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(Drawn by 
orange04 while she was exceptionally drunk. The quality of this image lies about what she can really do =D.... check out her sober artwork to see for yourself ^^)
Interviewer: "So what's this then?"
Doctor: "This? Oh, one of the patients drew it."
Interviewer: "A patient?"
Doctor: "Yeah; he has a name and everything for it. Better than my stick figures. If he'd write a book about it rather than claim it was out to kill him, he'd make a killing off the sales. Even maybe a movie."
Interviewer: "Huh. What's he call it?"
Doctor: "Demon. Valian. Starspawn. Along those lines..."
==================================================
A NOTE ON ROLEPLAYING AS THIS SPECIES:
This species is considered to be /highly overpowered/ in any setting, sci-fi or fantasy. Use of the species means you will have to submit to the fact that people WILL call you a godmodder, admins WILL test you, and people WILL whine! Act maturely and work with admins to change things to be suitable for the setting you are in, and remember above all that no matter how powerful you may think your Valian character is...... they CAN be killed, and many characters WILL try and kill them!
That's what being an alien is like :D
CONTENTS:
1 Description
2 Strengths and Weaknesses
3 Playing a Valian
1 Description
One of the rarer lifeforms in the galaxy are of the Valian species, an asexually-reproducing race that numbers in the scant hundreds. While very few in number, they remain one of the most hunted species in the galaxy despite their nearness to extinction, especially for any sentient race that is above the level of stone age technology They are considered universally dangerous to civilized culture and over the millennia many governing bodies, military factions, secret societies, and even entire races have begun campaigns to hunt them down and exterminate them.
Among true intergalactic society, databases rate them as 'a rare and dangerous specimen of silicate design'.
BIOLOGY
Valians are actually best described as being 'descriptionless', not in that they defy description but in that there is no set norm to follow when describing them. Their strengths and weaknesses vary by individual specimen as much as the skin color of a human, and so they are often classed among several subspecies rather than as the whole.
For the most part, however, they follow these basic lines:
A Valian is a metamorphic lifeform. Unlike a polymorph they are not restricted to forms of similar nature, but instead can turn into a vast array of things both animate and inanimate, with most of the strengths AND weaknesses related to such forms added to their own. In their natural form they are nothing more than large globs of black liquid, about three liters in volume, and with the consistency of hot syrup. Of course, they also taste much like melted rubber treated with chemicals with the aftertaste of hot copper, and so that is where their syrup similarities end.
Because in this natural state they are defenseless, they tend to take the form of a humanoid or quadruped but remain entirely black, giving themselves the notable traits of a single species or many to get around.
Valians get their energy from light, making them a photovoltaic silicon-based lifeform; this means they create electrical energy by absorbing radiation on a broad spectrum, and normally need not take in materials from outside. In case of injury or loss of mass, they use materials such as natural sand or synthetic parts to synthesize what they need. This energy-absorbing nature makes them all but immune to most laser weapons, but plasma, ion, and particle weapons can harm them with focused fire. Most small-arms fire of energy-based nature and most melee weapons have little effect on a Valian. Ballistic weapons can shatter their form much like glass.
In theory, a Valian in natural form is indestructible so long as they remain in a well-lit area, or remain hot; fire and light strengthen them and give them speed and strength, let them regenerate and even resist lethal injury, deflect physical bullets, take weight on their shoulders (assuming they have them) that would crush other creatures, and direct the flow of energy that enters their bodies as they see fit.
However, most Valians do not stay in their natural form: taking on the form of another species in color means they must reflect a large portion of the radiation that gives them strength, sacrificing their powers in return for the ability to blend in and manipulate objects.
In addition to this, they are also greatly harmed by the cold; temperatures below freezing can damage their bodies with cracking as they freeze, and they are able to shatter like glass. Dropping into icy water is nearly a death-sentence, especially if in the ocean, as they would break apart and scatter, leaving them unable to regenerate as normal regardless of the light or heat put into them at a later time, unless large portions of their mass were gathered in one place.
Valians are extremely long-lived by any standard, outliving others by thousands of years unless destroyed; it is not uncommon for them to live to ten-thousand years, though due to their scattered nature are unlikely to meet another of their species throughout that time.
