Day Twenty-three -- Cynoms, the prairie-dog people

Next up for Day Twenty-three is another humanoid. This one is bipedal with arms and opposable thumbs, rolling on the Beast form table to determine the base shape. This one is prairie dog/meerkat. The race contains spellcasters that are not necessarily leader types, and are willing mercenaries, serving other races and cultures. They're not mastermind races.

One of the things I like to do when naming monsters (or other campaign aspects) is, if they're based on real-life creatures, use some portion of the scientific name. The basic monetary system in my Absalom setting is the alcedes, named after the kingfisher. The owl-folk race are called strigi, after the owl. Looking up meerkat, it's scientific name is Suricata suricatta, which isn't super interesting, but prairie dogs are Cynomys, which is better. Let's call this race the cynoms.

Cynom
# Enc.: 2d4 (6d10)
Alignment: Neutral
Movement: 120' (40')
AC: 9 (base, plus armor, if worn)
HD: 1
Attacks: By weapon
Damage: By weapon
Save: F1
Morale: 8
Hoard Class: XXII
XP: 10

The cynom are a race of meerkat-folk, dwelling in prairies and savannahs in large communal groups. They are humanoid and human-esque in appearance, and average around five and a half feet tall, but are incredibly skinny, giving the appearance being much taller.

They live in underground dwellings connected by tunnels, the dwellings piercing the ground every so often to let light and air into the community. Cynoms are hardy and excellent archers, gaining a +1 bonus all missile attacks. They are also constantly alert, gaining a +1 bonus to both avoiding surprise and on initiative rolls. Cynom communities are ruled by chieftains -- 3 HD individuals that deal an extra +1 damage on attacks -- who have 2d6 lieutenants that serve to oversee and guide the community.

Each cynom community has a 40% of having a cleric of level 1d8 or a magic-user of level 1d6. They are largely vegetarian, and tend large fields of grain and vegetables that cover the ground above their settlements. They speak Common and their own language, which is capable of conveying information over great distances; a single cynom call can be heard by their fellows up to two miles distant and still be understood.