I'm having trouble visualizing a silt-horor. I keep think of them like giant squids that live in the silt sea. Anyone have a picture, or is that IC?
Taken from http://www.armageddon.org/general/beasts.html
QuoteSilt Horror : Ranging in size from about that of an inix to those approximating a large war argosy, the many-tentacled horrors are among the few known creatures to survive in the midst of the southern Sea of Silt. Known to slither up on the shores of the sea and prey upon anything up to the size of a small caravan, the aptly named silt horrors are most known for the terrible toll taken upon the usually stoic and secretive crews of the silt-skimmers. Their bodies are protected by a tremendously thick and durable chitin, highly prized as both a decorative and functional armor.
They're a bit like cthulhu or your average monster squid, covered in armor.
Mansa once posted a page with ALL of the darksun beasts on it.. I'm too lazy to search for it.
More like a cuttlefish with teeth.
I have a pic some place that I will post up when I get somewhere near a PC that I can use for my own ends.
I've always envisioned silt horrors as giant crabs with numerous tentacles instead of pincers.
I always pictured them as a squat version of a nautilus with twice as many tentacles.
Quote from: "Malifaxis"I always pictured them as a squat version of a nautilus with twice as many tentacles.
Yeah, I'm the same with this. Giant black nautiluses with long sharp tentacles.
Another post that just goes to show we need to get some pics in the documentation. Problem with descripts is they are so subjective. Go back to the whole debate are scabs slugs with legs or giant scarabs. A lot of the descrips are so vague that you are never sure what exactly you are looking at. And it is not any fault on the writer's part. How the heck do you describe an otherworldly being without using worldly being for reference? It's really, really hard, and it always ends up being abstract. I love the descripts, but we need pictures for exact study, I think.
Edit: Someone with drawing skills get on this. We need your powerz. :) I would suggest halaster, but we all know how well he can draw. "Halasterd" :D
http://www.ambushpaintball.com/armageddon/resourceanimals.htm
These couple pictures are from a website of Dark Sun art.
The horror pix:
http://www.geocities.com/tticd/whitehorror.html
http://www.geocities.com/tticd/magmahorror.html
The art page (follow the link for Dark Sun):
http://www.geocities.com/tticd/gallery.html
Unless your fellow employees have Athasian PTSD, it's all work safe.
Red Ranger
What I'd like to know is.... what does a sewer horror look like?
Looks like shit, I'm thinking. Think you might have to find out IC on that one, not that you want to try.
Quote from: "Malifaxis"I always pictured them as a squat version of a nautilus with twice as many tentacles.
Quote from: "Maybe42or54"Looks like shit, I'm thinking. Think you might have to find out IC on that one, not that you want to try.
*Snicker* Well given that it isn't on the Animals page on the website I'd say it's safe to say yes, I do have to find out in game.
Assuming they exist of course. I've always figured they were just an urban legend.
Quote from: "Aldiel"Another post that just goes to show we need to get some pics in the documentation. Problem with descripts is they are so subjective.
I agree - except that, in the case of many of these animals, I think people overestimate the commonness of their sighting.
Realistically, how many people on Zalanthas do you think have actually SEEN a silt horror (and survived)?
You can say this for many of the creatures that are not commonly also mounts. I think it would be great to have pictures of common mounts and maybe even meks. But anything that Joe Traveller wouldn't see while walking down the road shouldn't necessarily be something that everyone knows what it is and how it looks.
Again, some folks would prefer that people use their judgement about what is IC and what is OOC info - but part of the mystery, for me, was going and figuring that stuff out.
Being a ranger wasn't about busting it to get a meal out in the wilderness. It was about being the one guy who could actually go and -see- these things, and you and you alone knew what they looked like.
Now you go into a city and every Malik, Amos, and Foo knows what even the rarest of critters looks like, does, and where it lives. It's sad.
Quote from: "davien"Realistically, how many people on Zalanthas do you think have actually SEEN a silt horror (and survived)?
Well, I've played down in Red Storm and I can't play for very long without seeing one. If I'm lucky, I'll see it in the distance and survive. However if Tuluk is the newbie lands (when concerning animals uberness) then Red Storm is for level 100 people.
Quote from: "davien"Now you go into a city and every Malik, Amos, and Foo knows what even the rarest of critters looks like, does, and where it lives. It's sad.
Sure, after all, they've heard dozens of tales. "One time I saw a silt horror and it was THIS BIG. It near on chomped my arm off, with a hundred legs swirling to get me and bring me into it's mouth. And let me tell you, that mouth was one fucking scary thing. It had two beady eyes and below it was a gaping maw filled with dozens and dozens of teeth."
Having said that, I might know what an animal looks like (e.g. A jakhal) but I won't necessarily know what it is when I see it (e.g. I might think "A ferocious jakhal" is actually a raptor). But a lot of the time it's fairly easy to figure out what something is (unless you're travelling into places of the Known World where most people haven't been).
Just some of the animals and what I do with most outdoorsy type (but new) characters:
* Anakore - I won't recognize it unless it's half submerged in the ground.