Valians reproduce in one of two ways, being naturally genderless: either they split like a cell (a process that copies their forms but not their knowledge) in a process that can take days or minutes depending on how much energy and resources are around them, or they can use previously gathered resources to deposit young into a host body, typically a female's womb. These young use chemicals to trick the host body into thinking they are an actual child of their own body, and so force them into feeding them until they develop enough to leave; this can take days or months.
Most species greatly dislike the latter method of reproduction, since this usually involves tentacles and other such horrible things.
No one is quite sure where the species originated, though a close guess would be the Sirius star-system, arriving on other worlds via starship or asteroid, especially through hitching a ride unbeknown to the owner.
A NOTE ON SPACE-TRAVEL:
Valians do not need atmosphere or pressure to survive, so their own ships lack life-support. Instead they are extremely well-lit with infrared lighting, and filled with vacuum. It is not possible to board a Valian ship without protective gear when in space.
It should also be noted that Valians can survive for several long hours in total EVA, without protection; in direct sunlight they will be alright, but if they have no source of heat they will slowly and painfully freeze to death. In deep space, where light is nowhere to be found, they can die from a lack of energy before they freeze.
CRYOGENICS WILL INSTANTLY KILL A VALIAN. They cannot travel in a cryo-freezer, and must remain awake for entire voyages.
CULTURE AND HISTORY
It is commonly assumed that the Valian species was not evolved naturally, but created by some ancient race for a purpose that they either did not fulfill or are still trying to fulfill. Their history is lost to time for themselves given the methods which they reproduce and the far-flung nature of their population. What is known is through the history of races that have encountered them.
Valian individuals are known to take the forms of those they walk among for long periods of time, learning about them through their own eyes (assuming they have eyes) and generally acting as a simple member of their society. Inevitably they will be discovered, leading to chaos and fear in most societies.... which is countered by mass destruction as the Valian flees. Hunting the specimen down is nearly useless without highly advanced sensor equipment, and more often than not the Valian will never return.
Malevolent Valians are common, unfortunately; they revel in chaos and mass changes, especially those they bring about. They dislike politics to a degree, but will become involved in society in order to spur political or economic changes for better or worse, often for their own amusement at the prosperity they bring... or the calamity. Their intelligence ranges from extremely feral to above that of most humanoids, focused around a predatory cunning that makes them especially disruptive to societies they infiltrate.
Among other members of their kind, Valians are extraordinarily tolerant; even malevolent members show great respect and kinship to their brethren on instinct, and will exert great effort to aid eachother, though their chaotic nature often forces them to move apart before they can unite to do any true damage or any great good.
Valians have no music of their own, and their technology is often exceptionally focused and utilitarian, built from concepts made by other races and put together in clean-room reverse-engineering. They often adopt many traits, cultural, personal, and technological, of the species they interact with.
Valian goals tend to be entirely personal, and often selfish, centering around personal enjoyment and amusement through a vast array of things; physical, military, political, and sexual strength gives them happiness, and they are known to not be humble. The few truly benevolent members of the species have been known to ally themselves with others for their own reasons, but such members often find themselves hunted due to preconceptions of the species and the tendency for other races to react with fear at their revelation.
2 Strengths and Weaknesses
STRENGTHS:
* Can change form into practically anything, biological, mechanical, or otherwise. While size is limited because of the way they compress and expand their forms, they can be anything from a small elephant to a truck to a beaver to a normal human.
* Impossible to interact with them using magic; are not able to be touched by magical things or spells. (Also see weakness)
* Can interact directly with electronic components on a level as some cybernetic creatures. In addition they can channel electrical energy directly and even store it for long periods, but cannot generate it themselves.
* Are mildly telepathic, and can communicate with other telepathic species to a degree, and any other Valian within a hundred meters; they may also use this natural psychic sense to detect other Valians in hiding near them, regardless of their form.
* Are capable of entering a 'parasitic state' in which they take a host to heal or hide without changing forms. They lose their abilities directly, instead imbuing many of their powers to their host....who is almost always aware that an alien is living in them.
* Are largely immune to fire... and direct sunlight can give them immense strength, as their primary source of power is from light and other forms of radiation.
