Monsters in Karilan, Part II (E - G)

Monsters in Karilan, Part II (E - G)

Unfortunately, when I typed up several pages of this on the phone, the document got deleted for some reason, so everything was lost. Now, I am slowly recreating it from memory.

Earth Elemental

Earth elementals were summoned often by the dwarves both for manual labor and to bind their essences to the golems they create. Some unbound ones are roaming the world, lost after being transported by accident from the Elemental Plane of Earth to the deep Underdark.

Efreeti

Efreet, along with the rest of the geniekind were serving the nobles of Meshnarz who forged a pact with the genie lords. The efreet were used as soldiers, law enforcement, and commanders. Most modern efreet resent this history and the Meshi by extension. Despite that, the efreeti bloodline is one of the most common ones among the Meshi sorcerers.

Ethereal Filcher

The ethereal filchers can be found all around the world, but they seem to gather in larger numbers in Sifaril, where the veil between the Material Plane and the Ethereal Plane seems to be particularly thin. Some even believe that the filchers are agents of the metal elves of Hwaril that dwell on the Deep Ethereal plane, tasked with recovering various artifacts.

Ethereal Marauder

These beasts are thought to be related to the ethereal filchers. They rarely pose any danger to a well-prepared warrior, but their ability to strike from the Ethereal Plane with no warning makes them noteworthy. In the southern Sifaril, exists a rumor about a giant, yellow-skinned ethereal marauder that is devouring cattle. None of the town guards and adventures have managed to track down to monster yet.

Ettercap

The ettercaps dwell in the forests along with the monstrous spiders. They practically never engage in any non-hostile relationships with the others. However, their bands are a tempting source of spidersilk.

Ettin

Ettins live in the cold hills of Kargan, usually leading solitary lives. Some of the bully the local goblinoids and hill giants into servitude. These two-headed giants revere Demogorgon, the two-headed Demon Prince of Beasts.

Fire Elemental

Fire elementals are rarely encountered on the Material Plane, because their presence is obvious and destructive. In general, it is difficult to find somebody who knows how to summon these beings, because of the aforementioned reasons.

Fire Giant

The fire giants live in their cities in the mountains of Eskartar and Viril-Aventus. They are masterful smiths, but their weapons and armor are way too large for the local humanoids. Despite that, the local nobles consider having a fire giant weapon or piece of armor displayed in their manors to be very prestigious. Thus, not only do the giants raid the humanoids, but also the humanoids raid the giants.

Forest Gnome

Many people outside of Cedali are unaware of the forest gnomes’ existence. They live in their secluded villages protected by mundane and magical camouflage, only rarely engaging in trade with the rock gnomes and the raptorans. However, sometimes a forest gnome is overtaken by wanderlust and sets out on an adventure to explore the forests beyond the one where he was born.

Formian

While the formians usually are quite indifferent towards the Material Plane, one of the formian queens was exiled to Karilan. She and her nascent hive settled in the mountains in the southern Sifaril, where they try to become a local power much to the dismay of the elves.

Frost Giant

The frost giants dwell in the Southern and Northern Reaches. The ones in the northern polar regions have not joined the white draconic invasion and are desperately struggling to stay alive. The ones in the south have renounced the giant pantheon and began worshipping the ice archomental Cryonax. They have joined the archomental’s forces in their invasion on the civilized lands.

Frost Worm

The frost worms live in the cold plains in the north of Indaril. The fire elves say “as a frost worm’s trill” meaning “something beautiful, yet deadly.” Frost worm flesh is not edible, but their hides are used to create cold-resistant armor and shelters.

Gargoyle

These vicious creatures are be found inhabiting ruins all around the world. The legends say that the first gargoyles came to exist due to a curse Moradin placed on dwarven tomb robbers.

Gauth

These lesser beholders, just like the normal beholders, live deep in the Underdark. However, due to their relative weakness compared to the other inhabitants of the Lowerdark, they more often move closer to the surface, where they demand treasures from everyone or just go on killing sprees.

