Era 20: The Armtupleran Era
This era is named after the many fossils of the unique Armtupler species that date from this period. This was an era of great abundance on land and sea, with more large plants and animals than ever before
The continent of Caliburnia began to break apart. Lakes and seas slowly filled in the gaps, until they joined with the ocean. Cool, moist air now flowed into the heart of that continent. Somehow, this seems to have been a fairly gentle process. There is no evidence for the kind of giant volcanic upheavals which had happened so often before.
Meanwhile, all over the planet, there seems to have been a great increase in rainfall. The reasons are not exactly clear, but again it may be due to changing ocean currents. At the same time, the global climate was getting slightly cooler. The air was rich with both Carbon Dioxide and Oxygen. By the end of this era, most areas had a stable, pleasantly warm climate, with ample rainfall. Thick jungles covered most of the land surface.
After surviving millions of years of drought and hardship, many land species enjoyed an easy life during this era. Populations of some species grew like crazy. All the complicated measures to preserve water were hardly needed anymore.
In the oceans too, there was an increase in nutrients and plankton, probably due to the shifting of many cold water currents into the tropics. Soon there were countless billions of Stormfish and Redfish filling the waters, and populations of other species were not too far behind.
(As a side note, the discovery of fossilised 'humanoid footprints' from this era has caused much controversy. The generally accepted view is that these are distorted animal footprints. But some claim that extraterrestrial beings visited the planet at this time, with unknown motives..)
New Evolutions: (big)
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Planet Map:
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The Land:
The 'Fern Jungles' of the past gave way to true jungles, with large Fanel/Tranel type trees. These areas had a mix of all kinds of plants, growing as fast as they could, as they battled for sunlight. They produced huge volumes of fruit which supported equally huge populations of animals. The old
Big Fanel V3 species had a sudden revival. It had almost gone extinct during the cold and drought, but now the warm/wet conditions suited it better than the Tranels.
Various fern species continued to do very well, and spread around the world thanks to their airborne spores. The climate especially favoured the
Sprouty Fern, and its larger cousin the
Boom Fern.
Nearer the poles, there were cooler forests, where things were less crowded and less frantic. These areas had a smaller variety of plants, but still produced a lot of potential food. They had the same kinds of animals as the jungles.
The plains had shrunk in size but were still an important habitat for the hardier creatures. Unfortunately the poisonous
Hearty Moss began to spread through here, killing off the edible Mosses (
Fire Moss and
Proto-Moss) in the process, which reduced the amount of grazing
It was not such a good era for Zeeboos. A few Zeeboos could still be found in almost any habitat. But as jungles and forests spread out, there were only a few pockets where they still grew together in fields. These were usually on mountainsides, areas rich in minerals, or on the boundaries between plains and deserts.
The Lemunesian islands grew in size and number, thanks to constant tectonic upheavals. A mini-continent was beginning to form. But for now they remained a vast archipelago, with thousands of different islands of all shapes and sizes, often surrounded by tranquil lagoons and reefs. They formed a migration route for amphibians and fliers when they crossed between the continents. Otherwise, the land species of the two main continents remained basically separate from each other.
Karakavalions were large, versatile predators that lived in steamy swamps, rivers, and sheltered coasts. They seem to have been rather successful, and eventually spread from Caliburnia across the islands to Agonia. Their big crushing jaws would have been fully capable of brining down Diploduplers and Skullscrapers, as well as tackling Giant Quadruplers underwater. We can imagine that these fights were impressive to watch.
Merlytes were aquatic versions of the Hibroytes. They were not great swimmers and needed to breath air. But by the end of this era they had managed to spread to swamps, coasts and rivers all over the world.
Lemunesia still had no fully land-living animals, apart from primitive
Leafworms, and maybe some local flightless mutations of Jubblers and
Cloudbay Longfires. But it did have a mix of all kinds of plants from both continents. The heavier seeds of some plants were probably spread around by amphibious plant-eaters like the
LungScraper.
With the increase in life, there was an increase in death and decay which was good news for all scavengers. Some
Chungus and Leafworms would probably have been found in every square metre of the jungle floor.
