Demons
Demons are a highly varied race, coming in numerous forms and types but typically, most are humanoids with horns, long, prehensile tails, and typically leathery wings on their backs.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Demons, like most humanoids, are not all that different from their human ancestors, however depending on the region, can look drastically different. The most common form of demon is a humanoid with horns on the forehead, a long, prehensile tail. and large leathery wings akin to that of a bat's. Most often demons will be around the average height and weight of a human, if slightly lighter. Most variations of demons do not have their own names or differing culture from the rest of their kind, with few exceptions, despite their massively different apperances.
Yokai are a variant of demon native to East Asia, named after the myths and legends from Japan. Yokai are much more sexually dymorphic than other demons, with the males being larger, much more muscular, and having thicker horns. Females are still larger than other non-yokai demons, but not as muscular and more lithe. Most often their horns will be smaller than average for their kind over all. Most Yokai demons have very small vestigial wings, or lack them entirely.
Valdic demons are a variant in the species native to Central Europe. Valdic demons differ from others in their kind by having much larger wings, their horns more in the shape of antlers than the typical sloped horns to their kind, and most often will have ridges of scales on the arms and face. The wings of Valdic demons often have webbing stretch from the wing itself down to the back of the lower thigh.
Ecology and Habitats
Demons typically prefer warmer climates and although warm blooded, often have a harder time maintaining their body temperature due to their leathery wings and often bare tails. Due to this, they are most often found around the equator or areas that have warmer than average winters, such as around coasts affected by the gulf stream.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Demons are omnivores and will eat a large variety of foods, typically balancing fruit, vegetables, red meat, and grains. Nearly every meal has some kind of meat, typically red meat such as beef, venison, or goat. Culturally, demons share a lot of food customs with Vampires and have no ill effects from vampiric food, so many also enjoy blood in their meals, often as a garnish.
Additional Information
Social Structure
Demon families often are matriarchal, with the eldest woman in the family, regardless of direct blood relation, being the most respected member of the family and in charge of major life events such as giving her blessing for marriages, deciding when and where families shall move, and often will resolve conflicts with other families. This role most often falls to a grandmother or great aunt. If a woman older than the current matriarch joins the family, typically through marriage between younger members of the family, she will become the new matriarch. The Matriarch is highly respected for her vast life experience and knowledge.
Typically, her word is final, and disobeying her or assuming her intentions can result in social shunning of other family members until they apologize and once again earn her favor. This does not usually result in the exile of a member of the family, as demons are often quite forgiving, but a hard lesson to be learned by temporarily not being allowed to attend family events, receive assistance from the rest of the family, and their word not being taken as seriously. Once the relationship is amended, the person is accepted back with open arms. This shunning is often quite distressing to demons, due to them being so highly social with their family groups and living communally, with many generations sharing the same houses and often entire families being one another's neighbors.
Demons hold onto tradition quite strongly and reflect it in their mannerisms and beliefs strongly. They value family bonds and allies, but also are prone to holding quite strong grudges against those who have wronged a family member in the past for centuries.
Facial characteristics
The most notable feature of a demon's face are their horns. Typically, horns are smaller in females.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Global- Favors warm climates
Average Intelligence
Human intelligence
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
As a whole, demons have quite low magic resistance, allowing them to use many forms without many limits. Demons can also see essences.
Civilization and Culture
Major Language Groups and Dialects
Demonic, Common
Common Dress Code
Traditonally, demons wear layered clothing, with tight shirts and leggings with holes for the wings and webbing, and long flowing layers on top. Black, red, orange, and brown are favored colors. They will also wear the typical clothing of other races, such as mages and vampires, although with alterations for their horns and wings.
A common practice among demons is wearing feathers as part of their clothing and accessories, often in hair combs, earrings, or necklaces, tied to the many religious beliefs of demons and typical culture of worshipping avian gods.
It has become quite common for demons to also adopt the clothing of upper class Angels, spurring their tense relationships as this is seen as mocking and cheapening the value and history of the clothes, though as pointed out by many demons, this is often due to that in areas high in angel population, angelic clothing is often the only kind available at all. Angelic clothing has become a fashion statement and trendy in many demonic circles in recent years. These are usually dyed to reflect demonic culture.
Culture and Cultural Heritage
Demonic culture is centered around the belief that every person has their own place in the world and their own story to create. Personal histories of their families are held in high regard and there is very little cultural pushing for one centric ideal job, hobby, or practice, but rather a great strive to find what is right for each individual. Demons are known to be extremely passionate about their individual choices, with incredible drive and work ethic once they have found their craft or career.
Typically, the most common gods within demons' personal pantheons are gods associated strongly with flight, fire and earth, heritage, and family structures. Gods associated with water, independence from family or solitary lifestyles, and rejection of tradition or heritage are not commonly worshipped among demons, mainly due to their culture being strongly associated with family bonds. Food is also a large part of demonic culture, leading to a general association with fire within their communities, as fire associated gods tend to more often be associated with food holidays.
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
Burial among demons is rather similar to that of vampires, however lacks the practice of storing cremated remains in a mausoleum. Instead, among demons a body is cremated in a somber ritual with symbolic feasts of the individual's life, telling stories about them, and hosting all relatives at the home of the family's matriarch. During the event, the family's matriarch will don a shroud, shawl, or veil decorated with many small vials, lockets, or jars filled with the ashes of deceased members of the family. This act is seen as the matriarch ushering forth the spirits of deceased members of the family to welcome the newly deceased to Limbo peacefully, among friends and family. Once the body is fully cremated and cooled, a portion of the remains are stored in their own vial and added to the garment worn by the matriarch, with the rest scattered. In demonic families where there are vampire members or relations, the rest of the remains are often given to the vampiric members for housing in their mausoleum, with a small reserved portion to be scattered instead.
Matriarchs of a family also are highly involved in the wedding practices found in demons, almost always leading and officiating weddings. Typically, in marriages between two separate families that do not merge into one, both matriarchs take part in some fashion, often with one officiating the wedding and the other running the food services, dress, decoration, and guest management for the event. Family matriarchs also wear the same symbolic shawls, veils, and shrouds worn at funerals in the belief that ancestors' spirits will also be in attendance of the wedding.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Demons are typical allies of Vampires, Arachne, and Naga, sharing many cultural ideals or enemies. They have a long history of war with Werewolves, and Angels. As Blood Demons are a hybrid between demons and vampires, their closest allies, they are also on good terms.
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Genetic Descendants
Origin/Ancestry
humanoid
Lifespan
400 to 900 years
Average Height
Varies (6' to 7' female Yokai, 6.5' to 7.5' Yokai males) (5' to 6.5' Valdic)
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Demons have all the skin tones, hair, and eye colors found in humans, but also ashy grey, red, and faded blue being rather common.
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