Creature:Hermicee

"They're far too stupid and war-mongering, but we have no choice but to keep them in line."

- Centapedus Empire

"Genetically unfit morons that really only deserve not to be exterminated only because they are a useful asset to our plans."

- Gigapedus Dominion

"Idiotic, genocidal buffoons that simply are a menace to the Galaxy"

- Jeckle Civilization

"Analysis: Sensors indicate an extreme dis function within brainwave patterns. Threat Level: High. Conclusion: EXTERMINATE"

- The Grox Empire

"They are very pulled back for being such a evil and stupid empire... They are Kinda like the Loron..xD"

- Gablinus-Avis

Overview
Coenobita bardus (literally meaning stupid Hermit Crab) or more commonly known as Hermicee, are a hermit crab-like species that inhabit the planet Moneotype. Their basic design is the general shape of a Hermit Crab. They have spikes on their shell. Many castes of Hermicee exist, including the StrawBerry Giant, Crackrina, and the Grassy. Each have varying colors and weapons/details but all have the same general design and a pair of wings. Sentient versions of some subspecies have been created, walking more upright and having few clothing on.

History
Before space travel was ever invented on the planet, Moneotype, the Hermicee were on raging war not amongst themselves, but against many other native sentients on the planet. The Hermicee are extremely protective of their own species and other castes of themselves, making civil war a near impossibility amongst their civilization. This does not mean that they were prosperous, however. The rival civilization of the Feree Nation also competed with the Hermicee in their quest for world domination. With superior technology and intelligence, the Feree could plan and outwit the Hermicee. However, the Hermicee were not all helpless. Though they have simple weapons such as projectile catapults compared to the Feree's laser-based weaponry, the Hermicee had an extreme advantage: reproduction rate. The Hermicee's mentality of dominance and extreme amount of troops at their disposal.

Hermice-Feree War
At the start of the Hermice-Feree war, the Feree dominated the battlefield, using battlefield tactics. The Hermicee were fighting a losing battle. This war went on for several decades until the great Hermit Lord, Kuuljok Ironhide, stepped into military power. Brilliant military genius, Ironhide realized the potential of the Hermicee warriors. Using every one of his troops, they launched a massive assault on the Feree capital. The battle was known from then on as "a terrible Omen." From then on, Ironhide won the confidence of his empire. Assaulting, destroying, and using every one of the Feree's destroyed cities as one of their hives. At the final battle, the Feree proposed a surrender. Unlike what the Hermicee would normally do, they accepted the surrender.

The Great Purging
Slowly, the Hermicee took every right away from Feree "citizens" until they were practically slaves. Then Ironhide, launched "The Great Purging" where the Hermicee army was sent to extinguish every last trace of the Feree civilization. Leaving the children as food for the hatchery to be devoured by hatchlings, and the mature, old, and weak as slaves until they were "useless" and finally "purged" from the Legion. This caused many Feree to run and escape into the forests of Moneotype, and try to stay away from the Hermicee as much as possible. Some say they still exist secretly among the forests, but the Hermice Legion are still on the lookout for survivors to be "purged."

The Rising
The great Centapedus empire had already been in space for many years before they encounted the Hermicee Legion. Though many isolated and scattered Hermicee forces have already been space-faring, the particular Hermicee "Legion" (Legion refers to Hermicee originating from Moneotype, due to the massive number of Hermicee on the planet, it is considered the capital of the Hermicee species.) has just reached space. At first, there ships had already been landing on Centapedus planets and attacking. Though these weak, unconcentrated attacks were easily dealt with, the Centapedus were quite concerned. Soon, first direct contact was made. The Hermicee demanded "50 Kagillion Spore Moneez" and threatened to destroy the Centapedus's allies. The Centapedus, though quite confident in there ability to fight, were very unsure due to the massive size of the empire and were quite impressed with the Hermicee's surprising spreading speed, as they can inhabit nearly any planet with any temperature (provided adequate atmosphere is present.) Though the Centapedus were unable to come up with "50 Kagillion Spore Moneez" they proposed the sharing of technology and spice, giving the Hermicee Legion a boost in it's power, in exchange the Centapedus were somewhat safe, but random Hermicee raids do occur, usually failing. The same "safety" is not guaranteed to the Centapedus' allies, however, namely the Vectron empire.

