Stryxis - Slavery and Piracy: The Stryxis are also known for their dealings as slavers and pirates. Thankfully rare, the number of Stryxis who turn to these distasteful ventures are nevertheless often highly influential within their society. However, there is usually no way to tell the difference between a Stryxis who wants to sell merchandise and one who simply wants to take it by force.In fact, most Stryxis alternate between piracy and trade depending on the circumstances. However, they are a somewhat cautious race in general, and will not risk piracy unless they are assured of success. Therefore, they are often more likely to turn to slavery.Depending on who is asked, the lines between a Stryxis pirate, merchant, and slaver are often blurred. A known merchant and arms dealer might bargain with his clients one day and sell them into slavery the next. The only constant seems to be that they do whatever is in their own best interests at the time, which is why it is always best to deal with the Stryxis from a position of strength.Although Stryxis slavers have no qualms about attacking voidships and settlements for slaves, they prefer to have others do the work, and simply purchase their "meat." To the Stryxis, the slaves are simply another commodity to be traded and sold. In some ways this benefits their victims -- slave pens are crowded but sanitary, and overseers rarely resort to lethal measures. A slave killed is profit lost, after all.However, the slave-traders of the Stryxis are still reviled and shunned throughout the Koronus Expanse. Once a slave is sold, a Stryxis does not care about its fate, and stories abound of entire cargos being traded to dark powers or vile xenos for unspeakable sacrifices or perversions. Likewise, a Stryxis will not hesitate to perform surgeries or behavioural modifications on slaves to make them more valuable or suited for a customer's needs.A Stryxis will purchase almost any intelligent race as slaves. The only notable exceptions are those species who can easily dominate the Stryxis (such as the Rak'Gol) and the Aeldari -- whom the Stryxis will waste no time in attempting to eliminate with extreme prejudice.There are also those who have need of fighting soldiers to help them wage war. For them, the Stryxis can provide these needs in the form of slave-mercenaries who are controlled by a single Stryxis handler. The slaves are controlled by a variety of means from bomb collars and excruciator devices to mental conditioning or drug-fuelled compliance.The Stryxis are happy to contract out their soldiers for limited engagements or lengthy campaigns, and once the matter concludes, they pack up any survivors and move on to the next war. Stryxis slave-mercenaries are often equally desperate and brutal. Those who do well and survive to fight again and again are sometimes released from their servitude to make their way through the galaxy as they see fit.This does not happen often, but the mere possibility makes the mercenaries utterly savage in combat. However, it has been noted that on the rare occasions that the Stryxis participate in conflict themselves, they do not use their slave-mercenaries. Instead, they rely entirely on vat-grown warriors, perhaps preferring utter loyalty to convenience and low costs.Stryxis pirates are really no different than Stryxis merchants, save that they turn to violence more readily. These xenos pirates tend to utilise better-armed and armoured caravan-ships and attack targets of opportunity they come across, such as ill-defended voidships and colonies -- often demanding tribute in the form of whatever strikes their fancy.Should the hapless victims not have whatever these demented xenos desire, the pirates attack. If, by the grace of the God-Emperor, they should be able to comply with the insane depravities of these aliens, then they simply send over a party to gather the items and return another day.