Humma

PHYSICAL STRUCTURE
The body of a Humma is pear-shaped with a short, blunt head, no visible neck, narrow shoulders, unusually short arms, a stocky trunk, and wide hips with powerful legs. The face has a muzzle, with both feline and canine features. The body is covered with matted fur, usually dull brown. The hands are hairless. The feet are long and tough.

Humma walk on the balls and toes of their feet, which gives them their extra height. They are able to jump an incredible distance. Their short arms can hold a rifle but are not suited for melee weapons. They have evolved with an agile and strong prehensile tail with which they can deliver a sound blow or use a melee weapon.

Humma are warm-blooded but they are not mammals; their physiology and life cycle are unique. Young Humma are female. After they have borne a single child (all Humma bear one child in their lifetime) they change into males. When Humma approach 170 years of age they undergo another change into a neuter stage and remain neuter until death.

SENSES
Humma hearing and sight are equivalent to Human standards. Their sense of smell and touch are not as acute as most of the other races, while their sense of taste is completely dull. This lack of smell and taste, combined with their tough digestive system, means they can eat almost anything that is vaguely edible.

SPEECH
The Humma language is an ugly one, full of grunts and guttural noises. It is not an easy language to learn; Vrusk and Ifshnits, particularly, have a difficult time with it.

SOCIETY AND CUSTOMS
Humma history is steeped in civil and interspecies war. The Sathar incursions, however, drove the Humma to finally join the Rim Coalition. There is little that they enjoy more than a good brawl. Humma have an almost fatalistic, "it is a good day to die," attitude which not only makes them deadly warriors but leads them to entertain themselves in most illicit fashions. They are carousers without peers.

Humma society is feudal with the equivalent of a king (called the Highest One) and royalty (Higher Ones, High Ones, and so forth). The fealty they owe their superiors is a very serious matter with them. Humma are usually named after their forebears or the houses they serve (Glaxchild, Klud of Arius, etc.). The lineage of a Humma is important to him and a source of pride. In the last few decades the pride and honor that Humma have traditionally assigned to feats of war have come to include accomplishments in technical and scientific areas and explorations. There is even a house, Platget, that now sends out its descendants to become Star Law Rangers.

ATTITUDE
Most Frontiersmen do not like Humma, and even their fellow Rim dwellers are not overly fond of them. That is fine with the Humma, because they do not care for the other races, either. Humma are rude, crude, lewd, pushy, and arrogant. The only races they enjoy working with are the Yazirians (Humma admire their battle rage) and Osakar (because no one likes them either).

Humma evolved from an extremely warlike society. They were welcomed into the Rim System and eventually allied with the UPF because they are much more desirable as allies than enemies. Since the First Sathar War their hatred for the Sathar has run a close second to that of the Ifshnit. This is obvious from the term they use to refer to Sathar: "meat"

Average Size: 2.5m tall (Medium)
Average Mass: 90kg