Life: Species
Hain
Same word for singular and plural forms. Lifespan: 40 to 60 years typically. Old age takes them at around 130 given good quality of life.
Appearance:A small crowd of vaguely humanoid pale creatures busy themselves in and around communities of huts. Instead of skin and bones, they have smooth porcelain in scaled plates covering them and acting as an exoskeleton.
Hain are just over half the size of adult humans, but take different proportions. Their waists are thin compared to their chests and hips, their long forearms are thick and end in three dextrous fingers and a thumb textured to grip things, and their feet are large and digitigrade (walk on the balls of their feet rather than their heels), with each section of leg being about the same length. This makes for a skittering and awkward frame, but the hain move as naturally as any other biped.
The most prominent feature of hain are by far their heads. A single pale skull of elongated porcelain roughly takes the shape of a curved beak. The underside of the beak reveals another piece that makes up the jaw, opening to reveal a rough set of omnivorous teeth. On the middle-rear of this beak-head, on either side, are pairs of small eyes. Their beak head flits from side-to-side when looking at something, not unlike a bird. Two small holes near the front of the beak serve as nostrils.
(Author's note: the appearance of these creatures were inspired by the myrs from Magic: The Gathering. However, myr proportions and appearance were a tad too extreme to use for reference images here. Not to mention, most of those little guys were metallic and glowy.)
Description:The hain are a mostly failed attempt by Toun to create a slave race with longevity to serve his purposes. Hain take the essences of both Toun and Slough to make something unique and intelligent, but still driven by the influences of natural life.
PhysiologyHain are a drastic turn from the previous creation of Toun--the white giants. Instead of the bulky and powerful magical siphon, the cores of hain contain fully fledged respiratory, digestive, reproductive, muscular systems, etc. As well, their nervous system includes a brain that operates with true sentience, soul and all. Their senses are also conventional, save for two pairs of eyes that allow for depth perception on either of their flanks. A consequence of their eye arrangement make for blind spots directly in front and behind hain heads.
Their porcelain exoskeletons replace internal bones. This requires a specialised digestive system to cater for the raw materials. If the surface of the exoskeleton is damaged, they develop a replacement plate underneath the damage and moult the damaged plate off, all within a few days. They often break up the discarded plate to eat later. The exoskeleton is not nearly as thick as the hide of a white giant, breakable as a human bone would be. However, they do provide protection from scratches, insects, and parasites. Though small, hain can move swiftly and strongly in these heavy hides.
DietWild hain are tool using hunter-gatherers, feeding on creatures they can ambush and edible plants that they can find. In particular, their diet requires the bones of creatures that they can break in their jaws as well as patches of aluminium silicates. They have a taste for both and an adapted digestive system to process them. Both unusual supplements primarily feed their porcelain exoskeleton.
Early DevelopmentThe reproduction cycles of hain are reptile-like. There are males and females that mate to fertilise large eggs in clutches of one to three at a time. These eggs must be protected in an open nest for fifteen weeks before hatching. Newborn hain have an egg pipping tooth and an exoskeleton so thin that you can see the beating veins underneath. They grow quickly via pre-chewed food provided by their mother. Once they moult their birth exoskeleton over their first white porcelain skin--normally after two years--they are considered old enough to start eating without assistance and become hain children.
Hain children moult their exoskeleton once every month for ages two to four, with each moulting period becoming less common. Their moults slow to every two months for ages four to six, then every four months for six to eight, eight months for eight to ten, sixteen months for ten to twelve, continuing on as they grow until sexual maturity at around age fourteen when the moulting period changes slow to a reliable constant of a year and eight months. At this point, the hain is physically an adult. Adult hain continue to develop mentally as they experience life, as is to be expected.
SocietyHain are curious and social creatures that currently live in tribes that can range from ten to forty individuals, depending on availability of food. They are led by a group of the oldest hain in the tribes
Generally, hain have similar levels of intelligence to humans, though they tend to have different proportions of personality traits amongst them. For instance, hain have a keen eye for improving process, either by taking routes of less resistance or by inventing new things. They think outside of the box and innovate wherever they can. As well, they are conflict-adverse when it comes to matters within their own tribe. This is simply because compromise is much easier than injuring their friends, given their exoskeletons. Fighting for the sake of fighting is seen as child’s play. Rough-housing is common between hain children and rarely causes too much damage.
Warfare between tribes is not unheard of, but primitive weapons made for fighting are restricted to heavy clubs and wrestling techniques to break joints. Arrows and spears are used for hunting, but aren’t very effective against one another unless they find a joint. As much as possible, hain try only to injure and deter their enemies. It is seen as undesirable to be a hain murderer.
As it stands, hain are polygamous, with loving relationships forming in groups of between two and six interweaved partners. If a hain falls in love with another, they tend to also fall in love with their paramour's other partners. If there is a partner that they do not fall in love with, or rejects them, they tend to fall out of love with the original paramour. Their perception of love and relationships follow on to be fundamentally different to humans in this way.
Given their social nature and cooperative attitude, hain tend to be somewhat collective in their thinking. Their wills are much stronger when they have friends around, but utterly weak and cowardly when alone.
Two caveats follow these observations: All of these features may change as hain develop in the future, though vestigial influences may shine through. Also, individual hain may show completely different behaviours from time to time, much like humans.
Slave HainFive tribes of hain were mentally subjugated by an enraged Toun in order to use them as intended. These hain have had their minds permanently stunted and follow Toun's will unquestioningly. When not serving a purpose, they operate with a base animal intelligence to sustain themselves. Other hain see these creatures as uncanny and tend to avoid them at all costs.
Flaw:In Toun's eyes, the flaw of hain are their complexity. They are too susceptible to outside influence, too belligerent, too weak, and they have to be taught the required skills to serve him. They just have
too much Slough in them. He mitigated this by creating slave hain; a shadow of the creatures he wrought, devoid of their once great potential.
