Ralkish

The ralkish is a mammal endemic to the eastern caves of Kaarad. This creature is obviously linked to the boars family, since it's look like a little wild boar with huge tusk and six eyes (three on each side of the head). How the Ralkish managed to appear in Kaarad is currently unknow, however some hypothesis (made by Ashtari zoologists and geologists) claim that the Kaarad wasn't always a part of the Underworld and that it was somewhere during the Age of Myth that the Land of Terror would have been created thanks to a reckless use of magic, trapping mammals deep under the surface.
The ralkish are gregarious creatures, has a mean to protect themselves in the deadly Kaarad. Their three pairs of eyes are a mean to detect predators since each pair is different : the upper one is able to detect the smallest movements,, but lack the ability to distinguish colors and forms accuretly. The middle one is akin to a wild boar one, which mean that it see well in nocturnal environments (as in : the caves were the ralkish dwell, which are usually enlightened by of luminescent fungus and crystals, to the contrary of the Ssatrekis hunting ground, for instance). Finally, the lowest pairs of eyes is able to see in the infrared.
Those eyes make the ralkish extremely aware of their surroundings and thus difficult to hunt. Furthermore, their huge and deadly tusks (able to eviscerate a Kiaris), coupled with their resistance to poison make them dangerous for all but a Bilious Wyrm.
However, their bad temper often harm them, since they often charge head on potential predators, leading to the isolation of individuals ralkish. Even then, their tough leather, used to craft Kaaradi's armors, is able to protect them from mots of their predators. The ralkish's fur range from black to deep blue, an evolution which allow them to hide in the mushroom forests and "plains" of Kaarad. Their diet revolve around the Tears of Kor, the Karis and the Srakïn, mushrooms which are among the least venenous flora of Kaarad.
A ralkish usually live twenty years and is sexually mature at the age of three. Just like younf wild boars, the young ralkish stay with their relatives until the age of two, when they have to leave the group to find (or establish) a new one. The males ralkish are extremely aggressive during the mating seasons, going as far as battle to the death to claim females. It sometimes happens that the winner is too weakened by the fight to impregnate the females, and a youngest or weakest male will claim the prize.
Category:Bestiary Category:Organisms Category:Animals