17
Anyways, the map. It's incomplete at the moment, with only the main continent done. Like the write-up, it still needs a lot of work, and yes, I am aware of the pixellation in certain places. But its still a WIP, so it'll be fixed soon (not to mention my PS skills sux).
Wedestia
So far, the following major Geographical features have been done:
Northern Icecaps
North-eastern Icelands
Unknown Crash Site (see if you can spot where a massive space-borne ship would crash
)
The Highlands of the Kirabeen.
Terra Mountain Ranges
Hamayan Valley
Icarus Desert
Sylvian Crater
Bensquirian Planes
What needs to be done:
Southern Ice Continent
Various Island Formations
Rivers
Major Cities and ports
Idarious Island (special island)
Domacles Valley
Chain 1 Control Centre
Chain 2 Control Centre
The Gateway of the Wanderers (special island)
Demarkation of Borders and empire reaches
Coloration of the various empires.
Political map
Any C&C would be appreciated
Wedestia
So far, the following major Geographical features have been done:
Northern Icecaps
North-eastern Icelands
Unknown Crash Site (see if you can spot where a massive space-borne ship would crash
)The Highlands of the Kirabeen.
Terra Mountain Ranges
Hamayan Valley
Icarus Desert
Sylvian Crater
Bensquirian Planes
What needs to be done:
Southern Ice Continent
Various Island Formations
Rivers
Major Cities and ports
Idarious Island (special island)
Domacles Valley
Chain 1 Control Centre
Chain 2 Control Centre
The Gateway of the Wanderers (special island)
Demarkation of Borders and empire reaches
Coloration of the various empires.
Political map
Any C&C would be appreciated
18
Smallish update. Finished physical description of the Charlen, as well as genetic/evolutionary history.
The Charlen
Physiology
1. Physical appearance
The Charlen are a primarily bipedal species that is comfortable on either two legs or four. They weigh in at an average of a hundred and twenty kilos for a fully grown adult male, with the females being an average of a hundred despite the large size.. The skin/scale color varies regionally depending on the climate and availability of the sun, but the most common pigmentation is a brown color only a few shades away from that of normal human skin pigmentation. Their body frame is rather large, and covered almost entirely in scales despite being a herbivourous and warm-blooded species. The scales gives the skin a slight sheen, much akin to that of a Snake's or Armidallo's. The average height of most charlens when normally bipedal is around Six feet and Eight inches, allowing them to tower over most humans quite easily. However, this is formed mostly by the significantly long neck and head. The shoulder-level height is only slightly higher than a normal human's. The upper chest and next area contains a 'girdel' like structure, with the upper back extending a significant percentage of the neck, providing essential support required.
The neck itself is several inches longer than a normal human's, and almost completely flexible. It is very similar to a bird's neck, capable of twisting nearly 180 degrees as well as being significantly strong. However, this structure is also one of the Charlen's greater vulnerabilities, and is an incredibly hard area to protect by most armor. It is also the smoothest part of the body, possessing very few scales concentrated mostly near the base.
The head itself is narrower and longer than a human's and is in more of a triangle shape. Covered almost entirely in scales (especially around the eyes and cranium structure) The top of the head itself is slightly expanded outwards, allowing to accommodate a significantly sized brain, on par in terms of size with that of a regular human's. The mouth and nose itself is a long and narrow snout and is filled almost completely with molars and premolars. However, occasionally there are the odd genetic anomalies in the outlying areas of canines appearing in the front, indicating a possible species-wide evolutionary shift from a purely herbivorous nature to an omnivorous one.
The nose itself is in the form of two slits on the top of the snout. The eyes are oval and similar in appearance and struture to human eyes, however much like a nocturnal creature's eyes they reflect light very easily in the night. The most common eye color is normally yellow, with the second most common being brown, followed by red, green and blue. There are no ear slits, as they are internally located.
Overall it would bear some resemblence to a lizard's head, once again confirming the reptilian ancestory of the species (see 2. Theorized Evolutionary History). The most notable feature however, is at the sides of the upper cranium itself, where two horns have sprouted. These horns bear some resemblence to a ram's in the sense they grow upwards and then curve around over 180 degrees before pointing at a 45 degree angle upwards to the snout. They extend to around 15 centimeters above the cranium structure, in essence allowing them to impale any person or predator in their way.
