Couatl

The couatl is a large, winged serpentine creature, and considered a native outsider.

History
The couatl were originally sarrukh from Okoth who, when they realised that their empire was failing, fled to the other planes of existence. They never found a plane that they were willing to live in for more than a generation so they became nomads, travelling from plane to plane. This life hardened most of the Sarrukh, leading them into evil. A few dissenters broke off from their evil peers and entreated Jazirian, a fragment of the World Serpent, for succor, who responded by turning them into their present forms. The rest of the Okothian Sarrukh declared war on their transformed former brethren but the Couatl held their own, despite the sarrukh's advantage of greater numbers. This continued until Jazirian was slain by Merrshaulk, a darker fragment of the World Serpent. This forced the couatl to flee back to Abeir-Toril. They arrived in Maztica, where most remain to this day.

Ecology
Couatls are known for their beauty, magic, and virtue. Due to their intelligence and devotion to good, they are worshipped by people who inhabit the same area as them.

Environment
Coutal inhabit warm jungles. They are most common in Maztica.

Typical physical characteristics
A couatl resembles a long, feathered serpent with a pair of rainbow-feathered wings that allow it to fly. They are around 12 feet (3.5 meters) in length, with a wingspan of 15 feet (4.5 meters). They weigh around 1,800 pounds (882 kilograms). Their powerful minds are capable of great psionic might.

Society
Couatls live solitarily, in pairs, or in flights of 3-6 individuals. Their intellect is above that of most humans, and, although they do not use weapons and armour as a human might, they often own treasure. They typically speak Common, Draconic and Celestial.

People living in the same area as couatl sometimes worship them as deities. The spell summon monster IX can summon a couatl.

Lore
Couatls became the favored beings and signs of the god Qotal and when he left the True World he made a prophecy of a couatl that should one day appear to be greeted by his choosen daughter. They would be the first signs of the gods return to his people.