Nomaien

On Nomaie, the gender numbers aren’t any where near equal. Nomaien women tend to regard their male counterparts as inferior, though male siblings are generally exempt from this treatment. Nomaien twins have a deep psychic connection and when one is bothered by something, it intrudes on the other one. This is especially true of opposite gender twins. Those kinds of twins are sacred to the Nomaien people. They cannot lie to each other. The women treat strangers coldly and strange men even more so. The men are far more tolerant. When a woman finds a male to her liking, she does everything in her power to get that man. Physical contact in public between members of the opposite genders is taboo, though similar contact between members of the same gender is perfectly fine. There is no taboo on same sex pairings; in fact, they tend to be more common

Basic Information

Anatomy

Strangely, one of the more erogenous zones on a woman’s body is the pulse points on their wrists.
It’s generally not apparent to anyone outside of their race unless they have an extremely sensitive nose, but aroused Nomaiens give of a faintly sweet and spicy scent, much like cinnamon.
Because of the extreme temperatures on their world, they don’t tolerate being in cold climates very well. Most will be perpetually cold if they leave their world, so not many do so unless absolutely necessary.

Genetics and Reproduction

Nomaien women don’t reproduce easily. It’s rare for a woman to have more than two children. Back when they were still nomads moving from watering hole to watering hole, it became clear to them that love between a man and a woman was becoming rarer as the years passed. The women were finding it easier to find love among their own gender. Marriage was becoming less frequent. This came to the attention of the Queen. The end result of this was the present system. When a woman decides to have a child, she finds a suitable man and they come to an agreement. Sometimes they marry if they find that they like each other enough. Most often, they stay together for a time agreed upon. For reproduction, they seek the other gender; for love, they most often look within their own. This holds true for males and females. Among the royalty of the planet, marriages are required and are often arranged. When a Nomaien marries, it’s for life.

Dietary Needs and Habits

The women have vastly greater appetites for food than the men do, though why is a secret they keep to themselves.

Additional Information

Social Structure

They are a matriarchal monarchy.

Currently, the reigning queen is Hashaare'n ii Kantahar. Her consort is Chanse'iki ni Jalan. They have three children: Hinal'a, Yulan'iki and Jalon’g. Hinal'a is married and has children of her own (Tanlek'o and Jarele'yen). The heir to the throne isn’t necessarily the eldest daughter as younger ones have been known to inherit. Daughters have also been passed over in favor of granddaughters. The queen is referred to as Her Revered Majesty, while her mate is called Honored Consort. The consort is always male.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Personal space is highly valued. Nomaiens have very sensitive skin and skin-to-skin contact makes them very vulnerable. It affects them the way that drugs affect other species. It can be addictive. This evolved as a survival mechanism that allowed mothers to identify their children (or vice versa), which is very useful in the natural dark of the night or in the artificial dark of a sandstorm when the winds howl making vocal and visual communication impossible.

A related survival trait is a nearly mystical sense of direction. While they’re on their home world, they can tell exactly where they are, but once they leave its surface, even going up to one of the moons, they lose this ability. No one is entirely sure why.

Civilization and Culture

Average Technological Level

They are capable of space travel, though it’s rarely used. Largely, they use a series of interplanetary portals when they need to travel around in their star system.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

There are two dialects of the Nomaien language. The ancient dialect is only used these days in rituals. There is a more modern version that is used for every day speech. A third dialect isn’t really a language, but it’s the vocabulary that they draw their personal names from.

Common Etiquette Rules

As far as men go, it’s considered inappropriate to discuss women when in the company of women. It’s rude for them to look a woman in the eyes unless they’re related.
Nomaien women never wear their hair loose except when they’re being very intimate with another person.

They don’t have any stigma against crazy people.

Common Taboos

Bedrooms are the most private areas and are invaded only in the most dire of circumstances. A woman’s bedroom is even more so.

Common Myths and Legends

They venerate the world spirit, a female entity they simply call Nomaie. Even though they know how the universe works and that the sun will rise and set without any of their help, it is an ancient ritual of theirs to sing the sun into the sky every morning and sing it to sleep every night. It is their way of honoring their less enlightened past.
Nomaiens also believe in reincarnation. They believe that their actions in life don’t necessarily determine what life they are born into next, as there are documented cases of Nomaiens being reincarnated in other species. These are seen as learning experiences. In deep meditative states a Nomaien can access their past lives if they choose, though most don’t unless they seek guidance. Nomaien sehashi have nearly conscious access to these memories, especially if they were awakened as sehashi in those past lives.
Nomaiens believe there are 7 hells.

Average Height

Females - 5'7''
Males - 5'11''

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Nomaiens all have a range of body markings that vary in location and colour depending on what part of the planet they're from. Close to the equator they have small spots decorating their legs that tend to be several shades darker than their skin tone. In the northern desert, they have some small blotches that run from behind their ear, down the front of their neck, and then down their sides, terminating at their lower back. These blotches are black. Western desert dwellers have facial markings that are usually reddish in colour.

Related Ethnicities

• Nomaien