Insanely pedantic query: The hind-quarters of a Gnoll!

I've been preaching this since 3e came out.

Gnolls (if you're going with the hyena-base) should be a matriarchial society, based on dominance through intimidation and strength. There would be a lot of rivalry between females, but I still think they would have more power than the males overall.

Females have the important positions. Whether you run gnolls as tribal 'savages' or as a seperate feudal society, the females are the chiefs or queens, the shamans or clerics, the warlords or generals.

I picture a gnoll male's position in society as servant, footsoldier and father. The only way for them to gain some modicum of position & power is either to prove themselves worthy in combat, or to sire children with a female who has a strong position in society. If that's the case, I can see removing his ability to father children as a major form of punishment for disobedient males.

Hm. I actually accidentally created a couple of gnoll cultures over on this thread. Monoculture's too boring...

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I disagree about the leading female not wanting to get pregnant. What she would do is make sure that her brood is fathered by the strongest male.. While she is having the cubs, the father would protect her. Even better.. she would have more than one "father" (ie neither would know for sure) so that she would get more protection.

The whole reason that I think this is that otherwise it doesn't make sense. If you have no offspring you are a genetic failure and have failed your species by not producing the next generation.

And what male would want offspring from a weak female? that would just make weak offspring.

Actually I used Hyaena as the basis of my Orc culture and went for an extreme Matriarchy in which all clan members over the age of 'whelp' are female because the males are expelled and form savage mobs who have to survive on what the females leave behind (or by raiding humans or seeking the employ of DarkLords).

Only when the femals are in heat will the presence of males be tolerated at every other time any male stupid enough to cross the path of a mob of females will be attacked and (probably) killed. Shaman however are usually male transvestites who have been raised in the female clans.

For Gnoll society I made them slightly more normal and probably more wolf than hyaena, I also made hunting & eating meat central to their culture. Hence a major Gnoll insult is "I will eat the contents of your stomach!"

And gnoll bard create love odes like the following:
"My Bitch, your stink is like fresh killed meat that I hang upon my tree
Many are those who attack me for your sake but I laugh at their weakness and strike them down
I will rip out there throats with my strong teeth and lay their hearts before you
Together we will eat the contents of their stomachs and pile their heads high upon our mat.
We will have many pups, a mighty pack and together we shall hunt!"

alsih2o said:

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INSOLENCE!!!

YOU DARE TO PET THE BLOODY FIST OF YEENOGHU?!?!?!?

Tonguez said:

"I will eat the contents of your stomach!"

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"Oh you'll be eating the contents of my stomach alright. Just let me finish this vindaloo..."

Snoweel said:

INSOLENCE!!!

YOU DARE TO PET THE BLOODY FIST OF YEENOGHU?!?!?!?

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Feeearrr meee! FEEAARRRR MEEEE!!!!

Drakmar said:

I disagree about the leading female not wanting to get pregnant. What she would do is make sure that her brood is fathered by the strongest male.. While she is having the cubs, the father would protect her. Even better.. she would have more than one "father" (ie neither would know for sure) so that she would get more protection.

The whole reason that I think this is that otherwise it doesn't make sense. If you have no offspring you are a genetic failure and have failed your species by not producing the next generation.

And what male would want offspring from a weak female? that would just make weak offspring.

Click to expand...

Right. Females would be very combative over getting the strongest males (physically or politically), and males want to be with a female who has power of her own. Just like a low-ranking son of a duke would love to be married to the queen or princess of all the lands in the kingdom, rather than another low-ranking duchess.