Anduari (ænduɑri)

Traces of those who came long before us litter Visctheria. With only a little more time, we could discover so much about who the Gods truly are.

— Liliya Granthis, quoted in Chronos, the Visctherian Analogs edition

The Anduari came to Visctheria long before any other Visctherian races were created by the Gods. They walked the world for fifty-three years with their superior technology and knowledge of the universe, and left behind scraps that would only be uncovered when the Strutheo Star struck the world. Once the general population was forced into the stratosphere, only then would they search underground.

Creation

The origin of the Anduari is relatively unknown. It is theorized they traveled from the nearby planet of Anduar, from whence their name was given, and landed on the newly formed Visctheria near the start of the planet's timeline. While Arcanists guess at the extraplanetary origin of the mysterious race, worshipers of the Gods during the Deific Age said they came from the Gods themselves as a protospecies.

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Region of Origin

The Anduari first made contact with Visctheria on Xathar's Gate in 5991 BD, and quickly spread outward from the island. Using their tech and explorative experience, they hastily covered the newly born world in outposts and research stations, delving into the new species and landmarks that were yet to be discovered.

Appearance

The Anduari's appearance is hotly debated, with some researchers saying they were great beasts that roamed the world, and others claiming they were tiny creatures that manipulated massive mechanical avatars. Most depictions of the Anduari show them as vast shadowy figures working with technology advanced beyond our dreams.

Subspecies

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While there are no known subspecies of the Anduari, it is rumored among the Arcanists that the Grailae are the most closely related race to the Anduari. Salmanian old wives' tales support this theory, saying that some of the more powerful Grailae have the blood of an ancient race in them, someone who was here before anyone else. Because of this story, many pureblooded Grailae are extremely pretentious about their bloodline, even interbreeding to keep the bloodline pure. The practice has resulted in many dangerous genetic conditions among Grailae royalty.

Culture

The Anduari were extremely focused on information and knowledge, and spent much of their lives in the pursuit of that knowledge. Little is known about their culture, but they were said to communicate between research stations around the world. This vast sharing of knowledge is only mimicked by the modern day Visctherian Analogs, a huge collection of Visctherian history that has been digitized.

Linguistics

The Anduari language is vastly lost to time outside of a few small documents uncovered in the impact of the Strutheo Star. These documents, while pulled from corrupted Anduari technology, allowed for some simple knowledge of their - supposedly - native language. No translations have been successful, but the documents are likely written about the proper path through the Garlin Deep to Xathar's Gate.

Fashion & Style

Anduari dress, at least on Visctheria, was simple and unassuming. They wore thin, dark robes, and guarded themselves against attack using basic leather armor. No swathes of colored fabric have been uncovered from the wreckage of the Anduari research stations, but much metallic jewelry has been dug up from the earth.

Traditions & Rituals

Anduari spent most of their time searching for knowledge, to the point that their daily uploads became the most ritualistic thing to describe about them. In the calm Visctherian evenings, they would plug into their databases using small ports that connected to their nervous systems, and dump loads of information from their heads into the digitized system.

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History

They came from a traveling race, hailing from the planet Anduar, but lost to the stars for many generations. As they traveled through the stars, they grew further from their original culture, becoming more of a migrating hivemind than a people. Their hunger for knowledge overtook them, and while their findings and technology fueled an entire Age, it greatly diminished their recoverable history.

Arriving on Visctheria in 5991 BD, the Anduari stepped through Xathar's Gate and took to the infant planet like fish to water. They quickly spread across the world, setting up temporary and permanent research stations with their limited tools, but unlimited new resources. Visctheria may be very similar to their homeworld - or perhaps they were so adept at conquering, no challenges were encountered.

While the Anduari were a quiet people, without festivals or traditions, they spent much of their lives dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge and information, and the collection of that knowledge in vast databases. They put their lives' work into these think tanks, and sent signal after signal, full of information, into the stars. Who they sent these messages to, or if they were ever received, no one knows.

Much Anduari tech has been used in the creation of the Orbital Rings, including the data needed to hold the rings in the stratosphere of Visctheria, carefully balanced by gravity. This uncovered science has saved millions of lives with new medical technology, and one document pulled from the corruption even provided an in depth understanding of an Anduari brain - which proved to be very similar to that of most Visctherians.

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