Botana
The Botana are a species of plant native to Moneotype. Hermicees are fond of eating the seeds of Botana, and because of Hermicee-Botana symbiosis, Botana do not react hostilely to Hermicee devour vegetation. In return, Hermicee actively take care of Botana and feed it. Hermicee use them as sort of a biological weapon, often stuffing large numbers of feral seedlings into pods and sending the pods down to other planets to begin consumption of it's native species.

Naturally, Botana are not unlike other species of plant, they absorb carbon dioxide, and take in oxygen. What sets the Botana apart is it's extreme adaptability. When atmosphere is unfitted for Botana, they evolve into their mobile stage. In mobile stage, Botana are able to rapidly mutate into walking, moving creatures. In search of sunlight or nutrition, Botana Seedlings and full grown plants alike look for suitable locations to root. If sunlight is scarce or atmosphere is not dense enough, Botana quickly adapt into feral stage. In feral stage, Botana become dangerous to all forms of life, except Hermicee. At this stage, Botana are capable of burrowing into a host creature's skin, effectively turning it into a biological suit of armor and food source. The final, most dangerous stage of Botana is Hive stage. In hive stage, the Botana quickly take over large regions of a planet, infecting life forms and growing over other plant species to effectively create a "nest". Only few Botana infections have ever reached hive stage, notably the Botana Shelling of Elke.

Centapedus
The Centapedus and the Hermicee are officially "allies". This, however, only applies to the IronClaw clan, as many of the smaller clans of Hermicee still are unaware of this alliance due to the Hermicee's very loose and poor leadership skills. Because of this, the Centapedus can only maintain an unstable relationship with the Hermicee, and must deal with the constant threat of small raiding parties, as most Hermicee attacks are formed from small, weak clans or hives.

Jeckle
The Hermicee Legion has had there sights set on Elke for some time, though due to there very "loose" ruling class and social system, they have no well-coordinated attacks on the planet, most of which is prevented by the I.P.A. The only major attack was the Siege on Elke, a major assault on the Jeckle planetary capital, Shaunjun, by DemiClaw Lord Enthorium DemiClaw. The Hermicee have since been executing weak, concentrated assaults on small cities. The Centapedus has made sure that no attack from the deadly and rather large IronClaw clan has launched an attack.

Cyde Cult
The Cyde are a cult/paramilitary of Jeckles dwelling on the Jeckle home planet of Elke. Cydes are the same species as Jeckles, but view mainstream Jeckle society as a monstrosity for religious reasons. For some reason or another, the Cyde view Hermicees as gods, and have been controlled by Hermicee ever since the formation of the I.P.A. The Cyde and Hermicee have been planning and executing small assaults on Jeckle towns.

The Grox Empire
The Hermicee and Grox are in a state of constant war, the Grox, unable to combat the Hermicee's adaptability and resilience to harsh conditions, have no real options other than expensive weaponry, as the Hermicee's campaign against the Grox is also supported by the Centapedus and therefor, have sufficient technology to combat Grox offensives. The Grox have suffered no real casualty from the war against Hermicee, but the Hermicee has not displayed any kind of weakening from their attacks. The two empires are still at war to this day.

IronClaw Lord Kuuljok Ironhide
Powerful leader, brilliant strategist, and unmatched stength, this brutal tyrannical leader was the driving force behind the victory of the Hermicee-Feree war. His tactics were to use all available Hermicees (which is a large number) to attack a single place, rather than the common tactic of small, pillaging attacks. During the destruction of the Feree nation, Kuuljok had claimed himself ruler of Moneotype, and named the Moneotype Hermicees as "The IronClaw Clan", and he has ruled for several hundred years. Recently deceased, his successor, IronClaw Lord Anaka Ironhide has been ruling the empire with an iron claw as his father did years ago. Since then, the empire has gotten so large that much of the IronClaw clan has split off to smaller clans, but the central IronClaw clan is now ruled by many Lords, but Anaka still holds the most control.

