《Detail Dive! Nature of Predators Fanon》 The Venlil The Venlil actually have a significant volume of high quality fanart! [1] , [2] , [3] , [4] , [5] , [6] , [7] . it is my understanding these are posts by the original artist, and not shares or reposts. If this is wrong, please correct me, and I will credit the artist appropriately. Numbers 1, 2, and 3 are by u/Demon_Deity, 1 and 2 specifically are commissioned by the original author u/SpacePaladin15 and considered canon; 3 is from the fanfic ¡®A Change of Pace¡¯, though the representations are based on said canon art. Numbers 4, 5, and 6 are by u/Inkanyamba and are my accepted headcanons, and numbers 4 and 5 were directly inspired by the commissioned art. Number 7 is a digital rendering, models designed and rendered by u/OnlyOneSyllable; while the representations are not canon, their tail-chain behavior is, which I will get into further down the essay. This assessment is considered the primary reference for my current and future Nature of Predators-related works, regardless of canonicity, and may be used freely by other writers and artists, regardless of connection to my own work. Please understand that some of my conclusions are not just off-base interpretation, but explicitly non-canon; namely a facsimile of scent as well as descriptions of reproductive biology and culture. This assessment is based on a combination of canon art commissions, my personally accepted artistic depictions as linked above, canon references to the main story including names, utterances, and physical descriptions, as well as input from influential fanon authors and their works, who I will name along with their contributing sections. The average Venlil is described as coming up to the average human''s collarbone. Assuming that, favoring simplicity over accuracy, the Average Human Height is 6ft even, or 183cm, measured at the top of the head with good posture, I am interpreting the average Venlil, measured at the top of their head with good posture, not counting wool or ears, in the range of 5ft even, or roughly 153cm. I believe the Venlil have less variance in their physical form than humans, as such their tallest, with exception to outliers such as gigantism or dwarfism, would be in the area of 6ft even, or roughly 183cm; and the smallest 4ft even, or roughly 121cm. They have two digitigrade ¡°knock-kneed¡± legs, one arm on either side of their torso, with one hand each, and a head attached to a vertical neck on top of the torso; this would result in an overall humanoid appearance. They have three fingers and one thumb, with a claw on each digit, including feet. They have a tail, as long or slightly longer than their torso, with similar fur along its length, building to a thicker tuft at the tip. A tail like this would be agile enough to be emotive, but neither strong nor flexible enough to grab or hold things. I¡¯m going to step slightly away from canon and conclude they have bare skin on the touch areas of their feet and hands, resulting in a ¡°pad¡± appearance. I believe these pads are soft and thick enough to allow for quiet movement. It is mentioned explicitly that the Venlil don''t use clothes, supported by repeated references to the oddness of human clothing, so they wouldn''t have shoes. Without shoes, I believe their footpads are tougher, in line with what you would see on outdoor animals on earth; this would be a consequence of walking unprotected on rough ground. Since they are neither quadrupedal nor routinely walk on their hands, I believe their handpads are much softer, especially among non-laborers. It is confirmed they have a thick wool coat. I believe this is especially thick around their neck, up the back of their neck or ¡°scruff¡±, and over the top of their head allowing the appearance of a crown; I believe this extra thickness developed to protect against biting, and to maintain blood temperature as it passes through the neck to the brain, though it may be trimmed or cultivated due to personal taste. I believe the coat maintains a naturally moderate thickness down the forward of their neck, down their chest, to their pelvis, and over the denser flesh of their legs and arms. As a dense coat would impede movement, and bare skin would chafe, I believe the coat gradually thins to a short fur texture, similar to a rabbit, along the inside of their arms, upper legs, and sides of their belly, as well as places where temperature regulation tends toward chilling, such as ears, forearms, shins, hands and feet. I believe their fur abruptly moves to a velvet texture around their snout, jawline, and eyes, in such a way as not to impede field of view or hygiene. The wiki describes Venlil as having wool on the black/white spectrum, so that''s easy to deal with. The fact they exist on a spectrum like that implies there are different shades of wool from different parts of Venlil Prime, allowing for interbreeding and mixing colors to make the explicitly mentioned grey. Some Venlil, Slanek especially, are described as having color in different parts of their body, which implies non-evolutionarily-significant mutations are present in the gene pool. This would allow the development of Patterns; color blocking is mentioned in canon, but striping, splitting, and spotting would also be possible, as they are all mutations of the same genes. All creatures on earth are susceptible to more severe mutations, such as Melanism, Albinism, Vitiligo, and Heterochromia, so I would expect the same from other living things; especially other mammals. It should be noted that, while alternate fur color is not mentioned in canon, Jimek¡¯s crown appears blonde as shown in art example [1] and the mere presence of black tones imply a melanistic basis for coloring, allowing for the presence of some browns as well. This is corroborated by fan consensus with the introduction of characters such as Taisa, Treven, Kailo, and Kessa, who all feature brown in their wool, as well as my own Alvi. My conclusions on changes in fur quality ©\ curly wool transitioning to short fur - are precedented by many creatures on earth, including wool-mammals; the fur and wool on their body is different than on their ears, snouts, or paws. Given that this implies the existence of non-curly wool genes, it is possible there are examples of Alopecia, Straight-furred, or Hypertrichosis. This essentially means there is opportunity for significant, possibly regional differences in Venlil fur. Canon specifically calls out the lack of clothes on Venlil, and more than once noted the clothes on humans being odd or barbaric, so we can assume that the Venlil don¡¯t use casual or decorative clothing in any sense; there are, however, examples of PPE, such as fire retardant exterminator uniforms. There has been no mention of adornments on Venlil, but there has been mention of the oddity of human piercing and dyeing, so we can also conclude that is unusual or totally foreign to them. This has no basis in canon, and no fanfic has mentioned this, but in my stories I believe the Venlil use Braiding in their fur in intricate patterns, including as a mark of a relationship. This is purely to allow for some form of personal decoration. I''m not going to codify the exact designs, to allow more freedom among writers, but I will be utilizing this for my works. What follows are spoilers for Chapter 129 of the core story, and makes significant revelations in pre-contact Venlil. ¡­ ¡­ ¡­ In chapter 129, it is confirmed that the Venlil were genetically altered on a large scale, and what we see in the modern story is notably different than what they had evolved to become; specifically, the Federation took advantage of inheritable deformities, namely knock-knees and non-development of olfactory organs. Pre-contact Venlil had strong bounding legs, adept at charging, leaping, and ramming, and a nose with nostrils within their snout. Canon descriptions as well as artistic consensus shows they still have a subtle snout, and I will be incorporating this into my conclusions. If they have a snout and no olfactory organ, then this snout would have its own genetic triggers for development; this is supported by their pre-contact method of violence; ramming. On that note, I also conclude that the lack of a sense of smell would allow a very sensitive sense of taste, in much the same way a blind human may have a stronger sense of hearing. Venlil may be able to ¡®smell¡¯ the air as they breathe through their mouth and said air flows over their tongue. This would still not be as effective as proper scenting, only capturing the thickest of scents, the same way a human can ¡®taste¡¯ especially bad body odor from several feet away. This sensitivity would, however, mean their food experience is very different from ours, allowing the ability to detect flavors we may not notice or perceive. Again, this is not an evolutionary trait; they don¡¯t have specific biology to allow for detecting new compounds, only that their mind is using the processing normally reserved for scent for other things. Back to their snout: even after federation interference, their snout would be very sturdy, mostly thick bone, though it would be hollow. It is possible, as evidenced by a blind person learning new senses to compensate, that the debilitated Venlil may have some sensation in this cavity, such as low-frequency sense, but this would be a learned sense from the body making up for the lack of smell; some individuals may never learn this sense and the space would be unused. The snout itself would have limited sensation, but would make up for it with very sensitive hair and skin, allowing them to have a powerful sense of wind direction and differing pressure. Despite the Federation¡¯s meddling, they were still confirmed as True Herbivores; as such, their jaw, as with most grazers on earth, would have well developed muscles resulting in a rounded look. I believe they evolved to eat especially fruit, stems, and tough ruffage, leading to a nearly solid row of grinding molars in the back of the mouth taking up most of the jaw; further forward, we would see well developed incisors, with a larger pair of incisor majora at the apex top and bottom of the mouth. I believe these are longer and wider than the ¡°two front teeth¡± in humans, but not as large, comparatively, as root and bark eaters on earth; this would imply that, due to a diversified diet and agriculture, their root-eating ability has diminished over the eons. I believe they have a very sensitive, flexible tongue, not unlike a cow, long enough for the average Venlil to touch the tip of their snout; some individuals may be more or less able. The flexibility and length of their tongue serves several purposes, including bringing food into their mouth and grooming themselves and their partners; more on that later. I believe they have internal lungs in their center-mass that connects via a windpipe to the back of their mouth. While specifics of diet have been sparse in the main story, I see many writers, myself included, expanding into sharing cuisine; it appears the consensus is ¡°xenos are lactose intolerant, nothing is dangerously poisonous,¡± with exception to the canonically described ¡°meat allergy¡± which may prove lethal when eating meat. Canonically, alcohol as a recreational beverage is well known to the Federation, and the Venlil are explicitly described as having a notably higher alcohol tolerance compared to any other species, including humans; this is well precedented on earth by many majority fruit-eaters having a similarly higher tolerance compared to their mass. Eggs and mushrooms especially are uncharted territory. I agree with these assessments, and will say the Venlil routinely eat and enjoy, human or otherwise, fruit, berries, and ruffage, and supplement their diet with roots, tubers, and nuts. In canon it is implied that widespread cooking is a uniquely human trait and both the Arxur and Federation eat almost entirely raw food, though prepared in some fashion. Given this information, I believe the Venlil have an additional stomach to allow them to digest foods we may have greater difficulty with. As to organs not explicitly explained in canon or I have not mentioned yet and will not mention later: I believe some internal organs are necessary to the existence of a mammal, such as heart, lungs, liver, kidney, bladder, gallbladder, a blood-filled musculature supported by a blood-producing skeleton, fueled with blood-pumping veins, suffused with a nervous system, wrapped in a soft and stretchy skin. It is my view that in order for the Venlil to exist and work in a way we can relate to, they must have all of these organs. However, the exact quantity, quality, and location of these organs is not, in my view, integral to artistic renderings, plot development, or character growth. As such, I leave this level of specificity up to the reader and writer, and defer to what may or may not be mentioned in later canonical works. Venlil are sapient, thinking, reasoning creatures, so their concept of relationships would be very similar to ours. I believe that, due to the influence of pheromones, their relationships are more stable and long lasting than the average human, resulting in a higher percentage of monogamy and a lower percentage of divorce. To clarify, they have every ability to judge if a relationship is not right for them, and there is very little stigma against doing so, though they still feel the sting of loss when a relationship ends. Due to being at war with the Arxur for 200+ years, their culture would have adapted to the constant loss of life, and a larger focus on productive pairs would be seen on an institutional level: public and familial pressure to start a family, tax credits for children, robust public schooling and adoption/fostering infrastructure, special treatment for productive pairs. Because of this, non-productive pairs, such as homosexuality, sterility, or inter-species relationships are thought of negatively, though not with the outright hostility we humans are more familiar with; individual experience may vary, I am referring to institutionalized systems and general attitudes. I want to believe in a world without hate of love, so in my canon this is evidenced by largely ignoring such relationships; under-researched, under-represented, and overall thought of as ¡°a phase¡± rather than a lifelong bond. Thank you u/MackFenzie , your Shoot Your Shot fanfic was a major inspiration for Venlil courting behavior. When a Venlil fancies someone, they normally advertise this by being overall closer to their crush: more focused attention, closer proximity, the giving of gifts or services, time with them being higher priority. They announce their intentions with physical touch, especially winding tails, but also touching ears is a more gentle approach. If these feelings are not returned, it is common to pull away from this touch, give a verbal denial, or both. The dating process would be largely similar to humans, going to the movies, reading or making art together, anything that can give an excuse to spend more time together. This is very relatable, so I won¡¯t expand on it further. After establishing a relationship, they would have non-obvious public displays of affection, such as winding tails, the focusing of attention or physical closeness. More intimate displays, such as touch with paw on intimate areas like the rump, waist or scruff, as well as nuzzling and intimate grooming are definitely present, but seen as inappropriate; kind of a ''get a room!'' situation. Thank you u/Rebelhero, for your suggestions on grooming. Grooming can fall under a range of familiarity; familial and friendly grooming is not uncommon, but what is groomed and how it''s done can carry heavy connotations. Grooming the whole body, including private areas, is common from parent to young child, though as the child ages and learns to groom itself, the parent moves to more socially acceptable areas. For example, parents may stop grooming the scruff of an adolescent, the muzzle of a teenager, and the neck of an adult. Grooming practices can also be used to escalate affections or more explicitly announce intention, with paw and tail contact reinforcing the invitation. Two friends may begin grooming as a show of appreciation, one may move to a more personal area such as the muzzle or scruff, advertising they are interested in a more intimate relationship with this person. One exception to this is Tail Grooming. The tail, as it is such a powerful communication tool, carries extra significance to any action that would impede its movement. To touch, grab, or groom a tail is intensely intimate, and may cause a scene if done in public, and will cause a scene if done by a stranger Thank you u/Braquen and u/Acceptable_Egg5560 for hashing out marriage customs over discord! Officially, marriage is paperwork, and could remain simply that with no further pomp and circumstance. A civilization of this complexity requires bureaucracy to function, and bureaucracy requires neither ceremony nor celebration. But that¡¯s not the fun part. Weddings would be a large family affair, and may have a focus on faith, starting of new life, merging of families, or any mix thereof. Most ceremonies are similar to the human hand-binding ceremony: they would use a piece of fabric, woven in the couple''s own wool, with their vows embroidered in Venlillian script. Dyes and metallic fabrics are well known, but most use their naked wool, relying on color contrast for embroidery. The most common designs would be a blanket or a scarf, but paw-wraps and tail-binds are not unusual. A Blanket would symbolize protection of each other and their union, as a shield, and has significant faith connotations, such as a blessing by the Protector or Inatala. A Scarf, longer than a human would feel practical, would be long enough to wrap the pair together, and would have connotations of weaving families, togetherness, long life, and loyalty; protection of each other, by each other. A Paw-wrap or Tail-bind would be very intimate, separating the pair from their families, and would have the connotations of a new life together, and new beginnings. It is also common, among closer and longer-lived families, to add new wool to an existing family garment. Blankets that take up the whole room, scarves that used to be tail-binds but are now several meters long. What follows is what I believe to be clinical descriptions of reproductive biology and mating behaviors; very little of this, if any, is in any way canon. This may be considered indecent for some readers, but I can assure you it is not explicit. I follow u/Rebelhero ¡®s interpretation in Pack Bonding, which I also expanded on in my own story. SP15 has confirmed via discord that the Venlil are sexually dimorphic, though not nearly as severe as humans are accustomed to; he specifically mentioned that the Females have an overall smaller bone structure, which would affect height, shoulders, and face most visibly, and a different quality of wool, though he did not specify how. Expanding on this, I believe that the Males have a thicker wool around their neck and scruff, selected for better protection of their neck. I believe the Venlil experience blushing - which they call a Bloom - when excited, agitated, or otherwise experiencing cardiac stresses. The bloom is most apparent where bloodflow is high and fur or skin are thin: around the snout, on hand and footpads and between fingers, sides of belly, erogenous zones including the groin and anus, as well as the neck, although thick wool may make it difficult to see; it is most apparent on the snout, and the deepest shades would largely appear on the snout, neck, and groin. Ch129 also confirmed