Akhrini

Akhrini
Greater Magellanic Cloud Sophont
Base Information
Classification	Omnivore/hunter-gatherer
Status	Minor Human Race
Locomotion	Walker
Terrain	Plains
Body Form
Confluence	Humanoid
Bio-Identenoid	Human
Size	1.6 meters
Weight	90 kg
Culture
Languages	Takhil, Maganglic
Social Structure
Technological Epoch	TL:10-12
Psionic potential	Standard
Origin World
Homeworld location	Akhrikora
UWP	A8618C7-B Starport A Excellent: Starship Construction, Overhaul, Refined fuel Size 8 Large (12,800 km, 0.80g - 1.08g) Atmosphere 6 Standard Hydrographics 1 Dry World 10% Population 8 Moderate (600 million) Government C Charismatic Oligarchy Law 7 Moderate Law (no firearms) Tech Level B Average Stellar (large starships)
Primary Star	F4 V
Atmosphere	Standard
Off-world presence	Yes
Zoetic individuals	Yes
Source
Reference	Greater Magellanic Cloud Campaign
Canon	No
Also see	Greater Magellanic Cloud

The Akhrini of Akhrikora are a technologically sophisticated Minor Human Race with a human appearance.

Description (Specifications)

The Akhrini, an offshoot of the Efrip, are a Major Human race native to the Greater Magellanic Cloud. It is theorised that they were transported to the Greater Magellanic Cloud by the Sidhe approximately 60,000 years ago. Though of the same racial stock (Homo efripzondans), the two groups have radically differing cultures. The Akhrini culture developed on Akhrikora {Ewytctip 1709}; a desert world colonised during the Efrip period.

Physiology & Environment

The Efrip are unmistakable Human. However there are a number of noticeable difference from Humans of Terran stock. The average Efrip is shorter and stockier than the average Terran; and they posses a layer of fat which acts as effective insulation from extreme cold. They have a faster metabolism than Terrans, with an average heartbeat of about 83 per minute against the Terran average of 75. They have a higher occurrence of left handedness. Around one third of all Efrip are left handed, with a significant proportion (around 8%) being ambidextrous. The Efrip eye is superior to that of Terrans in bright light but inferior in subdued lighting conditions. The Efrip are able to metabolise certain proteins indigestible by other Humans. The average Efrip gestation period is 43 weeks as compared with the average Terran of 40 weeks. Most of these are undoubtedly adaptations due to the alien nature of their homeworld.

Akhrini Homeworld

Akhrikora (Akhrikora A8618C7-B) orbits Iraewp, a solitary F5 V star at a distance of about 315,000,000 km. Akhrikora has an orbital period of 973.34 standard days and rotates on its axis once every 36 standard hours. It has an axial tilt of 3° and an orbital eccentricity of 0.001. Akhrikora has no satellites.

Akhrikora has an albedo factor of 0.16 and an average surface temperature of 30.6°C. About 15% of its surface is water in the form of three small seas, 25% is arable land and the remaining 60% is desert.

Akhrikora has a population of 600 million (rather low for the capital of a large interstellar state), of whom 80% are Akhrini, 15% are Efrip and the remaining 5% other races and cultures. Akhrikora is governed by a Council of Elders (not to be confused with the Great Council of Elders which governs the Akhrini Commonality), a form of charismatic oligarchy. Akhrikora is the capital of the Akhrini Commonality.

Efrip & Akhrini Psionics

The Akhrini tend to regard the use of psionics as indicative of a weakness of character. However, perhaps due to the fact the a widespread psionic movement has never developed in their cultures, neither the Efrip or Akhrini share the Terran distaste for psionics. The Efrip and Akhrini within the Magellanic Empire tend much more strongly towards Terran attitudes and suppress psionics.

History & Background (Dossier)

The Akhrini are an offshoot of the Efrip. While Efripzond marched towards civilisation, some Efrip remained outside the mainstream of Efrip culture. These were the nomadic hunters who followed the great herds of Ewsakhng in the northern wastes. Even in modern times they still remain on Efripzond, living much as their forebears did. It is from these nomadic hunters that the Akhrini are descended.

These nomadic hunters maintained a fiercely independent culture, highly valuing individuality and freedom. They proved to be a constant source of problems for the Efrip, frequently revolting against the centralised authority of the Efrip Council. The First Council’s response to these revolts was to deport trouble making tribes to their colonies. Initially on Efripzond itself, later after the discovery of jump drive, to other worlds.

The Akhrini revolted in -1,143T and were deported to a distant harsh desert world then known as Igrewln. The world was already colonised by the Efrip, with their colonies clustered in the fertile lands around the small seas. The Akhrini were deported to the less hospitable deserts.

Over the next 600 years, the Akhrini came to dominate their harsh desert environment and gradually grew in numbers. However the basic nature of their culture lead to many independent tribes and frequent tribal wars. The basic Akhrini culture that developed was highly militaristic and individualistic. As the Efrip colonies on Igrewln grew to be a major industrial centre, they suffered frequent raids from the Akhrini, however the inherently disorganised nature of the Akhrini at this time prevented them from becoming a threat.

