Reynke (Kitsune) Race Article (shortened)

I personally would axe the ability to shrink other creatures entirely, if only because that ability alone has caused a lot of controversies with fairies, with people believing that they could shrink practically anything like it was nothing, and it would probably be better if something like that doesn't happen again.  I'm not saying size-shifting magic is inherently bad, but considering how much backlash it caused for the wrong reasons, I think it's a better idea if size-shifting be more of a case by case basis, like a spell some mages may study for one reason or another, and not something inherent to a certain breeds.  Plus, shrinking as an ability in Felarya is the hallmark of fairies, and giving them an ability that is synonymous with another race hurts their originality in my opinion.

As a compromise, if Kitsunes are so good with illusions, it wouldn't be impossible for them to fool someone else into thinking he has been shrunk like he had encountered a fairy.  Illusions don't necessarily have to be about images that aren't there, but also messing with someone else's senses and perception of reality.  If not, they usually need to train, as in study a spell, to be able to replicate a fairy's shrinking magic, and even then, it's substantially less powerful than the real deal.

I reworked the entry today and this is what I got so far. If I forgot something, please tell me, or if you have any suggestion on how to improve the article.

CHANGELIST:

1: I took out the shapeshifting abilities entirely and narrowed down their natural magic abilities to Illusions.

2: I turned down the shrinking ability to "making their first steps after trying to adopt it from fairies".

3: I put a little more precision into the whole odor stuff, mentioning how it can be counteracted and how their effectiveness varies between individuals.

4: I became more specific about their weaknesses, with them having little endurance, being exhausted rather quickly and attracting threats through scent or magic presence as seen by the predator senses.

5: I added a part dealing with how or why they do or don't go back to their own world for breeding.

6: I specified the part about Reynke knowing the location of their homeworld, but not telling it to others if possible since some people here seemed to have misunderstood that part, so it wasnt clear enough.

7: I cut out some repetitive parts which were mentioned multiple times.

8: I rearranged small parts of the article to give it a better reading flow.

So, what if a kitsune get their tail cut? Can it regrow in case the tail is missing or get burned to ash? Or the kitsune will need to have another tail-growing to regain the number?

In addition, I believe the scent would make a kitsune taste unique to a predators. Thinking of durian: it smells nice/bad outside, but the taste explodes on the taste buds.

Ok, given it a read. It's better, I'll give you that. Now that we're on it...

1- You mention they have a homeworld, and that they CAME to Felarya. How about other worlds, do they like going to other worlds too? It might work better if instead of a homeworld, they're relatively widespread (though covert), and there just happens to be a world where they like to stay openly.

2- The article is way too long. You need to convey the information faster, otherwise, it's very hard to be critical about the whole text.

3- The reynkes' tail being used in fur... that sounds a bit grisly. Any information you'd like to give us on nobles of what race or culture like to chop pieces off people to dress up? Are reynkes maybe not considered people in some worlds? Does this have anything to do with their habit of tricking people? Do people like to chop 'em up in revenge, or are they hunted as game?

4- The Hunt. The hunt, where they dedicate an hunter to take down a specified individual. "Dedicate"? I think you meant "Select", as in, they select one of their own to hunt someone while the others watch.

5- Social skills have to be picked up somehow. Reynkes cannot simply be born sharp-witted and with an idea of how to make members of other races do what they want, unless they have some sort of divine origin; if they evolved naturally in their homeworld, they'd have suitable social skills... for use on other reynkes. They have to learn that from parents, or peers, or etc. What kind of upbringing do your exemplary reynkes count with?

6- The worst punishment for 'em ain't death, you say. It's taking advantage of others' weaknesses. I think you meant "having their weaknesses taken advantage of". But given taking advantage of others' weakness is a way of life for reynkes, you're stating they continuously do upon others as they wouldn't wish upon their worst enemy.

That's what I can think of so far.

Stabs wrote:

Ok, given it a read. It's better, I'll give you that. Now that we're on it...


2- The article is way too long. You need to convey the information faster, otherwise, it's very hard to be critical about the whole text.

Agree about this part. Would be better if the reading become easier. Currently, as a non-native English speaker, I get information overloaded : P

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Edit:


I edited the article according to your guys feedback and consider the article done now, unless there are major changes to be made. The article being too long may be an issue to some, but others actually liked the length and detail and I see myself unable to cut down a significant (!) length without rewriting the whole thing entirely and leaving out substantial aspects of them, so rather than crippling the article as some people here requested, I will keep it whole. This is not a mere race overview but a description and I took as much time and effort to make them clearly understandable as that was needed from what feedback I recieved.

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@ TKH:
A kitsunes tail is like any other limb. If someone is able to repair/heal/regrow a cut arm, they can do it with a tail as well. if you lost your tail it would be like loosing an arm or leg. I dont see the need of an explanation here as it is kind of natural, but i will dedicate one sentence addressing that just in case.

Also, the taste of a Reynke doesnt seem to be something that needs further explanation. They probably have a unique taste but... I dont see how that would give the reader any additional valuable info. No other race has their taste explained either and it would suggest that Reynke are more common as food than other species.


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@ Stabs:
1: I already adressed that within the article under their social bahaviour.

2: Any suggestions about what to narrow down? Besides, other people liked the length. As long as you dont give a proper explanation of how to make it shorter i wont do it because writing detailed descriptions is pretty much "my style" and I wont cut out what seem to be essential parts of the description for the sole sake of it being shorter. I deem quality OVER quantity or the lack thereof in this case. And if you want stuff to be rephrased, ask someone who is more proficient with the use of english language than me. besides, seeing the amount of information, I doubt you can shorten it by a significant degree.

3: I don't care if it sounds grisly, I can totally see that happening in Felarya. This is how it is. I don't view "it sounds evil" as a reason to change something when it's intended to be that way.

4: right.

5: I dont get the question. I saw that as some sort of a given as with any other species. If you want to get an answer: through observing others and their targets and learning about psychology in general or in specific. Thats kinda how it goes for everyone, so why exactly would I need to mention that?

6: that would limit it down to that one thing, but reynkes are more creative than that. My mind breaking stuff was ONE example. i will clarify that a little more though.

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@ Ilceren:
Genetic compatibility: I dont understand what change you suggest. I dont see a problem with how i wrote it down.

Teeth: I can add that. cute li'l fangs are cute.

Horrendous degree: I kinda placed that word there intentionally. Your suggestion sounds a little too weak or neutral to me.

Primitive cannibalism: I dont get what point you are trying to make, please specify.

Proofreading: I will correct them, thanks for proofreading ^^

I think it would be interesting if there is a rumour that Kitsune loves eating livers of people with high magic potentials in order to enhance their own magical capacity to gain more tails. At least that is the way for Chinese folklore monsters do in order to increase their strength and shortern the road to enlightment (like how they attemped to cook the monk in Journey to The West)

Of course, it is just an rumour, but it would make magic users feel more nervous when encountering a Kitsune.

Okay, I read through the current article and I have a feeling that a lot of filler will be cut down if this gets adopted. The problem with really big articles is that it's difficult to read multiple times, especially if you're looking for specific information, because you'll have to go through a lot of text just to find the one pertinent information you happened to forget.

Anyway, I like the article for the most part. I think Reynkes might work better as an offshoot of whatever trickster magic fox creature that are based on Kitsunes that arrived on Felarya long, long ago, and after years of adaptation and crossbreeding, they have developed into their own species of magic fox creatures unique to Felarya. That said, I could see some tribes holding certain values of a particular ancestor, whichever was the most dominant of that particular society, since they reproduce so rarely.

