Sergal

A cold mist had settled along the thawing fjords of Egala, the northernmost island of the Broken horn. The water in the inlet was as still as black glass, almost as if you could step out of the boat and walk on it. Four men rowed the Yeoman commander, a scarred halfling, towards shore. The mission was simple, find the Fenneinan spy in the High Elf minority community here and bring him to justice, dead or alive.
As the strong men rowed on, the Halfling cast a quick cantrip and a blazing light shone forth from his shortsword, barely cutting through the fog. As if in response, an orange glow emerged just feet away, and slowly a pier faded into view. Upon the dimly lit and shrouded dock stood four humanoid creatures, and the halfling squinted to make them out. Lithe and pointy-eared, they quite nearly cut Elven figures in the haze, but the three-jointed legs and long snouts set their silhouettes apart.
A long, guttural growl pierced the air, followed by several trills that undulated varyingly in pitch. The three broadest sihouettes, clad in a signature angular half-plate, stepped back. The one in the front, clad in a form-fitting robe, held something oblong aloft with a barely-audible purr.
The creatures resolved into view... furred, clawed, toothy, and deadly. Sergal, the proud and violent race who lorded over these islands, unlikely but cherished Imperial allies. Their keen yellow, green, and blue eyes pierced the mist and gazed down upon the four simians that approached. As soon as the Yeoman could barely make out what the robed Sergal was holding, she heaved it into the boat and the object landed with a dull thud just in front of the Halfling's feet.
Long, golden hair caked with blood and two pointy ears framed a thin face drawn into a neverending scream, an elven head stared into the mist above. "Welcome, sir Yeoman," the Sergal's voice came crackling like lightning over the water, "It seems your task is already accomplished."

Sergal

Ability Score Increase +1 Con, +1 Str

Size Medium

Speed 30 ft

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Bite: The Sergal may make a strength-based bite attack on an enemy to deal 1d6 piercing damage.
This bite attack can be made as a free action during a grapple, which is termed a "biting grapple". If the grapple is successful, the grappled foe will gain a penalty to all attempts to free themself from the grapple equal to half the damage dealt rounded up. This penalty does not count as an effect of the grapple. The biting grapple is subject to/triggers grappling rules/effects and not attacking rules/effects. When resolving a bite attack or releasing a biting grapple, the Sergal must roll a Constitution save vs the target's AC. If the save fails, they lose teeth painfully and cannot make a bite attack or a biting grapple again until they complete a full rest.
Claws: If they have a constitution bonus greater than 0, Sergal add their constitution bonus to unarmed damage. The bite is not considered an unarmed attack and this bonus does not apply to it.
Overbreathing: Once per full rest, the Sergal may begin Overbreathing in order to add their Constitution modifier to attack and spell hit rolls (not damage rolls), as well as saves and skill checks involving Strength, Constitution, or Dexterity. Overbreathing lasts 30 seconds and can be used while under the influence of any status effect except Petrification. When Overbreathing expires, the Sergal may immediately suffer 2 levels of exhaustion to extend their overbreathing.
Battlith: Sergals proficient in martial weaponry gan proficiency with the Battlith (Sergal) and Battlith (Elven).

Choose one Subrace From Below:

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Northern Sergal

Choose one Stat Bonus from below:

Cadre Leader: -1 Str and +2 Cha
Grunt: +1 Str

You gain the following Ability:

Disciplined Warrior: Military service is mandatory for Northern Sergal, and they have developed a way to use their unique biology to steel their nerves in combat. Once per Overbreathing, the Sergal may reroll a roll result affected by Overbreathing. The Sergal must take the second roll. This effect can not be used again when Overbreathing is extended.

Choose a Sergal Dialect:

Choose a language group from Northern Sergal Language Groups

Southern Sergal

Choose one Stat Bonus from below:

Devout: -1 Str and +2 Wis
Grizzled: +1 Con

You gain the following Ability:

Divine Wisdom: The Southern Sergal have a keen and intuitive understanding of others and a special connection with the divinity. Once per long rest, you may gain advantage on one Insight, Perception, Handle Animal, or Religion check.

