Just to start, I'd like to say hi to everybody....'hi'

Yes, I suck at this, but I don't care. Keep this going!

This comic is rated T or Pg-14

http://twokinds.comicgenesis.com/d/20031022.html

Enjoy, peoples!

Vali'valiss

Valis for short, these extremely tall aliens are the servants of the worlds. They are helpful to a fault, doing anything they can to aid others without being repaid. They are often nine feet tall and almost white. They have long necks and massive, black eyes. (Think about the guys from Kamino in StarWars and you'll get the idea).

Urkagg

These are the warriors, bodyguards, and bouncers of the universe, perfectly evolved for jobs that require great strength but little brain-power. They look vaguely like humans, but are bald and have orange skin. They are about six to seven feet tall and able to lift ten times their weight. This great strength is balanced by being unable to count to one-hundred without looking up the numbers. They are inherently aggressive, and are able to drink large amounts of alcoholic liquid before actually becoming drunk.

Hope this helps those that can't think of something. Grats to a good friend of mine for thinking up the first one!

To Cabloob...

Yeah, that is a pretty sweet comic.

More updates will be posted here, so keep an eye out! I have a lot of work around the net, so I may not be able to do much...

I plan to improve on the intro quite a bit, so keep an eye on this page for my update notices.

Go ahead and post whatever on there. I'll go through at some point and clear all the non-stories and non-reviews out.

Your backstory brings up an interesting question; just what exactly are Akvah?

What you've written seems to imply that individuals members of the species are actually intelligent nanoswarms. Perhaps even the whole race is one gigantic nanocolony which simply divises itself into separate "groups" (of several millions or billions, likely) which all adopt a shared persona.

To simplify, this would mean that Arclis is actually a collection of nanites which share the identity of "Arclis" and act together in such a way as to make "him" seem no different from a single being. Interestingly enough, this could be said to be true for all entities, save that their individual cells aren't intelligent as I imagine his are. Unless, of course, he can only achieve sentience when all these nanites are in union.

Am I right or wrong on this? Either way, I'm curious about getting some clarification on what exactly the Akvah (and by extension, the Miscal) are.

EDIT: As a P.S., I'm wondering if there's any restrictions or particulars you have to tell me concerning the Lisk and all related topics. I don't want to go and make up something that doesn't correspond with your vision, after all. So, if there's anything I should know, name of their homeworld, any major events in their history, customs, etc., etc., go ahead and inform me. ;)

--dreamshell--

The Miscal, however, are a kind of sentient spore, and they come from great pools of an acidic liquid found on the outer edge of the galaxy. One of these pools is on Terra, built to create more of them closer to the planet of peace.

I really need to expand the species database...

The Lisk are similar to the huns of old earth, a tribal race that is mostly nomadic. They are not usually very intelligent, and you were right about their violence. They mostly use melee weapons, but some use forms of machine-guns.

Their tribe comes first, most of the time, and if anything is said to insult the tribe they will take it as if you had killed their mother, and seek to kill the offender. They eat rotting meat not for taste, but because they used to be scavengers before gaining intelligence through evolution. They are immune to almost all forms of virii and bacteria, and this makes them the best to operate chemical and biological weapons.

This also makes Lisk with bonded Miscal very rare...

-----------

I'll try to finish the species data at some point this weekend, but I have school...

Try not to think -too- hard about the science behind things. I -was- a fantasy author before this, you know...

Everyone say hi so we can go even further!

(one more post!)

I just like detail, is all. It's fun. And, while I recognize the fact that this is "just a game", I for one enjoy boiling my noodle a little to make the game more interesting. Adding quasi-realism to certain aspects of a game, even when conceivably it's of little importance to do so, helps out quite a bit with suspension of disbelief. After all, there's got to be some some sort of balance in order to establish just how much of the real world and how much of fantasy can be allowed to co-exist.

While it is possible that they could be nanites, they are just a puddle of liquid silicone that has gained intelligence due to a sort of tiny blackhole called a Rift.

I brought up nanites simply because that idea is a reasonably believable explanation for sci-fi. As for "intelligent" liquid silicone, I'm not sure how that would work. I don't know a whole lot about biology and all that (beyond the basics, anyway), but I don't think that silicone is a naturally occuring element. So how it could gain biological intelligence is somewhat of a mystery, unless we turn back to the idea of the Akvah being somehow artificial. Possibly created a looooooong way back, then gaining a sort of A.I., after which they then began to integrate organic elements into themselves and became something like cyborgs -- but on a molecular level.

