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Description

The Ripasteevan are a fairy primitive, large, sapient species hailing from the planet Iunulo in the Crux Arm, spinwards of the Suuk homeworld of Votagar, which has only recently emerged to the galactic stage.
Evolved on the old, rocky world of Iunulo, dominate by its black, desolate, rocky crags, numerous extinct volcanoes and exposed to elevated radiation due to a weak magnetic field, the ripasteeva are fairy bulky bipedal beings with two large upper limbs ending with two large digits and a smaller opposable thumb and two smaller legs that end with three clawed fingers and a third pointing backwards- due to the rocky nature of Iunulo's surface, the ripasteevan' legs are very efficient in traversing the terrain, but its their large arms which allows them to climb even the steepest of cliffs in search of food. Despite the low gravity of Iunulo, the ripasteeva musculature is surprisingly developed. The ripasteevan head is embedded into the upper torso, lacking a neck, and presents four bright yellow eyes, their mouth being little more than a vertical slit which parts to reveal rows of small lamprey-like teeth. A bony crest adorns the top and back of their heads, growing more prominent and colorful in males. Their skin is dark, with various stripped patterns to camouflage in the black rocky terrain.
The ripasteeva, as one of the few surviving macroscopic lifeforms on Iunulo still living primary on the surface, are for all intense and purpose biologically immortal, mostly due to a unique enzyme similar to lobsters on Earth which repairs damaged DNA, though unlike lobsters the ripasteevan life in a much more hostile environment and necessitate a large caloric intake to stay alive- the primary cause of death for them are death by another ripasteevan, starvation and diseases (the most prominent of which is caused by a parasite transmitted by their food))
Due to their homeworld's surprising lack of plant life despite the otherwise fertile volcanic soil (mostly due to the high level of solar radiation), the ripasteeva' primary diet consist of a type of crab like animal named Ugun which makes its living in the semi-flooded underground volcanic tubes which crisscross large areas of the planet's three continents. Using their expert climbing abilities to descend into the caves through massive extinct volcanic calderas, around which they developed their major settlements, the ripasteeva hunt or cultivate the ugun, which makes up about 90% of their diet.
The colonies of ripasteevan which settled around the calderas are highly socialistic in nature, with the good and survival of the colony put ahead of the individuals. Lead by a small group of the best ugun hunters and warriors who protect the colony from other's who'd wish to steal their food supply, the colonies lack any other kind of social hierarchy. The leaders convey to prioritize the needs of the colony, usually prioritizing the growth of the next generation and the warriors. Because of a substantial lack of plentiful food, the colonies numbers never rose very high and even though the ripasteevan have a fairy large birth rate less than 20% made it to adulthood before the age of modern technology. Due to this and a collective instinct for the betterment of the whole, ripasteevan society puts great emphasis of self sacrifice and service to society as the highest virtues. Intelligence and cunning is also highly revered, with any innovation that helps the greater good often putting its inventor in line for a leadership position. Warriors, while equally looked up to (often times literary, as a properly fed one can grow to be 50% larger than the average ripasteevan), their position as defenders and raiders is seen as even more expendable.
For many millennia, the ripasteevan's small colonies existed in a state of constant warfare, with little in the way of peaceful interaction or diplomatic contact, with every colony for themselves, trying to preserve its own bloodline in a world that rarely had enough resources for more than a few dozen million individuals. Over time, some of the largest colonies such as Sayyz and Ovoun amassed enough enough resources and knowledge to kick start a small industrial revolution, but technology never got very advance as constant raids from enemy colonies kept their resources and time focused on protection, and they stagnated at a late 19th century level for many centuries until recently, around the year 2143, when they were inadvertently contacted by the suuk- the real reason for it remains somewhat of a mystery as the Dominion refuses to make public the details, but regardless soon after first contact and the ripasteevan's introduction to advance technology the constant warfare between them came to an end as technology and resources from off-world allowed the colonies to prosper. Mass farming of the ugun has more or less quelled the food shortage and the peace has allowed the ripasteevan numbers to explode from a pre-contact of about 50 million to about one billion in just half a century.
The previous spots of the colonies have been systematically built up into various sprawling metropolises, and although they themselves have not yet formed any unified planetary government, the planet is closely allied with the Suuk Dominion which provides a surprisingly large amount of resources, technical knowledge and even helps administrates its small but increasing off world trade, to the point that many consider Iunulo a de facto Dominion world, though the Dominion denies it as such and insists on 'protectorate'. Perhaps most telling is the several millions prime ripasteevan warriors which have been enlisted by the Dominion, who claims to be simply building up its protectorate's military strength.
The ripasteevan warriors prowess in battle, thoughtless and potentially indefinite lifespans (and thus potentially very wide experience) has made them the prime commodity of the infantile spacefarers. Some of the larger colonies such as Sayyz have several officially sanctioned mercenary groups, who despite their youth have become fairy sough after by aliens seeking payed help in their conflicts.

