Water Elemental

The Water Elemental is perhaps the most dangerous of the Elemental types. Not for its aggressive nature, but more due to its passivity. More than a few unwitting victims have been swallowed whole by a disturbed Elemental when bathing in what they thought was a river or a lake, but was in fact someone's face. -Manuscript of the Elementalist, Chapter 79

Water Elemental

Water Elementals are most often referred to by their mortal given names, "Walking Whirlpools". While lacking sophistication, the term is an accurate description. It is the Water Elemental whose form is the hardest to discern among its brethren. Its body is in a constant state of flux, only changing to resemble a humanoid form for brief periods of time before collapsing, shifting, rolling and reforming. This state of existence also happens to serves as its most devastating attack. Should an unwary victim wander too close to a Water Elemental, it may be pulled into the creature's body by its powerful changing form. Many creatures do not last long inside a Water Elementals body, for if the lack of air does not finish the poor thing, the battering cyclone of liquids will finish it off in short order.

Elemental Characteristics

Elementals are creatures comprised almost entirely of a singular raw element of nature, the most common being Earth, Air, Fire and Water. Elementals come in various shapes and sizes, and most rarely maintain a singular, stable form. Instead, they are constantly shifting masses of their element, often appearing in a vaguely humanoid form. Elementals can be as tiny as a pebble, or as large as a hurricane, their power in most cases appears directly proportional to their size. The larger the elemental, the more destructive capabilities it has.

History

Elementals have been controlled by many powerful magic users in the past. Their typically weak minds, coupled with their inherently destructive magical nature make them ideal candidates for arcane bondage. Elementals have also been known to occasionally wander the physical realms on their own, sometimes congregating in places comfortable to them. One great tragedy in time recalls a wealthy noble who built his retirement home next to a lake of the clearest and sweetest water in the country, only to be set upon a week later by a large herd of water Elementals drawn to the same location. In most cases, Elementals avoid the physical realms, as they prefer their own planes of existence to others.

Culture

Elementals are typically a neutral race of creatures, and their desires are aligned with the tendencies of the element that they are comprised of. Fire Elementals, for example, always seek substances to burn, and to avoid the element of water at all costs. Their homelands tend to be planes of existence that suit their characteristics, as well as the elemental planes themselves. Other than the need to be among their element, Elementals do not seem to have any understanding of society, social interaction, or belief. It was at one time believed that Elementals simply formed into existence out of areas of high magical concentration. However, a powerful and somewhat arrogant wizard of some notoriety had reportedly survived a recent trip to the Plane of Fire, where he claimed he saw two Elementals change shape, color and speed in a synchronous pattern, intertwining and releasing a third, smaller creature of the same kind in a fantastical display. The mage had just enough time to relate this story before dying due to horrible burns covering his body from head to toe. Whether he had actually seen such an occurrence, or he was simply delirious from the pain is still open to debate, but many wizards today believe his story is a plausible one, although the greater magical community has yet to come to a consensus on the matter due to its source.