The Tellurians are one of the fifteen standard races .

Tellurians are a race of grey-skinned humanoids. Their biology tends to make them live primarily in enormous cities. They have three genders, called a "producer", "fertiliser" and a "breeder". They prefer being around others of their race due to their unique physiology.

Physical Appearance

Tellurians are humanoids with grey skin of different tones that has a smooth texture just after birth, but will slowly turn more and more rocky while the Tellurian ages. All three genders can grow long hair on their heads, both facial hair and on top of their head. This hair tends to have similar colours as gemstones in the earth. Black, brown and grey hair appear most often, but other colours like red, green and blue are not uncommon. It is also not uncommon for a Tellurian to have several colours of hair.

As the Tellurian ages, a process starts that will slowly crystallize the Tellurian's body. This will first result in drying out of the Tellurian's skin, which will become leathery at first and later on crack and harden even further, resulting in a rocky texture. Its hair will also dry out and clump together, forming first clumps then ridges. Eventually the hair will crystallize at the base and the rest will fall off. The same process happens to other parts of the Tellurian's body, even underneath the first layer of skin. This results in older Tellurians being covered in ridges of crystals protruding from their skin. Ancient Tellurians have been known to feature crystals of a foot or more in length on their body.

The most prominent difference in appearance between the three genders is related to their reproduction. This is very visible with the producers, who are usually larger than the other Tellurians and carry visible egg sacks on their body. Breeders can often be seen with large bellies, as they carry the maturing foetus in a pouch there. Fertilisers have no distinctive characteristics from the other genders.

Biology

As mentioned earlier, the Tellurian race features three genders. Of these three, the producers tend to be the rarest, whereas the breeders tend to be the most numerous. The producer is the most long-lived of the three genders, living to about 375 years. The fertilizer and breeder both age to about 125 years. They prefer being around others of their race due to their unique physiology.

Reproduction

Tellurians are unique among the races in that their method of reproduction more closely resembles that of ants rather than mammals. Tellurian producers grow egg-like objects on their body. These eggs are fertilized by the fertilizers. They take one of the eggs from the producer, then fertilize it using a gland at the back of their throat.

Once fertilized, the egg is placed near the producer and will hatch in about a week. The larva coming out of this egg is then put into the breeding pouch of a breeder where it will grow for nearly a year, after which it emerges from the pouch as a juvenile Tellurian.

Juvenile tellurians are small versions of their adult counterparts but with completely smooth skin and without any hair. They are able to make sounds, see, hear and walk without needing to be taught. Juvenile tellurians tend to quickly learn how to speak. However, the actual aging process takes quite a long while.

Diet

In addition to the common foodstuffs like vegetables and meat, Tellurians have a large need for several elements, like calcium. Tellurians have a unique ability to absorb these elements from minerals and rocks. Some things, like calcite, are used in their transformation process. Yet other minerals can provide them with energy, which means they can survive on rocks and water for a while before needing other types of sustenance.

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