Beyond the Ice Wall of Antarctica; THE VOGELVOLK OF SHANGRI-LA - The history of the VOGELVOLK begins with a lineage of Pachycephalosaurian Dinosaurs, which first attained the spark of SAPIENCE over six million years ago. These original VOGELVOLK lived a hunter gatherer lifestyle, used tools, spoke languages, explored beyond their homeland and conquered Wide array of environments, just as the earliest HOMO SAPIENS did in more recent history.

 THE VOGELVOLK OF SHANGRI-LA

THE VOGELVOLE

The history of the VOGELVOLK begins with a lineage of Pachycephalosaurian Dinosaurs, which first attained the spark of SAPIENCE over six million years ago. These original VOGELVOLK lived a hunter gatherer lifestyle, used tools, spoke languages, explored beyond their homeland and conquered Wide array of environments, just as the earliest HOMO SAPIENS did in more recent history.

Yet, despite their intelligence and the vast amount of time they've had to develop, the VOGEL have not Surpassed HUMANS in TECHNOLOGICAL advancement. Instead their societies developed far more gradually, and in a far different way.

AGRICULTURE is the key differentiating factor between the courses of HUMAN and VOGELVOLK Civilization. Mastery of FOOD PRODUCTION is the foundation on which advanced societies are built, but with no farmable crops to be found in the VALLEYS of SHANGRI-LA, the VOGELVOLK could only sustain themselves as generalized NOMADIC

Hunter-gatherers. While SHANGRI-LA would not provide the VOGELVOLK with the same opportunities the EARTH had granted EARLY MAN, it would still prove to be the KEY to their future development. The abundance of plant and animal life in the Lakeside valleys was so great that the VOGELVOLK rarely found themselves in conflict for FOOD, and the mountains between them discouraged invasion from one valley to another. 

Instead the VOGEL were more likely to trade with than plunder their neighbors. This trading proved to be  prosperous enough to where the early VOGEL TRIBES would not have to constantly move to attain the resources  they needed instead they claim territories where they would live in semi-permanent settlements. With this trade sustaining them, some tribes were encouraged to branch out and establish new territories, where they would 

specialize in collecting resources that couldn't be found in the fertile valleys. These territories would come to define the economic niche and means of survival for the tribes living in them. Some tribes settled along the coasts of LAKES and Thusly specialized in fishing, others remained further in LAND and managed the FORESTS, some lived

around entrances to the extensive cave systems BENEATH SHANGRI-LA, where they collected stones for tool-making, harvested FUNGI and HUNTED TROGLODYTE creatures, and others lived further out into the desolate mountains, where they followed and hunted herds of grazing animals.

Over the course of MILLIONS of years, these divisions in territory and lifestyle would cause the VOGEL to DIVERSE GENETICALLY and physiologically. Intermingling between those of different lifestyles would occur less and less frequently, with each group further specializing for their roles in the greater VOGEL TRADE NETWORK, leading to higher productivity and thus more advanced societies as time progressed. This resulted in the emergence of five distinct species all of which rely on each other to sustain their civilizations. Basically, while HUMANITY started diversifying their lifestyles after

harnessing food production, the VOGEL diversified first and slowly built up an abundance of resources great enough to lift each of their societies to new heights. 

As remarkable and complex as their arrangement is, it has a clear weakness, that being the careful balance which must be maintained between them. As different as the five species have become, their ability to still communicate and cooperate as much as they do is commendable, but they are no less competitive and power-hungry than we are, and seek to gain the upper hand on their rivals both within and between species. If these conflicts are pushed too far, trade networks will break down. When trade stops flowing, societies suffer and starve, their desperation leading to further conflict. 

This can easily spiral out of control, leading to total societal collapse across large swathes of SHANGRI-LA. This has happened on various occasions, each time knocking their development back by centuries, and is another explanation for why the development of VOGELVOLK SOCIETIES has been so gradual over the EONS. Despite this, their societies still continue to make new advancements through each

successive collapse, becoming more resilient as time goes on. Now the VOGELVOLK face the greatest turning point in the history of their kind, as a new RACE comes into the picture. Will they maintain the balance with the addition of HUMANITY, leading to greater prosperity for all? Or will their system crumble under the added weight. collapsing for the final time and pave the way for something entirely new?