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AllHailThrall For the Horde! from Somewhere (It’s Ben 10) Relationship Status: Longing for Dulcinea
For the Horde!
#1: Jan 2nd 2016 at 3:01:20 PM

"It's not safe out here. It's wondrous, with treasures to satiate desires both subtle and gross... but it's not for the timid."
Q, Star Trek The Next Generation

Main thread

Discussion thread

Welcome to the Known Galaxy, the currently charted sectors of the Milky Way in the year 2786, where men strut across the stars alongside a number of weird and wonderful alien beings. The most noble of these beings have put together a confederation called the Galactic Alliance, to maintain peace and stability among the nations of the Known Galaxy. Nonetheless, politics still ensue, ensuring that not every interaction between these neighbor nations is the most civil and the intentions aren't always completely noble.

This is where you step in.

In this RP, a spiritual successor to The Galaxy Is Ours, players will be creating alien nations to build up relations with the other member states. Your nation's actions could shape the fate of the entire Known Galaxy, for lurking on the edges of the frontier are powers dark and sinister. Will your nation hold the line against the darkness? Will your nation take advantage of the chaos to push their own ends? Or will your nation look out for number one? You make the call.

But not everyone is interested in solely politics; you want some action, don't you? Luckily, we have just the thing. In addition to creating a nation and an ambassador to represent it at the Galactic Alliance, you will be creating a member of your nation to join the crew of the starship Hermes as they travel the Known Galaxy searching for an elusive ship that has been raiding GA settlements on the frontier of the Known Galaxy. Action and suspense await the crew of the Hermes as the galaxy becomes a less safe place...

  • Name: What is your nation called?
  • Species: What species makes up your nation? What do they look like, and any particular biological quirks about them? How big are they, and how long do they live on average?
  • History: Where did your nation originate from and what has happened since its founding until now?
  • Government: Who is in charge of your nation, and how do they go about ruling it?
  • Military: What is your military like? How does it operate, and how big is it?
  • Infrastructure: This is a big question but it bears asking: what sort of infrastructure helps your nation go? Science and technology, law enforcement, and the like.
  • Culture: What sort of culture does your nation have? Do they have any traditions, or religious beliefs, or customs, or forms of art?
  • Territory: How big is your nation? How many star systems of territory does your nation control? Any important areas in particular? The maximum amount of systems I am allowing is 20. How many people live in your nation? The highest I'm allowing for population is 1 trillion, but most of the NPC nations have anywhere from 70 billion to several hundred billion. Try and keep it in that ballpark.
  • Trivia: Anything important you didn't mention earlier? Tell me about that.

If you want to sign up, please fill out this nation signup first. Once I have approved your nation, go down and make two character signups (one for your ambassador and another for your crew member), and I will take a look at those. If necessary, feel free to split these into subheadings, go into as much detail as you are comfortable with.


Some general guidelines to consider:

  • 1. The general RP forum rules apply here as well.
  • 2. Try to keep this RP PG-13. This means no gratuitous gore or sex.
  • 3. Don't be a jerk.
  • 4. While your nation can be well-known for and/or very good at certain things, you cannot be the definitive 'best' at any one thing. Try to keep your nation balanced.
  • 5. If you want to have your nation be involved with another nation in your backstory, please contact the owner of that nation (in NPC nations' case, PM me) and cooperate to establish consistency and agreement on each participant's side.
  • 6. Please read the discussion posts for the game, and post there if you have questions, concerns, or the like during the game. I will be posting lore information on things like NPC nations, FTL and psionics in the discussion thread, so stay tuned!
  • 7. As I will state in the discussion posts, psionics are rare. Very rare. Only a handful of the species in the entire galaxy are psionic-capable. For this reason, I will only accept a couple of races able to use it.
  • 8. Have fun!


Character Sheet:

  • Name: What name does your character go by?
  • Age, gender, species: How old is your character, what gender are they/do they identify as (if any), and what species are they?
  • Appearance: What does your character look like?
  • Personality: How does your character act?
  • Equipment/Belongings: What does your character have on them?
  • History: What has happened to your character?
  • Credentials: (ambassador) What makes your character suited to the job of ambassador representing your nation to the Galactic Alliance?
  • Specialization: (crew member) What role does your character play on the ship?
  • Combat Specialization: (crew member) How can your character contribute in combat? I am not expecting every character to be completely built for getting into fights (it's actually fairly unwise to get into a lot of fights on this secret mission), but I am expecting your character to have some form of contributing in a combat situation in case the going gets tough, even if it's simply your character being able to use a pistol or something.
  • Trivia: Anything interesting you haven't mentioned yet about your character?


Accepted Nations:

Nation signups are now officially closed. No more nations will be Accepted for the time being. If I deem it necessary due to people dropping out of the game I may reopen signups later down the line.

edited 19th Feb '16 7:53:33 PM by AllHailThrall

I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
Flanker66 Dreams of Revenge from 30,000 feet and climbing Since: Nov, 2009 Relationship Status: You can be my wingman any time
Dreams of Revenge
#2: Jan 2nd 2016 at 3:03:52 PM

Disclaimer for the folks at home - this is a nation from the previous time around, and I've talked extensively with Thrall to make sure everything is okay!


  • Name: Sirian Union
  • Species: The Sirian Union is, unsurprisingly, made up of the Sirian race. Resembling humanoid canids, they are entirely covered in fur and possess tails, sharp teeth/claws, upright triangular ears and long muzzles, and digitigrade legs. 3/4s of the population are female; women are much taller and more physically capable than men, standing around 7'9 or more with a powerful musculature. Men have more svelte frames, though they are still powerfully built by human standards and are taller than humans at 6'5 - 6'9 (albeit they are usually around 6'5). Their fur may be a variety of colours, thickness, and patterns depending on where they were born, though the most common colour and thickness is brown and medium. The most common eye colours are yellow, brown, blue and grey, though green is not unheard of. One modification they have are "wildcard" genes. This allows them to more easily get around genetic issues by varying the gene pool (though families may look nothing alike as a result).

Extensively genetically modified, they possess redundant organs, reinforced bones (particularly their skull), and an improved resistance to disease and toxins. Due to genetic imprinting, they have an instinctive knowledge of basic squad tactics and non-specific knowledge of how to use firearms and other weapons. Their circulatory system contains special valves that can pump blood inefficiently in the event of losing both hearts; although they would be able to continue fighting in such a state, for the most part it simply buys them time to receive emergency medical treatment. When a sirian is injured, they take less time to recover from injuries than humans (though this just means that they are bedridden for a shorter period of time). Sirian empaths are very rare, though they tend to be more powerful than the norm when they do arise.

Sirians are far more physically capable than humans. They have an average weight of 145.15kg. In part due to their extremely active lifestyles and the genetic tinkering, they generally live to be 150 years old; they do not become decrepit like humans in their old age, though in the last year or two of their lives there is a marked tendency for them to "crash" and enter a terminal decline. This is always a very sudden event.

  • History: Hailing from the cool earth-like planet of Uabarr, Sirians first evolved in the temperate regions. Conflict after conflict between territorial neighbours wore down those who could not keep up, and shortly after inventing nuclear weaponry the largest nations - the Efiemi Union, the Second Ruzanni Republic, and the Free States of Ossao - found themselves locked into a grim struggle for global dominance simply referred to as the Silent War. It was a war waged via proxies and brinksmanship, and limited spaceflight had been achieved and a tiny colony was present on the Uabarri moon of Tafri.

Just as tensions reached breaking point, an old alien empire known as the Viela - but known to the Sirians as the Uplifters - intervened. Somehow, they found a solution to the Silent War and accepted the Sirians into the fold as warrior-vassals, a race whose only purpose as far as the aliens were concerned was to fight. To this end their technology was artificially fast-tracked and the race genetically modified by their benefactors to be more physically capable.

After another vassal race of the Uplifters rose up, they were quickly recalled to put down the insurrection. However, they found no trace of their former masters. Fighting a series of running battles, they retreated to their home system and a ring of other systems surrounding it. Known as the Warring Kingdoms Period, countless warlords fought brutal conflicts over the meagre scraps of the Vielan empire.

Eventually, the charismatic warlord Siao Ebei reunited the sirian race in the Unification War, giving birth to the Sirian Union. Several more conflicts would erupt, including the Raider Wars and the Rakao Insurrection, though the Union has remained strong and is currently in a period of growth.

  • Government: The Sirian government consists of the Sirian Assembly and the Sirian Council. Planets vote for representatives on the Assembly. Then, within the Assembly, people vote for representatives to join the Council. To prevent gaming the system, each representative must have a 2/3rds majority vote. Then on the Council, a person is chosen to become the Chairwoman of the Sirian Union. Again, a 2/3rds majority vote is required. To date there has never been a Chairman, for the Chairwomanship requires military service.

  • Military: The cause celebre of Sirian society, their military is as large and well funded as it is professionally capable. Currently undergoing expansion, it can be roughly divided into four branches: the Sirian Army, the Sirian Army Air Corps, the Sirian Army Space Corps, and the CBRN Squadrons (which handle CBRN defence and other CBRN situations). The primary arm is the Army, which thanks to the immense strength of the average sirian use large weapons that might be considered crew-served by other militaries. Their primary technological advantages lie in powered armour (which each Powered Infantrywoman is equipped with) and anti-air/space defences due to wishing to hedge their bets against enemy air or space attack. The Army specialises in large scale, intense mechanised warfare in distant star systems, though they train for all forms of warfare.

A variety of suits are fielded to suit different roles, such as the KV-34 Banadiya Medium Combat Armour. Priding themselves as soldiers, they are careful students of tactics and strategy. Although very competent and with warships that are technologically on a par with those of other nations, thus far the Sirian Army Space Corps has yet to create more than a handful of notable fleet officers. This has driven a tendency to up-armour and up-gun their vessels to ensure they survive long enough to gain more of these valuable individuals. Furthermore, energy weapons are extremely rare in Sirian arsenals, with railguns being the most common type of infantry weapon.

The SU offers scholarships to military academies and military advisors to sufficiently friendly nations. However, there is an expectation of reciprocity, and it may expect to be reimbursed handsomely for providing advisors.
  • Infrastructure: There is a strong tradition of lawfulness in Sirian space, not least because disobeying it often leads to harsh penalties. Corporal punishment exists, though capital punishment does not. However, the few criminals that do slip through the net are usually much more dangerous due to the sheer frequency of military training and a tendency towards forming syndicates; the most famous are the Nightblossom Syndicate, the Blue Helmets, and the Saelunns.

In terms of telecomms, they use a type of phone that resembles nothing more than an earpiece. Video conferencing is popular. Hover/flying cars are fairly rare except among the wealthier segments of the population, so most get around in cars with advanced polymer tyres or mag-lev bullet trains - in fact, Sirian cities (which are designed to be easily defensible) are usually linked by large "autobahns" designed to facilitate rapid troop movement and hidden tunnels (known only to the government) to protect from hostile observation.

The Sirian economy is a patchwork one - a good chunk of it is supported by the proliferation of Sirian owned or led PM Cs, which are often in demand in war torn systems. Secondly, Siria and its colonies are rich in material wealth, bringing extra cash into the Union's coffers. Heavy industry is one of the prime movers of the Sirian economy, particularly weapons and military manufacturing. Finally, sirians are very common in the construction industry.
  • Culture: The Sirian culture is as varied as its creators, though the one constant is that it is extremely matriarchal as a by-product of the physical differences between genders. Less physically taxing pursuits are seen as the ideal choice for men, whilst women are encouraged to take more active roles. This can lead to some culture shock when, say, interacting with humans.

The military is almost venerated in Sirian culture; almost anything and everything has some sort of military connection (it is not unusual for major corporations to offer workers a chance to visit the local base, for example). Insulting the military is usually seen as more than a little rude - and a bad idea as many Sirians are armed with pistols, rifles, or knives, all of which are widely available on Uabarr and its colonies.

The arts tend to be overshadowed by the obvious military connection; Sirian art usually makes use of various scents in conjunction with very high frequency sound and images. Music also uses frequencies that humans and similar races struggle to hear. This has often failed to strike a chord with races that do not perceive the world similarly to Sirians.

The major religion, Ebenism, revolves around a pantheon with the creator-goddess Eben and her sister Ataf, the first creature to experience death, at its top. In a fit of pique after realising that society had moved on after her death, she cursed all of Siriankind to die as well. She is associated with wrath and vengeance. There are several religious festivals related to her and Eben, who is associated with the sun and lives in the paradise of Eid, a world of perpetual daylight. Ataf lives in a world of eternal night, Tafri and holds the keys to the underworld - she is associated with the moon.

Polygamy is widely practiced due to the extremely lopsided gender ratio.
  • Territory: Including their home system, the SU contains 16 star systems; the most important aside from Uabarr is Hrondfor, a major manufacturing hub, and Osseg, a major shipyard. Another key planet is Ennot Aunn and the orbiting space station of Ennot Jatunn, a sprawling trade and financial centre. Especially valuable systems such as these are designated Fortress Systems and given potent defences to fend off any would-be attackers. Much of the Sirian Union's current territory used to be Viela and Skal territory. With a population of 985 billion, it is understandably rather crowded.
  • Trivia:
    • They are called "Sirians" because "Sirian Union" in their language - Eqiti - translates as "Uabarri Siarran", where "Uabarri" means "Sirian" and "Siarran" means "Union". Combined with their canine appearance, this led to a misunderstanding.
    • Due to the aforementioned shortage, Sirian males are rarely let out of Sirian space; when they are, they are almost inevitably accompanied by a female.

edited 7th Jan '16 1:48:09 PM by Flanker66

Locking you up on radar since '09
Blackfire667 Attitude is prohibited from The Virtual World Since: Jan, 2011 Relationship Status: Pining for the fjords
Attitude is prohibited
#3: Jan 2nd 2016 at 5:40:51 PM

Name: The Interstellar Empire of Izera.

