((Rough Sketch, proper art comming later))
BiologyLike most of their homeworld's inhabitants, the Phaaruun posses six limbs. The first pair have evolved into massive taloned hands. For the most part, these are used for locomotion, but can be turned into vicious bludgeons if needed. The second, smallest pair, have developed long fingers and reach forward to manipulate objects and bring them to the "mouth". The third, final pair are moderately strong and again used for locomotion. These end in a foot with three toes with large nails.
Their skin is generally tough and slightly rubbery in texture, protected by a layer of subcutaneous fat. Except for the "head", the vocal sacks, and the palms/soles of the hands and feet, the entirety of the Phaaruun body is covered with downy, hair-like feathers. Above this soft layer is a sparse scattering of stiff, quill-like guard hairs.
The "head" of the Phaaruun does not contain any structures beyond an opening for the tongue and feeding apparatus to enter and exit. The brain and main sensory organs are contained within the massive hump on the shoulders, as well as the nostrils and vocal sacks.
Phaaruun have four senses; taste-smell, touch, hearing, and electric. The long tongue is flicked in and out of the "mouth" to taste the air, much the same way a snake does. Like the vast majority of carbon-based life forms, they react to direct touch. Their electrical sense works much the same as echolocation. They will generate a magnetic pulse, then wait for it to generate a current in anything metallic. They then sense this change in electrical charge as a fluctuation in the small field they generate themselves, like a knifefish on Earth. This only works at short range, though, and was evolved to determine whether an object was food or not. The vast majority of lifeforms on Uunaam reconstitute electrically conductive metals to assist in making their envois connections more efficient, like wires.
Despite their love for loud music, Phaaruun actually have excellent hearing within a short range of high-pitched frequencies, which they use for echolocation. The clicks and squeals are produced within the vocal sacks themselves, then focused by an oil-filled melon contained in the shoulder hump. Unfortunately for any crystalline races susceptible to shattering from resonance, these noises are of considerable volume and piercing quality. Phaaruun can quite easily induce resonance in many crystal structures without even realizing it. Lower range sounds, produced by expelling air out of the six nostril flaps on the flanks, are used for communication, and are of average volume.
The path of air for the breathing Phaaruun is as follows; From the large intake nostril at the top of the shoulder hump, the air is sucked into the single, central lung. From there, it is expelled into the vocal sacks and can either be used to produce echolocation clicks, "speech", or simply exhaled out of the flapped nostrils on the flanks. Most Phaaruun are capable of "speaking" with one sack while echolocating with the other.
Phaaruun reproduce sexually, with a male and a female. At first glance, there is little outward difference between the two, but on closer inspection it is noted that the males possess a pouch on their chest area, opening forward. The female has no such opening. Phaaruun lay up to four eggs at a time, which are then incubated in the father's pouch for several months. The young stay within the pouch for nearly a month after as they develop a coat of fur to survive the cold.
Phaaruun are liquivores, much like spiders. After taking down a prey item, (or ordering their meal), a pair of long, hollow tubes are inserted into the flesh, assisted by several sharp, blade-like structures that also emerge from the "mouth". Once the tubes are in place, one injects an enzyme into the food, while the other sucks the liquified material into the stomach. The enzyme works best when the meal is at just below the average body temperature for a Uunaam lifeform, but can work even in frozen carcasses. Water is ingested the same way, just without the digestive enzyme.
SystemMain Star: TuulA variable, pulsing star, it has of late become relatively stable due to a massive release of energy in the form of a coronal mass ejection. Other than this, it is a general, main sequence star, ranging from 80% to 60% the size/luminosity of our sun over the course of several Earth months.
Asteroid belt: Remains of a planet that wandered too close to Tuul and was torn apart by the gravitational forces. No interest beyond possible mining expeditions.
Planet 1: PhehSmall, rocky world with no atmosphere. Irradiated from close exposure to Tuul. Deemed inhospitable. Has three captured asteroids for moons.
Phaaruun Homeworld: UunaamAbout 150% Earth's size, with a gravity field to match. The standard Nitrogen/Oxygen atmosphere has been thinned considerably by the CME, but is still breathable by Phaaruun near sea level. The majority of the planet's water is locked up in the form of ice, and few large bodies of water exist. Thus, the planet can be considered a single supercontinent. Due to Tuul's variable nature, the planet experiences an ice age once every few months. This, more so than the planet's negligible tilt, is what causes seasons on Uunaam.
What little of the planet that remains unfrozen even in the "winter" teems with life, covered with vast grasslands that often flood during the "summer". The rest of the planet, though, is mostly ice-covered. That is not to say that it is lifeless, though. Various plants have developed extremely efficient life cycles that allow them to survive on what little nutrients they can gather, usually only growing and reproducing during the "summer". Phaaruun are native to this habitat, and occupy a similar niche to Earth wolves, hunting in packs to take down most prey, save larger carnivores.
Large portions of the planet are now covered in urban sprawl, both from the pre and post-CME era. It's usually obvious which is which, but in many places the two have melded together, the new imitating the old instead of just adding onto it or replacing it. About half of the planet is still slightly irradiated from the CME, but life is starting to finally return after thousands of years.
Uunaam has four moons, but all but one are too small to be of any real use, merely captured asteroids. The largest moon, Nuu, is about a quarter of Uunaam's size and possesses a very thin atmosphere of mostly heavier, exotic gases such as Neon and Chlorine. It was quickly skipped over for colonization.
