Nymphē

Name: The Nymphē - embodiments of Nature.

From the trees she blooms, the dryad with skin like bark, with her mane of luscious green. Beware her wrath for she makes the earth shake and rumble. Once caught in her clutches, there is no way to escape unscathed from her tangled roots.

The naiad charges from the depths of a fresh spring, brandishing a legendary sword of blue steel lost to the waters long below. The nereid’s rage rises with the tides as much as his calm lulls many an unsuspecting sailor into the ocean’s depths.

Do not be fooled by the light touches for when an Aurae walks among the clouds to unleash their will upon the winds, there is no telling as to what storms may ensue.

The nymphē of mountains, grottos, and caves are called Oreads. Long Indeed do they live, these staunch and unmoving protectors of nature.

These are the Nymphē of Marē. Magical creatures born of the forces of nature themselves, who live to protect that which birthed them as well as the natural world.

Deity: Faeluna - Elven Goddess if Nature Being born from nature's wild beauty, everything from trees, flowers and shrubs, to wild animals and birds, are sacred to them. Based on where their specific abode is, they revere forests, rivers, springs, meadows, mountains, seas and any natural formation that nurtures them.
Lifespan: The Lifespan of the Nymphē is different from other creatures because of their tie to the particular formation of nature which created them. Their life expectancy varies among their categories, tied to the life of that particular facet of nature. They are also affected by any harm that comes to their birthplace as they are born with it. Dryads - Live up to the life of the tree they were born from Naiads and Nereids - Live upto 1500 years Aurae - Live upto 250 years Oreads - Live upto 3000 years
Procreation: Nymphē are present in every facet of nature upon its creation. They are awakened by song. Magical beings can rouse the Nymphē with a song suited to their place of birth. While this doesn't bind them to the Nymphē, some assume names similar to the one that sung them awake.
For example, Dryads are born when a tree begins to take root, while a Naiad is born from a spring or a waterfall. These moments of their creation are considered blessings of nature. But they remain dormant until they are sung awake.
Once they are awoken, they serve as stalwart guardians of nature and their loyalty to those that sought such protection is unwavering.
When their time is done, they are said to fade away. The voices of the faded Nymphē are everywhere. This is why the wind howls from their voices, the earth quakes from the stampeding of faded Nymphē and the seashells carry their voices.
Organization: Nymphē of the same facet of nature are allied across geography. While they do not have a leadership hierarchy, their proximity to their region of creation determines authority. The closer the body of nature from which they were born, the stronger they are and their word holds.
Once again, they are the manifestation of facets of nature. In Marē there are five variants, Dryads, Nereids, Naiads, Aurae and Oreads. They represent different geographic and physical facets of the natural world. Nymphē can be of any gender.
The variants are as follows:

• Dryads - Dryads are born from trees and claim their abode in heavily forested areas.
• Naiads and Nereids - Nereids are born from oceanic bodies of water, the area within a sea, a coral reef, etc. Naiads are born from bodies of fresh water, rivers, lakes, waterfalls or springs.
• Aurae - Aurae are born from the clouds and breeze. They have a slightly different link for their lifespans as it is not a fixed body of nature. They are expected to live upto two hundred years or so, as long as they follow the breeze and stay in open air. Because of this, Aurae are nomadic, finding each other after they are birthed and spending their lifespans traveling the world and following the breeze as intended.
• Oreads - Oreads are born from hills, mountains, grottos, caves and volcanos.

Language: They speak languages unique to each variant among themselves. Sylvan for Dryads, Aquan for Naiads and Nereids, Auran for Aurae and Orean for Oreads.
In their human forms, they can learn and speak any regional tongue as humans do.
Appearance: Their true appearance tends to take on the manifestation of the piece of nature that has birthed them. They appear to be medium sized humanoid with skin, hair and eyes taking their colours and textures from their respective elements of nature.
Strengths:

• Agile
• Resilient
• Can assume human form
• Do not require food. Their sustenance depends upon the facet of nature they embody. In human form they can go extended periods without eating if they are physically close to the source of their creation.
• Nymph powers depend on what aspect of nature they control, they each have the ability to transform and manipulate it. They also have extra powers depending on the species.
Dryads - Enhanced durability, endurance, and strength, photosynthesis, regeneration of nonlethal injuries.
• Plant Magic - They can instantly make a flower blossom, a seed pod open, or a leaf bud bloom. They can also touch one willing being to give their skin a bark like texture that enhances their durability. This effect wears depends on the dryad’s proximity.
• Tree Step - Dryads can enter a tree and move from inside it to inside another tree within sight.
• Grasping Vines - They can create grasping weeds and vines from the ground with which to ensnare prey. They can also manipulate plant growth in their immediate vicinity to thicken and become overgrown.
Naiads and Nereids - Underwater respiration, pressure resistance, cold resistance.
• Water Magic - They can instantaneously move or otherwise change the flow of the water as they direct within reason in any direction. This movement doesn’t have enough force to cause damage. They can manipulate water to form into simple shapes and animate brief illusions. They can also change the water’s color or opacity. They can also freeze or heat a small amount of water, provided that there are no creatures in it.
• Tidal Wave - They can conjure up a wave of water that crashes down on an area within range, provided they are close to a natural source. The water then spreads out across the ground in all directions, extinguishing unprotected flames in its area and then it vanishes.
• Aquaportation - They can travel instantaneously through bodies of water within sight.
Aurae - Flight, Night Vision, Bioluminescence
• Wind Magic - They can seize the wind and compel it to create a small blast of air capable of moving things away from them. The strength of the effect depends on the present wind conditions.
• Summon fog - They can create thick fogs that mar visibility up to a few ten feet around them. They can create thick walls of wind around them that cannot be penetrated by other magical beings. This fog and walls of wind vanishes the moment they move.
Oreads - Enhanced durability, endurance, and strength, night vision.
• Earth Magic - They can target an area of loose earth and instantaneously excavate it or move it along the ground. They can cause shapes, colors, or both to appear on the dirt or stone, spelling out words, creating images, or shaping patterns.
• Rock Wall - They can manipulate rock and stone around them to create an instant wall for protection. This functions as any fortification until the Oread maintains their spell on the rocks then it crumbles.

Weaknesses:

• The Nymphē are tied to their respective facet of nature for their very existence. The strength of their powers depend on its proximity. They are vulnerable to all natural effects that can cause harm to their source of birth. Since they are summoned by song, they can also be banished by one, although it is very rare for one facet of nature to turn against another.
• They can only move from their location of creation, when they are freely given a piece of their home. Such as, a seed pod, a pine cone, or a vial filled with the air / water from their home. Each element of nature that they carry, must be blessed by the associated elemental.
• Human Forms: They can take the form of humans as chosen by the summoners or those that are most populous around their source of birth. They take particularly attractive forms and have been known to use these forms to tempt and distract unwitting enemies into traps that lead to destruction. They can indulge in all manner of intercourse when in this form and it does not cause procreation.

History: There are very few known legends of these guardians of nature. Some stories speak of natural calamities that prompted their creation, after which the Nymphē tied themselves to the region as a nearly immortal guardian. Yet others speak of great sacrifices that some magic-users made to nature, to gain sworn guardians to their abode, for once gained, their loyalty lasts till destruction. For all we know, these are fanciful ways to say they are born with nature and woken up by song.
Societal norms/mores:

• They are known to be elusive beings, preferring to stay within the cover of their birth source. If there are more than one Nymphē generated from a source, they live together in harmony. As such they do not seek other locations to form groups or have a set social hierarchy.
• Their human forms are most attractive, and beloved and desired by many. They use this to their advantage in luring their enemies towards certain destruction.