The Shakrim

“The difference between men and beasts is but one of form, in substance they are the same.” – Sseehllairan Fheelariss Dael Shar Shak-Atall (the First Ever Serpente)

The Isles of the Shakrim exist at the edge of the confluence of the new world and the age-old continent of the Traazorite Empire. Reaching the nine major Isles and the uncounted smaller atolls is a challenge to mariners because of the coral reefs, ever-shifting cloud cover, volcanic rifts, and other natural dangers surrounding the rocky-shored islands.
Thus for most of their existence, The Islands have remained shrouded in mystery and myth. Helping this perpetuation is the fact that most ships that approach the Isles do not come back. Merchants wishing to explore and take advantage of the undeveloped markets, Traazorite military expeditions, and even unlucky sailors blown off their course by the seasonal storms of the Shining Sea find their way to the Islands but not off of them.
The nine major Islands of the Shakrim Isles are Shakessmai, Shakashorth, Alshavras, Manasspish, Mumenkamal, Haichshatal, Breeseath, Khachish, and Tarreen.
Shakessmai is the largest of the islands and lies basically in the middle of the chain. It is the home of the Everserpente and holds the most important cultural and political centers of the Shakrim Isles. Mumenkamal (Hidden Glory) lies close off its southwestern shores. The Northern isles are volcanic and include Tarreen(Firefang), Shakashorth(Serpentmaw), and Alshavras(Lava Mountain). On the Eastern side of the Island Chain is Manasspish (Greencoil). On the Southwest, facing the Southern Continent, is Khachish (Salvation), Breeseath(Wildthrone), and finally wild and mountainous Haichshatal (Sharpspine).
There are countless other islands in the chain, most of which are inhabited by the Shakrim. Many of these islands have small civilizations and governments of their own, trading with the larger islands to make up for whatever they lack in size or nature.
Popular or common knowledge of the Isles is scarce. Bits and pieces of their peoples and history are known to a few rare outsiders who’ve managed to penetrate the Isles’ barriers and return, and to those few on the main lands who’ve survived the discovery of a Shakrim in their midst.

Climate

The geography of the Isles fall into two categories. Southern islands are comprised of limestone with level terraces and fringing coral reefs. Northern islands are volcanic with active volcanoes on two islands creating the mists veiling all the islands. One fifth of the land is arable, another tenth permanent pasture and the remaining covered in dense vegetation.
Island structure is a narrow coastal plain often interrupted with high cliffs leading to volcanic rocky rugged mountainous interiors. The primary natural resource is fish. The islands have a mild tropical marine climate moderated by seasonal trade winds. Little temperature variation occurs between the dry and rainy seasons. Natural hazards include monsoons, torrential rain creating landslides, active volcanism, a plethora of wildlife, and of course the Shakrim themselves.

