Humanoids
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Vampire
"Blood-thirsty beasts that masquerade as average people, vampires are a danger lurking in plain sight. They have fangs an inch long at least and can travel across a room in the blink of an eye. Purportedly vampires can communicate with one another without ever uttering a single word though this may be paranoid hearsay. Those who have witnessed encounters claim victims seem unnaturally at ease around the monsters."
Vampires can go an impressively long time without feeding if given an adequate meal. Though capable of draining a body dry, they can last nearly a month before hunger overrules their faculties. Animal blood works as well albeit at half the efficiency. Each vampire shares similar traits - Anti-coagulants in their fangs, a common language, and visual sensitivity to sunlight. More advanced specimens can take a bat-like morph.
✧ +1 Perception, +1 Agility ✧
Doppelganger
"The Doppelganger is the epitome of deceitful scum, a shape-shifting menace that crawls through human society like a parasite. It masquerades as an ordinary person but is capable of transforming into anyone it has laid eyes on, making it a master of infiltration and betrayal. There’s no knowing who it might be lurking as, or how many live among us, making it a dangerous, undetectable threat in every corner."
Doppelganger accounts are unreliable as most go undetected or evade capture. The number sent to Eden is significantly lower when compared with other occults for this very reason. Doppels have a true form - one they are born with - but can lose touch with it over time. Similarly, taking on an identity for too long will lead to loss of the real self. Older cases, rare as they are, are at risk of memory impairment diseases such as dementia.
✧ +1 Perception, +1 Endurance ✧
Dryad
"Despite the peaceful ideal old folklore establishes, the nymph's absolute control over nature is a rising concern. Hiding among the trees, it's said they whisk away hikers and mountaineers to unknown realms. An angered dryad will suck life from its domain until the area is no longer habitable. When pestilence and infestation come to pass, the dryad is guilty in its exemption."
The earliest signs of a dryad are being sickly as children and a sensitivity to environmental changes. Once their powers manifest, often as young as 10, the opposite appears to become true. Their unique connection to nature makes the dryad almost immune to all forms of sickness. This is not limited to themselves either as they can supposedly purge illness and heal others with a simple touch. Their magic revolves around everything living.
✧ +1 Strength, +1 Mana ✧
Warlock
"Mages who have lost their sensibilities. A warlock has made a pact with a specter, be it through trickery or a misguided lust for power. Their magic is inherently tied to the pact-mate and it's this unnatural bond that warps their arcane energy. Warlock magic is tainted to the core, having to do with darkness and other offensive elements. Specter bonds can range from sibling-like to romantic to a violent hatred that brings the deal to a grim end."
There are many reasons a Warlock will enter into a pact, and not all are a consequence of deceit, nor are many misguided. A pact is a form of symbiotic relationship that grants a mage access to a unique skill set as the nature of their magic changes. However, a lack of understanding has laid waist to Warlock's reputation. Devilish, corrupted magic, they say.
✧ +2 Mana ✧
Mage
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Perhaps the most human of the occults. Mages are those born with an innate ability to channel their magic. Oftentimes this is related natural elements such as fire, water, earth, and so on but their arsenal is usually limited to one or two. Their restriction is presumably a consequence of having no true access to magical studies. A mage's ability to reason shouldn’t be cause to lower your guard—Power backfires have proven to be exceptionally dangerous.
✧ +2 Mana ✧
Spectres
Ghosts, spirits, and other lost souls.
Demon
"Demons are often regarded as entities that have fallen from grace or as beings from realms beyond mortal comprehension. Ancient texts describe them as manifestations of primal chaos and dark desires. They are sometimes bound by ancient contracts or curses, and their influence is said to be a sign of a world in peril or a prophecy of doom."
Demons are an incident of specters that don't need to die for their magic to emerge. These occults were widely used as a scapegoat for the actions of others prior to more in-depth classification. Contrasting their dated portrayals, the demon is compelled by a need to care for and serve. They pact to find purpose and fulfillment, but non-occults are unable to withstand these bonds long. Recent theories suggest that historical protector roles - Such as knights - Attracted demonic entities.
✧ +1 Strength, +1 Perception ✧
Poltergeist
"Poltergeists are the remains of those who died under extreme anguish or betrayal. These tormented souls, bound by their unfulfilled vengeance, are driven to inflict their pain upon the living as they search for a body to inhabit. Their spectral forms are often shrouded in swirling mist, and their eyes burn with an unnatural blue fire. "
Poltergeists are unrealized occults who pass before their magic has a manner of solidifying. It is common for them to recall feeling cold while alive. Once this individual has died, they become eternal energy stranded in a timeless limbo. Only capable of interacting with our plane via misconstrued "hauntings," the poltergeist seeks to make a pact so that it can be given form again. Pacts with non-occults cause adverse reactions in the non-magical partner.
✧ +1 Endurance, +1 Mana ✧
Banshee
"Wailing spirits that bring death wherever they're sighted, even the oldest stories herald the accursed banshee as a bad omen. Bearing witness to one means that somebody close to you will die. Merely crossing paths will seal a fate in the coming days. Their piercing screams can be heard from miles away, loud enough to drive mourners deaf and bother the recently deceased with tormenting unrest."
Tragically, the banshee will know it's going to die before it does. In life they are perceived as anxious, sometimes paranoid, people who are haunted by ambiguous visions and dreams revolving around early demises - Theirs in particular. The condition is apparently hereditary and quite persistent in family trees. Most die young. Departed banshees are tied to an item and can't stray far from it but they do function independently of pacts as a result.
✧ +1 Endurance, +1 Agility ✧
Hybrids
Between humanoids and polymorphs, hybrids have a difficult time hiding their true identities. Historical depictions often paint them in a mythological or divine light due to their obvious natures. While some can change their forms, a hybrid can never pass as fully human or completely shift into an animal.
