The tyrannosaurus is the most powerful creature in the Valley of Eodon. Capable of killing any human with one blow, and with a hide thick enough to make it invulnerable, facing any T-Rex in hand-to-hand combat is suicide. There are three T-Rexes in the Valley of Eodon, and all have an important role. One bars the way to the Urali village (see the walkthrough for help with getting past it). Another, called 'The Thunderer' by the Sakkhra, keeps eating Sakkhra warriors who venture north to collect fruit, and needs to be killed by a boulder. The last one is east of the Disquiqui, and needs to be belled like a cat.
From the manual: Tyrannosaurus. Family Tyrannosauridae. The Tyrannosaur dates to the late Cretaceous period (some 65 million years ago, about the end of the era of the dinosaur). It is another carnosaur moving on two legs, and is almost 60 feet in length. It stands a few feet taller than the Allosaurs (or is it merely that it appears to stand taller? I must do comparative measurements sometime ... when I am able to do so without being consume) and weighs four times as much, massing some eight tons.
Among the inhabitants of the valley, its native name translates roughly as "Sharptooth." As observed in the Valley of Eodon, the Tyrannosaur is actually a quick - moving and intelligent predator; the natives say that it is in the habit of hiding itself behind stands of trees or ridges of hills and then ambushing its prey, roaring and racing down upon them at full speed. It is a prodigious and terrifying beast.
The tyrannosaur skulls I have been able to observe here suggest that the local species has developed a genetic defect in its skull structure: A blow of sufficient magnitude, assuming that one is able to hoist a boulder high enough into the air and drop in onto the tyrannosaur's head, might be enough to slay it in a single blow, if my calculations are to be trusted.
The allosaurus appears to be a distant relative of the tyrannosaurus. While it retains the aggressivity and carnivorous nature of its cousin, it is slightly smaller and therefore less dangerous. Unlike the T-Rex, the hide of an allosaurus can be penetrated by normal weapons; though this does not mean the allosaurus is not a dangerous beast.
From the manual: Allosarus. Family Allosauride. The Allosaurus dates to the late Jurassic and early Cretaceous (centering on about 144 million years ago). It is a carnivorous dinosaur which moves about on two legs; some 40 feet long and 15 feet in height, it weighs (from casts I have taken of its footprints and estimations therefrom of its weight) about one and a half tons. The only ones I have seen in the valley have been solitary hunters, but the natives swear to me that they sometimes band together in packs to hunt down larger prey, such as the apatosaurus. I do not know whether these stories reflect the truth, or are tales designed to terrify unwitting outsiders such as myself. (In truth, they did manage to achieve that effect.)
From the manual: Ankylosaurus. Family Ankylosauridae. This low-slung dinosaur with the armored back dates to the late Cretaceous period (about 65 million years ago, up to the end of the age of dinosaurs). An herbivore, it moves about on four legs, defending itself with a massive macelike knot at the end of its tail. It grows to some 18 feet and weighs about three tons, making it about the length and weight of a car. I have personally seen one native man riding a smaller variety of ankylosaur, but as he was in the process of trying to murder me at the time, I failed to query him on his techniques for capturing and training the beast.
Deinonychus
From the manual: Deinonychus. Family Dromaeosauridae. The Deinonychus dates to the early Cretaceous (some 144 million years ago) and is a fast-moving carnivorous dinosaur which runs on two legs. It grows to about 12 feet in length, stands around 6' in height, and weighs as much as a man. While living with the Yolaru tribe, I had opportunity to see a pack of Deinonychus hunting, attacking, and killing a juvenile apatosaurus, a most remarkable and illuminating sight. It is my hope that in future letters I may provide commentary on the social structure of the Deinonychus and other saurian species.
Dimetrodon
From the manual: Dimetrodon. Order Pelycosauria. Not technically a dinosaur, this creature belonged to that class of reptiles from which the mammals evolved. Dimetrodon dates to the early Permian era (about 286 million years ago). This four-legged, low-slung reptile is about 13' long, weighing some 450 pounds, and features a large, sail - like spinal crest used to regular its body heat. It has very powerful jaws and kills its prey by clamping onto and holding its victim until it perishes. In the Valley of Eodon, it's an early - morning hunter, usually making its kill shortly after dawn or going hungry for the day.
