Selkie

Selkies are both seal and human, and are creatures of contradiction, at once playful and practical, shy and outspoken, loving and distant. They fall deeply in love, spending nearly every waking minute with their beloved and then disappearing to spend long months frolicking in the sea. They may be the life of the party, talking and dancing with everyone, but they can just as quickly become secretive and reclusive. Perhaps it is their intimate connection with their seal coat, and the need to keep it safe at all costs, that causes them to keep a certain amount of distance and prevents them from ever truly trusting another.

Sailors, dreams of lost loves and broken hearts, and all of those who have lost a loved one to the sea gave birth to the selkie. The sea gives and the sea takes away. Anyone who has lived along the coast can attest to the wonders the sea gives to us: delicious seafood, beautiful shells, and the delights of swimming and sailing. But the sea is fickle, and where one day it gives us pleasure, the next it drowns a loved one or sends terrible waves that destroy homes and property. Those who truly love the sea describe an inexorable pull that pulls them back just as surely as the undertow pulls under the unwary swimmer.

A selkie’s skin contains her faerie essence and her Glamour — it is what makes her fae. Selkies are skinchangers, so unlike pooka or other shapeshifters such as werewolves, a selkie must physically wear her skin in order to change form. In order to take human form again she removes her skin. If a selkie’s skin is lost or stolen, she cannot use her faerie magic until she regains it. If the skin is destroyed, the selkie’s faerie self dies along with it (see below), though fortunately a selkie’s skin is quite difficult to destroy. The mortal seeming of a selkie’s skin can take many forms. Some appear to be traditional seal skins, though they can also appear to be wet suits, long coats, or any other item of apparel. When a selkie is not wearing or touching her coat she does not have access to any of her faerie abilities. This includes her Birthrights as well as the ability to cast cantrips. She does, however, retain all of her faerie memories; she is still a changeling, just a greatly weakened one.

Selkies do not undergo Chysalis in the manner of other changelings. When a selkie dies, or is near death, her skin is passed on to another human with selkie blood running through her veins. This honor is usually given to a Kinain with a love for the sea, who is often one of the selkie’s own descendants. A selkie who gives up her coat still retains her memories of being a selkie for a time, though the memories fade over the years.

Selkie
Name	Selkie
Plural	Selkies
Pronounced	SELL-kee
Dream of...	Maritime Allure
Affinity	Nature
Birthrights	Seal's Beauty, Ocean's Grace
Frailties	Seal Coat

Kith Notes

Appearance

Selkies are always sleek and attractive, with large, dark, liquid eyes and a light webbing between their fingers and toes. Even when far from the sea, they drip chimerical salt water, and they have a faint scent of the sea just after a storm. They tend to dress in loose-fitting garments that are easily removed to allow them to return to their seal form.

Lifestyles

Much of a selkie’s life is spent frolicking in the waves as a seal, so their life in the mortal world must be able to accommodate. They always live near the sea and traditionally take jobs as fishermen and sailors. Beachcombing and surfing have become popular in modern times.

Seemings

Childlings

These selkies are full of wonder and joy. They take delight in frolicking along the beaches and shorelines, sometimes taunting mortals. They care little for the doldrums of day-to-day life and view every day as an adventure. Childling selkies have less of the deep-seated sadness that more mature members of the kith display, but they are prone to poetical and whimsical displays of passion.

Wilders

Seekers in their wilder stage travel the coastlines in search of new friends and new experiences. The often have romantic relations with those they encounter, though unlike satyrs these tend not to be one-night stands, but rather deep relationships — at least until the selkie hears the call of the waves and must move on.

Grumps

Rare among selkies, they enter this stage when they feel the encroachment of Banality. They use this time to tidy up affairs and ready themselves to pass on the seal skin to another. Grumps can be found spending their days sunning on the rocks, enjoying the sound of the pounding waves. They often undertake one last adventure before succumbing to Banality.

Revelry

The ocean is the center of a selkie’s existence, and everything to do with the sea gives them joy. Selkies often experience Revelry by swimming in the ocean, though they can also do so by spending time with lovers and indulging in deep, sad, and tempestuous passions.

Unleashing

Mists, the scent of the sea, and the sound of crashing waves often accompany selkie cantrips. Sometimes pools of saltwater are left in their wake.

Kith Mechanics

Affinity

Nature

Birthrights

Seal's Beauty

All selkies have an inherent beauty and charm that affects all who interact with them. They gain +1 to Appearance and +1 to Charisma.

Ocean's Grace

Selkies reduce the difficulty for all rolls involving Dexterity by two while in the water. This applies either in human or seal form. Also, they can never botch a Swimming roll. Finally, selkies can hold their breath for hours, whether in water or out of it.

Frailty

Seal Coat

A selkie’s coat is his greatest weakness. If it is destroyed, his fae self is destroyed forever. Fortunately, seal coats are difficult to destroy. They are resistant to fire and require a successful Strength roll (difficulty 9) to damage, and at least three successes are needed to tear it in half. Casual contact with flame does not damage it and small rips and punctures heal over time. The coat is only considered to be destroyed if it is completely burned, or shredded with cold iron.

References

• Changeling: The Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition, pp. 104-105