Below the head and neck, a distinct shoulder and collar bone structure is present, much like that of humans, allowing significant upper body strength and stability when standing upright. The bones are somewhat visible in the way they bulge through the skin, with the muscles present mostly on the back of the shoulder structure and near the arm. The base of the neck has the greatest amount of structure, with several muscles running along the top of the shoulder and up the neck, holding it in place. As mentioned before, the back itself is equally built up.
There are no mammary glands in the upper chest area, and it is covered in smooth scales. This is largely contrasting to the back, which is covered in much, much thicker and spikier scales, serving as a passive defense mechanism against predators. The back itself arches outwards several centimeters, giving the Charlens a slightly hunched over look. The structure is such that it allows them to run efficiently on all four legs if need be, but it gives them a slight waddle when they attempt to run or walk fast on two. The upper arms are long and slender, yet with significant strength. The hands are similar to a normal human's, but instead of five fingers there are three, along with an opposable thumb. The three fingers appear more like toes, however and the palm itself is rough and scarred from walking around on all fours. Till recently, this has given the Charlen some problem working with smaller tools and sensitive equipment – an ability that they envy the humans for.
The torso and abdomen is where it varies the most between the sexes. Most males will have a smaller adbomen, with the sides and back arching inwards significantly, while the opposite is true for the females, mostly due to the difference in internal organ structure. Again, scales are present all along the spine at the back, towards the tail.
The tail itself starts from where the back arch ends. For male Charlen, the tail is around 1 meter in length, while for females it is around .8 meters. The tail itself is significantly thick and heavy, and is not very flexible. It is most often used as a counterweight when running and for transitioning between a running and upright position.
The Charlen's legs are slightly shorter than human's, but significantly thicker and more powerfull. They are capable of propelling the Charlen to significant speeds when combined with the forward arms.
Overall, the Charlen are somewhat intimidating when it comes to apperance, towering over most of their human compatriats and being physically strong.
Next up, Evolutionary history.
2. Theorized Evolutionary History
The only ones currently holding any data of the other species' evolutionary history are the Nevosians, however the information resource was freely available till around three hundred years ago. But with the destruction of the Igneous Scientific Society, most of the data on land was lost. The Nevosians have since not allowed any organization access to the data, however what they have done is told it a few specific individuals here and there out of either kindness, or in trade.
One of these individuals was Gravin Gin, an apperantice in the service of the Stairan medical core. Around twenty-five years ago, she rescued a stranded Nevosian from a dried-up lake, and then returned it to the ocean, as opposed to turning it in for interrogation, as was standard procedure. Grateful for this act of kindness, the Nevosian agreed to answer any of her questions and provide as much information as required. As the story goes, Gin asked the Nevosian about the origin of the Charlen species as a whole; as well as much information from their vaults on the species biology as possible.
The Nevosian obliged her as much as it could, sharing with her the knowledge the Wanderers had left them about the Charlen.
The Charlen appear to be a relatively young species, thought to have gained setience merely a millenia before the Wanderers had planted them here. The planet of origin is thought to have been entirely different than Wedestia; ranging from intense extreme to intense extreme, far greater than anything seen on Wedestia. On this planet, the Charlen were thought to have evolved in a narrow equatorial zone where life had managed to get a foothold and flourished. The first life forms here were supposedly strage creatures that thrived in a massive network of caves and underground lakes that lay underneath the belt. Life slowly crawled out of the caves and grow out into the open, where forests and trees had already taken root. Evolution soon took a foothold here, with thousands of species emerging and then dying within the relatively short gap of a million years.
The earliest forms of advanced life were lizards and cold-blooded animals, much akin to the lizards of Humanity's evolutionary history. However, here, they continued to evolve and die out, with genetic mutations happening almost every generation. The primary reason for this was the ever-changing climate, which did not favour a cold-blooded or large sized species. Finally, the ancestor of the Charlen came out. It was the first warm-blooded animal on the planet, capable of feeding and digesting the various plant life around it with ease. It was the only one capable of adjusting to the weather conditions around it, and continue a cycle that was active in either day or night.
