Rakshasa
A rakshasa is a type of Devil who looks like a humanoid tiger with backwards-facing hands. They are known for their ability to manipulate both people and magic.
Basic Information
Anatomy
A rakshasa in its true form stands between six and nine feet tall, broadly built and mostly bipedal. However, it can shapeshift between a form nearly identical to a nonmagical tiger and a form almost indistinguishable from a Human, Orokh, Dragonborn, or Elf. Beyond these three forms, they can disguise themselves with illusion magic as well, though this magic is relatively simpler and stands up less robustly to scrutiny.
Ecology and Habitats
Rakshasa are native to Avernus, the first layer of the Nine Hells. They are more agile Planewalkers than most devils, easily able to slip into the Material Plane without the use of extant portals. If a rakshasa is killed on the Material Plane, it slowly and painfully reforms at the bottom of the blood seas of Avernus, in a process that takes anywhere from a few weeks to several years, depending on the rakshasa's power. Like all fiends, if they are killed on their home plane, they are destroyed forever.
Additional Information
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Rakshasa are skilled Enchanters and Illusionists, with an extraordinary psychic ability to manipulate those around them without easily being detected. They can induce paranoia and nightmares in their victims through a scrape of their claws, robbing them of any ability to rest or recover. Rakshasa also resist magic cast upon them, with only the most powerful spells able to take effect upon them unless they allow it.
Civilization and Culture
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Rakshasa often take Humanoid warlocks and keep them close company on the Material Plane. The rakshasa, in their humanoid form, is often a known figure in their Warlock's life: a mentor, a relative, a spouse, or a close advisor. In rare cases, the rakshasa may choose to take their tiger form instead, and be "kept" by their warlock as an exotic pet.
Geographic Distribution
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