 April 4, 2008 - 8:26pm | One
thing I would like to add is that the Drals are actually as pliable in
their society as they are with their membranes. These are folks that
embrace change and outside ideas better than any other race in the
Frontier. After all, it is completely natural for a Dral to question
authority, if only for the sake of an entertaining (preferably
humorous) debate. Therefore, through these interminable discussions,
many new ideas are uncovered and implemented as the stoa discusses the
matter over a nice hot steam bath. Sometimes psychadelic perfumes are
added to these batches to provide some additional "perspective". "Laughter is food" is the mantra of all Dralasites. Comedians - human or otherwise - are among the most respected and honored members of the community. Comedians are expected to "be funny" at the drop of a hat, and this skill is highly prized (and compensated). Jokes and funny stories are the meat and drink of Dralasite interaction. Vrusk businessmen are particularly poorly equipped for this - often the deal will go to the proposal whose presenter told the funniest story or put amusing shapes and designs into the proposal book. This lack of business fundamentals infuriates the number-crunching Vrusk and leads to massive frustration when a Dralasite is the ultimate decision maker. Dralasites want to do business with someone who has personality! Dralasites make friends pretty easily. They can be good listeners and have a natural gift for diplomacy, tact, and generally try to avoid conflict and have some laughs during work. Most are quite outgoing, and have no qualms about introducing themselves and getting the social ball rolling. Dralasites make excellent "Devil's Advocates" and while this can be annoying at times, it is extremely valuable during business, legal, or military situations. You can count on a Dral to ask questions and make comments when someone says the obligatory "Any questions?" at the end of a meeting. All Dralasite politicians are consummate debaters. Those that reach senior positions in government are formidable debaters indeed and have regularly embarrassed their Human, Yazirian and Vrusk counterparts during electoral debates. However, their unusual shape and ways gives them a disadvantage in the way of charisma. Dralasites look a lot alike, so their politicians have to win elections with what they say, not what they look like when they say it. Slick human politicians have been able to beat Dralasites even after being totally schooled during debates due to this "charisma factor". Some Dralasite quirks: Dralasites love to make other races laugh, and consider that a great achievement - especially a sour puss Yazirian! They enjoy contorting their bodies into humorous shapes for this purpose. Dralasites are very popular with children of all the Races because of this. Dralasites are famous for their circus-like strong men. They do all kinds of wild feats of strength which wow audiences all over the Frontier. Dralasites are the least violent of all Frontier races. They also have had the fewest numbers of wars in their long history. Stoa may exile members but often let them atone and come back. Jokes, tall tales, and healthy debate goes a long, long way to bringing an exile back into full status with the community, unless the crime was particularly heinous (i.e. violent). Dralasites are very fond of soups, puddings, sauces, gravies, and all other liquids and near liquid foods. Dralasite cuisine is one of the few where all of the other races can at least get by and have something decent to eat. Vrusk love to eat bugs, Yazirians prefer their food to be meat (and raw - preferably still alive!) and humans with their cooking grosses out the Vrusk and Yazirians in general. Many members of the other races even go out of their way to pack some Drammune Pudding in their lunch boxes! No other cuisine enjoys such a wide following around the Frontier as Dralasite. At this point in Frontier history, the Dralasites have more than earned their place among the leaders of the Frontier in every category. Even the proudest old Yazirian or the most buttoned-down Vrusk has been known to crack a smile at the antics of the Dralasite, not to mention be swayed by their cogent thought and debate. |
 May 1, 2008 - 1:35pm | Human cooking grosses out Vrusk and Yazs? Vrusk eat bugs? Just looking for some clarification. Great writeup. I'd love more expansion. (Never thought of a Frontier Circus) |
May 1, 2008 - 2:13pm | Yes - Vrusk love bugs - live and wiggly or dead. They don't cook. They also eat vegetable/grain pastes, custards, and pudding. Sometimes fresh bugs are added to the pastes for a crunchy treat. Vrusk mash everything up - chewing is annoying to them. Most Vrusk mess kits will have a pestle included for this purpose. Some Vrusk are vegetarians. Yazirians prefer their meat raw - and alive. They have a primal desire to do all of the killing themselves. For large clan events, adolescent Yazirians have the privilege of killing the clan dinner in a central stage in front of everyone. This is a rite of passage and a great celebration - similar to a Confirmation or Bar Mitzva. The Yazirians then consume the animal raw. Sardine-like live fish are especially popular as Yazirian snacks. Every Yazirian gets great pleasure from feeling the fish's wiggling death throes in their stomach. Yazirians can eat cooked meat, but most do not like it. In company with humans, they will order their meat very rare. Some Yazirians will pass the meat briefly through a bunsen burner-type flame to "crisp it" a bit - but this is far from actual cooking. Yazirians enjoy spices and sauces much as humans do - or just garnished in the creature's blood. Yazirians can eat bugs, but prefer not to. They would be about as likely to eat a bug as a human - they will if they have to, but normally do not. The exception is large, juicy, hairy spiders, which are an expensive delicacy for Yazirians. Special breeds, without poison sacs, are raised for this purpose and this is a billion credit industry. Among Yazirians, it is considered very polite and generous to "share spiders." Yazirian guests that are looking to impress their hosts will bring a small tankfull of spiders to an event for dessert, or as hors d'ouvres. Dessert spiders are the most prized - and expensive. Yazirians have vegetables and fruits on the side, but meat is vital to them. As with everything else in Yazirian society, sacred foods have great symbolic and religious signifigance. Ritually killed food somehow just tastes better to them. There are no Yazirian vegetarians. |
