The Rus Against the Lizards

TRAL — Russians vs. Lizards

A Slavic folklore mod for NeoForge. Humble villages, an ancestral hero... and a band of lizards that wants to raze it all.

What is this mod?

TRAL adds a small war to your world: Slavic villages against the Lizard Warband. Trade with villagers, earn zlatniks, equip the mighty Bogatyr who protects each village, provoke and survive a massive lizard raid, and defeat the Lizard Brute—a 300 HP monster with a unique fighting style.

World Generation

• Slavic Forest: A new temperate biome with oak trees and farm animals. Everything in the mod happens here.

• Slavic Villages: These spawn in the grove. Around the well, you'll find the Slavic Man, the Slavic Woman, the Elder, and the village's very own Bogatyr. Find one using /locate structure tral:slavic_village.

• Lizard Camps: These also spawn in the grove, garrisoned by Lizards, Engineers, Warriors, and a Lizard Woman gathered around their war banner. Find one using /locate structure tral:lizard_camp.

Zlatnik — The Currency

Everything revolves around zlatniks: lizards drop 1 to 3 coins when killed (45% chance), villagers buy your goods with them, raids yield a profit, and the Brute carries a small fortune.

Villagers and Trades (Right-click to interact)

• The Elder: Buys expensive items like Bogatyr Armor (45 z), Bottle of Baikal Water (64 z), and the Idol of Perun (64 z). He also buys honey bottles and beetroot soup.

• Slavic Man (The Armory): Sells the Bogatyr Mace/Sword (13 z + 5 iron), Spear (10 z + 2 iron), Shield (7 z + 7 iron), Bogatyr Helmet (23 z + 5 iron), and Bogatyr Light Chestplate (23 z + 8 iron). Also sells a Silk Touch pickaxe and a Sweeping Edge sword for 4 z each, trades arrows for sticks, and buys iron.

• Slavic Woman (Food): Sells Pancakes (28 z), Dinosaur Eggs (20 z), eggs, bread, cake, and pie. She buys sweet berries. Get close to her, and she will teach you the Flower Crown recipe; she weaves her own using the flowers she gathers.

• Lizard Woman: She will only trade with you if you are wearing the Lizard Head. She sells her Poisonous Sword for 40 z.

The Bogatyr

The village champion: every village has one, and he is your brother-in-arms in this war.

• Equipment Screen: Right-click him to open his inventory. He has slots for weapons, shields, and armor, all of which render visibly on his body.

• Orders: Command him to "Hold position" or "March with me."

• Leveling: Feed him to heal him; equipping him with a full set of armor upgrades him to Level 2 and changes his appearance.

• Arming Him: Equip him with the mace, sword, spear, and shield from village trades, or with The Elder and Big the Mace (see Mysteries below).

Crafting Recipes

• Flower Crown: Poppies, daisies, string, and a vine (the Slavic Woman unlocks the recipe). Wearing it grants Luck V, but it breaks on the first hit.

• Pancakes: 2 wheat + sweet berries + 2 dinosaur eggs + sugar + a bowl. Creates a placeable stack of pancakes with 7 bites. Each bite restores hunger, and you get the bowl back at the end.

• Lizard Head: Lizard scales surrounding a leather helmet with two strings underneath.

The Power of Perun

• Bottle of Baikal Water: Drink it to gain the Power of Perun (~85s): the god of thunder watches over you, and lightning smites your enemies.

• Idol of Perun: A placeable idol. Its aura (20-block radius) grants the Power of Perun to players, villagers, and the Bogatyr. Place one in a village before a raid.

The Lizard Warband

• Lizard: The common raider. They skirmish in packs.

• Lizard Warrior: The elite troops. One of them carries the war banner... keep an eye on him.

• Lizard Engineer: Fires a shotgun and breaches walls when he can't reach you. Walls won't save you.

• Lizard Woman (Support): Heals nearby lizards and spawns new ones over time.

• Drops: All of them drop lizard scales.

Disguise: The Lizard Head

Put this on, and the lizards will barely be able to tell you apart from their own. They will ignore you unless you attack first (if provoked, they aggro for about 60 seconds before forgetting about you). Walk right into their camps, trade with the Lizard Woman, and explore freely. Note: The Brute is never fooled.

The Raid: Reptilian Revenge

• Triggering the Raid: Kill the Lizard Warrior carrying the banner (found in lizard camps). A horn will sound, and you will be marked with Reptilian Revenge.

• The Siege: While marked, getting close to a Slavic Village starts the siege. You must survive 5 waves of raiders with a boss bar, with each wave larger than the last.

• Canceling: Dying or running more than ~128 blocks away cancels the raid.

• The Finale: The fifth wave brings the Lizard Brute, who carries the banner.

• Victory Rewards: 20 zlatniks, 5 diamonds, 10 emeralds, 7 gold coins, 3 pancakes, and 2 bottles of Baikal water.

The Lizard Brute

The Brute only marches with the final wave of the raid: a slow, heavy wall of muscle with 300 HP.

• Attacks: He has 4 attacks with distinct wind-ups that you can anticipate and dodge: a ground-shaking stomp that sends blocks flying, a double mace spin when surrounded, an aerial smash once he's wounded, and a standard strike.

• Watch Your Positioning: Never stand behind him! His tail will counterattack with a heavy blow.

• Phase 2: At half health, his helmet shatters.

• Loot: 20–25 zlatniks, Big the Mace, 8 lizard scales, and a high chance of dropping diamond blocks and enchanted golden apples.

• Big the Mace (13 Damage): This weapon can only be wielded by a Bogatyr; it crushes any player who tries to hold it.
  
  

Mysteries

• If an Elder is crushed to death by an anvil or a deadly fall, a part of him remains... an item that only a Bogatyr can wield.

• Dinosaur eggs aren't just for making pancakes. Or are they?

Getting Started

1. Install NeoForge and drop the mod's .jar file into your mods folder.

2. Locate a Slavic Village, meet your Bogatyr, and start trading.

3. Craft a Lizard Head as soon as possible—walking safely among lizards makes early gameplay much easier.

4. Gear up your Bogatyr, place down an Idol of Perun... then go kill the banner bearer and defend the village!

5. All items can be found in the mod's custom creative tab.

Info

• Languages: Available in English, Spanish, and Russian.

• Mod Loader: NeoForge

• Sides: Required on both Client and Server.

• Development: Created with MCreator, featuring custom models, animations, and sounds.

• Source Code: https://github.com/soyheriosmods/TRAL

• This mod is participating in the ModJam 2026 contest; the full source code is available on GitHub.