Difference between revisions of "Gashiini"

Revision as of 16:38, 5 June 2006

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- Source: Michael Brown

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-The Gashiini are a minor race descended from genetically engineered specimens of a giant prehistoric ape relocated from Terra by the Ancients. Despite their often-fearsome appearance, they are a peaceful, inquisitive race with the same outlook as Humaniti.
+Please see the text of this article [http://jtas.sjgames.com/login/article.cgi?451 here]. You will need to be a JTAS subscriber.
-===Origins and History===
+ - Source: [http://jtas.sjgames.com/login/article.cgi?451 Michael Brown]
-During Terra’s Pleistocene era, a giant species of ape arose in what is today southeastern Asia. Gigantopithecus blacki was a massive hominid, standing 9-10 feet tall fully erect and weighing 600-1200 pounds. Exhibiting behavior possibly similar to later species of Terran ape, Gigantopithecus lived a peaceful existence in a post-Ice Age world. Scientists believe they became extinct about 500,000 years ago, but it is possible that isolated pockets of them survived until much more recently.
+{{LEN|G|Races}}[[Category:Minor Race]]
-When the Ancients arrived on Terra, they found scattered tribes of the creatures holding precariously onto their territories. Taking some of them to the stars, the Ancients genetically modified them and established them on what is now Gashiin. To what end is of course unclear, but genotyping clearly shows evidence of past manipulation. When the Final War overtook the Ancients, the giant apes were left to fend for themselves. While the last ones died on Terra, Gashiin’s population was thriving in the warm, earthlike conditions.
-Over the millennia, the naturally tight-knit Gigantos learned to use their natural close cooperation to solve problems. Technological progress soon followed, and by the time they were contacted by the Vilani around -5420, the Gashiini, as the Vilani called them, had reached TL5. The Gashiini prospered under the Rule of Man, but were content to stick close to their home system.
-Gashiin weathered the Long Night with moderate success, the Gashiini simply returning to the more insular culture they were already used to. Their technology slipped backward a little, but they had reached TL6 by the time the Third Imperium contacted them in 350. Again the Gashiini prospered, although this time, more of them were willing to leave their world and travel throughout the Imperium.
-Today, the Gashiini have taken their place among the Imperium’s other subject races and have established a few small enclaves offworld; the best known in the Spinward Marches is on Kinorb/Regina. Many have also traveled throughout the Solomani Rim and visited the world of their birth. The Solomani tend to refer to Gashiini simply as the Giants.
-===Homeworld===
-Gashiin is a world just over 8,000 miles in diameter, with a standard oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere, a hydrographic percentage of 50% and a Warm climate. The land surface is mostly a balance between rainforest and grassland. The world exports a moderate amount of agricultural products and light metals; strict environmental controls prevent wholesale exploitation of any other resources. The population stands currently at about 4 billion; 10% of this total is Human and non-Human aliens. Gashiin has a Class IV StarPort, with a Scout base in system. The tech level currently stands at 10, mostly due to imports. Gashiini science has strengths in environmental engineering and agriculture. Gashiini environmental engineers are some of the most sought-after in Charted Space.
-===Physiology and Appearance===
-Gashiini are large humanoids, very nearly Human due to their genetic manipulation by the Ancients. Men average 8 ½ feet tall and weigh nearly 500 pounds. Women are somewhat smaller: about a foot shorter and over 100 pounds lighter. Gashiini women outnumber men by roughly two to one. Both sexes tend to be heavily muscled, and more hirsute than most other humanoid races. Skin and hair tones tend toward darker colors. Imperial scientists have found that Giants and Humans are interfertile, and some crossbreeding has occurred over the centuries, although cultural biases have made such pairings rare. The offspring of such a relationship are larger than the average Human. Gashiini arms are slightly longer proportionally than those of other Humans, giving them a slightly longer reach. Their larger mass requires a higher caloric intake; consequently Gashiini consume more food than the average Human. In all other respects, Gashiini are physiologically similar to Humans.
-===Society===
-Cooperation meant survival to the prehistoric Gashiini, and cooperation is seen as key to a healthy society today. Close cooperation exists at the social level, with many guilds and councils running different functions of society from food production to law enforcement. To an outsider, Gashiini society may seem socialist, but it is actually more complex than that. Many of the guilds and councils have interlocking functions and usually run efficiently enough to meet the people’s needs.
-Gashiini society is egalitarian, with males and females having equal rights. The basic unit of society is the family, but the word “family” has more meaning than it does in most of Human society. Gashiini families are large and exceptionally close, with both mothers and fathers sharing child-rearing duties. Families typically have a male head, several wives and children, and extended family. Female-headed families are rare; widowed Gashiini tend to remarry quickly.
-Because of the Gashiini imperative to form close bonds with extended family members, housing on Gashiin is usually a large, elaborate affair, with many middle-class structures approaching the size of Terran mansions. Rooms in such places are numerous, and always include at least one room for use by guests of the household.
-Trade on Gashiin is among the most robust in the Imperium. Many mercantile corporations and organizations send representatives to Gashiin not just to trade, but also to observe a strong trading model. Gashiini-inspired trading practices have been adopted in several areas, with encouraging results.
-{{Source}}{{LEN|G|Races}}[[Category:Minor Race]]

Difference between revisions of "Gashiini"

Revision as of 16:38, 5 June 2006

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