This creature was far more adaptable than it's counterparts and was capable of spreading quickly. Since it was herbivorous, however, it soon became a regular food source for several predators. As a defensive strategy, the creature mutated several horns with which to defend themselves against the predators. Over each generation, the defensive mechanisms changed as the struggle between predator and prey escalated. Eventually, the creature reached the point as it we see the Charlen now, except that it was estimated to be around 4-5 times the current size and weight of most Charlen.
It had appeared to the Wanderers as if the entire evolution of the species had a sense of setience behind it, which wasn't half-false, in actuality. A breakthrough came out when the Predators that migrated from other sections of the equatorial belt to the small patch that the Charlen inhabited. These predators were far, far larger than any that were in that section itself, and found the slow and heavily armored Charlen to be easy prey.
This sparked off the final few evolutionary changes before setience. The only ones that could survive the predators were those that were too small for them to chase through the thick jungle canopy, and the ones that could run the fastest. This led to the decrease in physical size of the species over several generations, as the fastest and lightest survived. Several mutations occurred over the next several generations, effectively reducing the weight and increasing the creature's top speed. One of these changes including the hollowing out of some of the bones; especially in the neck and the head. This is suggestive of an evolutionary shift that would eventually take the species off the land and away from the predators in the form of flight.
Only the groups that were cunning enough to dodge the predators and work together survived; leading to only the intelligent to survive. Eventually, this intelligence continued to grow; leading to better communications, the formation of tactics and usage of terrain; mostly the classic signs of setience and intelligence. But it was still rudementary, still primitive in nature.
The final evolutionary change was the same that propelled humanity to full-blown culture: setience, and the formation of the opposable thumb. These two last changes brought about the Charlen that can be seen today. The development of a primitive society began soon after, along with the classic signs of shifting from a roaming species to a gathering one, and then one that was capable of farming. Predators were no longer an issue, as intelligence, tools and co-operation ensured that they could always hold out against them. Their only enemy now was the environment around them, time and the plague that had affected most setient species to date: overpopulation.
But the evolutionary changes did not end; for the environment around them was changing and the Charlen had nowhere else to go. As the environment started to become hotter, leaves and foliage continued to grow less, causing droughts and mass starvations. Only those that could adapt to the circumstances by changing diets slightly were able to scrape through the rough period. This period appears to have had a massive effect on the species as a whole, as till today, despite the conditions having changed, mutations where the front molars are replaced by canines are significant.It is still unsure wether the charlen's evolution will continue as the species advances, or wether they will share the same stagnation that humans have, simply out of the lack of any such need.
However, despite acquiring this information, Gin was not able to identify at exactly which point of time the Charlen were removed from the planet by the Wanderers, or indeed, wether any had been left behind. From what information the Nevosians possesed, the planet had undergone several tectonic changes, essentially changing the climate irrevocably and causing mass extinctions. It is most likely that the Wanderers had taken either a small sampling of the Charlen, or moved them out completely at this stage, however it could just have been earlier on. The only solid information is a statement given by the Nevosian, one which was passed down generation to generation for several centuries. It was a statement said by the leader of the first group of Charlen to step foot on Wedestia, one whose name was unpronouncable in either new tounge or English. When loosely translated, the statement roughly goes:
“We have been brought here today; by fate, by time and by life itself, as gaurdians and champions of the force that binds all of us together. We, the chosen, have left behind glory and our former lives in the service of not only those that were left behind, but in the service of existance itself. Feel proud and have courage my friend; for the Wanderers rescued us not from strife or from famine; but from ignorance and solitude. Make no mistake; we are not in heaven, or anything like it. Our survival will not be garaunteed, and it is certain that we will be tried and tested in our ability to do this eternal task. I will not promise you a better existance, for it would be but a lie; what I can promise you is that in this endeavour, in this task, should you faulter or should you encounter trouble, I will be right alonside you, all the way. Now we must go onwards, my friends! For honor, for our lives, and for that of existance itself!”