Jubblera Sensica and
Jubblerus Fruitus bred in huge numbers. Vast swarms of them must have filled the skies during the breeding seasons. The Sensica's sense of smell and its improved digestion, combined with the hardiness of living in arid terrain for millions of years, gave it the edge over other Jubblers. The
Desertia and
Frigidus went extinct.
The
Longbay Fireskimmer and
Island Dawnfire became the top flying predators with roughly equal populations.
Longbay Cloudifre numbers were in serious decline. The Fireskimmers were the most skilled fliers yet, and it seems that they roamed all over the planet. However, their weak jaw and talons would not have been enough to defeat the average land creature. As with their ancestors, their diet must have consisted of young and weak animals, or other fliers like the Jubblers. Their talons did at least help with perching in awkward places (something these species always had trouble with, having evolved from leg-less relatives of the modern Stormfish).
Finally, the
Clinging-Tick was able to spread over most of the land. It must have been impossible to travel through swamps or any kind of moist ground without picking up one of these parasites.
Caliburnia
The
Sprawling Tranels were the largest plants the continent had seen for a while. They towered above other plants and were common in both the jungles and cooler forests of the north. The
Novo-Tranel and other Tranels only really did well in the cooler climate.
Meanwhile the
Attack Tranel finally began to do much better, as there were far more animals to fall into its trap.
The climbing
Clespurytes had been doing quite well in the previous era, despite not being suited for the hot climate. Now they were almost completely replaced by their descendents. Two branches split off in very different directions...
The
Volaticytes began to glide from tree to tree. This was a great way of getting around and avoiding climbing predators like the
Xiavalion. Their talons enabled them to stick to trees like glue when they needed to. However, they seem to have been quite clumsy in the air. Their poor eyesight would not have been much good for navigating through dense forests. Every fossil of these creatures shows signs of damage to the head and 'wing' arms. Dazed Volaticytes sprawled on the ground must have been a common sight, not to mention a common food source for predators. Nonetheless, its clear that these creatures were very successful and had massive populations throughout this era.
The
Ursulanyte was a larger version of the Clepsuryte that made no attempt at gliding. It seems to have used its large size as a defence, though it was by no means immune from attack. Its size must have made it as clumsy in the branches as the Volaticytes were in the air, so probably spent a lot of time on the ground too. Ursulanytes also had cartilage support under their exoskeleton, somewhat similar to the extinct Keldots and Nekes.
The
Arix had a presence in the jungles and forests, but seemed to prefer lurking in the plains and the areas bordering them. The
Sensorix, another descendent of the
Audorix, took over as main predator in the dense vegetation, using ambush tactics. Though not particularly fast, it had the best combined senses of any animal at this time. Both the Sensorix and Arix were still partially omnivorous, and would have included fruit in their diet.
Cronodids gave way to spiky
Lithodids which had a new habit of digging up roots and bulbs to eat. Their digestive system was better at handling such things than other herbivores. Lithodids and Cronodids were still to be found all over Caliburnia, but the Dids had now been eclipsed by the Duplers.
With their larger size, upright legs and extendable mouth, the
Diploduplers had the greatest reach of any animal so far. They could eat the leaves of the taller trees with only climbers and fliers could reach. These creatures had a large appetite, but there was more than enough plant material to feed them. They lived in herds which much have been intimidating for smaller animals. Or they might have attracted attention. They seemed to have led quite violent lives. Many fossils show signs of deep claw-wounds, broken bones, and even severed limbs. They were fairly intelligent compared to most other creatures, but their senses remained relatively poor. They probably had a cautious and aggressive attitude towards anything they came across.
Armtuplers were the most 'intelligent' land species so far, and like their cousins they were relatively social creatures. They were adaptable and versatile and seemed to have large populations all over the continent. They were true omnivores and their intelligence would help when it came to sizing up potential victims. But like the
Diplodupler and
Hextupler, their senses remained quite poor and its not clear how well they could communicate with each other. As well as brains, they had grasping arms (evolved from the
rear pair of legs) which seemed to have been important for their lifestyle. We can only guess exactly how these were used, but it is likely that carrying food and youngsters around was their main purpose. They could also have been used to build large nest areas. The need to coordinate all these limbs was probably one of the reasons for the increase in brain size.
