Gand

"Very strange; Very quiet"

Insects, from a poisonous world. They do not praise their skills or accomplishments, and they are difficult to surprise. They have the instincts of prey, yet are predators -- it is strange.

Basic Information

Biological Traits

Over a dozen distinct species of the Gands have been reported. All are covered in a dense chitinous exoskeleton and reach a height of about 1.6 meters. They generally have three fingers on each hand, as dexterous as other humanoids, easily manipulating equipment designed for five-fingered individuals.
Gands differ from one another in their respiratory biology. Most Gands do not seem to need to breathe at all. The digestion of food in their stomachs produces the ammonia necessary for their biochemistry. Wasteful byproducts and extraneous ammonia are expelled through their exoskeletons. These Gands often emanate a methane musk. Other Gand subspecies possess actual lungs and cannot produce ammonia through digestion, instead requiring a special breathing apparatus.
Gand Biology is difficult to study, as Gands refuse to let other species study them. Some Xenobiologists propose the Gand religious rituals dictate genetic manipulation.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Gands have a closed culture. Their religion and life are closely intertwined. A gathering of elders called the Ruetsavii observes the various religious sects that represent the virtues of Gand life. Off-worlders are most familiar with the religious sect known as the "findsmen." These are the Gand who leave their home planet on ritualistic hunts to catch prey and bring divine blessings to their people. Many other sects are rumored to exist, particularly in the fields of genetics, medicine, and engineering, but their exact natures are unknown.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Homeworld: Gand
Galactic Distribution: Outer Rim

Civilization and Culture

Naming Traditions

Gand names are quite complex, but contain many elongated sounds and often contain a "k" or similar sound. Apostrophes are also quite common after the first letter in their name, though this doesn't occur in all names.
Name Generator

Average Technological Level

Gands, while primitive, made use of galactic technology and were proficient with the usage of advanced weaponry. However, they outsourced their starship manufacturing to other companies or heavily modified captured ships. The Gand discharger was a weapon that was considered the pinnacle of Gand technology; dischargers could both paralyze or kill enemies and extremely rare.

Major Language Groups and Dialects

Gand language is comprised of clicks and chirps from insectoid inflection, as well as a complex combination of gas exhalation to convey various emotional and mental states. Without the need to intake breathable gases, most Gand lack the vocal cords to make the sounds of Basic and other languages. Droids fare much better in understanding Gand than other humanoid linguists; as such, Gand (and those who interact with them) must use droids or translation devices to converse with other species.

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Gand society is highly insulated, but despite this most outsiders view the Gand as very humble. Gands place heavy importance on the achievements of an individual and held that an indiviudal had no name, and thus no worth, until he or she proved otherwise. the speech patterns of Gands utilized third-person self-reference. Young or unproven Gands were all called "Gand," as they were aspects of the same whole. Major accomplishments earned the use of a family surname. Mastering a skill, such as becoming a findsman, allowed for the use of the given name, all with third-person self-reference. Storied Gand could earn the right to use first-person pronouns after many feats and accomplishments and the ritual aptitude test, the Janwuine-jika. Through observation, Elders of Gand deemed whether or not a Gand was worthy to become Janwuine, the highest honor.

Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals

Within Gand society, a select few felt the call to the path of the findsman. Findsmen belonged to a religious sect that worshiped and interpreted the movements of the gaseous mists on Gand to predict the location of criminals. Part shaman, part law enforcer, a findsman augured the location of a fugitive, tracked the target, and brought the wanted being to justice. The findsmen rituals were known to take at least three hours to complete, but were considered to be very reliable. Many offworlders attributed the sect's success to the Force, believing that findsmen were actually Force-sensitive. However, the findsmen themselves claimed otherwise.
Individual findsman sects existed within the profession; each held a different set of beliefs regarding its duties and responsibilities, and performed its rituals in its own distinctive way. Findsmen sects also fought with one another.
Findsman training required devotion and study, and to leave the tradition was seen at times as a death sentence for the wayward hunter. If other members of the findsman's sect learned of their initiate's divergence from the path, they often deemed the Gand a rogue and even tried to kill him or her on sight. Members of other species often viewed the findsman tradition to be a strange sect that was devoted to a hunting religion, although the Gands themselves considered the findsmen to be "on the path to truth."

Common Taboos

To refer to one's self in the first person without being janwuine is considered arrogant and assumes the individual is known throughout society. Assumptions of identity and legend are considered shameful without evidence and social backing.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Gands had an active slave trade and penal system, and they employed the findsmen to locate runaway slaves and prisoners hiding in the enshrouding fog banks.
The Gands conducted trade and commerce on orbiting space stations that allowed visitors to avoid the poisonous atmosphere of their home planet. Despite such contact with offworlders, Gands were seen as insular and somewhat xenophobic. Outsiders were rarely, if ever, allowed on the surface of Gand, as the insectoid species did not want their society to be tainted with the ideas of independence and self-worth that offworlders might bring.

Scientific Name

Gand Sentient Insectoid

Lifespan

~60 - 95 Standard Years

Average Height

1.4 - 1.6 meters

Average Weight

70 - 80 Kg

Average Physique

Exoskeletons; three-fingered hands; skin varies from shades of brown, green, and purple