Stegosaurus
From the manual: Stegosaurus. Family Stegosauridae. This beast dates to the late Jurassic era (around 144 million years ago), was some 25 feet long, and weights around four tons. An herbivore, it is notable for the series of spiny plates which protrude from its spine, and for the knot of sharp spikes at the end of its tail - its most formidable weapon. I regret to say that I cannot settle the debate over whether the spiny plates are actually armor or a mere heat - dispersal mechanism; none of these plated beasts has allowed me to get close enough to determine this. However, the natives of the Kurak tribe say that monsters such as the Sharptooth (Tyrannosaurus) circumspectly avoid the spines when attacking the Stegosaurus, which is some evidence that they play a definite defensive role.
From the manual: Triceratops. Dating from the late Cretaceous (70 to 65 million years ago or so), the triceratops is the dinosaur famed in art and moving pictures, with the shield - like head featuring three protruding offensive horns; the horns over the eyes are over a meter in length apiece. This herbivorous beast is over 30 feet long and weighs, as far as I can tell, in the vicinity of ten tons. In the Valley of Eodon, the Triceratops moves about in herds through the forests and the plains, living off the luxurious plantlife and using pack tactics to defend itself from predators.
Baby Apatosaurus
Apatosaurus
From the manual: Apatosaurus. Family Diplodocidae. The Apatosaurus as for years known, and is still popularly known, as the Brontosaurus. Though by no means the largest dinosaur known in the outer world, the Apatosaurus is the largest to be seen within the Valley of Eodon, being some 80 to 120 feet long and weighing some 30-35 tons. Though prevailing scientific theory (and evidence within the Valley) holds that the apatosaurus does not actually spend the majority of its life in the water, the apatosaurus of the Valley does tend to seek the swamp-waters when danger is in the air; this terrain discourages the greater predators such as the allosaurus and tyrannosaurus. The native name for this beast translates, most appropriately, as "Longneck."
From the manual: Gigantopithecus. Family Pongidae. This primate is an enormous gorilla-like animal, standing some twelve feet in height and weighing in around 900 pounds, if my measurements of its tracks can be trusted. The native name for it translates roughly as the "black ghost" referring to the color of its hair and its solitary, normally shy habits. Though it does not seek out other animals - except for small rodents to supplement its otherwise vegetarian diet - it is a ferocious adversary when injured or angered, and the natives are terrified of it. Too, it is to be noted that there are occasional "rougue ghosts" who develop strange, deviant behavior, such as rampaging through the jungles and terrifying most men and animals in their path, or breaking away from their gigantopithecus clan and seeking to form new clans - often with smaller, intimidated "black ghosts" or even humans! In the Valley of Eodon, the Gigantopithecus dwells on the mountain slopes and ledges.
From the manual: Smilodon. Family Felidae. This beast, dating from the late Pleistocene era (about 10,000 years ago), is the archetypal "sabre - toothed tiger." Here, as with the Haakur, conditions in the Valley of Eodon have made the creature match its popular conception rather than its outer - world reality. Though laymen regard the "sabre-toothed tiger" as a monster the size of a Kodiak bear, actual outer - world smilodons seldom grew longer than four feet. However, in the Valley of Eodon, I have seen many sabre - tooths four times that size. The smilodons of the valley are vicious, brutish animals, terrifyingly aggressive in combat and capable of little cunning; they have been known to mortally wound their prey and sit back for it do die, but that is the extent of their "tactics."
From the manual: Ursus spelaeus. Family Ursidae. The mighty "cave bear" first appeared in the outer world some two million years ago, in the Pleistocene era and survived well beyond the Ice Age. A large bear, it is still not as large as certain modern bears. The bears observed in the Valley of Eodon seem content to subsist on grubs and vegetable matter, but the natives are certain that it will kill quite effectively if provoked.
