Vakzala

Discussion in 'Denied' started by schizothotep, May 5, 2019.

  1. schizothotep

    schizothotep Ozymandias's very own Diamond Donator

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    Name: Vakzala; "Night Stalkers"

    Description: The creatures named by the inhabitants of Eter as "Vakzala" are one of the few animals that inhabit the cold, snowy regions of the High Mountains. By the brief looks, they resemble a rather odd combination of a bear and a mountain lion; but upon closer interaction, they seem to be resemblant of none of the above.

    Vakzala are tall, unnaturally elongated and slender animals, most commonly recognized and identified by their horrific heads; which look like they were pulled straight from a horror, for they resemble flesh-less skulls than actual heads. The same bone-like structure can also be observed on the ribcage, the back, and many other parts such as arms, legs, or even their tails. But those additions do not serve as simple means to scare other predators off; the "shells" are, in fact, made out of keratin and calcium, and serve both protective and insulative purposes. They are so hard in fact, that it takes a few well-aimed strikes to effectively crush them. The "shells" are similar to horns or animals; every now and then, Vakzala shed their bony armor when their bodies get too big for them, just for it to grow back in a span of few days.

    Despite their massive sizes, Vakzala are capable of running at incredible speeds; that is thanks to their muscular and strong frontal and back legs, each ending in a sharp set of claws. Their limbs serve many purposes other than simple movement; they also are used for climbing rocky surfaces and walls, which angle can reach near ninety degrees, and to assault and immobilize their pray.

    But the most interesting part about Vakzala are their throats, and vocal cords located inside; structurally, the closest resemblance is found in birds such as parrots, or lyrebirds. Due to that, Vakzala are fully capable of mimicing and imitiating various, oftenly complex sounds. Of course, there is a huge flaw in this ability; Vakzala do not have their "own" type of a roar or sound, which means that all the encounters between the representatives of this species happen solely by chance. They are not able to find or track one another by sound, but other means such as footprints, smells, or other tracks still exist.

    [​IMG]
    (Artists rendition of a Vakzala; note the grotesque additions, such as the corpse of the adolescent human male or additional skulls, that don't appear on the actual animal)
    Behavior: Despite their terrifying presence and outstanding strength, Vakzala are not fond of direct encounters; instead, they opt to sneak upon a weakened and exhausted prey, killing them before they have a time to react or defend themselves, usually by lunging out of hiding or sneaking in the shadows until an opportunity is given. When presented with a rather big group of animals, and/or humanoid beings, they will focus on one target solely, and attempt it's best to lure it away from the group. To achieve this, Vakzala use their highly developed vocal cords to mimic any sound they have heard in their life before; be it as simple as a bird mating call, a panther roar, or as complex as basic human words, and full sentences. Although they are most oftenly random words thrown around into the wind, recently Vakzala have shown a minor sign of intelligence, as they seem capable of knowing and understanding the words mimicked by them, and picking them to a given situation accordingly. Vakzala, despite most commonly seen as lone hunters, are also capable of joining into packs of three to four individuals for group hunts, which changes their behavior drastically. Instead of creeping up and tiring the prey out, they instead lunge at groups of animals with the loudest, most terrifying scream they learned so far, in an attempt to scatter the group around, before picking off and killing panicking and fleeing individuals.

    Tamability: Untamable.

    Where is it found?: Native to the mountains of Eter, in the planet system of Argus.

    Rarity: Uncommon. About as rare as a mountain lion.

    Diet/Method of gaining nutrients and energy: Strictly carnivore. They are not lucky eaters, so already dead animals will do as well as freshly hunted ones.

    Products?: Nothing too special. You can use it’s remains like the remains of any other animal. Or use their shells as armor.

    Reproduction: Sexual, live birth. Pregnancy lasts five months. Up to five offspring at once.

    Size: Three to four meters tall, from the bottom of their feet to the top of their heads. Five to six meters long, from the top of their head to the tip of their tail. Females are smaller than males.

    Weight: Four hundred - four hundred and fifty kilogrammes, total.

    Lifespan: The oldest recorded specimen was forty-eight years old.

    Abilities:
    • Incredible strength, on par with a brown bear
    • Is as fast as a mountain lion
    • Amazing skills in climbing mountains and other rocky territories
    • Very good at hiding and masking itself, making it difficult to spot in rocky/snowy enviroment.
    • Ability to mimic and imitiate voices and various other sounds
    • Strong, calcium-keratin shell that covers various parts of their bodies
    Flaws:
    • When it’s shell is damaged, their weak flesh is exposed
    • ..Which is very, very fragile, making it relatively easy to damage it
    • Scared of fire, will attempt to flee at the mere sight of it.
    • Very rarely stray away from the mountains, their territory
    Other: When shined upon with a flashlight or alike, their eyes reflect with red, instead of the usual green or blue.
     
    Last edited: May 5, 2019
    zirconzz and Cheffy like this.
  2. Markus Aleksandr

    Markus Aleksandr The Liberated Bronze Donator

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    You mentioned at the beginning that they are one of the few animals that inhabit their ecosystem. How much are they required to consume? Regrowing an entire chitinous shell of that caliber in the spawn of a few days is an incredible feat, and I would say either requires a vastly-increased dietary requirement (at least during that period) or an increase to that time frame.
     
  3. schizothotep

    schizothotep Ozymandias's very own Diamond Donator

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    By the part about them being one of the few inhabitants of the mountains, I did not mean that there is little to none life found there; quite the opposite, in fact. I meant that there is a small variety in terms of fauna and flora.
    As for your next question - they usually eat forty to fifty pounds of meat on daily basis. That is not that much of a trouble for them, be it for their ability to mimic other animals, which could include mating calls and alike.
    For the term of the shell getting regrow, they do have to eat much more than usual for it to properly grow. The amount of food required doubles in amount during that period of time.
    The most general and the simplest rule would be that the bigger the shell, the more food they need.
     
    Last edited: May 6, 2019
  4. Markus Aleksandr

    Markus Aleksandr The Liberated Bronze Donator

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    So... It's come to my attention that this creature has been used prior to it being apped.

    This, in addition to the sheer mass and speed of this thing (~1100 pounds moving upwards of 50 mph holy shit),
    the completely bananas rate of bone growth

    I have to give this app a
    Denied grade.