#>Galapagos

[demi-pixellated]

Freij

Freije Known for their fringed ears, thick dark hair, and natural resistance the frigid temperatures of the north. Freije seals take on a white or pale-blue hue, contrasting against their dark skin. Typically asymmetrical and unique to each individual, they have been widely (and fittingly) remarked as resembling snowflakes and frost, consisting of radial pattern of crystal-like markings.

Matriar The military and naval prowess of Freij is recognized across Elothia, and its Matriar reflects that. As Leader and Admiral, She dons the military vestments of the region, although ornamented and embroidered to indicated Her regal station. She also carries on Her person, just as the officers under Her, a dagger and sabre. Typically these would be highly decorated commissioned works, much like Her chokha and kalpak. However the current Matriar has forgone the tradition, preferring to don and wield the standard arms of her men. As Impero recently saw a Patris leave the throne, Freij is likely to see one on theirs in the coming centuries as the current Matriar has only one son and seemingly no interest in bearing another child.

Czars State officials and Generals to Her Majesty. Much like the Matriar, Czars are outfitted in military garb and keep a dagger and sabre on their person. While still decorated to denote them as officers of import, it is not to the level of the Matriar.

Citizens Despite the high tolerance to the northern climate that they have become known for, Freije are born incredibly susceptible to the cold. Newborns are heavily swaddled in thick furs and kept indoors for the most of their first year. Even when younglings are finally able to be brought outdoors, they do so thoroughly bundled up, almost comically, in several layers of thick clothing and furs.

It's not until adolescense that the Freije's cold tolerance truly begin to build up. They begin to strip away their heavy coats, scarves and furs, and many, many, layers as the years proceed, and by their first century the typical Freije can brush off the low temperatures with far lighter apparel. To the outsider experiencing the bite of Freij's Spring chill for the first time, they may even look underdressed.

In opposition to this are the region's wealthier merchants, barons, and city officials. Setting themselves up at higher altitudes, far above the crowded docks and fish markets, even their natural resistance isn't quite enough to keep out the colder mountain winds. As a result, upper class Draken remain relatively bundled up well after maturing - a fact that's earned the ridicule of many common folk, thinking it make them look childish.

[spiderworries]

y’all can’t actually think giant tortoises would make good beasts of burden bc

a) do you know how long it takes them to get that big?? you’re gonna wait 50 years for your tortoise to be big enough?

b) have you ever tried to make a giant tortoise do anything? you can’t. they don’t give a flying fuck about anything.

[vestaignis]

Красный скальный краб (лат. Grapsus grapsus) или «Sally Lightfoot Crab» – десятиногое ракообразное из семейства Grapsidae. Салли Лайтфут — это небольшой, с достигающим 8 сантиметров панцирем, вертикально сп��юснутый краб с общей окраской от коричневого до оливково-коричневого цвета и полосами от коричневого до желтого или оранжевого цвета на ногах. Детёныши красного скального краба окрашены в чёрный цвет.

Вид был впервые описан Карлом Линнеем ещё в 1758 году, но до 1990 года этих крабов относили к виду Grapsus adscensionis, обитающему в восточной части Атлантического океана. Животное обитает на тихоокеанском побережье и Центральной Америки, Мексики и Южной Америки до северного Перу; многочисленны на Галапагосских островах. Кроме того, эти крабы водятся в Атлантическом океане на отдаленной группе островов Сан-Педру-и-Сан-Паулу.

Красный скальный краб отличается большой проворностью и ловкостью, поэтому его очень трудно поймать. Он очень резво перемещается по твердой поверхности и может бегать по почти вертикальным утесам. Салли Лайтфут обладает уникальной способностью плотно всем телом прижиматься к скалам с такой силой, что его не может оторвать даже сильный прибой. Нередко его можно увидеть отдыхающим на камнях вместе с морскими игуанами. Иногда представители данного вида помогают ящерицам избавиться от поселившихся на их коже паразитов.

Красные крабы бурно реагируют на приближение любых хищников. При малейшей опасности они спасаются бегством. Они постоянно резко меняют направление бега, что в большинстве случаев сбивает преследователей с толку.Животное также отличается умением быстро регенерировать утраченные конечности, оставив их на съедение хищникам. Днем ракообразные прячутся в скальных расщелинах или норах. Во время ночного отлива они разгуливают по обнажившемуся д��у в поисках пищи. Питаются Grapsus grapsus водорослями и падалью, выброшенными на берег морем. В целом они ведут полуводный образ жизни.

Старые особи живут в гордом одиночестве, а молодь предпочитает собираться порой весьма многочисленными группами.

