Sareth

Sareth is the common name for the lizard-like folk of the southern island of Arkay. The name they use for themselves is better translated as Zísârefh, literally meaning "The People" in their native language mâg.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Humanoid lizard-folk. Different regions have different adaptations depending on their environment. Eg, desert dwellers look different from island dwellers in collouration, markings, scales and horn shape. All sareth have scaly skin, tails, claws, fangs and horns of some description.

Genetics and Reproduction

Sareth lay eggs which they incubate in nests. A female will lay one to three eggs in a clutch. More than three is rare but not unheard of. The eggs take three months to hatch so nests are often clustered together in the centre of a settlement and cared for full time by Watchers. Once the eggs hatch, the parents take their young back to their homes.

Growth Rate & Stages

Hatchlings remain infants for approximately two years before reaching childhood. Sareth childhood lasts until the age of about ten. An adolecent may reach adulthood between the ages of 15 and 17.

Ecology and Habitats

Sareth are mainly located on the island of Arkay and the surrounding area in the south. There are some communities in the desert.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Sareth eat a variety of foods including fish, meat, insects, eggs, fruit and vegetables. The majority of their diet consists mainly of protein with only a small amount of plant matter.
They cannot digest dairy products so even a small amount will make them ill.
They tend to eat several small meals throughout the day instead of three larger meals all at once like humans often do.

Biological Cycle

Sareth go through cycles of skin shedding, usually occurring about once a year at the beginning of spring. Some may experience it in autumn instead and rarely in the summer or winter.
Most communities on Arkay tend to aestivate when temperatures peak in summer. This is because they fall between being warm and cold-blooded. They are able to regulate their temperature a certain amount but are much more reliant on their surroundings than true warm-blooded animals.
Individuals in much colder regions may brumate for the middle of winter but most venture south or find somewhere suitable to spend the cold season.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Sareth live in communities of 30 - 200 individuals on average. The community is led by a dmúgdáâfh (pronounced dmaug-day-aath), a spiritual leader. The dmúgdáâfh chooses a number of advisers, usually at least two, who help them make important decisions. Individuals in a community can take their problems to the dmúgdáâfh if they cannot resolve it themself. If the dmúgdáâfh continuously fails their people they will be replaced. The dmúgdáâfh will also take part in the Arkay Assembly unless their clan has been banished.
Gender roles are not strictly enforced and there is a lot of flexibility in what an individual can identify as. This means that there are no occupations reserved exclusively for any one gender. There are a few titles that are generally seen as highly gendered such as dmaugdaiath and R'shith.
A community will work as a whole for the befefit of everyone. This social structure works best in smaller groups so there is no real central power such as a king. Instead the dmúgdáâfh of the many communities gather annually to make deals and discuss important occurances.

Facial characteristics

Their eyes aren't quite as forward facing as a human's, giving them a wide field of view but a narrower area with sterioscopic vision. Some ethnicities have prominent bony ridges above the eyes and narrow snouts while others will have a generally flatter face with shorter and wider snouts and small eye ridges.
Sareth have sometimes been described as having a "dragon-like" appearence by outsiders rather than the more typical "lizard-like" description. Neither is more accurate than the other as sareth are unrelated to either.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Sareth are located all over Arkay and the surrounding smaller islands. Smaller communities can be found all over Oritas, mainly in large towns and cities.

Average Intelligence

Sareth have the same level of intelligence as a human.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Sareth have roughly the same sight capabilities as humans. Their hearing is poorer but they are more sensitive to smells and temperature.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Hatchlings are given a temporary name by their parents, usually based on either a physical or personality trait. This is reffered to as the egg-name.
When the child reaches the age of seven they are allowed to choose a name for themself, within reason. This name is their mid-name and is also temporary. It may be based on an aspiration, a habit, personality, physical appearence or something completely different.
When they become an adult, they are allowed to choose another name. This is usually their permanent name, though they may change it again later. This name can again be anything they wish, though it is usually more abstract than their mid-name.
Names are generally compound words, made up of an adjective and a noun, though sometimes three words may be used. The words don't have to keep their original spelling or pronunciation which leads to a number of mutations to make names easier to pronounce and spell. For example, Zeklí is a compound of zêc̥ (nobody) and klí (shadow) where ê is shortened to e and c̥ is converted to k to allow for easier blending of the two words. Another example is C̥leysejuz, Zeklí's mother, whose name is made up of the words c̥leyl (spirit) and sec̥uzh (steady or stable). This name has undergone more mutation. The second l from c̥leyl is dropped, the c̥ becomes voiced, making it a j, and the zh at the end converts to z. Names don't have to have recognisable words in them, and in some cases complete nonsense sounds have been chosen as names. The compound name method is simply the most common for of naming.
Only parents and older family members will continue to use someone's egg-name while childhood friends will use a mid-name occasionally. Everyone else will reffer to someone by their chosen name.
When introducing themselves, sareth usually start with their clan name, followed by their chosen name and a gender identifier.

