Civet

Basic Information

Anatomy

A civet resembles a lithe, graceful, athletic human with a leopard or jaguar-like head and a tail. They have sharp teeth and retractable claws, which are their primary weapons in combat. They are tall and slender.

Growth Rate & Stages

Civets mature at around 16 seasons.

Ecology and Habitats

Civets have few natural enemies. They are sometimes hunted for their pelts. Their skins and claws are also useful in some types of magic.

Dietary Needs and Habits

For food, they prefer rodents and game; only a very degenerate clan attacks members of another intelligent species for food. Civets are great hunters, combining quick, stealthy movements with natural camouflage to surprise prey. They are clever and organized, often driving prey into an ambush (though some play with prey before killing it).

Additional Information

Social Structure

Within Marmaroth, civets are integrated into the society of the city-states, though they group together within the city-states. Outside of Marmaroth, unter/gatherer groups of civets are called Hunts, and a clan usually contains several. The Hunts work the area around the clan lair. Some lairs are temporary, but most are small villages of ramadas (huts with grass roofs supported by tall poles, and no walls). A lair will typically contain some young civets, plus an elder who leads the clan. Around half of these elder-leaders are aided by a shaman. Almost 1 in 10 clans owe allegiance to a civet lord who are worshipped like gods. Shamans of clans not under the control of civet lords worship nature.
Curiosity drives most of the civets found outside their homeland, but not all of them become adventurers. Civets who seek a safer path to satisfy their obsessions become wandering tinkers and minstrels. These civetswork in small troupes, usually consisting of an elder, more experienced civet who guides up to four young ones learning their way in the world. They travel in small, colorful wagons, moving from settlement to settlement. When they arrive, they set up a small stage in a public square where they sing, play instruments, tell stories, and offer exotic goods in trade for items that spark their interest. Civets reluctantly accept gold, but they much prefer interesting objects or pieces of lore as payment. These wanderers keep to civilized realms, preferring to bargain instead of pursuing more dangerous methods of sating their curiosity. However, they aren't above a little discreet theft to get their claws on a particularly interesting item when an owner refuses to sell or trade it.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Civets are found mostly in Marmaroth, but small pockets of civets are found, usually isolated, throughout Gonde.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Civets climb and swim, and can use those abilities in combat. Because of their cleverness and acute sense of smell, civets are almost impossible to trap. They have a cat's keen senses, especially in the dark. They can see in dim light within sixty feet of as if it were bright light, and in darkness as if it were dim light. They can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray.

Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms

Civet lords appear as a huge jaguar or leopard, depending on where it is found. They are intelligent, malicious, and cunning. They speak languages commonly used by nearby societies.
Civet lords use trickery, ambush, allies, and spells to weaken foes before closing for combat. Most are wizards, while almost all the rest are priests of the Nameless One. Some few are both wizard and priest. Wizard spells are chosen from the schools of illusion, enchantment/charm, or necromancy; spells from the schools of alteration and invocation/evocation are never used. In addition to spells that require only verbal components, they can use the following powers at will: detect good/evil, detect invisibility, bind, and hypnotism. The bravest and cruelest civet lords can use dimension door three times per day.
Civet lords are closely related to civets, perhaps a cursed version. All civet lords are male and must take a civet mate to produce offspring (always a male civet lord). Although usually solitary, a civet lord sometimes takes leadership of a civet clan for the purpose of mating and insuring offspring. Such clans become evil and warlike under their rule. Some choose to stay with the clan even after the offspring is born and sent off to make its way in the world.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Each civet has a single name, determined by clan and based on a complex formula that involves astrology, prophecy, clan history, and other esoteric factors. Civet names can apply to both males and females, and most use nicknames derived from or inspired by their full names. Clan names are usually based on a geographical feature located in or near the clan's territory.

Average Technological Level

Civets often use weapons of wood, bone, and stone, including bolas, slings, obsidian studded clubs, and javelins with atlatl. The preferred weapon of civets, however, are their claws and teeth. If both forepaws hit, a civet rakes with its rear claws. A group encountered in the wild will include a Hunt Leader, and may also contain a priest.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Civets speak their own, ancient, language that has no written form.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Civets treasure knowledge rather than material things. A chest filled with gold coins might be useful to buy food or a coil of rope, but it's not intrinsically interesting.
In the civet's eyes, gathering wealth is like packing rations for a long trip. It's important to survive in the world, but not worth fussing over. Instead, civets value knowledge and new experiences. Their ears perk up in a busy tavern, and they tease out stories with offers of food, drink, and coin. Civets might walk away with empty purses, but they mull over the stories and rumors they collected like a miser counting coins. Although material wealth holds little attraction for the civet, they have an insatiable desire to find and inspect ancient relics, magical items, and other rare objects. Aside from the power such items might confer, a civet takes great joy in unraveling the stories behind their creation and the history of their use.
Wandering civetsare mercurial creatures, trading one obsession or passion for the next as the whim strikes. A civet's desire burns bright, but once met it disappears to be replaced with a new obsession. Objects remain intriguing only as long as they still hold secrets. A civetrogue could happily spend months plotting to steal a strange gem from a noble, only to trade it for passage on a ship or a week's lodging after stealing it. The civet might take extensive notes or memorize every facet of the gem before passing it on, but the gem holds no more allure once its secrets and nature have been laid bare.

Common Myths and Legends

Legends tell of a great civet civilization that was supplanted by other races.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

As a rule, civets tend towards reclusive and avoidance of other intelligent beings, even other civet clans. A sizeable minority of civets, however, are struck with wanderlust andseek out other societies and races.

Origin/Ancestry

Anthropomorph

Lifespan

80 seasons

Average Height

5'6"-5'10"

Average Weight

130-150 lbs.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Civets have beautiful spotted fur pelts that range in color from light yellow to brownish red. They tend to have green or yellow eyes.