Tasaar

Tasaar are a nomadic, feudal, deeply religious and extremely hostile spacefaring society which controls at least 80% of the northeastern quadrant of the galaxy through its system of tributary vassals, but at one point possibly controlled over half of the galaxy. Tasaar males are heavily muscled and hairless, bearing simian head and facial features. Tasaar females typically sport a slight amount of body hair and far less 'ugly' facial features.

### Government

The Tasaar government was composed of the Emperor, who held sole decision-making power, his Chancellor of the Fleet, and his Chancellor of the Army, who both act as supreme advisors to the emperor, and, in times of war, commanders of their respective forces. When a Tasaar emperor turns 50 years of age, a list of suitable candidates for succession, often including the Emperor's own sons or daughters, participates in a series of games and practice combats which determine one challenger. The challenger and reigning emperor fight each other to the death, and the victor becomes the next Emperor, forsaking all names and becoming the divine ruler of the Tasaar.

### Religion

Tasaar religion is centered around the "Ancestor", a deity which, if legend is to be believed, created the first Tasaar fleet and decreed that the species would never again settle until it found "the Promised Land". Emperors rule with the divine power of the Ancestor, and as such, an emperor's death in battle is seen to be an extremely ill omen, and has been known to be a morale-shattering loss; most recently, this was demonstrated at the Battle of Loran. Tasaar religious zealots have been known to split off from the fleet and engage in acts of piracy in the name of the Ancestor. It is also due in no small part to Tasaar religion that their migratory fleet engages in regular acts of forced vassalization, preying on empires and kingdoms that lacked proper military force to rid themselves of the Tasaar.

### Fleet (For more, see Tasaar Grand Fleet)

The Tasaar Fleet survives on the tribute which it collects from its vassals, using material to make, repair and upgrade ships, and food to feed its soldiers and civilians. The fleet acts as a moving city, featuring pleasure barges, massive cargo vessels, community centers, living vessels and hospital ships. Of the 30,000 or more vessels that make up the Grand Fleet, perhaps 6,000 are capable of military action. In the days before the Tasaar War, the fleet numbered perhaps 100,000, with over 30,000 combat-capable vessels. Scholars have long given up attempting to classify each type of Tasaar ship, as more often than not, the specifications simply reflect the captain's wishes for the vessel, and no true "class" system exists in the Tasaar navy.

### Ground Forces

Tasaar ground forces are extremely versatile and encompass several different races. Tasaar regulars are born and raised members of the Tasaar warrior caste, and most stand as tall (or taller) than the average Human male, but Tasaar are typically physically stronger. Regulars are afforded exceptional equipment and training, and often go into battle with a sword or Strike Lance alongside their primary weapon.

The Tasaar military, lately, has experienced serious complications with its military. Having never been forced into all-out war with an aggressive and equally-powered spacefaring nation, the Tasaar were sent reeling after their defeat on Oasis in 2540. Even after passing certain breeding laws, the Tasaar had trouble filling out the ranks of their normal military units to attend to a multi-front war, and had to rely heavily on conscripted troops from vassal planets. The Tarkan species was vehemently opposed to fighting for the Tasaar after the liberation of Oasis, and most Tarkan personnel were purged in favor of more mindless Centaur soldiers. This was also considered a mistake after the drone-like Centaurs proved, though high in volume, poor soldiers often outperformed by enemy units. Reskir and Zychor soldiers were considered to be suitable replacements for Tasaar soldiers, but Tasaar soldiers became something of a delicacy rather quickly.

### History

It is believed, through what could be gathered through various dialogues with prisoners and Tasaar officials, as well as the word of Dal'Korri tus Sendavan, that the Tasaar race became spacefarers perhaps 30,000 years ago. The Grand Fleet was likely first assembled around 25,000 years ago. By the time humanity mastered space flight and began to colonize, the Tasaar likely already ruled 40% of the galaxy, and they would reach the zenith of their power in 2520 under the 912th Emperor, who declared in a logbook "Today I have come to possess half of the galaxy. I aim to possess it all before I perish".

The 912th Emperor was killed by Tigran Sarkis and Derek Lee during Operation Trojan. This has been considered one of the darkest days in Tasaar history, as the heavily-embattled Tasaar fleet was sent reeling by the death of the Emperor, having lost the Chancellor of the Fleet due to Tristen Malax's sacrifice days earlier. The Tasaar Grand Fleet lost a fifth of its vessels almost immediately following the battle, with many splintering into their own smaller nomadic fleets or turning to piracy. The 913th Emperor, declared two days later, ordered an immediate withdrawal from the entire sector which Oasis sat in, fearing reprisal attacks despite the vast numerical inferiority possessed by the Tarkan Regime Navy, thoroughly convinced that the Ancestor had been sending a powerful message.

In a way, the grim predictions of the 913th Emperor were proven correct over time. The Tasaar War, the 10-year conflict which took place after the end of Masterly's War, effectively ended Tasaar hegemony over much of the galaxy.

**The Kulsitan Empire**

In 2552, two years after the end of the Tasaar War, the 921st Tasaar Emperor, Lao'kan Kulsitar, abolished the Grand Fleet and established the Kulsitan Empire. This marked the first time in perhaps 26,000 years that the Tasaar had abandoned their nomadic lifestyle in favor of a hereditary monarchy with core territory. This decision did not go over well with many of the chancellors and led to the formation of the Ancestor's Fist.