During this time the Akhrini developed the Rewlsf Akhrini (Akhrini Code) which is still the basis of their culture. The basic premise of this code is that warfare is a matter between tribes (or nations in later times) not individuals. The Rewlsf Akhrini sets out elaborate rules of conduct and hospitality. While two tribes may be at war, the individual members of that tribe are not viewed as the ‘enemy’. It is a requirement of the Rewlsf Akhrini to grant hospitality and succour to any person needing it. Captives and conquered peoples must be treated fairly and humanely. It was only natural that the Akhrini became disproportionately represented in the Efrip military; a factor that was to ultimately prove to be the undoing of the First Efrip Council.

In -523T the various Akhrini tribes were united under the leadership of the legendary figure of Pindeflsf. He united the tribes in a common goal and quickly conquered the Efrip colonies on the fertile lands around the small seas. This is taken as the founding of the First Akhrini Commonality (Iwolsfakhy Akhrini) and Igrewln was renamed Akhrikora. The Akhrini Commonality refused to recognise the Efrip Council and a war ensued. Fortunately for the Akhrini, Igrewln was a major industrial centre and the site of an Efrip naval depot; the Akhrini captured many warships and large numbers of Akhrini serving with the Efrip deserted to the Commonality. The Akhrini launched an immediate offensive and captured a number of major Efrip worlds. The Industrial base of these captured Efrip worlds proved vital in this war; and in -515T the Efrip Council was forced to acknowledge the independence of the Akhrini Commonality and its control of at least 32 other worlds.

The militant expansionist tendencies of the Commonality led to another war in -467T as the Akhrini spread to the stars. The Akhrini victory in -449T is generally held to be the most direct cause of the fall of the First Efrip Council. However the Akhrini were incapable of governing an interstellar state and the First Akhrini Commonality did not survive the death of Pindeflsf’s great-grandson in -369T. Lacking a charismatic leader the Commonality simply disintegrated into competing tribes. Many of these tribes raided throughout the former Efrip Council, contributing greatly to the onset of the First Dark Age.

The Akhrini languished in the First Dark Age along with all the Efrip worlds. Much knowledge was lost as the Akhrini had not formed a true technological society during their brief reign. However over the next 800 years the Akhrini absorbed the Efrip on the 200 or so worlds that had been a part of the Akhrini Commonality. By 450T they had regained the stars and fairly extensive traffic existed between their worlds. However no interstellar states existed, each world was controlled by an independent tribe (frequently more than one) much which vied with one another much as the Akhrini had always done. All this changed in 501T with the coming of the Terrans to the Cloud. Terran explorers contacted the Akhrini in 593T, but extensive contact did not come until at least 20 years later. It would appear that knowledge of the expanding Terran Empire was the impetus for the formation of the Second Akhrini Commonality in 624T. The Second Commonality proved to be far more durable than the first. It was not dependent on a single individual to hold the various tribes together, rather it depended on the Great Council of Elders made up of representatives of all the major tribes in the Commonality.

The Second Commonality was the Terran Empires major opponent in the Cloud; and fought six inconclusive wars with the Terrans. However it also expanded into the former Efrip Council, spreading Akhrini culture to many of these worlds. In 857T the Second Commonality absorbed the Second Efrip Council. Eventually the Second Commonality ruled over most of 4 sectors, but its culture spread far wider. With the fall of the Terran Empire the Second Commonality started to expand into the former Terran territories. However in 1168T the Second Commonality was rent by a massive upheaval which was to lead to its collapse. Several key tribes refused to acknowledge the sovereignty of the Commonality and civil war ensued. The Commonality effectively disintegrated into competing tribes in a remarkably short time, but the concept of the Commonality was by now very strong in the Akhrini. The various tribes were to wage war for over 200 years for dominance, but in 1402T the final government claiming to be the Second Commonality ceased to exist. By this stage, 200 years of constant warfare had taken its toll on the Akhrini worlds and they had lapsed into the Second Dark Age.

Many Sociologists point to the rise and fall of the First and Second Commonalities as proof of the widely accepted theory that the Akhrini can only remain united in the face of an overwhelming external threat. This theory is held to be strengthened by the formation of the Third Commonality.

The Third Commonality was initially formed in 2169T and consisted of 10 worlds near the Magellanic Empire. It did not include Akhrikora or the great bulk of the Second Commonality worlds. However the Third Commonality did not undergo expansion or even hold much authority over its member worlds until the end of the Second Mwoah War. It would appear that the Magellanic Empire’s triumph in this war identified the Empire as a clear threat to the Akhrini. After the war’s end in 2304T with a clear victory for the Empire, the Third Commonality underwent explosive growth. Most worlds joined voluntarily, Akhrikora joined in 2311T and the capital was relocated there in 2319T. By 2327T the Third Commonality covered most of the Ewytctip sector. Its rapid growth continued until the mid 2330’s by which time it appears to have reach a natural limit.

The Third Commonality differs from the First and Second in that it has a true central government bureaucracy. The Third Commonality maintains a number of governmental organisations which answer only to the Commonality. Included in these are an Army and Navy. However it still remains to be seen whether or not the Third Commonality can overcome the divisive tribal nature of the Akhrini culture.

