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Terra Metropolis; The Future of Urban Sprawl
Topic Started: Jan 1 2016, 10:22 PM (12,949 Views)
Sheather Jan 1 2016, 10:22 PM Post #1
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~~~

The year is 2600. At present, after several centuries' of rise and then gradual fall, there are almost 8 billion people on our Earth, as society has spread to cover the Earth from pole to pole on every continent over the last few tens of thousands of years out from their ancestral Africa through Europe and Asia, to the Americas, and across the sea to Australia and countless islands. Antarctica came last, its true settlement only made possible in the last two centuries, when the formerly ice-bound southernmost continent was finally left habitable by a warming climate thanks to the enormous carbon emissions of the industrial age. This world, once temperate, is today predominately as warm and tropical as it's yet been since the Eocene, yet there are are no virgin rainforests left to show for it - at least of of any significance. Over the last six centuries, we have gone through the sixth major mass extinction in our planet's long history. We saw the seas emptied of life to fill our dinner plates and the jungle cleared for lumber, the casual destruction of thousands of species indirectly and hundreds more extinguished with calculated slaughter. We'd bring some back, at least in some variation, and realizing our grave errors too late, engineer superficial copies of the rest - even, once we had the technology, organisms that vanished before we set foot upon this Earth - but for most life would never be as it was before the dawn of man. It would still be centuries again before the world as a whole was ready to make the efforts needed to try and rebuild some semblance of the wilderness of the planet we'd scraped dry for our selfish needs, to give the majority anything more than an artificial captivity to call home, and change would only come after the darkest of days. War, famine, and societal collapse took many lives, but from the ashes we rebuilt again. In the end, we could never restore it to its former identity; too much was lost, unable to survive in the new world we built around theirs - or the opposite may have been true, ecosystems so altered by introduced organisms for so long that they adapted and become dependent upon the lifeforms that once threatened their existence. Our world is now a new one, far from perfect, but no longer one set upon a seemingly unstoppable path towards its utter obliteration. We are a species that, for all our faults, is here to stay - but that no longer means we can't share our world in a sustainable way. Through a combination of nature's timeless resilience to adversity and our newfound power to modify the very foundations of life as we know it to help it along, Terra Metropolis is the future of us all.

The experimental colonies aside, we as a species are all bound to this little blue marble - Earth, our home - but one which we've only recently learned as a species requires as much attention going in as resources being pulled out to ever hope to be sustainable in the long run. As man and nature both learn to live side by side and with mutual give and take, not with a parasitic relationship neatly divided and single-sided, a new and promising chapter in the book of life begins today.

Table of Contents
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The Gaiaverse

| Eden | Terra Metropolis | Life of the Sylvan Islands |

Other Spec Evo

| Sheatheria | Serina | The Last Dinosaur

A Wholesome and Good Thing

| Sam |
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LittleLazyLass Jan 1 2016, 10:40 PM Post #2
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Proud quilt in a bag

 OK, I'm not questioning your capabilities, but just how many projects can you juggle? Seven? Or did we actually kill The Last Dinosaur?

Also, I assume from the text that this world is the same timeline as Eden? So that's three projects in one universe, cool. With that in mind, though:
Quote:
 
Welcome to the age of de-extinction, a glorious new era where the very concept of extinction, which has so long been viewed as permanent and unchangeable, has itself gone extinct.
Really, I'm not surprised it would end like this.
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I don't even really like this song that much but the title is pretty relatable sometimes, I guess.
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Adman Jan 2 2016, 10:00 AM Post #3
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Totally not lamna
* * * * * * * * *
Myo
Jan 1 2016, 10:40 PM
Or did we actually kill The Last Dinosaur?

Also, I assume from the text that this world is the same timeline as Eden? So that's three projects in one universe, cool.
Sheather has talked about having a way to tie all his projects together in the same universe in the skype chat before, but this is the first time we've seen it on the forum. So you're not wrong.

