/monster/ - The Last Bastion of Romance

Congrats Hue-mo’s. What kind of Lamia lurk in the jungles of Brazil? Can someone post a sloth girl?

>>375809

>Brazil

>>375857

>that thing is a person

>>375901

No it's not.

I can offer some examples from native mythology.

>Angra

Goddess of fire, commonly depicted as a lady made out of fire. She defended the Guarani from rival tribes with utmost zeal. Legend says that she has a special appetite for lettuce, which restored her vigor whenever she ate it (which is most likely an analog to the nature of fire and how fast it consumes plants and such).

>Sukuyu'wera (Suu-kuu-yuu-weh-rah)

Goddess of the open seas and snakes. A merciful lady spirit who often saves shipwrecked people from drowning. She's also a mortal enemy of the Ahiag (Ah-he-agh) - evil demons who can shapeshift in order to kidnap, kill, eat, curse and possess people. They don't know how to swim, and don't have the guts to try for fear of getting their shit wrecked six ways from Sunday by Sukuyu'wera.

>Jaci (Jah-see)

Goddess of the Moon and the night. She is the protector of vegetation, lovers and reproduction. Responsible for bathing the virgin tribeswomen with blessing light, and charming men with the female form, so they may seek wives of their own. According to legend, Guaraci, the Sun God, got tired of his job after a long time being, well, the Sun, and needed to sleep every once in a while. In order to illuminate the darkness in Guaraci's absence, Tupã (Too-pan), the "big boss" of the entire multiverse, created Jaci.

>Iara (Ee-ah-rah)

Goddess of rivers and lakes. A beautiful mermaid with light brown-golden skin, long green hair and hazel eyes, who lives in the depths of the Amazonian River. She is the "Mother of The Waters", who protects the sealife of every single river on Earth. She likes to come ashore during the evenings to decorate her hair with red flowers, and sometimes shapeshifts into a human form to check up on humans. She's so dazzling that fishermen often go overboard by accident, entranced by her looks. Quite a handful for Sukuyu'wera to deal with.

Ceuci (Seh-oo-see)

Goddess of tillage and home. She's often depicted as the brightest star in the Pleiades constellation. When she still roamed the Earth, Guaraci sent her a son, whom would come to be known as Jurupari. Her son would grow up to reformulate the costumes and lifestyle of the native tribes and establish a patriarchal system. He could no be approached by women during his teachings to the men of the tribes, and when Ceuci, who wished to see her son again after being separated for so long, was struck down by one of Tupã's lightning bolts for approaching him during one such ceremony. Her son was forbidden from saving his dying mother, and despite his tearful lament, she reassured him that she would shine in the dark skies, and look out for him always.

>Boitatá (boi-tah-tah)

A giant, horned, flaming snake with intense shining eyes and transparent scales which lives in the water, and protects the wilderness against arsonists. Impatient and a hothead to boot, when a person sees it slithering through the wild at night, it is advised to stand still, hold your breath, close your eyes shut and wait for it to understand your intentions. It considers people who run away in fear as evildoers who're setting fire to the forests and fleeing the scene, and will promptly hunt down anyone who does so.

>Boiuna (Boi-unah)

A giant dark snake capable of capsizing entire ships. It can also form illusion of a ship to attract shipwrecked men, and shapeshift into a woman.

>Caá-Yaríi (Caah Ya-ree)

Goddess of mate herbs. Humble and welcoming of travelers, and lives near the Tabay River. She makes the best damn tea this side of the Amazon.

>Naiá, The Water Lily

Once upon a time, a young virgin warrior girl, Naiá (Nai-ah), dreamed of the day she would be chosen by Jaci to be one of the goddess' chosen women to become a beautiful star in the sky. Her elders warned her that such an ascension would rid her of her flesh and blood, transforming her into light, but she did not care. Every night she would climb atop the highest mountain to wait for the Goddess of the Moon, but she never came. Naiá did not waver, and continued to wait, to the point where she refused to eat or drink anything. One day, while passing by a nearby lake to rest, she saw the image of the Moon upon the surface, reflected by the waters. Lost in her dream, she fell into the lake, drowning in the process. Saddened by her sacrifice, the Moon decided to revive her as a different kind of star - a Water Lily, the "Star of the Waters". Perfect and unique, whose white flower only flourished at night, and turned pink at dawn.

