WHO WILL WIN?
Tortoise
HISS-HMPH
King Cobra
HISS-HOOD
THE SETUP

Tortoise vs King Cobra

Tortoise
Tortoise
King Cobra
King Cobra

Pretend a tortoise and a king cobra meet in the island. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

This is pretend and based on facts. Real animals usually hide or leave.

Read the facts. Make your card. The page waits to pick.

Corner A

Tortoise

Chelonoidis niger · A walking bunker that outlives arguments.

Tortoise
Home
Galápagos islands · Lives in South America
Food
Plants
Group
Lives alone
Size
Tortoise is big.

Browser.

They feel footsteps.

Unbothered fortress.

  • Tortoise is big and slow.
  • Cactus, grass, and island plants.
  • Dry islands where going slowly uses less water and fewer bad ideas.

Family: Turtles and terrapins.

Corner B

King Cobra

Ophiophagus hannah · The tallest snake, with a hood like a warning sign.

King Cobra
Home
Asian forests · Lives in Asia
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
King Cobra is small.

Snake-eater with a stand-up hood.

Heat and chemical trail.

Alert, not cartoon-mean.

  • King Cobra is small and not very fast.
  • Mostly other snakes.
  • Dense forest and bamboo, where a long warning hiss carries.

Family: Other cobras and mambas — the elapid family of front-fanged specialists.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

Stand them next to a grown-up. Who is bigger and heavier?

1.70 m

Grown-up

0.50 m

Tortoise to scale

Tortoise

0.50 m

King Cobra to scale

King Cobra

Height to scale. A grown-up is 1.7 m.

Tortoise250 kg

As heavy as a grown-up, shaped like a helmet that learned to walk.

King Cobra7 kg

Can stretch longer than a pickup truck, but no thicker than a grown-up's arm.

Tortoise

0.50 m · 250 kg

Tortoise is big. 250 kg.

King Cobra

0.50 m · 7 kg

King Cobra is small. 7 kg.

Kilograms are honest. A small animal can still have a strong tool.

Who would you pick for size?

TOOLKIT!

TOOLS

Teeth, claws, horns, venom, kick — what tools do they have?

  • Weapon: Beak ram
  • Armor: Dome fortress
  • Senses: They feel footsteps.

Tortoise · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Hood-high venom fangs
  • Armor: Scale slicker
  • Senses: Heat and chemical trail.

King Cobra · labeled field diagram

Tortoise200 psi bite
King Cobra100 psi bite

Tortoise

Beak ram

Tool: beak ram. Bite: 200 psi.

King Cobra

Hood-high venom fangs

Tool: hood-high venom fangs. Bite: 100 psi.

A bite number is only one tool. Coils and kicks count too.

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Tortoise
1 km/h
King Cobra
18 km/h
Tortoise1 km/h
King Cobra18 km/h

Tortoise

1 km/h

Tortoise can go 1 km/h. That is slow.

King Cobra

18 km/h

King Cobra can go 18 km/h. That is not very fast.

A fast animal can miss. A slow one only has to connect.

Who takes the speed card?

HOME MAP!

HOME

They meet in the island. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
TortoiseKing CobraBoth

Meeting biome: the island. Colored land is where each animal actually lives.

Tortoise

This is home · Lives in South America

Tortoise lives in places like the island.

King Cobra

Can handle it · Lives in Asia

King Cobra's home is the asian forests, not the island.

Almost never. Their homes sit next to each other.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Tortoise
Plants · Browser.
King Cobra
Meat · Snake-eater with a stand-up hood.

Tortoise

Plants · Browser.

Cactus, grass, and island plants.

King Cobra

Meat · Snake-eater with a stand-up hood.

Mostly other snakes.

A plant eater is not 'safe.' Hippos and elephants still end arguments.

Whose hunting or defending helps more?

MOOD!

MOOD

Alone vs team. This rumble is one vs one.

Tortoise
Lives alone
King Cobra
Lives alone
Tortoise6 grit /10
King Cobra8 grit /10

Tortoise

Lives alone

Unbothered fortress. Grit: 6/10.

King Cobra

Lives alone

Alert, not cartoon-mean. Grit: 8/10.

Pack and pride animals lose their backup in a 1-v-1.

Who is better for a solo meeting?

PING!

BRAINS

Who notices first and thinks next?

Tortoise
3/10
King Cobra
5/10
Tortoise3 brains /10
King Cobra5 brains /10

Tortoise

3/10

They feel footsteps.

King Cobra

5/10

Heat and chemical trail.

In the wild, brains often mean leave before it starts.

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Tortoise
Chelonoidis niger
King Cobra
Ophiophagus hannah

Tortoise

Chelonoidis niger

Turtles and terrapins.

King Cobra

Ophiophagus hannah

Other cobras and mambas — the elapid family of front-fanged specialists.

Cousins are clues, not a score.

Not a fight point. Who has the wilder family story?

WILD CARD!

SPECIAL

What special move did they evolve?

Tortoise
Tuck and Outlast
King Cobra
Wobble Venom Warning

Tortoise

Tuck and Outlast

They pull in.

King Cobra

Wobble Venom Warning

One bite can make a huge animal feel wobbly and want a very long nap.

A secret move here is a real wild tool, not a video-game combo.

Whose special move would change the meeting?

YOUR SCORECARD

Your scorecard

Tap who has each fact. Then tap who you think wins.

  • SIZE & WEIGHT

  • TOOLS

  • SPEED

  • HOME

  • FOOD

  • MOOD

  • BRAINS

  • SPECIAL

Your card: Tortoise 0 · King Cobra 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

Keep going for the pretend meeting, then the science pick.

SKREEE!

THEY MEET

King Cobra runs first. Tortoise does not race. They wait in the island.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

CHOMP!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Tortoise is heavier. King Cobra uses hood-high venom fangs. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

SNAP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Tortoise tries the Tuck and Outlast. King Cobra tries the Wobble Venom Warning. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Tortoise!

A STOMP · UNDERDOG

You skipped a final pick. The facts still stamp a champ.

On the island, Tortoise wins. Tortoise likes the island more. King Cobra would still win some meetings at home.

In the wild, most animals skip a fight. We still judge who the bodies and the place would favor.

Science card: Tortoise 2 · King Cobra 6.

Your card: Tortoise 0 · King Cobra 0.

The last page follows the whole animal — body plus home — not one bar chart.

Send this fight

A friend can read the same facts.

Victory lap · Tortoise

Armor, patience, and a very committed walk.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

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