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Gargoyles Shop Vice Captain
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 Posted: Wed Jan 07, 2009 9:53 pm
Here is where you can find detailed facts and information about gargoyle biology, customs, and other useful stuff!
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Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2009 12:04 pm
[+] HISTORY [+]
The exact origins of gargoyles lie so far back in the mists of time that we have no certain details as to how they came about. However, what evidence we have suggests that they are descended from the great reptiles of the Mesozoic Era, possibly pterosaurs. It is certain, at the least, that they are native to this world rather than extra-terrestrials, and that they arose through natural causes rather than being the creation of magic. Gargoyles were the first of the Three Races to come into existence, preceding not only humans but even Oberon's Children. They enjoy a close link to the Earth that may be the result of their great age, and which may be the reason for their stone sleep.
By the dawn of recorded human history, gargoyles had spread throughout the planet, and clans could be found all over the world. This period of prosperity came to an end, however, when humans learned how to work metal, particularly with the dawn of the Iron Age. Humans had long feared gargoyles, believing them to be demonic monsters because of their frightening appearance and nocturnal nature, but had up until now been no threat to them; at night, the gargoyles were too formidable to be safely challenged, being stronger than humans, and the crude and primitive weapons of the Stone Age were no danger to a gargoyle in stone sleep. But when humans armed themselves with iron weapons, they could come upon gargoyles in their stone sleep and shatter them. Many clans were destroyed this way, and the remainder were forced to retreat far from human society, into the wilderness where it was safe.
But not all humans treated gargoyles this way. Some humans realized that the gargoyles, because of their fighting skills, made excellent allies in defending their homes from rival human bands. These humans sought out gargoyle clans and obtained permission from them to build fortified homes for themselves atop the cliffs where gargoyles kept their rookeries. By day, the humans in this fortress would watch over the gargoyles in their sleep, and protect them from harm, while at night, the gargoyles would protect the humans' home from attackers. And for a while, this strategy worked.
But it did not last long. As time wore on, the humans who had initially formed these alliances came to fear their gargoyle protectors, considering them unnatural creatures and savage beasts. Tensions grew between the two races, and usually, they ended with the humans turning upon their former protectors and destroying them. The numbers of gargoyles grew steadily fewer. At last, humans came to abandon these alliances altogether (for the most part), and the surviving gargoyles fled into the wilds to hide.
Beyond this general course of gargoyle history, a few specific events stand out. The earliest recorded event in gargoyle history took place during the reign of Caesar Augustus (27 B.C. - A.D. 14), the first Emperor of Rome. By Augustus's day, there were few gargoyles living in the lands taken up by the Roman Empire, largely because there was so little wilderness left in it for them to hide in, but occasionally, gargoyles were brought before the Emperor. At that time, gargoyles' garments did not turn to stone with them in the daytime, and so when a gargoyle awakened from stone sleep at sunset, his or her garments would be torn asunder by the process, rendering him or her naked. Augustus, a man with strong "family values" and very desirous of restoring high standards of morality to Rome, was displeased by this, and had one of his advisors, a powerful wizard, cast a "spell of humility" over the entire gargoyle race, causing their clothes to turn to stone with them henceforth.
At about this time, the legendary Irish hero Cuchulain was accompanied on many of his adventures, including his defeat of the Banshee, by a gargoyle beast which came to be known as the "Hound of Ulster" (although later on, the name came to be applied to Cuchulain himself and the gargoyle beast was forgotten). [About five hundred years later, King Arthur Pendragon of Britain also made the acquaintance of gargoyles, although the medieval romancers who wrote about him and his knights likewise ignored their part in the history of Camelot.] But few humans were as willing to accept gargoyles as these two legendary heroes had been.
And so, by the dawn of the High Middle Ages in the 11th century, gargoyles had become so rare that humans believed them to be extinct (and few mourned that). Indeed, the 11th century saw the end of one of the last alliances between humans and gargoyles, that formed between King Macbeth of Scotland (1040-1057) and Demona, which ended in 1057 when Demona betrayed Macbeth to the forces of Malcolm Canmore, bringing about her own clan's destruction as well as Macbeth's downfall. The Age of Gargoyles was at an end.
