Poe
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Name: Vu'kasin a.k.a. Night Terrors
Designation: Non-sentient
Homeworld: Bastion
Language: N/A
Average Lifespan: 10 years
Estimated Population: Planetary
Average height of adults: 1 meter (shoulders) 1.5 meters (head)
Average length of adults: 2 meters
Skin color: Black/White
Hair color: Gray/Black (Males), Jet Black (Females)
Distinctions: Red eyes, extended upper canine fangs, upper front teeth (see image), and retractable claws (12 cm.)
Breathes: Type 1
Strengths:
Strength and Speed: The Vu'kasin are very powerful creatures with most of their body consisting of muscle. Their very powerful legs grants them the ability to run up to speeds of eighty kilometers per hour while covering short distances.
Venomous Bite: Their mouths are littered with bacteria, so one simple bite can inject enough harmful materials into the bloodstreams of prey. The venom is so toxic that it kills within minutes.
Nocturnal Vision: Their eyes are coated with a red membrane that refracts light allowing to them to see perfectly in the dark.
Razor Sharp Claws / Extended Fangs: Despite the misconception they use their claws and fangs to kill prey, they are actually for defending themselves; and to hold prey in position while their nasty bite kills it's prey.
Force Mental Immunity: Immune to all mental attacks including Beast/Animal Control.
Camouflage: Vu'kasin's fur have the ability to allow them to blend into the shadows and darkness of night making them nearly impossible to detect via line of sight.
Weaknesses:
Daytime Blindness: The membrane coated around their eyes works against them in the natural lighting; making them completely blind.
Weakened Jaws: Their jaws are extremely weak, making it difficult to hold down prey with them alone; hence the claws, fangs, and venomous bite.
Alpha Male Syndrome: Each pack is ran by an Alpha male, hence when a new Alpha male takes over control of the pack; he will kill any existing pups and/or pregnant females.
Short Bursts: Despite their overall speed to cover short distances quickly, their bodies overheat at an substantial rate; thus causing them to rest for a long period if they overextend themselves. So they are not marathon runners.
Hunger Driven: Their desire to feed when prey is available overrides their sense of common sense. Despite being pack hunters, they will take unnecessary risks to bring down prey, leaving them vulnerable to counterattacks.
Force Elemental Attacks: Highly vulnerable to Force abilities that are associated with the elements; i.e. Lightening, Fire, Cold
Skeleton Structure: Despite their powerful muscular structure, their skeleton is extremely fragile resulting in it snapping easily.
Races: N/A
Diet: Carnivore; red meat, fish, fowl, insects
Communication: Barks, whelps, low and high growls
Culture: N/A
Technology level: N/A
General behavior:
The Vu'kasin are pack animals, thus making them pack hunters. Usually a pack consists of up to twenty members, with on occasion the pack being higher or lower in number according to location and food source, with an Alpha male residing over each pack. Their is an hierarchy within each pack. Outside the Alpha male there is the Den Mother, which is the eldest female in the pack. Under the Den Mother comes the Nursing Females; these are females who by chance are sterile but whose sole purpose is to aid nursing Mothers with raising their pups. The last on the order are the Hunters, these consist of females and males who do the majority of hunting and scouting. The Hunters usually consist of the entire pack, outside the Alpha, Den Mother, and Nursing Females, with the last subject to how many are sterile.
The Vu'kasin are extremely territorial, and have been known to attack roving settlers and vehicles moving through their territory at night; which is why most travel on Bastion through the hills, forests, and plains are conducted during the day; less said rovers are properly equipped to handle them. The beasts have been observed utilizing hit and run tactics, but their main point of attacking prey or trespassers is by overwhelming them with numbers. During the attacks of herd animals, they systematically single out the weak and sick of the herd, with part of the pack conducting hit and run tactics to draw away or keep off balance the healthier adults.
Dubbed with the nick name Night Terrors, these creatures can be found only at night; where as such their eyesight is vulnerable to natural lightening. However, it has been documented that pack members expelled from the pack have been seen wandering around at day; but this is a rare occurrence.