WEAKNESSES:
* Incapable of functioning at under 0 degrees Celsius for long periods of time. Freezing water practically destroys them, and supercooled air will blast them apart.
* Are greatly harmed by certain acidic chemicals, and basic chemicals can 'short out' their shapechanging if they contain certain elements. Nitric acid is especially hated by their kind for its ability to both dissolve their forms and be exceedingly more painful than other powerful acids; it leaves them still alive and constantly regenerating, but still harms them at a constant rate.
* Can never be healed by magic, helped by divine blessing, or use any form of magic item to any effect. In fact, some magic items are drained of power when in contact with a Valian, rendering them useless to those that can use them.
* Are known to have terrible memory, sometimes recalling things only as far back as a month or a couple years at most. Details are hard to keep track of. Names nearly impossible to remember. Only forms they have taken can remember things... if they learn something as a human, they often have to return to human form to remember all of it.
* Simply turning into a dragon won't give them fire breath... they would have to form a biological way in their bodies to produce flame. An automobile form would be unable to run without fuel put in from outside. A rifle form would need ammunition. They cannot use their own bodies as a source of energy, fuel, ammunition, or otherwise; it would be the same as a human cutting off a limb to use as a club.
3 Playing a Valian
For the most part, go nuts.
Yeah, it literally doesn't matter what traits you give yourself; just try and stay close to the strengths and weaknesses, but feel free to make yourself look like pretty much anything or give yourself other strengths and weaknesses; some forms of Valian are even known to have magical prowess rather than be null-magic creatures.
All that is really required is that in natural form, the body itself is utterly black, with glowing eyes of a single color. Typically, all clothing or accessories will follow this color pattern no matter what form a Valian is in; if a Valian has blue eyes they tend to wear blue clothing and leave the rest grayscale, letting them absorb more light.
If you like building things related to Valian technology (they ARE an alien race), try and build things with a very simplistic look. Functional, blank-walled, and typically curved external architecture with straight edges internal, especially unorthodox or super-regular geometry, like pentagon rooms with square furnishings.
orange04 while she was exceptionally drunk. The quality of this image lies about what she can really do =D.... check out her sober artwork to see for yourself ^^)Interviewer: "So what's this then?"
Doctor: "This? Oh, one of the patients drew it."
Interviewer: "A patient?"
Doctor: "Yeah; he has a name and everything for it. Better than my stick figures. If he'd write a book about it rather than claim it was out to kill him, he'd make a killing off the sales. Even maybe a movie."
Interviewer: "Huh. What's he call it?"
Doctor: "Demon. Valian. Starspawn. Along those lines..."
==================================================
A NOTE ON ROLEPLAYING AS THIS SPECIES:
This species is considered to be /highly overpowered/ in any setting, sci-fi or fantasy. Use of the species means you will have to submit to the fact that people WILL call you a godmodder, admins WILL test you, and people WILL whine! Act maturely and work with admins to change things to be suitable for the setting you are in, and remember above all that no matter how powerful you may think your Valian character is...... they CAN be killed, and many characters WILL try and kill them!
That's what being an alien is like :D
CONTENTS:
1 Description
2 Strengths and Weaknesses
3 Playing a Valian
1 Description
One of the rarer lifeforms in the galaxy are of the Valian species, an asexually-reproducing race that numbers in the scant hundreds. While very few in number, they remain one of the most hunted species in the galaxy despite their nearness to extinction, especially for any sentient race that is above the level of stone age technology They are considered universally dangerous to civilized culture and over the millennia many governing bodies, military factions, secret societies, and even entire races have begun campaigns to hunt them down and exterminate them.
Among true intergalactic society, databases rate them as 'a rare and dangerous specimen of silicate design'.
BIOLOGY
Valians are actually best described as being 'descriptionless', not in that they defy description but in that there is no set norm to follow when describing them. Their strengths and weaknesses vary by individual specimen as much as the skin color of a human, and so they are often classed among several subspecies rather than as the whole.
