Dalgata

Evolution of the Dalgata
At roughly 500 millenia ago, the planet that would become the old homeworld of the Dalgata took form. Orbiting a Class-G Standard Star, the planet was slightly on the cold side of temperate once it had stabilised. Unfortunately this cold stopped most mammaloids from evolving, and they slowly died out again, leaving room for the newly developing invertebrae.

It was roughly 250 000 years ago that the first traceable ancestors of the Dalgata developed, being very small, and probably not that different to Earth tarantulas. They developed the ability to shoot web for a few metres to create large webs which would catch food for the entire colony of spiders, and gave them a windbreak during the stormy seasons.

That was soon to change however. Unknown to them, a sun had gone supernova lightyears away, and was spewing out all kinds of radiation into space. The planet would be hit in a matter of years, and the Dalgata had no idea...

The First Republic of Ithrixia
Now we get to the interesting bit. The Dalgata had been united by a council, so that tradition continued. The council was formed from Dalgata who led the many villages they had constructed over the years on Ithrixia.

That’s when things got strange. The council for one thing chose to do all their deliberations during exercise, so it was quite common to see dozens of Dalgata passing papers to each other while running around the course.

However, this became a problem when it was swimming season. Soon, all deliberations were made verbally, and signatures were noted down as pending. As soon as swimming was over, they went back to passing Bills and Laws on the track.

Pretty soon, mistakes were being made. This led to public outcry, which led to a shutdown of all sporting facilities, and eventually caused the first sitting of the Dalgata Republic Council. At this council, it was decided that they had to balance things out, and they did.

That is until the second sitting, a few hundred years later, which is where you come into the story. The Dalgata borders had reached a critical point, in which they could no longer risk expansion with no idea of what lay beyond. A world orbiting the Coriana Star was set as their transmission base. Broadcasting began.

Dalgata to Access








Biology.
Needless to say the Dalgata do have arachnid features, however time after time they have denied that they still fit into the classification of spiders. Since there have been no DNA samples taken of them, all we can say is what we have been told, and we’ve been told quite a bit.

The Dalgata are seemingly a mix of things, from their story it’s a result of the radioactive solar wind that forced them to abandon their long lost home. Let’s start from the outside.

They appear to have a rather intricate exoskeleton, which has added strength from the many twists and turns of their shell that keeps it holding strong. At the same time, this shell can dissolve at will, giving them the ability to squeeze through anything thicker than their head.

On the subject of the head, it is certainly reptilian at first glance, perhaps amphibian on closer examination. We have been told that this was developed by one of the ancients as he explored the radioactive marshes of their old world.

Next to be noticed is those strange looking ridges that come out from the back of their head and the sides of their upright body. Apparently they are hereditary from their original form, solid bone, and seemingly difficult to mould helmets around.

Their hands are rather strange, three long fingers that grasp together like a mechanical claw. This is apparently what used to be the first pair of their old arachnid legs, evolving to their new circumstances with their upright body.

Finishing on the upper section, Dalgata biologists have told us that the first of their two heart-like structures is located in between the side ridges, alongside the four lungs and digestive tract. It is believed that they have no waste removal system, instead processing the leftover matter into structure minerals or other uses…

Onto the lower half is where we find the second heart, which is unusually elliptical in appearance, along with the enlarged liver and kidneys. Located up high near the surface of their back is a totally unknown organ, which Shadows seem to be very protective of.

While they keep their anatomy a closely-guarded secret, their own reproductive system is seemingly common knowledge. Apparently there are three Dalgata genders.

The majority of Dalgata are male, and thus they compose a majority of the military. The other genders are predominatly female, the first of which can produce the eggs that Dalgata hatch from, the other being a secluded group who take on the role of incubator. This group in particular are held in very high respect.

The Knights
Needless to say, the Dalgata Knights make up the majority of their military. Noted for their steadfast honour, the Dalgata will not kill another enemy if he is helpless, even to save his own life. The only exception to this is the life of another, a key factor in the military structre.