With that being said, I can't wait to see what you have in store for Terra Metropolis,
Projects and concepts that I have stewing around
Extended Pleistocene- An alternate future where man died out, and the megafauna would continue to thrive (may or may not include a bit about certain future sapients)
Inverted World- An alternate timeline where an asteroid hit during the Barremian, causing an extinction event before the Maastrichtian. Dinosaurs, pterosaurs, and notosuchians make it to the present, along with a host of other animals.
Badania- Alien planet that has life at a devonian stage of development, except it exists in the present day.
Ido- Alien world where hoppers (derived flightless ballonts) and mouthpart-legged beasts are prevalent.
Leto- Life on a moon orbiting a gas giant with an erratic orbit; experiences extremes of hot and cold.
The Park- ???
Deeper Impact- a world where the K-Pg extinction wipes out crocodilians, mammals, and birds; squamates, choristoderes, and turtles inherit the earth.
World of Equal Opportunity- alternate history where denisovans come across Beringia and interact with native fauna. Much of the Pleistocene fauna survives, and the modern humans that end up crossing into North America do not overhunt the existing animals. 10,000 years later, civilizations exist that are on par with European and Asian societies.
The Ditch- Nothing is what if seems..
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Martin Jan 2 2016, 10:11 AM Post #4
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Prime Specimen
* * * * * * *
Quote:
 
OK, I'm not questioning your capabilities, but just how many projects can you juggle? Seven?

I mean, it's not like he's gonna work on all of them at the same time. Nobody works on the same stuff for that long.


Going back to the topic at hand, I'm really looking forward to this. I wonder what'll happen to the dino stuff.
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Vorsa Jan 2 2016, 10:34 AM Post #5
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Mysterious tundra-dwelling humanoid
* * * * * *
Martin
Jan 2 2016, 10:11 AM
Quote:
 
OK, I'm not questioning your capabilities, but just how many projects can you juggle? Seven?

I mean, it's not like he's gonna work on all of them at the same time. Nobody works on the same stuff for that long.


Going back to the topic at hand, I'm really looking forward to this. I wonder what'll happen to the dino stuff.
Technically, Sheather can have as many projects as he likes.

Well we already know from Eden that the 'resurrected' species aren't allowed out of the places they're kept due to the cost of making them and possible effects (unless this is different now). However, if I remember correctly there were gliding cats in this so I'm interested to see how feral animals have adapted to the cities.
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Birbs

"you are about to try that on a species that clawed its way to the top of a 4 billion year deep corpse pile of evolution. one that has committed the genocide you are contemplating several times already. they are the pinnacle of intelligence-based survival techniques and outnumber you 7 billion to 1" - humans vs machine
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LittleLazyLass Jan 2 2016, 10:47 AM Post #6
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Proud quilt in a bag
Snowman
Jan 2 2016, 10:00 AM
Myo
Jan 1 2016, 10:40 PM
Or did we actually kill The Last Dinosaur?

Also, I assume from the text that this world is the same timeline as Eden? So that's three projects in one universe, cool.
Sheather has talked about having a way to tie all his projects together in the same universe in the skype chat before, but this is the first time we've seen it on the forum. So you're not wrong.

With that being said, I can't wait to see what you have in store for Terra Metropolis,
Well, it wouldn't be to hard to fit in The Last Dinosaur or Sheatheria in here. Serina might work to, even.
totally not British, b-baka!
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I don't even really like this song that much but the title is pretty relatable sometimes, I guess.
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Sheather Jan 2 2016, 01:32 PM Post #7
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 The reboot of the short-lived Terra Metropolis is the extended universe of the alternate Earth in which The Last Dinosaur, Eden / World of Gaian Advance, and Life of the Sylvan Islands are set. This particular aspect of the world is several centuries beyond the 5 year scope so far presented (years 2115- 2120), and rather than a future evolution scenario of our world, it is the future of the world thereby established. This world is differentiated from ours in that dinosaurs did not naturally die out until 14 million years BC and aesthetically, design aspects of such man-made things as vehicles more closely resembled those of the early 21st century for considerably longer; modern, rounded, "futuristic" designs like are popular in cars today were later on the scene and did not take off as readily, though this is a relatively minor detail. In the established progression of time, genetic engineering massively overhauled much of our world in the late 21st and through the 22nd century and our race as a whole had begun to lessen its destructive impact on the world by this time after a relatively dismal start to the 21st century which we, in our time line, would be in the beginning of today. This is not to say that the world has been a perfect utopia since the 22nd century but the progression has been more positive than negative compared to our impact throughout the age of oil.