Hextuplers did not increase in number and mainly hung around in the open plains.
The
Interactive Zeeboo was getting more like and more like an 'animal'. It was in fact the most complex lifeform of the age. It seems they used moveable 'roots' to protect each other from nibbling herbivores, as well as to sweep their vicinity clear of any rival plant species. The Interactive Zeeboos replaced the
Thinking Zeeboos, but their complexity and energy needs still made them much less common than the
Tougher Zeeboos in Caliburnia or the
Multiplying Zeeboos in Agonia.
Lemunesia
As mentioned there were more and bigger islands, but no dedicated land species had reached them.
Xiavalions were the most common predators. The islands were dotted with swamps surrounded by trees and dense vegetation, which was ideal habitat for them to stalk
LungScrapers and
LandScrapers in the undergrowth, or any flying creatures resting in the trees. Unfortunately, lurking
Karakavlaions were now firmly at the top of the food chain, and rampaging
SkullScrapers would have often disturbed the peace. Vegetarian food was so easy to find that SkullScrapers probably spent most of their time fighting.
The strange looking
Aquaupler evolved here. The first scientist to publish a description of this species was actually dismissed as a fraudster. It was some years before the findings were accepted as genuine. The Aquaupler had long legs attached to large feet full of spongy, buoyant tissue. It seems that it could 'walk' on water. This couldn't have been terribly fast or efficient, but could've been a good way of crossing lagoons and swamps while minimising the chance of running into predators. Though, no fossil has ever been found with all its feet intact, which might be saying something. Aquauplers seem to have spread all across the islands, and perhaps reached the continents too, but not in any big numbers.
The islands were also an important habitat for the last few populations of
Sextupler (ancestor of the
Aquaupler,
Hextupler,
Armtupler and
Diplodupler) which was now basically extinct elsewhere. It was a great spot for
Island Dawnfires and other fliers too.
Agonia
The 'Zerribean' sea was being squeezed out of existence. It was now more like a swampy basin surrounded by dense jungle. This was dominated by the
Skyward Woodfanels which grew in large numbers and towered above all other plants on the continent. The small
Woody Fanels and
Scavenger Fanels also did very well there - especially the Scavenger Fanels, which thrived on all the decaying matter on the jungle floor.
The climbing
Mirramids now had serious competition from the
Jafankunea, an omniviorus climbing relative of the Kakoo.
The Kakoo family did especially well. The original
Kakoo and
Kyponea species were in decline, but only due to the success of their descendents. The most deadly of which was the
Koranthea, the top predator of the Agonian jungle. It was versatile, relatively intelligent and very strong compared to most other species. It was also a very well put together animal. Fossils show that it had complex joints of bone and cartilage, giving both strength and flexibility. This allowed it to take a bipedal stance, though it was not particularly fast, and was easily outpaced by the
Sandavalion, for example. Still it must have been the most agile and manoeuvrable hunter of the time, which would be very useful amongst the dense vegetation of the jungle.
The Kakoo-related species were still limited by their need to stay near water. Even with insulating feathers, it seems their skin and body design was one that continually lost moisture. This was not much of a problem during this era, but meant that they never spread far beyond the damp jungles.
The plains and Zeeboolands were still home to the increasingly-ancient
Terradid MrkII's, with the almost-equally-ancient
Sandavalions picking off the weak and vulnerable. Such scenes had remained the same for many millions of years.
The Oceans:
Most plankton was still to be found near the poles, while most plants and sponges were found nearer the equator. The warm shallows were ideal spawning grounds, even if a species got most of its food elsewhere. Many animals migrated all over the oceans. There wasn't a great divide between warm and cool waters.
As mentioned,
Stormfish and
Redfish bred like crazy. With abundant plankton, their populations grew perhaps ten times larger than the previous era. This supported a swarm of all kinds of predators, which made life more dangerous for all the plant-eaters and scavengers too.