Demiclaw Lord Enthorium DemiClaw
Lord Enthorium DemiClaw lead the relatively small DemiClaw Hermicee clan. The clan itself had few synths, and limited technology compared to most. Enthorium, an inexperienced leader recently promoted to Hermit Lord status, ordered the Siege on Elke. This was a massive attack on the Jeckle capital, Shaunjun. The attack was a success, but thanks to Lord Enthorium's premature attack, he and his force were destroyed, leaving the city in ruins. It is presumed the DemiClaw clan is still in shambles, ruled only by one of the few StrawBerry Giants left.

Highlord Dar'eon Demiclaw
The Strawberry Giant, Dar'eon Demiclaw quickly came into power after Lord Enthorium's death. As only a minor lord, his power is highly contested, but some argue he is a better lord than Enthorium ever was. Dar'eon led the attack on Arkinath city, aided by the racist hate group of Jeckles native to the planet, the Cyde. Unlike Enthorium's attack, he only attack a small city, but utterly destroying it without any contact at all with Centapedus Commander Jargin's IPA. After this successful attack, the Demiclaw have grown ever stronger, but are still much smaller than when Enthorium was in power.

Drone Lieutenant Cutter
As only a large drone, Cutter leads a small portion of the Demiclaw drones. In life, he was an aggressive leader, often demanding more forces than just a small Drone force to work with. In his relatively low rank, he was denied by Dar'eon but ultimately left the clan to attack a small Grox outpost. Lieutenant Cutter is unlike most leaders, as he is found in direct combat and is wielding a Chainsaw, along with somewhat scary looking mask. He was killed during the attack on the Grox by High Dronox Commander Skuther.



Social Habits
They mainly stay amongst their own kind and other sub-species of Hermicee. Hermicees often judge other space-faring empires by looks and prices, making most of their military and economic choices very unwise. Their main strategy is; eat, sleep, kill.

Backstory
Hermicee, though unintelligent, are mostly successful due to their great reproduction rate and hording resources for themselves as well as taking advantage of "very friendly" empires. They depend mainly on their own numbers for success.

Torture
Hermicees have a reputation of being "Unintelligent, bloodthirsty brutes". This is absolutely true about them, and they have earned this reputation by two ways- destroying empires for pure pleasure, and torture. Hermicees always take prisoners, but not for interrogation but for entertainment and food. A prisoner can be tortured many different ways, often being extremely violent and brutal.

Other Empires
"It's funnies cause' theyz' dies and we lives" - The Hermicee planetary motto

Hermicee's are known by many to be nothing but a scourge, they completely obliterate other empires for joy. They will always break the Galactic Code, take advantage of weak empires, and what they're most famous for, destroying empires based purely on looks. If a species is "ugly" to them, it is immediately destroyed and the survivors are tortured. Zealot empires refer to them as "Spode's true nemesis" and try their best to destroy the Hermicee Empire, often being futile. Most empires steer clear from the Hermicee due to their random and violent behavior. The only empire that has even have something as a friendship to the Hermice Legion are the Centapedus Empire. They try to keep Hermicee attacks at a minimal, which is nearly impossible.

Caste System
The Hermicee live in a caste structure, from StrawBerry Giants to Crackrinas. Hermicee are dominated by a "Hermit-Lord" creature which is completely determined by genetics. The Lord's exact role other than controlling the hive is generally unclear. Physically, they are of immense size and strength comparable only by the Strawberry Giant.

In more sophisticated Hermicee society, the Hermit Lord is still present, serving as a Tyrant with absolute military and economic control.

The Hermicee, in addition to being "stupid" and aggressive, also have an extreme sense arrogance. This makes them completely dedicated to themselves, driving them to create every vehicle, building, and weapon have a vague shape of a Hermicee.

Hermit Lord
The Hermit Lord is a giant Hermicee of immense strength, capable of destroying buildings with ease. While they command other Hermicees and dwell deep within there hives, these brutal tyrants also take up direct combat roles, further demonstrating the Hermicee's war-mongering characteristics. In size, they are comparable to an epic, and will crush most of it's opposition with ease.

