A note from the Alien Worlds Loremasters: The Khaureds have been designed and released as the successor race to the Reptiloids, and form part of a comprehensive revamp of Alien Worlds races to allow for richer and more unique storytelling and lore creation opportunities. Various aspects of Reptiloid lore have been merged with that of the Khaureds, including their natural prowess in battle and the role of female Khaureds in more nuanced situations such as business and politics.
Introducing the Khaureds
Khaureds are aptly evolved to handle the high gravity and various airborne gaseous hazards of their home planet of Khaur. Typically a stocky race with thick, pebbly skin that acts as a natural body armor, protecting them from attacks and various phenomena such as caustic gasses, and their densely packed musculature - owing to the high gravity environment in which they evolved - makes them physically powerful compared to most other Federation races. They are the only race to possess a third eye in the center of their forehead, which remains closed at most times but will open during periods of intense physical or spiritual focus.
Whilst they make excellent mercenaries and bodyguards, culturally they are incredibly focused, driven by a strong sense of purpose. As such, before a Khaured will commit to a contract - or anything that requires their services - they must be convinced that the job is worth doing. They do not simply go with the highest bidder, they will assess the the worthiness of the cause they’re being employed for; if hired as mercenaries to fight a war, they must be convinced that the war is worth fighting, or to be contracted as bodyguards for a powerful ambassador, they must be persuaded that the ambassador merits their protection. Therefore, those seeking to hire the services of a Khaured must have an excellent “sales pitch”.
Female Khaureds tend to be the brokers and negotiators, whilst males are more physically oriented - though this does not preclude there being crossover between the two sexes in terms of the roles that they perform. As a species, they are renowned as strong and relentless fighters, preferring to use hand weapons and engage in close combat - though they are also excellent marksmen thanks to the additional depth perception and triangulation capability offered by their third eye. They are almost universally cool-headed in combat making them deadly opponents that are rarely goaded into mistakes or rash action.
In terms of politics Khaureds are dedicated and intensely loyal, driven to excel at their aims. This makes them a powerful political force in the Federation, though they prefer facts and bluntness to misdirection or intrigue. They often end up being a jarring presence, interrupting the otherwise delicate dance of interstellar politics, though when Khaureds are involved things at least tend to get done (for better or worse). They are implacable and ruthless when it comes to business as well, driven by the incessant need to see ever-increasing success and measuring themselves against their peers in an ongoing battle of dedicative prowess.
An element of Khaured society bridles against the ruthless and driven aspects of their race, instead exploring creativity, philosophy and various other intellectual endeavors. These individuals have created their own sect and retreated from wider Khaured society, building fabulous communities and monasteries high in the mountains far from civilization, their intricacy and beauty a stark juxtaposition to the blocky, brutalist architecture of typical Khaured towns and cities.
Rumour has it that the spiritual Khaureds have vast, ancient libraries in their mountain retreats, along with artworks of such ethereal beauty that only those who have reached a certain level of spiritual enlightenment may look upon them, lest they be struck blind or driven mad. In order to achieve such an enlightened state, Khaured gurus spend many years with only their third central eye open, attuning themselves through it to higher planes of existence. The closer to enlightenment that they are, the milkier the third eye becomes - though this is not through advancing blindness, but a change that enables sight beyond the corporeal.
Khaured Architecture
The gravity on Khaur is such that the Khaureds were forced to create robust structures lacking typical decorative paraphernalia found across the architectural styles of other races. This coupled with their penchant for function over form and general lack of artistic drive, has resulted in a brutalist style of architecture that looms imposingly over the landscape. Typical Khaured structures are akin to fortresses, thick-walled and constructed from highly durable materials.
The hard, brutalist lines of Khaured architecture carry through into their building interiors, and like the exteriors there are no unnecessary frills. Everything inside a Khaured building must serve some sort of purpose, and as such even the private quarters of Khaured individuals lack much in the way of decoration. The one exception to this is owing to the deep-seated need to show pride in their accomplishments, hence most Khaureds have a personal display case where they keep trophies from their endeavors, the majority of which are weapons or select parts taken from vanquished foes.
Spiritualist Khaureds seek to be the exception to the regimented, soulless norms of their race in every way, including their approach to architecture. Whilst they cannot completely eschew the need for robust construction, and likewise are unable to add fragile decorations to the outside of their buildings, they seek to add as much artistic flair to the construction of their buildings as possible. Visually they are still immediately recognizable as Khaured, but grander and with attention paid to details that beautify their form.
These Spiritualist retreats are also built in areas deemed to be of great natural beauty, whereas typical Khaureds pay no attention to such things, instead strictly reviewing the tactical pros and cons of the terrain upon which they wish to build.
The interiors of Spiritualist citadels are spacious and structurally detailed, with generous use of what - to Khaureds at least - are deemed as vibrant colors, and placement of artworks where possible. There is still a practicality to these interiors, but they strive to be warm, welcoming and appealing to the eye. There are public spaces where Khaureds are encouraged to gather, socialize and enjoy a much more varied cuisine than could ever be found in a typical Khaured city. There are also areas dedicated purely to spiritual cultivation, designed to offer a tranquil environment for would-be gurus to achieve mastery over the ethereal plane.
Khaured Vehicles
The technological development of the Khaureds has always focused heavily on military application, and their spacefaring craft are formidable in every respect with the densest loadouts of weaponry of any of the Federation races, and powerful ablative hull designs that allow them to weather heavy incoming fire. The Vanguard battle-cruiser is perhaps the most impressive of their large vessels, possessing an array of cannons & missile launchers, and several ultra-long range artillery capable of planetary bombardment from high orbit.
In addition to their larger brute force spacecraft the Khaureds are also well known for their small dogfighting craft, with individual pilots demonstrating almost unmatchable skill in part owing to their extra depth perception and quickened reflexes in lower gravity environments.
The Khaured penchant for building bipedal and quadrupedal mechanoids for ground-based campaigns has been the subject of some debate, as ostensibly wheeled or tracked ground vehicles are more practical. However, upon witnessing one of these mechs being piloted it becomes immediately clear that they suit the Khaured nature perfectly, offering more diverse functionality and the ability to reach locations no other ground vehicle could. The Khaureds treat their mechs as extensions of their own bodies, with military versions typically being bipeds carrying both mech-sized handheld cannons and melee weapons such as swords and axes capable of inflicting devastating damage in close combat. Colonization mechs are typically quadrupeds carrying the necessities for constructing new outposts, though they also tend to be equipped with turret-mounted cannons for defense.