Insects |
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| Bee | Bees are a constant species of insect native to the world of Aloria. Known since its earlier days, their key role in pollination was quickly discovered and in the modern-day, they are kept in order to produce honey for the Ailor, Cielothar, and other peoples and nations. They vary in size, with several subspecies, and can be confused with Wasps. But for many, Bees are far kinder and pleasing to look at. |
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| Hadar Wasp | Hadar Wasps are large diptera insects found in Hadar as well as the coastline of Sendras. These giant creatures served as a formidable menace to the various Hadarian kingdoms in their earlier years, and because a minor obstacle to Regalian troops and sailors during the Chrysant Wars. Today they remain unaffected by the frequent wars of the continent, and are now one of the most prevalent forms of life on the islands. |
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| Saruhanna Sand Ant | The Saruhanna Sand Ant is a massive insectoid predator, preying on anything unfortunate enough to blunder into its territory. Sporting a silver carapace, these arthropods are perfectly suited to prey on the less fortunate denizens of Saruhanna. However, they once ranged far and wide until the Great Storm wiped many of them from the great desert continent of Farah’deen. Their large size is also thought to be tied to the past, with the consensus standing that the feature is a result of a previous Void Invasion though many uneducated people believe it was a result of the Cataclysm. Regardless, they are a serious threat to any explorer seeking to venture into Saruhanna’s dry regions, especially ones who are foolish enough to stray into the ants’ cavernous colony networks. |
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| Fendar Rotbite | The Fendar Rotbite, while not particularly dangerous, is certainly an unpleasant creature. This vile arthropod thrives on rotting bodies, the cause of its loathing. Rotbites were first discovered on Fendarfelle in 263 AC by an Ithanian logging company, whose workers called it “La Pourriture”. They make homes for themselves in graveyards and the dense jungles of the region. In modern times, the bugs are fairly uncommon due to their reclusive behavior, but still a nuisance that most graveyard workers must deal with. |
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| Grand Papillon | The Grand Papillon is a vibrant butterfly that can possess colorations of yellow, green, red and brown in a black framed body. It has survived many disasters, from the devastating war between the Dewamenet Empire and Allorn Empire, to the Cataclysm, to the recent military conflicts of the last two decades, such as the Ranger Crisis. It is also known for its large size and currently stands as a symbol of nature to the Faith of Estel while others view it as an excellent pollinator. |
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| Southern Longwing | The Southern Longwing is well known in Daendroque culture as a symbol of movement but also disease. Supposedly carrying a plague that affected Elven society, this preconception remaining after the Cataclysm while the animal as a symbol of movement came both from its own frantic flitting over the waters and that it took a massive jump to southern lordships in the Regalian Archipelago. It is well known as the largest species of dragonfly, with enormous wings longer than their own bodies. |
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| Regalian Lilaspitze | The Regalian Lilaspitze is a purple butterfly well-known to the Regalian Archipelago in which it resides. While it was once heavily connected to the Emperor and royal power, it has since declined into a general symbol of Empire commonly employed by those not educated in its eating habits. The Lilaspitze moves from north to south with the changing seasons to avoid the cold, blessing many with the sight of a group of these winged insects fluttering through the air on their way to warmer areas or their old home. |
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| Feathered Meadowfly | The Feathered Meadowfly is a species of moth commonly associated with the moon in Ithanian Culture, although references to it date back to the ancient Asha. Seeing one of these creatures in the daytime is a rather rare sight indeed, but traveling through Ithania in particular at night, the opposite is true. It is noted for its gender-swapped color pallet as unlike many other animals, the males are usually gray, with the females sporting the vibrant colors. The Feathered Meadowfly continues to influence Ithanian art today, appearing in paintings and poems in particular. |
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| Fly | Flies are among the most common creatures in all of Aloria and are an annoyance to members of all Races and Cultures from any walk of life. Though they are often trivialized, they are vital scavengers that aid in decomposition of dead animals to provide sustenance for trees, flowers, and scavengers. Some Flies are more of a nuisance than others, and some are even outright dangerous. Almost all of them are thought of as disease carriers and signs of dirt and decay. |