* Bahamet - I might mistake this for a gurth, until I see it eat.
* Barakhan Lizard - I'll recognize them as a southron, because they're a fairly domestic animal.
* Braxat - Beastial half-giant. Very easy to recognize.
* Carru - Have antlers, so they're easy to recognize.
* Chalton - I'll know them. They are domestic, and most of us know what common farm animals are.
* Cilops - Common predator in the Northlands. Know them (unless I'm a southron of course).
* Cockroach - need I say anything? ;)
* Duskhorn - I'll know this on sight (curling antlers), but if I'm a southron I might get it confused with a carru.
* Erdlu - domesticated so well known
* Escru - Domesticated and well known throughout the whole world. I know them.
* Gaj - I'll know on sight if I'm a nakkie, otherwise I won't recognize it, but after seeing it's attack once will know what it is.
* Gortok - Know it. Only type of canine in the whole world.
* Goudra - Know of (but not their appearance) from down south. Know on sight from Tuluk.
* Greth - Know on sight (flying snake), but only for a Tuluki
* Gurth - Know on sight, might get confused with a bahamet until it attacks. Won't know the difference if I'm not from Tuluk.
* Gwoshi - Know of, might be able to deduce (depending on where it is from (docs don't say) and where I'm from) as woolly creatures are rare.
* Inix - domesticated. I know.
* Jakhal - Know on sight, but will confuse easily with tembo. I'll make an assumption depending where I am. If I see a jakhal around Tuluk I'll assume it's a tembo, if I see a tembo near Allanak I'll assume it's a jakhal.
* Jozhal - I will confuse with jakhals and temboes, but after seeing it in battle if it isn't
too ferocious, I'll know what it is.. unless I get cocky ;)
* Kank - I have no idea what this is.
* Mekillot - I'll know no matter where I am. They're well known. If I'm a northerner and see a feral one in the north I will get confused.
* Quirri - I'll know of them, and if I see one as a pet I'll know what it is. I won't know it in the wilds though (until my PC has seen one in-game while I was playing it).
* Raptor - Know on sight. They're so dangerous tales have spread far and wide about them ;)
* Ratlon - I won't be very surprised to see one. But I'll have to ask someone what it is (if I have some reason to notice it). Exception being my hometown mount seller sells them.
* Rats - Aren't these nakkies who live in the northern quarter? ;)
* Salt Worms - Kinda hard not to know what it is. Everyones heard of them.
* Scrab - I'll know on sight, unless I'm playing a northerner and I see it not in the south (i.e. I see it down north of Luir's).
* Shik - Know on sight. They're common.
* Silt Flyer - Flying lizard, I'll know on sight.
* Silt Horror - I'll know if I see it well south of Allanak no matter what. Northerners will be confused if they see it in other locations.
* Skeet - Won't know. Mainly cause I've never heard of them before.
* Sunback - Know on sight. They're mounts.
* Tandu - I've yet to make a character stupid enough to go in the Grey Forest regularly. Won't know.
* Tarantula - They're giant spiders. Everyone's heard of them. I know them on sight.
* Tembo - See jakhal.
* Tregil - Know if I'm a northerner, heard of if I'm a southerner.
* Vestric - Heard of if I'm a northerner (otherwise I haven't even heard of them) and can deduce on sight.
* War Beetle - Giant beetle. Know on sight no matter what.
So yeah, that's my list of what animals I do and don't know. What I try to do is every new char I make I look at the docs and go "What do I know from these?" and copy and paste what I know into a file. I don't normally live long enough to be bothered to do it with animals though. It is, after all, a lot of work. But I do make sure I'm not all-knowing on everything. If I'm young (which I normally am in order to account for my sucky skills) I'm not even all-knowing in my line of work. I'll instead know the basics.
Silt horrors look amazingly like....
...the mantis head screen. :twisted:
I disagree with a few of these here.
Quote from: "John"* Bahamet - I might mistake this for a gurth, until I see it eat.
* Gurth - Know on sight, might get confused with a bahamet until it attacks. Won't know the difference if I'm not from Tuluk.
A gurth is smaller than a person. A bahamet is HUGE. There's no way you could mistake one for another.
Quote* Tandu - I've yet to make a character stupid enough to go in the Grey Forest regularly. Won't know.
My hunter PCs see tandu fairly regularly outside of halfling territory. They're commonly known.
http://www.pathguy.com/darksun.htm
This page has some art, including a picture of a Kank, Mekillot, and Inix just shy of half-way down the screen.
There's also a picture of a Braxat and another pic of an Inix further down.
QuoteWhat I'd like to know is.... what does a sewer horror look like?
http://i.xanga.com/riversw/t/golgothan1.jpg
Quote from: "House Rising Sun"QuoteWhat I'd like to know is.... what does a sewer horror look like?
http://i.xanga.com/riversw/t/golgothan1.jpg
GRRRRRRRRRROOOOSS!! It's gross enough anyway but knowing its name is a sewer horror enhances its gross factor tenfold.