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PhantomLexicon — my hands are tied
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Published: 2018-02-19 05:03:41 +0000 UTC; Views: 264; Favourites: 47; Downloads: 0
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Very cool!! I am in love with the tail. Is this a certain species?
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They're called Marasats 
Spores will occasionally be sent out, but they don't spread very well in environments 'suitable for life', you actually see it in some of the drawings for Hangdog City where it will grow inside ships, just the glowing stuff that looks like something from a reef.
It takes a fairly long time for it to grow large enough to start producing the animals, once the Marasats appear they pretty much take over. By that point the main structure is starting to die, over a few hundred to thousand years it will slowly decay.
The Marasats function as individuals, but they are produced by cloning- in the 'awake' image you can see one of the other animals being removed from it's little sack, the Marasats are the same way. They can be 'killed' but are immediately re-absorbed and will be produced again. Any spore set from a base has basically the same creatures, and all information they have is transferred with them, so you can have what is pretty much the same individual in multiple places, though that doesn't happen very often due to the growth rate.
By the time the big life forms have come along you've got oxygen production, if the place they can hold an atmosphere they'll go to the surface and you eventually end up with something that has been terraformed, if not they stay underground or in a confined area.
Because of the way the entire system works with electricity and generates quite a bit of power, they sometimes end up working with humans, most commonly providing power and environmental stability in large ships and space stations.
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Did.. did you come up with all of this? Because it so well thought out and sounds AMAZING!!
WOW! I want one. This species isn't open, is it? *eyes glitter* *u*
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lol Sure, I don't have any problem with custom designs, nobody has ever asked. You can certainly have one. I can just make a base if you want to play around with it yourself.
Why thank you. Yeah, there's an entire world set up, complete ecosystem, I've even got evolution maps for them somewhere in my old stuff. A lot of the original material has been lost over the years.
The original idea, which I may still end up doing now that gaming engines are getting cheaper and easier to use, was to have it be an rpg/mmorpg where the basic goal is to work your way up through the whole environment from the lower 'swampy' maintenance levels up to the 'top', which is the city- type places, and eventually up to a 'tower', where you get to see the thing you're living inside.
There are three different 'classes', basically Diggers, Flyers, and Hackers/Manipulators/Controllers, I had decent terms for all of them but I very rarely actually used them so I've forgotten. The digger class has mole-type claws instead of hands, and are very large. They pretty much just rip stuff apart, mostly for constructive purposes but they can be aggressive if they have to. They tend to only be in the lower areas. The Flyers have wings, they can glide in open areas but can't actually fly unless they're in very low gravity. They're lightweight and more delicate than the other classes, and don't appear in the lower levels.
The Hackers/Manipulators are more generalized in their function, and are more likely to be seen in the company of various animals. They can 'program' the environment and customize/create life forms. They tend to group up more than the other classes and will form gangs, which can become territorial. As the environment evolves, the 'city' areas build up, and the lower city areas are abandoned. As this is going on, the organism itself is slowly dying from the inside out, displacing the marasats in the lowest levels, which move into the newly vacated city areas. It's here that you're most likely to come into conflict, as remaining members from the original population and groups from different areas tussle for space.
They're also most likely to work with humans. Given the proper environment they can set up and maintain a power system, and are very good at running communications networks. Although they will re-spawn if they are damaged, and new members of the population will be spontaneously generated if the area is large enough, they can't intentionally produce others. They can, however, generate certain maintenance animals and modify them as needed. If they are living in an area which becomes completely abandoned- say a space station that gets shut down- it will eventually be completely taken over and the new life forms based on the modified ones, so the entire organism slowly evolves and adapts, and when it spores will carry the new information.
All of them have limited vocal ability, they can make some noise but not actually talk. They basically communicate through a wireless network at close range, they have specialized nerves and tissue that basically connects the electric end of the tail into their brain, and can transmit various type of signal. To access the environment, communicate over long distances, or control animals the tail attaches into ports, allowing direct control.
The tail is an important part of social communication, and is usually held high and curled. It's considered 'trashy', for lack of a better term, to leave the actual spilt joint area of the tail uncovered. It's also considered 'low class' to have jewelry or accessories, particularly around the tail, or complicated clothing, as these indicate a maintenance worker of some sort.
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Amazing!! I'll try to keep all of this info in mind. A base would be nice, I'd LOVE to make one!
Seriously, I'd have fun creating my own and I appreciate you giving me permission!
Sorry for such a late reply. And any design suggestions are welcome~ And name suggestions, too.
