HOME | DD

Description
Name: Chelydra
Aliases: The Sixth Sense, Shell-Hydra
Pronounced: (Shell-eye-drah)
Faction: Rogue — The Swamp Monsters
Alignment: Neutral

Classification: Chelydra serpentina
Length: 1,065 feet
Height: 360 feet (main head)
Weight: 1,250 tons

Weaponry / Abilities:

Bolt-Cutter Beak:
Chelydra’s most powerful weapon is his massive, self-sharpening beak. Powered by enormous jaw muscles, the turtle’s bite one of the most powerful of any kaiju. The protruding tusks in his lower jaw only make his bite more formidable.

Sledgehammer Tail:
Chelydra’s tail is rather long and muscular. Used mainly for counterbalancing his head and neck, it’s also useful for crushing and battering his enemies.

Serrated Half-Shells:
Chelydra’s shell doesn’t completely cover his body. Far too large to need such a defense, his shell has shrunk to the point of only covering his shoulders and thighs. The remaining shell protects his secondary heads and acts as an attachment point for his neck’s heavy muscles. His thighs are covered by a plate-like carapace rimmed with flat triangular spikes.

Ironsides:
As with any large turtle, Chelydra’s pleated hide is rather heavy. Underlain by a mesh-like array of bony plates, the kaiju’s already thick skin is rendered practically impenetrable by slashing weapons. Four particularly large osteoderms sprout from near the end of his tail, and serve a similar function to the tail clubs of many advanced ankylosaurs: a brutal bludgeoning weapon.

Amphibious:
Being a snapping turtle, Chelydra is equally comfortable – and formidable – either on land or in the water. Able to hold his breath for nearly two hours, he can switch between the two elements quickly and fluidly. Chelydra is tolerant of freshwater, brackish water, and saltwater.

Sheer Size:
Thanks to his immense size and reinforced barrel-like torso, Chelydra merely shifting his weight can throw opponents off their feet, allowing his intended blows to literally send his foes flying.

Hydra:
Chelydra’s most notable feature is his additional heads and neck – six of them, to be exact. Smaller, leaner, and less armored than his primary head, these secondary heads are subservient to it and function essentially like arms. With them he can seize, grapple, and even throw his enemies.

Sixth Sense:
Due to having seven fully functional heads instead of one, Chelydra’s sensory range is increased exponentially. Fully able to see, hear, smell, feel, and taste with his six secondary heads, the kaiju can detect distant stimuli and respond accordingly, or examine objects and places too small or too inaccessible otherwise.

Weaknesses:

Heavyweight:
Due to his enormous size and weight, Chelydra is a noticeably slow mover. Lumbering across the battlefield, he can easily be outmaneuvered.

Personality:
Everything Chelydra does is done slowly; preferring to wallow and sleep rather than be active, Chelydra is difficult to motivate, even by his fellow Swamp Monsters. Not much bothers him, and it’s not like he has anywhere to be.

Combat Strategy:
Chelydra is a slow but surprisingly vindictive combatant. Ground shaking as he advances, he will initially lunge out from a distance with his six secondary heads, attempting to grapple and reel foes closer to his flesh-cleaving beak. Chelydra relies on his massive shell segments and his armored skin for protection. When even he can’t defeat a rival on his own, Chelydra will emit a loud gurgling roar, calling out for aid from his Swamp Monster comrades.

History:

Late September, 1998.

Residents all along the American Gulf Coast were battening down their valuables as a vast Category-4 storm, dubbed Hurricane Georges, lazily approached from the Gulf of Mexico. Having passed through at least six island countries already, the massive hurricane showed little sign of slowing down as it neared the east Louisiana coast.

The threat of the storm had forced boaters from the water by the hundreds of thousands, leaving the gulf itself barren of human life. With no one around to report a sighting, four enormous underwater objects trailing directly beneath the hurricane’s cloak of rainclouds went…unnoticed.

