Frequently Asked Questions
How did esk originate? Where did they come from?
If your character wishes to know more about the history of esk they can ask 000 for a story.
Do esk mate? Can they have romantic relationships?
Esk do not mate or breed, they are only created by transforming other beings into esk, but your esk is free to have whatever romantic relationships you'd like.
Can a very small esk live on a really large esk? Can that be their boundary?
An esk of the same biome could live on another esk if they want, but just keep in mind that an esk cannot be a boundary — the boundary has to be a location, not an object or being. So if you have a little forest esk and a big forest esk, little esk can live on big esk and keep their nature features and all, but once little esk rides the big esk away from the location of their boundary they won't have their transformation ability anymore.
Are there baby esk?
Esk do not age like animals. They may appear or seem youthful based on how they were in their past life. If they were transformed into an esk at a young age, they are more likely to appear as a young-seeming esk, and if they were older then they might appear as an older-seeming esk. The appearance of age can also represent a youthfulness of spirit and not necessarily the age they were when transformed. An esk may have existed for a very, very long time and still remain in a childlike state, appearance, or frame of mind.
What do esk eat?
Esk do not eat, they do not have mouths, tongues, or teeth. They are ethereal and do not need nourishment.
Can esk die? Can they get sick?
They do not age and die like animals do, but they can give up their form. This leaves a mark in their environment that holds their memory — it might be a patch of plants related to the plants of their form, it could be a relic or unusual natural formation, or the mark could be some kind of phenomenon or subtle essence. Esk can only give up their form by requesting it from another esk — it is a form of Transformation. Esk may remain immortal if they choose.
Esk can become sick but not from pathogens. Sickness for an esk is a "soul sickness" where they may be depressed, slow-moving, or feel malaise based on poor emotional state. Their nature features may change in appearance to reflect this illness.
How big or small can Esk be?
They can be any size that is able to realistically inhabit the Earth.
Can parts of their plants break off? What happens if they break?
Esk's nature features can be broken and regrow. However, esk that manifest with broken branches or stumps do not regenerate. If they started off with broken plants, they stay broken. If they started off with intact plants, they will regenerate. This trait is no longer considered uncommon.
Do esk make sounds?
Esk do not speak or make vocalizations, but can create sounds in other creative ways. Some might give off a humming sound or cause tinnitus in humans, some might make clacking sounds with their nature features or jangle something around that is hanging from a branch, etc.
Are esk intelligent?
Yes. Some individuals are smarter than others. Most are as smart or smarter than they were in their previous form, but some become less intelligent after transformation. This is open to interpretation.
How do Esk behave toward humans?
Esk all have their own personalities and perceptions of humans; some are kind and others are spiteful. There is some more information on human interaction on the TWWM Canon page.
What do people think about esk?
Most esk only appear to people when they are at their most lost or on the brink of death, so 99% of people who see Esk do not return to tell the tale. The ones who do will remember it in their own way — a cryptid or strange animal, a hallucination, a ghost, an angel, a deity, or they may never want to speak of it to anyone. Many Esk interact with humans in a subtle or invisible way that will not reveal themselves, and humans may interpret these as funny coincidences or as divine intervention depending on their perspective. Esk may be integrated into folklore, urban legends, conspiracy theories, or other aspects of culture.
Are Esk affected by human pollution?
Yes, they have an emotional bond with their environment and pollution affects them. Many esk like to clean up their home environments.
They can also accumulate human materials or garbage in their form as accessories, you can read more about accessories elsewhere in this species guide.
What do esk do?
All esk have their own interests. For the most part, Travelers like to act as guardians of their environment and will assist those who enter it and the plants and animals that live there, while Trespassers are usually not so helpful and may be isolated or destructive, but these are not rigid roles and esk can have very diverse personalities. Esk interact with humans in their environment in all different ways. Esk may also have their own interests based on their past lives.
Do esk have names?
Yes esk have names. They either retain the name from their past life or have a new name after being transformed. Their new name might reference their old name or past life in some way — it could be just a part or syllable of their old name, or a different arrangement of the letters. It can also be an entirely new name of any kind.
What are the limitations on esk sex/gender?
Esk do not breed to reproduce, so they have no physical sex characteristics. However, esk can have a gender identity, be gender-fluid, or agender. Their gender does not have to match the sex/gender of their original form.
Can esk interact with each other physically?
Yes, esk can interact with each other and other beings/objects physically. They can change their form to either be more solid or more ghostly or transparent.
Can esk make facial expressions?
Esk are psychically attuned to each other and what's around them, so the need for expressive facial features is very limited. Esk do not have external eyelids so they cannot blink fully, but they can "scrunch" their face a bit or protrude their eyes to indicate different emotions or blink their nictitating membranes. Some have a neutral expression where the eyes are somewhat closed or squinted.
Can esk have non-physical effects on others or on the environment?
Esk can use telekinesis to move things. They can also feel warm or cool and emit vibrations or subtle feelings of unease.
