Toci1 - Plated Murggle

Plated Murggles grow about 2.5 meters tall, making them slightly taller than their carnivorous cousins, the Quillback Murggles. While all Murggles have some armor, the Plated Murggle has the strongest one. Growing throw the dead skin coat running along their back are several plates made with interlocking hairs, similar to Rhinoceros horns. Predators have a hard time biting through these scales and may even find themselves with cuts around their faces as the scales have serrated edges.

But this protection comes with a few penalties. While they are just as muscular as their relatives, Plated Murggles move slower than most other Murggles due to the added weight. Herds of Plated Murggles cannot easily outrun their attackers and often must resort to forming a barricade with their backs. Adding noisy howls to this barricade will make the animals more threatning but moving together as one takes a lot of coordination from the herd. The other primary penalty comes during mating. Females lack some armor where their genitals are found and have slightly less protection but still enough to inflict injuries on other animals, including males. Males must balance themselves in an upright position in order to copulate and since mating can take a few hours, this can become very tiresome. Males who lose their stance may collapse onto the female and receive several cuts on their bellies.

"Plated Murggles are primarily inspired by pangolins. Looking back I wish I made the plates a little bigger, but at the same time I'm glad I didn't exagerate that detail. Exageration is something I'm saving for the last well known Murggle. Besides, compared to other Murggles, this one's armor comes off as the largest."

FUN FACTS:
Plated Murggles eat mostly plants but will occasional snatch blugs crawling on the soil.
Along with the armor on their back, Plated Murggles have additional plates hanging from their thighs that almost rake the ground. Their purpose is uncertain