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bloomblanche · 7 months

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Cirralings

(Splatoon fan species)

Aka: I overanalyzed Raian's design and ended up making a whole species of cirrate octopuses (otherwise known as dumbo octopuses) over it.

(The cover is an edited version of the official White Day 2020 illustration, if anyone's wondering.)

(Also, I'm going to use a lot of synonyms for "cirrate octopus", so here's a little list of what they all mean)

Cirrate octopus: octopus in the suborder "Cirrina" or "Cirrata"

Dumbo octopus: finned octopus (note: every cirrate octopus has fins, so they all classify as dumbos)

Flapjack octopus and Umbrella octopus: octopus from the family "Opisthoteuthidae"

Now, without further ado...

Introduction

I love dumbo octopuses. Who doesn't? With their little ear-fins flapping around as they float majestically through the deep sea, it's hard not to like them. And their rarity only makes them more mysterious and interesting. If they ever were to add a dumbo octopus character in Splatoon, the whole fandom would go crazy for sure. It's a wonder how absent they are from the franchise.

...or are they?

(cue vsauce music)

If you're in the splatband fandom, you probably know who this is. This is Raian (or Orion in the English localization) from the band Chirpy Chips! This creature has been mercilessly occupying my brain for, uh... almost a year now. Help.

But here's the most interesting part about them: they're a flapjack octopus! That's right, they're canon! And they've been right here since Splatoon 1. But... there's one small problem. They don't look like an Octarian at all. This is possibly explained by the fact that cirrate octopuses don't have ink sacs, and Octolings (like Inklings) are primarily composed of ink. That's where my fan species comes in!

They're mostly a product of me over-analyzing Raian's design and adapting it to my style. But then, I started attaching a lot of lore to them, and... boom. Now I've made an entire species over an obscure Splatoon character from an arguably less obscure in-game band. The brainrot made me do it, and I don't regret it in the slightest.

Here's a remastered collection of everything I've posted about them on other platforms!

Design breakdown

(I wanted to provide a closeup of every single element over the course of the post, but I can't because of Tumblr's picture limit. Don't hesitate to go back to the design sheet above if you need to.)

The eyes

When I first saw Raian, I thought they had pitch-black eyes. Turns out they're probably just closed, but I really liked the idea. Since cirrate octopuses live in the deep sea, they'll probably need to see as much light as possible. The Octarians also have this alien theme going on, as with octopuses in general. And with deep-sea creatures often being described as real-life aliens, I figured that I would take this aspect and go all out with it. I'm aiming for a "cute yet vaguely eerie" vibe, and I think the eyes fit very well with that!

However, I do think they would have coloured eyes. Or even irises! Take the Stauroteuthis genus (picture on the right), for example.

The fins

What's a dumbo octopus without its fins? They're always flapping about, so I loved the idea of having them move based on how they're feeling. Despite not giving them any eyebrows, I would still keep the "eyebrow muscles" for the sake of more dynamic facial expressions (like the ones in the introduction picture).

Their bangs are made out of webbing. As for the "antennas" on some haircuts, they're a modified pair of cirri! With the importance of fins, I figured that Cirralings would enjoy having "ear surrogates" for when their ears are hidden.

(or just because they feel like it)

(or not, it's their choice)

also it's cute

To those who don't know: a cirrus is a small hair-like strand that moves a bit like a mini-tentacle. The suborder "Cirrina" is named after those strands, which they most likely use for feeding.

If we go back to Raian's design, there's a problem: despite being a cirrate octopus, they don't have any visible suckers nor cirri. Will we ever know your secrets, mysterious chiptune flapjack???

...so, I came up with something. If we go back to the reference picture under "Design breakdown," the suckers are on the same side as Inklings and they're covered by their cirri. It's a little unusual, but again, it fits with the vibe I'm trying to create.

The swim form

Since many cirrate octopuses live at the bottom of the ocean, I figured that I should keep them adapted enough to sit on the sea floor like they usually do. Those who live in the open ocean probably look more like a traditional octo form.

One thing's for sure: Opisthoteuthidae certainly don't need much stylization with how cartoony they already look.

The hands

Cirrate octopus have a lot more webbing between their tentacles than incirrate ones. Here's a cool way to translate this: webbed fingers and toes!

