Younglings are any of the sentient races sung into being by the Evertree and the Song of Myora. When the Withering came, the Younglings fled to the Cosmos to avoid their destruction. In Grow: Song of the Evertree, there are several known Youngling races (although there are probably more):
- Everkin - The mysterious and aloof, yet also mischievous and magical, smallest and eldest of the Younglings. The first race sung into existence, they take their name from the Evertree itself and can actually hear the whispers of the Evertree itself. Everkin were close friends to the Aerum before the destruction of Alaria, trading with them and even helping them build the foundations of their once-great city, but once the Aerum discovered Alchemy, they slowly lost touch with the Everkin, until the Song broke and most fled throughout the Cosmos. The Everkin have only just returned to Alaria in response to the Evertree's call. Everkin have a home world, a timeless pocket dimension known as Where-Ever, that they were able to safely hide in to wait out the catastrophe of the Withering. When the Song was broken, the Evertree entrusted the Everkin with a single fragment to give to the one who would restore the Song.
- Pohko - Humanoids with long ears, horns on their head and strange, yellow glowing eyes. Their horns are a great source of pride, as they see them as a sign of maturity. Not much else is known about the Pohko, as they are only seen as Residents and Visitors.
- Veiled - Mysterious race of humanoids who value their identity so much they wear long robes and keep their faces hidden behind masks, usually decorated with fancy stones and other objects. Veiled who have committed crimes have their gems removed and are known as "Faceless".
- Bistan - Anthropomorphic animal-like race, with long, floppy ears and a fluffy tail. The one Bistan the Apprentice gets to know seems quite standoffish and very sensitive about their tail and ears, but most seem playful with a zest for life.
- Aerum - Also known as "Tree-Tenders" and "Children of the Song." Human-looking people, known for having the Song of Myora in their hearts. Though they cannot hear the words, they can sing the song and connect to the Evertree, using the Song to perform Alchemy. The Apprentice is the last of the Aerum in Alaria until their efforts push back The Withering and people begin to arrive once more.
- Gnomes - Very small humanoids (only slightly taller than Everkin) with beards and pointed caps. Very little is known about them, but perhaps we could learn more if you'd stop knocking things over when you visit!
- Mycela - Animate, walking and talking Mushrooms. An extremely long-lived race who has been in Alaria since before anything else. They survived the Withering in some unknown way, but they were able to hear the distress of the Evertree and are aware that the Apprentice was able to heal it. The can be found not only in a somewhat secret area in Alaria, but also sometimes appear on various Fungi-styled World Seeds.
- Unknown - Bisha and Bosha are the only two members of their otherworldly species that the Apprentice ever sees and they only come to Alaria on random days to celebrate Festivals. They appear to be humanoid creatures with bird-like heads. Bisha is considerably larger than Bosha (and twice the size of the Apprentice!), and the only one who talks to the Apprentice.
Visitors
After the restoration of the Dock at Meadow Quarters and docks in subsequent districts, Visitors will begin to arrive on great Airships.
Some of these visitors just want to see what the Apprentice is doing with Alaria and the Evertree. Others want to move in permanently and become Residents. While most Visitors are Aerum, there are a large number of Veiled, Bistan and Pohko visitors as well. Most Visitors, except for plot-specific NPCs and Visitors of Interest, will have random names, appearances and even skills and preferred jobs (although no Visitors of Interest can move in or be assigned jobs).
Visitors take some time to initially disembark from the airship docks and only disembark one at a time. If there are currently no visitors requesting to join the district at start of day, wait until all visitors have disembarked or check back later in the day. Visitors will depart near the end of the day (regardless of their interest in joining the district) unless the Apprentice has either assigned housing to interested visitors or built and staffed an Inn.
The decision to stay at an Inn is made randomly by each visitor, provided there is still available lodging. The chance of a resident stay is small and both interested and uninterested visitors make this decision at end of day. A single Inn provides lodging for up to 6 visitors for a single night by default, but lodging capacity and duration can be increased through Customization Tokens.