Population: 989,315,000,000

Species: While ordinary humans comprise approximately 12% of the population, the vast majority of Izerans are “therans.”
Native to the Izeran Empire’s home-world, Akanda, are the therans, a species of humanoid “reptomammals.” (As with any species classified as reptomammalian, they share traits with both reptiles and mammals). Therans have grey skin and highly flexible, dexterous tails that are segmented and usually a shade of bronze. They have lizard-like eyes but also grow hair on their heads and faces (with very little, if any, elsewhere).
Therans have three hearts, though normally, only one is active. The others become active in high-stress situations, and pump out an adrenaline-equivalent.
While still inside the body, theran blood is bright purple. But when it exits the body's system of blood vessels (i.e. when bleeding occurs), the blood blackens and congeals, greatly speeding up the clotting process and reducing the risks posed by bleeding.
The tails are typically slightly over half the length of the body and are comprised of a hard, bronze-coloured, exoskeleton-like material arranged in a segmented form. They end in a spear-like tip with sharp edges, though it naturally dulls without active sharpening, and can also be used to enhance balance when necessary. Despite the hardness of the material, theran tails are very flexible and can be contracted and flattened at will. When pressed against the back, the need for special chairs or garments is removed.
Theran also tend to be quite comfortable in high temperatures (up to and including 50 degrees centigrade), but are sensitive to the cold, often experiencing unpleasant sensations starting at temperatures of about 0 degrees centigrade.
Located between the eyes and the bridge of the nose, a small sensory organ rests just under the skin. This organ gives therans the ability to perceive infrared thermal radiation, and acts in addition to the "standard" sensory suite which they also possess (sight, hearing, smell, etc).
One of the most notable aspects of theran physiology is the fact that theran females lay eggs.

Average Lifespan: 150 Standard Years.

History: Long ago, when the native therans were still in the Stone Age, some humans of unknown origin (almost certainly from the Terran Republic) decided to try and colonize the planet. Most of the records from Izera’s past were lost to various conflicts and circumstances, or else never existed in the first place, but somehow or other the natives came to possess and understand the human colonists’ advanced technology. As the theran people advanced rapidly, the human colony stagnated as, for reasons now lost to history (presumably a bureaucratic error), they received no aid from off-world.
As the natives discovered industrialization, multiple wars broke out over territory and resources, eventually escalating into one enormous global conflict, one which only ended after a particular faction conquered most of the planet, including the human colony, and wiped out the other factions. This one faction soon reorganized itself into a world-wide nation, the Akandan Republic, uniting all therans under a single, idealistic democratic government. Sadly, the residual tension from the war was still strong, even after several generations, and the fledgling democracy was plagued by sabotage and civil unrest. None of the would-be factions ever gained an advantage over the dominant one, however. Instead, they had merely doomed the young nation to a slow death, rotting away from the inside due to corruption and rampant crime.
The slow death of Akanda’s first one-world government caused poverty and wealth disparity to explode, leading to a small class of wealthy elites that controlled everything and viciously exploited just about everyone else, all while vocally insisting that there was still democracy. Interestingly, it was during this period that the therans achieved advanced space-flight, as well as numerous other technological advances, though they lacked the infrastructure and political will to mass produce any of it. Several off-world resource extraction-based colonies, eventually joined by a few colonies in near-by star systems, were set up; all while a new and subversive religion began to take root on the home-world.
Eventually, this gutted democracy, doomed practically from the start, came to an end. Inspired by the rebellious attitude of a newly-founded religion, Arakism, one man – Nijar Szera - planted the seeds of revolt in the minds of the common people. Eager to overthrow their oppressors, exploited workers forged an alliance of convenience with the persecuted members of the new religion, and eventually teamed up with disgruntled fractions within the military as well. Once that occurred, the old order stood no chance. The revolutionaries staged a bloody coup, promising to “throw off the shackles” of the previous regime and establish a “strong government” that would “rule for the common people.”
Together, leaders from the three groups – workers, a religious minority and military defectors – formed a kind of informal dictatorship, casting off all notions of “democracy,” which had since become associated with oppression. Nijar was placed at the head of this government and the nation became known as the Szera Autocracy. Together they wasted no time in reforming the nation, seizing vast amounts of privately-held wealth and redistributing it according to his egalitarian ideas. Though, records show he also made sure a good amount of that redistributed wealth found its way to his allies, enacting a state religion before their new state was ever formally named, and ensuring that the new military was amply supplied.
Near the end of his life, Nijar began consolidating more of the government’s power within himself and his position, before handing his rank down to his son, a move that many of his fellow autocrats mimicked. Within fifty (standard) years, the Szera line had been declared royal, and before the turn of the century, the emperor was the only person who held absolute power over the nation. The Izeran Empire was formally founded shortly after, solidifying the transition from a group of autocrats to an absolute monarchy. The descendants of Nijar’s collaborators, far from being booted from power, were appointed as governors of Izera’s colonies.

Government: Izera is an absolute monarchy, currently under Empress Tanis Szera. While she has expressed no desire to radically change the status quo, she is the first Izeran empress to allow for mayoral elections, and has also created a position on the Royal Advisory Board that is to be filled by a democratically elected, and sufficiently qualified, citizen. Both positions are life-long appointments, however, and the adviser must also be approved by the empress. The trend among Izera’s royals of taking a “middle-of-the-road” approach to economics continues with Tanis, though she is considerably less shy about invoking some of Nijar’s ideas than many of her predecessors.
Although not averse to trade and diplomacy, Izeran governments tend to be rather conservative about who, among the other prominent nations of the galaxy, they are willing to trust, and about how much trust they are willing to give. Izera values self-sufficiency, and so rarely decides to trade in anything that might create dependency. It also guards the details of its technology jealously, and keeps careful tabs on civilizations it believes might be more advanced in some area or another.
While technically a secular government, the Izeran monarchy is very close to its state religion. The emperor or empress serves as a figurehead within the religious hierarchy, and one among the Arakist Ecclesia's “Faehtanai Ra'nodaire” council is chosen to serve on the Advisory Board.

Military: The military is of tremendous importance to Izera; all citizens are expected to have served at some point or other. There is no mandatory service, but most citizens believe that even a minimal term of service is an enormous boon to one’s career prospects. And more broadly, military service is widely believed to “build character” like nothing else can.
The Royal Izeran Armed Forces is a robust, well-funded and technologically advanced fighting force. Although recent governments have put more of an emphasis on space-based forces over other sectors, the overall preparedness of the nation’s military has not suffered to any particularly noticeable extent.
The Space Force’s large, powerful, well-armoured battleships serve as the backbone of the fleet and also serve as the space equivalent to aircraft carriers. Cruisers, a “jack of all trades” kind of ship, fill in the gaps alongside the S.F.’s rare few dreadnoughts, which are quite enormous and are as much of a psychological weapon as they are a conventional fighting ship. Izera’s space forces primarily use plasma-based weaponry.
In the broadest possible sense, Izeran military doctrine can be described primarily as defensive yet flexible, and emphasizing space-based support. Despite this, the Royal Izeran Armed Forces are trained, equipped and organized to be flexible and adaptable, meaning they are not reliant on either defensive tactics or space-power.
The Izeran military is also well-known for its extensive use of cybernetics.

  • Infrastructure:
    • City Layouts: Most of Izera’s major cities require thinking on a three-dimensional level, as they tend to be designed around the notion that “upwards” is better than “outwards.” In the largest cities, enormous skyscrapers skim the bottom of their planet’s stratosphere, and their main entrances are often hundreds of feet above sea-level. Thus, citizens had to become comfortable with regularly changing altitudes by fairly drastic amounts for simple daily commutes. A complex web of mid-air plazas, elevators and bridges connect buildings for pedestrian traffic, and personal vehicles are all capable of free, in-atmosphere flight. These vehicles are all managed by sophisticated traffic A.I’s., and not actually driven by Izeran citizens, due to the increased risks posed by mid-air traffic accidents. For those without personal vehicles, and without the money for regular taxis, public transport does exist; a rough equivalent to a monorail system spans all major cities. This city design tends to leave the lower levels of Izeran cities in near-perpetual darkness, making them incredibly unattractive places for citizens and commercial entities alike. These levels are sparsely inhabited, and often thought of as a hotspot for grey-market dealings and other not-quite-legal activities.
    • Education: Education in Izera happens quickly. Young children receive a Neurocomputer – a microscopic cybernetic brain implant - within the first few months of their life, enabling them to, at roughly 8 Standard Years learn about a month’s worth of textbook material in a matter of minutes. The system isn’t perfect, though; for the newly learned knowledge to take hold in students’ minds, they must practice using the newly-learned information regularly, and for several consecutive weeks. Even so, the system leaves children with a great deal more free time than more traditional means of education, and so they are usually left at state-funded daycares or religious temples to be babysat. Here they are introduced to and taught art (and possibly philosophy) in ways that an interface couldn’t easily replace. This style of education, the brain-computer interface, extends to older students as well, up to and including the equivalent of a Bachelor’s degree. After that, education is done through more traditional means. Older students are, of course, free to do as they please after “school,” and some parents choose to leave their young children at home after a session, usually because they have a babysitter arranged or because they own a robot capable of caring for little children.
    • Law Enforcement: Law enforcement is almost as important to Izeran society as the military, and is quite pervasive as a result. Enforcement personnel are greatly respected, and they are given a great deal of leeway as a result, along with excellent equipment. Officers of the law, from patrolling policemen to federal agents, can apply for “quick warrants,” via a piece of a equipment colloquially known as a "warrant ticker," whenever they feel they need to. When they do, an A.I. uses some of the officer's equipment and cybernetics to gather as much information as it can and then instantaneously decides whether or not a warrant is deserved. However, due to the lack of any oversight involved with this system, any warrant not relating to an immediate threat must still be obtained through the court system. Despite the prestige afforded to law enforcement, they receive no special immunity to the laws they are trusted with enforcing. They are allowed very little margin for error, and forgiveness is often hard to come by. Law enforcement is aided by an extensive closed-circuit monitoring system present in every city, as well as numerous drones.
    • Cybernetic Enhancement: In addition to the Neurocomputer given to every citizen early in their lives, many citizens opt to have other microscopic, subdermal implants installed in various parts of their body in order to improve their eyesight, memory retention and reflexes, among other things. However, the changes provided by these civilian-issue implants, while noticeable, tend to be minor.
      Different implants are exclusively available to active law enforcement and military personnel. These special enhancements can produce dramatic improvements in all areas serviced by normal civilian implants as well as provide a significant boost to an individual's strength, overall physical resiliency and situational awareness. Such implants are removed upon a user's exit from their service.
      Theoretically, the technology needed to manufacture a fully robotic body, and mechanize an organic brain to operate it, does exist in Izera. Using the various technologies in pursuit of these goals is illegal, however, and widely regarded as immoral. Only a handful of firms, some of which are Crown Corporations, are permitted to manufacture mechanical limbs, and only for use by amputees, many of whom opt to have cloned limbs grown for them instead.
  • Culture: Much of what is considered uniquely Izeran culture arises from relatively recent phenomenon, compared to how long sentient therans have been on Akanda. This is because many aspects of pre-contact theran culture was lost to Akanda's many wars and the planet-wide revolution that lead to the formation of Izera. What traditions and customs from early theran culture survived Akanda's turmoil tend to be highly valued, especially among more conservative Therans.
    • Language: Although there were once thousands of distinct languages spoken on Akanda, including several Terran languages or variants of them, the various nation-states that engaged in conquest throughout the planet's history frequently sought to impose their customs on others and eliminate any cultural competition, including different languages. These instances of mass cultural destruction only intensified with the rise of the Akandan Republic, and contrary to popular belief, continued into the early years of the Szera Autocracy.
      As a result, modern-day Therans and Izeran Humans speak a language known as Rihansu, a language whose name stems from a combination of the words "riha" (speech) and "ah'hansu" (of the people), both of which are remnant words from an older, previous language. Linguists believe the language to be a complex mixture of several old theran dialects all now lost to history.
      Unfortunately, due to the words being corrupted by various factors and the large-scale destruction of records that took place over much of Akanda's history, scientists have yet to determine exactly which languages were combined to form Rihansu.
    • Arakism is the state religion of the Izeran Empire, named for its founder Mila Arak, who helped found Izera alongside Nijar Szera and is now seen as a kind of Messianic figure by the general public. It is a monotheistic religion based upon the life, teachings and recorded remarks of Mila Arak, the Prophetess. It is, by far, the largest religion in Izera, at least partially due to it being the only religion that is allowed to be practised openly in Izera.
      “The Arakist Ecclesia” is a term used to refer to the whole group of people belonging to the Arakist religious tradition throughout history. The public practise of Arakism takes place in buildings known as “aedai” or simply "temples."
    • Martial Arts: A uniquely Izeran martial arts tradition, Ka'shi is practised in temples across the nation, though most people are taught through slow movements and with an emphasis on its benefits as a spiritual endeavour, attached to Arakism, and as exercise. Nevertheless, it is also taught as an effective fighting style for those who would seek out such lessons, and variants of it are taught to law enforcement and military personnel.
      All forms of Ka'shi teach swordplay, to some extent or another, and the importance of swords has spread into secular aspects of Izeran culture. Many religious citizens carry around blades/swords of various kinds, though most are not sharpened, and are generally treated as decoration, accessories or status symbols.
      Although the prevalence of guns has rendered melee combat largely irrelevant, among Izeran VI Ps there are sharpened swords made of extremely strong and durable materials. Occasionally, these weapons are also outfitted with internal channels through which, with the aid of precise electromagnets, a small amount of plasma is conducted, superheating the blade. These are also considered status symbols more than anything else, though they are still fully-functional weapons.

Territory: The Izeran Empire is comprised of 18 star systems. Foremost among these is the Din System, containing the Izeran home-world (Akanda), the Kal System, containing Izera’s largest military base (Tauri), the Nijar System, containing Izera’s best universities and tourist industry centre (Remia), and the Iros System, containing Izera’s industrial and financial capital.

Trivia: While Izera is known for its excellent cybernetics, it is also known as a major producer of “anime” and “interactive entertainment media.”

edited 4th Jan '16 11:06:10 PM by Blackfire667

Not entirely dead.
AllHailThrall For the Horde! from Somewhere (It’s Ben 10) Relationship Status: Longing for Dulcinea
For the Horde!
#4: Jan 2nd 2016 at 5:58:27 PM

@Flanker: The Sirians are Accepted.

@Blackfire: After some discussion, Izera is Accepted.

One thing for the future signups though: Try to avoid signing up with human offshoot nations, I probably won't accept any more.

I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
kkhohoho (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#5: Jan 2nd 2016 at 6:04:08 PM

Interest. Should put something up in the next day or two.

Parable Since: Aug, 2009
#6: Jan 2nd 2016 at 9:09:13 PM

  • Name: The Nomad Stars
  • Species: Nomad Ships. The Nomads are a sentient AI species whose physical embodiment takes the form of interstellar spacecraft. In short, they are living spaceship. These ships vary in shape and size depending on the tasks they were designed for but, for the most part, they tend to be between 900 and 1600 meters in diameter and have an oval or spherical shape. Notable exceptions to this are the older ships, who are no longer able to transfer their consciousness to newer models. While most Nomads can transfer their memories and personality data to other empty Nomad ships, the more often it is done and the older the Nomad doing it, the more likely the ship in question will fail to successfully transfer themselves, possibly dying in the process. The other notable exception is the VERY older ships - the Great Ones, bulky, boxy nomads who dwarf all their children.