The red rock crab (lat. Grapsus grapsus) or "Sally Lightfoot Crab" is a decapod crustacean of the family Grapsidae. Sally Lightfoot is a small, with a shell reaching 8 centimeters, vertically flattened crab with a general coloration from brown to olive-brown and stripes from brown to yellow or orange on the legs. The young of the red rock crab are colored black.

The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758, but until 1990 these crabs were classified as the species Grapsus adscensionis, which lives in the eastern part of the Atlantic Ocean. The animal lives on the Pacific coast and Central America, Mexico and South America to northern Peru; numerous on the Galapagos Islands. In addition, these crabs are found in the Atlantic Ocean on the remote group of islands of Sao Pedro and Sao Paulo.

The red rock crab is very agile and dexterous, so it is very difficult to catch. It moves very quickly on a hard surface and can run along almost vertical cliffs. Sally Lightfoot has a unique ability to press its entire body tightly to the rocks with such force that even a strong surf cannot tear it away. It can often be seen resting on the rocks with marine iguanas. Sometimes representatives of this species help lizards get rid of parasites that have settled on their skin.

Red crabs react violently to the approach of any predators. At the slightest danger, they flee. They constantly sharply change the direction of their run, which in most cases confuses their pursuers. The animal is also distinguished by the ability to quickly regenerate lost limbs, leaving them to be eaten by predators. During the day, crustaceans hide in rock crevices or burrows. During the night low tide, they walk along the exposed bottom in search of food. Grapsus grapsus feed on algae and carrion washed up on the shore by the sea. In general, they lead a semi-aquatic lifestyle.

Old individuals live in proud solitude, and young ones prefer to gather in sometimes very large groups.

Источник:/t.me/+E4YBiErj0A8wOGUy,/zooclub.org.ua/kraby/krasnyj-skalnyj-krab.html, ://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grapsus_grapsus, //www.lookphotos.com/en/images/70133765-Sally-Lightfoot-Crab-Grapsus-grapsus-Galapagos-Islands-Ecuador, /sotni.ru/kraby-krasivye-kartinki/.

[ttrpg-smash-pass-vs]

TORTLE

VS LOCATHAH

Tortle! More tortoise than turtle, but still! They can retreat into thier shell and hold thier breath for an hour! They're actually big into travel, for they always carry thier home on their backs. They also like making friends :) That's all I got, so on a less wholesome note, did you know that Galapagos tortoises thrust for 10-20 minutes while groaning so loud it can be heard for miles?

Locathah! Aww, they even have a pet :3 They're strong, athletic, observant, and amphibious. Thier will is strong, being very good at resisting anything that might poison, stun, scare, or put them to sleep! Combine with thier thick hide and incredible endurance could make for a fun time, but they do need do hop in water every few hours. They're actually really friendly and always down for friends and allies, but they do have a good bit of social etiquette they ask for. It's simple stuff though, mainly "social distance unless given permission to approach." Which I hope you did when possible to begin with, and isn't relevant since we're assuming you have permission.

[danbensen]

I’m trying something new here, which is to write off the cuff, with little editing, and press the “post” button without much thought. I’m doing so because this is the first spare moment I’ve had to respond to 

Bassoe’s response to my review of C.M. Kosemen’s soon-to-be published book All Tomorrows, and I don't want to let this interesting conversation wither on the vine.

If you had trouble following that last sentence, it’s enough that you know this: we’re talking about the evolutionary future of humanity.

The Machine-God Scenario

Bassoe talks about “machine-gods...obsessed with tending to the well-being of an inferior species” where “the only remaining selection pressure is desire to reproduce.”

Another selective pressure would be to make ourselves adorable to the machine-gods. Perhaps the gods have a template for what they consider to be human, in which case we'll only be able to evolve in ways that don't deviate from that template. I'm reminded of a Stephen Baxter story (Mayflower II) in which humans on a generation ship turn into sub-sapient animals, but they still press buttons on the control panel because that behavior is rewarded by the ship's AI.

The Super-Tech Scenario

But I agree that even without a super-tech future where all our material needs are met, the availability of contraception means that there's a selective advantage to people who don't use contraception. There are many ways for evolution to make that happen. An instinctive desire for babies or an instinctive aversion to contraception are two such ways. I remember a Zach Weinersmith cartoon where he jokes about future humans with horns on their penises that poke holes in condoms, but of course any such physical adaptation won't be able to keep up with technological innovation. We will have to *want* babies.

Another option is (ala Kurt Vonnegut's Galapagos) that future humans aren't smart enough to use contraception.

