#phractos

Petra Mandell

A maid in the service of Caspar, Petra is an odd soul with a love for cleanliness, order, and interesting people. As a moth Phractos, she is naturally mute, so she's good at keeping secrets. One can only imagine what truths lie behind those black eyes...

https://charahub.com/character/1249973/Petra-Mandell

Hester Kokinos

Hester is a bubbly nurse who works at St. Jericho's Hospital. She is a hard worker whose prone to daydreaming, but preserves anyway. Great with children, Hester hopes to dedicate the rest of her life to helping the young grow into healthy adults.

https://charahub.com/character/1250075/Hester-Kokinos

Madame Veronique 

Audience, please give a round of applause for our star of the evening, Madame Veronique! She's an award-winning musician and singer whose played in orchestras across the world! She'll sweep you off your feet with her amazing skill and talent, and leave you speechless.

https://charahub.com/character/1250054/Madame-Veronique

Silvia Andrea Cross

Greetings, darlings! Silvia is a Phractos, a group of sapient arthropod people. Silvia is a friendly and lively woman who centers her life around the philosophy of a Lady: a composed and polite person who excels in all tasks while being the heart of a group and shoulders adversity with unflinching determination and grace.

https://charahub.com/character/1227072/Silvia-Andrea-Cross

Caspar Straub

Say hello to Caspar. Caspar is a Phractos, a group of walking, talking arthropod people. Caspar is an extremely private and quiet person who prefers the company of cadavers over living people. He is often grouchy, rude, and occasionally drinks too much coffee.

https://charahub.com/character/1224322/Caspar-Straub

Introduction: The Phractos are a group of sapient arthropods who, through convergent evolution, developed hominin-like bodies. The Phractos are further divided into four classes: Arachnid Phractos, Crustacean Phractos, Myriapoda Phractos, and Insect Phractos.

The Arachnid Phractos are a group of arthropods most commonly identified by possessing eight ‘legs,’ although other appendages may be mistaken as legs. They primarily live on land, although a few species live near aquatic environments as well. About 18 orders of Arachnid Phractos exist such as  Amblypygi Phractos, (True) Spider Phractos, and Scorpion Phractos. A few orders have gone extinct, such as the Haptopoda Phractos and Sacroptiformes Phractos.

Evolution: Similar to the evolution of Insect Phractos, whose origins are believed to stem from “ordinary” insects like the Veteris Armis, the origins of Arachnid Phractos are believed to stem from “ordinary” arachnids. These arachnids developed from ancient crustaceans about 380 MA, and the earliest known terrestrial ancestor for arachnids comes from the Trignotarbida order. 

The Trignotarbida order were originally small creatures ranging from a few millimeters to a few centimeters in size. They lacked spinnerets and had a more simple body plan to modern arachnids. They lived on the ancient continent of Jearun, long before Yaquoris formed. However, as the Trignotarbida order evolved throughout the Silurian and asserted themselves as a carnivorous order, they began to develop heavy armor with spines and tubercles. This was combined with a development in their cranial capacity to better catch their prey, which forced their bodies to suit their increased brain size. This created a vicious cycle, and by the early Permian, the Trignotarbida order reached several inches in size and many of the known arachnid orders had sprung from them. Th

While the Trignotarbida order went extinct around 290 MA, their surviving descendant orders shared their similarly large brains continued to evolve and spread across Jearun and other ancient continents. While “ordinary” arachnids flourished in numbers far greater than the Phractos orders, and there were many evolutionary mistakes, reversals, and extinctions for the Arachnid Phractos along the way, by the formation of Yaquoris some 60 MA, most Arachnid Phractos orders reached an intelligence rivaling that of Insect Phractos.

Anatomy:  While each order of Arachnid Phractos has unique physical traits, all Arachnid Phractos have several traits in common: all Arachnid Phractos either possess a form of tracheae or a book lung, they lack a pair of antenna and wings, their bodies are divided into two segments called the celphalothorax (their torso and head) and their abdomen, and they all possess eight ‘legs.’ All Arachnid Phractos range in size, with Spider Phractos having the greatest variety, but most species vary from 3 to 7 feet in height, 4-8 feet in length, and 4-10 feet in width. They can weight between 50 to 120 pounds. 

