Ch'Ar

The Ch'Ar are a slender reptilian species, characterised by sharp edges that commonly taper to a point. Their many horns, spine and bone-like tail are one of their most distinguishing features. Their tribal society and values have undergone a great leap forward in tolerance and diversity since the Interstellar Era, this has stretched their presence in many directions ranging from skilled hunters to international athletes.

Anatomy

Ch’Ar have adopted a bipedal stance with digitigrade legs. Their pairs of hands and feet each come with three fingers and a thumb placed further backwards. Among the spikes running over their spine which end in a bonified tail they share many characteristics with the Ara’Athan, a closely related species which has always played an important role in their culture. With a thin face tapered to an edge their heads are shaped like a rhombus. The ridge that runs from front to back on their head curves upwards towards the tip of the cranium. On either side of the curve where the neck meets the skull both males and females have horns. The male horns curve upwards and past the tip of the skull, while female horns curve more outwards. The Ch’Ar feature a third eyelid that protects the eyeball from drought and intense sunlight. Their pupils are slit vertical into the brightly coloured eyeball. Their faces are streamlined with a limited range of emotions, mostly relying on the brows and intonation shifts in speech. Because of the lack of lips their speech is translated from clicking and hissing sounds. Their teeth are formed on the outside of the mouth by sharp protrusions of hard skin and bone. While having great biteforce, the jaw of the Ch'Ar is also the most fragile part, since their mouth has little soft tissue but instead a long and narrow, flexible tongue. Females and infants have an area of soft tissue where males would grow their tusks at the corner of their mouths during adolescence. This functioned as stimuli for mothers during the upbringing of a child.
Male Ch’Ar bodies feature scales in deep shades of red, usually darker at places where their skin gets harder. Females often are smaller than their male counterparts and are more vividly coloured in lighter shades of red. Their skins are covered with rhomboid scales that smoothly fit adjunct each other, these make for a flexible skin strong enough so it can endure the continuous blasts of sand. Unlike the flexible areas, the shoulders, elbows and knees are provided with hardened keratinous skin. There are also areas with soft tissue in the neck. These work as an extra respiratory function since the skin there can open up work as a set of gills. These help the Ch’Ar cool down, as they do not sweat.
Ch'Ars have vividly coloured eyes and bodily fluids which all come in the same bright colour. They often are green, yellow or purple. These features exhibit the strange trait of glowing in the dark. It is believed to be a remain of the ritual fight for a mate during night times as the temperatures would lower. The more injured an opponent the more visible they would become, making it even harder to compete.

Sensory Traits

The hot climates provided the Ch’Ar with a greater resistance to high temperatures, this reducing their ability to fare well in colder climates drastically. Due to the daytime heat the Ch’Ar also adapted themselves to a more nocturnal lifestyle. They see about as much in complete darkness as Humans can make up during a full moon. It’s not perfect night vision, so caution or tools are still necessary for visual aid.
Their field of view is rather limited with a blind spot in front of their nose, though it has a good depth perception. With their eyes positioned at the sides of their head this is believed to have been an evolutionary compromise from a previous lifestyle. Another remarkable feature is that their bone structure takes a great amount of time to heal, up to three times as long as the Human equivalent. On the counterpart of the strong but fragile bones the Ch’Ar have slender and short muscles developed for burst-actions.
With long, slender bodies adapted to desert climates the Ch’Ar make for poor swimmers. Many of them ever get educated properly on the techniques to this day, as water is scarce in their environments and gets treated with great respect.

Genetics

Ch’Ar are commonly sexually mature by the age of 22. Both male and female stay fertile for 40 years on average, during which time they may reproduce multiple times over their lifetime. When a male and female Ch’Ar mate the male seed travels over to fertilize the female’s eggs that will potentially develop. Chances of a successful fertilisation are low however, with less than half of the mating attempts being successful. Because of these low chances single eggs are quite common, though there are exceptions with multiple hatchings being recorded.
After carrying for 2 weeks the mother will find a warm place in the sand to deposit the fertilized eggs in until they are fully matured. The time spent brooding on these eggs can take up to 40 days where the mother will stay on top or around the batch for safety as the sand outside of the housing regulates the heat. Incubators are a common method of maturing the eggs as well since their modernising period.

Growth Rate & Stages

Ch’Ar develop mostly during the first decades of their average lifespan of 130 years. From hatching to the age of 10 exploration and growth is central in a child’s life as they learn about their environment and themselves. During these early years their body is also most fragile, as they grow rapidly. Therefore, during this stage children are often carried on top of their parents’ heads. Their juvenile years are spent until they are around the age of 25 where traditionally a trail would be held to determine their readiness for adult life. These trails are not always held with old traditions of Quilling or sparring, yet it is still common to hold a ceremonial bonfire. As an adult the Ch’Ar are free to roam wherever they desire and are unbound by family strings to go settle with a mate. Their bodies start to show the first signs of old age around their 60s until they are classified as elders around the age of 100. This is when muscles and joints become stiffer and the skin loses resilience.