History

Though there is evidence to suggest that the Shakrim Isles were inhabited long before the arrival of the Shakrim, the history of the Isles has been dominated for some time by their current reptilian peoples. Those drawn to the Isles to study their history meet the same grisly fate as most others who find themselves on the Shakrims’ shores.
A mostly oral Shakrim lore speaks of the “Time of the Expulsions” – Shakkala Lik Dael Semperatia – as the origin of their race. Legend holds the First Men were delivered to the Isle of Shakessmai by the evil Iron Men –Dael Taralakaz – in the language of the Shakrim. The First Men arrived on the Isle of Shakessmai and were greeted by Shakkamal - one of the deities of the Shakrim.
Shakkamal took interest in these stranded men calling them the Arrivals – Dael Selekinia – and chose to aid them. Shakkamal blessed the First Men with the Kamal-a-karb, the glorious change.
Shakkamal’s encounters with the First Men lasted for an age that remains shrouded in mythology. Tales are told amongst the Shakrim of the great deeds achieved by the First Men during this Dark Age. Aided by the blessings of Shakkamal they embraced their hostile island home and adapted to its natural laws. They are remembered as the Blessed of Shakkamal – Dael Aurailis Lik Shakkamasala.
One of the Blessed lineages has ruled as the Ever Serpente – Dael Shak-Atall – in unbroken succession from the Arrival to the present day. This leader is believed to be the living embodiment of the Great Shakkamal, the savior of the Shakrim.
When the Second Men were delivered to the Isle of Shakessmai, again by the dread Iron Men, the Shakrim count the end of the First Age, the Age of the Heroic Fathers – Dael Esh Likel Kamir Shakmai.
While many deeds of legend are credited to the First Age, the Blessed held a tenuous hold over only a small portion of the Isle of Shakessmai. The only true rule was the law of nature under which only the strong survive. The Second Men also found a world hostile and unmerciful. This world quickly provided two certainties – the weak found death; the strong found adoption amongst the Blessed.
The new blood of the Second Men altered the Blessed and changed them in ways both glorious and malignant. Some of the Blessed stayed apart, stayed pure. Both generations of Arrivals embraced the evolution invoked by the Great Shakkamal. The Shakrim deemed these changes the Will of the Serpente reflecting the duality that is in all things and certainly the Shakrim.
Despite accepting their destiny as one people, castes emerged; those pure, the Blessed – Dael Aurailis – and those mingled, the After – Dael Segaru. Upon the mingling of the two generations of Arrivals, the Ever Serpente proclaimed the joined peoples to be the Shakrim, meaning the Entwined – Dael Shakrim, and marked the beginning of a new age.
The Kamal-a-karb took a different route with the After and their offspring. Instead of Dael Atalke-ae-karb, the snake change, the After and their offspring experienced a different blessing – Dael Karb-a-Sarj, the lizard change. The After became bound to the various lizards through the Isles. Unlike the Blessed who remained bound to the various snake species.
The Shakrim believe that Vinnarasa’s mischievous nature had something to do with the alteration and the After are particularly chaotic as a result. Many Afters to this day have a particular fondness and closeness in their reverence for Vinnarasa - a second Shakrim deity of nature, fertility, and healing.
During the Second Age, the Shakrim prospered and multiplied. The changes brought about by the Entwining benefited the Shakrim more than not and they spread across the innumerable isles dominating all other species encountered.
The remaining eight islands were settled and Shakrim enclaves were founded on each. Enclaves are a far stretch from what humans would consider cities yet for the Shakrim they are places where great numbers congregate, society runs its course, and love, commerce, and mortality intertwine for the prosperity of the race. Legends also speak of a mysterious tenth Isle known as the Isle of Mist that stands eastward and apart.
Toward the end of the Second Age, the Iron Men returned. Early landings brought more arrivals yet few of the newcomers had the strength to find other than death. Lore speaks of only a handful of the Third Men surviving the Isles’ ruthlessness. These later Arrivals are named the Adopted – Dael Lasharinor, and like their predecessors they mingled with the Shakrim being welcomed amongst Dael Segaru.
The Iron Men accompanying the landings of the Third Men found only death. No vessel or crew who entered the waters surrounding the Isles escaped after they stranded their captives. Absent expeditions prompted more voyages. Larger and larger Iron Men expeditions attempted to penetrate the dangers of the Isles changing from deliveries of outcasts to incursions of exploration, exploitation, and conquest. Few adventurers, soldiers, zealots, or conquerors returned to their own shores. Those few who did share wondrous tales of ageless beauty, instant brutality, strange beasts, and priceless treasures.
Eventually, the Iron Men excursions ceased as tales became exaggerated into legends and few found the stomach to attempt to conquer myths of terror and death. To this day should a lucky mariner reach the shores of any of the more populous Isles a variety of grisly decaying warnings greet them. All demonstrate one promise: death waits for those who set foot on the Isles of the Shakrim.

Physiology

The Blessings of Shakkamal are believed to be an unknown mystical event (or events) between a mythical being and the first men deported to the Isle of Shakessmai by the Traazarite Empire. Shakrim stem from the race of Chalers. The resulting impact of this event or events is the installation of a therianthropic element into those stranded humans creating a race of half-human/half-snake were-serpents. Shakrim are predominately exothermic (internal body temperatures can vary widely) yet more human representations can be endothermic (maintaining a constant body temperature).
A majority of the Shakrim, especially the After and the Adopted, exhibit no signs of therianthropy. The presence, strength and racial direction of the “were” element will vary greatly by age, purity, breeding and numerous other elements. Non-therianthropic Shakrim may possess attributes belonging to reptiles – forked tongues, slitted pupils, reptilian coloration, etc. Dormant or late triggered therianthropic can occur and stories exist of Vinnarasa blessing non-therianthropes high in her regard.
The Blessed – being the least diluted bloodline since the original Blessings were bestowed– are more frequently therianthropic and exclusively were-serpents when therianthropy is present. Blessed represent a vast array of differing breeds of snakes.
The After are characterized by greater degrees of defects in young and can produce a wide array of deviant characteristics from pure reptiles to pure humans to non-therianthropic half-breeds to pure animal strains.
Shakrim bear live young. Newborns occur in batches of 5-27 young. Blessed tend to smaller broods and After larger ones. When in therianthropic form, the Shakrim are capable, albeit rarely, of proliferating with the appropriate reptilian species.