If your character wishes to know more about the history of esk they can ask 000 for a story.
Do esk mate? Can they have romantic relationships?
Esk do not mate or breed, they are only created by transforming other beings into esk, but your esk is free to have whatever romantic relationships you'd like.
Can a very small esk live on a really large esk? Can that be their boundary?
An esk of the same biome could live on another esk if they want, but just keep in mind that an esk cannot be a boundary — the boundary has to be a location, not an object or being. So if you have a little forest esk and a big forest esk, little esk can live on big esk and keep their nature features and all, but once little esk rides the big esk away from the location of their boundary they won't have their transformation ability anymore.
Are there baby esk?
Esk do not age like animals. They may appear or seem youthful based on how they were in their past life. If they were transformed into an esk at a young age, they are more likely to appear as a young-seeming esk, and if they were older then they might appear as an older-seeming esk. The appearance of age can also represent a youthfulness of spirit and not necessarily the age they were when transformed. An esk may have existed for a very, very long time and still remain in a childlike state, appearance, or frame of mind.
What do esk eat?
Esk do not eat, they do not have mouths, tongues, or teeth. They are ethereal and do not need nourishment.
Can esk die? Can they get sick?
They do not age and die like animals do, but they can give up their form. This leaves a mark in their environment that holds their memory — it might be a patch of plants related to the plants of their form, it could be a relic or unusual natural formation, or the mark could be some kind of phenomenon or subtle essence. Esk can only give up their form by requesting it from another esk — it is a form of Transformation. Esk may remain immortal if they choose.
Esk can become sick but not from pathogens. Sickness for an esk is a "soul sickness" where they may be depressed, slow-moving, or feel malaise based on poor emotional state. Their nature features may change in appearance to reflect this illness.
How big or small can Esk be?
They can be any size that is able to realistically inhabit the Earth.
Can parts of their plants break off? What happens if they break?
Esk's nature features can be broken and regrow. However, esk that manifest with broken branches or stumps do not regenerate. If they started off with broken plants, they stay broken. If they started off with intact plants, they will regenerate. This trait is no longer considered uncommon.
Do esk make sounds?
Esk do not speak or make vocalizations, but can create sounds in other creative ways. Some might give off a humming sound or cause tinnitus in humans, some might make clacking sounds with their nature features or jangle something around that is hanging from a branch, etc.
Are esk intelligent?
Yes. Some individuals are smarter than others. Most are as smart or smarter than they were in their previous form, but some become less intelligent after transformation. This is open to interpretation.
How do Esk behave toward humans?
Esk all have their own personalities and perceptions of humans; some are kind and others are spiteful. There is some more information on human interaction on the TWWM Canon page.
What do people think about esk?
Most esk only appear to people when they are at their most lost or on the brink of death, so 99% of people who see Esk do not return to tell the tale. The ones who do will remember it in their own way — a cryptid or strange animal, a hallucination, a ghost, an angel, a deity, or they may never want to speak of it to anyone. Many Esk interact with humans in a subtle or invisible way that will not reveal themselves, and humans may interpret these as funny coincidences or as divine intervention depending on their perspective. Esk may be integrated into folklore, urban legends, conspiracy theories, or other aspects of culture.
Are Esk affected by human pollution?
Yes, they have an emotional bond with their environment and pollution affects them. Many esk like to clean up their home environments.
They can also accumulate human materials or garbage in their form as accessories, you can read more about accessories elsewhere in this species guide.
What do esk do?
All esk have their own interests. For the most part, Travelers like to act as guardians of their environment and will assist those who enter it and the plants and animals that live there, while Trespassers are usually not so helpful and may be isolated or destructive, but these are not rigid roles and esk can have very diverse personalities. Esk interact with humans in their environment in all different ways. Esk may also have their own interests based on their past lives.
Do esk have names?
Yes esk have names. They either retain the name from their past life or have a new name after being transformed. Their new name might reference their old name or past life in some way — it could be just a part or syllable of their old name, or a different arrangement of the letters. It can also be an entirely new name of any kind.
What are the limitations on esk sex/gender?
Esk do not breed to reproduce, so they have no physical sex characteristics. However, esk can have a gender identity, be gender-fluid, or agender. Their gender does not have to match the sex/gender of their original form.
Can esk interact with each other physically?
Yes, esk can interact with each other and other beings/objects physically. They can change their form to either be more solid or more ghostly or transparent.
Can esk make facial expressions?
Esk are psychically attuned to each other and what's around them, so the need for expressive facial features is very limited. Esk do not have external eyelids so they cannot blink fully, but they can "scrunch" their face a bit or protrude their eyes to indicate different emotions or blink their nictitating membranes. Some have a neutral expression where the eyes are somewhat closed or squinted.
Can esk have non-physical effects on others or on the environment?
Esk can use telekinesis to move things. They can also feel warm or cool and emit vibrations or subtle feelings of unease.