Foghorn Toad

The foghorn toad lives primarily on the continent of Gleigos, in the deciduous forests in the center of the continent. They are known for their distinctive call, the source of many a frightening night encounter.

Habitat

The foghorn toad inhabits temperate and wet deciduous forests. It uses fallen leaves as camouflage and feeds on smaller animals, mainly rodents, snakes, and birds. However, anything that a toad can fit into its mouth it will try to eat, which includes some smaller races such as gnomes. Foghorn toads winter underground, digging out holes just large enough to fit within and then sealing up the entrances to keep warm. It is easy to pick out these toad-mounds if one knows what to look for. The only indication of anything beneath the surface is a small mound with a circular depression in the center.

Morphology

Foghorn toads are very large. Adult males can grow up to three feet with legs fully extended, while females can be as large as four feet long. The females are typically larger and more heavily built than males. They possess thick, leathery skin which is covered in pointed bumps. Their coloring is similar to that of brown leaves, mottled in varying shades of brown, black, and tan. Foghorn toads often bury themselves in scrapes in the ground, covered in dead leaves, to disguise themselves and wait for prey.

Foghorn toads are sturdily built, and their back legs are well-muscled and can deal considerable damage when the toad feels threatened or when hunting prey. They can make themselves appear even larger by holding air in their mouths and expanding the flexible skin around their throats and necks.

The eyes of foghorn toads are large and brown. In the dark of night, one may see these eyes reflecting yellow when light is shone on them at the correct angle. Behind the eyes are glands which secrete a mild toxin. This is an irritant to many folk races, but can cause a severe allergic reaction in the most unfortunate. This toxin helps the toad ward off predators such as the wolf-bear which may feed on the toads.

Toads in Folklore

Foghorn toads have a reputation as an unpleasant creature to encounter in the night, given their massive size and tendency to eat anything it can catch. But the most frightening thing about these toads is their call. This call is very loud and can carry for up to a mile if the toad is large enough. It begins as a rattling, clanking clamor, building in volume until nearly deafening. At this point, the call changes abruptly to a husky, raspy groan which sounds like an elder on their deathbed. This groan slowly raises in pitch until it is a shriek, then abruptly cuts off. Other foghorn toads will answer in kind, and on some nights the forest is full of their racket.

Before it was discovered that the toads were the source of the frightful noise, many folk believed that the forests of Gleigos were haunted by wrathful spirits. A great number of tales center on these spirits, but the most common tale involves an ancient race of folk who once lived in the forests until they were all killed, either by a great plague or by a terrible monster. The cries one hears at night are the last sounds of the dying as their lives were snuffed out.