Heraldry

The primary Shakrim heraldry is a red two-pronged arrow facing upward on a field of forest green. The arrow symbolizes the forked tongue of the serpent peoples of the Shakrim. This emblem also represents the duality of the uraeusanthropic (were-snake) and sauroanthropic (were-lizard) blessings of Shakkamal upon the Shakrim, who are both humans and serpents. The forest green field also represents dual themes: the pre-dominate skin color of the Blessed and the deep forests dominating the Isles of the Shakrim. It is also the personal standard of the Ever Serpente.

Government

The Isles have been ruled by a single Ever Serpente since the origin of the race. The Ever Serpente is a hereditary title that has stretched in an unbroken line of succession from the first Ever Serpente. The eldest male of the current generation of the Ever Serpente’s family is always placed on the Ever Throne. The Ever Serpente holds titular authority over all Shakrim. The Ever Serpente governs from the Isle of Shakessmai, in the Enclave of Shakkamal.
Shakrim families – Blessed or After – are large, typically numbering 10-12 siblings. The Ever Serpente’s family is Blessed, the purebred members of the Shakrim that chose not to mingle with the Second Men. The remaining members of the Ever Serpente’s family rule over the major Isles usually from the largest or most revered enclave on that island. These rulers are called Chulthas, a term that seems to denote more responsibility than it does governorship. The Chulthas are keepers of the faith and organize celebrations of Shakkamal on their islands or lead worship in community celebrations.
Chulthas are also responsible for the safety and defense of their island. They have a small contingent of mostly blessed soldiers and warriors that live and train in a central compound within the Chulthas’ prime Enclave. There are a few units of Afters that fill out a Chulthas’ ranks. Any other soldiers needed for defense are local volunteer militia, with a strong emphasis on volunteer.
Should there still be offspring from the Ever Serpente’s brood left, they are sent to foreign lands to establish enclaves or lead other service to the Ever Serpente. Lesser Blessed families are given ruling authority at the behest of the Ever Serpente, in particular, if current living members of the Ever Serpente’s family are small in number. Shakrim rulers hold office for life unless removed by the Ever Serpente or contested by other Shakrim. A short list of titles extend in rank down from the Ever Serpente depending on the size of, or reverence for, the ruling position in question.
In 1008, Sseekaillan Mannelassar Dael Sataes is Ever Serpente of the Isles of the Shakrim.

Enclaves

Shakrim cities are referred to as Enclaves, or Cheness in the Shakrim dialect. They are not recognizable as cities by most that would see them, if indeed they survived the Shakrim long enough to see them. A typical enclave is ruled by a blessed, though ruled would probably not be the correct term and would enrage most Shakrim who value their freedom from even the most local of governments.
A local ruler is known as an Avasa, and is more of an organizer and messenger for the gods than a mayor or government. The Avasa ensures that holy days are provided for and can call forward volunteers to fight in times of war - or when the Island’s Chultha calls upon them. The Avasa is usually a trained warrior though some have been known to be magic users. Either way, an Avasa’s job is more of a priest or community organizer than a magistrate.
Every Shakrim Enclave is different and tends to take on the appearance of the surrounding geography. In some rare cases, the inhabitants get together and shape the Enclave regarding some aesthetic, usually religious. Given the naturalistic bent of the Shakrim, this is very rare and exists especially in Temple cities such as Shalressa.
Habitations in an Enclave are made from multiple materials and their shape and use are usually dependant on the inhabitant. Some resemble dens or warrens and are dug underground. Others have a more recognizable shape and are made of wood and thatch.
Very little stone is used outside of the central compounds and the structures built by the Blessed. Most of these are religious but some are used to house the blessed and their families or the Avasa of the city.