For the most part, however, they follow these basic lines:
A Valian is a metamorphic lifeform. Unlike a polymorph they are not restricted to forms of similar nature, but instead can turn into a vast array of things both animate and inanimate, with most of the strengths AND weaknesses related to such forms added to their own. In their natural form they are nothing more than large globs of black liquid, about three liters in volume, and with the consistency of hot syrup. Of course, they also taste much like melted rubber treated with chemicals with the aftertaste of hot copper, and so that is where their syrup similarities end.
Because in this natural state they are defenseless, they tend to take the form of a humanoid or quadruped but remain entirely black, giving themselves the notable traits of a single species or many to get around.
Valians get their energy from light, making them a photovoltaic silicon-based lifeform; this means they create electrical energy by absorbing radiation on a broad spectrum, and normally need not take in materials from outside. In case of injury or loss of mass, they use materials such as natural sand or synthetic parts to synthesize what they need. This energy-absorbing nature makes them all but immune to most laser weapons, but plasma, ion, and particle weapons can harm them with focused fire. Most small-arms fire of energy-based nature and most melee weapons have little effect on a Valian. Ballistic weapons can shatter their form much like glass.
In theory, a Valian in natural form is indestructible so long as they remain in a well-lit area, or remain hot; fire and light strengthen them and give them speed and strength, let them regenerate and even resist lethal injury, deflect physical bullets, take weight on their shoulders (assuming they have them) that would crush other creatures, and direct the flow of energy that enters their bodies as they see fit.
However, most Valians do not stay in their natural form: taking on the form of another species in color means they must reflect a large portion of the radiation that gives them strength, sacrificing their powers in return for the ability to blend in and manipulate objects.
In addition to this, they are also greatly harmed by the cold; temperatures below freezing can damage their bodies with cracking as they freeze, and they are able to shatter like glass. Dropping into icy water is nearly a death-sentence, especially if in the ocean, as they would break apart and scatter, leaving them unable to regenerate as normal regardless of the light or heat put into them at a later time, unless large portions of their mass were gathered in one place.
Valians are extremely long-lived by any standard, outliving others by thousands of years unless destroyed; it is not uncommon for them to live to ten-thousand years, though due to their scattered nature are unlikely to meet another of their species throughout that time.
Valians reproduce in one of two ways, being naturally genderless: either they split like a cell (a process that copies their forms but not their knowledge) in a process that can take days or minutes depending on how much energy and resources are around them, or they can use previously gathered resources to deposit young into a host body, typically a female's womb. These young use chemicals to trick the host body into thinking they are an actual child of their own body, and so force them into feeding them until they develop enough to leave; this can take days or months.
Most species greatly dislike the latter method of reproduction, since this usually involves tentacles and other such horrible things.
No one is quite sure where the species originated, though a close guess would be the Sirius star-system, arriving on other worlds via starship or asteroid, especially through hitching a ride unbeknown to the owner.
A NOTE ON SPACE-TRAVEL:
Valians do not need atmosphere or pressure to survive, so their own ships lack life-support. Instead they are extremely well-lit with infrared lighting, and filled with vacuum. It is not possible to board a Valian ship without protective gear when in space.
It should also be noted that Valians can survive for several long hours in total EVA, without protection; in direct sunlight they will be alright, but if they have no source of heat they will slowly and painfully freeze to death. In deep space, where light is nowhere to be found, they can die from a lack of energy before they freeze.
CRYOGENICS WILL INSTANTLY KILL A VALIAN. They cannot travel in a cryo-freezer, and must remain awake for entire voyages.
CULTURE AND HISTORY
It is commonly assumed that the Valian species was not evolved naturally, but created by some ancient race for a purpose that they either did not fulfill or are still trying to fulfill. Their history is lost to time for themselves given the methods which they reproduce and the far-flung nature of their population. What is known is through the history of races that have encountered them.
Valian individuals are known to take the forms of those they walk among for long periods of time, learning about them through their own eyes (assuming they have eyes) and generally acting as a simple member of their society. Inevitably they will be discovered, leading to chaos and fear in most societies.... which is countered by mass destruction as the Valian flees. Hunting the specimen down is nearly useless without highly advanced sensor equipment, and more often than not the Valian will never return.