Gelatinous Cube

The gelatinous cubes have been puzzling the scholars for generations. Only Garm the Wiry, a dwarven explorer and wizard from Kes, managed to shine some light on the nature of these creatures. After an expedition to the Underdark that took several years, he found out that the gelatinous cubes were first created by the drow alchemists to both clean and protect their artificial tunnels and corridors. Garm also brought knowledge about the alchemists using similar formulas to create sentient humanoid slime creatures. The latter claim was disputed by the fellow scholars and thought to be a lie to make things seem more interesting and innovative. Garm to Wiry has disappeared many years ago, and some adventurers from Kes are still looking for any signs of the lost wizard and for the knowledge that he might be hiding.

Gen

These tiny genies were used as fine workers, crafting clockwork devices, exquisite carpets, and other things in the pre-giant Meshnarz. Now, they can only be seen among the few remaining sha’irs used as familiars.

Giant Ant

The giant ants are plaguing the Iron Theocracy, razing both surface and underground villages and farms. The giant anthills often contain various kobold or dwarven curios taken along with the mushrooms, crops, and everything else the ants take.

Giant Bee

These creatures live exclusively in the mountain valleys of the Goliath Holds. Their honey is prized among the goliaths, and many young daredevils “brave the bees for the honey”, often returning with swellings and (rarely lethal) poisonings.

Giant Bombardier Beetle

These beetles prefer damp underground environments, but can also be seen in the warm forests of Sitaril, Malassiril, Eskartar, and Amrado. They are carrion feeders that rarely attack without a provocation.

Giant Cockroach

Even troglodytes find the smell of the giant cockroaches revolting. These pests are exterminated by every Underdark being that has a nose. They often have territorial disputes with the otyughs over the best refuse piles.

Giant Crocodile

Giant crocodiles live in the swamps and rivers of Malassiril. Their physical might makes them dangerous even to young black dragons. Armor made of giant crocodile leather can stop all but the mightiest of blows.

Giant Eagle

Since the ancient times, the giant eagles have had close connections with the wind elves. Now, they nest in the mountains of Sifaril and Indaril, still maintaining friendly relations with the elves. What makes the giant eagles stand out is that they have their own language. Having no ability to write, they preserve their racial history in oral tradition. Their legends tell about their ancient home, a vast mountain range where Tumar is now. Where the mountains have gone, if they existed at all, is a mystery.

Giant Fire Beetle

These bugs can be found all around the Underdark. The adventurers who know how to extract the fire beetle glands properly, can use them as an emergency light source.

Giant Owl

The giant owls nest in the forests of Cedali. While sentient and generally benevolent, they rarely help the locals against the orcish invasion, unless there is a direct threat to their nesting ground. Unlike the giant eagles, the giant owls do not have their own language, but speak Sylvan.

Giant Praying Mantis

An uneducated person could mistake a giant praying mantis for a mantid. Sure, they look similar, but one of them has actual fingers instead of a set of sharp claws and usually wears at least some clothing or gear. Also, mantids live in Kargan, but the giant praying mantises mostly hunt in the forests of Amrado.

Giant Stag Beetle

These beetles rarely attack, unless provoked, but them being a nuisance to farmers whose crops they stomp and eat makes provocations quite frequent.

Giant Wasp

Giant wasps live in the jungles of Malassiril. The Dark Talon tribe of lizardfolks is the only one to tame these insects.

Girallon

These monsters live in the jungles of P’ktal. Being very territorial and fierce, they pose danger even to umber hulks that escort their neogi masters.

Githyanki

The githyanki are more active on Karilan than on many other worlds due to the presence of a large numbers of mind flayers. Their raids, conducted from the relative safety of the Astral Plane, are one of the reasons of the mind flayer menace not getting out of control.

Githzerai

The githzerai are not as active on Karilan as the githyanki, but their presence still can be felt. The hidden githzerai monasteries in the mountains of the Goliath Holds hold secret knowledge that might help the others fight the mind flayers.