The Artificial Womb Scenario

In this case, I think the most selected-for humans are the ones that are most efficiently produced by the artificial wombs. Maybe it's easier to pump out limbless grubs, which are fitted with cyborg arms (see John C. Wright's Myrmidons in his Count to the Eschaton Sequence). The form they take will depend on the parameters of the machines' programming. (see also Vanga-Vangog's The Endpoint)

The Collapse Scenario

I think this scenario is unlikely. If "life, uh, finds a way," then intelligence finds even more ways. When one resource runs out, we find another. The mere fact that you don’t know what the next resource is just means we haven’t found it yet.

But say for the sake of argument that there's a hard limit to technological progress (ala Vernor Vinge's A Deepness in the Sky) or science really is like mining, and it takes infinitely increasing resources to make the next marginal gain in technology. In both cases, you'd expect the graph of human advancement to look like a population when it hits carrying capacity. Exponential growth (we're doing that now) followed by a cycle of die-offs and re-growths, converging to a horizontal mean.

With no ability to innovate, natural selection would take over from technological progress. Once we’ve eaten all the meat and potatoes, there will be strong selection for people who can digest grass. I would expect humans in this case to diversify until our descendants occupy nearly every niche, absorbing most of the matter and energy available on Earth (at least). Whether these people are intelligent or not...probably not. @simon-roy seems to be hinting in this direction with his masterful comic series Men of Earth.

But I don't actually think collapse is likely. I bet that our population (and technological advancement) will not hit an asymptote, but will instead as progress according to a power law, as with the bacteria in Lenski's Long-Term Evolution Experiment.

The Mogul Scenario

Bessoe asks about a future in which “our cultural norms stick around indefinitely, those who generate more profit reproduce,” which I very much doubt.

In 20th century America, the more money you made, the fewer children you had. Now, it seems there's a saddle-shaped distribution, with the very poorest and the very richest women having the most children per woman. This is sure to change again, and faster than evolution can keep up. Perhaps you could say that if contraception pushes us to evolve an instinctive desire to have more children, and rich or powerful people will be in positions to gratify these instincts, then whatever traits make someone rich and powerful will be selected for.

Maybe, but now's a good time to go back to the Reich Lab's "Pervasive findings of directional selection," summarized here by the illustrious Razib Khan.

In comparing ancient to modern DNA, the Reich Lab found evidence for selective pressure in humans in Europe since the end of the Ice Age: increased intelligence, increased height, decreased organ fat, increased walking speed, decreased susceptibility to schizophrenia, increased immunity to many diseases, and, funnily, increased tendency to home-ownership and university education.

Obviously people weren't going to college in the Chalkolithic, but whatever traits make someone likely to go to college now have been selected for since the arrival of agriculture in Europe. You can paint a plausible picture of the sort of people who were most reproductively successful in the past six thousand years, and there is even some evidence for selection in the range of 1-2 thousand years. Aside from obvious things like immunity to smallpox and Bubonic plague, Europeans have gotten paler and blonder, and more of us are able to digest lactose than in Roman times.

But the 21st century is very different from the 1st, which in turn was very different from the pre-agricultural -70th. Maybe you can say that being smart, strong, and disease resistant have always been good, and being tall and baby-faced gets you some sexual selection (almost everyone seems to have evolved shorter jaws and lost their robust brow-ridges in parallel). So we can imagine future humans who just all look gorgeous.

read on (and see the pictures)

[fagsex]

god help me my sister was trying to drop in a little bit of soft launching my transgenderism to my parents earlier saying stuff like "yeah and what if ice was a boy? huh? huh?" which was so sweet and kind and it was relevant because my mom was complaining about how i never wore skirts or dresses willingly as a child and how i would kick her and scream when she tried to put bows and headbands in my hair (the headbands thing is a Huge contention between her and i because i would. break them) and anyway i was completely not paying attention and was instead showing her what it would look like if i was a galapagos tortoise who won the suite life on deck danimals sweepstake except futurama slurm style where i choked on a bottlecap and my mom just went "...sure looks like one" which is a late contender but coming in strong for accidental ally moment of the year

[g1ga-byte]

Finally completed the Indigo Disk DLC and I love this little baby turtle! I was think of an idea for Terapagos. When he was introduced, he's just a baby- a lil' guy! but Terapagos is based off the Galapagos turtles, and they can grow to be huge, so I wanted to play with this idea of an older Terapagos, and Elder if you will.

and I'm also a big Avatar: The Last Airbender, do one thing that came to mind was the Lion Turles, which are also mystical and powerful.

I might use this for my Disk Guardian AU, perhaps this was the Elder Terapagos who gave contacted Geeta and her mission is to protect the last of his kind, the little baby in the DLC, until he is strong enough to rule the lands again!

This is only a quick concept art, and I'll refine this art at another time, and I want to eventually draw the Elder's "Terastal" and "Steller" forms. Let me know what you guys think!

