YVVO's lifespan and life events
Nomenclature:
"A year" refers to a year on Earth as you know it. It's composed with 365 days of 24 hours.
A day on Bothea is equal to 48h (approx 24 hours of day and 24 hours of night - daylight can increase or decrease depending on the season and where they live on Bothea, poles having less daylight than equator.)
"A cycle" refers to how YVVOs count their time and age. It's equivalent to approximately 5 years on Earth.
Learn more about the time passing on Bothea on the time page.
(As usual, any picture here can be used for free in your YVVO projects. These AI generated images are "ethical" (didn't steal artworks,) read why in the rules!)
"A year" refers to a year on Earth as you know it. It's composed with 365 days of 24 hours.
A day on Bothea is equal to 48h (approx 24 hours of day and 24 hours of night - daylight can increase or decrease depending on the season and where they live on Bothea, poles having less daylight than equator.)
"A cycle" refers to how YVVOs count their time and age. It's equivalent to approximately 5 years on Earth.
Learn more about the time passing on Bothea on the time page.
(As usual, any picture here can be used for free in your YVVO projects. These AI generated images are "ethical" (didn't steal artworks,) read why in the rules!)
Yevat
If Yevatem can die of age, it's often a rare occurence. Most often, Bothea's whims will take a Yevat's life before one can reach a very old age. Bad falls, Varveleilem and other natural predators, valisem attacks, hunting accidents, deep wounds, dangerous fungi... Living on Bothea rarely is a peaceful life, and the dangers are many! Given the good conditons, however, the oldest Yevatem ever seen had reached 200 cycles old - an equivalent of 1000 years old! The most important thing to keep in mind is that Yevatem live longer than humans, but also need more time to grow up and to reach adulthood.
Lifespan Ideyevat (baby) > 0 to 1 cycle old (0 to 5 years old) Deyevat (child / teenager) > 1 to 5~7 cycles old (5 to 25~35 years old) Young adult > 5~7 to 20 cycles old (30 to 100 years old) Mature adult > 20 to 180 cycles old (100 to 900 years old) Old > 180 cycles and more - 900 years old and more Adulting - Between their cycle 2 and cycle 3 (10 - 15 years old,) children will develop their Rokyevat teeth. They're wider than their regular teeth, and they'll remain present (unable to retract) until their first rokyevat transformation. - Between their cycle 4 and cycle 6 (20 - 30 years old,) children will progressively start walking on two legs instead of four. They're considered as teenagers. - Between their cycle 5 and cycle 7 (25 - 35 years old,) teenagers will transform into their Rokyevat form for the first time. From this point, the Yevat will be able to reproduce. |
A Yevat will be considered as an adult by his peers when he'll have his Rokyevat form unlocked and he'll walk on two legs. One event can come before the other (either walking on two legs, either unlocking the Rokyevat form), it only depends on the Yevat. But the two elements are required to consider a Yevat as an adult. It usually happens around cycle 6, but can also happen slightly before or after (at cycle 5 or 7)* depending on a Yevat's maturity or needs.
*Many people have been seen writing that their Yevat is 18 years old. Most of time it's people who didn't read this part of the lore, but still consider their character as an adult, according to human years. These characters will be considered as adults nonetheless, please don't create a drama with someone who simply didn't read the full lore! (We have many pages ahah, I can't blame them.) As long as the user states that their character is an adult, and that the character in question doesn't look like a child, it's all good.
*Many people have been seen writing that their Yevat is 18 years old. Most of time it's people who didn't read this part of the lore, but still consider their character as an adult, according to human years. These characters will be considered as adults nonetheless, please don't create a drama with someone who simply didn't read the full lore! (We have many pages ahah, I can't blame them.) As long as the user states that their character is an adult, and that the character in question doesn't look like a child, it's all good.
Celebrated life events
Yevatem don't celebrate their birthday, nor do they have events like Halloween or Christmas. Instead, they have their own reasons to celebrate. Each of these events might lead to a party, including more or less Yevatem. Sometimes, these are celebrated within the family only, sometimes with the whole town or city.