Choose a Sergal Dialect:

Choose a language group from Southern Sergal Language Groups

Hybrid Sergal

Third Culture Cassiter: Choose a stat bonus and ability from one of the Subrace options listed above as normal and choose a non-Sergal language in place of a Sergal dialect. If you can choose an additional language as part of your character generation, you may also choose the regional dialect corresponding to your chosen subrace.

Languages. Common, Sergal Common, One Sergal Dialect ( or  language groups).

Basic Information

Anatomy

Sergal are members of the Cassiters, a mammalian superfamily common in Granmor and Morgranth. They are the only known bipedal Cassiter species and also the only known sentient species of Cassiter. Sergal are the largest known species of Lesser Cassiter (defined in the page referenced above).
Sergal follow a humanoid body plan with two arms and two legs, with a markedly dog or weasel-like aspect and heavily furred skin. The head is nearly totally flat and gently tapered past the eyes with no separation betwean head and snout, eyes portrude from the sides of the skull and are capable of nearly 270 degree vision. Also notable is the extremely long and dextrous tongue. Much like a shark, Sergal teeth grow throughout life and are designed to fall out easily. While an adult Sergal mouth has 40 teeth, he or she may go through as many as 360 teeth in its lifetime.
The Sergal's neck is long and has a wider range of movement than a human's. The legs are digitigrade, meaning the Sergal walk on long toes rather than feet, giving the legs three joints rather than two. Sergal hands have three fingers, one opposable thumb, and a vestigal fifth digit corresponding to a human pinky that portrudes just past the wrist. Wide fingers alow a Sergal‘a grip to equal a human's in strength, and the clawed nails can provide extra staying power on some surfaces.
Like other Cassiters, Sergal have a notable difference from Humans in that they have an extra pair of openings connected to the respiratory system. Like other Lesser Cassiters these are connected via the Windpipe and in the Sergal's case they are located ventrally on either side of the neck, similar in shape to gills. These help regulate internal temperature allowing the Sergal to sustain similar activity to a human without panting or sweating, and are widened by the autonomic nervous system during arousal, exertion, and stress. Aside from a slightly higher lung capacity and an extra two airways, Sergal are more or less similar to humans internally.
Sergal voiceboxes are capable of extremely nuanced motion that only one in a hundred thousand Humans can imitate. The Sergal can hear low and high-pitched noises that are outside a human's hearing range. As such, the Sergal language is nearly impossible for humans to speak, but Sergal are capable of speaking Human languages.

Genetics and Reproduction

Sergal are strong reproducers with a fairly short period of menstrual infertility, a gestation time of 8 months, and 3-5 offspring in a litter. Sergal reproductive tradition and practice are very similar to humans, however Sergal are superfecund and can have children from multiple fathers in one litter. Parentage can be complicated, and Northern and Southern Sergal have developed very different cultural ways of dealing with this.
Female Sergal tend to be slightly shorter than Male Sergal. Northern and Southern Sergal have developed some genetic differences as a result of their differing environmental conditions. Northern Sergal tend towards the taller end of average and are generally more robust in build. Southern Sergal, on the other hand, tend towards the shorter end of average and are generally more slight of build with longer tails and a thinner snout and jaw. Northern and Southern Sergal are two local variants of the same species and are completely compatible, with Hybrids more and more common as the Sergal become ever more cosmopolitan. Hybrid Sergal physically tend to exhibit a a split difference between the two races, rather than an increased variance, a fact which is quite puzzling to Imperial geneticists.

Growth Rate & Stages

Sergal have a higher metabolism than humans and have a shorter lifespan on the whole. In recent years, however, Sergal have been living much longer due to increased standard of living. Sergal generally reach sexual maturity at 8-10 years old and adulthood by 15. Sergal generally reach old age around 45 and a Sergal is considered Venerable at 60.
Sergal aging is marked by a dimming of the fur coat and graying around the eyes and nose. The skin on top of the forehead also begins to sag reducing the elderly Sergal's filed of view.

