Description + Characteristics:

Plains Tamers have brown scales of varying shades with vertical stripes of either gold or black. The scales are tougher than most being able to weather crashes, though they are weaker than Lava Jumper scales.

Plains Tamers are on average 25% larger than most drekmurians making them on average ten feet tall. To support this increased weight and size their wings are one point five times as large as average, making them about twenty two feet across on average. Other needed adaptations to their size include larger hearts, thicker leg bones, denser bones, and a slower metabolic rate.

Plains Tamers have the ability to breathe fire, and while it is not as hot as that of Lava Jumpers they are able to breathe a greater volume of it. They use this fire for a number of purposes from heating to cooking to even herding, preferably without starting a wild fire.

Plains Tamers are innately skilled at working with animals, be they companion animals like kiresks or cattle like urkons. This has resulted in them becoming the source of much of the food on Drekmur as they are highly efficient ranchers.

Preferred Range:

Plains Tamers can be found in relatively large quantities nearly everywhere other than the northern wastes, tundra Forest, sky scraper mountains, vast sands, northern jungle and frozen plains. They can even be found on the distant plains from a storm which blew a small population, about two hundred, there about three hundred years ago.

Culture:

Plains Tamers are highly social with them typically making lifelong connections with their nestmates. These nestmates are groups of five to ten Plains Tamers which are created around the same time and who are raised together. When in Plains Tamer communities these nestmates will often be educated together and remain together even after adulthood. This bond though is not limited to Plains Tamers as they will also form this same bond with any species which they are nestmates with. This has led to the perception that Plains Tamers are extremely loyal which to an extent they are but it is magnified greatly in regard to their nestmates. Interestingly it seems that this bond tends to be just as strong both ways regardless of the species.

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Plains Tamers have a uniquely strong connection to the animals they raise and care for. With most drekmurians the idea of an animal being considered as close as family is a foreign concept, most only get as close as they would to a friend. But Plains Tamers much like humans readily accept non sentient species into our families. This has led to them largely taking over the market of meat and cloth production as they are by far the best at ranching.

Plains Tamers are one of the most peaceful of all the species on Drekmur and that is significant on a planet without a war in centuries. They will and do frequently end conflicts just with their reassuring and calming presence. And if things do escalate, though that almost never happens, they often will just stop the aggressor without needing much effort at all using their size and scales. This has made them often serve as moderators for conflicts which more often than not they are happy to do.

Anomalies:

About one in every ten Plains Tamers will have an aura around them within which the emotion of those present blur and overlap. This when paired with their natural calm and friendliness makes for a great way to have honest conversation. These individuals are called Emotion Tamers.

Notes:

The size limitations of our ship mean we have been unable to accept any applications to join the crew by Plains Tamers. While I am a bit disappointed I do understand, we already can barely fit the other species and so trying to accommodate a species which is two feet taller than that is impossible without major retrofits. We could in theory fit them in the cargo bay but sadly regulations forbid it.

While their initial appearance and size was scarry once I got to actually speaking with them I found out just how soft and friendly they were. By the end of our conversation what had initially been a very stressful conversation became the pinnacle of my week. I am not sure exactly what it was but I just felt calm and relaxed.

Thinking back on the conversations I have had with Plains Tamers it seems that even those who are not Emotion Tamers exude an aura. I am not sure if this is yet to be noticed because their aura affects drekmurians less than humans or because it is assumed to just be a natural effect. I would love to test this further but sadly we have already departed and none of them could accompany us. Oh well there is always next time.