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| The Slizzar appears mostly like a humanoid snake-figure, with no legs, and a lower body in the shape of a snake tail that is 3 times as long as their body. With the snake tail, the Slizzar can at most run at jogging speed, but can swim faster than all races, except Mai-Allar. They can un-fuse the snake-tail to gain humanoid legs to run, but can no longer swim at high speeds. This change can occur instantaneously, unless the Slizzar is being pursued. They can adjust various visual features in this form, but can never change the colors they were born with. | | The Slizzar appears mostly like a humanoid snake-figure, with no legs, and a lower body in the shape of a snake tail that is 3 times as long as their body. With the snake tail, the Slizzar can at most run at jogging speed, but can swim faster than all races, except Mai-Allar. They can form pseudo-gills, allowing them to breathe underwater for up to 48 hours. They can un-fuse the snake-tail to gain humanoid legs to run, but can no longer swim at high speeds. This change can occur instantaneously, unless the Slizzar is being pursued. They can adjust various visual features in this form, but can never change the colors they were born with. | ||
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| The Sole Slizzar can perform a ritual allowing them to request a Deep Sea Serpent judge their machinations and plots at the Slizzar Shrine (/tp Slizzar). If deemed worthy by the Deep Sea Serpent, the Sole Slizzar receives a Temporary Racial Ability. | | The Sole Slizzar can perform a ritual allowing them to request a Deep Sea Serpent judge their machinations and plots at the Slizzar Shrine (/tp Slizzar). If deemed worthy by the Deep Sea Serpent, the Sole Slizzar receives a Temporary Racial Ability. | ||
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==History== | ==History== | ||
Slizzar have existed in [[Hadar]] for what most scholars assume is thousands of years. The forbidden city of Sassrakkand features a very unique pyramid at the very center of the city, the silhouette of which is frequently depicted in a variety of south-eastern Altalar murals, leading many to believe it has existed at the very least in the beginning of the [[Allorn Empire]], and possibly even before that. The reason why even the Altalar referred to it as the forbidden city, was because they could never quite penetrate its walls. In fact, it is said that many of the late Allorn city-states mimicked the massive bastion walls around Sassrakkand which stood for centuries unassailed. Each time an Altalar would come up with a plan to assault the city, they or their family mysteriously disappeared, and an actual assault never materialized. | Slizzar have existed in [[Hadar]] for what most scholars assume is thousands of years. The forbidden city of Sassrakkand features a very unique pyramid at the very center of the city, the silhouette of which is frequently depicted in a variety of south-eastern Altalar murals, leading many to believe it has existed at the very least in the beginning of the [[Allorn Empire]], and possibly even before that. The reason why even the Altalar referred to it as the forbidden city, was because they could never quite penetrate its walls. In fact, it is said that many of the late Allorn city-states mimicked the massive bastion walls around Sassrakkand which stood for centuries unassailed. Each time an Altalar would come up with a plan to assault the city, they or their family mysteriously disappeared, and an actual assault never materialized. | ||
Revision as of 05:07, 26 November 2020
| Slizzar | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Race | |
| Pronunciation | Slizz-ahr |
| Classification | Gorr |
| Subraces | None |
| Common Nicknames | Snake People, Shapeshifters, Puppeteers |
| Languages | Zasta, and whatever Language they pick up in the societies they emulate |
| Naming Customs | Dependent on whatever society they are in, yet often contains many L’s, S’s and Z’s. Many Slizzar abandon their real name and only reveal this to those they really trust. |
| Racial Traits | |
| Distinctions | Highly intelligent snake-like shapeshifters |
| Maximum Age | 180 years |
| Height | 5’ - 6’ |
| Weight | 100 - 160 lbs in their natural state |
| Eye Colors | Varying purple in natural forms, everything else in 4th form. |
| Hair Colors | Varying colors in natural forms, everything else in 4th form. |
| Skin Tones | Any and all colors, usually one dominant and one sub-dominant color with varying patterns or none in different colors. |
Hailing from the forbidden city of Sassrakkand come the Slizzar, a very rare and highly politically distinguished Race of shapeshifting infiltrators. Millions of people around the world live their entire lives without ever seeing a Slizzar, and yet the actions of Slizzar reverberate through history, sometimes right under the noses of historians who are missing the right clues to zone in on the true puppeteers of the strings of history. Slizzar remain one of the most fascinating, yet reviled Races all over the world, because of their ability to seamlessly merge into existing societies and hierarchies, and start working their way up fairly quickly and efficiently. They are known to play games of life and death over politics with others to such a high degree that accusing a successful and quickly rising politician as being a shapeshifter has almost become common practice, even in the Regalian Empire. Slizzar are inherently solitary, avoiding a communal existence like the other Races, yet where their cooperation does occur, it is done with surgical precision and respectful observance of the balance of power. In fact, the Slizzar are so obsessed with creating a balance of power between them all that any country, or society, can become an entirely unwitting plaything of a Slizzar using the locals as chess pieces in idle entertainment. It is as such no surprise that Slizzar are called master manipulators and schemers, and that their reputation always precedes them.
Physical and Mental Characteristics
Slizzar Forms
Slizzar are by nature Shapeshifters, allowing them to change appearances at will and with a high degree of authenticity. Slizzar by nature have two types of forms, but each form has a wild range of variance and customizability. Their first form is called their Birth Form, the way they are born, and the second form is their Glamor Form, which is a mimic form of other characters or a more personalized appearance.