Their tails being the source of their power like a fairy's wings is pretty clever and it's a good explanation as to why nine-tailed foxes are borderline divine. Stabs said that the idea of Reynkes having their tail cut off by wizards is grisly, which it is, but when you think about it, even though that wouldn't happen often, I could see some wizards doing something like that if they're complete sociopaths. Just something to note, I'm pretty sure Karbo once said that the soil doesn't grant humans and such the ability to regenerate lost limbs, instead the stump would just heal faster. So unless their tails regenerate because it's super magical, their only options would be to either grow their lost tails back the hard way, or they look for someone who knows a spell that regenerate lost limbs, which shouldn't be too hard for a Reynke with enough tails.

Reynkes being arrogant because of their magic superiority is something that, in hindsight, I should have thought of when writing the new article for the elves, cause it makes a lot of sense. I should probably ask Karbo to rewrite some parts of that article to reflect on some of these things if I get the chance. The odor thing I was rather skeptical about it at first, but from what I gathered, it all boils down to enhancing their charm spells. I also think it was a good idea to add a drawback that it however makes them easier to track by predators with a heightened sense of smell.

Anyway, one thing that struck me as odd was that they supposedly had a lot of problem dealing with predators when they first arrived. I would think given their affinity for illusions and intellect that they would use illusions to better hide and get away as their first option to deal with something several times their size, but whatever.

That aside, I like it.

Alright, Amaroq, Secret Agent Man S. Tabby is on the case. People say it's too long? I'll help you make it shorter.

Amaroq wrote:

Reynke
Reynke are a collection of different subspecies commonly referred to as Reynkes, Redtails, Kitsune, Kumiho or fox-people in general. They appear with a humanoid stature and canine features that resemble those of a fox and likewise their conspecifics are widely known to be especially smart and cunning, but also cruel individuals.

Summary's good, Amaroq.

Amaroq wrote:

Ever since Reynkes entered the world of Felarya, their population has been small and spread out far across the lands, causing them to suffer from a lack of genetic pools to develop from. Cross breeding with closely related canine species became one solution, which they turned out to be  perfectly capable of as they adapted to use science and magic to overcome what little incompatibilities were left.
This caused the race to become very diverse in individual appearance and even caused major differences, the most notably being the presence of multiple tails or the natural affinities to the use of specific kinds of magic.
However, one is not able to state that pure or impure breeds hold any physical superiority over one another aside from having different traits and affinities. If, for instance, a multitailed Reynke were to breed with a compatible Inu, it is very likely the child will only bear one tail, but in return gain some of the stronger bodybuild an Inu posesses.

Let us condense. I'll try to preserve ALL of the idea hooks here, Amaroq, but some of them will be left implied.

For my counter offer I wrote:

The irremediable rarity of Reynkes throughout the history of Felarya has pushed some of them to breed with other canine humanoids or resort to magic to prolong their bloodlines. As a result of the genetic bottleneck and outbreeding, reynkes have grown quite varied in appearance. For instance, they vary in their number of tails, magical affinities, or physical strength (in some of the mixed bloods).

Amaroq wrote:

Biological Properties:

Reynkes resemble humans who also possess certain properties usually found in canine species, mostly shown as a human sporting fox ears, teeth and one or more large, fluffy tails. Their average size is a few inches smaller than a human, not counting their vertically jutting ears. Many sightings record both giant and tiny Reynkes, but due to their illusionary and tricky nature, it is hard to tell which sightings have been real and which have just been Reynkes playing tricks on both viewer and camera.
They all have in common that they appear as exceptionally young and beautiful for their age, but otherwise sport rather slender and unmuscular bodies. Unlike many humanoid species, a Reynke has usually a weaker build than a common human. Even though they can somewhat bypass their genetic disadvantage through intense physical training, an untrained Reynke will have little strength and endurance, with only notably high agility and a well developed sense of hearing working to their advantage.

Their major strength however rest within their wits and intellect, and thus Reynke count as one of the potentially smartest races known to felaryans with very powerful spirits and quick reactions.
Reynkes are quick learners, able to learn from and adapt to new situations both physical and social at rapid speeds and their power to read and influence their surroundings or even opponents behaviour are unheard of.
This also influences their arcane understanding. Reynkes have an instinctive understanding for the arcane and are actually able to feel the magic inside and around them with little training, giving them a further edge when it comes to learning about manipulating the arcane flows to their own benefit.

Their ears are about on the same level of effectiveness as those of Nekos and Inus, even though they  may sport extensive fluffy fillings to protect them from wind and insects for better hearing, similar to protecting a microphone. This reduces their ability to hear quiet noises significantly, but the resulting sound is much more clear and distinguishable. This is especcially important when it comes to studying magics in which the exact pronounciation and suble differences in height and frequency of the voice have an impact on the result but also allows for spotting an approaching predator within the general noise of the surrounding jungle.

Another notable feature is their tail. Reynkes sport one or more tails, which are protruding as elongations from their spine. They are not only used as a means for balance and support when moving, but also serve as emitter for their personal scent as their base features a high concentration of odor glands. Since Reynke tails are exceptionally fluffy, they serve as very good temperature isolators, causing them to be a highly demanded clothing trophy among other species' nobles. Even living Reynke can be seen to cuddle their tails in order to keep themselves or others warm during the night.
Apart from this, tails also serve as the Reynkes magic catalysts and, like a fairy's wings, they are highly sought after by wizards of other species. Once cut a Reynke will loose a significant amount of their magic potential up to becoming unable to cast magic entirely and aside from having their limb healed, much training and therapy will be needed to enable a Reynke to use their tail to their full efficiency again.

Many Reynke strive to grow more tails if possible, to further enhance both their magic capacity and cuteness. The growth of multiple tails can happen in different ways. The most natural is breeding between two multitailed Reynkes.
However, it is possible for an individual to gain more tails over time as their understanding for magic and arcane power increase, causing one tail to not be sufficient as a magic store and manipulator anymore, similar to how a body grows more muscle tissue when the present muscles are unable to handle the stress put onto them anymore. Naturally, just growing a new tail is a much more difficuilt task than growing more muscles and thus it takes a Reynke between one hundred to a thousand years to accomplish the addition of even one tail. Only truly enlightened Reynkes who dedicated millennia of their own and their ancestors' lifetime to the arcane can ever hope to gain a high amount of tails and even the mightiest specimen have never been seen with more than nine tails up until today.
Due to their mortality, it is very unlikely if not impossible for a Reynke to grow eight or more tails in a single lifespan, so usually a combination of breeding and individual training along with the passing down of knowledge and progress is what develops them further. However, as it is Felarya's nature to stop the growth of any being living in it, Felarya is a highly sought after place to live for any ambitious Reynke, despite the well-known threats it bears.
Whether it being in Felarya or any other place, the growth of a new tail is a slow and extremely painful process that is widely seen as an event of great importance among all Reynkes. Prior to perforation a Reynke may suffer intense pain in their aft section as the spine develops what is basically a fully functional new limb before it breaks the surface and takes away the pressure from within. This phase is often accompanied by at least a month of meditation and intense practise of self control as well as the enduring of pain and Reynkes are expected to not use any magic or medicine to ease the stress put onto them, viewing the growth of a tail as a general strengthening of ones mind and body along with the increased magic potential.  

