Finfolk

Finfolk are frog-like creatures (although they have the power of shape-shifting), feared for their practice of kidnapping unsuspecting fisherfolk, or frolicking youth, near the shore and forcing them into life long slavery.

They are most dangerous around sunrise or sunset, since they dislike both bright light and complete darkness.


The Finfolk live in an underwater palace of huge crystal halls, filled inside and out with elaborate gardens of multi-coloured seaweed. Tiny, phosphorescent sea creatures ensure that it is never fully light nor fully dark. Its great halls and vast rooms are decorated with curtains which move with the currents, so that they seem like women in long dresses, doing a slow and courtly dance.

The Shallow Ones are descended from Finfolk who, long ago, abandoned their underwater home to live in Teleleli.

Their captives are given the power to breathe water by the Finfolk's magic. In addition to eternal and sunless toil, the Finfolk may use their slaves for magical experiments. These experiments seem to be aimed at changing the captives' appearance to one more pleasing to the Finfolk. But they are rarely successful, and indeed may make the 'problem' worse, so that in addition to disease, madness, deformity or death, the hapless thrall faces the danger of being exiled to wander and die in the silent sea beds. There is minimal hope of escape, and many captives believe themselves to have died and to be in some afterlife of punishment.