that pre-contact Venlil were highly aggressive, so this blooming may have been an early posturing behavior; as well, the Venlil were so aggressive that native large predators strongly avoided them. This lack of competition or severe predation, in addition to Federation tampering suppressing their aggression, would mean that the modern Venlil only experiences bloom when excited, angry, or attracted, of which the latter provides the most severe response. The presence of a bloom implies a greater physical and emotional sensitivity in that moment, and care should be taken. Ranging in color from a pale yellow to a rich dark gold, the deeper shades tend to only appear when both relaxed and excited, as in intense arousal, though other triggers are possible. Venlil do have and follow urges, including breeding, though they are not dictated by them; even in the deepest influence of a Cycle, male or female Venlil can choose who to pair with and why. Going against this judgment to satisfy physical needs, while sometimes necessary for relief, is intensely shameful. These urges are more severe than is average in the Federation, and exacerbated by the sensing of pheromones. The lack of pheromones does not imply a lack of interest or intention, nor vice versa; attraction is separate and distinct from arousal. I do agree with the description in Pack Bonding of a Scruff, located in the back of the neck between the shoulders and base of the skull, developed in childhood and carried into adulthood. Compressing this organ, such as by grabbing, biting, or clamping, will cause docility in children - and adults though with less severity - of both sexes, and assists parents in moving their children; in modern times it is largely a punitive measure to halt unwanted behavior. Handling the scruff has heavy dominant connotations, which may or may not be effective intimate contact. Females are equipped with an external mound and labia, internal receptive organ, internal egg supply, and give birth to live young in single-child litters, though twins and so on are not uncommon. While aroused, the surrounding skin will Bloom, as mentioned earlier, but the more sensitive skin past the labial lips will mostly match internal anatomy in color. Females do not have an external clitoris, as the human equivalent is the product of an undeveloped penis; however, as I will expand on later, the Male organ is recessed into the body and presents out of their own labial mound; because of this, the Venlil ¡®clitoris¡¯ is located on the ceiling of the vaginal canal inside the body. Female Venlil experience a breeding cycle, roughly two or three times per orbit of Venlil Prime, averaging 8 to 14 average waking cycles. During this time, the Female will experience several hours, per waking cycle, of the emittance of pheromones, higher body temperature, impulses to mate, and an intense extended bloom to match; in more severe cases, compulsive breeding actions such as grinding may develop. Culturally, these experiences are mollified by hydration and exposure to cold; i.e. baths, chilled juice or fruit. The Females¡¯ cycles are all shades of terrible, but also get more severe, and provide less warning, every year without a productive pairing. The sensations during a cycle wax, peak, and wane over the course of affected hours; as a woman goes longer without conceiving, these peak hours extend, and buildup and cooldown become shorter. It is also implied, with a sample size of one pairing in Pack Bonding, that being attracted or having indecent thoughts can trigger, or rush the onset, of a cycle. I will clarify these are impulses, akin to what a human would call an intrusive thought, and does not indicate desire or reasoned consent. While Male Venlil produce reproductive material at all times, unlike humans Venlil males either do not, or suffer much less, random urges. Rather, the pheromones released by a Female can trigger breeding urges in Male Venlil, the intensity of which can be sensed, allowing observers familiar with the sensation to vacate the area; sometimes older male Venlil will gently coerce younger, less experienced males to leave. Urges build with continued exposure, until a meltdown where the male begins presenting, and breeding actions become compulsory. Intelligence and judgment are maintained, albeit hampered, allowing unconsenting parties to perform such compulsions on inanimate objects. Arousal, and especially presentation, in Males, causes the release of their own pheromones; these advertise compatibility to receptive partners and increase the odds of a productive pairing. By ¡°advertise compatibility¡± I mean that a detecting individual, male or female, may or may not find this taste/scent attractive, and may influence the decision to pair. Given the description of presenting, which again is only present in Pack Bonding which I am explicitly using as inspiration, the males have a penetrative organ which is normally concealed. To allow for ken-doll artistic renderings to maintain canonicity, I will conclude that Males have a labia-like organ, mostly flush with the body and concealed by the rabbit-like fur I mentioned earlier, from which a penetrative organ emerges when engorged with blood; it is for this same reason I conclude productive organs, or testicles, are also kept within the body. My own explicit chapter established the description of the male organ, and I will use that here. The male organ is housed within the body and maintains some rigidity with solid cartilage, or a Baculum, upon which the organ develops. The organ itself is supplied with blood, and as such may have variable hardness depending on arousal and cardiovascular health. It is a bright orange color, matching their internal organs, though its vascular supply tends toward many small veins as opposed to the human arteries, allowing surface texture to be mostly smooth. The underside is lined with swept-back ridges, believed to aid in the removal of competitor fluid as well as assisting stimulation. The top side is more sensitive and somewhat textured to assist in stimulating the internal clitoris mentioned earlier. The male¡¯s testes are located inside the body, though they supply seminal fluid to sacs at the base of the penis, giving the appearance of a ¡®knot¡¯ though functioning differently. These sacs are surrounded by twitch muscles that, when sufficiently stimulated, contract and eject the fluid into the recipient; it is believed that this process encourages the male to ensure the female¡¯s climax, so as to trigger clenching of the vaginal canal around the ¡®knot¡¯ and trigger the male¡¯s own climax. Both male and female Venlil experience pleasure in the act and stimulus of associated areas, including nearby external areas, and do seek this pleasure; as with humans, the drive to seek this sensation is highly individual, with extremes such as casual pairing, fetishization, or ¡°cycle parties¡± being present and known, but not culturally accepted. With the presence of pheromones allowing the possibility of unintentional public acts, the Venlil have developed their infrastructure with this phenomenon in mind: all enclosed spaces make use of natural airflow assisted by reliable winds on their tidally locked planet, widespread use of scrubbers limit the spread of pheromones, delivery services for isolated women on their cycle, walk-able cities emphasize natural spaces and open air. Due to these developments, and a Venlil¡¯s ability to sense their own pheromones as well as others and remove themselves, there are only 1-2 public incidents per orbit in larger cities. It should also be noted, as an aside, again with a sample size of 1 thruple in one fanfic that is Pack Bonding, that humans can sense and be influenced by Venlil pheromones, though the severity of the effect is implied to be negligible. It is also implied that human pheromones affect Venlil, but the effect is not readily apparent in the story. A pairing of healthy venlil resulting in a pregnancy is exceptionally likely during a female¡¯s cycle, and very unlikely outside of it; though there are reasons why one or both participants may be infertile or unable to perform. A pregnancy lasts the human equivalent of 10mo, and is a far more gentle affair than the human experience. Morning sickness is known though comparatively uncommon and an indicator of insufficient nutrition; a home remedy of gnawing on Shalkit bark for its density of vital nutrients like Vitamin C, D, and Folic Acid is very common. Kicking is less common though more intense, and in their natural state, the passage of the pup - while still uncomfortable and no joke - would have been less severe and dangerous than the human experience. However, the Venlil we see are not their ¡®natural state¡¯. As mentioned earlier, Ch129 of the core story confirmed the Venlil were heavily modified genetically and in such a way that their young would inherit these same issues; knock knees and an absent olfactory organ. As these traits are added and not evolved, they would have severe effects on the birthing process and early health of the infant. Breathing issues would be frightfully common among the very young, completely setting aside the concept of asthma which would be much worse, and result in SIDS being much higher among the Venlil and their young and mothers being in general more frail and prone to illness shortly after birth. Add that to the birthing difficulties of changing their leg/hip structure, this would cause infant and mother mortality to be exceptionally high compared to the rest of the Federation, and possibly even compared to IRL human metrics! As with all things, these metrics are rough estimations. No one develops the same or grows the same, and individual mileage may vary; also, I will be talking about behaviors across the full 20-ish years of Venlil development, please pay attention to the Units! I encourage other writers to simply use this as a stepping stone for their own story; write what- and how- ever you need to share your story in its best light! Well into and shortly after pregnancy, female Venlil develop milk-bearing teats on their upper torso, positioned in such a way as to allow the mother to feed the infant while she carries it, while herself walking and/or eating at the same time. These do swell to noticeable proportions, though significantly less than a human; C-Cup would be considered exceptionally large to a Venlil, averaging high A-Cup or low B-Cup. These teats are not permanent, and return to mostly normal size after weaning; while hips, shoulders, and wool quality may be noticeably different pre-pregnancy compared to post-weaning, chest size would be nearly indistinguishable. SP confirmed on discord that Venlil from birth to about 12mo are transported by their parents via strollers or by being carried. Post-pregnancy female Venlil grow thicker wool on their shoulders, breast, waist, and hips to allow protection from an infant''s claws as well as allow them more stable holding areas, and wean their pups at around 10mo-12mo. When the pups are too large to be held, young Venlil stay very close to adults, most especially their parents, and hold onto thigh and waist wool for comfort. While in transit, such as walking down a street, it is common but not ubiquitous for the young to hold the tail of the leader, and the follower, creating a chain of cubs walking where they need to go. Venlil join schooling around 36mo, though they continue these behaviors while they are in unfamiliar situations with their parents, such as new places or meeting new people. Venlil youth are more prone to wandering around 5yo, and will leave their parent''s side to explore their surroundings or socialize outside their family. Venlil are considered young adults around 10yo, and held to a higher expectation of behavior. Venlil are considered legal adults at 15yo, and treated as such after that point. Venlil Pups develop exceptionally quickly compared to humans, at 8mo they are able to walk with difficulty, and at 18mo they have the mental capacity of a human 36mo (3 years). This trend continues as they age, with a venlil joining schooling at 3yo, higher education at 14yo+, and a mental adult at 20yo; though it is worth noting that canonically, the federation considers them a legal adult at 15yo. As shown in patreon story Venlil Foster Program, Venlil pups may not have absorbed Federation indoctrination and still have heavy herd-making and outsider-excluding behaviors, including vicious bullying. As such, they would readily clump together especially around a parent or adult when surprised or frightened. Venlil are described to have exclamations such as Sigh, Beep, Squeak, and Scream; this tells me sound comes from their mouth and is modulated by a voice box high up their breathing tube. Venlil are described to attempt to smile with their human partners, implying the presence of lips, which, with the use of a tongue, allow for many of the forward-mouth sounds that humans make; such as Ah Eh EE OH OO, as well as M, B, P, T and L. Soft glottal stops such as G are possible, but the frequent mentioning of ¡°growling humans¡± tells me they are not utilized; hard glottal stops such as Hard C, K, and Q are much more likely. My description of their tongue, while it is not specified in canon, does not allow for a full covering of their palette, which makes Soft J, Soft C, Sh, S, J, N or Z difficult. Confirmed of genetic alteration in Ch129, the Venlil have neither a nose nor alternate breathing pathway, so they would breathe through their mouth constantly; this would mean they would have to speak with both inhale and exhale, so their language would develop ways to include sounds possible by the passage of air alone, such as forward-mouth sounds, hums, hisses, and even whistling; produced mostly in the back of the mouth by using their tongue and windpipe to create the proper embouchure. My conclusion is that they likely focus on forward-mouth sounds only, and use Whistling to add complexity to their language, in much the same way the human Khosian language uses clicks. It is shown in the Patreon Exclusive Venlil Foster Program that Venlil may communicate some complex ideas using their tail alone: a mother Venlil tells their child to work on their homework and stop being hostile to a human. I believe that this level of complexity can only be understood with a strong familiarity between the participants; if the mother tried to do this to a Venlil they have never met, the stranger would, at best, understand that the mother is unhappy about something. I reach this conclusion because the translator does not understand motion, only sound, which means that the Venlil language is not reliant on body language; without this reliance, tail movements would not be codified enough for such complexity to be widely known. More likely, the tail is able to communicate broad ideas, such as affirmative, negative, annoyance, fear, directing, or addressing. And those ideas, along with the context of a close relationship, can communicate more specific ideas. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Thank you u/ImaginationSea3679 for your comments on literature, I will expand on it here. In order to accommodate a complex modular writing system, I believe the Venlil have a few symbols to represent base sounds, and modify those symbols with many accents, having a structure similar to human Arabic. I believe their writing evolved from scratches on a soft medium, likely soft bark or reed, which would allow multi-directional marks, and would slowly morph into curves as handwriting became less structured. It is a subjective judgment, but I believe the Venlil would feel a sense of ¡°beauty¡± from their script, and would incorporate it into text and architecture, especially of faith, likely during a cultural renaissance. This text would simplify during a scientific renaissance, and simplify further during an industrial renaissance. The original calligraphy would become an art form and practice, and continue to be used for special events. As an example, a married couple may make a blanket using their shared wool, with embroidered vows also using their wool. The cultural genocide practiced by the Federation after first contact would further push this style of script to a hobby, ritual, or artform; we are seeing a similar transition of English calligraphy in our real world. If a Venlil-specific writing system still exists in common modern use, it would be tailored to the Founder¡¯s system of writing and record keeping, with only the barest Venlil influence. Please refer to my name reference Here, as it features all Venlil names from canon, kindly provided by SpacePaladin, as well as a variety of fanfic examples from many different authors. This is not an exhaustive list, please forgive me if I missed yours, but it is a large enough data set to work with. Starting with canon names we see mostly duo-syllabic, with a couple mono-syllabic, and a single triple-syllabic name, being Carliva. Among fanfics we see the vast majority are duo-syllabic, with scattered examples of mono- and triple-syllabic; so far there have been no examples of more than three syllables. This leads me to believe that duo-syllabic is the more traditional style, with mono-syllabic being a known but uncommon practice, and I believe triple-plus may be due to cultural bleed from other species. This is lent credence by the fact that all examples of triple-syllabic names also feature sounds that are unusual in other examples. We are noticing a lot of consistency in sound in both canon and non-, and I''m very pleased to see it largely coincide with my language conclusions I mentioned higher up; this was not planned, which is all the more satisfying. We are seeing a lot of Va and Vi, and especially Nek, though fanfic modulates that significantly with Lek, Mek, Tek, Rek, and Vek. They clearly enjoy both hard and soft consonants, though a surprising lack of P sounds! I have also noticed they make common use of open mouth sounds, such as Ah and Eh. Given their emphasis on duo-syllabic, I conclude there is a method to how names are determined, with some flexibility for creativity and individuality. I believe they base their names on people who are important to them, most typically parents; as an example, my character Va-lek has parents El-va (mother) and Lek-si (father). In their 200+ years of wartime this would expand to caregivers in general, and notable figures and family, such as an uncle who died in a raid and was remembered in their nibling''s name. Triple-syllabic is a known phenomenon, but not traditional. While there are examples otherwise, triple-syllabic is most often used by the well-to-do, referencing their parents, as well as a generational family name. Whether by the high class or otherwise, it still follows the similar convention of referencing people important to whomever named the child, simply more people. Also, an opinion that goes against convention and may be unpopular: I believe mono-syllabic names likewise feature an important person, but they end with -m to indicate the name is finished. This could be due to someone adopting a new name, whether by choice or tragedy, or a caregiver naming a child without knowledge of parentage, or intentionally ignoring a parent. This differs from Diminutives which do not have the -m suffix, and may be the result of aesthetic preference, or even a rejection of the person the neglected syllable refers to. Also, as sapient creatures, a Venlil has every ability and freedom to define themselves however they see fit, including changing or abandoning their birth name. I will be incorporating this in my story, though I understand many fanfics have examples counter to it.