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Ugh. Allergies have been killing me this year. I have been trying to focus long enough to do a base drawing for three days now.
I'll see about getting a decent set of bases done, but here's one to get you started anyway- Height is usually 5-8 feet standing upright.
*Note* Even though they don't reproduce, and so don't actually need genders, I did design 'male' and 'female' versions- since as I said it was supposed to be a game, and people like being able to choose that sort of thing. And it gives more options for variation. This is the 'male' version, which is standard. I'll do the 'female' version and get her up, too.
Design wise, I happen to really like drawing wrinkles and folds in fabric, so I tend to do lots of fairly loose clothing. I also like detail work, so I tend to go for buckles and belts and whatnot.
I've found some of the stuff I had originally written planning out the game, and I'll get some of that posted, there is a sort of natural progression they move through where they'd gain things, you know, you'd start out with a super basic model and then you'd find clothing and tools and whatever.
As far as design, they're often in a fairly cramped environment so try to keep a fairly tight outline, long coats/cloaks/things like that are OK but shouldn't be excessive. Backpacks are fairly rare, they might carry hip pouches. If you've ever been out exploring in an overgrown area of woods, with small trees and vines all over the place, that's kind of the feel you'd get moving through many of the places.
Though there are more 'urban' areas, they still are in a fairly small space and generally try not to take up to much more room than they have to.
Common accessories include goggles, various small tools, and spools or loops of 'string'- as far as looks go these are glowing threads which resemble lit fiber optics, and are often used in repair work and to establish communications networks.
Body pattern is used to identify individuals from a distance, and so is usually fairly bold and in contrasting colours. Blues, grays, and greens are uncommon as a base colour, though grays may appear in smaller areas of contrast. Base colour is usually fairly pale, pattern may be stripes, spots, blotches, or any mix.
Patterns may resemble African or Australian aboriginal art, and often consist of 'patterns within patterns', including contrasting stripes or spots within larger areas of colour.
Patterned areas are almost always lined with contrasting bands of colour.
Many individuals have a mane, this is most commonly seen on the head and neck but may run all the way down to the base of the tail. The mane is usually long and shaggy, and may be a different colour or mix of colours to the coat. In some areas it is fairly common for the mane to be altered by cutting, dying, or adding extensions and accessories.
Assuming you were designing it like you were playing, you'd start out in one of the urban areas that has died off and been abandoned, the general feel is sort of a cyberpunk dystopian ruins, sort of a post-war Russia with lots of neon glow, overgrown with these big, dead, cement-like 'vines'. Obviously that's where you'd start picking up your stuff, and learn the basic controls and whatever.
You start out basically with a light shirt and a pair of pants. The shirt can really be anything, the default would probably be like a t-shirt or athletic type shirt, which can have pictures or words on it.
The basic clothing type equipment you'd find in the early parts would be things like arm coverings- you see lots of them pictured with the fingerless gloves/sleeves, some of those are just fabric and some of them are more protective. There would be light armor vests and several types of coat and jacket- I'm not going to start in on that but it is important to note that adding weight and layers lowers flexibility and agility- both of which are highly necessary for getting around. A basic coat provides protection from the elements but can't withstand much damage. An armor jacket or vest provides heavy protection- but also severely limits your agility.
lol Ok, I'm going to stop there, my dog needs to go out. If you have any questions, just ask.
Ah, and as far as names go, I'm kind of a nerd and- in keeping with the game idea- I usually give them some sort of geeky name, or something that sounds like a hacker name/screen name. Some of the ones in the gallery are Kode_Lok'd, MokeyGrrl, JakdN, Mandelbrot, Raver...
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*flails* Thanks so much for taking the time to give me all of this information!
I'm glad you gave me a lot to go on. You should put all of this into one of the base description or in a journal about them!
It will take me some time to come up with a pattern and such. But what about eye/tongue color? Paw pads? Claws?
As for a name, I'd like to choose something odd like that, yes. I like it~ But probably not with an underscore. 
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I have managed to delete this TWO TIMES NOW *groan*
Yeah, I'm going to get something posted in the folder with the other stuff.
Names aren't super important, just avoid 'normal' names. The idea is to encourage a cyberpunk feel even though many of the environments aren't typically 'cyberpunk'- even though they're working in a natural environment you've still got manufactured technology.
Paw pads match the skin colour- which usually is a darker version of the coat above. Most common skin colours are gray or black, pale individuals may have pink or brown skin though it is usually gray. The skin colour usually matches the pattern, though it may be solid. In some individuals with solid, very pale fur, the skin may have a pattern which only becomes visible when they get wet or go into certain areas.
