Loxodon

The humanoid elephants called loxodons are often oases of calm in the busy streets of the Endless City. They hum or chant on sonorous tones and move slowly or sit in perfect stillness. If provoked to action, loxodons are true terrors - bellowing with rage, trumpeting and flapping their ears. Their serene wisdom, fierce loyalty, and unwavering convictions are tremendous assets to the guilds they serve.

Lumbering Giants

Loxodons tower over most other humanoids, standing over 7 feet tall on average. They have the heads - trunks, tusks, ears, and faces - of elephants, and hulking bipedal bodies covered by thick, leathery skin. Each of their hands have four thick digits, and their feet are the flat-bottomed, oval-shaped feet of elephants.

Like that of an elephant, a loxodon's trunk is a useful appendage. In addition to providing a keen sense of smell, the trunk can be used to lift and carry even heavy objects. The trunk can also be used to carry both food and liquid to the mouth and can even act as a snorkel.

Gifted Stoneworkers

These elephant humanoids are tireless, patient artisans with an unrivaled intuition about their craft. Although they make nurturing spiritual leaders, their gift for stonework is so ingrained that they are often at a loss when they try to impart that knowledge to others. Among the Conclave in particular, it falls primarily to the loxodons to build the guild's magnificent, cathedral-like arboretum structures

Relentless Loyalty and Deep Convictions

Loxodons possess a tireless loyalty often leading them to value tradition and order. They believe that the members of a group have responsibility to look out for each other. Once they have joined a guild, faction, a company, or have bonded with other individuals in any capacity, loxodons devote themselves to maintaining that bond. They coordinate their efforts and are often willing to sacrifice themselves for the better of the group. They expect reciprocal loyalty and commitment from the other members of their communities and can be severe in their disappointment when their trust is betrayed.

The only thing that runs deeper in a loxodon family than tradition and loyalty are their convictions. These convictions usually stem from problems that a particular family or individual has come into contact with over the ages and, as such, can change from demographic to demographic. For example, loxodons in the wilderness of the Rubblebelts may value the hierarchy of the wilds and consider it a great affront for civilization to have tried to overtake it. Those in the heart of the city may value the law so much that traitors to society stir them into vigilante or organized action against them. Whatever the case may be, their convictions anchor them firmly to the communities that they dwell within and help on a daily basis.

Their love for community and their unwavering convictions usually manifest in an apparent stubbornness and resistance to change. Some families of loxodons have refused to move from their communities once they turned into Rubblebelts and others have turned into criminals after refusing to follow a recent edict outlawing a certain practice or tradition they hold dear.

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

A loxodon's name in their native language includes subtle tones, produced in a loxodon's resonant naval chambers, that indicate status, family connection, and community role. Since most non-loxodons can't replicate the noises necessary to speak Loxodon and usually don't understand it without intensive study, loxodons often translate them into titles such as 'Grandmother', 'Revered', 'Hierarch', 'Healer', or 'Saint' when interacting with other races.
Male Names: Bayul, Berov, Brooj, Chedumov, Dobrun, Droozh, Golomov, Heruj, Ilromov, Kel, Nikoom, Ondros, Radomov, Svetel, Tamuj, Throom, Vasool
Female Names: Ajj, Boja, Dancu, Dooja, Elyuja, Fanoor, Irij, Jasoo, Katrun, Lyooda, Mayja, Radu, Shuja, Soofya, Totoor, Verij, Vesmova, Yoolna, Zarj, Zoorja

Major Organizations

Believing in the value of community, most loxodons drift towards the Selesnya Conclave. Some find fulfillment in the cause of order by joining the Orzhov Syndicate or the Azorius Senate.

Though they primarily value order, some loxodons even find their way to the Gruul Clans, believing that the injustice of civilization removing nature as the controller of Ravnica to be a much greater affront than a little street riot in comparison. Along the same vein of conviction and zeal, some loxodon families have a long standing tradition of joining the Boros Legion for a term of service, believing that a contribution to the overall protection of society is not only honorable, but very necessary to do for those who are capable of doing it.

Lifespan

450 years

Average Height

7 - 8 ft

Average Weight

300 - 400 lbs