Argonian

Argonians are the reptilian denizens of Black Marsh. Little is known and less is understood about them. Years of defending their borders have made the Argonians experts in guerrilla warfare, and their natural abilities make them equally at home in water and on land. They are well-suited for the treacherous swamps of their homeland, and have developed natural immunities to the diseases and poisons that have doomed many would-be explorers into the region. Their seemingly expressionless faces belie a calm intelligence, and many Argonians are well-versed in the magical arts. Others rely on stealth or steel to survive, and their natural agility makes them adept at either. They are, in general, a reserved people, slow to trust and hard to know. Yet they are fiercely loyal, and will fight to the death for those they have named as friends.

While Argonians appear reptilian in nature at first glance, they also exhibit fish- and amphibian-like qualities, such as being able to breathe underwater, having small gills behind their ears, and swim using the same body mechanism as that of a tadpole or eel, waving its tail side-to-side to propel itself through the water. Unfortunately for the Argonians, the very traits that enabled them to survive so well in the swamps of their homelands also made them ideal slaves for hard labor in regions of Morrowind that would prove uninhabitable to the other races. They are commonly enslaved along with the Khajiit in Morrowind. Though slavery is illegal in the rest of the Empire, the Dunmer of Morrowind were allowed to own slaves for quite some time. This was due to the conditions of the treaty under which Morrowind joined the Empire, which allowed the Dunmer to follow their ancient traditions concerning the ownership of slaves. King Helseth has recently abolished slavery from Morrowind due to political and moral

Personality
Argonians possess the most alien personalities in all of Tamriel from a human or meric perspective and it is therefore often assumed that Argonians possess neither personality nor emotions. Of course this is not true; Argonians simply do not express their emotions by shifting their face as man and mer do. The only emotion they can express facially is anger and the only signs for that are bared teeth and narrowed eyes.

Religion
The Argonian pantheon is widely unknown but seems to contain references to Sithis (any Argonian hatched under the sign of the Shadow is given to The Dark Brotherhood and referred to as a "shadowscale"). The Argonians worship the Hist, as well; it is unclear as to what the Hist actually are, however. The first edition of the Pocket Guide to the Empire points towards the Hist being a different breed of Argonians that are ugly and frail, yet intelligent (although the Bethesda staff has hinted that this description of Hist as a breed of Argonians was a mistake). Other more reliable sources imply that the Hist is a type of ancient, sentient tree considered sacred by the Argonians, and that the tree secretes a type of sap-like resin that hardens and, when molded, can make ideal armor. In addition, Hist sap can be violently hallucinogenic when ingested, as can be seen from events during the Oblivion crisis.

History
Indeed, it appears that there are many different breeds of Argonians; when compared, the Argonians from the various games seem drastically different. The Arena Argonians were merely gray humans with small, black eyes and hair ranging from blue-green to bright red. The Daggerfall Argonians, while more closely resemblant to the Morrowind breed, were still of human body structure, but had serpentine tails, lizard-like faces, dull green skin and lime-colored ventral scales. The Redguard Argonians were basically stocky-looking Morrowind Argonians, and the Oblivion Argonians can be best described as a cross between the Daggerfall Argonians and possibly the Arena Argonians, standing completely upright, rather blunt-faced, and reddish in color. It is likely that the different types of Argonians are simply different strains of the same Argonian race. It has been hinted by "Wormgod" of the Bethesda staff that an Argonian's appearance is determined by how many times "they decide to lick the tree," most likely referring to the Argonian tradition of licking Hist sap after they come of age.

Tribes
Argonians usually live in tribes, each having their own customs as well as differing appearances. There are a few known tribes:
 * Agacephs: Most have needle-like faces and vary in color from bright green to orange. They live in the inner part of Argonia, near the Hist.
 * Archeins: During the time when other races tried to put plantations in Argonia, Archeins were very powerful. They made most of their money by selling other Argonians into slavery.  Since the other races realized Argonia is unfit for plantations, they have gone bankrupt.
 * Paatru: Described as "toad-like," they live in the inner part of Argonia.
 * Sarpa: Described as being "winged", though it's unclear if this is meant literally or not. They live in the interior of Argonia.
 * Nagas: They are described as having "huge mouths filled with dripping needle-like fangs". They are usually seven to eight feet tall.  They also appear to be more snake-like than other Argonians.  When the other races were attempting to put plantations into Argonia, they generally acted as highway men, robbing passing caravans; however, since the other races ceased trying to put plantations in Argonia, they have left the roads and have gone back into the inner swamps.