Residents
Residents are Visitors to Alaria who wish to move in and find jobs. The Apprentice is responsible for finding them homes and businesses to keep them busy and happy. Once they've moved in, Residents also make various Requests of the Apprentice, the successful completion of which results in various rewards, including items and increased Harmony in the District.
Residents can only be recruited to the district they are visiting and cannot be moved to another district at a later time. (Confirmed as true as of the Care and Prosperity Update.)
Aside from a few named Residents that arrive as part of various plot lines, Residents have random names, skills and preferred jobs. These can all be modified by use of Consumable items that can be found as random drops or purchased from the Temple or Bathhouse. The Apprentice need not try to move every Resident in, and in fact, it is sometimes beneficial to pass on a Resident who might lack the necessary skills to contribute to the Harmony of the District.
When hovering over a building in manage mode, the building will show what stat is needed for the resident worker inside. Using that stat (and examining the visitor's current skills in the resident management interface) will help the player choose which interested visitor is worth inviting to live inside the district.
- It is possible for two (or more!) Residents of a District to have the same randomly-generated name. To avoid confusion, the Apprentice may wish to use a rename token in such situations, or simply pass over duplicate-named Visitors in favor of other prospective Residents.
To force a Resident to leave Alaria, they must first be removed from their workplace and housing assignments via the building management interface. The newly-homeless and jobless Resident will linger for a few days to give the Apprentice an opportunity to reconsider, but will eventually depart with visitors in the evening never to be seen again.
Amongst the many Younglings the Apprentice meets, there are a few special ones who have more important roles in the Apprentice's life.
Romanceable NPCs will also become Residents as the Apprentice progresses through their quests, requesting housing and employment over the course of one or more of their quests.
A romantic relationship is not necessary for a Romanceable NPC to join or remain in a district.
- Book and Coppertop - Two artificial constructs, made through the power of Alchemy, who serve as guardians and mentors to the Apprentice, and are the only other remaining members of the Everheart Alchemists.
- Kathleen - The first person to return to Alaria after the Apprentice begins to push back the Withering. An Aerum with long, blonde hair, she serves as a tutorial for Resident management. Unlike the other Residents whose names are not randomly-generated, Kathleen can be given items to change her appearance, skills and name, and can even be forced to move out.
- Arralyn - Another Aerum, and an old friend of the Apprentice, Arralyn arrives a couple of days after Kathleen, wanting to move back to help the Apprentice. Also serves as a potential romantic interest.
- Oleander - Arralyn's brother, who arrives the day after she does. He, too decides to stay to help -- and to keep his sister from getting in trouble with their parents. Oleander is also a romantic interest, but the Apprentice can only become "serious" about either him or his sister, and not both.
- Elderkin - The eldest and wisest Everkin, found in Where-Ever. He introduces the Apprentice to the rest of the Everkin.
- Pallas - a Bistan. A scholar obsessed with knowledge. Does not appear until a Library is built. Another potential romantic interest, if you encourage their quest for knowledge.
- Aeric and Flora - two Veiled who will not appear unless a Temple is built. They want to learn more about the restoration of Alaria. Aeric is a Faceless (his mask has no gems because he committed a crime in the past and is trying to redeem himself). They each have a separate romantic path.
- Bisha and Bosha - the previously-mentioned otherworldly creatures who appear on Festival days.
Visitors of interest
There are also some interesting, but inconsequential Visitors who appear randomly in the various Towns. They cannot be interacted with or recruited as district Residents, only talked to.
- Digby Derbyshire - An Aerum with an extremely large head, looking for his missing hat.
- Java Joe - An Aerum who seems obsessed with coffee and Cafés.
- Evelyn Twitcher - An Aerum with goggles who wants to watch the Everkin.
- Tracy Feld - A Pohko with party shades who is obsessed with fitness.
- Hoyt Couture - A Bistan obssessed with fashion.
- Robby Drake - A Pohko who just wants to take a bath.
- Peridot Pollex - An Aerum with rope tied around her head who loves gardening.
- Larry Lilac - a Bistan boardgame enthusiast.
- Lisa Lime - a Aerum who is a very nosy reporter.