Argonians

Argonians

Saxhleel
Clockwise: Argonian battlemage, visionary, warrior, smuggler, and sorcerer.
Regions with significant populations
Black Marsh, Cyrodiil, Morrowind
Languages
Jel
Religion
Veneration of the Hist; veneration of Sithis

The Argonian people have, throughout Tamrielic history, been perhaps the most misunderstood, vilified, and reviled of all the sentient races. Yet, those who have taken the time to experience Argonian culture have gained a greater appreciation for this noble and beautiful people.

— Brendan the Persistent

Argonians (self-name Saxhleel, "People of the Root"), also known as lizardfolk, are a humanoid race native to the foreboding swamps of Black Marsh, a lush and threatening land teeming with poisonous plants and violent predators. They are largely reptilian in appearance, but may also possess traits typically found in amphibians, birds, mammals, and fish. Argonians are swift swimmers and can breathe underwater. They possess natural immunity to poison and disease, a trait that serves them well in their treacherous homeland. Argonians have a mystical connection to the Hist, and may be considered an extension of that organism.

Foreign racial categorization labels them as "beastfolk", as opposed to the humanoid races of men and mer. The Argonians' alien nature is often commented on; they are called strange, expressionless, reserved peoples, slow to trust and hard to know. This is a sentiment shared even by lukiul, or "assimilated" Argonians, who were raised far away from the Hist and often have significant trouble fully understanding the emotions, body language, or motivations of their estranged brethren.

Biology

Argonians are semi-aquatic and are most comfortable in warm, moist environments. In addition to their terrestrial lungs, they can breathe underwater via a set of gills behind their ears, but they usually prefer to remain in the shallows. Some Argonians may sport head feathers, horns, hair, or fins. Argonians are capable of live birth in addition to traditional egg-laying. The gender of an Argonian may fluctuate over the course of their life; like other attributes, it is influenced by the individual's connection to the Hist.

History

According to traditional accounts, the genesis of the Saxhleel came about when the ancestor lizard tasted Hist sap, attained consciousness, and was then molded into a "useful" (humanoid) shape by the Hist.

Argonians have inhabited their marshlands since the beginning of recorded history. Aldmeri explorer Topal the Pilot described "manlike reptiles, fleet of foot and running the length of this great mire" in the Merethic Era.

The ancient Saxhleel formed an advanced civilization in antiquity, as evidenced by the xanmeers, great stone pyramids whose ruins still dot the landscape of Argonia. At some point, perhaps in the First Era, the Argonian civilization declined in a process known as Duskfall, and its people shifted to a more primitive way of living, in accordance with the will of the Hist.

Notes

Attribution notices