Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thread

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Arioch »

GeoModder wrote:It is telling that the Umiak didn't make a difference between the assumed few numbers of Loroi on Neridi colonies and the local Neridi populations. Granted that the Neridi are by most the closest ally of the Loroi though.
Most of the captured Neridi systems were made a part of Morat territory, and so were under a joint Umiak-Morat occupation. The largest captured Neridi colony was Azimol, which had a significant Loroi population. The Neridi were by no means innocent bystanders (a Neridi civilian can commit sabotage as well as anyone else), and it was a messy situation; when a facility blows up, you don't necessarily know who did it. The occupation forces were perplexed by the ability of captured populations to wage an effective insurgency even after they were rounded up and monitored. At one point the Morat began to suspect that the Neridi were also secretly telepathic. And unlike the comparatively dispassionate Umiak, the Morat (who were under a lot of pressure) responded especially harshly to the insurgency. To make a long (and unpleasant) story short, when the decision was made that the captured colonies could not efficiently be pacified, the resulting liquidation included Neridi as well as Loroi.

The Neridi have skin in this game. In addition to the losses during invasion and occupation, when the Umiak started raiding Laget through Tithric territory, it was mainly Neridi civilians who were killed. For the Neridi, the war is personal, and not just against the Loroi. In particular, the Neridi have developed a burning hatred for the Morat, who they had previously regarded as friendly neighbors.
GeoModder wrote: Did those genocides on occupied Neridi colonies start before or after the Hierarchy declared its anti-neutrality policy?
The anti-neutrality policy had nothing to do with the treatment of captured Union populations, who were most definitely not neutral. But to answer your question, the anti-neutrality declaration was in late 2141, whereas liquidation protocols began in late 2143.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Grayhome »

The occupation forces were perplexed by the ability of captured populations to wage an effective insurgency even after they were rounded up and monitored. At one point the Morat began to suspect that the Neridi were also secretly telepathic.
Oh my goodness, were the Loroi mind controlling/body swapping with their Neridi "friends" and using them as drone proxies to attack the Umiak? Oooo, the questions this raises. ;)

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by dragoongfa »

I suspect that the Neridi were easier to 'read' and could perhaps 'receive' basic instructions thus allowing them to act as lookouts and agents of opportunity.

Plus they are short little buggers and can fit everywhere.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Grayhome »

I suspect that the Neridi were easier to 'read' and could perhaps 'receive' basic instructions thus allowing them to act as lookouts and agents of opportunity.
I love your naive and idealistic nature.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Arioch »

Grayhome wrote:
The occupation forces were perplexed by the ability of captured populations to wage an effective insurgency even after they were rounded up and monitored. At one point the Morat began to suspect that the Neridi were also secretly telepathic.
Oh my goodness, were the Loroi mind controlling/body swapping with their Neridi "friends" and using them as drone proxies to attack the Umiak?
Of course not. The occupiers merely underestimated the effectiveness of the Loroi psionic warfare castes.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Grayhome »

Awww, so less ruthless than what I was expecting.
The occupiers merely underestimated the effectiveness of the Loroi psionic warfare castes.
Wow, people seem to do that a lot.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Arioch »

Grayhome wrote:Wow, people seem to do that a lot.
Well, no one expects the Spanish Inquisition!

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by GeoModder »

Arioch wrote:
GeoModder wrote:It is telling that the Umiak didn't make a difference between the assumed few numbers of Loroi on Neridi colonies and the local Neridi populations. Granted that the Neridi are by most the closest ally of the Loroi though.
Most of the captured Neridi systems were made a part of Morat territory, and so were under a joint Umiak-Morat occupation...
Ah? Did the Hierarchy so to speak grant additional territory to their Morat ally? Or was providing occupation forces for captured worlds a sort of demand of the Umiak towards the Morat?
Arioch wrote:The Neridi have skin in this game. In addition to the losses during invasion and occupation, when the Umiak started raiding Laget through Tithric territory, it was mainly Neridi civilians who were killed. For the Neridi, the war is personal, and not just against the Loroi. In particular, the Neridi have developed a burning hatred for the Morat, who they had previously regarded as friendly neighbors.
Had to look up the expression 'skin in this game'. Did you mean that beside the loss of life the Neridi also lost a vast amount of investment?
Arioch wrote:
GeoModder wrote: Did those genocides on occupied Neridi colonies start before or after the Hierarchy declared its anti-neutrality policy?
The anti-neutrality policy had nothing to do with the treatment of captured Union populations, who were most definitely not neutral. But to answer your question, the anti-neutrality declaration was in late 2141, whereas liquidation protocols began in late 2143.
Thanks.
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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Arioch »

