u/LocalBirrinFan

The Flame Knights are an indigenous sophont species to the planet Ziggurus; a high-gravity (higher than Earth, not as high as Vulcanis) planet with extensive cave systems and a largely humid, tropical climate.

1. What is a Flame Knight?

Flame Knight is actually their species name, not their occupation, but taxonomically, Flame Knights are psuedo-piscine reptilians, like a mosasaur or crocodile, Flame Knights (and their relatives) pertaining to their own order entirely: Psuedopiscilacerta.

They are most comparable to catfish in behavior, though.

2. Why did they evolve the way they did?

The distinctive hunched biped look of Flame Knights comes down to a few factors.

A. Aquatic Structure.

Because of the higher gravity on Ziggurus, most water pools as large basins which are relatively shallow. Ergo, the ancestors of the Flame Knights did not evolve for fully aquatic movement, as well as needing to build nests on land. Because they couldn't properly move without some type of fins and tail, but if they only had that, they'd hardly be able to move themselves in the barely-present water, they have a combination of limbs and fishy parts.

In addition, their terrestrial ancestry would make it difficult to fully transition to aquatic life, and their native environment makes it impractical.

B. Ambush Predation.

The ancestors of the Flame Knights were slinking terrestrial snake-like beings who relied on ambushing prey to devour whole. And, if there's one situation that benefits stealth and ambush, it's water. Water serves as a great way to hide, and Flame Knights -on account of their highly-sensitive barbels- can simply sit and wait until prey is nearby, at which point, they can swim upwards and drag prey below.

2.1 What's with the opposable thumbs and distinct legs, then? Whales, dolphins, and most fish are great swimmers but they don't even have fingers.

As for why they have distinct limbs, like I said: they're partially terrestrial, (mainly because their eggs are absolutely not designed to be birthed in water and need to be in nests.) but also because they're ectothermic organisms that rely on basking for heat management.

As for the presence of thumbs, they're ancestrally for clearing debris. Like I said prior, Ziggurus has higher gravity, which causes deep trenches to form, often all the way to hydrothermal activity. It also causes more geothermal activity. These two factors often cause stony buildups of metal and Igneous rock to form in a number of locations of Ziggurian water bodies.

In addition, the humid and tropical climate causes lots of floral growth on the surface and on the little areas that Flame Knights love to nest in. The higher gravity results in shorter, but thick-and-heavy foliage which often crowds where the Flame Knight's ancestors needed to make nests.

So, the presence of blockages and obstructions in their natural hunting and nesting grounds meant they need better grip to haul these things away. A thumb and more dexterous fingers in general provide that kind of grip strength. You can even see that their arm structure is similar to that of a giant sloth's. Although, their claws (the sloth's) are primarily for digging, a Flame Knight's graspers are more structured for grabbing, tearing, ripping, and pushing aside.

2.2 Why are they pictured as bipedal?

That's just a stance they do when they're just standing about. It's akin to how bears will do the same thing. By just standing about, they drastically improve their ability to see, smell, and hear new stimulus from around them.

In addition, they'll stand like that if they're wrestling or aggressive.

Most of their time is actually quadrupedal for locomotion or laying on their backs.

2.3 What makes them good hunters?

Firstly, don't assume they are just cause they're scary-looking. It's xenophobes like you that's why big and strong species are seen as dumb. But, they are good hunters. (This is a cringy joke.)

It mostly comes down to bulkiness and their gaping jaws. Their bulkiness is mostly an attribute of their high-gravity homeworld. More force means more muscle and denser bones are needed, (Which is another reason why they're partially-terrestrial. They'd literally just... sink in any water deeper than their body height.) which also means that they need more efficient lungs and hearts.

That bulk means that they are heavy and they are strong. They employ big-cat-like tactics in hunting: pouncing, running, and slashing. You can often spot young Flame Knight-lings (Baby Flame Knights are called pups, btw.) pouncing and playing with each other as training for when they are older.

But the gape of their jaws is quite fascinating. You'll note a distinctive distension in their necks, just in front of the shoulders. This section is actually a nexus for a few important muscles. Their hunting method mainly involves relaxing certain cranial muscles that correspond to their unfused jaw joints, like a catfish. Essentially, they possess small "accelerator" bones that keep certain jaw muscles tensed. Then, they'll suddenly "drop" their lower jaw (by relaxing those two tensed tendons in that neck region) and protruding their lower maxilla outwards, while pulling their upper maxilla back and up, followed by sucking in powerfully, creating a wide orifice and vacuum to swallow prey whole. Then they snap their accelerators back into place, otherwise they'd have a permanently distended jaw. Think of it like a chameleons tongue, but in reverse, so to speak.

