Yesterday I mentioned cwara. Today I’ll expand upon that in what is to be the first in a series of bestiary entries.
Cwara are somewhat like turtles and somewhat not. They are amphibious reptiles, though more at home in the water, whose backs and heads are armored in thick plates similar to those of dinosaurs. There are many species of cwara across Delgar, from the small tropical varieties known for their bright colors and long spine-like plates that inhabit the epeiric seas of the equatorial islands of Aun Ceartu to their large, squat cousins who dwell in the caverns of Narthrall, known for their dark hues and remarkable tolerance to Void Aether, for which their toxin, capable of conferring that benefit, is prized.
While some species of cwara are poisonous, such as the Narthrallian cave-dwelling uocari, most are not. The tropical varieties form a staple food source of Aun Ceartu, while the eggs of the migratory shallows-dwelling adiapa are a seasonal delicacy in Araxia, when they come to nest on the beaches in southern summer.
All species of cwara are relatively commonplace, with the extreme exception of the uocari, which have been hunted to the brink of extinction by the draphen, who, in calling Narthrall home, are constantly in danger from their poison as well as dependent on it for protection against the voidborn.
Uocari are also eaten in Narthrall, though the practice is forbidden by the Ascended due to the value of their toxin. Their skin, dried and smoked, while all but inedible, is desired for its hallucinogenic properties. Their salivary glands, where the toxin is produced, are used to brew the tea that forms the core of the Ascension rite.
The last species of note is matarca, the so-called giant cwara. These massive beasts are more common than uocari, though less often encountered as they live in the deep ocean. The sheness are said to domesticate them, but what the sheness do or don’t do has always been the realm of wild speculation. Matarca are famed for bringing down ships at sea, but most folk prefer to view such fish stories with skepticism. Matarca rarely come within viewing distance of a landmass.
I apologize for all the italicized words, but Delgar is, of course, not Earth, and so its names for things are, understandably, not from languages we would recognize. I have consistently used Delgar’s common tongue, Araxei, in rendering this. It is a brief summary of the cwara of Delgar, true, but I think I hit all the important points.
I have introduced a lot of new topics here which I will expand on in the coming days. I hope some of these have piqued your interest.