Birth Form
In their Birth Form, the Slizzar appears most snake-like. They have no legs, instead having a lower body that is that of a snake from the waist down, a tail that is three times as long as their body, and coils and slithers behind them as they move around at normal walking speed. The rest of their body is however also covered in scales, a humanoid torso with humanoid arms leading to a head that resembles a combination between a snake and a more humanoid face. Some Slizzar in their Birth Form have no “hair”, while others have a bundle of snake-like tendrils, each with a snake head at the end that can move around independently as if sentient itself. This snake hair is in fact not sentient, and even if these tendrils have eyes, the Slizzar cannot see through them, however they can move them in whatever way they like and make them imitate actual snakes. These snake “hair” tendrils can be painlessly cut off, and regrow, and grow much like real hair. In their Birth Form, Slizzar are not capable of growing facial hair, and for all intents and purposes look a-gendered, having no gender dimorphism or distinguishable gender-coded specific body parts. With their snake lower body, the Slizzar cannot quite run at the speed of Ailor, instead slithering at a jogging speed, but are able to swim very quickly in the water, faster than most races, except Mai-Allar. Additionally, they can form pseudo-gills in any variant of their Birth Form, allowing them to breathe under water for extended periods of time, up to 48 hours at a time, after which they must re-surface for air.
While in their Birth Form, Slizzar have some flexibility over their appearance. They can, for example, fuse apart their snake-tail and gain humanoid legs, which resets their movement speed to Ailor-kind. They can even choose to go somewhere in the middle, by keeping a much smaller tail, and having two humanoid legs to stand on. Furthermore, they can adjust their head to appear more humanoid, yet retaining the unhinged jaw, and are also able to make the snake “hair” tendrils appear more like dreads instead of actual snakes. These changes can occur instantaneously and painlessly, though when chased, it becomes harder to change in and out of legs, since the Slizzar do have to stand still while making changes to their appearance. While in their Birth Form, they can also split their arms and gain an additional set of arms, though this is purely just aesthetic, and confers no combat advantages beyond the fact that they can hold objects in their second set of arms. Finally, while in Birth Form, Slizzar are also able to change their entire upper body into Glamor Form, leaving only their lower body that of a snake. Even though their upper body appears in Glamor Form, this is still considered Birth Form, as the difference between these two forms is dictated by what the legs (or absence of them) looks like.
Slizzar hair colors and scale colors and patterns are completely free game. That is to say, they can literally be any color, any hue and any pattern. The Snakes “hair” can be one consistent color different from the “skin” scales, or exactly the same, or have a different pattern. The eyes can have any color, white scaled Slizzar exist in equal measure to blue scaled, red scaled and black scaled Slizzar. Some have patterns, others have one smooth color, and others have gradients. Some have snake-hair to their hips, others only just beyond the ears. Despite shape shifting in their Glamor Form however, Slizzar can never change the colors of their Birth Form on their body, even if they can shift around various features. Shifting their snake hair from snakes to dreadlocks will not change the color or pattern, nor will their eye color change.
Glamor Form
Slizzar are able to change their appearance at will and mimic any other race, or even combination of races across their entire appearance. At a glance, a Slizzar can appear like an entirely different person, changing gender, race, body shape, bodily components etc. This is called the Glamor Form (when this change also includes their legs that is). From top to bottom, in Glamor Form, Slizzar are able to combine Qadir hair with Orc skin tone, an Altalar face with Cielothar ears, the body hair of an Avanthar, the body shape of a Lesara, with furred and digitigrade Varran legs. If they however want to be more subtle, they might also just mimic an Ailor or an Altalar in their entirety, or choose be an Altalar that only differs from the members of the actual race, with Maraya ears. At its core, Slizzar are able to mimic any combination of races or individual race to the letter and indistinguishable to the naked eye, though appearing like a combination of races does set off some alarm bells, and those familiar with racial theory will be able to tell that an impossible combination of races, is in fact a Slizzar. Additionally, on top of this infinite combination of other races, Slizzar are also able to manifest small appearance aspects of their Birth Form (but not the tail), onto their Glamor Form. This might include patterns of scales on parts of their face, manifesting their Birth Form eyes, and even the snake “hair”, including coloring said snake “hair” with whatever color of hair they picked for their Glamor Form (the only exception to not being able to change colors from the Birth Form).
Glamor Form cannot ever be used to imitate someone. While Glamor Form can be used to look very much like someone, and even sound like them (since Slizzar can also change their voice), anyone within Emote Distance that has seen said person up close can immediately tell the difference. That being said, Glamor Form also has some functional cross-play with other Abilities, notably Form Sensing, explained further below. Changing Glamor Form is painless and near instant, but does require the Slizzar to be standing still, and cannot be done more than once per hour. Even if the Glamor Form is on cooldown, the Slizzar does not have a cooldown for switching between Glamor Form and Birth Form and vice versa. Slizzar are not limited to a set amount of Glamor Forms, though they do have a tendency to store such complete pictures in their mind for future use when they become comfortable with a certain appearance. Even though Url, Manathar and Wyldwarped Kathar are not races, Slizzar can still mimic them.
