Trog

Tescan legend tells of a time when certain men didn’t crave blood. A time when no vampires existed. In this time the peoples lived without fear of the beasts in their safe homes. This angered the forces of nature and fae who didn’t wish for a complacent people. Through the machinations of this force the Trog sprung forth. The Trog were impure forms of that which the fae sought to cultivate; a stepping stone on the way to a truly parasitic force. The Trog didn’t die off though, instead disappearing into the darkest, and deepest of places. A nightmarish horror for travelers too far astray to encounter.

#### Physiology and Anatomy

Trogs are a species of large flightless bats. A life of troglodytism has made them acutely adept cave predators. Their eyes have become nothing but tiny beads hidden under a layer of bony cartilage. The rest of their senses are a different story. Though a Trog’s hearing isn’t as defined as its flightful cousins, it is still extremely sensitive and elf-like. Their main sense is that of smell with an enormous nasal structure above all other components on their head- including the brain. A Trog is able to pick up the faintest trace of blood in their cavernous homes. Trogs are able to distinguish between organisms based on the odor of their blood and the marks left by other Trogs.

When it comes to mobility, Trogs are second to none in a cavernous environment. Their muscular limbs and partially retractable claws make them exceptional climbers and enable them to move quickly over rough terrain. Membranes between their forelimb digits, while useless in flight, allow the Trog to glide and slow their falls like Avians. When used in tandem, Trog can clamber along ceilings and walls only to drop down to ambush prey. Trog are best suited for hit and run ambushes as their membranes are susceptible to damage like burns. Should a Trog have their membrane torn they will be unable to glide, though these injuries are not permanent and will heal over a course of a month.

Hemovores, Trogs use their serrated teeth to cut into flesh and muscle. They then lap up the blood with their long tongues. Trogs are perfectly capable of eating flesh as well but prefer blood over all else. The shriveled up corpses they leave behind are often choice places for their brood. Females will deposit their single large pup onto a body so that it may subsist off the decaying flesh. Juveniles have a specialized ‘beak tooth’ to chisel into their host bodies so that they may remain warm within the decomposing center. Trogs rapidly mature over the course of a year at which point they will already be mobile and actively hunting.

#### Psychology

Unintelligent but cooperative, Trogs can form mobs of up to eight adult individuals. They have no leadership structure but may work together to restrain prey or bring down larger animals. Mobs may share or hoard food, however hoarders may be subject to attack by other Trog. Trogs hunt almost exclusively underground, leaving only under dire or very specific circumstances. Trogs may come to the surface if one or more are the case: it’s night or when the sun is bloated out by blizzards, there’s a surplus of blood spilt in the snow like in large battles, or if their territory is disturbed via intrusion by other organisms.

Trogs can’t be tamed but do seem to exhibit a level of docility around those suffering from the vampire curse, only attacking them if provoked.