An area of confusion for many people is that many Arachnid Phractos only possess six “legs.” This is technically true, because many Arachnid Phractos only possess six limbs for walking. What they fail to recognize, however, is that over the millennia, Arachnid Phractos have actually adapted their forelegs into a set of grasping limbs; these grasping limbs make up the lower set of arms for Arachnid Phractos. In a similar bout of adaptation, the pedipalps of many Arachnid Phractos also developed into grasping limbs, or the upper set of arms. While this adaption means that Arachnid Phractos have weaker balance than their “ordinary” counterparts, their grasping ability is equal to that of Insect Phractos. The lower set of arms are still called “legs” to recognize the arachnid lineage of Arachnid Phractos. 

Similar to Insect Phractos, Arachnid Phractos have similar abilities to their “ordinary” counterparts. For example, Scorpion Phractos possess stingers that help them with ambushes and hunting, and claws for pinning prey. Spider Phractos can weave webs, and Whip Scorpion Phractos possess superhuman strength. However, these abilities aren’t directly proportional to their smaller counterparts: a Scorpion Phractos’ venom isn’t as potent, Spider Phractos need to produce more spider silk to hold their greater body weight and that of their prey’s, and Whip Scorpion Phractos aren’t as proportionally strong as ordinary Whip Scorpions.

Diet: Almost all Arachnid Phractos are carnivorous. While they do possess human-like jaws, their thin throats cannot ingest solid food larger than a half-dollar coin. As a result, most Arachnid Phractos digest food outside their bodies by bathing their meals in stomach acid and partially digesting it into a soft meat paste. They then chew the half-digested food particles with their jaws and mandibles before swallowing. Harvestmen Phractos are the only Arachnid Phractos capable of fully chewing and swallowing food in their bodies.

It is common for Arachnid Phractos to use venom to paralyze prey prior to digesting them to avoid dangerous struggles; this venom is designed to break down into harmless chemicals during the pre-digestion process to avoid harming the Pharctos themselves. It is also common for Spider Phractos to accidentally swallow their own silk during meals, which also safely breaks down to avoid clods of silk forming in their stomachs. The greatest complaint to ingested spider silk is sore throats and the silk’s unappetizing flavor of glue.

While modern Arachnid Phractos do follow the dietary habits of humans and Avesians by eating domesticated animals like chicken, pig, and cow, they have historically been known to eat any animal they can capture. Not only that, but Arachnid Phractos societies have been known to make other Phractos into livestock, such as the the Bristly Millipede Phractos; the only reason these actions weren’t considered slavery and mass cannibalism is because species like the Bristly Millipede have an intelligence more comparable to a monkey than a human. Husbandry like this, however, has fallen out of practice due to societal pressures from humans and Avesians; furthermore, with the advent of modern farming technology, Arachnids can eat “ordinary” insects en masse more efficiently than raising Bristly Millipedes for consumption. Nowadays, a common meal to an Arachnid Phractos is toast covered in meal worm paste and and sprinkled with cricket legs.

Introduction: The country of Eosmus is a landlocked country in Eastern Eodeth. It consists of 26 smaller territories known as “Regios.” The country finds its earliest roots in a small territory settled by several bands of Phractos in 1454 CE. By cooperating with the Spawn and forming the Amicitia Coalition, Eosmus was formally established in 1503 CE. The country serves as a beacon of unity among the Spawn and Phractos, despite their vast cultural differences and histories. 

Geography: The country of Eosmus is located just north of the Khorfteum Desert and the Errat Sea. As such, the southern region of the country is warm, but considerably humid. Lake Ogon also contributes to the high humidity, as the large lake occupies more than a quarter of the country’s territory. Both Spawn and Phractos are known to call Lake Ogon home.