Common traits between Forms
Either in Birth form of Glamor Form, Slizzar do not visually age beyond the age of 18, which is when they mature into adults. Unlike Yanar, Slizzar do have a biological sex that they are born with, but much like Songaskians, gynandromorphism exists, allowing both male and female Slizzar to carry children. When Slizzar reproduce, either with a non-Slizzar (in Birth or Glamor Form) or an actual Slizzar, children are always born in pairs of two, identical twins. Why this occurs, is not known, but it does differ per parent. Two Slizzar parents give birth to two identical Slizzar children, who in their Birth Form look identical, down to their scale patterns, besides a particular orientation of scales on their forehead, which is how they are told apart. If a Slizzar reproduces with a non-Slizzar however, one child is born as a Birth Form Slizzar, and is in all aspects a Slizzar, while the other twin is born belonging to the race of the non-Slizzar parent, in all aspects not a Slizzar. This would sometimes reveal the identity of a Slizzar mate however, so Slizzar have gained the ability to simply suppress their fertility unless they wish to reproduce. Slizzar have one consistent Physical Stat across all Forms, but their Body Shape is malleable in both Birth and Glamor Form to whatever they want, the same goes for Body Fat, and also Character Height, though Character Height must remain consistent with racial limitations. That being said, both in Glamor and Birth Form, Slizzar only ever have access to the Racial Abilities of the Slizzar. Even if they are 100% Avanthar in appearance during Glamor Form, they can never gain the Avanthar Racial Abilities. Note: It is not permitted to identify a Slizzar based on the lack of their Racial Abilities. Challenging a Slizzar to perform Racials they do not have, or having a “gotcha” moment when a Slizzar is unable to use the Racials of the race they are imitating, is metagaming.
Slizzar Personalities
Slizzar are, because of their shapeshifting abilities and their cultural history, master manipulators and political schemers. There are numerically very few Slizzar, and numerically very many non-Slizzar, so in the eyes of the Slizzar, the world is their playing ground, and they have very little competition. Slizzar are excellent advisers, tacticians and spies, but also entertainers, companions and caretakers, due to their abilities to substantially answer the needs of any individual. They are calculative in their approach, but not immune to emotional outbursts, and certainly have a streak for mean-ness and spitefulness when someone works against them, or gets in their way. They are greedy, and like possessing things, including people, but are more sharing with other Slizzar. Slizzar in general advocate self-betterment, but not necessarily through the scope of being a lone-wolf. While many Slizzar are lone-wolf, an equal amount is a co-operative kind of Slizzar. These Slizzar that work together are called Nest Slizzar, which is neither an insult nor a compliment. Nest Slizzar disdain Sole Slizzar (lone-wolves), while Sole Slizzar consider Nest Slizzar weak. The distinction between a Nest and Sole Slizzar is important, because some Nest and some Sole Slizzar Abilities only work when a Slizzar has chosen to work with other Slizzar, or to go at it alone. Nest Slizzar that work together usually elect one of their members as the de-facto leader, in which case this Nest leader is called the Matron (regardless of whether they are female or male).
Slizzar are loyal to their own race. In the grand scheme of the world’s events, Sassrakkand does not have an official stance or running horse over who should win the game of geo-politics, and they also do not strictly get involved in the Void-Exist or Vampire-Regalia conflicts to make one side win over the other. Slizzar do not really care, deeply or emotionally, what happens to the world, as long as their race is still there to control the masses at the end of the day. This means that Slizzar inherently are not so interested in going after each other, however competition and mutual sabotage has been known to occur between Slizzar. It is not unreasonable for a Slizzar to attempt to oust another Slizzar from an important position by revealing their identity, and then taking their place, or outright kidnapping them, taking their Glamor Form for themselves, and then using it to pretend they were them all along. Generally speaking, the great game of manipulation does allow Slizzar to work together in Nests, but Nests can be fiercely competitive with one another, downright hostile, with any amount of Sole Slizzar caught in the middle, as long as the outcome does not involve the death of other Slizzar. That is one absolute code that all Slizzar follow, and it is enforced in their very mind, which is to avoid the death of another Slizzar at all costs.
Slizzar Abilities
Emotion Surge
Emotion Surge is a Control Power Ability usable on other non-Slizzar and individuals who do not have Control Power Immunity. Emotion Surge allows a Slizzar to transmit a specific strong desire to do something to another person, while also lowering their natural inhibitions and restraint to giving into what they want to do, increasing momentarily their vices and repressing their virtues. Emotion Surge, for example, allows a Slizzar to transmit the great urge to be alone with them during a public party, allowing them to get their target in private if they agree, or to give them a strong urge to dance with them on the dancefloor. While acting as a Control Power, Emotion Surge is not completely fail proof. It only gives the target a strong urge, not an irresistible urge, and it is still up to the player to decide what their character does, even when factoring in the effects of Emotion Surge. Furthermore, before engaging in any romantic or intimate conduct through Emotion Surge, be sure to have the approval and permission of the person targeted, as forced romance is generally considered unkosher and creepy. You do not need to inform or get approval for other Emotion Surges not involving romance or intimacy, such as giving someone a strong urge to anger, a strong urge to drink a glass of water, or a strong urge to dance outside in the rain. Emotion Surge must specifically target emotions and whims, and cannot ever target specific truths, such as “you suddenly have the strong urge to not believe in Unionism”, or “you suddenly have the strong urge to think 4+4 equals 10”. Lastly, Emotion Surge cannot ever lead to a Character acting overly self-detrimental, such as having the urge to do something that would lead to death or maiming. Emotion Surge must be applied within 5 blocks and only one person can be targeted at a time, though the effect can remain for as long as the Slizzar is within Emote Distance. The target cannot ever notice that Emotion Surge was used on them.
