Answerin
| Answerin | |
|---|---|
| Status | Minor Human Race (Homo sapiens) |
| Classification | Herbivore/intermittent |
| Size | 1.9 meters |
| Weight | 75 kg |
| Homeworld | Answerin (Vland 0431) |
| Multi-world | Yes |
| Canon | Yes |
| Extinct | Extant |
| Reference | GURPS Traveller: Humaniti |
Minor human race native to Answerin/Parsi (Vland 0431).
Physiology & Environment
Answerin orbits a close binary system composed of a huge A7 II star and a main sequence G0 V star. The combined ultraviolet radiation output of this pair has stimulated massive melanin production.
Like most minor human races, the physiological differences from Solomani-Vilani norm are slight. Rather, it is societal, cultural, and psychological differences that set the Answerin apart from the rest of Humaniti.
Height: Given the lower gravity of Answerin, the humans from that race are somewhat taller than most humans. The average Answerin male is about 1.9 meters tall, and the average Answerin female is about 1.8 meters tall. This is an environmental rather than genetic feature.
Weight: Additional mass comes with that height. Males average about 75 kg, and females only slightly less than that. Because of lower gravity, their weight, however, is only two-thirds of that.
Appearance: All Answerin have dark brown or black skin tones. Hair color is likewise dark, with wavy hair three times as likely as straight hair.
Answerin faces are marked by slight epicanthic folds over their eyes as protection against the light of their twin suns. These folds give some individuals a squinting appearance, while others just seem tired.
Diet: When the Ancients transplanted proto-human stock to Answerin, there was very little highly developed animal life present. (This remains true to the current day.) The Answerin developed a strictly vegetarian diet. Native biochemistry on Answerin is, however, digestible by humans, so there is no need for extensive food preparation.
Their vegetarian ways have become socially ingrained. They have no desire to eat meat, and - were they to do so - would become ill until their body became used to a carnivorous diet.
Rest: The local day is slightly longer than 25 standard hours. They now divide their day into two eight-hour periods and one nine-hour period. Since Answerin is a hot world, the nine-hour night period is used for work, while the eight-hour periods are used for rest and sleep. Answerin have little trouble adapting to standard 24-hour days, although most Answerin prefer to work in the evenings.
Reproduction: Females bear live infants after an eight-month gestation period. The shorter pregnancy and larger pelvic structure of Answerin females is a result of the generally larger size of Answerin children. Multiple births are rare, and are regarded with quasi-religious awe even today.
Senses: Answerin senses are about average for human norms in most respects. The eye’s epicanthic folds protect them from higher intensities of light and their nocturnal habits give Answerin a better than average level of night vision.
Anatomy: Answerin exhibit no other deviations in anatomy besides those already mentioned. Blood types are H, M, N, and Z, with H and N being the most common.
Lifespan: Somewhat shorter than those of other humans. The average Answerin lives for approximately 65-75 years. None are recorded to have lived beyond an age of 95. Since the period of Answerin’s revolution around its stars is slightly more than 95 years, several superstitions have evolved concerning the relationship between lifespan and the local year. As such, Answerin generally begin their careers at an earlier age. Most enter educational facilities at the age of 14. Many begin their careers at this age as well, entering the career at the equivalent of "journeyman" status.
History & Background
No information yet available.
Psychology & Philosophy
Since they differ very little from other humans physiologically, psychology becomes very important in differentiating them. It is how the Answerin think and look at the universe that sets them apart.
Fear: Foremost and Answerin psychological traits is the belief that fear in any form, from sheer lack of confidence through anxiety to terror, is simply a disease of the mind. Fear has no ontological reality; rather, it is a corruption, a cancer on the usual and natural calmness of the human mind. Like any disease, then, fear must be eradicated to better the human condition.
Since fear attacks the rational faculties and renders one susceptible to error, this disease is the worst of all diseases. Many other illnesses also stem from fear. Thus, to eradicate fear means to eliminate a host of other human problems.
The Answerin place great stock in the human mind’s ability to overcome physical difficulties. Humaniti’s intelligence and rationality are what separate it from plants and animals. Fear clouds reason and makes one think improperly. The Answerin believe a calm and tranquil mind is capable of great feats. Pain and fatigue result from laxity of the mind. With proper training and mental discipline, anyone can overcome such merely physical ills.
It is a weak will and undisciplined mind that separates common men from heroes. Conquering the frontiers of the human psyche, the Answerin believe, will enable them to better master themselves physically, and with that mastery comes freedom from the physical. This is how the Answerin view human happiness.
The Answerin, then, sometimes appear as very self-assured and smug to outsiders. They know that there is truly nothing to fear except fear itself. This makes it difficult for others to get along with Answerin. Their confidence can be overbearing, and more than a few Answerin are deemed by outsiders to be conceited and arrogant. This is really a poor interpretation; Answerin merely look at stressful situations with a rational detachment and conclude that nothing, least of all efficiency and success, is to be gained by giving into the corruption of the mind known as fear.
By no means are the Answerin stoic. They display the full range of human emotion in the usual ways. Nothing akin to fear, however, means anything to them.
Philosophy
A curious result of this lack of fear is the lack of any developed religion as known on other human worlds. The Answerin do not need the comforting aspect common to many religions. Instead, they are quite content with an almost fatalistic view of the universe.
The way things happen in the universe is judged to be quite proper and no amount of worrying will change that. Several philosophies take the place of religion, and reconcile Answerin to their place and fate in the universe. They all teach the idea that the mind is supreme and can affect matter for the better. Others usually find Answerin philosophical viewpoints rather bleak and cold.