Core Story (canon) Slanek Sla-nek Tarva Tar-va Glim Glim Kam Kam Cheln Che-ln Haysi Hay-si Volek Vo-lek
Ilja Il-ja Thima Thi-ma Carliva Car-li-va Mulnek Mul-nek
Venlil Foster Program (canon) Callsi Call-si Jimek Ji-mek Kaulin Kau-lin Vana Va-na Remsi Rem-si Tibek Ti-bek Cylek Cy-lek
Nalva Nal-va Stram Stram Lashi La-shi
Human Exterminator (canon) Nam Nam Volek Vo-lek Rauln Rolln Rawln
Predator Disease (canon) Derva Der-va Sialsi Si-al-si Sial-si Nulin Nu-lin Mollsi Mohl-si Kalsim¡¯s Trial and Sentence (canon) Mynek My-nek
Foundations of Humanity Adults Valek Va-lek Alvi Al-vi Tarva Tar-va Borven Bor-ven Leksi Lek-si Elva El-va
Carvit Car-vit Bilvee Bil-vee Gliva Gli-va Nalja Nal-jja
Children Ilnek EEl-nek Vaibek Vai-bek Thiimek Thi-si-mek Shibek (Shishi) Shy-bek (Shee-shee) Voshia (Shia) Voh-sha (Shya)
Pack Bonding Kaabra Kaa-bra Venik Ve-nik A Rose by Any Other Name Talen Ta-len Elva El-va
Hunting with Predators Vikri Vik-ri Querek Que-rek Nel Nel Birin Bir-in Azik A-zik Inva In-va
Shoot Your Shot Glenil Glen-il Taysil Tay-sil Hana Ha-na True Predators Kona Ko-na
Nature of a Giant Tarlim Tar-lim Sharnet Shar-net Barlen Bar-len Pharva Phar-va The Fleece Irvo Ir-vo
Jauntes Jaun-tes Marklen Mar-klen Treven Tre-ven Rolem Rolem Autonomous Response Tavik Ta-vik
Have a predator friend, they said Tihal Ti-hal Cultural Osmosis Kyndl Kyn-dl Jyssh Jy-ssh
An Unconventional Rescue Felaf Fe-laf Kefte Kef-te Souvla Souv-la Sweater Weather Keehl Ke-ehl Riga Ri-ga Verek Ve-rek
Insertion (formerly Now Boarding) Zeleveya Zel-eve-ya Jalnak Jal-nak Rejio Re-jio Kaveel Kav-eel Tarrem Tar-rem Zicaeron Zi-cae-ron Yarmeh Yar-meh
Vril V-ril Jarun-del Ja-run del Zeitaff Zei-taff Predator in a Prey''s Body Jurzula Jur-zu-la
Predator Cattle Tevak Te - vek Triva Tri - va Slenk Slenk They Way of the Human Limmi Lim-mi
Intelopers Vlen Vlen Ovuk v - uk Svi Svi Fevri Fe - vri
Predator Disease Derva Der-va Sialsi Si-al-si Nulin Noo-lin Mollsi Mol-si
In canon, the Translator does all of the heavy lifting in terms of time. Measurements like ¡®seconds¡¯ and ¡®hours¡¯ all the way up to ¡®weeks¡¯ and ¡®years¡¯ are translated automatically, so one requires no further elaboration. You, the Writer, can just use human measurements to reduce confusion and mental load on the reader, which is a good thing. Regardless, the fandom has had difficulty reckoning the passage of time on a Tidally Locked world; rightfully so, since most of humanity¡¯s context for time requires a day/night cycle, especially in the smaller timescales many stories make use of. The first idea of this time system comes courtesy of u/YakiTapioka in his Recipe for Disaster fanfic, and created a measure of time leaning on one¡¯s individual experience. Seconds, Minutes, and Hours are foregone, skipping right to Claws, roughly equivalent to 4hrs of human time. These have been used in fanfics for large increment timeframes, as well as relative times of day similar to a human¡¯s Morning, Afternoon, or Evening. There are 5 Claws in a day, called a Paw, resulting in a 20-hour daily cycle. However, these times are relative; one person¡¯s Second Claw may be another¡¯s Third, because having no day/night cycle would allow people to stagger their activities throughout the day. As a consequence, Venlil cities are in general more reliably active than their human counterparts; they still have the concept of Rush Hour, represented by Rest Claw and Work claw, but their peaks and valleys of activity are less extreme. An average Venlil¡¯s day works out to First Claw spent between waking and leisure, Second and Third Claws are mainly labor with breaks and sometimes a nap, while Fourth is rest and leisure; Fifth claw finishes their waking cycle with leisure and sleep. Subjective timekeeping works very well for a first-person POV story, which NoP and its fanfics make great use of, but a collaborative society would still need a standard timekeeping measure so people of different reference points can have common ground. For this reason, Yaki also introduced the idea of Suns. Suns are the same as claws, 4hr increments, though they are standardized from the First Light of the end of the First Night after the start of the New Year, measured from the town of Heartwood; the southern-most permanent town located on the terminator line. This moment, and the official end of the first Festival of the new year, are measured from the first beam of sunlight hitting the base of the Heartwood tree at its center. . With this standardization, individuals with different schedules can refer to the Suns for meetings and collaborations. Also established by the fan community has been the idea of a cyclical ¡®Night¡¯, explained by a minor axial tilt that would cause places closer to the terminator - the division between day and night - to experience anywhere from a few days to a week of anywhere from perpetual sunset to full darkness at some regular interval. The stated cycle by the idea¡¯s originator, Yaki, is 4 cycles of 5-day ¡®weeks¡¯, followed by one cycle of 5-day ¡®Night¡¯. While the full range is 5-days, places closer or further from the terminator will experience different amounts of darkness, with waning and waxing twilight before and after this darkness. As an example, Heartwood, which is nearly right at the terminator line, would experience nearly the full 5 days in full darkness. The Grove, however, is closer to the sun, and so will only experience around 36hrs of darkness. The Night may be celebrated or demonized by individual communities; An Introduction to Terran Zoology and Letter of Marque both speak of a festival or celebration to honor the stars and passage of loved ones, while The Grove in my own story will lock their doors and stay inside for fear of what lies in the dark. What you do with the Night, if you do anything at all, is entirely up to you! The stated cycle would mean the Night would happen every one to two months. However no one, not even the fanfic author who introduced the idea of ¡®Night¡¯, has written any scene taking place during such time, despite such stories spanning longer than the full cycle. In my own story, the Night will happen every two months - the next increment of which is Late October - and will feature approximately 36hrs of full night. My reasoning for this is that The Grove is close enough to be affected, and the event will be a full 5 paws or 100hrs, but their distance from the terminator would shrink their period of full darkness. As well, their tall forests will block most light from the surrounding area and most of the sky itself, leaving the Grove in near total darkness save for the starlight above them. The Venlil live on a tidally locked planet, with a hot side, cold side, and ribbon of habitable zone between; in my world these broad areas are referred to as, in order from hottest to coldest: The Scorched Wastes, The Burning, The Green, The Twilight, The Night, and The Frozen Wastes. Being tidally locked would create very reliable and powerful winds in mostly one direction, being a guiding force in their architecture. Their snout gives the impression of a powerful digging tool, as such I believe their early habitations would have been burrows. As they moved aboveground with the development of settlements and villages, they would have kept the rounded shape and low ceiling typical of burrows, with minimal space between and shared living being fairly common; I will point out this is not unusual; humans did similar in early history. Smooth lines and soft curves would continue, being slowly replaced by wood or straw; the lighter material houses would need to contend with wind, so the shape would shift to more oblong, in line with the reliable winds of the tidally locked planet. Villages become cities, and population density grows. Mostly out, but some still take advantage of up, further pushing the shift to an oblong shape. Due to several reasons, such as pheromones, fear of predators, and attachment to nature, the Venlil would shy away from the shoulder to shoulder building habits of early humans, preferring open natural spaces between buildings. Through the industrial revolution, these buildings become higher and made of stronger material, and a grid begins to form through the cities. These densely packed buildings would retain their oblong shape, but manufactured materials prefer straighter lines so would appear more hexagonal: imagine a Hexagonal Mesh, pulled to deformity so each cell was long. These buildings would not pack neatly, so they fill the void spaces with walking paths and clean nature, allowing clear sightlines and minimal locations for predators to hide. At several parts of this process, some Venlil would seek to express themselves through architecture, allowing for designs that break the mold. Some may want to oppose nature and build hard lines in defiance of the wind. Some may be traditionalists and shrink to the more circular short burrows. After the industrial revolution, these eccentricities would be numerous, but still the minority, allowing for a thrilling and varied skyline while domestic housing would be fairly regular. While the Venlil as a whole are led by Governor Tarva, delegation is a necessity in every form of government organization. Venlil Prime is split up into an as-of-yet unknown number of districts, all run by a group of Magistrates known as the Magistratta, with a High Magister acting as the American equivalent of a State Governor. The Magister is an administrative position, serving as the final word on their elected fields, but are all supported by specialists that fill expert needs; for example, the Magister of Law and Order is not a judge themselves, but do oversee and coordinate judges and the process of law in their district. These lower Magisters oversee more specific parts of how the district functions, like Law and Order, Labor and Safety, Economy and Finance, Schooling, ect. These magisters oversee both legislative and some judicial matters in their specialties, but don¡¯t have absolute power, as the High Magister can overturn any of their policies or rulings. While the Governor leads the planet as a whole, the planet is subdivided into Districts, Subdistricts, Municipalities, and Neighborhoods. These are likewise led by the High Magister, Magister, Director, and The Neighborhood Baas. Amount, distribution, and elected tasks of each of these roles are determined mostly by population density; Director and Baas are only seen in large cities like the Capitol, while smaller towns like The Grove or Heartwood may stop at Magister. While these roles do lead their respective areas, they are administrative and lead other people who specialize in specific tasks. Similarly, a Director may be the point of contact for their constituents, but they would contract out specific tasks; ie, they don¡¯t own a maintenance company or an exterminator office. A Baas is essentially a state-appointed HOA director, and maintains the health and safety of their immediate community. Very small towns, such as the Grove with its sub-1k population, would have one Director who also fills another role, such as chief exterminator or engineer, while also reporting to their subdistrict¡¯s Magister, who in this case oversees several rural townships. The Venlil are a democratic people, who elect their chosen candidate by popular vote without major political parties, though that specifically hasn¡¯t been explored in Canon. In Canon, Tarva notes that a new election cycle for Governor is coming up in 2137, and it stands to reason that the magisters would be voted in on a cycle offset from hers. As discussed above and in canon, the Venlil are known to be more emotional than the average Federation species, which also tells me they are very Expressive. The Venlil would have a thriving artistic community and appreciation, and cover many different disciplines. Visual art would be fascinating, given the lack of depth perception of a monocular species. Of course, it¡¯s also highly implied that only those able to pay for an art school may pursue artistic endeavors, and those schools have a curriculum that was manipulated by the Federation. It is currently unknown how much of an effect this has had in canon, but common consensus is that it has resulted in creativity being stifled outside of certain ¡°non-predatory¡± avenues. Given their wool as an abundant resource, I believe bodily expression may have been the first example of art, especially from staining by fruit or flower. This would quickly transition to paints, likely using their own wool as an implement or canvas. Once spinning yarn became available, they would use that for mobile shelters and adding comfort to living spaces, the need to decorate those spaces would make wool become an artistic medium; blankets, modesty-shawls and tapestries. An appreciation of nature and acute senses would make incredible interpretive work. As civilization moves, their appreciation of nature and color would decorate their buildings and living spaces. Cities mean buildings, architecture, statues; stereoscopic view may limit their appreciation of 3d art like statues, so they may not fully utilize it, though they are familiar with the practice. There has been limited reference to music in the core story, though it should be noted that in Glim¡¯s Escape, he notes a familiarity with a human guitar, and the fact ¡°This sounded like Venlil radio fodder¡±. This implies that, despite being in an Arxur cattle farm for some number of years, Glim is familiar with the concept of music and plucked string instruments, and that music being broadcast publicly on a radio. Humans have a significant variety of musical systems and sounds, so there would be some intersect with the Venlil. Western styles are my most familiar, so that will be my main reference and comparison point, though it is worth noting that the descriptions in Playing by Ear are very similar to the partial tones of South Asia and the Middle East, as well as this comparison being explicitly called out. Speaking of Playing by Ear , I would like to thank u/VeryUnluckyDice for their worldbuilding. Thus far, Venlillian music has been referenced but not really expanded on in both canon and fanon, and Dice has made the most effort to create a system that is relatable while still being novel, and describing it in a way that is both thorough and understandable. Dice explains that the Venlil use a 24-tone system, as compared to the West¡¯s 12-tone, meaning that the Venlil make use of what we would call partial and quarter tones. Quarter-tones are not alien to the human experience - very little is in terms of music - but for those unfamiliar it may give an ¡®off tune¡¯ sound which some may find unpleasant. This would, however, allow the Venlil a great deal of color for their music, making grand chords within chords that could convey great emotional weight. Their concept of chords and harmonies are similar to the West¡¯s, in that they have a root tone with several harmonics above it, and the interaction of these harmonies and dissonances is found pleasing and may convey implied emotion. Venlil also use a ¡®gliding¡¯ technique where they utilize tones outside of the established 24-tone system, clearing a particular tonal gap using equal intervals. Similarly, the Venlil have a looser understanding of Rhythm in their works. They have a concept of rhythm, and find pleasure in repeated patterns, but they frequently though not always stray from the established rhythm of the piece to convey new emotions and meaning. However, Mackfenzie also established that the Venlil have difficulty acclimating to Polyrhythms, so this would imply that while the rhythm itself may fluctuate, it is not layered upon another different rhythm. As with all things, individual mileage may vary. A specific Venlil may have more experience with Polyrhythms and there may even be regional exploration of the same, this Dive is specifically for broader trends. As to sound: As established in canon the Venlil are familiar with plucked string, and early human history implies that whistles and percussion are very early development, so we can assume most sapients would have had this developmental step. So far, the only truly odd sounds would be Reed, Brass, and some Synthetic sounds that humans have only just discovered. Reed instruments require the discovery of a pliable material vibrating when air is blown in line with it. This would be easily discoverable by any species spending a lot of time around grass or trees, so the Venlil would absolutely have this sound. Synthetics are, as the name implies, sounds created by modifying the sound directly through technological means. As this implies a post-computer civilization, and computation is a necessary part of space travel, we can assume the Venlil, being space-faring, have access to and experiment with these sounds as well. Brass, however, is a different matter. To have a brass instrument requires a great deal of metal-like material, understanding that it creates a different sound from wood, a way to forge it to unusual shapes, and understanding how one can make the vibration with one¡¯s lips. Each of these requirements have their own issues in terms of Venlil development, but the Lips are a biological matter so I will focus on that. To shape one¡¯s lips into the proper embouchure requires significant facial control which the Venlil lack, as evidenced by their reliance on tail and ear language. It requires sensitivity in one¡¯s lips, which a hard-foliage grazer would have less use of. And finally, it requires fleshy lips that are uncommon among comparable creatures on Earth, so there is limited precedent for the Venlil to possess it. So I will conclude the Venlil would be unfamiliar with Brass sounds natively, though other federation species may have discovered them and introduced them after contact. For the Venlil, most of what we can gather by their faiths are their curses and exclamations. Phrases such as ¡°by the stars,¡± ¡°sun scorched,¡± ¡°by Inatala,¡± and ¡°by the Protector¡± have all made an appearance, so it is safe to assume that the Venlil as a group practice multiple faiths. As a disclaimer, yes I use that word a lot; Faith is a sensitive topic for many people, and can greatly change a culture and story. My interpretations are mine alone, albeit inspired by others, and I encourage other writers to tell their own story with their own understanding of faith. Also, I am noting here the ideas of non-canon Faiths. Established in Ch129, the Venlil culture was essentially erased and reset by the Federation shortly after first contact, which explains why the only faiths explicitly mentioned on Venlil Prime are The Protector and Inatala, which are Gojid and Krakotl faiths, respectively. We can assume from here that, canonically, the Venlil have no religion of their own in the current setting. However, several fanfics, my own included, believed at the time this was due to a lack of worldbuilding and not intentional. So many of us built our own faiths that have been scattered around Venlil Prime. These faiths are not canon, and if you would like to stick to canon, these would only be in the smallest pockets of believers with very little if any history to call their own, which conflicts with many of these. With that understood, I will expand on these fanfic faiths here for your inspiration and use: On a tidally locked planet, their main influence of faith would be largely dependent on their location. Those who spend their life in the Burning or the Green would see the Sun for their whole life, see the life and heat it provides and worship it as a provider and creator. Those in the Burning would also respect its hostility, and the destruction it wrecks on the sun-side deserts. Those in the Twilight would see the sun for most of their life, but would also have a festival, or mourning, or both, for the brief time the planet¡¯s axial tilt causes the sun to dip under the horizon. They would use this time to share stories of the stars, and likely have some manner of honoring the dead as or within those stars. Thank you u/YakiTapioca for your interpretations of Venlil sun worship! In his story, the Sun is personified by what is believed to be a real Venlil named Solgalick. A uniter and a leader, he pulled the sun through the sky, and in doing so, gave the People a cycle to rely on, and gave the People the Sun¡¯s Number, to count it. Part of practitioners¡¯ worship is the adherence to the Sun¡¯s Number in their daily lives, with varying levels of adherence. Sylvan¡¯s parents, who he described as devout, use the Sun¡¯s Number in making Strayu. A part of this worship entered common use: a Claw is 4hrs, a