Unathi

The Unathi (ᴇᴡ-nahth-ee) are a race of tall, reptilian humanoids that possess both crocodile-like and serpent-like features. Their scales are hard and plate-like, save for the softer ones that line the inside of their legs, armpits, and groin. Originating from the planet of Moghes, the Unathi live in an extremely religious society.

Additional Information: Moghes, Unathi Culture

Mechanics

• Unathi have a unique language, that they can naturally speak and understand. Use this in game by typing say #o.

• Instead of punching, Unathi scratch people when unarmed. In addition, Unathi are difficult to severely injure, but tend to heal more slowly than humans.

• Unathi ribcages extend past their chests, meaning that surgeons treating internal injuries to the abdomen have to cut through the ribcage.

• Unathi do not have kidneys. They filter toxins in a single organ, located roughly where humans have livers.

• Unathi have good heat resistance, but very little cold resistance.

• Due to different anatomy, Unathi are unable to wear some apparel designed for other species. They are able to wear 'softsuits' (such as non-hardsuit space suits, biosuits, and fire suits), but are unable to wear hardsuits not tailed for Unathi anatomy. An example of an Unathi hardsuit is the breacher suit.

Overview

Naming

Unathi name themselves in manners that are heavy on E's, I's and O's and S's, almost sounding hissing, or guttural.

Clan Unathi, both Unity and Heretic, are named in three parts: a personal name, a family name, and a clan name. Outside of a clan environment, these Unathi will refer to themselves by their clan-name, when practical. They are allowed, but not required, to include their clan name on official paperwork in human space. Addressing one of these Unathi by their first name, without permission, is highly disrespectful.

Unbound Unathi do not use their clan-name, this right having been stripped from them in their exile. Occasionally they are also stripped of their right to a family name. Some keep their first name and use only that, while others will create or accept a title, denoting some notable aspect of their life or personality.

Redeemed Unathi are not born into this state, and a name is very important to their sense of being. Initiates do not have names of any kind, and will not be seen in human space. When they are Redeemed they gain a Personal name, chosen by them and their Redeemer, and take the Redeemer's personal name as their family name. Full-fledged Redeemers take their Chapter name in place of a Clan name.

Biology

Unathi are a species of carnivorous, reptilian bipeds. Their back scales are hard and rigid, but those that line the inside of their legs, armpits, and groin, and those on their underbellies, are softer, though still rather thick. Hide patterning tends to err towards high contrast in neutral tones of grey, tan, or green, though some shades of other colours are not unknown, and albino Unathi have special significance in many of their cultures.

Unathi never stop growing, though it does slow as they age, and the average adult can range anywhere between 200 and 260 centimeters in height, and weigh between 250 and 400 kilograms. Females are usually slightly larger than the males of similar age. A large amount of their weight is taken up by thick bone, especially the ribcage. Their ribs are very thick, and extend down to the pelvis to protect their organs, which gives them a broad stature and a near-universal bow-legged stance. This bone density contributes to their sluggish movement on land, but does provide legendary durability. Additionally, Unathi physiology is able to regrow any non-vital body part, so long as the Unathi can survive without until it is regenerated, which may take years, depending on the extent of the damage.

As a cold-blooded species, they suffer fatigue and even short comas when exposed to extremely low temperatures. Their hearts have two valves that are spread across their chest, which makes it sound as if they have two heartbeats at once. Unathi do not have kidneys, but rather a complex filtration organ, sharing the functions of a liver and kidneys.

Unathi have a roughly ellipsoid skull, with forward facing and slightly elevated eyes. Females tend to possess more rounded snouts than their male counterparts. Their eyes have slit pupils, with irides in many possible colors. Unathi have no lips, which gives them a distinctive look with slightly protruding upper teeth. Unathi have two rows of serrated, triangular teeth, which are regrown when lost. They also have very long black tongues, which may stretch up to a foot and a half long, forked just like a serpent's and in much the same manner as snakes, Unathi can sample the air around them using their tongue.

Some Unathi have spines, frills, or horns on their heads, depending on their ancestry. Additionally, on many Unathi, a line of spines extends from the back of the head down to the base of the tail, and while these lay flat in normal circumstances, they pop up when the individual is riled up.

Unathi have five digits on their hands, and three on their feet, and these are capped with sharp claws. Though they stand plantigrade, their size, toe claws, and semi-webbed extremities make it somewhat uncomfortable to wear human or skrell made equipment without modifying this gear to suit Unathi physiology. This is further complicated by the fact that Unathi have a muscular rudder-like tail extending from the base of their torso. Unathi are crepuscular, sleeping through the brightest and darkest parts of the day-night cycle. Unathi can, with some effort, adjust themselves to a more “stable” human sleep cycle, in which case they prefer being nocturnal to diurnal.