The Vu'kasin make their dens into the side of hills, usually using their claws to etch out a tunnel system. The packs found within the forests and plains have created elaborate labyrinths underground, but these packs are rare in comparison to those that reside in and around the hills of Bastion. Also, all dens are created near watering holes and water sources (such as lakes and rivers), and thus, the packs will live here for generations; meaning they are not nomadic, unless food becomes scarce then and only then will they venture out to find new homes.
It has been recorded that packs have 'waged war' on one another over territory and assimilating only the strong survivors into the pack, but this has always been a subject of debate to those that have studied the animals.
History:
The Vu'kasin had been on the planet long before any human/alien settlements were erected. How they became to be is a mystery, but most scientists believe they are the result of an evolutionary chain that can be traced to the earlier, more common wolf-like creatures that once roamed the planet side. Some speculations have been proposed that due to their earlier involvement with immigrated species, such as humans, they were forced to evolve into the nocturnal creatures they are today; to prevent extinction from over hunting and over zealous enthusiasts bent on killing the species for land to construct villages and the cities that Bastion houses today.
There have been several legends attached to these creatures, one worthy of noting was that during the Yuuzhan Vong War, warriors from the Vong were tested against these beasts, and according to legend it was a rite of passage for Vong warriors. Another legend was that Roan Fel would send young soldiers into the hills to face these beasts, to better prepare them against the ferocity of Darth Krayt and the Sith.
But the most notable legends surrounding the Vu'kasin was that Moff Vilim Disra, at the bequest of Emperor Palpatine, capture these animals to be studied in a secret lab on how to not only extract the venom from their mouths, but to study the applications of their fur and how they were immune to Force mental attacks. The latter being studied on how to incorporate that into a super soldier through genetic splicing. However, when the Yuuzhan Vong attacked Bastion, the lab and all it's records had been destroyed. The only 'proof' that this secret lab existed along with the experiments conducted there came from a scientist who managed to survive the attack. However, the unnamed scientist disappeared a few days later after speaking of such experiments; but word had spread of this lab nonetheless.
Over time, the species began to thrive uncontrollably, making it dangerous for passage at night. During Emperor Roan Fel's reign of Bastion, every third week of the month a culling was instituted to keep the animal's numbers down; however, after the defeat of the One Sith at Coruscant and the formation of the Galactic Federation Triumvirate that followed after, the animals were ignored in place of rebuilding the galaxy. Once more, the Vu'kasin began to thrive and a few years later they were spotted all across Bastion; including one uncharted island. Today, the beasts are no longer hunted, but feared and respected by the citizens of Bastion. They are not considered the apex predator of Bastion, but they do own a place at the top as one of Bastions most deadliest predators.
The Gulag Plague
During the outbreak of the Gulag Virus, Bastion was not spared. The planet's inhabitants were nearly decimated, including the animals on land, the air, and in the waters. The Vu'kasin were not spared from the disease. Compared to the other species on Bastion they had a longer life expectancy than most, but their numbers dwindled to what scientists would categorize as threatened.
They suffered from the disease and near hunger, forcing to scavenge from the carrion that littered the planet. They began to invade cities feeding off the dead, and if possible, the living. When the disease began to slow and the species of Bastion began to thrive again, they held the title of apex predator among the animals until they began to grow even more territorial, putting their species on a pace of slow progression. These bouts of territorial fighting kept them from overrunning the plains, hills, and forests of Bastion.
The Gulag Virus, scientist speculate, prevented the Vu'kasin from becoming the apex predator of Bastion.
Netherworld
The Vu'kasin were not affected directly by the event. Their food source consisted of what lived in their environment. However, where the species thrived near civilization, they began to starve turning to cannibalism feasting off the sick and weak of their packs. These packs began to roam taking up position in areas where food sources where in abundant.
Due to the event, the Vu'kasin are rarely found where cities are erected, and some packs hunt around settlements but never seek out those inhabitants unless wary travelers invade their territory. Occasionally a rogue is spotted, but being pack hunters a lone Vu'kasin will not attack bigger prey.
Notable Player-Characters: N/A
Intent: Twofold. The first is to give Bastion some lore, since there is no mention of species (animals) before the arrival of immigrated species (humans and aliens). The second, to be utilized as the basis for a future massive project further down the road.