Paw is 5 Claws, and their time increments are amplified by factors of 5 after that. Thank you u/Braquen for your conclusions on Venlil Astrology! Being tidally locked, the Night would see their starry sky scroll along with the orbit of the planet, and their constellations would loop and repeat. This, in conjunction with the importance of weaving I discussed in weddings, and braiding as a decorative, I agree with Braquen¡¯s conclusion that they would refer to their starry night as a Tapestry, and its eternal cycle of being woven and unwoven would give them a reverence for history, rebirth, and a stronger connection to the cycle of life and death. Because of this, It is possible that the Federation may have thought it a death cult, and either destroyed or assimilated it. As time marched on, peoples traveled, and cultures merged, you would see more Venlil adopt aspects of each faith. For example, my character, Valek, honors the dead by wishing for the safe passage of their memory from the Day of their life, to the Night of their death. Thank you, u/Acceptable_Egg5560 , for your discussion of faith in Nature of a Giant! In NoaG, Tarlim follows a meditative practice of the Three Tenets: the Growth, the Still, and the Flow. The Growth understands that all things move beyond your control, that change continues without regard; you can do much to guide this change, but it cannot halt, so it asks you to make peace with change and understand your part in it. The Still understands that all things end; all things pass, both the bad, and the good, so it asks you to find peace in this natural passage. The Flow understands that while everything ends, endings are beginnings and vice versa, the Flow welcomes the new as an expression of what came before, and a promise of what comes after. Predators are seen as a disruption, or a Meddling, of this natural cycle; an unnatural perversion and interruption. Thank you u/TheManwithaNoPlan for fleshing out your story''s Church of the Herd with me over discord. The Church of the Herd was invented by the Federation when inducting the Venlil. It believes in an all-encompassing one-ness and connection with yourself and the natural world, referring to this as The Herd. It emphasizes protection and support within, and because of, the Herd. Large emphasis is placed on self-sacrifice in protecting those ¡°in the center'''' such as the young and fertile. This faith also follows a cycle, though one of death in service to the Herd as a protector at the borders, flowing inward to be reborn anew. It establishes the First Predator as being one of the Herd, who by tasting meat, disrupted the natural order and was cast out, and from whom all predators were birthed. The Church of the Herd also teaches that the sinful are not reborn of the herd but outside it as a predator. Thank you u/Liberty-Prime76 for your perspective on a twilight faith about the guiding star Polani! In Letter of Marque, several people in the town of Heartwood honor Polani the guardian, and her guiding star. Heartwood lies at the very edge of the habitable Twilight before Night, and their night sky is visible all year around, though what stars can be seen are very few and vary. But Polani is the brightest among them, and one of very few visible throughout the entire year. The story begins with a wandering nomadic herd of Venlil looking for a place to settle. In their wandering one of their number, Polani, lost her pups to shadebeasts. This loss drove her grief such that she dedicated the remainder of her life to protecting her herd such that no other mother would have to suffer as she did. In the throes of her grief, her screams shattered glaciers and made a vast valley to provide shelter and safety for her herd. Her rivers of tears are said to have watered the fields and carved the ground into great farms so that they could grow crops to feed themselves. Eventually, upon her death, the stars of the tapestry above welcomed her into their number. Her love for her herd burns bright, marking her as the brightest star of Heartwood¡¯s Twilight sky. The Heartwood River Festival of Night started as a way Honor her life and story by celebrating the night and her star, and celebrating the love and protection of family she exemplified, while ensuring that those who had died in the last rotation made it to her embrace in the stars above. This is done by floating a candle in their memory out on the Coolwater Basin so that they may join the stars. The Krakotl Described as ¡®turkey sized¡¯ and ¡®shorter than a Venlil¡¯ by SpacePaladin in the discord, fan consensus bumps that up so center mass is roughly level with mid-thigh or hip on a human, putting the top of their body at roughly 3ft 6in, or 107cm. Given their long neck, the top of their head would reach just below the heart of a Human, putting the average Krakotl, standing tall, at around 4ft tall, or 122cm; art example 4. Clearly avian, they are covered in feathers of ¡®tropical colors¡¯ and their beaks share the same vibrancy; the majority of their legs would be scaly and bald due to mostly aquatic native lands, which I will expand on later. Feather color and pattern would differ significantly from one to another, though SP15 clarified they are on a blue/grey spectrum as a general average. Differences in the beak would be more subtle though equally unique in fine detail. Feather structure is fairly typical of waterfowl, smooth and largely hydrophobic, but they would have accent feathers in hidden parts of their underwing and head-crest, used in courtship such as dancing, as well as long rigid tail feathers used for body language and as a colorful threat or courtship display; see example 5 for especially tail feathers, and examples 3 and 2 for head crests, especially 3 for threat display. Their home is described as swampy, explaining their well known mainly-algae diet, though after Cilaney¡¯s Interview, it is revealed that the Krakotl were the first Gentle¡¯d species, and they ¡°were scavengers, who would occasionally go for fish as well.¡± This would imply biological qualities that would process meat, capture live aquatic prey, and live in these same areas as these foods. Nishtal is described as swamp and marshland, which lines up with the aforementioned conclusions from their diet; I will go one step further and say these swamplands mostly featured tall trees and shallow waters, though this appears to be the consensus among the community at large. After Gentling, the Federation mostly fed the Krakotl algae, but when Kalsim shared his field rations with Arjun, he mentioned the presence of fruit, berries, nuts, and bark. While bark is a little unusual, the other items are well within expectation for an avian¡¯s diet. With such a comparatively broad diet, their beak would be very generalist, though with a sharp hook at the end to cut and tear meat. Art examples 1 and 2, linked above, are good references. In such an environment, dry dirt would be a precious commodity and largely taken up by plant life, forcing the Krakotl to nest in higher branches. This, combined with the hidden dangers of aquatic predators, would pressure them to develop flight-capable wings especially suited to quick ascension, Wing Assisted Incline Running, assisted leaping, and pouncing. More than a few Fanfics have described the Trees of Nishtal as being especially tall, so I will postulate that Nishtal¡¯s gravity is slightly less than Earth; no more than the difference between Earth and VP, though negative. A lower gravity would allow foliage to climb to incredible heights, possibly even to air thin enough that it cannot support flight; this would pressure the Krakotl to develop arboreal traits alongside avian traits. A few notable fanfics such as Wings of Freedom and Pack Bonding (NSFW) have described Krakotl climbing vertically where their flight fails, so this would fall within consensus. Given this, in addition to the description by SpacePaladin via discord that their primary manipulators are hands on wing¡¯d arms, we can conclude that their hands would have strong gripping ability, as well as inward-curved talons to grip bark, possibly with locking wrists; see art examples 1 and 3 linked above. Locking wrists also sets a good precedent for climbing/flying hybrids, as flexible arms make for poor flyers. Their wrists and elbows would instinctively lock when balanced upward pressure is applied to the under wing, allowing for downflaps to catch air and keep them aloft. This would cause them to have very limited flexibility in their shoulders, arms, and wrists, though one does not need such flexibility to manage civilization or fly a spaceship, and technology and tools would accommodate farming and building. Entirely possible, but humans would be better suited for nearly any form of labor. I will clarify, this is directly against canon: in ch43 Kalsim comments on the Takkan surgeon, "though I found his kind much clumsier than Krakotl surgeons." No matter how you shake it, surgery requires significant dexterity, which this assessment explicitly states they lack. This is a reasoned conclusion of earth precedent, and compromises made to accommodate their ability to both fly and use tools. Their feet would also be similarly taloned, though more developed to hold thick branches or perches. Confirmed in chapters 47, 48, and 50 in the core story, Krakotl crew were provided with a ''perch'', implying a specialized seat for avians. From this, we can conclude that Krakotl legs and rumps are structurally different enough as to make what would be Federation Standard seats unsafe for Krakotl crew. Without the pressures to both climb and fly, their feet would retain a significant amount of dexterity, and would likely serve as auxiliary manipulators when their hands are insufficient; as well, since their long neck allows their beak similar maneuverability, watching a Krakotl solve a difficult puzzle would be quite a show! Given their aquatic diet, their legs would be long enough to keep their body off of the water, and their neck long enough to bring their beak back to it; as such they would have a similar overall shape to a flamingo or crane. Having such a long neck would prompt several novel sleeping positions, including laying their head on their rump like a swan, tucking their head under their wing especially while upright, laying long and flat like a young owl, or laying their neck on a support, such as a cuddle buddy or specialized bed or lounge. Krakotl also have stronger coloring and patterning in the UV spectrum, and can perceive these differences naturally (confirmed in Ch47 of core story), though strong UV light such as Blacklight can make these clearly visible to humans, and garishly vibrant to Krakotl. While all of their plumage is more vibrant in UV, only certain parts are UV Luminescent; the differences are fairly minor in natural lighting as from sunlight, but concentrated UV such as Blacklight can give a ¡®glowing¡¯ look to these patterns. Krakotl do experience sexual dimorphism, though it is very minor to the human eye: visible differences favor the males with a longer neck, meatier fingers and toes, and broader beak, while females have an overall larger body. Again, these differences are measurable but very minor, and a human could easily mistake one gender for another. In the Ultraviolet Spectrum, however, differences in sex are much more apparent. Females have larger color blocks of a similar color to their natural plumage though more vibrant in UV, arranged in layers on and in line with their wings, and blotted coloring on their upper and lower neck, while the majority of the neck is one color. Also, the under-wing of a female is lined with thick swirls, with a large blot in the center. These swirls are intricate enough to be a unique visual identifier from significant differences in favorable lighting, and may be used for simple communication across long sight-lines. Tail colors are frequently solid-colored feathers of striking shades, though instances of spotting and fine striping in individual feathers are not uncommon. Color blocks or blots are more common on the head, face, and beak of females, while striping and streaking is more common among males. Males¡¯ UV coloring can be several shades off of their natural plumage, and feature much more complex patterning over their outer body, favoring geometric patterns, though some may have more ''feminine'' curves. Males'' underwing pattern is not notably different from their outerwing, serving as the most obvious difference between male and female. Fine detail on their wings and tail are very common, most commonly striping but spotting or blotting are also known mutations, with color blocks along their body and spine. A Male¡¯s neck would be lined with fine stripes, in line with their air sacs and syrinx; I will describe these organs in the next section. Among both sexes, these stripes and blots do not need to be uniform, straight, or level, as organic patterns are made by chance, not by an engineer. As a Krakotl ages, their feathers may dull, along with their UV vibrancy, though their UV luminescence would be the first to go. Coloring one¡¯s self with such inks would be a known practice, though seen with the same feelings as a human combover or fake tan: a vain attempt at forestalling age. As a living creature, the Krakotl are not immune to several unusual mutations such as gigantism, dwarfism, albinism and melanism, as well as other more avian-specific mutations I''m not aware of. While albinism and melanism would change their plumage coloring, design would still be present if difficult to perceive. UV patterns among albinos would be quite faint, likely requiring specific lighting or angles of view to see well. Melanism would cause their plumage to assume much darker shades, including all-black, but earth precedent does not preclude exceptions; some variants may be mostly black with patches of natural color, or overall several shades darker of natural hues. UV would likewise be difficult to perceive among the Melanistic, though instead due to the patterns lacking definition, appearing as blurred clouds, some places so dispersed their form cannot be defined. Vitiligo would appear as whole feathers turning stark white in patches, though their UV pattern would be unaffected besides color. Heterochromia would affect eye color only, feathers would be unchanged. While their eyes have not been described in detail in canon, earth precedent tells us they probably have circular pupils and irises, with pigmented sclera; the sclera is well hidden, as the iris takes up the majority of what is visible. The Iris is colored by Melanin, and would follow a similar brown/gold spectrum as humans. Rare mutations could push more orange or red. Albinism would remove all pigment, allowing us to see a dark violet color, matching their blood. Earth avians set a precedent of having largely immobile eyes, relying on their flexible necks to adjust their view. Starting from the top and working down: earlier we established that Krakotl eat fruit, berries, nuts and bark, and the Cilaney Interview confirmed they ate decaying flesh as a scavenger, as well as implying they caught and ate live fish. Like most avians they lack grinding teeth and strong jaw muscles, so they would have a Gizzard to help process harder foods like nuts and bark. Krakotl are warm blooded, colored a dark violet, and as with any warm-blooded creature they experience blushing. These appear in shades of blue to deep purple, most visible on the sides of their neck, just under their jaw hinge, at the space where their neck meets their body, along their under-wing airsacs, and for men along their pubic slit; more on that later. While mammals and reptiles tend to have tongues that are long enough to clean lips and nose, very few avians on earth share this trend, so Krakotl would have a tongue only as long or shorter than their beak, structured to encourage the modulation of sound and passage of food. Given their varied diet, the tongue would have to be very multipurpose; with that in mind, I posit that it would be fairly muscular, to modulate sound in its beak, but also high soft surface area, possibly with keratinous filaments, or even just long papillae. Above their beak are two lateral vents, appearing to disconnect the space where the beak meets their skin. These vents, which meet just within the skull, serve as a high-capacity trachea and houses their scent organ. This trachea, and the separate esophagus, pass through their highly flexible neck. The trachea bifurcates to dual vocal organs called collectively the syrinx. As in earth examples, the syrinx allows significant control of sound, which we will return to when we speak on relationships, and later language. The respiratory system would remain bifurcated, protectively surrounding their vital organ cavity, with tubular airsacs filling the space under where their wing meets their body. Longer than they are wide, the tubular air sacs can be quickly inflated and deflated to emphasize plumage along their breast and under their wing; used most especially during courtship dances. These also allow them to carry rich air to the thinner atmosphere of the Nishtalese upper canopy. Returning to their digestive tract. Their esophagus would first meet their stomach just behind the syrinx to coat their food with digestive fluids; sufficiently coated, they would then pass to the Gizzard, which uses powerful muscles and hard mineral nodules to break up their food, returning to the stomach to introduce additional digestive fluids as needed. These nodules are naturally created within the body, comparable to gallstones but on purpose. Once masticated, the food continues its journey through one or more absorptive organs similar to human intestines, before exiting in the normal way. Given their ''scavenger'' background, I believe their stomach acid to be noticeably stronger than humans, though not as strong as Earth carrion birds; their diet is far less specialized than vultures, so would not require such extremes. Additionally, Krakotl keep a Crop at the forward of their throat, just below the point where their neck becomes their head. The evolved use of this organ is to hold and pre-digest food for hatchlings; as such, it produces a minor digestive fluid. Not as strong as stomach acid, this would be comparable to human saliva. The amount produced is influenced by several factors, including unusual mutations which may cause the over- or under-production of such, but normally whatever comes out would be well covered, but not soaked. On earth, intersex and transgender are far more common among avians, some species more than others, and I believe the Krakotl follow this trend; noticeably more common than humans, but still a minority. As well, such complicated mutations involving coloring of plumage would make instances of ''feminine'' markings on male-sexed persons and vice versa relatively common, leading to a laissez-faire attitude toward gender definition. This overall fluidity would carry over to preferences, and the gender of one''s partner may not be of consequence to pairs not seeking to produce. Krakotl have a concept of monogamy and ''belonging to someone'', but they have a stronger emphasis on emotion and compatibility, rather than physicality. Courtship is a means of entertainment, and bonded pairs may find companionship outside of their relationship. There is a sense of accomplishment in finding a partner outside of your relationship, and there is a sense of losing when your partner succeeds. This would cause high emotions, but is also seen as a part of a relationship. This is a significant culture clash compared to humans, and would be the source of serious strife without good communication between partners. I will emphasize, this is the overall average. There are many individuals who find the game tiresome, and would place great value on committed loyal relationships, sometimes even leading to heartbreak within relationships of their own species. Such fluidity and flexibility would make Krakotl the most likely to have interspecies relationships, whether physical or emotional. A significant minority, but not nearly so slim as human queerness. Courtship rituals are very important to Krakotl dating culture. The most common and reliably effective is dance, allowing the opportunity to flash your feathers and show your moves, but gift-giving and demonstrative actions are also very effective. Krakotl would find themselves comfortably at home in human clubs of all stripes, but Blacklight Raves would be especially intense. Krakotl of all ages decorate themselves aesthetically. Paints, dusts, dyes, and