Their bulk and largely carnivorous diet makes them especially formidable predators.

3. Why are they smart?

This is a fascinating question. Because, in most cases: big animals who have all but eliminated the potential of not eating aren't all that smart. But Flame Knights have a whole civilization to their name. So, why?

Well, what do you notice about the Flame Knights? They're very big and muscular as well as active predators? And what do you notice about Flame Knight pups? They come out nearly fully-formed aside from size. But how can that be if they're clearly such an energy-dependant species.

Well, simply put: The yolks of their eggs are massive. They're absolutely chock-full of vital nutrients and minerals needed to feed the developing embryo.

But what does that have to do with intellect? Well, with Flame Knights being as large as they are, that means they only make a few young at a time. Those young are precious and take up to 14 months to fully develop.

But the massive yolks mean that scavengers and opportunistic little critters are always trying to steal Flame Knight eggs to get a quick meal. (Or just... kidnap Flame Knight pups)

Either way, reproduction is a crucial variable for all living things, and this causes an unknown variable which promotes higher social bonding and higher emotional intelligence. That, combined with things like their opposable thumbs means that the Flame Knights found their way to sentience quite fast.

4. Why are they called 'Flame' Knights?

Flame Knights have a bioluminescent compound in some of their tissues, (mainly oral ones, but also lining the interior of their horns, as well as the outer dermis on their underbelly) which they use for countershading whilst swimming so they aren't visible to prey.

This innate white glow diffuses through blood vessels and comes out as an orangish color, hence "flame".

(Link to my original post about the Arachne: https://www.reddit.com/r/SpeculativeEvolution/s/xG373ay9Cu )

1. How does Arachne sexual dimorphism function?

Arachne are innately matriarchal, so males have to fight over a mate. For that reason, they have pretty distinctive structures for gathering the attention of a female.

Namely, these include abdominal spikes, a distinctive abdominal pattern (Horouy /HOR-OH-AY/), and the distinctive horn-like structures on the top of an Arachne's head, which actually help amplify mating calls to better find a mate.

The horn-structures (Hallowhorns /HAH-LOW-HORN-SUH/) grow in hollow layers around an osseus horn core. This means they're somewhat fragile and prone to breakage. Though, a partially-broken set of horns is actually a show that a male is more appealing, since it indicates further fitness for mating.

(Basically, the logic is: Arachne horns and big and heavy, so if a male continued living past a fight - and not just that but presumably won that fight - then he has good genes that will be good for the offspring.)

2. What is Arachne social structure like?

Though it varies between kingdoms and countries, most Arachne are seamstresses, using their silk to create art, tools, and -namely- homes. Arachne silk is remarkably tough, though they do not have much at a time, so each strand is placed meticulously. The silk is generated in spinnerets below the chelicerae and then gathered by the ventral arms.

(Many ascribe the need to gather their silk more efficiently to be the reason why they have that set of arms.)

Aside from artists, merchants are the second most common job for Arachne, and a quite esteemed one at that.

Because Arachne are - at their core - ambush predators instead of persistence predators like humans. This breeds a curious but stuck-in-their-ways behavior. Communities of Arachne are usually small and consist of a few families who are quite resistant to change or outsiders. If you ever enter an Arachne city, then everyone is studying you, even if you can't currently see them...

As for leaders, because of the inherent sexual dominance structures between the two sexes in Arachne, they usually have a sole queen and she has many male concubines or servants, which would be considered a prestigious position, though the male servants don't have much authority. The queen's daughters - of which there will be many on accounts of the 6+ potential fathers - will be rigorously educated and trained to either take up a royal position or as other administrative positions.

2.1 How do Arachne act with other species?

They don't outright hate outsiders. However, they are usually wary of new people who enter their cities. They will be studying you and recording every trait about you from the moment you enter the city gates to the moment you exit them.

They actually rely a lot of interspecies trade (usually with their silken delights as the currency) for defense. No one wants to irritate the people who make all your art and clothing and have about 50 other species who rely on their trade and consider them allies.

3. How do Arachne mating dances work?

Akin to a peacock jumping spider, when a boy spider finds a girl spider he really likes, he will display and show off his decorated abdomen in an extravagant and complex dance. These dances are either unique to the individual or passed down through families.

If she likes the dance, she'll bring him back to her place - with his thorax gently clutched in her jaws so he cannot leave - and they'll mate. If she doesn't, she'll stand statue-still and won't react at all.