[theunwantedgamerawebtoonhuman]

I'm very confused. Is Koki physically that strong in the show??? She is a mechanic, which is often a lot of intense physical work. But that's also what the Kratt brothers do regularly. She's also not super muscular, and the brothers aren't either. They're just fit to me.

No she's is not that strong in cannon lol. That's just my headcanon because side characters don't get any character given to them 😞/j

It stems from the fact that in cannon she knows Karate and Tai Chi

As for the show no one is shown as muscular besides Gourmand, I'm pretty sure it's an art style choice

And as for the brothers it's SUPER inconsistent how strong they are because no power suit Martin and Chris have lifted a Galapagos tortoise. And I believe Martin did while holding a huge boulder as well.

[ask-aph-ecuador]

¡Oye!

🦙 It's me, Ecuador! The alpaca-tortuga lover of the world!? That's me! ¡¡¡That's me!!!

Here's some things to know about me!!

I have two pets, Galapagos (a tortoise) and Cotopaxi (my alpaca)!

I use he/him!

Mi "human name" is Mateo Recalde!

My favorite food has to be llapingachos!

¡¡¡¡¡I LOVE TORTOISES, ALPACAS, TURTLES, EVERYTHING!!!!!

{ OOC INFO }

Interactions are from @/incompetentcloudkingdom, use they/them for me!

I'm not Ecuadorian, nor Spanish for that matter, if you try to speak to me in Spanish I most likely won't respond because my Spanish is very broken- I'm learning Ecuadorian history, so that's my reason for making this blog . Please don't mention current events in politics here,,

Basic DNI applies to this blog, but also dni if youre a mdni blog because mun is a minor

every ask here and there might have a doodle,,

{ Info about Ecuador as a character and Interactions }

Ecuador is a relatively quiet and polite smiley-guy who's generally friendly, especially around animals, but he has a temper if someone offends him or his animals. Ecuador usually uses Spanish terms and exclamations if he feels an incredibly strong emotion, usually excitement or anger depending on the situation. (an example of this is the !Oye! In the intro).

Sometimes Mateo likes to speak in purely emojis, with him being pretty quiet when not ticked off . Combos of emojis can mean anything, ex "🐢🇪🇨🦙" being Mateo himself. more info about this in this post. He can regularly send asks entirely in emojis, making sentences such as "🇪🇨🐢🦙 💞 ⛰️!!" via spaces in emojis.

Any Hetalia blog or asker can int in character, even if you go against Ecuador's set stuff (ex a Galapagos islands OC interacting despite his tortoise representing the islands), this includes 2p, Nyo!Talia, nekotalia, and mochitalia too

[starryknight-dragonarts]

I have been following along with Truegreen7's series on Youtube where he and 3 other Fakemon artists get together to design a new pokemon based on the same prompt. This Prompt was: Pretty, Protector, Protagonist

I started my prompt with the word "Protagonist", what animal and type would I want to see be a Protagonist? Well as evident by my love of Charizard and Salazzle I really like Hot Lizards so I would go for a Fire type Lizard! They are meant to be Feminine but I don't just want to copy Salazzle's look so I decided to go with a different body type to emphasize her strength, if Salazzle is a Glass Cannon of Special attack then this pokemon would be a Tank that can take a hit and give it back.

I decided to base mine off of the Marine Iguana, native to the Galapagos islands, they spend most of their time basking on hot rocky beaches to build up heat and energy to then go diving in the cold pacific ocean and graze on sea plants so Fire/Water type seemed perfect. They prefer being warm on land but they have adapted to a semi aquatic lifestyle. Another fun fact about Marine Iguanas that is relevant to this is that when they feed on sea plants they also end up swallowing some sea water and have to get rid of the salt somehow so they projectile sneeze the salt out their nose which is why their faces often look white and have salt crystals built up on their heads. I imagine this pokemon has a signature move where it fires hot salty steam out of it's big round snout that has a damage over time effect like Salt Cure.

Marine Iguanas are not what people often consider traditionally beautiful looking, Famous naturalist Charles Darwin called them: "Hideous looking creature, of a dirty black colour, stupid, and sluggish" and then spent time picking them up from the beach and throwing them in the ocean to watch them swim back…this obviously is now very illegal. Thank you for your contributions to Natural Science Darwin, you also married your first cousin!

Personally I think they are very cool looking like something reminiscent of prehistoric times, while usually a black volcanic color sometimes Marine Iguanas bear a mix of Red and Teal which looks majestic. I figured the pre-evolution should look small, cute, and like something you would want to protect but has the potential to be strong. Mariguna is a fun loving child who loves to play on the beach. When they go swimming they make a bubble jet from the heat vents on their hands and feet to propel them through the water. Mariguna sometimes get picked on by bigger pokemon so they stick around their much larger evolution for protection.