I'm sorry for telling you to scroll back again, but I'm very proud of how I drew that hand. Look at it. I'm not forcing you, like- you don't have to do it if you don't want to, but. Look.

The teeth

These are just Octoling teeth but flipped and a little different. I also decided to "fuse" the teeth together to better distinguish them from the Octarians.

My main goal with this species is to show how differently they would evolve compared to their surface-dwelling cousins, all while staying similar to each other. I haven't studied biology since secondary 4 (aka 10th year of American high school), though, so please take this with a miniscule grain of salt.

The mask and neck, as well as any other design choice that I haven't explained, are just some elements of Raian's design that kinda just... exist. That doesn't mean they're useless, though. If anything, it makes them look more "cirrate-like."

On a side note, I thought it would be cool to base them around what they're most famous for: their appearances! Given their reputation as "the octopus suborder that makes scientists so happy that one of its species almost got called 'Opisthoteuthis Adorabilis'", I think they have something to be proud of.

Unorganized tidbits of lore

I wanted to illustrate all of these individually, but I'm pretty busy with university. Also, I'm kinda slow at drawing. In the end, I got too impatient and decided to reveal my most developed ideas right then and there.

Cirratians, like most deep sea species, evolved through many miracles. First, the miracle of coming in contact with the crystals. Second, the miracle of evolving on dry land via caves. Third, the miracle of surviving in the harsh, barren underground.

Because of this, they evolved to be drastically different from their surface-dwelling counterparts. Since they don't have ink sacs, their bodies are mainly composed of water. However, they can still be splatted by getting submerged in dense enough liquids such as brine.

Not every cirrate octopus is a Cirraling, as evidenced by the existence of cirrate Octolings. As the name suggests, the latter are Octolings with cirrate ancestry. They almost always inherit the ink bodies of Octarians, but some are born without ink sacs. There are two types of cirrate Octolings: those whose ancestry dates back to the dawn of evolution (often through interbreeding and assimilation) and those whose ancestry is a result of modern Cirro-Octarian contact. Scientists are still researching this odd, prolonged "contact gap".

Similarly to Octarians, they have their own variants born from severed tentacles. Though, due to their different needs, these ones are non-sapient and take the role of cattle and companions. In ancient times, long tentacles were considered a sign of wealth.

They have a traditional dance characterized by slow movements and light, flowing fabric. Skilled dancers will try to make their costumes flow as much as possible without moving too fast. If they did, it would be considered a waste of energy.

Like many deep sea cultures, one of the most important gods they worship is based on ancient whale falls (illustration by @thap34nut ). This large, skeletal god is a symbol of plenty. It is credited as the origin of marine snow and an essential provider of food to their ancestors. In the afterlife, it will grant eternal satiety to those who died of starvation. Meanwhile, it will punish the greedy with eternal hunger. To honour that god, they have a similar holiday to Squidmas colloquially called "the Deepest Gratitudes." The many bone decorations (which are usually painted rock sculptures) are often the source of culture shock to many uninformed outsiders.

Despite their internal shells, Cirralings are very squishy. This allows them to better withstand their highly pressurized environment. However, this also makes them vulnerable: they are notably more prone to bruising than most inkfish. So, they prioritize diplomacy over conflict.

Their natural charisma is known all over the deep sea, and many young Cirralings move to bigger cities in hopes of breaking through the idol industry. They are often stereotyped as charming and polite at best, or two-faced manipulators at worse.

Despite their reputation, they have a certain "shyness" to them. Indeed, most Cirratian cities and settlements are rather isolated. Their conflict-avoidant culture is most likely a result of the competitive, individualistic atmosphere of early deep sea civilization. Since then, however, the "spirit" of humanity and the survivalism of deep sea life managed to blend together more smoothly. Despite their cold and aloof appearance, these modern civilizations are now characterized by a certain sense of unity.

Cirratian society is noted to have a pretty unique atmosphere, even compared to their surrounding cultures. Despite shrouding themselves in mystery, they are warm and welcoming. Despite living simple lives, their social rules are very strict.

Cirralings are significantly less concerned with imitating humans. Their skin tones are rarely human-like, and while dull, they vary a lot in terms of colours. Their fins and tentacles also play a very important role in expressing emotions, sometimes even more than facial expressions. They have gained minor colour-changing abilities from the crystals, though many of them describe the process as "time-consuming and not very instinctive." They specialize more in bioluminescence.

