Vanir (species)

The **Vanir**, also called **Eldens**, or **Fomori** by the Nyrish, **Nordics** and **Svartalfen** (**Dark Elves**) by Thule Society and Stormfront, are a race of vampiric soul eating psychic humanoid aliens from the planet Evanor. A cousin species of the Numerians (and of Humanity), they evolved as a nomadic civilization on their homeworld when they were visited by the Monolith. After failing to be selected, they vowed to chase the Monolith. They achieved interplanetary around 1 million B.C. then interstellar technology over tens of thousands of years and were the most powerful empire galaxywide by 20000 B.C. when they encountered Numer. After millennia-long cold war, they fought Numer and its military coalition for a century and destroyed it, achieving total galactic hegemony until august 2023 when a succession of civil wars, rebellions and invasions made it collapse.

They master psychics and biomechanics.

## Politics and diplomacy

From 9600 B.C. to 2023 A.D., the Eldenheim was the dominant power of the galaxy. The Eldenheim is a semi-constitutionnal hereditary monarchy with around a hundred monarchs in the Evenarius bloodline since its foundation.

They maintain diplomatic and economic relations with thousand of different civilizations in the Milkly Way and some of its satellite galaxies, including the Eight Tribes of Orok, the Nibelungen and multiple anthropian collaborators and worshippers on occupied worlds.

If mercenary activites are outlawed for Eldenheim citizens, the Eldenswhere (Ministry of Defense) employ thousands of mercenary groups from other species, including the Orokins (with Blackfang Galaxywide) or Humans (with DarkForest Offworldwide).

They are one of the founding members of the Interstellar Free Trade Zone (known as the "Galactic Federation" in Earth conspiracy circles) and use Element-115 as a galaxywide currency with civilizations at Kardashev I to II level.

## Biology

* Average lifespan : about 20,000 years.
* Average height : 190 to 200 cm for females and 216 to 226 cm for males.

## Technology

### Genetics

They use extensive genetic manipulation to absorb ADN from different species including DNA from plant to allow photosynthesis from gamma rays from giant blue stars. Those modifications allow them to live thousands of years, survive in vacuum and multiple different biospheres. They also have carbon-reinfored bones and eyes that can see at night time.

However, as they evolved on a low gravity world (0.6 g) and lived accordingly in their ships and space habitats ever since, they are vulnerable in high gravity worlds like Earth. During the Eldenkrieg, when the Emperor decided to deploy regular troops along with Orokin mercenaries, many cases of cardiac arrests were reported to the UMC Dzungarian HQ by front units and the surgeons that examined them, and to the EldensMind, because of variety of factors including gravity, radiations, micro-organisms and atmospheric composition and pressure. Overall, the vanir troops were under-efficient during surface operations in the Earth Theater (especially during the Hollow Earth guerilla warfare).

### Biotechnology

The most recognizable technological signature of the Vanirs are there biomechanicanial ships, vehicle and weaponry allowing neural-linked interface and near-instantaneous reflexes, faster than what artificial intelligence is capable of producing. Their biotechnology is also motivated by a strong "technophobia" resulting from traumatic cybernetic wars thousand of years in the past. They can "grow" their ships and armor like plants with photosynthesis (or other source of converted energy) and repair them, allowing ship to effectively repair themselves other time. A side effect is that theirs ships never really stop growing and the oldest ones, around 14,000 years old as of 2019, can double or more their original espected size.

However, they have no smart IA and simple microship technology in comparizon with the Nibelungen.

### Cooling technology

Another emblematic aspect of vanir technology is the gigantic razor-like solar sails and thermal radiators deployed from their ships and habitats, including merchant, scientific and military vessels, used for optimal radiation-conversion cooling.

### FTL

They master FTL travel through warping space with graviton-oriented rays, similar to the man-made Alcubierre drive, but much faster than most species. There ships travel at around 32,000 *c*. They also widely use the Warpgates Network which they effectively control with their hegemonic fleet, much like the Western alliance with Panama and Suez Canals.

### Military

While they master directed-energy weapons (DEWs) like plasma weaponry, they extensively use "conventionnal" weaponry including missiles, torpedoes, railguns and linear accelerated projectiles.

## Inspirations

* IRL, they are inspired by Precolombian civilizations (especially Mayans and Aztecs), Scythes, Mongols, Pharaonic Egypt and Imperial Japan.
* In legends, they are inspired by elves, vampires and fomori
* In fiction, they are inspired by Wraiths and Goa'ulds (Stargate), Xenomorphs (Gigerian art), Hellraiser, Dark Eldars (W40k) and Yuuzhan Vongs (SW).