Small parties often look like a day filled with dances and chants around a fire, with a lot of food and crafted gifts on the table. Big parties often involve the whole town or city. It'll include everything from the small parties, and more: they'll also have sessions of bodypainting, they'll paint an decorate the town, they'll play musical instruments, and they'll organize hunting sessions. An egg! - Fertility rate tends to be low among Yevatem. Every egg is celebrated by the parents (all of them), and the town's people may give presents as well! Parents will tend to engrave a Velilyevat or a wing symbol on the egg, hoping to have a winged baby. Did the egg crack? - The baby is here! A baby Yevat hatching will be celebrated between parents only. Parents tend to be really protective with their baby. They'll give the baby its first food: it'll be the parents' favourite food that they chewed before (because newborns don't have teeth yet, but they can eat everything from birth as longs as it's soft or liquid.) First teeth! (Baby) - The first teeth appear several weeks or months after birth. The parents don't have to chew the food for their baby anymore, so they celebrate it! |
First Rokyevat teeth! (Child) - Rokyevat teeth are big, and as long as they grow, children can't retract them, giving them a funny face. In several cycles, they will develop their Rokyevat form as well, and will finally be able to retract their teeth. But between time, it's crooked teeth all day! It's the direct equivalent of acne pimples on a human teenager's face... To celebrate, the family and friends can offer various fruits, roots, and toys to chew on, to help with the gum pain of teeth growing.
Are we a bipedal species? (Teenager) - The spine of a Yevat takes some time to fully develop. They walk on all four until, during a month or two in their life, this position will not be comfortable anymore. One day, the Yevat will realize that it's best to walk on their hind legs only; it will mean that the spine has finished its growth, and that adulting is near! This can be celebrated in a party with all the loved ones.
First time turning fully in Rokyevat! (Teenager) - Children keep their rokyevat teeth for cycles before they can finally turn into a Rokyevat, and finally retract their teeth. The Rokyevat form will be triggered by a crisis: anger, frustration, wound, life endangered, etc. It will be fully deployed to answer a specific emotional state. It's said that the first transformation is the most important one, since it'll shape how the concerned Yevat feels about it. When the Yevat's back to normal, this experience is celebrated.
Are we a bipedal species? (Teenager) - The spine of a Yevat takes some time to fully develop. They walk on all four until, during a month or two in their life, this position will not be comfortable anymore. One day, the Yevat will realize that it's best to walk on their hind legs only; it will mean that the spine has finished its growth, and that adulting is near! This can be celebrated in a party with all the loved ones.
First time turning fully in Rokyevat! (Teenager) - Children keep their rokyevat teeth for cycles before they can finally turn into a Rokyevat, and finally retract their teeth. The Rokyevat form will be triggered by a crisis: anger, frustration, wound, life endangered, etc. It will be fully deployed to answer a specific emotional state. It's said that the first transformation is the most important one, since it'll shape how the concerned Yevat feels about it. When the Yevat's back to normal, this experience is celebrated.
First prey hunt with the pack! (Teenager) - Even if a Yevat doesn't want to become a hunter, one should know what a hunt looks like, and one should know such skills. Knowing how to prey on animals and to feed oneself is considered as a vital skill. It's also considered as some kind of 'rite of passage,' used to officially include someone in the community (teenagers often are too shy to blend with adults, before they're forcefully included in these hunting sessions.) It allows them to meet people they might have not met otherwise, and it give them the value of working for a community by bringing food back for everyone. That's why, during these specific hunting sessions, the hunters strictly refuse to come back empty-handed. They can leave for days to make sure that the lesson is transmitted to the yougling.
It's however rarer in the big cities, as Yevatem will more tend to learn their parent's skills instead. It's still celebrated by hunters in these cities, but it tends to be forgotten by others. First prey hunt alone! (Young adult) - Once a Yevat has learnt how to hunt in pack, they're reay to hunt alone for the town. They might not talk about it, but will come back some day with a big prey to feed their people. The bigger the prey, the more people can celebrate it! However, it may be a risky experience, as Bothea is a dangerous planet. Some young adults never come back from their trip to find a prey. Any mean can be used to kill the prey and to bring it back to the community, from the blunt attack to more refined traps. First wound! (which will lead to a scar) (Anytime) - Ouch, that surely was a bad wound, but the Yevat made it and survived! Now, they know what pain really feels like. The experience will leave a definitive trace of its passage on their skin. They're now ready to face every of Bothea's challenges! Generally, the whole town celebrates, or close ones for large cities. It often happens quite young, but sometimes, a Yevat can be spared for a long time before getting their first scar. If one could feel shame by celebrating it at an old age, it's generally not mocked anyway. |
You're hired (Adult) - Whenever Yevatem understand what job they want to make to participate in their community, they do small celebrations. These are mostly between the circle of workers with the same job. It can be reproduced every time a Yevat changes of activity. It's important for them: as they live in a society with no currency, but only trading good and services, acquiring skills is important to live with others, and not as an hermit.
