Ramke - Unathi Application

[Ramke]

BYOND Key: ramke

Character Names: I've got a lot but my most notable recently are Zahri Rahqarkir, Avelka S'rrenikir, Nasira Nahnikh, Ahari Zerikanh, Takiyah Nihalkir and Ka'Akaix'Zrin Kl'ax

Species you are applying to play: Unathi

What color do you plan on making your first alien character: Sand yellow / Bahard Cream on wiki

Have you read our lore section's page on this species?: Yes

Why do you wish to play this specific race:

It's very different compared to what I played before, and I am looking for new experiences. I absolutely love playing religious characters and having seen a certain few Unathi characters recently has inspired me to seek to make my own. The sheer mentality difference compared to what I usually play (Tajara) is something I imagine I will find fun to switch to.

Identify what makes role-playing this species different than role-playing a Human:

Unathi are heavily dictated by tradition, honour and clan values as opposed to humans, which are significantly more lax. A significant shift in perspective is needed to play them, as you would view things very differently compared to a human (i.e. being dishonest as a male is not only disgraceful, but risks your clan's standing). Unathi are very communal and focused towards their community and clan, and their motivations are often intertwined with their community's needs and wishes. They also have distinct behavioural quirks, such as staring actually being seen as a sign of respect, as well as a lot more unspoken signs such as baring your neck to accept defeat or guard it to show defiance, tail stomping, etc. Lastly, their whole world view is shaped by the Contact War, and how their home is now mostly dominated by radioactive hellscape.

Character Name: Alrssi Searkihu

Please provide a short backstory for this character:

Alrssi Searkihu is a female Unathi born a few years after the Contact War began on 2442 in Bahard, Moghes to an impoverished clan. Pre-war, clan Searkihu was relatively well-off, and most of its members found employment taking care of their clan lord's vineyards. After the nuclear exchange, however, the clan's main source of income and reputation fell apart as the vineyards fell to the radioactive soil, and the clan quickly turned impoverished. With many clan members lost to the war, the situation was dire when Alrssi hatched.

Alrssi had a rough childhood, with the clan barely scraping by granted Bahard's overall situation. Many worked any jobs that they had available, and most of the money went to the Clan Lord in taxes or the clan elder, who was responsible for the clan's finances. Alrssi, when old enough, helped with typical household tasks, assisting her mother with chores in her teen years. She was brought up by the teachings of the Church of Sk'akh, and followed the beliefs as any clan member was expected to.

While walking across town one day, Alrssi overheard a Si'akh fire priest providing a passionate sermon, and stayed around to listen. She was enthralled in the words, giving meaning to the suffering she was experiencing, the state of the city making more sense. This was before the crowd was dispersed and the fire priest beaten up and tossed out the city gates. The thoughts were shoved aside in fear of being discriminated against, but not forgotten.

When reaching the age of maturity, Alrssi began working any jobs available to her, much like the rest of the clan. She found employment with the clan lord's estate as a housekeeper. But it was clear that it was only going to turn worse as houses and streets became less frequented, and sand piled further against the walls. The fire priest's words kept coming back as hardship followed, before eventually finding the courage to breach the topic with some of her clan members. The reaction was mixed, with one admitting they shared the same belief in Si'akh, while others raised concern. By that point, word got out, and the discrimination started full-mast. Not'zar's Guwan reforms had passed just before, so the clan elder was unable to take immediate action, but privately told Alrssi that her presence would be a detriment to the clan's well-being, and encouraged her to leave on good terms to find another way to contribute to the clan. The clan lord would likely catch wind of it soon and remove her from her position.

Taking the hint, Alrssi sought out the growing Si'akh community within the city, and eventually departed with a group to the wasteland. She found the clan leader's decision distressing, but had agreed to find a way to contribute monetarily or some other applicable way out of the feeling of duty and wellbeing of her family. The grou had traveled for a long time enduring many hardships, seeking to follow Si'akh's footsteps, before they came across a settlement in the wastes. Alrssi took aboard more and more of Si'akh's ascetic principles to follow throughout the journey, such as only eating raw meat and drinking only water. At the settlement, encouraged to seek personal redemption, Alrssi found and joined the local IAC education centre, and after a fair bit of time learning medical care, began volunteering for the triage hospital in the settlement.

Alrssi volunteered at the hospital for a few years before finding an opportunity to be employed elsewhere through connections, acquiring a way off the planet to earn income and contribute to her clan. She worked on the ship for a year, traveling from place to place, before realising the paltry sum she was earning would not be enough to keep her clan and family afloat, and the elder remained unhappy. Looking for opportunities elsewhere, she sent out applications to a variety of different locations looking for medical workers, before getting accepted as a first responder to a ship under NanoTrasen's contract - the SCCV Horizon.

What do you like about this character?:

The background offers a story that heavily weighs on the character's decisions, mentality and worldview. Si'akh is my favourite religion by far of the main three, and I wanted to make a religious character that relates to it. A bittersweet connection to the character's clan adds some internal conflict to the fray,

How would you rate your role-playing ability?