A last notable feature are their odor glands. They are mostly located within their crotch and tail areas, but lesser amounts can also be found at the typical body locations such as their armpits and feet.
Reynke permanently radiate an intense, pleasant scent, that serves as a means to identify each other, notify of their sexual readiness and attract potential partners. It is generally developed during adolescense and slowly recedes upon entering their old ages, which can easily take a few hundred years.
However, the arousing scent is not limited to the noses of other Reynkes and indeed species such as humans are also affected - sometimes to horrendous degrees. While a Reynke will permanently radiate a pleasant scent thats barely noticed, higher concentrated doses may actually work similar to aphrodisiacs and drugs. Some specimens of the Reynkes bear odor glands so intense that prolonged exposure to their scent has similar effects to the consumption of drugs. It is said that too frequent a consumption may actually result in psychic or physical addiction after a few weeks of exposure. While never originally having planned for this, Reynkes may be aware of that effect and use it to their advantage if needed even though their smell also causes a risk in the Felaryan jungles and some Reynkes try to hide their scent using magic or perfumes because of that. All in all though, the effectiveness of their scent varies heavily between different Reynkes, as many factors such as genes, sexuality, age and size come into play and their addictive nature can be prevented by using perfumes, a strong air circulation or something as simple as a nose clip, whose usage being mandatory among Negavian bureaucrats when dealing with known Reynkes.

Whew! This is gonna be a handful! *Does like a fairy and shrinks the article*

For my counter offer I wrote:

Reynkes are humanoids with fox ears, sharp canines, and one or more fluffy tails. Though giant and tiny reynkes have been spotted, their propensity for illusions means such sightings must be taken with a grain of salt. Human-sized reynkes stand a few inches shorter than humans on average, usually sporting lean and youthful bodies. Though agile and aware, reynkes rarely excel on the physical department, where they count a disadvantage relative to humans.

Reynkes excel in intellectual pursuits. They are naturally much smarter than many other races. Their swift wit, mental power, and their knack for learning and adapting are without peer. Together with their instinctive understanding for the arcane and ability to feel magic, reynkes know to channel their intellect into arcane careers where they make the most of their natural advantages.

Reynkes' fluffy ears protect their softer tissue from wind, dust, and insects. They also reduce their ability to hear quiet noises, but gives them exceptional detail on what they do hear: this is an advantage for them where it comes to discerning the nature of any sounds they hear in the wilderness (and in learning how to pronounce arcane words). Their tails serve both as a means for balance and as an insulant, being specially fluffy: if a reynke has nothing better, they can cuddle with their tails for warmth. They also favor their tails, and consider that having more tails makes them cuter: a reynke will strive to grow the most tails it can.

These appendages will serve another purpose as well. While the mechanism is not well understood, reynke tails also function as magical catalysts, just like a fairy's wings. Losing a tail could spell the end for their sorcery: even if healed or regrown, their magic likely won't ever be at the same level. Reynkes whose parents both had multiple tails may be born with multiple tails: for the rest, growing an additional tail means training themselves with magic until they achieve a level of power and understanding such that their body may develop another tail in order to handle that power. The culmination of the process is heralded by discomfort an intense pain in their aft section as the spine reshapes itself to develop the extra tail; once the skeleton is ready, the growth of a new tail is explosive. They are expected to endure the pain using nothing but meditation and self-control, as a new tail must mean strengthening the body and mind as well. The growth of a new tail is seen as a great honor both for the reynke, his family and his bloodline.

Finally, reynkes have scent glands, mostly in their crotch and base of the tail, but with a proportion of them throughout their skin, most notably on their neck, armpits and between the toes. They permanently radiate a scent which varies by individual and by health or sexual readiness; these glands start working during puberty, and wind down during their old age (a few hundred years). Interestingly, humans' moods are affected by their pheromones as well, and in some horrendous cases of very rank reynkes and very weak-willed humans, they can develop a dependence. The reynkes themselves aren't always interested, and may try to hide their scent with magic or perfumes. Simple countermeasures such as circulating air or even a nose plug may serve humans well; bureaucrats make it a point of wearing the latter when dealing with confirmed reynkes.

You'll notice I've removed the part about them being hunted for their tails. Don't worry, I'm going to throw it in Reynke Society. After all, being hunted for something isn't a natural bodily process, it's something that people do to you. Likewise, I'll put that the lure of Felarya for reynkes is that they want to grow more tails, and Felarya affords them more time, in Reynke Society.

Amaroq wrote:

Reynke Society

Little is known about the true society of Reynkes as all we know about them is coming from the very small stem of specimen that decided to go to and live in Felarya. To a Reynke, knowledge is power, and thus, important facts such as the exact origin, or even the name of their homeworld are unknown to outsiders. Thus, Reynkes are considered one of the most mysterious sentient races known to Negavian scholars, who gained only little insight into their lives and habits.

Having been the dominant species on their homeworld, Reynkes hold great pride in their evolution to be one of the smartest species known to the current day. Their arcane knowledge and mastery of magic can look down on a history that fills the books of millennia and their explorers have travelled across worlds and dimensions long before many of todays species even began to evolve.
Thus, it is to no surprise that the Reynke society has built up an extensive amount of cultural identities and histories, usually passed down within so called houses, which are basically a bloodline of Reynkes. Many families can look back to ancestors whose physical remains have long turned into dust and others have long left their homeworld to populate foreign places, founding the base for them to develop and "conquer" entirely new worlds. Most houses try to uphold a reputation and pride about their progress on the way to enlightenment. Since the growth of a new tail is a very rare incident, it is widely seen as a huge improvement to a house's reputation and bloodline and especcially the noble families take great care to only breed with specimens bearing the same or a higher amount of tails.

Despite their age and progression, Reynkes have little tolerance for technology and rarely make use of anything that appears more complex than medieval machines, as all they ever needed to do they could more elegantly accomplish through the use of magic. Even though they do not lack the understanding of how technology is produced or being operated, they simply are in a way technophobic as the concept of a mass produced bullet being as deadly and dangerous as a finely crafted fireball frightens and offends them. Technology lacks the grace and spiritual requirements  of the arcane arts, and is considered a "cheap" way only those who fail to make use of their intellect should refer to, while true strength is considered to be coming from within.
However, there are Reynkes that majorly rely on technology and use them like any human would, usually to make up for their lack of magical powers. They may not bear the best reputation along their specimen, but they are not prohibited from doing so either, because unless raised otherwise, every Reynke shares one motto:

"No limits, anything goes. What's possible, can be done. "

With magic offering them basically unlimited possibilities as long as they just study it for long enough, this lack of ethical or social barriers allowed them to truly gain the upper hand, first on their homeworld, later on any other place they managed to gain a foothold on.
This belief along with their innate smartness led to the common Reynke belief that they are a superior species and often look down upon the lesser blessed races.

Reynkes always fancied quality over quantity and place great efforts into educating and teaching their offspring, resulting in a rather low birthrate and population since lives are long and education lasts a whole lifetime. They are very few, causing them to value their species above others even more, and in times of war, often the loss of one Reynke to no less than fifty defeated foes was considered a horrible trade.

