Umanu



Umanu is the adopted name of the human members of the Noah Six expedition, which was launched from Earth in 3466 as part of Project Noah, an attempt to save the last remnants of Earth's empire from complete extinction (the establishment of Arth was accomplished through the Noah Two expedition). Noah 6 arrived in the Delta Sector in 3838. Finding the Cloud Nebula largely unoccupied and realizing its potential strategic value as a safe haven, the Noah 6 expedition settled within the nebula. To further hide their identity from any enemies that might have followed them to the Delta Sector, the two species that made up the expedition decided to change their very names. The Elowan members became the Lowar; the Human members became the Umanu. A hundred years after their arrival in the Delta Sector, the Lowar discovered the Shyneum Planet; together the Umanu and the Lowar began a golden age of trade in the Delta Sector and times were altogether prosperous. In 4240 the Umanu were enslaved by the Uhl's offspring; two years later the Umanu exterminated the Lowar. The Umanu remained enslaved until 4640, when the Uhl's offspring was finally defeated by the crew of the ISS Buttershark.

While the Umanu are human in all but name only, they have suffered from 400 years of total mental enslavement, which has affected the way the Umanu perceive the universe. This, combined with their fashion sense (leaning towards solid-colored hooded robes) and their place of origin, marks them at the very least as an altogether distinct group.

The Umanu are a member species of the New Empire; for additional information on the Empire, [SF3MANWorkRequest|see their profile page].

Basic Characteristics

 * Type: Humanoid
 * Durability: 7
 * Learning Rate: 6
 * Science: Good
 * Navigation: Excellent
 * Tactical: Excellent
 * Engineering: Excellent
 * Communications: Good
 * Medical: Average
 * Genders: 2
 * Life Stages: Adolescent at 15 years. Adult at 21 years. Middle age at 40 yrs. Old Age at 60 years. Venerable Age at 70 years.
 * Lifespan: 70+5d10 years.
 * Height (Male): 1.7 meters; 1.4 + 1d5x0.1m
 * Height (Female): 1.6 meters; 1.3 + 1d5x0.1m
 * Mass (Male): 90 kilograms; 40 + (same 1d5 from height + 1d5)x10 kg
 * Mass (Female): 60 kilograms; 35 + (same 1d5 from height + 1d5)x5 kg


 * Niche/Symmetry: Omnivorous Bilateral Consumer
 * Speed/Transit: Biped, 10 m/rd (6 kph)
 * Volume: 0.075 m^3
 * HD: 50/50/50
 * HP: 70
 * Unarmed Damage: 5 NHP
 * STV: 83 MU (1100 MU/m^3)

Physical Description
While the Umanu are biologically human, they have been under the direct mental control of the Uhl's offspring for approximately 400 years; this combined with the relatively small size of the initial population means that the Umanu, as a distinct group, are less diverse than the human population from which they were taken. The Umanu are a bipedal omnivorous species with smooth skin and a characteristic mat of scalp hair; this hair is typically ranges from a light brown to black color. They are 1.4 to 1.9 meters in height, and are light beige to a darker beige in color. The Umanu have an internal skeleton and two small, narrow-set eyes which allow binocular vision; these eyes are typically brown. Uhl-influenced breeding led to a stock which is somewhat stronger than the average human, but less mentally flexible. They tend to excel in any field involving mechanics and tend to be keen marksmen. The Umanu have a pair of arms (motor appendages) and legs (propulsive appendages), both of which terminate in five digit-type appendages per major appendage. The Umanu usually eat five small meals per day and sleep about six hours a day. Umanu can go about two weeks without food under normal circumstances, and about four days without water. Although there is a degree of sexual dimorphism in this species, the differences are insignificant. Umanu reproduction is performed sexually; Umanu females typically produce one offspring via live birth after a 40 week gestation period.

Space Units
See New Empire entry for Space Unit information.

Ground Units
See New Empire entry for Ground Unit information.

Territory
From the time of the arrival of the Noah Six expedition to the present day, the Great Cloud Nebula in the center of the Delta Sector has been the territory of the Umanu (records indicate the Umanu shared the nebula with the Lowar up until their compulsion by the Uhl). There are 27 star systems within the cloud, and all of them fall within their jurisdiction. The Umanu have settlements on four worlds within the Cloud. Their homeworld, Elluriae, is the lone rock world orbiting &delta;96x141. Most Umanu living on this planet live in urban areas along the northern coast of the main continent. The Umanu are also known to inhabit the old Lowar homeworld, Lerar, at &delta;139x135, p7. The Umanu military training center was, until very recently, located at &delta;112x133, p7. This molten world was used to toughen up troops for life in service of the Uhl. With the Uhl's demise, there has been talk about abandoning the world all together; the Empire has yet to make a decision as to the final fate of this facility. By far the most important world in Umanu territory (certainly in an economic sense) was the Shyneum Planet at &delta;117x153, p2, the soul source of Shyneum in the known universe; the full ramifications of the planet's destruction on the Umanu as a seperate race within the Empire may never be fully known.


