Echves Coniferous Swamp

Place

Place Name:

Echves Coniferous Swamp

Biome:

Coniferous Swamp

Size:

Unknown

Continent:

Unknown

Subcontinent

Unknown

Geography

Like all coniferous swamps, Echves is a veritable maze of trees, vines, bushes and moss and waterways that can confuse those who are not used to the waterlogged lowlands. Located to the southwest of where the Xerea Empire’ capital city, Echves’ outer shell is a wild tangle of trees and other foliage that many have avoided because the area was too difficult to enter compared to the other regions on the continent. This allowed the region to develop without any interference. The forested swamp was an enclosed mess of paths and dead ends leading to a lake with a single island in the very heart of the region.

Several animals that have mutated in the un challenged ecosystem make their homes in the dense vegetation. Strange plants grow on the southern side of the island, and a spiderweb of caves reside below the island. To the west of Echves is the coastal regions of the continent while to the north and east are the regions the served as the heart of the Empire. To the south was the last temperate plains before the start of the tropical zone. The invasion of three zu'aan men had little initial impact on the region, however the actions of one of them promised to change the nature of the region forever.

He used many of the resources of the swamp to build the exterior of a lab and living quarters on the island that only he had discovered. He carved a secret path into the region that only he could find. And when the Empire fell the man brought a select group of people to his secret island lab to continue his experiments with the kin'toni plague. While his experiments ended in his death at the hands of his own creations, the refined kin'toni proved to adapt to their swamp home. They tore down the lab and built a walkway between the island and the rest of the swamp.

They cultivated the growth of new paths and hunted many of the large animals that shared the swamp. They spread the seeds of the strange plants the man had used in his experiments to the rest of the region in the hopes that it wold affect the evolution of the wildlife and vegetation to something that suited their personal tastes and needs. They closed his secret path inside the swamp. They built a second canopy to avoid the sun. Now the darkness has allowed the shrubs and fungi and other things that thrive in the shade to expand past the safety of the pathways.

The kin'toni have built a small village that reaches out from the island to the far shores of the lake. Most recently they have been widening the pathways to allow them to escape the confines of the forest swamp and explore the outside world. They have even built a boat and other tools that might need to help them survive in the unknown lands beyond the safety of their tangled cluster of trees.

Plants

The vegetation of the coniferous swamp of Echves is made up of various mosses, shrubbery, brush, fungi, and of course coniferous tress. These plants make up the majority of the walls of the labyrinthine watery paths of the swamp along with rocks and dead tree stumps that prevent easy passage through the foliage. Long grasses pop up out of the algae covered murky water and thick vines entangle the branches of trees creating a natural canopy effect overhead. The central lake is home to many submerged variations of grasses and algae.

As well as the strange plants that initially grew on the southern part of the lake’s island. Much of the land retained its wild vegetation even after the appearance of three zu'aan men. And when the K’hil kin'toni clan escaped the confines of their underground prison and made the swamp their home, the changed the nature of the vegetation by encouraging more wild growth of particular plants with the construction of a second canopy to prevent much sunlight from entering their territory. They also planted mire of the strange plantin other portions of the swamp to see what would occur to the wildlife.

Whilst the rest of the vegetation is simply a variation of the regular variety found in other coniferous swamps, there is one plant that only has one strain that grows in Echves. This plant is the dwyl'kokxa. This strange plant is a lightly vined gourd that looks like a pale yellow head with spikes protruding in a deep red ring. The edible part of the gourd is somewhat sour to the taste and extremely juicy. While no signs of it are visible upon a single eating of the gourd, continuous ingestion of the pant is believed to be a contributing factor in the mutations of the local wildlife.

Because of this the man who discovered it used the gourd in his experiments to refine the serum that created the kin'toni plague. The gourd indeed refined the kin'toni who he created with his experiments. However not in the ways he had anticipated. It did not remove the thirst for blood, or make them more susceptible to receiving orders. A local variation on one of the more common plants in the area is the nawl'uw'dara. This sturdy pine tree is recognisable by its ashen bark and red pine needles. The tree grows tall enough to be seen poking out of the tangle that is the outer section of the swamp.

The K’hil used its discarded branches to help make their second canopy, and the bridges they use to leave the lake area of the swamp. They also us its sap to coat the bridge to prevent it from collapsing. However they avoid the needles due to the potential of getting sick from ingesting the toxic seed either directly or by accident.

Animals

The wildlife of Echves has to be seen to be believed. Like other coniferous swamps, Echves is home to a myriad of different reptiles, mammals, insects, and birds. However due to the presence of certain plants and the untouched nature of the area, the animals are quite a bit larger and wilder than the other variations out there. Some have even shown signs of mutation beyond the increased size and strength that make even the least powerful of them a danger to the unsuspecting wanderer. Due to these mutations there is no pure herbivores in the region.

Every creature is either an omnivore or a carnivore. It was these mutations that causes the three men from the Xerea Empire to become fascinated with how the same genetic variations could be achieved in their own biology. This fascination even led to one of the men discovering the strange plant he theorised was responsible for the more controlled aspects of the mutations, and later led to the creation of the kin'toni and the K’hil clan of refined kin'toni who now control the region. The K’hil used the strange plant to further the evolution of the wildlife even further in the hopes of creating loyal monsters to aid in hunting and warfare.

One of the mutated varieties of animals is the yawnu'raka'an. These raka'an are three times the size of the common breeds of Earthly large rats and have muddy grey fur with a crimson crown marking on their backs. They run in packs and live in burrows amongst the dense foliage. They are primarily carrion scavengers but when enough of them are present they will attack and devour larger living creatures. When on its own, a yawnu'raka'an will often be timid on docile around larger animals. However the scent of blood will attract large swarms and cause them to go into a frenzy.

This was one of the species that the mutated genetic structures was studied during the initial experiments that led to the kin'toni plague. Another of the mutated animals of the region is the mayakate'ran. This aquatic amphibian has mutated to be twice its regular size with an elongated snout, blood red pigmentation with black spotted markings and a red tinged bioluminescent glow when in dark areas. These omnivores live off the plants ans other animals it can catch in the lake and waterways of the swamp. They have a venomous bite that renders its prey partially paralysed and numb after two hours from when it is bitten.

The mayakate'ran will quietly follow the poisoned creature until it collapses. At which time the amphibious creature will burrow into the corpse and eat it from the inside. This creature was only witnessed by the man who would later create the k’hil and was one of the things that caused him to realise the potential risk the experiments could pose as each mutation had a strange hunger for blood even if the unmutated variations were pure herbivores.

Historical Timeline of Ages

Age Name	Dates	Controller
Stone Age	Before 1E 0	Unknown
Copper Age	1E 1–1E 2200	Unknown
Bronze Age	1E 2200–1E 4400	Unknown
Iron Age	2E 0–2E 700	Unknown
Ancient Age	2E 700–2E 2200	Unknown
Middle Age	3E 0–3E 2050	Unknown
Early Modern Age	3E 2050–3E 2600	Unknown
Industrial Age	3E 2600–3E 2700	Unknown
Machine Age	3E 2700–3E 2800	Unknown
Atomic Age	3E 2800–3E 2850	Unknown
Space Age	3E 2850–3E 2875	Unknown
Information Age	3E 2875–3E 2900	Unknown
Genetic Age	3E 2950–3E 3000	Unknown
Awakening Age	3E 3000–3E 3415	Unknown
Twilight Age	4E 0–4E 500	K'hil Kin'toni Clan

Place

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Echves Coniferous Swamp

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This article is written by xoishtar. Copyright 2026 xoishtar. All rights reserved.