Gegno - TheGiraffe3/Endless-Sky-Creators-Handbook GitHub Wiki
Original text, by Saugia
NAVIGATION
INTRODUCTION
The Gegno are a mixed humanoid species, comprised of 3 subspecies that for the most part differentiate one faction from another.
The first subspecies is called the Iaculex, whom are notably larger and bulkier than a human and slightly orc-ish. They have scaley reddish-brown skin, two large horns in the shape of an arc in front of them, and are somewhat hunched and have lower heads. The Iaculex don asymmetrical heavy armor.
The second subspecies is the Usuelit, whom are smaller and slimmer, slightly taller than a human figure. Instead of scaly skin, their skin is more rough and bone-like with a low-saturated green and white tint. The Usuelit don shorter symmetrically played armor that almost resembles feathers.
Finally there are the Satequli, who's builds and appearances range between both ends of the Usuelit and Iaculex, making up a majority of the Gegno's population. Rather than types of armor, the Satequli have more leather and belted-looking clothing.
The design of the 3 Gegno Species initially started out simply Orc vs Goblin, but has much since deviated from that, and was inspired by the game Gears of War's Locust species (Mauler, Kantus, and Drone):
HISTORY
The Gegno were born on a distant, rugged, rocky world with layers of cave systems beneath the crust. As their world grew more populated and cities grew large, the future of their civilization was questioned a multitude of times. The Iaculex are very battle-driven, and believe that proof of strength, survivability, and unwaveringness are the most important attributes of a Gegno. They are always fighting for their pride, no matter the cost or risk. On the opposite hand, the Usuelit are very intelligent and achievement driven, focusing on technological and scientifical advancement, believing that to be the future of the Gegno. The Satequli, being the most common of the Gegno, are both intelligent and strong, and do not lean more one way than the other. Therefore, the Satequli are the most well-rounded Gegno, and live longer than their more ambitious brethren. However, the one fatal flaw of the Satequli is that despite their strength in both sides, they lack the drive and persistence to push their future and live quiet, seldom lives day-to-day. They may be perceptive, but have little desire to take the reins of the Gegno's future themselves.
Stagnation of the population became a serious problem, and due to a lack of pursuit for the future, the Gegno split into 2 different factions: The Gegno Vi, who mostly consist of the Iaculex, the Gegno Scin, who mostly consist of the Usuelit. The Satequli remained the most common Gegno but, unlike their brethren, remained complacent and did not strike out as another spear into the future. (It's worth noting that although the Vi and Scin had very opposite spectrum ideologies, they never saw each other as the wrong ideology- more so, they saw their own as the more correct ideology- the better alternative of two good alternatives.) Under strong, passionate leaders, the Vi and the Scin declared war on the other, with the victory prize being the steering rudder for the future of the Gegno. The Wars that followed became known as the Gegno Gauntlet Wars, starting from single assassinations, to civil wars, and to world-wide wars.
Never seeing this sort of conviction and commitment, even the Satequli began joining both ranks of the Vi and the Scin under their preferred ideals. Over time, the bloodshed increased, and the population decreased, and after hundreds of years, the Satequli realized that continued warfare would be the end of their species, with the Vi and Scin reluctantly following shortly after. This led to a new post-war act called the Gegno Growth Doctrine, in which the Gegno at this point in their history became capable of space travel. The Vi and Scin agreed that continuing war would only hurt the Gegno, and pushed most of their efforts and resources into finding new colonies for the Gegno to thrive on, reaching past the stars for help. An uneasy peace resulted from this act, and within that time period their homeworld of Dueyu Eitch was rebuilt upon greater advancements.
Eventually, the Vi and Scin became weary of each other once again and begun to build their own war forces and fleets at their new planets. Both knew that eventually they would have to fight one another to solidify the true future of the Gegno, seeing their respective ideologies as the absolute path. As time went on, so did the need for resources, and the next largest conflict in Gegno history began in the stars. A large, material-rich system was discovered right between the boundaries of the Vi and Scin, home to an enormous rich ring-system planet. Necessary to fuel both of the efforts of the Vi and the Scin, the Gegno would face warface once again, but this time, instead of a timely extinction, it would be the resulting future of the race entirely.
MAP
Gegno Space separates off of Bunrodea/Automata space with a few systems and sits in the upper left arm of the galaxy. The factions are split into three different areas as well.
There will be two ways to reach the Gegno. One is through jump-drive, which will be done so through the upcoming Bunrodea space. For the second, there have been questions raised on whether or not Gegno content should be accessed earlier due to their tech level, so me and Zitchas have agreed on a Remnant wormhole link, which adds to the idea that the Ember Wastes have resulting wormholes to more than just the south and west. This is also a link to work with if we were to get to the Gegno before core systems are added.
DESIGN
The Concept of the Gegno is, as mentioned earlier, to introduce a lower-tier race into the game. They are also to introduce some antics of the old Escape Velocity series. Their ships are slow, armor-heavy and are somewhat dated-looking, inspired by the Vonians & Emalgha of EV Override, and the Aurorans of EV Nova. Their ideology is also more straightforward and brute-force, as explained below.
Gegno in itself is derived from the latin word Gigno, which means "I bring forth as a fruit of myself: I bear, I beget, I engender, I give birth to". This is to support the basis of the Gegno's concept being the focus on growth. Each faction name is also based on Latin words. Vi, for Violence, and Scin, for Intelligence. System names are based on Volcano names, with the main conflict system based on the main volcano found in Italy (where Latin originates), Vesuvius.
Gegno ship names and planet names are a play on phrasing, taking the syllables & letter words and over-annunciating them, for example Dueyu Eitch= W H= Homeworld (backwards).
Gegno ship types/class names are based on geology- Vi ships are named after Metamorphic Rocks, and Scin ships after minerals found in those rocks. The ship's texture layouts use imagery of their labelled rock/material, or something related to them. Civilian ships follow a similar suit.
Gegno weapons are based on words related to their faction's ideals, such as Ballistic for the Vi, and Acuit for the Scin.
LEGENDS
Beyond the Gegno themselves, a few notable content additions litter about Gegno space and will provide some interesting side stories that contribute to the region's lore.
Indigenous Iije
The Iije are a bio-luminescent space-dwelling lifeform found east of Gegno space in a dark region that is devoid of life and bright stars. These creatures feed upon the remains of stardust, nebula, matter, etc. and are entirely passive in nature.
Ancient Rulei
The Rulei, full name vyu'Rulei, are an extinct race that previously inhabited Gegno space. Their timely end is represented by a single relic ship found towards the south that the player will be able to interact with and hear the tale from- albeit through an obscure lens.