Ecology and Habitats

Many of the Sergal's adaptations have led observers to believe that the Sergal’s ancestors were adapted to littoral fishing, much like seals or otters. Their streamlined body and water-repellent fur make Modern Sergal good fishers and swimmers but many of their greatest advantages were lost in the rise to intelligence.
The Sergal are native to the islands of the Broken Horn. They have spread widely across these parts and now that they have joined the Empire and their standard of living is higher they are spreading all across the southwest coast of Granmor and the kingdom of Verdon. Hardy, brutal Sergal troops are heavily used to pacify the restless North and so Sergal settlements have sprung up there as well.
Sergal do not like hot, humid, or overly vegetated climates as their thick fur makes them hot and their gills are sensitive to sand, dust, and pollen. Sergal living in hot climates bathe frequently and carry misters to keep their gills clear.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Sergal are omnivourous, their diet consists mostly of meat and fish supplemented with tubers, vegetables, and fruits.

Biological Cycle

Sergal do not shed and maintain their coat year-round.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Early in life, Sergal form a close group of friends of both genders called a cadre. Sergal generally mate for life with one of the other members of their cadre. In Northern Sergal society it is still considered normal to mate within the cadre, but in the Southern Sergal culture this is forbidden.
Because life-partner pairs can contain offspring from several males in the Cadre, the family of the Cadre is considered family to any pups born within it. This has led to a strong tribal structure in which strong political and economic bonds are created among groups of families who share a gene pool. New connections between tribes are created by youth of different tribes growing up in close contact, creating Cadres that connect the new tribes and their genetic pools. This makes tribal relations much more stable than in human societies.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Sergal sense of smell is much heightened over that of humans but less than their Lesser Cassiter ancestors. They have a much wider field of vision and can position their eyes sideways or forwards, even moving their eyes independently. They also have a weak electrochemical sense which gives them a strong direction-finding ability. Their rates of magic and psychic sensitivity are slightly lower than humans but more or less similar.

Civilization and Culture

Major Organizations

Sharptooth Kingdom, Inquisitors' Ministry, Royal Tempestpaw Navy, Imperial Sergal Auxiliary Force

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Sergals speak Sergal Common and literally thousands of subdialects.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Sergal culture is very conservative, with the Northerners focused on state and tribe and the Southerners on family and religion. They are not particularly apt with magic and their long rebellion against Fennein has aligned them with the Empire in the belief that magic must be controlled. Sergal have a rich culture of storytelling and music. Visual arts are mostly decorative and not usually free-standing. Sergal music emphasizes polyrhythms and repetitive, simple melodies played on wind, horn, and stringed instruments. Notably, Sergal are the only known sentient species that does not sing.