I think I roleplay okay. Could always be better, could be worse.

Notes:

If something is incorrect or the concept is flawed in a particular way, please let me know and I will correct it.

[Sheeplets]

Ramke is one of my favorite faces to see in a round. Her characters are fun and well executed. Sure, I'll cosign on this.

+1

[CatsinHD]

Ramke is a joy to talk with both ICly and OOCly. Their characters are great, being both unique and well written. That's not to mention their ability to write a concise backstory for this interesting Unathi. I wish I could give a +2, but a +1 will have to do.

[geeves]

i scramble to get my security slot whenever i see ramke on, as such i will be breaking my vow of never approving of applications and granting them a +2

[Caelphon]

From Furry, to Scalie. Disgusting. Anyway, heres some questions. 

20 hours ago, Ramke said:

While walking across town one day, Alrssi overheard a Si'akh fire priest providing a passionate sermon, and stayed around to listen. She was enthralled in the words, giving meaning to the suffering she was experiencing, the state of the city making more sense. This was before the crowd was dispersed and the fire priest beaten up and tossed out the city gates. The thoughts were shoved aside in fear of being discriminated against, but not forgotten.

1. What impact did this have on your Unathi's personality? Did she have a crisis of faith? How did she overcome all that she was taught, and told about Si'akh, to invest in it and eventually become a follower of the faith? You mention about her relationship with her Clan, but what about her immediate family? Her father? Mother? Siblings? 

20 hours ago, Ramke said:

Taking the hint, Alrssi sought out the growing Si'akh community within the city, and eventually departed with a group to the wasteland. She found the clan leader's decision distressing, but had agreed to find a way to contribute monetarily or some other applicable way out of the feeling of duty and wellbeing of her family. The grou had traveled for a long time enduring many hardships, seeking to follow Si'akh's footsteps, before they came across a settlement in the wastes. Alrssi took aboard more and more of Si'akh's ascetic principles to follow throughout the journey, such as only eating raw meat and drinking only water. At the settlement, encouraged to seek personal redemption, Alrssi found and joined the local IAC education centre, and after a fair bit of time learning medical care, began volunteering for the triage hospital in the settlement.

2. How would you say this affected your Unathi? Did they take pity on those impacted by the nuclear cataclysm, or did they try and convert those they tended to the "truth faith"? Did she work with other Unathi, or was she exposed to other cultures and religions? How did she take this, and is she tolerant of other species?

20 hours ago, Ramke said:

Alrssi volunteered at the hospital for a few years before finding an opportunity to be employed elsewhere through connections, acquiring a way off the planet to earn income and contribute to her clan. She worked on the ship for a year, traveling from place to place, before realising the paltry sum she was earning would not be enough to keep her clan and family afloat, and the elder remained unhappy. Looking for opportunities elsewhere, she sent out applications to a variety of different locations looking for medical workers, before getting accepted as a first responder to a ship under NanoTrasen's contract - the SCCV Horizon.

3. Which ship did she work with? Was it an IAC ship, or a pirate ship? Referring back to the previous question, how did this impact her view on Moghes, and the greater Orion Spur if she was exposed to other religions, cultures, peoples, etc? 

Goodluck, there are no wrong answers. 

[Ramke]

9 minutes ago, Caelphon said:

From Furry, to Scalie. Disgusting.

9 minutes ago, Caelphon said:

1. What impact did this have on your Unathi's personality? Did she have a crisis of faith? How did she overcome all that she was taught, and told about Si'akh, to invest in it and eventually become a follower of the faith? You mention about her relationship with her Clan, but what about her immediate family? Her father? Mother? Siblings?

Initially, it did not, but the main way she was indoctrinated into the belief was the seeds that the fire priest had planted. The prophet Juzida was known to provide extremely passionate and intense sermons, and I can only assume fire priests (that must recite every sermon before they become one) imitate his style. This would have left a lasting impression on Alrssi, compared to the typical Sk'akh sermons and religious activities which are more timid in comparison. If it's unusual, you remember it better. At first it was in denial, as Si'akh was branded an illegitimate faith by the Sk'akh church, and she did not want to entertain those thoughts believing it to be heretical as well. The switch was very gradual, with the difficult living reminding her of suffering, which subconsciously brought back the priest's words and slowly associated with Si'akh's beliefs. Bahard is a doomed city that's continuously heading towards extinction, so that only expedited the process. Since it's a heresy of the Sk'akh faith, most of her impressions of Sk'akh would remain other than the change in worldview introduced by Si'akh. The 5 stages of grief would apply here.

For relationships with immediate family: it was a traditionalist family, but everyone worked together and tried to keep positive relations due to poverty. Alrssi would take after her parents' advice the most, looking (staring?) at them with respect. They were caring enough of their children, so a sense of close-knit family would follow. With siblings and such, it'd be a bit more casual, even involving rivalry.

10 minutes ago, Caelphon said:

2. How would you say this affected your Unathi? Did they take pity on those impacted by the nuclear cataclysm, or did they try and convert those they tended to the "truth faith"? Did she work with other Unathi, or was she exposed to other cultures and religions? How did she take this, and is she tolerant of other species?

