Nezem

“Where you see one Nezem, you can be absolutely certain another hundred of them are somewhere nearby.”

Nezem Culture Researcher

Once servants to the empire that once dominated Zokukuni, the Nezem now roam free in the seemingly endless sprawl of caverns and mines beneath the very soil the empire once conquered. Said caverns have been expanded, connected and reinforced with salvaged material collected from the ruins of the empire itself, supplemented and repaired with what remained in the depths of the mines. It is not wholly uncommon for a Nezemite to spend the entirety of its life underground save for salvage runs or various raids on other rival clans.
These numerous Nezem clans span the abandoned territories of the empire, and raiding parties belonging to different clans are often found skirmishing for priceless empire salvage. The relations between these clans have always been muddled by petty conflict and attempts to seize power, and yet despite this, it has yet to result in an outbreak of war between said clans. This has, however, resulted in stagnation in much of Nezem society in regards to social advancements while weapons of conflict continue to advance rapidly.
Repurposing and experimenting with empire salvage is a cultural staple of the Nezem as a whole, regardless of the specific clan. These experiments lead to the rise of new inventions ranging from rotary projectile launchers to powered golems and vehicles. While dangerous in their own right, they are often highly unstable and just as likely to malfunction in a violent way as they are to function normally. The very notion of normal smithing is lost to most of the Nezem clans, and their close-range weapons are often slabs of metal beaten down into something resembling blades before being ground on stones until they have at least one sharp edge, usually several. As such most of the constructions, contraptions and armaments of the Nezem are visually jagged, yet still effective enough for practical use.

Racial Modifiers

• Characteristics: Nezimites gain a +2 bonus to AGI, but suffer a -1 to STR and WP. The Nezem are known for their uncanny ability to move quickly, often to get into places they shouldn’t be.
• Varying Size: Nezemites may subtract 5 from their Size characteristic as per the Uncommon Size Advantage. If this would bring them below Small size, the remainder does not apply.
• Night Vision: Nezemites ignore any penalties caused by natural darkness, and reduce penalties from magically induced or absolute darkness by half.
• Prone to Disorder: The mind and behaviors of the Nezem is rife with chaos and uncertainty, along with a disdain for authority. Nezemites suffer a -20 to Etiquette and Leadership and a -30 to Persuasion. However the penalty to Persuasion is reduced to -10 when bluffing, misguiding or hiding the truth in some form. Additionally, Nezemites suffer a -20 to Composure against fear or fear related effects and a -20 to Withstand Pain. However, this also renders the Nezem difficult to control, and they have a +20 bonus to resist domination or possession effects capable of modifying their conduct.
• Distinctive Posture: Due to the unique shape of their body as well as bodily proportions, Nezemites suffer a -30 to Disguise. Adopting a false appearance or identity only helps so much when it still moves and is shaped like a Nezemite.
• Packrat: If a Nezemite of Medium size is carrying more than their Natural Weight, including Maximum Load, reduce the Movement penalty from said weight by 2. This does not change the Fatigue loss incurred due to said encumbrance.
• Distrustful Senses: Nezemites gain a +20 bonus to Notice, Search and Track for the purpose of actively finding potential prey, an opponent during combat, or traps and other sources of harm.
• Rampant Digestion: Renowned for their ability to scavenge or forage and then consume rotting meat and long-since spoiled and decaying plants, Nezemites gain a +20 bonus to any Resistance check to avoid being poisoned or contracting food-borne illness from ingested substances. Additionally, they reduce the duration of effects produced by a failed Poison Resistance check against ingested poisons by half.
• Salvager's Rite: Known for their unusual methods of acquiring and constructing equipment, the Nezem are uniquely adept at using ramshackle gear to surprising effect. Nezemites ignore the penalties from -5 quality gear. Additionally, Nezemites can purchase the Improvised Weapons module for half DP cost and increase the base damage of improvised weapons by 10, and their breakage by 2.

Basic Information

Anatomy

The Nezem are a race of bipedal rats with long dextrous tails that are capable of swift feats of mobility and speed on two legs. They are often coated in a thick bristly fur that protects them from various climates despite their place of origin being Zokukuni. As such it is not strange to very rarely encounter a vagrant Nezem in nearly any climate across the Eye.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Nezemites are well known for their rather egregious diets composed of literally anything they think might even be slightly edible, as well as many things that are simply not. The concept of flavor, preferences or even enjoying one's food is almost entirely a foreign concept to Clan Rats. This is often not the case for more independent Rats who develop their own sense of taste and preferences through cultural diffusion.
Aside from diet, Nezemites are also renowned for their peculiar ramshackle constructions using salvaged empire technology. These contraptions can range from functional weapons of war to basic utensils such as a food steamer.

Civilization and Culture

Culture and Cultural Heritage

The bulk of Nezemite society is comparable to that of a republic as most Clans elect their leaders through various means. Whether this is through intentional hardship, dangerous tasks to prove their value as a leader, or simply choosing the next leader differs between the Clans. There are however a few clans that instead are led through violence, their leader often being one that took control by force.
Most of the Nezem’s origin is shrouded in mystery, having served as indentured servants during the time of the empire. Where the Nezem came from or how they came to exist as servants is currently unknown and is often a common arguing point between scholars regarding the mysterious Nezem. Regardless of the actual reason, most of the Nezem only care for what the next day may bring and often forget or care very little for what has happened in the past unless it is of great importance to them. As such, minor slights that occur day to day are forgotten and forgiven unintentionally, while great insults are met with greater uproar. To be remembered by a Nezemite means one of two things, you are of great value to them, or they likely want you dead or at least maimed.
Nezemite society within the depths of their mines and caverns is flooded with unique and various contraptions put together with salvaged technology left behind when the empire collapsed. These range from household utensils such as a food steamer and water heater to weapons of war. The most notorious conflict-borne contraptions are the rotary gun, a belt fed gun capable of firing until it either runs out of bullets or breaks, and the long arm, a rifle with an extremely long effective range capable of surprising accuracy. Aside from these two categories, some clans even put together large golem-like structures and power them, enabling them to move and function for various purposes. While not fully understood, what is known regarding the constructions of the Nezem is that they use unstable corestone in their constructions in order to power the object(s). The method in which said corestone is destabilized is not commonly known and is regarded as a fiercely guarded secret of the Clans.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Other Nezemites

The Nezem as a whole have a peculiar relation with themselves. Oftentimes, a Nezemite from one Clan will automatically assume the worst of a Nezemite from another. While this is not typically to the point of violence, it is obvious they are not wanted there but are tolerated assuming they provide some kind of benefit to the foreign Clan they are in the presence of. Despite the frequent and typically violent skirmishes between Clans, there is something resembling peace between the Clans and the common Clan Rat can in fact visit other Clans without the threat of simply being killed. This is not always the case but is commonplace.

Nearly Everything Else

The mindset explained above also applies to nearly every other race but is often exaggerated or dialed to an extreme. While one can typically meet and exchange words with a Nezemite patrol or perhaps a singular Nezemite, it is quite rare to be allowed into the depths of a Clan’s caverns. It is even more rare to be accepted in their space. Attempts to enter and oftentimes even approach the entrance to a Clan cavern is sometimes met with warning shots and threats.

Goblins 

There does however exist one exception to this, and that is Goblins. If there is one race that has somehow ended up in the good graces of the Nezem as a whole, it is the Goblins. While they may not specifically share the same views, at least not openly, Goblins and the Nezem share a lot of similar views and behave in similar manners. It is not wholly uncommon to see the occasional Goblin mingling with Nezemite society.

Attribution

Written and contributed by CatChatter with permission.