Truth Surge
Truth Surge as an Ability can only be used with the explicit written OOC consent of the other participant to puppeteer their character’s opinions and wants, but can be used in certain scenarios to make roleplay with a Slizzar deeper, for those who are willing and ready to accept that. Truth Surge is an enhanced version of Emotion Surge allowing a Slizzar to use a Control Power to alter a state of mind in a target, in a more complete manner than Emotion Surge. If you have the OOC consent of the player that is the target, then your Slizzar is able to modify that person’s feelings and opinions while within Emote Distance. This consent is carte-blanche and valid until it is no longer valid, by clear communication, either perpetual, or for single-instance rp. The target cannot ever notice that Truth Surge was used on them.
Perfect Form
Perfect Form is an Ability Slizzar have to decipher the ideal partner appearance of a targeted individual. If the individual is willing and consenting, the Slizzar can extract the information instantly. If they are not, then the Slizzar can slowly piece together the information as long as they have spent at least 30 minutes within Emote Distance of that individual, uninterrupted. This includes information such as their preferred gender, race, appearance aspects, other racial features, and their preferred style of clothing. While Slizzar do not have control over shapeshifting clothes, if they have harvested the perfect Form of an individual, they are able to manifest a magical set of clothes that appears like that person’s preferred dress style superimposed on their normal clothing, but only for their very specific unique taste.
Heart of Sassrakkand
The Heart of Sassrakkand takes a different form depending whether the Slizzar is a lone wolf (Sole Slizzar) or a Slizzar working with a larger group of other Slizzar (Nest Slizzar). For Nest Slizzar, the Heart of Sassrakkand allows them to touch any mirror, turning said mirror into a Mirror of Sassrakkand, which shares visual viewing with any other member of that particular group of Nest Slizzar aligned and subject to a Matron, who also happens to be in front of a mirror at that time. Nest Slizzar are able to send telepathic signals to each other from great distances alerting the desire to speak through the Mirrors of Sassrakkand. Any Slizzar who answers the call is then visible in the mirror, along with all other members connected visibly also. The only things seen in the Mirrors of Sassrakkand are the people speaking, and any object or person they are holding. The Mirrors do not reveal where they are, or the circumstances they are in beyond their body. Any Slizzar can leave the communication loop by simply touching the Mirror, causing it to return to normal, or stepping more than a few feet away from it.
Note: It is permitted to hold these Slizzar Nest conferences on a private Discord. That being said, some rules are attached. All participant Slizzar must be logged off from the server for the duration of the conference. They may not leave a roleplay scene, join a conference, complete the conference, and then hop back into the roleplay scene, unless they can reasonably travel between a room or house and the scene in time. Some waiting between finishing the conference, and logging back on may be involved. Secondly, conferences must happen “in the moment”, and may not be deferred. For example: if a Slizzar initiates a conference in a mirror, and then goes to bed, another person just waking up 2 hours later cannot read back all the chat of the conference, and then have a say in it, or take that information as IC information as well. Conferences cannot be delayed, deferred, paused, or put on hold, and must begin and reach completion within 15 minutes, or however long the discussion lasts. Whenever such a conference starts, all active members must be announced at the start in an OOC message, and anyone joining mid-way must also provide an OOC message of their entry, and be caught up to speed. They will not receive information on all aforementioned subjects or conversation topics automatically. Using information gleaned from such conference conversations is strictly meta if the person was not present, so we recommend making a channel for the conference, and then deleting it when it is done, with one person keeping screenshots of the participants on hand. If this all seems too complicated, then do the actual conference meeting in-game. Slizzar can just walk to somewhere in the wilderness and pretend it’s a mirror conference. It is also important to note that only Nest Slizzar, who specifically are part of a group, and are subject to a Matron can participate in these Mirrors of Sassrakkand, only when the Matron knows of their membership and approves of it. Non-Nest members or non-Slizzar cannot participate, except if a member holds their hand in front of a Mirror, in which case they also appear.
If a Slizzar is a Sole Slizzar however, they are able to target a single individual (who must not be a Nest Slizzar, but can be another Sole Slizzar or non-Slizzar) and establish a telepathic communication link with them, both ways, but the Slizzar can also choose to deny the target the means to reply back. When this communication occurs, it may only occur over Server Direct Messaging. Private Discord telepathic Communication is not permitted. This means that they can telepathically communicate with their target at a great distance, and can even communicate with them while doing other things. To establish this link, they must be within Direct Touch range, and cannot remove it for at least 24 hours, but can instantly swap it to another target within Direct Touch range. This telepathic communication link also allows the Slizzar to transmit Emotion Surge (and Truth Surge, if permitted) to the target from great distances (though if targeting another Sole-Slizzar, then they obviously do not have the means to use Emotion Surge. For all intents and purposes, two Slizzar working together are still Sole Slizzar, but any more (so 3 and above) Slizzar working together are classified as a Nest, with no upper limit of members. Only Slizzar can be members of a Nest, but they do have a classification of Nest Ally for any non-Slizzar that works with their Nest and knows their identities. Sole-Slizzar cannot under any circumstance work or ally with Nest Slizzar, and must always seek ways to use or manipulate them if they are active in the same area, or in the way of the Sole Slizzar’s ambitions.
