Traits

A BJD shell is one of the commonly made types of shells. These shells are distinguished by the use of ball joints, and are less stiff when uninhabited. Ball Jointed prosthetics are commonly used as well; In some cases shells may be made with missing pieces, so prosthetics are fairly easy to come by and easy to install. Ball Jointed shells and prosthetics are typically believed to be easier for saura to control, and in particular to be easier for smaller sauras to inhabit, as the hollow spaces within the shell are smaller, and fragmentation of the body typically causes less loss of saura.

An articulated shell is one of the commonly made types of shells.  These shells are distinguished by being formed to resemble the exterior of a humanoid body that would possess interior joints.  Articulated prosthetics are commonly used as well.  They are believed to be somewhat more difficult for saura to control, as they typically are more rigid before becoming inhabited by saura, but are a popular choice for shellmakers as they are often simpler to make than a BJD shell.

A fragmented shell is one that has experienced damage that broke the exterior of the shell to reveal the hollow area where the Lockette’s saura resides.  The fragmentation can take differing forms, from lost limbs to cracks to missing sections of shell, and even to aesthetic things such as having a series of hearts punched into the shell.  Saura connects pieces of the shell even after fragmentation, so it is not unusual to see a fragmented Lockette with a hand floating but their forearm missing.  Fragmentation can represent a dangerous risk to a Lockette’s quantity of saura and ability to regularly replenish it, and it is typical for Lockettes to seek prosthetics after an injury to prevent this, or to use some material to cover smaller holes or cracks.  Of course, for their own reasons, some Lockettes will not seek prosthetics or covers, or will choose ones that do not fully prevent the loss of saura from their fragmentation.  It is generally impossible for a Lockette to survive having more than 50% of their original shell fragmented, as the shell just no longer possesses the capacity to retain the saura.

Traditionally, Lockettes manifest with humanoid legs and arms as their shells are typically made with these.  On occasion, however, a saura will drastically alter the shell it chooses to inhabit.  These shells may exhibit paws, clawed feet, hooves, and/or the growth of fur or feathers on the body.  These animalistic traits typically come from mammals, but on occasion may resemble other animals.  They never change the overall shell from being that of a bipedal, however.

Most Lockettes have standard saura.  This saura is generally sheer or even invisible, and tends to coalesce closely together with no stray wisps escaping unless there has been a recent serious injury or the keyhole is temporarily emitting some to remove excess from the shell.  This saura has no negative associations or effects in Lockette society.  It’s fully possible for a Lockette with standard saura to be a horrible individual, but it is not expected.

Occasionally, Lockettes may have something… attached to their saura when they manifest.  This saura is possessed by something, and that possession appears to be little smoky clouds, which are generally sheer to opaque and colored enough to be noticeable.  These bits of myst can often be seen escaping from keyholes and fragmentation, and are also sometimes found on charms.  Myst can affect the mental state of the Lockette it is attached to, but do not always do so.

An infested myst possession is overall quite similar to a myst possession.  However, an infested myst is distinguishable by eyes in the myst that escape the shell or fragmentation or by additional eyes growing on the shell.  An infested myst possession is liable to drive a Lockette with it to seek power and wealth, and sometimes to behave violently towards others and seek to consume their life essence or saura.  It is unknown if this is due to the nature of the myst, or if it is simply an instinctive way to seek safety.  Infested Myst Possessions often have the capability to transfer hosts, although this will usually result in the death of their former host.  Infested Myst Possession is sometimes seen alongside a Frenzied Myst Possession - sometimes they seem to be part of the same possession, while other times they appear to be in some level of conflict.  The details on this are poorly understood.

A frenzied myst possession is overall quite similar to a myst possession.  However, a frenzied myst is distinguishable by teeth in the myst that escape from the shell or by additional teeth and mouths growing on the shell.  A frenzied myst possession is liable to drive a Lockette to behave violently towards others, and sometimes to seek to consume their life essence or saura.  This is believed to be because the Frenzied possessions are capable of speech heard only by their host.  This is generally believed to be the most dangerous type of possession.  Frenzied Myst Possessions rarely have the capability to transfer hosts, although this will usually result in the death of their former host.  Frenzied Myst Possession is sometimes seen alongside an Infested Myst Possession - sometimes they seem to be part of the same possession, while other times they appear to be in some level of conflict.  The details on this are poorly understood.

Originally believed to be a form of possession, Inky saura has come to be understood as simply a different form of saura in most cases.  It is unknown what this saura type originally comes from, but these sauras typically prefer to manifest in darker and colder places.  This saura forms Lockettes who are incredibly heavy and are slow-moving.  Many use mobility aids, as inky saura is not always as adept at maneuvering shells.  Inky saura leaks through orifices, fragmentation, and keyholes alike quite noticeably, and on Lockettes with BJD shells, it will leak through the joints as well.

