BRAKIRI

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The Brakiri have gained a reputation as pack rats, who invent nothing and only steal technological advances from others. However, the Brakiri Syndicracy is one of the main powers within the League of Non-Aligned Worlds and they have gathered a great many allies through the political and trade treaties.

**Personality:** Of primary importance to any Brakiri is the improvement of his social standing, usually through the acquisition of wealth and proﬁt. They are noted as traditionally always seeking the best circumstances for themselves, often to the detriment of their immediate friends and allies. Though not naturally given to violence, any Brakiri will argue long and hard for his fair share of any proﬁt. As a whole, Brakiri hold no allegiance to anyone but themselves, but will pay nominal fealty to a water clan and possibly a corporation (though they are often one and the same on their homeworld of Brakos), for it is recognised that through a powerful ally they may gain greater social standing.

**Physical Description:** Brakiri are humanoid in appearance, with thick, tough leathery skin. Evolving on a harsh and dry world, the Brakiri have adapted to live at night in order to escape their sun’s burning glare. This has granted them an ability to see in pitch darkness that far exceeds that of any other race.

**Relations:** Having once been conquered by the Centauri, the Brakiri have little love for the Republic, but even this will not stop individuals readily trading with the Centauri in order to gain vital merchant contracts. The Brakiri are eager to avoid war and conﬂict themselves, for there is rarely any real proﬁt in ﬁghting. Their over-eagerness to secure a better deal has gained them a poor reputation, though their network of trade treaties has done much to stabilise areas of the League of NonAligned Worlds in the past, for even the most pugnacious of governments is often won over by hard credits. However, by concentrating on trade rather than scientiﬁc development, the Brakiri have come to rely on others for technological advancement, which has led many to consider them as being little more than pack rats.

**Brakiri Systems:** The Brakiri Syndicracy is based on the homeworld of Brakos but encompasses three other systems. This, together with the extensive trade treaties the Brakiri have negotiated since ﬁrst travelling to the stars, have made the Syndicracy a political force to be reckoned with in the League. The Syndicracy is governed primarily by proﬁt-driven corporations which themselves originated from ancient water clans who regulated and fought over the provision of water until the Brakiri gained a foothold in space and were able to mine ice from their outer planets. This process of government sometimes seems abhorrent to races who view it as distinctly unenlightened and greed-ridden, but it is a system that plays directly into the Brakiri psychology and has allowed them to claim a place in the galaxy.

**Brakiri Beliefs:** Like many in the League of Non-Aligned Worlds, Brakiri believe in the existence of a Great Maker who created all worlds and all races. However, their primary beliefs centre on the only comet to orbit their home solar system, a celestial phenomena that has bafﬂed astrologists and cosmologists from many worlds. The comet, which makes an appearance in Brakos skies once every 200 years, is a potent symbol of death for any Brakiri and any mention of it when it is not in the skies is a great taboo, even a prophecy of death or disaster. The comet is due to return to Brakos in 2262 and many Brakiri are now working hard to prepare for the solemn ceremony that will herald its coming.

**Language:** Of all the races, the Brakiri have come to accept the use of English as the common language on Babylon 5 most readily and most are highly ﬂuent. They still retain their own language on Brakos and other systems within the Syndicracy but do not jealously defend it in the way other races do within the League.

**Names:** Brakiri do not differentiate between the males and females of their species through naming systems, considering each individual’s worth by their accomplishments and social standing, never by sex. Thus, it is common to ﬁnd males and females sharing names and it is only when one Brakiri distinguishes himself to a great degree that his name may be reserved for a single sex in future generations. However, this is a rare event in a proﬁt-driven society and many parents may be keen to adopt such a name for their offspring whatever its sex, to ensure the best possible chances for its success when reaching adulthood.

**Brakiri Names:** Kronir, Kuulimbak, Nakir, Resha, Saphak, Wakat.

**Brakiri Clan / Corporation Names:** Ak-Habil, Im-Rehnsa, Ly-Nakir, Pri-Wakat, Zy-Torga-Ran.

**Starfarers:** With their homeworld well developed and exploited, many Brakiri have turned to the stars to seek proﬁt and fortune. They make for natural traders and the galaxy has opened avenues for wealth and proﬁt that their ancestors could only have dreamt about. They are driven by a sense of acquisition and work hard to bring any expensive or worthwhile object or technology into their possession.

**BRAKIRI SPECIES TRAITS**

• • All Brakiri are of Medium size.

• • Brakiri have a base speed of 10 meters.

• • Darkvision: The Brakiri are a night-dwelling race and are perfectly capable of seeing in pitch darkness. Utilising infrared light waves, Brakiri can see at night by the heat imaging of their surroundings, to a range of 20 meters. They do not require any amount of residual light for this to function.

• • Brakiri are well practiced at assessing the worth of any item they come into contact with and determining the best method of acquiring it, making them excellent traders and merchants. They gain Appraise, Bluff and Sense Motive as a class skill regardless of their actual class and a +2 bonus to all Appraise, Bluff and Sense Motive checks.

• • When in hot conditions, Brakiri avoid the penalty to Fortitude saving throws for wearing heavy clothing or armour. In addition, they only need make a Fortitude saving throw every two hours when in very hot conditions and every 20 minutes when in extremely hot climates. A Brakiri can go without water for two days plus a number of hours equal to twice his Constitution score

• • Automatic Language Feats: Fluency (Brakiri), Fluency (Human) and Fluency (any one other language of the Brakiri’s choice).