Traveling with a group of like-minded Si'akh believers indoctrinated her into the belief fully, and this is where she adopted the more ascetic lifestyle - not like there was much of a choice regardless when venturing with a group of Si'akh followers.

She did take pity on those she treated, and at risk of regurgitating lore straight from the wiki she shared the belief that all Unathi were damned. She did share that mindset with those that were willing to talk, but didn't push the topic if they were dismissive out of fear of provoking conflict in an already desperate location, and the IAC probably wouldn't want a preacher volunteer agitating the patients. In the end, repentance is something she stated that she was doing, along with encouraging others to do the same passively.

She did work alongside Unathi, and that is where she also saw humans and Vaurca (Mi'kuetz) for the first time. While originally skeptic, seeing their mission, work and actions spoke louder than the prejudice you might expect from a peasant witnessing aliens properly for the first time. She was aware of other religions, and certainly dealt with Th'akh, while viewing them with pity, as they had the "wrong" worldview, and are doomed to stay in the Chained Wastes.

Other species she had been introduced to after she left Moghes, but does not have extensive exposure to them. I was hoping to leave this to develop on-ship. The only exception to this is IPCs, who she views as soulless automatons. Not aggressive, but don't view them as anything more than tools.

10 minutes ago, Caelphon said:

3. Which ship did she work with? Was it an IAC ship, or a pirate ship? Referring back to the previous question, how did this impact her view on Moghes, and the greater Orion Spur if she was exposed to other religions, cultures, peoples, etc?

I should have specified this in my writeup but neglected to add the word, it is an IAC ship - went from an IAC hospital in the wasteland to a ship working for the same organisation through connections. Half of the latter half of the question was answered in the previous question, but to specify on Moghes and the Spur: seeing Unathi of different cultures and worldviews settled on other planets reinforced the view that Unathi are doomed to reincarnate, as they continue to repeat the process of allowing wickedness to fester in new locations, which Sk'akh will eventually end in a similar catastrophe as Moghes, or its settlers will end up being reincarnated back in the wastelands to suffer. Alrssi does not consider other species cursed, rather that it is the Unathi's burden, and acknowledges that they will have their own beliefs and afterlife to return to.

[Triogenix]

Hi and thanks for applying! Cael already asked a bunch of questions so I'll keep mine short.

On 28/02/2023 at 15:48, Ramke said:

Unathi are heavily dictated by tradition, honour and clan values as opposed to humans, which are significantly more lax. A significant shift in perspective is needed to play them, as you would view things very differently compared to a human (i.e. being dishonest as a male is not only disgraceful, but risks your clan's standing). Unathi are very communal and focused towards their community and clan, and their motivations are often intertwined with their community's needs and wishes. They also have distinct behavioural quirks, such as staring actually being seen as a sign of respect, as well as a lot more unspoken signs such as baring your neck to accept defeat or guard it to show defiance, tail stomping, etc. Lastly, their whole world view is shaped by the Contact War, and how their home is now mostly dominated by radioactive hellscape.

This is solid, but I'd like to see you expand on it, pointing out a few places in Unathi Lore where Unathi might behave differently, or have different ideas of what is honorable?

Edited March 1, 2023 by Triogenix

[Ramke]

4 hours ago, Triogenix said:

This is solid, but I'd like to see you expand on it, pointing out a few places in Unathi Lore where Unathi might behave differently, or have different ideas of what is honorable?

In terms of high-level perspectives, the biggest example that comes to mind is Ouerea, where the feudal government was overthrown by rebels to become a democratic society under the Hegemony. It was spurred on from human and Skrell influence, who originally helped the colony by establishing a colonial government. Unathi from there are typically a lot more lax to foreigners and have a growing trend of individualism rather than a focus on the community, though the typical clan structure still exists. There's also the Queendom, where gender roles were inverted in other to overcome the severe shortage of men after the Contact War, something that saved them from falling like the rest of the Kingdoms.

Some of my favourite honour stuff for Unathi is actually the concept of pirate honour. Unathi pirates warp honour into something that fits them, but still have a sense of righteousness even if they do evil deeds. To give an example, raiding pirates might forcefully take slaves aboard their ship if they find their skills useful, but will nearly always release them after some time along with a weapon, some of the pirate's spoils and guidance on how to return to where they want to go. Same with taking spoils - most pirates would only take up to half of their target's goods as long as they are cooperative, and ensure rival pirates are able to return to the nearest docks if they surrender. I distinctly remember a passage that they would also treat their prisoners very well as long as they didn't try to escape, but seems like this might have been reworked since I've last seen it.

Aut'akh is another example of how Unathi might act very different, where they abandoned the concepts of clans and leaders while instead forming leaderless communes. Unlike the vast majority of Unathi, they view augmentation as beneficial to one's spirit, rather than a massive detriment, going with a "the flesh is weak" mentality. An extremely distinct difference in their world view and general lifestyle.

[Lucaken]

This application is accepted on behalf of the Unathi team.