The Northern Empty
Labyrinthos
EN Green Archon
EN Green Archon
100
5000Lore
Are you familiar with a species of seedkin called the "genomos"? Yes, well, while their resemblance to topiary does render them absolutely adorable, they are also quite carnivorous.
Genomoi typically prey upon small animals that draw near them for shade. Alas, a particular specimen has grown enormous with its insatiable appetite, and mice and the like do naught to satisfy its hunger.
We have termed this specimen the "green Archon" in hopes that the name will give unwary scholars pause ere approaching, but I fear that their desire to study it will soon outweigh their sense of self-preservation...
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EN Ü-u-ü-u
EN Ü-u-ü-u
Lore
As you may already be aware, there is research being performed on animal husbandry in Labyrinthos. One subject of that research is the Azim Steppe's species of yakow, the dzo. The Xaela keep them as livestock, so we hope to find some success in maintaining them as a food source.
Alas, one of our dzo recently sent for slaughter managed to escape before it could be delivered, and is now...well, running amok, so to speak.
The dzo responds to "Ü-u-ü-u" which is, in fact, a herding call employed by the Xaela, though no few gleaners have mistaken it for a personal name. Should you find this difficult to pronounce correctly, however, more rudimentary methods of quelling the beast will suffice.
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Ilsabard
Thavnair
EN Iravati
EN Iravati
Lore
Ah yes, Iravati. The name is a rather ancient word for a medicinal plant or so my colleagues among the Arkasodara say.
Evidently, this particular specimen grew inordinately powerful after menacing several alchemists and subsequently downing half the Great Work's supply of potions and elixirs.
The professors of the Studium's Faculty of Medicine were ecstatic to hear of this, and have requested samples to facilitate the study of the effect alchemical potations have on animals. Alas, for various reasons, few are willing to contend with a rampaging gaja.
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EN Vajrakumara
EN Vajrakumara
Lore
Thavnair is home to a plethora of rare and unusual fauna, but there is perhaps none so unique as the vajralangula. These creatures use their tails to pluck fruit and wave it about as a means to court mates.
Said three-pronged tail clasped about an amra bears a mighty resemblance to the vajra - a weapon oft depicted alongside local divinities - hence the species's name.
Our naturalists would like to study the aforementioned tail, and require a specimen in its youthful prime as a sample. Naturally, they've gone and set their hearts on a particularly ornery one, and naught else will do...
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Garlemald
EN Emperor's Rose
EN Emperor's Rose
Lore
A massive morbol from Dalmasca, the Emperor's rose was originally presented in offering to Solus zos Galvus. Subsequently, it was kept in a greenhouse located in the imperial botanical gardens.
The creature escaped its enclosure some few years ago, and made its way to the frigid Eblan Rime, where the Garleans believed it had perished. Thus it was with great surprise that they discovered the creature had not only adapted to the extreme cold, but begun to propagate itself.
One of our biology professors is perplexed by how this seedkin, born in the hot and humid climate of a jungle, managed to adapt to the polar opposite so swiftly. Much to our collective dismay, there is only one means by which to find out...
Pictures
EN Warmonger
EN Warmonger
Lore
Ah yes, the warmonger... Developed at the Enceladeum, this autonomous, cutting-edge piece of magitek is programmed to ruthlessly slaughter whosoever it determines to be "the enemy". As you may have guessed from its name, it is not particularly discriminating in said determination.
Nevertheless, the Garleans are one or two steps ahead of Sharlayan when it comes to mechanical engineering, so faculty and students both are champing at the bit to study it.
Given its nature as an unfeeling machine of mass murder, it would be difficult and likely unwise to retrieve in an operational state. However, should it be appropriately dismantled, its parts ought to be sufficiently edifying.
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The Sea of Stars
Mare Lamentorum
EN Daphinia Magna
EN Daphinia Magna
Lore
Ahem! Volcanoes have been found to erupt in pillars of smoke that reach beyond the clouds. Now, suppose an organism of some kind, one capable of withstanding significant heat and pressure, was not only carried aloft by that eruption, but shot beyond our sky...
Even if the chances are one in ten thousand or one in one hundred million, or one in a trillion! There need be only a single specimen on the moon to prove my theory. I can see it now...the shape of my dreams incarnate!
...Or invertebrate, as the case may be. Yes, a species of crustacean fully adapted from generations of life on the moon "daphnia magna".
Pictures
EN Genesis Rock
EN Genesis Rock
Lore
Tell me, do you know of the phoebad? 'Tis a natural type of golem born of a surfeit of aether in mineral formations. Its cousins, of course, may be composed of other substances in which aether accretes, such as snow...
Thus, it stands to reason that at least one variety of phoebad, or something altogether similar, should exist on the moon! ...On second thought, I mislike the sound of "should" verberating from my lips. Lunar phoebads do exist, as we shall soon prove!
Call it premature, but I have named our find the "genesis rock". We may throw it in the faces of those idiot astronomers the moment you deliver my sample.
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The World Unsundered
Elpis
EN Shockmaw
EN Shockmaw
Lore
Legends of a great whale that roams the skies have been passed down from generation to generation the world over. Bismarck, the white whale worshipped by the Vanu Vanu and said to dwell amongst Abalathia's clouds, is merely the best-known example.
Perchance such tales originated solely in the mind, ancient peoples shuddering at the sight of a vast wavekin, and imagining what horrors would reign should one take to the skies. Or perhaps, in the distant past, a creature akin to the mythic Lord of the Mists truly did inhabit the clouds...
I believe it so, yet I need proof. My research indicates that the ancient creature would most closely resemble the south sea isles' legendary "Shockmaw", but even if I am wrong...I must know.
Pictures
EN Yumcax
EN Yumcax
Lore
Ah, this one is most intriguing. There is a myth passed down in the far west - in the land known as the New World - that tells of a deity named Yumcax, believed to rule over agriculture.
In this legend, Yumcax is described as an enormous tree that not only levitates, but is also possessed of a singular eye. Though there are certain similarities with the species of seedkin we know as treants, the differences are too marked to ignore.
In the interest of respecting your time, I shall get right to the point: I believe Yumcax once existed, in a time before memory. Even should it be a mere twig or scrap of bark, I am counting on you to procure a sample that proves my theory.
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The Sea of Stars / Edge of the Universe
Ultima Thule
EN Level Cheater
EN Level Cheater
Lore
If Omega was created by a civilization hailing from the depths of the sea of stars - as I theorize - then it must be far more advanced than we in the realms of science and technology.
It is inconceivable that such intellectuals would not keep records on their mechanical devices. Furthermore, as competent scientists, they surely would have wished to ensure the data they collected was never tampered with save in ways they saw fit.
If only I could prove that such a mechanical creation existed, I might be persuaded to add your name to a footnote in my book on the subject...
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EN Oskh Rhei
EN Oskh Rhei
Lore
My dearest gleaner, consider how the Allagan Empire deployed Omega to capture the dreadwyrm Bahamut. Consider the mighty clash between Omega and Shinryu at Baelsar's Wall! Do you not sense the presence of a hidden through line connecting these incidents?
If we accept that there is some truth in the name dragon star and examine Omega's encounters in this context, is it not clear that both Omega and dragonkind hail from other stars at war for untold ages!?
I shudder to think what ruthless machines such as Omega would do were they to make captives of the dragons, so very thrilling are the possibilities! Of course, it will be difficult to prove the existence of mechanical dragons without a complete specimen...but I shall accept any trace.
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