Serpent Folk
Sha’al
In the southern lands of the Fiery Isthmus and the jungles of the Scaled Lands and Vast Untamed live the Sha’al, a civilized race of bipedal saurians. The Sha’al are a fervently religious race with firm socials caste based upon sub-races. Although viewed with apprehension by neighboring Yrūn settlements, the Sha’al are generally a peaceful race. Some scholars have gone so far as to say that the Sha’al are the most civilized of the Mortal races. This assertion is often contested by the belief that the Sha’al Nul are unthinking laborers, with no free will.
There are four subraces of Sha’al:
- Sha’ál Shadas (i.e., black Sha’al)
- Sha’ál Alas (i.e., red Sha’al)
- Sha’ál Dsara (i.e., striped Sha’al)
- Sha’ál Nūl (i.e., white Sha’al)
Physiology
The Sha’al are cold-blooded and cannot live long outside the tropics without proper equipment or enchantments. During summer months, the Sha’al can move into sub-tropic and temperate areas but do so warily. Any prolonged exposure to temperatures lower than 60 degrees can impede or kill a Sha’al. Although Sha’al live in tropical areas, they are not dependent upon the moisture of those climes. Sha’al are equally comfortable in desert and rain forest biomes, as long as there is fresh water accessible.
Sha’al do not have binocular vision and are therefore poor users of missile weapons. All Sha’al receive penalties when using missile or ranged weapons. It is difficult to surprise Sha’al however, due to their side-vision.
Psychology
See individual subraces.
Culture
Language
The standard Sha’al language is called Shalambh. Each sub-race of the Sha’al speaks its own dialect of the language. Those dialects are: Shalambh Alas, Shalambh Dsara, Shalambh Nul, and Shalambh Shadas. Sha’al are capable of speaking foreign languages, though have difficulty forming sounds that require rounded-lips (e.g., J, O, Q, hard-U, W, Y). This impediment makes many sharp consonants sound breathy or hissed.
Religion
The Sha’al worship a triumvirate of major deities which work as one, and may be one. The major gods are harmony, lore, and war. Sha’al of different lands worship these same gods, in addition to numerous lesser ones.
Sha’al embrace the idea of reincarnation, believing their actions in the present affect their standing in the life following. Sha’al reincarnations cycle between the subraces, and does not deliver Sha’al spirits into the bodies of the unclean. At the time of death, Sha’al corpses are ritually bathed in scented waters to purify the spirit so it may inhabit another. A similar ritual is performed for births at time of hatching.
Magic
Only the Black and Red Sha’al are able to Weave spells. Black Sha’al are limited to Spirit Magic, while Red Sha’al may use either Arcane or Spirit Magic.