mmm. While it could be construed that way I do have to give my views on how we could argue against them.
First we're proposing getting in contact with not one, but four Primarchs and providing them aid. After Lin they're potentially the closest beings to the Emperor's representatives and effectively allying ourselves with them is far from a bad move, especially since we know they're going to be one of the top powers in the galaxy (and I can believe it too, if they just take the space between Noctern, Chogoris and Deliverance they'd control a large chunk of Segmentum Ultima and Segmentum Tempestus. Add in the fact that he might be able to nab Ryza and Catachan.)
Giving them additional support and ability to stand against the Orks, Abanddon and whatever other gribbles are coming via the Destroyer or the Tyranids breaking through seems like something we can argue is for the survival of the Trust as a whole.
Second this will directly benefit the Trust. The Primarchs are the Primarchs, even a semi equal exchange of technology and psycic information would likely benefit us multifold. Svartheim for instance we could swing by getting a chance to talk to the greatest human smith to ever live. All of them have things that would be useful, from Russ's Cryoguns, Vulkan's Golems, Khan's enhance Grav bikes and Corvus's stealth armour ect. and that's just the stuff I know exists from canon. Hell they potentially know things like the Martian Forge designs (ah the blessings of perfect memories), more ways to increase AM, EM and RM production. Vulkan may even know how to make ARM.
Third I'd argue we have a duty to spread the Banishment and Soul Flame techniques as far and wide as possible. Because **** chaos.
Fourth I'd argue that the risk to the Trust from this deal can be minimised. We're gaining in notoriety to be sure, but we're still fairly unknown and the Webway minimises detection from Chaos and other interested parties. It'll certainly take time for people on the other side of the galaxy to realise that the source of this tech wasn't the Primarchs themselves, but instead a small polity literally on the other side of the galaxy.
Fifth I'd argue that since we're coming to the Trust with this proposal rather than going off on our own, pretty much doing it and then asking for permission we're not driving a wedge at all. We're keeping to our remit and powers granted to us and will respect the will of the council. If our arguments cannot sway them then we loose, if we can then we win there's nothing devise about that, especially on the matter of contacting the Primarchs.
Finally Ridcully...eh loosing a year on any action sucks, but there you go.
We do already have an order of warding its one of the larger ones, and the problem with the idea is the same as any large scale warding we have. That it requires a large amount of power and maintenance.
Currently warding our command centres within the cities is doable, but there are comparatively not too many of them. There are a lot of hospitals, schools and orphanages, likely millions of them all told, and the runes in them would need to be fixed from damage, recharged ect.
Its likely a similar problem to warding one of our cities completely. We could do it, but it would tie up every single one of our psykers into batteries forever.
I'm not saying the issue is totally cut and dried, I just see it as being a good way to borrow trouble by creating an issue that could degrade support for the idea or negatively impact our perception by the Trust for no good reason.
Yeah, the thread was talking about using the webway for transportation and Durin popped up and mentioned that any troops that were working for the Eldar would get to use the webway, so very strong odds on them accepting troop loans as payment.
I also dont put it past Eldrad to say "errm... yeah I already knew that" selectively on information given to him tbh.
Isn't that just a risk whenever you talk with Farseers?
Still I'd hope that Eldrad would be familiar enough with this song and dance to give Ridcully a list of things he already knows so Ridcully doesn't have to focus on it.
I'm not saying the issue is totally cut and dried, I just see it as being a good way to borrow trouble by creating an issue that could degrade support for the idea or negatively impact our perception by the Trust for no good reason.
I get that and if it were Ultramar or Callamus I'd be more eager to agree with you, but again these are the Primarchs. The people we threw parties for from Ridcully merely finding out that they were alive and active.
I cannot think the Trust can hold against us proposing the idea of contacting the Primarchs with the intent to support and be supported in turn, not unless they've been replaced with Lacremoles or something.
Even if they turn it down for some reason I do not believe they can find that proposal, of all things, malicious or high handed specially since we waited to ask, before starting to make contact.
Regarding tech transfers have we reached the point of where our technology will never be used by most other factions even if it was stolen, because of how hard it is to make?
I mean we have climbed the whole building the tools needed to build the tools for a while now and I don't see many factions having the required socioeconomic requisites to have what is needed.
P.S. I want more education and jobs for regular citizens so they can do Mechanicum tasks. The mechanic shops are a step in said direction I guess.
Regarding tech transfers have we reached the point of where our technology will never be used by most other factions even if it was stolen, because of how hard it is to make?
I mean we have climbed the whole building the tools needed to build the tools for a while now and I don't see many factions having the required socioeconomic requisites to have what is needed.
P.S. I want more education and jobs for regular citizens so they can do Mechanicum tasks. The mechanic shops are a step in said direction I guess.
The advantage and problem with STCs is that they are remarkably idiot enabled, anyone with the right materials can use the designs to make the thing shown without any idea as to what they're actually doing.
As long as you can take the right materials shown in the design and follow them exactly you can make a conversion beamer. They might have problems because of a bottle neck of resources, but then again so do we.
And again we've usually been less building the tools to make the tools, so much as we've been making the factories to build bigger factories. As soon as we get the design for something we've almost always been able to implement it swiftly, the main bottle neck is resources and assembly lines, not our ability to make them in the first place with the required resources.
Its a similar bottle neck for any society that can read the things.
Of course one gets better results if they understand the information.
Well we're already at max education barring Muspelheim and Niflheim (neither of whom we can match), but I'm sure its next on the list...as soon as we get to a point where the conservatives won't throw a ***** fit over it.
Well we're already at max education barring Muspelheim and Niflheim (neither of whom we can match), but I'm sure its next on the list...as soon as we get to a point where the conservatives won't throw a ***** fit over it.
Given the existence of machine spirits and the like a tech priesthood is warranted. Where do you think a mechanically inclined adept should end and a proper tech priest should begin?
Given the existence of machine spirits and the like a tech priesthood is warranted. Where do you think a mechanically inclined adept should end and a proper tech priest should begin?
A lot higher up than the conservatives seem to think it should, seeing as we have plenty of examples in universe of non tech priests managing just fine.
Examples include the underclass of admech workers who tend to their machines fine with minimal tech priest assistance (they do pick some things up so its not a perfect example.)
How about the man who despite no training was able to keep an entire Geller field operational, in a half destroyed ship in a space hulk and keep its machine spirit so placated he started to suspect the whole machine spirit lark was bullshit (he's from the same supplement as the Navigator in the Statis Chamber that I bring up whenever Lin and Gulliman rolls out).
And given the massive spectrum of guilds and weapon manufactures independent of the admech who don't need to kiss the ass of every toaster they walk by and the thousands of xenos species that do not need to drop to their knees and beg forgiveness from the faulty automatic door I think they're over blowing it a bit. (Yes I'm Flanderising a bit, the point I'm trying to get across is that even for humans machine spirits were not the most important thing ever, its an admech thing more before anyone else.)
In short I think that as one of the most basic admech rituals is literally percussive maintenance (AKA Hit it hard) I think they're having us on with how complicated placating the machine spirits is, if all I need to do so is apply a some techniques I picked up from IT Crowd.
It does not take immense skill to hit a machine with a hammer and if they're so flipping concerned then it should not take them much time teach people the basic rituals needed (Try turning it off and on again, light some incense, binary mumble) if for thousands of years their uneducated slaves can learn the same thing through osmosis.
