[hider=Empire of Aramun]
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[i]Banner of the Empire of Aramun[/i]

[b]Name of nation:[/b]The Empire of Aramun

[b]Species:[/b]
[u]K'hlath[/u]
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K'hlath are bipedal, humanoid creatures resembling in outwards appearance, to a fair extent, humans. However, various differences exist that make the K'hlath both outwardly and inwardly different from other creatures. An "average" K'hlath specimen stands at approximately 2 meters in height (6' 6") and masses 90 kilograms (198 pounds). Turquoise or green in skin color (or any variation thereof), all K'hlath sport four arms. Two primary arms, larger and more dextrous than the secondary ones, stem from the shoulders much like a humans arms. A second set grow below the first and are set slightly forward in comparison, made for grasping objects and slightly simpler tasks, although this set is proportionally stronger, equalizing the strength of both sets. Genders are visually indistinguishable, partly because most specimens would classify as both for reproductive purposes.

The coloring of the K'hlath comes partly from natural minerals that grow under the skin, causing their skin to feel rough and gravelly. This at once makes their skin more and less durable against certain effects. A unique point of K'hlath biology is the existence of two brains. One can be located in the head and processes all higher cerebral functions such as imagination, mathematics, etc. Meanwhile, the secondary brain manages basic bodily functions and rests near the center mass of the body, exact location varying by individual. Displaying no psionic or magical potential, K'hlath rely entirely on technology. An individual's face sports no mouth or nose but rather two long slits which serve the purpose of speech, smell, and specialized extrasensory functions, primarily echolocation.

[u]Rakloid[/u]
The Rakloid are a humanoid race with pure red skin, and unique bendable horns coming off the bottoms of their face. Their hair and eye color tends to be similar. After a natural destructive event of tremendous magnitude, a sect of Rakloid ventured off into space apart from the main group of Rakloid who were saved by the Iscandarans. Less than .1% of the population, they remain mainly on the world of TBD

[u]Human[/u]
Not much to say here. You should already know the basics. Compose approximately 9% of Federated Empire's population

[b]Description of government:[/b]
On the surface, the government of the Empire of Aramun would appear akin to that of the human Holy Roman Empire from the 14th and 15th centuries. The nominal head of government is the Emperor Eternal, so named for the position rather than the ruling person themselves. Rather than utilizing a hereditary system, each new Emperor Eternal is appointed by the Electors Nobilite. To rise to the ranks of the Electors Nobilite, one must be born in or raised to a member of the noble class. High-ranking warriors and "knights" do not meet such a qualification. Each member of the Nobilite proposes a new member should one be required and the merits of each are discussed until the greater majority agree on the appointment.

Below the Emperor Eternal and his court are the ducal estates, vast territories managed by a ducal family which has generally ruled for centuries. The Duke or Duchess manages distribution of lands to the barons, trading with other duchies, general policy, rule of law, and military upkeep. More specialized matters are handled by either Counselors or barons. Barons, Baronets, and Baronesses are usually members of old families which have migrated or distant relatives of the current duke, although such is not always the case. Size of holdings varies greatly, from an entire planet to a string of outposts on outlying worlds. Responsible for dealing with the minute matters of rule in place of the dukes, barons are constantly busy.

At the bottom of the government are the fiefs, ruled by lords, counts, earls, or marquis in human parlance. Normally country-sized holdings, the ruler of a fief shares much the same responsibility as barons and dukes.

Each system held by Aramun is a duchy in itself, with there being fifteen duchies in total. Twenty-three habitable planets are spread across the systems, although efforts are being made to shift the orbit of planetary bodies to remove the need for sealed outposts. Nominally under the Emperor's control, each ducal estate acts more akin to an independent nation than a subsidiary body, with the Emperor simply being the most respected of all dukes.

[b]Description of military:[/b]
The military of Aramun is a disjointed organization; in fact, it could be said no military exists for the nation as a whole. Instead, each ducal estate and barony is responsible for training and maintaining a force of standing soldiers, with the capacity to conscript and equip a certain percentage of their population with weapons and armor should such drastic measures be required. Military forces are usually divided into the Void Fleets, Void Mariners, ground Regiments, and the knightly houses.

