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Dethskull

Dethskulls were small, fist-sized creatures that marked the middle point between a crab and a spider. Their horrifying appearance and namesake was attributed to their mobile home and primary line of defense against predators: the skull of a larger, dead organism. Dethskulls could use anything from rodent skulls to human or larger skulls, depending on their age and size.

They were decomposers, hanging around sites such as battlefields, slaughterhouses and bogs, scavenging whatever they can before Carrion Retrievers could arrive. Dethskulls posed no threat to anything larger than themselves, opting to run and hide inside their bony skull-shells when anything huge casted a shadow over them.

Biology #

Anatomy #

A small sized crustacean with eight segmented legs. All of their legs were capable of rotating so that they curled upwards as opposed to down. The dethskull would use this to help grip its shell (4 legs employed in movement while the other four hold its protection in place).

Dethskull eyes were attached to long stalks, allowing them to peer out of their makeshift shell no matter how complex the structure may be.

Despite having an exoskeleton, dethskulls were extremely vulnerable without using a secondary shell. Their natural exoskeletons were surprisingly brittle and weak, making an exposed dethskull easy prey.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities #

Dethskulls were incapable of seeing colour. They could only register light and dark, which they used to try and determine if a larger organism may be nearby. Comically, this meant that the dethskull would act extremely cowardly when nearby dark coloured surfaces, as it would register these as shadows from potentially larger organisms.

Dethskulls also relied on their incredibly sensitive sense of touch, which allows them to locate things around them based on vibrations made by movement.

Genetics and Reproduction #

A female dethskull would ingest the male's sperm and store it within a unique organ until she was ready to lay eggs. Females laid their eggs along the interior of the shell, fertilizing them simultaneously.

After only a couple of days, the young dethskulls hatched, escaping from the shell and into the surrounding area to scavenge for their own food. During this time they were extremely vulnerable. A female could lay up to 60 eggs per batch, but only 10 of them might survive.

Growth Rate & Stages #

Once 2 weeks old, a young dethskull was strong enough to carry the skull of a small animal (like a mouse) as protection. Every subsequent week, the dethskull would outgrow its skull and be forced to find a larger one. 2 month old dethskulls, which were adults, were often large enough to use the skulls of gorjaks, humans, duns, trinaticals, and other similarly sized organisms.

Dietary Needs and Habits #

As a scavenger, dethskulls were often found on site after a fresh kill in the wild, or more infamously, on the battlefield after a bloody conflict had come to a close. They often had to compete with Festerplains carrion retrievers, but their appetite was much smaller, often allowing them to feast and get what they needed before larger scavengers arrived.

Biological Cycle #

Dethskulls were not affected by the changing of seasons. They would continue to be as active in the colder winter seasons as well as in the boiling hot summer sun.

During the night, dethskulls retracted themselves into their shells to protect themselves. The light level was often too dim for dethskulls to see anything at all, making it too dangerous to remain active.

Ecology and Habitats #

Dethskulls were located all across Legere. Their primary role was scavenging, and they played a key role in nutrient recycling and decomposition in many different environments. Dethskulls were extremely resilient to environmental factors, allowing them to survive in both cold and hot regions.

Spikes in population could occur in response to bloodshed or other conflicts.

Cultural Impact #

Dethskulls were sometimes seen as the shepherds of souls or the actual souls of the deceased making their way to some form of the afterlife. In Jinifarian, Endalan, and certain Isutan cultures, beloved pets or loved ones were buried with their heads above ground, allowing dethskulls easy access to the skull of the dead organism. This is to help "free the soul". A skull fixed to the dethskull was seen as the late individual's soul departing from the body that failed it.