With the species of Damarian, as found on the list here, there are many different species, which all evolve at about roughly the same time.
Obviously, a huge problem about multiple species evolving simultaneously is that if they're all sapient, they can kill each other off in a deathmatch-esque war. However, I want most of them to have at least some technology, and for them to have survived long enough to accept one another.
So, without further ado, here's what Damarian's surface is like:
- Larger than Earth (1.5-ish Earth Diameter, roughly 4.5-ish Earth circumference, and thus (Most likely, following surface area calculation rules) several times Earth's surface area).
- Same percentage of land area and water area as Earth; 71% water (WAY more water than Earth, and also much more area, even with 29% land area)
- Most likely chillier, due to Damarian's orbit being roughly 384 days (19-ish days longer than Earth's orbit), but if it is, most likely the temperature differences would be minor, only noticeable at the (Much more distant) poles, and would be nearly indistinguishable at the equator.
- Orbits Aplha Centauri A, also known as Rigel Kentaurus, at almost the same distance as Earth does with the Sun, but more distant enough for an almost 19 day extension of the year (Hopefully, with Alpha Centauri A's bigger size and thus extra heat and light, habitability by humans is possible).
- Has 6 moons, which are NOT relevant for the question AT ALL; This question assumes the Damarian's orbit (And those of its moons) are stable and life has adapted to 5 moons and the tidal effects they all make. Plus, 3 of them are tiny ex-asteroids, and 2 of the other 3 are less than 1,000 km wide each. The largest is about the same size as our own Moon.
- Four major landmasses: Gaundar (Mostly in the north of the planet, colder but longer and thinner); Tharizdun (Huge mass split nearly down the middle near the equator, resulting in a huge middle sea, with many hundreds of islands in the surrounding ocean; Sort looks like a fortune cookie that's been opened); Kehez (Comes from the south pole and goes up past the equator, getting within 2,000 miles of Tharizdun's southern edge, and gets fairly close to Gaundar on its northern edge); and Dendar (Southern temperate zone, close-ish to Kehez on the opposite side from Tharizdun). I'll be referring to the continents for the habitats.
Here is what Damarian's non-sapient life is like:
- VERY rich plant life (In the energy and nutrients easily available from the plant); fruit and nut eating herbivores only need to eat for about 30 minutes each day, leaf and fungus eaters only need 2-ish hours of feeding daily, and even grazers and grain eaters only need to eat about 4 hours a day, but typically spend most of their day eating anyway (Hey, why not?)
- This rich plant life means herbivores can sustain HUGE populations, which leads to much larger population counts of carnivores, which, along with Damarian's size, means that Damarian can hold much more biomass than Earth.
- The animals provide prey for the Stone Age peoples, who occasionally met. Being Stone Age people, each interaction was different: Some meetings ended with fight, others with trading.
So, using this question, I know that there are a few things the sapients need to keep themselves from killing each other: Different habitats (Easy, with Damarian being THAT big), but some way to interact often (I'm thinking they all can survive just fine in most climates, but usually live in two or three particular habitats), or have them have different niches or needs.
With all of my species in order of appearance, here's their habitats and general niches (During the Paleo- and Mesolithic Ages):
Volrortheans: Either chilly, Scandinavian-esque locales (Closer to the coast) on Gaundar or Kehez, or warm, Polynesian-like coasts on equatorial Kehez, and temperate grasslands of Kehez. They are typically megafauna hunters in smallish groups (4 to 12 adults, half that many youngsters).
Maravneans: Temperate plains and forest of Kehez, usually near rivers; Usually fish and hunt/gather.
Asterians: Hot deserts and temperate plains of equatorial Kehez, typically hunt and trap smaller critters and smaller members of megafauna species.
Amazoneans: Warm jungles and plains of Kehez. Trap and gather in jungles, hunt in plains.
Madraeans: Chillier forests (Like taiga) and plains of southern Kehez. Usually hunt, but also gather in the summer.
Fenireans: Small islands and plains near the coast of Kehez and Tharizdun. Fish and gather, almost to the exclusion of meat.
Phanerae: Mountains in warm areas and plains of southern Gaundar. Hunt in the plains, gather in the foothills.
Elves (In general): Colder coastal forests, and plains, unlike the Madraeans, who stay away from the coast, but still on Kehez. Usually gather more than hunt, usually at night.
Dwarves: Mountains in southern Kehez, and nearby plains. Hunt and trap in foothills at night.
Orcs: Hostile badlands of central Tharizdun or plains. Mostly hunt, and gather very little.
Tieflings: Deserts around the Tharizdun badlands, and plains. Usually hunt and trap at night, like the Asterians over on Kehez.
Aasimar: Forests of Dendar, near Kehez, plus plains. Hunt and gather at night.
Aeritheans: Didn't evolve on Damarian, like the linked question (The first one) mentioned.
Avari: Forests of southwestern Gaundar and plains. Obligate carnivores who hunt pretty much exclusively, though they enjoy fruit and will gather it, as opportunity permits.
Naven: Forests of northwestern Gaundar and plains. Obligate herbivores and only gather, usually at night to avoid Avari.
Maer: The areas coastal to the Ilsensine sea (The sea that's splitting Tharizdun). Typically fish and gather in the sea, and hunt on land at night for luxury meat (Land animals).
Formians: Forest and deserts of southern Dendar, and plains. Usually gather and hunt as a near hive mind (They have the ability to very quickly transmit ideas and messages they want to send in perfect clarity), based on a central hive.
Vaeran: Forests of northern Dendar, and plains and deserts. Hunt and gather at night.
Arachne: Forests and mountains of northeast Dendar, plus plains. Trap and gather at night.
Pterians: Mountains and plains of central Dendar. Hunt from the air, and gather periodically.
Centaurs: Plains and forests of central Dendar. Hunt on the run, and gather as opportunity permits.
Ashara: Plains and foot hills of Tharizdun's northern wing. Hunt mostly at night.
Leonar: Cold plains and deserts of Dendar. Hunt and gather.
Zavran: Hot plains and deserts of Dendar. Hunt and gather at night.
Mitarn: Plains and deserts of southern Gaundar. Hunt almost exclusively, but gather sometimes.
Ceana: Swamps of the northern edge of Tharizdun's southern wing, and plains. Hunt and gather, and fish.
Kobolds: Forests and plains of Tharizduns southern wing (On the southern edge). Trap and gather and night.
Dragonkin: Mountains and plains of western Tharizdun (The west part is the part where the wings meet). Hunt and gather.
So, hopefully, these niches and habitats allow them to survive together, yet not kill each other until they develop civilization or accept each other.
Please, if you can review my ideas, and possibly even suggest better ideas, that'd be great.
PS magic does exist on Damarian, but it'd be better if there is no magic involved in this. Bonus points go to anyone who doesn't suggest using magical means for keeping them all alive.
UPDATE: I'm pretty sure you all don't know how big 1.5x Earth's diameter is. Damarian is MASSIVE, with huge swaths of land possibly splitting groups.
