Designing Unique Alien Species for your World

This is honestly one of my favorite topics. It’s always important to me for a world to have a variety of points of view, physical forms, and non-human species and cultures. Of course it can be tricky to come up with something that isn’t just a copy of some other setting, so today we’ll explore the options when it comes to creating a cast of non-human species.

An important thing to consider as you work on this is: what role is this species playing in the world I’m creating? Do you need them to be antagonists? Allies? Are they the dominant species or hidden and unknown to most of the world? If they live alongside humans, how do humans see them and how do they see humans? Keep these intentions in mind, to help the rest of your design elements line up with them. Though, of course, don’t be afraid to let a new thought alter your initial ideas. Nothing is set in stone until you hit that submit button.

Where to begin.

You have a few options for the general flavor of the species you’re trying to create. These can determine or be determined by some of the other setting and genre factors.

Analogues from Fantasy and Folklore: Borrowing from classics the way a lot of classics borrowed from Tolkien and the way Tolkien borrowed from myth and folklore can be a very effective technique. Sometimes it’ isn’t about being original so much as trying to invoke a feeling. Maybe of nostalgia and high adventure, maybe of comfortable familiarity. The advantage of this choice is that you are starting with a load of context your reader will already have. If someone tall and pretty with long pointy ears walks into a bar, most people will probably think they know what they are dealing with. You can use this to not have to establish already known rules, or you can subvert those rules in unexpected ways. You’ve researched what has been dreamed up, just like your audience has, but put your own spin on it; added nuance to make it your own. I have a small collection of monster encyclopedias for this purpose,

Example: The elves from The Elder Scrolls franchise. Tolkien wrote his high-elves and his woodland-elves, with some very subtle differences, mostly in culture. The high-elves in Tamriel are often fascistic and arrogant, and the wood-elves are seen as smaller and less threatening, but have this cultural mandate called The Green Pact which means, among other things, they must eat what they kill, even if it was a human or another elf they killed in self defense. This adds not just nuance, but a bit of danger and menace to that nuance.

Animal Hybrids and Chimeras: Always a popular option for adding some whimsy and color to your set of races. Good examples are the Khajiit and Argonians from the Elder Scrolls franchise, or, from a more science fiction setting, the Navi from Avatar and the Kilrathi from Wing Commander. A more cartoonish example (not a bad thing if that’s what you’re going for) might be Starfox.

Synthetic/Alternate Life Forms: You’d probably assume a sci-fi setting for this, but there is a definite place for it in fantasy as well. Sure there can be sentient robots, androids, a machine hive-mind connected through wifi, but there can also be a fantasy setting with elemental beings and golems. One really interesting concept to play with here is in analyzing the differences between this kind of life and our own. How do their imperitives differ from ours?

Example: In Westworld, Bladerunner, Fallout 4, and even Aliens, the synthetic humans are so physically close to biological humans that they are nearly indistinguishable. The difference only really appears in psychological, emotional, and behavioral ways, but that is what those stories often set-out to explore. I mean… unless you rip them in half. Then it’s pretty obvious.

Complete Non-Humanoids: These are races that are so very different from our shape that they don’t exist anywhere but in your world. There are a few ways to achieve this level of originality. You can take an animal hybrid and keep stacking traits from different animals until it becomes unrecognizable, and then homogenize it under one kind of skin. Really think hard about the differences in their culture, how they are raised, how their life looks compared to a human life, especially if you want an entire species to be represented. This, like the other options, is not exclusively the realm of sci-fi. Fantasy can feature extra-planar, extra-dimensional, magically mutated, even demonic or dare I say, Lovecraftian beings.

Humanoids, Non-humanoids, Demi-humanoids

To first clarify my definition, I’d call anything with a generally human arrangement of body-parts and features a humanoid. So almost all the cliche star trek races you see would be humanoid. Elves and orcs would both be humanoid because the differences are mostly cosmetic. The shorthand is: If it can be done with make-up on a human and a few prosthetics, it’s probably a humanoid.

