Crowfolk

Loud, gregarious, boisterously active and often heavily adorned with bright colors and shiny baubles and bells, a flock of crowfolk is a difficult sight to miss. Although they make up a fairly large portion of the global population, their populations tend to be densely concentrated in specific areas, most notably urban centers.
Crowfolk, like orcs and dragonborn, are one of the created races from the Great Arcane Era. Together with the Aarakocra, they were created to be messengers, guards, and spies for the Elder Elementals of the Plane of Air, also known as the Council of Air. At the time, crowfolk and Aarakocra were one species, with many ethnicities based on various different kinds of bird. Various myths says that the crowfolk and Aarakocra were once literal birds, enchanted into greater intelligence and an upright stance.
However, during the Great Arcane Cataclysm, the crowfolk and Aarakocra were faced with a serious dilemma; without access to magic, they would be cut off from the Plane of Air and the Elder Elementals, losing their capability for flight in the process. The Aarakocra chose to retreat from the Material Plane and remain subjects of the Elder Elementals in the Plane of Air. But the crowfolk rejected this option, choosing to remain behind and adapt to their new limitations in the Material Plane.
One such adaptation was the transformation of their wings into forelimbs with hands and opposable thumbs. This was actually achieved by means of an ancient "curse" - a magical disease called Sinealis that plagued both the crowfolk and Aarakocra, which mutated their wings. Through some deft spellwork, ancient crowfolk mages were able to control the form of Sinealis, and deliberately infected those who remained behind. All extant crowfolk are carriers of the disease - and for this reason the few Aarakocra who visit the Material Plane remain far, far away from their distant crowfolk cousins.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Crowfolk resemble large, bipedal corvids with thick beaks, thick feathers, and large, black eyes. They have four limbs, the upper two being feathered arms with dexterous, scaled fingers, and the bottom limbs being scaled, crow-like feet with four toes, one of which is opposable.
Crowfolk possess internal genitalia, and generally do not display notable sexual dimorphism in their size or coloration, making it difficult for non-crowfolk to identify males and females of the species. In fact, many crowfolk find it difficult to identify males and females of their own species, and generally find it pointless to bother. Because of this, crowfolk are, generally speaking, incredibly tolerant of transgender individuals and homosexual relationships.

Genetics and Reproduction

Crowfolk are oviparous, and a female crowfolk generally lays her cream and brown speckled eggs in clutches of 3-4 at a time. Crowfolk can lay a new clutch of eggs twice a year, although once every one to two years is more common among most crowfolk cultures.
Crowfolk nests are large structures, usually raised between 10-30 feet above the ground. Almost 20 feet in diameter, the average crowfolk nest is constructed from a strong base made from wood, metal, or stone, lined with soft material such as wool, hay, or feathers, and covered with fabric or animal skins. Unlike many oviparous species in Ferlausen, crowfolk also use their nests as places to sleep and eat. An entire family of crowfolk with children's ages ranging from nearly adult to chick, will generally all live and sleep in the same nest together.

Growth Rate & Stages

Sinealis, the wing mutation disease, cannot be passed via the eggshell, and so newly hatched crowfolk resemble rather large crow or raven chicks, complete with small, nearly featherless wings. Within a few hours, the chicks contract the disease from their parents, and within twenty-four hours their arms manifest themselves.
If a crowfolk chick is hatched away from living crowfolk (for example, if a member of another race were to come across an abandoned nest and brood and hatch the eggs themselves) they will not contract Sinealis, and will grow up resembling very large birds. However, without magically or elementally-powered flight, the wings are utterly useless, and crowfolk raised this way will usually seek out crowfolk at a relatively young age in order to contract the disease and grow usable appendages. Such crowfolk generally have trouble learning to use their new appendages past the point of brain malleability, and will never be as dextrous as crowfolk who contracted Sinealis as chicks.
Crowfolk mature at about the same rate as human beings, and generally live to be around 70 years old.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Crowfolk are extreme omnivores, and can easily eat many things that other species are either incapable of digesting or would get extremely sick from, including raw meat and rotten vegetables. They have robust immune systems that combat the vast majority of foodborne illnesses.

Biological Cycle

Crowfolk molt once a year in the spring. It is not unusual to see nearly-bald crowfolk wandering around and scratching at themselves about a month after the spring solstice. Many crowfolk collect their shed feathers and use them as padding and lining in their nests.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Crowfolk are highly gregarious, and across cultural and ethnic divides have a tendency to live together in large flocks. Flocks generally live very close to each other, often all in the same building in larger cities, and are made up of several closely-related extended families. It is rare to see a crowfolk walking around without two or three companions.
Crowfolk are so gregarious that they often "adopt" members of other species - intelligent or not. A crowfolk flock often has dozens of cats, dogs, pigeons, true crows, and other animals living with it - as well many friends among various other intelligent species.

Civilization and Culture

Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals

Crowfolk generally love bright colors and shiny objects, and many will collect items with interesting colors, patterns, or textures - including scraps of paper or fabric, small metallic objects, pieces of broken ceramic or pottery, and much, much more. These are generally collected in their nests.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Crowfolk see themselves a generally getting along with everyone. Whether this is actually the case often depends on the culture of the species they live among. Many humans, especially along the Desert Coast, tend to view crowfolk as rowdy and unwelcome thieves, who live in and among garbage and rarely contribute in meaningful ways to society, being wrapped up in themselves. In contrast, crowfolk and dwarves get along famously, and certain dwarvish communities are well-known for their thriving crowfolk friends who live above the ground over their tunnels and burrows.

Lifespan

70 years

Average Height

4' 11"

Average Weight

78 lb

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Although most crowfolk are a uniform dark black, various ethnicities of crowfolk exhibit brightly colored feather variations, including forms resembling magpies, steller's jays, and blue jays.