Month: March 2020

Common to many worlds, Lizard Men / Folk (hereafter referred to as the Giss) are the founders of a great empire on Gæa.

Giss lizard folk are large bipedal reptiles which resemble humans in certain aspects. While their countenance from tip of snout to tail is lizard, their pelvis and shoulders are similar in certain ways to those of a human and they stand erect, on their hind legs. They have a protruding jaw, which houses a mouth lined with canine teeth, much like that of a crocodile, although shorter. Eyes are set much like that of a lizard. They have a four fingered hand (three fingers and a thumb) and a five toes foot.

The Giss are considered to be poikilothermic (cold blooded), but their physiology has developed to a stage where they are able to maintain their own body temperatures for moderate lengths of time. Thus, one may be able to survive a short snow storm and the cold weather associated with it without having to hibernate, but will most certainly not outlast a protracted cold winter.

They are ovoviviparous, but not give birth to many young. A mature female may produce up to nine infants at one time, but numbers of three to five are more common. Their gestation period is one hundred and fifty days, which means that a healthy female can produce two broods per year.

Like humans, Giss differ subtly through their genetic coding. Some have yellow eyes while others eyes may be red, green or blue. Their skin may vary from a light green, through deep green, to a muddy, brown-green. Some may have a small crest on their head and/or down their back while others may possess a pair of small, blunt vestigial horns on their head.

They are highlly intelligent creatures who are skilled in many of the crafts and lore that humans know. Although generally civilised, small numbers of primitive and barbaric tribes may be encountered. They are most prolific in warm environments, such as deserts, plains and jungle and tend to clothe themselves accordingly, favouring loose togas and loincloths.

Although they are carnivorous by nature, some Giss have been known to eat fruits and vegetables in desperate times.

The Giss may be one of the first creatures i ever defined. RQ 3rd ed never defined Lizard People, although later on once i got my hands on the Glorantha Bestiary it was evident other similar concepts ad been considered, such as the Newtling and Slarg

This reptile was inspired by an old Viking Forge / Tabletop Fantasy / Asgard Miniature called “Land Dragon with Lizard Man Rider”.

These large bipedal beasts are not dragons at all, but rather large relatives of the Desert Walker, whom they resemble in many ways. They live in arid, open expanses such as deserts and semi deserts and are carnivorous. Although they live almost exclusively on fresh killed prey, they have been known to take carrion and even eat their own kind at times.

In the wild, these are solitary animals who only meet to mate. Males will often fight for supremacy when they do come into contact with each other. Land dragons are vicious beast who have been known to run down and devour many unsuspecting travellers

Their almost limitless endurance in hot climes has, like the desert walker, many of these large, horse sized lizards to be domesticated so as to provide mounts and, on occasion, to act as beasts of burden. They do not however make good draft animals as their tail, with its lethal bone spike tends to cause much damage to any wagon they are hitched to.

Due to the fact that the land dragon is so viscous, domestic ones are reared from egg. It is extremely rare to encounter one that has been tamed from the wild. Although they thrive in almost any conditions, bar sub zero arctic climes, they are most suited to warm, open places. Land Dragons average between an eleven and eighteen year life span and are oviparous.

The Land Dragon was initially defined on VII August MMII