Kuo-Toa



“They say if you convince a hundred Kuo-toa of a new belief, all Kuo-toa of the surrounding area suddenly start displaying this belief”

Kuo-toa are fish-like, amphibious humanoids who generally live in the Underdark, especially closer to the ocean and around underground lakes and rivers.

They are half-mad religious zealots, descendants of a once-great race that was pushed deep underground many years ago, their population nearly exterminated and forgotten. Here, they worship mad gods and spawn new numbers, lacking self-belief, sanity or any real leadership.

Races
The most common form of Kuo-Toa are the most well known – fish-like humanoids with webbed hands and feet and large eyes.

Deep Ones

Deep Ones are those kuo-toa that inhabit the deepest and darkest waters at the very roots of the earth, and are very rarely seen even in the underdark.

The Scaled Horde

Kuo-Toa 'rough riders' from the vast underdark plains east of Slubdoolpoop. They are known for their cavalry of lizards that can scale walls with ease. It is said they are raised, live and die all in the saddle.

The Builders

Inhabiting the reefs and isles of the former realm of the Oceanic Empire, these kuo-toa are peaceful above all else, content to live in their reefs, building and expanding. They tend to be more brightly coloured than their kin and are more self-reliant.

Tropical Kuo-Toa

Kuo-Toa away from Vedar tend to be brighter and more colourful - often in bright oranges, reds and blues.

The most common form of Kuo-Toa in Takûarusá is the pirabá. These tend to be smaller and more feral than their Vedar brethren, but often live much closer together in the rivers and lagoons of the continent. Individually these would not be too much of a concern but the packs and swarms they attack in can bring down even sauropods that venture into their waters.

Less common, but far more individually dangerous are those individuals called the pirakesétá (dangerous knife fish). These can be found in lagoons often by themselves or in small groups, though sometimes they lead a colony of pirabá.

Society
The majority of kuo-toan society is split into two factions: The High Tide, or mainstream, and the Deep, or minority beliefs. The current High Tide are worshippers of the goddess Blibdoolpoolp, the Sea Mother. Their holy sites often provide access to water, and often serve as spawning points and trade centers.

Kuo-toa are social creatures, often living in small communities numbering in the hundreds. The nature of the Uderdark means that larger communities can be very difficult to support. Madness is a common ailment amongst the kuo-toa, their degenerate nature and utter lack of self-belief encouraging a weak mind.

The Deep worships various different entities and is constantly shifting.