Human Racial Information

Related Rules

• Racial Overview
• Darid
• Sussarian
• Tyconian
• Neo-Human
• Kisha
• Character Generation Rules

Physiology

Height and Weight

The average Human male is about 1.8 meters tall and masses about 85 Kg while the average female is about 1.75 meters tall and masses about 70 Kg.

Appearance

Skin coloration varies from dark black through shades of brown and yellow to peach color. Hair colors run from black through brown to red and blond. Eye colors can be blue, green, gray, brown, or mottled mixes. There seems to be no preference toward coloration.

Humans have a mirror symmetry to their bodies with the left and right halves being essentially mirror images of each other. They have two ears, eyes, arms, and legs and one nose and mouth. Each arm ends in a single hand with 5 digits. Each leg in a single foot with 5 toes. About 85% of Humans are right handed while about 15% are left handed. Less than 1% are ambidextrous.

Diet

Humans are omnivorous showing no inherent dietary preferences. Variations in dietary preferences are matters of taste or culture rather than a biological need.

Rest

The natural 'day' cycle for Humans is 24 hours. Their day is typically divided into three 8 hour periods. One for sleep and the other 2 for normal waking activities. A Human requires about 8 hours of sleep per 24 hour period. Failing to get the required amount of sleep has fatigue effects as described in the fatigue rules.

Reproduction

Humans may mate with Humans and some Non-Humans. Non-Humans with which successful mating can occur include: Neo-Humans, Kisha, and Darid. Mating with Kisha usually produces Kisha offspring, about 60% of the time. Darid and Humans produce Darid offspring about 40% of the time. Neo-Human and Human parings produce a Neo-Human child about 55% of the time.

Human females bear live offspring after a gestation period of about 9 months. Single births are common while multiple births are somewhat less so. There is no tendency towards the child being of one gender or the other.

Senses

Humans have five basic senses: Sight, Hearing, Touch, Taste, and Smell. Humans define the norm in these senses.

Anatomy

Human anatomy defines the norm against which other races, especially Human derivative races, are compared.

Humans have range of blood types. These are O+/-, A+/-, B+/-, and AB+/-. Human blood in plasma form can be given to all but Sussarians, and in whole form to Darid, Kisha, and Neo-Human.

Lifespan

A typical Human lifespan is about 100 years. Human growth and development is, again, the defining norm. Humans reach independence at about 13 and full adult hood about 18.

Psychology

Family

Humans, as a rule, have strong family structures. They use their families as a support structure for both emotional and financial needs. Particularly strong is the parent-child bond. Parents remain very protective of their children long after they are adults. In some case to the point where the parent will help out criminal children and even deny their obvious guilt.

Power

Another major motivation for Humans, especially within the Empire, is power. While other races seem to have a clear cut purpose and destiny, Humans don't seem to be factored into the Great Plan of the Elders. To counter this feeling, many Humans strive to acquire power and wealth in a effort to exert influence over the Empire and its course.

Religion

Humans are frequently motivated by their religious beliefs, even if that belief is that there is nothing to believe in. Differences in religious beliefs have often been a key motivator in wars though out known Human history.

Society and Culture

Because Humans are the single most populace species within known space, their society and culture is especially diverse and difficult to describe. It is full of contradictions and opposites, especially among the more isolated worlds.

Religion

One of the common themes in Human societies is religion. The details of the religion is often very different but virtually every culture has one. Moreover, most of the religions have a single all-powerful, all-knowing god and an afterlife. The reason for this commonality even among remote and isolated low tech planets is still a mystery.

Social Species

Another theme that seems common to all Humans is that they are a supremely social species. They seem to need social interaction to survive. Studies have shown that Humans who have been in strict isolation suffer from severe psychological disorders. However, studies also show that when that isolation ends, they recover rapidly and often virtually completely. Human children are particularly sensitive to the need for social and physical contact. Physical and psychological development can be permanently impaired if a child is raised without such interactions.

Another interesting feature of Humans' social behavior is that any race can fulfill that need, not merely Humans. This is very puzzling since many other races, who tend to need social nurturing much less, seem to prefer it from their own species.

Adaptability

The final and perhaps most notable feature of Human society and culture (and of their physiology and psychology as well) is adaptability. Humans are the single most adaptable species known to date. They can adjust to a very wide range of cultural and social standards as well as to a large variety of environmental conditions. In general, their psyche is similarly adaptable and remarkably resilient.

This resilience and adaptability is probably their most powerful feature. And so unprecedented that, it seems, even the Elders were uncertain how to harness it or where it fits into the larger picture.