--------------------

Even as Hurricane Georges was running on fumes an entire state away in western Mississippi, formerly vibrant towns and cities in Louisiana continued to become burning wastelands. The coastal city of New Orleans, despite having survived the hurricane relatively intact, was the first of many to fall. Whatever this unknown force of destruction was, its path seemed to be following that of Hurricane Georges, leveling whatever manmade structures the storm had left standing in its wake. As the last vestiges of Hurricane Georges crept their way through Alabama and Georgia on September 29th, the four unseen sources of devastation followed from the ground beneath the storm, well aware that their cover was fading and fading fast.

--------------------------------------------------

Artist's Commentary:
This is DOD’s polycephalic sauropod-turtle, Chelydra. Back in DOD’s infancy, I had unintentionally created four kaiju whose base species can all be found in the Florida Everglades; once I noticed this coincidence, I took the opportunity to group them together as “The Swamp Monsters”. The first of the group I created was Chelydra here, whom I based off of my favorite shelled reptiles: snapping turtles. His name comes from the scientific name of the common snapping turtle, but at the time, it also sounded like “Shell-Hydra”, which inspired the kaiju’s design. Design-wise, Chelydra was originally built like a conventional snapping turtle, but I eventually realized that a retro sauropod-like form would suit his long-reaching capabilities better. Character-wise, I envisioned Chelydra being sluggish, apathetic, and mostly indifferent to the world.

Artistic Notes:
— Chelydra has 5 toes on each front foot, and 4 toes on each back foot. All of his digits are tipped by thick, blunt claws, though the claws on the hindfeet are somewhat larger and bulkier.
— Chelydra’s central head is based on that of the alligator snapping turtle: animal.discovery.com/fansites/… . His secondary heads are based on that of the common snapping turtle: www.chelydra.org/ca_common.jpg .
— Chelydra’s shoulder-mounted shell is based on that of the alligator snapping turtle: upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia… , but his spines are angled more vertically.
— Chelydra’s thigh-mounted shell is vaguely shield-like, with two large spines running down its center; these spines are similar to those along his shoulder-mounted shell. The flat spines around the shell’s edge in the image actually run all the way around the edge, their points facing back.
— The top pair of Chelydra’s secondary heads is positioned directly above the back of his neck, while the two lower pairs are positioned above his shoulders.
— General References:
Overall – upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia… upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia…
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia…

Description
Name: Chelydra
Aliases: The Sixth Sense, Shell-Hydra
Pronounced: (Shell-eye-drah)
Faction: Rogue — The Swamp Monsters
Alignment: Neutral

Classification: Chelydra serpentina
Length: 1,065 feet
Height: 360 feet (main head)
Weight: 1,250 tons

Weaponry / Abilities:

Bolt-Cutter Beak:
Chelydra’s most powerful weapon is his massive, self-sharpening beak. Powered by enormous jaw muscles, the turtle’s bite one of the most powerful of any kaiju. The protruding tusks in his lower jaw only make his bite more formidable.

Sledgehammer Tail:
Chelydra’s tail is rather long and muscular. Used mainly for counterbalancing his head and neck, it’s also useful for crushing and battering his enemies.

Serrated Half-Shells:
Chelydra’s shell doesn’t completely cover his body. Far too large to need such a defense, his shell has shrunk to the point of only covering his shoulders and thighs. The remaining shell protects his secondary heads and acts as an attachment point for his neck’s heavy muscles. His thighs are covered by a plate-like carapace rimmed with flat triangular spikes.

Ironsides:
As with any large turtle, Chelydra’s pleated hide is rather heavy. Underlain by a mesh-like array of bony plates, the kaiju’s already thick skin is rendered practically impenetrable by slashing weapons. Four particularly large osteoderms sprout from near the end of his tail, and serve a similar function to the tail clubs of many advanced ankylosaurs: a brutal bludgeoning weapon.

Amphibious:
Being a snapping turtle, Chelydra is equally comfortable – and formidable – either on land or in the water. Able to hold his breath for nearly two hours, he can switch between the two elements quickly and fluidly. Chelydra is tolerant of freshwater, brackish water, and saltwater.

Sheer Size:
Thanks to his immense size and reinforced barrel-like torso, Chelydra merely shifting his weight can throw opponents off their feet, allowing his intended blows to literally send his foes flying.