Ten achievements (Anytime) - Yevatem tend to remember their successes pretty well. When they accomplished enough personal successes to be able to add one on each of their fingers, they celebrate it with the whole town (or close ones in large cities.) Each success is personal and can vary a lot. This event is called the "ketsadezlatysunem," or "dezlatysunem," which simply means "event of the ten successes." To prepare for this event, the concerned Yevat will write a glyph representing each success on the pulp of each of their finger. Then, people will gather around them, and they'll announce and explain each of their successes in front of the crowd by raising their fingers one by one. This celebration is mostly made to encourage and reward Yevatem to grow as a person, and to accomplish old goals and dreams. If a Yevat misses one of several fingers on their hands, they're allowed to cheat and to count less achievements for this event, as it's considered that lacking fingers can be a handicap to accomplish things.
It can be repeated every time a Yevat gathers ten achievements. Young adult's first achievements are often the ones listed previously on this page, but here are other examples:
- When a Yevat deerly wanted to learn a skill, and finally made it possible (like singing, for example)
- When a Yevat finally beat a deep sadness that pushed them to inaction for a long time
- When a Yevat built, or had built, the home of their dream
- When a Yevat successfully raise a child to adulthood, and is proud of it
- etc. If it's meaningful for the Yevat, then it counts.
In love (Adult) - Every time a Yevat falls in love (may it be with one or several partners) and that it's reciprocal, they now form a "masga," a couple (although the translation of "couple" is incorrect, since it can be composed with more than 2 Yevatem.) The lovers celebrate by spending time alone, isolated from their community (sometimes even travelling far away,) to practice every kind of lover activities. It's a little like a honeymoon! Weither one of the concerned Yevat has an uterus or not, they'll probably try to make babies!
In love for life (Adult) - Whenever a relationship reaches a full cycle (approx 5 years), it's said that the love is real, and is suited to last a whole life. (Just like for humans, many couple can shatter before reaching 5 years long.) Many Yevatem won't consider a relationship as being serious before a whole cycle has passed. If they're still together by this time, all the involved partners of a relationship will then isolate, and take time to speak about their relationship. They say what the relationship has given them, and how it has changed them (for the good, or the bad.) They speak about what they learnt with the other(s) and what joys and pains they may have caused to each other. They speak about how to meliorate their relationship, and how to become, together, better persons. They make plans for the future. If an egg has been laid between-time, then they'll speak of their child too. Then, they often reproduce a honeymoon to spend time together (leaving their child(ren) with the community when the kid(s) is old enough to speak.) When they've done this, they can now officially be called a "logamasga," a long-time couple/relationship.
Everything eventually comes to an end (Death) - Unfortunately, everything that is made of flesh eventually dies, and the ones who stay must mourn. Yevatem don't bury bodies, they have a special ritual for their dead: First, they prepare the body, make it as pretty as possible in neat outfits and jewelry the Yevat used to own and love. Then, they carry the body to an Ovskrud: a deep cemetery lake, which the bottom of can't be seen. The body is weighted down with sand or rocks and is left to drown with the others. It disappears into the black waters (a "death fungi" colors the water that way) while Yevatem say "Bothea desirehemae ve," "May you feed Bothea," with a hand movement.
After this event, Yevatem will carve the dead Yevat's glyph (if they had one) on trees or stones so the world remember them. They might dance or stay quiet, but they'll all pray so the soul of the deceased reaches the Primordial Yevat, the Otimsaal.
"It's a dark night. The sky is heavy, and we can't see the stars. We set up big fires everywhere in the town to light it up. Earlier in the day, we all painted our bodies. We all used a lot of coal and bone power, to have the colors of death. We painted our faces with mourn. The eldest Velilyevat of our town died today, believing she could fly again. Her wings were too heavy, and lacked muscles and practice. We covered her body with her favourite jewerely, then we threw her in the Ovskrud, the sanctuary lake. Yevat has chosen to take her back in his soul, and Bothea will feed on her flesh. She had a long life. She took care of us for many cycles. This night, we are all going to dance. We will carry her to the Yevat's soul and make sure that she hears us."