Their low count and long lives also increased the Reynke's affinity for individuality. Each one has their own character, but also a growing list of traditions and habits that are carefully refined and polished over the course of their lifetime. This especially shows in their study of the arcane, as many Reynkes will strive to become the master of a specific branch of magic, while others try to gain knowledge of as many different kinds of magic as possible, but other aspects are influenced as well.
Reynkes may have strong familiar bonds which are very intense due to the amount of work and value they put into each offspring, but other than that they tend to be loners. The influence of other Reynkes is somewhat disturbing to their own habits and traditions, as Reynkes fear becoming a uniform mass that could be considered a mainstream, not only because it deducts from their pride of their individuality, but also because it would actually fill their mind with unecessary things and slow them down at achieving their personal goal. However, this risk is not apparent in the presence of "lesser" species as unless they consciously choose to learn from them, it is unlikely for a Reynke to adapt to their habits.
Few things catch a Reynke's interest long enough to serve as a hobby, but those that they have are often mastered in a way that turns the respective Reynkes into exceptional artists when performing them. Favourite interests include mastery of martial arts, calligraphy, music and painting, but also ritualized swordsmanship and archery. They even transfer the ambition to turn anything into a mastery on trivial things such as their hunting and feeding habits, where sometimes the capture and defeat of prey has turned into a carefully executed ritual or the most tricky and complex shenanigans.
"The Hunt" is actually a widely fancied sport among the Reynke species, where they designate a hunter, whose task it is to use all of their wits and skill to take down a specified individual in the most cunning or creative way possible. The idea is to uphold the concept of brain over brawl, where the weak and small Reynkes succeeded over much larger or tougher opponents. Often, certain restrictions are added, such as the waiver of magic, leading only the option to outsmart or seduce the physically superior target. Reynkes have made it an art to skillfully lead a prey to walk into their own doom and even when not competing with each other, a Reynke will still often experience great pleasure from tricking and confusing or seducing their victim into their demise.

Since Reynkes lack the morals and ethics of other species, they don't know the concept of good and evil in the same way human society does. They have little mercy and are often depicted as especially cruel by other species because of their lack of mental boundaries and the way they even perform killing as a form of art. Being the superior being that they think themselves to be, a Reynke will play with others and have fun with them as if everything just exists for them to put it to good use. Since Reynke are omnivorous beings, they more often than not see any other species as inferior or outright as potential source of food if they can't find a way to benefit from keeping them around.

Amaroq, your article is HUUUUGE!

For my counter offer I wrote:

Little is known of reynkes in Felarya. For them knowledge is power, and they make a point of keeping knowledge about their nature away from prying eyes.

What is known is that they were (are?) the dominant species in their homeworld, and pride in being one of the most intelligent species. They've visiting worlds for millenia, before the rise of most other civilizations. Though loath to share them with outsiders, they are proud of their cultural identities and histories; every reynke can look back upon millenia of ancestors within their genealogy, the memory of whose accomplishments they pass on to their children. These tales spur every reynke to greater accomplishments for the glory of their house and bloodline.

Their magical affinity, favoring of pragmatism over ethics and intelligence gave the reynkes an advantage on their homeworld, and they have not lost it since then. They have, however, grown rather conceited from it, often considering themselves better than other races.

They most often disdain technology out of a matter of principle: while acknowledging its possibilities, they feel offended that devices place such possibilities at anyone's grasp. They find horrendous that any lowly human may gain the ability to fire a bullet just as deadly as whatever fireball they may devise after decades of work, considering true power to be only what comes from within. Most reynkes rarely rely on any technology above simple mechanical devices, preferring magic instead. The reynke who embrace technology would face a small stigma, if it weren't for their universally explicit pragmatism.

"No limits, anything goes. What's possible, can be done. "

As they favor quality over quantity, reynkes spend a lot of time and energy in mentoring their youth. This results in a low birth rate, and a strong sense of individuality: their habits and traditions are molded by their immediate family, but beyond that, they are loners. Two reynkes from different families may have very different, perhaps even irreconciliable traditions, and the thought of a mainstream society horrifies them, as does having to adapt to it instead of devoting all their energy to achieving enlightenment. This is not a risk in the presence of inferior beings, as the reynke will only learn their ways if they so intend.

Enlightenment takes many forms, but it is most often about excelling at their chosen arts (calligraphy, swordsmanship, music), and achieving the highest number of tails possible: the centuries required for the process are the main draw for many reynkes to approach Felarya, where they could, in theory at least, have all the time they need to gain as many tails as possible. Reynkes rarely spend their time with hobbies, but if they do, they approach it with the same ambition that they approach enlighenment. Their rarity, ambition and intelligence makes them hold themselves in very high regard: they consider anything less than fifty enemies to be a horrible trade for their lives, and even then, not a sweet deal.

Their attitude is not without its consequences. In some worlds, reynke tails are considered of great value, and their grisly hunts will be sponsored by royalty and wizards alike, who seek them for their unique softness and their magical properties, respectively.

Sure, presenting the information in this order kinda makes it look like it's their fault they get hunted, but I think it fits a little better here than there. Also, I left the Hunt for Hunting Habits. Because it's... The Hunt? Hunting?

Amaroq wrote:

Reynkes in Felarya

While the mind and magic have little limitations, their physical body does. Having discovered Felarya a long time ago, it didn't took them long to find out about the Felaryan soil's power to preserve life and age. Ambitious Reynkes enter Felarya for the promise of longevity or even eternal life to study countless years and take more steps to become enlightened. Others may enter Felarya in the search for its rich amount of arcane artifacts and knowledge, trying to learn from the local inhabitants. Since anything goes, it is no shame to learn a new kind of magic from a lesser race, as the Reynke will be able to take their impure and imperfect attempts to control the fine strands of magic and then improve them to turn them into something better. Thus, despite its many known and unknown dangers, Felarya is actually a rather popular target for Reynke travels. For many of them, however, this decision turns out to be a fatal mistake.

Felarya is a dangerous place, even to skilled and smart magicians and many Reynkes die during their first week on this dangerous plane, usually vastly underestimating the threats they are pitted against. Their arrogance can quickly lead to their downfall and thus, only a handful of Reynkes survive for a prolonged time within the jungles as the mayority is simply not used to flora and fauna striking back at them. Quickly a newly arrived Reynke will realize that the best capabilities and intellect are worth little when they are faced with unseen or gargantuan threats they have only read about in their books. Their scent easily gives them away and their arcane presence is widely seen with the aid of many predator senses. Given how Reynkes are used to either outsmart or surprise an opponent or defeat them with the use of superior magic, their lack of endurance and constitution shows pretty soon. Even the most powerful Reynkes run dry on magic sooner or later and need to rely on backup provided by other individuals until they regenerate, causing them to suffer from a timeframe of high vulnerability. So even though they are skilled enough to fend off a highly dangerous threat or two, the hazardous jungles might just throw countless more at them, leading to Reynkes expending their ressources very quickly. Thus, Kitsune are not well fitted to survive on their own in the jungles and risk death whenever they leave the boundaries around the Felaryan dimensional gates without protection.
Some Reynkes travel to Felarya, fully aware of the risk of dieing, with the intention to achieve true modesty and reverence at their own insignificance within the vast world of existance, which are both said to be needed to progress on their way to enlightenment as arrogance is a flaw they need to rid themselves of.

However the reasons for entering Felarya, those who opt to stay and survive quickly find that they have to adapt their ways of living to this hostile and - eternal youth or not - shortlived world. Since Reynkes rarely form groups beyond their own flesh and blood, they are often forced to join groups of other species and live along their side. Some even decide to found new families within this land, either by meeting other Reynkes or breeding with compatible species, though the majority prefers to return to their homeworld for breeding purposes. Once they travelled too far away from the dimensional gates though, this is not always an option and Reynkes see themselves forced to pick another, compatible species.
They usually see the need to keep their line alive and pass on their achievements to be greater than the dishonour of using a lesser being as a partner and thus, the risk of death turns felaryan Reynkes into much more accepting beings when it comes to other species and they will more often than not experience a change of personality and view of the world when living among them for a prolonged time. Sometimes, a Reynke might even view other species as equal, just different, but usually they will at least keep part of their belief of being superior, as they are confident about being able to outwit and outsmart them with ease.