The Knights were formed in the very early days of the Republic, and as a custom maintained their skills in annual tournaments. In these battles, contenders start with the basic broadsword, and as competitors grow less stun swords are brought in.

The only disgrace the Knights refuse to aknowledge is that of the Keltath oath. Keltath was the last Dalgata to bear a single phrased name, and as such is renowned in Dalgata history outside the Knights. So far, we still haven't been given a translation of the oath, but most assume that it had predictions about the Dalgata's current crisis.

The Advanced Soldiers
These Advanced soldiers are trained solely for battle. Pulse guns and rockets were recently aquired from trade, only under grave circumatances. These forces came into effect only a few years ago, when the Shadows encountered their first alien lifeform.

This race was the Grox. They came to Ithrixia in a single ship, as an observation of 'Outer Galactic Life Forms'. As the Dalgata live on the edge of the Spore Galaxy, they were of no interest to the Grox. That is, until a mining operation...

A mining operation on Zalrith 12 had unearthed energy crystals identical to the ones found on the Dalgata's long-lost homeworld, and became a instant hype for archaeologists and the ship-builders alike. Unfortunately, the Grox took interest too.

It became clear that facing the Grox with swords alone, so while the miners kept the Infestation Pod at bay, an Dalgata captain named Idac'Zitha'Maokl went out into unknown space, to find the help they needed.

Thanks to a quick supply from a Nepharian trading colony, Idac brought back the ranged weapons they needed to drive the Grox away from good. From then on, the Advanced Soldiers became the main fighting force, while the Knights continued on as a closed circle.

Non-Political/Military Roles
The Dalgata family is a rather sensetive subject to the Dalgata, mostly because of the fact that we have never seen a female Dalgata or heard any mention about Dalgata children. From what we have been told, we have summarised this information.

The Dalgata families all reside on Ithrixia, a world exclusive to Dalgata, and only located by the Grox. And because of it's position on the rim of known space, this greatly worries us.

Back onto sociology, the Dalgata male in a family is supported by a close relative who has his own income, usually a brother or cousin. Each Shadow family own a segment of land, and the head of each family group own a large island.

On these 'House heads', it seems that Dalgata families employ a monarchial system, with the most experienced Dalgata leading these houses. These houses are designated by how each Dalgata family is related, (Idac'Zitha'Maokl is designated leader of the Corinthial House for instance. Meldath'Xhor'Takth is a high member in the Szoran House.)

As far as we know, each house head is a member of the Dalgata Republic Council, with the exception of Idac'Zitha'Maokl, Plar'Nolt'Kirs (Plaar-No-Lot-Cur-S) and Xthi'Fona'Jtin (Zee-Thee-Fona-Ju-Tin), all of which are Captains in their own right. (Xthi'Fona'Jtin is the only female who is commonly known as being in the military, as we suspect she is an incubator.)

Dalgata Adventures
EAW - Fourth One on Ice Part One.



Diplomacy
Coming Soon.

Ithrixia
Ithrixia is the homeworld of the Dalgata, strictly off-limits to all other races, for two known reasons. One is to protect the Houses, which say they are thinking of the interests of their families. The other is that many Dalgata cities are underground, and fear of spies mapping their complexes drives their other very unusual feature.

Approximately 275 000 Dalgata vessels orbit Ithrixia at any given time, not leaving their posts apart from their monthly maintenance routine, a rather spectacular wave of diving and rising ships, observed by a few permitted vessels. Apparently, these ships have very powerful energy weapons, and are controlled remotely from the surface.

The festival of Ithrixia falls every 3 standard years, for them it is an annual event. At this festival, the Dalgata abandon their strict vegetarian diet for a huge feast of meats and other products as a celebration of their survival. The meat is seemingly obtained from other worlds, and undergoes a very strong purification process, which prevents any form of alien disease from spreading.

Vehicles/Ships/Weaponry/Other
Dalgata Standard Ship.



Fixed Artillery Piece.



Plasma Thompson.



Coming soon.