Monster
From Mizahar Lore
A monster is any creature that is not considered to be part of a race; even though they may be sentient, they either do not form cultures or are utterly incompatible with the races of Mizahar. Monsters are often dangerous and hostile to the people of the land, and they differ greatly in abilities and intelligence.
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Overview
There was a time in Mizahar's history when the continent was entirely populated by "monsters". Of course, this was the label that the early Humans gave them upon arriving on the shores of Mizahar. Powerful, exotic creatures with equally strange and violent habits that were entirely alien to mankind, they could be nothing but monsters. Forced to fight for territory and survival, people eventually succeeded in pushing back the monsters with help from the gods.
The importance of monsters gradually dwindled, until they stopped being a matter of everyday survival and were reduced to hazards for the unwary traveler straying from the main path, fairytale fodder that was more often talked about than actually seen in person. The horrors of civilized warfare replaced those of the monsters' magic and claws, and the races of Mizahar thought they were the sole owners of the land - even though the monsters had been there first and were merely defending their own territories.
The Valterrian was the unexpected cataclysm that changed the status quo, plunging the races back into an era where the monsters were a force to be reckoned with. By this time, the creatures labelled as monsters had changed considerably; only a minority of the creatures from mankind's early days still survived, but many more had evolved or had been created by the meddling of the gods, and in some cases because of men themselves. The Valterrian generated monsters of its own, and destroyed those that were too weak to live, much like it did with the civilized races.
Classification
While monsters in Mizahar are extremely diverse, they can be divided into a few broad categories.
Relics
Relics are the monsters faced by the early Humans when they started to colonize Mizahar. These monsters are older than any known race and are rare nowadays, though they are, without a doubt, among the most powerful. It took mankind many millennia - fighting as a united front and investing all of their resources - to drive them into near-extinction. Relics are as alien as it gets; their bodies, their minds, their souls have very little in common with the organisms seen in everyday life. They generally do not age, and their colonies are very small. In many cases, a Relic is the only one of its kind still existing in Mizahar. Their way of using magic and Djed is just as bizarre and dangerous as their appearance.
To the Relics, civilized races and especially the Humans are evil invaders who brought unprovoked war to their lands. They view people as monsters and will hunt them down as mercilessly as they are hunted down. Their intelligence is high, but their thought processes are completely different from those of Mizahar's races.
Fauna and Flora
Sometimes, animals and plants become dangerous enough to be considered monsters, especially if they acquire unsettling traits or if they evolve from existing, more normal animals. Gigantism is the most common mutation that can affect a wild animal species, turning them bigger and more feral than their usual counterpart.