History

The Sergal have dwelt on the islands of the Broken Horn since time immemorial. There is some evidence that at some point thousands of years in the past, the Sergals had an empire that spanned nearly the same area as Verdon. However all Sergal records from before 1210 were destroyed by the Elves of Fennein and what oral traditions remain (largely among Southern Sergal elders) are contradictory and unreliable. By the time of Southmark's colonization of Egala, the Sergal were simply a few warrior tribes fighting amongst one another and moving seasonally to avoid the harsh winters and storms that racked the region.
In Summer 1210 PE, the first colonists from Southmark landed on Egala. The recently subjugated Arundani Humans of the mainland Broken Horn had believed the islands to be the realms of Gods and would not set foot on them except to bring sacrifices. The Southmarquais did not believe their stories, and decided to settle the islands for the empire. In the Fall of 1210, the Sergal made first contact with the humans, making it clear that the interlopers were not welcome. The tribe that contacted the Humans, the Treefellers, believed that the Humans would not make it through the winter. The Humans proved them wrong, and more arrived in Spring 1209. The Sergal attacked, and the war that would break them out of possibly 2000 years of isolation would begin.
The Southmarquais Colonists barely held off the Treefeller tribe and petitioned the mainland for aid. Southmarquais troops were shipped across the Egala Strait and the colony counterattacked, wiping out the tribe. From here on, little negotiation would occur. The Southmark Colonists attacked the Sergal wherever they encountered them, with both sides fighting brutally. Valiant though their efforts were, the Sergal tribes were defeated one by one and those who remained fled south and west to Nobliak and Priyatin. By 1185, Southmark controlled Egala.
At this point, the tribes of Nobliak and Priyatin were well aware of the Human threat, and on each island the tribes began to coordinate. However, the Sergal had lost the knowledge of how to make steel (if they had ever had it) and knew they needed to learn it in order to defeat the Human invaders. Luckily for them, a human-raised Sergal who would later take the name Sharptooth Vengefulheart would do just that, escaping his adoptive parents and bringing contemporary Smithing practices to the Sergal of Priyatin in 1179. Over just the next five years, Sharptooth's adoptive tribe would subjugate or destroy the rest of the Priyatin tribes, uniting them into the first and only Sergal Kingdom by 1174. Named after its founder, the Sharptooth Kingdom unleashed a devastating attack on the newly founded Human colonies in Nobliak in 1170. 
After defeating the Humans in 1162, the Elves turned their attention to the Sergal. Fennein was as advanced magically compared to Southmark as Southmark had been technologically to the Sergal, and were a much more crafty and merciless foe. Time and time again the Elves refused to meet the Sergal in open battle, weakening them with enchantments, abjurations, and illusions and then cutting them down with hails of arrows from the treetops. The Sergal were pushed back to Hara, the southernmost island of the Broken Horn which is covered in the Howling Glacier.
For the next thousand years the Sergal would attempt to take back their home, even as thousands of mind-enslaved Sergal toiled in the kitchens, fields, and archaeological sites of the Fennein colonies. Then in 132 PE, the Sergal would receive a visit that would change their fortunes.
Keylon Jenners, a royal envoy, Yeoman, and adventurer from Verdon, was sent to find out the situation in the Broken Isles with just a small crew. Keylon and his crew were under the impression that the Sergal had been completely wiped out, and that the Fennein Elves ruled all of the Broken Horn. En route to Nobliak, his ship was caught in a storm and blasted off course, landing in Hara. On arrival, Jenners was stunned to find the Sergal living on the islands in considerable numbers. Jenners reached out to the Sharptooth King, King Northstar Vengefulheart, to propose an alliance. After many trials and tests to prove the Human pure of intention, King Northstar accepted Keylon's proposal.
By 127 PE, the Alliance was finalized and the Magocracy agreed to send its best Wizards (and some Dwarven and Gnomish advisors) to teach the Sergal the arcane arts, confident that their new allies would remain true to the treaty and follow their strict rules. In 125, an ultimately successful fifty year campaign began to remove Fennein from the Broken Horn and restore its islands to the Sergal. The cooperation between the Verdon and Sharptooth Kingdoms and the accords between them would provide the template for the Union of Granmor. In 74 PE, the Elven evacuation of Egala was cut off, their dirigibles falling from the sky and naval ships set alight. Together, Verdon and the Sharptooth celebrated the liberation of their lands.
Over the next 9 years, the Sharptooth Kingdom would surrender hundreds of boatloads of captured Elven goods in compliance with the Magocracy, setting up its own Inquisitors' Ministry to mirror the Magocracy in its semi-sovereign territory. In the 60 years leading up to the Empire's rehabilitate nearly twenty thousand mind-controlled Sergal ex-slaves, rebuild their settlements, and repopulate their lands before their mutual aid obligations with Verdon came due. In 17 PE, when the Empire set out to conquer Centralia, seven thousand Sergal shock-troops and mage-hunters arrived to participate in the campaigns.
The past 200 years has seen the Sergal establish a golden age in their cold island kingdom. Their culture and civilization flourishes once more under the auspices of the Union of Granmor.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

The Sergals enjoy good relations with the Humans, especially the Verdonese who they view as staunch allies, despite their long war against Southmark fifteen hundred years ago. Sergal geopolitics is driven by their hatred for the Elves, which stems from Fennein's many long years of brutal occupation of the Broken Horn Islands, their native home. Sergals are indifferent to the Halflings, almost their polar opposites in attitude, but share their love of a good story. The Dwarves and Gnomes are kindred spirits to the Sergals, as both were nearly wiped out by their Elven foes. Sergals do not fear the Orsenmen but often look down on their lack of unity and will to stand on their own.

by Mick Ono

A Northern Sergal Male (L) and a Southern Sergal Female (R)

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Cassiter

Scientific Name

Magnosculum Sapiens

Lifespan

50 years

Average Height

6’1-6’8”

Average Weight

300-350 lbs

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Like dogs their fur can have random patterns or be monocolor ranging from white to black and gold to brown. Southern Sergal tend to have more muted and uniform coloring, with whites, grays, and tans predominating. Northern Sergal have more dramatic coloring and sometimes even display a tricolor or calico presentation.

Related Ethnicities

• Northern Sergal
• Southern Sergal