Here's the Kabutons, check 'em out. Rise of Lorenzo Ramos The Kabutons were once a very quiet race of humanoid beetles, living on the jungle planet of Escara II, mostly ignored by other, more advanced races. However, this all changed when Lorenzo Ramos, a noble Kabuton, was kidnapped, along with his family, and some others, by a passing Avian ship, on its way to terraform Escara II. He was held prisoner for 3 days, before he broke out of his cell by chewing through the bars with his mandibles. However, the Avian guards saw him, and chased him through the ship. Whilst being chased, Lorenzo saw what the Avians had done to the other Kabutons, including his family. Swearing to avenge them, he jumped on the ship's teleporter and beamed down onto the surface of Escara II. After his narrow escape, Lorenzo rallied up group of skilled Kabutons, forged himself some steel plate armour, and sneaked onto a landed Avian ship. He butchered the crew with a master-crafted sword, and then flew away with the Kabuton warriors. He then turned his attention to Escara III, a nearby, Avian-inhabited planet. Taking them by surprise, Lorenzo destroyed villages and plundered any technology he could find. He had no mercy, and no remorse. His rapier dripped with avian blood that night. It was then that they noticed a nearby Avian spaceship factory. He found the control room and, with the help of a Novakid, who had been held prisoner by the Avians, Lorenzo 'redesigned' the ship blueprint to create his own, personal fleet. With the fleet, he could finally drive away the Avians who had been scourging the Escara system. Once this goal was complete, Lorenzo decided to used his new fleet to conquer and colonize across the Galaxy. He conquered Glitch worlds and Human worlds, but there was none he despised more than the Avians, the feathered abominations who killed his family and threatened to destroy his planet. The more he conquered, the more Kabuton settlements appeared on the conquered planets. The Kabutons grew into a mighty race. No-one knows what happened to Lorenzo, but Kabuton legends say that, after conquering his 1000th planet, Lorenzo finally ascended into Godhood. Age of Prosperity Meanwhile, the Kabuton race kept conquering. The empire grew rich from the conquered planets, and technology progressed rapidly. The kabutons prospered for many years. They became a well-respected race, and a truce was at one point formed with the Avian race. Society improved, and there was no poverty. All the while, Kabutons utilized the intelligence of the Novakids to improve existing technology, leading to an age where the kabutons were the most technologically advanced out of all the races, even the Apex. War Erupts However, one day, out of nowhere, a civil war erupted. No-one is sure what started the war. Some say it was a cruel emperor, others say it was simply a misunderstanding. It all started when a group of Kabuton worlds cut themselves off from the Empire, and started building their own fleets. They continued mass-producing weapons, and then started randomly attacking Kabuton worlds. In response, the Kabuton Emperor sent fleets of ships to intercept, only to find nothing there but a ticking Antimatter bomb, which exploded, wiping out the Empire's elite, as well as destroying most of the planet below. Because of this, both sides were equally skilled, and the war lasted much longer, and cost many more lives. The Kabuton Civil War lasted for many years, and many planets were lost in the process. The Empire lost a lot of its advanced technology, especially in the final siege on the Escara system, which lasted 4 years. Escara I, the main Kabuton city planet, was completely destroyed. Eventually, the rebels were defeated, but at a huge cost. The Empire was shattered, all that was left of Escara II, the Empire's Capital, was in ruins, and the Emperor had been butchered on his own throne. The Empire Rises Again However, out of the ashes, Lorenzism arose. A group of old, noble Kabutons crawled out of an underground bunker. With them they held the remains of advanced technology, and they lead a large population of Kabutons, who took shelter when the siege began. They had been studying the life of Lorenzo Ramos, and had composed a set of ideals that would unite the race in a New Empire, forged from the remains of the old one. They believed that the only way to live forever is through conquest, in the name of Lorenzo Ramos, and in the name of the Kabuton Empire! Kabutons appear similar to beetles, with mandibles by their mouths, and a hard exoskeleton. Unlike normal beetles, they only have 4 limbs. This is because, during evolution, the middle pair was absorbed into the body, and were converted into plates of internal armour for protection of internal organs, which were also taken from the abdomen into the thorax., giving the Kabutons 2 main parts to their body: the head and the thorax. Just like beetles, Kabutons come in a huge variety of colours and often have horns, antenna etc. on their heads. They are very humanoid, even having 5 fingers at the end of each hand. Even with their tough exoskeletons, Kabutons wear armour into battle. The Kabutons have a 1500's/1600's Spanish Empire theme, which forms the basis of their architecturure. The capital of the Empire, Escara II, is mostly in ruins, but there is one building that still stands: The Great Fortress. Towering miles into the sky, the building is used for many purposes. Firstly, the Emperor and his Noble Elite live there. From there, they command the entire empire. Secondly, the building is dedicated to Lorenz Ramos, and priests often go on a pilgrimage to the Great Fortress. Finally, it is used as a place to 'store' all the criminals from the empire, as well as