Ten achievements (Anytime) - Yevatem tend to remember their successes pretty well. When they accomplished enough personal successes to be able to add one on each of their fingers, they celebrate it with the whole town (or close ones in large cities.) Each success is personal and can vary a lot. This event is called the "ketsadezlatysunem," or "dezlatysunem," which simply means "event of the ten successes." To prepare for this event, the concerned Yevat will write a glyph representing each success on the pulp of each of their finger. Then, people will gather around them, and they'll announce and explain each of their successes in front of the crowd by raising their fingers one by one. This celebration is mostly made to encourage and reward Yevatem to grow as a person, and to accomplish old goals and dreams. If a Yevat misses one of several fingers on their hands, they're allowed to cheat and to count less achievements for this event, as it's considered that lacking fingers can be a handicap to accomplish things.
It can be repeated every time a Yevat gathers ten achievements. Young adult's first achievements are often the ones listed previously on this page, but here are other examples:
- When a Yevat deerly wanted to learn a skill, and finally made it possible (like singing, for example)
- When a Yevat finally beat a deep sadness that pushed them to inaction for a long time
- When a Yevat built, or had built, the home of their dream
- When a Yevat successfully raise a child to adulthood, and is proud of it
- etc. If it's meaningful for the Yevat, then it counts.
In love (Adult) - Every time a Yevat falls in love (may it be with one or several partners) and that it's reciprocal, they now form a "masga," a couple (although the translation of "couple" is incorrect, since it can be composed with more than 2 Yevatem.) The lovers celebrate by spending time alone, isolated from their community (sometimes even travelling far away,) to practice every kind of lover activities. It's a little like a honeymoon! Weither one of the concerned Yevat has an uterus or not, they'll probably try to make babies!
In love for life (Adult) - Whenever a relationship reaches a full cycle (approx 5 years), it's said that the love is real, and is suited to last a whole life. (Just like for humans, many couple can shatter before reaching 5 years long.) Many Yevatem won't consider a relationship as being serious before a whole cycle has passed. If they're still together by this time, all the involved partners of a relationship will then isolate, and take time to speak about their relationship. They say what the relationship has given them, and how it has changed them (for the good, or the bad.) They speak about what they learnt with the other(s) and what joys and pains they may have caused to each other. They speak about how to meliorate their relationship, and how to become, together, better persons. They make plans for the future. If an egg has been laid between-time, then they'll speak of their child too. Then, they often reproduce a honeymoon to spend time together (leaving their child(ren) with the community when the kid(s) is old enough to speak.) When they've done this, they can now officially be called a "logamasga," a long-time couple/relationship.
Everything eventually comes to an end (Death) - Unfortunately, everything that is made of flesh eventually dies, and the ones who stay must mourn. Yevatem don't bury bodies, they have a special ritual for their dead: First, they prepare the body, make it as pretty as possible in neat outfits and jewelry the Yevat used to own and love. Then, they carry the body to an Ovskrud: a deep cemetery lake, which the bottom of can't be seen. The body is weighted down with sand or rocks and is left to drown with the others. It disappears into the black waters (a "death fungi" colors the water that way) while Yevatem say "Bothea desirehemae ve," "May you feed Bothea," with a hand movement.
After this event, Yevatem will carve the dead Yevat's glyph (if they had one) on trees or stones so the world remember them. They might dance or stay quiet, but they'll all pray so the soul of the deceased reaches the Primordial Yevat, the Otimsaal.
"It's a dark night. The sky is heavy, and we can't see the stars. We set up big fires everywhere in the town to light it up. Earlier in the day, we all painted our bodies. We all used a lot of coal and bone power, to have the colors of death. We painted our faces with mourn. The eldest Velilyevat of our town died today, believing she could fly again. Her wings were too heavy, and lacked muscles and practice. We covered her body with her favourite jewerely, then we threw her in the Ovskrud, the sanctuary lake. Yevat has chosen to take her back in his soul, and Bothea will feed on her flesh. She had a long life. She took care of us for many cycles. This night, we are all going to dance. We will carry her to the Yevat's soul and make sure that she hears us."
Velilyevat
Velilyevatem share the same lifespan as Yevatem. Genetically, their only difference with Yevatem is their pair of wings. Socially, however, it's another story. Velilyevatem have different life events, as they must lead and serve the community. They're raised by older Velilyevatem to learn the ways and duties. The teaching is often made separated from other children and members of the community, for Velilyevatem seldom blend among Yevatem and their usages.