Military

The Shakrim military is a mixed force reflecting the varied nature of the Shakrim, their fierce independence, and hunting orientation. Males and females may serve equally. Units and leadership are drawn up by brood, enclave and Isle. The entire range of racial variation – pure humans alongside uraeus- and sauro-anthropic next to aberrations somewhere in between – will be present. Shakrim do not striate units by breed or subspecies. Blessed tend to form elite units or specialist troop types operating in smaller numbers or individually (if infiltrating or scouting). The After tend to generate the rank and file soldiers in larger scale units.
Due to the active harmony Shakrim have with nature, armies may also be comprised of a wide variety of serpent or reptilian enlistees. These units can range from large harnessed lizards to swarms of smaller reptiles and serpents to flyers and gliders to rider-mounted beasts. Additionally, all forms of part-human part-beast hybrids ranging widely in intelligence and capabilities can be deployed. A small number of horses have been captured during various incursions and bred for traditional purposes.
Shakrim are capable of fielding effective operations in all climates. They prefer raiding, sabotage, specialized strikes, etc. to full open-field warfare. Acclimatized to wooded and aquatic environments, they excel in operations in these settings. Cold climates present challenges given the cold-blooded nature of much of their populations. In such situations, force sizes and composition can be quite limited, down to only purer human or full uraeus- and sauro-anthropic variants.
Armaments and armor include natural and artificial components. Artificial components generally tend toward leather, hide, scale or chain armor, shields, spears, side-arms, and bows. Just about any form of “pointy” shooting or stabbing implement can be found. A significant portion of weaponry contains a wide array of poisons and toxins. Weapons are plentiful and ever at the ready in the Shakrim climate of survival of the fittest. As a result, large military elements can be fielded with very minimal notice.
The core of the military is an irregular mass of militia assembled from a volunteer population. Missile troops are prevalent. Skirmishers are numerous and highly effective on foot or mounted. Mounted troops are rare and comprised principally of light cavalry.
The Ever Serpente and higher authority rulers maintain standing armies of organized well-drilled units of Blessed in which more sophisticated and consistent forms of armor and armaments can be found.
Shakrim naval forces tend to smaller lighter faster drafts. Drawn from the general population, no significant ocean-going vessels exist. Instead, naval efforts are geared toward raiding, piracy, sabotage, etc. much like their preferred military tactics. When large scale tactics are required, Shakrim tends to swarm their opponents with many smaller craft initiating boarding actions whenever possible. They then pillage and sink any captured vessels.

Religion

It is difficult to put a finger on the pulse of worship among the Shakrim. As a libertine society, Shakrim are free to worship or not worship as they please, though most follow one or both of two gods that form the main pantheon of Shakrim deities. There is a third god that is also worshipped, though never openly due to its nature.
The Shakrim believe in Akolam Spish, a horrific and giant serpent with two heads that endlessly encircles the world - though they do not publicly worship it. They venerate Shakkamal, one of the heads of this beast, as their savior. Shakkamal is the god of survival and consumption. They also worship Vinnarasa, the second head, who is the goddess of fertility and healing.
Akolam Spish is a god of duality. Duality is a main theme in Shakrim religion, just as it is in their physiology and lives. Duality between masculine and feminine. Duality between man and beast. The duality between life and death. Duality between consumption and fertility. Shakkamal is the father and the protector characterized as the hunter and possessed of great wisdom. Vinnarasa is the mother, grower, and healer characterized as a nurturer yet possessed of savage prowess and tumultuous natural emotions.
There are small shrines to both deities dotting the islands but have main temples on each island and an associated priesthood. The priesthood has little or no hierarchy outside of the local temple. If one wishes to serve, they simply show themselves at the temple and ask for admittance.
Akolam Spish, where venerated, is done so in secret - if there is a temple to Akolam Spish its location and practices are unknown - as it is the god of secrets, deception, and hidden worship.
A host of lesser spirits is found in reverence throughout the enclaves. They include lesser deities or supposed offspring of Akolam Spish, revered ancestors or heroes, and many simple spirits of nature. Most have small homages paid to them besides Shakkamal and Vinnarasa. In rare instances, elements of splinter cults have been unearthed both on the islands and among foreign enclaves.
Burial rituals are either a “return to nature”, “endowment to the earth”, or “given to the sea”. The aged or infirm wander off into the wild to be absorbed back into the cycle of nature. Blessed tend to place dead in earthen barrows where the land eventually reclaims the body. Aquatic-oriented species bury their dead at sea. Rituals tend to be personal affairs distinctly lacking in ceremony or pomp.

