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Archives of Nethys

Archives of Nethys

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Thatchling

Source Pathfinder #196: The Summer That Never Was pg. 88
In rural Shenmen, some branches of Sangpotshi warn of what can happen if a soul bound for reincarnation is prevented from entering the River of Souls and rejoining the cycle. These souls become frustrated, confused, and then furious at what they feel is a denial of the body they deserve, and in turn, they force vegetation to serve as their new body. Others theorize that when a body is buried in a shallow grave, the roots of grass growing down into the remains can tangle the soul and capture it.

Thatchlings are intelligent and capable of speaking but rarely do so— they generally have little to say to those whose lives they covet. Rarely, one might attempt to lure someone into an area of tall grass or dense undergrowth by calling out to them for aid, but they have little skill at deception, so such tactics aren't particularly effective at making them seem like actual living creatures in need of help.

Members

Red-Hooded Thatchling (Creature 2), Thatchling (Creature 0)

Sidebar - Additional Lore Forever Senseless

The thatchling's curse robs the sense of direction from those it falls upon, leading to a whole category of insults in Shenmen that compare someone's ability to get something done to “a thatchling's sense.” For example, someone who has a hard time making friends might be said to have “a thatchling's sense of friendship,” while someone who constantly ruins meals might be said to have “a thatchling's kitchen sense.”

Sidebar - Advice and Rules Old Friends

The source of Willowshore's thatchlings is the simple fact that the souls who would normally have been reincarnated upon death can't do so, thus rising as thatchlings. Of course, since each year “resets” things, those who died during the year and became thatchlings are reborn alive once more on every first day of summer, with no memories of their previous doomed existence. While still driven by instinct to attack the living, Willowshore's thatchlings do feel a sense of remorse—if the GM judges it especially appropriate, they might take a –2 circumstance penalty to attack rolls and saving throws against creatures they knew in life.