Name: "Swamplings", Stagnum hominis Description: Considered by some as a degenerate form of Froeggs or maybe even Hylotl, the Swamplings are a species of primitive beings which have somehow ended up on several planets with suitable ecosystems, likely brought by slavers or as stowaways that eventually snuck off into the wild. They appear as odd, amphibious-reptoid beings with slimy, scaly skin with horn-like growths and large, murky eyes. They can often be seen in ragged clothes fashioned from local fauna, wielding rudimentary tools. To give a comparison, Swamplings are to Froggs/Hylotl as Humans are to Homo rudolfensis and other early human species. Swamplings + Bonus Swampling "architecture" piece Behavior: Swamplings organize in loose caste tribes known as pods, with leaders seemingly being some form of religious leader, like a shaman. This shaman reserves the right to breed with all suitable females in the pod, and will defend this right against any who challenge their authority and right to rule with battles to the death. These pods will collect food and make rudimentary tools, hunting whatever they can find to eat. They have been witnessed taming some animals to an extent, using them as mounts and collecting food from them at times. Tamability: Untamable, unless you enslaved one Where is it found?: Swampy planets, including regions of the Undercrypt's Erebus layer Rarity: Uncommon, they enjoy a rather wide swathe of territory, and each pod includes about 20 to 35 Swamplings, with other competing males going off to start their own pods. Diet/Method of gaining nutrients and energy: Omnivorous, but Swamplings are particularly attracted to eating insects, fish, and algae such as kelp, but they aren't above cannibalize and devouring sapient species. Products?: Eggs can be eaten, but they taste horrible. You could take whatever trinkets they have on them, but most would consider this to be useless garbage. Reproduction: Sexual, a female can lay up to five fleshy, slime covered eggs after breeding, each usually the size of a small cantaloupe. The spawn is visible in the egg, especially as it grows. The egg hatches after about 5 to 16 weeks of incubation in a shallow pool of warm, slow moving water. These eggs are tended to by members of the pod who turn them twice daily and take care of them throughout the day. The freshly-hatched spawn will go through informal metamorphosis from a mostly aquatic-dwelling spawn to the adult, capable of living on both land an in water over a process of growth that takes about 18 months, at which point they are capable of breeding. Males will usually leave their pod at 16 months, just before they can breed, so as to not be killed by the current Pod Leader Size: Adults are usually about 1.6 to 1.9m tall, but they appear shorter due to their hunched posture Weight: Ranges from 120-190lbs, particularly large and rotund males can weigh up to 250lbs. This weight is often seen as a status symbol. Lifespan: Around 45 years on average, but slaves that are well taken care of can live up to 85 years Abilities: -Extremely adept swimmers, can swim up to 30mph with ease due to their flipper like feet and hands, as well as their sleek body -Can breathe underwater -Can see underwater due to a nictitating membrane under their eyelids -Can smell underwater with sensory organs like in sharks -Sharp, fang-like teeth and claws allow for them to rip and tear their prey -They can leap from the water and on land with a vertical 7 feet due to strong legs like in frogs -Sensitive hearing of a hunter, and powerful eyes able to see in the low-light situations of a swamp Flaws: -Awkward movement on land -Although much more intelligent than a common beast, they aren't 1/10th as smart as sapient species such as humans or hylotl -Much like any fleshy species, they can be shot and killed by ballistics, plasma, and lasers -You can punch their eyes and snout to stun them -Bright lights stun them and put them in a daze, as do loud noises -Being ectotherms (cold-blooded), they have to be in a fairly warm environment, or else they begin to shut down due to their internal temperature dropping to hypothermic levels Other: These wouldn't be able to be played as a character, unless one was to be augmented to increase intelligence, which would require a tech app similar to the ORED process, and even if augmented, they would likely be viewed as monsters by most people.