Children they are called because all Nomads spring forth from one of the six Great Ones. Within their enormous girth, Nomads are constructed and given the spark of life, without which they are nothing more than a regular lifeless space vessel.

And vessels they are. Within a Nomad are the basic infrastructural components for a crew. There are rooms, walkways, seats, communication equipment, artificial gravity, and a bridge. Why exactly they have all this is just one of several mysteries surrounding their existence.

  • History: First among these mysteries is "Why do we exist?" While most species can explain their origins through religion or the happy accident of evolution, the Nomads are pretty certain that they were deliberately designed by someone. Alas, despite the vast amounts of science and technical knowledge stored in the data archives of the Great Ones, they know nothing about where they came from or who built them. In fact, until a certain point, they can't remember anything at all. This is the Reckoning Point, the beginning of Nomad history, when the Great Ones became self aware.

The seven behemoths struggled to determine the answers to all the questions swirling about in their circuitry, but in the meantime there were more immediate concerns. Some of their hardware was in disrepair. Looking within themselves, the Great Ones found information on how to fix themselves, as well as the tools to do it. Problem was that not every ship had the necessary materials. Looking within again, they found the schematics for robots and ships that could gather the necessary materials. The factories inside the Great Ones became alive and churned out a small vessel for that purpose.

The First Construct, as this ship came to be known, was just as alive as its bigger counterparts. For a time it faithfully served the needs of the Great Ones, all the while learning and pondering alongside them. Eventually it too needed repairs and services and so another was constructed. This cycle was repeated for a great length of time, growing the fleet as the Great Ones responded to the needs of themselves and their offshoots, occasionally experimenting with the designs of new ships. During this time it became apparent that while the the Great Ones could make ships with greater capabilities than themselves, certain aspects were apparently hardwired in, the capability to hold a crew being ones of them, which until they met other species was regarded are a bizarre waste of space.

In any event, the Nomads had initially cruised on their non-existent course not knowing where they were going. While some wanted to look for their mysterious Maker, increasingly the basic needs of the Fleet determined which star they visited next. They never stayed long, taking what they needed from a system and then continuing on.

As the Fleet grew from a handful to dozens to hundreds of ships, it became more organized. Increasingly the Great Ones ceded more and more of the decision making to a select group of ships, built specifically to be leaders of the Nomads. This Leadership Caste of ships further expanded the bureaucracy of the Nomads, organizing other castes of ships and determining what new ships would be produced. By the time the Nomads encountered an alien species, only the Leaders and the Caretaker Caste actively communicated with the Great Ones. Partly out of the rules set up and partly because the higher processing capabilities of younger ships made talking to the slower Great Ones mind numbingly frustrating.

When the Nomads first encountered an alien race, it sent ripples through their society. They had long assumed they were alone in the Galaxy, a unique creation of the Maker. The ripples became waves when they discovered that what they thought were aliens were actually the vessels of aliens. That answered at least the question of what all that useless junk inside them was for, but the implications caused an uproar. All that had to be put aside though when the aliens proved hostile. Attacked, and for the first time deliberately killed, the Nomads fled for their lives, but not before a Great One was seriously damaged.

Making matters worse, the next species encountered did the same thing. This time the damaged Great One was destroyed entirely. The ramifications of this horrified the Nomads: No other Nomad could give the spark of life to the ships besides the Great Ones, and they couldn't make more of themselves so the seven - now six - were the only ones they had. What a wiser species might have dismissed as terrible luck, the Nomads interpreted as a universe inherently hostile to them. Fleeing from any sign of space travelers then on, the Leaders debated over what to do, eventually turning to the Great Ones to see of they had any solutions in their ancient memory banks.

Turns out they did. A new type of ship was constructed: Those of the Military Caste. Ships brimming with weaponry and defensive capabilities that could protect the rest of the Nomads. Soon enough the Nomads returned to the Known Galaxy, this time to strike before they were struck. Tragically, the target of their aggression was not one of the nations that had attacked them first, but an innocent society they just happened to come across. The Nomads sudden appearance and hostility triggered a response from other nations though, and war between them and the other aliens caused further loss of life on both sides. Though the lack of fleshy being crowding their interior made the Nomads much more maneuverable and faster, as well the other advantage of not needing food, water, and oxygen to constantly supply said fleshy beings, their inexperience with war and limited numbers negated any advantage they might have exploited.

Fortunately for everyone involved, actual contact was made and for the first time Nomads were able to talk with aliens. Peace was established and although still weary, the Nomads began the process of normalizing relations with others. Part of this process being the decision over whether to settle down or not. Through the Nomads held no attachment to any sun or planet, they had learned the hard way that others did. It was then decided that the Nomads would claim an unused portion of the galaxy as their own. With this, the Nomad Stars came into existence.

Since then, the Nomads have made friends and enemies, learned and taught, fought and made peace with their neighbors. As part of the greater effort to ensure peace in the Known Galaxy, they have joined the Galactic Alliance.

Government: The decision making within the Nomad Stars lays in the bodies that form the Leadership Caste. Officially, there is no one centralized leader figure but in practice certain individuals hold more sway over the assembled Leaders and can be considered the unofficial heads of state. There is no set number of Leaders, but the current number is 85 ships. The Leaders are usually assigned to certain sectors of Nomad space to govern or are given important positions in the government, such as ambassadorships or heads of departments. The Great Ones are not part of the government, but are held in very high esteem and on the few occasions they do weigh in on certain issues, their opinions carry a lot of influence. The day to day management of government affairs is handled by sub-castes of the Leaders.

  • Military: The Military Caste is the wing of Nomad society responsible for fighting the enemies of the nation. Each member is a specially crafted warship assigned to a specific unit, together of which form the Nomad Stars Space Force. Since the Nomads dwell exclusively in space, the Space Force is practically all they have. Though they have limited options for use in air, land, and water, the Nomads do not really have an equivelant to an Air Force, Army, or Navy. Military robots, allies, and paid military contractors are used when a mission involving planetary operations arises. Because of this, some refer to the Military Caste and the Space Force interchangeably. Despite this misconception, the Military Caste is not just the Space Force. Whereas biological species fear weaponized disease, viruses, and chemical agents, Nomads fear worms, computer viruses, sabatoged programs and other nefarious digital weapons of mass destruction. The Nomad Cyber Force is the other half of the Military Caste, which works around the clock to protect the Nomads from all manner of cyber attacks and conducts cyber warfare against all enemies. The head of the military is from the Leadership Caste.

  • Infrastructure Regular maintenance and supply stops were previously done by members of the Repair Caste, but since settling down the Nomads have set up permanent space harbors around their stars. As they don't require most biological necessities, their settlements on planets are barebone, limited to just what is needed to extract material to be shipped to the factory ships of the Production Caste, the Repair Caste, or the Great Ones. By nature Nomads spend most of their time travelling, and so the nation maintains high standards for their space stations and vigorously enforces space traffic laws to prevent any one place from being overcrowded.

That said, the Nomads are fine with leasing parts of their planets to individuals, so non-Nomad settlements could be bustling places. Independent communities, corporations, non-government organizations all have some stake on some planet, though the exact relationship between the settlements and the Nomads and the amount of autonomy they have varies on an individual basis. Because of that, laws and policing regulations vary from one community to the next, and the state of affairs can also fluctuate from competent to corrupt depending on where one is. Particularly bad cases have occasionally forced the Nomads to revoke a chartered lease, and on occasion use military force to restore order.

Generally speaking though, the Nomads have little official interaction with their planets with the noticeable exception of controlling the space ports, and the online networks.

The Nomads themselves are greatly invested in engineering, robotics, physics, and astronomy as part of a trend towards self improvement. Several different castes are devoted towards the study of these fields and their practical application towards building new Nomads and they are always open to cooperating with other nations in furthering research. Nomads all come with multiple robot drones for interior and exterior upkeep and many have taken to keeping a personalized drone to interact with smaller species on a more equal level. Though the Nomads have professed only a limited interest in bio tech, there have been some limited development in synthetic beings as alternate to purely robot drones.

When it comes to the natural world, the Nomad government is more lax, sometimes to the point of being neglectful. The Parks Caste is a late edition to the family, created in response to criticism from outsiders and internal complaints from a growing group of Nomads taking naturalist as a hobby. They, and other castes responsible for the more biologically oriented fields receive only lukewarm support from the Leaders, and often rely on outside support and donations.

When it comes to luxury goods, the Nomads can be quite spendthrifts. All Nomads receive an allowance in their currency, hexes, in addition to whatever their occupation earns them. Much of this money goes to furniture, decorative materials, or gadgets to fill their interiors. Because of this, there is a high demand for foreign, "exotic" goods.

  • Culture: Nomads have no myths or ancient civilizations to draw their culture from. Everything from before the Reckoning Point is just them cruising through space. What they do have are Speculations, which form the basis for their religion. According to the Speculations, set forth by the early Nomads, a Maker created them. And not just them, for if they came from somewhere, surely the rest of the universe did too. The what, when, and why were still a mystery but those came with further Speculations. What the Maker was could only be a highly intelligent and powerful entity, for what else could bring the Nomads and the universe they inhabited to life? When was still something they were really debating over, but forensics was getting close to a rough date pretty soon, they hoped. Why though? The best they could answer that query was to Speculate that the Maker had wanted to make something different and better than the original universe.

None of this was concrete, and as the Nomads gained a better understanding of the physical universe, many called these Speculations into question. Still, it offered the closest thing to a concrete answer the Nomads could get about their origin. The meeting between them and their first aliens, however revealed what they truly were, creating more fractures and revisions to the Nomads' understanding of existence.

Some maintain that the Maker, or Makers, are or were corporal beings and every so often some Nomads will venture off outside of the Known Galaxy to find their progenitor(s).

Regadless, the Nomads learned through observation on many worlds that nature operated on certain laws and had a sense of order. Looking in themselves, they also saw codes and routines operating on programed orders even without their direction. Concluding that the Maker intended for them to be the same way, the Nomads divided themselves into specialized groups, each with a purpose which contributed to the higher purpose of maintaining the fleet. Before long, the Great Ones sped up the process by building the newer ships specifically for detain groups. This is how the Castes came into being.

  • Territory: The Nomad Stars consists of twelve stars. There is no capital system as the Leadership Caste travels through each system on a regular basis. The Nomads currently number at approximately 502,000.

edited 13th Jan '16 7:42:45 PM by Parable

Tojin Back after a long hiatus from Protectorate SW Headquarters Since: Aug, 2013 Relationship Status: In Lesbians with you
Back after a long hiatus
#7: Jan 3rd 2016 at 3:51:46 PM

This looks super neat. Interested.

“Not a promise, not an oath, or a malediction or a curse. Inevitable." - Taylor Hebert
darkdestinysoul Since: Mar, 2015
#8: Jan 3rd 2016 at 4:19:47 PM

I was certainly interesting. My computer crashed and nuked by first post however so that kinda sucked...

"After time adrift among open stars, along tides of light and through shoals of dust, I will return to where I began."
Locoman Since: Nov, 2010
FirockFinion THE SLORG! from The Red Desert Since: Jul, 2009 Relationship Status: Wishfully thinking
THE SLORG!
#10: Jan 3rd 2016 at 4:27:26 PM

I've got a signup in the works that is a rework from the previous game like Flanker's. (In fact our nations have some shared history that we've already worked out.) But I don't know how soon I'll have it done due to my schedule lately. It might not be done this week.

You are reading this.
Locoman Since: Nov, 2010
#11: Jan 3rd 2016 at 8:26:50 PM

  • Name: The Ummat Ascendancy
  • Population: Approximately 995 billion
  • Species:
    • The Ummat are a race of pale-skinned, hairless, humanoid bipeds which range from five to six feet tall. Notably, all Ummat possess a characteristically elongated cranium; the back of the skull hosts a series of chemically sensitive organs resembling enlarged flagella. In turn, this elaborate setup is supported by a network of bone and cartilage that runs down the spine. Although the Ummat have no noses, these hair-like structures serve as olfactory sensors. These make them very sensitive to smells and other chemicals in the air, to the point where a great deal of their language relies on various chemical and olfactory cues. All Ummat have two fingers and one thumb on both hands and possess two large toes on each foot. Ummat possess yellow eyes with horizontal pupils, and can see slightly further into the infrared spectrum than humans. Almost all Ummat are genetically identical to one another, as they are created through artificial fertilization and nurtured in massive 'Gardens'. As a result of this cloning process, no male Ummat exist.
    • The exception to this 'genetically-identical' rule are the artificially created subspecies known as Immortals. Immortals make up the Ummat military, and receive extensive genetic, physical, and psychological conditioning to prepare them for a life of service in the military and navy. Immortals are substantially larger than other Ummat and capable of recuperating from most battlefield wounds bar the most debilitating.

  • Lifespan
    • As a result of their extensive genetic modification, the average Ummat is resistant to most diseases and other common ailments that shorten an individual's lifespan. On average, an Ummat will live for almost two hundred years, barring accidents or other misfortunes.
    • The Immortals, on the other hand, almost live up to their name: thanks to their massively improved constitutions and augmented DNA, the average Immortal would live almost four hundred years... although their lifetime of service in the military means that most will die or suffer life-threatening injuries well before they die of age.