[i]Void Fleets:[/i] Responsible for the operation of all ships belonging to a specific noble family or other organization.

[i]Void Mariners:[/i] Specially trained soldiers who fight in ships, vacuum, and are sometimes used for covert insertion actions.

[i]The Regiments:[/i] The bulk of Aramun's military, diverse in training, morale, equipment, and culture.

[i]Knightly Houses:[/i] Knights and Nobles comprise a force separate from the Regiments. Generally operating large mechanical war constructs, knights can also be found in specialized vehicles or leading their Regiments on foot.

[b]Technological Overview:[/b]
Were one to simply glimpse the surface of Aramunae society they would be forgiven for assuming that this culture is of a relatively low technological level. Most do not envision an interstellar nation as being powered by gears, chains, and steam-like machines. By all means it shouldn't actually work. Yet it does. In early-21st century Earth human parlance, the Empire of Aramun would be labeled visually steampunk, yet the functioning of their technology far surpasses this.
[hider=Common Technology]
[i]Abysm Generators:[/i] Integral to the operation of all Aramunae technology are the arcane machines known as abysm generators. Discovered by the K'hlath during their early stages of evolution, this machine could not be understood by the scientists of the K'hlath. Replications could be made yet any attempt to advance upon the design met with failure after failure. Instead, focus was placed on finding more of these generators so that more efficiency might be acquired. Abysm generators work upon minute gravitational shifts, manipulating the density of space and time to cause accelerations and deceleration within atomic structures: in simplicity, the devices utilize dark matter to create literal atomic turbines, pumping out massive amounts of radiation which is absorbed by power cells. No methods have been found thus far which can destabilize a generator and are in consequence almost entirely safe. One disadvantage is that they require a secondary power source, usually a coil bank filled with a tremendous amount of electricity, to turn on. After that point it is self-sustaining. While not scaleable to human sizes, generators can be placed into vehicles.

[i]Quantum Gravitics:[/i] Study of the Abysm generators led to the discovery of quantum gravity, a force omnipresent as long as there is mass in the universe. Utilizing the fluctuations of Abysm units, quantum gravitic manipulators are able to create a variety of effects, most commonly levitation, shielding, and containment fields.

[i]Void Fall-Through:[/i] Riding upon the waves of early universal acceleration, Aramunae ships adopt frames of reference that place them far beyond the limit of lightspeed in a classical frame, enabling vessels to achieve faster-than-light speeds. They are, to a large extent, Alcubierre Metrics, although gravitational tunneling is also utilized to further shorten the distances traveled.

[i]Cogitation Spirits:[/i] The Empire's "AI," Cogitation Spirits are simple quantum computers utilized for specific tasks, although more advanced spirits can display complete sentience.

Alongside the Abysm generators were found two other pieces of technology integral to Aramunae society, the voice caster and the Abyssal Forge. Voice Casters work upon the principle of quantum entanglement to near-instantaneously communicate across interstellar distances while the Abyssal Forges power the industry of Aramun. Great contraptions many kilometers in dimensions, twisting fields of gravity and energy create exotic matter and materials, such as antimatter, dark matter, stable trans-uranic elements, and the primary metallic compound of Aramun, Valthum Bronze, a light yet hyperstable material which was found to be extremely resistant to damage.[/hider]
[hider=Military Technology]
The exact nature of the technology owned by the military varies by ducal estate, but across the entirety of the Empire there are several common tools available to all. A majority of the infantry are not power-armored because of the costs associated with creating such contraptions within Aramun. Instead, infantry wear thin plates of a Valthum Bronze-Carbon alloy across various parts of their body that offers immunity against most glancing hits and greatly increases survival rates in cases of being hit directly by weapons. However, the Aramun's definition of power armor is slightly different from others since most people end up being highly cybernetic later in life. Powered-armor infantry are linked directly to their suits via their pre-existing mechanical parts, resulting in a unison of the suit and body so that they could almost be considered one. Each suit features its own Cogitation Spirit to assist with all tasks. More machine than not, the powered infantry are able to compete with the best of other nations because of their machine precision combined with biological free thought.

