Lizards

Lizards are the most common predators in Rain World and will try to devour the Slugcat which you play as...

They come in many varieties, and depending on the sub-species, the player will have to react in many different ways to fight, evade, or distract them. When fighting a lizard, the head is protected while the lizard glows for some species. As they keep getting wounded, they will flicker and become more vulnerable.

Development
In the very beginning of the game, the only enemies the game was supposed to have were lizards.

They were initially named "Crocs", and their initial concept was the following: "'the Croc' is a crawling, climbing creature that can't jump, and is somewhat less mobile than the bear. This one will come in a few sub-species, some of which will be capable of wall climbing, increasing access the different areas of the map. They will have different stats and abilities and be threatening in different ways.".

Movement
Slugcats have two main ways of movement: crawling in tunnels or on poles and standing on open floors. Moving in a standing position is about twice as fast as crawling. On the other hand, lizards always keep at the same speed, slower than the slugat's standing position but faster than the crawling one. Which means that while on the floor, the player can outrun a lizard. However, in a tunnel or on a pole, the player will quickly be caught by the lizard because they are faster in tunnels.

Most lizards can, along with dragging themselves along the floor and crawling in tunnels, climb up poles, but some subspecies can't do it and some others can go as far as to climb up walls additionally. Also, while most lizards move like any normal lizards, green lizards appear to haul themselves along the floor.

If the player tries to jump over a lizard's head, the lizard will raise up it's head and snatch the slugcat mid air.

Senses
Lizards rely on several senses to perceive their preys and predators. First of all, there is sight range. A lizard has a 250° sight range, and can hear and investigate noises caused by the slugcat jumping, or by rocks thrown by the slugcat.

Hunting
Lizards use various strategies depending on the subspecies in order to catch preys. However, a large variety of them is able to do the following. When they are within close range of a prey, they will have two main ways to catch it: they will either go on at their usual speed mouth wide open to catch the prey, or they will stop for a few seconds before rushing forward way faster than usually with a gaping mouth. Once they have caught a prey, there is a chance for the prey to die, the chance being about 1 in 12 for the typical pink lizard, but it can greatly vary depending on the subspecies.

Taming
Whilst Lizards can't be fully controlled, you can distract them by feeding them prey. Throwing a dead Squidacada, Lantern Mouse or Scavenger at a Lizard can cause it grab the food, and run away with it's new meal.

Lizard Types
As stated by the Developers there are many different colored lizards, and each has its own unique behavior.

Lizard types (so far) include:
 * Red Lizard
 * Red Lizards are deadly hunters. Faster, more aggressive and more intelligent than the usual lizard, they do however only have the basics movements of a lizard. They are rarer than the usual lizard, but once he has spotted a prey, he won't give up easily...


 * Orange Lizard
 * Orange Lizards, also called Yellow lizard, possess large antennas on top of their heads. They use these antennas to communicate with other Orange Lizards. Orange Lizards are very dangerous, because they are pack hunters, and they can use strategies to encircle the slugcat and devour him. Orange Lizards fight less among themselves than other lizards, however, it is still unknown if this behavior is shared by the entire subspecies or only by a single pack.


 * Magenta Lizard
 * Magenta Lizards are the most common lizards, and they are found in many regions. However, it's not because they are common that they are to be taken lightly. Many unwary slugcats were cought and devoured by these omnipresent hunters...


 * Green Lizard
 * Green lizards are the toughest of all lizards. While they can't climb at poles like most lizards can, they are very hard to kill (5-6 hits with a spear???), so the best thing to do is to climb up a pole where these lizards won't be able to get at you. If confronted directly, Green Lizards will charge their prey, enabling clever slugcats to simply jump over them. They are also easily distracted and won't think as much over an event as other lizards would do. Green Lizards do consider the small blue lizards as prey, however are willing to fight most other animals. This makes leading other predators to a Green Lizard a powerful opportunity to escape from a deadly situation.


 * Blue Lizard
 * Blue lizards are the frailest of all lizards. However, they are rather fast and can climb up walls, and they will use this gain of mobility to catch prey where other lizards fail. Alongside the Blue Lizard's mobility, it also has a short tongue (about a body length long) that can be used to grab prey from a distance.


 * White Lizard
 * Much like a Chameleon, it has camouflage and a long tongue to grab prey. When they see a prey far away, they will wait for it to come into close range before trying to catch it with their tongue. Much like the blue lizard, the white lizard can climb up walls, making him a dangerous foe altogether. He can be barely seen thanks to his eyes, and like most lizards, when he sees a delicious prey, he will let out foam in anticipation of the meal to come even camouflaged, which can be helpful to see him before it's too late. They are some of the only lizards able to catch squidacadas thanks to their tongues, which can stretch the length of their bodies.If you ever get caught by the tongue, just throw something at it and it will let go. It is also possible for the lizard to lose its ability to camouflage if a spear is thrown at its head.


 * Black/blind Lizard
 * Blind lizards can be found in the subterranean and shaded citadel. They are very hard to see and so are you. They have no eyes and have little tendrils on their nose, if these are touched or bumped against walls the lizard's head will flicker, giving their position away. Escape without a light is impossible.(More info will be added here as it becomes available.)


 * Amphibian
 * Amphibians are lizards that have no glowing head, they come in white, black and red. Red amphibians have the same hunting stats as red lizards. Amphibians resemble that of an axolotl and have a sticky tongue just like blue and white lizards. They also swim much better.

Lizard Eggs
Quote from GAU Interview: Part 2, at 8:01 - http://youtube.com/watch?v=NLjRFJnO5k0?t=8m

Combat Tips

 * Most lizards can deflect spears aimed at the head, but it does give them a moment of pause for slugcat to escape.
 * The black parts of the body are soft and if hit right can be pinned against a wall with the spear.
 * Explosives scare away the lizards, causing them to leave whatever room you threw them in.
 * You can jump on a lizards' back without getting eaten immediately, but this is a very risky move since the lizard can snap its head back and grab you.
 * Lizards can be lured into environmental traps if they are focused enough on you.