[ACCEPTED] The Djnar, and the Greater Hive

Species Name: Djnar
Physiological Description: Striver caste Djnar have a body shape best described as Dromeosaurid, with opposable thumbs on their four-digit hands. Warrior Caste Djnar have similar structure, but much larger, with heavier musculature and denser skeletal structure. Their arms and legs are similar in length, unlike the Striver caste and are thus capable of a loping, quadrapedal method of locomotion alongside bipedal. Mother Caste are entirely quadrapedal, although during their ‘searching’ phase of their life cycle, they have two enormous wings emerging from their backs. These are torn off and devoured upon initial burrowing.

Notable biological features across all castes are four eyes, and the Yethark, an organ particular to life on Djnaricah, visually comparable to webbed fish fins, emerging in the same position that many species have their ears. The Yethark is used to sense smell and sound, which is a combined sense amongst Djnaricahn species. Djnar possess nostrils, but these are merely breathing apertures. Emerging just below the Yethark are the Dnjars mandibles; two insect like claws that are used in body language and, alongside viciously toothed jaws, to grip items in the mouth.

Djnar are noted for, amongst sapient species, for having excellent depth perception. Djanar are primarily carnivorous, but are capable of digesting many forms of fungus; they find most green vegetation indigestible.

The striver caste is the most common, and most commonly witnessed Dnar caste. Striver Caste tend to be around 2-3 meters long at maturity from nose to tail, and usually stand around 1-1.7 meters tall, and have a lifespan of about 50-60 years. Warrior Caste Dnjar are much larger, usually around 15-25 meters in length and 5-7 meters tall when in a quadrapedal stance, and have a lifespan of around 40-55 years. Mother Caste are truly enormouse, ranging from 47-61 meters long, and around 17-28 meters tall when at full maturity (it should be noted that at maturity and motherhood, Mother Caste are primarily incapable of independent locomotion, only able to shift around their breeding chambers), and have a lifespan of around 200-500 years.

All Striver and Warrior Caste Djnar are asexual, with no reproductive capacity. They tend to be referred to as “He” in polite conversation, but this convention is primarily arbitrary. This convention arose merely because referring to a sapient as ‘it’ is widely considered demeaning. The Mothers are the only Djnar with any reproductive capacity, and are capable of both producing and receiving sperm. The sperm produced is horked up in large organic sacks, which are then transported carefully to other Hives to impregnate foreign mothers. A Mother can impregnate herself, although this increases deformity and intellectual disability amongst the produced spawnlings.

Biological History:
Djnaricah is the homeworld of the Djnar, giving them a preference for hot, wet worlds. They only discovered the theory of evolution through contact with other species, and the evolutionary origins of the Djnar are currently a hotly debated topic in scientific fields.

Social Structure: The Djnar live in great ‘hives’, although in the era before space colonization (a time known as the unification) the philosophy declared that all Djnar hives were part of one, greater hive. Striver Caste Djnar fill most roles in society as they are the most populous Djnar Caste. Strivers tend to operate in units of six called “Crews”, roughly analogous to the family unit in other species. These Crews hatch together, and spend their entire lives together. They are given a generic education until the age of 10, at which time their Crew is given an assessment covering physical, mental, emotional capabilities and preferences along with other factors and they are then assigned a role in the hive. The crew will perform this function for their entire lifespan, starting off in an ‘apprentice’ type role and then progressing with maturity and skill. Due to modern weaponry, the bulk of the Warrior Caste no longer assists too greatly in warfare, so whilst many Warrior caste can still be found amongst the armed forces of The Hive many also fill heavy labor roles. Mother Caste Djnar are confined by their biology to a reproductive role, but socially they hold great sway. Despite having no official authority, their word holds great import in the hearts of the Djnar, roughly analogous to a religious icon. They are highly educated, and given their enormous lifespans become incredibly intelligent over time, and thus their advice is greatly valued by governing Djnar.

Native Culture:
The Djnar are notable for a ruthlessly materialistic philosophy. They place little to no value on individual rights and freedoms, and tend to eschew abstract moralities for or rigid practicality. Every action must in some way progress The Hive, although rest and recreation is seen as valuable, as one strives most efficiently when neither exhausted nor insane. Most art forms are considered recreational rather than productive, and thus artistically inclined Crews usually practice their art in their free time rather than as an occupation. The Djnar are driven constantly to expand their collective material power and technological prowess, driven by an ancient primal fear inherent in their dominant philosophy. This philosophy, originating in ancient Djnaricahn Religion, states that there is much more that the Djnar do not know about than that the do know about. With that in mind, they should direct all efforts towards strengthening themselves in order to best meet the challenges of whatever is out there. This fear of the unknown tends to be personified in literature and propaganda in ancient Djnaricah as a Malevolent Sea-deity, and in modern times as “That which lurks between the Stars”. This indefinite, horrific figure is noted by Djnar Anthropologists to be a natural progression; once they were afraid of that which they didn’t know of the sea, and beyond the sea. Then, having mapped their oceans, that fear transferred naturally to the vast expanse of space.

