DOD Bestiary: Ramskull

Common Name: Ramskull (Xenoceratops, Xenocorn)
Pronounced: (Zen-o-cera-tops), (Zen-o-corn)
Classification: Xenocornus dicornis (Two-horned Alien-horn), Xenocornus sylvestris (Alien-horn-of-the-forest)
SGOC Rank: Xenofauna (euxenosaur hybrid)

Length: 450 feet (xenoceratops), 390 feet (xenocorn)
Height: 200 feet at the shoulder (xenoceratops), 170 feet at the shoulder (xenocorn)
Weight: 750 tons (xenoceratops), 680 tons (xenocorn)
Diet: Omnivore
Social Structure: Herd (10-40 members) (xenoceratops), Solitary (xenocorn)
Home Planet: Kepler-22b
Distribution: South America, central Africa (xenoceratops); Asia (xenocorn)
IUCN Status: Near Threatened (xenoceratops), Endangered (xenocorn)

Description:

Ramskulls are a genus of potentially hybridized euxenosaurs that resemble Earth ceratopsians. Huge and ill-tempered creatures, these beasts are best left alone by all but the most skilled of hunters.

Both species of ramskull are hulking, tank-like animals. Lumbering along on four stocky legs and broad six-hooved feet, these beasts can move at impressive speed when angered, knocking down massive trees and crashing into enemy ramskulls with a bone-jarring impact. Ramskulls are heavily armored with pleated folds of ossified skin, protecting them and acting as a supportive girdle. The beast’s frill expands to either side of its huge head and shields both its neck and its shoulders. Ramskulls have sharp interlocking teeth for tearing up food but can also wield them against predators as a deadly weapon. Their beady little eyes sit atop muscular turrets like an Earth chameleon’s, allowing them to move and look around independently.

Ramskull anatomy is so unlike that of other euxenosaurs – and so like that of Earth tetrapods – that many suspect the animals seen so far are not true ramskulls, but artificial hybrids produced by the Tyloban Empire. Why they would make ramskulls so Earth-like in anatomy is unclear.

The xenoceratops (illustrated here; not to be confused with the ancient Earth ceratopsian Xenoceratops foremostensis) is the larger and more common ramskull species, a colossal armored beast that moves in herds numbering up into the forties. Pig-like and omnivorous, xenoceratops are patriarchal in nature and follow the herd’s largest, orneriest member as he wanders across the landscape, feeding and socializing as they go. These thundering herds are like a force of nature, reshaping every land they pass through and churning up the soil with greater efficiency than any agricultural equipment. As such, these beasts are prized by farmers of all races for the rich soil and dung (which makes an excellent fertilizer) they leave in their wakes. Once every two years xenoceratops herds settle down in an area and begin their courtship rituals, which involve brutal fights and noisy copulation in equal measure. Female xenoceratops lay clutches of ten or so eggs in a primitive scrape in the ground, which she covers in a net of reptosilk and guards vigilantly for the next few months. Xenoceratops are extremely territorial during this time and will annihilate anything bigger than a truck that comes close to their nesting grounds. The calves are precocious and must be able to keep up with the herd, although they tend to wander and most will end up hopelessly lost or in the belly of a predator.

The xenocorn is the smaller and rarer of the two ramskull species, and is distinguished from its cousin by the thick forking horn that protrudes from its snout. Feeding mainly on tough and woody plants, this reclusive species sticks to the woods where it can more easily hide from danger. It is found exclusively in Asia; very little else is known about the xenocorn, although it’s presumed that its calf-rearing habits are much the same as those of its better-known cousin. Their courtship battles are more often seen than heard, which males crashing their horns together in stag-like battles that can echo for several miles. According to the Tylobans, xenocorn meat is a delicacy and the animals are hunted only on special occasions.

Skrag love using ramskulls as beasts of war, which they adorn with heavy armor, massive artillery, weapons racks, and assorted trinkets to terrify their enemies and symbolize their prized mount’s strength and ferocity. The Tylobans view them as wonderful sport to hunt (neither species is entirely domesticated), and often make plaques out of the beasts’ neck frills. Humans sometimes hunt juvenile ramskulls for their meat and hides, but getting between a mother and her calves is considered a suicidal move.

Like all SGO-sized euxenosaurs, ramskulls have a reactor gland and are themselves mildly radioactive. Their flesh is considered safe for human consumption.

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Artist's Commentary:
Ramskulls are two fictional species of alien animals that I added to Days Of Dikorus in reference to the vintage restorations of ceratopsians as bow-legged reptilian rhinos. I based their behavior on that of rhinos, hippos, and the fictional “stegadon” from the Lizardmen codex, 8th Edition.

Artistic Notes:
— A ramskull has six (6) toes per foot.
— A ramskull has three (3) horns on its head.