Sarcavenas

Sarcavenas is a Flying Wyvern, and an Adapted Species of Diablos.

Explanation for Evolution
During the Second Great Dragon War, deserts became increasingly hot and arid. These deserts also became breeding grounds and territories for Teostra and Lunastra, as their former volcanic homelands became too active to inhabit. These factors caused the local cactus population to decline, both through absence of resources and from the intense heat created by the presence of the Teostra and Lunastra. Many desert-dwelling monsters suffered as a result, but among the worst-suffering of them were the Diablos. Though they were once feared as desert tyrants, the depletion of their main nutritional source and the increased presence of powerful predators proved to be too much for many of them to overcome. As a result, the species nearly went extinct. Those that survived and were able to reproduce were smaller than average, and also had more developed digging capabilities. Their descendants began adapting to a more subterranean lifestyle and subsequently developed a more omnivorous diet to gain nutrition from the smaller burrowing creatures of the desert. After the war's end, the traditional variety of Diablos was driven to extinction, leaving behind only the smaller burrowing Diablos.

These burrowing Diablos were the ancestors of Sarcavenas, which still bears some slight resemblance to its ancestors through its horns, hard armor, tusks, and bony frill. However, all of these traits have been modified heavily to accommodate the monster's new lifestyle, and the long, clubbed tail, wing membranes, and bipedal stance of its ancestor have been discarded completely.

Physiology
Sarcavenas is noticeably smaller than Diablos, about the size of a Molten Tigrex. Most of its body is covered in dark brown armor plating that is tough yet streamlined. To aid in its underground lifestyle, Sarcavenas's horns have broadened and become more downturned and shovel-like to become more efficient digging tools. The monster possesses a bony frill much like its ancestor, but this frill is split along the midline to form two radar dish-like structures above its ears. Sarcavenas has four large tusks: two of its tusks point forward and are used for digging, and the other two face upward and are used for tearing into tough root vegetables and armored prey. Its body structure has dramatically changed from that of its ancestor, as it is a quadruped with powerful clawed forelimbs rather than a winged biped. Much like Akantor, only small spikes remain where its wings once were, and it has a very robust and stocky build. Its tail has also shortened dramatically so that it does not become an obstacle when burrowing.

Abilities
A burrower by nature, the Sarcavenas is able to use its burrowing skills to rapidly escape threats and launch deadly attacks from below as its ancestor once did. However, these digging abilities have become much more robust than that of Diablos, as it can leap from its tunnels while spinning before immediately going back below the surface. Sarcavenas also uses its horns and tusks to dig deep pitfalls for prey to fall in. As before, it is capable of extremely powerful charges propelled by its robust limbs and driven by its heavy, armored head. Sarcavenas also boasts an extremely loud roar that causes tremors in the ground.

Attacks
Tremor Roar: Used upon entering combat or becoming enraged. Sarcavenas inhales deeply and releases a loud roar that requires HG Earplugs to negate and causes damage to hunters without sufficient protection. However, this roar is so loud that it actually causes tremors in a wide radius, so hunters outside of its damage radius can still be affected by the roar's reverberation.

Ramming Skull: Sarcavenas attacks with a forward headbutt. This attack sends smaller foes flying.

Snapping Tusk: Sarcavenas bites forward twice, slightly readjusting itself before each bite.

Claw Lash: Like Odogaron, it wildly swings one of its forearms forward to strike at something with its large claws.

Horned Charge: An attack carried over from its ancestor. The monster charges at a target in an attempt to gore them on its large horns.

Sandstorm Funnel: Sarcavenas blows out a funnel-shaped blast of sand from its mouth. This attack causes Earthblight.

Digging Charge: The monster scrapes one of its forelegs against the ground before rapidly charging forward. In the middle of the charge, it sticks both its horns into the ground and digs below its surface before resuming its charge. The attack ends when Sarcavenas leaps out of the ground.

Body Press: The monster briefly stands on its hindlegs before toppling over, landing on its stomach and heavily damaging anything below it.

Sliding Claw: It strikes forward with one of its forelegs, but the momentum from the attack is so great that it is pulled forward while sliding on its stomach.

