Editing Lizardfolk

''If you are looking for the [[Warhammer Fantasy Battle|Warhammer]] faction, see [[Lizardmen]].''

Monstrous humanoids come in many different shapes and sizes across various settings, editions and gamelines. One of the more universal are '''Lizardfolk''' - originally known as Lizardmen, but changed during the early 90's, probably for the same reason that [[Monstergirls|Mermaids]] became [[Merfolk]]. As their name suggests, they are a race of humanoid lizards, though they often come in various forms. Generally, though, there's two traits they will have in common; they will be fought in a swamp or marsh, and they will be primitives.

In a world where even [[gnolls]], [[orcs]] and [[goblins]] manage to cobble together steel weapons to fight with, lizardfolk are usually lucky to wield Stone Age gear like spears and clubs, instead of just ripping things to bits with their fangs and claws. Considering they live in swamps that tend to be home to things like crocodiles big enough to swallow them whole, giant carnivorous slugs, flowers that lay their seeds in your brain to turn you into a zombie propagatory aide, huge crayfish that can snap them in half, giant lumps of swamp muck that hate everything around them, and worse, this makes them either insanely badass or insanely stupid. Maybe a little of both.

Exactly why they're so primitive is never really explained. ''[[Dragon Magazine]]'' did once do an "Ecology of the Lizardfolk" article, which gave them a religious basis; essentially, in vanilla D&D, Lizardfolk worship a [[dickgirl|hermaphrodite]] goddess, Semuanya, who they portray as nothing more than a god-beast - a creature of divine might that concerns itself only with the basic needs of survival, no smarter than any animal. Furthermore, Semuanya once had a mate named Kecuala, who unlike its spouse was actually a thinking creature and so constantly thought about the world around it. Eventually, it thought so much that it split itself into two creatures, one male and one female, so it would be able to properly act on its thoughts. Those two Kecualas were the first Lizardfolk. As a result, lizardfolk literally demonize intelligence as evil, an unnatural and wasteful attribute, and deliberately try to be as feral as possible in hopes of one day restoring Kecuala to life.

Conversely, [[Pathfinder]] ties the answer to their environment and biology.  They don't breed as quickly or have the same kind of impatient ambition as the warm-blooded creatures, so their population grows slowly and they are more-easily content with meeting their basic survival needs.  And because they live in swamps, where metal is hard to get and quickly rusts and cloth or paper quickly rot, they derive less utility from many of the more-obvious trappings of other cultures.  Notably, they ''do'' actually have a rich tradition of arts and oral storytelling that everyone else tend to ignore, and the xenophobic lizardfolk can't convey since none of them care to learn how to converse with other races.

The meta-reason is probably related to why the lizardfolk are always seen in swamps. Lizards, like all reptiles, are ancient creatures, tens of millions of years old, and haven't needed to change much since they got the basic template down before the dawn of the dinosaurs. As a result, lizards have a "primeval" motif ingrained in pop culture. So, lizardfolk being primitives just builds on that theme. Likewise, the age when reptiles ruled was a time when the world was covered in lush rainforests, swamps and marshlands, so even though modern swamps are more home to crocodilians, snakes and turtles than lizards, lizardfolk and swamp just go together under that motif.

Despite their mutual reptilian looks, lizardfolk are quite distinct from and not related to [[Dragon|Dragons]], [[Dragonborn]] and [[Draconian|Draconians]]. This is probably because the ancestors of dinosaurs and modern reptiles diverged from each other roughly 285 million years ago during the Early Permian epoch.  They do, however, speak Draconic, and like [[kobold]]s are popular slaves or subjects to various dragons, notably the [[Chromatic_Dragon#Black_Dragon|black dragons]] that share their environment.

Traditionally, lizardfolk are spooky due to their "coldblooded and pragmatic" mindsets - for example, lizardfolk are usually portrayed as "morally cannibalistic", in the sense that they don't specifically want to eat sapient creatures, but if they do have to kill them for other reasons, they won't waste the protein afterwards - but not actively evil, with their typical alignment being [[Alignment#True Neutral|Neutral]]. However, they also traditionally are prone to the presence of "Lizard Kings" (and, in later editions, Queens); these are demonically corrupted lizardfolk tainted in their egg by the demon prince [[Sess'inek]], granting them significantly increased strength, size, intelligence and ferocity. Consumed by a rapacious hunger for sapient flesh, these [[Alignment#Chaotic_Evil|Chaotic Evil]] tyrants drive their followers to uncharacteristic acts of aggression, if only by virtue of the simple fact that if they can't get humanoid meat, Lizard Kings & Queens will happily devour ''at least'' two of their own tribe-members ''a day'' to sate their appetite.

