Smart, dependable and useful, the messenger birds of Andaril
Description
Ravens are the predominant messenger birds in Andaril for their intelligence and resourcefulness.
Pidgeons eat grain, but a scavenger bird like a raven will eat just about anything, including the plentiful corpses that are created from the continuous war the Lumare and Kaligo empires have been under for the past four centuries. When grain was low, people started using the ravens, and since then, it’s stuck.
These selectively bred ravens have been bred for their intelligence, speed, and reliability, making their intelligence on par with a human toddler. Another advantage these birds have is the ability to remember multiple paths, and recognize words correlating to those locations/paths.
How these ravens are trained to comply is a largely debated ethical problem, as most still use narcotics to get them addicted, making the raven comply for another hit of the substance. The substance used varies, but is oftentimes mixed into a special kibbled given to the birds. When they aren’t eating this kibble, they scavenge battlefields, hunt rodents and eat leftovers from soldier camps.
Behaviour
Naturally curious, ravens have formed a mutualistic relationship with their masters, serving them as elite messenger birds, being rewarded in food and oftentimes narcotics. The messenger ravens form strong emotional bonds to their masters, and have even been reported to follow them to battle.
Diet
The messenger ravens eat anything they can scavenge, which typically includes scraps given to them by soldiers, or enemy corpses. While the nutritional value in the psychoactive kibble they are rewarded doesn’t provide top-tier nourishment, it does motivate the birds to continue serving the cause.
Misc
Lifespan: 30-50 years
Population: 50M
Height (tail to beak): 60cm
Height (wingspan): 150cm
The World Stones 