Since the reasons for Reynkes to enter Felarya are numerous, their lives gain different shapes as well. Some may prefer to stay in the safety of a Negavian library, others try to just make a living among the Felaryan society, and even more actively go on a quest to join adventurers or to meet other magically adept species to learn from them, with Sphinxes, Fairies and Demons being the most notable creatures of interest. While many Reynkes die upon meeting such beings, others actually manage to get accepted. There is an unusually large amount of Reynkes living within the Forest of whispers and the close by Fairy kingom, as both species enjoy each others tricksters and shenanigans as well as the access to new ways of magics, but also the lake of illusions and Miragia Forest are good places to look for one of them.

Most Reynkes however decide to settle with the many easily avaiable and even easier manipulated humans, whom they use as aid, guards and foodsource alike. It didn't take them long to find out that they appear as exceptionally beautiful to them and how much of a strong effect their pheromones have on the humanlike mind and most Reynkes are willing to take full advantage of it. Some use it merely for hunting purposes, becoming tricksters and thieves, maybe even assassins, others actually decide to join a group, often quickly proceeding to either gain the leading position or manipulate the leader into acting to their every whim. Dealing with a Reynke always puts oneself at a risk and there have been whole groups of adventurers whose last sign of existance faded away upon leaving the city walls alongside a freshly recruited Reynke.

This selfish and dangerous nature has long been revealed to Felaryan society, and some badmouth them as "mini succubi" or similar as they have shown similar characteristics in the past complete with legends about soul eating fox people.
But the promise of a smart and powerful magician as an ally, not to mention as cunning and easy on the eye, often outweights the risks to many foolish adventurers. If one was to accept a Reynke along their side, they would do good to absolutely be sure about the Reynkes motivations, or else they might quickly find themselves in a bad spot once an opportunity arises. However, rejecting a Reynke in the heat of the moment might prove difficuilt to impossible if the trickster works their charm and magic on the decisionmaker in question.
Thinking of themselves as superior beings, a Reynke that actually plans to accompany a group for longer than just the next lunchtime will most likely strive to become the groups most influential person, either as the leader or the leaders secret commander. In most cases they make use of their intellect and magical power to impress their companions, but just as often their sex-appeal and smart usage of charm and scent will do the trick. Their scent is their most powerful tool as as long as Reynkes are around, people might slowly grow addicted to it, causing them to want to be in their presence and to generally like them more. Being an aphrodisiac, it becomes increasingly easy for a Reynke to become the most popular group member and might be able to bend and wrap people around their fingers as if they were mind controlled. Being the solo-type personalities they often will try to get rid of competition that they cannot subdue by normal means. Either by getting them killed, killing them themselves, or my more subtle means such as refraining from helping in trouble or having them expelled from the group by manipulating everyone else.

More often than not though, a Reynke will not reveal their true identity, often hiding their tail with magic or underneath long and baggy clothing. Others proudly display their species and dwell in their surroundings appreciation, fear or respect as a Reynke is a rare sight, even if you know where you have to look for them. The fact about a Reynke's strength increasing with its numbers of tails is widely known or at least assumed, and thus often used as a status symbol, both within Felarya and outside. And while meeting a Reynke is about as likely as finding a Skevol in the Negavian street, meeting one that has accumulated four or more tails would be comparable to winning a lottery that cheats its players. However, non-Reynkes are never able to tell, because some sneaky felaryan Reynkes use the knowledge about their abilities actively to fool their surrounding, giving themselves more tails than they have with illusionary magic, so ninetails and similar Reynkes can still be seen. On the other hand it's the really tricky ones who would actually reduce their number of visible tails in order to appear weaker than they actually are, so one cannot be too sure about who they have in front of them for real, even though magic sensitive species will easily be able to tell the difference between a real and a concealed Reynke once they meet a truly powerful (or an power imposing) individual.

Reynke are also known to be especcially vengeful. Their well developed mind allows for an immense memory and they are able to remember misdoings against them for a long time, holding and nourishing a grudge over the course of months or years. It is then when a Reynke becomes the most dangerous as they will try their best to find a fitting punishment. Once their trickery becomes malicious, their plots and schemes not rarely result in heavy injury or death.
To many Reynke however, death is not even the worst fate one can suffer - but instead it is taking advantage of the others weaknesses and needs. For instance, with intellect being held as the most important of all things in Reynke society, the truly worst punishment for them would be to loose one's mind.
Rumors say that some individuals do not refrain from using the addictive nature of their scent to turn their victim into a heavy addict, whose dependance to the drug-like pheromones becomes so intense they physically suffer from deprivation and their whole mind revolves around getting a new dose, turning them into little more than mindless toys to the Reynke performing this long term punishment. These are often merely used as toys and trophies for their new owner, humiliated hulls permanently and solely lusting after the scent of their desire while becoming physically or mentally incapable of living without it.

Gosh, you make me work a lot.

For my counter offer I wrote:

Reynkes choose to come to Felarya for several reasons: the promise of more time to achieve enlightenment is one, but the arcane treasures from bygone days are as much of a lure to them as to anyone else. Reynkes attach no shame to learning magic from other races, and often try to improve upon what they learn (or rather, appropriate).

Their stay doesn't always go as planned. Even the best magicians amongst them are prone to underestimating the danger after reading about it, which often leads to an untimely end. If they are able to fend off one or two threats, once their endurance runs out they rarely find the rest they require: their scent and magic give them away. Reynkes are simply not fit for traveling too far from the gates.

Adapting to Felarya often requires Reynkes to drop their arrogance and superiority, which they consider necessary for enlightenment. In order to adapt, they usually join forces and live with other species, whose strength complements their own. They can even learn to see other species as equal, just different, though they never completely drop their confidence in their superior intelligence. Some of them find themselves so comfortable with this arrangement that they even take mates outside their race, rather than returning to their homeworld. Though the latter is preferrable, some reynkes find themselves stranded with no way to return, and they consider the need to extend their bloodline to be more important than tending to its purity.

Once within, their lives may go down a number of paths. Some simply make a living, others stick close to libraries to improve their magic, and some more enterprising others even go as far as to seek out other species, such as fairies, sphinxes, demons, or others, to learn their arcane lore. Most reynkes are (voraciously) rejected, but there are actually many of them in the Forest of Whispers, the Fairy Kindgom, and the Lake of Illusions.

Most of them settle in Negav, of course, where there is an ample supply of easily tricked and manipulated humans, from which they get their safety, manpower, and food (sometimes literally). Reynkes make use of their full range of abilities to get their way, becoming thieves, killers, and leaders with equal consideration. Dealing with them is always a danger.

Though rightfully known to be selfish and ruthless, and some of them are said to devour souls, the promise of a smart and cunning magician as an ally will outweigh the risks for many foolish adventurers. Those that join with one would best be as certain as possible what the reynke's intentions are, or they will certainly find themselves regretting it sooner than they thought. Even if their intentions are honest, a reynke will prefer to either lead the group or control its leader, and they will not hesitate to manipulate anyone in order to achieve this. Those who resist their manipulation will be taken care of in some other way, be it by dispatching them, sabotaging them, or even getting the rest of the group to ditch them.

