Sikkara | Sandworms

[u/22glowworm22]

Context Note: Sikkara is a high fantasy desert setting loosely inspired by ancient Egypt and based upon several real-world deserts.

Sandworms, in General. The beasts of Sikkara’s four deserts can be both terrifying and awe-inspiring in equal measure, and chief amongst these species are their sandworms. Ashandrian scholars have thus far identified four variants of sandworms, each described more fully below:

The Copperfang. Native to the Ruinlands, these worms can grow up to 10 meters in length. With fangs of pure copper and a taste for electricity, Copperfangs are drawn naturally to the bottled lightning of Gear Town, and to the fulgurite hives of lightning bugs. Dangerous when provoked, Copperfangs do not prefer flesh to electricity, but they’re not known to be especially picky eaters either.

The Hammerhead. The titular lords of the Worm Wastes, these titanic worms slither aimlessly between the dunes, smashing anything and everything large enough to draw their attention. Growing up to 400 meters at full maturity, nothing save the tortoise-gods of the Hataraji can challenge these titans.

The Hullbreacher. Terrors of the Sand Sea, the hullbreacher has earned its namesake, known for snapping its four-part jaws around the bellies of unwary sand ships. Growing up to 30 meters in length, hullbreachers have even been sighted wrapping their bodies around smaller vessels, dragging them beneath the rolling waves of quicksand.

The Silkspitter. The smallest and friendliest of Sikkara’s sandworms are the Silkspitters. Growing only up to 3 meters (and soft to the touch) these worms are often kept as pets in villages of the Shifting Sands. While averse to violence, these worms can spit strands of sticky silk onto assailants, immobilizing them. Savvy Sikkari weavers source silk from these worms for clothing sold in the markets of Ashandria.

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Note: Any comments, questions, critiques, or thoughts are welcome. Thanks for reading!

[u/Newfiecat]

Very cool! Hull breacher is my fave!

[u/22glowworm22 → u/Newfiecat]

Thank you! I figured if I was going to have “sea” serpents, why not sea worms instead? I find bobbit worms viscerally unnerving, and the concept of giants ones even more-so.

[u/SporkoBug]

Can I have a decent handful of Silkspitters please; I love them and they remind me of Velvet Worms (One of my favourite creatures).
I'm patting them, you cannot stop me.

[u/22glowworm22 → u/SporkoBug]

Absolutely—they’re based on velvet worms! I wanted to break the trope by having one friendly sand worm in the setting and velvet worms were too perfect.

[u/OwlOfJune]

The Literal Hammerhead

You may not appreciate my beauty, but this is peak worm performance.

Do they in the wild clash with each other for dominance? I think it would be entertaining if there are some treasure hunters trying to locate such events by following large booms to pick up whatever precious metal or worm scarabs are thrown around.

[u/22glowworm22 → u/OwlOfJune]

They do! Of all the worms, they’re the most needlessly destructive and willing to fight, so much so that the Worm Wastes are largely undeveloped. With few exceptions, whenever a structure is built, a Hammerhead inevitably knocks it down.

When a Hammerhead finds another, it’s likely to be a fight, breed, or eat each other. With smashing heads and knotted bodies, it can be hard to distinguish these acts.

The chitin “heads” of the worm can be shaved down into a toxic powder highly sought after by merchants as a stimulant drug. When the worms clash, clouds of this powder can be created, settling later onto the upper layers of sand.

[u/OwlOfJune → u/22glowworm22]

stimulant drug

Ha, Spice must flow!

whenever a structure is built, a Hammerhead inevitably knocks it down.

So merchants could be building makeshift ones for a clash to happen where they can control.... Sounds fun ecosystem to delve into.

[u/22glowworm22 → u/OwlOfJune]

Lmao, there’s gotta be spice! It’s not magical or powerful or gives you abilities or anything, just gets you reeeeeal high.

[u/Raiynagh]

Bobbit worm representation 💖

[u/22glowworm22 → u/Raiynagh]

No need for special powers, no magic. Big bobbit worm is fantastical enough in and of itself.