Sharptooth

The Sharptooths (also Sharp-tooths) were a tribe of lizardfolk dwelling in the Vast Swamp of Cormyr.

Base of Operations
The Sharptooths had territory around the northern part and source of the Darkflow River, in the center of the Vast Swamp.

History
The Sharp-tooth tribe was known to live in the Vast Swamp around 1367 DR.

In the Year of Lightning Storms, 1374 DR, the Sharptooths were attacked by a new tribe—the Shadowscales, strange, shadow-shrouded undead lizardfolk who were the horribly transformed remnants of the former Dragonslayer tribe. The Sharptooths could not resist them; many were slain, more captured and carried off to the Lost Refuge. Worse, those who were captured eventually came back as Shadowscales themselves, attacking their own kin.

In one raid before autumn, the Shadowscales captured a number of lizardfolk, including Ashala, Gruss, Kurash, Sithen, and even the Sharptooths' old chieftain, Gathan. They were missing and thought dead. However, the lowly Kessessek, priest of a forgotten god and mate of Ashala, proved himself by turning away some of the Shadowscales, and the leaderless Sharptooths acclaimed him as their new chieftain, rather than risking the old tradition of having the strongest battle for dominance.

Uncomfortable and inexperienced as a chief, Kessessek adopted an aggressive but canny strategy against the mightier Shadowscales. He made an alliance between the Sharptooths and the Blackscales and Poison Dusks—other tribes attacked by the Shadowscales—and so they survived against further raids. Then, in early Eleint, he led a war party of Sharptooths, Blackscales, and Poison Dusks into Shadowscale territory around the Skull Staff. They hoped to slay some of their Shadowscale foes or their Shar-worshiping allies, or else capture some of the "dream walkers"—the mind-controlled petitioners of a false Temple of Mystra—that regularly passed that way to a ruined keep called the Lost Refuge. Kessessek and his kin recognized that these dream walkers were innocents under a spell and compelled to journey to the enemy, and hoped to capture them, free their minds, and deny this resource to their shared enemy.

In fact, the next group to pass that way were actually adventurers in service to Mystra investigating the false temple and Sharrans' activities. This unfortunate misunderstanding was eventually resolved in parlay with Kessessek at the Sharptooth encampment among hot geysers, over snail-and-eel soup. Kessessek tested, treated, and spoke with them, realizing they shared a common foe and could be key to the fight against the Shadowscales. Telling what he knew of events in the Vast Swamp and about the Lost Refuge, he sought the adventurers' aid in freeing Ashala, Gathan, and the others, promising all his treasure and magic in payment. However, he would not risk more lizardfolk lives, believing the forces inside the keep were too great. An attack on the camp by seven Shadowscales and a grell seeking to kill Kessessek saw the priest-chief paralyzed and the Sharptooths flee, but the adventurers prevailed, for which the Sharptooths were grateful.

Later, when the adventurers eventually returned from the Plane of Shadow, having ended the Shadowscale and Sharran threats, they found the Sharptooths had taken over the Lost Refuge. The Sharptooths celebrated with a feast of wild boar roasted over fire, wreathes of swamp flowers placed over the heroes' necks, and wild dances.

In the following weeks, after War Wizards investigated the Lost Refuge, the kingdom of Cormyr made an alliance with the Sharptooth tribe. Limited trade even began between lizardfolk and human, and the Vast Swamp lost a little of its mystery and dread in Cormyrean eyes.

Relationships
Around 1367 DR, Sharptooth territory bordered the lands of the Blood Moon orc tribe and the Scimitar goblin tribe.

From 1374 DR, the Sharptooths were allied with the Blackscale and Poison Dusk tribes, and even with the kingdom of Cormyr.

Possessions
Sharptooth warriors fought with clubs, heavy wooden shields, nets, and javelins.

Notable members

 * Kessessek
 * Gathan
 * Ashala