Dobharchu- The Otter King

World: Midgard

Diet: Meat

Length: 23 feet

Lifespan: 20 years

Habitat: Lakes

Activity Cycle: Crepuscular

Dobharchu are one of the oldest monsters made by mankind, a mostly simplistic upgrade of the ancient creatures known as “otters”. Like the otters, they are beasts of both land and water. Unlike them, they are swimmers in both worlds. A dobharchu pushes as easily through the earth as it does through the water, leading with their spade-shaped head. Half of a dobharchu’s hunting is done on land, pouncing from the earth to grab landbound prey.

Dobharchu are thought to have originally be created as watch animals, hence their extremely territorial nature. A mated pair of dorharchu will take up a pond or lake as their territory and violently defend it from anything roughly their size. A pair of otter kings is one of the few forces that can deter a swan griffon from claiming a lake as its own. They will live in a burrow under the bank, allowing them to exit both onto the land and into the water. While they hunt and patrol territory alone, their mate is always within earshot of their unusual piercing whistle and will come running at it.

Some dorharchu are still kept by impressive beastmasters or in their original role as guardians. Many sacred ponds are watched over by the fearsome otter kings, kept docile by skilled beastmasters and abundant fish. Legends tell of Keh-mola, the great demon of wrath, having his forces wiped out at a sacred lake and his body sunk to the very depths, where it still lies, all by a single family of dobharchu. Those familiar with both demons and dobharchu find this legend unlikely, but still encourage us not to take them too lightly, lest our bones rest in their dens.