Whereas the vast majority (but not all) of the star wars races would be non-humanoid. If it has extra limbs, an animal-like face, a tail, and no significant human features at all, I’d call it non-humanoid. Werewolves, dinosaurs, dragons, hutts, species 8472. If you want a non-humanoid, my favorite way to begin is with a non-humanoid body-shape and go from there. If it would require full special effects to appear on screen, or make-up on an animal, it’s probably non-humanoid.

Lastly there are the demi-humans, which you’ll see mostly in greek mythology. These are things that have specifically and undeniably human features, but are cut-off at some point and replaced with almost purely animal features. Centaurs, fawns and satyrs, and merfolk are all great examples. They might be magically created, or could even be a stitched together abomination made with mad science.

At times it can be hard to place. For example, where would you place Chewbacca on this scale? Luckily, it is a purely arbitrary assignation, and you don’t need to answer to anyone for it.

Species Development Exercise

Of course you can always just take these factors into consideration and use your mighty brain to think up something brilliant and perfect, but sometimes, even knowing all this, a tool can help provoke new ideas and also be really fun to play with.

These tables are designed to help when you need something more unique, strange, and original, rather than a humanoid analogue. They are great for aliens, mutants, or unexpected fantasy races.

First: Become inspired by a general animal shape/biology.

This animal will represent a starting place. The inspiration for your species. Roll a 10 or 12 sided die, and you can use a 6-sided-die to narrow it down from the suggestions on the right. Rolls: d10/d12, d6

1 Primate/Simian (Gorilla, Monkey, Lemur, Chimpanzee, Human, Baboon)
2 Insectoid/Arthropod (Ant, Spider, Crab, Scorpion, Mantis, Beetle)
3 Canine/Vulpine (Wolf, Dog, Fox, Coyote, Jackal, Fennec)
4 Feline (Lion, Tiger, Panther, Housecat, Cheetah, Leopard)
5 Avian (Corvid, Raptor, Swan/Goose, Songbird, Emu, Parot)
6 Icthyan/Aquatic (Shark, Tropical, Ray, River, Eel, Squid)
7 Reptilian (Lizard, Constrictor, Turtle, Chameleon, Viper, Spiny)
8 Hooved (Horse, Deer, Goat, Cow, Gazelle, Boar)
9 Rodentia/Mustelid (Mouse, Rat, Rabbit, Weasel, Otter, Skunk)
10 Combo Roll +1 animal and use both.
11 Misc. 1 (Bear, Bat, Elephant, Dolphin, Dinosaur, Kangaroo)
12 Misc. 2 (Panda, Zebra, Snail, Giraffe, Owl, Pangolin)

Second: Change the physical structure.

How they move, and their general body shape depends on their environment, but also on their natural configuration. Most lifeforms on earth have bilateral symmetry, meaning they are roughly the same on the right and on the left. Humans are upright and bipedal. These may not be the case for a different species. Roll: d8

1: Humanoid (Two arms, two legs, like a regular human.)
2: Tauroid (Two arms, four legs, like a centaur.)
3: Half-Serpentine (Two arms, no legs, moves like a snake or a snail. Merfolk also apply.)
4: Serpentine (Zero limbs, but a long flexible body.)
5: Quadruped (Zero primary arms, four legs. May use forelimbs as hands, but could also use tail, trunk, or lips for manipulation.)
6: Crutch Monopod (Two arms and one leg. Arms assist movement like crutches.)
7: Primary Biped (Two legs, but zero, vestigial, or useless arms. Think t-rex. or a penguin.)
8: Radial Multi-limb (Any number of limbs arrayed around a center with radial symmetry.)

Third: Alter the size.

Remember that the bigger something is, the more heat it holds onto, and the slower its metabolism tends to be. Things also tend to be a more average size, especially if they are sapient, so two dice are rolled and combined for this table. Roll: 2d6

2: Tiny (Cat Sized)
3-4: Small (Child Sized)
5-8: Average (Human Sized)
9-10: Large (Polar bear/Horse Sized)
11: Huge (Elephant/Orca/T-Rex Sized)
12: Gigantic (Whale/Brachiosaurus Sized)

Fourth: Add strange and exotic features.

