Prik-Tik

**Nation Name:** Prik-Tik (People of the Hidden Sands) [No Flag yet]

**Species Notes:** *Lizardfolk* - Lizardfolk span a wide variety of humanoids. Some take on a more reptilian or draconic aspect, and some lean more towards amphibians. They can be found in isolated areas around the world, and very rarely will they be found outside of their homelands. As they are almost exclusively carnivorous, it can make getting along with outsiders difficult. The majority of them are cold-blooded, operating under the same circumstances normal reptiles do.

**Location:** In Stik-Tik-Kittik, "The Bowl that Contains the Desert"

**Culture:** The Prikki-Tikki (PREE key -- TEE key) are a fierce and religious group of lizardfolk who reside in what they call the Stik-Tik-Kittik, "The Bowl that Contains the Desert." They wear no clothing during the day, as their leathery hides are often enough to prevent the sands from chafing at them, and clothing prevents them from absorbing the heat of the glorious Sun-Lord. However, they know of the dangers of the night when their reflexes grow slower, and so they often carry bundles of fabric, blankets, and thick clothes woven from the sparse grasses and ferns found at the base of the mountains that surround the desert. As a desert people, they have learned how to camouflage themselves rather well in the dunes. Due to the shape of their desert crater, the wind currents sometimes become trapped and create massive sand devil cyclones, and so the Prikki-Tikki maintain a nomadic lifestyle. They live by the words "Follow the Sun to the Next Hunt." Adolescents must prove themselves worthy of hunting for the horde by bringing down some game animal in the wilds, alone. If they survive, they become an adult. If they don't, well...

**Faith:** The Prikki-Tikki revere two things. The Sun-Lord, bringer of life and the next hunt; and the Dark One, the predator and bringer of death. The lizardfolk worship the Sun-Lord and pray for strength, sometimes seeming to see results. Stories have come down through the elders of certain bold hunters who survived by some miracle, or by sheer divine power. But there are also stories of the divine themselves. The one that all Prikki-Tikki know is of the Great Star-Sea Battle, when the Sun-Lord and the Dark One fought for control of the lizardfolk and the world. The Sun-Lord defeated the Dark One and sent him to the Cold Star Desert, but that will only contain the Dark One for so long. Some day, it will return, and the Prikki-Tikki will be prepared to aid the Sun-Lord in banishing the Dark One for good... Or die in a cold and heartless armageddon.

**Recent History:** The Prikki-Tikki have never left their desert crater nestled in the mountains. Few have ventured all the way to the mountains, and none have ever been able to cross them.

**Economics:** The Prikki-Tikki produce intricate grass weaves that manage to capture and hold heat through the cold desert nights. They do not trade, as they have never had any interaction with another intelligent species.

**Military:** A vast majority of the Prik-Tik clan are fighters by nature. Those who are not able to fight tend to ensuring their temporary camp is maintained. Most Prikki-Tikki have talon-like claws on their hands, and so few resort to weapons. Some, however, do make rudimentary spears to compensate for losing their claws or appendages in order to avoid being reduced to camp maintenance. They often drive Klickticka, the elephant-sized yak-like creatures of their desert, into valleys between sets of dunes, and then they come together to bring down the great beasts.

**Boons and Banes:** The Prikki-Tikki are an impressive species of lizardfolk. They can go for up to a month without water, as their biology is superb at conserving body moisture. However, they are a ravenous people, and so they go hunting often. One Klickticka can feed a dozen of their folk for a week; they currently number in the hundreds. Fortunately, the Klickticka have begun breeding more rapidly in response to this predation, and a few of the Prikki-Tikki seem to be attempting to domesticate and breed them for a more reliable food source.

**Notable Ranks, Jobs and Characters:**

* Tikki-Tik - Leader of the Prik-Tik clan (Currently Prikkikik)
* Tok-Toks - The collective of Elders, advisors to the Tikki-Tik. When the Tikki-Tik dies, they choose the next capable leader from among the stongest of the Prik-Tik.
* Priiik - Spouse of the Tikki-Tik, and lead priest/shaman of the faith. (Currently, Pikiprikki)
* Tik-Tik - Second strongest of the clan, head of the hunts. (Currently, Tikkikik "The Desert Talon")
* Tikki-Tok - Prophet of the Clan; very rarely is there one who rises among the people as one who radiates with the Sun-Lord's divine will. These few are revered as demigods and minor messiahs. (Currently Pikistik "Light-Born")