Shoroshin
Lizardmen of Peta Naw
The Shoroshin are Lizardfolk native to Peta Naw, the massive westlands at the west side of Southern Jerain, on the major continent of Ethae. The Shoroshin are made up of two subgroups, the Kha tribes in the north of Peta Naw, and the Slee to its south. The two types have a deep ethnic hatred for one another. Each seeking to exterminate their rival. The eternal loathing between them is lost to history, both having a mythology around these blood war they share. The Kha claim to be the true Shoroshin, and the Slee to be a creation of some dark entity in the ancient past. The Slee in turn claim themselves true Shoroshin, with the Kha a breed of mutated offspring of some foul union with other species.
Both types are as territorial as other lizardfolk, attacking any humanoid entering their lands. However, unlike other lizardfolk content to remain in their own environments, the Shoroshin are an aggressive expansive breed. The Kha send raids into Awiropa often enough that the Awirean keep rangers along the borders tracking any lizardfolk movements in the region. In the south, the Slee have battled the Los in the past, but have lost ground because of it, and now focus their efforts into expanding north into their hated enemy's territory.
Human and other travelers into Peta Naw think the Shoroshin a river-based breed of lizardfolk. This is due to most encounters with them, at least in their native envorrments are in the rivers of the regions. While this is partially true, as the Shoroshin use the rivers and waterways to travel, and often hunt, their dwellings are far from the rivers. The Shoroshin build their villages in burrows below the ground, a mile or so from a river. Access to these burrow villages is only through tunnels dug and connected to the nearest river. The burrows and their tunnels are created from fire bakes clay walls, hard and curved to support the weight above and keep the marshy lands from caving in their homes. Most of these burrows house a few dozen lizardfolk, though a few large, city sized, networks are rumored to exist deep in the center of Peta Naw.
The Shoroshin are most active in the summer months when the region is hottest. During spring, they use the rainfall and flooding of the land to hunt, supplies for their aggressive summer season. Fall is used to prepare for winter. They do their final hunts in the flooding rain logged land, before retreating to their burrow villages for winter. Through the winter months they remain in their villages, keeping warm with hearth. It is during the winters the Shoroshin are most vulnerable. They do not hibernate and must keep their burrows warm. It is this that can be their downfall, as hunters know to track them by finding regions where the ice-covered lands are melts and the ground feels warm. There they dig and can wipe out a community of sluggish Shoroshin caught off-guard.
Shoroshin, both Kha and Slee, stand about a head taller than most humans. Their features are very similar, though distinctions between the two breeds do exists. The Kha scales are often a more muted coloring, lending them a better ability to blend into the environment, while the Slee show more vivid colors. Kha scales colors vary more than the near universal green of the Slee. The females are very similar in appearance, both sporting a crown of leaflike frills along their heads. The males are distinctive in that the Slee have these frills also, and they run down their back, while the Kha sport horns instead.
When it comes to garments, the Slee wear very little. Most is decorative leathers from animals of the marsh. These are often adored with colorful stones or shells from the coastal lands. Both male and female Slee cover their reproductive body parts with leather loincloths. The Kha wear much more, despite the warmer weather in the north of Peta Naw. This clothing is made from either leather or are cloth garments abstained from raids. Thse stolen garments are worn with pride from the Kha as a show of power among their people. The Kha also have a tradition of wearing the skin of fallen Slee as torso garments.
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