TRANSFORMATION

New arrivals who become Monsters do so at a speed that largely varies from person to person, but will be expedited on full moons and any time they set foot outside of Aefenglom due to their connection to the city's magic slowing the rate of change. It takes, at minimum, 3 months to fully change into a Monster, and at most 9 months. Fighting the changes may put the Monster in question at risk, as this is fighting the nature that has been given to you upon arrival, and will result in the instincts pushing back just as hard as you fight it.

The full moons in the month they arrive will result in Monsters experiencing: restlessness, exhaustion, and/or agitation at best depending on their Monster, with aggression and mild states of feral behavior at worst. They'll also notice their Monster traits starting to come in, if they hadn't yet prior to the full moons, due to the two aforementioned ways for their changes to be expedited: leaving the safety of Aefenglom's Wall, and the full moons.

As such, a moon shift won't ever occur on their very first month, but could happen on their second for the first time if a player chose. Or it could happen on the third, or fifth, or even the ninth when the transformation is finalized. It depends entirely on how you want to progress through the character's changes, but they will progressively experience the effects of the full moons they go through, and the strength of their effect will increase over time until they're forced to take this form.

MOON SHIFT & LUNAR CHANGES

Every Monster experiences the aforementioned lunar changes, as this is not specific to only Turnskin. Further information on these changes can be found under each Monster's entry in the bestiary, but there is one specific thing to note: Monsters will only experience a full change (their moon shift) on full moons at a player selected point past their first month.

For example:

Say Character A, a Harpy, experiences their first full moon after spending the time since their arrival slowly gaining their feathery traits. If they have an increase in feathers, elongated teeth/claws, etc on their first month's full moon - they are stuck with those! This is because no character in their first month experiences a moon shift. They'll simply notice a sudden increase in traits: a Harpy getting even more feathers, sharper teeth and claws, perhaps the itching and aches that come with wings developing.

However, say Character A experiences their first full moon, acquires the above, and finds themselves stuck with this. For their next full moon, their player may decide to have them experience their moon shift after developing more feather growth, maybe even sprouting small wings. They become more wild appearing, have greater feather growth, and may even find themselves with large wings or a tail. But when the full moon passes, it's a player's choice if they retain these traits at the max that they were experienced, or if they only keep some of it in a smaller dose. Moon shifts become more monstrous the more full moons a Monster experiences, and more of the traits remain over time after, until they're finalized.

Admittedly, Turnskin will find themselves the most likely to transform during their second month in Geardagas, as the lunar pull hits them the hardest. They can fight it, but, again, it is strongly recommended they don't.

GOING FERAL

Because Monsters are, after all, already constantly at risk of going feral, where they lose control of their human consciousness and can attack those around themselves. This can be caused in a variety of ways:

• Fighting your newfound monstrous instincts, nature, and changes - this results in a sort of backlash of the magic that is inherent in what you are now, and will overwhelm your human mindset.
  
  
• Having minimal control of yourself during lunar changes - due to the sister moons of the world you now inhabit, all Monsters are twice as susceptible to full moons and the sway that they have over instincts and emotions. Fighting against the changes is even more dangerous during these times, and it's easy for those not in control of their emotions even as humans, or those not comfortable with their new form, to find themselves going feral even if they don't fight the changes.
  
  
• Monsters without a Bond will find themselves more susceptible to the magic of the world. While residing in Aefenglom protects them to a degree, there is some amount of "noise pollution," as it were, that manages to make its way into the city. Because Monsters are the perfect conduit for magical energy, if they don't have a Witch (or even another Monster to share the load with), the loss of control is a slippery slope if they don't find a means of cleansing themselves of this energy that builds up in them.

Monster FAQ