In addition to everything else, your species may have developed special methods and tools for survival. Consider again how each might be used in their environment, to acquire their dietary needs, and to help against predators or prey. The more that are added here, the stranger it can become. However, I recommend not going too crazy with it. Roll a 4-sided die to determine how many such features they will have, and for each of those, roll a 20 sided die. Roll: d4 x d20

Fifth: Wrap it up in a new skin to homogenize the form.

Surviving in any environment is all about solving problems. Not all adaptations make immediate sense because a species might not have begun in the environment they ended up in. This can say quite a lot about their evolutionary environment. Roll d10

1: Bare (Like a human)
2: Moist (Like a salamander or slug)
3: Furred (Mammalian)
4: Scaled (Reptilian)
5: Feathered (Avian or Saurian)
6: Blubberous (Seal-like)
7: Carapace (Insectoid)
8: Plated (Like am armadillo)
9: Mucousoid (Flexible like an octopus)
10: Combined (Roll twice more, difference may be a separation between front and back, or limbs and body. Might also be combined in another way, like sparse coverage of fur/feathers over skin, or a mucousoid lining over scales like a fish.)

Sixth: The Finishing Weirdness.

You can probably assume quite a lot about the species now, such as it’s diet and environment. Your final task now is to think up one unexpected twist. Maybe the giant murder-monster you just invented is completelt passive and herbivorous. Maybe they have seventeen genders, or no gender at all. Maybe they appear mammalian but happen to be egg layers, or appear reptilian but have a pouch for their young. Maybe they have no eyes. One unexpected twist as the finishing touch.

Sample Results!

All right! Let’s roll a few of these weirdo aliens up, shall we?

Species 1: The Beaked Turtltaurse?
horse, tauroid, average size, 4 features
thick hide, vivid coloration, beak, regenerative
skin: bare

So what we have here is very odd being. It rests a solid-shell carapace on four widely spread hooved legs. It’s upper torso has a long face with a beak at the end, and arms for tool manipulation and grasping. It has a similar defensive mechanism to the turtle, pulling its entire upper torso into the shell, arms and all.

It comes from an environment with large flying predators, so its shell has bright vivid colors to attract attacks away from the otherwise dull colored torso. When it does take damage, usually to one of its legs, it can regenerate that entire limb. Not so with it’s upper torso, which is much harder to regenerate.

The top of the shell is only about 4 feet off the ground, and when extended the torso and long face can stretch to about 7 feet high in most adults.

The final twist: A little bit of sexual dimorphism is always fun. So we’ll mimic some of the sexual dimorphic traits seen in lizards and birds, and say that the males are smaller, but with more brightly colored shells. This puts the courtship on the males to show off how brightly colored they are, for the sake of attracting danger and protecting the female and the young. It means the females tend to be stronger and more durable, though duller and more aimed at camouflage patterns.

Species 2: Drop-Gorillas?
gorilla, quadruped, large, 1 feature
wings?!?
skin: furred

So here is a very different set of dilemmas. A very large quadrupedal gorilla with fur doesn’t seem all that weird. Gorillas are already mostly qudrupedal, walking on their knuckles. So how to make that strange, and at the same time, how to make the wings even remotely viable? I could go with vestigial wings, or non-flying wings for, like, display purposes, but that seems lame. I want them to be useful.

So here’s what I’m thinking. There is no reason not to use something very like a gorilla, since it isn’t necessarily an ALIEN species, it might just be a freaky cryptid. So I’m calling it: picture a big-ass gorilla. If I wanted to go with alien I might make it more dedicated quadrupedal, or change the color of the fur, but there’s no need for that. Big gorilla, 7′ at the shoulder.