Weapons in Aramun are generally ballistics or lasers, although many special weapons utilize gravitics in their operation. For ballistic weapons, gears cycle bullets into place upon which embedded arc coils accelerate the projectile to hyper-sonic speeds, aided by the activation of a charge of semi-liquid propellant shortly after leaving the barrel. Fissile and/or highly radioactive material is embedded into most bullets, giving them explosive properties as well as poisoning the area. Lasers are x-rays pumped by cold-fusion reactors stored in backpacks, generally carried by heavy infantry and grenadiers. Gravitics also rely on back-pack power sources since Abysm generators cannot be scaled down to the size of personal weaponry. However, the back-pack powered weapons function exceptionally well, even if they are cumbersome to normal humans. The gravity inside the target is artificially increased, causing them to implode in many cases. The denser or heavier an object, the more pronounced the effect, making gravitic weapons exceptional tank and heavy-infantry killers. However, short ranges limit these weapons.

War robots and androids are fully mechanical constructs operated solely by advanced Cogitation Spirits, making up for a majority of the support received by infantry. However, tank destroyers and other armored fighting vehicles, generally akin in design to WW2 Earth vehicles, are numerous as well.

[i]Fell Barriers:[/i] The primary form of shielding utilized by K'hlath ships, Fell Barriers are triangular wedges of gravity extending approximately one hundred kilometers from the broadside of the ship. Effectively impenetrable to a majority of conventional weapons due to the titanic forces exerted by the Barriers, the fields also serve to accelerate weaponry to near-c velocity. However, there are drawbacks to this system. Only the sides and front of the ship are covered, leaving the bottom and top of the vessel completely exposed to fire. Massive quantities of energy are consumed to power these shields, leaving little else for the ship. Finally, any shots fired through may randomly change as the Barrier field shifts, causing the shot to miss. The shields are generally kept on extremely low power, extending only a few hundred meters from the vessel in order to deflect glancing hits and reduce the effect of direct shots during a surprise attack.

[i]Arc Coils:[/i] Large rings of metal travel along the top, bottom, and aft of the ship, running currents of electricity through them. Fashioned of pure Valthum Bronze rather than an alloy, these rings act as a means by which attacks to the unshielded sides may be mitigated or stopped. Any attack attempting to penetrate is blasted with several petavolts of energy, reducing physical projectiles to plasma which splashes across the hull. EM and other energy-based attacks instead encounter the natural electric field between and on the rings which destabilize the attack. Despite the apparently powerful, they are not designed to stop dedicated attacks, making void warfare battles of maneuver. The discharge of an Arc Coil is fatal to an unprotected person within several kilometers in atmosphere because of the amount of energy released.

[i]Valkine Weaponry:[/i] Valkine weaponry can be considered a combination of the various types of weapons utilized by Aramun. Solid metal is liquefied before streaming down the barrel, accelerated by gravitational fields and negative Coulomb particle repulsion. The radioactive jet of metal measuring in at tens of thousands degrees Celsius streams across the field in a supersonic line, imparting vast amounts of kinetic and thermal energy into the target, causing deflagration in hardier targets that leaves the insides wreathed in plasma while softer targets detonate. Anything that survives the flow will find themselves bathed in radiation many hundreds of times higher than what can be survived by a human, sometimes causing the continued melting of nearby materials. An extremely rare and valuable weapon.

[i]Tunneler Warhead:[/i] Quantum tunneling. A phenomenon which allows a particle to pass through an otherwise impassable barrier. This is exactly what the Tunneler Warhead uses. Carried in limited numbers, these warheads are normally utilized against defensive stations and unwary ships, although using the weapon as a means by which to disable an opposing vessel is an oft seen sight. Although tunneling would normally work on a minuscule scale, advances have allowed the tunneling effect to be raised from only a few nanometers to a few dozen centimeters at the most, several centimeters at the lowest. Because of the variability of the warhead, it is uncertain whether or not the payload will actually punch through the hull. If it does, however, the radioactive particles will destroy most anything in the immediate vicinity of the "tunnel" before poisoning the ship with radiation.