Then Mariguna becomes Ambroyroar, a Big Sunbaking Beach Babe with scales that make it look like she is wearing a Bikini, and has muscles like a powerlifter, not a traditional feminine aesthetic but very beautiful nonetheless. They spend most of their time laying on the beach and up on rocky cliffs by the sea basking in the sun and building up heat. If anybody messes with their Mariguna then they are ready to move and fight at any moment using the heat Vents on their hands and feet to inflict burns on enemies.

[kuruna]

∞ Arisen & Pawn Character Introductions

Template by @arisenreborn ^.^ Thank you for making it- I love stuff like this!

♛ THE ARISEN:

NAME: Desdemona NICKNAME: Mona AGE: While she physically appears to be in her mid-late 20s, she is at least a few hundred years old. RACE: Some sort of elven subspecies! PRONOUNS: She/Her PREFERRED VOCATION: Mage or magic archer. While she is capable of battling up close and personal when necessary, she prefers keeping her distance. FAVORED GIFTS: She tends to enjoy expensive things. Gemstones, regal clothing, and the likes. She is constantly pretty low on funds, because as soon as she has enough gold she'll blow it all on cute outfits. FAMILY: Noblewoman mother, peasant father (estranged from both). Distantly related to my DD1 Arisen, Kuja.

POSITIVE TRAITS: Has a very strong sense of justice. Determined. Has a natural curiosity that makes it easy for her to find hidden secrets. Kind, despite how she tends to keep her distance from people. NEGATIVE TRAITS: Very, very private. Tends to keep things to herself. Distant in the sense she doesn't allow herself to become close to others. Reckless and impulsive, will rush head-on into danger if it's to help someone else (which isn't necessarily bad... but if she gets hurt too, then it's an issue!) LIKES: Shopping, gemstones, forests, perfumes, hanging out around the brothel (she doesn't even do anything there she's just nosy...), she is fond of helping others. DISLIKES: hot weather, battling against ogres (more often than not she is the only woman in her little party...), reading maps (she's awful at it), large cities (despite everything, she gets lost very easily). FUNFACTS: Kind of flirtatious but avoids commitment. In a modern AU she'd be really into gyaru fashion. Likes exploring new places, but has a tendency to get lost... and whenever she makes it back to whichever city is newest, her and her pawns are in a pretty bad shape due to it. Actually prefers seafood, but doesn't often cook it while camping since it's not as filling as the meats.

1. What was their life like before becoming Arisen? Desdemona lived a very aimless life, in a sense. Due to her age she's gone through many different experiences, but she does not tend to attach herself to anything. But she enjoys helping others, despite this. she enjoys doing things that may be considered noble... and so when Melve needed help, she headed there.

2. How do they handle being Arisen, and the responsibilities that come with it? In the beginning, it was devastating for her. She already thought that her long lifespan as an elf was a curse, but now she has the immortality that comes with being Arisen. What will she do now? Thinking about it makes her head ache. Regardless, she tries her best to be virtuous... in her own way.

3. What are their thoughts on Pawns in general? Desdemona feels more kinship with pawns than she does her fellow men. She relates to the experience of lacking the will to do as you please, though her life has changed greatly since her time spent in a noble's household. Even so, this had led her to be very protective of any pawn that enters her care even if it's only for a short time. When they are taken by the Brine or she is unable to save them in time, she feels as if she's betrayed them...

4. What's their relationship like with their main Pawn? One of their first interactions was Desdemona saying "I'm not fond of that title- "Master" or Arisen or what-have-you. I'd like if you'd simply use my name." This small thing established how they'd interact with one another during their journey. Galapagos' own will is something Desdemona encourages. She likes him to be able to choose for himself what he wants. This has led to some tense interactions with townspeople, of course. To most of the world, pawns are simply mindless followers. Why is it, then, that this particular pawn has such freedom? She's also just very protective over him and on more than one occasion may have threatened someone who was looking at him funny. Whoops!

5. Do they have any interest in being Sovran? What are their opinions on the politics of the world in general? Desdemona left the noble life behind her long ago... and so she isn't fond of the idea of being Sovran at all. If she has no other option, however, she would be willing to do it... but she'd rule in her own way, which would perhaps be a bit untraditional. She doesn't quite understand why Vermund's ruler NEEDS to be an Arisen, when Arisen aren't always the best people for the job, tradition be damned. It also frustrates her that while pawns are treated better in Vermund than they are in Battahl, it is clear that they are still seen as tools, or just accessories to the Arisen.