It's worth mentioning that reynkes are very vindictive, and never forget an insult or slight. They raise holding a grudge to an art form, and derive great pleasure in finding a fitting punishment for those who wrong them: their trickery does not shy from causing injury or even death. However, to them, the worst fate one can suffer is not death or suffering, it's to lose what they are. As intellect is held in high regard for reynkes, they consider losing control of one's mind to be as great a punishment as it can be. Some specially vindictive individuals engineer such fates for their offenders, turning them into addicts to their scent, which renders them little more than mindless toys and trophies.

Of course, reynkes are careful about displaying their race: they can conceal their tails easily with baggy clothing (so long as they have only one). Those that do know to use their abilities to give the exact impression they want to, often making it appear like they have more or less tails, known to be a symbol of power and status, than they really do by using magic. They are already rare, however, and to find one with four or more tails should make one suspicious. Magic-sensing beings and other reynkes have an easier time seeing through those illusions, however.

Come on, I'm almost done...

Amaroq wrote:

Abilities and Hunting Habits:

As stated before, Reynke are exceptional spellcasters and magicians. The standard Reynke possesses a natural affinity to the illusionary magics, changing either their own appearance or their surroundings.

Reynkes have the ability to vastly increase their magic potential by growing more tails. While many Reynkes will stick to their natural abilities in illusion, others will eventually want to explore other kinds of magic and thus, they are often adept or expert at one or more foreign magics, depending on the avaiablility of teachers or study material. There have been rare sightings of Reynkes that take their first steps in size changing magic after trying to adopt it from Fairies, others experiment with elements, demonology or ley line magic. Given enough time and material, Reynkes are capable of obtaining any branch of magic that doesn't have an inert limitation they cannot bypass by any means and some Reynkes actually made it their goal to trick the laws of nature themselves and obtain access to those branches anway.

Other characteristics are their vast use of intrigues and psychic manipulation. If they would care enough about others, Reynkes would provide perfect politicians as they possess a quick yet wise tongue, sharp wits and the right feeling for how to make a person do what they want. Their young and fertile appearance, their scent and grace makes it easy for them to charm susceptible fools right away and if that isn't enough, some might just add a little seduction spell to the mix.

Their intellect also allows them to plot effective traps and ambushes, but in desperate times, especially the Felaryan Reynkes, they have adapted to use sharp daggers and poison as well, using stealth and quickness to their advantage even though these methods are usually more or less looked down upon by more powerful individuals.

Being omnivorous, Reynke see anything that isn't a Reynke as potential food. They do not refrain from eating fruits or beings of their same size or even larger and in their natural environment have no particular preference to eating prey as a whole and alive. If not related to someone via friendship or contracts favourable to a Reynke, they might turn anyone into a meal if the hunger and opportunity arise. Of course, they are aware of which individual is expendable and what the potential consequences of murder are, so they pick their killings carefully and arrange them in a way that turns out best for them. However, rumors say that negavian Reynkes are particularly disturbed by recordings of more primitive cannibalism performed by Reynkes who have been travelling through the Felaryan jungles for a prolonged time, as if they independently and commonly grew a strange liking to swallowing their prey whole.
Once the hunt for prey or opponent alike has begun, a Reynke might go great lengths to defeat it and will continuously think of new ways to achieve it. One time they might project a group of predators, chasing the apparently hunted victim into a trap, other times they will lure the victim in with a bait, and sometimes they are strangely content by being the bait themselves, using seduction or the appearance of weakness to isolate and take down their target. To them, even the act of killing or consumption are forms of art and might be performed in a ceremony that makes those acts performed by other species look even more primitive and barbaric than they are per definition. And the smarter the victim deems themself to be, the more fun it will be for a hunting Reynke to prove them wrong...

*drives a steamroller over the article* WRYYYYYY!!!

For my counter offer I wrote:

Being omnivorous, reynkes see anything else that isn't a reynke as potential food. They do not have any preference to eating their prey whole and alive, and anyone who is not related to the reynke is liable to be turned into a meal.

While growing more tails help reynkes develop more magical power, most of them also choose to master different forms of magic. While illusions are universal amongst them, others explore and learn other kinds of magic. Reynke don't believe that any kind of magic is inherently out of reach, and if they did, they'd just find a way around that. Thus, reynke not only study ley lines, demonology, or the elements, but some even experiment with fairy magic or stranger fare. WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH HUNTING?!

The fox people have an ancient tradition called "the Hunt", where an individual (the haughtier the better) is designated as the prey, and a reynke as the hunter. During the Hunt, the hunter will use all his cunningto thwart and take down the prey in the most outlandish possible ways. The hunt may or may not end with their death (and subsequent [or not] consumption), but the point is for the hunter to use their cunning. Thus, sometimes the Hunt requires the hunter to handicap themselves not to use magic or force.

Reynkes who care for hunting beyond this ancient sport tend to consider it an art form, and make a performance of both their stalking and their consumption. Some of them have gained a taste for human flesh, and make it a point of acquiring it even in Negav; getting away with it becomes just a part of the hunt to them. They employ all their cunning and wits to manipulate and charm prey humans, making them disappear without a trace. Some others prefer to plot elaborate traps and ambushes, and a few have adapted to use stealth, speed, knives and poison though such methods are looked down upon by more powerful individuals.

There, now that I've shrunk your article, maybe you can sort it out easier. For starters, you might want to shove the part about magic up there somewhere, because it's not effin' relevant to, you know, hunting habits. Same with the part aboot silver tongues.


Now if you'll excuse me, I 'll go get some brain bleach before I start dreaming of reynkes.

Thank you very much stabs, i think you did a very good job.

I took most of your shortened text and rewrote some of it, and left in some of my old descriptions where I thought that your variation would alter or miss out on important aspects that I dont want to loose. So this would be the finalized version, and I do not see a possibility to make it even shorter without loosing important information. (Sure, one could cut a sentence here or there but there wont be a significant difference thats worth the effort.

Compared to the old version at 5061 words this one carries 3410 which is pretty much exactly 2/3rd of the previous length. I would consider that to be a very reasonable amount, considering the complexity of the species in question and would be happy to see this being embraced into the world of felarya. Most of you know I wrote it with passion

It is interesting that how Reynke, high-magic species, feels surprised at how technology can be as deadly as their magic. Consider how they thirst for knowledge about magic, I guess magi-tech would be a good subject to study about, since it is involves magic : P.

I like it.

Their hunting behavior reminds me really of the classic 'Reinecke Fuchs' written by Goethe in the good old Times - I admire that. This is astoninglishy harmonic Work - phat Respect! It is so full of life - it makes me smile while reading it. And it makes me think of a neat chicken stable raid at night...

I think of something about Kitsune's behavior:

-Like  have mentioned before (the non-shortened version), Kitsune may follow  the path of hard vore, which fits to what stories in various cultures on  Earth that they are man-eaters. In some stories, Kitsune eats people  with strong magical ability to improve their own, shortening the time to  reach enlightenment. In Chinese folklore, an animal who takes thousand  years of training will become a celestial being on the Heaven. There are  animals who follow by hard-training and doing good deeds, while other  eats people with power as a shortcut (that's why animal monsters in  "Journey to the West" want a taste on the monk's flesh). So, I think  that hard vore in Kitsune's culture can be treated as a way to torture  the prey, or a way for them to shorten the traning time, hence faster  rate of tail growth, if they specifically aim at the flesh of powerful  mages. However, such a method of gaining power is dangerous due to the  risk of being killed by the targets who are powerful, being treated as a  cheating way among hard-trained Kitsunes (well, it's like you steal  people's savings money and transfer it to your own account), and, more  importantly, Kitsunes who consume flesh will often become crazed for  power and may lose their mind and become real man-eating monsters.  Also, things that are not jaw-breaking and store magic power inside like fairy wings also interests them.