Language & Letters

Whilst Maganglic is widely spoken as a second language within Efrip and Akhrini space, it and related languages are only spoken as a first tongue on a few Terran colonised worlds. The most commonly spoken Efrip language is Iryakhtip (the official language of the First to Fourth Efrip Councils), whilst most Akhrini speak the related tongue, Takhil (the official language of the Akhrini Commonality). Several other related languages (Risoct, Ewifakhil, Oliso, and Ireslfi) are also not uncommonly encountered within Efrip and Akhrini space. These together with a few rarer languages make up the Efrip family of languages, which are spoken as the first language by perhaps 90% of the inhabitants of Efrip and Akhrini space.

Iryakhtip originally used an ideographic script, the Otakhra. However, this was gradually superseded over a 500 year period by the current phonetic script, the Opiyakhra. The Opiyakhra is first recorded in -2,217T and started to achieve prominence around -1,700T (greatly assisted by the general decline in literacy occasioned by the nuclear holocaust). By about -1,450T the Otakhra had fallen out of general use. The last recorded use of the Otakhra were in the collected works of the poet Akhytoct, published in the Otakhra script shortly after her death in -1,203T. The Opiyakhra script is now used by all the languages of the Efrip family, with the exception of Reakhera (only spoken on a few worlds, all within the Magellanic Empire), which uses the Anglic script.

The most striking difference between Iryakhtip and Takhil is that; in Iryakhtip all words must begin with a vowel, whilst this is not true of Takhil (though the majority of its words do also begin with vowels). Another distinguishing feature of Iryakhtip is its lack of single syllable words. There being only eight in the entire language; all of which are words of considerable antiquity (for interest, these words are: Ef - Myself, akhwo - to commit suicide due to insanity, ri - a deity, Efyt - a plant native to Efripzond, olsf - Home, Eflsf - a large flying predator native to Efripzond, end - meat cooked inadequately, and ong - the sound of an avalanche). Takhil has rather more such single syllable words, but they are still a comparative rarity.

Calendar & Timekeeping

Both the Efrip and Akhrini use very similar temporal systems. Both are based on the complex temporal system which developed on Efripzond before space flight was developed. The basic division of time in both systems is the Iyata (day) of 24 Terran hours. The Iyata is divided into 3 Erilsf (watch; this division is omitted from the Akhrini system), each Erilsf is divided into 4 Onopakh (session), each Onopakh is divided into 10 Ixreni (period: this division is omitted from the Akhrini system), each Ixreni is divided into 10 Iwind (cycle) and each Iwind is divided into 100 Riniot (heartbeat) which corresponds to 0.72 Terran seconds. Many larger divisions also exist: 8 Iyata make up a Efkzo (week; this division is omitted from the Akhrini system), 9 Efkzo plus 1 Iyata (73 Iyata in all) make up a Ectgri (season), 4 Ectgri make up a Olsfgrew (year of 292 Terran days), 5 Olsfgrew make up a Itbiop (pentad). The Itbiop is the largest division of time in the Akhrini calender and corresponds to 4 Terran years. However the Efrip calender has four even larger divisions; 2 Itbiop make up a Ewrarix (decade), 4 Ewrarix make up a Risjril (era), 23 Risjril make up a Akhylfowo (epoch) and 223 Akhylfowo make up a Engbirif (eon of 164,128 Terran years). The Engbirif corresponds to the orbital period of Ewndakh around Efakhndo. It goes without saying that traditional Efrip timepieces are rather complex devices (more than one humorist has commented on the coming of the digital watch to the Efrip). It should be noted that in all Efrip languages all words for temporal divisions are both singular and plural as well as being proper names.

Both the Efrip and Akhrini calenders have different start dates. The Efrip calender dates from -5,932T (the traditional date for the martyrdom of Ictakhri), while the Akhrini calender starts its dating from -780T (the traditional date for the Rewlsf Akhrini); neither calenders have a zero year. Since the First Dark Age, the vast majority of Efrip worlds have modified their calenders to use the simplified Akhrini temporal system. The arrival of the Terrans in the Cloud has seen the development of a third temporal system, known as the Ereyt system. The Ereyt divides the Iyata into Terran seconds, minutes and hours (known as Endon, Initewt and Orae respectively) and retains only the Olsfgrew and Itbiop above it. This system is used by virtually all Efrip and Akhrini worlds within the Magellanic Empire and has gained wide acceptance outside it. There does exist an Ereyt calender, which has its start date at 692T (the date it and the Ereyt system were first proposed) and has a zero year (more precisely a zero Itbiop). This calender is used by many Efrip and Akhrini worlds within the Magellanic Empire, but is rarely encountered outside of it.

Astrography

This race is primarily located in the following areas:
Greater Magellanic Cloud:

Homeworld

The homeworld of this race is:

• Akhrikora

World Listing: 1105

Significant communities of this race are known to dwell within the following systems and worlds:

No world articles for Akhrini

References

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Far Future Enterprises or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Martin Rait. "The Efrip and Akhrini." Meshan Saga 06 (1998): 19.
• Andrea Vallance. Downport ^{dead link}