being the place where the death penalty is carried out. Although the Kabutons are in possession of advanced technology, they prefer to make it look like the technology that Lorenzo Ramos used when he conquered Escara III. This means Kabutons will use a flintlock pistol that shoots lasers, or a plasma-tipped rapier. Even their armour mimics the steel-plate armour that Lorenzo wore. Their ships are often very well-decorated, often with gold decorations, and sometimes a figurehead of Lorenzo Ramos. On the ground, Kabuton buildings are just as well decorated. Thanks to the conquest of the Kabuton Empire, most items of furniture are gold-decorated, with elaborate stone carvings. The buildings are also this well-decorated on the outside, with flying buttresses and grotesques decorating the walls. The cathedrals are the most impressive, built to honour and worship Lorenzo Ramos, who the Kabutons worship as a God. Kabuton religion, Lorenzism, forms the basis of Kabuton culture. It teaches that by conquering, one becomes closer to Lorenzo, and eternal life. Most Kabutons follow these beliefs, and each individual dedicates their life to helping conquer and reclaim the Kabuton Empire. In fact, if anyone is said to have questioned these views, the elite Kabuton Inquisition is called. They are ruthless, unmerciful and terribly efficient. To question Lorenzism is a death sentence. However, there are still some who have escaped Lorenzist tradition and found a home with other races. These individuals are shunned and persecuted by Lorenzists. There are classes in Kabuton society. Firstly, the Emperor and his Noble Elite, who reside in the Great Fortress. They rule over the Empire, and they are above all other classes. The second highest classes are the Nobles and Conquerors. Nobles are born into nobility by being directly descended from Lorenzo himself, whereas Conquerors earn their nobility through conquest. The next class are the priests and missionaries of Lorenzism. Their job is to preach the ways of Lorenzism to isolated pockets of Kabutons separated after the Civil War, and they keep an eye on the lower classes. The next class are the Technological Ambassadors. They are in charge of maintaining the Empire's technology, and they are the ones who trade technological knowledge with the Novakids and Apex. The next class is the soldiers, who are the ones called to assist the Conquerors in their conquest. The second lowest class is the peasant, people too weak to conquer anything, who take care of the more domestic jobs, such as farming. The lowest class is the criminal. Thieves, murderers, blasphemers: All are taken to the Great Fortress, none ever leave. Kabutons have a quite neutral relationship with Humans, mainly because Humans tend to make no contact with the Kabutons, and also because they have nothing especially important for the Kabutons to plunder. Avians, on the other hand, are the Kabutons' main enemy. This is mainly because of Lorenzo's attacks on Avian planets and ships. It is very rare to see a Kabuton having peaceful relations with an Avian, although it does happen occasionally. Kabutons and the Apex have somewhat good relations. The Kabutons admire the dedication to the race that the Apex show, and the Apex are interested in Kabuton ways of conquering. Both are very willing to share methods of dealing with 'rebels' and 'troublemakers'. The Kabutons are very wary of the Floran race, and often avoid Floran-inhabited planets. From Avian texts, the Kabutons know very well about the Florans' reverse-engineering capabilities, and are cautious of them. The Kabutons are very interested in Hylotyl culture, as they have only recently encountered the race. This is also because the Kabutons are looking for any valuable technology the Hylotyls have. Because of this, relations with them are somewhat uneasy. As for the Glitch, the Kabutons are not interested in their 'Backwards' culture and their 'Medieval' architecture. Because of this, Kabutons mostly ignore the glitch. Finally, the Kabutons have the strongest relations with the Novakids. Even with their short memory span, Kabutons have many times used the superior intelligence of the Novakids to their advantage. Novakids are respected by the Kabutons, especially because it was a Novakid who helped Lorenzo build his own fleet to drive the Avians out. Basic Kabuton: Variety of horns/colours: Kabuton wearing armour: Kabutons wearing clothes: Example of a Kabuton melee weapon : Why did the Avian's ship explode? He pressed the wrong Kabutton! Feel free to comment, I might add more sprites later. Edit: Whoops, extra spoilers. Don't know how to remove them.
That is certainly an unconventional choice of theme for your civilization; I'm not sure if anyone else has thought of that before. I would like it if you elaborate on their culture and history a bit more. It seems a bit short.
so many "meet the's" a bit more of an original title would be nice the sprites look alot like humans re-textured. could mandibles be added?
Added mandibles, and an example melee weapon. Also made history longer, and added 6 more Kabuton sprites (including 2 examples of Kabuton clothes) And added a title thingy.
I disagree with the history, since I usually consider the Avians to be more peaceful then aggressive. As said above, they kinda look like the glitches, especially their armor.
At the risk of being accused of bumping a page, I will point out one flaw with the story that will bug me if I don't say it: The Novakid are by no means an intelligent race, and as they have no desire to record their history or pass it on to their children, they have forgotten all important research, meaning that they would not be ideal in the least for help with technological advancement.
