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somebody's BUGGING me... — Description
i drew this a while ago, but didn't have the internet to post it -_-
but hey, ya'll get two posts in a day, eh? XD
anyway, Queen Chrysalis!!
I was, of course, inspired by insects, namely the praying mantis and scorpion. I also used a bit of rhinoceros beetle, in her horn specifically. I wanted her to be tall and thin, lanky, with segmented limbs, strongly inspired by my main inspo, the praying mantis. I also loved turnipBerry 's interpretation, namely the enormous buggy tail they gave her, and I had to nab the idea >w< I decided to get rid of the holes in her body for the most part, because although it is a cool design element (that I kept in a few small spaces) I don't really see the need for the holes. I always try to look at practicality, as well, when it comes to my designs, and the holes seemed kind of useless. I might change this later, I'm not sure yet.
I will admit that her design is all over the place. I like her colors, but the design overall is a bit wishy-washy. I might have to redo it later.
anyway
she's one of my favorite villains. they didn't give her a lot of development, like at all, which was unfortunate, because there was a lot to be done with her character! I have some headcanons of my own, about her and the former primitive changelings.
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Queen Chrysalis is the former leader of a primitive kingdom of Changelings, an insect-like pony hybrid that mostly resides in the swampy areas of Equestria. She is a rare queen morph, of which each hive possesses only one, and she remains as the only surviving changeling queen of the original Dark Changelings (their darker, more primitive colors, as all changelings possessed before the metamorphosis of King Thorax).
Queen Chrysalis (or simply Chrysalis, as she lost her official title as queen) is quite old. She is not nearly as old as her common rival, Princess Celestia, or her sister, Princess Luna, but she is still quite old when compared to the common pony. It is unknown how old she truly is, but she is believed to be little more than a century in age, likely more than that. It is thought that her anti-aging ability is derived from her diet and lifestyle; she feeds off of large quantities of love, from any species, and has been primarily secluded in her hive for the majority of her life, minimalizing the risk of injury or death.
Like all changelings, Chrysalis relies on a diet of love to survive. Changelings are actually rather psychically connected to those around them, and it is believed that they gather love through the psychic connections that ponies (and other species, too) share with their loved ones. Changelings can break into this connection and feed off of the love it generates, using their ability to shift their appearance at will, namely into the loved one(s) of their targets. The recent metamorphosis of the changelings as a species has severely reduced the need for this, as they are now more welcome than ever into common Equestrian society. However, a select few rogue changelings, many of which have sided with their former queen, still rely on their shape-shifting and deception to gain love from their targets. Though changelings can eat physical things (they are omnivorous, though mostly tilting towards the vegetarian side), the nutrients they derive from the earth pale in comparison to those they gain from consuming love. Changelings can store love in their semi-transparent, rubbery stomachs in case of a shortage or when travelling, and will consume plants and other vegetation when in dire need of food.
It is mostly unknown how changelings came to be, or rather, how they evolved into what they are. They have evolved for so long, that they have their own personal blood type, though pony blood can be found in almost all changelings. What it is changelings are a mix of, we are unsure. Many suspect that the changelings evolved from common ponies, or their ancestors, to adapt to their environment, though it is unknown what kind of environmental changes would force them to evolve in an insect-like direction. They are thought to be distantly related to the Kirin and Umbrum, all of which are closely bound in blood, and even Batponies at their outermost edges, though this has yet to be proven.
Not all changelings have magic. There is a hierarchy of changelings, and only the highest-born are bred with magic. Changelings formerly would closely monitor those who bred with one another, to keep the hierarchy pure and give magic to only those who were born into it. However, changeling breeding has become significantly more relaxed since the metamorphosis of King Thorax. Queen Chrysalis is thought to be the only changeling alive to possess magic powerful enough to rival that of an alicorn (when fully charged; Chrysalis had been gorging on love for longer than a week at the time of her and Celestia's battle, and had more than enough love to strengthen her magic. She defeated Celestia only barely).
The queen changeling morph is of unbelievably pure blood. A queen was originally only born every three hundred years, perhaps more sparse than that even. Chrysalis is thought to be the last of the pure-blooded queens. New queens can be born, and they inevitably will be, to inherit the changeling throne, but Chrysalis is the only remaining Dark Changeling queen. All recent queens will be born in the new 'Changedling' morph.
The 'Changedlings' are astoundingly colorful when compared to their previous, darker counterparts, and can generate their own love, therefore eliminating the need to steal it from others. It is thought to be the next step in their evolution. It appears that changelings evolve through metamorphosis, as there have been very few metamorphosis in their species' history, all of which have been lost to time.
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that's all of the big stuff I have right now
I have some smaller points, tho!
- changelings cannot change their appearance indefinitely. it takes energy, most of which they gain from the love they consume.
- Thorax's magic is equal to that of an alicorn, though it is tranferred a little differently (through his 'antlers', rather than his horn).
- magic is now common among changelings, and they can use their horns to cast spells, just like unicorns can (royalty use their antlers). however, most changelings don't use their magic, as they are unused to it.
- changelings do not have foals, as ponies do. instead, they have grubs, that metamorphize into their teen years, and then shed to grow, as tarantulas do.
- (stemming from the previous point) shedding can take hours, and usually leaves behind a tight, sticky, nasty exoskeleton behind. changeling exoskeletons are a rare, high-priced ingredient used in invisibility and skin-changing potions.
- Chrysalis' hair is not...hair XD it's some kind of rubbery keratin thing. idk. but it's not hair. Changelings are incapable of growing hair.
- she wears that tiny crown out of spite XD its a mockery of the enormous, decorative crown that the princesses wear, showing that she cares less about fancy, shiny things, but is just as royal as they are. in truth it just looks odd on her XD
- it is unknown whether Chrysalis can metamorphize into a Changedling. it is likely that she can, but she simply refuses to.
- she is not eternally trapped in stone in my universe. she remains free, and eventually integrates herself back into changeling society, and becomes a common citizen, but she refuses to switch over, much like Pharynx's situation (except it drags on forever). Thorax has a hell of a time reforming her on his own. it takes Spike to truly set her straight, and even then it takes forever. she is a very stubborn gal.
- she eventually has a small brood of triplets, each with a different father, mostly to make herself more comfortable and at home in an alien world (she spent much of her time caring after the grubs during the good old days). their refs come later :3
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that's about all I got XD
Queen Chrysalis belongs to Hasbro
Art belongs to me