4. How do Arachne reproduce?

On the underside of a female Arachne's abdomen we can see she has a small slit-like opening which leads to a collection of unfertilized eggs, which in turn lead to an ovipositor. A male will insert his penis into this slit, ejaculate, and fertilize these eggs.

Afterwards, the female is on the hunt. She will look for a suitably large prey animal (something slow-moving or dumb), and using her ovipositor, inject her clutch of eggs into the flesh of this prey creature. A full clutch of Arachne eggs usually consists of 1-8 individuals contained inside of a flexible ootheca which she can easily slide out of her ovipositor's orifice. A whole Arachne ootheca containing a full clutch is about 2 feet long. As you can imagine, the "birthing" is not pleasant.

Afterwards, paralytic compounds in the venom of the Arachne will shut down the nervous system of the host for the whole 11-month gestation period.

The host is then dragged back to the nest, where the mother and doctors will monitor the eggs' health and keep the host alive.

5. What is the Arachne life cycle like?

0 Years - Infancy: In this stage, the child resembles a pale, glossy version of its adult form only about 30 cm across.

1-7 Year - Childhood: Still shiny and slimy and lack a hard outer skin, but get larger and more intelligent, maxing out at 5 feet tall and 4 feet wide.

8-15 Year - Adolescence: The child gets larger and starts developing its hardened skin. Usually close to their natural adult size. This is when their pheromones and sexual systems become more active and primed for mating.

16 Year - Adulthood: The Arachne is biologically finished developing and has developed its outer shell.

17-24 Year - Student: Though biologically, the Arachne is now an adult, society does not view them as such. This is when they undergo an 8-year further education process so that the Arachne can make social connections and find a career in the world.

In addition, this prepares them for when they become an Elder.

25-30 Year - Parent: This range is when it is considered acceptable to find a mate and produce offspring.

30-46 Year - Raising the Child: In this age range, the parent will raise their children and seek a job they truly enjoy.

47-74 Year - Elder: Elders are held in high regard, because this is the minimum age where they can serve a political position. It is considered an Arachne's civic duty to act in their government.

75 Year - Death: The Arachne dies of old age.

The Arachne are an indigenous race of arachnid sophonts to the planet of Vulcanis which has high gravity and a high geothermal activity. Though, it does have large quantities of plant life and water (kept from boiling due to higher atmospheric pressures). It is very unpredictable and dangerous, which makes the Arachne all the more miraculous.

1. How are they giant spiders?

True insects or something similar never properly evolved on Vulcanis. Though it has a high oxygen atmosphere, the high gravity makes exoskeletons impractical, so the clade of Dermoarthropoda evolved instead, (colloquially: "skinsects".) ((Or skin-rachnids, in this case, I suppose.))

Point of the matter is: the "insects" on Vulcanis have a more vertebrate-like structures with endoskeletons and such. The larger ones have more vertebrate-like nervous/circulatory/respiratory/etc systems as well, cuz those don't scale all too well the bigger the animal.

1.2 Why do they appear to have an exoskeleton then?

They do not. What they have is a hardened layer of skin they use as protection for their rocky and hot homeplanet. The "hardened cuticle" as it's primarily called is akin more in structure to the scales of a pangolin than it is a bone or an exoskeleton.

2. How do they not get crushed then?

Despite their looks and relatively large size, they are not all that heavy. The bulk of their body's weight is their "skin-shell", and their bones, naturally. Even so, their weight is well-distributed amongst their six walking limbs (again, pretend I drew six instead of four.).

2.1 How do they have the brainpower for all those limbs? Vertebrates on Earth can only have a maximum of 4 limbs, after all.

Vulcanis' primary ancestor for most animals had eight limbs (mostly for movement) so many of the creatures on the planet have either 8 fully functional limbs, multiple dominant limbs and several vestigial ones, or the brainpower to manage eight limbs.

3. Why are they smart?

Vulcanis is a very unpredictable planet with unsure odds of finding food or ensuring your offspring survive. That tends to breed three things:

A. Big dumb things that are tough enough to withstand whatever is thrown at them long enough to eat and make a bunch of babies.

B. Many dumb small things that are numerous enough to eat and make a bunch of babies.

C. Medium-to-small smart things that can outwit the odds and make a few babies.

The Arachne's ancestors evolved towards the third. It also tends to breed aggressive things which make the species that do protect their young very good at doing so.

Inherent protective parental behavior towards their young in the face of high predation gave the Arachne's a kickstart to evolving towards sentience. In addition, Arachne aren't exactly the toughest critters around relative to other Vulcanites, so intellect and the ability to yeet rocks real good served as a decent substitute.

