Temple Guard

The Temple Guard are a revered and uncommon spawning of Saurus. They were created to protect the Slann Mage-Priests and the temple-cities in which the Lizardmen dwell. To their tasks, they dedicate every fibre of their beings, displaying a single-minded determination that will result in either the safeguarding of their charges or their own deaths.

As befits their honoured status, Temple Guard are armed with heavy ornamental halberds and adorned with sacred glyphs. In addition to armour plates of the strongest bronze, the Temple Guard bear distinctive helms fashioned from the horned and crested skulls of Lustria’s predatory beasts. Some Temple Guard are as old as the temple-cities and Slann that they protect. However, should one fall in battle, his helm is salvaged by Skink attendants to be placed within the inner sanctum of a pyramid-temple. There it remains, a relic, until a new generation of Temple Guard is spawned to claim the helms of the fallen. It is believed that when a Saurus inherits one of these sacred heirlooms, he becomes imbued with a portion of its predecessor’s strength and martial skill. In this way, the Temple Guard continue to safeguard their charges for eternity — clearly the role for which they were designed.

As protectors, Temple Guard are matchless. They stand sentry, silent and motionless, not even blinking their eyes. It has been known for Temple Guard to maintain such a sleepless vigil for centuries, thick layers of dust settling upon their reptilian forms — yet the ever-watchful guardians are not immobile statues, and can erupt into sudden violence should they perceive any threat to their charges. Even Skink Priests and other attendants to the Slann approach with skittish caution, least they by some unintended move invite the Temple Guards’ heavy-handed response.

Wherever a Slann Mage-Priest goes, his Temple Guard will follow him. If the Slann wishes to ascend a towering pyramid or retire to the solitude of a Star Chamber, his guardians will dutifully follow. The most powerful of their number, the Revered Guardian, takes the foremost position. No matter to the Temple Guard if the Winds of Magic blow so strongly that prismatic arcs of energy flash through the air, or if the warming rays of a solar engine bask the area in its intense heat - they are beyond distraction. If their temple-city is threatened or a sacred object they were tasked with guarding is stolen, the Temple Guard will attack their foes relentlessly, pursuing until the threat is over or the object returned before returning to their silent vigil. Should a Slann Mage-Priest go to war, his Temple Guard go with him, often forming up around their master — shielding him with their own tough, scaled bodies and interlocking shields. Heedless of their own casualties, the Temple Guard execute their sacred duty until the enemy is annihilated or they themselves are slain.