-With  their natural mastery in illusion magic, I think if they feel want to  eat or threat someone, but do not wish to harm them physically or not  able to, then they will use their magic to make an illusory vore scene.  By putting the prey into a world of illusion where Kitsunes are the  master/mistresse of time and space, the Kitsune can do everything that  vorephile people can think of, no matter how absurb it sounds. Same-size  vore, macro-micro vore, tail vore, etc... Additionally, it is also in  Kitsune's power to make the prey feel like they're in a digesting hell,  or make the digestion a mind-blowing experience of pleasure. If the  Kitsunes feel safe, they may even engage themselves in that world of  illusion by linking their mind to prey, which is often used to  interrogate for information, directly and sadistically torture the prey  or just to have some pleasurable fun. However, the Kitsunes mind-linking  make them more vulnerable to a mind-counterattack from the preys who  suddenly gain a strong resistance again mind-attack, and from external  force attacking the Kitsunes who are immersing themselves in illusion,  so the Kitsune needs to be extra cautious about their preys.  Nevertheless, even if years have past in the illusory world, it may be  that only a few minutes have past in the reality, where the Kistunes and  the prey are seen staring at each other and doing nothing. There will  be no wound inflicted on the prey, except mental wounds: some people who  are trapped in Kitsune's illusion lose their will to resist or become a  slave of illusory pleasure of being eaten. Moreover, this is also  Kitsune's method to check whether the prey's mind is strong enough to  resist their illusnory magic and to resort other plan in case the  illusion fail. And finally, it proves to be more effective to cause fear  on giant predators with weak will and make them run away, rather than  trying to fight them or flee.

After having talked to Karbo, I decided to rewrite the article once more, shortening it one more time and taking into account some of his suggestions about rewriting or rephrasing some sequences. I hope this compromise is now to everyones likings and could be considered the final version. :3




Reynke
(redirected from Kitsune, Kumiho, Reynke)

Reynke are a collection of different subspecies commonly referred to as Reynkes, Redtails, Kitsune, Kumiho or fox-people in general. They appear with a humanoid stature and canine features, hinting at a close relationship to Inus. Their conspecifics are widely known to be especially longliving, smart and cunning, but also cruel individuals.


===Biology===

Common Reynkes stand a little shorter than humans, sporting lean and youthful bodies which are of a weaker build than most humanoid species. Though giant and tiny Reynkes have been spotted on felaryan grounds, their propensity for illusions means such sightings must be taken with a grain of salt. Since their innate rarity often forces Reynkes to carry on their genes in unorthodox ways, such as crossbreeding or the use of magic, their felaryan members have grown quite varied in appearance with notable differences being in their number of tails. Without intense physical training however, a Reynke will always have little strength and endurance.
Their brain and spirit however is highly developed, giving them an intellectual edge over many other species. A Reynkes swift wit, mental power, and their knack for learning are unheard of and aid in their instinctive understanding for the arcane as well as their ability to sense magic to a certain degree, causing Reynkes to be naturally born mages.

Reynkes canine ears sport a fluffy filling to protect their softer tissue. While this reduces their ability to hear quiet noises, it gives them exceptional detail on what they do hear, enabling them to tell the nature or origin of sounds. This also aids in learning about the exact pronounciation of arcane words, where suble differences in height and frequency of the voice may have a great impact on the efficiency of the spell casted.

Another notable feature is their exceptionally fluffy tail or multiple thereof. Reynke tails are not only used as a means for balance and support when moving, to provide warmth in cold environments, but also serve as emitter for their personal scent.
Lastly, Reynke tails also function as magical catalysts, just like a fairy's wings. It is possible for an individual to gain more tails over time as their understanding for magic and arcane power increase, causing one tail to not be sufficient as a magic manipulator anymore. Similar to how a body grows more muscle tissue when the present muscles are unable to handle the stress put onto them, the body will grow more and larger tails. Naturally, just growing a new tail is a much more tedious task than growing more muscles and thus it takes a Reynke many years to accomplish the addition of even one tail.
Due to their mortality, it is very unlikely for a Reynke to grow many more tails in a single lifespan, so usually a combination of controlled breeding, and individual training are used to increase their tail-count.

The growth of a new tail is a slow and extremely painful process that is widely seen as an event of great cultural importance. The culmination of the process is heralded by an intense pain in their aft section as the spine reshapes itself to develop the extra tail. The Reynke in question is expected to endure the pain using nothing but meditation and self-control, as gaining a new tail requires to strengthen the body and mind as well. The entire process is seen as a great honor both for the Reynke and his bloodline as due to their influence on a Reynkes life and their display of their capabilities, tails are seen as an important status symbol. Losing a tail could easily be considered a great disaster to a Reynke. Even if fully healed or regrown they will struggle to use their tails to their previous potential ever again.

Lastly, Reynkes possess scent glands, mostly in their crotch area and around the base of their tails, but with a proportion of them throughout their skin, most notably on their neck, armpits and between the toes.
Reynke permanently radiate a pleasant scent that serves as a means to identify each other, notify of their sexual readiness and attract potential partners. It is generally developed during adolescense and slowly recedes upon entering their old ages.
The arousing scent is not limited to the noses of other Reynkes and other species such as humans are also affected. While a Reynke will permanently radiate a pleasant scent that's barely noticed, higher concentrated doses may actually work similar to aphrodisiacs and drugs, causing prolonged exposure to their scent to result in actual psychic or physical addiction. Its effectiveness varies heavily between different Reynkes though, as many factors such as genes, sexuality, age and size come into play.
Reynkes are aware of that effect on other species and may use it to their advantage if needed, even though some Reynkes try to hide their scent using magic or perfumes because of the dangers inherent in permanently radiating a smell.
Due to the potential trouble coming along with being exposed to a Reynkes scent, simple countermeasures such as circulating air or a simple nose plug may serve humans well; bureaucrats make it a point of wearing the latter when dealing with confirmed Reynkes.


===Reynke Society===

Little is known of Reynkes in Felarya. To them knowledge is power, and thus they are reluctant to share their cultural identity with outsiders. What is known is that they were and most likely still are the dominant species in their homeworld, and take pride in being one of the most intelligent species known to them. They are very proud of their culture and history; every Reynke can look back upon millenia of ancestors, the memory of whose accomplishments they pass on to their children. These tales spur every Reynke to greater accomplishments for the glory of their house and bloodline, and so each new generation shall slowly pave the way to enlightenment, which is what most family branches strive for.

Despite their wisdom and progression, Reynkes have a deeply seated disdain and defiance for technology: while acknowledging its possibilities, they feel offended that devices place such possibilities at anyone's grasp. Believing that true power may only come from within, most Reynkes rarely rely on any technology above simple tools and prefer magic instead. The Reynke who embrace technology would face a small stigma, if it weren't for their universally explicit pragmatism and their desire to leave no boundaries intact: "No limits, anything goes." Their habit of favoring of pragmatism over ethics gave the Reynkes an advantage on their homeworld, and they have not lost any of it since then. They have, however, grown rather conceited and arrogant, often considering themselves superior to other races. In times of war, often the loss of one Reynke to no less than fifty defeated foes was considered a horrible trade. This also shows in their favourite sport called the hunt, where a Reynke will try to kill and devour beings of other species inside an arena. Often pitted against foes of superior strength or size, or given additional handicaps, the original idea is to both sate the Reynkes underlying lust for blood and the display of their races superiority over other species alike. Though the latter might be questionable, given how the fights and rules are arranged by and for the Reynke species and they take great care that the Reynkes sucess is pretty much given with little risk.

