Gnyph

Gnyph

The gnyph are large beasts of the arctic wastes; the Gnyph Folk are the sapient species which has either evolved from the beast gnyph or which are the ancestors from which the beasts are degenerated. It is likewise unclear whether the Gnoph-keh Folk, which SEE, are descended from the Gnyph Folk or vice versa. That those Gnyph Folk with high-tech civilizations frequently use "subtle ice" technology suggests a close relationship between the two; SEE "Subtle Ice" in Gnoph-keh entry.

Gnyph resemble a cross between a carbuncle-studded rhinoceros and an armadillo, swaddled in thick white seal fur and under-girded by a generous padding of blubber, trundling about on two to eight pairs of legs; they develop additional sets of legs as they grow.

The muzzles of the gnyph are rather like those of a baleen whale; the gnyph ingest tremendous amounts of snow and ice, which they then sieve through their baleen, extracting the photosynthetic bacteria, wee ice-worms, and other biotic material suspended in the snow and ice. The armored lips and rasp-like tongue-tip of the gnyph are tough enough to scrape lichen from exposed rock.

While this diet would suggest that the gnyph are placid browsers of the snowy wastes, and indeed most are, the gnyph is not averse to adding a bit of meat to its diet. The more meat a gnyph eats, the greater its appetite for more of the same. As this transition to carnivorous tendencies is an individual development, it is not possible to determine whether a particular gnyph is a placid grazer or a hungry hunter until it is too late.

Carnivorous gnyph can no more rend great mouthfuls of flesh than can their grazing kin. As their main attack is tramping, this is not a problem; they are well adapted to slurping up the pulp and gobbets to which even their sturdiest prey is quickly reduced.

Some gnyph are herded by arctic Folk; wild carnivorous gnyph may attack both herders and herds. Domestic gnyph are valued for their rich milk. They become fond of their people, and enjoy having young ride in their pouches. Domestic gnyph may be fed special diets to enhance their armor and bones beyond the high-tensile strength stone quality of the basic gnyph or the bronze armor and bones of the behemoth.

While the ignorant generally assume the gnyph to be rather dull witted beasts, it takes cunning to survive in the harsh arctic, even for a veritable living tank. Domestic gnyph can learn as readily as any dog, and carnivorous gnyph have been known to stalk prey with all the cunning of a tiger.

The basic gnyph weighs some 4-8 tons.Behemoth-class gnyph may be as large as hills. Their bones are prized, as to support their great mass the behemoth gnyph replaces mere calcium with copper and trace elements, resulting in armor of pure bronze; under their heavy pelts, their hides are likewise armored with studs and plates of bronze.

An unusual aspect of gnyph physiology is that they are, oviparous and have external fertilization, and that both the males and females have pouches. The female gnyph lays a clutch of 4-10 fur-covered eggs, which the male then fertilizes. The male and female each secrete 2-5 of the fertilized eggs in their pouch. Mating done, they then separate, perhaps never to meet again. A moth later, the cute - if lumbering - cubs hatch. Within two months, they begin to explore the outside world, returning to the warm and cozy pouch to sleep. Gradually, they graduate to sleeping in a den carved of heaped boulders cemented with ice. At two years of age, they are driven away, to struggle in the harsh arctic environment on their own.

As the adults only seek a mate after the previous set of cubs are gone, the gnyph have a rather low rate of reproduction.

Some epic poems suggest that the common gnyph are actually degenerate descendants of a sapient space-faring Gnyph Folk, colonizers of worlds bound in arctic cold.Sapient Gnyph begin life, as do beast gnyph, with two pairs of legs. As they grow, they develop additional pairs of legs. Finally, at maturity, they develop forelimbs with grasping paws, fully functional as hands.

Gnyph Folk are clearly more mundane relatives of the Lovecraftian Gnoph-Keh Folk, which SEE. A distinguishing difference is that the Gnoph-keh boast horns, something like a rhino or unicorn, have maws armed with multiple rows of tusks, and are famed for their psychic abilities. While individual Gnyph may have some psychic abilities, their chances of having such powers are no greater than most species of Folk, while all Gnoph-Keh have some chilling power, many having considerable weather powers, and a few having demi-divine powers. Some Gnyph Folk are lead by Gnoph-keh, possibly as a "servitor race" or in a cult-like fashion.

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Last update Jun 28, 2006