Our human culture and physiology arose from our planet of origin’s environment. Why then would an alien species be similar, if they arose from vastly different circumstances? As a self-proclaimed Xenophile I have pondered this greatly and sat down to right this article with the aim of creating an admittedly loose guideline to creating new alien species and creatures. It soon became apparent that a single article could never hope to cover the wealth of quirks and material that goes into creating a plausible and interesting new species.
So, I decided that this article needed a definite focus in order to contain something useful to the community. As every creature, intelligent or animistic, owes their evolution to the environments and temperament around them, it struck me as remarkably simple to start at the beginning: choosing a world to begin the process. So in this first article I’ll be taking a look at the role each type of world plays in a creature’s development.
Any creature that evolves on a planet with very heavy gravity is going to be short, stocky, ponderous or possibly immobile. Multiple legs would be the most likely natural evolution, as the crushing weight of the planet’s gravity could be distributed evenly. Avian and flying insects would probably not exist on such a world.
A planet with almost no light would make sight almost redundant. Of course, with very little light, this would mean there is also very little natural heat, so any alien species that would evolve on this world would do so with some protection against the cold. Ectothermic (cold-blooded) life forms would be ill-suited for such a world, so you can rule out turtles and fashionable xenomorphic sunbathers. Fur would be predominating. Natural predators would likely rely on finely honed senses of scent and hearing, and psychic mutation may occur more naturally as a result.
Low Gravity Planet
A very low gravity planet could have lots of flying insects, bugs, and creatures. Land based life forms might be massive as the lesser gravity would put considerably less stress on individuals. Rhinos and hippos would be considered small here! Other species could be tall and slender, while others might float on the wind. Local flora could easily reach impressive heights unfathomable to earthly counterparts.
Under the scorching rays of a desert world, the arid and baked sands may appear to be devoid of animal life. But surprisingly a large number of animal species may thrive there. Surface grazing animals would make use of water available in desert water holes and conserve it for long periods of time. Smaller creatures would consume the sparse vegetation. Reptiles, insects and arthropods would develop impermeable out coverings. Many creatures would burrow or find subterranean shelter instinctively during the day and be more active nocturnally. Animals may have thick hides, scales, or spines and most would have long legs to elevate them to avoid direct contact with burning sand.
Avian creatures would be ill suited to live in such a world, but are possible if enough sporadic land masses exist. Eurypterids and amphibious life would tag along at such sites as local competitors. The vast majority of life would be aquatic, however; fish, massive whale-like creatures and predatory sharks as well as a wide variety of invertebrates. Things with tendrils, vivisecting multi-teeth, gills and bulbous eyes would hail from such worlds.
Of all the planets, life that originates on a gaseous world would be the most alien in form and behavior. With no Terra Firma to work with, would the creatures be mostly essence? Would they be fish-like entities that float capriciously through the ether? Psychic creatures might naturally develop in this environment and would defy conventional biology or normal analytical study.
A warped planet is a planet twisted and corrupted by the power of the ether from being trapped in a prolonged warp rift. Entwining the impossibilities of the warp and the reality of the physical realm, Warped Planet’s are not bound by the laws of physics, but by the whims of Chaos and mortal emotion. Literally any bizarre possibility can occur in such worlds, so any species that naturally (or more accurately unnaturally) evolves here could look and behave in any way imaginable. Psychic manifestation of varying degree is almost a definite here as while as mass mutation.
Well that that for my first attempt at writing a useful article. Next article I'll tackle alien cultures. As a caveat, I am not particularly educated and all of this was just cobbled up from personal conjecture, so if you have any feedback, suggestions, or your own opinions please feel free to comment!
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