The statement roughly suggests that the Charlen willingly left their planet with the aid of the Wanderers. However, the context of the statement is unsure, especially in regards to the mention of other species. Truly figuring out the genetic history of the Charlen is near impossible due to this, as it is unsure just how much the Wanderer's influence has changed it, not only here, but on the Charlen's home planet as well. Such an example of change can be that of the Nevosians itself.
Using this knowledge, Gin published the findings again, with the verification former Igneous Scientific Society member Jared Tran. Currently, this is the most widespread explanation accepted regarding the evolution of the Charlen as a whole. However, one of the most important question that remains is whether the nervous system structure of the Charlen that allowed for sensitivity to the second change is a natural formation, or one created by the Wanderers. The exact details on the system will be referred to under the next section.
The Charlen
Physiology
1. Physical appearance
The Charlen are a primarily bipedal species that is comfortable on either two legs or four. They weigh in at an average of a hundred and twenty kilos for a fully grown adult male, with the females being an average of a hundred despite the large size.. The skin/scale color varies regionally depending on the climate and availability of the sun, but the most common pigmentation is a brown color only a few shades away from that of normal human skin pigmentation. Their body frame is rather large, and covered almost entirely in scales despite being a herbivourous and warm-blooded species. The scales gives the skin a slight sheen, much akin to that of a Snake's or Armidallo's. The average height of most charlens when normally bipedal is around Six feet and Eight inches, allowing them to tower over most humans quite easily. However, this is formed mostly by the significantly long neck and head. The shoulder-level height is only slightly higher than a normal human's. The upper chest and next area contains a 'girdel' like structure, with the upper back extending a significant percentage of the neck, providing essential support required.
The neck itself is several inches longer than a normal human's, and almost completely flexible. It is very similar to a bird's neck, capable of twisting nearly 180 degrees as well as being significantly strong. However, this structure is also one of the Charlen's greater vulnerabilities, and is an incredibly hard area to protect by most armor. It is also the smoothest part of the body, possessing very few scales concentrated mostly near the base.
The head itself is narrower and longer than a human's and is in more of a triangle shape. Covered almost entirely in scales (especially around the eyes and cranium structure) The top of the head itself is slightly expanded outwards, allowing to accommodate a significantly sized brain, on par in terms of size with that of a regular human's. The mouth and nose itself is a long and narrow snout and is filled almost completely with molars and premolars. However, occasionally there are the odd genetic anomalies in the outlying areas of canines appearing in the front, indicating a possible species-wide evolutionary shift from a purely herbivorous nature to an omnivorous one.
The nose itself is in the form of two slits on the top of the snout. The eyes are oval and similar in appearance and struture to human eyes, however much like a nocturnal creature's eyes they reflect light very easily in the night. The most common eye color is normally yellow, with the second most common being brown, followed by red, green and blue. There are no ear slits, as they are internally located.
Overall it would bear some resemblence to a lizard's head, once again confirming the reptilian ancestory of the species (see 2. Theorized Evolutionary History). The most notable feature however, is at the sides of the upper cranium itself, where two horns have sprouted. These horns bear some resemblence to a ram's in the sense they grow upwards and then curve around over 180 degrees before pointing at a 45 degree angle upwards to the snout. They extend to around 15 centimeters above the cranium structure, in essence allowing them to impale any person or predator in their way.
Below the head and neck, a distinct shoulder and collar bone structure is present, much like that of humans, allowing significant upper body strength and stability when standing upright. The bones are somewhat visible in the way they bulge through the skin, with the muscles present mostly on the back of the shoulder structure and near the arm. The base of the neck has the greatest amount of structure, with several muscles running along the top of the shoulder and up the neck, holding it in place. As mentioned before, the back itself is equally built up.
