Manticoras

Manticoras are lesser relatives of sphinxes, smaller and more ferocious than their wiser kin. Despite their intelligence and cunning, manticoras are bestial creatures that live to kill. They will eat almost any living prey, bones and all, leaving no trace. It is not unknown for manticoras to hunt in packs, allowing them to take on much larger and more powerful prey; such packs have even been known to attack columns of heavily armored soldiers, leaving nothing behind but a few dented helmets.
A manticora resembles a massive lion, covered in large, spiny protrusions, with a barbed tail and a disturbingly human-like face. While its massive claws and armor-piercing fangs present the most obvious threat, its tail lash is truly devastating; few creatures can take the brunt of such an attack and survive.
And yet, not all peoples live in fear of manticoras. When the Zumari nwoda exiled themselves to Tyveria, they somehow persuaded the manticoras to serve as bodyguards for their ships, in exchange for their pick of the captives. This alliance of convenience has made the Zumari clan rightly feared across Tyveria.