Shakahar
15th October 2006
Shakahar are humanoids with the facial (and possibly some other) characteristics of a particular animal. Generally, one who is familiar with the animal will have no trouble identifying which type of animal the shakahar takes after.
In Nehra, there are shakahar for nearly every animal found there although shakahar are few in number. Shakahar vary slightly in size compared to the animals they take after. For example, a mongoose shakahar will be 6 or 7 stone, only slightly smaller than a wood elf, while a leopard shakahar might be 15-18 stone (210-252 pounds), larger than many well-built humans. In turn, the leopard shakahar would be smaller than an elephant shakahar; these shakahar could reach 25 stone or 350 pounds.
Shakahar tend to share some physical characteristics with the animal they take after. A viper shakahar will be very quick; an elephant shakahar will be very strong.
Shakahar do not form communities, possibly because they are so few in number. In Nehra, shakahar often live alone in the wilderness cooperating with animals of the type they take after and wood elves from the clan named after the animal. For example a mongoose shakahar may live alone in the wilderness, spend significant time with the mongoose wood elf clan, and spend time with actual mongooses in the wild.
Shakahar have been known to mate with humans and elves, but never with a shakahar that takes after a different animal.
As with all races, the mystery of the first shakahar, or how the race came to be, is a mystery. In Nehra it is said that the Silver Dragon known as Sand is in some way responsible. The magic that she wove to protect Nehra’s elves from the monster races may have imbued the land with enchantments that allowed the tribe’s representative animals to take on humanoid form. It is said that only one shakahar taking after a specific animal exists at one time, lending support to the theory that shakahar are humanoid aspects of elven tribe’s representative animals. However, there are shakahar outside of Nehra, something which this theory simply does not explain.