Their eyes vary much less than other humanoids: they are large and dark to absorb as much light as possible. Some may have smaller or lighter irises, but this is rather uncommon. Cirratians come in all shapes and sizes, but their eyes are their most recognizable aspect.

The Cirratians and the Octarians have an odd relationship. They want to understand each other better, as there's potential for solidarity and brotherhood. However, it's hindered by their inherently different values.

Sometimes, Cirralings sneak to the surface in search of resources. They rarely interact with surface dwellers, as both parties would fear each other in the past. In fact, the "glowing-eyed mimic" or "void-eyed mimic" cryptid originated from various Cirraling sightings.

They often come to the surface through bodies of water. For a variety of reasons, some may even wash up on shore. Those who choose to stay will almost always hide their identity, though they have been revealing themselves more and more as the years went by. The events of Octo Expansion lead to a wave of deep sea creatures who immigrated to the surface in search of new opportunities. By then, almost every Cirraling had stopped hiding their identity.

Thank you for your interest❣️

Here's my favourite flapjack pic, for the soul.

#splatoon #splatoon fan species #fan species #flapjack octopus #dumbo octopus #fanling #cirraling #cirralings #deepsea metro #I wanted to post this later in the month #but I accidentally posted the draft and panicked #so I privated it and kinda felt obligated to finish it earlier

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octahedral-chaos · 7 months

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Random thing, but why do I suddenly want to ramble about my silly joke Splatoon crossover species-

They're called Lochlings, *Thunderlings and Parilings, you could easily tell what they're based off...

*Edit: "Thunderlings" are actually called Lightlings now!

#OCTAfan says stuff #Splatoon #Splatoon fan species #genshin impact #Lochfolk #Oceanid #Thunder manifestation #Electro oceanid #Genshin pari #Tw genshin #Ask to tag

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zenala-art · 10 months

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My first attack goes to @nemiirus of their amazing OC, Midori!

#team werewolves #splatoon #splatoon fan species #smallfry #little buddy #zenalaart #art fight 2023

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goatposter · 1 year

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splatoon 4

#text #art #oc #pen doodle #splatoon fan art #splatoon fan species

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tri-toxikon · 2 years

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AUGHUHG I didn't realize how much I missed my Raylings until I started playing Splat3,, Monroe especially. god I need to start writing a Hero Mode for them again

#splatoon fanart #splatoon #splatoon 3 #splatoon oc #splat3 #splatoon art #splatoon 3 fanart #splatoon 3 art #splatoon fan species

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hadalzonee · 6 months

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woe, oc x canon be upon ye. but as cuttlelings

#splatoon #splatoon oc #callie splatoon #callie cuttlefish #callie #oc x canon #oc/canon #cuttleling #splatoon cuttleling #splatoon fan species #splatober #splatober2023 #splatober 2023 #oc: riya #callieriya #my art #my ocs

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jinglr · 8 months

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Behold! My Splatoon fan species!

Siring (Siren-ling)

Oc: Thelxiepeia (Thel) She/Her

(This is so silly it doesn’t fit the lore at all but more under cut!)

Physical attributes: Webbed tentacles, web fins on forearms and lower legs, “fangs” on face marking, (sometimes) duller in color

Summary: Sirings are basically vampires. They have to consume their own relative species to survive (Inklings, Octolings.) They can eat things like Salmonids and Jellyfish, but they’re not as filling. Sirings are few and far between in the modern worlds, as they often starve or are found out and killed. Sirings can usually go 1-3 months without a “proper” meal, depending on age. When going a long time without feeding, skin and ink lose saturation. To “catch” prey, Sirings either lure them in with their voices “curiosity killed the cat,” or simply befriends the victim, luring them into a friendship before killing and consuming them. In a modern day world, Sirings are in hiding, and only feed if they randomly come across a dead body (gotta be somewhat fresh though,) or break into a morgue. Sometimes, bodies donated to science go strangely missing…

Differences: Sirings often try to pass for Octolings, but there are some major differences.