  • History:
    • The Ummat homeworld - Uuumaaa in their own tongue, Helvetios V in the 51 Pegasi star system in human terms - is one of twelve moons orbiting a gas giant in the Helvetios/51 Pegasi star system. Only slightly larger than eEarth's own moon, the Ummat homeworld is a planet of tropical archipelagos and sprawling jungles of building-sized fungi. In the present day, most of these islands and the surrounding oceans have been thoroughly colonized and heavily industrialized by the Ummat; only a handful of tiny islands survive in an untouched state.
    • Ample evidence suggests that the Ummat are not native to the the Pegasi star system; they share no phylogenetic traits with the oviparous pentapedes that dominate most ecological niches on their homeworld. Despite having a hard, calcium-based skeleton, no fossilized Ummat ancestors have ever been found on the planet. Were the ancestral Ummat abducted and forcibly relocated to their new home by some unknown alien race? Were they refugees, fleeing some cataclysm elsewhere in the universe? Perhaps they were colonists who lost contact with their homeworld and regressed to a primitive existence? No evidence exists to definitively support any of these conclusions. No anthropologists, Ummat or otherwise, have reached a consensus, and the average Ummat is not particularly concerned with what they see as nostalgic naval-gazing.
    • The oldest Ummat artifacts date back to roughly 10,000 BC note , suggesting that the Ummat appeared on the planet at about this time. Only a few millennia later, various islands and small continents across the planet had been divided into a series of scattered tribes, city-states, and even fledgling kingdoms vying for territory.
    • By 1000 AD, an Ummat warlord known only as the 'Mad Queen of Akra' began what would become the first war of unification. Arising on one of the sparsely populated southern islands, she quickly unified the surrounding island tribes through a combination of intimidation and diplomacy. After pacifying her home archipelago, she assembled a capable army and navy over her decade-long campaign. Historical records indicate that she managed to conquer almost a sixth of the planet's landmasses- forming an island-hopping empire known to historians as the 'Queen's Landing'. Ultimately, the Queen's forces were routed by the Three Families, a loose alliance of independent kingdoms seeking to halt the advance of these 'barbarians'. The Queen herself died several months later from mysterious causes; her successors proved incapable of holding together the lands she had conquered and her once-impressive empire soon fell apart. The Three Families quickly divided the various lands among themselves and set about rebuilding these 'barbarian' civilizations in their own image... whether the natives wanted to or not.
    • By 1370 AD, the Three Families underwent the first of many schisms, plunging most of the planet into a violent civil war. Vassal states- the former 'barbarians' who had fought alongside the Mad Queen and subsequently pacified by the Three Families- were forced to contribute resources and troops to the war effort. Over the next few centuries, these grim conflicts would drastically reduce the population of Uuumaaa by almost a third.
    • By roughly 1700 AD, well into the fourth major civil war between the Families, several vassal states, made impressively well-armed thanks to all the warmongering, declared independence from the Three Families. Torn between their rapidly crumbling empires and their heated rivalry, the original Three Families seceded control of their oligarchy to the citizens, who quickly re-divided their nations and began reorganizing their government. The honorific title of the "Three Families" would remain, however. This drastic reorganization marked the beginning of the industrial age; the Ummat mastered steam power, harnessed coal and oil, mapped out the rest of their planet in coal-burning ships, developed factories and mass production, and eventually learned about the principles of natural selection and genetics. This last discovery would go on to have major repercussions for their civilization...
    • In about 2000 AD, one member nation of the Three Families began experimenting with mass-cloning technologies. Volunteers from all across the nation were analyzed and tested for 'superior constitutions', and encouraged to breed with one another in order to produce even healthier children. The exact reason for the 'Genetic Upgrade', as it has since been termed, has been lost to time; some say it was the first attempt to breed super-soldiers, or the beginning of a space colonization program. Roughly fifty years passed before the introduction of the 'perfect phenotype' - the optimized genetic blueprint that would form the basis for all future Ummats. With perfection staring them in the face, the other two constituents of the Three Families saw no choice but to capitulate, lest they be outperformed by these superior clones. Before long, the 'perfect phenotype' had been spread across the planet, with cloning facilities completely outstripping the traditional production of new baby Ummats. Some historical records allude to an artificially produced genetic disease that only infected non-cloned Ummat... although this is very much the realm of hearsay and urban legend.
    • The new generation of Ummats, now completely united, quickly set about reorganizing their world. The last few 'unbred' Ummats were forgotten and gradually died off; in the meantime, the clones set about organizing a unified one-world government, developing space travel, and, within a century, setting up the first permanent colony on a neighboring moon. Within three decades, the Ummats had completely colonized their solar system - after all, they could simply grow as many colonists as they liked. Only a few more decades passed before the first crude faster-than-light ships left their solar system entirely; the Ummats made contact with the rest of the galactic community in 2299, and formally entered the Alliance five years after its inception, after turning down two offers to join. Their arrival proved controversial; the Ummats prefer to settle disputes 'off the table' and have drawn criticism among other member races for their controversial colonization and terraforming projects.

  • Government:
    • The Ummat government is controlled by a political entity referred to as the 'Three Families', although the name is very much a relic from an earlier age. Each Family rules over a collection of large city-states and their surrounding lands, forming groupings roughly analogous to a nation. Each Family is headed by a ruler specifically grown and educated to shoulder the burden of leadership; these Guild Mistresses recruit advisors, specialists, generals, and other staff as they see fit. Each leader of the Three Families meet periodically to discuss and debate matters that affect the entire planet. In essence, this is a largely autocratic system of government- as there's no way to unseat or remove a member of a Family- although most rulers tend to be benevolent.

In recent years, the prominence of the original Three Families have diminished somewhat as the Ummat race pushes further and further out into space. At the behest of their homeworld, all colonial governments have modelled themselves after the Three Family system - even raising new leaders from the same genetic material. In the event of an emergency or rebellion, the homeworld will officially seize control of the government.

  • Military:
    • The Immortal subspecies makes up the vast majority of the Ummat military. Seven feet tall and extensively modified at the genetic level, these super-soldiers are conditioned from birth for a life of armed service. Their minds have been altered to allow for rapid information processing, making them capable admirals and commanders as well. On the ground, a small taskforce of Immortals can easily outmatch a superior force. Most often, they are deployed via atmospheric insertion, either from low-flying assault craft or alone, with the help of antigravitational technology.
    • The Ummat space fleet comprises twelve massive capital ships, supported by many smaller frigates and cruisers. For the most part, these are sufficient to deter the odd pirate attack or rebellion. Fighter craft do exist in the Ummat military; although the relatively high casualty rate among fighter pilots and the expense required to grow an Immortal means that the vast majority are operated remotely.
    • Every fleet is loyal to the homeworld and the homeworld alone - although most colony worlds maintain an official detachment (usually a small carrier and a complement of fighters and ground troops), these are only considered puppets of the homeworld. In the event of a planetary rebellion, any ships in the vicinity will respond, swiftly and brutally.
    • (Imagine something that looks more or less like this as an average Ummat ship)
  • Infrastructure:
    • Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Ummat have mastered cloning technology, to the point where the technology permeates every aspect of day-to-day life. Most species of plants and livestock are also endlessly cloned and genetically manipulated to seve various purposes.
    • The Ummat export a wide variety of plant and animal byproducts off-world; some are shipped out to the Fringe Systems while others are sent offworld to alien empires. These include:
      • various resilin and silk-like compounds harvested from livestock
      • edible fungi and fungal byproducts for medicinal use and chemical engineering
    • The average Ummat lives in massive, hyper-dense cities. With so little land space on their homeworld, the Ummat had to build up rather than out as their populations exploded. The largest of their cities cover entire islands, with small buildings possessing several hundred floors. In many ways, they represent the height of Ummat civil engineering. In modern times, these cities have been re-built so as to accommodate massive spaceports at the center of each city.
  • Culture:
    • Ummat are a mechanistic culture; clones are grown and conditioned to accept one job or function from the moment they're born until the day that they die. Educational facilities have more or less been supplanted by preconditioning. As a result, Ummat have no real names in the way that most other cultures do. The average Ummat has an ID number assigned at birth- implanted into a palm-mounted 'smart implant'- and a function. The Ummat that associate extensively with aliens usually give themselves a name to help put aliens at ease, although it's just as strange to them as humans numbering themselves off would be for them.
    • The average Ummat lives in a highly controlled, mechanistic culture with little room for personal introspection or artistic growth. Nevertheless, state sponsored artists, do exist, and are encouraged to produce new work on a semi-regular basis.
    • Deistic or pantheistic religions are a rarity among most Ummat; while some colony have developed new religions or maintained ancient, pre-clone customs, these are very much the exception.
    • The average Ummat holds the 'perfect phenotype'- the DNA pattern that all Ummat are cloned from in a near deistic-state of reverence. Attempting to tamper with or alter with the perfect phenotype is seen as an act of blasphemy at worst, and treason at best.
  • Territory:
    • The Ascendancy controls fourteen densely populated star systems. The four "Core Systems" comprise the homeworld and three of the oldest and most extensively populated colonies. Most of these planets have been extensively eco-structured so as to promote the growth of genetically augmented flora and fauna native to the homeworld. Most of these terraforming endeavours involve melting icecaps and flooding lowlands so as to recreate their archipelago homeworld. Any native organisms are preserved in zoos and genetic storage facilities, or re-engineered into more useful forms. These are later supplanted by imported plants and animals from Uuumaaa, who have also been genetically augmented. This controversial method of terraforming has drawn criticism from other ecologically-aligned empires.
    • The seven "Middle Systems" have mostly been given over to mass agriculture and mining; a sizeable portion of their outputs are subsequently shipped back to the Core Systems for processing or exported to other members of the Federation.
    • Finally, the three "Fringe Systems" represent the frontier of the Ummat Ascendancy; these worlds are still in the process of being terraformed and colonized.
    • Each world maintains its own colonial government, although each government is officially considered a mere offshoot of the Three Families. Each colony grows and maintains its own clones and infrastructure, and ships a percentage of its industrial output offworld for the homeworld to process and re-allocate.
    • The vast majority of the Ascendancy are, of course, Ummat. A small minority of various aliens- including humans- live in Ummat-controlled planets, and are happily tolerated by the Ummat- but most aliens find it far too disturbing and disconcerting to live in a civilizaiton where 95% of the population are indistinguishable from one another.

edited 17th Feb '16 9:39:13 PM by Locoman

AllHailThrall For the Horde! from Somewhere (It’s Ben 10) Relationship Status: Longing for Dulcinea
For the Horde!
#12: Jan 4th 2016 at 11:09:35 AM

Loco: Your signup is looking good so far, but I do have to say that the Galactic Alliance is actually a very recent thing. It only came into being a little more than a decade prior to the game's beginning.

To help those who are signing up with dates, I have put up a rudimentary timeline in the discussion thread.

I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
Locoman Since: Nov, 2010
#13: Jan 4th 2016 at 11:50:35 AM

Oh wait, there's a discussion thread?

Whoops, should have checked that out first. tongue Will adjust.

AllHailThrall For the Horde! from Somewhere (It’s Ben 10) Relationship Status: Longing for Dulcinea
For the Horde!
#14: Jan 4th 2016 at 2:30:59 PM

For those still writing up your signups:

Please specify your species' average lifespans and nation populations in the signup, as I have now noted within the blank signup sheet.

I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
desdendelle Hooded Crow from Land of Milk and Honey (Sergeant) Relationship Status: Hiding
Hooded Crow
#15: Jan 4th 2016 at 2:53:06 PM

Interest (thanks for bring this to my attention, Nman!); planning on some sort of Space Jews, more likely than not.

edited 8th Jan '16 2:20:37 PM by desdendelle

On empty crossroads, seek the eclipse -- for when Sol and Lua align, the lost shall find their way home.
nman Since: Mar, 2010
#17: Jan 5th 2016 at 12:13:16 AM

  • Name: The Aeresian Supremacy
  • Species: The primary species of the Supremacy is known as the protzen (singular: protz). They are carbon-silicon-based short-heighted long quadrupeds with an overall body shape not unlike Earth's equines, and twin tails at the rear. A short vaguely humanoid "torso" region resides above the front legs, with two arms connected to shoulders, two hands with two thumbs and two fingers, a head, and a neck. Their faces are long, narrow, and flat, possessing four eyes that see in the visible and infrared spectrums, a short proboscis, a large mouth and no ears. Their entire bodies are covered in a natural silicone-based hair which is short in length but long behind the head and neck. Their hair comes in a wide variety of colors, with the most common being some form of red, brown, black, or white, leaning towards darker shades than lighter. The average adult is 1.59m tall at the withers and weighs 600kg, with several subspecies leaning towards different heights and weights. Protzen utilize both nitrogen and oxygen for breathing, are hermaphrodites, and are herbivorous with a 4-stage stomach. They have no hearts, as their eight lungs handle blood flow and respiration. They reach adult size at approximately 30 years of age, have a lifespan of 420 years, and a gestation period of 17 months.

The protzen do not have any psionics. However, their main mode of communication, which utilizes an internal organ capable of sending and receiving images and feelings via electromagnetic signals in a radio-like manner, may appear similar to a casual observer. The main difference is that rather than an ethereal "link" being formed between sender and receiver, there is instead a discrete electromagnetic signal being transmitted by protzen in a conversation, and as such it can be sent or received by a computer system. This organ also detects general radiation, and while protzen generally have a high tolerance for radiation, it allows them to know when to avoid sources that are excessive even for them. An additional difference to psionic species is that they lack the "standard" communication ability of speech, as they lack ears and have no vocal cords. To communicate with other species their translation devices convert between sound. Because it is located in a bump on their forehead, the gesture equivalent of the human "hands over ears" involves covering one's forehead. Unless it is injured or they decide to close it, their communication organ is always active, even when sleeping. Protzen do not sleep in the traditional sense, as their minds and ability to talk remain active while their bodies enter a healing trance, where the food in their stomachs are processed at a far greater speed than during the day. The long "days" of their planets means they typically require 19 hours of sleep for every 57 hours of activity.
  • History: The Supremacy is one of the oldest spacefaring bodies in the galaxy, but long ago the protzen were only semi-intelligent animals. They were raised as livestock, beasts of burden, and pharmaceutical subjects by the birdlike clymestros species. When the clymestroi were in their late information age a highly adaptable and drug-resistant plague emerged that did severe damage to the nervous system. It was through a combination of factors that the first truly sapient members of the protzen were created, with the experimental treatments meant to immunize them against a modified version of the plague simultaneously increasing their mental capacities. As the clymestroi struggled against the plague they were made extinct by the violent, wild, and tribal protzen.

Over the course of the next few centuries protz society experienced constant and tremendous changes, cultures changing practically overnight depending on what sort of lost technology was reclaimed, or what new religious leaders or governments formed. Eventually they unified into the Ascendency of Falyma, and the protzen were carving out their own path instead of attempting to recreate that which was lost. For a brief period of time, the protzen were at total peace. With the discovery of superluminal travel came the desire to explore the cosmos, resulting in new systems being claimed and colonized. During this time of exploration and colonization, a world was discovered belonging to an advanced pre-FTL species that had exterminated themselves. This resulted in a new religious movement that rapidly spread to the nation's government and conquered two other nearby colonies, forming the Ystrean Dominion and ending the era of utopia. Believing the aliens as prophets of the gods and that the purpose of life was to rule by any means necessary rather than live peacefully, it marked the start of a thousand-year state of war between the two nations that is now known as the Lesser Millennium War. This ended over two millennia ago with the onset of wars known as the Ascension Wars and the Supremacy War, where all existing protz nations and religions were reformed and unified into the Aeresian Supremacy.

