 |
|
| Species | Maero (also Mohoao) |
| Order | Faerie |
| Classification | Vaettir |
| Court | Unkindly |
| Sphere | Filth |
| Origin | All faeries are born Nameless and must be given a True Name; maeros have rotted Names |
| Lifespan | 2,000 years |
| Habitat | Inhospitable forested mountains |
| Food | Flesh, including mortal or other fey |
| Description | Maeros appear to be 10' tall humans with long, bony fingers and long, dirty hair, including body hair. |
| Procreation | Maeros reproduce sexually with one another, and rarely with other fey or vaettir or mortals. |
| Esoterica | Maeros are beings of brown msawhat, poioumenon, and uafas. Like all faeries, they are users of The Tradition, a form of poioumenonic lore empowered by dream energies. They also use other forms of msawhat, all forms of arnum, void, rending, entropy, infernum, sin, quaestus, Damaskian powers, mijjit, mansam, waste materials, some emotional resonances, spirits, and kor. |
| The Tradition | Maeros have the following fey powers:
Maeros can survive being dismembered and put themselves back together, so long as their fingernails remain sharp. They can speak from their dismembered heads for up to ten days. Their nails must be kept sharp by raking them along trees, which wither and die after three such scrapings. They can speak to the soil, air, and water and defile it. They carry stone clubs made from the rocks of their territory, which are stronger within the territory.
|
| Glamour | Maeros can glamour themselves using certain ancient rhymes to be slightly less terrifying. |
| Weaknesses | If they do not speak their True Name backwards into that same mirror in half a minute, maeros lose their True Names. They have a fortnight to recover it or they become targets of the Wild Hunt, corrupted into another kind of fey, or turn into a hag or boggin. Iron or steel will bind a maero into powerlessness. An iron horseshoe nailed over a door will bar a maero from entering a house. Pure aether, light of purification, and pure hegnh can harm them. |
| National Culture | Maeros hate outsiders. They kill and eat almost anyone not of their gangs. Their gangs are run by the strongest, most vicious member, usually also the largest. They have little structure beyond violent dominance. Children are raised by their parents, if they are lucky. Many are killed and eaten before they are old enough to walk. Those that survive usually grow up abused and abusive, with a grudge. When a maero child is old enough to fight, they usually try to exert dominance over the other children, if there are any, or over the weaker members of the gang. Eventually they either die or gain influence enough to be survivors or accepted parts of the gang. Some try to run away, but they are usually killed by other gangs and eaten. Maero gangs control a territory of inhospitable land in the mountains, coming into conflict with other gangs in the area. They live in small communities with hide-tents as homes. They have no respect for the land, forest, water, or air, but they thrive off the defilement of their territories. The worst territories are ancient areas of blight, deforestation, and disease. Some roles within the gang provide protection by being necessary for the gang's or gang leader's survival: the nail sharpeners, the club-makers, and the hunters/guards. To be one of these is to be privileged in the gang, but there is always competition among them. |
| Unkindly Culture | Maero gangs are recruited by the Unkindly Court as soldiers in their armies. They gladly accept, taking payment in slave flesh and other goods, and enjoy the chance to expand their territories or betray other gangs. |
| Other Courts | Maeros are forced to reform in the Kindly or Seelie Courts. In the Summer or Winter Courts, they are killed on sight. In the Unseelie Court, they are often taken as slaves or soldiers. |
| Mortal Interactions | Maeros kill and eat mortals. |
| Notables | Doshan, the Fingerclawed; Paru, Maero Manifest |
| Special Classes | Club-Maker, Hunter, Nail-Sharpener |
| Sample Stats | PRO 10 ATH 9 STR 18 Nails +4/+4 Club +6/+3 AWA 8 WIL 7 ROG 7 Glamour 3 Vanish (30 seconds) Whistle 6 Paruspeak 11 |
GrandGuignol
Copyright © by the contributing authors. All material on this collaboration platform is the property of the contributing authors. Ideas, requests, problems regarding Foswiki? Send feedback