Edit
Right I'mma probably not get to respond if you decide to. Sleeeeep
Given the existence of machine spirits and the like a tech priesthood is warranted. Where do you think a mechanically inclined adept should end and a proper tech priest should begin?
Seeing the existence of the Tau and DAoT are at a higher tech level than the AdMech ever achieved (and no, the AdMech are not necessary because Chaos because they can fall just as easily to Chaos as anyone else) I think the entire Adeptus Mechanicum is more trouble than it is worth. This is including the Machine Spirits and that is if a good chunk of the rituals the AdMech do don't "anger" said Spirits without them knowing.
If I could have my way I would nuke the conservative/traditionalist faction from orbit and fold in all their mumbo rituals into the Church after running it through a pannel of Saint Lin, Ridicully and Tranth to identify which are actually useful and which are a waste of time or making things worse.
Isn't that just a risk whenever you talk with Farseers?
Still I'd hope that Eldrad would be familiar enough with this song and dance to give Ridcully a list of things he already knows so Ridcully doesn't have to focus on it.
I get that and if it were Ultramar or Callamus I'd be more eager to agree with you, but again these are the Primarchs. The people we threw parties for from Ridcully merely finding out that they were alive and active.
I cannot think the Trust can hold against us proposing the idea of contacting the Primarchs with the intent to support and be supported in turn, not unless they've been replaced with Lacremoles or something.
Even if they turn it down for some reason I do not believe they can find that proposal, of all things, malicious or high handed specially since we waited to ask, before starting to make contact.
Gotcha. In fact, it seems like I miss-read your arguments. Thought you were saying something along the lines of 'it's such a good idea/proposal that we'll automatically be fully forgiven in any transgressions involved in preparing it', which I viewed as a bit far.
W.R.T warding our cities, I belive Durin said it's too expensive (in EM); It is actually possible, if somewhat impractical, to set up Rune of Banishment on every one of our cities, however.
EDIT: It's take about ~1.4 Million Minor Psykers/Equiv; But we expect this number to go up to ~2 Mil soonish.
We do already have an order of warding its one of the larger ones, and the problem with the idea is the same as any large scale warding we have. That it requires a large amount of power and maintenance.
Currently warding our command centres within the cities is doable, but there are comparatively not too many of them. There are a lot of hospitals, schools and orphanages, likely millions of them all told, and the runes in them would need to be fixed from damage, recharged ect.
Its likely a similar problem to warding one of our cities completely. We could do it, but it would tie up every single one of our psykers into batteries forever.
good points....but our psker pop IS rather rapidly increaseing (minus the occasional invasion of course). So why are we not getting regular upgrade choices on investing more money into warding like we do with city-upgrading or army-upgrading?
...why not ward-upgrading?...at the very least having the option would be nice so that we can see how far we are from it being practical
or what if we want to rotate where the wards are focused on? like what if we find out that a group of chaos/baddies are targeting our commanders/generals and so we decide that its worth taking away a little from the general ward-defenses in order to add to the wards protecting our generals
perhaps the rotation idea is too small of a idea to add to the quest (we don't want TOO many options otherwise it just becomes a slog-fest and turns take longer for durin to work)....but the first option of having upgrades is not all that hard I would think.......or maybe if we keep it as a write in request that we could ask for the cost for ward-upgrading for specific things
Gotcha. In fact, it seems like I miss-read your arguments. Thought you were saying something along the lines of 'it's such a good idea/proposal that we'll automatically be fully forgiven in any transgressions involved in preparing it', which I viewed as a bit far.
good points....but our psker pop IS rather rapidly increaseing (minus the occasional invasion of course). So why are we not getting regular upgrade choices on investing more money into warding like we do with city-upgrading or army-upgrading?
...why not ward-upgrading?...at the very least having the option would be nice so that we can see how far we are from it being practical
or what if we want to rotate where the wards are focused on? like what if we find out that a group of chaos/baddies are targeting our commanders/generals and so we decide that its worth taking away a little from the general ward-defenses in order to add to the wards protecting our generals
perhaps the rotation idea is too small of a idea to add to the quest (we don't want TOO many options otherwise it just becomes a slog-fest and turns take longer for durin to work)....but the first option of having upgrades is not all that hard I would think.......or maybe if we keep it as a write in request that we could ask for the cost for ward-upgrading for specific things
Because while our population is rapidly increasing that doesn't mean that our ability to even basically ward entire sections of millions of kilometre3 hives is increasing that fast. Its just too big.
The largest projects we can do are the psyker cities and those break the bank every time we do them and they're so small you can fit all of them into a small hive and have room to spare.
Comparatively the number of psykers who go into warding full time basis is not that large compared to the number of psykers we have.
What's the point of rotating where the wards are? We can't moth ball the things, if we do that and don't maintain them then we have to reestablish them every time. If we intended to make them then presumably we wanted to put them there permanently.
Still generally if we do one option then it can act as a gateway to more. If we upgrade our command centres with banishment wards we may get the option to see where we can stick basic ones.
The untainted major Psykers included 5 Beta-levels, 54 Gamma-levels, 292 Delta-levels, 1,217 Epsilon-levels and 2,454 Zeta-levels.
445,592 minor Psykers were located by the Witch Finders over the last five years, a fraction of a percent less then the previous five years.
The untainted major Psykers included 2 Alpha-levels, 8 Beta-levels, 50 Gamma-levels, 301 Delta-levels, 1,253 Epsilon-levels and 2,625 Zeta-levels.
458,487 minor Psykers were located by the Witch Finders over the last five years, a fraction of a percent less then the previous five years.
Those are the numbers for the last two years, we're getting more psykers per 5 years in every category than ever before. In fact with rising population I think the number is increasing.
How about the man who despite no training was able to keep an entire Geller field operational, in a half destroyed ship in a space hulk and keep its machine spirit so placated he started to suspect the whole machine spirit lark was bullshit (he's from the same supplement as the Navigator in the Statis Chamber that I bring up whenever Lin and Gulliman rolls out).
BTW People do we have any timeline for when we should start cracking open those data jewels?
We have 12 of them, but ya know heavy decryption.
@Durin
1. How much information do we estimate the Jewels contain?
2. How much can the Jewels contain at max?
3. Sorry I can't remember this one, have we searched the ruins on both moons, or just the larger ones on Amaltheia? Checked we did Diphobe's ruins
Explore Ruins: Deiphobe-- Deiphobe has the most extensive ruins of any of the moons of Cumea and as such Archmagos Tranth would like to being his explorations there. Due to the condition of the ruins and how wildly scattered they are it will take most of a decade for him to explore them.
Amaltheia, Avernus IV Alpha, is by far the largest with a diameter of four thousand kilometers. It is highly stable and contains many ancient ruins and large metal reserves.
BTW People do we have any timeline for when we should start cracking open those data jewels?
We have 12 of them, but ya know heavy decryption.
@Durin
1. How much information do we estimate the Jewels contain?
2. How much can the Jewels contain at max?
3. Sorry I can't remember this one, have we searched the ruins on both moons, or just the larger ones on Amaltheia? Checked we did Diphobe's ruins
Huray for checking. In that case the question becomes will we be able to do Amaltheia at some point?
? There are apparently a lot of them.
4. Vote closed?
Man, re-read the great work of @Addio that is the WH high collection for the Emberverse, and I gotta say they're all just as good as I remembered. Probably the only thing legitimately good that comes from that travesty of a collective fan-work.
It does make me speculate a bit about how the post End-Times Trust would handle being in some of the other fan-work WH40k-verses. Both the 'for the lolz' type and the actual though provoking ones. I mean, tossing them into a universe with the near-canon Imperium would lead to some fairly weighty issues with how much should they interfere—leaving them to sort themselves out is obviously right out, but many of the changes they could make would have some bad consequences—the only thing stopping the Imperium from committing even more xenocide is lacking the means to do so and needing their forces elsewhere, and without significant meddling I imagine that any material excesses they do create would be rapidly funneled into the hands of the planetary elites in most areas.
Of course, none of this really compares to my amusement at the idea of what would happen if they ended up in one of those smut-verses that inevitably crop up. The horrified realization and disgusted confusion would be a thing to behold...
Man, re-read the great work of @Addio that is the WH high collection for the Emberverse, and I gotta say they're all just as good as I remembered. Probably the only thing legitimately good that comes from that travesty of a collective fan-work.
It does make me speculate a bit about how the post End-Times Trust would handle being in some of the other fan-work WH40k-verses. Both the 'for the lolz' type and the actual though provoking ones. I mean, tossing them into a universe with the near-canon Imperium would lead to some fairly weighty issues with how much should they interfere—leaving them to sort themselves out is obviously right out, but many of the changes they could make would have some bad consequences—the only thing stopping the Imperium from committing even more xenocide is lacking the means to do so and needing their forces elsewhere, and without significant meddling I imagine that any material excesses they do create would be rapidly funneled into the hands of the planetary elites in most areas.
Of course, none of this really compares to my amusement at the idea of what would happen if they ended up in one of those smut-verses that inevitably crop up. The horrified realization and disgusted confusion would be a thing to behold...
One of the more prominent races of the Idra'Sakar empire are the rat-like Khoswe. Physically they appear as humanoid rats. Typically possessing a somewhat hunched posture and standing between 1 to 1.7 meters tall. However, due to their rather extensive (and reckless) use of biomancy appearances can vary wildly. Barring biomantic acceleration, a Khoswe is ready to begin contributing to society by the age of 3 and fully grown by the age of 5. Typically, they will live to the age of around 20 baring a violent end. The Khoswe are united within the empire under a loose coalition of city-states known as the 16th kingdom. Khoswe are individually somewhat weaker than an adult human, and approximately 90% of them possess no notable psychic powers. Despite this, they have managed to not only survive but thrive. compensating for individual weakness with sheer numbers and startlingly advanced technology.
Khoswe are by nature intensely cooperative, a trait further enhanced by a culture that has fixated on selfishness and infighting as the root of evil to a nearly insane degree. The cause of such a strong fixation on a flaw rare in their own people is rooted in their semi-mythical history and the intense emphasis has resulted in a species that seems to almost lack a survival instinct. Their extreme views on selflessness and self-interest is also a source of tension with other races of the empire, as the Khoswe tend to see other species as untrustworthy and near unforgivably selfish. Conversely, outsiders see the Khoswe as unsettlingly reckless, and willing to die, with many finding it difficult to trust creatures that seem so utterly unafraid of death.
The bedrock of Khoswe culture is the myth of the accursed 13th kingdom and their deliverance. While the details of the myth have become clouded over millennia of retelling, many elements have remained consistent. The version below is commonly held to be the most distilled example of the consistent elements.
Long ago and far away, across the greatest sea, upon distant shores, the creators made those who would become the Khoswe as a tool against the great enemy. 12 times was their kingdom found wanting, too weak, to foolish, or unable to wield the 7 Arts and so 12 times where they remade. Finally, the 13th kingdom was found worthy. Wielding the 7 arts with brilliance, and strength the 13th kingdom overturned all who would stop them. The creators saw this, and smiled, before leaving their newest creation to its task. But where the first 12 kingdoms were too weak, the 13th kingdom was too hungry. Silently the enemy snuck into their midst and dripped the poison of selfishness and betrayal into their minds. Brilliance turned to treachery, strength turned to selfishness, and the 7 arts where twisted to serve the Enemy. maddened by the foul whispers of the foe the 13th kingdom fell and forever dammed itself. For ages did the 13th kingdom blight the distant shore until in their madness they sought to bring the Enemy to their lands in full. Such was the weight of their crime that the world itself turned upon them, the dead rose in indignation, the forests rebelled in rage, the mountains thrashed in disgust, and the distant shores burned. But all was not lost, as the distant shores burned in cursed flame another hand fell upon them. The will that guides the world had seen the wonders and horrors of the 13th kingdom and saw a few faint glimmers of potential untainted by madness. It plucked them from the across the greatest ocean and once more remade them, thus rose the 14th kingdom, first of the Khoswe.
But to undo the work the great Enemy is no simple thing. For every sin cut away a sliver of virtue was removed as well. The first of the Khoswe stood before the will that guides the world naked and incomplete, holding only the scraps of a single Art. they wept at their own weakness, for how could they repay the mercy if they could barely survive? Distraught the 14th kingdom begged the Will for the power to pay back its kindness and to atone for the shame of their ancestors. In its infinite mercy, the Will was moved by their pleas and gave them a great gift. I took from its own essence the smallest of sparks and poured it into the incomplete shell of the Khoswe's souls, filling some small number of them with their arts. So was born the first of the white ones, those who shall see our people complete at last. Overjoyed the Khoswe swore that they would remake themselves, again and again, and again, until they could repay the kindness the Will had shown them. So, it has been since before their where Khoswe. Through toil and sacrifice do we complete ourselves, so that one day our distant descendants shall, at last, prove themselves worthy of the worlds mercy.
The extent that the legends are true is not known, but there is some evidence that the Khoswe were not present on Avernus prior to the 14th kingdom era. The importance of this myth and its variations cannot be overstated. the desire to prove worthy has been one of the main drives behind much of the Khoswe's endeavors, to the point that they differentiate between kingdom ears based on how close they feel they are to becoming "complete." Khoswe possess a significant aversion to the number 13 due to its association with the 13th empire. Khoswe seems to find little beauty in appearance, rarely bothering with visual arts or aesthetics. However, they have a rich musical tradition, mostly focused on bells, chimes, and other delicate sounding instruments.
The key to their numbers is the use of dedicated Den Mothers. Altered females capable of birthing new Khoswe at a staggering rate. Den Mothers are significantly larger than their smaller children, often 4 or more meters tall and almost as wide. Den Mothers are sessile and are usually kept in the safest parts of a warren. Despite their appearances, Den Mothers are keenly intelligent and are universally psykers of some power, Possessing a limited form of both biomancy and telepathy. Typically, the skill in one is inversely related to their skill in the other, though there are exceptional individuals who possess great skill in both. Both skills are limited in that they can only be applied to a Den Mother's own children, using the sympathetic link as a point of contact. Biomancy is typically used to alter and enhance their children, while telepathy is used to help guide and teach them. Keeping young Khoswe alive is considered the more difficult job by most, as the combination of a child curiosity, the Khoswe's bizarrely atrophied survival instinct, and the dangers of Avernus make keeping them alive a challenge. Den Mothers that favor telepathy can raise more and better-taught children, and those that favor biomancy can produce stronger and larger children. The rare Den Mothers who are skilled in both are considered strategic assets of immense value. The creation of the Den Mothers is often thought to be the crowning achievement of Khoswe biomancy.
approximately 10% of the population possess psyker abilities, with what would be considered major psykers making up about 1% of their population. the Khoswe possess 3 disciplines, biomancy, warp forging, and telepathy. Initially, they possessed only warp forging, but have managed to breed others into their species through an unrelenting and reckless program of enhancement. On average one major settlement is destroyed by magma wyrms every three or four decades as result of these programs. Something the Khoswe take a perverse pride in. These programs are possible only due to an extremely rare breed of Khoswe known as the white ones. Khoswe born with stark white fur and natural omnimancy. More details on their disciplines are provided below.
Warp forging is the oldest of the Khoswe disciplines and is the foundation of Khoswe technology. Warp forging is centered around the creation and control of stable warp anomalies, typically binding them to a physical object or location. Such anomalies distort the laws of the Materium in mostly consistent ways, enabling literally impossible feats of engineering. This has enabled the creation of such marvels as the famous blink rifles and chill casters, as well as less flashy uses such as great forges and digging machines. Unfortunately, such devices are unstable, especially the most potent that combine multiple anomalies. As such they must be constantly monitored and adjusted, lest reality drift out of the machines tolerances and produce a catastrophic failure. More than one empire soldier has lost their life to malfunctioning Khoswe technology.
Greater users of this art are called Warp smiths, with the lesser ones being called simply Engineers. Typically Warp smiths will remain behind the lines, creating useful anomalies and devices for Engineers to employ. However, the greatest and most potent of their crafts are too unstable to function in the hands of any but their makers. Such potent devices can turn the tide of battle near single handled, but most warp smiths consider their place firmly in the lab putting weapons in the hands of others. However, the tale of the killing note and his chime armor shattering a keeper of secrets, or the legendary last stand of Azkrukch the breaker and her devastating quake hammer ensure there are always at least a few full Warp smiths willing to take up arms directly.
The second discipline attained by the Khoswe, it's adoption marked the beginning of the 15th kingdom. Khoswe biomancy has an unusually sharp divide between lesser and greater practitioners. Lesser practitioners are limited to self-enhancement and are known as Specialists. typically fulfilling the role of either elite infantry or extremely skilled artisans. Greater biomancers are known as Life Shapers and are cable only of slowly altering others. As a result, Life shapers almost never take to the field, and when they do their powers will usually have little direct application.
Khoswe approach to biomancy and biomantic experimentation can be charitably described as reckless, though few can argue with the results. Typically, a great deal of effort is put into the creation of deadly beasts known as Warformes to aid their people. As can be expected Avernus provides ample material to create creatures of staggering deadliness, though controlling such creations remains a far greater challenge. In addition to creating deadly Warformes the Life Shapers have also crafted a number of creatures of significant use in civilian life. While the Den Mothers are by far the most famous of these creations they are far from the only ones. Life shapers have also created a vast number of useful livestock, crops, and medicines. However, the barely controllable Warformes that emerge from the Life Shapers labs remain the most well-known of their creations, and much of the Khoswe's mixed reputation comes from the carnage wrought by escaped experiments. Augmentation of Khoswe is only slightly more constrained, with many soldiers volunteering for dangerous enhancements to better serve their people, and as a result created Khoswe subspecies for mass deployment. However wide scale alterations of the general populace are mostly left to the Den Mothers. The dangerous and somewhat distasteful work of the Life Shapers has left them with somewhat tarnished reputation, even among their own kind.
Specialists are capable of only self-augmentation. Typically, specialists will choose an area of focus and dedicate themselves totally to their chosen area of expertise. Those that pursue martial skill often become scouts, assassins, or champions. Most combat Specialists eschew armor and focus heavily on speed, as many of the dangers they face can pierce even thick steel. When not under orders many will wander the local area seeking opportunities to hone their skills and assist where they may. This habit of wandering heroics has done much to ender Specialists to both their own kind and the empire at large. Specialists who pursue civilian pursuits tend to provide much of the skilled labor needed to produce and maintain the mundane aspects of their technology.
Only recently created, deployment of the first telepaths is widely considered to have been a key factor in the survival of several settlements during the day of pink skies. The creation of telepaths has ushered in the 16th kingdom. Unlike the other two arts telepathy is not yet fully mature, with most telepaths completely losing their sense of self over time. However, the utility offered by telepathy is such that this is considered a worthwhile trade-off. Greater telepaths are known as Soul Singers, and lesser ones are known as conductors.
Due to the extreme youth of the telepathic arts, the Soul Singers remain the least common form of the major psykers, and the doctrine for their use is still somewhat in flux. The inherently communal nature of the Khoswe wears on the minds of their telepaths, slowly eroding their ego and sense of self. Typically, this culminates in the dissolution of their mind, leaving them either brain dead or mindlessly repeating an action until dying of starvation. This has made the usage of Soul singers a balancing act, the larger scale the use the shorter the lifespan, and the more damage they could do when they go mad. So far there has been only one major disaster, an experiment in the mass coordination of an entire warren resulting in the entire population working themselves to death over the course of weeks. However, the idea of such coordination appeals greatly to the Khoswe, so experiments of how to do so with only an acceptable amount of risk are proceeding and have so far resulted in only the loss of a few dozen research complexes. The most common use for soul singers at present is as a means of long-range communication. enabling field armies to coordinate over long distances, and nearby warrens to remain in constant contact. During the day of pink skies, the first Soul singers where key in empowering the will of the defenders, however, this is considered an inefficient use of a scarce resource in less desperate times.
Lesser telepaths are known as conductors and are generally far less prone to madness than Soul singers, and as such see much wider use. The most common use for conductors is to act as either short-range communications or as a sort of hub to allow a small group of Khoshe to better coordinate. Typically, conductors can coordinate only groups of close friends with a strong group identity safely, however, they can press their limits somewhat but at the risk of the same madness for themselves and their allies that Soul Singers suffer. Legends and stories of small conductor led groups fighting as one to achieve victory have already woven themselves into Khoswe culture, and many see the risk of madness as a small price to pay.
The white ones are staggeringly rare, with at most three being alive at the same time, and far more common for there to be only one or two in the entirety of the kingdom. named for their distinctive white fur the White ones are natural omnimancers, possessing an immense talent for all known psychic disciplines. Power wise they vary from mid delta to low beta, with most falling closer to the delta end of the spectrum. Aside from their power, they are seen as sacred, as supposedly their power comes from a direct gift from the Planet mind. White ones almost never take the field, leaving their laboratories only in the direst of circumstances. For as long as the Khoswe have had records, the white ones driving goal has been the rediscovery of the six lost arts, a task that is dangerous enough to induce a significant rate of attrition. While white ones seem to age extremely slowly if at all, it is rare for them to survive to the age of 50 due to the hazardous nature of their research.
The Khoswe city-states or warrens will mostly follow a broadly similar layout. Typically, the actual city will be built underground, with the area directly above it given over to the production of food. Typically, such farms will have a network of tunnels designed to enable troops or even weapon emplacements to emerge and engage attackers from unexpected angles running underneath them. While many such farms possess walls, the outer defenses are usually intended more as a tripwire than a main line of defences. Against a serious threat, the defenders will turn the farmland into a series of killing fields and ambushes to bleed the attacker before retreating into the fortified underground tunnels. Most warrens will have a number of satellite settlements in the sounding area. Satellite settlements will usually have a similar structure, a fortified underground living area beneath a prepared killing filed. Typically satellite settlements are reliant on relief from the main warren against major threats. Typically Satellite settlements are created either to take advantage of useful resources, guard approaches to the warren or to enable particularly dangerous research to be carried out away from larger population centers. Typically, Research complexes are regarded as temporary, as anything dangerous enough to warrant being done away from the Warren is likely dangerous enough that the destruction of the research complex is only a matter of time.
Khoswe technology is perhaps the most advanced, if not the most powerful of the nonhumans residents of Avernus. Relying heavily on a solid understanding of mundane physics to take full advantage of both warp forging and Life shaping. Khoswe technology includes complex mechanical devices in addition to the widescale use of firearms. Items using a Warp forged anomaly are rare, and require at least one engineer to function with anything resembling safety, but even with an engineer monitoring it breakdowns and malfunctions remain disturbingly common. While there are certain minimal standards, Khoswe attitudes towards innovation and field testing mean there is far less consistency than would be expected of a near industrial level tech base. In addition to proven bedrock designs, there are always a huge number of prototypes, variants, and custom creations for any battlefield or civilian use. Typically, such devices will outperform the bedrock designs in some way but be either far more expensive, far less reliable or quite frequently both. Warformes are the ones most well known for producing dangerous instances, as even the bedrock Warformes can be extremely dangerous. Despite agreeing to share knowledge with the rest of the empire, their reputation for dangerous technology has greatly limited the adoption of Khoswe technology by the rest of the empire. For a sample of some of the more common bedrock designs see below.
Blink rifle: An extremely long rifle that uses an active warp anomaly to teleport the bullet directly into a target. the blink rifles are perhaps the single most famous weapon the Khoswe employ, enabling small infantry teams to slay even titans with luck. Famously slaying a titan infamous for its thick armor with a single perfect shot. 2 main variants exist, one that relies on a high muzzle velocity, and one that relies on a large payload. Typically, the second is used with either explosive or poisoned rounds. Controlling the precise distance the bullet exits from the Riffle is tricky, as such they are used primarly aginst Titans and other large targets.
Cryo caster: A large artillery piece roughly analogous to a cannon. Instead of a physical projectile, it creates an anomaly that drops a targeted area to near absolute zero. How large an area and how close will vary from cannon to cannon and can be adjusted by the crew of engineers. While the effect does not propagate well through living tissue, the flash frozen atmosphere and terrain will usually cause issues for anything caught in the radius. Cryo casters are particularly dangerous against submerged or flying targets, as the vacuum pocket caused by crystallizing the air is extremely disruptive to most forms of flight.
Twist alloy: created and maintained under warped physics twist alloy is essentially a larger volume of metal spatially folded into a smaller area. while the degree of resilience varies by grade and base material, even common twist steel is comparable to adamantine. however, it's nature has serious drawbacks. should an item composed of Twist alloy receive heavy enough damage the item will violently revert to typical physics, causing the item to explosively shatter into jagged fragments with deadly force. Twist alloys are tracked in two ways, the extent of compression and the compressed martial. while there are several complicated technical systems to track the exact compression, most break it down into the broad categories of light, common, master and straining. For example, a copper wire under maxim compression would be straining twist copper. As the rate of compression increases so does the difficulty of production, the enhancement of the materials tensile strength and the damage that will be done when it shatters. Despite the danger Twist alloy seems fairly widespread use by the Khsowe, as it does not require engineer to maintain compression. Typically, straining grade twist alloy is considered too dangerous to use as anything but wide area munitions, though trying to find a less destructive us for it is a common way for overly ambitious warp smiths and engineers to meet their ends.
Shatter guns: The penetrating power of a chemical firearm is often constrained by metallurgy of their makes. As the limits of conventional steel would leave gunpowder weapons too underpowered to be of use in Avernus the Khoswe make their guns from twist alloy. Enabling sufficient powder loads to be useful but making misfires intensely deadly. The Khoswe have also developed several twist alloys that reduce recoil via specific warping, further enhancing the stopping power they can extract from chemical slugthrowers. Typically, small arms will have a sheath of conventional steel to try and channel a shattering weapon away from its wielder, but this is not always the case. No such effort is made with field guns as the attempt is regarded as futile. More than anything, the sight of entire Khoswe regiments being reduced to shreds of bloody meat by their own misfiring weapons is an image often conjured to argue against more widespread adoption of Khoswe technology by the rest of the empire.
Guardian hounds: A Warformes designed for extreme modularity, the hounds are a large canine body capable of supporting up to 3 head like symbionts. Typically, each symbiont will possess some form of breath weapon or psyker ability. The base design offers a choice between one that spews a flammable liquid and one possessing pyromancy, however, most Life shapes will design and maintain their own stock of symbionts. By tradition, most will keep the appearance of canine heads if feasible. Guardian hounds for all their modularity serve an extremely narrow, if vital purpose. They are used as guards for research complexes and will accompany recovery teams dispatched to investigate research complexes that miss check-ins. The extreme modularity allows shapers to customize it to deal with almost any type of threat, with some symbionts even being field swappable. Due to their specialized nature, several design compromises were made that leave them utterly unable to function without constant maintenance by a Life shaper. A duty often used to teach apprentices the basics of Life shaping. Constructing a Guardian hound and 3 unique symbionts is a common final task to mark an apprentice life shapers transition to journeyman.
Giants: Technically a Warform, though in practice they are closer to an artificial subspecies. The simply named giants are Khoswe modified to grow to enormous dimensions. typically growing to over 2.5 meters in height and possessing considerable bulk. Giants require specially made Den mothers to produce, and as few Den mother with sufficient biomancy possess any serious telepathic talents they will often receive a substandard education. This has given typical giants a somewhat undeserved reputation for being dim-witted. While they rarely receive much telepathic teaching, giants are just as intelligent as their smaller kin. While giants are seen as fellow Khoswe, it is not uncommon for some Warrens to saddle them with extra responsibilities to compensate for the expense of their creation. unmodified giants are used either for manual labour or are given heavy field guns. While capable melee combatants, conventional wisdom holds that they are more cost-effective welding heavy ranged weaponry rather than engaging in melee. though there are a variety of unusually stable variants intended to be viable melee combatants, as well as a number of elite formations who compensate for their relative frailty and lack of psyker abilities in melee with rigorous training.
Typically, each warren is ruled by a council with members elected to represent the various power blocks and population demographics of the warren. The exact makeup and methods will vary from warren to warren but are typically intended to ensure every significant group has at least some voice in rulership. There is little federal structure above individual warrens, with the only federal structure being the yearly grand council. The grand council made up of a representative from every warren is used primarily to interact with the rest of the Idra'Sakar Empire, as it's only direct power is to set the agenda for the speaker sent to act as their representative.
The primary purpose of the grand council is to act as a chance for the various warrens to share news, developments, establish trade agreements or request aid. should an opportunity or threat requiring the coordination of multiple warrens arises the grand council will act as a point of contact for the affected warren in most cases. though most grand councilors are given broad powers over their warren to respond to time-sensitive issues. Abuses of this power are rare, and usually terminal for at the very least the councilors career. This somewhat ad-hoc arrangement works primarily due to the Khoswe intense distaste for infighting.
Relations with the rest of the rest of the Idra'Sakar Empire are complex, with the Khoswe often being both a loose cannon and a great boon. The disregard Khoswe seem to have for their own lives can make them dangerous neighbors or comrades. More than one neighboring settlement being overrun by escaped Warformes or destroyed in the fallout of same grand catastrophe and more than one battle has been lost due to malfunctioning Khoswe weaponry. On the other hand, that same disregard means they make fine allies, sending vast armies to fight and die without hesitation. Typically, their popularity wanes during long stretches of peace when all that is seen of them are disasters and strange beasts, but waxes during harsh times when they send forth their numberless armies to aid the rest of the empire. This pattern has been somewhat upset in recent centuries as their conduct in the day of pink skies seems to have left a lasting positive impression, though if it will truly last through the centuries remains to be seen.
thanks to doomedwombat for betaing this for me.
hey @Durin made a thing. as usual, let me know if it needs any finagling to fit.
One of the more prominent races of the Idra'Sakar empire are the rat-like Khoswe. Physically they appear as humanoid rats. Typically possessing a somewhat hunched posture and standing between 1 to 1.7 meters tall. However, due to their rather extensive (and reckless) use of biomancy appearances can vary wildly. Barring biomantic acceleration, a Khoswe is ready to begin contributing to society by the age of 3 and fully grown by the age of 5. Typically, they will live to the age of around 20 baring a violent end. The Khoswe are united within the empire under a loose coalition of city-states known as the 16th kingdom. Khoswe are individually somewhat weaker than an adult human, and approximately 90% of them possess no notable psychic powers. Despite this, they have managed to not only survive but thrive. compensating for individual weakness with sheer numbers and startlingly advanced technology.
Khoswe are by nature intensely cooperative, a trait further enhanced by a culture that has fixated on selfishness and infighting as the root of evil to a nearly insane degree. The cause of such a strong fixation on a flaw rare in their own people is rooted in their semi-mythical history and the intense emphasis has resulted in a species that seems to almost lack a survival instinct. Their extreme views on selflessness and self-interest is also a source of tension with other races of the empire, as the Khoswe tend to see other species as untrustworthy and near unforgivably selfish. Conversely, outsiders see the Khoswe as unsettlingly reckless, and willing to die, with many finding it difficult to trust creatures that seem so utterly unafraid of death.
The bedrock of Khoswe culture is the myth of the accursed 13th kingdom and their deliverance. While the details of the myth have become clouded over millennia of retelling, many elements have remained consistent. The version below is commonly held to be the most distilled example of the consistent elements.
Long ago and far away, across the greatest sea, upon distant shores, the creators made those who would become the Khoswe as a tool against the great enemy. 12 times was their kingdom found wanting, too weak, to foolish, or unable to wield the 7 Arts and so 12 times where they remade. Finally, the 13th kingdom was found worthy. Wielding the 7 arts with brilliance, and strength the 13th kingdom overturned all who would stop them. The creators saw this, and smiled, before leaving their newest creation to its task. But where the first 12 kingdoms were too weak, the 13th kingdom was too hungry. Silently the enemy snuck into their midst and dripped the poison of selfishness and betrayal into their minds. Brilliance turned to treachery, strength turned to selfishness, and the 7 arts where twisted to serve the Enemy. maddened by the foul whispers of the foe the 13th kingdom fell and forever dammed itself. For ages did the 13th kingdom blight the distant shore until in their madness they sought to bring the Enemy to their lands in full. Such was the weight of their crime that the world itself turned upon them, the dead rose in indignation, the forests rebelled in rage, the mountains thrashed in disgust, and the distant shores burned. But all was not lost, as the distant shores burned in cursed flame another hand fell upon them. The will that guides the world had seen the wonders and horrors of the 13th kingdom and saw a few faint glimmers of potential untainted by madness. It plucked them from the across the greatest ocean and once more remade them, thus rose the 14th kingdom, first of the Khoswe.
But to undo the work the great Enemy is no simple thing. For every sin cut away a sliver of virtue was removed as well. The first of the Khoswe stood before the will that guides the world naked and incomplete, holding only the scraps of a single Art. they wept at their own weakness, for how could they repay the mercy if they could barely survive? Distraught the 14th kingdom begged the Will for the power to pay back its kindness and to atone for the shame of their ancestors. In its infinite mercy, the Will was moved by their pleas and gave them a great gift. I took from its own essence the smallest of sparks and poured it into the incomplete shell of the Khoswe's souls, filling some small number of them with their arts. So was born the first of the white ones, those who shall see our people complete at last. Overjoyed the Khoswe swore that they would remake themselves, again and again, and again, until they could repay the kindness the Will had shown them. So, it has been since before their where Khoswe. Through toil and sacrifice do we complete ourselves, so that one day our distant descendants shall, at last, prove themselves worthy of the worlds mercy.
The extent that the legends are true is not known, but there is some evidence that the Khoswe were not present on Avernus prior to the 14th kingdom era. The importance of this myth and its variations cannot be overstated. the desire to prove worthy has been one of the main drives behind much of the Khoswe's endeavors, to the point that they differentiate between kingdom ears based on how close they feel they are to becoming "complete." Khoswe possess a significant aversion to the number 13 due to its association with the 13th empire. Khoswe seems to find little beauty in appearance, rarely bothering with visual arts or aesthetics. However, they have a rich musical tradition, mostly focused on bells, chimes, and other delicate sounding instruments.
The key to their numbers is the use of dedicated Den Mothers. Altered females capable of birthing new Khoswe at a staggering rate. Den Mothers are significantly larger than their smaller children, often 4 or more meters tall and almost as wide. Den Mothers are sessile and are usually kept in the safest parts of a warren. Despite their appearances, Den Mothers are keenly intelligent and are universally psykers of some power, Possessing a limited form of both biomancy and telepathy. Typically, the skill in one is inversely related to their skill in the other, though there are exceptional individuals who possess great skill in both. Both skills are limited in that they can only be applied to a Den Mother's own children, using the sympathetic link as a point of contact. Biomancy is typically used to alter and enhance their children, while telepathy is used to help guide and teach them. Keeping young Khoswe alive is considered the more difficult job by most, as the combination of a child curiosity, the Khoswe's bizarrely atrophied survival instinct, and the dangers of Avernus make keeping them alive a challenge. Breeders that favor telepathy can raise more and better-taught children, and those that favor biomancy can produce stronger and larger children. The rare breeders who are skilled in both are considered strategic assets of immense value. The creation of the breeders is often thought to be the crowning achievement of Khoswe biomancy.
approximately 10% of the population possess psyker abilities, with what would be considered major psykers making up about 1% of their population. the Khoswe possess 3 disciplines, biomancy, warp forging, and telepathy. Initially, they possessed only warp forging, but have managed to breed others into their species through an unrelenting and reckless program of enhancement. On average one major settlement is destroyed by magma wyrms every three or four decades as result of these programs. Something the Khoswe take a perverse pride in. These programs are possible only due to an extremely rare breed of Khoswe known as the white ones. Khoswe born with stark white fur and natural omnimancy. More details on their disciplines are provided below.
Warp forging is the oldest of the Khoswe disciplines and is the foundation of Khoswe technology. Warp forging is centered around the creation and control of stable warp anomalies, typically binding them to a physical object or location. Such anomalies distort the laws of the Materium in mostly consistent ways, enabling literally impossible feats of engineering. This has enabled the creation of such marvels as the famous blink rifles and chill casters, as well as less flashy uses such as great forges and digging machines. Unfortunately, such devices are unstable, especially the most potent that combine multiple anomalies. As such they must be constantly monitored and adjusted, lest reality drift out of the machines tolerances and produce a catastrophic failure. More than one empire soldier has lost their life to malfunctioning Khoswe technology.
Greater users of this art are called Warp smiths, with the lesser ones being called simply Engineers. Typically Warp smiths will remain behind the lines, creating useful anomalies and devices for Engineers to employ. However, the greatest and most potent of their crafts are too unstable to function in the hands of any but their makers. Such potent devices can turn the tide of battle near single handled, but most warp smiths consider their place firmly in the lab putting weapons in the hands of others. However, the tale of the killing note and his chime armor shattering a keeper of secrets, or the legendary last stand of Azkrukch the breaker and her devastating quake hammer ensure there are always at least a few full Warp smiths willing to take up arms directly.
The second discipline attained by the Khoswe, it's adoption marked the beginning of the 15th kingdom. Khoswe biomancy has an unusually sharp divide between lesser and greater practitioners. Lesser practitioners are limited to self-enhancement and are known as Specialists. typically fulfilling the role of either elite infantry or extremely skilled artisans. Greater biomancers are known as Life Shapers and are cable only of slowly altering others. As a result, Life shapers almost never take to the field, and when they do their powers will usually have little direct application.
Khoswe approach to biomancy and biomantic experimentation can be charitably described as reckless, though few can argue with the results. Typically, a great deal of effort is put into the creation of deadly beasts known as Warformes to aid their people. As can be expected Avernus provides ample material to create creatures of staggering deadliness, though controlling such creations remains a far greater challenge. In addition to creating deadly Warformes the Life Shapers have also crafted a number of creatures of significant use in civilian life. While the Den Mothers are by far the most famous of these creations they are far from the only ones. Life shapers have also created a vast number of useful livestock, crops, and medicines. However, the barely controllable Warformes that emerge from the Life Shapers labs remain the most well-known of their creations, and much of the Khoswe's mixed reputation comes from the carnage wrought by escaped experiments. Augmentation of Khoswe is only slightly more constrained, with many soldiers volunteering for dangerous enhancements to better serve their people, and as a result created Khoswe subspecies for mass deployment. However wide scale alterations of the general populace are mostly left to the Den Mothers. The dangerous and somewhat distasteful work of the Life Shapers has left them with somewhat tarnished reputation, even among their own kind.
Specialists are capable of only self-augmentation. Typically, specialists will choose an area of focus and dedicate themselves totally to their chosen area of expertise. Those that pursue martial skill often become scouts, assassins, or champions. Most combat Specialists eschew armor and focus heavily on speed, as many of the dangers they face can pierce even thick steel. When not under orders many will wander the local area seeking opportunities to hone their skills and assist where they may. This habit of wandering heroics has done much to ender Specialists to both their own kind and the empire at large. Specialists who pursue civilian pursuits tend to provide much of the skilled labor needed to produce and maintain the mundane aspects of their technology.
Only recently created, deployment of the first telepaths is widely considered to have been a key factor in the survival of several settlements during the day of pink skies. The creation of telepaths has ushered in the 16th kingdom. Unlike the other two arts telepathy is not yet fully mature, with most telepaths completely losing their sense of self over time. However, the utility offered by telepathy is such that this is considered a worthwhile trade-off. Greater telepaths are known as Soul Singers, and lesser ones are known as conductors.
Due to the extreme youth of the telepathic arts, the Soul Singers remain the least common form of the major psykers, and the doctrine for their use is still somewhat in flux. The inherently communal nature of the Khoswe wears on the minds of their telepaths, slowly eroding their ego and sense of self. Typically, this culminates in the dissolution of their mind, leaving them either brain dead or mindlessly repeating an action until dying of starvation. This has made the usage of Soul singers a balancing act, the larger scale the use the shorter the lifespan, and the more damage they could do when they go mad. So far there has been only one major disaster, an experiment in the mass coordination of an entire warren resulting in the entire population working themselves to death over the course of weeks. However, the idea of such coordination appeals greatly to the Khoswe, so experiments of how to do so with only an acceptable amount of risk are proceeding and have so far resulted in only the loss of a few dozen research complexes. The most common use for soul singers at present is as a means of long-range communication. enabling field armies to coordinate over long distances, and nearby warrens to remain in constant contact. During the day of pink skies, the first Soul singers where key in empowering the will of the defenders, however, this is considered an inefficient use of a scarce resource in less desperate times.
Lesser telepaths are known as conductors and are generally far less prone to madness than Soul singers, and as such see much wider use. The most common use for conductors is to act as either short-range communications or as a sort of hub to allow a small group of Khoshe to better coordinate. Typically, conductors can coordinate only groups of close friends with a strong group identity safely, however, they can press their limits somewhat but at the risk of the same madness for themselves and their allies that Soul Singers suffer. Legends and stories of small conductor led groups fighting as one to achieve victory have already woven themselves into Khoswe culture, and many see the risk of madness as a small price to pay.
The white ones are staggeringly rare, with at most three being alive at the same time, and far more common for there to be only one or two in the entirety of the kingdom. named for their distinctive white fur the White ones are natural omnimancers, possessing an immense talent for all known psychic disciplines. Power wise they vary from mid delta to low beta, with most falling closer to the delta end of the spectrum. Aside from their power, they are seen as sacred, as supposedly their power comes from a direct gift from the Planet mind. White ones almost never take the field, leaving their laboratories only in the direst of circumstances. For as long as the Khoswe have had records, the white ones driving goal has been the rediscovery of the six lost arts, a task that is dangerous enough to induce a significant rate of attrition. While white ones seem to age extremely slowly if at all, it is rare for them to survive to the age of 50 due to the hazardous nature of their research.
The Khoswe city-states or warrens will mostly follow a broadly similar layout. Typically, the actual city will be built underground, with the area directly above it given over to the production of food. Typically, such farms will have a network of tunnels designed to enable troops or even weapon emplacements to emerge and engage attackers from unexpected angles running underneath them. While many such farms possess walls, the outer defenses are usually intended more as a tripwire than a main line of defences. Against a serious threat, the defenders will turn the farmland into a series of killing fields and ambushes to bleed the attacker before retreating into the fortified underground tunnels. Most warrens will have a number of satellite settlements in the sounding area. Satellite settlements will usually have a similar structure, a fortified underground living area beneath a prepared killing filed. Typically satellite settlements are reliant on relief from the main warren against major threats. Typically Satellite settlements are created either to take advantage of useful resources, guard approaches to the warren or to enable particularly dangerous research to be carried out away from larger population centers. Typically, Research complexes are regarded as temporary, as anything dangerous enough to warrant being done away from the Warren is likely dangerous enough that the destruction of the research complex is only a matter of time.
Khoswe technology is perhaps the most advanced, if not the most powerful of the nonhumans residents of Avernus. Relying heavily on a solid understanding of mundane physics to take full advantage of both warp forging and Life shaping. Khoswe technology includes complex mechanical devices in addition to the widescale use of firearms. While there are certain minimal standards, Khoswe attitudes towards innovation and field testing mean there is far less consistency than would be expected of a near industrial level tech base. In addition to proven bedrock designs, there are always a huge number of prototypes, variants, and custom creations for any battlefield or civilian use. Typically, such devices will outperform the bedrock designs in some way but be either far more expensive, far less reliable or quite frequently both. Warformes are the ones most well known for producing dangerous instances, as even the bedrock Warformes can be extremely dangerous. Despite agreeing to share knowledge with the rest of the empire, their reputation for dangerous technology has greatly limited the adoption of Khoswe technology by the rest of the empire. For a sample of some of the more common bedrock designs see below.