6. Who are their love interest(s) and/or closest friends? Desdemona enjoys flirting with Glyndwr (she thinks its funny how obvious his blush is when he's so pale), but doesn't really have an interest in pursuing him. she sees some similarities between herself and raghnall, but wishes he wasn't so pessimistic, despite being the same way. she likes wilhemina quite a bit, too. she is more sympathetic to her desire for revenge than most may be. brant doesn't dislike her, but he thinks she is a bit strange.

7. What drew them to their preferred vocation? Do they have history with it?Desdemona is a bit... reckless. She tends to go for vocations that allow herself to have a longer range during battle, because she knows otherwise she'll end up getting herself beat due to some impulsive choice she made. She is also simply pretty proficient in magic.

8. Do they have any hobbies? Any way of relaxing between all that monster-slaying and traveling?Desdemona looooooves shopping...the first thing she does upon finding a new town is hit up the shops, she'll do it even before staying at the inns. she also enjoys reading and collecting different rings...she's a bit picky about jewelry, though!

♟︎ THE PAWN:

NAME: Galapago Ialandos (he was named by the child of the first Arisen he served. You can just call him Galapagos, though.) NICKNAME: Gal AGE: Physically looks to be in his early-mid 30s, but is really a very ancient pawn. RACE: Same elf subspecies as Desdemona. PRONOUNS: He/him (but when he learns about they/them pronouns it's over for him quite literally) PREFERRED VOCATION: thief -> fight / warrior FAVORED GIFTS: Would definitely get really really flustered if given Any gift, but he not so secretly likes being given fancy armors and the likes. He loves being brought along on Desdemona's shopping trips. INCLINATION: Forager (it's Desdemona's fault... she likes randomly grabbing stuff and cramming it into her pockets, and now he does too.)

POSITIVE TRAITS: Dedicated and loyal, thoughtful, always looks at all sides of a situation before acting. Good at communicating and very honest about his feelings (as honest as he can be, at least). Makes friends rather easily. NEGATIVE TRAITS: At times is unquestioning of other's motivations, even if such a thing can get him hurt. Has a bad habit of running off on his own. A little bit of a hypocrite; will scold others for things he lets Desdemona get away with. LIKES: Sunny days, traveling in ox-carts (he likes to see the scenery go by), collecting flowers, street performances, fancy armor sets (he takes good care of them). DISLIKES: Rain, ghosts, spiders, even darkness... despite his life experiences, he's actually a bit of a scaredy-cat and is often jumpy when exploring caves and the likes. FUNFACTS: Used to wear a black face-paint, but since switching vocations he's stopped using it. Has several tattos and scars from his time spent with bandits. His eyesight is pretty bad, so he tends to rely on sound more than sight... Desdemona wants to see about getting him glasses, though.

1. What was their life like prior to being summoned by their Arisen? Galapagos once served under an Arisen of old. This Arisen was a bandit-king, and while he wasn't callously cruel like some are, he was definitely a bit uncaring towards Gal. Due to this experience, Galapagos learned to be ruthless in battle, and learned to make himself quiet an unassuming. When this Bandit-Arisen was caught and swiftly executed, he left behind a young child... and Galapagos began to raise this child as a way of continuing his service to the Arisen. It was a strange time in his life, to act as a parent when a pawn should have no desire for such a thing... eventually this child became an adult, and grew old, and passed on. Afterwards, Gal traveled aimlessly across different worlds until, many years later, he felt something calling out to him... and soon he appeared before Desdemona.

2. What is their opinion on the Arisen? How do they view their relationship? Desdemona is very, very different from the previous Arisen he served under. She encourages him to think and act for himself. She encourages him to speak (and be listened to), to try out new things, to explore freely even without her guidance. He isn't quite sure what to think of it all, except that her kindness towards him has made him start to feel... odd. He doesn't know, for example, why seeing Glyndwr tends to make him feel instantly bitter (Gal hasn't realized it yet but the answer is very simple... he wants Desdemona to be flirting with Him instead!!)

3. Is there anything about the Arisen they find troublesome? Be it a small quirk or bad habit? (Or are they obviously flawless?) He wishes she wouldn't run off on her own so often! So many times they've ended up in perilous situations because desdemona got herself separated from him. at the time time, he finds her boundless curiosity very charming. he can never stay upset with her for long. and again, he tends to grow Mysteriously Annoyed and Angry when she flirts with others, though he tends to hide it (it's none of his business who Desdemona talks to, after all). He only figures out he's experiencing jealously when he brings it up to Brant (Brant does Not want to know the details about this, but Gal didn't know who else to ask about it 😭)

4. What is their specialization and is there any story behind how they cultivated that skill set? He's a forager... but it's not for any deep reason. It's simply that Desdemona herself loves foraging, and Galapagos ended up loving it too. However... they both end up carrying very heavy packs by the end of the day.

