Info
Original concept by Kosef Sturre does not match any existing user name.
Additional revisions by Mctoran.
Scientific Name: Alius Homo Gelu
Common Name: Penumbras
Other Names: Gelidians, Fomoire, Frostfolk
Diagram depicting the common penumbra and their attire, provided by Kubileya.
HABITAT(S): Level 813
Description
Penumbras are a species of intelligent humanoid entities originating from and mostly found within Level 813. They are capable of complex thought, higher learning, tool use, language communication, and a plethora of other intellectual capabilities. In fact, in all respects of the mind, they are essentially equal to humans in ability and potential.
Penumbras are known to show increased resistance to damage and greater physical endurance compared to humans and are vastly resistant to extreme temperatures. Their behavior towards humans is vastly complex and varied as a result of their intelligence, but general trends show that these entities typically cooperate with wanderers or groups, albeit with a degree of reluctance or territoriality.
Biology
Aged illustration depicting a Penumbra hunter. Date of creation unknown.
Standing at roughly 7-8 feet tall on average, Penumbras closely resemble humans, save for a few key differences. All Penumbras have monochromatic hair and typically dark gray skin pigments; their eyes are usually pale in color, their bodies are often slim, if not spindly, in proportions with slightly elongated arms; and their mouths are concealed by a layer of hyper-regenerative skin that they tear open to eat or raise their voices. Penumbras also almost universally sport one or more pairs of black horns growing from their temple, which can take all manner of different shapes and sizes ranging from small spike-like protrusions to massive antlers or winding ram horns.
In terms of inner biology and anatomy, Penumbras have an organ layout similar to humans apart from more complex double-chamber stomachs, intricate hearts capable of surviving a heart chamber failing, and bones composed of iron rather than calcium. Due to the nature of these bones and how resilient they are compared to normal iron, some wanderers have been known to dissect the remains of Penumbras to fashion surprisingly durable armor out of their skeletons.
Penumbras are capable of rapidly healing wounds and recovering from pain or sickness — their anatomy able to quickly regenerate anything damaged or lost. Some Penumbras could be destroyed so thoroughly that only a single finger remains, yet regrow their entire body and reaching complete rehabilitation within mere hours. Although Penumbras do indeed rely on sustenance just the same as humans, malnutrition/dehydration does not prove fatal and will instead render them comatose.
There are only two ways to permanently kill a penumbra: destroying their body beyond their ability to regenerate, or exposing them to the light of Blackfire. The latter nullifies their regenerative abilities, reflected by a change in the pigmentation of their skin and hair to resemble that of a human. In such a state, penumbras are rendered just as vulnerable as humans.
Societies
Penumbras are unique compared to most entities due to their accomplishment of organizing themselves into advanced societal groups and even entire civilizations, with settlements at several different points of technological advancement dotting the expanse of their homeland of Level 813. These settlements can often boast remarkable hallmarks of civilization, with many having their own unique cultures, religious beliefs, and dialects of the shared Penumbra language known as Daxerese.
The Daxerese script is very similar in style to that of several runic alphabets found in The Frontrooms, with the main exception being that Penumbras have recently scrapped the Daxerese counting system in favor of Human numbers.
Typically, Penumbra civilizations are organized into self-classified tribes existing at one of two different general levels of advancement. On the lower end, one can expect small-scale agricultural settlements or pastoral nomadic caravans with usually no more than a few hundred residents at most, possessing technologies on par with the Iron Age in The Frontrooms, and relying on barter trade, if even being open to trade with outsiders at all. On the larger end, however, one will often find networks of fortified towns and villages comprising a fully-fledged nation, with proper economies supporting organized militaries and infrastructures similar to Earth's mediaeval period, with governments here often organized into monarchies with a ruling figure called an "Eteryng". These larger civilizations typically wind up being only tribes in name.
Quite often, Penumbras are also not the only entities found in these societies. Settlements large and small make use of Arctotheriums, ursine entities almost entirely domesticated by Penumbras and used for all manner of purposes: livestock, pack animals, transport, war mounts, |and so on. Larger civilizations often boast aviary towers housing tamed Deathmoths that serve as messenger birds; militaries sometimes keep Hounds as guard dogs with consistently questionable degrees of domestication; and some towns even welcome Facelings as residents and hard labor workers. Often this is noted to go in the opposite direction as well in regard to many human colonies and groups, with most human-made settlements in Level 813 having at least a solid handful of Penumbra residents and some outposts and groups elsewhere in the Backrooms boasting any of these entities who are listed among their ranks.
Discovery
Penumbras have likely been known of by wanderers for as long as their home level has been known, with the oldest written account of a human interacting with a Penumbra dating back as far as the year 1502. Penumbras, however, have their own written histories showing their presence and development in the Backrooms dating back far further, with some of their oldest surviving texts and works being dated by scholars to be several thousands of years old.
The Lost are known to have associated with Penumbras in their time, referring to them as "The Horned Ones". However, certain ancient texts detail acts of barbarism committed by some members of The Lost against Penumbras, such as fashioning armor and weapons out of their bones to wage war against "gods".