>Caupe (Cah-oo-peh)

Goddess of beauty, equivalent to Aphrodite.

>Parajás (Pah-rah-jahs)

The three hunter Goddesses of Honor, Good, and JUSTICE.

>Tainacan (Tai-nah-cahn)

Goddess of the Constellations.

>Picê (Pi-seh)

Goddess of Poetry.

>Biaça (Bee-ah-sah)

Goddess of Astronomy.

>Açutí (Ah-suu-tee)

Goddess of Writing.

>Arapé (Ah-rah-peh)

Goddess of Dance.

>Graçaí (Grah-sah-ee)

Goddess of Eloquence.

>Piná (Pi-nah)

Goddess of Sympathy.

>Amanaci (Ah-mah-nah-see)

Goddess of Rain.

>Sumá (Soo-mah)

Goddess of Art and Agriculture.

>Guaipira (Gwai-pi-rah)

Goddess of History.

>Araci (Ah-rah-see)

Goddess of the Aurora and the early hours.

>Caamanha (Caah-mah-nee-ah)

Goddes of the Flora. The "Mother of the Wild", clad in leaves and roots, who protects the jungle from deforestation. Workers and travelers are advised to pack up their camps before setting off to run their errands, fearing that Caamanha might place a wooden twig within each of their resting places. Such twigs have morphine-like effects, sending them into deep sleep as they lie in their beds, leaving them vulnerable to attacks from animals and monsters.

>Jururá-Açú (Joo-roo-rah Ah-soo)

Goddess of the Underworld. Legend says that, for having freed Anhangá from imprisonment, she became the only entity capable of entering and leaving the underworld at will. She was transformed into a turtle by Tupã as punishment for doing so, hindering her locomotion, but oddly enough making her ordeals easier, as she could tresspass in and out of the underworld without being noticed, using her shell to disguise herself as a rock, and thus having vast knowledge of both the world of the living and the dead due to her many travels, which she could do at her own leisure.

>Açai (Ah-sah-ee)

A legendary nereid.

>Icamiabas (Ee-camee-abas)

A title given to tribes of warrior women and their matriarchal society. The famed Amazons.

>Besta-fera

The Wild Beast. A mythical man-eating creature with a frightening roar, often described as a centaur. It gallops through the villages at night until it finds a specific tomb of a recently deceased person, and promptly vanishes before it. The deathly sound of its hooves can terrorize anyone who hears it. The Wild Beast whips any creature that dares chase it down or stand in its path into submission, but despite its fearsome demeanor, it is not that much of a threat to humans, as tradition dictates that when a man sees its stern, judging visage, he will mad for many days, but will eventually recover.

>Bicho Papão

The "Devourer Creature", equivalent of the Bogeyman. With fiery eyes, it is the personification of fear itself, and can transform into any monstrous form it may desire. Its has a special appetite for young misbehaving boys.

>Boi Vaquim

A creature with the form of a winged bull with golden horns and diamond eyes. It strikes fear into campers, as it can shoot fire from the tip of its horns. It takes a strong, courageous man and an agile horse to lasso the Boi Vaquim.

>Cabra Cabriola

The Capriole Goat. A fearsome creature with a monstruous aspect, who likes to eat young boys. Legends says that when a child suddenly breaks into tears, it meant that the Capriole Goat was about to take another victim.

>Capelobo

A Chimera-like creature, with a mix of human and animal features. It has the head of an anteater (or a dog, or a mule, and human body, with round feet (roughly akin to an elephant's). It's very fast and is constantly rushing through the wilderness near rivers and lowlands. It's especially active during the night and the early hours, stalking villages and camps from the brushes. Its fearsome roar is akin to a loud scream, and it feeds on dogs and cattle, especially the young. It has a habit of attacking hunters, seeking to drink their blood or suck their brains out. Legend says that a well-placed shot at its navel is the only way of slaying the beast. It's often compared to werewolves, and some consider it a type of werewolf.

