HARPY, the Savage Sky Fighter Pokégirl

HARPY, the Savage Sky Fighter Pokégirl

Type: Near Human (avian)
Element: Flying
Frequency: Uncommon
Diet: Carnivore
Role: Scout, Fighter
Libido: Average
Strong Vs: Bug, Fighting, Ground, Plant
Weak Vs: Electric, Ice, Rock
Attacks: Aerial Ace, Dive, Feather Blizzard, Fury Swipes, Gust, Speed Storm, Wind, Wing Buffet
Enhancements: Enhanced Endurance & Strength (x3 each), Enhanced Speed (x2), Natural Weapons (Claws and Wings)
Evolves: Harpy Lady (2 Dream Stones)
Evolves From: None
Revised: March 2013

One of the earliest created avian-based pokegirl breeds, the Harpy was a constant harrasser during the Revenge War. Though easy to tell apart from human women physically, they were still difficult to handle early on due to their ability to fly, their speed, and the pokegirl's ability to simply dodge away from bullets fired at them. Despite this, they became known as one of the easier targets during the war as time went on and even more powerful and capable pokegirls came to the front lines. Still, harpies remained feared due to their ability to soar overhead and release pokegirls from the first pokeballs- turning them into dive-bombers with the ability to unleash their payload behind the human's front lines. This made them priority targets on the battlefield. Their sheer numbers near the end of the war ensured that many went feral, while just as many were captured and converted by humans to be used by tamers within harems.

Physically, they are quite different from humans, though remain humanoid with a similar range of height, skin color, and eye coloration. Their hands and feet are not that of humans, but are claws- the claws for feet have three front toes and one rear toe, capable of gripping onto branches, arms, and other objects quite easily. Their claws for hands, however, retain three fingered talons and an opposable talon, giving them human range of manipulation, though the talons are roughly fifty percent longer than a human's fingers are. Tail feathers emerge from the pokegirl's tailbone, which assist in in-flight mobility. Even feral Harpies are quite proud of the beauty of her feathers, both the tail feathers and those on their wings, and watchers have recorded numerous instances of harpy flocks washing their wings when resting after a flight. Their wings are quite large, the base of each one extending from their wrist to the shoulder, and extend out for a length roughly equal to that of the pokegirl's height. The color of the feathers tend to differ per individual, with the most common being either brown or white, though red, purple, green, and pink have been recorded as well.

Being rather temperamental pokegirls, the breed is quick to anger and judge others. Their speed in the air give them an excellent base velocity which is often supplemented by the Speed Storm technique, which can lead to making their various aerial attacks stronger. Their large wings are absolutely necessary in order to fly, however, so make tempting targets for any that must battle against them. However, where there's one Harpy, there's certainly at least a dozen more nearby. They are not especially adept at sex battles, on the other hand, though there is certainly something to be said about the breed's evolutions to sway critics. Individually, however, a Harpy is fairly weak and often make an excellent choice for beginning tamers to capture and tame.

Harpies, as already mentioned, are a decent choice for tamers just starting out. Their decent capabilities and maneuverability, though low for a flying-type pokegirl, are enhanced by the availability of a typically simple way to evolve the breed. Despite the repugnant reputation of ferals, they do tend to clean up nicely, though are typically far more homely than beautiful- they are not Trollop-level ugly by any means. Tamers should beware the talons and claws of the pokegirl when taming one, and some tamers have even gone so far as to ensure that their Harpy wears gloves and special boots that cover their sharp nails and claws when not in a battle. Some Ranches work with Harpies almost exclusively, and through extensive breeding practices have managed to produce exquisite individuals of the pokegirl breed that rival even the pokegirls that critics commonly consider the most beautiful in the world.

This particular breed dislikes being bound and especially loathe any positions which will get their feathers too dirty, and their preferences when being tamed often reflects this, especially when not in a clean environment. It should also be noted that the base of the breed's tail feathers are connected to a large number of sensitive nerves, which can easily be used to arouse and distract a Harpy if one knows what they are doing. Harpies molt once every six months, shedding old feathers and growing new ones in their place, which requires roughly two weeks- the first week for the molting of the old feathers and growing the new ones, and another week for the new feathers to become usable for flight. Domestic Harpies often wind up taking a fair amount of time to preen any dirt or grime from their bodies and especially their feathers every day, and will attempt to bathe as often as possible when given the chance to do so.

Ferals Harpies travel in relatively large flocks of up to three dozen individuals, on average, and form these flocks according to the distinctive coloration of their wings. They are also quite easy to locate due to their numbers and the way they often trill and sing to one another to communicate, much like birds before the Revenge War did. To capture one, isolating a Harpy that is molting is probably the easiest way, as she cannot fly away, and the ferals may not realize that one of their own is being attacked until it's too late. Catching her by surprise and silencing her removes most any possibility of flock interference as well, but allowing the attacked Harpy to cry out may bring down the wrath of the entire flock onto any unsuspecting tamer attempting to capture one. Threshold cases are fairly common and are relatively painless compared to some other breeds, with the process taking roughly a month for the wings to grow from the new pokegirl's arms, the tail feathers from the tail bone, and their claws and talons to form from their fingers merging together. That is not to say that the process is completely painless, however, but due to the slowness of the changes taking place, it is typically bearable.