Malevolent Valians are common, unfortunately; they revel in chaos and mass changes, especially those they bring about. They dislike politics to a degree, but will become involved in society in order to spur political or economic changes for better or worse, often for their own amusement at the prosperity they bring... or the calamity. Their intelligence ranges from extremely feral to above that of most humanoids, focused around a predatory cunning that makes them especially disruptive to societies they infiltrate.
Among other members of their kind, Valians are extraordinarily tolerant; even malevolent members show great respect and kinship to their brethren on instinct, and will exert great effort to aid eachother, though their chaotic nature often forces them to move apart before they can unite to do any true damage or any great good.
Valians have no music of their own, and their technology is often exceptionally focused and utilitarian, built from concepts made by other races and put together in clean-room reverse-engineering. They often adopt many traits, cultural, personal, and technological, of the species they interact with.
Valian goals tend to be entirely personal, and often selfish, centering around personal enjoyment and amusement through a vast array of things; physical, military, political, and sexual strength gives them happiness, and they are known to not be humble. The few truly benevolent members of the species have been known to ally themselves with others for their own reasons, but such members often find themselves hunted due to preconceptions of the species and the tendency for other races to react with fear at their revelation.
2 Strengths and Weaknesses
STRENGTHS:
* Can change form into practically anything, biological, mechanical, or otherwise. While size is limited because of the way they compress and expand their forms, they can be anything from a small elephant to a truck to a beaver to a normal human.
* Impossible to interact with them using magic; are not able to be touched by magical things or spells. (Also see weakness)
* Can interact directly with electronic components on a level as some cybernetic creatures. In addition they can channel electrical energy directly and even store it for long periods, but cannot generate it themselves.
* Are mildly telepathic, and can communicate with other telepathic species to a degree, and any other Valian within a hundred meters; they may also use this natural psychic sense to detect other Valians in hiding near them, regardless of their form.
* Are capable of entering a 'parasitic state' in which they take a host to heal or hide without changing forms. They lose their abilities directly, instead imbuing many of their powers to their host....who is almost always aware that an alien is living in them.
* Are largely immune to fire... and direct sunlight can give them immense strength, as their primary source of power is from light and other forms of radiation.
WEAKNESSES:
* Incapable of functioning at under 0 degrees Celsius for long periods of time. Freezing water practically destroys them, and supercooled air will blast them apart.
* Are greatly harmed by certain acidic chemicals, and basic chemicals can 'short out' their shapechanging if they contain certain elements. Nitric acid is especially hated by their kind for its ability to both dissolve their forms and be exceedingly more painful than other powerful acids; it leaves them still alive and constantly regenerating, but still harms them at a constant rate.
* Can never be healed by magic, helped by divine blessing, or use any form of magic item to any effect. In fact, some magic items are drained of power when in contact with a Valian, rendering them useless to those that can use them.
* Are known to have terrible memory, sometimes recalling things only as far back as a month or a couple years at most. Details are hard to keep track of. Names nearly impossible to remember. Only forms they have taken can remember things... if they learn something as a human, they often have to return to human form to remember all of it.
* Simply turning into a dragon won't give them fire breath... they would have to form a biological way in their bodies to produce flame. An automobile form would be unable to run without fuel put in from outside. A rifle form would need ammunition. They cannot use their own bodies as a source of energy, fuel, ammunition, or otherwise; it would be the same as a human cutting off a limb to use as a club.
3 Playing a Valian
For the most part, go nuts.
Yeah, it literally doesn't matter what traits you give yourself; just try and stay close to the strengths and weaknesses, but feel free to make yourself look like pretty much anything or give yourself other strengths and weaknesses; some forms of Valian are even known to have magical prowess rather than be null-magic creatures.
All that is really required is that in natural form, the body itself is utterly black, with glowing eyes of a single color. Typically, all clothing or accessories will follow this color pattern no matter what form a Valian is in; if a Valian has blue eyes they tend to wear blue clothing and leave the rest grayscale, letting them absorb more light.
If you like building things related to Valian technology (they ARE an alien race), try and build things with a very simplistic look. Functional, blank-walled, and typically curved external architecture with straight edges internal, especially unorthodox or super-regular geometry, like pentagon rooms with square furnishings.
Category Artwork (Digital) / Doodle
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 841 x 527px
File Size 35.1 kB
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