Ecology

Their home planet is a rocky desert with temperatures averaging around 40°C. Evolution in this harsh environment provided them with a good resistance to warm temperatures. The risk of hypothermia is therefore greater if otherworldly experiences don’t come with the right warming clothing.

Diet

The Ch’Ar diet mainly consist of various types of meat, fish and insects. They are used to eating multiple times a day with limited amounts of food at a time. In addition to their basic needs they also take kind to fruits as its sweet tastes are rare on their home planet.

Social Structure

Much of the Ch’Ar lifestyle is still based upon tradition. To this day male Ch’Ar names end with an “-us”, female names end with an “-as”. Family names are not used as children adopt the name of their father or mother as a surname, a son after his father while a daughter takes the one from her mother. The latter part of their name is devoted to the name of the clan they are in.
Throughout centuries they lived in a sort of clan, a Tchalit: a tight group of families ranging from fifteen to fifty units. This group behaviour still consists to this day, as it is noticeable most Ch’Ar prefer less crowded areas and are picky on their group of close contacts. Whenever Tchalit expand beyond the common numbers it is often seen that these split up or branch off, Ch’Ar moving out to claim ground elsewhere either on their home planet or on possible other planets since the Interstellar Era.
An average family will have two children which are trained and kept close. Within clans all parents take care of the children of one another, as in the past there were no guarantees that one’s parents would live long enough to raise their own children. In most modern clans the children will be kept around the original parents.

Culture

The Ch'Ar originated from Rh'Aerillis, a red-desert planet with enough supplies to keep only the greatest alive. Therefore, it was a competition to become the best and climb the social hierarchy. The family you lived with was at the very core of existence, and the clan you were part of was held to high regard. The mindset of a clan can often determines that of its offspring. Many clans have undergone changes throughout the centuries, adopting a more openminded view and valuing interstellar relationships and research. However, this is not adopted by all, as many Tchalit still value the old traditions of warfare, conquest, patriarchal values and hold grudges against those who contradict the old ways. Ch'Ar spend a great amount of time on education and planning, the material they learn of course depending on the clan’s mindset and core principles.
Warfare and combat are a central aspect of the male Ch’Ar culture, this coming in various degrees depending on the social stance of the clan. Nonetheless the varying mindsets, they make for good combatants and have bodies well equipped for these fights. In older Tchalit females will not fight often as it is considered immodest. However, there is a notable increase and acceptance of female warrior Ch’Ar since the Interstellar Era, as a more inclusive mindset developed. The sharp elbows and knees of the Ch’Ar can be used for puncturing and slicing opponents, as sodo their claws and tusks. Their skins are hardened yet disadvantaged with the long healing time needed for wounds and broken bones.
Whenever engaging in warfare or honourable fights, Ch’Ar often wear warpaint. These come in various colours, often related to their clan or core values, and cover their faces, torso and limbs in patterns of varying density. In the old days these warpaints were applied during sacred ceremonies, and while some still hold these to the same superstitious beliefs, more modern Ch’Ar still believe in the importance of the warpaint. It is seen as an act of courage and trust, signifying their dedication to the cause, no matter the chances of loss.
The Ch'Ar did believe in higher forms that had power, but these would not interfere or punish you for what you did while you were alive. Instead, they would only reward those that accomplished great things, or made an honourable sacrifice. One notable deity was the god of the sun, Val, who would give and take life on a planet scorched by her heat, a furnace where she created the strongest warriors. In honour of these powers both the summer and winter solstice are celebrated in Ch’Ar culture.
In some clans the ritual of Quilling is still practiced aside of the ceremonial bonfire with sparring. This is a ceremony that happens when a Ch’Ar comes of age that involves body modification by implanting Da’Edris pods. Because of the natural resistance to the puncturing pods they are applied through incisions in the skin where the pods then get planted inside. After the parasitic plant develops and evolves the remains of the dried out, calcified horn-like structure will remain permanently buried into their skin.

Spread

Originally from the desert planet Rh’Aerillis. Now the Ch'Ar are spread across the galaxy and often live with multiple clans on a same world in more varied, generally warm, environments.

Addendum

The Ara’Athan are speculated to be an old branch of the Ch’Ar species as they share many biological similarities. However, as Ch’Ar walk upright, the Ara’Athan have remained on all fours. They are considered to be close companions, as a loyal Ara’Athan will stay by the side of its owner with remarkable fidelity and understanding.

Average Lifespan	100 years
Average Height	M: 220 cm F: 200 cm
Average Length	M: 100 cm F: 80 cm
Average Weight	M: 80 Kg F: 70 Kg
Average Build	Sharp