Asterade (species)

ℹ️️**That is *not* what I thought it was...**This article covers the *Asterade* species. For information on its commonly royal *subspecies*, visit *Hyade Asterade (subspecies)*.

## Specialties

Darkvision - 4ft glow, sees shades of teal

Resilience - poison defense (physical)

Asterade Combat Training - battleaxe, handaxe, light hammer, warhammer

Tool Proficiency - blacksmith, brewing, masonry

Moonstonecutting

An **asterade** (pronounced "aa-stir-aid") is a species within the Igmus. Most of this species resides or originated on the planet Astela, spending their days honing their skills - most of which include moonstone work and/or creating resources - and, if they're *extra* lucky (or just originated into the position), utilizing their specialties to serve the planet's royal family.

While there are always exceptions. this species tends to have a strong and large threshold for the stresses of everyday life, and can often be tossed countless tasks without burning out. It's rather rare for these guys to find boredom in what they do, whether that be out of love, a sense of duty, or both. Their endurance allows them to work quite a while before even breaking a strain, much to their satisfaction.

## Etymology

When creating the name for this species, the show's creator decided to mash together the words *asteroid* - as in the small, rocky, sun-orbiting objects - and the star cluster *hyades* (pronounced "hai-uh-deez"), which is located within the Taurus constellation of Earth's solar system.

## Biology

The appearance of an asterade varies based on their age. Regardless of that, all asterades have several things in common. Their heads have a 3-dimensional physique, with each eye - sharp and often rhombus-shaped - taking place on either side of the head. The front of their faces are pointed in the middle and spiky in the back, giving their heads the look of a soaring comet (or just a smear frame). Above each eye ridge is a long, thin, pointy horn, each with a small circle hovering over them.

Their bodies are usually separated from their heads, a common trait of many of Igmus's species. The body is composed of a rectangular top half, followed by a round bottom half where the legs start, each leg having its own oval. Attached to the bottom of the legs are the feet, flat and shaped like thick lines. On the back of the asterade are a quad of ribbons, two attached at the shoulder blades and two more attached at the back of the hips.

Also detached from the body are its arms. The asterade's arms are organically shaped, starting out thin and square at the shoulder area before widening and rounding out at the palms. Across the round part of their palms are circular fingers, called "digits". Usually, the sizes of the circles don't match with the fingers of a human hand, for comparison, but in some cases, the asterade might have a larger digit that they might assimilate as the thumb, and the smallest one as a pinkie.

The texture of the asterade's body feels - and looks - reminiscent to a duvet blanket; warm, soft, thick, and smooth. How this species managed to manifest such and elegant coat is unknown, but it sure feels nice to touch! It also comes with some benefits for them, too, as the coats help them adapt to the temperatures of different locations, allowing them stay warm under cold conditions or to keep excess warm air from entering their bodies.

When developing the appearance of the asterade, the show's creator traced out a figure or silhouette out of an image of the Pleiades cluster, the same cluster that houses the double star system Sterope I (Tauri 21) and Sterope II (Tauri 22). If these names sound familiar...