While inky saura is its own type of saura, it is not immune to becoming possessed.  However, unlike normal saura, inked saura can occasionally overtake a myst possession and transform it.  These inked possessions lack the ability to change hosts, and often wind up taking their own shape and appearing as though a companion to the Lockette they have possessed.  (For example, a pair of wings or a swarm of bees would retain those forms).  These possessions appear inklike in nature, typically leaving stains around themselves.  Some will have their own opinions, feelings, and desires that they act upon, which may wind up harmful or helpful to the host, and can usually communicate in some fashion not only with the host but with others around them, and vary in how far they can travel from their host, though the maximum possible distance known seems to be under a mile/1.6 kilometers.

Malformed saura is a less understood form of saura, but has come to be considered as more dangerous than even a Frenzied Myst Possession.  Malformed saura is most commonly distinguished by skeletal tails, however there are some other common signs such as charms that appear heavily broken (and especially charms that are each broken in different ways!), ears that appear heavily torn, and bodies that are fragmented beyond the normal 50% that is possible for a typical Lockette to survive.  Malformed saura is unable to be replenished in the ways that a standard saura or inked saura can be - eating and drinking do nothing for them, they have to remove it from their shell as waste as their saura will not dissolve it.  Use and presence of their summons does not build additional saura for them either.  These Lockettes have one resort to survive - consumption of the life energy or saura of others.  Saura of another Lockette will feed them for longer than the life energy of a non-Lockette, but it can be more dangerous to take…  They can become even more dangerous when possessed.

An inked Lockette who is also malformed is typically very unlikely to survive long, as their saura will have more difficulty in consuming the less tangible saura or life energy of others and normal inked are already rare enough to find.  However, it is not completely impossible for a malformed ink Lockette to manage long-term survival…

These commonly seen ears typically have a short and pointed shape, similar to that of a cat from Earth.  The amount of scattering may vary, but there are usually at least a few holes in the ear and small pieces floating around it.  These ears can be placed at either the side of the head, where human ears would go, or on top of the head where cat ears would sit.

These commonly seen ears typically have a long and slightly rounded shape with some amount of floppiness, somewhat similar to that of a rabbit from Earth.  The amount of scattering may vary, but there are usually at least a few holes in the ear and small pieces floating around it.  These ears can be placed on the sides of the head, where human ears would go.

These commonly seen ears typically have a long and very rounded shape, somewhat similar to that of a sheep from Earth.  They also usually have texture on the inside of the ear.  The amount of scattering may vary, but there are usually at least a few holes in the ear and small pieces floating around it.  These ears can be placed on the sides of the head, where human ears would go.

These commonly seen ears typically have a long and pointed shape, and are usually upraised in a position that resembles raised wings.  (Occasionally they may tip downward instead).  The amount of scattering may vary, but there are usually at least a few holes in the ear and small pieces floating around it.  These ears can be placed on the sides of the head, where human ears would go.

These commonly seen ears typically appear as though they are a set of four ears, with the overall shape and position of the four resembling a hairbow.  An individual ear observed has a short and pointed shape.  The amount of scattering may vary, but there are usually at least a few holes in the ear and small pieces floating around it.  These ears can be placed on the sides of the head, where human ears would go.

These uncommonly seen ears typically have a long and pointed shape, and are characterized by an unusual feature - their version of scattering does not include pieces floating around the ears, and they more or less simply appear to have been notched with a few holes present.  These ears can be placed on the sides of the head, where human ears would go.

These uncommonly seen ears typically have a long and pointed shape, resembling a Great Dane or German Shepard when they sit on top of the head.  The amount of scattering may vary, but there are usually at least a few holes in the ear and small pieces floating around it.  These ears can be placed on either the sides of the head, where human ears would go, or on the top of the head, where cat ears or dog ears might sit.

These infrequently seen ears typically have a long and pointed shape, with the exterior of the ear being visible from both sides of the ear as it folds in on itself.  The extent to which it folds may vary.  The amount of scattering may vary, but there are usually at least a few holes in the ear and small pieces floating around it.  These ears can be placed on the sides of the head, where human ears would go.

These rarely seen ears greatly resemble ovis ears - but doubled.  Like ovis ears, they also usually have texture on the inside of the ear.  The amount of scattering may vary, but there are usually at least a few holes in the ear and small pieces floating around it.  These ears can be placed on the sides of the head, where human ears would go.