Eye markings. Circles vs fangs

Teeth. 2 opposite/middle vs 2 top

Ink color. Bright vs Dulled

Tentacles. Outside suckers vs No suckers and webbed

Limbs. No fins vs translucent webbed fins

Fingers. Pointy clawed vs Round.

Thel random stuff: Thel is anxious, introverted, and quiet. Thel also suffers from the typical Siring starvation signs, which include loss of saturation, fatigue, cold touch, mental tiredness, etc. In the modern world, Thel can’t feed very well or often, really only eating Salmonids and other lesser creatures. However, a strictly carnivorous diet can be pricey, so she is her own indie music producer under the name M3R-SH33 (mermaid + banshee) and that’s how she gets most of her money. Sometimes, she also serves as a corpse cleaner upper (if it’s fresh enough, and she’s the only one on scene, she can grab a couple bites without anyone noticing.) Despite her nature, Thel HATES feeding on Inklings and Octolings. She wants to live beside them, not feast upon them. She’ll go months at a time without food due to shame, fear, and self loathing. Think of her like an unwilling vampire, just trying to live.

That’s it for now! I might update it later or something idk

#splatoon oc #Splatoon fan species #splatoon #Siring #Siren-ling #my art #oc rant #random rant #she’s pretty though #Thelxiepeia #sketch form for now!

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platinumparadax · 2 years

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Splatober Day 25: Draw some Fanspecies

Sealings! Like Ink/Octos they can change forms however they aren't entirely human like Ink/Octos but have evolved to have a human like form to "fit in".

#splatober #splatober 2022 #splatoon #splatoon 2 #splatoon 3 #splatoon fan species #splatoon fan character #splatoon ocs #splatoon fcs

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sykam0re · 1 year

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"Wish to request a fortune? Or perhaps a cup of tea, first?"🌙

#splatoon #splatoon 2 #splatoon 3 #art #my art #oc #splatoon art #original character #splatoon oc #my oc #spiruling #spirulings #splatoon fanlings #splatoon fan species #splatoon fanart #fan species #fanart #oc: erebus

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batsing · 1 year

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SO. SLUGLINGS AMIRITE??

I heard some of you were interested, so here's a bit of info on them! Sorry it took a little while I ended up drawing a ton for my scrimblos here </3

Sluglings evolved from sea slugs as you probably know, which are known to have up to 700000 microscopic, razor sharp hook shaped teeth. (I sure love animals that are biological horrors up under a microscope!!) Over time this became a useless thing, so they began to evolve in favor of merging the teeth into much larger, actually usable fang-like teeth. These fangs are semi retractable and are also heavily used to convey emotion, similarly to their antenna, unsheathing when angry.

Sea slugs are solitary creatures, unlike sluglings which had evolved to be much more sociable over time. At first so they could hunt with a chance of succeeding, but now to the point of having a complex social structure. They have developed a unique language called Sluguni, alongside some highly expressive body language. Some examples found below.

Another thing to note is the rounder, broken mask shape. They partially come up the nose bridge, but are ultimately broken apart, taking on an almost heart shape in most common cases. In rare cases, there will be only one rounded shape, making them look almost like a weird inkling if it weren't for their antenna. They most commonly have two rounded "eyelash" shapes, but it's also not unheard of to have more than two. More examples below!!

Their hairstyles are composed of several things as well, with no real requirements other than the antenna! Plus one other trait.. This trait can be anything, from the gills, to the cerata, to the mantle skirt!! You could even get creative and slap the tail/foot on as a sort of longer hairstyle! Antenna + hairstyle can be mixed and matched should you so desire; More examples below!!! You do not need to follow these examples, and if you do you don't need to follow them to an exact! Creativity is encouraged just like you would with an inkling character!! Like look at Frye compared to other inklings!!

SO GET OUT THERE AND CREATE A SLUGLING IF YOU WANNA GOOFS GO CRAZY GO WILD HMU IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS I DONT BITE I PROMISE!! :D

IF YOU MAKE ONE TAG ME THIS IS A THREAT I WANT TO SEE THE SCRUNKLY

#slugling #sluglings #splatoon #splatoon fan species #I am so happy I finally got these mfs out there #i love them a lot #i also have so many smaller facts about them #you might get whiplash from a few of them #prepare for me to info dump on them uncontrollably #seriously i have so much just bottled up about them rn

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