Description

The Ripasteevan are a fairy primitive, large, sapient species hailing from the planet Iunulo in the Crux Arm, spinwards of the Suuk homeworld of Votagar, which has only recently emerged to the galactic stage.
Evolved on the old, rocky world of Iunulo, dominate by its black, desolate, rocky crags, numerous extinct volcanoes and exposed to elevated radiation due to a weak magnetic field, the ripasteeva are fairy bulky bipedal beings with two large upper limbs ending with two large digits and a smaller opposable thumb and two smaller legs that end with three clawed fingers and a third pointing backwards- due to the rocky nature of Iunulo's surface, the ripasteevan' legs are very efficient in traversing the terrain, but its their large arms which allows them to climb even the steepest of cliffs in search of food. Despite the low gravity of Iunulo, the ripasteeva musculature is surprisingly developed. The ripasteevan head is embedded into the upper torso, lacking a neck, and presents four bright yellow eyes, their mouth being little more than a vertical slit which parts to reveal rows of small lamprey-like teeth. A bony crest adorns the top and back of their heads, growing more prominent and colorful in males. Their skin is dark, with various stripped patterns to camouflage in the black rocky terrain.
The ripasteeva, as one of the few surviving macroscopic lifeforms on Iunulo still living primary on the surface, are for all intense and purpose biologically immortal, mostly due to a unique enzyme similar to lobsters on Earth which repairs damaged DNA, though unlike lobsters the ripasteevan life in a much more hostile environment and necessitate a large caloric intake to stay alive- the primary cause of death for them are death by another ripasteevan, starvation and diseases (the most prominent of which is caused by a parasite transmitted by their food))
Due to their homeworld's surprising lack of plant life despite the otherwise fertile volcanic soil (mostly due to the high level of solar radiation), the ripasteeva' primary diet consist of a type of crab like animal named Ugun which makes its living in the semi-flooded underground volcanic tubes which crisscross large areas of the planet's three continents. Using their expert climbing abilities to descend into the caves through massive extinct volcanic calderas, around which they developed their major settlements, the ripasteeva hunt or cultivate the ugun, which makes up about 90% of their diet.
The colonies of ripasteevan which settled around the calderas are highly socialistic in nature, with the good and survival of the colony put ahead of the individuals. Lead by a small group of the best ugun hunters and warriors who protect the colony from other's who'd wish to steal their food supply, the colonies lack any other kind of social hierarchy. The leaders convey to prioritize the needs of the colony, usually prioritizing the growth of the next generation and the warriors. Because of a substantial lack of plentiful food, the colonies numbers never rose very high and even though the ripasteevan have a fairy large birth rate less than 20% made it to adulthood before the age of modern technology. Due to this and a collective instinct for the betterment of the whole, ripasteevan society puts great emphasis of self sacrifice and service to society as the highest virtues. Intelligence and cunning is also highly revered, with any innovation that helps the greater good often putting its inventor in line for a leadership position. Warriors, while equally looked up to (often times literary, as a properly fed one can grow to be 50% larger than the average ripasteevan), their position as defenders and raiders is seen as even more expendable.
For many millennia, the ripasteevan's small colonies existed in a state of constant warfare, with little in the way of peaceful interaction or diplomatic contact, with every colony for themselves, trying to preserve its own bloodline in a world that rarely had enough resources for more than a few dozen million individuals. Over time, some of the largest colonies such as Sayyz and Ovoun amassed enough enough resources and knowledge to kick start a small industrial revolution, but technology never got very advance as constant raids from enemy colonies kept their resources and time focused on protection, and they stagnated at a late 19th century level for many centuries until recently, around the year 2143, when they were inadvertently contacted by the suuk- the real reason for it remains somewhat of a mystery as the Dominion refuses to make public the details, but regardless soon after first contact and the ripasteevan's introduction to advance technology the constant warfare between them came to an end as technology and resources from off-world allowed the colonies to prosper. Mass farming of the ugun has more or less quelled the food shortage and the peace has allowed the ripasteevan numbers to explode from a pre-contact of about 50 million to about one billion in just half a century.
The previous spots of the colonies have been systematically built up into various sprawling metropolises, and although they themselves have not yet formed any unified planetary government, the planet is closely allied with the Suuk Dominion which provides a surprisingly large amount of resources, technical knowledge and even helps administrates its small but increasing off world trade, to the point that many consider Iunulo a de facto Dominion world, though the Dominion denies it as such and insists on 'protectorate'. Perhaps most telling is the several millions prime ripasteevan warriors which have been enlisted by the Dominion, who claims to be simply building up its protectorate's military strength.
The ripasteevan warriors prowess in battle, thoughtless and potentially indefinite lifespans (and thus potentially very wide experience) has made them the prime commodity of the infantile spacefarers. Some of the larger colonies such as Sayyz have several officially sanctioned mercenary groups, who despite their youth have become fairy sough after by aliens seeking payed help in their conflicts.