Djnar are adverse to euthanizing disabled young (as only the Mothers reproduce, this will not improve genetic quality), but rather assigning them tasks within their ability range. The Djnar tend to be initially Xenophobic in a very literal sense when encountering a new species, tentatively probing them and learning more, but once familiar don’t tend to harbor much hatred. They will integrate smaller cultures into the Greater Hive, finding niches for these other species to fill (with or without consent, although Djnar Social Engineers usually have most populations content with their roles within three to five generations.) Djnar are quite content to treat with other civilizations, but collectively will not submit to any philosophy they see as “Dangerously Frivolous”, in that it does not respond with the appropriate ruthless devotion to progressing in order to best meet That Which Lurks Between the Stars.

Factions:
The Djnar as a species are the dominant race in The Greater Hive, although individual Crews may explore other cultures and the like as ambassadors or to spread the hives cultural influence. Many of these Djnar outside of the Greater Hive still feel great loyalty and ownership of The Greater Hive.

Faction Name: The Greater Hive
Faction Type: Commonwealth/Empire
Species: Djnar primarily, Yesk (a crustacean race of shore dwellers who had achieved an iron age level of technology before integration into the Hive)
Planets: Sky Blaze Star System - Djnaricah, Duran, Nlarg; Yandra Star System - Dlroth, Shuretth (Yesk homeworld); Tganath Star System - Turagna, Orzok
Culture: The Greater Hive is the collective empire of the Djnaricahn Race. It is ruled by the Council of Prime Overseers, who each represent one Djnaricahn star system. The Greater Hive follow the ruthless utilitarian philosophy of the Djnar, and thus devote incredible energy to the advancement of the material and technological power of the Greater Hive, out of fear of that which is not yet known, personified as a theoretical “That which is between the stars’
Technology:
Most Djnarahn Tech runs off thermonuclear or plasmic energy, derived from Plasma generators. These contain miniaturized Sun Analogues, whose energies are controlled and harvested by the device. The Greater Hive is quite proficient at terraforming, able to within a century turn even the most inhospitable rocky planet into somewhere usable. In General, they are philosophically opposed to the use of artificial intelligence, and instead surgically implant citizens of the Greater Hive who are incapable of physical work within machines to serve as a controlling intelligence. Djnar cyborgnetics are of a good quality. Djnar Faster than Light is a limited and so far quite experimental procedure. They use enormous Carrier ships to contain entire fleets, the Carrier ships being the only ones with Faster than Light capacity. This Carrier ship will then use gravitic tethers to ‘slingshot’ itself through a projected tunnel of warped space. Traveling in such a manner is a quite disturbing experience, and the Greater Hive eagerly seeks better alternate methods of interstellar travel.

Military Forces: The Djnar don’t make the same military/civilian divide as much as other races do. Whilst many crews are given tasks in warfare, all citizens are taught basic military expertise and could form efficient militias in the event of an invasion, or a mass drafting. Djnar infantry tend to use light powered armour, and the most common firearm is the Starscythe, which derives power from the miniaturized plasma reactor integrated in the Djnar’s powered armour, and shoots single blasts of superheated plasma (light, heat, radiation). These weapons shoot only once every five seconds, in order to avoid overheating, and are normally fitted with ‘halberd head’ bayonets, useful for stabbing and chopping in close quarters. These bayonets are enveloped in a molecular disruption field which helps assists them in penetrating even modern armors.

Djnar fleets have a focus on Swarm and boarding tactics. Fleets must contain a carrier ship in order to have faster than light capacity, but within these they tend to have thousands of smaller boarding vessels and fighting ships, using Plasma weaponry and torpedoes primarily in ranged combat.

