The Lion King
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To add to the roster of fauna that fits the overall theme of planet Midvinter.
- Image Credit: Far Cry Primal concept art, by Ubisoft: https://news.ubisoft.com/en-us/article/313661/far-cry-primal-designing-look-stone-age-fantasy
- Canon: N/A
- Links:
Midvinter - Valkyri
GENERAL INFORMATION
- Name: Mammoth
- Designation: Non-sentient
- Origins: Midvinter
- Average Lifespan: 50
- Estimated Population: Rare
- Description: Large, woolly, and usually peaceful herbivores that roam the tundras of the Northmark, mammoths have few natural enemies capable of posing a threat to them when sticking to their herd. The northernmost tribes of Valkyri inhabiting the area live closer to nature than other, more civilised clans, and have a long history of domesticating mammoths, using them for labour and even in the occasional raid against neighboring tribes.
- Breathes: Oxygen
- Average Height of Adults: 10 meters
- Average Length of Adults: 15 meters
- Skin color: Black
- Hair color: Various shades of brown; pure white in rare cases
- Distinctions: These humungous quadruped mammals are unique to the farthest north of Midvinter, covered entirely in long, brown hair allowing them to weather temperatures even Valkyri would succumb to. These lands, at the height of winter, see temperatures of well below -50 degrees Celcius, not taking into account the harsh winds from being close to the coast and nowhere to seek shelter. They live in groups of about a dozen members, consisting mainly of females as adult males leave to seek a mate from another herd. The Matriarch (oldest female) leads each family, deciding their every course of action as a group, such as when and where to go in search of food. Like all creatures on Midvinter, they are incredibly physically strong and imposing; thick hides are able to protect against all but the most decisive blows, and even then their bones and tusks are amazingly durable.
- Races: N/A
- Force Sensitivity: Non-Sensitive
- Monarchs of the Tundras: One of the largest creatures Midvinter has to offer, and exclusive to the northern tundras and forests, no other man or mammal is capable of challenging their rule of these lands due to their immense size and strength.
- The True North: In the farthest north, the temperature and terrain allows for little in terms of fauna to survive. Mammoth hides allow them to weather any winter, no matter how cold or everlasting. They are considered naturally immune to cold.
- A Tool for Every Situation: Adults possess massive tusks which they use for clearing the way and rummaging the earth when scrounging for food in the forest, and provide excellent defense against attackers.
- Walking Tanks: While incredibly powerfully built, they move slowly and methodically as one would expect of creatures of such size.
- We Happy Few: There are many herd spread across the northernmost areas of the Northmark, each numbering in only a dozen or so members.
- Shakers of the Earth: Easy to spot from size alone, an entire herd on the move makes the ground tremble even a hundred meters away.
- Diet: Herbivore; tall grass, leaves, nuts, berries.
- Communication: Trumpeting, snorting, rumbling.
- Technology level: N/A
- Religion/Beliefs: N/A
- General behavior: Each family of mammoth consists chiefly of females, as adult males roam around on their own in search of mates from other herds. Male and female calves are raised collectively within the group, with the latter staying with their family for their entire lives. The oldest female is the Matriarch, who dictates the actions of the herd as a whole, and her rule is rarely challenged except by the occasional male outsider looking to start trouble. When the Matriarch dies, be it from natural causes or in battle, the leadership falls to the next oldest female member. Male members stay with the family until they reach adulthood, when they leave on their own accord. When they find a suitable mate from another herd, their offspring remain with the mother while the father wanders off on his own, seeking yet another mate. Should the herd come under attack, the adults will form a defensive circle around the calves, fending off man and carnivore alike.
While some of the more famous wildlife Midvinter has to offer seldom remain in one place for long, such as the noble vhaanir with their huge herds or ferocious frír hunting parties on the prowl, there are many species unique to certain areas of a specific Mark (jarldom/province). Probably the most well known of these are the lions of the western plains, mostly due to the popularity and fame of House Heavenshield, who took their likeness as their sigil, governing these lands. There are many more, however; in the Southmark, for instance, the coastline is littered with penguins. In the Eastmark, they instead have walruses lining their stony shores. All these are examples of wildlife who rarely seek new places to make theirs, and in so doing helps in differentiating the five Marks.
The Northmark, however, while seemingly an inhospitable and grim place when compared to the more civilised lands further south, is home to the most ancient and hardy beasts. Here, man and mammal have ever been forced to live close to nature, for she rules these lands with an iron grip. Seemingly endless winter and tremendously harsh winds blowing in from the coastline make it the absolute coldest place on the planet. Having only been properly organised for the first time by the arrival of [member="Théodred Heavenshield"] taking up the title of Protector of the North, like his father did Warden of the West, many of the northernmost tribes still primarily follow the law of the land; there are no castles or town in these desolate parts, but rather small, roaming communities living in tents and crude huts. These lands breed only the most hardy folk, for anyone weak inevitably succumbs to nature's wrath.
Here, it is not the Valkyri who rule unopposed. It is the colossal Mammoth.
Far larger than any other mammal known to Midvinter, mammoths are lumbering herbivores with four tree-sized legs and two massive tusks on either side of a long trunk making up the silhouette of the animal. Their entire body is covered in long, shaggy hairs offering perfect protection against the constant assault of wind and weather, and their hides are strong enough to withstand blows and injuries that would otherwise cripple other beings. Despite all this, mammoths are not hostile by nature and will mostly allow smaller beings to pass them by unharmed due to the fact that no single being on Midvinter can harm them. Only when facing a large enough threat, such as an unusually large party of frír (sabre-toothed cats), do the mammoth take defensive positions alongside the rest of their family, forming an outward-facing circle around their young. Few are careless enough to brave going up against a wall of swinging tusks and sheer muscle.
The tribes of the north know these creatures however, and will sometimes manage to capture strays and domesticate them. They ride these great beasts with unsurpassed skill - simply because no-one else have ever done it - and have trained them to do manual labour, and even wage war against other tribes at times, where the outcome is decided by champions battling atop the backs of their humungous companions.
Mammoths are the undisputed rulers of the True North, with no-one having dared to challenge their reign since time immemorial. They are the Kings and Queens of the tundra.