5. Do they have any thoughts on the politics of the world and their place in it as a Pawn - or how Pawns are treated? Due to his age, Galapagos has seen the world, as well as the way pawns are treated within it, change much over the years. Despite the attempts of Empress Nadinia, he noted that pawns have been getting treated even worse within Battahl, no doubt as backlash against the Empress giving pawns more legal rights. It frustrates him, though he doesn't often voice it. After his experience as a parent, he doesn't see himself as being overly different from humans or beastrens. He grieved his loss all the same.

6. Does their journey with the Arisen change them in any significant way and how? Galapagos becomes more confident and more talkative... he also, of course, falls in love for the first time, though he's reluctant to voice that. But being treated simply as a fellow man by Desdemona has enabled him to be true to himself.

7. Is there a reason they chose their preferred vocation? Due to his past as a pawn serving under a bandit, Galapagos was an archer and thief for a time, focusing on long range attacks and being sneaky. But he felt as if he learned all he could, and felt as if he were stagnating. And so he switched to a fighter at first... he wanted to learn new skills, but... something about being able to protect Desdemona in the same way a knight would... made him feel very excited. He's also giving warrior a try (Desdemona likes seeing him swing around that big hammer).

8. Do they have any hobbies or preferred past-times? He likes camping more than he'd admit... he also enjoys going on shopping trips with Desdemona (he acts like he isn't as Into fashion as she is, but more than once she's caught him eyeing some nice outfit or fancy suit of armor with a sparkle in his eyes). He finds it relaxing to be near the beach, and would probably enjoy fishing if he ever gave it a try... he's anxious about the idea of sailing on the water, though.

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this book review from EcoWatch:

Adam Welz’s The End of Eden is an extraordinary document of a planet under stress. Taking a deep dive into the scientific history of our planet, Welz brings the research into the moment by exploring how species around the world are being forever altered or eliminated, in ways that few people are aware. 

“Humans have been performing an uncontrolled experiment on this fragile, life-giving cocoon,” Welz writes in the book’s introduction, referring to Earth as a “tarnished Eden.”

Welz writes about places he’s traveled to, as well as ones he extensively researched, including the Mojave Desert, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, the Galapagos Islands, New Jersey’s Pine Barrens, and areas close to his home in Cape Town, South Africa. 

Welz looks mostly at microclimates and how “these intimate ecological breakups and breakdowns are of no less consequence than the so-called natural disasters.” It’s an exploration of the science of phenomena like thermal heat and CO2, and a painfully real one, considering how plagues, extreme weather, migration, fire and other events have affected the delicate ecological balance of Earth and mammals like the white-throated woodrat, honeycreepers in Hawaii, and land tortoises, among others. 

But Welz sees hopeful adaptations as well. “Some species will colonize habitats, areas, and communities that they have never lived in before,” he says. “Climate change is scrambling natural communities and creating new combinations of species — new ecosystems — almost everywhere we look.”

Some of the book’s research really points to some unalterable changes in species. How does one avoid that kind of psychological climate change dread? 

I get people saying to me, I’m scared to read your book because I might get depressed or something. It’s like, well, yeah, that happens to me. And I think, you know, well, this is what’s going on, folks. And you can either pretend it isn’t there or you can deal with it. And if it changes you, if it marks you, well, that’s what it’s going to do, because this is what’s happening. And that’s actually okay, even though it is difficult.

There’s all sorts of things that are just truly bleak and there are solutions, but the political opposition to those solutions at the moment is ferocious. And if we are really going to do something substantial about climate breakdown and the extinction crisis, it’s going to be a fight. There are very strong entrenched interests who want to carry on with fossil fuels and want to carry on with rampant destruction of ecosystems, because they’re making a lot of money out of it. It’s got to be a fight. It’s not going to solve itself. It’s not going to be because people have the right ideas. You know, if any change is going to come, it will be through action.

[mirica199]

Petarification and the Third Legendary

Introducing the new battle gimmick for Pokemon Zenith and Nadir, my Pokemon region inspired by Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands!

Petarification can only affect certain Pokemon, and when used in battle, it causes the Pokemon to turn into solid stone. However, they can still move thanks to the energy running through their bodies. There are twenty different kinds of Petarification, eighteen relating to the eighteen types, but they can only affect one Pokemon. When one of those Petarification types are used during battle, the Pokemon will change one of their Types to match the Petarification that corresponds to them. They also gain a boost to their Defence, Special Defence and whatever attacking stat is highest.

For example, the starters have Petarification Forms which they swap out their secondary Type for the Type strong against their base types, so Flourispine becomes Grass/Fire, Torsidian becomes Fire/Water and Glacaber becomes Water/Grass.

