Garrok

The garrok are a family of horned bipedal sapient psuedoreptiles found throughout the Nightlands, with the core of their society found in Tevhetra. There are three species of garrok: cave garrok, river garrok, and mountain garrok. However, the garrok consider themselves one people regardless of specific species.

Basic Information

Anatomy

All garrok are bipedal, though with hunched spines compared to most mammalian bipeds. They have two arms and two legs that bend forward, long tails, and four clawed digits on each hand and foot, with opposable thumbs. As psuedoreptiles, they have scaled skin and lay eggs but are moderately homeothermic, though must take extra precautions to maintain their body temperature in the cold. They also do not shed their skin in large quantities. Females on average are larger than males, but otherwise they are not very dimorphic.
Cave garrok are the smallest of the family and have shorter limbs than the other species, with small, rounded, downwards-pointing horns which can be either perpendicular or parallel to the skull. River garrok are medium-sized with longer necks and tails. Their horns are long, straight, and point back away from the head. They are semiaquatic and tolerate the cold the best of their people. Mountain garrok are the largest and most muscular, with large upwards horns perpendicular to the head, resembling those of an ox's.

Genetics and Reproduction

Garrok hatch from eggs. The egg is laid between a month and two months after conception and will take around six months to hatch (often longer for mountain garrok).

Dietary Needs and Habits

Garrok are omnivorous. They usually prefer meat and have more pointy teeth than grinding ones but can substitute plants and fungi in a pinch. River garrok prefer fish and amphibians.

Additional Information

Facial characteristics

Snouts, round forward-facing eyes, lack external ears

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Garrok have decent eyesight and can see in color, but do not see well in the dark. They have below average hearing, and cannot hear certain high tones. However, they have very strong senses of smell and are sensitive to infrared energy, though not to the degree of dragons.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Garrok parents will give their child a nickname upon their hatching, but will hold off giving them a proper name until they are three or four (usually around the time the child starts to speak in sentences). As adults, garrok give themselves a title based on a trait they'd like to present to everyone else. Garrok often change their title several times over their lifetime as they grow and change. It is considered awkward to have the same title as someone they know. Garrok outside the SGF will sometimes use a loanword from another local language as their title so as to avoid having repeat titles.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Torugk is the most commonly spoken language among the garrok, with their dialect determined by region. The garrok who live in Aphelia usually speak both Aphelian and Aphelia Torugk.

Common Dress Code

Due to their limited homeothermy, most modern garrok fashion incorporates crystals so as to keep the wearer warm. The exception is in Crystalglade, where it is consistently warm enough to not be necessary. Clothing is usually skirted to encompass the legs and tail. Horn ornamentation is popular, especially among the mountain garrok since they have the most to work with.

Average Height

3'4"-3'8" (cave), 5'8"-6'3" (river), 7'5"-8' (mountain)

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Light or medium gray (cave), bright green or mossy teal (river), dark gray or grayish-blue (mountain)