Beseech the Deep
Beseech the Deep, like Heart of Sassrakkand, is an Ability that changes depending on whether a Slizzar is a Sole, or Nest Slizzar. The purpose of Slizzar, is to perform great feats of manipulation and intrigue, on the unwitting, or the unwilling, to expand their personal influence (or in the case of Nest Slizzar, to aid others in doing so). Once a Slizzar feels satisfied about what they have achieved, they may perform the Beseech ritual in which they enter the Slizzar Shrine on Regalia (which can be found through /tp Slizzar) to the Nesrassian Faith, and try to summon the conscience of a Deep Sea Serpent to judge them (this must be communicated with Lore Staff before such an event can take place). Both Sole and Nest Slizzar can perform this ritual, but the outcome is slightly different for each of them. For Nest Slizzar, all Nest Slizzar that are available, but at the very least the Matron, must be present at the ritual site, and proclaim their achievement and plot and manipulations before the Great Sea Serpents. If deemed worthy, all members receive a temporary Proficiency Boost depending on the Great Sea Serpent that feels honored by their offering. For Sole Slizzar, only the Sole Slizzar needs to be present at the ritual site, and proclaim their achievements and plot and manipulations before the Great Sea Serpents. If deemed worthy, the Sole Slizzar receives a Temporary Racial Ability depending on the Great Sea Serpent that feels honored by their offering. Note, this is a strictly optional mechanic, and will require some fairness on the part of the player. The fairness aspect comes into play that this Ability only rewards those who had to put in actual effort to achieve what they achieved. Slizzar manipulating their OOC friends through their consent is not considered actual effort, since OOC friends are very likely to just go along with what their OOC friends want in roleplay, and may even be motivated to help create scenarios for them to succeed and “win”. As such, Lore Staff will be very critical of Slizzar proclaiming to the Great Sea Serpents, manipulations and plots and control over their OOC friends. This mechanic is mostly to reward Slizzar for going outside of their comfort zone, and undertaking actually challenging roleplay plots, instead of going for safe options and being attached to hip to their OOC non-Slizzar friends. Not performing this ritual does not make your Slizzar a failure. From the perspective of roleplay machinations, Slizzar controlling their OOC friends is not any worse or better than doing it to strangers, especially if it makes you as a player more comfortable. The present, or absence, of this Ability’s effects does not make any Slizzar a worse or better character, it is merely an encouragement to those who are willing to take more risk and succeed, to create a bigger reward.
Summary of Racial Abilities
Due to the complicated nature of Slizzar Racial Abilities, it is absolutely necessary to read the full depth descriptions above. The Summary does not actively or accurately reflect all the limitations and specifications of the Abilities, and should only be used as an easy point of reference.
| Ability | Type | Range | Common Abilities (All Slizzar have these Abilities) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slizzar Forms | Racial Passive | Self | Slizzar are natural shapeshifters, and can change between their Birth form and Glamor form. |
| Birth Form | Racial Shift | Self | The Slizzar appears mostly like a humanoid snake-figure, with no legs, and a lower body in the shape of a snake tail that is 3 times as long as their body. With the snake tail, the Slizzar can at most run at jogging speed, but can swim faster than all races, except Mai-Allar. They can form pseudo-gills, allowing them to breathe underwater for up to 48 hours. They can un-fuse the snake-tail to gain humanoid legs to run, but can no longer swim at high speeds. This change can occur instantaneously, unless the Slizzar is being pursued. They can adjust various visual features in this form, but can never change the colors they were born with. |
| Glamor Form | Racial Shift | Self | The Slizzar can seamlessly mimic the features of any race, and even mix-match visual features of a race, but will never gain the Racial Abilities when shifted. They will be indistinguishable from a member of the race, unless they mix and match features. They can additionally manifest minor aspects of their Birth Form, such as scales or hair. Glamor Form can be used to vaguely mimic the appearance of another Character, but will always fail upon inspection by another character within Emote Distance, as long as that Character has seen the person before up close. |
| Emotion Surge | Racial Spell | 5 Blocks | Emotion Surge can be used on other non-Slizzar who do not have Control Power Immunity. The Slizzar can transmit a strong desire to do something to a character within 5 blocks, and can only target one person at a time, but the effect remains until the Slizzar exist Emote Distance. Emotion Surge is not explicit mind control, and must target emotions and whims alone. It cannot alter specific truths, and cannot lead to the Character doing anything overly self-destructive or self-sabotaging, such as doing anything that would lead to death or maiming. Surges involving Romance or Romantic feelings should be discussed OOCly first, as we heavily discourage unprompted 'force romanced' rp. |
| Truth Surge | Racial Spell | Emote Distance | Truth Surge cannot be used without explicit OOC consent (on server) from the target. Truth Surge allows the Slizzar to alter the state of mind of a target within Emote Distance, in a complete manner, permanently (until removed) changing how they feel or think about anyone or anything. The effects of Truth Surge cannot be avoided once consent is given, but, any Ability that removes Target Curses can cleanse the effects of Truth Surge, reverting any changes made. Even if cleansed, the target cannot ever recall that Truth Surge was used on them. |
| Perfect Form | Racial Shift | Emote Distance | The Slizzar can decipher the ideal partner appearance of another character. If the character is aware and consenting, the Slizzar can deciper it instantaneously, otherwise, the Slizzar must spend 30 uninterrupted minutes within Emote Distance of the target. The Slizzar will then be aware of, and can transform into the target's preferred gender, race, appearance aspects, and preferred style of clothing. Only when utilizing Perfect Form can the Slizzar magically manifest a set of clothes that fits the target's style layered over their normal clothing, but only for their specific tastes alone. |
