Ste tech (and gc dating system)

St'e upon (re)disocvery were an entirely medieval or earlier technological stage by popular conception. However, this is often realized as Native American (North) interrelations with the land and nomadism. Every world features either wandering tribes, communal kingdoms, beast scavnegers, nature-inhabitors, or some combination or modification of that existence.

As such, st'e usually had basic metalurgy upto and in line with stygys hand tools. Their beast wrearing and farming skills were legendary, and as such that is their primary employ both under and away from Heene rule. Their warriors are protective of their broods, and despite Heene attempts to intermix and break alliances at times, new bonds almost always form. The Heene cult is an overriding ideology, but even then, it uses the St'e propensity for community to exact protective fear of other bipedal species and a communal desire to ascend with or for ones people. Dogma often rests as folks viewing non-believers as harmful, as if the dogma-holder were a white cell to the body and enemies are pathogens or tainted cells.

The bone motifs are benign aspects of St'e biology. NOT a matter of savageness. The most industrial, most primitive, most evil most virtuous st'e all need and employ bones to continue propogating.

St'e are naturally somewhat goblin like with long pointed ears, two eyes, and sharp front teeth followed by plant grinding plates similar to molars. They prefer slightly agape mouths as resting teeth in the gums is slightly painful. They primarily breathe through their noses (which have an enitirely separate path to their lungs) but mouth breathing is possible under stress or high activity. -- They are naturally nongendered, but this is commonly rendered as one gender by outsiders depending on which gender roles they most commonly align with in their cultures. This is most commonly women for fruiting/neutral st'e, men as sporing st'e, and neutral genders for in-betweens or general use. She is/was the most common pronoun used by induviduals followed by "it," the equivalent in the St'e's language and for foreign-born st'e this is often preferred. Over time, the majority of st'e used "it" as a primary, only, or secondary pronoun. This is traced to the St'e common tongue using the same pronouns for objects and peoples. This often persists when they learn new languages and many St'e have trouble understanding congugated language, instead using one congugation, gender/type neutral congugation, and/or using several in a discoordinated manner. Many regard them as fools for this, but as St'e have proven time and again, they are a remarkably smart species.

St'e skin is remarkably tough on its own, but their cultures have enduring lineages of ceremonial wears and armors. While a st'e soldier or farmer may be relegated to simple tunics and loincloths cut from animal hides, more industrial st'e tend to have separate shirts and loincloths, armor plates, greaves, and gloves. Protecting clothing exists in environments necessitating this. In the olden days, the (IRL MANDO STYLE) armor was common among their people, though in simpler form. St'e modified ceramite began overtaking these basic metal, ballistic hide-wrap armors. As it stands, Chosen are the primary users of this set as a metal and exalted are the primary users as a ceramite. Skilled soldiers and massed infantry (equivalent to the stormtrooper to the imperial army trooper) use pigmetal armors with heavies of that type using bulkier metals to protect against laser and plasma damage better. Line troops use simple tunics or rely on their resilient hides. Shamans or st'e fielded from more common tribes with the practice will lace bones in their armors. Even under armored troops will have a few detatchments of these shamans, often used as some kind of specialist or support unit (organizations vary)

This is such that, in a hierarchical power/rank scale, it's)

Ceramite Mando-esque; often very ornamental: Exalted/Higher Chosen

Metal Mando-esque (Can be painted); often more streamlined and practical: Chosen

Metal with chosen logo: Chosen, line troop

Armorless with chosen logo: Chosen redeemers, hoping to regain some piety by serving till death.

(FTR: Chosen aren't spartans. They're like Uruk-Hai. A seperate hierarchy itself above normal st'e troops, held with closer regard and despite being fully sized armies, number astronomically less than other units. That said, several wars and campaigns can be done by them and beyond a certain point or in certain contexts, they can be expected to be the entirety of a St'e/Heene Client Force. Powerbow is the most common user of Fully Chosen units, one of the only ways to distinguish their bought soldiers from other arbitrators)

From there, its:

PAR with armored ste: Volc

Heavy Armored St'e (See helmeted, printed, and body wear piece st'e): Heavy, not always of particular rank, but most armored, often best armed to boot.

Light Armored st'e (See printed armor and helmeted orcs/trolls/tall goblins/fire monsters): Armored but still mobile soldiers. The upper ranges can be expected to receive a great deal of damage, but nothing too remarkable. A line troop.

Armored Verit (See armored printing or armor piece verits): Armored Verits. They may have eons old ceramite armor or true plates, but their wealer stature caps them off here.

Minimal armor st'e (See: Fantasy Trolls, some moria orcs, green?? Orcs): Usually just a helmet of curaiss, sometimes just greaves (for walking on dangerous brush/ground) A st'e with a few or a single key body area(s) armored, leaving the rest mostly uncovered. Often found when lower ranks are given armor they weren't collected with, or after they scavenge it/make it.

VOLMAC SPECIFIC; par with below-ish: Armored Prison Troopers.

PAR with below\* Equipped Verit: Powerbow in particular overtook many verit worlds. Verits, despite their strengths, are still rather weak, however. Hardy, but physically weak. To keep up with other powers, trained verits used as more than thralls with often get new equipment, training, and be allowed to grow wings. Weapons are never left to the wayside here.

(MOST COMMON:) No armor st'e: St'e are remarkably resilinet people. They don't need armor to survive a burst of modern rifle caliber shots and could easily survive a blinder bolt or two with rest and medical care. If nothing else, they propogate like rabbits so the powers that be aren't too conerned with losing them (sadly). They can be and often are fieled with their sparse loincloths, tunics, or cultural beads as their only dress. Sometimes small metal signets, necklaces, or harnesses are added, but they're just as common as they are missing. The lesser trained and equiped of this class can be considered thrall warriors if taken from the civilian population of a world untrained for war.

VOLMACE SPECIFIC: Prison Troopers. Thralls but prisoners.

Thrallwarriors: Most commonly used to bulk ranks, as trainees, or when no other alternative is availible. Thrallwarriors are gang leaders, civil defenders, and civilians drafted into war en masse. Due to this, they often have very cheap, awful, or no weapons at all. They'll use salvaged or outdated tech. They'll often have subpar training and knowledge. A militia more than a military. However, using old tech allows for lost technology to be fielded with them. Though it may be worse for wear, an ancient ceramite-armored thrall can likely survive more damage than your average St'e line trooper. A thraller with a barely outdated blinker is more of a threat than an unarmored St'e with a hide-breaker or skin blaster bow/crossbow. A proficient gang enforcer can be more of a fighter than a private in a formal military. Its a D20 dice roll between 19 <3's and 1 20+ (metaphorically. The odds are actually WAY lower for a "20").

random: Solar day is .45964975342 Galactic Common Days, as measured as the rotation of The AoN homeworld upon formation of the Octet, set as the day length of Refuge Star and later Refuge Void. Local times are measured in their own calendars but GC members usually translate year-based distinctions around the 512 GC-Day, 8 GC-Month year. It's been roughly 8^8 years since the formation of what is now known as the Octet. However, many figures believe another formation date may be what's referenced with that date, as the figure comes from a vague comment from an Accordo'Ne'Ziiran person.