Snake

Snakes are cold blooded reptiles which have no legs and move using their body muscles. They are mostly carnivores.

Background

In Daventry and other lands, serpents range from a variety of sizes, from the smallest of garter snakes to monstrous sea serpents.

It is written in parts of Daventry people are known to charm snakes, causing the reptiles to go into brief trances induced by the rhythm of music. It is said that in some parts the Other World, fakirs can charm the king cobra and make it do the fakir's bidding, merely by playing a mystical tune for it on a flute. This may be true; however, it is said by more skeptical scientists who claim to have studied the phenomenon that the snake is just following the swaying motion of the person playing the music and not the music itself. The cobras in the world of Daventry don't seem to have heard of this pronouncement. There are those in world of Daventry who also use the music of the flute to charm cobras.

On the other hand, the snake Graham encountered in the mountains of Serenia did know something about getting spooked. Snakes, like most creatures in Daventry will start, then flee, at sudden and unexpected noises. This particular snake took that particular pronouncement seriously.

Throughout history serpents have been depicted as vile, evil creatures. This also seems to be true in the world of Daventry, evidenced by the satanic serpentine icons and statues in the dark wizard Mordack's castle, and by the fact that Alexander refers at many times to Alhazred as "that snake".

In the Ancient Ones language the serpent is the animal that represents the letter U.

Snakes

Interestingly, snakes make an appearance in every King's Quest game (except the original KQ1AGI):

In Adventure in Serenia/The Wizard and the Princess, there were many rattlesnakes blocking the Wanderer's way though the Endless Desert of Serenia. He had to kill or drive them away by throwing rocks and sticks to them. He finally saved the King of the Snakes who was trapped under a rock. In the first half of the desert the wanderer encountered a coiled snake which he used a rock to kill. In another area he encountered a snake sticking it's head out of a hole. He used the stick on it to scare it away. Inside of the hole was half of the Hocus note. The wanderer also encountered the occasional random snake slithering through the desert which he avoided or used his stick to drive them away.

In the KQ1 remake, there was snake living in swampy lake, one of the many lakes in Daventry.

In KQ2, An Evil Enchanter had turned Pegasus into a viper because he had refused to be his mount, and Graham turned it back into its real form by giving back its bridle.

In KQ3 there were many snakes living in the desert of Llewdor with Medusa, a snake-haired humanoid.

In KQ4 a snake, a cobra, was on one of the islands at the Swamp of Tamir guarding the Magic Fruit.

In KQ5 there was a poisonous snake blocking the path to the mountains. There are also big sea serpent in the sea near Mordack's Island.

In KQ6, Shamir Shamazel turned into a snake to spy Alexander when he was using Sing-Sing to send presents to Cassima.

In KQ7, an eel, the Snake Oil Salesman runs a small cart in Falderal, however unlike most snakes he has two arms. He hams up the act of being a snake, even hissing some of his words or dramatic effect (so that others assume he is a snake or member of the Snake-man race). The branch shaped like a snake is a clue to getting into the Boogeyman's home. THe Badger Guard asked for a "golden-haired fruit snake".

In KQ8, Connor had to fight some Water Snakes in the lower levels of the Temple of the Sun.

Sunbellied Ratsnake is a species of snake found in Daventry, and mentioned in See No Weevil. Rosella wanted it killed, but was told it was completely harmless.

Behind the scenes

Poisonous snakes are not uncommon in fairy tales be it from 'poisoning' via venom or snakes being poisonous to eat. See Mohammed with the Magic Finger, The Story of Zoulvisia, or The Snake Prince: in Andrew Lang's Fairy Books. See also Oleg: the Prince Who Was Killed by His Favorite Horse and Charlegmagne and the Snake. The Twelve Brothers in Grimm's Fairy Tales. Sinbad had to deal with poisonous snakes as well.The Legend of Saint Brandon also had him land on an island with poisonous snakes. Poisonous Snake is also a common DND creature as well (a 'tiny beast').

The snake in KQ5 is called The Snake in the credits.

See also poison, venom, toxin and bane for some of the similarities and differences between terminology. This article is not the place to discuss pedantic online debates on terminology.