Fire Newts (5)

Sculpted by Jason Wiebe

Thankfully, members of this race of subterranean heat-loving amphibians are rarely encountered on the surface world; such meetings always end in bloodshed. Fire newts thrive in inhospitable caverns with unbreathable sulfurous, ash-filled air, lava flows, and boiling pools of mud. Their society is militaristic, focused on conquering territory. They create little, save for weapons and armor, and are skilled smiths. They are sadistic and keep slaves for short periods before ritually roasting them alive and devouring them.

A few months back, a tremor opened an undiscovered passage in the Caverns of Doom, linking a series of steamy, muddy grottos to fire newt territory. The fire newts ran afoul of the many mudmen dwelling within the muck and have been at war ever since. A band of adventurers stumbled into the midst of the war and were forced to retreat. They returned to Barrowgate, muddy and bloody, but with tales of a vast, unclaimed fortune of uncut gemstones embedded in the cavern walls.