SKAVEN

Sapient rats native to Stirrope (but found across the world), the Skaven race goes by many names, some of the most common being ratkin or Children of the Horned Rat. These ratkin are a society of clans led by four "Great Clans": Clan Skryre (Devoted to to the study of magic and blending it with insane science and engineering), Clan Pestilens (immune to most diseases), Clan Moulder (Rat Breeders), and Clan Eshin (assassins).

Among the lesser "Warlord" clans are Clan Mors (most powerful of the Warlord Clans), Clan Rictus (miners, but also produce a large number of Stormvermin), Clan Scruten (spies under the control of the Grey Seers), and Clan Skab, and beneath these are various other Warlord clans (Carrion, Crooktail, Famin, Ferrik, Festerlingus, Festus, Gangrous, Gnaw, Gowjyer, Gristlecrack, Gritus, Grutnik, Klaw, Krik, Krizzor, Liskit, Mange, Mordkin, Rikket, Skaul, Skitr, Skitterbite, Skrapp, Skrittlespike, Skurvy, Skuttle, Skully, Sleekit, Spittle, and Volkn)

Then there are the Thrall clans under the control of other clans:

Skyre: Ektrik and Vrrtkin

Pestilens: Feesik, Fester, Gratzz, Morbidus, Septik, and Skrat

Eshin: Kreepus and Treecherik

Like the ebb and flow of the tides, so too does starvation run rampant in Skavendom. Many of these rat creatures will starve out, certainly adding to the mentality of a skaven to look out for ones' self. However, just as the most dangerous rat is one that is cornered, the same is true for Skaven. During these cycles of famine the Skaven will look elsewhere for "food-stuffs," usually meaning trouble for nearby settlements.

However, this has lessened as more and more Clans turn to trade with outsiders.

The average Skaven is usually fairly cunning and always malicious, but prone to cowardice (It is a common insult among Skaven to claim that another has "squirted the musk of fear," as skaven squirt various musk and pheromones depending on their emotional or mental state. Clan Eshin, however removes their warrior's musk glands for various reasons) - confident only in large numbers (when greatly outnumbering their opponents) and won’t hesitate to stab an opponent (or ally) in the back if the opportunity presents itself. However any Skaven, due to their innate cowardice (another mixed blessing for the Rat-kin), will acknowledge that working together no matter how short, is usually a better idea than going at it alone (like throwing your rival in front you, he will take the death blow and with your rival dead, that’s the best of trade-offs by Skaven Standards, its only higher, with the more rivals you implicate). So thus skaven generally divide themselves among clan members, although showing no particular loyalty to their fellow clan-mates, they would still rate their clan-mates somewhat higher then say, another Skaven from another clan and so on. There are also skaven united by common interests.

An average Skaven has a lifespan of about 20 years (Although this is simply caused by their culture, not their biology.), but higher members of the Skaven society can live much longer, even hundreds of years (possibly due to drugs or magic). These rat-kin, while being weak, they are very agile and fast, traits often trained upon by Clan Eshin, who excels in assassinations. the individual skaven have a high metabolism rate, however. It is assumed that their short average lifespan is caused by simple infighting and starvation, however, their fast metabolisms do result in their increased food consumption compared to other races, which brings with it the danger of prolonged fights.

Male Skaven are workers and warriors, while females spend much of their lives hidden away as breeders, producing three to five litters a year, 20 or so young per litter. It is rumored that the pack-masters of Clan Moulder have bred females who can produce the absurd amount of five-times has many litters.

a non-Breeder female

Since their introduction into some modern society, more and more Skaven clans are experiencing the concept of equal rights, with females now having the same rights and positions of power that males have, much better then their previous slave state. This has lowered skaven numbers in these clans to a sustainable rate. This has also caused a new clan to split off from Clan Eishin, the all-female Clan Sniek.

Interestingly, there are two subtypes of normal Skaven.

Stormvermin are larger than normal Skaven, and tend to have black or near black fur. They are hand-picked by Skaven Warlords for the Stormvermin units, and are then given better armour and weaponry. Stormvermin units are also commonly used as bodyguards for high-ranking Skaven such as Grey Seers and Warlords.

The Stormvermin are well known for their size and fur coloring, as most skaven picked to be Stormvermin have been known to dye their fur black.

Grey Seers are the great wizards of the Skaven, and are seen through the race as prophets of the Horned Rat. Recognized by their white or grey fur and the horns on their heads, they commonly preach to the Skaven populace of a coming time called the Great Ascendancy, when all of the Skaven will rise up as one and overwhelm the World. Any who oppose the Grey Seers are considered to be heretics, and will be hunted down and killed in the name of the Horned Rat. On top of all of the power of the Grey Seers, there is also one of their number in the Council of Thirteen, known as the Seerlord, and is the informant to the rest of the Grey Seers of the council's actions. Some Skaven believe that there should not be a Grey Seer in the Council, and say that it is not the intended role of the Grey Seers. However, in the massive Skaven populace, their voices remain unheard for the time being.

In a way, the Skaven brought this on themselves. Their evolution and society favored the paranoid, from the first semi-sapient rats that hid from bigger predators to the rat-eat-rat society they live in now explaining both their cowardice, their backstabbing ways (when it is safe to think you are always surrounded by enemies it becomes normal to think in preemptive strikes) and their megalomania (another symptom of paranoia) when they think they are on top. In addition the starvation cycles weed out all but the most ruthless and you have your average skaven.

Among the most useful of all Skaven inventions is Arclight.

The invention of the Arclight by a tragically shortly lived apprentice Engineer turned out to be one of clan Skryre's most notable inventions. The Skaven are well accustomed to darkness and low light levels and could make candles, oil lamps, braziers and warpstone lanterns before, but unlike those, arclights could be used to provide a form of illumination that plants could act as a substitute for sunlight. This meant that hither-to unused caverns could be used for growing food. More food meant more skaven and soon Skyre's factories were working day and night making arclights, wiring and generators powered by watermills, steam engines burning coal and detritus and warpstone reactors to power them to outfight vast stretches of tunnels with growlights for potatoes to better feed the ever growing population of skavendom.

These farms are run by skavenslaves who are kept penned up and fed in separate tunnels where they eat and sleep, and at all other times are muzzled to keep them from sneaking a bite to eat from the crops they are required to plant, fertilize, water, weed and harvest.

Arclight has become a commodity that Clan Skyre uses as a bargaining chip when dealing with other subterranean races, as only that clan knows how to create and maintain it.

2814025 Good summary, and I really like your choice of pictures. My own view on their psychology is that their evolution and society favors the paranoid, from the first semi-sapient rats that hid from bigger predators to the rat-eat-rat society they live in now - that would explain both their cowardice, their backstabbery (when it is safe to think you are aways surrounded by enemies it becomes normal to think in preemptive strikes) and their megalomania (another sympthom of paranoia) when they think they are on top. In addition the starvation cycles weed out all but the most ruthless and you have your average skaven.
In their way they also have their own six elements: Manipulation (Clan Moulder), Ingenuity (Clan Skyre), Subterfuge (Clan Eshin), Tenacity (Clan Pestilens), Ferocity (Stormvermin) and Magic (Grey Prophets).

2818735 ...that is genius! mind if I put that in?

2819147 Thank you much! And be my guest, it would be an honor.

2819755 ...and it's done!

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