The Siska

The Siska: A Cultural Summary

by Sig Artula, Scholar of the Daemedran Academy

As any scholar worth the title should know, the siska were the last race to migrate to Solitude before the Reaving. They arrived in one migration a century prior to the end of the Godless Times and another almost immediately afterwards. Most know them as a race of huge, lizard-like reptiles who reside in the wilds, and come across to us city-dwellers as stoic and unfriendly. But this simple viewpoint ignores the nuances of their unique morality and social practices, as well as the role they have come to play in the world at large.

When the siska arrived in Solitude they were unlike any race that had come before; massive, reptilian and unsociable. Initially, many human and eyra nations drove them away out of fear. However it quickly became evident that – for better or worse – these newcomers preferred to keep to themselves. Few besides the elves had any real contact with the siska in the century before the Reaving, and afterwards, they appeared to recover from the cataclysm more quickly than most. It was in this time, when demons, dragons and others of ill intent threatened to snuff out weakened civilizations, that the siska made their intentions known. All throughout the world, throngs of siska began to push back against invading armies and murderous raiders. Often, small armies of the lizardmen would pop up in defence of fledgling human or eyra cities, destroy the intruders, then disappear without attempting dialogue with either side. Retaliation against siska colonies was common at first, but in every case ever recorded the attackers were met with crushing defeat.

After the world recovered from the Reaving, many of the reborn nations sought out the siska that had defended them in their time of weakness. They were surprised to find that the siska leaders – the Sairs – had little to do with the intervening armies. As it would happen, those forces had been made up of tokays (juveniles) seeking to hone their combat skills and gain “rya” – rya being a siska term combining honor and life experience. Those who spoke with the Sairs learned of the siska’s simple codes of law and how they regarded their relationships with Solitude’s other races. Simply put, the siska strive to live in a quiet, but healthy balance with the other races around them. Thus, they do not make war or seek out trade or diplomacy so long as peace and harmony – “stasis” as they call it – is maintained. However, if significant threats to their territory or those within their territory arise, they have rules in place to respond. Tokays are told from a young age that fighting those who break the stasis are fair targets for earning rya. It should be noted that only those adults who accumulate a large amount of rya will ever be allowed to breed. So, when such threats arise, young siska need no prodding from their elders to go to battle. When hostile forces sought to retaliate against siska colonies, they faced not only masses of tokays, but the mighty and experienced adults who reside in the town-like Basks at the core of every colony.

In modern times, most nations correctly consider having a siska colony within their borders a strong deterrent against most kinds of conquerors and raiders. Siska leadership, unfortunately, remains isolated from world politics. Though young siska – or wandering adults seeking to gain more rya – can be found in cities around the world, most remain in the wilds that form the bulk of their territories.

Siska morality is difficult for the more social races of Solitude to comprehend. As a race, they serve as a force of balance in many places. But as individuals, siska are often most concerned only with increasing their rank within their colony and tend to avoid complicated personal relationships. They are a fascinating race that is criminally understudied at the Academy. I would advise any who wish to learn more about our reptilian neighbors to seek me out with questions (and, hopefully, expedition funds) immediately.