The new Terra Metropolis combines aspects of its predecessor and the since-developed world of the Eden universe, a future where man and nature live in a relative balance equal parts wild and domestic. It's a strange yet oddly beautiful world, a true urban ecosystem of strange and wonderful creatures. Some life had no trouble adapting to the spread of human civilization on their own - encouraged or despised - while others, unsuited in their natural form and otherwise threatened with extinction were - in compromise - molded minimally or sometimes greatly to fit the new world by man himself. The beginnings of Terra Metropolis lie weaved through the stories in the world's other relevant threads, but they don't tell the whole story, and need not for their respective purposes. Though the Eden project focuses somewhat on the outer world building aspect of its universe, it is fundamentally dedicated to the presentation of GaianAdvance's most famous Paleo-Zoological Park, famous for being the first major example of artificially-engineered organisms that could be considered functional and self-replicating. Life of the Sylvan Islands is just that - a documentary of the native and introduced plants and animals of the unique albeit fictional Sylvan Islands which exist north of Australia in the Eden universe but not our own (another difference, but not one too vital in the big scheme of the world).) The Last Dinosaur is a very early prequel - though overall, it is an offshoot of the Eden universe with the least immediate relevance for the time being, since not that much so far has been produced for it. The Last Dinosaur is alternative evolution vs. absolute paleontology spec, since it did not happen in the world we live in (even though the world in which it did, despite these discrepancies, does develop along very similar lines.)

Sheatheria and Serina may or may not be relevant to the same universe, but even if they were, they are worlds still unknown to man. They can though be considered canon in the same world as one another. They are both more fantastical than my other speculative biology projects and don't mesh well.

Sam isn't relevant to anything else I post and is hardly a project, just a bit of fun for everyone.
Posted Image
The Gaiaverse

| Eden | Terra Metropolis | Life of the Sylvan Islands |

Other Spec Evo

| Sheatheria | Serina | The Last Dinosaur

A Wholesome and Good Thing

| Sam |
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LittleLazyLass Jan 2 2016, 02:22 PM Post #8
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Proud quilt in a bag

 Now I'll just let the scale of all that sink in, it's really quite magnificent.
totally not British, b-baka!
Posted Image You like me (Unlike)
I don't even really like this song that much but the title is pretty relatable sometimes, I guess.
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Archeoraptor Jan 2 2016, 02:26 PM Post #9
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"A living paradox"
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I would like to see what do you do with geckos and lizards they adatp very well to small cities
Astarte an alt eocene world,now on long hiatus but you never know
Fanauraa; The rebirth of Aotearoa future evo set in new zealand after a mass extinction
coming soon......a world that was seeded with earth´s weridest
and who knows what is coming next...........

" I have to know what the world will be looking throw a future beyond us
I have to know what could have been if fate acted in another way
I have to know what lies on the unknown universe
I have to know that the laws of thee universe can be broken
throw The Spec I gain strength to the inner peace
the is not good of evil only nature and change,the evolution of all livings beings"
"
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Sheather Jan 2 2016, 02:32 PM Post #10
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 It's also taken until now that I feel I've progressed artistically to a point where I can conceivably represent how I envisioned this world relatively well. A big issue that ultimately killed the first Terra Metropolis was that, at the time, I just couldn't illustrate the urban environment.
Posted Image
The Gaiaverse

| Eden | Terra Metropolis | Life of the Sylvan Islands |

Other Spec Evo

| Sheatheria | Serina | The Last Dinosaur

A Wholesome and Good Thing

| Sam |
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malicious-monkey Jan 2 2016, 02:43 PM Post #11
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Spec Ops
* * * * * * * *
Quote:
 
I mean, it's not like he's gonna work on all of them at the same time. Nobody works on the same stuff for that long.