Then again, I'm clueless as to if this hypothesis is even at all right. Just trying to use a little science. Besides all that, what are these Rifts? Perhaps they explain the Akvah's sentience.

Some belive the Akvah are from the fourth dimension

The fourth dimension? As in time? Maybe you mean the *fifth* dimension, which is an idea being discussed now of another spatial plane other than the ones we are familiar with. The fourth is more abstract, while (I'm guessing) the fifth is something more physical.

Your description for the Miscal at least makes a bit more sense, since they would be completely organic in the concept you've described. Could it be perhaps that the Akvah are a genetically modified, even improved, version of the Miscal? Just throwing that idea out there.

About the Lisk:

If I may say so, I have a few questions about them, too. Firstly, didn't you state before that it is forbidden for them to use ranged weaponry (i.e., machine guns)? Second, how advanced are they technologically? At least enough so to have voyaged into space, I'm guessing.

Third -- and this is more of an opinion -- but the Lisk almost seem to be too broad as far as their culture. For instance, surely they can't just go slaughtering people just because someone says unkind words about their tribe. Also, why point out their lower intelligence? I don't see why, just because they might be nomadic and more aggressive as a species, that means they're also less enlightened. After all, humans aren't so dissimilar and we're pretty bright (but you might think me optimistic in that regard).

Also, I can understand the scavenger idea, but the thing about evolution is that it is the process of living things adapting to different circumstances. If that's the case, why would they still eat spoiled food (at least, exclusively) if they've outgrown the need to be scavengers? Furthermore, since this early scavenging seems to have helped with their immune systems, it's not as if they need to keep doing it, as if stopping and eating something fresh would mean their uber-immunity would go down the drain. It's in their genes by now.

Try not to think -too- hard about the science behind things. I -was- a fantasy author before this, you know...

Well, it *is* science fiction. A bit of science would help. :D Like I said, there has to be some kind of balance between reality and fantasy. Forgive me, I know this world of yours is pretend, but I imagine a good deal of it is meant to behave in the same ways our own does, am I right? So it can't hurt to put a little effort into things, from how I see it. If you'd like, I'm more than willing to help out in that respect. When I like something and take the initiative to join in, I also like to do what I can to help make whatever I'm involved in the best it can be.

P.S. Sorry for the huge reply. I ramble. ;)

--dreamshell--

Silicone is naturally occurring in a lot of places, but mostly space. A carbon-based lifeform needs oxygen to survive, but a silicone-based lifeform doesn't. This enables then to survive in space without any form of life-support.

Alright, the Rifts...

The Rifts are tiny holes in space and time, caused by the expansion of the universe. If you tug on two ends of a sheet of tissue, tears will form, and that is essentially what is happening with the Rifts. They are not useful in any way, as they cannot be used for travel, and are not truly dangerous, but they are the source of the Akvah. The Miscal, while almost identical in appearance to the Akvah, are an entirely different species, and genus.

The Lisk...

They will not use ranged weaponry, that is correct, but some use a 'sort' of machine gun, one which firse bursts of superheated air. These pockets of superheated-air have an almost physical quality to them that allows it to be used as a ballistic weapon, but it is not in violation of their culture's beliefs. Besides, many cultures are hypocritical...our culture is, anyway.

They are not really able to digest meat from a just-killed animal, as that was long taken from their genes. They can, however, have meat that has been broken down somewhat by biological processes. Not only that, but as more and more bacteria enters a Lisk body, it is added to their genetic 'library' of illnesses, and they can create new anti-viruses within their bodies before ever encountering it, allowing them to have total immunity before their species encounters it.

While they are quite sentient, it is hard for Lisk to understand many concepts that human children find to be simple. They are unable to use fire, they never learned how, and they never needed it, and so they now fear it instinctually. They are about as advanced as human culture was in the Terran year of 2079, and have no ability to travel in space by themselves. They aquired this technology from another race that passed by, and like the scavengers that their ancestors were, they took what they needed to survive and made their way into space. They are intelligent, but most are unable to understand concepts such as democracy and tactics. Still, they are quite an incredible race, thanks to their ability to create anti-virii in their bodies, and their immunity to most venoms and toxins.

You have only two, so no harm doing it.

This doesn't even remotely make sense to me. The second dimension? That's simply a plane on which length, width, and height all co-exist. Think of a square.

Silicone is naturally occurring in a lot of places, but mostly space. A carbon-based lifeform needs oxygen to survive, but a silicone-based lifeform doesn't. This enables then to survive in space without any form of life-support.

You're thinking of *silicon*. Drop the 'e'. Silicone is what they make breast implants with.

A Rift sounds like a black hole to me. And from what I've heard, black holes have the potential to be just a *teensy* bit dangerous.