Gnoll

The gnolls of Meshnarz have had territorial skirmishes with the Meshi in the ancient times, but after both factions became subjugated by the sand giants, they warmed up to the humans. Most have abolished the worship of Yeenoghu, the demon lord that created their race, but some consider the demon worship the only way to throw off the giants’ shackles.

The gnolls of Meshnarz are also known for their special kind of esoteric medicine that includes consumption of various clays and using clay to treat wounds.

Goblin

The goblins can be found all over the surface world and in the Upperdark. They live on the outskirts of civilization, either as independent bands or tribes, or as servants to hobgoblins, bugbears, ogres, giants, barghests, or many other beings that are stronger than them. Rarely, a goblin has enough of such bullying and snaps, leaving the tribe and trying to integrate into a civilized city. However, that often results in an even more severe bullying.

Gold Dragon

Most of the gold dragons have their lairs built in Amrado, where they can find a lot of gems and other minerals to consume and hoard. Some even live disguised as maenads. One gold dragon of interest is Bestirlim the Wise who constructed a castle in the eastern Amrado. There, he trains warriors and mages whom he calls “the heroes of the future”. Many adventurers strive to join their ranks, but most fail the tests. Nobody even knows for sure what cause the dragon is following, but most believe that it is related to the elemental invasion from the Southern Reaches.

Gorgon

Gorgons live in the labyrinthine tunnels of the Middledark and Upperdark. Their hides often are smelted and turned into weapons, armor, or tools.

Gray Elf

The gray elves are considered arrogant and aloof even among the high elves. They live in their secluded mountaintop citadels in Sifaril, only occasionally taking part in the high elven politics. A trait the gray elves are known for is their obsession with the purity of blood. Thus, gray half-elves are practically unknown, gray elven sorcerers are almost nonexistent, and non-gray elves rarely exhibit gray elven traits.

Gray Ooze

These oozes can be found in the cold marshes of southern Tumar. The orcs try to stay away from anything that looks like water when traveling through these lands.

Gray Render

The gray renders live in swamps of Kes and the Iron Theocracy. Their tendency to bond with the native creatures and protect them puzzles the scholars, but most believe it to be some kind of a divine curse.

Green Dragon

The green dragons nest in the forests all over the world. Among the chromatic dragons, they are considered to be relatively benevolent, mostly because they are never seen rampaging through the civilized lands, ravaging villages, and wreaking havoc. However, they are still egoistical schemers whose motives and goals usually are quite evil.

In the old times, when the war between the wood elves and the neogi has just started, one of the green dragons of Sitaril offered the elves a pact – he would protect them in return for the lifelong servitude. The descendants of this pact have gained some magical powers, but became compelled to never harm a green dragon. These elves are called the forestlord elves in the modern times. They can be found anywhere in Sitaril, but they locals are always wary of them and their masters.

Grell

These aberrations live on all layers of the Underdark. Not concerned with enslaving others, they live only to consume others and to spread their kind to other worlds. Because of this fact, they hoard knowledge of Gate spells, magic items that transport the user to other places, lost technology of the neogi and the mind flayers, and similar items.

Griffon

Griffons nest in Indaril, Kargan, and the Iron Theocracy. While sentient, they are savage and difficult to tame and train. However, the tame ones become vigilant protectors of their masters. This fact makes the griffon eggs fetch a pretty coin on the markets.

Grimlock

The grimlocks live in the Middledark. In some tribes, juvenile grimlocks are requires to travel down to the Lowerdark and return after a certain amount of time to be considered adults.

Grizzly Mastodon

These aggressive animals are prized as beasts of burden or mounts both be the orcs of the southern Tumar and the frost giants of the Southern Reaches.

Guardian Naga

The guardian nagas are benevolent creatures that protect sacred sites. A sacred spring in the mountains of Viril-Aventus is said to be able to cleanse taint and bring youth, but it is protected by a dozen of guardian nagas who allow only the most righteous people to go there.

Guardinal

The guardinals are often summoned by the raptorans to help them combat the orcish invasion. The raptorans believe themselves to be the descendants of the avorals.