 Pit, 114 Vault

An extensive set of subterranean chambers, vaults, and tunnels, usually used for storage or burial, and sometimes for illicit activities. When used for burials, Tunnels are also called Catacombs. For all other game purposes, Tunnels are considered Dungeons.

- The Writer.