It doesn't seem too far-fetched to think we will somehow get an underwater expansion before World of Warcraft ends.
With that in mind, I've been thinking about a few sea creatures and lately, I've been very fascinated by shrimps, and in particular, Peacock Mantis Shrimps, with their stories of breaking aquarium glass and their appearance that doesn't look too far off from an eldritch sea horror or something you'd see in Lovecraft's works. What are Peacock Mantis Shrimps'?
Also called Odontodactylus scyllarus, peacock mantis shrimps, harlequin mantis shrimps or painted mantis shrimps, these are magnificent creatures that come in a beautiful range of colour and are equipped with a lot of.. what you would call legs that push them forward over the ocean floor.
These spectacular animals can range from 3 to 18 centimetres (1.2 to 7.1 in) and come primarily in a colourful palette consisting of mostly shades of green and orange.
Peacock mantis shrimps are neither mantids, nor shrimps.. or for that matter, of course, peacocks..
They are crustaceans, but not shrimps.
So what makes these organisms so magnificent if not their bright colours?
Well, mainly two things, actually:
1) Like the pistol shrimp, the peacock mantis shrimp is equipped with two raptorial appendages that are used like clubs which are not only an imposing sight in itself, but also capable of breaking through aquarium glass.
There's a reason you'd be strongly advised not to put your hand near it, and that reason is that you may lose a finger or two if you're not careful enough.
That's right. These creatures pack a punch that equals the speed and strength of a .22 calibre bullet. Yes, you heard that right; these animals manage to hit you with the speed of a vehicle while the water itself tries to hold their nifty little club-like weapons from picking up too much power.
I think that in itself makes them a really great candidate for a hunter pet. If they are that strong under water and in such an -in comparison- small form, then imagine how strong they'd be without water resistance and at a bigger size than a dog? Yes: Absolutely devastating.
But I told you there was a second reason these creatures are amazing and that is their ability to see just about every shade of every colour perfectly. Peacock mantis shrimps have 3 pupils in each eye and they can see just great.
Now as this is a shrimp thread and peacock mantis shrimps aren't really shrimps, the family should obviously be called 'crustaceans', but crustaceans would be a really HUGE family as there are a lot of crustaceans. That aside, pistol shrimps and peacock mantis shrimps both look quite a lot like shrimps, so that shouldn't be a problem.
Besides, it's not like we have Wyverns that are actually Manticores!
Shrimps
Special ability:
Death Strike
Hit the enemy with your raptorial claws, effectively knocking them down and stunning them for three seconds. Deals ?% attack damage
I realize I only spoke about peacock mantis shrimps, but I guess it's a proper way to open the discussion!