I remember reading ages ago, in the write up for Cyphrus, that there were "elegant serpents that swim through the land like whales through the ocean". That was C and P'd, by the way, straight from the blurb in the Forum Index. But the more I look and more I play in Cyphrus, I'm realizing that while we have bears, lions, wolves, glassbeaks, yukmen, coyotes and snakes (not serpents, big dif), we DON'T have the serpents.
Well, time to correct, methinks...
What I had in mind was something like this:
Something with lots of spines for better moving through the grasslands of the SoG, and scaled up to maybe 50-60 feet long, with a girth to match (going by the "whale" comment above). A constrictor, not a viper, since being that huge will be advantage enough, and a snake that large maintaining venom glands would be hard to conceive. It's prey would basically be anything smaller than itself, and while the older, larger serpents would probably know enough to steer clear of humans, the younger ones would be isolated enough that they'd know nothing about spears, arrows or fire, and see them as just another meal (often riding a larger meal).
Before it looks like I'm overpowering this monster, let me give you the good news.
First of all, it is very much adapted to the thick, tall grasslands of the SoG, both in diet and movement. Contrary to what many think, those particular grasslands do not cover the entirety of the SoG; probably less than half, in fact. So it's not like you're going to run into them that often.
Secondly, much like large constrictors in real life, it can take a Wyrm days to digest a full stomach's worth of food. In that time, they're pretty helpless and susceptible to predators, thanks to almost all their energy being drained towards digesting. Related to that, a full stomach can last a Wyrm a season, maybe even longer, so they're not aggressively hunting that often. Once they're satisfied, they save their energy and stick to their territories.
Thirdly, there aren't many of them: not because they're endangered or over-hunted, but because they're so huge that often they simply can't eat enough to stave off starvation. I got the idea from here, and it seems logical enough.
As far as other details go, I picture them as pretty solitary animals, to the point where courtship can be dangerous for both parties. Once a litter is produced - generally 10-12 infants - the female leaves them to fend for themselves. Given how dangerous the SoG is, maybe a quarter or less of them will survive to maturity, and perhaps one or two into adulthood. The Wyrms mate once or twice in their lifetimes, which are unknown, but Drykas elders speak of Wyrms with the same markings being spotted by individuals separated by at least a generation.
So... that's my idea. Lot of holes, lot left unwritten and undecided, but this is just the outline. What say ye, honored peers?