Harpy
"Beware bird-crossed monstrosities - Angels do not walk among us despite what you may have heard on the news. While a harpy can indeed wield light itself this shouldn't be mistaken as God's will. These predators are inclined to mislead the faithful, drawing men to isolation before calling a storm to sweep their prey away. Children should be monitored at all times lest a harpy carry them off."
Anyone who takes on avian attributes falls beneath the harpy umbrella. Ranging from simple winged folk to more birdlike embodiments, it's commonly understood that most unidentified harpies do not learn to fly as a consequence of lacking resources and mentorship. Those who come into contact with a harpy usually describe its voice as "soothing" which may be an intrinsic trait.
✧ +1 Perception, +1 Endurance ✧
Minotaur
"The Minotaur, a fearsome beast from ancient myth, stands as a nightmarish fusion of man and bull. Towering over most humans at nearly ten feet in height, its massive, muscular frame is covered in thick, dark fur. Its head is unmistakably bovine, with sharp, curved horns that can gore an enemy with terrifying force. The Minotaur’s eyes gleam with a feral intelligence, and its roar can shake the very earth."
Traditionally “minotaur” has been reserved for bull-men. Modern adaptations however have begun to use it as a blanket term for all occults that possess comparable traits, essentially absorbing fauns, satyrs, and similar into the category. Minotaurs are typically identified by the presence of ears, tails, and the unmissable horns sprouting from their crowns. Those with hooved legs are more easily discernable and often go to Eden quite young.
✧ +1 Strength, +1 Endurance ✧
Merfolk
"Most sailors' got a tale about songs, er screams, er a lady's voice from the deep. Being at sea long enough will mess with yer head, but even the drunkest idiots know not to go gettin' nosy. Though now and again, I seen ships tugged into the harbor, hull rotting from the salt and sails tangled in its own ropes. No cap'n, no crew, but rottin' crab in the nets and pictures of wives in the bunks. Makes ya wonder what else they be hearin'."
Although nearly indistinguishable from their kelpie ancestor while in their human form, Merfolk have evolved to align more closely with humans to lure their prey more easily. In doing so, they'd also adopted passing traits such as the ability to digest plants and are one of the few occults that're able to create small, flourishing communities outside of Eden. That said, Merfolk range more broadly than the accounts of fair-skinned maidens basking on rocks. Traits of many different types of sea creatures can be found among them, and gills are considered rare and desirable features compared to lungs.
✧ +1 Agility, +1 Mana ✧
Polymorph
Polymorphs have the ability to shift between human and creature. These changed forms vary from person to person, though individuals have been known to have multiple on occassion. Additional abilities reflect their animal counterpart to some degree and may be used regardless of present body.
Werewolf
"Afflicted by an unquenchable hunger for innocent meat, you'd expect these beasts to keep to the wilderness. Instead, they prowl in plain sight, disguised as the ordinary people you pass every single day, only to be exposed for their true nature when the full moon reaches its peak. It's best to get inside before dusk, because your only savior is the rising sun."
Werewolves are among the most common occults banished to Eden, and often as young children. As an old-world mutation, their magic is volatile and violent from its early genesis, and comes on without warning leaving a dormant occult especially vulnerable to exposure. These episodes don't always follow in accordance to the lunar calendar, and the susceptibility to the moon's influence varies from one wolf to the other, but a full moon will put even the most stable lycanthrope on edge.
✧ +1 Strength, +1 Perception ✧
Basilisk
"The Basilisk is said to be a creation born from the darkest of sorceries, a monstrous blend of serpent and dragon meant to guard ancient, forgotten secrets. Tales recount that the Basilisk’s gaze was a gift—or curse—bestowed by a malevolent deity, turning the creature into a living embodiment of petrification. Ancient texts and local legends suggest that only those who can outwit or overpower the Basilisk can hope to uncover the secrets it guards."
Basilisks are reptilian polymorphs. The most prevalent of which change into large serpents, though the limitation extends to other forms including crocodilians, monitors, and rarer draconian shifts. Some possess regenerative properties like those seen in lizards. Venoms and poisons are non-lethal to the average adult, and their stare can be equally potent.
✧ +1 Perception, +1 Agility ✧
Unicorn
"Unicorns are wondrous creatures. They're quite beautiful, and humble when told so. To befriend one - or capture it - will bring good tidings for whoever has put in the effort. Unicorns grant wishes and bestow fortune, things a person would not want to share. Yet to anger one without having control over it saps the luck from your life. It would be a slight easier to just take the horn."
The name brings to mind a white horse with an ivory horn. However reports dispute their monolithic color and very rarely are the horns immaculate. Out of all polymorphs, a unicorn's human appearance is the most convincing yet the vast majority are not taken in as people. Firsthand accounts will use the same breath to admire their majesty and bemoan their bad attitudes.
✧ +1 Agility, +1 Mana ✧
Kelpie
"The kelpie's transformation is a gruesome shedding of its hide as it changes from body to body. Locating these evasive shapeshifters is both a difficult and dangerous undertaking. They will hide near water sources, appearing invisible to the naked eye, then drag people under attempting to drown them. The very presence of a kelpie will taint any river or pond, ravaging the ecosystem from within."
Kelpie is a branching term used for any polymorph with aquatic traits. Traditionally they take the shape of horses and seals. This is of course the norm, not the unequivocal rule. Shifts always embody the kelpie's nature to a degree - Unusual scales, kelp in the hair, a fish's tail - But are either mammalian or amphibious. Animal forms are rather ordinary in the realm of polymorphs, but it has been alleged that a skilled kelpie can use multiple.
✧ +1 Endurance, +1 Mana ✧