Major Organizations

Sareth have few major organisations but they do worship the Thirteen Divines. As such, they have priests dedicated to their worship, though there are usually only a few, or sometimes one in smaller clans, dedicated to the worship of all of them.
Clan leaders take part in the Arkay Assembly. This is a regular gathering of clan leaders and advisors to settle disagreements between clans and to help maintain the peace between the people. It also serves as a way to regulate clan leaders and to hold them to account if they fail to adequately serve their people.

Gender Ideals

Sareth have a fluid concept of gender, unbound by physical appearence. They have equivalent genders to male and female, called nlâdz and sik, but they also have others which would be considered non-binary by humans such as deshra (agender), oé̯drâ (both male and female), thí-nlâdz and thí-umran (half/demigender) among others.
Hatchlings are assigned snâ-thûsha (literally "nothing-young") since genetalia is internal and it is difficult to tell sex until roughly a month after hatching. Only when the hatchlings acquire language and begin to learn their people's culture do they begin to explore gender. This is a discussion the parents and sometimes the dmúgdáâfh will have with them. The hatchlings will be expected to explore their gender. Some will settle by adolecence, some will change throughout their life.

Relationship Ideals

Sareth are polyamorous. Some may only have one partner but many will live in polycules of three to five individuals. These relationships are generally exclusive but it's up to each group to decide the exact dynamics.

Average Technological Level

Sareth have reached the same level of technology as humans. They have several large cities which have become centres of knowledge and tehnology. They have different goals to humans, driven by their environment and their more socialist ideals. They generally focus on improving the quality of life for all sareth rather than domination over neighbouring civilisations.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Sareth have their own language called mâg which itself has several dialects. Some sareth have also learnt the languages of men in order to make it easier to live and trade with them.

Common Dress Code

Sareth typically wear as little as they feel they can get away with. As Arkay typically recieves a lot of sun throughout the year many sareth will only wear light clothing to keep their skin protecte from sunburn. In the cooler months when the sun poses less danger, many will go without a shirt and only have a loincloth. As sareth are largely reptillian, they lack external genetalia so there's not much to cover up.
When venturing to other civilisations, sareth will make an effort to wear culturally aceptable clothes. Biologically female sareth however make no particular effort to cover their chests like other species since there's nothing there to cover. If everyone else is shirtless, they will be too.
Body paint is often worn simply for decoration and sometimes as sunblock.
In cooler weather, additional layers may be worn to preserve body heat such as coats and gloves. These regions are also usually the only place where actual shoes are worn and sometimes a layer is worn over the tail, though this is rare since almost everyone agrees it looks ridiculous.

Common Taboos

Misgendering is a big no. Sareth are very respectful of an individual's identity and take care to use the correct names and pronouns.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Sareth mostly get on with the other sapient species of Oritas. They trade with each other and learn each other's languages. Some communities are more accepting of outsider influence than others on their culture
They will sometimes face discrimination from others when near their settlements but this is not generally tolerated by either general populations or the sareth themselves.

Lifespan

70

Average Height

1.5 - 1.8 m

Average Physique

Sareth are built much like a human. They are generally quite lean and might be described as skinny but they have more muscle than the average human so fighting one isn't a good idea.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Sareth scale colours can include green, red, orange, yellow, blue and brown. Colouration largely depends on which community the individual is decended from. Someone from the south of Arkay where there is significantly more tree cover is more likely to be green or brown than red or orange.

Geographic Distribution

• Âkrát