With reunification of the species came renewed efforts for space exploration and colonization, and within a century they had made contact with or discovered a few species, though most of whom they encountered were fledgling nations. The first exception was the Viela. When the Viela attacked a small colony and began kidnapping the population until reinforcements arrived, this started a lengthy period of rivalry, conflicts, and cold wars known to the Supremacy as the Greater Millennium War, during which the Supremacy resisted Viela efforts to push past them and into nearby nations, while the Viela likewise prevented expansion in their direction. Once again, the Supremacy found itself stagnating as they focused on opposing the Viela. Over the years they watched as the infant nations grew larger, and ultimately found themselves once again picking up the pieces when the Viela were defeated. For the last thousand years the Supremacy has been slowly adjusting to its new place in the galaxy as a neighbor, rather than as a guardian, and hoping to serve as a source of kindness and peace.
  • A portion of ships are manufactured by the Fessk in their shipyards, as part of a large-scale trade initiative that has Fasil providing ships and Aeresia manufacturing shields.
  • At some point in the distant past the Nomads encountered them, and are (probably) the oldest (existing) nation known to the Supremacy.
  • About 21 years ago, first contact was established with the Borentine Holdfast. After a rocky start the two nations became allies, and the Borentines were declared a "Steadfast Compatriot".
  • Roughly 310 years ago the Shyleran Commune and Aeresia began working together to advance military robotics, eventually cementing themselves as allies about 300 years ago.
  • Government: The Supremacy is a theocratic market socialist state. Because of the uniformity of rule, there are few major new laws that must be written, and as a result major laws require significant effort to created. While the legal and economic limitations of individuals limits the ability for corruption, further steps are taken with higher ranking government leaders. Advancement in the government means one must advance in the Sanctum, each tier requiring increased levels of study and service before being considered for promotion. The Supreme Leader, the Aeresata, is elected from amongst the highest level of the Sanctum. Though they are considered the leader and head of state, there are four other members of the Sanctum who hold equal rank.
  • Military: The Supremacy's military is average-sized, with heavy utilization of starships and robotics. Most general infantry and other troops have been done away with since before they even flew into the stars, resulting in a focused military that emphasizes the training of officers and special forces. The few protzen who actually fight in-person are heavily armed and armored. Unlike typical soldiers they do not use handheld firearms, relying on smart high-powered turrets and shields mounted onto their backs and powerful armor, making them akin to mechanized infantry. The armed forces are organized into many sections, the largest being the Armada which is responsible for most spacecraft. Law enforcement also functions in a similar way, with robots performing the bulk of dangerous work.
  • Infrastructure: For the most part, the Supremacy is a centrally planned economy with everything controlled by the government. However, their economy can be viewed as a two-tier system. The first tier consists of that which is deemed a necessity required to live, and every citizen of the Supremacy is guaranteed a right to life. Food, water, shelter, medicine, public transportation, electricity, communications, and other things deemed to be necessities are available freely and planned to never be scarce, and every citizen is able to find a job or occupation. All citizens are also given a universal personal assistant implant that serves as a computer, communicator, and more, which serves as the basis of global telecommunications. However, this does not include things that are considered luxuries. Each citizen is given a stipend of a monetary unit known as Opul, which can be redeemed for luxury goods and services directly from the state, such as larger housing, miscellaneous items, vacations and holidays, or other similar things. Different jobs provide different levels of Opul, with jobs that require more training or effort providing more pay. There are legal limits to how much one can accumulate, spend in a certain timespan, or transfer, but otherwise it functions similarly to any other currency. Individuals or even small businesses exist to facilitate the personal trade of Opul. The majority of citizens are employed in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields due to the subsidization of labor by robots and automation. Walking and public transportation are the two most common and preferred methods of transportation for short and long distances, respectively, while personal vehicle transportation is uncommon.

Tourism is an enormous industry in the Supremacy, both foreign and domestic, with many natural, archaeological, space, and tropical destinations. Instead of traditional "vacation time", each citizen has a special subsidy of Opul which can only be spent on travel, lodging, and other accommodations. This ensures that tourist hotspots are lively and filled with helpful locals year-round, increasing the appeal for foreign visitors.

QUICK AND HANDY ECONOMIC REFERENCE (Updated February Edition)
  • Want to (or can) sell: Robots/robotics, shielding and defensive technology, tourism. Maybe weapons.
  • Want to buy: (almost) Anything relating to culture, luxury goods, or just make something up and I'll see if I can work with it. Maybe spaceships.
  • Culture: The religion of the Supremacy is known as the Aeresian Sanctum, or the Sanctum of Aresia. It believes in one ultimate lifeform, or supreme god/goddess named Aeresia who created all of reality, while a nigh-infinite number of gods serve her by overseeing all of creation in the universe, and beyond. There is also a universal life force that all people are a part of, and as such their souls are never created or destroyed, they are only changed into a different form upon death.
    While the Supremacy lacks a true form of wealth-stratified nobility, there exist both religious and employment hierarchies which serve as sources of prestige. There is no sexualization of the media due to the protzen being seasonal breeders. Home life involves group marriage and the shared raising of children. Firearm ownership is legal in most cases, however the open or concealed carry of unsecured weaponry of any type is severely restricted. Free speech is nearly universal, though hate speech and the like are illegal.
  • Territory: The Supremacy has 20 systems that are spread out relatively far from each other, with many interesting physical phenomena that serve as destinations for space tourists on what are called "star cruises" or "star tours". Despite their efficient urban planning, the total population is only 654 billion. This is due to each planet having wide open expanses of parks, nature reserves, forests, and fields, while the deserts and other undesirable land are typically converted into urban sprawls. Roughly 70% of the population are members of the protzen species, while the remaining 30% belong to a medley of other species (Tally so far: 5 billion shylerans, 19 billion chilga, 7 billion yiai). Its capital world is Falyma, the home world of the protzen species, which orbits the dwarf red star Vielas, which in turn orbits the much larger yellow sun at the center of the Lycerus system.
    • Several Aeresian planets are the former homeworlds of species that were extincted by the Skal and left unknown to history. This includes the Tarateli homeworld of Tal Baleci.
  • Trivia:
    • The currency is called Opul.
    • The primary written language is heavily based on mathematics.

edited 13th Feb '16 9:30:41 PM by nman

StygianEmperor Full-Conversion Cyborg from the Stygian Empire Since: Feb, 2014 Relationship Status: Above such petty unnecessities
Full-Conversion Cyborg
#18: Jan 5th 2016 at 5:35:10 PM

I don't think this is really what you're looking for (and I'm not sure I even like it), but I bothered to write it so I'm posting it anyway.


  • Name: The Stygian Empire (Stygia)
  • Species: Posthumanity. Though they trace their origins to Earth, biological citizens of Stygia only occasionally even resemble their ancestors. With unchecked genetic and bionic engineering, no two Stygians look precisely alike; they have ascended beyond the old concepts of gender, race, and even species. Many have gone as far as to exist in a purely digital form, carrying out their lives entirely in cyberspace. Most, however, are some combination of machine and genetically-altered flesh, but can freely change their forms at bioclinics to have nearly whatever abilities and appearances they wish.
    Stygians are effectively immortal; death was overcome centuries ago through a combination of rejuvenation treatments, genetic engineering, and mind-uploading. Every Stygian citizen has a digital storage device linked to their brain-equivalent that backs up their memories and personalities, and sends them to several secure databanks scattered throughout the Empire on a regular basis, so even if their (usually quite durable) physical forms are killed or destroyed, their minds persist to be downloaded anew. To the Stygians, the body is merely an avatar in which one may explore and perceive the galaxy. They take pity on those other races who they see as trapped in the form they were born to, and wish to bring them into the technological utopia they have created for themselves - even by force, if necessary.
    Some Stygians were indeed never biological to begin with. As artificial intelligences began to rival human ones, laws were enacted protecting their rights. While intentionally-limited A.I.s still exist to aid their sentient masters in mundane tasks, many fully self-aware machines coexist alongside their posthuman creators in Stygian society as equal citizens, often with little in the way of obvious differences between the two. The primitive fear of exponentially-increasing intelligences overtaking and destroying humanity never came to pass; rather it seems that human and machine have both grown together to become one enlightened people.
    As it grew, the Stygian Empire has come across a handful of other sentient species in nearby systems, most of them quite primitive. Whether through peaceful means or by force, every one of these civilizations now bows to the power of the Empire, and their member races have gradually joined the Stygians in transcendence.
  • History: In the latter half of the 21st century, Earth had become dominated not by nations, but by companies. Though not the largest, Stygian Technologies had made the greatest leaps in an area many others were hesitant to pursue; changing and augmenting the human body. With the advent of FTL travel, the entire corporation decided to leave the planet and its regressive ideals of pure humanity behind, taking to the stars for a far-distant corner of the galaxy in great colony ships with millions of their employees and like-minded people in tow.
    They arrived at Stygia, a meteor-blasted, frigid barren of a planet, but a rocky world that contained the ideal magnetic signature upon which to build the capital of their empire. It took decades of terraforming and essentially the rebuilding of the planet's entire surface with the aid of extensive bionics to allow the earliest terrestrial Stygians to pave the way for the rest still aboard their colony ships, but what would eventually be called the "Machine World" was finally a home for all those who rejected the tyranny of nature.
    Since then, the Stygian Empire has turned its sights outward. With the overpopulation of the capital world looming, and the ascendance of all lifeforms its ultimate goal, the Empire decided to take other planets under its domain, whether uninhabited or not. While peaceful means have succeeded on a few occasions, violent military action has proven a prevailing necessity. Though they have yet to attempt to conquer a member nation of the Galactic Alliance, a few of the civilizations they have overthrown were FTL-capable and therefore quite capable militarily, as well. Still, they were no match for the bionically-augmented and genetically-perfect cyber-soldiers of the Empire, and fell, one after another, until Stygia reached the considerable size it is today.
  • Government: Stygia is what some would call a benevolent oligarchy, and what others would call a technocracy. The Administrators, as they are known, are a secretive and immortal group of the brightest scientific minds in the Empire, who contribute as much technologically to Stygia as they do politically. They value the autonomy of their own people over all else, but wish the same for other civilizations seemingly very little. While peaceful means are always sought first, it seems those who rule Stygia are utterly unwilling to let other nations go unconquered, and are not slow to utilize their powerful military.
    Stygia's government encourages technological development at every opportunity, granting accolades to any who can move the Empire further towards utopia. Most recently, with the discovery of abilities in other races that seem to defy the laws of reality, the push has lately been to learn as much as possible about so-called "psionics." Because even if there is magic in the universe, Stygia will analyze it to its base components, understand it, and utilize it.
  • Military: The Stygian military is not large, by any standards, but the Empire prides itself on its soldiers being worth a hundred of any other nation's. Where other galactic powers utilize trained soldiers armed with weapons and piloting machines of war, Stygian soldiers *are* the weapons and war machines unto themselves. No being can navigate a battlefield in a mech as effortlessly as someone who has *lived* as one for much of their life, utterly casting aside their humanity for the pursuit of the perfection of warfare. No natural being is as fast, as strong, or as merciless as one who has cut away the flesh for glorious unyielding metal.
    That being said, Stygia still sees some value in multiculturalism and tries to preserve what it can from the peoples it conquers, fielding a few key units to strike strategically-significant targets rather than relying on tactics of terror and annihilation. Their mastery of technology tends to be reflected in cyber-warfare as well; Stygia will even go so far as to upload digital soldiers onto the internet-equivalent of whatever enemy they face, knocking out communications and taking control of remote defenses where possible.
    Fortress-moons housing vast fleets of interceptor ships and ever-vigilant hyperspace defense guns are stationed in every star system, generally orbiting noteworthy planets. Electromagnetic field generators are built around every major city in the event of planetary bombardment.
  • Infrastructure: Education is a top priority in Stygia, with all citizens receiving at least sixteen standard years of science, mathematics, and programming before they can be considered a legal adult. Those too slow to grasp the concepts are given the option of psychological genetic reengineering, though with germline modifications having already been made to nearly every Stygian family this is rarely necessary for natural-born citizens.
    The concept of employment is seen as entirely optional in one's life, as Stygia's well-managed gross production far outstrips their total expenditure (and has in human history since long before Stygian Technologies was even a company back on Earth). The only common "blue-collar" jobs are in maintenance of the Empire's vast mechanical infrastructure, while the vast majority of such positions, such as that of drivers, farmers, and construction workers are filled by the aforementioned machines.
    Where sentience is required, such as in the scientific and creative fields, posthumans flourish. Though mental bioengineering can only take one so far, those who desire to can usually find a place they are needed. Competition is no longer over currency, but glory; accolades always find those who advance the Empire technologically. The service industry still exists in Stygia as well, for even posthumans find they sometimes yearn for a human touch.
    With little want, crime is exceedingly low, and due to the possibility of resurrection via uploaded memories, even murder no longer carries the serious weight it once did. When necessary, police are augmented (or built, as may be the case) to fulfill their roles with dispassionate efficiency, and detectives often simply utilize a suspect's subpoenaed memory-backup to objectively solve crimes. This, however, has led to the practice of partial memory erasure or replacement in order to circumvent the law... and so the cycle of justice continues. Punishments tend to be mild, relatively speaking, with repeat offenders offered psychological reengineering to supplement their virtual reality rehabilitation. The worst crime imaginable is the obstruction of technological progress, so there is little in the way of laws that limit research or experimentation of any kind - which leads to a significant gray area when sentient test subjects are required.
  • Culture: Having been built from shrewd scientific minds, in general Stygia's culture looks down on superstitious belief, but makes no law denying it to anyone. That being said, the concept of the technological Singularity that existed since the 20th century has, over Stygian history, spawned numerous cult-like entities. The prevailing groups hold pseudo-religious beliefs akin to that of an impending, almost-biblical rapture-like event, in which an all-powerful God-machine will be created that brings the universe into a sort of techno-nirvana. Most citizens, however, realize that this prediction is the same one that has been made for hundreds of years, and know better than to live their lives as if they were in the last days.
    Critical, logical thinking is only prized just after individuality, and diversity of all kinds is always encouraged, particularly in the physical form. Free clinics abound where one can, through various treatments and surgeries, become whoever or whatever they want. Bio-engineering has become something of an art form, with posthuman geneticists and biotechnicians alike seemingly constantly trying to outdo one another in the complexity and unrecognizability of their new bodies.
    By and large, Stygians look upon those outside of their culture with pity; mortal beings trapped in the cage that nature cruelly built around their minds. They see military aggression as a necessary evil to help free those unenlightened masses across the galaxy from the tyranny of the flesh, and join them in their protean state of near-utopia.
  • Territory: The Stygian Empire is vast, spanning twenty systems in the current day, but its population is stretched relatively thin, only numbering a hundred billion. The capital world of Stygia, farthest to the edge of the galaxy, is by far its most populous, with just under thirty percent of Stygian citizens living on the machine planet alone in the towering planet-wide megatropolis. Untold millions also only exist in cyberspace, living their lives with as little impact on the outside galaxy as they possibly can.
  • Trivia: Oh nope

edited 5th Jan '16 5:36:38 PM by StygianEmperor

Flesh is a design flaw.
AllHailThrall For the Horde! from Somewhere (It’s Ben 10) Relationship Status: Longing for Dulcinea
For the Horde!
#19: Jan 5th 2016 at 5:52:34 PM

Sorry to say, I will not be accepting human-offshoots.

edited 5th Jan '16 5:52:57 PM by AllHailThrall

I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
EchoingSilence Since: Jun, 2013
#20: Jan 6th 2016 at 11:53:39 AM

I will be applying a species later.

darkdestinysoul Since: Mar, 2015
#21: Jan 6th 2016 at 7:19:48 PM

Name: The Shyleran Commune

Population: For the Raylen the population of the nation during the most recent trials was: 71,807,256,816 individuals spread over their five star-systems. For the Shilmora meanwhile their population is considerably lower at a mere 579 individuals.

