Merfolk

There’s about five subspecies of water-based monsters, but are all classified under the same name, “Merfolk.” They have various tales and legends, but their actual story is quite unknown and differs per region.

Surface
Surface Merfolk are of the sea, and most resemble the “mermaid” of modern variety. Beautiful, they take on the appearance of various fish in pattern and shape. They are told to be dangerous - that their songs will draw fishermen to their doom, but any fisherman will tell you the actual opposite! They try to draw a  fisherman away from rocks, whirlpools, storms and other dangers at sea when possible.

River
River Merfolk are fast, strong swimmers with strong physique. They can swim upstream in large rivers like salmon with ease, and currents rarely sweep them away unless they are weakened/injured. Their fins allow for sharp turns and high speeds, with even babies reaching a good speed of 20 MPH and some adults peaking at 70 MPH. They’re often competitive.

Pond
Pond Merfolk are often much slower than any others, and with more fat than muscle on their bodies, because they have no current to go against. A lot of them lurk near the bottom of large lakes, not bothering to move for most of their lives unless they really want to, because they eat whatever is there for them to eat. They’re often lazy and love to sunbathe on the terrain around their home.

Deep Sea
Deep Sea Merfolk are often quite large - with rare beings sometimes growing to whale-like sizes. Their “nonhuman” half can resemble squids and octopi and other more rare varieties. Usually, the Deep Sea Merfolk are born shy and very unconfident, and grow to be prideful and arrogant, and like to reside deep away from other species for this reason - thinking themselves too good for most interactions. Their social skills are, as a result, terrible, and they usually return to being shy during conversations outside of their home sea level.

Shark
Shark Merfolk are a subspecies of their own, due to their ability to live most any level of the sea and their noticeably low intelligence. Although usually docile merpeople, they are typically the biggest merfolk-related threat to swimmers because of mistaking them for seals and other marine creatures. They’re shunned for reasons similar to real sharks, but are not as dangerous as they are stupid.