==Variants==
Lizardfolk have come in a staggering variety of different forms over the many, many editions of ''D&D''.

The earliest variants appeared for ''Dungeons & Dragons'', the 1977–1999 gameline separate to ''[[Advanced Dungeons & Dragons]]'' 2e. These early unique breeds of Lizardfolk hailed from [[Mystara]], and appeared as a [[PC]] race at the end of [[The Voyage of the Princess Ark]] in ''[[Dragon Magazine]]'' #185. They consisted of the "common Mystaran" Lizardfolk, the Gator-men, and the Cay-men, the latter races being magical hybrids between lizardfolk with alligators and caimans respectively. Both were failed experiments of the Herathian empire to create superior slave-stock to the earlier failure that was the lizardfolk. Gator-men were larger, stronger, but also barbaric, bloodthirsty and cannibalistic. Cay-men were dumber than the Herathians intended and also incredibly pretensious despite (or perhaps because) of their intellectual ineptitude.

Another new ''D&D'' lizardfolk variant, the Malpheggi, appeared as a PC race in the [[Hollow World]] Player's Guide.

The first-ever Fiend Folio featured two additions to the lizardfolk family tree. The Babbler is a primitive, avatistic throwback of the lizardfolk, whilst the [[Firenewt]] is a flame-resistant water-restricted "cousin".

[[Advanced Dungeons & Dragons]] produced a huge array of lizardfolk variants:
* The Bakali, or Krynn Lizardfolk, appeared in the [[Dragonlance]] sourcebooks ''Rulebook of Taladas'' and  ''World Book of Ansalon''. These also covered their degenerate offspring, the Jarak-sinn.
* Caymans and Gator-men reappeared in the ''Mystara Monstrous Compendium Appendix'', alongside newcomers; the [[Wallara]] and the Sis'thik.
** The [[Wallara]], which everyone tries to forget about, are an all-male species of lizardfolk who just so happen to look like Aborigine men painted up for coroborree in rainbow colors.
** The [[Sis'thik]] are essentially desert-dwelling lizardfolk [[Amazon]]s; males are smaller, weaker, stupider and delegated all the manual work, whilst the bigger, stronger, smarter, fiercer females handle everything else. Also, they really love the taste of copper dragon flesh.
* [[Red Steel]] brought into being the [[Cayma]] and [[Gurrash]] - literally just renamed versions of the earlier Caymen and Gator-men, alongside the [[Krolli]] and the [[Shazak]].
** Krolli are winged lizardfolk with a propensity for the mercenary lifestyle.
** Shazak are peaceful lizardfolk who were the origins for the other three.
* Cayma, Gurrash, Shazak and Wallara all received PC writeups in the ''Odyssey: Savage Coast of Mystara: Orc's Head'' sourcebooks.
* ''[[Dragon Magazine]]'' got in on the fun too; issue #268 featured four new varieties of lizardfolk, in the form of the Agrutha (gator-folk), Crocodilians (even bigger and more savage versions of the Agrutha), the Geckonids (peaceful, friendly and inquisitive gecko-people), the Varanids (warlike komodo-people), the Tokay (evil counterparts to the Geckonids), and Iquanids (iguana-people in sea and land form).
* The Varkha, introduced in ''Dragon Magazine Annual'' #1 before making it into Volume IV of the ''Monstrous Compendium Annual'', are a race of malevolent aquatic/amphibious lizardfolk that stalk the waterways of the [[Underdark]].
* The Lizardfolk of [[Dark Sun]], originally believed to be extinct, were later revealed to have survived in the infamously divisive "Mind Lords of the Last Sea" sourcebooks. [[Pterran]]s are also lizardfolk, albeit with pteranodon ancestry.
* The Malatran lizardfolk appeared in ''[[Polyhedron_Magazine|Polyhedron]]'' #121.
* [[Spelljammer]] had its own take on lizardfolk, too.
* [[Maztica]] introduced what is perhaps one of the weirdest lizardfolk; the Ahuizotl is an extra-primitive river-dwelling lizardfolk with the ability to spit out a [[elemental|water weird]] once per round!
* Ingundi are shapeshifting, psychic, cannibalistic lizardfolk native to [[Greyhawk]].
* Khaasta, from the [[Planescape]] setting, are [[Star Trek|Ferengi-esque]] plane-traveling cut-throat, back-stabbing traders. No, that's not a type.
* Laerti are desert-dwelling vicious raiders from the [[Forgotten Realms]], more savage in nature than the Sis'thik. They have their own subrace called the Stingtails, whose prehensile tails can be used to wield weapon or deliver slaps covered in contact venom.