| The following Abilities can only be used by Nest Slizzar. | |||
| Heart of Sassrakkand (Nest Slizzar) | Racial Passive | Any | The Slizzar can touch any mirror, turning said mirror into a Mirror of Sassrakkand, which shares visuals with any other member of a group of Nest Slizzar aligned to one Matron. The Nest Slizzar can send telepathic signals to each other from any distance alerting the others that they wish to speak through the Mirrors. The Slizzar must then find a Mirror in order to enter the Call, and can end the Call on their end by either touching the Mirror, or moving a few feet away from it. Only Nest Slizzar who are beholden to a Matron can participate in these types of calls, and only when the Matron knows of their membership and approves of it. If a Nest Slizzar brings a Non-Nest Slizzar or a non-Slizzar in front of the Mirror and invites them by holding their hand in front of the mirror, that character can then participate. |
| Beseech the Deep (Nest Slizzar) | Racial Passive | -- | All Nest Slizzar, or at the least any Nest Slizzar who can attend and the Matron, can perform a ritual allowing them to request a Deep Sea Serpent judge their machinations and deeds at the Slizzar Shrine (/tp Slizzar). If deemed worthy by the Deep Sea Serpent, all members of the Nest receive a temporary Proficiency Boost. |
| The following Abilities can only be used by Sole Slizzar. | |||
| Heart of Sassrakkand (Sole Slizzar) | Racial Passive | Direct Touch | The Sole Slizzar can touch a single individual, who cannot be a Nest Slizzar, but can be another Sole Slizzar or a non-Slizzar, and establish a telepathic communication link with them. This link can be both ways, but the Slizzar can deny the target the ability to respond back. This communication can only occur through Server Direct Messaging. Once established, the Slizzar cannot remove it for at least 24 hours, but can instantly swap it to another target during that time. The Slizzar can transmit Emotion Surge (and Truth Surge, if allowed) through this communication, unless the target is another Sole Slizzar. The effects of this Ability can be removed from the target by any Ability that removes Target Curses. |
| Beseech the Deep (Sole Slizzar) | Racial Passive | -- | The Sole Slizzar can perform a ritual allowing them to request a Deep Sea Serpent judge their machinations and plots at the Slizzar Shrine (/tp Slizzar). If deemed worthy by the Deep Sea Serpent, the Sole Slizzar receives a Temporary Racial Ability. |
History
Slizzar have existed in Hadar for what most scholars assume is thousands of years. The forbidden city of Sassrakkand features a very unique pyramid at the very center of the city, the silhouette of which is frequently depicted in a variety of south-eastern Altalar murals, leading many to believe it has existed at the very least in the beginning of the Allorn Empire, and possibly even before that. The reason why even the Altalar referred to it as the forbidden city, was because they could never quite penetrate its walls. In fact, it is said that many of the late Allorn city-states mimicked the massive bastion walls around Sassrakkand which stood for centuries unassailed. Each time an Altalar would come up with a plan to assault the city, they or their family mysteriously disappeared, and an actual assault never materialized.
The city stood alone in Hadar for most of recorded Allorn history, though the Altalar were completely oblivious to the presence of Slizzar among their political elite, even to the very end of the Allorn Empire. In fact, to this day, the only evidence of Slizzar ever having been inside the Allorn Empire is through word of mouth from contemporary Slizzar. If any Slizzar did indeed exist among the Allorn, they likely died during the Wildering. The Altalar, who had several colonies in Hadaria, pulled out of the region around 300 BC to focus most of their military powers on combating the Ailor who had become more militarily capable and aggressive against their would be slave captors. This resulted in 250 years of practical isolation until 22 BC, when as a result of the Sendrassian Civil War, a massive exodus of Allar arrived in the wild and untamed continent that was Hadaria. The land was filled with many jungles and a whole host of dangerous beasts, but considering what the Allar had just left, it was a paradise. The Allar were welcomed, less as friends but more so as tools for the Slizzar to use for their own good, and for the first time in their history, the Slizzar changed their strategy. Instead of being hidden and infiltrating, they chose to try and openly control the Allar, at first by softening them up to their presence, and later by pretending to integrate into their society as one of their lizard-kind, only to then turn and manipulate them into allowing them to absorb all the high positions of Allar politics.
This political control galvanized to such a degree that one Slizzar, Miko Missa, was declared Empress, who has in modern times been classified as a Mage post-mortem. The reason why the Slizzar accepted one of their own to become more politically powerful than all other Slizzar is unclear, but it is likely that along with the fact that they started being a public part of Allar society, the Slizzar simply started sampling new ideas and trying new things that they had not done for thousands of years, a decision that would inevitably come to harm them. The Slizzar power spectrum finally came crashing down when the Regalians invaded Hadar with their superior military equipment in the Chrysant War. The Slizzar were first weakened by the Humans, and then suffered full racial genocide at the hands of the betrayed Allar, who had since learned of the serpent’s puppeting ways. This resulted in a massive flight of Slizzar back to the forbidden city of Sassrakkand, which the Ailor laid siege to at the end of the Chrysant War. While the tactic of infiltration against Altalar had always been successful to avoid a full blown siege of their city, this tactic was of no avail to them against the Ailor. The Slizzar were both unprepared, because of their focus on the Allar, and also unable to quickly enough win over the Ailor, who with a much shorter life span than Altalar reacted to the world’s events much faster, faster than the Slizzar could catch up.
