Malack's unique race.

[ReaderAt2046]

This is basically a combination of several facts into on statement.

1. Malack is fairly clearly not an ordinary lizardman.

2. He seems to be a snake-man based on the last few art panels).

3. He mentions that he was turned 200 years ago, and before that was shaman to a tribe that no longer exists.

4. We have not seen any other snakemen in OOTS, including in Tarquin's service.

Therefore, I conclude that Malack is either the last of his race or very nearly so, that the snakemen have for all intents and purposes been wiped out by the Perpetual War. What do you think?

[Zmeoaice]

Not really. He looks like a re-color of Ganji.

[Gift Jeraff]

I actually like that idea. And maybe he lies about being a lizardfolk so people don't question how he can be of a race that's been extinct for so long (thus revealing that he has immortality somehow, and he tries to keep his vampirism private).

It also just occurred to me that Girard's half-dragon aunt was shown to be a snakewoman of sorts, so maybe Malack is half-dragon and half-lizardfolk, thus allowing for his statement of "us lizardfolk" to be true while also explaining the possible snake-y-ness.

[Shale]

Not really. He looks like a re-color of Ganji.

Look at how his lower body is oriented under the robe, though. His posture only works if (a) he doesn't have legs; or (b) he's floating.

[FujinAkari]

Look at how his lower body is oriented under the robe, though. His posture only works if (a) he doesn't have legs; or (b) he's floating.

He IS floating, 873's first panel confirms this.

[Gift Jeraff]

Though him floating in the pyramid doesn't really need a special explanation--Zz'dtri could've easily cast his houseruled Fly spell on him.

[Cavenskull]

He IS floating, 873's first panel confirms this.
Just as Durkon is floating in the last panel of that same page. :smallwink:

[ti'esar]

We don't know whether Malack actually has legs or not, but I think we can be fairly certain that he doesn't use them to move.

This is actually a comparatively plausible theory.

[GSFB]

He has flight as a vampiric ability, so he just doesn't use his legs much anymore.

[Stormlock]

Vampires don't get flight at will in their humanoid forms. They need to become bats or fog for that.

[Finagle]

If we had a better camera angle or Malack's robes obeyed the laws of gravity, we could see right now in this strip.

[Meph]

If I should judge just on his look and his way of moving, I'd bet Yuan-ti. Abomination or less likely half-breed (even if the half-breed hypothesis would explain his medium size).
But his assumption to be a lizardman is a mystery in this case: why to pretend it?

[dps]

Maybe he was once a regular lizardman, and lost his legs in an accident or somesuch (maybe the ritual to become a shaman in his tribe involved removal of the legs?) before he became a vampire, and has some sort of permanent magic that lets him float.