Skathitaurs

The Ramal Herd

Where all other herds have failed, the Ramal have succeeded. None other than the Skathitar have remained loyal to Kaane's Directive, remembering their place as the god-king's messengers and rearing at the chance to enact his will upon the continent around them. Where there were once a number of nomadic tribes wandering the Ramal Desert, there are few left, and only under the watchful eye of the Skathitar herd. These warborn half-men have a long history of war and violence, having conquered the entirety of the desert along with the ever-raining jungles of Kash. Though they are now bound by the Ardina Concord to not war with their neighbors, they were once locked in a bloody war with the human kingdoms in Karadia, and while they outnumbered the Karadian soldiers ten to one, they could not combat the dragonpowder vehicles and weapons the humans had built to protect themselves. This is often a sore spot for the Ramal Herd, and they will lash out as often as they can against anyone from the Karadian kingdoms as long as they don't break the rules of the Concord. Any who do not seek permission to travel through the desert are fair game, and as a result, most travel across the continent is done through The Spine, the mountain range that divides Ardina in two.   The Skathitar are often mistaken for a subspecies of devil or demon rather than a divine branch of the Old Guard. Rather than these half-men being born with lower halves resembling an animal like a horse, bull, or deer, they have instead been hatched with the lower halves of scorpions, complete with a set of strong claws and a poisoned tail. The chitin of their carapace often continues up their bodies and protecting parts of their torsos and arms, providing them natural armor. Those hatched under the eclipse of the twin moons, Kaane's holy day, are blessed with chitinous armor that protects their entire bodies, forming protective helmets around their faces that resemble Kaane's own battle-worn helmet.