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--- quorra_crabs [2025/03/31 05:31] – created admin
+++ quorra_crabs [2025/09/29 06:06] (current) – [QUORRA] admin
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 === Major Planetary Zones | (Twin) Sections of the Habitual Belt | Regions | Wildlife ===
-====== QUORRA CRAB ======
+====== QUORRA ======
+{{ :quorra_crab_gg_scenic_2d.png?200|}}
 ===== Overview =====
-The Quorra Crab is a semi-aquatic crustacean native to the freshwater ecosystems of [[lake_tijonara|Lake Tijonara]] and [[lake_arla|Lake Arla]] in the [[asari|Asari Region]] of the [[habitual_belt|Habitual Belt]] on [[the_planet_voi_700_d|VOI 700 D]]. Known for their stunning iridescent shells and rhythmic burrowing behavior, Quorra Crabs are vital ecological engineers. By constantly shifting lakebed sediment, they oxygenate the soil, improve water quality, and create habitats for microorganisms and aquatic vegetation.
+The Quorra, called Nar’kuma (“Soil Dancer”) by the [[the_senti|Senti]] and [[the_trando|Trando]] Tribes, is a compact, semi-aquatic benthic forager native to the shallows and reed margins of [[lake_tijonara|Lake Tijonara]] and [[lake_arla|Lake Arla]] in the [[asari|Asari Region]] of the [[habitual_belt|Habitual Belt]] on [[the_planet_voi_700_d|VOI 700 D]].
+Unlike clawed crabs, Quorra use four paddle-ended legs to churn mud and sift for food. A tough, keratinous, bird-like beak lets them chip roots, crack snails, and scrape algae from stone. Their steady “dig–pause–dig” rhythm aerates lakebed soils and shapes micro-habitats used by plants, invertebrates, and fry—earning them a reputation as quiet engineers of the littoral zone.
+===== Physique and Appearance =====
+  * **Size:** 15–18 cm body span
+  * **Weight:** 1.2–1.6 kg
+  * **Carapace:** Rounded, asymmetrical dome; rough, stone-like texture streaked with algae, silt staining, and small encrustations (no geometric plating)
+  * **Limbs:** Four stout legs ending in broad, blunt paddles for shoveling and short bursts of swimming
+  * **Head/Beak:** Forward-set, downward-curved keratin beak (no pincers) for scraping and cracking food
+  * **Eyes:** Small, lateral, low-glare eyes adapted to turbid shallows
+  * **Ventral Plume Organ:** Mucus–bubble siphon that vents fine silt and bubbles during digging, briefly clouding the water
+==== Special Features ====
+  * **Paddle Digging:** Efficient mud-churning gait improves oxygenation and exposes edible biofilm
+  * **Root Scraper Beak:** Chips rhizomes, crushes snails and bivalves, and rasps periphyton from rock
+  * **Silt Veil:** Plume organ releases a short-lived cloud that conceals the animal from predators while foraging
+===== Game Mechanics =====
+  * **Armor Class (AC):** 14 (rugged dome carapace)
+  * **Hit Points (HP):** 10
+  * **Speed:** 20 ft. (land), 30 ft. (swimming)
+**Actions:**
+  * **Beak Nip:** +3 to hit, 1d6 piercing (vs. restraints/line/tool or for self-defense)
+  * **Sediment Veil (Recharge 5–6):** Creates a 5-ft radius lightly obscuring cloud for 1 round; creatures inside have disadvantage on Perception checks relying on sight
+**Special Abilities:**
+  * **Benthic Engineer:** After 10 minutes of undisturbed foraging, improves water clarity and plant rooting in a 10-ft area (advantage on relevant Survival/Nature checks there for 24h)
+  * **Low Profile:** Advantage on Stealth when stationary against reeds/rock in shallow water
+===== Behavior =====
+  * **Diet:** Detritus, algae, soft roots, snails, small bivalves, carrion flakes
+  * **Social Structure:** Mostly solitary; loose aggregations form where sediment is soft and rich
+  * **Activity Pattern:** Most active during rain pulses, fog, and low-angle light
+==== Survival Strategies ====
+  * **Freeze & Silt:** If startled, freezes under its silt cloud or wedges beneath roots
+  * **Armor Hunker:** Tucks limbs, presenting the dome toward threats
+  * **Edge Foraging:** Works the boundary between vegetation and open shallows to balance safety and food density
+===== Reproduction and Lifecycle =====
+  * **Mating Trigger:** Rising water level after heavy rain
+  * **Egg Deposition:** Small clutches packed into shallow, silt-lined scrapes under roots or stones
+  * **Hatching Time:** 10–12 days
+  * **Juveniles:** Miniature forms with softer beaks; graze mainly on biofilm for first month
+  * **Lifespan:** 8–12 years
+===== Look and Feel =====
+Seen from above, a Quorra could be mistaken for a silt-streaked stone until it shifts, paddles bite the mud, and a faint cloud puffs from beneath. The beak rasps at a root; a snail shell clicks and splits. In a few minutes the patch is looser, brighter, and ringed by tiny bubbles—evidence of oxygen creeping back into the muck.
+===== Exohuman Usage =====
+In the [[beta_age|Beta Age]] around [[arla_town|Arla Town]], fishers occasionally harvested Quorra inadvertently. Only the muscular leg pads were eaten (boiled or fried); the dome and plume organ were difficult to prepare and often discarded. Cultural objections from the [[the_senti|Senti]] and [[the_trando|Trando]]—who consider Quorra vital to marsh health—kept take low. Under the [[peace_treaty|Peace Treaty]] in the [[the_gamma_age|Gamma Age]], targeted harvest was banned and the species gained protected status.
+===== Tactical Advice for Dungeon Masters =====
+  * **Ambient Signal:** Clusters of fresh silt veils and spiral dig marks hint at clean water and good foraging spots
+  * **Soft-Ground Hazard:** Recently churned patches can count as difficult terrain for a round
+  * **Ecology Clue:** Absent Quorra may foreshadow pollution, algal blooms, or predator pressure
+  * **Gentle Objective:** Tasks to relocate Quorra from a dredge site, or to survey dig density for a tribal rite
+===== Related Pages and Further Information =====
+  * [[lake_tijonara|Lake Tijonara]]
+  * [[lake_arla|Lake Arla]]
+  * [[the_senti|Senti Tribe]]
+  * [[the_trando|Trando Tribe]]
+  * [[wildlife_of_asari|Wildlife of Asari]]
-To the [[the_senti|Senti Tribe]] as well as to the [[the_trando|Trando Tribe]], the Quorra Crab is called "Nar'kuma", or "Soil Dancer," and is often featured in artistic motifs symbolizing harmony through quiet labor.
+**Known Predators:**
+  * [[skyweaver_eels|Skyweaver Eel]]
+  * [[bluestrike_heron|Bluestrike Heron]]