The arrival among the Velilyevat circle (Baby) - If an egg opens on a winged baby, the Velilyevatem of the town will take the baby with them. It's a big event and the whole town have a party! It's considered as one of the greatest honor to have a child joining the leaders, it also says that the child is worth the FATHER's blessing. And who knows? Maybe some day, this child will be the leader of the community, becoming the parent's pride. The status of monk / apprentice (Child/teenager) - The winged children now know how to talk. They're ready to learn how to lead a town, and much, much more... They'll be frequently shaved, losing their hair and horns for humility. Velilyevat or wings symbols will be traced on their body and head during rituals. The status of finished Velilyevat (Young adult) - An important ritual/party between Velilyevatem will occur. The monk will be officially a Velilyevat of the town. He or she will be a member of the council: their opinion will matter and the chief will listen to it. They don't have to shave anymore and can let their hair and horns grow back. At the end of the party between Velilyevatem, they will walk across the whole town in a ritual outfit: Yevatem will sing and throw flower petals to celebrate it. In general, it happens during daytime. If for some reason, it has to happen during the night, an adage says that the Velilyevat will become a tyran. |
The status of town's chief (eventually) (Anytime) - Towns have, in general, several Velilyevatem. One will be the chief, the other ones form a council. When the chief dies/or when he doesn't want to be the chief anymore, a new chief is chosen by the council. In general, the oldest Velilyevat will be picked for that role, as he's considered wise. But if a Velilyevat, even young, has proven many times that he/she/they makes good decisions and give good advices, they'll be chosen instead. Once a Velilyevat is chosen to be the new chief, the biggest party will animate the whole town: music, songs, bigs hunts, bodypaintings, etc. will happen during several days in a row. The new chief will be admired, sitting on a high place and visible to all, wearing a ritual outfit.
Varveleil
If old Varveleilem have been witnessed, it's impossible to say how long they can live. Surely they can die of age or wounds, since they have cemeteries in the dead lands, but it's rare to see one dying. Most of time, a Varveleil will die because another Varveleil killed or hurt another too heavily.
A good bet would be to say that they can live as long as Yevatem, so up to 200 cycles old - approx 1 000 years old. However, they seem to reach their adult size faster than Yevatem. The dragons often lay one egg per reproduction, but can also lay two quite often, or three more rarely. Lifespan Baby > 0 to 0.5 cycle old (0 to 2/3 years old) Child / teenager > 1 to 4 cycles old (5 to 20 years old) Young adult > 4 to 30 cycles old (20 to 150 years old) Mature adult > 30 to 180 cycles old (150 to 900 years old) Old > 180 cycles and more - 900 years old and more |
Adulting
- Varveleilem will learn to breathe their fire or acid several months after birth, and will play a lot with their new ability.
- After half a cycle (approx 2 or 3 years old,) their wings are big enough to learn how to fly. During this period, they'll spend most of their time and physical energy trying to learn how to fly, and will need to eat a lot. They'll also crash a lot when learning how to land, and the process can be dangerous to them.
- Their iridescent reproductive wings doesn't produce hormones until they're 4 cycles old (young adult.)
- After they start producing reproductive hormones, they gain a better control of their reproductive wings, and their parents will leave the nest foverer. Their parents will never come back in the nest, and will give their territory to their child(ren).
- Varveleilem will learn to breathe their fire or acid several months after birth, and will play a lot with their new ability.
- After half a cycle (approx 2 or 3 years old,) their wings are big enough to learn how to fly. During this period, they'll spend most of their time and physical energy trying to learn how to fly, and will need to eat a lot. They'll also crash a lot when learning how to land, and the process can be dangerous to them.
- Their iridescent reproductive wings doesn't produce hormones until they're 4 cycles old (young adult.)
- After they start producing reproductive hormones, they gain a better control of their reproductive wings, and their parents will leave the nest foverer. Their parents will never come back in the nest, and will give their territory to their child(ren).
Oyevat
Oyevat statistics are biased, if not unknown. Since they're able to clone themselves and to transfer their mental matrice from a point to another, even without a body, it's estimated that all of the current ones are older than the events of the Long Night itself. In other words, they are all millions of cycles old, and seem immortal. No child has been witnessed, and it's heavily probable that new ones are simply created in tubes and born in their adult size, with a pre-programmed thinking micro-ship in their mind. Although, they were doing this way when they had the technology to do like this - nowadays they simply don't reproduce anymore (or yet) and simply try to "resurrect" the old ones.