Strawberry Giant
The Strawberry Giant is by far the second largest of all Hermicee castes (dwarfed only by the Hermit Lord), about the size of an elephant. As its name suggests, the Strawberry Giant has a bright red coat with black lines streaking downward. It has large horns sticking out of it's shell (witch has also earned it the nickname, Devil Hermicee), and has three Pincernaught mouths. Strawberry Giants are brutes, hogging every bit of meat for themselves, they may even act hostile toward other castes of Hermicee. As a result of there size and nature, they serve as leaders for minor hives and are usually second in command the the Hermit Lord, until they grow into one themselves.

Royal Honor Guard
Honor Guard Hermicees are almost never seen outside of Hermicee territory. As their name suggests, they play the role of guarding leaders and important areas. Fast and deadly, Honor Guards are rarely-occurring caste of Hermicee, so few of them exist and the few that do exist are a merciless and cunning few. Wielding only Electrical staffs, they are used only in melee combat. They are skilled in the art of dodging,hand to hand combat, and have a very high survival rate, meaning that Captains encountering one of these creatures is almost certain death.

Crackrina
The only true female caste of Hermicee, Crackrinas exhibit different behavior from regular Hermicees. Though they remain carnivorous, they mainly stick to fishing and economy rather than active hunting. They are also very few in number due to Hermicee gene probability. Although more "peaceful" by Hermicee standards, they still have the same physical capabilities as males. Through the use of pheromones and certain vocalizations, the Crackrina can direct Hermicee drones to their destinations. They ultimately serve as caregivers and the main driving force of Hermice reproduction. They are the most intelligent of the Hermicee and usually work on mechanics, though there thoughts often go unnoticed. They are of equal rank to Black Jacks.

Black Jack
Large, dark Hermicees that serve as high-commanders for special forces. They usually lead small operations that usually deal with ambush. Brilliant tacticians, they are among the few "smart" Hermicee. There ability to hurl acid over long range has also earned them a battlefield role of ranged combat, they usually lead Grassies into battle. Black Jacks are quite fond of light weaponry, preferring to use their acid. A few have been known to drive heavy vehicles and lead synths into battle.

Grassy
These camouflaged Hermicee are a variant of the standard drone Hermicee, thanks to the hardened crystalline acid they shoot, serve as assassins, while they are capable of direct combat, they usually tend to stay out of range, on top of buildings or cliffs, firing down at there enemies. Unlike other Hermicees, Grassies also exhibit "smart" behavior and usually travel in packs, lead by a single Black Jack.

Lazy
Lazies are just what their name suggests, lazy brutes. Even by Hermicee standards, Lazies are considered "dumb." This is, however, due to the noxious gas they secrete. Hermicee are somewhat immune to the gas, which acts as a sleeping gas to most life forms. Lazies, being constantly exposed to their own poison, have developed a sleepy habit. However, what they lack in speed, they make up in force. Lazies are perfectly comfortable lumbering into battle without any kind of weapon. Though some of the more sophisticated have been known to carry a myriad of deadly tools such as rocket launchers, chainsaws, reaping scythes, and hammers. Besides the Strawberry Giant and Lord, Lazies have the greatest amount of vitality.

Drone
These are the backbone and driving force for Hermicee military, Drones work with as both workers and soldiers, mainly cannon fodder. These are the ultimate examples of "stupid and war-mongering" as they usually are not smart enough to operate sophisticated technology, so they mainly stick to melee weapons; axes, scythes, knives, hammers, Stun Rods, or in a few cases, Chainsaws. While a select few well-trained drones are capable of using simple trigger weapons, such as Plasma Blasters or Rocket Launchers.

Big Drone

A sub-class of the standard drone, these Drones are in the stage between a standard drone, and metamorphosis into a Strawberry Giant. They have higher intelligence, though not by much, and use only powerful weapons, namely Rocket Launchers and Chainsaws. They serve as squad leaders, and lead packs of smaller Drones into battle. Although many exist, very few live long enough to become a Strawberry Giant.

Worker
The lowest rank of the Hermicee Legion, they operate on machinery, building structures, digging, and helping Crackrinas with taking care of the hatchlings. While they are mainly a working class, they also join combat with drones. Due to there small size, they can outmaneuver drones and turn the tide of a battle, as there working experience gives them the knowledge to use there tools on enemies, mainly electric stun rods. Along with the Crackrinas, they experiment on captured creatures to create inhumane, bio-mechanical engineered soldiers and slaves, also giving them a role as slave masters, leading slaves to there deaths.