Eosmus is bordered to the north by the country of Paklos, to the west by Ryca, and to the east by Melvice. The country is also quite close to the Lith Bazaar, which is the most eastern property of the Tial Gols. As such, the country shares the honor of selling, trading, and distributing wares from Otera and Aeshai across eastern Eodeth alongside Melvice.

Government and Politics:  The country of Eosmus is a directorial republic. Spawn and Phractos make up the majority of the country’s population, and as such, the heads of state similarly represent this population with four Spawn leaders, and six Phractos leaders. Eosmus is unique among the countries of the world in that it is the only country in Eodeth with a partly run Phractos government.

And so we finally get into Eodeth! Eosmus is currently my favorite of the countries of Eodeth, partly because its going to be a vital part of a future novel of mine, and partly because I enjoy the thought of Spawn and Phractos cooperating together. It isn’t fully developed yet, hence the short blog post, but I’ll be sure to update this post in the future. 

In related news, I have finally commissioned someone to draw the map of Mundus! Finally, instead of strictly relying on my directions, any time anyone wants to locate a country, city, or landmark on Mundus, all they have to do is check the map! How convenient! Only so much details can be placed on the map, so smaller cities like Breham couldn’t fit, but otherwise the map will be a nice guide for those curious minds trying to puzzle what the f**k I’m talking about. 

Introduction: The Phractos are a group of sapient arthropods who, through convergent evolution, developed hominin-like bodies. The Phractos are further divided into four classes: Arachnid Phractos, Crustacean Phractos, Myriapoda Phractos, and Insect Phractos.

The Insect Phractos are the largest and most diverse class of Phractos. Composed of over 25 orders, the Insect Phractos consist of orders such as the Beetle Phractos, Fly Phractos, Gladiator Phractos, Mantid Phractos, and Stick Phractos. Some orders such as the Flea and Twisted Wing Phractos have gone extinct, but most orders survive and even thrive to this day.

Evolution: Although modern scientists continue to puzzle over the bizarre convergent evolution of Phractos, most agree that Phractos first appeared in the fossil record around 98 million years ago in the continent of Upea, before Yaquoris formed. The earliest Phractos ancestor, Veteris Armis, lived in the dense rainforests and woodlands of Upea as a beetle-like insect with a thick exoskeleton and strong mandibles.

However, as the continental plates shifted Upea further north, the rainforests and woodlands where Veteris Armis lived began to disappear. Forced to adapt, the cranial cavity of Veteris Armis began expand, and the insect grew into a larger, yet lightweight form. Startling, Veteris Armis even began to mimic other insect species, and by 60 MA, many of the Insect Phractos orders we know today managed to form.

Anatomy: While each order of Insect Phractos has unique physical traits, all Insect Phractos have several traits in common: they have chitinous exoskeletons, a three-part, three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and one pair of antennae. All Insect Phractos range in size, but most species grow no larger than 3 to 5 feet in height, and weigh between 20 to 50 pounds. 

Like their ancestors, Insect Phractos have unique abilities most other sapient species lack. For example, Ant Phractos possess great physical strength exceeding any known human and Butterfly Phractos can fly. These abilities, however, aren’t necessarily proportional to their ancestors: an Ant Phractos cannot lift 100 times their own weight, and Butterfly Phractos cannot fly thousands of miles.

This comes down to simple fact of biology known as the Square/Cube Law, which essentially means the larger an organism is, the more effort they exert to lift their own bodies. So while Insect Phractos possess astounding abilities, they are a fraction of their ancestors: an Ant Phractos can lift about 10 times its body weight and a Butterfly Phractos can fly a 100 miles without rest. 

Diet: The diet of Insect Phractos is wide and varied. Some orders like the Grasshopper Phractos are herbivores, and often work on farms to feed on vegetables, while others like Scorpionfly Phractos are carnivores who hunt small game and scavenge leftover meat. Angel Phractos primarily eat fungi, detritus, and pests like mites, while Moth Phractos drink nectar.

Okay, for this month’s Species of Mundus, I tried something a bit different and focused more on the unique biological aspects of the Insect Phractos rather than classification. With any luck, this tells you, the audience, more about the Phractos and is more engaging to read.