#(( extra gill-slits bc some merfolk species have different numbers

[royalreef]

@abracafockyou​ / @shakesinshake​ inquired:  🐶 may I ask for either striker or any oc on this blog you might like? Muses as Merfolk - (Very Selectively) Accepting

(( I think Striker would be best suited as one of the “Vampire” merfolk, which I’ve written about before here! I need to go back over their information again, as some isn’t quite up-to-date anymore, since I rehash and refine my lore a lot. Other parts are still accurate : heterodont dentition with larger pointed teeth at the front for grabbing and broader cusped teeth towards the back for slicing, slit pupils, dull colors that are often dappled, more equal tail flukes, fused earfins, their history compared to other merfolk, and so on. The same goes for them having relatively small settlements that easily end up wiped off the map due to some royal’s own personal wishes or plans that they just ended up in the way of.

That said, one thing I don’t think I’ve mentioned here before is the fact that they’re actually fairly commonly employed by Merkingdom royals for less savory jobs. The reason is two part — no one cares if one of them ends up in trouble or goes missing entirely, and they aren’t exactly in a position to say no to any royals that might position them for jobs. Even with anyone less than that royal, saying no to what they’re asking is highly taboo and often enforced via not-so-subtle taking care of anyone who refuses them, but when you struggle to survive or last through a system that ultimately wants you and your community dead, well... There’s seldom any other options. If a royal were to, say, put a hit out for someone they were married to due to failing to fulfill their duties and their image, then... A jrh’yhwa’t wouldn’t really have many other options, unless they had some way to pull rank on the royal.

It’s also not unlikely that a royal might arm their hitman with whatever they need for the job, potentially using their own resources to ensure it gets done right.

“Guns” for merfolk hold little in common with our conception of the weapon, and it’s a poor translation for what accounts far moreso for a portable cannon. Projectile weapons are hard to come by underwater. Even when you do find them, they’re often inaccurate, or just don’t work at all, and merfolk are universally fairly good at absorbing shock. Most of the reason why common weapons are bladed are just due to how much easier they are to produce as well as how much more effective they are in hurting another merfolk. So, merfolk “guns” are far closer in operation to how a mantis shrimp’s claw works, capable of launching a super-heated bubble that can blow a hole in the side of whatever you aim it at. For this, they’re remarkably hard to come by, often needing various connections alongside permits and someone to petition in the court system that you can have such a thing. For this, any single “gun” often ends up highly custom-made for their owner to begin with, as anyone who has rank enough to have one often has the same resources and a personal desire to tailor it to their liking.

Wide-brim hats are very much just a very unusual aesthetic choice underwater.