Hai nu

Hai nu were a race of sentient aquatic creatures native to Kara-Tur.

Description
Hai nu were lean yet strong humanoids. Their body was covered in a fine fur in alternating shades of blue, green and yellow. Their hands and feet were webbed, and they had short claws at the end of their fingers and toes. Hai nu had a row of gills extending down both sides of their neck. Their eye sockets were encircled with a bony ridge.

Combat
Hai nu were peaceful and preferred solitude, rarely engaging in combat. But this did not mean they were weak and easy targets. They zealously defended their homes and territory from attack. They preferred to avoid direct confrontation, instead they used subtle means to discourage trespassers. Hai nu fought in groups, and often coordinated with their animal allies such as porpoises, sharks and whales. They were often armed with tridents, spearguns and short swords. Hai nu and their allies encircled their opponents and attacked from all sides at once.

Hai nu gave their opponents an opportunity to surrender, and if accepted, allowed them to leave. But they demanded an oath that they never returned. If their opponent violated this oath, hai nu attacked without mercy and left no prisoners. As a last desperate resort, hai nu may petition the Sea Lord for assistance. If Sea Lord intervened, it was often by summoning a massive storm or sending a tun mi lung dragon. Hai nu were immune to all water-based spells, but vulnerable to cold and fire-based spells.

Society
Hai nu society was organized into tribes called schools. These schools were matriarchal and typically consisted of four to forty mature hai nu, 75% of which were female. A school is lead by a matron. Hai nu had a close relationship with the Sea Lord. Sometimes a school lived together with sea spirit folk.

They lived in the warm, shallow seas surrounding Kara-Tur. They were commonly found in Kozakura, along the northwestern coast of the island of Hinomoto and the southwestern coast of Shinkoku. They made their villages in forests of thick seaweed, or in the hull of a sunken ship.

Hai nu were infatuated with treasure, particularly gems and statues. They salvaged treasure from the hulks of sunken ships. Half of everything they found was dropped into crevasses as an offering to the Sea Lord.

Ecology
Female hai nu give birth roughly every two years, laying up to a dozen eggs in a spawn. Only half of these eggs were fertile. A young hai nu was very vulnerable to predation due to their small size and until their reached maturity, they remained close to their mother. A female hai nu defended their offspring vigorously, even to the death. A hai nu typically reached maturity in three years.

The diet of a hai nu was varied. They ate crabs, fish, oysters, seaweed and other marine life. Hai nu were able to breathe for short periods outside of water.