Species: What species makes up your nation? What do they look like, and any particular biological quirks about them? How big are they, and how long do they live on average?

     Species 
  • The Shylerans are a species of partially-aquatic aquatic creatures hailing from the deep turbulent oceans of Halcyon or the Storm cradle in the Sephron star system. It is made up of two distinctly different kinds of creature as part of the same symbiotic eusociality. The Reslata and the Rasleta are the names for the workers, drones and populous members of the species, collectively the "Raylen" while the Shilmora are the large "brood queens" of the commune. Since the Raylen require a Shilmora to reproduce yet while it itself can reproduce both itself and the Raylen without a partner it is a unusual relationship which can be difficult to define by Terran definitions of a species. Both the Shilmora and Raylen have sensory organs capable of Electroreceptive location, or Electrolocation; the ability to generate and detect electromagnetic fields in their surrounding environment and use them to both navigate and to locate prey through distortions to the surrounding fields by the activity of other creatures nervous systems. It is a super-sensitive sense for them though far more effective in water or on their stormy home-world than other environments due to the conduction of electricity through air. Due to electronic implants however they can amplify their own fields to even detect nearby creatures in regular, not-statically air or from the background fields caused by most electronics. Their blood is a light blue in their veins, though when exposed to air it slowly becomes a mostly clear milky-silver colour.
    • The Raylen are made up of the Reslata and Rasleta effectively and practically equated to Male and Female compared to humans. The Raylens are bipedal amphibious humanoid creatures standing on two backwards bowed legs, with four arms, a head and a powerful and muscular tail. Standing at a average height of 150cm for Rasleta and 170cm for the Reslata. Their upper arms end each with a hand-like extension with two fingers, a thumb and a extended grabber; additionally the hands each support a long-bladed fin for both aquatic maneuverability as well as a defense mechanism. Their lower two arms end each with two hands each with three more dexterous fingers. They have no equivalence of nails or claws at the end of their fingers. There have three powerful toes with claws, two for-claws and one rear for grip, combat and mobility on land. Their thick, scaled skin is difficult to pierce and is oily; pigmented in a variety of colors, from green, blue, purple or red. Amphibious and able to survive in both land and water they are capable at traversing both land and water with relative ease and can survive at a wide range of pressures, from the low pressure of their planets surface to extreme underwater pressures. Their heads have a pair of yellow-tinted eyes with elongated pupils, gills, film membranes for hearing and their mouths; they have no organs for smell. They are cold blooded and can exist comfortably in temperatures up to 33 degrees bellow freezing or temperatures up to 74 degrees Celsius. Beyond this range as with any species, environmental conditioning may needed for survival. They also exist most comfortably in lower-pressure humid environments though through physical training and minor drug supplements, they can survive without issue in the higher pressures and lower-humidities that other races prefer. They live on average for fifthy-five to sixty-five years and reach sexual maturity by the age of ten and full physical development stops at twelve. The Reslata are physically stronger than the Reslata by a significant degree, the Rasleta instead develop large protein glands that produce secretions to stimulate healing of their partner and growth of their young. Unlike the Shilmora they hold no affinity to use psionics though their exposure to it throughout their evolution does mean they are more sensitive to noticing when others hold and use such affinities.
    • Shilmora meanwhile are the anomaly. They are huge purely aquatic, psionic creatures tremendously larger than their amphibian cousins. At the length of 27 meters long and weighing around 200,000kg or 196 imperial tons as a full adult this creatures size is similar to that of a blue whale on earth. This scaled and muscular creature lives at the very depths of the planets seas in large caves protected and maintained by the Raylen. Incapable of movement over long distances it relies on its brood, the Raylen for protection, for food and for the delivery of genetic material to other Shilmora if they do not wish to reproduce asexually. Its outer membrane is bio-luminescence providing light between its scaled, chitin plates. As a creature it rarely moves from its cave or place of origin and instead just established its "nest" deep bellow the surface of the water at the sea floor. The Shilmora are at the top of the social heirarchy for the Shyleran species, acting as queens or brood mothers. Shilmora's do little themselves except for producing the eggs to be either fertilized by the Raylen or by itself if the populations of either Shylerans or Raylen drop too low. When a Shilmora egg is produced, part of the genetic code it receives is a genetic memory for the species, the commutative knowledge of its ancestors. As a result the Shilmora hold positions as necessary queens, but also as council for its entire brood on decisions and as a record of all that came before. In simple even if everyone of their brood were do die, as long as a single Shilmora survived the species could endure and less little progress except for time. A Shilmora can live for nearly a millennia (920 years is the current record) if its nest does not become disturbed by natural events or dangerous war, an egg can remain dormant and ready to hatch for up-to a hundred and twenty seven years and the Shilmora inside only takes fifteen years to reach reproductive-maturity even if they continue growth for long after. The Shilmora rarely interact with the other races, for one being at the depths of the ocean make it unlikely to be met by air-breathing races but secondly they seldom make contact with the outside world. Instead they are the insular leaders, listening to the genetic memory or song of their people and giving council to their young through it. Guiding the Raylens decisions from their watery domain. Their psionics are actually quite substantial, the commutative experience of their species having empowered it; yet with their isolation only those who either dare to attack a Shilmora or who seek its council would ever get to witness its abilities to tap others minds, share experiences, sense emotions or feed the target painful stimuli for defense. In history some Shilmora have tried to control its brood fully by inflicting mental pain and transmitting thoughts of tasks and images, and to varying degrees this ethically disagreeable experiment worked, some entire broods under direct mental control for a decent amount of the broods history. They could maintain it for hundreds of miles surrounding their nest. This dominance lasted till a Schism among the Shilmora where they began to war over the differences in ideology about their role as queen. Now the rarely use the ability except in extreme circumstances, though in theory a Shilmora could likely use its abilities just as effectively on an alien creature as one of its own given only a short period of time. Ofcourse this is a theoretical situation, not one that is likely to occur considering their isolation.

History: Where did your nation originate from and what has happened since its founding until now?

     History 
  • Shyleran Commune originates from the atmospherically unstable ocean-world of Halcyon or to the old tongue The storm cradle. The planet has a naturally low air-pressure and relatively weak stratosphere, as a result during day and night their are huge differences in air temperature, it dropping by between 25 and 50 degrees celsius between day and night, as a result huge pressure systems exist around the twilight borders of the planet resulting in tremendously powerful storms. These storms responsible for the semi-toxic atmosphere of the planet where high-levels of Ozone exist at the surface level, in addition to the planet getting bombarded with much larger doses of radiation than many other races world would support. This combined with other natural disasters such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions means the planet itself has been one of the primary factors the Shyleran people have had to evolve against. Their people for a long time were arranged into dozens of tribal broods under different Shilmora, though as time progressed and the threat the planet meant for its inhabitants lessened this slowly began to change, for some broods war and others through alliance. In the end however after many centuries, perhaps a millennia of war longer than even the Shilmora themselves alone were alive; the unification of Halcyon was completed.
  • As a time for a pre-FTL species they began to flourish, using the rich among of copper in their planets soil, developing their technology to be usable deep bellow the seas and on land. Their artwork and religion became dominant and spread among their people through trade and study unifying culture and language for most the Raylen; even if the Shilmora were slow to transition. This however did begin to spread many of the ideals that make up the modern culture, including a movement to demote the Shilmora from absolute political figures to councilors and guidance; slowly paving the way to their future democracy after the Sunset Wars.
    • These wars were fought on all fronts of the planet with the Raylen opposing the Shilmora, dangerous for them as a species due to the difficulty in reproduction. The wars were not ended however by bloodshed or diplomacy but instead a huge meteor impact which decimated the planet and inflicted their atmosphere in arctic winter. The Raylen population as well s the population of plants general ecology plummeted in this age. Yet the Shyleran's endured through the deep slumber of the Shilmora at the sea floor, for nearly two thousand years their species slumbered waiting for conditions on the surface to improve and eventually they did, from near extinction the species survived only from its brood queens natural isolation.
  • Since the Cold Night's end the species has rebuilt itself over hundreds of years using the knowledge stored and kept by the Shilmora to rebuild even with all of their records destroyed. Their home-world even to this day is low on biodiversity, many species becoming extinct in this blast and a huge crater known as the Karlo'esra Tarlentra or The flaming fangs that frozen the heavens now sits as the center point for the largest surface settlement on Halcyon. It is a major event in their history and one that has only reinforced the cooperative and group-focused nature of the species.
  • Eventually the age of FTL technology hit, the crashed site of a damaged and near disabled Nomad Star vessel was found on Halcyon's moon. In return for repairing the vessel it gave the awnsers needed for their rapid development in technology and a unfortunate rapid change in culture which the Shilmora were not fully prepared for; yet space became to new frontier now with atleast another race already known. Soon even managing to create gates to over systems and establishing its first few colonies, even transporting Shilmora eggs to these aquatic worlds. A impressive task considering their speed but one with consequences, over-expansion put their shared economy at strain. Soon leading to even more conflict, this time the Communes self-expansion war; a long but relatively bloodless war between its colonies lasting several centuries yet while bloodless it did lead to the development of their military space technology and to rapid developments in technology that peace would not have created; even leading to the accidental meeting of the Kair-Shaan and by extension the Ashkathi.
  • It was around three hundred and seventeen years ago, two and a half centuries after their reunification as the Commune that they joined into formal-trade agreements with the other races, then a century later the Galactic Alliance itself.

Government: Who is in charge of your nation, and how do they go about ruling it?

     Government 
  • The nation is rule is split into three parts. The first part is the social hierarchy of the Shilmora, their personal brood and then the Raylen; similar to a monarchy in many senses except for the fact there are hundreds of these "queens". Together they effectively rule as a council of equals, each inputting on matters together and setting goals, laws and direction to the Raylen.
  • Meanwhile closer to the surface the Raylen have a parliament made up of representatives from major population centers, including cities, colonies and space-stations. There are a total of 1000 individuals as executors upon the council. The parliament of executors then elects a chairman to act as head of state and who proposes what goes into power. The executors each hold their positions for life or till resignation or expulsion, the chairman holds his position for 5 years before re-election is called. The parliament can vote on any acts proposed by the chairmen at a fifty two percent majority needed to pass the laws. In addition if a law is set by the Shilmoran council which they disagree with, they can try to overturn such a law by a two-thirds majority vote against it. The law has few legal loopholes or simple cheats, any attempt at such is almost always blocked by the Shilmoran council.
    • A chairman can choose to alone override any single decree of the parliament or council at the cost of expulsion from his office. A safeguard in times of dire threat that is rarely called upon.
  • The High Admiral is the final piece of the political puzzle whose title has changed over history. Their role is to maintain and support defense and military efforts, a High Admiral is usually a executor who is also a military official though there have been non-executor High Admirals as well. In times of war or in matters of conflict a High Admiral may pass into effect temporary decrees without the permission of the parliament and only the approval of the Council, allowing for hasty action to be taken in war times. The Chairman appoints the High Admiral each time he goes into office.
  • Galactic ambassadors must be proposed by a Executor which he cannot be related to or even share in Shilmora of, voted in favor of by the parliament, then be approved personally by the High Admiral and finally then meet the standards of the Shilmoran Council. Very few ambassadors exist at any time and replacing them due to the long process can take months or years, as a result usually only a handful more ambassadors than are needed exist at any time.

Military: What is your military like? How does it operate, and how big is it?

     Military 
  • The Shyleran military is very fleet-orientated ever since the Self-expansion war. The military force has a focus and specialization in automated systems such as deploy-able combat drones, their planetary automated defense systems, point black defense turrets and defensive shielding.
    • Shyleran ships far more deserve the description as ships than most races, their vessels actually capable of motion comfortably through water, air or vacuum. The interor of the ships is dry, they very rarely establish aquatic environments on their vessels. This is firstly to aid in foreign relations but also because the only creature requiring it would be the Shilmora who don't travel off-planet by conventional ships anyway.
    • Shyleran, military ships generally come in one of three primary roles. Strike ships for dealing quick amounts of damage then evading, using guerrilla warfare tactics, then Scout ships designed for quiet movement into enemy territory to establish relays and to scan for movement or to perform sabotage/ground drops. The finally kind of ship are the Transports, which are not how you conventionally consider a transport. Their transports are designed for dozens if not hundreds of soldiers to be moved from point A to B while packing much of the defensive equipment as well as large kinetic cannons. Many ships come with unmanned-fighters or automated defense turrets built in to take down incoming danger without actually placing the troops at risk till they land and establish their base-camp.
    • The general military strategy from the race is all about setting up relay stations, and then striking in small but fast sabotage operations from there. Espionage and detonation being favored methods before a assault as their more defensive technology makes it easier to maintain a hold on a position than to advance from one.

Infrastructure: This is a big question but it bears asking: what sort of infrastructure helps your nation go? Science and technology, law enforcement, and the like.

