Rakshasa

Yuta in 1st stage, Kalavinka in 1st stage, and Maruna in 2nd stage (Ep.74)

Clophe in 3rd stage and Cloche in 4th stage. These siblings have one nastika and one rakshasa parent. (Ep.2-78)

Shess, a 4th-stage rakshasa (Ep.68)

A rakshasa is a sura with two nastika parents, or in rare cases, a nastika and a rakshasa parent. Rakshasas go through five stages of development in order to reach adulthood. Unlike their nastika parents, rakshasas have fixed genders. The children of rakshasas are called upanis.

Development of Anything

Rakshasas are born in human form, but can take sura form at any stage of development.

The rate of development differs for each individual rakshasa. For example, Samphati took 700 years to reach her 4th stage, which is slightly longer than average; however, she reached 5th stage in 5000 years, which is the fastest growth among all rakshasas in all clans. Maruna spent 700 years in his 2nd stage alone, an unusual length of time. Developing to fifth stage normally takes tens of millions or hundreds of millions of years, far longer than for lower stages.

According to Kasak, the mental age of a sura corresponds to the stage of development, and not the actual age. Currygom states on her blog that even if centuries pass, as long as a rakshasa remains in the same stage, its mental age also stays the same.

Groups of 4th- and 3rd-stage rakshasas are afraid of the notion of the half-dragon Kasak being nearly at the level of a 5th-stage rakshasa.

1st stage

Rakshasas at this stage grow the same as human babies. This is the only stage where they gradually grow; after this stage, they jump in appearance when they develop.

2nd stage

This stage begins at the point in which they stop growing at 1st stage. In human form, they resemble human children around elementary school age.

3rd stage

This stage is roughly equivalent to adolescence for humans. This is the time they develop an interest in the opposite sex; however, they can be even more impulsive than humans during puberty. Their age of appearance is around middle school age.

Accumulating experience and the key for development

4th stage

The rakshasas at this stage resemble humans in their late teens, around high school age. All rakshasas will reach this stage if they live long enough.

Many rakshasas remain at this stage and never develop to 5th stage; their development essentially stalls at this point because they are unable to meet the second condition for advancing to 5th stage. Shess is the classic example of a rakshasa stuck in 4th stage. Most rakshasas die before developing to fifth stage, and so they are regarded as fully grown at 4th stage and start to mate.

5th stage

Rakshasas at this stage resemble adult humans, and by appearances they can easily be mistaken for nastikas. Their sura form appears half-human and is commonly covered up by something else; in some cases only partially, but in others to the extent that the face is completely hidden.

They are superior to 4th-stage rakshasas in every way, but the most significant difference is in their vigor. Their total amount of vigor is much higher, and they no longer need to eat in order to restore it, like nastikas.

Two conditions must be met in order to advance to this stage: Accumulated experience must reach a specific level, and there must be a key to development, which is an experience more intense than ever encountered previously. Finding a key is apparently easier for rakshasas who have lived easier, less eventful lives, unlike Shess, whose earlier development occurred during the more violent era of the early universe. In rare cases, the key for development into 5th stage is the same as the key for development into 4th stage.

Developing to fifth stage normally takes tens of millions or hundreds of millions of years.

Transcendental skills

The transcendental skills available to each rakshasa depend on the attributes it possesses, since each skill has specific attribution requirements. For example, Hiding requires the user to have at least one Darkness attribute. Rakshasas also require vigor to power their transcendentals. Some transcendentals, such as Hiding, can have multiple targets, and some may require a delay before they can activate.

As they develop, the number, strength, and variety of their transcendental skills can increase, unlike with nastikas who have a fixed number. Very few rakshasas, such as Maruna, are born with their own unique transcendental skill.

Attributes

Rakshasas each possess three attributes: one clan attribute and two hereditary attributes (one from each parent). This gives them access to three-attribute transcendentals, such as Black Volcano, that nastikas are unable to use due to having only two attributes. The single exception to this rule is Yuta, who has four attributes due to having two clan attributes as a result of being a normally-impossible crossbreed.

Vigor

Rakshasas at 4th stage and below require vigor in order to use their transcendentals. Vigor is replenished through eating; however, eating is not required for general survival. Vegetarian suras need to eat more than carnivorous suras in order to gain the same amount of vigor. 5th-stage rakshasas, like nastikas, do not need to eat to restore vigor.

Notes

• Clophe and Cloche have one nastika and one rakshasa parent. As a result, they are weaker than rakshasas born to two nastika parents.