Gwylion

Gwylion are sylvan beings that look rather like satyrs but are far more sinister. Above the waist each is a strikingly lovely young woman with a compelling stare; below, she has the shaggy legs and sharp hooves of a goat.

Every gwylion has some gift for witchcraft, though few ever master it or rise above 5th level. They make up for this with natural powers: they can hide their true shape behind illusion, and both their voice and their gaze work like a charm spell, with their kiss the most potent of all: a victim may save against the gaze or voice, but no save is allowed against the kiss. Gwylion can also brew magical philtres and elixirs. They use these gifts to seduce males of other humanoid races, because gwylion can bear no sons and must take outside mates to continue their wicked line.

Like most sylvan folk they favor lonely woodlands, and some settle on wooded or tropical islands to prey on passing ships' crews. They occasionally keep company with malataurs or arciteni but mostly live only with their own kind. A band holds up to twenty gwylion and perhaps twice as many captured males, who are kept charmed as little better than slaves. A favorite may be pampered, but most are cast off within months and likely eaten, so the hunt for new mates never stops. Human men are their first choice; centaurs, satyrs or elves serve only when humans are hard to find, and to the annoyance of malataurs and arciteni, gwylion feel no attraction to them at all.