The
Flatfish was an offshoot of the Redfish that took to life at the bottom. Shoals of these creatures probably glided over the seabed, randomly digging into the sand and sediments with their hardened fins, in the hope of disturbing zooplankton and the tiny larvae of larger creatures.
Cloudfish were apparently still around, but were most likely confined to a few isolated lakes and inlets.
Populations of
Koranops were not in the same league as the Stormfish, but were still many times more numerous than the
Certanops of the previous era. When threatened, Koranops was actually faster than the Stormfish or Redfish, though that was still too slow to avoid many predators. Still, the combination of spikes and exoskeleton was probably something that predators avoided if they had a choice. And its more efficient swimming was useful when it came to migrating between the most plankton-rich areas. Though like their ancestors they often preferred the shelter of reefs and vegetation, where they used their tentacles to anchor themselves in place and save energy.
The new
Algacae Rerethermis and
Sticky Zeeboo species added to the variety to the underwater forests.
Many plants and sponges became infected with the
Muto-Cult, a new kind of parasite. But it seems that a symbiosis was beginning to take shape. The Muto-Cult was rarely fatal, and in return for nourishment it provided defence with its poisonous spikes. In a way it was much the same as the
Shellster Kipinus and the other early ancestors of the Koranops.
The
Amacilndasa was a versatile creature and seemed to be very common on the sea floor during this era. Any predators hoping to make a meal of them would first need to dig them up, and then break through their hard shells.
The
Shock Finner was the fastest predator around, and took over the lifestyle of the earlier
Bitey Finner. It was easily able to catch Stormfish and etc. But its rather weak jaws and fangs usually prevented it from tackling prey like the Koranops.
It is likely that Shock Finners hunted the other Finner species. Indeed they were the only predator with much chance of catching them. But it must have been an energy-draining task. And even if caught, their cousins had a strong skeleton to break. Probably only the young of other Finners were hunted, so that they could be swallowed whole. Overall the Finners still enjoyed protection of speed and vision.
Xoso and
Double Finners seemed to have remained very common during this era.
The Finner body design was well suited to an increase in size. The
Megafinn proved successful and had a healthy population. Their complex mouths and digestive organs could handle plants as well as plankton. They were good swimmers like their ancestors, and could easily cover enough distance to find enough to eat. Their big mouths would have stripped large areas of seabed of their plants, and disturbed the small creatures lurking there in the process. They were probably followed by Storm Finners and other predators looking for something to eat.
Although a powerful swimmer and bigger than most other creatures, the Megafinn was itself still vulnerable to a determined attack. However its unlikely that predators would make such an effort unless they were desperate.
Predavalions were the most intelligent creatures in the ocean at this time - though the extinct Intelavalions had once been just as 'smart' - and they were able to use this as an advantage, particularly when it came to tackling the bewildering swarms of Stormfish and Redfish. The Predavalions seem to have been very successful at this, and were probably able to eat their fill on most hunts. They also had the best vision of any animal so far, which would have been a big advantage in waters near the surface, where plankton-eaters tended to gather.
The Predavalions were undoubtedly the top predators of the time, though the
Sociavalions still held a place, with the benefit of being slightly simpler and less demanding on local prey.
The large
Karakavalions seem to have been present in coastal waters. The Karakavalions certainly had the jaws to tackle any sea creature, but their poor swimming wouldn't make them much of a threat to most. They may well have dived down to hunt crawling
Quadruplers on the sea floor, and may even have gone up against the
Giant Quadruplers.
The
Crimson Slasheel coiled round its prey like barbed wire, slashing it with sharp scales. It must have been devastating against soft-bodied prey. It had the strength to break thin shells and exoskeletons too, though it probably risked damaging its scales against such targets. Of course, the prey first had to be caught. Without a speed advantage, the Slasheel relied on its vibration sense to hunt mainly at night or in murky waters, as with its ancestors. Other predators like the
Shy Hunter competed for this role.
