Gnolls are such a weirdly specific monster. Tribal hyena-headed humans. Where did they come from? Did a specific author invent them? I know there are were-hyenas in African folklore, but they're not the same thing as a gnoll.
I simply must learn more about these “gnolls.” They remind me of creatures from my homeland, powerful totems of hunting and cooperation. Other tribes consider them unclean, but In my country, hyenas are no more associated with the dead than lions or jackals. Any carnivore will eat carrion if it is hungry enough.
Oddly enough, the trope appears to be because of their teeth. All mammalian carnivores have puncturing canines and scissor-blade bicuspids, but only the hyenas have those giant bone-crushing molars, which allow them to access the fatty marrow inside the long bones. Also the brain, which these most of these stupid northerners are still calling “skull-marrow.” They imagine the heart is the seat of all higher cognitive functions!
There are tales down south of skin-walkers, powerful shamans who can take on the hyena’s form, but these seemingly stable hybrids, the gnolls, are new to me. In the four-legged southern versions, the females are the larger and more aggressive sex.
Which makes me wonder about this Korga Blackmane . . .
I didn't really assign "motives", I just considered their background and perspectives. The more human-ish ones, the werewolves and gnoll would be more lenient about man-made things such as metal, fire, etc where as the more natural beings, the Treant and forest spirits, would lean more against man-made things and more towards the natural world. I think one of my strengths is being able to look at situations from different characters perspectives and think how they would act in different situations, which really helps with solo-ing as I don't need to use oracles as much since I can simply follow what the characters would do. Thanks for the comment!
Gnolls are such a weirdly specific monster. Tribal hyena-headed humans. Where did they come from? Did a specific author invent them? I know there are were-hyenas in African folklore, but they're not the same thing as a gnoll.
I love gnolls and have the same question
My character in a traditional DM-type game speculates.
https://arden-vul-1.obsidianportal.com/adventure-log/the-bonecrushers
THE BONECRUSHERS: Applied Dentistry
I simply must learn more about these “gnolls.” They remind me of creatures from my homeland, powerful totems of hunting and cooperation. Other tribes consider them unclean, but In my country, hyenas are no more associated with the dead than lions or jackals. Any carnivore will eat carrion if it is hungry enough.
Oddly enough, the trope appears to be because of their teeth. All mammalian carnivores have puncturing canines and scissor-blade bicuspids, but only the hyenas have those giant bone-crushing molars, which allow them to access the fatty marrow inside the long bones. Also the brain, which these most of these stupid northerners are still calling “skull-marrow.” They imagine the heart is the seat of all higher cognitive functions!
There are tales down south of skin-walkers, powerful shamans who can take on the hyena’s form, but these seemingly stable hybrids, the gnolls, are new to me. In the four-legged southern versions, the females are the larger and more aggressive sex.
Which makes me wonder about this Korga Blackmane . . .
This was so cool to read. When you created the monsters, did assign each a motive? You do such a nice job of keeping their perspectives clear.
I didn't really assign "motives", I just considered their background and perspectives. The more human-ish ones, the werewolves and gnoll would be more lenient about man-made things such as metal, fire, etc where as the more natural beings, the Treant and forest spirits, would lean more against man-made things and more towards the natural world. I think one of my strengths is being able to look at situations from different characters perspectives and think how they would act in different situations, which really helps with solo-ing as I don't need to use oracles as much since I can simply follow what the characters would do. Thanks for the comment!