In spite of this, humans vaguely remembered that gargoyles were protectors, and although it did nothing to change their opinions about living gargoyles, they still placed gargoyle-like sculptures atop their castles and cathedrals, believing that they would protect these places from demons and evil spirits. So some measure of the true legacy of gargoyles remained.
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Gargoyles Shop Vice Captain
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Gargoyles Shop Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2009 12:13 pm
[+] BIOLOGY [+]
Gargoyles are part of a biological class called "gargates", presumably descended from the great reptiles of the Mesozoic Era. The only other species in this category is that of the gargoyle beasts, which serve as the gargoyles' companions.
The most prominent biological feature of gargoyles is that they turn to stone in the daytime. This trait of theirs, known as "stone sleep", means that at sunrise gargoyles (and gargoyle beasts) turn to stone [or, to be more accurate, an organic substance similar to stone] and remain that way until sunset. During this time, gargoyles sleep and dream, injuries sustained during the night heal, and they absorb solar energy from the sun's rays that gives them the strength to glide at night. Without this last, a gargoyle would have to eat the equivalent of three cows a night in order to get airborne.
Gargoyles are warm-blooded, like mammals, and have a greater resistance to the cold than humans do. However, like birds, reptiles, and the duck-billed platypus, they lay eggs. Female gargoyles nurse their young, however.
Gargoyles do not age during their stone sleep, so they age only half as quickly as humans do. Thus, a 30-year-old gargoyle would be biologically equivalent to a 15-year-old human. [A gargoyle could theoretically live to close to 200, but most gargoyles die premature deaths through being slain in battle or smashed in their stone sleep. However, the magical properties that blessed the spring have lessened the time. For this shop, Gargoyles age just slightly slower than humans.]
Gargoyle appearance varies from clan to clan, often dramatically (as in the case of the English gargoyles) and even gargoyles within the same clan look very different, and are usually easily told apart. Some sort of overall gargoyle norm does exist, however, judging from the Scottish, Guatemalan, and Japanese clans. Gargoyles are bipedal (although they can easily run on all fours if they need to) and more or less humanoid in shape. They have leathery wings, usually bat-like, but sometimes glider-like or web-like in the manner of a flying squirrel, and long tails. Gargoyles have clawed hands with three fingers and a thumb, and clawed feet (they walk upon their toes). Their ears are pointed, their teeth fanged, and they have some sort of brow-ridge above the eyes in place of eyebrows, and horns upon their foreheads.
But this aside, gargoyles display a great deal of variety in physical appearance. Some gargoyles have humanlike faces, while others have beaks. Some gargoyles have hair, while others are bald. Gargoyle skin color varies noticeably within the same clan. And many gargoyles depart from this "norm" even more dramatically.
When gargoyles are awakening from their stone sleep or are angry, their eyes glow. Male gargoyles' eyes glow white, and female gargoyles' eyes glow red.
Gargoyles are immensely strong, and can actually scale stone walls, digging their claws into the stone to provide footholds for themselves. However, despite their wings, they are not capable of actual flight. They can only glide upon air currents. When gargoyles are not gliding and are on the ground, they can cape their wings about them (with the exception of such gargoyles whose wings are attached to their arms).
Naturally, gargoyles are biologically very different from humans. Indeed, although both species are sentient and native to Earth, they cannot even produce children together. A human and gargoyle love affair is quite taboo.
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Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2009 12:32 pm
[+] CULTURE AND SOCIAL CUSTOMS [+]
Gargoyles live in clans, gatherings of fairly closely-related gargoyles. Each clan has a leader, and a second-in-command underneath. The leader's function is self-explanatory; the second-in-command's function is to lead the clan in the leader's absence, and to succeed to the leader position in case the leader is slain or has to step down due to unfitness. (Indeed, leaders of gargoyle clans have to appoint seconds-in-command to ensure a ready-made successor for such an occasion).
Gargoyles are in many ways, a very communal race, and this is particularly the case with the hatchlings. Gargoyle children are raised by the entire clan, and the concept of biological parentage does not exist. This custom seems to have arisen thanks to the high death rate in gargoyle society; since it is entirely possible that a hatchling's biological parents meet death even before his or her hatching, this policy ensures that orphans will not exist in the clan, and that all hatchlings will be cared for, protected, and raised.
