In the Shifted Land of Greater Massachusetts (roughly the northeastern US plus some colonies), there are three types of Winged People. There are the Bat People who have bat-like wings and prehensile tails; Sprites who have insect-like wings and antennae; and Drakals who are essentially dragon women. Sprites and Drakals are all female, while Bat People are of both sexes. Bat People and Sprites came to be during the intense and sometimes mutating magic of the Shift, while Drakals seem to be human or elvish women changed by dragons by some unknown means or the children of Drakals by human or elvish fathers. There are around ten thousand Bat People, two thousand Sprites, and under two dozen (known) Drakals in Greater Massachusetts.
Winged people are all somewhat magical in nature, as flight for a human sized creature is pretty much impossible without magic or psionics or technology. Unlike Shifted Lands humans, winged people lack psionics. Bat People generally lack other magical aptitudes, although they can use magic as well as the average human and there are a few Bat People Mages. Drakals and Sprites all have Magical Aptitude, and Sprites also Regenerate.
Winged People tend to be rather noticeable. Sprites and Drakals are striking, beautiful people, although in different ways. Sprites are delicate looking, petite winged women with light builds and slightly boyish figures. Their wings defract light into a rainbow of colors. Drakals are usually taller and more shapely, with their scaled skin, bat-like (or more correctly dragon-like) wings and somewhat lizardish tails actually enhancing their alien beauty. Bat People tend to not be regarded as attractive by humans due to their furry (note: fur, not just hairy) torsos and tail (-1 for reaction rolls) and their demonic looking bat wings. However, some are considered beautiful or handsome and there are humans in romantic relationships with bat people.
Bat People have bat wings and a prehensile tail. Their torso and tail and wings are covered with soft fur that is the same color as the hair on their heads. Bat People tend to form romantic bonds with other bat people, but some get involved with humans and sprites. Most couriers and fast food delivery people in shifted Boston are bat people; they've entirely replaced the bicycle couriers of earlier times since they don't have to deal with traffic or pedestrians. (GURPS cost: 40 points)
Sprites have wings somewhat like lacewing insects and antennae somewhat like those of moths. They tend to be petite, and never have a strength greater than 8 (-3 on ST base). Their antennae give them enhanced hearing and smell (+2 on hearing, smell, and taste rolls), and also allow some ability to sense electromagnetic fields. They are very magical; they have magical aptitude, regeneration (one hit point per hour), and they have twice as much fatigue than their ST would normally give. Sprites are often thought of as "flighty" and frivolous; spending most of their time practicing or performing Air Dances (a sort of combination of flight and dance) , or concerning themselves with their appearance. They do tend toward artistic pursuits and generally dress in light, pretty clothes but this is far from universal; many are close to the opposite of the standard stereotype.
Sprites are almost always beautiful (+2 on all reaction rolls made by women , +4 by men), but some humans find it to be a overly alien beauty. Still, sprites seem to have little trouble attracting male humans and elves. Their children are sprites if female and like their fathers if male. (GURPS cost: 74 points)
Unlike other winged people, Drakals are not a result of the Shift. Drakals were completely unknown until Andrea Mills returned from the wilderness after a brief relationship with a dragon as a sort of dragon-woman. Being broke and lacking a job, she agreed to pose for a book of "tasteful and artistic" nude photographs of non-human women being produced by a photographer ex-boyfriend. The book was a great success, and Andrea found herself with a modeling career and hordes of fans. This showed other drakals that it was possible to live in civilization despite their change, and some returned.
Apparently, relationships with dragons have shortcomings; dragons tend to sleep for days or weeks or even months, leaving their drakal consorts neglected and bored. Some drakals completely severed their relationships with their dragons, but some only moved back to civilization and their dragons visit them in human form frequently. There appear to be no female dragons; dragons court suitable human, elvish, and perhaps other women and by some unknown means change them into drakals. The most any Drakal has said about the process is that it "brought out their true selves"; implying that the women have to have some undefined quality in order to be transformed. Some people believe that this is the truth behind the notion of dragons carrying off virgins although virginity doesn't seem to be a requirement and the known dragons seem to only take willing mates.
