Again, that's a completely different thing. Gross physical differences. Just because they're both serpents doesn't make them remotely the same thing. Naga are a paranormal critter, period. They're not the Awakened version of anything. When a Naga's Magic falls to 0, they don't become an anaconda or any other snake.

You're right. Giant frakking snakes in the amazon are different from giant frakking snakes that can use magic in the amazon. Huge difference.

Exactly. Plus, y'know, the fact that they have faces, vocal cords, etc. I mean, if you're ignoring massive physical differences, you could just equate all birds, all fish, whatever. Perhaps you meant that an un-Awakened Naga would be broadly *like* an anaconda?

Not that it has anything to do with the topic.

Re: hybrids, they *have* classifications. A tiger/lion is either a tigon or a liger, depending on the parent sexes. A zebra/horse is either a zorse or a horbra. These are sterile (mules), so they're not a species. A half-wolf is wolfdog, and they're both already the same species in the first place.

Horbra is really an unfortunate name.

It's the shame that makes them sterile.

Really? I thought it was the clasps

Also, I think the idea of calling a taxonomy *correct* is a problem. At the risk of continuing to be off-topic, I'll reiterate that *any* taxonomy, any scientific classification of things grouping more than one individual, is ultimately arbitrary. The ultimate measure of usefulness to a classification is its usefulness. It's true that Linnaean classification has been falling out of favor for decades now in favor of a less hierarchical taxonomy, because it's more useful in today's world of DNA research and evolutionary taxonomy. Perhaps in a world where scientist magicians (I get a little thrill down my spine when I say that) can examine the auras of critters, another taxonomy would prevail entirely. Again, that does not make one *wrong* or another *right*. Science is not about an endless progression of proving others wrong, it is about discarding techniques which are no longer useful or precise in favor of those which are.
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Regarding the naga thing, I think Neraph was trying to get at the *statistics* of a Naga being mostly the same with an Awakened anaconda. What that was trying to prove I am typically at a loss to guess.

More or less right. I was trying to say that mages can take the form of an "un-Awakened Naga" by simply taking the form of an anaconda, which would share very similar physical attributes and mundane Powers. I don't think a boa constrictor (~8 feet) would work well for an anaconda (~7 meters/23 feet - 3 meters shorter than the typical length of a naga, and who says all naga are 10 meters?).

Yeah, I'd say the sapient naga isn't a great basis for the mundane anaconda. Let's look at the real snakes listed in RW. Boas have listed BOD 6 STR 8, and they run 3 or 4 meters only - a lot thicker and tougher than skinny little mage-snake nagas. A six- or seven- meter anaconda is a true beast, I'd say BOD 8, STR 9. Constrictor snakes don't have super fast reflexes, say AGI 3 R 1, and obviously mental stats don't matter for shapechanging, but the python's CHA/LOG of 1, INT of 5, WIL 2, make sense here. The naga's Armor and Venom powers also don't make a lot of sense.

Eh. Yet more evidence showing us that the game designers really didn't look too in-depth on the stats for the creatures they were making.

Speaking of "looking in-depth." You know nagas aren't native to the Amazon right? Nagas are an Indian/Southeast Asian myth, they're based on cobras, which have a lot less girth for their length compared to a constrictor which uses sheer muscle for its attacks rather than venom, so they'd have less Body and Strength than an anaconda despite their prodigious length.

Don't let the fact that *you* think of a naga as an Awakened anaconda (something not supported by the stats, the fluff, or the source mythology) cloud the dev's intentions. Not saying they're always right, just that they shouldn't be *assumed* to have not done the research simply because of past evidence.

Well then why are they in the Amazon? And what other giant effing snakes do you know that are in the amazon?

Trolls came from humans. Nothing says Naga didn't come from a smaller snake and grow much larger.

Sounds like TheScrivener nailed it.