Sootcrow, Karnehet|Ash-Eyed Messenger or Vrakk|Flamepicker
Basic Information
Anatomy
The Sootcrow is a medium-sized desert corvid, roughly the size of a raven, but with a broader wingspan and flame-weathered plumage. Its feathers are dark charcoal in color, rimmed with flecks of rust-orange or scorched amber depending on age and diet. The beak is curved and steel-colored, able to crack bone or pry at armor seams.
Unique to this species is its resin-slicked outer feather layer, which helps protect it from sand, ash, and searing winds. This coating also causes their wings to spark faintly in firelight, making them appear aflame when flying near desert blazes or lava flows.
Their eyes are round, ink-dark, and highly reflective—capable of spotting movement and glint from vast distances.
Biological Traits
A rare variant known as the Fire-Tongued Sootcrow displays bright orange flight feathers and the ability to emit a sharp, magically enhanced shriek that can daze nearby creatures for a few seconds.
Some crows develop obsessive mimicry, repeating only one sound endlessly—often the death rattle of a specific creature or the whispered cries of a caravan priest. These are seen as omens of madness in Zolan desert folklore.
Genetics and Reproduction
Sootcrows nest communally in ruined towers, skeletal remains, cliffside fissures, and sometimes within the hollow skulls of massive beasts. Nests are made from woven bone splinters, teeth, snake sheddings, and discarded fabrics.
Growth Rate & Stages
They lay 2–6 eggs, with a high mortality rate due to their exposure to predators and scavengers. Chicks develop quickly, fledging within a month, and typically remain with their group for one year before forming or joining new flocks.
Ecology and Habitats
Sootcrows thrive in the transition zones of the Gleaming Wastes—especially along the edges of burned caravans, battlefield ruins, collapsed Ashwurm tunnels, or Sunlatch Lizard migration paths. They rarely venture into central dune fields unless scavenging after a storm or drawn by the scent of death.
They are common at Durrozhonth pillaging sites and even roost near Zolan war camps, feasting on scraps and the fallen.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Sootcrows are omnivorous opportunists, scavenging primarily but not above killing weakened prey. Their diet includes:
- Fresh corpses—especially recently paralyzed victims of Sandveil Adders
- Carrion scraps left behind by Ashwurms or Sunlatch Lizards
- Rotfruit cactus seeds, burnt lichen, and saltworms
- Enchanted cloth, wax seals, or spell-scroll edges (though these may sicken them)
They are known to chase down small constructs or magical familiars, ripping them apart for components.
Biological Cycle
Sootcrows are year-round residents of the Wastes. During the Dry Pulse (when heat and violence peak), they become aggressive and territorial, known to mob wounded creatures or lone travelers. In cooler seasons, they exhibit more cooperative scavenging behavior and even share kill sites with Hollow Vultures—though not without confrontation.
Full moons and solar eclipses drive them into screaming frenzy, during which large flocks gather around ley-scarred bones or ruins, mimicking the cries of the dying in a cacophony locals call the “Ash Choir.”
Behaviour
Sootcrows are bold, highly social birds with complex call patterns and dominance games. They are known to:
- Antagonize Hollow Vulture, Ashemat|Wing of the Departed or Gral-Keth|Bonebreaker, stealing from their kills or dive-bombing their young
- Harass Sunlatch Lizard, Irrsatekhet|One Who Clings to Light or Kravshik|Glass Fang by mimicking mating cries, drawing rivals into conflict
- Pick off Sandveil Adder, Tazir’metekh|Whisper Beneath Sand or Vrashk|Vein-Killer kills before the venom has fully worked, sometimes getting bitten themselves in the process
- Circle Ashwurm, Nekhazuret|Wrath of the Earth or Gralkh|That Which Buries from a safe height, descending as soon as the predator departs or falls silent
- Follow Dust Mephits to battlefield relics or magical shatter points
- Giant Vultures, whom they squabble with but often defer to
- Ankhegs, whose tunnels they monitor from above, feeding on the creatures they drag underground
- Gnolls, whom they follow into raids to feast on remains
- Mummies and undead, whom they avoid instinctively, often sounding alarms at their presence
Additional Information
Social Structure
Flocks range from 5 to 40 individuals and are ruled by dominant matriarchs, often the oldest female with the largest wingspan. These “Grayshades” lead from the front, roosting highest and dictating scavenging patterns. Internal squabbles are frequent but rarely fatal.
They hold mock funerals over fallen leaders, circling while dropping fragments of bone or coin. Zolan lore interprets this as the soul being weighed by birds before being judged.
Uses, Products & Exploitation
In Zola, sootcrow feathers are used in mourning veils, believed to shield mourners from restless spirits. A single sootcrow feather sewn into a traveler’s cloak is said to prevent the soul from wandering if the body dies in the sands.
Durrozhonth warbands use the birds as alarm systems, encouraging them to nest near camps to alert them to intruders or leyline surges.
Some Zolan scholars have attempted to train sootcrows for message delivery, but most efforts end in theft, sabotage, or inexplicable mimicry of confidential letters.
Geographic Origin and Distribution
Common across the entire span of the Gleaming Wastes, especially in the eastern bonestrips of Zola and the war-seared ravines of Durrozhonth. They do not fly near verdant territory and avoid mountainous zones unless driven by food scarcity.
They’re particularly common around old battlefield sites, and some say they remember where death has occurred, passing that knowledge to future flocks.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Sootcrows possess exceptional eyesight tuned for reflective heat shimmer and low-light scavenging. They also exhibit high cognitive function, with many showing behaviors associated with mimicry, trap setting, and tool use.
They can imitate shrill human screams, drumming war calls, and caravan bells—often to lure creatures toward danger or to confuse them long enough to snatch something shiny or edible.
They are known to track Ashwurms from the sky, following tremor lines and waiting for the great beasts to surface and kill.
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