Unicorns

Unicorns in general are horse-like creatures that feature a single sharp horn on their foreheads. They are mainly herbivores, but there are differences between the breeds' diets.

Common unicorns

Unicorn Etchings.

Common unicorns are ill-tempered animals, distinguished by their gray or greenish hides. Unlike their benevolent cousins, the horns of common unicorns tend to be bent or curved. They stand about four feet tall. Although commonly supposed to be stupid, evidence such as unicorn cave paintings suggests that the creatures are far from unintelligent.

They are known as vicious, annoying pests on the surface, where their speed, pugnaciousness, and high birth rate has allowed them to endure the Empire's attempts at the Extermination of Non-Humans better than many other races.

Common unicorn names

• Benthorn the Vile

White unicorns

White unicorns are a very rare breed. Unlike their common cousins, they are peaceful, benevolent, and imbued with powerful magic. These good unicorns carry the living embodiment of nature wherever they go. Where unicorns live, grass will grow, because they will it -- even underground. Nonetheless, white unicorns prefer to live on the surface.

The benevolent unicorns bear an aura of serenity, much like a dragon bears an aura of awe: simply being in the presence of a unicorn has been reported to have brought feelings of warmth. The white unicorns' magical aura is centered within the unicorn's horn. To their kind, the horn is sacred, and a white unicorn cannot be laid to rest without it. To others, however, the horn is a much-sought after magical reagent of some power. Unicorns, and their horns, have powerful healing properties that are magical in nature.

Consequently, because of their intensely magical nature, the white unicorns were hunted especially fiercely by the Empire. Many have been slain or forced into hiding; thus, white unicorns are among the most rarified of all races, second only to dragons. Yet the slaughter of one comes often at a steep price, as the killer of a white unicorn gets branded with a permanent curse, rendering them much more suspectible to magic.

White unicorn names

• Handi
• Aetherius
• Aeliopol
• Aeriassa
• Aessoforus