Guard
From the manual: Hyracotherium. This small animal (some two feet in total length) is more commonly known as the eohippus, or "dawn horse." As the name suggest, it is the ancestor of modern horses. It dates to the early Eocene era (around 55 million years ago). It is very common in the Valley of Eodon, especially in the northern plains, where the natives hunt it for its hide and meat. (It is in no immediate danger of extinction, being a prolific breeder and a very good runner.)
Sloth
From the manual: Megatherium. This ancestor of the modern tree sloths was a ground sloth the size of some modern elephants. Walking about on four legs, it was some 20 feet long and 6 feet at the shoulder, and weighed on the order of three tons. Its descendant in the Valley of Eodon is much the same, and behaves much like its tree - sloth relatives: Vegetarian, slow - moving, mostly peaceful. It is not, however, an easy kill for natives or dinosaurs, being capable of fighting savagely for its life.
From the manual: Pterosauria. Numerous examples of the famous flying reptiles are in evidence in the valley. The species they represent date from the early Jurassic (213 million years ago) to the late Cretaceous (some 65 million years ago), from the Dimorphodon of England to the Quetzalcoatlus of the southwestern United States. In addition, another pterosaurian species, a super - pteranodon who dwarfs the mighty Quetzalcoatlus and is capable of becoming airborne while carrying hundreds of pounds of prey, exists in the valley; I do not know whether it is a survival of a hitherto-undiscovered species from the outer world or a species which has developed in the peculiar conditions of the Valley of Eodon. When I have had opportunities to examine more of these "super-pteranodons," I shall provide the scientific community with more data on them ... and, of course, will take the discoverer's perogative of naming the species.
From the manual: Plesiosaur. Order Plesiosauria, Superfamily Plesiosauroidae. This is a water-dwelling dinosaur dating to the early Jurassic (some 200 million years ago). Growing to twenty to twenty-five feet in the valley, the plesiosaur is a dangerous and aggressive animal. Certain outer-world descendants of the species grew to more than forty feet in length, and may well be represented in the deeper waters of the valley. The still waters (such as the swamps) are sufficiently rife with them that it is unsafe to cross except on a raft or perhaps on the back of an accommodating apatosaurus or archelon.
Argent sergeant
Alphadon
From the manual: Alphadon. Order Pantotheria. This primitive mammal dates to the late Cretaceous period (around 65 million years ago). It is best thought of as a three foot - long marsupial superficially resembling an opossum. In the valley of Eodon, they occupy the ecological niche elsewhere taken by modern rates. They are clever omnivores, capable (via gripping feet and prehensile tails) of living in trees, and can be quite dangerous in packs.
From the manual: Unfortunately, I can do no more than briefly mention the variety of enormous cave spider to be found here in the Valley of Eodon. This is a web - building spider, an absolutely huge species - one example I have seen measured six feet across with legs at extension. They occupy certain caves in the valley, but do not rely on the bounty of their webs: They go foraging at night. I have not had the opportunity to study them and cannot offer much in the way of scientific discussion of their origins.
From the manual: Archelon. Order Chelonia, Suborder Cryptodira, Family Protostegidae. Modern readers would doubtless prefer to call it a "big turtle." Dating to the late Cretaceous period,(i.e., somewhat over 64 million years old), the Archelon is a sea turtle of preposterous size, growing to some 12 feet in length. The varieties I have seen in the Valley of Eodon have been freshwater variants who are accustomed to the presence of humans and will often forebear attacking humans if thrown a quantity of food.
Myrmidex drone
From the manual: The Mymidex are an insect species, but one unlike any ever seen in the other world. Myrmidex (my own name for them, and the name to which I've translated all native references to them in our various notes and papers) are ant - like in structure and social organization, but grow to manlike size. As such, they make hash of prevailing theory about the square - cubed laws, but they do exist, and are a formidable and savage race ... much like the ants to which they appear to be related. They are a frightful danger in the Valley of Eodon, and show signs of intelligence to augment their ant - like ferocity and tirelessness.
Wisp
The Codex of Ultima Wisdom has a page full of monster data taken from The Savage Empire Clue Book.
© by Daniel D'Agostino 2002-2024