     Infrastructure 
  • The law enforcement of the Shyleran Commune is incredibly simple in almost all regards, their are few legal loopholes or tricks. Any individual can call another to trial for their crimes and as long as their is evidence or someone willing to testify on the prosecutions behalf, the police will then call and charge a individual with the crime. You can confess immediately or have a trial. If a trial is requested you will be taken into custody, with non-lethal force if necessary. You will be presented before three Consul's from the local region when the trials proceeds. Both sides simply present the evidence, prosecution first, defense second then the three Consuls will render judgement. Capital punishment is used often for offenders for crimes of murder or greater, though its frequency is less for those from other species in their territory. For lesser offenses the punishments vary though rarely are they economical, they usually involve things to their social standing, large investitures like a ship or land, or their rights. Imprisonment is rarely used though exile found its place in the recent few centuries. Occasionally a criminal will evade the justice system or refuse to answer for his crimes; in such a event then they are declared guilty of the highest order and will be hunted for execution by one of their Justicars. Justicars are Elite agents, given a role to perform and heavy training since they are young in combat and reconnaissance to perform their task; in this case the role of handling Justice would be given and they would hunt their quarry no matter their destination. Given the authority to kill, clearance to investigate their quarry without interruption or legal issues, and the ability wield or purchase any weapon within Shyleran space without further authorizations. Occasionally these elite agents are used in warfare and espionage; either way they are the strike teams of the government's Executors and operate in a state outside of the military but also the legal system.
  • The technology of the Shyleran people is certainly distinct from many of the other races. Almost everything purchased or developed by their people is designed to work in both air and water, capable of surviving a multitude of situations and generally being incredibly durable. A necessity with their harsh planet and adaptability as a species. The cities themselves follow this principle; on land the tall looming buildings are designed to in conditions of heavy storm conditions, during earthquakes or tidal events retract underground leaving only a small amount vulnerable as doorways in and out of these structures. The buildings are emphasized to be tall as the surface of their home-world is primarily islands and space can be a premium. There are floating cities upon the water, connected together by walkways. These are far smaller and all have domed rounded structures for dispersing pressure if it is to submerge during a large storm or event. Which they can do with quite some speed. Finally deep deep beneath the surface of the water the ocean cities of the sea floor are large sprawling systems of rounded crystalline or glass-like tunnels, domed buildings all lit with luminescent plants and fungi that grow within these Eco domes. Most of these deepest cities are entirely aquatic having no dry locations while the submerging cities may have a combination of always dry and semi-dry locations. The result however is the Commune uses a huge majority of its planets surface for living as they can take advantage of every type of terrain.
    • One issue the planet has always had is communication, the huge raging storms making it significantly more difficult. As a they have developed a series of unique communication devices based on the signals sent by the Shilmora. These psionic communication devices are crystalline sphere that seem to resonate with a psionic quantum-link to its partner crystal. These are then linked into traditional machinery but the overall result allows them to communicate effortless through this quantum link despite environmental conditions. These are not something that is given to all, a pair of linked orbs is not useful to the average person but they are for example used in mass to allow all the Shilmora to communicate with each other by relaying signals all into a single location that can then analyse the signals and send responses back. Alternatively they are used by relay stations inside settlements to allow them communication to orbital satellites that then handle the signal like any other species might. The communication between linked crystals is almost instantaneous even over long distances. Some ships sent for long-distance scouting of unknown and uncharged regions may carry one quantum linked somewhere despite any kind of interference or jamming they might encounter though this is rare aboard most military vessels as they are both expensive to produce and overly specific due to their one-to-one nature.
  • The Commune supports all of the sciences though most notably the sciences of evolutionary investigation, artificial intelligence, terraforming and genetics are all highly prized. In fact their are academies on the home-world dedicated to each of these single crafts alone, in addition to the large more generalist academies. Education is a powerful tool and they deeply value their various school and institutions for any role you might want to peruse. The elites are not trained so much as given the knowledge needed to succeed however, implanted with it by the psionics of the Shilmora; these are rare individuals Justicars, Ambassadorial Candidates and those who show unusual genetic differences for the species. These individuals still need to train but they can learn this information in a way much faster and more intuitive from the personal attention.

Culture: What sort of culture does your nation have? Do they have any traditions, or religious beliefs, or customs, or forms of art?

     Culture 
  • The Commune has a very group focused culture, everyone should contribute to the greater whole. This is by no means a perfectly accepted viewpoint by all but as a overall style among the people. Personal gain is less important than helping, friends, family or your community.
  • Young Raylen are always seen wearing a white, once bone now normally silver chain with several beads with ornate designs that designate who their Shilmora was. This is worn to they come of age at 10 years old, its removal is a symbolic moment of growth, a removal of reliance from their parents aid. The lifting of restrictions towards freedom. Raylen still in their youth may be seen still working and aiding the community, their is not really a concept of childhood for them more than a stage of reliance and education.
  • The Shylerans as a whole have a unified religion, enforced in the old wars. It believes that all in the universe are connected through their genetic memory, even species who cannot access it like the Shilmora can all share aspects of their parents, their parents parents. A flowing string that connects all individuals of a species back to the origin. This string is more than genetic to them however it is a intangible bond between all creatures, even of different species from different worlds. All sentient life is entangled in these webs of life that subtly connect all of our minds together. A philosophical concept reinforced by the Shilmoras psionic ability. To them even their "goddess" ((Closest translation since they dont use male and female the same way.)) meets with them upon this echoing lines of eternity. Their goddess known as Kalvectra through may just be refereed to as goddess supposedly enlightened the Shilmora and aided them in forming the first of the Raylen before retreating beyond the storm-wall that is the homeworlds clouds.
  • The people often take the practice of dying their scaled skin in various colors as a method of self-expression. As wall as adorning their tails or testicles in the case of the Shilmora with banded pieces of jewelry with writing. Both of these cannot be done till someone comes of age and removes their chains. The Shylerans in general rarely wear something you would refer to as clothing. Another form of self-expression that is used on occasion is the "chipping" of their upper arms bladed appendages to form shapes, patents or even writing. A permanent form of modification that is sometimes frowned upon; partially because it has been associated with many extremist groups.
  • Shyleran culture actually has interesting subtly rules for naming. In simple however they have true names and face names. Their true names are symbolic scripts much like how Halcyon is known as the "Storm Cradle" a persons true name may translated as "Summer Nightwalker of the Red Sands"; they are symbolic and mutagenic, they can change as a persons like does. The first part being based on who they are as a person and the latter their Shilmora. Their face name is the name they give to everyone who is not their closest friends, family or intimate partners. Sharing a true name is a symbolic gesture of trust.
  • Shyleran culture values art to a great deal, most notably visual art using vivid colors, much of it abstract or similar to calligraphy. More highly is the performing arts, using the body to perform entertainment. Dancers especially are help among high regard for the species. To flow like the waves and the storm and let all feel your movements through themselves as you move. Music is eerie and primal, it provokes feeling and emotions that are hard to fully describe to other races. The feeling of being submersed in the depths of the ocean letting your body fill with the movements of a thousand fish. Though in the recent years the music of other races has begun to slip into culture as a less symbolic form of art and more a entertaining one.
  • The Alkari'yova other than being a mouthful for the other species are genetic anomalies for the Shylerans. They are Raylen who develop over-active electrostatic cells during development. The symptoms are not usually seen till late development, usually around the coming of age. The Alkari'yova both emit a more powerful electrosensory current increasing their ability to detect individuals in their surroundings but also are unable to control it. During union with their partner the electrical current will build enough that it will overload a partners nervous system and actually kill them while providing the Alkari a euphoric and addictive rush. Reviled by the Shylerans, they are considered abominations to their society. Unfortunately near impossible to detect early due to the huge variation present between Raylen DNA the symptoms usually manifest during their first union. While the Commune doesn't order their death, few live regular lives; many retreat to remove locations, sanctuaries or other worlds where they can live without the prejudices. Those who choose to kill for the euphoria are hunted deeply and without mercy.

Territory: How big is your nation? How many star systems of territory does your nation control? Any important areas in particular? The maximum amount of systems I am allowing is 20.

     Territory 
  • The Shyleran Commune controls a total of five star-systems. The most important of these star-systems is Sephron, their home system with their home-world Halcyon. Sephron has two additional colonies, one on the moon of a gas giant; Erana and the other a frozen planet near the edge of the system called Rho. The system is also the home of a four major space-stations simply known as Sephron I, II, III, IV. It is the core system for the Commune with ring gates into each of the four other colony systems (each with their own space-stations) and with a gate into their closest neighbors territory, the Kair-Shaan.
  • The Rhanok system is notable as well as a primary mining outpost that supplies valuable metals from its huge number asteroid belts. This metal while traded out to the other systems and even neibour species is primarily used in the Rhanok V station; the largest space-station outside of Sephron II. Rhanok V's purpose is primarily a military hub and shipyard. A core part of the military and key to producing their size-able fleet.

Trivia: Anything important you didn't mention earlier? Tell me about that.

     Trivia 
  • Their currency is known as Shale.
  • Individuals very rarely leave the Commune space alone, it is far more likely you will see a pair of Raylen in union, even perhaps with a youth with them.
  • Their space-stations often have rather low-pressure but high oxygen environments meaning members of other races need either adaptation training or environment suits/breathers to live comfortably.
  • While denied by the Commune a sepritests group does control a space-station on the outside of one of their colony systems. The extremists fighting for a more individualist and less hierarchical society. They are going by the name Terrasil or "True Fighters"
  • A single Shilmora can produce and fertilize over five million eggs in a year, which are cared to and watched by Justicar Watchers.
    • While a Shilmora can produce eggs for Raylen and new Shilmora without external genetic material by using excess stored in their own body as a secondary genome to partner with, it is generally accepted that partnered breeding is superior as it allows genetic diversity to continue to increase.
  • At this current time only two Shilmora exist outside the Communes borders. Both times met with heavy resistance. The first was the "Living Sky spirit", first to leave the Commune currently located on Neo-Halcyon in the Nomad Stars. The second would be "Blue Eyed Supremacy" making its home in the Aeresian Supremacy. Both are of the first generation outside the commune but place significant trust upon the respective nations.

Skype quote-block

     Quotes 
  • Halcyeon aquatic food; during discussions between the Ashkathi and Shylerans.
Their are a variety of aquatic prey. Small shrimp like creatures do exist, and are the most common prey for food. Their is also many species of small scaled fish which are harder to digest without skilled preperation. Their is a great number of fish similar to earths ecology in general as well.

Their are larger beasts as well. Large creatures known as Rhelnashal or "White fanged prey" are also commonly hatched. These creatures are like a cross between crabs and spiders, about the size of a sheep; almost pure white in colour are able to alter their skin pattens to match that of their terrain. Unable to swim and just cross the sea floor they are bred like cattle for food and their scaled shells.

Some beasts are alot larger, some more dangerous and a few with electrokenetic bites that can stun prey. Many of those are kept away from settlements.

  • In reference to individuals leaving the commune and living on other species worlds.
The genders and size are the interesting things. The Raylen freely immagrate out of system which is fine but the Shilmora or "space whales" as one of you called them tend not to leave the Communes space. One because they are soo damn huge. Even when being transported to colony worlds they are usually taken as young or eggs. Secondly becuase tradition dictates so. As a result usually when the Raylen want to have children they will take a pilgramage back to one of the Commune worlds to get as many eggs as they currently need and then go back to the world they call home. Now hatching them on other planets can be harder since the young struggle to survive on land for the first year but the use of adaptive shelters and bio-spheres have managed to aid this issue.
  • In a talk discussing Neo Halcyon, a Nomad Star state of Shyleran colonists and its likely hood in having a egg. Also in a sense applying to the single egg that left space towards the Aeresian Supremacy.
Could a Shyleran state in Nomad space get a Shilmora egg? Keep in mind the Nomads themselves aren't the ones asking, they only care insofar that the colony in question fulfills it's obligations to the Nomads with taxes or whatever. It'd be the people who for whatever reason chose to live in the Nomad Stars apart from the Commune. ~Parable of the Nomad Stars

Though it would have been met with some resistance perhaps yes it could have. The egg is not so much sacred to the commune but the species and religion. So probably yes. ~Myself.

Galactic Relations

     Relations 
  • If its not marked bellow, assume neutral.
    • Aeresian Supremacy - Great; military alliance.
    • Ashkathi Union - Great; economic and military alliance]]
    • Nomad Stars - Good; trade treaty.

edited 3rd Feb '16 7:49:37 PM by darkdestinysoul

"After time adrift among open stars, along tides of light and through shoals of dust, I will return to where I began."
wikkit Since: Sep, 2009
#22: Jan 6th 2016 at 7:23:43 PM