There are no mammary glands in the upper chest area, and it is covered in smooth scales. This is largely contrasting to the back, which is covered in much, much thicker and spikier scales, serving as a passive defense mechanism against predators. The back itself arches outwards several centimeters, giving the Charlens a slightly hunched over look. The structure is such that it allows them to run efficiently on all four legs if need be, but it gives them a slight waddle when they attempt to run or walk fast on two. The upper arms are long and slender, yet with significant strength. The hands are similar to a normal human's, but instead of five fingers there are three, along with an opposable thumb. The three fingers appear more like toes, however and the palm itself is rough and scarred from walking around on all fours. Till recently, this has given the Charlen some problem working with smaller tools and sensitive equipment – an ability that they envy the humans for.
The torso and abdomen is where it varies the most between the sexes. Most males will have a smaller adbomen, with the sides and back arching inwards significantly, while the opposite is true for the females, mostly due to the difference in internal organ structure. Again, scales are present all along the spine at the back, towards the tail.
The tail itself starts from where the back arch ends. For male Charlen, the tail is around 1 meter in length, while for females it is around .8 meters. The tail itself is significantly thick and heavy, and is not very flexible. It is most often used as a counterweight when running and for transitioning between a running and upright position.
The Charlen's legs are slightly shorter than human's, but significantly thicker and more powerfull. They are capable of propelling the Charlen to significant speeds when combined with the forward arms.
Overall, the Charlen are somewhat intimidating when it comes to apperance, towering over most of their human compatriats and being physically strong.
Next up, Evolutionary history.
2. Theorized Evolutionary History
The only ones currently holding any data of the other species' evolutionary history are the Nevosians, however the information resource was freely available till around three hundred years ago. But with the destruction of the Igneous Scientific Society, most of the data on land was lost. The Nevosians have since not allowed any organization access to the data, however what they have done is told it a few specific individuals here and there out of either kindness, or in trade.
One of these individuals was Gravin Gin, an apperantice in the service of the Stairan medical core. Around twenty-five years ago, she rescued a stranded Nevosian from a dried-up lake, and then returned it to the ocean, as opposed to turning it in for interrogation, as was standard procedure. Grateful for this act of kindness, the Nevosian agreed to answer any of her questions and provide as much information as required. As the story goes, Gin asked the Nevosian about the origin of the Charlen species as a whole; as well as much information from their vaults on the species biology as possible.
The Nevosian obliged her as much as it could, sharing with her the knowledge the Wanderers had left them about the Charlen.
The Charlen appear to be a relatively young species, thought to have gained setience merely a millenia before the Wanderers had planted them here. The planet of origin is thought to have been entirely different than Wedestia; ranging from intense extreme to intense extreme, far greater than anything seen on Wedestia. On this planet, the Charlen were thought to have evolved in a narrow equatorial zone where life had managed to get a foothold and flourished. The first life forms here were supposedly strage creatures that thrived in a massive network of caves and underground lakes that lay underneath the belt. Life slowly crawled out of the caves and grow out into the open, where forests and trees had already taken root. Evolution soon took a foothold here, with thousands of species emerging and then dying within the relatively short gap of a million years.
The earliest forms of advanced life were lizards and cold-blooded animals, much akin to the lizards of Humanity's evolutionary history. However, here, they continued to evolve and die out, with genetic mutations happening almost every generation. The primary reason for this was the ever-changing climate, which did not favour a cold-blooded or large sized species. Finally, the ancestor of the Charlen came out. It was the first warm-blooded animal on the planet, capable of feeding and digesting the various plant life around it with ease. It was the only one capable of adjusting to the weather conditions around it, and continue a cycle that was active in either day or night.
This creature was far more adaptable than it's counterparts and was capable of spreading quickly. Since it was herbivorous, however, it soon became a regular food source for several predators. As a defensive strategy, the creature mutated several horns with which to defend themselves against the predators. Over each generation, the defensive mechanisms changed as the struggle between predator and prey escalated. Eventually, the creature reached the point as it we see the Charlen now, except that it was estimated to be around 4-5 times the current size and weight of most Charlen.
It had appeared to the Wanderers as if the entire evolution of the species had a sense of setience behind it, which wasn't half-false, in actuality. A breakthrough came out when the Predators that migrated from other sections of the equatorial belt to the small patch that the Charlen inhabited. These predators were far, far larger than any that were in that section itself, and found the slow and heavily armored Charlen to be easy prey.