The Siege of Sassrakkand ended in a complete disaster for the Slizzar. With the loss of the Empress who was noted as one of the most powerful Slizzar at the battle of Fessa Huallo, and most of their Allar guardians dead or resentful of them, the city had no defensive garrison to speak of, or any weapons to defend the walls. The Ailor also used the terrifying fire-power of their battleships to pound the ancient bastion walls into submission, since the city was essentially built in sea-shallows, and could easily be reached by gunboats and even smaller frigates. The outer wall of the city crumbled after a week of non-stop shelling, after which the Ailor discovered that the city was actually made of 3 encircling walls, each ringing around the inner wall. The outer section of Sassrakand was broken, and this section of the city experienced massive flooding, resulting in destruction of almost forty percent of the city. The Slizzar fled to the inner level, which then experienced terrifying mortar bombardment. The Ailor could not reach into the inner city, as the rubble of the bastion wall prevented the ships from sailing into the interior, and soldiers could not launch an amphibious assault on the high towering walls. They then chose to simply bombard the second ring into submission. This bombardment did massive amounts of damage until massive smoke plumes obscured view into the city interior, and the ailor simply assumed the city would burn up from the inside and left, never to return.
With the near destruction of sixty percent of their city, the Slizzar learned a hard lesson. While the vast majority of them had survived the reprisals of the Allar and the Ailor genocide, they were seriously caught on the backfoot and pushed into a corner. The Slizzar thus decided to make a public display of power, a sign that they were beaten but not broken, and that they should not be so easily dismissed. In one final act of complete co-operation, all Slizzar in the Regalian Empire were recalled after assassinating the aristocracy of the Empire. In a short time span, as the Regalian Military sailed back to the capital to celebrate their victory, the sleeper agents and infiltrants in Ailor society were all activated at once, poisoning, strangling and stabbing the nobles of the realm in one massive concerted revenge attacks. Many notable politicians and important families lost numerous important members, the death toll was particularly high among the van Sherburne and Kade families, resulting most notably in the death of the niece of the Emperor, Princess Liliane Kade-Ivrae de Sange. It is said to this day that every noble family in the realm has at least one family member that was killed in this manner, inflicting a massive humiliating loss on the Empire that has not been rivaled since by any other enemy. The Slizzar came together in the leftover parts of Sassrakand and started rebuilding, eventually venturing out into the world again and rebuilding their network of infiltrant manipulators.
It is commonly accepted nowadays that the Slizzar have infiltrated nearly every level of society among most Races, despite their small population number. In Regalia though, most of the memory of their assassinations have been forgotten, both because of the fact that remembering would be a painful humiliation, but also because the power void created by so many other nobles allowed for the catapulted rising of a new class of nobles who gained power from the series of events. In some cases, some of the detractors of these families would even allude to Slizzar helping these upstart nobles gain power, leading to their modern generally not-hostile yet distrusted view.
Society
Slizzar society is a bit difficult to pin down, because Slizzar intrinsically do not live in a communal manner like other Races. While there are certainly still Slizzar within the walls of Sassrakkand, the vast majority live outside of these walls in the wide world, and have very little interactions with one another outside of Nests and the Sole Slizzar roaming around. That being said, to say that Slizzar don’t have a society is far from the truth, it just presents itself in a different manner that other Races would not consider a society. Slizzar do live communally in the city of Sassrakkand, but very little is known about this city by outsiders, and Slizzar like it this way, because most Slizzar simply don’t talk about their lives as Slizzar, and instead prefer to focus on their infiltrant life, or what life is like outside of the forbidden city. In Regalia, Nests may often have a compound to live in together, but for the sake of their hidden identity, also choose to have houses of their own further away from their Nest Compound, which usually ends up being a Clandestine base of sorts. Slizzar have a strange level of loyalty to one another not quite found in other races, that allows Slizzar to completely dismantle and destroy another Slizzar’s plots and livelihood, but never lead to their death. If a Slizzar is accidentally responsible for another Slizzar’s near-death or impending death, they are tasked by Slizzar society to prevent it from happening. Within Sassrakkand, there are no political leaders, this egalitarian self-investment is consistent throughout, and most Slizzar simply look after themselves, or in some way their descendants, for whom they might have a fondness, though not one that would stop them from competing against them in the game of influence and manipulation. The only real sense of communal loyalty Slizzar have is to one another inside a Nest, and towards their Matron if they have one.
Culture
Slizzar culture is incredibly subtle, since many of the individual actions taken as custom or tradition, can be attributed to other Races. Indeed, Slizzar don’t engage in much cultural expression like other Races do, and a lot of their quirks and expressions of identity are easily mistaken to belong to someone else’s culture. The most important person in a Slizzar’s life, sometimes even more so than their Slizzar mate (though the line between them can often blur) is their Slizzar Mentor. The Slizzar grow up remarkably quickly, their body and mind is developed to that of an adult within 6 years of birth, after which they choose a mentor, who is usually a few decades or at the very least 10 years older. A Slizzar mentor teaches their student about the world at large and what dangers to find within, Slizzar culture, religion and other aspects of life, while also honing their skills through teaching. Most Slizzar who learned things in Sassrakkand, learn their Proficiencies from their Mentor, and continue to hone those skills later in life to perfection. Mentors remain important figures to look up to in a Slizzar’s life, and a Slizzar will generally speak fondly of their Mentor.
