The horr

Horr aren't normally mentioned in singular, because there seem to be no individual swimmers among them. The gigantic sea beasts instead only appear as swarms, or more specifically, as one swarm, so large it would emcompass an entire continent if they swam in a line. A horr is far over a hundred meters long, has four flippers and four eyes and thus is able to see below and above him. They are dark greyish blue in colour, with a dull red stripe on the side.

"That was a day to remember, when the horr pushed themselves into the fleet parade and dwarfed the ships that had seemed majestic and huge moments before. They are given their own holiday now, and seem to greatly enjoy the attention; they even take a small detour to come by our coast."
— Ordjugral, Sawan

The horr swarm is not very well researched. Their enormous size makes it difficult to get close; while horr are quite gentle creatures, they go about their business trusting that smaller things (like ships) will make way. They seem to like the Summerstar Isles in southeast Ryaq, and are said to know paths between oceans not known to mankind. Horr are not hunted. Aside from the incredible effort it takes, the last time a horr was killed in Lozir, the swarm stayed away for a Great Quarter and with it, most other sealife as well.


Artists' notes
Whales have always held great fascination for me, and never cease to amaze me with their intelligence and integrity. Horr are my chance of mystery on top of it. Because they're so difficult to travel and opportunities so different, many fantasy worlds leave out great parts of the sea, but I intend to give Genius Loci a lot of ocean adventures as well.

The mul'ahman

The mul'ahman, or diggers, are a species that is very quiet and barely ever noticed, and they're fine with that. A mul'ahman is a stocky person averaging 1,50m in height, covered in dark brown to black, velvety fur with small eyes and lots of white whiskers. Their shoulders and arms are very muscular, their clumsy fingers make shovels, and indeed diggers do dig surprisingly fast. Not being too good with colours, their clothes come in trademark earthen tones.

"They are gentle, well-mannered, peaceful, and value musical instruments over weapons. We wish we could convince more to come to us as sappeurs; still, Mul'geranan is probably our best neighbour. Sadly, it is also our shortest border."
— Diramanashka, Brightholder

The diggers' most known settlement is the state Mul'geranan in southern Sawa, where the underground dwellers live undisturbed; unlike other species, they show little interest in other folk. Because of their small numbers, they are left to their own devices, but enjoy company when given the chance.

"It has long been discussed if we should invite above-grounders to live with us, but we fear our love of slowness might be to our disadvantage, and so we keep discussing. Slowly."
— Nambi, mul'ahman

Artists' notes
These guys are just so nice. I don't even have anything planned for them yet. One might think such a calm people among all the rowdy neighbours of Brighthold would be in constant danger, but because of their peacefulness, Brighthold keeps them safe. I considered throwing them out several times, because they're so literally anthropomorphic, but I looked around my species and let it slide.
Now, this is probably really the last species in Genius Loci, although I won't promise there aren't any living in the far mountains or the deep south or wherever.

Art on deviantArt: Curse, Starmaker squared, and Agorisai

More art published on deviantArt: Curses, also described in a blog article, Starmaker - the avatar of the Area - and the city of Agorisai, that recently had its blog article published.