While this system has traditionally been the custom, it has, in recent years, been challenged. With the birthrate increasing, more and more gargoyles are starting to see their biological children in a new light. (It is your choice as a RPer to decide whether your gargoyles raise their young or not. However, I strongly encourage you to stick to the traditions.)
Although hatchlings belong to the entire clan, gargoyles are a strictly monogamous race. They mate for life, and in nearly all cases, when one gargoyle in a pairing dies, the other remains single thereafter. There are exceptions to the rules, but they are very, very rare.
Gargoyles gather their eggs in caves or underground chambers called rookeries, generally set in mountains or high cliffs, their prefered habitat. Here they can be safely watched over. (It is quite possible that the necessary defense of the rookery from enemies may have been one of the reasons for gargoyles developing their protective instinct, for which see below.)
Traditionally, gargoyles don't have names. They consider the concept a peculiar human custom. However, by now gargoyles have begun to accept the concept of names, at different times and ways for each clan.
In gargoyle society, the sexes are more or less equal. Female gargoyles are the ones who lay the eggs and nurse the young, of course, but other than that, male and female gargoyles alike fight as warriors to defend the clan, and female gargoyles are just as capable as male gargoyles of becoming seconds-in-command or leaders.
The primary purpose of gargoyles is to protect. At first, this consisted of merely protecting the clan and its home, particularly the rookery, but as time went on, many gargoyle clans have since expanded upon the definition of this role.
Goliath and Hudson alike feel that protection is an important task of gargoyles; Hudson has many times repeated the adage, "A gargoyle can no more stop protecting the castle than breathing the air", and Goliath himself presented this credo to Coldstone in these words: "Gargoyles protect. It is our nature, our purpose. To lose that is to be corrupt, empty, lifeless."
And protection remains important for gargoyles, indeed. Only the most corrupt of them have rejected this duty. And there can be few anguishes greater for a gargoyle than failing to protect someone from harm. When gargoyles choose to protect an area, they will do so steadfastly, even when the humans whom they protect respond to them with fear and hatred.
While gargoyles are not perfect, there seems to be less serious crime among them than among humans. Some punishments for gargoyles who behave poorly are known, however. For minor offences, a gargoyle can be sent to the rookery (a humiliating punishment, but one seldom inflicted). Treason is dealt with by the traitorous gargoyle being banished from the clan.
Gargoyles think of themselves as primarily gargoyles. Individual gargoyles may pursue particular interests, but they never think of themselves as scientists, poets, artists, or what-have-you. They merely pursue it, without letting this interest define them.
Gargoyles have a vague religious belief, if one different from that of recognized human religions, both monotheistic and pantheistic. Their god is nameless, of course, undefined, and unlimited. Gargoyles see all things as part of the whole. Some gargoyles have an interest in the spiritual, but they merely follow this interest without seeing themselves as priests or priestesses. They have no creation myths, for the simple reason that they are not interested in their origins, just accepting themselves as existing.
When a gargoyle dies, the rest of the clan holds a Wind Ceremony for him or her, a sort of farewell to stone and flesh. Their own beliefs about death can be expressed in these two sayings, "Death and life is all part of a whole", and "One passes through stages, but nothing ever dies."
Gargoyles are not magical beings in and of themselves, but some can learn magic. Gargoyles appear to have an ambivalent attitude towards such arts.
Officially, gargoyles don't make use of money, considering it unnecessary to their life-style. (Under natural circumstances, gargoyles presumably obtain their food by hunting and gathering, which would certainly make a monetary system not required.) However, there are always exceptions.
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Gargoyles Shop Vice Captain
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Gargoyles Shop Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2009 12:35 pm
[+] Gargoyle Beasts [+]
A species of animal closely related to gargoyles. [Gargoyle beasts are, in fact, the only other member of the biological order known as gargates.] Gargoyle beasts are generally found living with gargoyles, as pets and "watch-dogs".
Although gargoyle beasts look roughly dog-like in appearance, they are not dogs at all, and in fact, bear much the same relationship to gargoyles as chimpanzees do to humans.] They have no wings, are four-legged, and cannot speak, communicating rather by animal noises, particularly barks and growls. Presumably, they are not fully sentient, but have more of an animal intelligence level. Like gargoyles, they turn to stone by day and come in various shades of color. They are loyal, formidable animals, who battle devotedly alongside their clan in its defense, and can strike terror into the hearts of their enemies.