Planet 3: AamuureGenerally considered to be Uunaam's twin of sorts, possesses a much thicker atmosphere and stronger magnetic field due to its somewhat larger size and rapid spin. These both protected it from the CME, and basic life has continued to survive here. The thick atmosphere also acts like a blanket, keeping the planet's temperature relatively constant despite Tuul's fluctuations. Was originally targeted for colonization even before Uunaam's moons, and has once again gained that status. First preliminary colonies are being set down, but they are still heavily reliant on Uunaam for supplies.
Planet 4: DruunMassive gas giant, tinted blue by the presence of methane. Has hundreds of moons, but none large enough to be of any significance. Effectively sweeps up any stray comets and asteroids in the system.
Personality and HistoryMany peacemakers across the galaxy insist that tolerance of other cultures is the key to the continued state of peace in the universe. The Phaaruun couldn't agree more. It's too bad that the opposite isn't usually true. It's not that they have a grating personality; indeed, they are quite friendly towards foreigners. It's that they never seem to take anything seriously. They will continue their celebration of life come war, disease, famine, or threats of apocalyptic destruction. Nothing, absolutely nothing will get between a Phaaruun and his enjoyment of himself and others. Even in the face of certain death, they remain giddy and positively chipper.
The majority of Phaaruun history has been lost to the ages due to a catastrophic event that nearly ended their civilization several hundred years ago. The species had nearly made it to space, and was desperately seeking to colonize other worlds, as their homeworld was running dangerously low on living space. They reached for the stars, unknowing that their local star was in a turbulent state. It was already a variable star, pulsing larger and smaller over the course of several months. One day, the sun finally released all its pent up energy in a coronal mass ejection the likes of which no being had seen in millions of years. All equipment failed, all sensors were fried, all life on the day side was instantly killed by the radiation. Auroras could be seen almost all the way to the equator as energized particles bombarded the atmosphere. To this day, life on the planet is still recovering, and the half of the planet that happened to be facing the sun is only just now becoming safe to inhabit again.
With half their population wiped out and all their technological advances reduced to nothing more than scrap metal, the remaining Phaaruun struggled to survive on what little was left. The largest problem was how to get food. In their thousands of years of civilization, they had gotten to the point where almost the entire food production system was automated. The only place the average Phaaruun saw the creatures they ate was either in a zoo or in an informational text. Needless to say, millions starved to death by the end of the year. By the end of the decade, they had been reduced to near tribal levels.
The once unified planet split into various factions, warring over what little farmland and livestock was left. Slowly, though, the technological infrastructure was rebuilt, starting with salvaging what little was left. One nation in particular advanced at breakneck speed, returning its citizens to the pre-apocalyptic standard of living after only 500 years of steady work. Its head of state, in an unusually compassionate move (or a deviously clever one), moved to accept all Phaaruun into her country. Those few who didn't jump at the chance due to nationalism, religious intolerance, or simple stubbornness soon found themselves the vast minority, a tiny portion of the population. They were quickly eliminated.
From this experience, the primarily religion of the Phaaruun developed. Simply put, its messages are "Party hard while you still can, because you or your companions may not wake up tomorrow," and, branching off of that, "Don't waste your time on the negative, because it will always be there. Instead, focus on the positive, and take comfort that it'll always be there, too. Both may change their faces, but they are always present."
CultureThe fist thing one notices about a Phaaruun is his unbelievably happy state of mind. Not necessarily optimistic, as he acknowledges that the negative exists, but all in all having a good time. Giddy is the word often used. It is often mistaken that Phaaruun simply don't understand the gravity of the situation they're in. They fully know that their state is dire, it's that they just don't care. They don't give a darn that they're going to die a long, horrible death, since they know they've gotten all the pleasure out of life that they could have. Typical interrogation techniques simply don't work on them. If the Phaaruun mindset were to be summed up in three words, it would be "I REGRET NOTHING!"
Though the Phaaruun technically have a military force, it is almost entirely useless for actual war. The "soldiers" often have absolutely no combat experience, even in simulation, and for the most part act as an emergency relief team, aiding those in danger from disease or natural disasters. Outside of this, they really have no purpose. Phaaruun communities tend to police themselves, with all individuals highly concerned with how he or she is viewed by the others. Actual punishments are rarely delivered, but when they are, it is almost always either indefinite solitary confinement, physical torture, or death. Few other things affect the Phaaruun mindset enough to be considered punishment.
Phaaruun do not have holidays in the traditional sense. Each day, a topic is selected to be thought about and celebrated as the individual sees fit. Phaaruun are basically given the excuse to party daily. Occasionally, there will be a "Free Topic Day", at which point Phaaruun celebrate for the sake of celebration. Common topics include the existence of various things, such as food, air, steel, electricity, or even Phaaruun themselves.
Phaaruun communal celebrations are noteworthy for their musical accompaniment. Anyone with the willingness to do so composes the soundtrack to the party, often with at least 10 artists contributing to the project. Phaaruun music is created by layering various patterns of beats to create highly complex, thumping rhythms, nearly fractal in nature. Some races find it highly relaxing… as long as it is played at levels other than the usual ear-shattering, lung-collapsing thumps of the average Phaaruun celebration. A few more fragile beings have lost their lives to the rave.
Can't post much more now, kind of tied up at the moment. Proper scanned image due Thrusday at the earliest.
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). Most of the humor is going to be rather spontaneous, bizarre, and occasionally a little dark... Just like a good portion of the "funny" pictures in the Random Image Bonanza.
