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Furceros — Description
Just by looking at them, you can easily guess that the Furceros are related to the Cyclops. Both are single-eyed reptilian creatures who possess tusks and the ability to change the color of their hide. In fact, certain cultures refer to the Furceros as "Lesser Cyclops," as they are smaller and much less aggressive than the massive Cyclops (do note that the Furceros are not a fan of this name. Being referred to as "lesser" is not something they enjoy). They can also be found in the same areas as the Cyclops, though they tend to highly prefer the tropics and jungles. The key differences between them and the Cyclops are their long, thin legs, prehensile tail and sticky tongue. The long limbs help with climbing trees and thick vegetation, while their tails aid with grappling and also serve as a kickstand! Unlike the Cyclops, whose tongue is reduced and trivial, the Furceros possess a sticky tongue that can reach out almost two feet! While this is not as impressively long as other chameleons, it is meant more for probing cracked exoskeletons and pulling in food past their long tusks. These pointed teeth are good as tools, but they often get in the way for eating, so their long tongue helps fix that!

As I mentioned, the Furceros are one of the main sapient denizens of the rainforests and jungles. They place their homes deep in these dense forests, to the point where it is incredibly difficult to locate them unless you have a map or are extremely lost. Due to their preference for the deep jungle, outside cultures are suspicious of them and see them as a secretive and insidious group. Some believe that both they and the Gralatars are the defenders of the ancient ruins and temples hidden within, and that any explorer who vanishes during a quest have most likely been slain by these "beasts." While Gralatars are seen as trap-makers and hunters through trickery, the outside world sees Furceros as deadly assassins. Due to their ability to change the color of their skin, the Furceros are believed to be able to become practically invisible in their jungle home. Tales speak of unseen foes who come from all sides and drag poor souls into the deep brush, never to be seen again. Beings like ghosts that drop from above and then vanish with their victims like smoke. Ask any common person outside the jungle about the Furceros, and they will speak of invisible assassins and vicious specters that defend their forest home. While these stories are indeed spooky and chilling, they are also 100% garbage. It's almost funny how wrong people have it about the Furceros, because if there is one thing the Furceros despise more than anything, it is the idea of blending in.

If you ever actually met a Furceros, you would not be dealing with a stealthy shadow but a boisterous rainbow that is ready to punch you in the face with an array of vibrant and obvious colors. To put it simply, the Furceros are not subtle people, and they are quite happy that way. No camouflage or simple appearances for them, they want to stand out. Not only will they change their hides to be an array of bright colors, but they will also cover themselves in as many colorful things they can find. To their culture, appearance and color is everything. It is a status of power and position to them, as well as a tool they use during the mating season. To be biggest and brightest person around is to command the attention of everyone in the room. You don't get noticed with drab colors and simple trinkets, no, you get all the attention through intricate feather accessories, painted tusks and dyed bones. You can see this when you meet their chieftains, as they often have the biggest and loudest headdresses and garbs you will have ever seen. You can also witness this if you happen to be a common dryad that doesn't really have that many colors on her. When I first came to the village, every one of them kept giving me this puzzled look and they often didn't pay much attention to me. Turns out, they were confused by my lack of decoration and believed I was trying to be sneaky and suspicious by not standing out. I talked with them about it and they told me that I was simply too bland and drab to be noticed (which was nice because it cleared up the issue, but still HEY!), so they decided to dress me up. The sheer amount of paint, feathers and trinkets they put on me was crazy! After I left to my next expedition, I had to spend three days scrubbing myself to get all the body paint off! It was quite something trying to explain to everyone why I was colored blue and yellow!