The most famous Djnar ships are the infamous “Ticks”: small ships built very cheap. Their main armaments are six ‘legs’ emerging from the bottom of the ship, which can be enveloped in a molecular disruption field. These legs are used to clamp onto the hulls of enemy ships, at which stage the ship can then attempt to fly away, peeling away hull or become a permanent fixture. The Djnar inside then use plasma cutters to penetrate the hull, and then send power-armoured Djnar Infantry to attack the ship’s crew, and hopefully secure the ship

These ships will attempt to swarm large enemy ships in order that some might make it through. The reason boarding is favored is because then more of the technology and shipping can be looted rather than wastefully destroyed.

The Greater Hives Fleet (Current)

Carriers: 7

A Djnar Carrier is a huge, spherical ship. Twenty Km by twenty Km, it has a thick armored hull and several enormous docking bays. Requiring a crew of five thousand striver caste and five hundred warrior caste, its main purpose is the transport and protection of more battle capable ships. It is armed primarily with a tremendous amount of Mass Driver anti missile systems, whose projectiles are space debris siphoned into harvesting systems via gravitational manipulation. These weapons are controlled by the ships integrated Pilot. Djnar Carriers contain huge factories, from which repairs may be done, and smaller vessels even constructed from stores of on board materials, as well as minerals harvested on their journey.

Like most Djnar technology, a Plasma reactor powers it, albeit a big one. In a dire emergency, this can be set to overload

Destroyers: 1400

A Djnar Destroyer is a large ship, two kilometers in length and .5 kilometers in width and height in order to present a small profile to enemy ships, with a crew of about three hundred striver Djnar and fifty Warrior castes. Not particularly maneuverable, but surprisingly fast, destroyers are best at moving either forward or backwards. Turning is difficult. Their primary armaments are enormous plasma battle cannons emerging from the front of the ship. With three barrels for cool down allowance, these quite sizeable weapons are able to, with a steady but continuous fire rate, shoot star analogues roughly the size of a bus in a forward direction. The limitations of the weapon is that due to its emplacement it may only shoot forward, in the direction that the ship is facing, but its main purpose is to destroy the shielding and attack larger vessels, so this is not seen as to problematic. The destroyer must reroute much of its power to this weapon to fire continuously, so any thrust is suspended whilst firing such. Momentum continues, but naturally will slow and eventually reverse due to the recoil of the Destroyer Cannons.

Also at the front of the ship are several missile bays. Djnar "Starspear" missiles are homing missiles with on board Plasma reactors. These reactors function as both the missiles potential 'payload' able to be remotely overloaded, as well as powering the missiles forward drill, and that drills molecular disruption field. Starspear missiles are designed to pierce enemy hulls, and then continue to dig into the ship, providing tunnels for Djnari infantry to pour into, and giving the missiles limited mobility. The missiles will continue with their own thrust and momentum towards pre programed targets until they are no longer able to continue forward motion. The missile will then await further instructions; it can either be remotely overloaded, creating a significant plasma detonation, or if the ship is boarded and captured, it may be quickly salvaged for parts before the ship is given a full refit.

Destroyers have 'broadsides' of manned anti air plasma turrets and mass driver anti missile turrets, primarily to defend the Carrier ship and other destroyers from incoming fighters and missiles.


Fighters: Numbers are continuously in flux, due to ease of production.

The main fighting power of the Greater Hives Fleet, the Djnar fighter is 50m by 20m, lightly armored and highly maneuverable. It has three multi barreled repeater plasma weapons for dogfights, each with a great degree of maneuverability, as well as its primary weaponry, six mechanical legs, able to be charged with a molecular disruption field. Designed to be fielded in the thousands, if not tens of thousands, Djnar fighters are primarily designed as boarding ships, grasping onto larger vessels with its legs, allowing the Djnar inside to cut through both it and the enemies hulls in order to provide egress into the enemy ship. Each fighter normally contains a 'payload' of around sixty Power armored infantry. Even with crew disgorged, the integrated pilot still has full control of systems. From this position, all three-repeater plasma guns can be fired, and control of legs is still viable. No longer viable as an escape ship, these fighters will sometimes attempt to fly around the larger vessel, tearing up sections of grasped hull, although more likely than not the 'legs' will come off rather than thicker hulls. The integrated pilot is also able to overload its reactor, causing a substantial detonation

Djnar infantry

Striver Caste

Striver Caste infantry are highly trained, lightly armored, vicious assailants. Like all Strivers, they are somewhat skittish, but what other races sometimes fail to see is that the Djnar fight-flight reflex, due to the conditions of their home world, is firmly set to 'fight'. In fact, it takes great discipline for a Djnar to be able to contain his fear and retreat, when all his instincts are telling him to destroy that which would threaten the hive.