oils are well known, but just as common are decoratives like False Feathers. These may clip, tie, hang, screw, or plug to an anchor near the base of a feather; these may include the feather itself, a worn scaffold of a variety of materials like string or chains, or even permanent implanted anchors. These decoratives can be a variety of things such as fabrics, metals, synthetic feathers, real feathers that have been dyed, or more recently lights and noisemakers. As much as they love to party, it''s a young''n''s game. Krakotl that we would consider middle-aged would find the whole matter exhausting and juvenile, though there is a lively makeup industry for those not ready to move on. With such a heavy trend to ''settle down'' monogamy and reproductive pairs become more important as they age, reducing the percentage of non-reproductive pairs as the age demographic climbs. They are still present, and in greater percentage than ~2020 humans find themselves, but still trending down as the population ages. Marriage is a legal arrangement, recognizing the indicated persons as one legal unit, with shared resources, permissions, and status; multi-partner ''families'' are not unusual, and are called Nests officially. What humans consider ''married'', i.e. a long term committed relationship, is a personal matter and not involved by the government. Stepping out of, or somehow damaging these relationships has no bearing on the Nest in a legal sense, though may still be a valid stated reason for separation. The Krakotl are a dual sex species, there are clearly defined male and female organs and configurations. However, as with all living things, mutations and variants may blur these lines. As well, just as with Earth Avians, such mutations would be much more common among the Krakotl, but only as compared to humans; the frequency of such mutations would still be a very slim minority of the Krakotl whole. I conclude that the Krakotl feel sensations in the stimulation of reproductive organs, and consider these to be good feelings. I believe they also pursue these feelings recreationally, whether or not the need to produce offspring is present. Krakotl do not have a season, nor specific triggers. They have Urges and seek to satisfy these urges with a partner, making social gatherings with the intent to mate, called Lekking, a common pastime with dedicated venues being a thriving industry; a human comparative would be parties, bars, and clubs. The most common courtship ritual would be to dance and posture, using flexing and inflating of airsacs to emphasize vibrant plumage which normally remains hidden. Following through with the act in these places is not uncommon, but considered inappropriate and may be grounds for forced removal. For these Detail Dives, I try very hard to find the meeting place between Real World Examples, Prominent Writer Consensus, and What Is Interesting to read, write, and draw. I¡¯m afraid I was not able to find a satisfactory intersect of these goals, largely because real world avian reproductive anatomy is fucking weird; which makes logical sense given the hyper-specialization required to make flight of any kind possible by evolutionary pressures. Because of this, I will show no preference for any story, anatomy, or writer input, and invent something Completely New, which fulfills my own needs for story and believability. I would be honored if writers use my suggestions, but as they have no basis in anything, I encourage writers to do what they feel is best to convey the story they need to tell. The first oddity is that the Krakotl developed reproduction that preferred hanging from the side of a vertical surface, being the mega-flora trees of Nishtal, using their climbing claws to hang by during the act and allowing partners to face themselves. This is supported by the climbing pressures we mentioned earlier, itself supported by powerful talons on their wing manipulators. This is also supported by the conclusion that Female coloring and UV patterning is more complex on the inside of their wing, advertised during courting dances, and advertising ¡®readiness¡¯ while hanging, as well as complex patterning on the back of males, advertising ¡®occupied¡¯.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Both male and female have a cloacal vent, but only in female specimens is this involved in the reproductive system. This cloacal vent is located under and just behind where their legs meet their body; the opening would aim just forward of plumb while in a relaxed seated position on a perch. This opening is the end point of both their digestive and reproductive system, though these systems meet just before the opening itself. The vaginal canal is located just under and in line with the digestive tract, swooping low and attached to their ribcage, meeting their womb. This cavity is longer than it is wide, developed for oblong eggs. The ovum are attached completely to the outer walls of the womb, and disperse their eggs through the thick membrane of the womb when hormonal changes cause the membrane to be more porous. The cloacal opening and the vaginal canal have sensitive nerve endings running its length, along the space where the men¡¯s baculum would be; we will speak on that later. Stimulating these areas causes the over-production of lubricating fluids and muscle contractions along the length of the canal. The Male sex organ is a rigid appendage that is held within the body at rest, and presented from the body by specific muscle contractions. Its rigid form is maintained by a stiff cartilage, which humans know as a Baculum, upon which spongy tissue grows after puberty. The organ emerges from a long slit, longer or just as long as the member, averaging 5 to 6 inches, though mutations may make the slit shorter than the organ, requiring medical intervention to extend the slit. The spongy tissue does itself engorge, as any tissue would in high blood flow situations, but the bulk of the volume is taken by several lymphatic sacs along the length. These sacs are lined with flaps of thin flesh, which flare when the sacs are filled with fluid. Given the significant surface area gained, it is theorized these flaps assist in removing reproductive material left by other competitors. These flaps, as well as pressure upon the lymphatic sacs, are the primary source of stimulation of the male sex, though the area around and within the slit are popular for use in foreplay or same-sex activities. Upon climax, seminal fluid is launched from the tip of the organ, in an attempt to get the material as close to the womb as possible. Given the nature of lymphatic sacs, the organ remains active and sensitive for some time after final stimulus or release, which would allow for longer sessions with the goal of multiple partners. Whether the Krakotl attached to the organ has the endurance or wherewithal for such ambitions is a personal matter. Krakotl lay eggs when fertilized, and only rarely without, normally triggered by hormonal imbalances. They lay in clutches averaging 1-2, though larger have been recorded; the largest clutch in Federation record was 10, of which only 7 hatched successfully, and this number is considered highly unusual. Eggs are fully hard within a day, and hatch within two to three months. Children reach sexual and emotional maturity, by human reckoning, at a similar rate as most federation species, roughly 3-4 years faster than humans. I mention this because several stories such as Perfectly Planned etc, Death of a Monster, Innocence and more besides, establish that the Federation employs what humans would consider ''children'' into positions we consider inappropriate, such as Soldiers and Exterminators. As heinous as this is, I believe this is a powerful storytelling driver, and will incorporate this into my stories. The wiki confirms they have one of the largest vocal ranges in the galaxy, ranging from deafening screeches to melodic harmony. This implies they share similarities with Songbirds: I enjoy this interpretation and what it implies for language, and so will follow this. As mentioned earlier the Krakotl have a Syrinx, long neck, and several air sacs, leading me to conclude they have the widest range of possible phonemes and possess the most natural ability at mimicry. With practice, a Krakotl will be able to create ''close enough'' for any sound in any language I can readily conceive of. But a native language develops organically as a species develops, and as with most things, even language follows the path of least resistance. That is to say, their native language and sounds would only be as complex as is needed, and would not utilize their full vocal ability. Such potential for complexity would tend toward a language that builds on itself, similar to latin or german, and by extension english. Several small sounds with their own partial meaning or context smashed together to create a new meaning; ¡®meaning¡¯ itself being a great example, ¡®-ing¡¯ being the process of ¡®mean¡¯ which is the purpose or intention of something. Audibly, this would create a language that sounds very fast and modular, with several repetitive cycles as tense and identity change. As far as sound, the first sounds to develop would be loud sounds as they call and respond through the marshlands. Screeches, squawks, titters and chirps, all originate in the syrinx at the base of the throat, creating a significant reliance on glottal stops, hisses, and hums. These sounds would be modified in the upper throat by simple orifices to create Rr Ah and Oh modulations. They would have sounds that function the same way we use P¡¯s but created by audibly closing their beak for Snap and Clack sounds. A well practiced human would mimic these using our familiar T and K sounds. I think Krakotl''s native language would make most use of hard K, soft R, and a few L variants, as well as Zh or Jj sounds pulled from deep body. Pure Ss would be difficult, rather shifted to Sh, produced in the back of the beak. Their vowel sounds would mostly use Ah Oh and EE. Rounder sounds like OO would be possible, made by full-throat resonance, but may produce a tonal call as a side effect. Their written language would also have similar trends to english and german. They would have an alphabet, around the same length as english, but they would use this framework to combine letters in novel ways to create new sounds; such a modular language would also have no need for accents, each letter would be its own glyph. In this way, the Krakotl can also write more languages in their native script than most species. Given our earlier assumptions that they nested in tall canopies, they would have developed writing on wood. Talons would be more readily available than writing tools, and given their strength exhibited by Jala¡¯s swoop, they would be sturdy enough to mark the wood as desired, instead of needing to account for woodgrain. The strong curve of ¡®talons¡¯ would be difficult to make omni-directional marks with, so I believe they would make straight marks in line with the position of their claws. Given their need for something like a thumb, I believe both lateral and vertical marks to be utilized. In conclusion, it would look fairly similar to Viking Runes; aesthetic runes, not historical. I am aware the linked image is not historically accurate. Please check my Krakotl Name Reference for specific examples. Seeing a lot of sounds that we spoke about in the earlier section; but this was intentional, so I¡¯ll leave the discussion of sound aside and move on to culture. With such a modular language, the Krakotl have the flexibility of naming their children after abstract concepts, things the parents enjoy or symbolize something important to them, names of important people, or even sounds of things they enjoy. I personally headcanon that u/Braquen ¡®s Krie was named after their parent¡¯s first lekking call. Given this flexibility, and the process of laying and hatching, I believe that the Krakotl don¡¯t name their children until they get a sense of their personality, which may even happen as early as in the egg. Until that time, they would have names like First Laid, Second Laid, and so on. Not much more to say on this, so I will move on. Most detail was provided in u/Cheesypower ¡®s Wings of Freedom and u/MackFenzie ¡®s Shoot Your Shot: Algae Blooms . I enjoy these interpretations and will lean into them, as well as earlier conclusions on their native habitat. Also confirmed in Ch48 and clarified by SpacePaladin in discord, the Krakotl have Floating Stilt Cities on the water. As we discussed earlier, the megaflora of Nishtal would set the stage for tall habitations. Early history would have these trees housing several families, or one large family, on a single tree for several generations. Initially these would start as built nests, then move into natural hollows, then with the advent of tools carved hollows would allow them to build below the canopy into the trunk. As time moved on these trees would become villages, then neighborhoods; the pressure to share resources and populace would have these villages coalesce into cities and towns spreading over several canopies. Their early ancestors would start off gathering mushrooms, moss and lichen in their early habitations, eating the grubs and pests they find would be an early introduction to carnivory, which would allow them to move to the omnivory established in canon by the Cilaney Interview. With the establishment of communities and primitive farming, the Krakotl would approach a point where they no longer compete with local wildlife, and start to assume command of their local areas. As they fortify themselves from dangers, or remove them entirely, they would expand their habitats to the water level and establish permanent production along these waterways. With safety on the ground assured, their habitats would continue shifting waterward as the abundance of resources would outweigh the now smaller risk. Old families may have kept and continue to keep their canopy homes, but Krakotl born on the water tend to keep a few wingbeats from the ground for most of their lives. This access to arable land and potable water would turbocharge their farming practices and assure their dominion over the area, which would allow the development of true cities. From here on their history would look very similar to humans, but their megaflora trees would continue to stand proud. Trees of this size, surrounded by their similarly sized brethren would be exceptionally difficult to kill with primitive technology, even with genuine intent; this would have significant implications on their art and culture, which I will expand on in the next section. Lacking the established infrastructure for such a population migration, public areas such as Lekking Grounds, Forums, or Markets would continue to exist in the hollowed trunks of their ancestral homes, but as expansion continues these would shift to wider habitations rather than taller; over time material advancements would gradually shift this back to verticality. Given their disgust of anything that isn¡¯t herbivory, as well as petrifying fear of the idea of predators, the Federation would discourage the continuation of water-level settlements. Using human colonial knowledge, one effective way would be to paint the water-borne as lesser or below the tree-borne, introducing the start of a caste system. The core story, and most fanfics, do not touch on any manner of class or caste, so it is reasonable to conclude these walls may have dissolved in the 1000+ years of Federation assimilation. With federation influence, as well as modern and Federation material sciences, the Krakotl would return to their arboreal architecture, building upon the trees, while still using ancestral carve outs for their same purposes as public venues. In the modern era, Nishtal cities have businesses, public areas, and civil infrastructure housed within the great trunks of their mega flora trees. Residential housing would be surrounding the canopies, built attached onto the trunk below, as well as built atop the branches within and above. Federation technology, as well as industry at ground level, would make consistent updrafts of warm air, which would assist the populace in reaching higher portions of the city with less effort. With the need to accommodate other federation species, elevators would also be very common, built onto the sides of the great trunks or freestanding within. Looking at their very intricate personal colorings and courting rituals, they would depict what stands out against the noise, and further contrast it with the nature around it. They would have an appreciation of form and try to understand it by carving deadfall of smaller flora. With an omnivoric past, scavenger especially, they would have an abundance of long lasting material to create with: bone. Given their penchant for self-decorating, pre-metallurgy Krakotl would create extravagant jewelry with bones and clay as the basis, accentuated by brightly colored things such as gems and opal. Given their vibrant habitat of swamp and marshland they would have ready access to plant-based colorant, and use them to create paints, dyes, and powders. Their use of dyes would be present, though underutilized as their early materials don''t easily accept dyes; feather, bone, mud, and plant matter. Far more, and far earlier, their use of powders to decorate themselves and their habitations would be very complex, using stencils, presses, and blow reeds to allow for very intricate designs. As well, these powders could be added to wet mud and brick to color their homes. Not long after, they would add these powders to liquid mediums and create paints, using shed feathers as implements to paint more detailed works. By the time of Federation First Contact, they would have a very vibrant artistic movement touching on many different disciplines, but after first contact personal identity would be a strong driving force. A thousand years is a long time, and I have every confidence they would have rediscovered many of their earlier artistic forms, but carvings would be seen as predatory due to emphasizing the effectiveness of their natural weapons, and the use of bone would be completely suppressed in all forms. I will start with canon information on Inatala and Maltos, then move on to headcanon theories. There are not many references to faith, for any species, in the core story. What follows is the most detailed information on Inatala and Maltos, referenced in Ch51, from Kalsim''s POV. Given it''s detail despite brevity, I will copy the full excerpt here: "Given how many galactic religions were organized against predators, it could be that Terrans saw hunters as deities. The Krakotl¡¯s farming goddess, Inatala, brought plants to the universe to feed her children. Predators were considered a perversion of her natural order, who turned to Maltos, the god of violence, out of greed. Our reality was the eternal struggle of good and evil. I strayed from the faith once I became an extermination officer. The priesthood had a way of twisting the goddess¡¯ teachings; none of it matched with their written beliefs. Maltos wasn¡¯t an inhibitor of empathy, but merely an agent of destruction. We had seen that predators were violent and greedy, while not without some positive qualities." I commend SP on his skill in giving such wonderful detail in such a condensed space, this is enough to leave on its own. But I will mention that, confirmed in The Interview, Inatala is a faith that was influenced, or invented wholesale, by the Federation as a method of control. Looking at our Colonial history, we can infer that the best way to invent or take control of a faith is to build off of what already exists. The presence of a dichotomous faith, and their history of omnivory, leads me to believe they may have had a focus on the cycle of life and possibly rebirth in their pre-federation faith. Their funerals may have been to let the body flow downstream, to rejoin the marsh and be remade within it. Their weddings would have been a celebration of their role within the cycle, and their love a reflection of it within their lives and communities. The antagonist deity, Maltos, would have been seen as a facilitator of the end of this cycle, and Inatala the beginning. Federation influence would have twisted Maltos to be the end of all cycles, the end of everything, and Inatala the levy against the crashing wave. The Federation enforces a mono-culture, so the presence of other faiths pre-contact is very likely. As mentioned in the previous section, megaflora such as described would