They will not use ranged weaponry, that is correct, but some use a 'sort' of machine gun, one which firse bursts of superheated air.

This is still a type of long range weapon, though. I figured their reason behind not using such is more about their ideas on how fighting a person face-to-face is the superior way or something. And even if cultures tend to be hypocritical, that's more of an individual issue. If there are mass-produced superheated air guns, then that kind of means everyone is ignoring the supposed taboo.

Unable to use fire sounds a little inaccurate. Have an aversion to using it, maybe. But if that's the case, how do they keep themselves warm? They are warm-blooded reptiles, right? So what happens in cold weather? Also, how exactly do they use this scavenged space travel technology? Fire would be involved there. Are you telling me the whole race simply uses space travel as a kind of intergalatic taxi ride, using it but not actually taking part in any of it?

If they have a sufficiently advanced society, then why are concepts like democracy and tactics beyond them? If they're a warrior race, I would think they'd be familiar with things like battle strategies and diplomacy. Just because they might not use democracy or have a habit of giving into aggressive emotions as opposed to rational methodologies doesn't mean they can't *understand* such things. The Lisk sound like they're getting dumbed down and made into kind of a discriminated minority. Aren't the Falkser guys the ones who act as the antagonists?

--dreamshell--

The Lisk have an ingrained fear of flame, not heat, but open flame. They come from a desert planet originally, and therefore never needed to keep themselves warm. They are warm-blooded, yes. Your description is a good one, yes, it's a taxi ride to them. They do'nt research things unless they have to, and they are scavengers by nature and as a lifestyle. Because they are, they are dangerous enemies, as each clan fights differently and uses different styles of weapons and hand-to-hand combat. The guns are NOT mass-produced, and are actually a rarity.

Tactics are not something they use. They know brute force, and big swords, but not much else when it comes to battle. Still, by their sheer ferocity, they are very deadly enemies. They also do not hold with democracy, and instead their leaders are selected based on bloodline and battle prowess, and once they are in power what they say goes.

I don't mean to be rude, but explaining things comes with the territory. It's a necessity to things like RPGs and writing.

Desert planet? See, I wouldn't have gone with that. That's the kind of stuff I would like to know about before I write a backstory for Soo and Lo'osh.

I guess I can handle the 'taxi ride' idea. But the more you mention about the Lisk, the more of an unpleasant and inconsistent race they seem to be. Certainly Soo must be an oddity in this culture. And why would humans ally themselves with such a self-centered society? Perhaps we could meet halfway and say that some tribes of Lisk are being "Terranized" (think Westernization, but more expansive) and are adapting more human-based customs? For instance, maybe the tribe Soo comes from is no longer nomadic and is instead one of the few on his world who are trying to establish permanent residences like towns and cities? Also, the air guns could be something of an illegal object by large, but are used by more amoral groups of Lisk?

The complete lack of tactics doesn't make sense to me. Any sentient entity, especially ones who engage in war, are going to understand "If I do this, then this will happen". Making the Lisk largely *believed* to be stupid is fine, as that is a racial angle that could be fun to write, but actually *having* them be so simple is odd.

And sure, they don't follow democracy, or at least, not enough of them do for it to be a popularly known idea. I got that part.

I think the problem here is that you're generalizing the whole race into one type of behavior. Human beings aren't like that, so why are the other races?

--dreamshell--

I'm getting tired of explaining, so read this and leave it alone for now. Any other questions, read a book and go to bed...

You want it, you got it...

HUMAN

The human race is a small one, and relatively short-lived. They are very simple creatures that evolve faster than they can learn to use their adaptations, and are greedy and self-centered. When one human supports a belief, they will try to spread it to others in a fanatical fashion. They are extremely violent, and have terrible memories, and often commit suicide for reasons inconsistent with their situation.

While they are so terrible a species, they are great in number. They reproduce at an astounding rate, and they are able to adapt to changes within minutes, not generations. They often attack others of their own species, and have no ability to understand many advanced concepts that the greater races have learned. By allying with the Draconians, some problems were solved, but they remain greedy and violent to this day.

You want something bad, try to go below the Human race...

Booyah, Earth...Booyah...

Regardless, you seem to have an aversion towards delving more deeply into things. What's wrong with me trying to figure out how this world works a little bit better? I don't really think you're doing a very good job of being open to players' concerns here. If we ask questions, you should want to reflect on and answer them, not try and deter us from asking more.

--dreamshell--

Lol thats something my grandma said to me earlier today.

--dreamshell--

jk.... ok... i can do other things i guess lol