[366 Days of Monsters] Day 38/366 - Umbra

The umbra inhabit the Shores of Despair in the Other. Visitors to the Other, whom the umbra have dubbed "Those Who Encroach", who have met the umbra recount tales of a vile, cruel species of elf-like creatures with pitch-black skin. Hence, the erroneous nickname "shadow elf."

Shadows Reborn. Umbra do not procreate. Instead, they are made from destroyed shadows that have been reborn within the Black Cauldron. From there, these new umbra drift through the Other's great empty oceans and are eventually found by others of their ilk. New umbra are given their roles quickly, often as shadow-warriors in the front lines. Umbra have no memories of their past lives and unlives before or during their time as a shadow.

The Shores of Despair. While the arnitikos of Omeria rarely regale the curious with stories of their time in the Other, they sometimes speak of the Shores of Despair, the chaotic home of the umbra. The Shores are not an actual coast line, rather a collection of floating islands assimilated from the Material. At the center of the Shores stands the Growing Spire, the palace of Desperon, the light-hating clan master of the umbra.

Hunters of the Arnitikos. In the black eyes of the umbra, arnitikos are seen as a malfeasance to be eradicated. Although the two share much in common—Those Who Encroach from the Material often confuse the two as close relatives—their methods of creation are quite different. Umbras spend much of their time hunting arnitikos, including those who've returned to the Other.

Masters of the Fu Tao. The umbra wield pairs of deadly finesse weapons called fu tao. Also known as tiger hook swords, these weapons resemble long steel hooks with daggers in their hilts and blades over the loop guard.

Other Nature. The umbra does not require food or drink.