People have asked what my Looming Gaia races look like as children. Here's the first set! These ones are "commoners", meaning they are peoples which can't use magic.
Here's an image of the adult versions: fav.me/dc6c8vu
Roshava are a six-limbed commoner species. They walk upright on two legs and have four arms. Both exceptionally strong and fast creatures, they are best known for their athleticism.
Female roshava can be identified by their blue flesh, while males are red. Males may grow thick facial hair and a light to moderate amount of body hair, while females do not generally grow facial hair, and have less body hair than males. It may appear that their hair is black, but in reality, the females’ hair is actually dark blue while the males’ is dark red. This is more apparent in bright sunlight. This hair turns gray in old age and their skin wrinkles with time. All roshava have black or brown eyes.
A roshava’s top set of arms is called their “major” set. These arms are stronger and a bit larger, used for fighting and heavy lifting. Their lower arms, called their “minor” set, have finer motor skills and are used for delicate tasks like weaving and drawing. Each set of arms has a set of pectoral muscles to support them. Female roshava are able to breastfeed with both sets.
Roshavan bodies digest food efficiently, making it easier for them to lose fat and gain muscle. However, they require a lot of daily protein to maintain this muscle. They are omnivorous creatures with expansive diets, rich in meat, legumes, and other high-protein foods.
A roshava’s vision, hearing, and sense of smell are comparable to a human’s. Like humans, they become blind in darkness. Also like humans, they sweat through their skin which gives them exceptional endurance.
LIFE CYCLE
The natural lifespan of a roshava is around 100-120 years, making them the longest-lived of all commoner species. This can be attributed to their strong hearts and resilient bodies.
This species is able to breed year-round. Female roshava give birth 9 months after being impregnated by a male. As infants, they are completely helpless and require their mother’s milk for at least 6 months. They reach toddlerhood at 2 years old, childhood at 6, adolescence at 13, and full maturity by 25. Roshava older than 70 years are considered elders, though they usually remain quite independent well into old age thanks to their good health.
Curiously, roshava have a 90% chance of birthing twins, fraternal or identical.
CULTURE
In the First Age, Gaia created many groups of each people and spread them around the globe, but roshava are the exception. There has only ever been one group of roshava, and all modern roshava descend from this group. They are called the Koesh, and their native land is the Twisted Canyons in Serkel, which still boasts the highest roshavan population on Looming Gaia today.
Because of this, roshavan culture tends to be quite homogenous no matter what corner of the world they live. Most roshava take pride in their roots and observe their old cultural traditions, whether they’re in their homeland or not.
Their most notorious tradition is the “Split-Soul Doctrine”. This is the spiritual belief that all twin roshava share one soul between them. Because that soul is split in two, each half is lower quality than one complete soul. However, roshava without twins are believed to have a complete soul, which makes them closer to the celestials. This has created a major class divide in roshavan culture, in which the “Unbroken” are regarded as superior to the “Twinsouled”.
In their oldest city of Koeshan, the Unbroken are offered special opportunities that the Twinsouls are denied. This includes higher-ranking jobs, better property, and even faster service at businesses. Koeshan’s ruling class is made entirely of Unbroken individuals. The Unbroken make up about 10% of the total roshavan population.
TRIVIA
-Their traditional names are not gendered, meaning males and females share the same names. Names ending with -eesha are overwhelmingly common, both as first names and surnames. Doleesha, Sarfeesha, Tanileesha, and Rajaneesha are examples of common names.
-Because their rate of twin births is so high, their rate of conjoined twin births is also higher than other species. However, these conjoined offspring usually don’t survive beyond a few years. Laseya and Rashel are a famous exception.
-Devajaya is a world-famous roshavan athlete and a divine.
-A roshava’s heart is quite large in relation to their bodies. It must be large and strong in order to pump blood through their many limbs. However, this makes them more vulnerable to fatal wounds in battle, as their hearts take up a large portion of their torsos.
