The folidotas (foe-lee-DOE-tuhz) are a rarely mentioned and even less frequently seen form of mamano. A folidota is covered in large, overlapping scales covering her head, back, legs and feet ranging in color from light to dark browns. Their keratin scales not only offer great protection, they provide excellent camouflage as well. This camouflage is most useful, as folidotas tend to be solitary; they prefer to keep their own company and keep interaction with other mamano to a bare minimum. Folidotas are among the more diminutive mamano, rarely exceeding a height of 165 cm, and are said to be physically only slightly stronger than a moderately trained human. Folidotas prefer to live in forested environments where they dig burrows deep into the earth or beneath the roots of large trees.
When the scholar Lucile van Kant developed the fourth iteration of her report on the demographic distribution of mamano across the continent neither she nor her aides came across a single account of a folidota having been seen over the past 50 years. This lead her to categorize them as presumed extinct, only to be proven wrong when one came to live in a small hamlet near the deep woods of Elizabeth. Her mate had convinced her that life in the forest was a bit too solitary for him.
The folidotas’ elusive and solitary nature produces a predictable conundrum. They prefer to have a man all to themselves and will be loathe to enter into any kind of arrangement that entails sharing a partner with another mamano. When they do come across a man in their isolated parts of the woods they will attempt to convince him of the benefits of living with her, as she is well accustomed to her environment and will not struggle to support them both -- he would have to get used to a diet of small animals and insects, however. As this man gets used to his new life he will eventually take on the role of protector and provider, as folidotas have an uncanny ability to evoke a protective instinct in men. When it comes to initiating intimacy the man will most likely need to step up to the plate, as most folidotas’ shy nature will lead them to have difficulty doing so themselves. Though there are few accounts, it is said that a man might find great enjoyment from a folidota’s long tongue.
Name That Mamono: Polly
Polly is nearly 200 years old and can proudly say that, aside from her mother and father, she has only four times interacted with other sapient creatures. She would have dearly liked to add a fifth to the list, but the man she came across a week prior had been snatched up by a harpy while she was hiding nearby debating the best way to approach him. She told herself that he seemed the social type in any case and would have been a bad fit for her. Polly dreams of one day meeting a man who is just as averse to social interaction as she herself is, but she recognizes the need for patience. The center of the deep woods is not a place where one should expect to meet many people. That was, after all, the reason she lived there.
Polly likes to spend her days curled up in her cozy burrow-home and is out and about most nights to hunt for small rodents, rabbits and tasty insects. It’s as simple a life as it gets, and that’s just how Polly likes it.
GOLTHIAR
Family: Alraune
Type: Plant
Habitat: Forests, jungles, swamps
Disposition: Gregarious, single-minded, lustful
Diet: Sunlight, water, and nutrients from the soil; spirit energy
The golthiar (GOAL-thee-arr) is a rare kind of mobile alraune. Their skin is soft and pliable like grass while their hair is leafy. Golthiar average about two meters tall with willowy builds, but they're not hothouse flowers. The golthiar are soldiers, and they take their duties seriously.
As plants golthiar don't -- indeed, can't -- eat solid food. Instead they root themselves in the ground while they sleep in order to derive nutrients from the soil. They require plenty of water (more than humans need) and at least two hours of sunlight each day to remain healthy. They are also vulnerable to cold. Like ordinary plants they breathe carbon dioxide and exhale oxygen. Most golthiar adore kissing, and thanks to the ability of a golthiar and a non-plant humanoid to supply each other with the gases they breathe they can go a long time without coming up for air. Their skin is resilient enough to act as light armor, and their strength is roughly equal to that of lizardmen. Golthiar vision extends into the ultraviolet; they have excellent low-light vision and can discern far more colors than humans can. Their sense of smell is superior to that of the werewolf family. While surprisingly fast and agile for plants golthiar capability in this area is inferior to that of an athletic human.
Golthiar have the unusual ability to perform reverse photosynthesis. They can communicate via light pulses, sometimes in frequencies that humans and most other mamono can't see. They can also project blinding flashes or even searing beams of light (but not true lasers) as a means of offense, but overusing this ability rapidly depletes their reserves. An experienced golthiar can emit rangefinding pulses that allow her to judge distance and windage with great accuracy. This ability makes them some of the best archers in the world.
Golthiars' instinctive grasp of small unit tactics makes a sibling squad -- called a grove -- a frighteningly effective team. Many groves support themselves with mercenary work, but they sometimes turn to banditry. Nor are the two mutually exclusive. Golthiar often patrol the wilderness seeking lost humans, and any human found by such a patrol might be drafted into marriage. Golthiar have no problem sharing with their squad mates, but any other mamono will have to earn the grove's trust or she'll have a fight on her hands.
Golthiar reproduce by bearing fruits that, after nine months, fall off and bloom into tiny copies of their mothers. The rare golthiar futanari have both pistils and stamens and are equally able to be "pollinated" by human men or "pollinate" human women. A futa golthiar's human wife drops a seedpod instead of giving live birth, and the babies burst from the seeds up to an hour later. Either way a typical birth yields four to six sprouts. If multiple members of a grove bear fruit at the same time the newborn groves may join together into a larger group called a copse. Having such numbers creates a fighting force that even adult mamono would be wise to avoid, and when fully grown a copse of golthiar is truly a force to be reckoned with.
Name That Mamono: Licaria (lie-CARE-ee-uh)
At 190 cm (6’ 2”) Licaria is an intimidating specimen, and she doesn’t hesitate to take advantage of that fact. She hasn’t lost her grove, exactly. She knows where they are, she just can't get to them. She insists that she and her sisters are innocent of the crimes that landed them in prison in that dwarf city. Carrie and her grove aren't bandits, they just “borrow” things from time to time. As for the escape attempt, it was sheer luck that Licaria made it out when her three sisters were recaptured. Her mission now is to spring her grove from jail and get them all far away from that city. She could really use some help, though... and she wouldn’t mind if that help is cute.
tygertygerJul 25, 2022 8:36 AM
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