View of Outsiders

The Shakrim view outsiders as oppressors, oppressed, or food. Slavery doesn’t exist. Reactions vary based upon the presence of outsiders in the Isles or the presence of Shakrim outside the Isles.
Inside the Isles, Shakrim react with savage violence to potential or existing oppressors. Shakrim typically allows the oppressed the chance to demonstrate strength, value, or survivability. Those worthy are often adopted into the broods (or eaten if they refuse).
Outside the Isles, people are still judged as oppressors or oppressed. Oppressors are avoided or killed (and/or eaten). Oppressed are tolerated, sometimes befriended, sometimes adopted, or maybe just eaten.
Most Shakrim are more than happy to live out their lives naturally and secluded on their islands. Contact with the rest of Faelon is minimal, and always on the terms of the Shakrim.
Visitors to the Shakrim Isles, should they find their way through the hidden reefs, constantly changing fog, and Shakrim naval patrols, usually find death awaiting them when they make landfall. A few trusted traders are allowed into Shakrim ports but are not allowed outside of predefined areas within the larger Enclave.
There are some Shakrim though that for one reason or another are induced to leave their jungle lands and travel the wider world of Faelon. They are met with little enthusiasm by most people, though some cultures are more tolerant of them than others.
Remaining hidden from the rest of Faelon and known to but a few, there are Shakrim enclaves outside of the Isles. Whether from groups striking out on their own or orders of the Ever Serpente, leader of the Shakrim, some Shakrim travel to other lands to establish Shakrim society.
As many Shakrim cannot regulate their body temperatures, these enclaves are usually hidden deep within marshes, jungles, or subtropical forests where the Shakrim’s physiology can survive and thrive. The reason for this expansion and exploration is unknown. Shakrim keep their secrets, and certain sub-sects of Shakrim religion revolve around secrets, deception, and plots.
Occasionally one of these enclaves is stumbled upon by explorers looking for treasure or some rumored fortune. These are never seen or heard from again. The Mershael conduct constant sweeps of their lands to root out and destroy these Shakrim incursions. Other kingdoms are less thorough or even turn a blind eye to Shakrim expansion.
It is rumored that the Symidians not only allow Shakrim to inhabit their southern temperate rainforests but have an agreement by which these Shakrim will fight for them if called to war. Whether this is true or not is unknown, but it is a constant rumor whispered from the lips of Symidian traders and diplomats.
Most Shakrim wandering the world do so in a far less organized manner. They are individuals or small groups looking for adventure and treasure. Some are simply overcome by their curiosity and give up their life on the Isles for a life of exile from their people.
Many Shakrim are at home in the water and make excellent mariners. Because they are looked upon with suspicion, most Shakrim that take a job on a ship other than a Shakrim trade or pirate ship are relegated to menial and physical tasks. Few are the captains who understand their natural navigation talents and put them to use.
More Shakrim become pirates than simply mariners and are eagerly recruited by Crews who value their fighting prowess and ability to attack from the water. They overcome their prejudice for the lizard people for their utility on a pirate vessel. Though the vast majority of Shakrim pirates are members of all-Shakrim pirate crews a fair few can be found amongst crews of mixed nationalities that ply the waters of Faelon looking to take advantage of the weak.
Shakrim are mostly willing to engage in trade and can readily be seen in ports of call on the ocean borders of both the Northern and Southern continents. Some of these ports even have small enclaves of Shakrim inhabitants who have found their skills with leather and wood are in great demand in these cities.
What is uncommon is these Shakrim staying in their adopted homes permanently. Most find their way back to the Shakrim Isles having made lots of money but still untrusted by their customers. Those who do set up homes in foreign countries are distrusted by other Shakrim. They are seen as abandoning a way of life that is gifted by Shakkamal.
One of the most unsettling traits among Shakrim is the ability of some of them to change between lizard and human forms. This shapeshifting opens up many opportunities, good and ill, to an enterprising Shakrim. It also means that the Shakrim could have infiltrated far further into Faelonian society than is known.
Those who can control this shift find employment wherever they please. Many in Faelon live and work with Shakrim and aren’t even aware. Others put their abilities to more nefarious ends. Their nature and ability make them perfect spies, saboteurs, and deadly Assassins, working for those who have money and need a particular skill from time to time.

Mating Rituals and Customs

The Shakrim greet each other by bearing their teeth and hissing. The mood of Shakrim can be seen in the coloration and formation of teeth and tongue. This style of greeting reveals a physically verifiable statement of Shakrim intent.
Mating rituals are brief and simplistic. In courtship, the male states his intent to the head of the female’s brood. Gifts, accomplishments, or ancestry can all be used to show the strength and worth of the appealing male. Should approval be received then the female can accept, or dispute. In disputing the female must fight the male and drive them away, or find suitors that will do so for her. Many an unwilling bride-to-be has been known to find subtler and more poisonous ways to end an interest.
Males can be polygamous or monogamous without discretion, although the Blessed tend toward monogamy. Females tend to attach to a single male with only a few rare instances of more polygamous circumstances, mainly among the Vinnarasa Priesthood. No significant formal rituals exist for marriage as the naturalistic bent of the Shakrim lends itself more towards simple mating.