Lifecycle

Hatchling:

• Females lay eggs, with the average clutch being between one and three. They have a six month gestation period, after which they are laid in a humid, warm area. After two to three weeks, the fetus is fully developed and hatches from the egg.

• Unathi hatchlings are extremely small, arguably non-sapient, and very delicate. They grow slowly, and while most hatchlings are technically able to fend for themselves shortly after emerging, Unathi guard the eggs and younglings ferociously. Some historians theorize that this protective need, along with continued support into adolescence, is what lead the primitive Unathi to gather together into clans, rather than remain solitary.

• Immediately after hatching, the young Unathi is little more than an aggressive and clever predatory lizard. They are quadrupedal, and the heavy bone plates that characterize an adult Unathi have not yet developed. Unlike humans, Unathi young are more or less capable or caring for themselves, but the Unathi clan structure developed to protect the young from predation, and other packs Until they pass out of this earliest stage, Unathi are incredibly territorial towards non-family, and without the watchful eye of their minders, only a small percentage would survive the running territorial battles that they instinctually wage.

Infancy and Childhood:

• After around three Earth years, the Unathi hatchling has grown enough to begin actively recognizing family members, or at least the individuals who raised them. They are now around 30~40 cm in length, and weigh around 10~15 kg.

• At around three earth years of age, Unathi that manage to survive begin to show signs of a less primal intelligence, willingly seeking out their own kind. They stop attempting to vie for territory, and instead begin acting as pack hunters.

• At around five years, the young Unathi will begin to shift towards bipedal movement, as the rear end of their body changes to support it. It is during this time period that most Unathi begin to understand rudimentary language, and some will utter their first words by age six.

• Unathi parents formally name their children after they have learned the basics of language, frequently at around nine years of age.

Adolescence:

• At fifteen years of age, Unathi begin developing their extended ribplates. The earliest stages of this process can be likened to human teething, and it is incredibly painful. After these first growing pains, a young Unathi will be placed into a Unity education program that best matches their personality and early skillset. While this is by no means a permanent assignment, many Unathi craft-masters can trace their passion back to this first schooling.

• By age 24, most Unathi have discovered some inkling of what drives them, and are placed into what amounts to an Apprenticeship in that field, with continued religious and general education on top of that.

Adulthood:

• By age 32, an Unathi is considered physically mature. They will continue to serve under their teachers for some years.

• An Unathi is considered an adult at forty years of age, and inducted ceremonially into their clan, though Clan Elders may hold this ceremony for a wise young Unathi at as early as age thirty.

• Unathi usually don’t pair-bond until after age 80, having spent further time integrating into society, and becoming wise enough to tell instinct from regular thought.

Venerable Adulthood:

• While no defined age sets an Unathi adult from their elders, for most there is a certain point at which their great age and wisdom afford them more respect than their younger peers. It is around this point that the Unathi will be seriously considered for the responsibility of clan and regional leadership positions

• After around 200 years of age, the Unathi is now a master of its chosen craft. They likely hold great respect from the younger members of their clan, and may have dozens of adult apprentices, learning from this singular master.

• Though the Unathi never stop growing, and don’t seem to suffer senescence like most other sapient species, they often die after reaching their third century of life, as a result of the strain of gravity on their increasingly large bodies. Elder Unathi who consign themselves to Zero-G or heavily aquatic lifestyles have been recorded living far longer, though these options present their own issues and risks.

Cultural Backgrounds and Ethnicities

Unity Clans - Highly religious, they believe their ancestors are preparing for a great battle at the end of time. The actions of one Unathi should benefit the species as a whole, referred to as The Unity. Those who fall out of this line of thinking are more pitied than hated, and most true believers would rather bring a heretic back into their line of thinking than kill them, though the methods used depend greatly on the converter. The Unity currently control the majority of Unathi space, under a government known as the Moghes Hegemony, after the homeworld of the Unathi. Clans are run by the oldest members of each of the families in said clan; the Unathi have great respect for the wisdom of their Elders.

Day to day matters are handled by the Circle of Elders, but the official leader of a clan is titled Grand Elder, and they are elected roughly every 10 Earth years from this Circle. In many respects the Grand Elder is little more than prestigious figurehead position, with their obligations to the clan overriding their obligations to act in the interests of their family, but they do have the final say in all tied votes on the Circle. The Hegemony is comprised almost entirely of Unity Clans.