The third Legendary for Pokemon Zenith and Nadir is called Petasquash. It is a Poison/Ground Type corrupted by toxins thousands of years ago, yet got its name for the phenomenon it created...

Petasquash is the origin of Petarification. It used to take on a different appearance, but when a toxic flood invaded Gosdor thousands of years ago, Petasquash sacrificed itself to save the Pokemon, resulting in its body becoming horribly corroded in the process, even causing its organs to melt. In a last ditch effort to save itself, Petasquash absorbed all the energy around it and turned itself into solid stone, the only thing keeping it alive was the energy running through the stones. This phenomenon has been dubbed Petarification and Petasquash itself got named after the phenomenon. However, in recent times, the stone has begun to crack…

Petasquash can be captured in the Epilogue for ZN, titled The Polluted Lands. It and Zapalope are the only two Pokemon who undergo a special form of Petarification. These don’t change their types, but they keep the Defence, Special Defence and attack boost, but these boosts are doubled.

This is Zapalope's Petarification! It's meant to be an example for what other Petarifications can look like...

[tales-of-tai-shan]

I don't mean to brag, but I believe I put more effort into worldbuilding KFP universe precolumbian Galapagos than DreamWorks itself does into making KFP 4.

Hard times make strong fandom.

[ttrpg-smash-pass-vs]

LEONIN

VS Tortle

Leonin are lion people! These are 6-7 ft (1.8-2.1 m) tall, strong, bold, confident, and surprisingly forgiving. People think they're short tempered, but they're really just looking for an excuse to wrestle, argue, or fight. Any sort of battle of wit or body to challenge themselves with. They don't hold grudges, likely because they're so confident that insults don't hurt them, just prove your opinion worthless. Their claws are also retractable, and they do have a loud (and frightening) roar!

Tortle! More tortoise than turtle, but still! They can retreat into thier shell and hold thier breath for an hour! They're actually big into travel, for they always carry thier home on their backs. They also like making friends :) That's all I got, so on a less wholesome note, did you know that Galapagos tortoises thrust for 10-20 minutes while groaning so loud it can be heard for miles? and that tortoise junk usually expands to half the length of the shell's flat part? Sometimes more! :D

[wowlorecraft]

World of Warcraft: Turtle Islands

{ This is pure headcanon fiction }

World of Warcraft announces its next saga: The Seas of Azeroth. WoW: South Seas, WoW: Western Isles, and WoW: Turtle Islands

As the Exodar enters low Azerothi orbit and as distant seafaring travel sees increasingly heavy traffic, the remaining landmasses of the planet come into light, including Khaz Algar and Avaloren

These wandering isles atop massive turtles' shells provide refuse and safe haven for myriad species. Some turtles are teeming with life, and some have only a single, ruling species

Here, on these islands, we find the relatives of the Hozen who look remarkably like humans. Vanaras, as they call themselves, stand upright and are about as tall as the average Stormodan human but with simian features including fur and a tail.

They live extremely spiritual lives alongside the Gaja, a short race of Elekk-like beings, similar to the Tuskarr. The Gaja make pilgrimages lead by the Mahagaja to pay homage to the Dikkarin, the celestial elekks that hold up the astral plane

As there are numerous wandering isles, elves also made their way to an island ages ago that had Harpies. Yet, unlike on the other continents, the worship of Aviana was strong and pure, leading the Harpies to nonviolence and cultural practices. The blending of Night Elven and Harpy culture lead to harpies taking on more humanoid features such as hands and feet, and the night elves gained wings. The avian culture of this island resembles the Galapagos and the diversity of bodyshapes amongst the sparrows.

Trolls, too, have ended upon on a couple of islands, but these island trolls are quite different from the trolls that we know. Due to the island effect, they have shrunk consistently and, like the elves, ended up mutating to fit into numerous niches. In short: ..well, short trolls!

Interestingly, a group of Sand Gnomes has even got to an island and is growing larger and larger with each generation. At present, they are about the average size of a Dwarf now

There are so many islands meaning so many opportunities:

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (aka children of Tortolla who spec into being Subtlety Rogues and worship their island turtle)

A cousin of the Vulpera (Kitsunai) whose parent Ancient Guardian lives on the island and with another branch of Night Elves

An island where the K'thir were welcomed and accepted with open arms because they look like Octopus-like Pasifika-inspired people, but this mistake cost them dearly, and we can help!

A branch of sea-faring Viking-like Vrykul called Sjagul

Goblins

(plus the above in readable format:)

Giant Sand Gnomes

Smol multi-flavoured Trolls

Tol Nelf-like Vulpera

Winged Night Elves

Friendlier and more sane Harpies

Vanaras, the Hozen relatives

Gaja, the Tuskarr of Elekks