Adrenaline Surges
The Answerin are renowned for their fighting skill. This dates back to the days of the Vilani Ziru Sirka, when the Vilani used Answerin as shock troops and marines. This skill in fighting has two bases. First, the Answerin psychology is such that toughness and resistance to pain are commonplace among Answerin soldiers. Couple this with the discordant nature of Answerin nature generally, and one has a formidable fighting man.
However, the Answerin have another means by which to increase their fighting skill. Every Answerin can, at will, produce an adrenaline-like reaction in his or her bloodstream. Like most adrenaline reactions among humans, this surge allows the Answerin to gain better strength and dexterity to meet danger. Unlike normal adrenaline rushes, this results not from fear or danger since such is meaningless to the Answerin.
This reaction produces effects far greater than normal adrenaline surges. An Answerin rush lasts about one standard minute. During that time the Answerin’s strength, dexterity, and general endurance to pain increase prodigiously. He must rest after that minute, however, because the rush is tiring. Another surge cannot be willed until one standard hour has passed. The adrenaline rush is one of the keys to the deadliness of Answerin troops.
The exact origin of the ability is still open to debate. Some suggest that it is simply a naturally evolved ability. Since adrenaline rushes are usually associated with fear or danger, and the Answerin both disdain fear and have no animals large enough to cause them great danger, that theory is often discarded. Others point out that the ability is unique to the Answerin.
As expected, the Ancients are often offered as a possible explanation. The Ancients, as far as is known, never used humans as soldiers. So why would they have geneered such an ability into the Answerin? Still, our knowledge about the Ancients is scant at best. We cannot disavow this possibility.
Culture & Society
Answerin society at its most basic is like many other human societies. The family is the basic social unit. A single parent and large numbers of children are the norm. Children are an important part of society since the infighting that characterized early Answerin history made large populations necessary.
There is a fair degree of equality between the sexes. Labor was never divided on the basis of gender: it is seen as irrational and inefficient to place people in roles on any basis except expertise. Both parents share in the responsibility of raising children and instructing them in Answerin ways.
Social Organization
No information yet available.
Government & Politics
Democracy is their traditional form of government. Each adult is given the right to decide about government matters. Rational human minds, unfettered by fear, should be able to properly order state affairs and create just laws to further human minds from cares and worries.
From the earliest times, individual voters have been their own representatives, voicing their opinions and ideas in a folk moot. Representative structures were established as populations grew, and Vilani influence added the idea of a bureaucracy. The size of any established bureaucracy is small by Vilani standards, but that they exist is due to Vilani influence.
Answerin society has always been extremely discordant: factionalism is the norm. The planet was divided into very many small independent states before Vilani contact. Only Vilani influence established a world government.
The basic dichotomy within Answerin is this: there is equality of treatment, harmony, and a democratic spirit within certain small groups, but there is much fighting outside those groups. The advent of world government has sublimated and redirected this fighting. Various government departments are often at odds with one another and with various occupations (through their guilds and unions). Adding the Vilani-influenced idea of bureaucracy creates a pretty frightening picture of Answerin government. The Answerin people, however, are individualistic enough to survive without governmental help and also libertarian enough not to want it.
Government Structure
No information yet available.
Interstellar Relations
No information yet available.
Language & Letters
The original group of humans whom the Ancients transplanted from Terra probably spoke one language. After the Final War, the humans began to explore their world. Language diverged as groups took up new locations. Eventually they spoke several different dialects which were only vaguely intelligible to speakers of another dialect.
While related by root words and grammar, the dialects were quite different in vocabulary. All were particular languages: the individual word particles don’t mutate in any fashion. Only placement and modification by other words changes their meaning in different sentences.
War and conquest eventually reduced the number of dialects to four. They are commonly known as North, South, East, and West Answerin, based more or less on their original locations. When the Vilani began traveling the stars and imposing their ways on other worlds, Vilani became a widely spoken language.
The present world government had its basis in the nation which spoke North Answerin. Together with some Vilani borrowing, this language became the world’s official language. Galangic has had little influence on the North Answerin tongue. Only North Answerin and Vilani are spoken by any large number of natives, but all four greater dialects (and some smaller ones) still exist.
Mental Diagnosis
The science of psychiatry is highly developed among the Answerin. The present-day Answerin lack of fear is the product of thousands of years of psychiatric and psychological research and treatment. Their mind-over-matter philosophy definitely influenced the development of Answerin psychiatric and psychological methods.
Many breakthroughs in physical medicine came from observing the effects which mental medicines had on the body. They have also developed several devices that allow them to further explore the human psyche, and decide on the best treatments for various mental and physical ailments.
One of the major devices is a portable unit somewhat like an Imperial stress detector, but much more sophisticated. This device allows a qualified operator to detect stress and anxiety levels. Appropriate actions can then be taken. Because the device borders on psionics in its operation, its sale and use were restricted to Answerin in the pre-Collapse era. Illegal versions could, however, be found throughout Imperial territory.
Calendar & Timekeeping
No information yet available.
Technology & Trade
No information yet available.
Military & Intelligence
Without the usual fear of death that most people feel, the Answerin often fail, to realize the potential loss involved in warfare. Answerin history is one of war after war as well as various other forms of discord. Although their society as a whole was relatively stable (not changing in its basic form or assumptions), the status and power of various Answerin states varied with the year. Warfare has also hardened the Answerin psyche. Although their lack of fear occurred first chronologically, the warfare and infighting further strengthened this tendency in the Answerin people.
|
This article was published in JTAS Online and you need to be a subscriber to see the article. You may view the entire original article here. |
- GURPS Traveller: Humaniti
- Periodical: MegaTraveller Challenge No. 55
- Article: "Contact: Answerin (Campaign Supplement - Meet the Answerin, a unique minor human race" from Challenge No. 55
- Author & Contributor: James Maliszewski of Challenge No. 55
- External Link: Downport CARI