Auwaz couatl
Auwaz couatls are the most commonly seen variant of couatl. They roam the oceans of Golarion, helping those lost at sea find safe passage.12
Appearance
Auwaz couatls are winged serpents whose colouring resembles the ocean: their skin is light grey marked with green and light blue, and their blue and green feathers have hints of light yellow. The exact colours depend on the body of water where the individual auwaz couatl lives: each ocean's or sea's resident auwaz couatls have their own colour pattern. The auwaz couatl's wings make the sound of a gentle ocean breeze, and many sailors utter short blessings when encountering such breezes in case an auwaz couatl is nearby. An auwaz couatl is eight feet long with a wingspan of 12 feet and weighs 800 pounds.2
Ecology
Auwaz couatls know the location of all nearby coastal settlements and are happy to inform lost travellers as well so they can return to safety. Suspicious travellers are led astray and followed by the auwaz couatl, who corrects the misinformation if the traveller appears to be good-hearted. Evil ones are pointed to dangerous areas, and auwaz couatls rarely bother to follow them, preferring to let them get lost.2
Auwaz couatls hold some control over the weather, calling upon winds to speed up the passage of lost travellers, or allowing shipwreck survivors to breathe water as they take them to safety. They also use this power to bring perils upon evil travellers, striking them with thunderstorms if necessary.2
The lifespan of auwaz couatls is the shortest among all couatls: they only live as long as humans do. Auwaz couatls reproduce once every few years, laying several eggs each. It is unknown how they know the exact time to gather; it is hypothesised that they read the messages left on the stars by their mix couatl cousins.2
Habitat
Most auwaz couatls live near seas or oceans, except for a small minority who live inland to help those lost in forests or mountains. Young auwaz couatls are sedentary, but once they mature, they start travelling all across Golarion until returning in their final years. Auwaz couatls tend to avoid others of their kind, but gather in packs to protect the young in times of peril, using a particular call audible only to couatls to warn them of dangers.2
Many auwaz couatls take the time to speak to travellers, usually by flying above ships. Most of the time, they ask about current events so they would not accidentally send others into danger, but sometimes these discussions become artistic or philosophical. Some auwaz couatls are fond of comedy and can spend hours telling such stories, especially to children. Many ships fly kites shaped like auwaz couatls, in order to deter pirates, signalling to them that the ship is protected.2
Auwaz couatls see kinship in children's innocence, and are happy to guide distressed children home, even carrying them on their backs if necessary. They take time to speak to children who ran away from home and learn of their reasons; those who fled a troubled life are guided to a new home, while others are encouraged to return while cultivating their wanderlust, and many of them eventually become adventurers when they grow up.2
References
- ↑ Garrett Guillotte, Steven T. Helt, Luis Loza, and Stephen Radney-MacFarland. (2016). Bestiary. For Queen & Empire, p. 86. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-60125-836-6
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Sarah E. Hood, Luis Loza, Jen McTeague, and Mikhail Rekun. (2019). Bestiary. Eulogy for Roslar's Coffer, p. 82–83. Paizo Inc. ISBN 978-1-64078-119-1