The Story "Rogue Skink" in the last contest got me thinking. Saurus are evolved from crocodiles (I think), and crocodiles are very strong swimmers. I think Saurus should be able to swim, though probably not as well as Skinks. I'm not angling to say they should have River Strider or anything like that. Humans can swim, but they don't have River Strider either. Well armed humans struggle marching through water. There is a reason Olympic swimmers don't carry swords and shields while doing laps. Also, lots of humans never learned to swim, especially in medieval times but that doesn't mean humans can't swim. I think if a Saurus discarded his weapons, shield, and if applicable armor, a Saurus could probably swim. A Skink would still be able to swim circles around them, but I think encumbered Saurus could at least float safely without drowning and maybe maintain a clumsy dog paddle (known in Lustria as the Huagerdon paddle). What sayeth ye?
Most archosaurs, and in general animals, are well adapted to short swimming distance. Some even longer, I reckon that most sauruses, due to their inheiritance would be great or at least decent swimmers. Just not wielding weapons of metal and giant shield strapped to their arms. Your point exactly The design would in general suggest that sauruses are some kind of crocodilomorpha (crocodile, alligators and kaimans ) alternatively their based on crocodile skinks: https://www.google.dk/search?hl=da&...t%2FRed-Eye-Crocodile-Skink-194318273;720;709
Gaming mechanics and gaming fluff wise, it isn't really that saurus (or Bretonnians) can't traverse water (Vampires might have problems though!). It is just that Skinks, Krox and Salamanders et al are exceptional at it. They are adapted for it and their kit doesn't impede them. Skinks swim; Saurus drown. Was an awesomely cool line from Rogue Skink, but it was from a skink's perspective. He might just have felt that the inefficient thrashings of a saurus looked like drowning. In the story, the Darksaurus had a good three arrows in him, and was half eaten by a serpent. We can forgive him for being a bit splashy. Contrast the above with the Spawning of Bob lack of Continuity, where saurus being unable to swim is actually an important plot driver. Why? because of Inigo and Fezzik
Well to be honest, Bob, moving the plot and telling a compelling story is more important then keeping a consistent touch with the source material. Not that this swimming sauruses concept means you did
How is that Slanputin and NIGHTBRINGER have got their post count up so high in a short space of time? It's uncanny.
Maybe we should stop liking their posts... My input, Saurus are born in pools just like everything else. So yes they CAN swim. However they are born in he dark caverns below Temple Cities. So I'd suspect that they're affinity to water is less than that of a Skink or Krox who are born in the swampy areas above ground. That said, back in 6th we had the option to give them a blessed spawning that made them aquatic. So there has to be varying degrees of ability, just like with all creatures.
That was a badass line and was in fact the tie-breaker that got Rogue Skink my second vote. For the purpose of that story, it was vital that Saurus couldn't swim. That's actually a good explanation to let the awesome line stand AND still justify a Saurus swimming later in that same literary universe.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the Sacred Spawning of Tzunki give saurus the Aquatic rule? In my fluff I treat Saurus' relationship with water more or less in the same way as humans. They CAN swim, but it's not something they're naturally bred for (except Tzunki Saurus). Their natural lizardiness makes them a bit better natural swimmers than humans, but their heavy shields and weapons make it impractical to just swim everywhere. My current WIP fluff piece features some difficulties transporting an army of Saurus warriors across the ocean (albeit only a small voyage).
It did Exactly that The 6ed had this to say about the spawning: Strongly associated with water, those blessed by the Sacred Spawning of Tzunki sometimes have mottled sea-green skin hues, their claws are often webbed and they have powerful gills hidden in folds of skin on their necks. So they would also gain gills and other aquatic features, to endure the condition of long time submersion into water. I guess most people are right, about the water relation for ordinary sauruses.
To be fair we disagreed on the first vote, but there is too much congruence for my tastes. Anyway that's off-topic so we can continue to discuss our mental issues elsewhere.