Though some may see this cultural practice of theirs silly and juvenile, it is something that is a huge part of their tribes. Not only is one's attire and colors important for being noticed, but it is also crucial for ceremonies and catching the attention of a mate. In fact, the time of year where they find suitors is the absolute most anticipated days of their lives. Everything before and after these few days are building up to such a grand event. To lay it down in simple terms first, the males of the tribes are looking to woo the females with their colorful getup and complex costumes. If a female likes what she sees, she will approach the male and the two will go off together and begin their relationship. In time, this will lead to offspring and so on so forth. The thing to keep in mind, though, is that it is not as simple as I just wrote it. One does not simply win the females over with the appearance they carry with them day to day. To truly win their hearts, one must make a super special costume and display. To do this, the males of the tribe will spend their entire year leading up to this moment gathering materials and working on their courting display. This will always be done in secret, and it is taboo for a male to let anyone see their costume before that special day (especially if it is a female that sees it). What they want is to build up anticipation and then surprise everyone with their special appearance. If someone were to see it before the ceremony, then they wouldn't be getting the strongest response. These courting garbs they make and wear will wildly vary between individuals (because you don't want to show up to the dance wearing the same clothes as another person! How embarrassing!), as they are constructed with special preferences and ideas in mind. Some may go after a specific color scheme, while others may look to have a theme. Certain males who have their eye on a specific female may try to learn what her favorite things are so that they may incorporate them into their costume. Since these costumes are incredibly complicated and intricate, they require a great deal of materials and resources. A good chunk can be gained by trade and personal collecting, but a lot will come from their hunts for food.

When it is time to hunt for food, the leaders of the tribe will create hunting groups and then select four to six individuals to fill each of these parties. What is important here is that the leaders will decide which territories each group will hunt in, sending their best hunters to places where prey is bountiful and the lesser ones to areas that are a bit more limited. Those who want recognition and a cut of the kill will seek to be placed in the first group of hunters, as that means they have a better chance of downing prey and claiming valuable materials. Those picked for the weaker parties and sent to places where prey is a bit more scarce will be a little bummed out, but will use this hunt to try and impress the chieftains. If they can bring back big prey or lots of food, than perhaps next time they will get a shot at being in the lead party. For these hunts, both males and females will participate, as they both desire the goods that come from downed prey.

These hunting parties search the jungle floor and understory for meat and edible plants. They tend to use long-reaching tools, like spears and polearms that they craft from wood, stone and sap. You may notice that their weapons are just as flashy and decorated as they are, which is actually more important than you may think. Each Furceros' weapon is unique to them, so that there is no confusion on whose tool is the one that landed the killing blow. When prey is downed, the first thing the group will do is look to see whose weapon is the one that finished the beast off. When it is decided, the lucky hunter will be given prime pickings on the fallen prey. What I mean is that this hunter will get to select one piece or part of the animal that they get to keep for themselves. After that, the next hunter will get a pick, and then the next and so on and so on. What they are taking is not the meat or flesh, but things like feathers, beaks, claws and other decorative materials. These collected goods will be added to their personal trinkets, or the males will use them to help construct their special courting costume. Though females do not make courting displays, they will still collect pieces of slain prey so that they can add them to their own appearance. Males who are interested in a certain lady should be observant when she goes to collect her piece from prey, as that will give hints on what her preferences are. Once each hunter has claimed their trophy, they bag the meat and continue the hunt. At the end of the day, they shall return to the village and spread the food around.

In time, the courting days will finally arrive and the tribe will prepare itself for the special ceremony. The young and old will work to set up the stage and decorations for the event, while the competing males go to their burrows to don their garbs. The eligible females will line the designated "walkway," where they will sit to watch the show and judge the presenting males. A structure similar to a stage curtain is made to hide the males from the ladies' gaze until the time is right. The leaders will have a list of names that they will announce, which is the cue for the specific male to take to the walkway and show off. They will strut down the path, often adding some dance moves to further add to the display. They have a short window of time to walk down to the end of the walkway, then turn around and return to the hidden curtain. It is this brief time where the females will watch and judge their displays, looking to see if any of the males win their admiration. At any time they may choose their potential mate, be it during the show or after all the displays have finished. For them, it is first come first serve, so it is important that they make their decision before someone else beats them to it. If one male has a rather incredible display, you may see a few females quickly getup and hurry to the backstage to be the first in line. Even after the show, the undecided females may ponder their decision for a few days. Some may decide that none were worthy and then wait for the next year, while some may ultimately choose which display stuck out the most to them. The couples who come together that night will spend their next years developing their bond and raising offspring, while the unpicked singles will get to work improving their display for the following year. While this ceremony is important to them, it is by no means a serious event. It is practically one big party, with food, drink and merriment being shared between all. I have had the honor of being invited to one of these events, and I have to say it is a dangerously good time! So much cheering, eating and drinking! The dances that occur after the event seem to last for hours, which can be quite tiring if one has had too many goblets of fig wine! I would gladly have a night like that again, but never would I wish to experience the morning after again! Not in this lifetime!

