Lore
Raven is a Fae Trickster often seen as a glossy black corvid that slips between shadow and sky. In the field it reads like a living punctuation mark: sudden, precise, and full of intent. Smell: a faint ozone-and-oil tang, like rain on iron and the musk of wet feathers. Sound: a gravelly croak that can fold into startling mimicry — snippets of human speech, kettle whistles, or distant bells — layered with sharp clicks and wing-snap punctuation. Temperature: a cool draft follows its passage; its presence chills the air by a breath, as if it borrows the dusk. Observe the feather sheen (iridescent blues and purples in sun), the keen black eye that seems to study stories rather than food, and the habit of collecting bright things in a deliberate scatter.
Origin: Tlingit / Haida (Pacific Northwest Coast) • Northwest Coast
Classification: Fae (Trickster)
Field Notes
Observations
- Uncanny mimicry of a familiar voice or a sudden chorus of metallic clicks; often found near an odd scatter of polished or shiny objects.
Encounter Advice
- mischief: Steals small but significant items (pins, coins, trinkets), imitates loved ones to lead the curious off a path, rearranges campsite gear at dusk, and leaves cryptic tokens — a feather placed on a pillow, a bone cleaned and set upright — as both jest and message.
- interaction: Treat it as a clever negotiator. Speak plainly, never accept a gift without offering something in return, and do not follow when it departs after a mimic; that is often the bait. Give a small, honest offering (a polished pebble, a sliver of cured fish, a bright bead) and watch for a single exchange — raven bargains in tidy, immediate trades. Maintain good humor; flattery and riddles may amuse it, outright anger will earn only mischief.
- offering: Polished small trinkets, cured fish or salted meat, bright beads or a neat knot of ribbon.
Abilities
- Sun & Fire TheftSeizes or conceals celestial lights (sun, moon, stars, or fire) and can release or hide them to reshape day, night, and fortune.
- Shapeshift GuiseAssumes human and animal forms flawlessly to deceive, bargain, or infiltrate households and councils.
- Song of MisdirectionSings or speaks words that sow confusion, laughter, or distraction, bending attention and social order for a decisive moment.
Weaknesses
- Bound by BargainA clear oath or negotiated exchange forces Raven to return stolen lights or undo mischief, even against its will.
- Outwitted by CraftClever human cunning, crafted traps, or communal ritual strategy can trick, trap, or embarrass Raven and strip its advantage.
Lore Check: RavenQuestion 1/12