Heretic Clans - Those clans who have collectively broken away from the dogma of the Unity, for whatever reason. This isn’t a specific label so much as a catchall term for any clan with differing beliefs from the mainline Unathi. So-called Heretic Clans have, in the past, occasionally gained enough influence to change the Unity. That fact, coupled with the Unity's compunction against killing other Unathi, has caused most Heretic Clans to be seen less as heretics, and more as lifestyle activists.

The most well known are the clans of Abel’s Rest, who integrated with the human colonists after the Unathi-Human Conflict, and have profited greatly from the partnership. Their less xenophobic views seem to have gained some amount of traction in the Hegemony, and it is possible that they will manage to reshape the state of the Unity within the next century.

Unbound - Some Unathi find themselves unwilling to follow the doctrine of the Unity, and surrender their clan ties to make it on their own. Some Unathi are stripped of their clan title as punishment for heinous crimes. All of these individuals are considered part of a group known as the Unbound. Unbound Unathi frequently gather in city slums, or in the wilderness, and are rarely welcomed by Unathi who still part of the Clan system. The process of becoming an Unbound Unathi is incredibly traumatic; one's clan is a fundamental aspect of one's identity, and use of one's former clan name with no more claim to it is a grave dishonor. Their entrance into the afterlife is jeopardised, as without the important resources and training provided within the clan structure, Unbound must push themselves harder to earn their place in death.

Some Unbound Unathi rename themselves, or go by self-given grandiose titles. Those who do not follow this trend continue to make use of just their personal names. Beyond being disgraceful, unwarranted use of a clan name is outlawed, and those outside of a Clan are punished more harshly in general.

Redeemers - The Redeemers are one massive clan-like organisation, stretching throughout Hegemony space. Very few Redeemers are actually related, as the organization draws almost exclusively from those Unbound who wish to find a purpose again, and the children of the Redeemed. Unbound are taken in by a Redeemed, and have their remaining names removed, to begin the process of killing the old to allow room for the new. The new Initiates then spend their days living in asceticism, being reintroduced to their old crafts and the Unity by those Redeemed who have walked similar paths. After many, possibly hundreds of years of manual labor and prayer, those Initiates who show appropriate zeal and talent are taken to be renamed, as new Redeemed. Redeemed are given more responsibilities, including management and some combat roles.

A Redeemed lives in much the same way as a fresh Initiate, save for the fact that he now has a name. They are expected to live the Unity at all times, and will, at some point, quite possibly select Initiates of their own. Once a Redeemed has himself lead at least five Initiates to their redemption, the leaders of the local Chapter may allow him entrance into their inner circle as a Redeemer. Redeemers fill an important role in both their own organisation, and the Hegemony in general, acting in a number of duties, but especially as a sort of “Priest Caste”. Due to the death of their Unbound past self and subsequent revival into the pinnacle of the Unity, each Redeemer is expected to be a font of faith and wisdom, more so even than the Grand Elders of many clans. In the Human-Unathi War, Redeemer-led squads of Redeemed were the source of many of SolGov's greatest losses; clad in “Breacher suits” and fighting in disciplined formation, they were fired from Hegemony ships in large torpedoes, and were often able to entirely gut Human (and Skrellian) ships from the inside, leaving them adrift and crewless. Horror stories of such battles are still common in the USDF (United Sol Defense Force) and even some SDTFs (Skrellian Defense Task Forces), but never within earshot of any Unathi.

Language

Unathi speak Galactic Common and other human-made languages with a hissing, guttural accent. They address each outsiders by clan or family name, rather than by personal name.

Sinta’Unathi - The language spoken amongst Unathi, in a manner similar to that of SolCom. It incorporates the natural snarls and hissing of the Unathi into a mostly unified format. The exact slang and grammar of the language varies slightly from region to region, but is overall kept intact by the vigilance of the Hegemony’s linguists.

Job Preferences

Anti-Unathi sentiment remains fairly common in SolGov space, and many employers, NanoTrasen included, have a tendency to pass over Unathi for promotions, especially for supervisor and security roles. Unathi are not usually hired into Colony Director roles or Head of Security roles, and are strongly discouraged from taking Command roles or stepping into Acting Command roles.

Anti-Unathi sentiment remains fairly common within controlled SolGov space, although this is lesser seen on the outskirts of space. Many believe the Unathi to be little more than aggressive warriors, and as such it is common within SolGov space for Unathi to be turned down for jobs or promotions. Because of this it is more common to find Unathi employed on border and outskirts installations, where they can find more success.

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