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| Haelstram Jungle Scuttler | For as long as anyone can remember, the Haelstram Jungle Scuttler has crawled in the leaflitter of L’Elvellen’s jungles. This large, venomous insect is known to locals as a hazard, and though they do not threaten the lives of grown Ailor, they can seriously wound most races and outright kill young children that tread on them by mistake. Infamous for its potent bite and disturbing visage, the Haelstram Jungle Scuttler is among the most reviled arthropods in Daendroc. |
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| Llinàme | Despite their unassuming appearance, Llinàme are vital for the work of natural scientists and taxidermists across Aloria, commonly used to clean skeletons of flesh to prepare them for display or examination. These small, black grubs were originally discovered in the forested regions of pre- Cataclysm Ithania and first domesticated by the Ithanian Ailor around 100 AC. While these worms are not very common in their natural habitat, most natural history museums now have at least one large colony of the grubs which they use to clean skeletons. Recently, concerns have been raised that Llinàme may become a pest species due to their voracious appetite and broad diet, though infestations are currently very rare. |
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| Axford Pondflitter | For as long as Humans have lived in Anglia, the Axford Pondflitter has lived alongside them in the marshy and wet areas of Anglian lowland. Often mistaken for dragonflies, Axford Pondflitters are known for their iridescent bodies and their tendency to dart through the air low to the water’s surface in search of emerging prey insects. |
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| Bugutza | The Bugutza is a creature very few Regalians would like to consider exists on Aloria, namely because of how disgusting it is. A large grub creature the size of a man’s arm, the insect has been a source of food for the Naylar inhabitants of Hadaria for years, making it an integral part of their cuisine. Surprisingly, despite the Chrysant War, this bug is still prosperous and is also known to be easy to find after a rainfall. |
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| Farah’deen Dune Worm | Ever-violent and vicious titans, the Farah’deen Dune Worm lurks deep beneath the sands of Farah’deen, exploding out of the ground without warning to swallow up prey. The Dune Worm is a creature of unbelievable size and appetite that will consume almost anything in its path, including other Dune Worms. These rare monsters are some of the most feared things in all of Farah’deen, able destroy any caravan traveling on the sands within an instant. |
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| Knûrka-Vørak | Knûrka-Vørak are medium-sized, plated worms with a unique, almost alien physiology. Once existing in harmony with another subterranean insect, the Stone Bee, the arrival of the Dakkar and their conflicts with the Dwarves shattered this careful balance, causing the species of worm to now spread across the underground caverns formerly dominated by the Dwarves. Some have even reached the surface of Ellador, often to their displeasure due to the extreme cold, and they instead retreat underground after having made a kill or two. They are well feared by Dwarven society, and the other local Races, considered a menace worthy only of being killed. |
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| Hadarian Beetle | Hadarian Beetles are over-sized insects treated as a common delicacy to the Allar and Slizzar. The insect emerged from the depths of Hadar during the last Void Invasion, sprouting from the earth and remaining topside as the archipelago formed around them. During the foundation of the Essa Empire, the beetle became renown as a Naylar delicacy and was widely consumed. With the fall of the Essa Empire the Hadarian Beetle's population in the wild has doubled since what it once was. The animal is most common in the eastern regions of the island chain today, with the more recent use as a carnival oddity. When prompted with food, the insect can perform simple tasks such as pushing and pulling small items and this is often done for the amusement of others. |
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| Wasp | Wasps are a constant species of insect native to the world of Aloria. Known since its earliest days as a pest and an irritant for those of all classes, this view has remained into the modern-day. They vary in size, with several subspecies, and can be confused with Bees. But for many, Wasps are far nastier and unpleasant to look at. |
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| Ant | Ants are a broad-ranging species of ground-dwelling insects that have existed across Aloria for millennia. The species is made up of workers, diligent servants of the colony and the vast majority of its population, and those members who exist solely for propagation, the queens and the males. Most see Ants as nothing more than an aspect of nature, but their draw to food of all sorts means that they can ruin picnics, outdoor eating, and if they inhabit a home, even indoor meals. |