A Strivers power armor is most useful against ricochets and splash back from blast weapons rather than direct impact. It does, however, greatly increase the strength and speed of the striver wearing it, as well as its integrated life support allowing him to survive in many hostile conditions, including the void. He is able to communicate with his crewmates, as well as communicate to the swarm as a whole in order to coordinate attacks. Djnari power armor is networked, meaning that as they continue to travel inside enemy vessels even if ship sensors weren't able to penetrate it initially, continually updating tactical data will be supplied to the Djnar, sometimes leading to an entirely erroneous notion of a 'hive mind'. Naturally, it is covered by an external layer of soft rubber analogue, to provide grip and muffle noise.

Djnar infantry squads are composed of a Djnar Crew that has, from its assessment, been training for warfare. They are fit, willing and able, with an emphasis on the willing. Naturally a predatory species, Djnar warriors are often quite bloodthirsty, and often adopt savage, uncivilized practices such as taking trophies from their enemies.
They are armed with "Starscythe" plasma rifles, which fire significant blasts of plasmic energy at five second intervals, rechargeable "Disruption" grenades (spherical gadgets which emit a cacophony of light, sound and smell, with the intention of temporarily disabling the enemies ability to react) and 'sticky' plasma grenades for breaching and assaulting enemies. The sticky function is activatable, allowing the Djnar to choose whether to throw a rolling grenade towards the enemy or to stick it on a door. The explosion is remotely activated.

The "Starscythe" plasma rifle is also noticeable for a halberd head bayonette, sheathed in a molecular disruption field. Combined with the Strivers enhanced strength and speed, this blade is quite effective for melee combat, able to both stab and hack. Djnar express a preference for close quarters fighting, as it plays well to their natural sensibilities as well as causing minimal collateral damage. These halberds, if plasma grenades are expended, can also be used in breaching situations, able to hack through walls, doors and other things. This is naturally slower and less efficient than a plasma charge, however.

Djnar are well mentally adapted for the tight, close quarters fighting of ship-to-ship warfare, having most likely lived in claustrophobic tunnels all their lives. A Djnar boarder’s main objective is the neutralization of all enemy ship crew, in order to capture the ship and more material resource units for the greater hive! They are capable of above ground warfare planeside, but even then will take to tunneling and ambush attacks. Caught in the open, a Djnars limited long-range vision will likely prove his undoing in a firefight.

Djnar power armor is built so that, in a dire situation, its miniature plasma reactor can be overcharged, turning the brave Hive Warrior into a powerful explosive.

Warrior Caste

Being immense and bred for warfare, Warrior caste Djnar continue to have an active roll in modern military situations, even with technological advances. Warrior caste Power armor is significantly heavier, providing incredible strength to the immense warriors. Indeed, their roll is more of a heavy support vehicle than that of an infantryman. Warrior castes Infantry tend to operate in groups of two, each with a crew of 'on board' striver caste Djnar to perform armor repairs, fire shoulder weaponry, add fire support and whatever else the behemoth warriors may need. They wear regular power armor

Warrior castes are armed primarily by Molecular disruption fields in the gauntlets of their power armor, turning their immense claws into weaponry suitable for the space age. Their natural strength, combined with the fields and the power armor allows them to rend even through some ship hulls, and definitely cause damage to weaker areas. In space battles, Warrior caste tend to fill one of two functions; either they are acting defensively, crawling on the outside of friendly ships (magnetic 'clamps' in their power armor prevent them from falling into space) in order to repair damage and deal with any enemy boarding vessels. Alternatively, they can grab onto the backs of Djnar Fighters, in order to be transported to larger enemy vessels. From this point, they will crawl around the outside of the vessel and attempt to disable (Read, pummel to oblivion) strategic assets on the enemy ship, such as anti air turrets, missile bays, sensors etc. In the event that they are actually able to breach the ships hull, it is likely they are to big to maneuver around, however if they are able to find, for example, a hangar bay they can cause much mischief within, as well as regularly punching through portholes they find in order to vent atmosphere. Basic tactics are; if there is a weak point, punch it.

Additional armaments to the Warrior castes power armor are two shoulder mounted heavy assault Plasma rifles, useful against infantry and light starships. These are fired by the Warriors accompanying striver Crew. He also has two head mounted "mandible" cannons, which have significant power but also a significant cool down, useful for blasting apart infantry or enemy vehicles. These, he controls.

He, too, is capable of overloading his plasma reactor and exploding for the Greater hive.