be exceptionally difficult to kill with pre-industrial technology, even with genuine intent. Given this and their reliance on them for housing and safety, they would have a deep reverence for these trees and an ingrained sense of permanence, leading to a faith rooted in these trees. This faith would have emphasized that everything comes and goes, but these mighty trees have been here longer than history, and will remain long after all else is dust. This faith would teach that everything passes, that all ends, but you are The Tree of your life, and you will remain in spite of and because of everything that clings and carves at your bark. Their funerals would emphasize that the memory of the dead remains, and that their effect on their world will long outlast the flesh and bone mourned by those they leave behind. Their weddings would be a celebration of the permanence of their devotion, and a challenge to existence that this union will stand against all it faces. You will notice that these faiths each have a level of reverence for the dead. These facets would be suppressed, or even labeled as a Death Cult by the Federation, leading these faiths to be targeted for cultural assassination. Whether or not these exist in some way post human first contact, they would be a slim minority with Deep family traditions to keep it alive. Thank you u/Towerator for detailing your homebrew faith in discord! This creation myth, as is, is recounted in its pre-contact context. After Federation influence, this story and the surrounding faith were significantly altered to assume the framework stated above in the quoted excerpt. The Universe began with the hatching of the Cosmic Egg, from which Irrik, the Creator, was born. Irrik gathers their Shell Shards to make Irrik-An, Nishtal''s orange dwarf primary, and Irrik-It, a red dwarf in distant orbit of Irrik-An, averaging 100 AU. Irrik then plucks a few of its feathers which become planets, one of which being Nishtal, and leaves to create new stars. Irrik, while extremely powerful, has no interest in life. However, while Irrik made the largest shards into heavenly bodies, smaller shards found Nishtal and infused it with life using Irrik''s power. Soon, this life grew to resemble its Creator, and the first Krakotl were born. These new Krakotl sought more Shards, appearing as sacred Diamonds, to sustain themselves. Ages passed before a young huntress, Inatala, finds a Great Shard, which held immense power. The shard merged with Inatala, creating the First of the Four Gods. Her ascension caused Inatala to become prideful, so she assumed dominion of the world. She amassed an army, and conquered all that was as she sought Great Shards. She succeeded, but in doing so she discovered another Krakotl, an old man named Maltos, had found the Shard first. Maltos refused to use it for fear of what he could become. Instead, Maltos worked to help those hurt by Inatala''s conquests, or give them their final mercy where he could not. Inatala soon found the city where Maltos hid. So many were lost to protect the Shard, that Maltos considered breaking his vow to use the Shard. Instead, he came across a young chick who, despite being fatally wounded, kept her hope. It was at that moment Inatala cornered Maltos and the child. Maltos used the Shard on the dying child, to spare her life, at the cost of his own. The child, Rakim, became the Second God. Maltos accepted death, just as he accepted the death of many others. Inatala was shocked by such a selfless act, and stopped to listen. Maltos and Rakim showed Inatala the scope of her devastation, and Inatala was horrified. She swore upon the stars that she will never raise her weapon against the Innocent again, and gave her Great Shard to Maltos, who became the Third God. Rakim leaves the new friends to heal the damage Inatala had caused using her newfound godhood. Inatala then roamed the world while meditating on Maltos¡¯ words. She searched for a way to temper the Krakotls¡¯ greed of Shards. After another age, she found a fourth Great Shard. She was tempted to use it selfishly, but resisted, and instead gifted it to a woman who sought to understand nature, Illem, and she became the Fourth God. Illem, in her wisdom, knew that to end the Krakotl¡¯s greed, they must have a new way to thrive; blessed by the Shards but inextinguishable. So, she took the last Shards and seeded them to trees to make Fruit, and threw them to the waters to make Fish. And so, Rakim taught the Krakotl Mercy. Maltos taught Justice. Illem taught Life. And Inatala taught the evils of Temptation, and the virtues of Succor. The Gojid Described as spiny and stocky, for reasons I will get into later, this tells us that the Gojid had evolved to defend in place. This combined with the confirmation that they are omnivorous give heavy support for them being fundamentally similar to porcupines, hedgehogs, and echidnas. All of which are burrowers. Burrowing creatures don''t have a significant enough diet to fuel sapience, so I believe they transitioned to living above ground, either full time or part time, to feed on fruit falls or by climbing trees. While not detailed in canon, Offspring invented two moons for the Cradle. Of which, Ki-Yu has a highly elliptical orbit causing significant weather shifts on the Cradle whenever it passes by. I believe these weather shifts would have forced the Gojid to stay underground during hard weather, and emerge after the moon¡¯s passing to feast on fruit in the canopy, setting the stage for a dual specialization species. This is further supported by their significant mass and claw strength, which is precedented on earth by both bears and sloths, who use a strong grip strength and sturdy claws to hold on to the bark of the tree as they climb. Large body size can sometimes be selected for when there is an abundant low-quality food source and climatic instability, as you can range further on lower nutritional content. As described in the Attack on the Cradle arc, as well as in the Arxur Bonus Story patreon miniseries, the Cradle is generally very similar to Earth: verdant land masses with at least one large ocean, gravity similar enough it was not an impediment to human ground forces, and atmosphere close enough to earth to not require breathing equipment. The wiki details that the Gojid are most well known for their Fruit exports and general hardiness. Gojid are described as taller than Venlil but shorter than humans, which would put the average Gojid, standing with good posture, at the jawline of a 6ft human; so I will estimate this to be around 5ft 5in, or ~165cm. Interestingly, this is well within the range of average human height, so there may be frequent occurrences of Gojid standing taller than a human; put another way, a 6ft Gojid is tall, but not Tall tall. They are also described as having a tail ¡®too stubby for tail language¡¯. This tells me their tail is largely a balancing tool, as their spiny backs would be heavy enough to either give them a constant slouch, which is never described, or need something else to keep them balanced, which a broad meaty tail would do well for. The Human Exterminators Patreon bonus story established that a mostly healthy almost-adult Venlil is ~90lb. In Ch11 of Main Canon, Sovlin bodily ¡®flings'' Slanek with disdain through a door with enough clearance that the door can close without impedance, and Marcel can approach despite his severe injuries. Sovlin also held Marcel down and clawed his face off-camera, and in Ch98 Sovlin gored his claws through an Arxur raider. This is a mountain of evidence to say that either Sovlin is an A-tier badass among his people, or the Gojids are more beefy than many may assume, and probably appear more bear-like, as exemplified in all five of the art references I shared above. Described in canon as having a sturdy frame, and combined with the above conclusion, Gojid would have easily twice the body mass of a similarly tall Venlil. Evidenced in Ch67, Sovlin caused a guard to step into his spines and the guard¡¯s injuries were described as ¡®prickle wounds¡¯. Lacking the description of quills hanging off of the injuries, we can conclude the Gojid have smooth spines, and not barbed quills. As an intelligent species with tool use, they may notch their spines to create barbs, but this would be a personal decision and not a natural attribute. This encounter also implies that a gojid¡¯s spines are well-rooted, and would not become dislodged into their attackers as in porcupines. This slides us into their claws. Shifting focus to their more bear-like appearance, their claws would be adapted for both climbing and rooting, with a possibility of some burrowing in soft substrate, creating forward claws that are long but strongly curved, and very sturdy; I believe that Blackbears would be a comparable reference, as they are known to root as well as climb. This is also supported by their described damage I mentioned above. Their back claws would be similarly sturdy, but transitioning to bipedal would reduce their use, making them shorter either by decreasing length or magnifying the curvature; in either case, they would be very damaging but difficult to control, so not used for carving, but rather defense, ripping, or digging. Most artist consensus shows a preference for neutral browns, and forest patterns. Canon only describes shades of brown and cream, but I prefer Offspring¡¯s interpretation that it would expand into the black/white spectrum, possibly regionally. Patterning would be largely colorblocking and banding with limited discernable shapes. Wide-area shapes, such as spirals, spots, or stripes, would be possible but a minority, and be poorly defined. More extreme mutations such as Albinism, Melanism, Heterochromia and Vitiligo would be possible, as with nearly any other species on earth. Vitiligo would appear as paling of defined areas and the hairs or spines in those areas. The aforementioned patterns such as banding and colorblocking would be especially apparent comparing the front and back of an individual. Forward fur would be soft along the belly and inner arms, tougher or wiry on their legs and undertail, and a lighter shade compared to their back. Snout fur tends to be short and stiff but some persons, especially males, may overproduce this fur to the appearance of whiskers. These may be cultivated or trimmed aesthetically. Back fur would be stiff and wiry, as long or just shorter than their spines. Said spines would be most prominent and most developed in the spaces between their shoulders, along their spine, over their hips, and along their tail. How far beyond this initial space varies from person to person, but in general the highest concentrations are where I mentioned, steadily thinning out to regular fur as it moves to just behind their sides. Different fur quality would be the main difference in color. This would allow the opportunity for gradients, but they would be due to a transition of fur quality, rather than coloring. The Archives confirmed that the Gojid were omnivores who occasionally supplemented their diet with animal meat, stolen from the kills of larger predators. This is described in-chapter as an occasional treat or celebration, as meat is not a necessity to their diet. With this reveal, and our earlier conclusion of fruits, nuts, and berries, we can conclude their diet would be exceptionally human-like, though it appears they either don¡¯t need, or are able to self-produce, essential vitamins and proteins found in animal meat such as Vitamin B12, Creatine, Taurin, and several others. Given the continuing similarities to humans, I believe their internal organs would appear largely the same; I see no reason for Gojid to have specialized organs that humans do not have, nor vice versa. It has been commented in-story many times that their blood, internal organs, and musculature are all very blue, which would expand to blushing and eye color. Their irises would have melanin-based coloring, ranging from brown to gold, with rare mutations allowing green, but their sclera would appear extremely white due to the hint of blue from their veins; similar to how modern day clothing manufacturers include blue thread to make white more ¡®white¡¯. ¡®Bloodshot¡¯ eyes would be a deep blue, which combined with their darker irises, would make the eye appear very dark overall. Skin color would be melanin-shaded as well, but due to their thick fur, their skin would be fairly pale, then spotting with darker skin to exposed areas like around the eyes, ears, lips, and nose. As well, due to their habitat and blue internal biology, they would again appear especially white; though their thick fur and spines would make this difficult to perceive. Being blue-blooded - literally - would influence how they blush, though their previously mentioned darker skin under thin fur would hide it completely. It would also appear in places of high bloodflow such as intimate areas, soft-flesh sides, and hinge connections like armpits. Only the most perceptive, or uncomfortably invasive, observers would be able to see. As a reasoned sapient the Gojid would be able to make abstract judgments about how they make relationships, so they would have the potential and presence for any relationship possible by humans; one or more partners, productive or non, performing any number of acts in the pursuit of good feelings. Being a seasonal burrower would reinforce close families and strong bonds, leading to a natural preference for monogamous relationships. As with any other species, their courting practices would be more time together, giving of gifts or favors, or performative actions. I believe the giving and keeping of keepsakes and gifts would be most common, followed by demonstrations of one''s capability as a provider such as decorating nests or places of safety. This would also extend to their marriage rituals, in the giving of something important to themselves and/or their relationship to symbolize they are now one person. I believe the Gojid have good feelings from the stimulation of intimate areas, and pursue these feelings recreationally and as a bonding activity. Given their above- and below-ground history, this would push them to leave the burrow and family at a certain time in their development in search of their own burrow and to start their own family, after which they would spend a great deal of time with that person and mate whenever their needs align. This would lead to a very human experience in which they do not have seasons or cycles, don¡¯t have complicated dances or performances, just simple urges that they can ignore or pursue. Gojid are mammalian, which means they are warm blooded and feed their young with Mother¡¯s milk. Offspring set the expectation on Ch13 that the teats are in the lower torso, around navel area, and I feel that is reasonable and will follow it. During late pregnancy and after birth the teats swell in preparation for the child, and because of this swelling may become more sensitive than average. I do not believe they are sexualized in any significant measure, though individuals may have their own preferences. Gojid give birth in litters of one, with the possibility of twins+ roughly on par with human percentages. Infant gojid spines and claws are softer than their adult counterparts, but still dangerous to the soft internals of a mother so they are normally birthed with a tougher amniotic sac. Besides that, the Gojid reproductive system and cycle would be very similar to humans. Birthing canal with external labia, proto-penis that is reminiscent of a clitoris, self-lubricating and cleaning with natural fluids, and a menstrual cycle that, while less severe than the human experience, would be a source of discomfort and mess, especially since clothing is still an oddity even among the Gojid. One significant difference is the presence of a tail and spines. I believe the tail would be lifted to allow access and to protect the giver from the spines of the receiver. The male reproductive system is similarly human-like, with a spongy penetrative organ which, while at rest, remains hidden within or just under the fur. Excitement by increased bloodflow would cause it to engorge and rise from under this fur in shades of white and blue. As burrow life has limited competition between partners, hindrances to mating would happen outside of the body such as dominance displays or altercations. The organ itself would develop for ease of entry and exit, and efficiency of emission. The testicles would exist outside of the body but held close, only discernible as lumps under and behind the base of the member in high temperature and excitement scenarios. Human sex organs are as large as they are to fill a performative need; they do not assist in the act of reproduction in any appreciable fashion. As the gojid lack this performative need, I believe their members to be of a smaller size in comparison to their mass. As with most Federation species, the gojid gestate, deliver, and develop at a faster rate than the average human. Offspring set the precedent that a 5-6mo gestation is premature but survivable, leading me to conclude the Gojid gestate somewhere between 7-8mo. Following artist consensus, their heads are of a significant mass, with lips and a tongue. The small teeth I mentioned earlier would not be easy to name a seal against, but this could be adjusted to the roof of one¡¯s mouth rather than their teeth, allowing D, N, S, L, T, and soft J sounds. Being a burrower they would develop large deep sounds that can carry through tunnels and across open ground beneath the canopy. Being spined implies they naturally tend toward defense, standing their ground against an aggressor. This is also evidence for big sounds and also loud. They would have likely developed several ways to posterize and intimidate; this is supported by using their spines to emote. Pretending to be bigger is a good tactic, but it works much better with sound, this combined with their larger-than-the-average-fed size makes me confident they know how to give a good bellow. Since they likely developed language in, or close to, being soft-substrate burrowers, they likely have more guttural grunts and huffs, using a louder drone to get attention across long tunnels. This would also suit them well communicating across the canopy. As they came to dominate their ecosystem, their dominance calls would become more social, possibly even using a howling mating call, or shouting down competition. This would give heavy emphasis on guttural sounds such as Guh Hh K and Q, and including glottal stops in their grammar. This would mean they can create many of the sounds a human can make, with a preference for slavic dialects. As to writing they would start their history writing on their burrow walls in soft substrate or against stone caves, using their claws and later their quills, and later still switch to stones. Needing to differentiate each other by sight they would gain a keen perception of the orientation of quills, leading into very straight lettering with prominent downstrokes and purposeful cross-strokes. I believe their guttural language would create lettering that is phonetic, representing specific sounds, and the letter would indicate where in the mouth or throat that sound originates. The height of the meeting of the crossbar would indicate its location, and its angle would indicate its movement or emphasis. More complicated sounds, such as mouth-focused, would adjust the position of a highly angled crossbar to show how forward in the mouth the sound is. This will be using my Gojid Name Post as reference. First off I am very saddened by the limited overall cast of this species. There are a lot of good characters and a lot of good history to work with, and I for one would be excited for more Gojid content overall! First off I¡¯m seeing a lot of conflict with my earlier language conclusions: not a lot of guttural sounds, but we are seeing a lot of lip sounds, like M, P, and B. Again we are seeing a lot of duo-syllabic, and it appears Offspring is prompting a few sharp guttural sounds like K and Q. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. I do believe that names mean something, but given their long history with the Federation, and the fact their culture was not totally erased like the Venlil, these meanings would be ancient and forgotten. Now these names reference people and stories that the parents hope will guide or personify their child, in much the same way modern humans name their children after mythologies or faiths. On that note, I think the Gojid lean the hardest into their faith in terms of naming conventions.