It is likely, judging from the reports of the "Hound of Ulster", that gargoyle beasts are in some way the original of the "black dog" legends of the British Isles, but further data on this is as yet unavailable.
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Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2009 12:37 pm
[+] OBERON'S CHILDREN [+]
Also known as the Third Race, the Fair Folk (by the Scots), the Sidhe (by the Irish), and the Dark Elves (by the Vikings). One of the Three Races, and the most mysterious and magical. They are the origin of humanity's legends about faeries, elves, and other otherworldly beings, including even the gods of mythology.
Exactly when Oberon's Children came into existence is unknown, although they appeared some time after gargoyles did. They were formed from magic (evolving from such beings as will-o-the-wisps), as was their home, the isle of Avalon.
The first (so far as we know) ruler of these beings was Queen Mab, who was also the most powerful of them. However, at some unspecified date, her son Oberon overthrew her, and took her place as ruler of the Third Race. It was after his ascendancy that they began to be known as Oberon's Children; before that time, they were known as the "Children of Mab". (They are not - for the most part - his biological children; the title refers rather to the fact that he rules over them as a sort of "pater familias").
Oberon's Children have spread throughout the world, and made themselves known to humans, who came to (in many cases, such as those relating to Odin and Anubis) believe them to be gods and worshiped them. Even those who did not receive worship, such as Oberon and Titania themselves, found their way into human folklore and legend. At some point, however, Oberon passed a decree which magically forbade any of his race (including himself) from directly interfering in the affairs of mortals. (This did not prevent them from finding loopholes, however, something which even Oberon has done from time to time).
Despite this, many of the Third Race, including Titania, continued to hold a strong sense of contempt for mortals, and finally in 995, Titania committed some unspecified act that angered Oberon enough to banish all of the Fair Folk from Avalon, commanded to live in the mortal world until his anger passed. The Weird Sisters alone were left behind to guard Avalon from intruders, and even they were confined to a barge floating in the waters off its shore.
The true existence of the Third Race is unknown to humans, who, for the most part, believe them to be only mythical.
Oberon's Children are beings of pure magic, not flesh and blood, although, as shape-shifters, they can assume human, gargoyle, or animal bodies at will. Indeed, to speak of their biology is utterly inaccurate, since they have none as we understand it. They may not even have any true forms, as we understand them, but merely forms that they assume more often than others.
The Fair Folk are immortal, or at least, close to it. None of them have died of old age as yet, although it is not an impossibility for the remote future. They can be slain, but only with considerable difficulty.
Oberon's Children have one great shared vulnerability: cold iron. Their spells cannot affect it directly, and a faerie bound by iron chains is powerless to escape them unless released by someone else. A faerie wounded by iron will wither and age dramatically, and the sound of an iron bell can incapacitate a Child of Oberon and even, if prolonged, kill him or her.
As has been said before, the Children of Oberon are natural shape-shifters, and can (apparently) take on any form that they pleased. While they are genuinely in a mortal form, however, be it human, gargoyle, or animal, they are subject to the restrictions of that form.
While in mortal form, the Fair Folk can mate with mortals of the species whose form they have taken, and even have children by them. These halfling offspring often inherit a certain measure of their faerie parent's nature, although this varies from individual to individual. [Merlin, the halfling son of Oberon, was one of the greatest wizards of all time]
Oberon's Children are governed through a sort of feudal system; indeed, their own feudalism may have become the inspiration for human feudalism. Oberon rules over the rest of the Fair Folk. The more powerful figures of the Third Race, such as Odin, serve as his vassals, and each one in turn has lesser Children of Oberon beneath him, such as the other Aesir under Odin. But ultimately, all of the Children are subject to Oberon.
Oberon's Children have Avalon for their primary home, but many of them have local residences in the outside world, such as Asgard for Odin and the other Aesir.
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Gargoyles Shop Vice Captain
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Gargoyles Shop Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu Jan 08, 2009 10:58 pm
All information was pretty much copied and pasted from The Gargoyles Fan Website. To read more about Gargoyles, please go there to check it out! Trust me, they have MUCH more to read about.
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