>Ana Jansen

Once a rich woman who often mistreated her slaves, she was condemned to roam the roads of São Luís do Maranhão as a ghost, riding in her haunted carriage as its pushed by a headless slave and his likewise headless ghostly steed.

>Cavalo d'água

The Water Horse. A creature of fantasy that supposedly lives in the São Francisco River, where it chases down ships. It is believed that only one Water Horse may exist at any time.

>Labatut

A giant human-like creature with round feet, long hands, long messy hair, a single eye, and tusks protruding from its mouth like an elephant's. It is considered to be worse than a werewolf in terms of man-eating. It typically hunts for prey on empty roads during windy nights under the full moon.

>>377254

>Mapinguari (Mah-pin-gwah-ree)

A giant one-eyed apeman-esque creature, with dark/red body hair, which is so thick that it's basically bullet-proof armor. It has a large mouth with rows of sharp teeth adorning its terrifying grin.

>Gorjala (Gor-jah-lah)

A giant apeman-like creature with dark hairs, much like Mapinguari. One of the guardians of the forest, it chases down and devours any who trespass into its domain. It is usually found taking shelter in ridges and mountaintops, as it loves going on long walks at the edge of cliffs and precipices, jumping over deep, deadly pits for fun.

>Charia (Cha-ree-ah)

It is said that the bright red star of Aldebaran is the right eye of Charia, the Celestial Jaguar, who gazes down upon the Earth from the cosmos above. Depicted as a bluish jaguar, its only purpose is to bring darkness to the world. It is a powerful entity on par with the patron gods, and is determined to slay them. It chases the Moon every night, seeking to devour it. Legend has it that the phases of the Moon are merely the result of Charia biting off chunks of the celestial body, which then needs to flee the jaguar for some time to reform. Sometimes Charia's attack cause the Moon to "bleed", resulting in the event commonly known as the Red Moon. It is at this time that Charia is the closest to achieving its goal. In order to dispel the darkness brought forth during the night of the Red Moon, people of the tribes shout and scream at the top of their lungs, confusing Charia and disrupting its hunt. Charia also attempts to slay the Sun from time to time, causing the event known as the Solar Eclipse. Despite being often told in tales as an evil spirit, it is also depicted a benign one, taking the form of a jaguar woman who aids humans and gods alike in their endeavors. Charia is not always evil.

>>377255

>The Enchanted Bull of Lençóis

A huge bull with a bright star on its forehead, who appears on the island of Lençóis, Maranhão, on Fridays during the full moon. The creature walks along the beaches at night and disappears at dawn.

>Teiniaguá (Tei-nee-ah-gwah)

The Salamanca of Jarau. Teiniaguá is an enchanted lizard with a large, beautiful gemstone on its forehead, which is said to hold magical properties. Teiniaguá lives in a place called Cerro do Jarau, at the border between the state of Rio Grande do Sul and the country of Uruguay.

It is said that Teiniaguá is a witch from the region of Salamanca, Spain, where it would have been bewitched by a spirit called Anhangá-Pytham, and trapped in the shape of a lizard during the day. One day, a sexton - a boy responsible for taking care of the church - found Teiniaguá sitting by a lake. Well aware of its magic powers, the boy took the animal to his room back at the church.

At night, the creature took on a human form, and asked for something to drink, which the boy promptly answered by bringing wine to please her. The boy eventually began to neglect his sacristan services, until the priests discovered the reason why. Upon being found, Teiniaguá heeded the boy's advice to transform into her lizard form and flee. The boy stayed behind to be captured and sentenced to death.

