D&D 5E A reptilian world?

[grimslade]

I love the idea of a reptilian world, but the thought of just swapping out regular D&D races for scaly analogs is really wasteful of the concept.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

To be clear, I was not suggesting 1:1 swaps.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Another one: anthropomorphic Tegus (lizards that are not strictly cold-blooded, and can heat their blood without sources needed by other reptiles) that have a higher speed or can do bursts of unusual speed as compared to other denizens of the world.

Which makes me think…is this world warmer than typical, like prehistoric earth? Or when winter comes, do other species rise up and threaten the more reptilian civilizations?

Or is there a race like the Silurians of Doctor Who fame who live deep within the warmth of the earth?

 

[Zeromaru X]

Or is there a race like the Silurians of Doctor Who fame who live deep within the warmth of the earth?

In D&D? The only one I can remember from official sources are the troglodytes, but they are always depicted as less advanced than other species/cultures.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

In D&D? The only one I can remember from official sources are the troglodytes, but they are always depicted as less advanced than other species/cultures.

I remember the Trogs, but I was thinking a LOT more like Who’s Silurians- advanced, civilized, etc.

Of course, nothing wrong with having the Trogs being a fallen civilization, unaware of their ascendancy that was so long ago, EVERYONE has forgotten.

…except for the settlements of “The Deeper Ones”- Trogs so far down they haven’t been seen in so long, no one remembers them either. And like the Silurians, they plan to return…

 

[Tonguez]

Another one: anthropomorphic Tegus (lizards that are not strictly cold-blooded, and can heat their blood without sources needed by other reptiles) that have a higher speed or can do bursts of unusual speed as compared to other denizens of the world.

Which makes me think…is this world warmer than typical, like prehistoric earth? Or when winter comes, do other species rise up and threaten the more reptilian civilizations?

Or is there a race like the Silurians of Doctor Who fame who live deep within the warmth of the earth?

Thats a fascinating factoid about Tegu being able to switch between ecto and endothermic metabolism, I’d always imagined Lizard folk as endothermic too (more saurian than lizard) but it seems squamates might have the edge afterall.

Another factoid I was reminded of is that because of their ‘cold blood’ metabolisms reptiles can survive on significantly less food than mammals of equivalent size (and a hibernating Crocodiles can survive 3 years without food) - what is the implication of that in a world of sapient anthropomorphic reptilians?

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Thats a fascinating factoid about Tegu being able to switch between ecto and endothermic metabolism, I’d alsways imagined Lizard folk as endothermic too (more saurian than lizard) but it seems squamates might have the edge afterall.

Another factoid I was reminded of is that because of their ‘cold blood’ metabolisms reptiles can survive on significantly less food than mammals of equivalent size (and a hibernating Crocodiles can survive 3 years without food) - what is the implication of that in a world of sapient anthropomorphic reptilians?

They don’t need to invest as much land in animal husbandry, for one.

 

[dave2008]

Another factoid I was reminded of is that because of their ‘cold blood’ metabolisms reptiles can survive on significantly less food than mammals of equivalent size (and a hibernating Crocodiles can survive 3 years without food) - what is the implication of that in a world of sapient anthropomorphic reptilians?

From fossil data we know that predator to prey rations are much more equal. While with endotherms you need a lot more prey animals.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Eating your foes might be a bit more common, too. In some cultures, it might even be analogous to slavery- practiced by some while vilified by others.

Agriculture might be different as well. Since most reptiles and their kin are carnivores, there would be little call for true food crops as we know them. Some crops would be feed for food animals. Some would be for “industrial” use, like timber or hemp. Some crops would be for seasoning & spices. Others for medicinal or ”pharmaceutical” use. They may or may not have versions of plant-derived teas, coffees, or alcoholic beverages.

 

[cbwjm]

I've considered doing this before but never really got it out of the "thinking about it" stage.

Not 100% sure which analogues I'd use but maybe I'd have dragonborn replace humans as the most populace race. Kobolds would replace gnomes, specifically tinker gnomes. I have an image of kobolds as artificers that are the equivalent of wild magic sorcerers, they love making things and often those things blow up.

Yuanti will always be the bad guys, essentially the snake men from Hyboria, except they're out in the open as the rise of man has not yet driven them underground.

Lizardfolk are the primitive cousins to dragonborn or perhaps they just prefer a nomadic primal existence over the cities of the dragonborn. In fact, that would be cool to see tribes of nomadic lizardfolk with giant lizards as pack animals.

This would be a setting where I'd also be keen to have dinosaurs. I normally don't use them unless I'm including a lost world section of the setting. I think I would also want to update saurials to 5e. I kind of see them as wise philosophers, I'd probably create a loose caste system for them where each specific type of saurial gravitates to specific areas, similar to their 2e class level limits. They'd also have a reputation as being some of the best spellcasters in the world.

And as a bonus setting, after playing in the scaled world, you can advance the setting thousands of years to a point where man has risen and spread out, great dragonborn and yuanti empires have crumbled, and now their former homes become sites for humanity to explore and plunder.