Eh he he he

Posted Image

Quote:
 
Well we already know from Eden that the 'resurrected' species aren't allowed out of the places they're kept due to the cost of making them and possible effects (unless this is different now).

Didn't stop Yi qi.

Myo
Jan 2 2016, 02:22 PM
Now I'll just let the scale of all that sink in, it's really quite magnificent.

I agree, this is one of the most ambitious metaprojects I've seen done by one person, and you pull it off well.
Edited by malicious-monkey, Jan 2 2016, 02:43 PM.
"My recommendation would be to just draw things now and draw good things later." - Nanotyranus

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revin Jan 2 2016, 03:10 PM Post #12
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Leonardo da Vinci at his finest
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Okay, so The Last Dinosaur is alternate, though with a minimal effect split. I would agree that a dinosaur surviving in Antarctica probably will not lead to a major butterfly effect.
I tend to get dis– Hey, look, an elephant!
Potentially an elephant


Fire into Ice, a project about life on a rogue planet ejected from our own Solar System. Check it out!

My spec evo YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/speculativeevolution

With personal experience as a raven, I am a major proponent of conserving all corvid species at all costs. Save the endangered Mariana crow here.

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Sheather Jan 2 2016, 03:27 PM Post #13
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 It probably would in reality, but doesn't here.

In the early to mid 22nd century, GaianAdvance is massively popular and extremely large, and though they've done a lot more, their recreated "dinosaurs" are probably their biggest claim to popularity and wealth, and why wouldn't they be? To the public, they've brought back an entire clade - one famous in pop culture at that - from the dead! Even though the animals produced are in fact only realistic, speculative copies, they are still an incredible scientific feat as living, breathing, and reproducing animals, the first to come entirely from man's tinkerings rather than natural evolutionary process. They're amazing! The world flocks to see them.

But realistically, that isn't going to last forever. For sure they'd probably always have visitors, but eventually - especially as the company expands its parks across the world and competitors arise - dinosaurs and sabre-toothed cats become the new elephants and zebras. They lose the novelty that made them so popular and so subsequently valuable. It's been five hundred years since the opening day of Eden and the park as we know has been gone for some time, its parent company dividing and evolving across many generations of ownership. Maybe something remains as a relic or it transitioned into something entirely new. However, once the 'dinosaurs' lose their novelty, they're going to gradually become more available, first through other zoos and eventually maybe even into private ownership. Five hundred years to the day after the grand opening of GaianAdvance's pride and joy, quite a few of its formerly-prized organisms have trickled down through the system to the point where they are so commonplace they have naturalized, adapted over dozens of generations without human management, and integrated themselves into the new ecosystem for so long that nobody thinks much of them at all. Obviously Tyrannosaurus rex isn't among them, but there would prove some very adaptable survivors that can today still hark back their ancestry to the historic zoo in the Sylvans - not to mention the countless animals produced directly by the company and later competitors for domestic ownership, be they commercial or companion.
Posted Image
The Gaiaverse

| Eden | Terra Metropolis | Life of the Sylvan Islands |

Other Spec Evo

| Sheatheria | Serina | The Last Dinosaur

A Wholesome and Good Thing

| Sam |
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LittleLazyLass Jan 2 2016, 03:34 PM Post #14
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Proud quilt in a bag

 So Terra Metropolis - now with 100% more dinosaurs!
totally not British, b-baka!
Posted Image You like me (Unlike)
I don't even really like this song that much but the title is pretty relatable sometimes, I guess.
Me
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malicious-monkey Jan 2 2016, 03:37 PM Post #15
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Spec Ops
* * * * * * * *
I'm interested to see if those intelligent African Greys come into play.
"My recommendation would be to just draw things now and draw good things later." - Nanotyranus

Ilion: an illustrated tour of a tidally locked planet
Spoiler: click to toggle

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