Claws are naturally pale gray or almost black. They may be blunted slightly, but are not cut short as the nerves extend well into the claw area. Some individuals specialized for extremely delicate work may have very short or no claws on the hands.
Claws are usually not painted as such, because it can cause damage and weaken the structure. However, it is a common behavior for them to expose their hands- particularly the claw area- to several substances which can be found inside various native flora. This can be done for several reasons- the least legitimate (but often most common) of which is to leave glowing graffiti or other messages. A side effect of this is that it also coats the claws, causing them to glow. Eventually, the entire claw will be permeated and will emit a weak glow.
I usually go for yellow or orange with eyes, think birds/reptiles/wild dogs. They don't really see very well at a distance- they live in tunnels or crowded 'city' type environments and can only see clearly for a few blocks- maybe 2000 feet or so- after which they can't see much detail- this is why large, glowing landmarks are common in more open areas. They can sense certain substances and electrical fields, meaning they can navigate fairly well whether they can 'see' or not.
Tongue and mouth are pink inside, teeth are flat for shearing/grinding though they do have short canines top and bottom. When agitated or injured, they may produce glowing saliva- this can also be done intentionally.
Which leads to an important note- even though they look like standard animals, they are actually the end result of what started out as a mutually beneficial relationship between a small nocturnal animal and a kind of fungus. Though they retain the outward characteristics of a standard animal, they do not have the type of anatomy one associates with 'animals'. Though they do have a solid internal structure surrounded with 'tissue', they do not have 'muscle' and 'bone' but rather a system of 'tubes' similar to what can be seen in the general environment. When damaged, they do not bleed, but they will ooze a glowing substance. Sometimes they can 'soak' heavy damage by spontaneously re-growing the damaged area. Damage to the main body usually heals with a scar, limbs may re-grow but often the skin layer is not replaced, leaving the system of 'tubes' exposed.
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I'm a little confused now. Probably because I'm tired and feel unwell, I'll read over it again.
I was going to ask about blood color! But this sounds even cooler. Now, I was thinking of maybe giving him apricot fur. Is blue-grey skin fine?
Maaan, you've put so much thought into this! Just brilliant!
My sister is in love with your work and the design of a marasat.
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I had to re-write that comment three times, it might not be super clear.
Blue-grey is fine for skin, I'm not super picky with that stuff. It's really more just that they need an actual set pattern, I don't really want to start getting into muddled texture fill type colours.
lol I've had a long time to work on this stuff. And I'm really, really well educated in anatomy and biology, and just sort of general paleontology and zoology. I spent LOTS of time in natural history museums when I was a kid, too. And worked with animals alot. I trained and bred horses for years, did wildlife rescue, bred rabbits, kept chickens, there were a few times when I got to be close to or work with large exotic animals- actually when I was a little kid, our neighbors had pet lions (until one of them got loose and roamed around the city, then they made them send them off to a more secure facility)- I have a few memories of being up really close to them- like sitting or laying on them. But I'm starting to wander off topic.
I also am one of those people that really needs logic behind things that I do- I'm fine with 'just because' in other people's work, but with mine I really need it to feel like a complete functioning universe that follows natural rules.
I started out with the basic design for the critters, and I had the backgrounds and environments and stuff that I really liked just from all my sketches- and all of the monster type creatures that went along with it. But the design of the two is very different, the rest of the creatures don't have eyes, some of them don't even really have visible heads- I knew that I wanted everything to be part of the same big organism.
Which is why I ended up choosing an evolutionary path that I do actually have sort of mapped out, where you start out with two completely separate life forms that eventually end up basically merging into one over the course of millions of years.
And then there is a point where there was contact with human culture, which is where the clothes and certain aspects of technology and architecture come from. Lots of that isn't direct contact with humans, but since they can eventually take over things like old space stations, ships, colony planets, etc that have been abandoned, adapting to the environment ends up with them adopting certain concepts.
The wings were something that I sort of balked at, I really like drawing them and wanted that option, but I also know the ratios for wing to body weight and shape required to actually fly, and I didn't want them to be that big, and I definitely wanted feathers and not bat-type wings. Which is why I decided to limit their range and keep them in certain specialized areas where the environment is controlled in a way that negates gravity enough to let them function.
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Impressive piece!!!
One can sense the struggle the main character has to try and break free from her shackles....!
Strong work to be proud of!!!!
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