Ranking System
The Hermicees have a crude ranking system which is largely unknown due to the simplicity of equipment, so most is usually determined by battlefield observations.

Leader Ranks
These are general Hermicee leader ranks that run Hermicee military and society.
 * Tyrant - Given only to Lords and, in special cases Strawberry Giants. They command entire Hermicee clans and hives.
 * General - Given to Strawberry Giants, or in the case of large clans, few Hermit Lords. They are second in command to the entire military.
 * Marshal - Leaders of entire ground operations. Mostly given to Strawberry Giants.
 * Mistress - Given only to the Crackrina caste, they are are of very high rank and command all that are lesser then them in military, ceremonial, and economic situations.
 * High Commander - Exclusive to the Black Jack caste, they command entire operations and sometimes fleets of Hermicees.
 * Overseer - Leaders of Hermicee Squads, usually Black Jacks, Big Drones, and Crackrinas.

Military Specialist Ranks
These are for Hermicees that are highly-trained and are the "best of the best", these only appear in sophisticated Hermiee society.
 * Special Operations Commander - Exclusive to the Black Jack caste, they lead and fight alongside highly-trained assassin units.
 * Commando Overseer - Given to Black Jacks who lead small squads.
 * Assassin - Given to Grassies with cunning one-on-one combat skills.
 * Shade - Hermicees that wear cloaking devices.
 * Commando - The general infantry of Special Operations, mostly comprised of Grassies and Big Drones.

Labor Ranks
These ranks are for the labor class of Hermicee, though this does not mean they don't see any combat.
 * Slave Master - Given mainly to Drones and Workers in charge of herding slaves into battle, work, or the slaughterhouse.
 * Botana Master/Mistress - Caretakers and soldiers that typically work with Botana and causing infestations. Mostly given to Workers and Crackrinas.
 * Weapon Master - Workers in charge of handling and or wielding heavy weapons and vehicles.
 * Brood Master/Mistress - Crackrinas and Workers in charge of feeding the hatchlings.
 * Engineer - Hermicees that work on construction and combat with tools.

General Battlefield Ranks
These ranks are applicable to Specialist, Labor and some Leader ranks as well (i.e. Commando Middling, General Ultrum, etc.)
 * Extrum - Hermicees who are considered "heroes" by destroying key objectives or thinking of weapons that revolutionize Hermicee warfare, they wear large amounts of ceremonial armor and are given lethal weapons.
 * Ultrum - Hermicee soldiers who have caused an astonishing amount of enemy casualties, they are usually given permission to wield weapons such as chainsaws, hammers, and other heavy weapons. This is rank is common among Big Drones and Lazies.
 * Middling - Hermicees that have caused a good amount of trouble, usually a small amount of Drones achieve this rank.
 * Piddling - Most Drones start at this rank. Equivalent to a human Private.

Military Organization
Hermicee use a very basic style of Military organization. Most units generally are led by an individual. The population does not include hatchlings.

"Synths"
The Hermicee, although stupid, also have several integrated enslaved races in their working and military class. Many of these are fitted for specific combat or maintenance roles in the Hermicee legion, and many have been adapted (crudely and mechanically) for their specific roles.

Hunter
Named for there agility and superior tracking skills, Hunters are capable of running down there enemies and work with Hermicee drones on certain ambush or capture missions. They bear a striking resemblance to a Half-Life 2 enemy of the same name. Deadly and agile, they are efficient at shooting down prey with accuracy, though they are not particularly durable to physical attacks.

Triceph
Named as "Stridobugs" by Centapedus these larger tripodal cousins of the Hunters are more outfitted for siege. At a height of several stories high and the durability of a large vehicle, these monsters are quite impressive to look at. First discovered during the Hermicee-Centapeus wars, these large creatures are deployed in cities where they fire powerful bolts of plasma and heavy rockets at infantry. They are also quite adept at climbing over buildings.