The child of a dragon and a drakal will be a dragon whelp, while the child of a drakal and a man will be a drakal. The gestation period is about the same as for humans; some observers suggest that carrying a dragon fetus is what turns a woman into a drakal, but the drakals decline to confirm that. Some observers also suggest that a Drakal's first dragon whelp is laid as an egg, but most drakals laugh at that suggestion. Drakals nurse their hatchlings for a bit longer on average than human women; young drakals and dragon whelps develop a bit slower than human babies although a whelp is more mobile than a human or drakal baby. The young drakal or whelp does not achieve flight or flame breath until around adolescence; about the same time magical ability or psionics manifests in other races. Drakals are as devoted to their young as any human, but whelps tend to go to live with their fathers around the age of five to share in dragon dreams. Their mothers still visit them and care about them, usually.
Drakals have draconic wings and reptilian looking tails. They have no body hair except on their heads, and their external ears are replaced by a slight ridge. Their skin is finely scaled and feels somewhat like fine soft leather; very pleasing to the touch. Their skin color varies from golden to copperish. They have no eyebrows or eyelashes, but have slight ridges over the eyes. They have claws on their hands and feet instead of nails (+2 damage in combat, -1 on DX for actions involving manual dexterity); the claws are about the same color as their skin, just a bit darker. They also have Magical Aptitude. And of course, since they are draconic, they have flame breath with a range of one yard that does one d6 damage at a cost of two fatigue points. Drakals are always quite beautiful (+2 on reaction rolls made by women; +6 on rolls by men) ; tall, shapely, and usually a bit (sometimes a lot) bosomy. The tendency of drakals to end up in professions where physical beauty is a top priority and their tendency to look as if they were painted by Boris Vallejo has led to them being disparaged as "scaled bimbos"; some men assume that all drakals are "easy" and many people assume they are all beauty and no brain. But there's one drakal lawyer, and another drakal developed the "Flying Dragon" karate variant used by almost all drakals that allows for effective use of flight, tail and claws; they certainly are capable of doing pretty much anything a human can, but they'll have to overcome their stereotyping.
Some people who are particularly uncomfortable with reptiles dislike drakals, and even some who find them attractive are unnerved by their claws and potential for breathing fire. On the other hand, there are so many people who really like drakals that there's a quarterly publication all about them. Drakals always have significant reputations and recognition; even a drakal with no particular accomplishments working in the most boring job that exists will be recognized on the street and pestered by admirers wanting autographs or dates or to take pictures of them.
Drakals always wear some gold jewelry even in bed and when bathing; it seems to comfort and please them. Usually they have a couple of gold chain necklaces, and perhaps some bracelets and ankle bracelets; some even wear clothing made of fine gold chain. They are very attached to their gold, and anyone trying to take it is likely to be clawed and/or flamed.
(GURPS cost: 80 points)
The Flight advantage allows for double ground speed. The Flight skill defaults to DX.
It's entirely possible that I'm duplicating some entries from GURPS Fantasy Folk; I don't have that book. However, these winged folk do not have a long history; they are all descended from Shifted humans except for a few drakals that started as Elves or (maybe) others. They function as a sort of human minority more than as separate species.
I picture Bat Winged People as "average Joes" with wings; they have a neat ability, but pretty much act like a human of their culture. Most humans have little trouble dealing with them.
Sprites have their own culture extolling art and dance and the joy of life. Not all sprites follow this way, but the rest of society tends to lump them all together.
"Say, why don't you dance for us?"
"I don't dance. I'm an electrical engineer!"
"Oh, you must dance! You're a SPRITE!"
Adventurer sprites probably would be these atypical sorts.
Drakals are really rare, always noticed, and usually a drakal will run into somebody who knows a lot about her in any civilized area. Some fans are obsessive, and many men assume that drakals are free with their affections. While their significant fighting ability will ward off most overly aggressive suitors, they will still get a variety of propositions from the polite to the tacky. Most drakals in civilization are models, spokeswomen, sales people, and in other professions where their exotic beauty is a plus. Drakals probably should have the Longevity advantage, but in the Shifted Lands setting that would be relatively meaningless and would be an unnecessary 40 point cost addition.
[This last bit led to a criticism of the GURPS system, since I was not giving Drakals an ability they should have because of the point cost. I feel that the problem is more the cost of Longevity; it really adds nothing to the character's power for the price of a powerful advantage or a whole lot of skill points. Give 'em Longevity for free.]
[It occurs to me that as there is a certain "sex appeal" aspect to the reaction bonuses for Sprites and Drakals, they might only be applicable to heterosexual observers; gay observers might have the bonuses reversed. Use your judgment.]