But the Slasheel also had the strength to plough through underwater vegetation and even haul itself out of water for short periods. Thus the Slasheel was able to work its way into lakes and swamps far inland, where it became a danger to certain land animals. At the same time, some sub-species remained quite at home in the depths of the ocean. The Shlasheel was definitely the most widespread predator under the water at this time.
The
Harpoon Serpenteel was another offshoot of the
Azure Serpenteel. Though not as strong, it attacked with a harpoon-like fang that was catapulted from its mouth. If caught, the prey would then be crushed to death in the usual fashion. Though not as widespread or successful as the Slasheel, it seems to have done quite well and was probably better able to catch prey that had good reflexes and vibration senses of its own.
The Yuckii did not really benefit from the increase in Stormfish and Redfish. The shoal instinct of those creatures usually prevented them from wandering off to investigate strange things, like a Yucky's lure.
The Yuckii generally caught enough various prey animals to survive, though the
Yuckius Hornius was becoming a little too complex to be supported by its passive hunting strategy. The effort of continual reproduction must have put a great strain on these creatures. It was probably rare that any adults reached their full potential size and strength.
If they didn't die early, they may have fallen victim to the
Assasin Yuckius. This was a Yucky that had added its own kind to its menu, and was beginning to adapt to the poisons and disgusting taste of its brethren. Though it doesn't seem to have been a particularly grave threat at this time, and wasn't very numerous.
There were now no less than four Yuckii species (including the older
Evenprettius and
Prettius), all with slightly different lifestyles, but all competing with other for prey. Taken together they were very numerous, but no single species was able to thrive.
Finally, the only change to the deep ocean floor was the appearance of the
Geoturyte, a relative of the ancient Pondurytes. It hunted what little zooplankton there was at that depth. This was a very laid back lifestyle, except the danger of randomly being eaten by passing predators at any moment.
Bonuses:
Plant award: Hearty Moss.
flamingzaroc121 has +1 gene bonus.
Animal award: Koranthea.
Luckymoose has +1 gene bonus.
Innovation award: Aquaupler.
c&cciv3 has +1 gene bonus.
Survival award: Bathyscaper.
North King has +1 gene bonus.
Story award: Thlayli has +1 gene bonus.
*New!* Evolution is speeding up:
For this turn at least, you can now add 3 genes by default, that is 4 with a bonus. And you can remove the same amount.
However,
I don't want to allow more than 2 to be spent on the
same thing in
one turn. IE a creature suddenly getting 'Flying x4' in the space of one era is not realistic at all.
*New!#2* NPC evolutions are now open for suggestion:
Though I can only allow one 'official' evolution per player per turn, I would like to ask for any suggestions people may have for NPC creatures. From now on I want the NPC's to be influenced by players. So, please feel free to post any ideas you many have for other evolutions! But I don't ask that you spend much time on them or do stats for them, because I make no guarantees about actually using them, or I may change them alot. They will still be NPC's and wont give bonuses to people.
*New!#3* 'Insects':
There are now generic 'insects' on land, like there is 'plankton' in the water. These are tiny species that wont have stats, though some may be miniturised relatives of things like the Jubblers and Leafworms etc.
They are a food source, but anything with 'Flesh Eating' or maybe just even 'Complex Stomach' will be able to eat them if it needs to. When it comes to a eating lots of insects, the genes will need to be about trapping/catching them. Like maybe a 'long sticky tongue' or 'web' or some such
Problems:
@ all, I am thinking about a more 'formal' way of showing what creatures are living in what regions, and how well they are doing. I will add this to the update ASAP.
@erez87, I didn't remove cold resistance x1 for the Megafin, hope thats OK. Although the planet is indeed warm, I saw it being useful for migrations through the cool waters near the poles, where most of the plankton is.
@Slavic Sioux, let me know if you'd like the rules explained more clearly. Based on what you posted, I assumed you wanted Clamworm and not Sandworm as the starting point for your creature. And everyone has two genes to use per turn (excluding bonuses). Since you added scavenging, I added extra 'digging' too.
Species Stats:
Recently extinct creatures are still shown in the word doc, but they are highlighted in bright red. They are not shown in the txt.