Main Story(canon) Nulia [F] Sovlin [M] Hania [F] Talpin [M] Berna [F] Piri [F] Yotul Oneshot (Canon) Bemic [F]
Jemic [M] Rumi Something About Blue (Patreon) Rivlia Arxur Bonus Story (patreon Nimlin
Offspring Braq Turin Imdi Taraka Rylett Laenar Arrut Yotun Juran
Callio Irt Redan Marlo Erryt Roklin Bolaro Mela Praitor
Carcos Harbeck Goranuut B¡¯tly (northern dialect) Ur¨¨d (northern dialect) Merilla
True Predators Thraxis Nature of a Giant Sol-Vah Tight Money Boalin
Blue Roses Pelago Pelaga Barlim Telg Pragh Tack The Dojo Barak
Lost and Found Bolad Dunyab Shehrab Geneva Team Tevest Virnix Dwlin Kover
The Foundations of Humanity Ulmic Letter of Marque Salamar
Chapter 128 confirmed that at time of first contact, the Gojid lived in clay houses; as well and off topic, they had sailing technology, as well as gunpowder and limited electricity. Having familiarity with clay lines up with having some manner of familiarity with soil, which does give some support for initial evolutionary development as burrowers, and is further supported by my conclusion that they are closer to bears. Their initial development would have them creating their own burrows in soft substrate, as a hedgehog or porcupine, but as they would become more massive larger homes would be needed, pushing them to caves, or hybrid burrows; an example would be to make a hole or ditch and pull foliage over it for shelter. This invention of created shelters, combined with learning of the malleability of mud and then clay would give support for built-up shelters such as a mud hut. This catches us up with First Contact so this cultural progression stops here, but Federation influence would not remove these trends, only alter them. Their modern houses would range from recessed into the ground or natural features, such as Braq and Turin¡¯s home in Offspring, or appearing more modern and technological like what we see on Venlil Prime or Aafa. One thing I would like to highlight is the focus in canon, and the even stronger focus in fanfiction, that the Gojid are more spiritual, more connected to their Protector faith than most, and this would reflect in their architecture. They would have scattered places of worship and a handful of larger temples or cathedrals to their faith. My own story mentions the Cathedral of the Protector and describes it as a feat of artistry and engineering. True Predators also mentions ¡°An ancient church dedicated to the Gojid goddess Valla, or the Great Protector as she was more widely known¡± though describes it closer to a wooden temple or monastery. Such a reverence for a protector and provider deity would give them great appreciation for the natural world around them, and if we combine that with their burrowing and carving claws, I think that bas-relief and carvings would be especially popular. Canon makes special mention of great orchards; and if we combine this with their burrowing background we can conclude they didn''t have much in the way of plains or fields, native gojid wouldn''t have much experience with a distant horizon if not for their evident seafaring ability pre-contact. So their houses and buildings would have less concern of protecting from the wind, like the venlil. They would instead be more focused on protecting from moisture and fallen limbs, which means solid walls and sturdy supports. While the Gojid would use most of their trees for fruit production, this would also give them a lot of experience with raising lumber forests, which would allow them to have mostly wood architecture. The Federation may not have erased this part of their culture, but they would have thought it primitive or obsolete, so most if not all new buildings would be the usual Fed style: build up, lots of metal and glass, things that would be abundant in space debris. Offspring explores Gojid music with what browneorum called a Sonophone. A sonophone is a tall woodwind reed instrument, not dissimilar to a baritone clarinet, with a downward facing bell that is to be planted on the floor. The instrument does make its own tones and harmonies, but it is largely designed to encourage the listener to feel the music through the ground. This is an interpretation that I enjoy, so I will agree that the Gojid have a stronger sense of touch than the average species, and enjoy this sensation as both leisure and stimulation as we would with music. They would have all of the simple instruments, percussion and woodwind; string instruments I believe are a post-contact development due to their lack of string-like resources. The archives confirmed they had firearms before contact, which means they had decent metallurgy. Combine this with a burrowing history, they may have a comparative abundance of metals to use for non-essentials. This lays the groundwork for brass to be possible, though they don''t have the lips or facial muscles to use a bell-style mouthpiece. This might instead give them the opportunity to have woodwind-alternate instruments made of brass. Yes, I am saying the Gojid probably have something similar to a saxophone. As far as physical art, I believe the Gojid have the most opportunity to build their art into their living spaces, with statues, frescas, murals, and carvings. Their interior spaces, especially religious spaces, would be richly decorated with a combination of realistic depictions and abstract representations, filling spaces and allowing texture to add depth and meaning to the art. More novel, I believe the Gojid would be very practiced in acoustic design, allowing these spaces to be tailored to speaking and performing venues; A priest could give a sermon without electronics, a performance hall would be full stereo. The Archives confirmed that the Protector was the majority faith on the Cradle pre-contact, possibly even only faith. It was revealed as a provider deity, believed to have taught their ancestors agriculture and having created the world for The Gojid. This was corrupted by the Federation to also give the Protector a defender role, demonizing predators and meat-eating as against her creation and plans. Fanfic has largely kept to this interpretation, though Offspring expands on the Protector faith and what it looked like pre-contact. Offspring¡¯s worldbuilding centers around the Bendara region, so there is a strong possibility for regional variation in the Faith, especially pre-contact as it is canon the Federation enforced a monoculture as part of the uplift process. The Bendara region hosts an almost pagan-esque faith entirely separate from the Protector, known as the Great Chain of Being. This faith is very old, all but completely extinguished by the time of Braq¡¯s grandmother, who taught Braq what she could of the faith before her passing. One of these lessons was the familial box; a coming-of-age or familial-confirmation ritual in which a person gives the box something emblematic of their regret, and takes from it something an ancestor gave; essentially allowing several generations of family to teach lessons they wish they knew themselves, long after their passing. These boxes and their contents were treasured items, carefully recorded and stored. Whilst a box could be replaced, its contents could not. The chain itself was also an important heirloom, made from a precious metal or similarly long-lasting material. This early culture was built over by the arrival of a northern culture, who also brought with them the Kay-ut [All Mother] mythology. This faith introduces a family of the Protector, possibly the ¡®family¡¯ being the Protector collectively. This faith describes Kay-ut, the All-Mother, as a faceless woman, beautiful and terrible to behold, and is associated with the creation and protection of life, such as by fertility, birth, love, strength, judgment, and totality. Kay-ut gave birth to the daughter Ki-ra, associated with intelligence, craftsmanship, and patience; She gives life its form, and lays out the days ahead. Go-ji is another child of Kay-ut, and a representation of the Gojid themselves; as such, is not necessarily worshiped but rather used to represent the average Gojid in stories. Ki-yu is the son, represented by the moon of the same name. He is associated with burial, death, and humor, and guides the dead to Kay-ut. Ki-yu arrives on every perigee of the moon to collect the bones of the dead, to be given to Ki-ra to be remade anew. Because of this, to exhume a body is to prevent it from being remade, and is therefore considered a mortal sin. These faiths were heavily modified by the Federation, and in the case of the Chain possibly erased entirely. In the current story, Kay-ut and Ki-ra¡¯s relationship is maintained, but The Protector figure has been modified or introduced to ward off Ki-yu and the predators. Ki-yu is the most changed, where initially he was a description of change and passage, in this new reckoning he is a wicked trickster who brought predators into our world, and was banished for his evil. Every perigee of his moon is his attempt to bring new evil, and it is through the Protector that he is driven off. The Arxur Natural history (u/browneorum) Arxur bear some similarity to Earth crocodyliforms, however their advanced terrestrial state supports the notion that they have not occupied a semi-aquatic ambush predator niche for tens of millions of years. For an arxur-like sophont to have evolved, a string of evolutionary pressures and subsequent adaptations must have occurred:
  1. Movement onto land: A full terrestrial occupation would have been the first feature to have occurred. The crocodile bauplan is an evolutionary success story, emulated first in stem-tetrapods like Tiktaalik and Panderichthys ~150 million years before the first crocodilian. Their traits include a. eyes and nostrils placed high on the head to be vigilant whilst remaining beneath the waterline, b. a large, flattened skull filled with interlocking or pronounced teeth to trap prey, and c. a strong, paddle-like tail for aquatic movement.
All of these traits, whilst useful in the water, become hindrances on the land, but the face and head would be the first to change. Looking up is useful when you¡¯re looking up at prey, but your vision would be better spent on eyes that can see where you¡¯re going. Binocular vision, the ability to effectively gauge distance, would be most effective in a terrestrial predator. A large, flat skull could work; amphibians get away with it (keeping in mind that they are all aquatic, too), but such an animal becomes limited in that it can only eat what it can fit in its mouth. Most large carnivores tend to favor a longer, narrower snout that maximizes bite force and gape without compromising visual or olfactory capability. It also widens the zygomata (the cheekbones) for a stronger bite, and incidentally, frees up the back of the skull, allowing the brain to grow; the first tentative step toward sapience. Good comparisons would be baurusuchids, canids, and theropod dinosaurs. The appendages would also have to change; the paddle-like tail would be reduced in favor of stronger, larger, more mobile limbs to move about on land. This may seem like a colossal undertaking, but it is actually the most probable to occur. Populations become isolated all the time; all it would take is one river drying up over a prolonged period, one little pond that ran out of food, and the selection to move away from the water would take hold. Such changes have occurred in Earth¡¯s history before; crocodiles have done so on a number of occasions, and indeed, one would be remiss to not point out that the entire tetrapod transition effectively occurred in this way. To use that metaphor fully: an Arxur is as different to their crocodile-like ancestors as early reptiles were to amphibians.
  1. A more active lifestyle: But moving onto terra firma came with new difficulties. Where a crocodile is effectively a mouth in the river that waits for prey to come to drink, early Arxurids had to seek out their prey. Pursuit predation would not have been their earliest form of prey capture, as their anatomy would still be carrying a fair amount of aquatic baggage. Ambush would have remained their primary means of hunting, but their bodies would have to adapt to a different style of predation.
The primary means of prey capture by a crocodilian predator is a strong bite, inflicting major lacerations, shock, and bleeding, whilst dragging the weakening prey into the water, where it is drowned. Simple, brutal, effective. But moving out onto land compromises this, making escape from a slow-moving reptile more likely. Moreover, the crocodile can no longer rely on the water to drown its target, so if the first bite does not subdue the prey, it will escape. As well, ambush is made more difficult by the lack of water; a crocodile is a big, strong animal, but it is well hidden, no less, in the one thing a prey item cannot be without. If Arxurids were to survive, they would need to be able to actively catch their prey. Here, the changes would be subtler from the previous stage, more focused on the internal anatomy. Firstly, the limbs must become more nimble, stronger, and capable of a longer stride. Crocodiles walk plantigrade (heel to toe, as humans do), and can move at great speed, but this is ineffective for a cursor. Their distal portion of each limb must be made longer, preferably with the extension of the digits into a digitigrade stance. A long, well-muscled tail, such as the early Arxur possessed from their crocodile-like ancestors, would become less flattened paddle, more thickened counterbalance. Secondly, the loss of any impedance to the movement of the pelvis relative to the torso. True quadrupedal cursors, such as cheetah or greyhounds, maximize the length of their strides by stretching and shortening their mid-sections between each footfall. Early Arxur would not have been moving at such high speeds, but they would have still possessed gastralia (belly ribs) in their mid-sections that would have slowed them down considerably. Gastralia gotta go! Thirdly, the teeth would have to change. All Terran reptiles have homogenous dental morphology, i.e., their teeth are just replicates of one another, most often simple pegs. Simple pegs are perfect for holding onto something, less so for cutting it up. Carnivorous reptiles (theropods, varanids, mosasaurs, etc.) all possess/ed flattened, serrated teeth. It is possible that Arxur may evolve further differentiation of their dentition, but on Earth this is a trait solely found in mammals. If such a change was to occur, the most probable justification would be an adaptation to a broader diet at this stage. The final adaptation would be the next strong movement of the Arxurids away from animals and toward true sapients. Terrestrial predators must be able to strategize in a way their ancestors did not need to. They must take better stock of their senses, gauge the likelihood of injury and success. Many hunting animals are quite intelligent, but working alone can only get you so far. The next adaptation is probably the greatest yet, and requires a trait generally considered un-Arxur.
  1. Group cooperation: Socialization; the act of interacting with others, of being social. All animals practice some form of socialization; dispute of territory, displays, and mating are all essential to an organism¡¯s survival, and all require some ability to communicate. Modern Arxur are complex social creatures; this much is evident from their behavior alone, but it is also a prerequisite to building a society. An Arxur who lives alone, no matter how intelligent, dies alone. They have no one to talk to, to share ideas, or songs, or art with. In short, they build no culture, and that clearly is not the case. At some stage in their evolution, they must have developed some capacity for cooperation.
Pack hunting would be the most sensible assumption; a group of Arxurids could bring down larger prey than one alone or permit the rearing of offspring whilst others are away. But all this comes with profound implications. On Earth, packs are family units, built around mating and/or dominant individuals. It¡¯s a sensible strategy; if I can safeguard others (even better those who share genes with me) then they will safeguard me. This makes a lot of sense, obligately enforcing group cohesion around shared communal bonds. This, we should also recognise, is the start of empathy. As the American anthropologist Margaret Mead purportedly said, ''The first sign of civilisation is in the setting of a broken femur.'' Some subtle physiological changes would occur to facilitate socialization. Individual recognition would be paramount; is this my brother, my lover, or my enemy? Unique color patterns, perhaps around the eyes, would be a good starting point. Specific vocalization is also found amongst pack animals and would be a strong driver of cognition. Here, a positive feedback loop could take hold; more interaction leads to more complex socialization, and with it, greater cognition that then adds to the strength of subsequent interactions. At this point, an Arxurid is equivalent to a hominid in human evolution, akin to a great ape.
  1. Manual manipulation & bipedalism: One of the earliest questions in human evolution was whether or not our brains grew before our bodies did. Early australopithecines provide a clear answer: Lucy stood upright like a person but had a brain no bigger than a chimpanzee¡¯s. The Arxur face a similar question; what came first: manual manipulation or bipedalism? On the face of it, it seems like a simple question; they clearly stood upright so that they could use tools. But this is a circular argument, where the effect is also ascribed to a cause, so we must look deeper.
