Misery Ascendant - Lizard Man, Daerhaei

Lizard Man, Daerhaei (Daar-HAY-ee)

Climate / Terrain:	Subterranean
Frequency:	Very Rare
Organization:	Clan, Band
Activity Cycle:	Any Underground
Diet:	Omnivorous
Intelligence:	Average to High 9-16
Treasure:	M, Q
Alignment:	Lawful Evil
# Appearing:	5-50 (5d10)
Armor Class:	4 (10)
Movement:	14
Hit Dice:	2 (or by level)
THAC0:	19 (or by level)
# Attacks:	2 (or by level)
Damage / Attack:	by weapon
Special Attacks:	Leap Attack
Special Defenses:	Chameleon
Magic Resistance:	20% +2%/lvl
Size:	M (5’-6’)
Morale:	Elite (14)
XP Value:	650

Appearance: Subterranean Lizard Men, or Daerhaei, as they refer to themselves, look much like their surface cousins, appearing as a large cross between a man and a lizard, and have skin ranging in color from dark brown to greys to black. Their eyes are usually a deep red or yellow and the slit-like pupils are black. Subterranean lizard men have powerful legs, which allow them to leap great distances. They stand five to six feet in height and have a two to three foot non-prehensile tail. Male Daerhaei weigh in at between ninety-five and one hundred and twenty pounds, and females at eighty to one hundred and ten pounds. It is almost impossible for anyone not very familiar with the race to tell the difference between the males and females. Daerhaei are treated as having an exceptionally high dexterity, higher than that of men (+2), and lower constitution and charisma (-1 each).

Combat: A Daerhaei’s world is one in which violent conflict is a part of every day life. It should not be surprising, then, that most of them encountered, whether alone or in a group, are prepared for a fight. Daerhaei will make use of any bladed weapon, and when shields are employed, they are usually small. Subterranean lizard men are a highly stealth oriented people, as such they move silently as if they were of twelfth level as a thief and have a 120’ range infravision. Daerhaei start with a 20% Magic Resistance which increases by a 2% increment each level. Daerhaei can climb walls, slick surfaces, and even ceilings almost effortlessly, at their base movement rate. They can cling to the ceiling for an almost indefinite period of time, waiting for something (or someone) to pass underneath.

Daerhaei make use of a leap attack, in which they can leap up to ten feet in the air and forward twenty feet, or they can leap downwards from the ceiling, upon unsuspecting enemies. They receive a plus one to hit on this attack and do double damage with impaling weapons, as well as receiving a plus two to the opponents surprise roll. Daerhaei can, when motionless, invoke a chameleon-like power, where they are able to change colors to blend in with their surroundings in natural light. This ability also allows the Daerhaei’s heat patterns to meld with the surrounding stone, so that they are undetectable in the infra-red spectrum as well. They must remain completely motionless, and this ability requires one round of full concentration to invoke.

Daerhaei encountered in a group will usually have a leader of a higher level than the rest of the group. If ten or more Daerhaei are encountered, a fighter / thief of at least fourth level in each class will be leading them. If twenty or more are encountered, there will be a fighter / cleric of at least sixth level in each class. If there are more than thirty, up to 50% are of at least fourth level in either the warrior or rogue class, and the leader will be a seventh-level fighter / eighth-level priest, with a sixth-level Elementalist mage as his assistant, in addition to the high level leaders. Unlike most inhabitants of the Underdark, they are unaffected by bright light of any kind.

Habitat / Society: Unlike Lizard Men of the surface, these lizard men are usually highly intelligent and fairly civilized. They live in cities in the Underdark, sometimes (very rarely) numbering in the ten thousands. Daerhaei worship a demi-god named Daerhyn, the god of stealth and scales, who was once a highly intelligent lizard man king who came to power, and eventually created the subterranean variant. Daerhaei are omnivorous, but prefer drow meat above all else, considering it a delicacy. They have been known to set up ambush on Drow patrols, gathering up the defeated bodies to bring them back to the city for mass consumption. Daerhaei see other lizard men, as well as Troglodytes, as inferior, and some cities make use of them as slaves for menial labor.

Ecology: Subterranean Lizard Men can and will make use of any and all confiscated drow clothing, armor, and weapons, as well as make a few of their own. Daerhaei tend to gravitate towards barbed and serrated weapons. Because of their selective feeding habits and relative closeness to Drow cities (usually about four or five days travel), Subterranean Lizard Men have been in a long standing war with the dark-elves. These are not all out wars per se, usually the larger battles will consist of no more than thirty or forty combined Daerhaei and Drow. Daerhaei use a version of the lizard man tongue that is virtually unknown outside of the Underdark. They have also learned the languages of the Drow, surface lizard men, Troglodytes, Duergar and Svirfneblin. They also speak the subterranean trade language used by many races under the land of the suns.

Daerhaei life spans (for those that die of natural causes) usually last in between one hundred and twenty-five to two hundred years. Of course, living in the Underdark and warring with drow tends to shorten ones life span.

Daerhaei eggs are considered by most to be inedible, but drow consider them a delicacy. It may be that the drow have learned this as an acquired taste, and only eat them as added incentive to hate and hunt Daerhaei. Subterranean Lizard man flesh is hard to prepare adequately, as it burns easily, becoming too hard to ingest. When cooked properly, however, it is sweet and nutritious.

Daerhaei can reach fifteenth level as warriors, eighteenth level as rogues, fourteenth level as priests, and (very rarely) ninth level as a mage. Mage Daerhaei usually prefer Elemental Earth spells, and any concealment or thievery related spells. Daerhaei can also reach twelfth level as a psionicist.

Daerhyn grants his follower priests major access to the spheres of All, Animal, Combat, Elemental, Guardian, Healing, and Necromantic. Minor access is allowed in the spheres of Charm, Creation, Divination, Protection, and Summoning.

There is also rumored to exist Drow/Daerhaei crossbreeds, called the Daerrow, not to be confused with derro, whose pronunciation is the same, but their existence has not been proven. These creatures are rumored to look much like Drow, except for their reptilian eyes and small patches of scales on parts of their body. These creatures at large have been reported at the deepest levels of the Underdark, and are rarely seen by anyone, and almost never by the people of the surface lands. These creatures are also rumored to be masters of shadows, but whether or not this is an innate ability or a common use of spells remains to be seen. Treat all encountered Daerrow as being specialists in the school of Shadow, with all of the benefits and restrictions of a specialist of that type. Surprisingly, despite the eternal war between Daerhyn and the Goddess of Chaos Lloth, these creatures are on good terms with Daerhyn, probably because Lloth forbids any kind of deformation, and probably considers Daerrow to be among those so inflicted. Another reason for Daerhyn’s apparent affiliation with the Daerrow, is that he values any help he can have against the Queen of Chaos, and the irony of the fact that Lloth's forces could be hampered by something she ostracized is probably not lost on Daerhyn.