[i]Harmonic Torpedoes:[/i] Ship-mounted weapons, these torpedoes are usually on the order of 50 meters long and 10 meters wide, making for a heavy, blunt weapon. However, the main purpose of the torpedo isn't the kinetic energy it can impart but the special properties afforded it. Several cogitation spirits are stored inside each torpedo, linked to various sensors as well as an internal Abysm generator. Upon launch, gravity and plasma drives accelerate and guide the torpedo towards its target. This is when the special properties activate. Ten thousand kilometers out, gravity wedges on the torpedo activate. Specially crafted for the purpose of breaching the Fell Barriers of opposing ships, the specially designed Abysm generator attunes its own gravitational fluctuations to that of the shields, allowing it to plow through almost unopposed. Upon contacting the hull of the vessel, the gravity wedge shears through momentarily before becoming inert, the power supply having been exhausted. Sometimes some of the mechanisms inside the torpedo are exchanged for a small troop bay, although this vastly decreases the range and effectiveness of the weapon. Can also be equipped with a Tunneler warhead.
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[b]Cultural Overview:[/b]
The K'hlath culture values temperance and knowledge above anything else. Competitions are a common sight and, while respected and conducted often, remain private affairs between the competitors. K'hlath architecture is designed to surpass the environment which it inhabits, building upon the foundation of the planet. One could mistake some of the more developed fiefs for planets made of metal. The appearance of a building generally depends on the materials produced by the planet, although some buildings will be fabricated from off-world materials. Normally, structures will appear as an extension of the landscape. Clothing is simple yet elegant, designed to monitor health via small telemetry sensors. Made out of synthetic fibers, each style is specific to a family or guild, with color, marking, and cut denoting certain achievements, relations, or status.

Food takes a similar approach as architecture, utilizing subtle herbs to accentuate the natural flavor of the main meals. Meals are always provided as one large serving as each dish is meant to complement the whole. Art is quite prevalent in K'hlath culture, most often displayed in the mode of sculpture or music/dancing. Artists are respected throughout the Dominion, given higher social standing than most other people. Military members and religious figures hold a higher standing, with the noble families and guilds retaining the most power.

Bodily modification is common to the point of universality. Few individuals will not seek some form of enhancement or change to their originally biological body. Most often, these surgical procedures are administered by automated medical units with oversight from family members and government officials due to a deeply-seeded slight mistrust of AI because of their past resistance. Most often, cybernetics are added over the span of an individuals life, replacing failing organs or lost limbs to enable full functionality. This allows increased longevity, although most choose to stay partially organic, despising robotic immortality in favor of natural death. Basic modifications, applied at birth to all citizens, are bio-synthetic musculature and bone structure, making the average individual much stronger, faster, and healthier than they normally would be. Slow-release steroids are implanted as well which serve to vastly increase an individual's lifespan by rejuvenating their body. (Sounds sophisticated. And then you see it.)

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(A human in her early 70s modified with mid-low end implants)

Religion: The Church Vaterni, subscribed to by approximately 37% of the Unity's population, holds power in various areas of daily life, especially that of conduct. The primary area of difference between the general culture of the Unity and the writs of the Vaterni is in how one regards the wider universe. Unlike their brothers who view the universe as simply another situation to attend to and manipulate, followers of the Vaterni are at once bellicose and benign. Rather than simply exert influence over other nations, Vaternians wish to directly rule over other possible civilizations and provide them with what the high clergy view as the best state of life.

Aside from the Church Vaterni, worship is varied, most families or ducal estates worshipping their own pantheon, some fiefdoms hosting an established church.

In the age of ending shall there be a beginning. And in this beginning will come a change. Unity shall come to the stars and all that you see will be yours.

-Inscription by an unknown author within the holy texts of the Church Vaterni

[b]History:[/b]
I'll get there eventually. Hopefully not terribly necessary.

Other:
If hamburgers are made of beef, what are beefburgers made out of?
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