The hetepkans were the first sentient, civilized race on Torar. They lived more than 30,000 years in the past, far before the first records of the world's history. Exact dates are unknown, but the few scholars who have managed to piece together information on this mysterious civilization place their rise and fall well before the Seed.
During the time of the hetepkan civilization, the world's continents had not yet formed: the world's land was in a single pangea supercontinent. It was populated with proto-dragons that resembled vastly huge flying snakes, as well as titanic, primal versions of many creatures seen today. It is from these proto-dragons that the hetepkans are believed to have originated.
Hetepkans are also credited with being the first people to harness the power of magic, and it is this edge that allowed them to survive and even thrive in such a dangerous, hostile environment. No one truly knows the extent of or how advanced the hetepkan civilization was. The only certain piece of information about them is that the coming of the Seed wiped them out.
Physical Description[]
Hetepkans stood between six and eight feet tall, with males being taller than females on average. They were covered in soft, snakelike scales that were typically green, tan, brown, or black, but had cream-colored scales covering their chests, stomachs, underarms, and groins. Despite being primarily reptilian, indeed records seem to indicate that the females laid clutches of eggs, hetepkans had mamalian features and were warm-blooded. Their young were nursed by the mother for a short time, and after that the paternal parent would be responsible for the rearing of the children. Hetepkans had no body hair, but did have head hair, which was always black. It would seem that hetepkans also had the ability to transform themselves into snakes of varying types, though information on this is sketchy at best.
Hetepkan Lands[]
The hetepkans lived in a time when 90% of the landmass on Torar was steamy, primordial jungles. These days their ruins are normally found in swamps and jungles, though in theory hetepkan ruins might be found anywhere. Tectonic events will have all but eradicated any trace of hetepkan artifacts in mountainous or otherwise geologically active areas.
Religion[]
The hetepkans worshipped a pantheon of animal-deities known as the Primals. Nearly nothing is known about the actual worship of these deities, with the exception of Lygoc. The hetepkan pantheon included the following gods:
- Lygoc - the Serpent. God of the arts and creativity.
- Muzen - the Wasp. Goddess of wealth and prosperity.
- Camazotz - the Bat. God of night, death, and sacrifice.
- Uayab Xoc - the Fish. God of storms and water.
- Hun Baz - the Monkey. God of knowledge, magic, and writing.
- Ixchel - the Jaguar. Goddess of the hunt, birth, and medicine.
- Vucub-Caquix - the Macaw. God of deception, power, and murder.
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