 * See New Empire entry for specific territorial holdings.

Status
The history of the Umanu's presence in the Delta Sector has been rather tragic. Because of their overtly aggressive behavior under the influence of the Uhl, none of the other starfaring races in the Delta Sector have had much to do with the Umanu; usually the mere sighting of one of their ships sent anybody else's ship into an immediate defensive posture. The G'Nunk sometimes went into the Cloud for the express purpose of testing their mettle against the Umanu; as neither species was keeping records during that period, it is impossible to say how many G'Nunk have lost their lives to the Umanu (the G'Nunk have designated the Umanu as G'Nasch, superior in strength to themselves). The socio-political system in the Delta Sector fundamentally changed in 4640 with the Uhl's final defeat. The Umanu, with the help of Interstel and later the Empire, were able to re-establish a rapport with the Humna Humna in order to begin redistribution of Shyneum throughout both the Alpha and Delta Sectors. This has in turn led to a vast increase in interstellar trade in the Delta Sector, delighting the Humna Humna no end. Unfortunately, the increase in trade hasn't done much to mollify the other races in the Sector as yet; time will be required for the Umanu to establish any kind of direct rapport. In the meantime, the Umanu are largely dependent upon the Empire to mediate any dealings between themselves and the other Delta Sector races. The Umanu's sudden transition to a friendlier posture has made them the epitome of evil to the G'Nunk, who feel that there is nothing more evil than a strong, non-aggressive race. Because of their isolation from the Alpha Sector, the Umanu's attitudes towards the Alpha Sector races hasn't changed much since the initial launch of the Noah Six expedition (they still hold great malice towards the Gazurtoid and disdain for the Spemin, and are on generally friendly terms with the Veloxi and Thrynn). As a race, they feel a sense of guilt over the extermination of the Lowar. As a result, they have a tendency to do anything an Elowan asks of them without hesitation. They are, at present, full members of the Empire; politically, they share the same set of allies and enemies as that group.


 * See New Empire entry for alliance status data.

Economy

 * See New Empire entry for economic data.

Supplemental Information
Prior to the defeat of the Uhl, the Umanu were little more than automatons. Many post-Uhl Umanu are very expressive and artistic. Their caliber of art-forms is a little under par, but then again the race as a whole has been denied creative expression for 400 years (so few individual Umanu really care). Many Umanu are extroverted; they have a tendency to gush, particularly when giving thanks to someone. The Umanu still possess many of the same qualities as Humans, in particular the qualities which made them so valuable to the Uhl: aggression and tenacity, mild territoriality and possessiveness.

Before they were freed, the Umanu served a singular purpose: to defend the Uhl at all costs. As a result, the Umanu really had no true motivation to explore and go on adventures while still under the Uhl's compulsion. After the Uhl's defeat, however, the Umanu have several reasons for going away from their local community. The Umanu are in direct control of the only known source of Shyneum, and the race is in need of capital to rebuild civil infrastructure; joining the New Empire has gone a long way towards the restructuring of Elluriae and Lerar to places where people can actually live and grow (as opposed to being mere breeding grounds for more of the Uhl's minions). The Shyneum planet also has to be defended from pirates, smugglers, and any race ambitious enough to attempt to wrest control away from the Empire (at least, this was the case prior to the Shyneum Planet's destruction). Serving in the Imperial fleet accomplishes these goals. There are also probably individual Umanu who have known nothing other than starship duty their entire lives. Finally, the Umanu are explorers at heart, like their Human ancestors. For all these reasons (as well as the fact that the Umanu fleet formed the backbone of the new Imperial Fleet), the Umanu are everywhere within the Empire, including those individuals who have chosen to put their lot in with Interstel.

Importance
The Umanu are members of the Empire, and thus serve the same role in the game as all other Imperial races (i.e. they are part of the same political entity whom the player serves). By themselves in the game, the Umanu will have a peripheral role in the game at best. The player may find refuge in the Delta Sector on their worlds and conduct trade with the Umanu planets. Perhaps their biggest role in the game will be related to the abundance of Shyneum in their space (owing to the location of the Shyneum Planet in their territory prior to its destruction); there are no limits on the amount of the fuel that may be bought in former Umanu space, at least until the price of Shyneum reaches its highest level within the game.

Communication Text

 * See New Empire entry for communications texts.

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