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| Hortaal Moth | The Hortaal Moth is a unique, winged insect native to the Moon-Moth Forests found in the southern Hortutor Wildlands. In these sheltered (but vast) groves beneath the arching branches of strange, blue-sapped trees, the Moth flutters in the evening. Likely thanks to the sap of these trees, the Moths glow with the same fine blue tint that the tree leaves have, washing everything beneath and around them in this light at night. The Hortaal Moth adds to the overall dream-like quality of the Forests, and are enjoyed by many in the cities and towns that have formed under the forest canopies. |
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| Torat-Nekh | The Torat-Nekh is a species of particularly vicious, carnivorous insect that many would rather read about than meet face to face. A beetle of varying sizes and ferocity, the Torat-Nekh are a breed of insect that devour any flesh they can get their pincers on, and live in the deep deserts of the Ashal Isles - far, far away from any established cities. An ancient legend claims that many Kings and Queens of the Asha kept these scarabs in jars, meant to warn against extreme criminal behavior. Dead Torat-Nekh were often used to decorate the walls of holy sites or crushed and ground into a fine powder to be used in paints or dyes. Whether or not the legends hold true has been lost to the sands of time and now, the Torat-Nekh are a vague threat in the back of travelers’ minds as they navigate the deep deserts of the Ashal Isles. |
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| Stone Bee | The Stone Bee represents a species rendered extinct by the arrival of the alien Dakkar into the subterranean world beneath Ellador. Previously an insect that lived in balance with the strange, semi-necrophagic worm, the Knûrka-Vørak, they could not adapt to the rapid changes the Dwarves unwittingly unleashed onto their realm, just as they had done with the surface. Considered lost from the world by 150 AC, and going unfound in the decades of exploration efforts since then, they have become a significant symbol in Dwarven Society for all that they have lost, but also stand for nobility, justice, and honor, all things they never received at the hands of the Dakkar and the Knûrka-Vørak. |
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| Enferena | The Enferena are strange atmosphere-dwelling insects born on the ground and capable of raising hundreds of feet into the air upon maturing and developing their ability to form a unique gas that fills a similarly unique sack of flesh sitting where their abdomen should be. The creature has been tamed by the Maraya, and a large portion of the formerly wild species now focuses their life in and around the various epicenters of Maraya civilization in Aloria. The insects, while distant companions, are primarily used by the Maraya to drop down their unique “Spirepods” behind the lines of their enemies, granting devastating blows to the foes of the creature’s owner. |
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| Rikhzah Beetle | The Rikhzah Beetle is a small creature with a copper-brown chitin shell and a diet of dung largely disdained in wider Aloria as a gross insect. However, the insect is of high importance to the Asha as the Race makes use of the Beetle’s natural pigment that colors them black and forms an important part of the basis of their tattooing artistry. This ink sinks deep into the skin and then bonds permanently with the hair follicles, thus setting the color in the fur, even after the fur would be shaven, lost or regrown. Rikhzah tattooing can produce unnatural patterns, shapes, and formations, and is particularly popular among the Corsairs and the free tribes that live away from the Asha States. Thus, the Rikhzah Beetle prospers across much of the Asha world, including the former Asha world, and is valued by those who can appreciate their traits and role in the world. |
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| Fâraknud | Little is known about what lies in the lands of Gana-Eeshtar, but the Fâraknud are one of the creatures that have made their debut known to those who live above ground. They fascinated the eyes of those that saw them for the first time due to their rock-like appearance and magma-like interior, bringing up the question as to what their nature was. These odd creatures, now identified as beetle-like insects, were first found by Dwarven miners five centuries before the Cataclysm. Their reputation has bounced back and forth as to whether or not they were harmful to Dwarven society, but they have been accepted into all societies since then. Today, they serve as untamed creatures that can be found in the deep underground of the known Dwarven Holds, or in the possession of eccentrics or blacksmiths that have sought them out. |
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| Black Cloth Butterfly | The Black Cloth Butterfly is a widely-spread insect native to the Regalian Archipelago, and is well-known to the inhabitants of the region. First recorded by the Altalar and later the ancient Ailor peoples which dotted the landmasses, the Black Cloth Butterly enjoys temperate zones and is easily recognisable by its thin, rounded, near-black wings which give the air of some exotic cloth propelling them through the air. The Breizh found the insects unique for their visual beauty but also dark color scheme, and they became important to the Culture’s celebration known as the Feil od Papillenuit. It is their mesmerizing visual look and their key role in Breizh Culture that makes the Black Cloth Butterfly a commonly known, popular insect. |
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