Scoop Upper: It digs both its horns deep into the ground before rapidly raising its head skyward, scattering rocks and dirt in front of it. This attack can cause Earthblight.

Foreleg Bash: It raises one foreleg and then smashes it against the ground to crush an enemy below it.

Rapid Tunnel: Sarcavenas uses its large forelimbs and claws to make a large hole in the ground, and rapidly digs to cross the battlefield. This allows it to cover distance much faster than charging.

Underground Thrust: While underground, Sarcavenas may occasionally stick its head out to strike at a target with its horns.

Horn Swing: An attack carried over from its ancestor. The monster drags its head across the ground in a rising arc.

Enraged Only
Clawing Charge: It charges at an enemy much like before, but swings its claws throughout the charge to extend the attack's horizontal range.

Downward Bash: The monster raises its head before slamming it on the ground, knocking anything it hits to the ground. This attack can Stun hunters.

Rear-Ender: As its tail is far too short to be used as a weapon, Sarcavenas instead sits on a smaller foe to crush them underneath its weight.

Brutal Stampede: Much like a Brute Tigrex, the monster wildly charges around while stomping with its forelegs.

Turnaround Charge: Sarcavenas charges swiftly, but uses its forelegs to change its direction mid-charge.

Double Horn Swing: Another attack carried over from its ancestor, the Sarcavenas repeats its Horn Swing attack twice in a row.

Corkscrew Tunnel: The Sarcavenas screeches before digging underground while spinning like a drill. It then rapidly leaps out of the ground while spinning, sending smaller threats flying. However, this is not the end of the attack, as Sarcavenas uses the momentum from its spinning jump to burrow back underground and launch another jumping attack. This attack can be repeated up to five times before the Sarcavenas resumes its normal attacks.

Mounts
Sarcavenas's head and back can be mounted. While it is mounted, it will shake, attack, and roll to get the hunter off it.

Taxonomy

 * Order: Ornithoscelida
 * Suborder: Wyvern Feet
 * Infraorder: Heavy Shell Wyvern
 * Superfamily: Horn Wyvern
 * Family: Cavenas

Habitat Range
Sarcavenas can be found in areas with a hot, arid climate.

Ecological Niche
Sarcavenas is an omnivore that mainly consumes tubers, root vegetables, and small herbivores. Its diet has made it a rival of the Brute Wyvern Suasuion, with which it competes for food and territory. This is not only because Suasuion eats the same type of prey as Sarcavenas, but it is also because Sarcavenas tends to prey on the herbivores in Suasuion's herd. On occasion, these two monsters will come into violent conflict, and the loser is often consumed by the victor. Other than Suasuion, the Sarcavenas has no major competitors or predators.

Biological Adaptations
All of Sarcavenas's features are suited to aid it in its burrowing lifestyle. Its horns are broad and downturned, and now see more use as shovels than as weapons. However, its horns are still used to drive off and attack threats that enter its burrow. To suit its life underground, its frame has changed dramatically: the body is both more compact and more streamlined, its wings have evolved into powerful forelegs tipped with sharp, digging claws, and its ancestor's mighty clubbed tail has degraded into a spiky stump so that it does not get in the way when digging. Sarcavenas also has a larger, thinner frill that is split down the middle. This frill seems to function more like a radar dish than as a means of defense. It has also evolved an additional pair of tusks that are used for catching and chopping prey.

Behavior
While just as belligerent and territorial as its ancestor, if not more so, the Sarcavenas lives a much different lifestyle. Rather than living on its own, Sarcavenas lives small family groups.These groups usually consist of a male,a female, and their offspring (if any are present). The adults both dig a large communal burrow for themselves and their offspring, and both alternate between hunting prey and watching over the young. Prey is dragged back to the burrow, and what is not eaten immediately is stored in a den with other food. This method of food storage and communal living has allowed the Sarcavenas to maximize its chances of survival in the unforgiving deserts of the world.

Trivia

 * Its name is derived from "Satan", "Cavern", and "Ceratopsian".