This courting ceremony of theirs is not the only event they hold during the year, as the Furceros are quite the partying group! It seems like almost every month has a special ceremony or ritual they perform, which is meant to appease the gods and strengthen the bond of the village. Though the outside world may like to pretend they're insidious, explorer-eating beasts, they are actually quite the friendly group! In fact, they have even been capable of befriending Floral Dryads! Really! It is shocking to believe and amazing to see! It turns out that Floral Dryads who live in or near these tropical areas are actually quite close to the Furceros. It seems their love for colors, ceremony and flare have given them a thing in common, and the two species are great friends. I would never have suspected! To think those snooty plants could be friends with a tribe of lizards; or friends with anything! Imagine my shock when I finally found the Furceros village I was searching for! Here I was, pushing through dense jungle, hoping to find a hidden tribe that has (supposedly) remained isolated from the outside world for centuries, only to have my first sight be a Floral Dryad helping fix up a Furceros' flower wreath! And to think I was worried about finding a translator! Anyways, Floral Dryad communities that live near Furceros tribes will often form a partnership, where the dryads will grow crops and fruits while the Furceros hunt for meat. The two will trade for food, trinkets and other colorful things, and when the time comes for celebration, all parties are invited. It appears the Floral Dryads down here are much friendlier and open than the ones back home, which makes me want to take some back up north to help set their fellow sisters straight! Not only are they partners with dryads, but they do seem to share a bond with the spidery Gralatars, though this was not always the case. From the stories, it seems the two tribes were at odds with each other, as the Furceros enjoyed feeding on the enlarged spiders and the Gralatars weren't too pleased with that. The two tribes fought each other for years, until the day their god intervened. It sounds like the "God of the Jungle" rose up and demanded that the two cease their warring, as they were both children of his domain. Through him and the words of a faithful "Priestess" (It's always capitalized in the tales, I don't know why), the two species made up for their previous sins and struck a deal. They would no longer be enemies and they would respect the homes and lives of each other. While not all of them are the closest of chums, they coexist with one another and uphold their end of the bargain. The Gralatars will stick to the canopies and trees, while the Furceros hang down below. All may travel where they please, as long as they respect the territory they are in. The two species even trade with each other, with the Furceros mainly looking to get their claws on the Gralatars' silk. Their webs can make strong rope and unbreakable nets, which the Furceros use in construction and hunting. One of their favorite things to trade for are "Sticky Nets," which are made of Gralatar webbing that has not been dried. They use this special tool on Great Mottled Caecilians, as it not only pins the great beasts down, but it also subdues their ravenous colonies of Peeler Beetles. The large amphibians can then be slain, while the gobs of beetle-covered webbing are then dried and broken up to get a load of delicious crunchy beetles! Yum!

In conclusion, the Furceros are a fun, happy group that do not deserve the myth of being deadly or dangerous. Such tales and stories need to come to an end, before anything wicked comes from these misguided assumptions. There is no violence or malice to be found here, only merriment and fun! The only thing that I experienced during my time with them that could even remotely considered mean was when I showed up wearing things that I thought were colorful and flashy. I preemptively tried to dress vibrantly because I knew they respected those that were decked out in colors and trinkets. Turns out my definition of "showy" came nowhere close to theirs. The only way I could have been more underdressed was if I was bark naked. The looks I got was the ones who gave to a child when they got into mom's makeup and tried to "look pretty." I mean c'mon guys, I was trying!

Chlora Myron

Dryad Natural Historian

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And the other jungle dwelling species to go with Gralatars, the Furceros! Once I made the cyclops, I had to do something else with the design. Having a tribe of cyclopean chameleons was too much fun to pass up! Also had to do something with the fact that chameleons are some of the flashiest looking lizards you will find. No blending in here!

This one got shoved ahead of the posting line up for certain reasons, but good ones! You shall see in time!