GeoModder wrote:Ah? Did the Hierarchy so to speak grant additional territory to their Morat ally?
Yes, it was a gift of territory in reward for their contribution to the war. The Morat were (and still technically are) an independent ally, and the Umiak know how to use the carrot as well as the stick.
GeoModder wrote:Had to look up the expression 'skin in this game'. Did you mean that beside the loss of life the Neridi also lost a vast amount of investment?
Having multiple colonies captured or destroyed and millions of your people killed is of course also a huge financial loss, but I was implying a more visceral investment. To throw more metaphor at you: when you "lose your shirt" that's financial ruin, but when you "save someone's skin" that's something more serious, so "skin in the game" implies (at least in my opinion) that there's more than just money at stake. The Neridi have shed their own blood and they want blood in return; their participation in the war is not just a favor for a friend (as it is for the Barsam).

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Eluvatar »

Arioch wrote:The Neridi have shed their own blood and they want blood in return; their participation in the war is not just a favor for a friend (as it is for the Barsam).
That's interesting.

Do the Barsam have no reason to believe the Umiak would enslave them?

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Arioch »

Eluvatar wrote:Do the Barsam have no reason to believe the Umiak would enslave them?
That's open to academic debate (as the Barsam are committed to mutual defense of the Union by treaty regardless of how they feel about it), but I meant that the Barsam have suffered no direct attacks on their territory or civilian populations in the current war, and so there is no personal vendetta or hatred against the Hierarchy. The Barsam are nominally pacifists, so while they support the war effort, most just want it to be over. If the Umiak were to offer a truce tomorrow, I think many Barsam would counsel acceptance.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by GeoModder »

Arioch wrote:
GeoModder wrote:Had to look up the expression 'skin in this game'. Did you mean that beside the loss of life the Neridi also lost a vast amount of investment?
Having multiple colonies captured or destroyed and millions of your people killed is of course also a huge financial loss, but I was implying a more visceral investment. To throw more metaphor at you: when you "lose your shirt" that's financial ruin, but when you "save someone's skin" that's something more serious, so "skin in the game" implies (at least in my opinion) that there's more than just money at stake. The Neridi have shed their own blood and they want blood in return; their participation in the war is not just a favor for a friend (as it is for the Barsam).
Thanks again! :lol: I was thinking along those lines at first too, but looking up the expression online brought me to the financial meaning.
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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

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Arioch wrote:
Eluvatar wrote:Do the Barsam have no reason to believe the Umiak would enslave them?
That's open to academic debate (as the Barsam are committed to mutual defense of the Union by treaty regardless of how they feel about it), but I meant that the Barsam have suffered no direct attacks on their territory or civilian populations in the current war, and so there is no personal vendetta or hatred against the Hierarchy. The Barsam are nominally pacifists, so while they support the war effort, most just want it to be over. If the Umiak were to offer a truce tomorrow, I think many Barsam would counsel acceptance.
And the Neridi would not?

Huh.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Hālian »

...I just noticed that in the Umiak data file, the sample umiak's arms are on backwards.
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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Arioch »

Carl Miller wrote:...I just noticed that in the Umiak data file, the sample umiak's arms are on backwards.
In what way are they backwards?

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Hālian »

His right hand is the normal one when the text says that should be the left hand.
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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

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Carl Miller wrote:His right hand is the normal one when the text says that should be the left hand.
As it says in the description, not all Umiak have the right hand specialization; in some the right hand is normal. The illustration shows both versions.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Hālian »

D'oh.

Was the claw specific to any of the subspecies before they were all mixed together into the umiak we will know in 144 years?
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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by Arioch »

Carl Miller wrote:Was the claw specific to any of the subspecies before they were all mixed together into the umiak we will know in 144 years?
Yes, it was specific to the nomadic Hal-tik.

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Re: Miscellaneous Umiak/misc. races question-and-answer thre

Post by dragoongfa »

Quick question: What was the name of the Centaur like Soia-Liron race that used to live on Deinar before the Loroi?

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