Hydra:
Chelydra’s most notable feature is his additional heads and neck – six of them, to be exact. Smaller, leaner, and less armored than his primary head, these secondary heads are subservient to it and function essentially like arms. With them he can seize, grapple, and even throw his enemies.

Sixth Sense:
Due to having seven fully functional heads instead of one, Chelydra’s sensory range is increased exponentially. Fully able to see, hear, smell, feel, and taste with his six secondary heads, the kaiju can detect distant stimuli and respond accordingly, or examine objects and places too small or too inaccessible otherwise.

Weaknesses:

Heavyweight:
Due to his enormous size and weight, Chelydra is a noticeably slow mover. Lumbering across the battlefield, he can easily be outmaneuvered.

Personality:
Everything Chelydra does is done slowly; preferring to wallow and sleep rather than be active, Chelydra is difficult to motivate, even by his fellow Swamp Monsters. Not much bothers him, and it’s not like he has anywhere to be.

Combat Strategy:
Chelydra is a slow but surprisingly vindictive combatant. Ground shaking as he advances, he will initially lunge out from a distance with his six secondary heads, attempting to grapple and reel foes closer to his flesh-cleaving beak. Chelydra relies on his massive shell segments and his armored skin for protection. When even he can’t defeat a rival on his own, Chelydra will emit a loud gurgling roar, calling out for aid from his Swamp Monster comrades.

History:

Late September, 1998.

Residents all along the American Gulf Coast were battening down their valuables as a vast Category-4 storm, dubbed Hurricane Georges, lazily approached from the Gulf of Mexico. Having passed through at least six island countries already, the massive hurricane showed little sign of slowing down as it neared the east Louisiana coast.

The threat of the storm had forced boaters from the water by the hundreds of thousands, leaving the gulf itself barren of human life. With no one around to report a sighting, four enormous underwater objects trailing directly beneath the hurricane’s cloak of rainclouds went…unnoticed.

--------------------

Even as Hurricane Georges was running on fumes an entire state away in western Mississippi, formerly vibrant towns and cities in Louisiana continued to become burning wastelands. The coastal city of New Orleans, despite having survived the hurricane relatively intact, was the first of many to fall. Whatever this unknown force of destruction was, its path seemed to be following that of Hurricane Georges, leveling whatever manmade structures the storm had left standing in its wake. As the last vestiges of Hurricane Georges crept their way through Alabama and Georgia on September 29th, the four unseen sources of devastation followed from the ground beneath the storm, well aware that their cover was fading and fading fast.

--------------------------------------------------

Artist's Commentary:
This is DOD’s polycephalic sauropod-turtle, Chelydra. Back in DOD’s infancy, I had unintentionally created four kaiju whose base species can all be found in the Florida Everglades; once I noticed this coincidence, I took the opportunity to group them together as “The Swamp Monsters”. The first of the group I created was Chelydra here, whom I based off of my favorite shelled reptiles: snapping turtles. His name comes from the scientific name of the common snapping turtle, but at the time, it also sounded like “Shell-Hydra”, which inspired the kaiju’s design. Design-wise, Chelydra was originally built like a conventional snapping turtle, but I eventually realized that a retro sauropod-like form would suit his long-reaching capabilities better. Character-wise, I envisioned Chelydra being sluggish, apathetic, and mostly indifferent to the world.

Artistic Notes:
— Chelydra has 5 toes on each front foot, and 4 toes on each back foot. All of his digits are tipped by thick, blunt claws, though the claws on the hindfeet are somewhat larger and bulkier.
— Chelydra’s central head is based on that of the alligator snapping turtle: animal.discovery.com/fansites/… . His secondary heads are based on that of the common snapping turtle: www.chelydra.org/ca_common.jpg .
— Chelydra’s shoulder-mounted shell is based on that of the alligator snapping turtle: upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia… , but his spines are angled more vertically.
— Chelydra’s thigh-mounted shell is vaguely shield-like, with two large spines running down its center; these spines are similar to those along his shoulder-mounted shell. The flat spines around the shell’s edge in the image actually run all the way around the edge, their points facing back.
— The top pair of Chelydra’s secondary heads is positioned directly above the back of his neck, while the two lower pairs are positioned above his shoulders.
— General References:
Overall – upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia… upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia…
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia…