SonoftheStars
Member
Name: Anatasi
Designation: Sentient
Homeworld: Kelku
Language: Anatasi (Na'vi), non-verbal communication
Average height of adults: 1.8 meters
Skin color: Orange with black stripes
Hair color: Black
Breathes: Oxygen
Strengths:
+Born Warriors: Anatasi are raised from birth to be hunters and warriors. They are naturally very skilled with melee weapons and hand to hand techniques.
+Predators: Anatasi are in all respects alpha predators. They have powerful senses of hearing, sight, and smell, and can track a target with either of these senses through any environment.
+Non-Verbal Communication: The Anatasi can communicate with each other almost completely via gestures and body language. An Anatasi can talk to one person and be communicating non-verbally to another at the same time.
+Natural Weapons: Anatasi possess sharp claws and fearsome fangs in a powerful jaw. These weapons, usually the only ones used by an Anatasi during the trial of the Years of Woe, are leftover from the Anatasis' predatory ancestors and give them a deadly edge in melee combat.
Weaknesses:
-Sensitive: Anatasi senses are powerful but sensitive. Loud noises, bright lights, and even particularly pungent smells that would only annoy a normal human can cause them physical pain or even incapacitate them.
-Fear of Fire: Because of their predatory ancestors, Anatasi fear fire. They use fire for such things as cooking, but all flames are kept small, guarded constantly, and put out as soon as the task is completed. Any sort of uncontrolled blaze, even something as small as a match, will throw an Anatasi into a panic until it is determined it will not harm them.
-Free Spirit: Anatasi hate to be locked up. A trapped Anatasi will soon begin to go crazy, pounding or straining at their bonds with no regard for their physical safety. Being trapped or imprisoned is the worst form of torture for an Anatasi.
Distinctions: Anatasi have black stripes all over their body, as well as a detailed stripe pattern on their face that is unique to each individual. They also have slightly feline features, though not nearly as much as Cathar and with no fur. They possess sharp fangs and claws that they can use as natural weapons.
Average Lifespan: 100 standard years
Races: N/A
Estimated Population: 2 billion, on Kelku only
Diet: Mostly meat with a scarce sampling of vegetables. Most things that are poisonous to humans are poisonous to them.
Communication: Anatasi have a written and spoken language, Anatasi, but are also capable of communicating non-verbally via gestures and body language.
Culture:
Introduction:
Anatasi culture is based around war and combat. Much like the Echani, the Anatasi see combat as an art form, and much of their daily life is centered around improving their battle skill. Anatasi are descended from alpha predators, and this link shows in their culture.
Growing Up:
From birth, an Anatasi is taught to live by their own wit and battle skill. Children are raised by their mother until age seven, when they are more or less on their own. Family, or rather pack ties are still strong, but children are expected to feed and defend themselves. This leads to a fiercely independent and self-sufficient spirit. The only part of their childhood controlled by adults is their training in the art of war, which starts at age seven and continues until age fourteen. When they turn fourteen, Anatasi begin what is known as the Years of Woe, four long, grueling years of trials before they become a full adult. During these years they are cast out of their tribe, expected to survive alone. They are considered dead, and will not be helped in any way by any tribe. In fact, many Anatasi during the Years of Woe are considered a threat and attacked on sight. They are expected to call on their ancient instincts to survive. During this time, the Anatasi must complete several trials to prove that the spirit of the warrior and predator within them is strong. There are four trials, one for each year, with time for spiritual, mental, and physical preparation in between. They can be completed in any order, but the Anatasi must provide proof that they have completed them. The trials are the Trial of the Mind, the Trial of the Spirit, the Trial of the Body, and the Trial of the Ancients, which is a special final trial where the aspiring warrior is supposedly tested by the spirits of their warrior ancestors. If all trials are completed, the Anatasi is welcomed back at age eighteen as a full warrior.
Anatasi Warfare:
Anatasi warfare is the center of their culture. Combat is seen as an art form, and is treated as the ultimate expression of what it means to be Anatasi. Most of Anatasi combat is centered around one-on-one duels fought on equal footing. Such duels are fought to settle disputes, to decide tribal leaders, as entertainment, and even to seal marriage pacts. When Anatasi fight in groups, they charge in a focused battle line, but usually melt into single combat once the lines meet each other. Anatasi fight barehanded or with basic melee weapons such as staves, knives, swords, and spears. Ranged weapons are considered cowardly and only suitable for hunting. Many people believe that since Anatasi are so focused on honorable combat they are weak when they are not on an equal footing, but Anatasi are alpha predators. When cornered or pushed to the brink, or when it is otherwise necessary, the animal instincts of the Anatasi come out and they become a deadly, uncontrollable killing machine.
Family Life:
Anatasi family life is rarely centered around a single married couple and their children, as most children are considered on their own by age seven. To Anatasi the whole tribe is family, and only married pairs have the deep intimate relationship that is considered essential to the average human family. To an Anatasi child, every woman of their tribe is their mother and every man their father. Only when they begin the Years of Woe do these ties begin to break, and when they return they are as independent as any human adult. Anatasi males usually find a mate when they return from the Years of Woe from among the eligible females in the tribe. Anatasi courtship, like many other parts of their culture, is centered on combat, with the man doing everything possible to prove his strength and skill to the woman he loves. Rather than proposing like a normal human, when the male believes he has proved himself he will challenge the female to what is known as a "marriage duel". If the woman accepts, she is considered to have decided that the male is strong enough to beat her in a fight and the two are set to be married. The reason for the woman to want a mate who can beat her in a fight is that the marriage duel is an all out brawl where the pair is considered married only if the man beats the woman. This practice is considered strange by many, but is intended to cement the man's position as the head, but also to teach him respect for the strength of his new wife. Despite their savagery, these "love brawls" almost always forms respectful, loving relationships among the Anatasi.
Warbands: One of the most interesting things about the Anatasi culture is the warbands. Warbands are small brother/sisterhoods, with usually about twenty or so Anatasi each, that play different roles within a tribe. Very tight-knit groups, Warbands are usually made up of Anatasi who went through the Years of Woe and returned at the same time. Warbands train, fight, and live together, and often contain many married pairs. Betraying a member of ones tribe is a major crime among the Anatasi, but doing so to a member of ones warband is ten times worse. Warbands usually have a specific job within a tribe, be it hunting, tracking, guarding, or healing, and some Anatasi choose a specific warband to join after completing the Years of Woe rather than make a new one. Some warbands, such as the Warriors of the Light, are cross-tribe and have major influence on Anatasi life.
The Force: The Force is not seen by the Anatasi as it is by others. Their view on it is similar to that of the Kaleesh. Like the Kaleesh, the Anatasi place high value on respecting ancestors, and they, like the Kaleesh, view the Force as a gift from the "Ancients". Practitioners of the Force are looked on highly by the Anatasi, as they are seen as being blessed by the Ancients. Like the Dathomir Witches, the Anatasi have developed their own way of using the Force, with the Anatasi usually mixing Force techniques in with their hand-to-hand combat techniques to create a volatile and deadly martial art. The Force is also used by tribal shamans in complicated ceremonies to give power to warriors about to go into battle. The Anatasi have no grasp of the Dark Side or the Light, as they see the Force as nothing but a tool to be used to enhance their combat ability. However, as has been mentioned before, the Anatasi are alpha predators, and their primal instincts often prevent them from achieving the total peace sought by the Jedi. Jedi who attempt to train Anatasi students often find that they are much like attack dogs. They can be trained to restrain themselves, but Anatasi are still alpha predators at heart, and have a desire for combat that makes it extremely difficult for them to hold back as a Jedi should. A Sith master, however, would find that an Anatasi takes to the Dark Side of the Force like a Mon Calamari takes to water. The dark side is all about the release of emotions, and it is in this factor that the Anatasi would find a home. The Anatasi themselves are not evil, but they are free spirits, and asking them to conform to any code but their own code of honor is practically impossible. Anatasi Sith are much more common than Anatasi Jedi, however even when practicing the Dark Side Anatasi are still honorable warriors. They do not kill indiscriminately, except when pushed, and show mercy to honorable enemies. You just simply cannot take the predator out of an Anatasi. No matter what you do, the instinct will always be there, and it is because of this that the Dark Side is far more likely to be a fit for an Anatasi.
Technology level: Primitive
General behavior: Anatasi are rarely found outside their homeworld, as they are quite content to live as they do with no technology, but when one does decide to leave they are usually Force-users or some other form of warrior. Anatasi are almost always fighting, hunting, or protecting and serving their tribe. An Anatasi's idea of R and R is a good duel. When not fighting they are almost always training to better their skills.
History: The Anatasi evolved from predators sometime in the distant past. They were unknown to the galaxy for many years, due to their planet's location beyond the Outer Rim, and were not located until a Republic convoy enroute to Kamino suffered a navigational failure and found the Anatasi homeworld of Anatasus. The Anatasi were intrigued by the concept of a galactic war when the Republic suggested they join it, but since the Anatasi were primitive and had no desire to leave their homeworld, they did not fight in the Clone Wars. The Separatist attempt to conquer their world for its natural resources was met with such fierce resistance that the Separatists were forced to abandon their plans. The Anatasi were attacked again by the Empire following Order 66, but again they proved too difficult to conquer and the Empire eventually gave up, as beyond its resources the planet was of no tactical use. The Anatasi lived in relative peace, maintaining connections with the New Republic for some time afterwards. Due to their distance from the hub of the galaxy they were mostly left alone, which led to the survival of their species during the rise of the Gulag Plague. The Netherworld event stole almost two thirds of the Anatasi population, with the rest celebrating what was thought to be a widespread summoning of the worthy so they could be reunited with the Ancients without going through death. The Anatasi that were left lived life as normal, hoping that they to could be so lucky.
Notable Player-Characters: None yet
Intent: I have a plan to make an Anatasi character so I needed a page for the species.
