Though they are often seen as monsters due to their very primitive nature and ability to cause trouble the Kleppik are really just another type of bird folk, with a shrouded origin being the cause of disagreement over the classification. Their race isn't actually called the Kleppik as it is simply the name scholars agreed on for reference stemming from their habit of stealing as well as the sound they make with their beaks. They go by many different local names such as Thieflings, Looters, Borrowbirds, and Taxings to name just a few names with a common theme. Though their thieving is a nuisance the Kleppik don't steal out of malice or greed, they simply just like shiny things with a particular preference developed for coins and gems but especially coins as they seem to have learned that the other races like to keep coins in easy to carry pouches which are easily snatched off of the back of a wagon or when briefly left unattended by their owner and they have even learned to cut purse strings with their talons with a skill that rivals the best cutpurses. The one upside is that the males are quite easy to spot with their bright colors while they are the main ones to steal, that's not to say the females don't steal at all they just don't quite as often even though their muted colors make them far more stealthy for it.

The reason for their thieving ways is quite simply to impress potential mates where once a male would have to impress with dance and showing off their bright colors, large shoulder feathers and golden yellow comb and wattle, they discovered the females were far more easily swayed by bringing them shiny things to decorate their neasting area with. As can be seen here by this male impressing a female at her nestign area by throwing around some coins into the shallow water during his dance, where they'll sparkle in the light just below the surface. Females tend to make their nesting area in wetlands or inside tidal caves which have access from above where they will typically created a large sleeping nest high up and several smaller nests down below to store the shiny things in so she can marvel at them from her nest. Males and females do not pair up for life usually but may chose the same male for years in a row if they keep impressing her or there simply is a shortage of males in the area. That said the females are not exactly faithful anyways as they can recieve some opportunistic males besides their partner that breedign season and produce offspring with multiple males. Typically a female Kleppik will lay between three to five eggs and up to nine if she has recieved multiple males that season, and after hatching the chicks will remain with their mother for a year before they strike out on their own. Most will not survive to adulthood due to predators, a lack of food and ability to obtain it effectively. During this stage in their life the young will master their thieving skills to either steal food or try to barter for it with stolen coin, something the adult Kleppik will do occasionally as well when food is scarce so anyone who has had their coinpurse stolen by them might be getting some their money back eventually. Because of their hoarding of riches some budding adventurers see them as a safer alternative to raiding a dragon's lair for some coin, and while this is true the Kleppik can defend themselves quite well against the poorly prepaired and inexperienced adventurers using their talons, wind magic and a deafening scream that can leave victims disoriented for some time. One of their abilities which they also use to ward off intruders is the ability to throw their voice with air magic and perfectly mimic sounds, voices and human speech in order to distract or terrify. Though there have been reported cases where this ability is used to lure in males and females of other races during mating season when there are no suitable partners found by the end of the season, sometimes even offering payment in return but while these reports are generally dismissed as wild tales, the Kleppik do seem to have some basic understanding of trade for goods and services as demonstrated when they attempt to trade their stolen coins for food.
Although it is found ill advised to take them up on such an offer regardless wether it is true or not, and some scholars from the city of Artis claim that this is one way harpies are created despite a lack of proof one way or another. There is however some credible stories where Kleppik have tried to seduce human women and men, but these cases were likely just an attempt at distraction in order to steal something, as in every case the person ended up with having some of their possessions stolen afterwards.

Despite this ability to mimic speech no proper communication has ever been established as the Kleppik don't really seem to understand the words, but they do seem to have some knowledge of the intent of certain words to get some simple ideas across, meaning that unfortunately we may never learn more about them through dialogue since they seem to lack the ability for more complex thought. Something of an annoyance for sure to scholars who wish to unravel the origins of the Kleppik.
One leading theory suggests that they may be descendants of the children of the sky Goddess, Joon from an affair with another diety of the skies before she had an affair with Neme which resulted in the first griffons. Though somehow these children of hers have been cursed with lessed intellect, perhaps because they sought to steal her secrets or power at some point which could account for their thieving ways today still. Their shoulder feathers might provide the proof of this as Joon has many forms and a peacock is one of those and those feathers are still soon on the male Kleppik in particular, though the females possess them too only more slender in shape. Perhaps we may never know the truth even if we could properly communictae with them as it does not seem likely the Kleppik pass on any oral history to their young, or any kind of deeper knowledge or culture for that matter.

~Anden Crowe, Field researcher and Ornithologist, Artis University.

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