At some point in history somebody decided to make up some of their own animals and beings, and sometimes the particular creature they made up was interesting enough that others kept using the same made up creatures in their stories.
For organisms with an intelligence about equal to humans or otherwise sapient which usually don't get wantonly slaughtered by heroes without moral repercussions, see Fantastic Sapient Species Tropes. See also Our Monsters Are Different. Note that this, like most things, is now subject to The Wiki Rule, as you can see here
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Tropes:
General categories:
- Fantastic Racism
- Fantastic Sapient Species Tropes
- Liminal Being
- Not Quite Human
- Our Monsters Are Different
- Sliding Scale of Anthropomorphism
Specific types:
- A Kind of One
- Alchemic Elementals
- Alien Animals
- Alien Fair Folk
- All Trolls Are Different
- A Load of Bull
- Animated Armor
- Antlion Monster
- Asteroids Monster
- Attack of the Killer Whatever
- Basilisk and Cockatrice
- Benevolent Monsters
- Big Creepy-Crawlies
- Bigfoot, Sasquatch and Yeti
- Blob Monster
- Bond Creatures
- Brain Monster
- Bug War
- Calacas
- Call a Pegasus a "Hippogriff"
- Canis Major
- Chest Monster
- Chupacabra
- Clock Roaches
- Clockwork Creature
- Cthulhumanoid
- Cute Monster
- Cute Monster Girl
- Cyclops
- Differently Powered Individual
- Divine Birds
- Elemental Embodiment
- Eldritch Abomination
- Energy Beings
- Enthralling Siren
- Fantastic Flora
- Fantastic Foxes
- Fantastic Nature Reserve
- Fauns and Satyrs
- Fearsome Critters of American Folklore
- Feathered Serpent
- Female Monster Surprise
- Genius Loci
- Giant Flyer
- Giant Space Flea from Nowhere
- Giant Spider
- Golem
- Gorgeous Gorgon
- The Greys
- Griping About Gremlins
- Harping on About Harpies
- Headless Horseman
- The Heartless
- Hobbits
- Home of Monsters
- Horde of Alien Locusts
- Horned Humanoid
- Hybrid Monster
- Hybrid Overkill Avoidance
- The Hypnotoad
- The Imp
- Insectoid Aliens
- Interspecies Adoption
- Interspecies Friendship
- Interspecies Romance
- Invisible Monsters
- The Jersey Devil
- Kaiju
- Killer Space Monkey
- Kirin
- The Krampus
- Leprechaun
- Lilliputians
- Little Bit Beastly
- Little Green Men
- Living Clothes
- Living Gasbag
- Living Shadow
- Living Ship
- Living Structure Monster
- Living Toys
- MacGuffin Guardian
- Man-Eating Plant
- Maneki Neko
- Mechanical Lifeforms
- Medusa
- Mega-Microbes
- Mega Neko
- Metamorphosis Monster
- Mix-and-Match Critters
- Monster Fun Facts
- Monster Knight
- Monster Lord
- Monster Roommate
- Monstrous Humanoid
- Moon Rabbit
- The Morlocks
- The Mothman
- Muck Monster
- Mushroom Man
- Mutants
- Nature Spirit
- Nephilim
- Non-Human Head
- Non-Malicious Monster
- Nuclear Nasty
- Oracular Head
- Ouroboros
- Our Angels Are Different
- Our Banshees Are Louder
- Our Centaurs Are Different
- Our Cryptids Are More Mysterious
- Our Demons Are Different
- Our Dragons Are Different
- Our Fairies Are Different
- Our Gargoyles Rock
- Our Genies Are Different
- Our Giants Are Bigger
- Our Gnomes Are Weirder
- Our Goblins Are Different
- Our Gods Are Different
- Our Gryphons Are Different
- Our Homunculi Are Different
- Our Manticores Are Spinier
- Our Mermaids Are Different
- Our Monsters Are Weird
- Our Ogres Are Hungrier
- Our Spirits Are Different
- Our Werebeasts Are Different
- Paradox Person
- Pegasus
- Petting Zoo People
- The Phoenix
- Planimal
- Plant Aliens
- Plant Person
- Prehistoric Monster
- Proportionately Ponderous Parasites
- Psychopomp
- The Reptilians
- Riddling Sphinx
- Roc Birds
- Rock Monster
- Rodents of Unusual Size
- Sand Worm
- Sea Monster
- Scorpion People
- Silicon-Based Life
- Single Specimen Species
- Slime Girl
- Snake People
- Space Whale
- Spider People
- Spider Swarm
- Starfish Aliens
- Stingy Jack
- Tentacled Terror
- Things That Go "Bump" in the Night
- Tulpa
- Treants
- Ultimate Life Form
- The Undead
- Unicorn
- Valkyries
- The Virus
- Wendigo
- Winged Humanoid
- Youkai
- Yowies and Bunyips and Drop Bears, Oh My