As for wings, I want them to be functional, and not to be too out-of-place on this species, so I’ll give it wings like a bat: the only other mammal that features wings. This means the wings are built into the arms, and… come to think of it, that’s perfect, because a bat does kind of walk like a gorilla, on its knuckles with long fingers splayed back or tucked into its side.

This species can look mostly like a gorilla, but keeps it’s wings like a vampire bat, practically out of sight as it moves around. The biggest struggle of flying is getting lift which becomes exponentially harder the more mass you have. Gorillas already have SO MUCH mass. Like… even a chimpanzee will sink like a stone in water because they have so much more bone density and muscle mass compared to humans. A gorilla? Flying? Then double that size?

No, these guys will have to use their wings more like parachutes, dropping down from cliffs or the canopy to ambush prey. They don’t have the density or strength of a true gorilla, but are more comparable with a human of their size. Still plenty formidable, though. OH MAN, I just had another thought… you know how gorillas beat their chests with cupped hands to show aggression? What could THESE guys do with their wings that is similar to that?

So overall, these things are terrifying hairy parachute giants that drop down and wrap you up in their massive webbed fingers, disorient and pummel you. So how about that final twist? Well, gorillas are already surprisingly passive, and these things have such a technique for ambushing, I don’t think I can say they are not predatory by nature. So…maybe they are a bit like cuckoos. They share an environment with actual gorillas, and place their young with those gorillas to be raised. Only at a certain point their wings start growing in and the size starts increasing at which point they strike out on their own. Unlike the cuckoo, the young don’t kill the regular young, and in fact this develops a familial bond with the regular gorillas, so the winged species tends to remain close to the territory, and defend it from dangers to the gorillas. Poachers worst nightmare.

Species 3: Grass-Leapers
kangaroo, crutch monopod, small, 3 features
horns, leaping legs, chameleon skin
skin: insectoid carapace

So I’m not gonna lie, I wasn’t too sure about this one until that last roll. That really pulled it all together.

So this species is short, maybe 4′ tall. They have a powerful single jumping cricket-leg that they can use to propel themselves 15′ into the air from a standing position, or push them forward at great speed as they run using their two forelimbs like crutches. In a sitting position, they can use one forelimb at a time as a grasper, but it is a real trick for them to balance on just their back leg.

Their head resembles something like a mantis head but with a longer muzzle. Their fuzzy moth antennae grow down and resemble floppy kangaroo ears, and they have beetle-like horns on their head and going down their back as well. These spines resemble branches and grass, giving them additional camouflage in the tall grass plains where they live.

Their chameleon skin is not like an invisibility suit, able to change quickly and at will, but rather follows changes to their environment. So when they grass is green and fresh, so are they. When it turns dry and yellow in the dry-season, their carapace comes to match that yellow color. The neat trick is that if they went to an alien world where the grass was red or blue, their carapace would match that within a few weeks time.

The final twist is that while they are definitely arthropoid, they have evolved to subsist on sunlight, having a form of chlorophyll in their carapace. It is not a powerful source of nutrients, but it is a consistent one that has allowed them to thrive in otherwise inhospitable environments. They still have mouths, and still use them to breathe and communicate, bu no longer need to eat. Also, a bonus weirdness, they reproduce asexually, producing buds on their underside in the rainy-season that drop off into ponds, sit through a few seasons before hatching. These buds can sit dormant for decades waiting for the proper condition. As such, these are not naturally social animals. It is their intelligence and curiosity that draws them to gather.

Conclusion

I will definitely have to followup with some pictures of these guys later. Be sure to check back next week, I might add them in:)

I would love to see what you guys roll up with these tables, so please share your results in the comments!

There are two major ways to progress these ideas that I want to develop in future posts. One will be taking these alien species and turning them into cultures and civilizations. We’ll establish their cultural values, their traditions, their technology level… maybe even their fashion choices!

The other is naming. I’ve given these guys some rudimentary names just based on what they look like, but I will soon have a whole post dedicated to coming up with names for things. So stay tuned, and I’ll see you next-world!

—Charles