Wallaran Spirit

These spirits dwell only in the dream realm, the place sleepers sometimes reach in dreams so vivid they feel real, and they never enter the waking world. They take the shapes of animals from the wide southern grasslands, the wallaras' homeland, and speak straight to the dreaming mind, even of those who are not wallaras. Of the many kinds, three are most common.

The kangaroo is usually gray or dull red, timid by nature but dangerous when roused, boxing with its forepaws and slashing with its mighty hind legs while its thick tail props and balances it. The koala, up to about two and a half feet long, is stout, round-headed and nearly tailless, with thick ash-gray fur, short legs and big feet. It lives high in one kind of eucalyptus, eating only its leaves and flowers, often stays in one tree for days, and will not let go even when dying. The kookaburra is a chunky gray kingfisher about 18 inches long whose raucous call earned it the nickname laughing jackass; it eats large insects, mice, snakes and small birds more than fish.

Fighting one is possible in theory and hopeless in practice, since only dreamers can meet them and they rule dream reality. An attacker may find the spirit gone, or his weapon turned into a eucalyptus leaf or a piece of fruit. About 95% of spells cast against one simply fail. Only magical weapons physically present in the dream realm can hit it, and since a dreamer carries mere reflections of his gear, the party would need to travel there bodily.

Over any visitor the spirit has the power of an 18th-level mage, casting at will with no components or casting time. It rarely uses harmful spells; a violent foe is more likely turned by polymorph other into some harmless, peaceful animal. A peaceful dream encounter is worth 1,000 XP, while fighting one earns none.

Wallaras believe in two worlds, waking and dreaming, and are unsure which is more real. The spirits appear only in the deepest dreams, offer a riddle, rhyme, vision or veiled hint, and vanish when something rustles in the dream brush. They usually leave a token behind in the waking world to prove the dream true: a feather, a eucalyptus leaf, a pinch of sand.

All wallaras who share a totem see themselves as a family, so all kangaroo wallaras are brothers. Most see their guide twice in life, on walkabout and near death, receiving counsel or comfort each time. Their priests meet their guides often and treat them as companions, helpers and teachers.

Kangaroo wallaras are the closest thing to warriors among this peaceful folk, quick to act and thought rash by their kin. Koala wallaras are steady, loyal, peaceable and thoughtful, and mostly provide the community's food. Kookaburra wallaras have a double nature: they are the tricksters and jokers, as sly as wallaras get, outgoing and often the ones who deal with strangers. They also raise the children, taking that duty so seriously that they never abandon a child, and join the kangaroo wallaras to defend the village when needed.

No wallara may kill, eat, harm or even touch the animal of his own guide, a taboo that protects those species. Legend says the wallaras were once wise and mighty and walked with the gods, and the spirits may be some of those ancients trying to help their fallen descendants.