Sand Carp
The first non-direct combat Synth developed by Crackrinas is a large fish-like mechanical being that has almost no weapons at all. It's powerful armored head is used to topple buildings and destroy roads, stalling vehicle advances. Deployed mainly for defense than offense, these massive creatures make it difficult to travel by land as the constant quakes they produce are more than powerful enough to shake around equipment and weapons, as well as throwing off the aiming of personnel. While the Sand Carp itself is nearly useless in combat, it does produce hordes of offspring, flying terrestrial fish known as "Sky Minno." These tiny devils are often found in large clusters around Sand Carps and do not hesitate to defend the nest, although fast and stunningly intelligent, they are easily outmatched because of there relatively low vitality.

Sand Ripper
These deadly nematodian synths are responsible for sabotage. Their head is armored with powerful spikes made of an unknown, strong, magnetic alloy. There powerful attacks are mainly used to set up blockades and often can toss vehicles flying into the air. They may lie dormant for days, waiting for the next convoy to come along and tear it to chunks of metal.

Kraken
The Kraken is a massive crab-like synth usually paired up with Tricephs. They have very low visibility but make up for in their acute sense of touch. They can feel the vibrations of a penny landing on a tile floor from miles away. Krakens are slow and clumsy and are used as shields for smaller Hermicee forces. Massive plates on their legs act as such shields. Their claws, lined with razor sharp spines, can dish out extreme amounts of destruction to vehicles and buildings.

Gorgon
Gorgons are agile spies and are usually seen leading packs of hunters. Unlike Hunters, Gorgons are durable do to a tough exoskeleton and natural stamina. Mainly used for operations such as spying on enemy encampments, and swiftly taking out leaders. They may also be used in space operations, due to their ability to breath almost any substance and survive for several hours in the vacuum of space. Gorgons stand menacingly tall with four deadly scythe like legs. Six poisonous appendages shield their massive eye, in the middle of their upright head. Two antenna run down the back of their heads and are very sensitive, this is their week spot. They are armed with deadly plasma launchers that enable them to attack any target.

IronClaw Clan
The largest Hermicee clan ever observed, spanning an estimated 700 systems. Currently ruled by the brutal IronClaw Lord Anaka IronClaw (formerly Anaka Ironhide), the clan has expanded a tight grip on conquered planets. Few enemies standing in their way, they are ruled by not one, but several Lords due to the sheer size of the Clan. Other than other Hermicee Clans, they are the only Clan to have something of a diplomacy with another Empire, being the Centapedus Empire.

The IronClaw clan has a legacy of being the "Stronghold" of all Hermicee forces in the Galaxy. In the center of Clan, lies the Hermicee homeworld of Moneotype. Though it is unknown where the Hermicee exactly originated from, Moneotype seems to be the most likely candidate, as it developed technology and numbers very quickly (by Hermicee standards). The IronClaw clan has spawned many smaller clans due to leadership being increasingly difficult on such a large scale. The Clan itself is at war with the mighty Grox Empire.

Crystal Shell Clan
The Crystal Shell were unleashed in the opening of The Crystal Ruins and are now in The Galaxy. Possibly being an entirely new species of Hermicee, the Crystal Shell are light blue Hermicees with large crystals poking out of their shell. These crystals are formed because of the Crystal Shell's habitat. They live in under ground caves, and come out to feed on sleeping prey at night. A crystal shell is judged by how large the crystals on it's shell. The larger the crystal, the higher the rank. They are a trade species, they are assigned to trade with other empires that will take their spice for high prices. Empires that do not accept the trade rout, react hostile, or take the spice for low prices, will be destroyed. Crystal Shell are the largest Hermicee empire, besides the IronClaw.Their buildings are exact replicas of original Hermicee buildings, but with different paint jobs. Most colonies are generally larger than normal Hermicee colonies. A colonized planet will be completely remodeled to meet Crystal Shell standards. They are extremely picky about what planets they colonize. Most planets they control are purple, blue, and green spices (it is unknown why pink spice is left out).

Trivia

 * The Hermicee are very similar to real-life Hermit Crabs.
 * Though the Hermicee have wings and live in hive-like structures, they are mainly underground and rarely take flight.