Names
Racial Name: Slaad
Commonly referred to as: The Savages
Single: Slaad
Multiple: Slaaden
Of Slaad Make: Slaadish
Gender Distinctions: Male - Slaad, Female - Slade
Typical Given Names
Slaad - Fadil, Alban, Kader, Asim, Diya, Saif, Musa, Jawdat, Sanjiv, Bishen
Slade - Hafsah, Salima, Nada, Jameela, Hania, Sushila, Lalita, Kala, Nilam, Rina
Commonly referred to as: The Savages
Single: Slaad
Multiple: Slaaden
Of Slaad Make: Slaadish
Gender Distinctions: Male - Slaad, Female - Slade
Typical Given Names
Slaad - Fadil, Alban, Kader, Asim, Diya, Saif, Musa, Jawdat, Sanjiv, Bishen
Slade - Hafsah, Salima, Nada, Jameela, Hania, Sushila, Lalita, Kala, Nilam, Rina
Social Structure
A slaadish city could arguably be called a hive, with a single dominant slade at the reigns, and individuals having only minor importance. While there are many slaadish cities, they each function independently and only work together if a single powerful warrior can rally the ruling slades behind their cause. The cities are typically a multitude of rooms carved into a cliff side, with bone and rope scaffolding connecting them all. While the ruling Slade will generally have the highest and largest room, the rest of the colony generally have small living chambers, often shared by two or three slaaden.
Economy
While there is a rudimentary currency amongst the Slaad, it is only used by the general workers and warriors, the ruling slade of a colony has imminent domain over everything in the city, and subsequently takes whatever she wants. The colony is generally a constant hub of activity with workers moving about to keep the place in order, and expand the city, while warriors are coming and going on various scouting and harassment missions. The Slaad are known for being very industrious and various forges and siege-works can always be found in operation.
Habitat and Diet
The Slaad live on the Savage Island off the southern coast of the Kaldosa mainland. Specifically, they live in the western half of the island, close to the mountain range that seals off the Ancient Caldera from the rest of the world. While that caldera is a lush forest, the Slaad live on the other side of the mountains, which is a veritable wasteland of burnt ground and rock. The only natural resources aside from the rock, are the bones, hair, and hides of the other creatures that inhabit the Island. Using the bones and rock for armor and weapons, and the hair and hides for clothing and rope, the Slaad have found an unusual balance with an environment that gives very little.
Birth, Growth, and Death
Unlike many other hive-like species, the dominant slade is not the only female capable of reproduction, however; the effect is very similar. All slades periodically lay eggs, which are subsequently claimed by the dominant slade, and ferried off to a communal hatchery. As a result it is rare for a slaad to be aware of who their biological parents are. It is not unusual for a healthy slade to lay a dozen eggs in a year, any number of which may be fertile. A fertile egg will generally hatch after just a few months, and will already be capable of walking at birth. The Slaad have a shortened lifespan, and likewise a shortened childhood. A slaad is fully grown and considered an adult by age five, at which point they leave the care of the hatchery workers, and enter into the main community of the city. The brutal environment that the Slaad live in makes a habit of killing them off at a steady rate, however; even should they avoid the snares of the world, a slaad will succumb to a natural death at around twenty-five years of age.
Philosophy
Due to their short life spans the Slaad generally have no fear, and live for the moment. They tend to follow the deities that best suit this mind set, and discard their beliefs as soon as they prove inconvenient. They will almost always choose momentary satisfaction over long term gain and often prove to be very difficult to reason with. In more recent years, a few ambitious slaaden set their eyes on the lush landscape of the Kaldosa mainland, and rallying an enormous war band, they launched an invasion that would become known as the Savage Wars. Although they had made considerable progress and had the civilized races on the brink of breaking, the warrior that had commanded their allegiance was slain at the gates of the Laithia capital, and the power vacuum that resulted collapsed the structure that held the war band together, causing them to flee back to their homeland. While there have been a few more attempts at such an invasion, none has proven as successful as the first.