This sparked off the final few evolutionary changes before setience. The only ones that could survive the predators were those that were too small for them to chase through the thick jungle canopy, and the ones that could run the fastest. This led to the decrease in physical size of the species over several generations, as the fastest and lightest survived. Several mutations occurred over the next several generations, effectively reducing the weight and increasing the creature's top speed. One of these changes including the hollowing out of some of the bones; especially in the neck and the head. This is suggestive of an evolutionary shift that would eventually take the species off the land and away from the predators in the form of flight.
Only the groups that were cunning enough to dodge the predators and work together survived; leading to only the intelligent to survive. Eventually, this intelligence continued to grow; leading to better communications, the formation of tactics and usage of terrain; mostly the classic signs of setience and intelligence. But it was still rudementary, still primitive in nature.
The final evolutionary change was the same that propelled humanity to full-blown culture: setience, and the formation of the opposable thumb. These two last changes brought about the Charlen that can be seen today. The development of a primitive society began soon after, along with the classic signs of shifting from a roaming species to a gathering one, and then one that was capable of farming. Predators were no longer an issue, as intelligence, tools and co-operation ensured that they could always hold out against them. Their only enemy now was the environment around them, time and the plague that had affected most setient species to date: overpopulation.
But the evolutionary changes did not end; for the environment around them was changing and the Charlen had nowhere else to go. As the environment started to become hotter, leaves and foliage continued to grow less, causing droughts and mass starvations. Only those that could adapt to the circumstances by changing diets slightly were able to scrape through the rough period. This period appears to have had a massive effect on the species as a whole, as till today, despite the conditions having changed, mutations where the front molars are replaced by canines are significant.It is still unsure wether the charlen's evolution will continue as the species advances, or wether they will share the same stagnation that humans have, simply out of the lack of any such need.
However, despite acquiring this information, Gin was not able to identify at exactly which point of time the Charlen were removed from the planet by the Wanderers, or indeed, wether any had been left behind. From what information the Nevosians possesed, the planet had undergone several tectonic changes, essentially changing the climate irrevocably and causing mass extinctions. It is most likely that the Wanderers had taken either a small sampling of the Charlen, or moved them out completely at this stage, however it could just have been earlier on. The only solid information is a statement given by the Nevosian, one which was passed down generation to generation for several centuries. It was a statement said by the leader of the first group of Charlen to step foot on Wedestia, one whose name was unpronouncable in either new tounge or English. When loosely translated, the statement roughly goes:
“We have been brought here today; by fate, by time and by life itself, as gaurdians and champions of the force that binds all of us together. We, the chosen, have left behind glory and our former lives in the service of not only those that were left behind, but in the service of existance itself. Feel proud and have courage my friend; for the Wanderers rescued us not from strife or from famine; but from ignorance and solitude. Make no mistake; we are not in heaven, or anything like it. Our survival will not be garaunteed, and it is certain that we will be tried and tested in our ability to do this eternal task. I will not promise you a better existance, for it would be but a lie; what I can promise you is that in this endeavour, in this task, should you faulter or should you encounter trouble, I will be right alonside you, all the way. Now we must go onwards, my friends! For honor, for our lives, and for that of existance itself!”
The statement roughly suggests that the Charlen willingly left their planet with the aid of the Wanderers. However, the context of the statement is unsure, especially in regards to the mention of other species. Truly figuring out the genetic history of the Charlen is near impossible due to this, as it is unsure just how much the Wanderer's influence has changed it, not only here, but on the Charlen's home planet as well. Such an example of change can be that of the Nevosians itself.
Using this knowledge, Gin published the findings again, with the verification former Igneous Scientific Society member Jared Tran. Currently, this is the most widespread explanation accepted regarding the evolution of the Charlen as a whole. However, one of the most important question that remains is whether the nervous system structure of the Charlen that allowed for sensitivity to the second change is a natural formation, or one created by the Wanderers. The exact details on the system will be referred to under the next section.