"Stupid rat, rat! Block them, block them!" The rat-man screeches, its mangy fur bristling as it gestures with clawed hands. Other Skrags, armed with makeshift weapons, scurry to obey, forming a ragged line of defense.
Among the Skrags, the Skrag Pikers stand out for their age, experience, and better equipment. These older, more seasoned Skrags are not leaders but bullies, using their physical prowess and superior gear to boss around smaller Skrags and assert their dominance. Despite their domineering nature, Skrag Pikers are formidable in combat, particularly with their long-range weapons.
Skrag Pikers are slightly larger and more robust than their scavenger counterparts. While their fur remains mangy, they wear slightly better-looking—albeit still ragged—armor. They wield long spears or pikes, weapons that emphasize their combat advantage. Their eyes gleam with a mix of cunning and cruelty, and their bodies often bear scars from countless skirmishes.
The Bully
Skrag Pikers use their superior equipment and combat experience to intimidate and control smaller Skrags. They are not true leaders but maintain their status through sheer physical dominance and intimidation.
Combat Support
In skirmishes, Skrag Pikers leverage the range of their weapons to strike from a distance. They often serve as support units, providing cover and picking off enemies while the more reckless Skrag Scavengers engage directly in melee combat.
Environments:
Skrags are humanoid rat-men, a grotesque blend of human and rodent features. Standing between four and six feet tall, their bodies are covered in patchy, matted fur of varying shades of brown and gray. Their elongated snouts, sharp teeth, and beady eyes give them a perpetually hungry and cunning look. With wiry, nimble limbs ending in clawed hands and feet, Skrags are well-suited for climbing and scavenging. A long, hairless tail trails behind them, often used for balance and manipulation of objects.
Once a noble race of Ratfolk, the Skrags have devolved into their current state due to their addiction to a mysterious drug called "Warp.
" This substance has not only altered their minds but also their bodies, transforming them into diseased and twisted parodies of their former selves. Prolonged exposure to Warp has granted them a peculiar resistance to necrotic energies but left them vulnerable to holy or radiant powers.
Scavengers of the Desolate
Skrags are drawn to places of death and decay, such as graveyards, fallen battlefields, and abandoned barracks. These locations offer ample opportunities for scavenging shiny objects and remnants of value. Their obsession with anything that glimmers drives them to steal from even the most dangerous foes, including orcs, ogres, and occasionally, dragon hoards.
Nomadic Tunnels
Skrags inhabit complex tunnel systems and underground warrens, which they constantly expand and fiercely defend. These labyrinthine homes allow them to move swiftly and unseen, making it difficult for enemies to track or catch them.
Wealth Equals Power
In Skrag society, the accumulation of shiny objects is the primary measure of status. The individual with the most wealth is considered the King of the Skrags.
However, this position is often short-lived, as other Skrags will stop at nothing—including theft and murder—to increase their own wealth and usurp the throne.
Anarchy and Competition
Skrag society is chaotic and cutthroat. Alliances are temporary and based solely on mutual benefit. The constant competition for wealth and power keeps the Skrags in a state of perpetual tension, where betrayal and backstabbing are commonplace.