Blink rifle: An extremely long rifle that uses an active warp anomaly to teleport the bullet directly into a target. the blink rifles are perhaps the single most famous weapon the Khoswe employ, enabling small infantry teams to slay even titans with luck. Famously slaying a titan infamous for its thick armor with a single perfect shot. 2 main variants exist, one that relies on a high muzzle velocity, and one that relies on a large payload. Typically, the second is used with either explosive or poisoned rounds.
Cryo caster: A large artillery piece roughly analogous to a cannon. Instead of a physical projectile, it creates an anomaly that drops a targeted area to near absolute zero. How large an area and how close will vary from cannon to cannon and can be adjusted by the crew of engineers. While the effect does not propagate well through living tissue, the flash frozen atmosphere and terrain will usually cause issues for anything caught in the radius. Cryo casters are particularly dangerous against submerged or flying targets, as the vacuum pocket caused by crystallizing the air is extremely disruptive to most forms of flight.
Twist alloy: created and maintained under warped physics twist alloy is essentially a larger volume of metal spatially folded into a smaller area. while the degree of resilience varies by grade and base material, even common twist steel is comparable to adamantine. however, it's nature has serious drawbacks. should an item composed of Twist alloy receive heavy enough damage the item will violently revert to typical physics, causing the item to explosively shatter into jagged fragments with deadly force. Twist alloys are tracked in two ways, the extent of compression and the compressed martial. while there are several complicated technical systems to track the exact compression, most break it down into the broad categories of light, common, master and straining. For example, a copper wire under maxim compression would be straining twist copper. As the rate of compression increases so does the difficulty of production, the enhancement of the materials tensile strength and the damage that will be done when it shatters. Typically, straining grade twist alloy is considered too dangerous to use as anything but wide area munitions, though trying to find a less destructive us for it is a common way for overly ambitious warp smiths and engineers to meet their ends.
Shatter guns: The penetrating power of a chemical firearm is often constrained by metallurgy of their makes. As the limits of conventional steel would leave gunpowder weapons too underpowered to be of use in Avernus the Khoswe make their guns from twist alloy. Enabling sufficient powder loads to be useful but making misfires intensely deadly. The Khoswe have also developed several twist alloys that reduce recoil via specific warping, further enhancing the stopping power they can extract from chemical slugthrowers. Typically, small arms will have a sheath of conventional steel to try and channel a shattering weapon away from its wielder, but this is not always the case. No such effort is made with field guns as the attempt is regarded as futile. More than anything, the sight of entire Khoswe regiments being reduced to shreds of bloody meat by their own misfiring weapons is an image often conjured to argue against more widespread adoption of Khoswe technology by the rest of the empire.
Guardian hounds: A Warformes designed for extreme modularity, the hounds are a large canine body capable of supporting up to 3 head like symbionts. Typically, each symbiont will possess some form of breath weapon or psyker ability. The base design offers a choice between one that spews a flammable liquid and one possessing pyromancy, however, most Life shapes will design and maintain their own stock of symbionts. By tradition, most will keep the appearance of canine heads if feasible. Guardian hounds for all their modularity serve an extremely narrow, if vital purpose. They are used as guards for research complexes and will accompany recovery teams dispatched to investigate research complexes that miss check-ins. The extreme modularity allows shapers to customize it to deal with almost any type of threat, with some symbionts even being field swappable. Due to their specialized nature, several design compromises were made that leave them utterly unable to function without constant maintenance by a Life shaper. A duty often used to teach apprentices the basics of Life shaping. Constructing a Guardian hound and 3 unique symbionts is a common final task to mark an apprentice life shapers transition to journeyman.
Giants: Technically a Warform, though in practice they are closer to an artificial subspecies. The simply named giants are Khoswe modified to grow to enormous dimensions. typically growing to over 2.5 meters in height and possessing considerable bulk. Giants require specially made Den mothers to produce, and as few Den mother with sufficient biomancy possess any serious telepathic talents they will often receive a substandard education. This has given typical giants a somewhat undeserved reputation for being dim-witted. While they rarely receive much telepathic teaching, giants are just as intelligent as their smaller kin. While giants are seen as fellow Khoswe, it is not uncommon for some Warrens to saddle them with extra responsibilities to compensate for the expense of their creation. unmodified giants are used either for manual labour or are given heavy field guns. While capable melee combatants, conventional wisdom holds that they are more cost-effective welding heavy ranged weaponry rather than engaging in melee. though there are a variety of unusually stable variants intended to be viable melee combatants, as well as a number of elite formations who compensate for their relative frailty and lack of psyker abilities in melee with rigorous training.
Typically, each warren is ruled by a council with members elected to represent the various power blocks and population demographics of the warren. The exact makeup and methods will vary from warren to warren but are typically intended to ensure every significant group has at least some voice in rulership. There is little federal structure above individual warrens, with the only federal structure being the yearly grand council. The grand council made up of a representative from every warren is used primarily to interact with the rest of the Idra'Sakar Empire, as it's only direct power is to set the agenda for the speaker sent to act as their representative.
The primary purpose of the grand council is to act as a chance for the various warrens to share news, developments, establish trade agreements or request aid. should an opportunity or threat requiring the coordination of multiple warrens arises the grand council will act as a point of contact for the affected warren in most cases. though most grand councilors are given broad powers over their warren to respond to time-sensitive issues. Abuses of this power are rare, and usually terminal for at the very least the councilors career. This somewhat ad-hoc arrangement works primarily due to the Khoswe intense distaste for infighting.
Relations with the rest of the rest of the Idra'Sakar Empire are complex, with the Khoswe often being both a loose cannon and a great boon. The disregard Khoswe seem to have for their own lives can make them dangerous neighbors or comrades. More than one neighboring settlement being overrun by escaped Warformes or destroyed in the fallout of same grand catastrophe and more than one battle has been lost due to malfunctioning Khoswe weaponry. On the other hand, that same disregard means they make fine allies, sending vast armies to fight and die without hesitation. Typically, their popularity wanes during long stretches of peace when all that is seen of them are disasters and strange beasts, but waxes during harsh times when they send forth their numberless armies to aid the rest of the empire. This pattern has been somewhat upset in recent centuries as their conduct in the day of pink skies seems to have left a lasting positive impression, though if it will truly last through the centuries remains to be seen.
thanks to doomedwombat for betaing this for me.
hey @Durin made a thing. as usual, let me know if it needs any finagling to fit.
could have sworn I already mentioned it was unreliable, but I'll add an explicit mention. as well as more expliclty spell out that any sort of warp forged tech needs an engineer to function at all.
edit: done. warp tech needs a minor psyker handling it to work (with the exception of twist alloy) and is rare, and getting the distince right with a blink riffle is hard.
The dangers of being shot with a bullet are not usually related to a piece of metal being inside your body, but rather the fact that a part of your body has just been forced to endure substantially higher kinetic forces than its ability to tolerate. In several ways, having a bullet being teleported into you is like being hit with an arrow.
By muzzle velocity, do you mean rate of fire? Because a bullet that has been teleported is a bullet that does not have velocity.
The dangers of being shot with a bullet are not usually related to a piece of metal being inside your body, but rather the fact that a part of your body has just been forced to endure substantially higher kinetic forces than its ability to tolerate. In several ways, having a bullet being teleported into you is like being hit with an arrow.
By muzzle velocity, do you mean rate of fire? Because a bullet that has been teleported is a bullet that does not have velocity.