On the day of his execution, however, moments before he was killed, the ground cracked open, opening huge holes. Teiniaguá left the depths to rescue her friend, taking him away with her to a large cave at the hills of Jarau. Teiniaguá used her powers to make the boy immortal, and so they lived happily ever after, surrounded by the gold and riches of the cave.

>Cumadre Fulozinha (Foo-loh-zee-nee-ah)

Godmother Fulozinha, sometimes called "Flower of the Bushes", is a forest-dwelling fairy. Fulozinha is a young girl, around twelve years old, with long hair. Her hair is so long in fact, that it drags along the ground when she walks around. She is often confused with Caipora (don't confuse the two, or she'll get mad).

She is also the "owner" of the forest, and one should always give her an offering, should they meet. She's usually fine with tobacco or porridge. Unlike Caipora, who receive specific offerings in exchange for permission for one to hunt, Fulozinha demands offerings if one so much as enters her forest. Should a person meet her, they are required to give her a gift of some sort. A boastful and prideful child, she announces her arrival with a loud whistle, and if you don't have anything to give her when she shows up, she will "beat you up, simple as that!" She also beats up people who give her offerings that contain pepper. She hates spicy food.

Some people say that she uses her hair as a whip as a method of attack. That is, when she's not using a stick. It is also said that she has tremendous strength for her size.

>Cupendiepes (Cuu-pen-dee-eh-pehs)

The Cupendiepes are winged human-bat hybrids. Merciless to anyone who enters their territory, they take advantage of their nocturnal habits to attack by surprise.

>Enchanted Princess of Jericoacoara

A beautiful lady trapped in a snakelike form and destined to store treasures who lives in a cave near the lighthouse of this city of Ceará. It is said that she guards the gate of an enchanted city full of treasures. The woman is attached to a serpent-like form with golden scales, but keeps her head and feet in human form.

To have access to all this fortune, one must go to the serpent and draw a sign of a cross in its scales with blood. This will break the spell and open the gate. However, the blood must come from a sacrifice, and to this day no one has offered themselves as sacrifice so someone else could take the treasure. And so the princess remains in her cave, guarding the doors to a golden kingdom.

>Sanguanel (San-gwah-nel)

Sanguanel is a type of elf, and a mischevious at that. It has settled in the region of Rio Grande do Sul, brought from abroad by Italian immigrants. It is depicted as a small, red creature that lives in the treetops.

It is known for kidnapping children and taking them to the treetops, where they are put in a state of drowsiness. It does them no harm, and even feeds them with honey and water, using a large leaf as a glass. Its behavior is a bit of a problem, as the parents of the children become desperate due to the disappearance of their young, looking for them until they find them at the top of the trees in comfortable nests made by Sanguanel.

>>377267

>Carneiro Encantado

The Enchanted Ram, also known as The Golden Ram, is the soul of a lone monk who was murdered by a group of thieves, who wanders about the land. Some say that it often attempts to guide people to a place of treasures, only to vanish when approached.

>Cachorrinha D'água

The Little Water Puppy. In the San Francisco there lives a small, white-haired seal-esque creature with a star made of gold on its forehead. It loves to swim, coming ashore every now and then to sunbathe by the riverbanks.

When crossing the waters of the river, one must pay attention and look out for the Water Dog, as those who spot this little creature chilling out by the riverbank will be blessed with a life of happiness and riches.

>Arranca-Línguas

The Tongueripper. A huge, hairy, strong, primate-like creature who eats only the tongues of cows and oxen. Standing at around three to four meters high, it has a fearsome roar.

>Witches

Witches are women of various ages who have a direct connection with demons and even the Devil himself. They usually act only during the night, as during the day, they live like ordinary people. They cause several different kinds of ills and misfortunes, such as causing animals to vanish, driving travelers crazy, and sucking the blood or life force out of children, leaving them sick.

These witches have a variety of abilities: They metamorphose (commonly into moths), fly, turn people into animals, and even alter reality, causing people to see the environment around them in scary and distorted ways.

Here's some more creatures I haven't covered. Might be interesting for design inspiration: https://imgur.com/a/d4pW6fa