3rd edition wasn't so inventive. [[Eberron]] mentioned the existence of Blackscale and Poison Dusk lizardfolk; the ''Monster Manual III'' confirmed that these were, respectively, larger, dark-scaled, stronger lizardfolk and smaller, smarter lizardfolk with a penchant for ranged weaponry. Many speculate as to the possible influence of the [[Warhammer Fantasy]] [[Lizardmen]] upon these races. The ''MM IV'' added the Dark Talons; evil lizardfolk alchemically infused with black dragon blood.

==Playable Lizardfolk==
''D&D'' has a long history of monstrous PC race options, particularly of the [[furry|beastfolk]] flavor. Lizardfolk are no exception, and have appeared as PC options in:
* ''Dragon Magazine'' #185 (Mystaran, Cay-man, Gator-man) - Basic D&D
* ''Dragon Magazine'' #186 (Wallara) - Basic D&D
* Hollow World Player's Guide (Malpheggi Lizardman) - Basic D&D
* Dark Sun Campaign Setting, Revised (Pterran) - AD&D 2e
* Complete Book of Humanoids (Common Lizardman) - AD&D 2e
* Spelljammer Boxed Set: Lorebook of the Void (Astromundi Lizardman) - AD&D 2e
* Complete Spacefarer's Handbook (Astromundi Lizardman) - AD&D 2e
* Dragon Magazine #268 (Agrutha, Brute Crocodilian, Master Crocodilian, Varanid, Geckonid, Tokay, Iguanid)
* Odyssey: Savage Coast of [[Mystara]]: Orc's Head (Shazak, Caymar, Gurrash, Wallara) - AD&D 2e
* Dragons of Krynn (Bakali, Jarak-sinn) - 3rd Edition
* Races of Faerun (Lizardfolk) - 3rd Edition
* Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Advanced Race Guide
* Volo's Guide to Monsters (Lizardfolk) - 5th Edition

===Basic D&D Stats===
For stats on the '''[[Cayma|Cay-man]]]''', '''[[Gurrash|Gator-man]]''' and '''[[Wallara]]''', see their respective pages.

'''Mystaran Lizardfolk (Shazak)'''

'''Malpheggi Lizardfolk'''

===AD&D Stats===
For stats on the '''[[Cayma]]''', '''[[Gurrash]]''', '''[[Wallara]]''', and '''[[Pterran]]''', see their respective pages.

'''Common Lizardfolk'''

'''Astromundi Lizardfolk'''

'''Mystaran Lizardfolk (Shazak)'''

'''Agrutha'''

'''Brute Crocodilian'''

''Master Crocodilian'''

'''Varanid'''

'''Geckonid'''

'''Tokay'''

'''Iquanid'''

===D&D 3e Stats===
'''Lizardfolk'''

'''Bakali'''

'''Jarak-sinn'''

===PF Stats===
'''Golarion Lizardman'''

===D&D 5e Stats===

==Unified Setting Description==
*[[Unified Setting/Lizardfolk]]

{{D&D1e-Races}}
{{D&D2e-Races}}
{{D&D5e-Races}}
{{Pathfinder-Races}}

==Monstergirls==
{{Monstergirls}}
[[File:Highly Monstrous Lizardgirl Maid.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Careful: those scales can be sharp.]]
Just like most other readily recognized [[beastfolk]], lizardfolk have long gotten the [[monstergirls]] treatment and been portrayed as both female and with a more visibly humanoid appearance. Ironically, they fall into one of those few species where /tg/ actually tends to prefer the beastfolk interpretation to the "hot chick with lizardly traits tacked on" interpretation; most cite some form of uncanny valley.

Needless to say, this elicits a particularly vicious battle between the furry and anti-furry crowd. Seriously, if you want to see how fast a thread can get saged on /tg/, start one asking what the difference is between having a human guy get overpowered by a big, strong, muscular lizardwoman and being overpowered by a big, strong, muscular lizardwoman who just happens to have wide, womanly hips (for easier passing of eggs), a well-padded rump (for cushioning during the sex act) and breast-like fat deposits on her chest (signals of reproductive health & value). Your head will spin.

Still, lizardgirls of the more MG sort have a lot of possibility, from a sort of scaly [[amazon]] variant to something more primeval.

In the [[Monster Girl Encyclopedia]], the awkwardly named "Lizardmen" are a culture of proud wandering warriors, who seek out worthy opponents to duel, hoping to find a strong warrior to take as their husband. The setting also features [[Salamander]]s as a fiery-powered, more hot-blooded variant of the species.

[[Category: Monsters]]