Slizzar do take other Slizzar as partners, but the relationship sometimes blurs between lover and partner in proverbial crime, and sometimes it gets more confusing when that partner ends up being their mentor. It is not uncommon for mentors to become partners with their students when their studies are complete (usually around 12 years after having become an adult Slizzar). Slizzar partners can also live far away from each other and remain loyal to one another in a bond that is not always physical. Some Slizzar couples can go without physical intimacy for decades, but have an unbreakably strong emotional connection that expresses itself in extremely emotional feelings. Children of Slizzar unions are carried to term by either parent, if both parents are Slizzar usually in Sassrakkand to be connected to their holy city, but otherwise anywhere outside of the general view of non-Slizzar to avoid complications with a snake-child being born. The children are usually taken care of for one year by the parent, after which they are given to the House of Mentors, where a group of currently retired and no longer teaching mentors of advanced age will raise them between the ages of one years old and six years old, though the parents can still be very much involved in this process. Twin Slizzar are always kept together, both through the House of Mentors, as well as the choosing of a Mentor who guides them both. Even after raising, parents become a model to look up to, and are frequently used as a motivation tool for the Mentors to encourage their students to excel and surpass the performances and achievements of their parents. Slizzar culture in such a way is very much focused around the concept of the child out-doing the parent, a stark contrast to many other Ailor cultures where respect for elders can sometimes border on accepting their parental superiority and not exceeding them. The Elders choose a Mentor for the Slizzar from the pool of eligible Mentors, though Mentoring does not have to take place in Sassrakkand, it can happen "on the road" out in the wide world, and there is no clear end-date for Mentoring. Each Mentor may identify that a Slizzar has learned enough and can be free from their guidance. Sometimes, the students may also choose a Mentor if their parents permit it, but in any and all cases, twin Slizzar gain the same Mentor.
Slizzar cultural quirks are far and wide in between, but some are fairly consistent. Firstly, Slizzar love smells, incense is a very common way Slizzar use to surround themselves with floral scents, but particularly chrysanthemum flowers and water lilies are very important to them. It is said that a specific type of water lily grows all over Sassrakkand, and the sweet scents remind them of home, which is why many Slizzar enjoy the smell of flower based incense. The Slizzar also have a heightened affinity for dancing, and turning their body in ways that other Races find alluring. To the Slizzar themselves, these dances are just a mode of entertainment, sometimes even bordering on religious theatre, as the movements are meant to represent their Deep Sea Serpent deities, but the unknowing and ignorant other Races just see these dances as alluring and sensual belly-dancing. Slizzar furthermore also love the feeling of fur, the exact reason why being unknown, but the sensation of fur between their fingers is like giving a cat a scratching pole. Many Slizzar wear clothing that has some form of fur lining, or wearing actual pelts or a fur coat.
The only expressions of Slizzar culture occur during the month of January, when most Slizzar return to Sassrakkand to celebrate communality. The exact sequence of events in Sassrakkand is unknown to outsiders, but every night is filled with communal singing to the moon as the moon rises above the city and reflects on the white marble of the walls and the cascading water that flows into, around and inside the city. This communal singing is sometimes so grand that it can be heard far outside the walls, lucky listeners describing it as a song bordering between melancholy and sadness, yet with a hopeful twist and a spark of passion to it.
Religion
The Slizzar follow the Nessrassian Faith: the faith of the giant Deep Sea Serpents. This faith has several gods embodied as various snakes which represent various aspects of a Slizzar’s personality. This religion is central in their life, for it guides their actions, and in hopes of becoming successful, they worship and offer tribute to their gods who they constantly aspire to become. It can be said as such that the Nessrassian Faith is less a religion, and more a life view or life philosophy. Still, the Slizzar worship the Sea Serpents as divine beings—and would even bow to the living ones if, or when, they surface. Many of their life choices and actions are woven into this concept of worship, whether it be manipulating others, succeeding in a plot, or rearing their puppets to have a mock-conflict with another Slizzar and prove the better manipulator by winning over the other. Within their home however, the Slizzar do not engage in active worship, and in some cases, Slizzar have even been known to accept a secondary faith, their Race being the only one known in Aloria that does this, called Faith Syncretism. That being said, they will still and must always acknowledge the Nesrassian gods as the primary more important diety, accepting the secondary god(s) as only a temporary additional fulfillment of a Spiritual need that is not always present in the Nesrassian Faith, which is often depicted as quite ruthless and uncaring for their own people.
- For more information on Nessrassian, click here
Trivia
- It is rumored that one Slizzar once managed to worm their way to the chambers of Chancellor Morgann Kade. There is no physical evidence of this ever having occurred, but it would explain his erratic behavior, with how sensible and calm most Kade Chancellors have been.
- Slizzar tails or legs that have been cut off slowly grow back over the course of two weeks.
- Slizzar greatly appreciate fruit, and have even been known to include flowers in their diet.
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