4. Why spiders of all creatures as an evolutionary background?

One of the primary ones is that spiders are very well-designed creatures. On such a usually uneven and unpredictable surface, having lots of limbs is good for manuervability. In addition, they're quite stable physically, which is really good in general. Though they can't crawl on walls (cuz Square-Cube law) they can do the next best thing and climb with those distinctive clawed gecko-like digits, which is made much easier by their 6-limbed origins. Their four eyes are good for watching out for predators, too.

Though they lack the hydraulic movement of the spiders of Earth for ensnaring prey, they have something just as suitable: body slamming. In short, they'll set up a lure, (their silk used to be for web-making, but as you can imagine: giant spiders can't hide in webs without breaking em', but they are good for making nests in general.) climb somewhere high up and when their prey sniff-sniffs... SNAP. They drop down with their chelicerae out and bite down HARD or just straight-up crush their prey beneath their bodies, assuming a flattened "spider-pancake" pose. Though they can crouch or flex as needed.

The shock is absorbed through their many limbs, which spreads the sudden force out better.

Because this hunting method is so effective, they just... never evolved anything better and continue to be the bodyslamming bugs I know and love.

Hailing from The Mikkhhalian Isles, the Catmeragons are sophont descendants of draconic ancestors. Evolving for the arctic tundra, the Catmeragons developed a thick coat of feather-fur, and their wings atrophied into large sails they use for basking and heat absorption. They still have scales beneath their fur, and they have some vestigial, albeit mighty osteoderms, but for the most part, their draconic ancestry has abandoned them.

The driving force for their evolution to sapience was preexisting high parental behavior and the desperation of native arctic animals, whose aggression promoted group behavior, and eventually, the Catmeragons' ancestors discovered how to use their own fire breath as a tool.

​

As for how their flame breath works, their stomach is split into two tubes. One leads to their stomach, and the other to a "venom sac". This second-stomach is full of a pyrophoric venom which is derived from their own stomach bile. In addition, they got a gizzard connected to their primary stomach. By regurgitating the venom upwards into their mouths, and grinding their teeth together (which have a keratin layer on the back), they produce a spark which ignites the venom into a column of flame. Their cigar-shaped snouts aid in this endeavor, acting like a natural funnel for the fire.

This flame breath - as well as the flame breath of all dragons - derived from their shared ancestor's turkey-vulture-like trait of regurgitating their stomach acid to defend themselves.

So, pretty much, you have these two sophonts native to the same planet.

You have the Brawl-Crabs and the Helltanks.

Brawl-Crabs are these aggressive fiddler-crab-lookin people.

Helltanks are these more highly social, bee-hive-like beetle things.

But both are technically crustaceans, like how pillbugs are called insects, but are technically crustaceans.

I imagine they evolved from a shared ancestor, but the Helltanks evolved from a chemical-producing descendant whose genes would allow them to produce venom and pheromones, allowing an offshoot to become eusocial, lose that eusociality, but keep the higher intelligence and social bonds, and evolve into the Helltank.

Meanwhile, the Brawl-Crabs descended from a more standard "crab" ancestor who became a top predator, either crossbred with the eusocial sister species (like humans interbreeding with Neanderthals) or had instinctual social and child-rearing behaviors emphasized by higher competition and evolved into the combative Brawl-Crabs.

Shatter is an Ashveil, which is an all-male species, but she realized she was trans, so that's why she looks like that.

Ashveils are also a pretty evil species all things considered, but Shatter was orphaned and adopted by a Catmeragon couple at a young age, who are much more sweet and kind as a species, so Shatter was raised with love and compassion in her heart instead of fascist dogma.

Also she a baddie

Pretty much what it says in the meme. My first interactions/exposure to sex was first and foremost CHANGED (A literal fetish game) and two people who were just like... horny constantly. It was literally like the only thing they ever talked about, no matter how much I begged them to stop. It's just... broken boundaries, trust to me, now.

Then, I discovered r/196. Boy that was a fuckin' mistake. Don't go on there, it's full of horny femboys and puppygirls and groomer humor, which for the aforementioned reason completely fucks with my head. Now, I can't hear "-pilled" or "-maxxing" without breaking down.

I just... don't wanna exist in this world. Every time someone talks about yuri or yaoi or all kinds of freaky shit like it's normal (I know it is, people have sex, but it feels like the cruelest evil i have to condone at such an innate subconscious level) I just wanna curl up and cry in a corner. Every time I have to hear and read and see that shit, it's feeling that knife in my gut all fucking over again.