Ethereals
| Ethereal | |
 Ethereal |
Genus: Dura Cellus Homeworld: Sprout Central Authority: Scattered collectives Restricted Job Roles: none Guides: No external guides |
Ethereals are organic humanoid beings with a blood that has strange luminiscent and electrical properties. Ethereals are barred from most authority roles on Nanotrasen stations and are not protected by the AI's default Asimov laws.
Their naming convention is a celestial body followed by two capitalized letters. E.g. "Andromeda XV" or "Jupiter EP".
Lore
Description:
The Ethereals are a humanoid species hailing from the planet of Sprout- a densely jungle-covered planet with wide oceans and plentiful rivers. Near the oceans there are thick saltwater bogs, while inland rocky plateaus and tepuis, lush cenotes and occasional volcanoes dot the landscape. The skies have a constant cloud cover, and monsoons are frequent across almost the entire planet's surface. However, it is not the landscape itself that makes Sprout a planet of ecological interest, but the flora and fauna. Almost every living thing on Sprout thrives off of electricity. Via a complex ecosystem of beings that provide electricity via electrophoresis and electrochemistry, and those that consume electricity as their main source of energy. Amongst these "electrical consumers", Ethereals are the top of the food chain.
Ethereals themselves are a biological oddity, with an internal organ structure and life cycle that puzzles even the most decorated xenobiologists. Their skin is translucent, revealing both their blood- a complex, bioluminescent solution similar to battery compositions known colloquially as Liquid Electricity- and their internal organs, which are crystalline in structure. How exactly these crystals function is unknown. Analysis of the chemical makeup of Ethereals reveal that they are not carbon-based, but silicon-based, which has lead some to theorise that the internal working of an Ethereal is much like a flesh-and-blood machine.
When first discovered by TerraGov's explorers, the Ethereals were in an Medieval age, similar to our own Middle Ages- an era of knights and chivalry, with feudal nobility ruling over petty fiefdoms and few (if any) strong, unified nations. TerraGov initially made the decision to observe the populace of the planet- however, an event would occur that would force them into contact with the natives: the Day of Fire. A TerraGov resupply vessel would suffer a malfunction in its thrusters while coming to dock at the observation post, resulting in them becoming jammed on. This pushed it (and the observation post) into the gravity well of Sprout itself, resulting in the entirety of the station crashing down nearby to a city on the surface. Survivors who were fortunate enough to jettison would now find themselves stranded on the planet, which had, until moments beforehand, been entirely unaware of the existance of aliens. The resulting fire from the crash burned around 20,000 square kilometers of jungle before a monsoon was able to extinguish it, and this left TerraGov with a crisis to resolve. This resulted in the decision to uplift the people of Sprout, in what became known as the Great Enlightenment. Until this point, direct intervention with "primitives" was strictly forbidden by TerraGov.
The uplifting was not gentle, nor was it well received (at first). The Ethereals were ripped from their feudal institutions into the plasma age in less than 50 years. The decision sent waves across humanity, and the galactic scene- diplomatic protests from the Lizards (who viewed the act as an aggressive expansion by humanity into another species' territory) and the Moths (who viewed the act as an immoral interference with the natural development of another species) would create problems for the project, but once it was started, it was irreversible.
And so, the Ethereals would find themselves thrust onto the galactic stage.
Fun Factoids:
- Sprout has three moons, of which one is able to maintain a breathable atmosphere, as well as a tropical climate. This moon, called Spring by the Ethereals, is now a resort world, with thousands journeying to it yearly to vacation.
- Sprout is located in a particularly isolated region of space, with the most direct route to Human space being via a nebula- too dangerous for most vessels. For this reason, the planet takes a long time to reach from the rest of inhabited space, and particular commitment is needed to visit.
- TerraGov advises remaining in and around major settlements while visiting Sprout, as the local flora and fauna are considered quite dangerous. Even in the larger cities, the possibility of a wild Volthound running rampant through the streets is (unfortunately) high.
- If you've been a member of the TGMC in the past 50 years, particularly as a peacekeeper, you've probably been deployed to Sprout to assist in the pacification efforts.
Sprout: From the Ashes
Sprout would undergo radical changes alongside the Ethereals during the Great Enlightenment. Major scale land recovery was undertaken, and the feudal society of old was replaced with an interim government set up by TerraGov to handle planetary administration until such a time as the Ethereals were capable of taking over for themselves. Power was seized from the autocrats and monarchs of old in doing so.
For the new planetary administration, a new city was needed, and this would be built in the remnants of the jungle that had burned during the Day of Fire. Vast towers of steel and concrete, alien to the Ethereals, would make up this new, concrete jungle, and the necessary infrastructure for a spacefaring civilisation was first laid here, including Sprout's first spaceport, intersystem communication relay, and TerraGov military installation at Fort Summer. Several TGMC divisions were stationed here during the Enlightenment and were critical in the pacification of Sprout.
While the planetary capital has brought Sprout to the space age, the planet still has many remote and inhospitable regions which have not yet been connected. It is estimated around 65% of the Ethereal homeworld is still covered in jungle that is impassable to most vehicles, leaving settlements that are almost impossible to reach by land. As air facilities are also lacking, these remote settlements are mostly cut off from TerraGov's influence, and are generally reachable only via small, dangerous roads, or by foot through the dense jungle.
Ethereal Culture
Ethereal culture is particularly odd within the inhabited galaxy- while they had, prior to the Great Enlightenment, had a very diverse range of homegrown cultural groups and individual societies, much of their history post-uplifting has been dominated by humanity, and as such, their cultural makeup has become homogenised and subsumed by humanity's. While they may not literally wear humanity's blue jeans and listen to their pop music, the influence of their "protectors" can be seen everywhere in modern Ethereal society. Native languages are dwindling, being replaced by Galactic Common. Traditional religion strains against the influence of human faiths. Long-held traditions are consigned to history. Efforts are being made by some to preserve the Ethereals' distinct history, but it seems in many ways to be a losing battle, as more and more Ethereals make the decision to leave behind their life on Sprout and head out into the great beyond in search of adventure.
Some of these attempts to preserve culture have come in the form of reactionary militias, made up (mostly) of the former warrior and priestly castes of Ethereal society. Wielding strong power and influence in the remote, cut-off hinterlands, these groups provide strong resistance to TerraGov's presence on the planet. While not strong enough nor bold enough to attempt attacks on the regions directly under TerraGov's influence, they are a perpetual threat in the border regions and cause serious problems for construction crews and frontiersmen in these areas. The task of expanding the frontier on Sprout is typically given to corporations via E-Colony charters. Nanotrasen is one of the many corporations involved in this process.
None of this is to say that Ethereals do not have a distinct culture. While the influence of humanity is extreme, they have maintained some elements of their heritage. In particular, Ethereal music remains a defiant area of their culture, particularly as music has major religious and cultural significance to the Ethereals.
Gameplay
Ethereals are a optional playable race. When you create an Ethereal character, you can customize the color of your glow.
When attacking with their hands, Ethereals deal burn instead of brute damage. Instead of nutrition, they have to keep an eye on their electrical charge - if it gets too low, their glow fades, they become even more vulnerable to brute damage and will start dying.
Their nutrition can be recharged with Cyborg rechargers, by touching lightbulbs, or by consuming special food like High-power energy bars and empowered burgers.
Ethereals that get struck by electric shocks take a little less damage and gain charge.