The most reasonable argument would be prey/carcass manipulation. Where mammals have specialized teeth to help break down a big meal, reptiles tend to be more¡­ violent with their food, having to toss their heads around and swallow big chunks. If the teeth are remaining more reptilian and dedicated to feeding, with only some heterogeneity, then having some dextrous, mobile hands makes sense. Most predators restrict the forelimbs to grappling with prey, using the head to deliver a killing stroke. Arxur would likely still do this, but having a strong set of hands might be selected for if they began hunting larger prey, as socialization would supply. Thus, alterations to the pelvis and lower back would be needed, as well as anchorage of large muscles in the thigh and tail. This would result in a stiff-seeming but strong lower section. Motion at the elbow and the ability to pronate/supinate the hands would be critical, but must be balanced against any impact to their primary (quadrupedal) form of movement. The shoulder would have to remain quite restricted to allow this; an Arxur probably couldn¡¯t raise its arms directly upward (as in surrender) or draw a bow. But this is the final push, and with the ability to alter your surroundings, strong binocular vision, social and communicative skills, and a growing brain, the Arxur would have been well on their way to sapience. The average Arxur is described as standing head and shoulders above the average human. Assuming, more for simplicity than accuracy, measured at the top of the head with good posture, that the average human stands at 6ft even or 183cm, this would place the average Arxur around 7ft or 214cm tall. However, several times in-story they are described as hunched over as if ready to pounce; understanding this, they would stand up to 8ft or 244cm tall with good posture. They have an overall humanoid structure: Two arms, two legs, one head, and a meaty tail; best used for balance, but could also be a bludgeoning instrument should the need call for it. Clawed hands made for grasping and clawed feet made for sprinting and pouncing. As obligate carnivores, their bodies would be better suited to hunt and capture things that fight back for their survival. To hold fast to something that is trying to escape, they would have well developed gripping muscles and claws that would curve toward the palm. Thank you u/Browneorum for helping me figure out their claws! Described as 6-digited, with four clawed fingers flanked by two clawed thumbs on each hand and foot. Injuries on humans and Federation alike have mentioned long gashes, so the claws would be long and thin, with a micro-serrated slashing edge. These injuries have also described disembowelment and impalements, implying great length and slight curve; I would compare this to a cat claw, though straighter and 20-30% of the length of the digit, similar to a bear claw. A sapient creature capable of civilization would have an enlarged brain, so the Arxur skull would become taller and wider to accommodate it, as well as forward-facing eyes. They have grey coloring over their whole body, however as a living creature, they would still be susceptible to albinism or melanism, though these may be cause for elimination by Betterment. The largest visual difference between individuals would be bone structure and Scale patterning. The exact location and quality of scales on their body would be determined by genetics, healing, early development, and even lifestyle, which would lead to patterns that are unique from one individual to the next. Scales would be different across their body, from nearly skin-like on creases and joints, to harder scales on belly, chest, neck, and pads of hands. The hardest scales would be found on the back of their neck, top of head, outside arms and biceps, and spinal column, and would be hard enough to protect against biting and slashing especially, with limited protection from low-yield munitions. Citing Earth precedent, Reptiles of all sorts shed their skin as they grow or heal, and I feel the Arxur are no different. As their hide is so different across their body, they would have different manners of shed depending on the quality of scales. Hard scales like those found on the spine or outside arm would come off in Schutes, described as rigid keratinous flakes of the whole scale, while soft scales in high contact areas like inner joints would slough off in thin sheets. Scarring appears differently on different parts of the body: hard scales such as back and arms would require deep cuts to scar, and what was once one hard scale would become two; these scales are rarely in high-movement areas, so this aberration would not cause any issues. Soft scale areas, like the face and underarm, would create scale-less scar tissue and discolor darker. Given this method of healing, personal adornments would include mutilation such as tattoo, piercing, and scarring, though would appear very differently from humans. Tattooing would be done on the soft skin under and behind the scales, and would largely be used to emphasize scale patterning. Piercings would be most used on the face, and never hard scale, as it would fall off after damage or shed. Their scaled body would be more resistant to small arms; pest killers such as birdshot would be a strong irritant, but military or home defense grade munitions would still be very effective. Scarring would be permanent evidence of some kind of violence, and so would be a mark of respect, though the type of scar and its location would have specific meanings. Scars on the back would be a sign of cowardice, and may be intentionally inflicted by a superior as a mark of shame. To lie about your scars would be a severe breach of trust overall, and to self-inflict scars that mimic the marks of combat is extremely dishonorable, and may be grounds for ostracization. Arxur display Sexual Dimorphism, although markedly less than humans. Being such an antisocial creature they would develop the need to be independent, which would curtail the evolutionary need for the sexes to specialize; essentially, they have no stressors to look different, so they would look very similar. Humans, being adept at identifying small details, may eventually learn these differences, but it would be very difficult, and many may never get it down. Chapter 69 confirmed the Arxur have slit pupils, which is well founded by examples on earth; every animal on earth with a slit pupil is an ambush predator. On earth, the eye color of ambush predators, namely crocodilians, are largely based on the need to camouflage and tend to have very little variance. Crocodilian eyes normally range from a drab orange/brown to forest green, though albinism and melanism can shift that to bright orange or jet black respectively; given the Arxur¡¯s primarily grey coloring, I will conclude that the average eye color is majority tan or grey. I prefer u/Browneorum¡¯s interpretation of early life in Offspring , and conclude that Arxur hatch from a hard-shell egg, and spend early life quadrupedal; this is also supported by the scene in Ch59 in which ''One Arxur pounced from all fours, and dragged [Sovlin] by the arm out into the open.'' Though to reconcile the understanding that adult Arxur can chase down most prey species while on two legs, I will conclude that Arxur develop bipedalism through puberty by hormones changing the shape of the pelvis to accommodate the new joint structure. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Arxur are obligate carnivores, almost twice the body mass of the average human, and warm blooded. Looking at earth precedent, there are not many terrestrial warm red-blooded obligate carnivores that have more body mass than Humans, but one of which is the Tiger, who averages 100.40F or 38C internal body temperature. I feel this is a very reasonable conclusion for the Arxur, and will be incorporating it into my stories. Compared to the average human running at 98.6F or 37C, Arxurs would be very warm in comparison. As they have claws that are adept at quickly subduing their prey, they would have less pressure to change their teeth, making them most adept at tearing flesh and breaking bones rather than capture. This would look markedly similar to a crocodile¡¯s, though with several exceptions: The teeth would develop a narrower profile with serrations, as opposed to the straight pegs of crocodiles, as well as pointed molars at the back of the mouth adapted to breaking bone and shredding meat. With these, whatever they eat would look like corned beef by the time it gets to their gullet. Arxur are unusual in that, true they are obligate carnivores, but they are also plant matter averse, in that they cannot digest any quantity of plant matter, of any kind, without suffering some level of gastro-intestinal distress. This would mean that sugars are nearly absent from their diet, and combined with the high fiber of raw meat, their teeth would be largely very clean; though the possibility of cracking or chipping one¡¯s tooth still exists. Culturally, this would mean that Dental care is only at an emergency level rather than maintenance; and, given Betterment¡¯s propensity to drop someone at the first sign of ''weakness'', dental care would only be provided to the most effective hunters or most powerful leaders. Arxur are described as inherently antisocial in that they become aggravated and tired from the extended presence of others. This is at odds with the idea that, before Federation interference, the Arxur were at a technological level roughly even with Humans in the late 1900¡¯s, which would place them at the start of their information age; this information is canonized by the Wiki. Walking the line of ''social but not really'' implies an individual may have one or two others who they trust, if not enjoy the company of. These may include: mated pairs, clutchmates, parental figures, mentor figures, or long time acquaintances, but it is established that Betterment, established after first contact, has been trying to breed out empathy and social structures, forcing reliance on the government and Betterment. This would not halt the odd ''friend'' in their lifetime, but these relationships would be only barely more than surface level, enough to feel regret at their passing, and would significantly affect the acquisition of a mate. Pairings would be largely set up by Betterment, though whether or not you are allowed is determined by an application and vetting process that the prospective parent initiates. If you are found wanting, you will not be allowed to procreate. Those with favorable traits would be allowed to breed, but the constant need for hunger-crazed raiders would make child rearing impossible in the field. As such, the vast majority would be raised in institutions separated by age groups and/or population, whichever is more pragmatic. If the children have a concept of ''mother, father, brother, sister'' it would only be a gendered understanding of caregivers and friends; who laid you, who hatched you, and who you hatched with would have little or no bearing. Same-egg twins are a possibility, if rare, which may give reason for a closer, long-term relationship. In such a heavily caste-based meritocracy, those who prove themselves effective at what they do would be afforded special privileges such as the opportunity to raise their young directly; Chief Hunters raise their young to be Chief Hunters, Prophets raising Prophets, and so on. Without the influence of Betterment, Arxur would pair as convenient and the mother would raise the young to self-sufficiency, which would be a very young age compared to Federation species, at which time the young would either leave or be ejected from the ¡®family¡¯. There would be instances of many-mother groups to raise large clutches as a collective, and this behavior would have laid the foundation for being raised by Betterment. For the father to contribute to rearing is not unheard of, but very unusual. Throughout their evolution the father would have very little incentive to stick around, leading to a preponderance of ¡®fusion-fission¡¯ relationships. This would mean that, Pre-Betterment, their cultures would be largely matriarchal, with larger groups possibly led by a mated pair including a committed father. Post-Betterment would make the ¡®leader¡¯ the Prophet and those who represent them, regardless of gender. Arxur lay eggs, though only when prompted by fertilization. They lay in clutches of 2-4, though larger and smaller clutches have been recorded, with the same chance of magnifying as the human chances of twins, triplets, and so on; as well, multiple viable embryos in one egg is a known phenomenon, though very rare. Of the eggs laid, at least one is always fertilized - though not necessarily viable - and at least one is always an infertile self-replicating yolk of amino acids and proteins, which serves as a source of food for new hatchlings. I believe the Arxur feel desire, and pursue the sensations brought about by intimacy. Arxur do not have a breeding cycle, rather their need is prompted by external environmental factors: high ambient temperature, high humidity, and the feeling of prosperity, plenty, and safety, i.e. well-fed; other factors may contribute including trust, vulnerability, or dominance. While this may prompt arousal, breeding behaviors are prompted by touch of specific erogenous zones on their body, such as neck, sides, belly, and underside of the meat of their tail; these areas become discolored due to blood flow during arousal, and become extra sensitive. Setting up these triggers would eventually develop into a mating ritual involving the preparing of a nest to create a safe space, gathering and gifting of food or other trinkets to prove the ability to provide, and dancing to stimulate erogenous zones; these rituals would have carried all the way up to First contact, and artifacts of it may exist post-Betterment. During arousal, contentment, or the aforementioned foreplay rituals, an Arxur will frequently, but not always, make long deep body sounds, comparable to but different from purring. Arxur are equipped with a cloaca, which disposes of excrement, provides and receives reproductive material, and deposits eggs. Though a key difference is that the vaginal canal, which receives reproductive material and passes eggs, is a separate canal that branches off of the main cloaca. The walls of a Female Arxur''s cloaca are coated in a specialized protective mucus which serves as lubricant during intimacy and egg laying, and a protective barrier from pathogens during waste disposal. The vaginal and cloacal walls are highly textured to allow for expansion, though the surrounding flesh is interlaced with musculature for passing stool, eggs, and moving her legs. Given such potential for muscular control, a female has the capability to use these muscles to encourage, or discourage, insemination, though not all individuals may practice this. As well, it would be possible for the female to use this control to decide who inseminates them, by guiding the male into their non-reproductive canal. A male Arxur''s reproductive organ remains in their body also as a branch off the cloacal canal, except arousal fills the surrounding area with fluid which inverts the canal to a penetrative organ, emerging from the cloaca and appearing very smooth and tendril-like. The sex is given form by fluid pressure, meaning it would be only as rigid as needed to perform; this would allow significant flexibility in both form and size, allowing a wider range of size compatibility than a comparable human would be capable of, provided preparation and patience. Upon presentation, the organ emerges coated in a different mucus than is present in females, the specific composition works to eliminate and replace the mucosal membrane of the female, allowing for and increasing the likelihood of successful insemination. Human precedence tells us that mating technique is largely a cultural and personal influence, which means that the high-competition low-survival environment of Betterment fosters a violent and one-sided experience. Some may enjoy this, some may hate it, but it is all they know. Their biology allows for gentler affections, they receive stimulation from it and some may prefer it, but few may be familiar with the experience. The core story mentions growls, hisses, clicks, and low reverberating tones; fan writing does the same, so we already have a very solid consensus. Because of that, I''m going to focus on more unusual parts. While their early roots were aquatic, nothing about their interaction or environment implies a current-day need for an aquatic environment, indicating they have evolved to be almost entirely terrestrial; this means they would have to keep their mouths from drying out with the use of lips, making their mouths appear closer to a lizard than a crocodile. These lips would not be as nimble as a primate, so lip-based sounds like Buh and Puh would still be very limited; if they exist at all. Though Ff sounds, as they do not require fine motor control of the lips, would be very easy, and would modulate to a Vv sound when backed by a hum or growl. Having a mouth full of carnivorous teeth is not conducive to easy speaking, so I believe they rely heavily on deep body sounds and glottal stops, with most if not all mouth sounds being some form of S. Given this, I believe their first oddity is that they don''t use their mouth to speak much, if at all; the vast majority of their sounds would be coming from one or more voicebox-like organs deeper in their body. This is supported, albeit obliquely, by the fact they eat their meat raw and in large quantities. It''s probable that to avoid choking on food, their breathing and speaking pathways are separate from their digestive system; very different from humans and most creatures on earth. As early water-land hybrids, they would have evolved to communicate through dense mediums, which may include dense air, as their dense bodies imply a high-gravity world. Since sound doesn''t carry cleanly through dense mediums, they would have evolved long, strong sounds, originating deep within the body. They may have used this as an intimidation tactic, especially in conjunction with a harmonic medium. This tells me they would use long tones, possibly using a drone as an emotive, modified by glottal stops, clicks, and hisses. With that in mind, their vowel sounds would be open-mouth Ah Eh EE OH. Nearly every creature on earth with a tongue, has one long enough to clean their entire mouth, as well as their nose and/or eyes, and I believe the Arxur are no different: their tongue would be long enough to clean their nose above the tip of their mouth, and as their snout is so long, would also be long enough to clean their eyes. A tongue like that would be very good at RR and SS sounds, but unable to make a complete seal on the upper palate, making N sounds nearly impossible. Common consonants would be Ff, K and G. Hard X would be more exotic but well-utilized, and modulated to a Zh or J sound when followed by a vowel sound. Guh would be common at the start or end of a word, but rarely both, while most S and Th sounds would have a strong lisp to them. Zee sounds would originate largely in the body, but modified by a Ss sound in the mouth, resulting in a very breathy soft J sound. Thank you u/ImaginationSea3679 for your comments on the Arxur written word, I will expand on it here. Given their use of a drone along with additional sounds, I believe the Arxur indicate their drone with a horizontal line across their phrases, not unlike Devanagari, which is one of several scripts developed in India; whether the drone line is above, below, or through the phrase is not relevant and I leave to the writer how it is positioned, or if it is standardized at all. They would have symbols on these lines that represent broad concepts, such as ''Prey'' or ''Danger'', then modify these concepts using marks that represent phonetic sounds. These phonetic sounds would create the word that is heard and convey the full meaning, tense, plurality, and other specifics of the word and its use; as a visual example, '' P???r???e???y??? '' would be ''Venlil'' and '' P???r???e???y??? '' would be ''Gojid''; notice how the base word, or glyph, is the same but the accents change to give precise meaning. Rather than developing a writing implement, I believe they largely use their claws, so the language would feature mostly lines while also taking advantage of depth; visually, I¡¯m imagining a cross between Japanese and Yautja from the Predator franchise. Finally, as they mostly use their claws to write, I believe that class would also determine how an individual writes; the higher castes would show their superiority with sharper claws, so a lower-class would have to use the blunt of their claw. Please see my Arxur Name Post for a list of Arxur names from canon as well as fanfic. Following my spoken word observations, we are seeing a lot of sharp consonants such as K, T, and G. Duo-syllabic is again very common, but I¡¯m also noticing a strong leaning on S sounds, giving the names more of a hiss behind them. As to naming conventions, it would make the most sense if the young were named in honor of things their name-giver, whether parent or caregiver, found important to them. Though as opposed to the Venlil, the Arxur would have a stronger focus on accomplished leaders, hunters, and soldiers. Pre-Betterment architecture would focus on single- or double- person living, with a sprawling layout. Cities would look very different, with very little if any living spaces around working spaces. Public transit would be essential in such a sprawling civilization, but it would have a strong emphasis on compartmentalizing and overall privacy. Keeping with my assessment of limited parentage, child rearing facilities would be located closer to the cities while adult civilians would live further out. These facilities would eventually be owned and run by The State, but until then would function as community daycares, with new mothers and elder mothers tending the young of the community as a whole. There would also be friend groups, small communities of more familiar females that raise each other¡¯s clutches outside of this system. Post-Betterment, architecture would quickly shift to being state-sponsored and utilitarian. Minimal material, built to last, with little regard for aesthetic. Community child rearing would become required, and done totally by The State. Being a Matron would become a profession rather than a calling, recruited by Betterment based on their ability to train rather than to raise. These matrons would then select apprentices, possibly from the young they raise, to be their helpers and eventually replacements. While pursuing brutal efficiency, Post-Betterment Arxur would condense their housing, while still compartmentalizing further; this would cause stress and tension, instigating competition and establishing dominance, all of which would further the goals of Betterment in a merciless ¡®survival of the fittest¡¯ mentality. This brutalism would extend to their war machines, which is also shown in canon, with sharp angles and every open space sporting additional armaments and/or shielding. As they transition to a raiding-based society, their average life would push into space, using capital ships to house and train new Arxur, while sapient-cattle farms provide cushy living for those with powerful friends or family. Pre-Betterment, artistic expression would both revel in and deconstruct the world around them. Having predatory eyesight allows understanding of fine detail, so there would be a thriving photorealism movement. Having binocular vision would also give them more appreciation of a three-dimensional space, so they would have a stronger focus on statues, friezes, and wall reliefs; with such a strong sense of smell, they would also incorporate novel materials in their art, both 3d and 2d, to lend another depth of sense. Some Arxur, especially those trying to process the horrors of their world wars, may expand into surrealist or expressionist techniques, but this movement wouldn¡¯t gain ground before the rise of Betterment. Betterment would pull the focus of their art away from the self and push it toward the Glory of Arxur-Kind, and the perfection of the Prophet. Leaning hard into photorealism, any new artistic works, including statues and carvings, would venerate the Prophet and depict battle scenes, likely fictitious, triumphing over anything that would not be ¡®Arxur¡¯; visually, I¡¯m imagining Renaissance Catholic, mixed with Soviet propaganda, with a hint of the ultra-violence of Warhammer 40k. Pre-Betterment, I can see their faith leaning one of two ways: either leaning into the Christian Colonial ideal of mastery and dominion over their world and its bounty, which would lay a solid foundation for the racial superiority espoused by Betterment. Or, having a reverence for death, and its place in the cycle of their world; understanding that they and everything else must kill to live, and being thankful at every meal to be the one to win this struggle. Post Betterment, the atrocities of the Federation gave a unifying enemy to the Arxur, and they unified behind a single individual, Laznel, who became the Prophet. Outlined in ch39 by Captain Coth, Laznel was a genetic scientist who posited that certain bloodlines had a higher chance of being stronger, or smarter, or other beneficial traits, and submitted this theory under the article Betterment; we the reader, would recognize this as Eugenics. While Laznel¡¯s theories had gained ground pre-first-contact, it wasn¡¯t until after the Federation tried to Gentle the Arxur that these philosophies became commonplace. Laznel, the Prophet, gave the blueprint for the Perfect Arxur, something every Arxur should aspire to be like. The Prophet Descendant is the top of every level of leadership, including being the head of Betterment, which translates to the top leader and interpreter of their faith. The Prophet Descendant and Betterment use this belief to guide Arxur behavior and enforce what we would call Brutal Darwinism to try to craft the next Perfect Arxur.