SURVIVAL

The cool, harsh conditions found high in the mountains provide a perfect environment for these tiny, winged imps to flourish—particularly, the eastern stretch of the Aradine Mountains. You will find Hydaks’ nesting sites among the exposed peaks, ideally where snow settles and ice sheets form. Thorny hands, horns, and wing claws allow Hydaks to burrow deep into the ice. Dozens gather in hollowed-out caverns to see out the night, hanging upside down from protruding rock outcrops, awaiting the dawn.

Gales sweeping across the slopes can often reach speeds of one hundred miles per hour or more. However, this is no problem for a Hydak. They are expert flyers even in blustery conditions, manoeuvring as easily in a high wind as they would in a light breeze.

DIET

Birds and bugs are main sources of food. Despite Hydaks standing approximately ten inches tall, if enough band together they are more than capable of taking down a goat, a deer, or even a wolf or mountain cat—anything they can overpower and tear apart with their claws and pin-sharp fangs. They are far from fussy eaters and are known to turn on the weakest among their group during fallow times.

ADVERSARIES

Due to their high numbers and hostile behaviour, Hydaks have few natural predators. Grand Mountain Owls that also inhabit the peaks are their primary adversaries and will often snatch Hydaks, two at a time, during the winter months.

Spring can be a dangerous time to be out on the mountains. It is during this season that Hydaks descend to the foothills in hordes, searching for prey. When their numbers swell to ominous levels, the Borini living in the nearby city of Galenta send out archers to halt their advance. The fighting is always fierce.

Every few years, Hydaks take part in an even bloodier battle with the white hawks of Galenta. The two species have a deep-rooted hatred of one another. Inevitably, after suffering devastating losses, the Hydaks are driven back up to where they came from.