Kraken

Basic Information

Anatomy

Hard Shell

The exoskeleton grows in segmented curl that is periodically shed to grow a new one.

Pincers

Two large claws in front of their head used to hold and crack prey or to burrow into holes.

Bristle Legs

Many pairs of legs on the thorax are segmented and jointed for walking and swimming.

Biological Traits

Spiral Shells

The shells are a single, conical tube coiled into a 360° spiral growth reminiscent of mollusk shells. It is noticed that adult krakens have few turns in their shell than the younger ones, due to rapid expansion of the tube's conical shape.

Observations of adult shells are certainly restricted to the dead ones beneath Eeat, but we do catch and eat the small ones they sell in the market.

— Yatei Scholar

Growth Rate & Stages

Soft Shrimp Stage

At birth they are squishy, translucent and microscopic. At this stage they are entirely subject to the ocean currents scattering a brood every which way and subject to wide spread predation.

Hard Lobster Stage

A moderately hard shell starts to develop once the younglings reach a certain size. They spend most of their time ambushing small prey from some hiding spot.

Soft Octo Stage

A kraken at this stage is alternating between ambush and active hunting tactics. This is because they are constantly growing, shedding and regrowing their exoskeleton as their softer bodies experience a growth spurt in size and tentacles.

Hard Octo Stage

The final growth stage is where the kraken shell takes on its famous spiral and becomes a permanent home for its head to retract. By contrast, its armoured pincers and some of its tentacled legs are permanently outside the shell.

Ecology and Habitats

Deep Sea

A long stretch of open ocean that extends well pass the Brine Marshes and the Merrows in the north and similarly pass Giantsfall and continuing onto areas that are home to unfamiliar civilizations.
It i extremely rare to see an adult kraken as they spend their entire time in the deepest sea. The lowest depths of the sea, where little light reaches, is also said to be home to similarly large animals and smaller fish with a vicious visage.

Biological Cycle

Molting

Molting is when a baby kraken leaves its tight-fitting exoskeleton to begin growing a larger one. During the shrimp stage, krakens will molt the most often due how to fast they grow, between 1 to 2 weeks. So much so, that their shells rarely have time to harden all the way.
At the lobster stages, a kraken will molt every 3 to 4 weeks. The soft octo stage is the last phase in life where krakens will molt. From that point on, their shell is permanent.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

Eeat Foundation

Being a curious cross between a slug and a crab. Young samples of this rare crustacean are more often dredged from the depths of the pearl sea during tidal surges expected in the flood season.

These finger sized babies are scoped all the time in a fishermen's nets and added ignobly into fish broth and stews.

A far cry from when they grow big. Three massive spiral shells of long dead Krakens are large enough to form the foundation to Eeat.

Lifespan

Suspect 1000 years

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Bluish Grey, but turns Reddish Pink when cooked
Facial characteristics
Shrimp-like squashed face

Geographic Distribution

• Floodlands
• Pearl Sea

Related Ethnicities

• Cloud Clans
• Painted Tribes

Related Materials

• Ink Stone