Ok, plenty of new details to add to this subspecies, lets see if I can compile them all in one place.
The so-called ghost nagas gain their nickname for just how rare and elusive they are. In a place like Felarya, you probably do have greater odds of seeing a ghost than one of them. They are a breed that has specifically evolved to gain better odds of survival in such a dangerous, turbulent place, and posses quite a few unique traits that set them apart from other naga breeds. In terms of their physiology, they tend to be somewhat smaller and less bulky than their other scaly cousins, usually only reaching a 70 foot 'standing' height, but their tails are particularly long, easily reaching 150 feet in a fully grown adult. The tail is an especially important third appendage for ghost nagas, and they use it to reach between limbs of trees to move without having to touch the ground and rustle the undergrowth. They also typically make use of its great length to ensnare prey that are too far away for them to use their arms, and if they should get into a fight it would become their primary weapon, trashed around wildly like a whip. Their scales come in some variation of colors, but are always very pale, often ending up looking like shades of white and gray.
Their sixth 'radar' sense is rarely fully developed, even in adults, but they make up for this with excellent vision, often sporting eyes with enormous irises, allowing their pupils to grow or shrink to any proportion necessary. Their metabolism is extremely slow, and combined with their lesser bulk they typically only need to consume one human per week to keep fed. They can often be found resting for days on end as their slow but efficient digestive systems get every possible nutrient from their prey. When this process is complete and they're ready to hunt again, all of the energy they've stored in this time can be put to use all at once. They are especially shy and cautious in nature (though there are exceptions), and their instincts demand them to avoid being noticed by anyone at any time. The idea of being watched can easily send them into bouts of paranoia and other forms of insanity, so they take very great care in everything they do to keep their presence to themselves. Luckily, they have a method to avoid most watchful eyes. Their affiliation with light magic allows them the gift of being able to manipulate their skin to only reflect whichever wavelengths of the spectrum they choose, and in the range of visible light they can easily cause their bodies to appear any conceivable color or pattern. Typically this is used to make them match their background, much in the same way a chameleon does, but more experienced specimens with greater mastery of this art have been known to perform even greater feats than simply becoming invisible. So long as they could muster both the great amount of energy and brainpower to manage such detailed and complex manipulations of each individual skin cell, it is physically possible for them to do such things as disguising themselves as others or creating a bright flash of light as a distraction in times of danger. Ghost nagas use their illusory skills to maintain their existence quietly and peacefully. A side effect of the greater mental affluence they need to make use of their skills is above average intelligence, often leading to their habit of creating complex, unnecessarily complex plans when hunting or even performing menial tasks. It is even rumored that a select few of them may have reached a stage of mental development that could allow some level of extrasensory perception. But in spite of their abilities, they have an intrinsic fear of any other intelligent life form, even keeping their distance from other naga breeds. Most will end up living alone, only making contact when they feel the need to reproduce and when raising their young.
Their development is also fine tuned to help their survival. A single mating usually leads to the laying of just one egg, to which all of the mother's attention can be given. The hatchling will emerge roughly the size of an adult human (excluding the tail), and will remain this size for 20 or so years until puberty begins to set in. During this period of time, the hatchling will usually stay within arms' length of its mother, spending those years developing their instincts and learning from her example. When adolescence finally occurs, they will experience their growth spurt, and within a decade they will expand to their full adult size. It is then, when their body's nutritional needs skyrocket, that they will be weaned from their mothers and forced to hunt their own food. This turbulent period in a ghost naga's life, when they need to hunt on a frequent a basis as the other naga breeds, that they finalize the development of their skills that they'll be using for the remainder of their lives. When it ends and their bodies and metabolisms settle down, the result is a creature that is fully prepared to deal with the complicated task of survival. They thrive in warm, sunny regions that have abundant growth, and the Felaryan jungles fit this bill perfectly. They have spread as far north as the jungle of perils and as far south as the misty glade, but because they avoid congregating with other nagas, even with members of their own breed, they are so far spread apart, and so elusive, that no race or civilization has ever seen enough of them to actually recognize them as a full species!
Subject: Ghost Nagas Revisited 
Sat Aug 09, 2008 11:24 am
