Avarga
Physical Characteristics
Average Height: 7’6”-9’ (229-274 cm)
Average Weight: Males – 200 lbs (90 kg); Females – 350 lbs (160 kg)
Average Life Expectancy: 250 years
Skin: Chromatic scales, with males exhibiting more colorful hues, while females have more muted tones
Notable Features: 5-digit hands with 2 opposable thumbs, 4-digit feet, horns, monocular vision, minor regenerative capabilities
Abstract
The avarga are a prideful species of humanoid warriors that used to traverse the stars seeking challenges to prove their strength. Originating from a harsh unforgiving world, avargan bodies have become physical testaments to their capability to survive.
History
Pre-Contact
Early Civilization
Avargan oral traditions say the species hailed from the moon, Umbani, which orbits a gas giant exoplanet far from the Acarias Galaxy. Umbani was an extremely unforgiving landscape, filled with dense jungles and dangerous swamps. Due to the nature of the moon’s habitat, many of the animals evolved to be ferocious beasts of immense power. Those who failed to compete head-to-head with these creatures resorted to living in the canopies, where their smaller size would play to their advantage.
Early in the avarga’s evolutional development, they predominantly existed in these canopy environs and relied on the strength and flexibility in their arms and legs to keep them from becoming prey to the beasts below. As time passed, the avarga grew more capable, strengthening their bodies and developing primitive tech that helped even the playing field. Eventually, took the leap down to the forest floor. Successfully hunting, killing, and feeding on bigger animals propelled the species’ evolution and resulted in the upright posture we see today.
The earliest avargan civilizations were clan-like, family structures. Strong warrior-chiefs created clans for protection that would then grow and recruit more avarga into it. Since life was quite difficult on Umbani, being outside a group was essentially a death sentence. Some avarga did choose to forgo a clan and those skilled enough to survive were known as Olmorani.
As the avarga spread throughout the moon, they began to discover strange artifacts that were buried under the intense foliage of the planet. They found the ruins of a past civilization that they referred to as the Old Ones. On one particular expedition, they stumbled upon a laboratory that held machines of immense power. The power of these machines was of such a caliber that the avarga thought them to have been made by gods. As they began to research and understand the technology, the avarga were eventually able to adapt it and become an extraterrestrial civilization.
The avarga extended their reach to the other moons and planets of their solar system and set up many colonies. Their rapid rise to power meant they kept a lot of their tribal rituals and customs alive. The avarga were relatively few in number compared to many other species at this time, and because of their traditions, preferred to space themselves out. This oftentimes led to certain groups or families almost controlling entire continents as their own ground.
Post-Contact
The Resonance
Already a space-faring race, the avarga were able to witness the Resonance as it reached them; a deafening ping that reverberated throughout the universe. Across their solar system, the Old Ones’ artifacts began glowing and interacting with each other in ways never seen before. Avargan scientists were able to trace the Resonance to a distant star system. The avargan leadership concluded the Resonance was the doing of the Old Ones and that it was guiding them to the holy land. The avarga rallied their people from across their system and left on a great pilgrimage that would take them to Kylia.
Journey to Kylia
When the avarga reached the Acarias Solar System, they quickly discovered that they were not alone. Another alien species, the olari’i, had also come to explore the origins of the Resonance. Upon first making contact, the avarga mistakenly thought that the olari’i were their fabled Old Ones. After some time, they saw the olari’i experimenting on old tech and understood that they were not the gods they initially thought, but merely another species like them. Offended by this, the avarga sought to eradicate the impostor species.
Small skirmishes would break out between the two groups as both tried to learn and understand the capabilities of the other species. These battles would only grow in both scale and intensity, especially after the arrival of the nirgul and umanu, and by some point, it became an all-out war.
Millennium War
Not much is known about the millennium war other than it was an extremely bloody and grueling battle between the various different species that came to Acarias. Many believe the avarga to be the instigators of the conflict, but there is no proof to back these claims.
After Unification
Golden Age
The Millennium War ended with the arrival of the Nuru Moja. A being of such immense power that it was able to quell the fighting and unify the races singlehandedly. As the Acarias Galaxy entered into a Golden Age, so too did the avaragan people. While this prosperity was welcomed by most, there were some avarga who wished to return to the old ways of living, as they saw the current state of living to be improper, tainted by gluttony and laziness. Groups of Avarga would turn back to hunting and gathering, living out in the wilderness as Blood Tribes.
Formation of the Council
At first, the avarga were hesitant to agree to the new Council of Seven, despite one of their own being chosen, as they saw the Nuru Moja as a stronger fighter and leader but as the council proved their might, the avarga were eventually convinced. However, as time went on and the council themselves grew more and more disillusioned with the capacity of the alien species on Kylia to live harmoniously without divine intervention, so too did the avarga gradually lose faith in the council.
The Fall
The Fall enacted a heavy toll on the avarga. With resources becoming scarcer by the day, the avarga felt it was their duty to fight to survive. Like every other sentient species, the avarga sought to protect their own first and foremost. But in alienating the other species, they left themselves vulnerable. The avarga’s lack of numbers in comparison to other species made it hard for them to persevere over time as each avarga’s death left that much more of a void in their population. Those who were left by the end of the Fall spread across the planet, mostly as either Blood Tribes or assimilated members of other societies. Since avarga were already well-suited to living on their own, many chose to not reside in large citadels, as they saw an urban lifestyle contradictory to what their ancestors would have wanted.
Post Fall
Current Kylia
Many Avarga would inevitably take up the mantle of Olmorani once again, but this time the word took on a different meaning. Similar to the Olmorani that lived on Umbani, the avarga chose to found an organization of the same name that was comprised of highly skilled individuals who operated outside in the wilderness to protect, hunt, transport, excavate, or otherwise do jobs most would consider impossible. This would later grow to be divided into three separate guilds, the Hadrai’da, Djinn, and Vikari’i. The Avarga excelled in this type of role, and their natural skill sets proved extremely valuable in performing Olmorani work. Many avarga grew rich from this, but most had little use for money other than as a means to purchase better equipment that could help them get stronger. Following their return to this more traditional way of life, the avarga who chose to walk the path of the Seraph put an extremely high value on their dokan, as they saw it as a spiritual connection to their ancestors and the Old Ones. Many avarga would pass down dokan for generations or under the premise that the rarer, more valuable a dokan, the higher that family sat on the societal hierarchy.
Culture
The religion of Darata was dominant across the avarga on Umbani before they came across the technology of the Old Ones. This religion focused on finding harmony with nature and connecting to one’s ancestors. Rather than faith in a divine deity, followers of Darata believe that the natural order of life is influenced by a mystical energy that tests one’s ability to grow. Because of this, avarga that practice Darata strive to find a sustainable balance between hunting and conservation in order to maintain an equilibrium and not endanger other species. Another core component of this religion are the rituals by which one can call upon their ancestors for guidance. The most popular of which is known as Ak’darata’mka, or “prayers to my father’s father”.
A major change happened in avargan religion when the Old Ones’ technology was found. Some avarga believed that the ancient technology was proof of the existence of gods, and that these artifacts had been passed down to them. This created a schism between believers of Darata and followers of this new religion, Vikāsa. Vikāsa would eventually evolve into a polytheistic religion with various Old Ones being represented by the most prominent of the uncovered artifacts. Even at present on Kylia, avargan Blood Tribes tend to be practitioners of either Darata or Vikāsa.