Entertainment

The Shakrim remain close to nature with “frontiersmen-like” behavior pursuing hunting, athleticism, and martial prowess. Justice is at the decree of the local ruler or can be adjudicated by combat. A significant gladiatorial influence, lethal and non-lethal, runs through society for both entertainment and resolution of civil matters.

What is valued by this society?

Shakrim believe every person is the absolute owner of their own life and should be free to do whatever they wish with person or property, as long as they respect the liberty of others. They support only a minimum amount of governmental authority because they believe it necessary to ensure maximum individual freedom. Shakrim favor an ethic of self-responsibility and strongly oppose a welfare state. Forcing someone to aid others is ethically wrong and ultimately counter-productive. Nature must take its course. Shakrim do not oppose force used in response to aggression (including preempting predicted aggression). Shakrim strongly oppose conscription because no one should be forced to fight a war they oppose.
Counter-balancing these anti-authoritarian sentiments is a strong connection to nature and their family or brood. Being part man and part beast, society can be characterized as animalistic. Broods are large and self-managed. They own responsibility for assignments given by the Ever Serpente, and providing for members including the elderly and infirm.
In society, males and females occupy any station with certain exceptions depending on the Isle and brood.

Economy

Shakrim operate an economy based on barter, trade, and service. Little exists in the way of currency with items being worth their weight rather than symbolic representation. The Ever Serpent and rulers of the nine Isles smelt their own markers. Typically made of gold or other precious metal, these items are nominated a value by the originator and can be used in payment for goods and services. They can also be redeemed with the originator in return for equivalent goods and services. Value is whatever an individual or group assigns as worth therefore a wide free market system prevails.
A large part of the Shakrim economy is dependent on Piracy. Known for their cunning tactics and ferocious combat prowess, the reptilian people of the Shakrim Isles are feared pirates.
Increased activity by Shakrim pirates in the last few years has caused a lot of concern in the ports around the Shining Sea. Many merchant lords and their respective countries have increased the presence of the military in the merchant fleets that sail from their harbors in the Shining Sea to ports around the world.
Shakrim pirates rarely prowl the coastlines of the Shining Sea, knowing that they will find themselves at a disadvantage to the heavily armed and manned patrol ships that keep those lanes safe. If they do chance to come near the sea lanes, it is usually under the flag of another nation hoping to lure an unwary merchant captain.
What the Shakrim do love are the seasonal storms that ravage the Sea. These storms blow in off the Isarshael mainland and routinely knock merchant vessels off course and into more dangerous waters. The Shakrim are natural seafarers and seem to have a natural affinity for finding their way in the Shining Sea. They prowl the waters just off the sea lanes, looking for ships that have blown off course or have become lost in the fog that accompanies the storms.
Shakrim pirates rarely risk ship-to-ship boarding actions unless they heavily outnumber their opponents. They are jealous of the ships they capture and don't want to risk harm to them as they attack. Instead, the Shakrim use subterfuge and confusion to attack.
Shakrim casters, will use their water magic to limit vision and cause confusion aboard the ship. This allows the Shakrim to get close without risking detection until it’s too late. It also allows the Shakrim to get close enough to unleash the kind of attack that they have become infamous for.
Being mostly aquatic creatures, many Shakrim pirate attacks come from the water itself. In the dead of night merchant vessels suddenly find themselves awash in reptilian pirates, their crews being killed and their ship commandeered or sunk after being razed of goods.
The Shakrim rely on stealth and sudden overwhelming attacks during these amphibious assaults, carefully taking out those sentries and crew that are awake before dispatching a dozing crew below decks.
Dozens of small man-reptiles jumping over the deck rails and spitting poison on a surprised crew would be enough to panic anyone, but follow it with Headhunters, Ghora, and Trasilisks running amok butchering the remaining crew, and it's no wonder the Shakrim pirates are so feared amongst those that call the sea their profession.
Shakrim pirates return to their home ports loaded with the spoils of such raids. Some even return with ships, though Shakrim tend to favor very small, very fast ships to the larger ships used by most of the nations that the Shakrim prey upon.