As they favor quality over quantity, Reynkes spend a lot of time and energy in mentoring their youth. This results in a low birth rate, and a strong sense of individuality. Their habits and traditions are molded by their immediate family and later refined and altered by themselves, but beyond that, they are loners. Two Reynkes from different families may have very different, perhaps even irreconciliable traditions, and the thought of a mainstream society horrifies them, as does having to adapt to it instead of devoting all their energy to their own cause. This is not a risk in the presence of inferior beings, as the Reynke will only learn their ways if they so intend and thus, prolonged contact to non-reynkes is seen as acceptable though not desireable.

Since Reynkes lack the morals and ethics of other species, they don't know the concept of good and evil in the same way human society does. They have little mercy and are often depicted as especially cruel by other species because of their lack of mental boundaries and the way they even perform killing and eating their prey as a form of art. In fact, a Reynkes' artistic hobbies and professions are often very excentric, yet very well chosen and taken to a level of mastery far beyond mere devotion to an interest. Widely spread forms of art include but are not limited to the mastery of martial arts, calligraphy, music or painting, but also ritualized swordsmanship and archery.

===Reynkes in Felarya===

While the mind and magic have little limitations, a mortal body does. Once Felarya was discovered, it didn't took the Reynkes long to find out about its soil's power to preserve life and age as well as the rumors about artifacts and magicians scattered across this world.
Reynkes choose to come to Felarya for several reasons: the promise of more time to achieve enlightenment is one, but the arcane treasures are as much of a lure to them as to anyone else. Reynkes attach no shame to learning magic from other races, and often try to improve upon what they learn beyond the capabilities of their former, inferior owners. For many Reynke, however, this decision turns out to be a fatal mistake.

Felarya is a dangerous place, even to skilled and smart magicians and many Reynke die during their first week on this dangerous plane, usually vastly underestimating the threats they are pitted against. Their arrogance can quickly lead to their downfall and thus, only a handful of Reynkes survive for a prolonged time within the jungles. Quickly a newly arrived Reynke will realize that the best capabilities and intellect are worth little when they are faced with unseen or gargantuan threats they have only read about in their books. Their scent easily gives them away and their magical signatures are like shining beacons for some predator senses. Given how Reynkes are used to either outsmart, surprise or defeat an opponent with the use of superior magic, their lack of endurance and constitution shows pretty soon. So even though they are skilled enough to fend off a dangerous threat or two, the hazardous jungles might just throw countless more at them, leading to Reynkes expending their ressources very quickly.

Adapting to Felarya often requires Reynkes to drop their arrogance and superiority, which they consider necessary for enlightenment. For that cause, they usually join groups of other species whose strength complements their own. Reluctant at first, some of them discovered that living in human cities such as Negav wasn't so bad after all and offered a lot of new opportunities. They learned to see other species as almost equal, just different, although they would never completely drop their confidence in their superior intellect. Some of the permanent residents find themselves so comfortable with this arrangement that they even take mates outside their race, rather than trying to return to their homeworld. Though the latter is preferrable, some Reynkes find themselves stranded with no way to return, and they consider the need to extend their bloodline to be more important than tending to its purity.

Since the reasons for Reynkes to enter Felarya are numerous, their lives gain different shapes as well. Some may prefer to stay in the safety of a Negavian library, others try to just make a living among the Felaryan society, and even more actively go on a quest to join other magically adept species to learn from them. While many Reynkes are fated to solely learn about the deadly nature of these species' stomachs, others manage to get accepted. There is a small amount of Reynkes living within the Forest of whispers and Fairy kingom, but also the lake of illusions and Miragia Forest are good places to look for them. Most Reynkes however decide to settle with humans, whom they use as aid, guards and sometimes foodsource alike.

Many rumors and mysteries are told about the Reynke species, one commonly being that a Reynke will devour the souls of those they kill, along with their bodies. True or not, the promise of a smart and cunning magician as an ally will outweigh the risks for many foolish adventurers. Those that join with one would best be as certain as possible what the Reynke's intentions are, because dealing with a Reynke always puts oneself in danger. There have been whole groups of adventurers whose last sign of existance faded away upon leaving the city walls alongside a freshly recruited Reynke. However, rejecting a Reynkes' request to join might prove difficuilt if the trickster works their charm and magic on the decisionmaker in question.
If a Reynke plans to accompany a group for longer than just next lunch break, they will most likely strive to become the groups most influential person, either as the leader or as the hidden hand guiding the latter. Their scent is their most powerful tool, making people slowly grow addicted to it. Being an aphrodisiac, it becomes increasingly easy for a Reynke to become the most popular and influential group member and might be able to bend and wrap people around their fingers. If a strong-minded member resist their influence, the reynke will often try to get rid of them, either by disposing of them in some tragic arranged accident or by more subtle means such as having them expelled from the group by turning other member against them.

It is worth mentioning that Reynkes are very vindictive, and never forget an insult or slight. To them, holding a grudge is almost a form of art, and derive great pleasure in finding a fitting punishment for those who wronged them. They don't shy away from causing injury or even death, however, to them, the worst fate one can suffer is to lose what they are. As intellect is held in high regard for Reynkes, they consider losing control of one's mind to be as the greatest punishment. Some especially vindictive individuals engineer such fates for their offenders, turning them into addicts to their scent. After being exposed for long enough, their mind will melt away and they will merely serve as toys and trophies to their new owner, humiliated hulls solely lusting after the scent of their desire while becoming literally incapable of living without it.


===Abilities and Hunting Habits===

Some Reynke prefer not to reveal their true identity, hiding their tails with magic or clothes specifically chosen for that purpose. Others proudly display their species and dwell in their surroundings appreciation, fear or respect. The fact about a Reynke's strength increasing with its numbers of tails is widely known or at least assumed, so some sneaky felaryan Reynkes use the knowledge about their abilities actively in order to fool their surrounding. While they may appear as having more tails than they really possess by the aid of illusionary magic, others would actually reduce their number of visible tails in order to appear weak and vulnerable.
They naturally excel at illusionary magic, but most of them may also choose to master different arcane schools. Thus, some Reynke study and experiment with different arcane arts such as demonology or the elements, even some scattered instances of Reynkes making use of fairy magic are known to exist.
But even without the use of magic a Reynke knows how to get around in felarya by making use of intrigues and manipulation. Some Reynke prefer to plot elaborate traps and ambushes, and a few have adapted to use stealth, speed, poison and a reliable knife rather than on arcane mumbo-jumbo.

Being omnivorous, Reynkes are predatory and never completely cease to look at what isn't a reynke as potential food. They do not see any particular necessity to eating their prey whole and alive, so even a human sized person is liable to be turned into a meal. It is an instinct the Reynke try to hide and supress in order to be accepted in society and to avoid conflicting the Isolon Eye and similar mechanisms of protection, however, deep inside the forest, no one is able to tell if or how long a Reynke may resist their urges, especially when convenient situations or abilities are at hand.
They will employ all their cunning and wits to manipulate and charm prey, making them disappear without a trace. Either way Reynkes try to be aware of which individual is expendable and what the potential consequences of their actions are, so they pick and perform their killings very carefully.