Empire Crabs

This species of crabs dwells throughout the waters of the Western Continent, and is known to dwell in both shallow and deep ocean. They are known for their particularly hard outer shell that serves as a near perfect defence. They may have some relation to the Kssk People of Ksskchi.

These crabs are more varying in biology than their Eastern relatives, the Gip~GipGero'Gero, mostly because there are two distinct types. The two subspecies of Empire Crab are the Knight Crabs, and Emperor Crabs. A gathering or colony of these crabs is called an empire

## Emperor Crabs

### Biology

These crabs are titanic, and are the largest crustacean known to exist. They stand at a height of 10 meters. The legs, when laid flat from end to end measure about 12 meters each. Their bodies have an average height of 4 meters. Their claws are about half the size of the body, and could very easily crush most creatures. They have standard crab limbs: 2 pincers, and 6 legs. While both Emperor and Knight subspecies have spiked shells, the spikes on an Emperor crab grow much longer than their smaller brethren. It is unknown whether or not the spikes on Emperor crabs are venomous, as no creature can get close enough without being swarmed or grabbed by its enormous pincers. The outer shell of Emperor crabs is bright red, with special emphasis on the spikes. This colouring successfully deters most predators.

Emperor Crabs are capable of eating most things on the sea floor, be it algae, squid, fish of all sizes, and shrimp. Occasionally, a large carcass, typically a whale, might fall to the seabed and be swarmed by an empire, who could stay for weeks to pick it clean.

### Behaviour

Emperor Crabs are often never seen without a large number of knights at their disposal. This gathering is not too destructive to most environments since Emperor crabs tend to stay in deeper, more desolate parts of the oceans. It is estimated that a single emperor has 30 knight crabs under their command. They can communicate with their subjects specialized claws, that can produce more sounds than typical crab claws for complex orders.

When two empires meet, the Emperor Crabs always try to assert their dominance over the other. This war results in large casualties among the subservient Knight Crabs, and only ends when one crab yields or dies. The servants of the loser then join the winner's empire, and the losing Emperor wanders off, alone and battered. Lonely Emperor crabs are incredibly vulnerable to the other predators in the oceans

## Knight Crabs

### Biology

Knight crabs are more average in size than Emperor Crabs. They can range in size from 2 feet tall, all the way to 2 meters tall. Their height to limb ratio is about the same as Emperor Crabs, but their claws are quite different. Rather than the specialized communication claws of Emperors, Knight Crabs have heavily armoured claws with more emphasis on crushing and tearing. The spikes on Knight Crabs are shorter and duller than Emperor Crabs. It is known that Knight Crab spikes aren't poisonous, so they are safe to eat. The shells of Knight Crab have much more variety in colour, ranging from Red, to Green, to Purple.

Knight Crabs mostly eat Algae, smaller fish, and shrimp. They will also partake in the feast when sizeable carcasses are found on the sea floor.

### Behaviour

Most Knight crabs group together in swarms around Emperor crabs. They serve as the foot soldiers in their empire. Their job is to attack threats before they could reach their Emperor, as well as slay other crabs in a bid for dominance. Knight crabs are not known to ever disobey the orders of the Emperor, and they always move as one coherent unit. Empire crabs are almost like localized Hive Minds.

Some knight crabs wander far from their Empires. Typically, these are the scouts and scavengers. While alone, they are vulnerable to most predators, and some are even caught by the terrestrial creatures of The Western Continent and served as Cuisine.