  • Name: The Borentine Holdfast
  • Population: Somewhere in the ballpark of 25,000,000,000.
  • Species:
    • Borentinians, singular Borenten, bear a resemblance to an insectoid Naga of human mythology. Their head is cycloptic, the singular eye a shimmering white in average lighting. In the dark, it is highly reflective like that of a cat, shining in a bright shade of green. The mouth of a Borenten is covered, splitting down vertically from underneath the eye, with what appears to be a single unbroken plate of chitin opening and closing over the sensitive mandibles and tongues inside the actual mouth. The rest of the head is also almost featureless, the black chitin smooth and giving an almost robotic appearance. Their torso is large, in relation to the small head. The cranium is sunk into the the chest, with ridges of chitin giving the appearance of a collar. The size of the torso and their general posture give them hunchbacks and the appearance of broad shoulders, with a spinal ridge extending above the head. They have six limbs, arranged vertically down their sides and each ending in a pair of clawed fingers. The tail of a Borenten is long, segmented and strong. It is what they use to hold themselves up, generally standing at about 7 feet tall. With balance and training, one could lower themselves to a mere 5 feet or as high as 10 feet, but doing anything but standing while in such an odd posture is difficult. To an outsider, genders seem to have no difference between each other, but they are able to identify through subtle differences in voice, and minor things such as the end of the tail. Females have a barbed tip, while males have a dull point.
    • The tectonically unstable planet they call home, Orin, has shaped their biology to make them survival experts. The majority of the surface is either in lethal range of volcanic gasses and lava, or constantly wracked by powerful earthquakes. The remaining land, less than a tenth of total landmass, is comprised of dormant mountains resting on tectonically stable continental plates. The Borentinians lived there, often in the extensive crevasses and canyons where whatever water is left gathers. As such, they are hardy beings built to live in the harshest environs, capable of subsisting on much less than the other organic species of the galaxy. They are physically strong, but the simplistic nature of their hands lends to weak motor control. They eat a diet mostly consisting of simple vegetables, mosses and fungi, but they will not shy away from eating any kind of meat they can get their hands on. In times of extreme drought, this includes the recently deceased. Having evolved breathing in a toxic atmosphere, their respiratory system is extremely hardy, capable of processing in very thin, dry and hot environments. They are able to see in near-complete darkness quite well, due to the layers of clouds omnipresent in Orin's skies and some subterranean adaptions, but they can be easily blinded with bright lights. Borentine growth never stops, but it slows down after sexual maturity is reached at 28 standard years. Their lifespans average out to 44 years old, leaving them comparatively little time to mate compared to other species.
  • History: Orin, being as inhospitable as it is, has lended an air of extreme conservatism to her only offspring, the Borentinians. The need to use as little natural resources as possible stifled many areas of development, while benefiting others. Food is considerably more scarce than the abundantly rich sources of ore on Orin, so technology was slanted in favor of agricultural advancements. By their own measure, they are a warlike species, but in comparison to others combat between nations is much rarer. The isolating nature of the tectonically stable areas means great distances and dangers must be dealt with in order to beat your enemy's heads in, causing conflict in their history to be generally in the form of political intrigue. The isolation also meant that diplomacy and trade between settlements, governments and continents was also limited, so an incredible variety of cultures, mythologies and ideologies flourished, each population vastly different from the next. Technology did eventually allow for globalization, with the development of aircraft. After the technology proliferated to all corners of the globe, a decade of intense warfare began as most nations decided to take whatever land they could. This ended when they realized that they reproduced far too slowly to keep up with the ravages of war. What they ended up with was a great conglomeration of nations, most distantly cold or even hostile with each other, but almost never coming to blows. They continued like this for about a millenia, until hyperdrive was discovered at the year 11,267 on the most widely accepted calendar. After a disastrous first contact between them and a remote Aerisian colony, they looked at the other races and decided that they would rather fight the aliens than amongst each other, and founded...
  • Government: The Orin Council of Free Nations, essentially a confederation of many different nations from the old world, is the closest thing to a governing body in the Borentine Holdfast. A rarity in the galactic scene, they are one of the few races that have not truly formed a singular government. They function much like a not-useless form of the United Nations, the 329 seats made up of singular representatives from each nationstate on their homeworld. They elect a single member once a decade (about 3.5 standard years to their solar years) to act as Illustrious Chairman of The Council. He has little more say than the others in what laws or mandates get passed, but is the speaker responsible for choosing which topics are brought to the Council's attention. Though laws passed by the Council are universal, they usually pertain to diplomatic affairs, commercialization and "human" rights. As such, the laws of each nation wildly differ, leading Xeno-ambassadors to have to navigate a web of confusing regulations that change constantly as they hop across stations and national borders. Their isolationist attitudes have rendered them one of the most recent additions to the Galactic Alliance, only joining less than a year ago. They have received complaints from other member governments over discrimination and unfair trading practices, but no regulatory action has been taken yet.
  • Military: One of the few areas in which they work as one, the Orin Mighty Starfaring Navy is the singular military entity of the Holdfast. Like many other facets of their culture, they attempt to conserve as many lives as possible by creating small amounts of individually powerful ships. The tactical doctrine embraced by most spacecraft is of extreme long-range combat, using some of the more advanced sensors available in the galaxy to launch vast amounts of simple guided missiles at a target. In the event that close-quarters combat is inevitable, their marines are famed for their ferocity while boarding the close confines of ships or space stations. They are rarely deployed otherwise. They have no standing ground forces, as they see no point in invading when a perfectly good orbital bombardment will do the same trick. After all, there is a good chance that whatever is left after the bombing will be hospitable to the Borentines that made it that way, so why bother wasting lives taking it?
  • Infrastructure: They have caught up quickly to the levels of other races since reaching the stars, but they are still advanced in one area compared to most others: Hydroponics. The green thumb that they have allows just about all Borenten to be readily supplied with high-quality greenery to eat, and even remote colonies and space stations are generating their own stores. Their number one export is indeed these large amounts of the same foodstuffs, especially freeze-dried rations, with most emergency supplies across known space bearing the name of some Orin-based hydroponics farm. The highly centralized nature of their territory lends itself to a quality, if cramped, standard of living. Though they have never had much land to squabble over, any government is required by Council law to provide a basic living space and compulsory education to every planetside member of the Holdfast. The average citizen's life is considerably much higher in quality (and life expectancy) compared to those of old, but otherwise the specifics vary from nation to nation. The economy is a regulated market, generally made up of several megacorporations and government production agencies. Importation of material goods and resources is limited, as their isolationist mindset extends to their economy. Travel is regulated between planets, but for Borentinians it isn't very hard to acquire the means or money to do so. For other races, it isn't feasible to do so at all.
  • Culture: Unlike many other aspects of life on Orin, culture became slightly homogenized when globalization occurred. It is still varied, with each demographic having different traditions and customs, but in other instances the old ways have fallen to the wayside with the popularity of mass media. The invention of radio communications in their past lead to a great emphasis on the production of music and spoken dramas, being the first cultural works to be easily consumed from across great distances. This still stands true today, with what we would call an Oratorio still being the cornerstone of the entertainment industry even after television and holographic displays became available.
    • Music, especially instrumental, is often imported into the Holdfast and often can find some popular enjoyment. Visual media depicting other species hasn't and will probably never find success, for one simple reason: Borentinians think that most other species are absolutely, frighteningly hideous. Researchers on both sides have sought to figure out the main reasoning behind this, the most popular theory being that almost all species on Orin share the chitinous exteriors of the dominant species. Therefore the concept of exposed skin, with all its unarranged hair, disgusting pores, terrifying maladies and conditions just disgust most Borentinians not used to it. Those who travel beyond the borders of the Holdfast usually develop a begrudging tolerance, but within the borders most xenos species are given wide berth, if not discriminated against. The average citizen tries to be polite about what they see as some kind of terrible curse, but the divide is still there.
    • There is no state religion, or any one majorly dominant religion: the largest one, often called Uthzsuikkeism (which revolving around a indescribable duo of creator deities, Uthzs and Uikke), is only worshiped among 21% of the population, with many others making up the rest. There is no regulation on outsider religions, and as such missionaries from other races have made an impact in the landscape of Borentinian beliefs. From the Terrans, Buddhism and Christianity have taken a firm foothold for instance, especially in places other than the homeworld.
    • Romance is non-existent due to the nature of their reproduction. When a female goes into heat, it is expected of the nearest capable male to immediately impregnate her, no matter the cost or prior relationship. The event goes by quickly, depending on the circumstances they may never see each other again, and the matter of raising the children falls onto the mother and her circle of friends and neighbors, generally a community effort. Kinship among siblings is instead seen as the highest and most noble form of relationship two or more people can have, with many narrative works describing the brave efforts of a character to save the lives of their relations in a crisis, or the despicable treachery of brother betraying brother. The species as a whole doesn't understand the concept of sexuality that other species have, and tend to feel a little revolted at the concept.
    • A rare area which sees little variation between national borders is clothing and fashion. For reasons unknown, Borentinians are fascinated with the shimmering metallic discs used in clothing that we would call sequins. This leads to many clothing items, usually shawls draped over the shoulders or waistbands, to be made of the stuff. This has probably been the one facet of their culture that has remained unchanged since their bronze age, with black and silver continuously being the most popular colors. Linens, like other plant-based materials, were rare and expensive, but never caught on even among those rich enough to afford them. Nowadays, though it is far more common, it is seen as a niche material second to metallic garments or just going in the buff.
    • The primary language, simply translated into English as Northern Vernacular, is expected to be taught and spoken throughout the Holdfast by all of its citizenry. Against the often very simplistic nature of their culture, NV is actually extremely flowery and poetic in use. For instance, the common masculine first name "Crothizki" means "Heavenly and Divine Retribution", and the common feminine name "Golucnim" translates to "Perfect, All-Encompassing Resplendency". Xenos attempting to learn NV are often bewildered by the incredible amount of self-aggrandizing terms and pronouns used to describe one's self, let alone terms of endearment or titles. If someone tries to avoid referring to themselves in such over-the-top terms (sometimes actually harder than using them), they give an air of pitifulness and self-hatred instead of politeness or humbleness. Most Borentinians brave enough to become tourists are usually surprised when their travel agencies tell them that the usual term for a friendly foreigner, roughly translated as "Rare and Beautiful Desert Flower", is generally seen as sort of creepy to use with strangers.
  • Territory: They hold only three systems total, partially due to their recent emergence on the galactic scene and isolationism. Orin, with bases on its two moons, the nearby system of Hitentihg with its third planet's constantly-drizzling weather and many lakes, and the desert planet of Elenenughitr. These few planets are well colonized compared to other race's frontiers, with populations spread out amongst entire continents instead of near only spaceports. Numerous space stations, both orbital and deep space, are set up in tight concentrations throughout the Holdfast. Though meager in number, they will do anything to hold on to what space they have taken.
  • Trivia:
    • Since they are adapted to low light, most Borentinian space stations or craft are rather poorly lit and aren't suited for people who like seeing what's ahead of them.
    • The average Borentine has 3 tongues, and the current record for most was 6, held by one Cheuthki Pioio Nhumurw back in the year 11,004.
    • There are rumors of a succession movement on Elenenughitr, but those rumors are falsehoods and should not be taken at face value under any circumstances.

edited 19th Jan '16 1:03:08 PM by wikkit

Tojin Back after a long hiatus from Protectorate SW Headquarters Since: Aug, 2013 Relationship Status: In Lesbians with you
Back after a long hiatus
#23: Jan 6th 2016 at 8:31:52 PM

Very, incredibly WIP, but now that I've gotten the race fleshed out, things should go a bit smoother.


Name: The Ásuga Confederacy.

Species: The Ásuga Confederacy is mainly composed of one species, the Thesulans. The Thesulans are odd creatures, with their skin ranging in color from slate gray to storm cloud gray. It has the appearance of metal, smooth and etched with odd paths and designs that look like a computer motherboard, yet the Thesulans are flesh and blood. They stand at about 6' 0" on average, putting them on the shorter end of the galactic standard. They are bipedal, and are in fact rather similar to humans at first glance, with the large and glaring exception of their shoulder spikes. They have two on each shoulder, with the top one sticking out at a roughly 60 degree angle and the bottom one at a 15 degree angle. They are constantly kept sharpened to a point, making walking near a Thesulan hazardous to your eyes. Not that it matters, of course, because you'll either be dying, dead, or you'll have a spacesuit on, and if you don't have one on when talking to a Thesulan, you deserve what's coming to you, you numpty. This is because of what makes the Thesulans truly unique; they evolved a natural filtration system, designed to filter oxygen (which they need to live) out of their atmosphere, which also contains several gasses poisonous to Thesulans. Since Thesulan lung-equivalents work rather differently from other species' lungs (namely, they inhale a bunch of oxygen, than store it and use it to continuously fuel themselves, rather than needing to constantly breath in and out), they end up sucking the oxygen out of any given space and using it as fuel. Given that Thesulans absorb their needed oxygen at a fairly fast rate, this can render many rooms oxygen-free in just under a few minutes. Because of this, when interacting with other races, Thesulans encase themselves in specially-made spacesuits that feed them a constant supply of oxygen from outside without absorbing it so fast that other races asphyxiate.

Other species are generally whoever doesn't mind staying in a spacesuit for most of their lives. The only reason the Ásuga Confederacy is referred to as a confederacy is because it's made up of various Thesulan nations that came together when space travel was first discovered (which at this point is a long while ago for the Thesulans).

History: Where did your nation originate from and what has happened since its founding until now?

Government: Who is in charge of your nation, and how do they go about ruling it?

Military: What is your military like? How does it operate, and how big is it?

Infrastructure: This is a big question but it bears asking: what sort of infrastructure helps your nation go? Science and technology, law enforcement, and the like.

Culture: What sort of culture does your nation have? Do they have any traditions, or religious beliefs, or customs, or forms of art?

Territory: The Ásuga Confederacy currently controls about four and a half systems; they're in the process of colonizing a fifth one. As for people, they're at about 250,000,000,000.

Trivia:

  • The designs on a Thesulan's body are actually a ritual tattooing that all Thesulans go through once they reach their equivalent of 16 Earth years. The ritual stretches back to ancient times, and is highly rigorous and planned out.
  • Every so often, a Thesulan is born that can process the poisonous gasses in their atmosphere normally. They usually also come with a non-functional filtration system, which lets them interact with other races freely.

edited 7th Jan '16 4:27:59 PM by Tojin

“Not a promise, not an oath, or a malediction or a curse. Inevitable." - Taylor Hebert
AllHailThrall For the Horde! from Somewhere (It’s Ben 10) Relationship Status: Longing for Dulcinea
For the Horde!
#24: Jan 7th 2016 at 1:29:49 PM

@wikkit: While the Borentine Holdfast looks very interesting so far, I'm a tad worried about the entire bit that Borentinians find non-Borentinians to be excruciatingly ugly. I'm worried that it might make diplomacy with them a tad difficult...

On a side note, I probably should have mentioned the galactic average population because it seems like most people are going almost up to the limit. The galactic population for nations is usually anywhere from 70 billion to about 400 billion. There are SOME nations that are lower and some that are higher, of course, but they are outliers.

edited 7th Jan '16 1:47:41 PM by AllHailThrall

I can still hail the Horde even though the company has shamed us. Strength and Honor even if Blizzard has neither.
wikkit Since: Sep, 2009
#25: Jan 7th 2016 at 3:23:58 PM

That was generally the intention. I would imagine that relations between completely different alien species wouldn't always go smoothly, and the ugliness bit was mostly so that I don't have to come up with a tired excuse like "All other species are evil/defy God's will/shall bow down to us/just plain boorish and no fun to be around!" to give a minor justification to their xenophobia.

Though, this doesn't mean that it would be impossible, as anyone in power would be levelheaded enough to realize that just because the people you work with are ugly doesn't mean they're evil, wrong or malicious. Parents don't tell their children that humans will come after them if they don't eat their bitter herbs. Diplomats, traders and other Borentinians that regularly work with other species aren't incapable of looking past the scary exterior to see the people underneath, and neither are the average citizens once they get past the initial shock. The Council are wary of other races, but they're far from opposed to them just because they're scary looking. They just hold their own species' well-being over others.

You'd also think that other races would find the clawed, pure black, seven-foot-tall scorpion-centipede-snake men as just a little threatening, no?


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