Oáxémak

The Oáxémak /ɔ.aɪ.ɕe.mɑk/ is a mythical creature rumored to exist in traditional Lo'Oix mythology and folk beliefs. The creature is often said to be a malevolent spirit conjured in a desperate attempt to win a war by an ancient peoples inhabiting Serrona. It takes the form of a humanoid with many ungulate-like characteristics such as leg anatomy including hooves and a skull on its head often compared to that of deer with antler-like protrusions coming forth from it.

According to folk legends the Oáxémak is able to take the form of various animals or villagers and make the sounds of these creatures to lure in prey.

Etymology
The name of the creature is derivative from the Lo'Oi language and literally translates to "he-who-mimics", in reference to the hunting behaviors rumored of the legendary beast.

Hunting Behaviors
Prior to an assault on a person, the Oáxémak will take the form of livestock or villagers and make constant noise in order to lure in possible prey. It is believed that their antler-like protrusions that come from their skull are not practical in terms of physical usage but instead are used to funnel wind, acting like a kind of massive woodwind instrument that projects the mimicking noises the creature will make for miles.

Once feasible prey is drawn near from the sounds it produces it will rapidly change form, eyewitnesses report it literally or metaphorically tearing out from the skin of the animal it is mimicking and leaving a shed 'husk' behind. The Oáxémak is capable of quick movements, darting towards its unlucky prey with rapid speed and using its claws to inflict melee damage.

According to legend, if prey manages to escape the Oáxémak with distance or height, the creature will let out high pitch bellowing screeches that can produce residual damage to those who hear it, possibly inflicting deafness, blindness, or nausea. In game this may be present in the form of debuffs like Hunger or perhaps even the Powder Snow effect. The creature is said to be relatively fragile in terms of physical brute but nonetheless is an incredibly difficult beast to defeat in legend as a result of its fast-paced supernatural movements and incredibly hard-hitting damage. Reported eyewitnesses to the beast attest that it is capable of tearing through flesh in a matter of seconds. I saw the pits where its eyes should be emerge from the skin of the lamb. Its wool swelled before making the most horrifying or tearing noises as it unfurled showing at first what appeared to be a skeletal bull elk of some kind. Those more knowledgeable immediately recognized the beast and fled, those who didn't run made a sorrowful mistake as the humanoid flesh prodded out from the poor lamb and stepped out of its skin. In a matter of seconds the Oáxémak darted at the two watching huntsmen and shredded them; I watched as it tore into one of them and swatted away the other with a mere flick of its wrist. The swatting alone must've caused ribs to be broken as an ungodly amount of blood was present. As for his peer, his face had been mutilated and eaten away.

-Folk legend; "Oáxémak vo Kroskogado"

Origins and Summoning
Prior to the development of organized countries in Serrona such as the Sérotat the region was filled with a multitude of tribes and small kingdoms. It is from modern Croscograd and Atoxa where the legend is said to have originated. In most myths surrounding the Oáxémak a tribal king is desperate to win an oncoming battle with a neighboring tribe. He has despotic and horrible to his people, using executions with great frequency. The king in question decides to contact the spirits for consultation in the following battle. During this séance, the spirits of those he had killed used their collective effort to curse the taigas of Eldham for their death. This resulted in the king being torn from within; the Oáxémak emerging from within the deceased king.

In the modern day the Oáxémak will appear in the frozen regions of Eldham, typically those that are densely wooded like cold taigas. They have also been reported in tundras and mountains. They will almost always appear in the dead of night or during blizzards using the environment to their advantage and using the howling wind to carry the mimicked sounds it produces over long distances.

Appearance
Images in the likeness of the beast have been found etched into stones and trees dating from hundreds of years ago by the local people; likely as a sign of warning that the area is known hunting ground of the Oáxémak. Cryptic shrines and ‘offerings’ have been found deep in the woods as well. Authorities attribute these to young pranksters attempting to scare travelers, but these explanations do little to quell reports of the calls of animals not native to the Serronan tundras being heard in the woods.

Possible Mob Drops
-Rotten Flesh

-Bones

-Raw Mutton

-Leather

-Gold Nugget

-Spider Eye

-Blue Ice (Uncommon)

-Ghast Tear (Uncommon)