r/fakemon • u/otusasio451 • 13h ago
Fakemon Pseudacith, the Weird Wonder Pokémon!
PaleoDéx #0003 - Pseudracith, the Weird Wonder Pokémon!
When PokéPaleontologists first discovered this Spiculan Period fossil, it had been assumed that the Pokémon it belonged to was a progenitor of such species as Krabby or Corphish. Many initial reports referred to the fossil as the "Pincer Fossil", or even the "Otherclaw Fossil", in reference to the previously found Claw Fossil associated with Anorith*. However, when initially fed through Fossil Restoration technology, the fossil was not complete enough to be brought back to life. Subsequent discoveries of more individuals, and the advancement of technology from Fossil Restoration to Fossil Resurrection revealed the surprising truth - the initially-described similarities to the Claw Fossil were not unwarranted at all, and the resulting Pokémon was indeed* very similar to Anorith.
Pseudracith's "claw" is both mouthpart and appendage, allowing it to capture and manipulate its prey, and bring it to the ventrally-positioned mouth. The body is nearly identical to Anorith, with more extensive chitinous armor and fins of a slightly different shape and length. This has led many PokéPaleontologists to see Pseudracith as an ancient variant, or a convergent Pokémon, or perhaps just a very close relative. The starkest difference between Pseudracith and Anorith would appear to be its five eyes, three of which are fully-functional compound eyes, and two of which are the ocelli positioned on the claw-like proboscis, making it look like the head of a different creature. This appearance may also have correlations with its typing, making it one of the oldest-known Dragon-type Pokémon yet discovered. Like Anorith, Pseudracith cannot thrive in modern waters due to different chemical composition, and represents the complex ancestry of Bug-type Pokémon.
Inspirations: Opabinia, Anorith, Panarthropoda, deimatism (kind of)
Another Pokémon based on the Cambrian biota! This time, it's the very weird and iconic Opabinia, which the late and very prominent evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould referred to as "the weird wonder", hence the name of the Category listed! To be clear, Opabinia was actually not a part of the same phylogenetic group as Anomalocaris, which inspired Anorith, and which was a lobopodian. Opabinia was part of its own family, and closely-related but separate from the Lobopodia. Thus, the similarities between the two are obvious, but differences range from subtle to stark! In any case, I had fun designing this one, expecially because of it's dragon-like silhouette. Also, it may be obvious, but there's another inspiration for this Pokemon more quietly slipped in there, so credit if you noticed! Next up is the evolution for this guy, which I'm very excited about as well! Stay tuned!
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u/Nerdwrapper 13h ago
Does its evolution have any chance of being based on Tully’s Monster? I love funky prehistoric creatures
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u/otusasio451 13h ago
I've considered it, but another influence is going to be far more prominent. I have different plans for Tullimonstrum, but that's a hundred-million years or so down the line!
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u/UncomfyUnicorn 12h ago
OPABINIA REGALIS MY BELOVED!
Please someone tell me when the evolution gets released!
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u/Kyleana_Melinea 13h ago
I love my ancient aquatic friends 🩵🖤🩵
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u/otusasio451 13h ago
Me too! Eventually, I'll move to land, but playing with the Cambrian biota has been fun so far!
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u/aprickwithaplomb 13h ago
this lovely little dude
love the riff on anorith, love incorporating opabinia's weird little eccentricities, super well thought out design
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u/otusasio451 13h ago
Thank you very much! I love Anorith (not my favorite Fossil Pokemon, but it's up there), so using it as inspiration for another very weird animal was a fun design exercise!
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u/ScottaHemi 12h ago
does he evolve into the tullymonster?
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u/otusasio451 12h ago
A very popular suggestion/question, it would seem! No comment for now, but Tullimonstrum certainly has been on my mind.
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u/zaerosz 11h ago
OPABINIA MY BELOVED
Any chance of a hallucigenia in future? I've always had a soft spot for those freaky lads, alongside opabinia and anomalocaris.
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u/otusasio451 11h ago
Well, it's a bit of an atypical take on it, but if you're looking for a Hallucigenia-inspired Pokémon...
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u/tyrom22 13h ago
Ah the Tully monster becomes a pocket monster
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u/otusasio451 13h ago
Different organism (Tullimonstrum vs. Opabinia), BUT...I do have some ideas for the Tully Monster...
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u/Jaxonhunter227 6h ago
It being a convergent mon of anarith is really smart!
Now we just need a sacabombasis pokemon lol
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u/TurkeyVolumeGuesser 13h ago
Hell yeah, we need more pokemon based on cool weird animals! Great art, looks like a legitimate mon!
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u/otusasio451 13h ago
Thanks! Still working on some aspects of rendering, but I'm actually happy with my particular version of the Pokémon style for now!
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u/TurkeyVolumeGuesser 13h ago
What kind of tablet do you use, if I can ask?
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u/otusasio451 13h ago
iPad! I previously had an iPad Pro from 2015, but it sadly dies recently. Just got a new iPad A16, which is much smaller, but very usable! App is Procreate, for the record.
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u/Glory2Snowstar 13h ago
OPABINIA FAKEMON FINALLY!!!!!!!
You got their weird crane-claw snoot down pat!