Rishans
Group Name:
Rishans
Created by:
Dennnis Washburn
Short Summary:
Insane Ancients of good like power.
Appearance:
The Rishans first appear in Denni' Star Trek Game of 1992, and then in ST-OM
and subsequently
Physical Apppearance:
Various - However. some evidence shows that the Rishans appeared human.
Biology:
Unknown. When wearing hman bodies - the Rishans had a conmventional bio-chemistry.
The wide spread appearance of conventional bio-chemistry and common terran life
forms on planets all over the galaxy is largely due to rishan terraforming and
interference
Population:
Unknown - towrd the end of their reign Individual Rishans cn be tracked.
Nature of Members:
The Rishans were a humanoid race whose effects on the Universe can be traced
back 80,000 years. The last Rishan artifacts have been dated at 30,000 years.
The Rishans wielded incredible technology, and over time this technology grew to become something like supernatural powers.
The most primitive of Rishan artifacts so far encountered can be vaguely understood but in no way duplicated - 30 kilometer long starships, space stations that can rewrite someone's brain and life experiences.
Younger and more complex Rishan Artifacts appear to be complete magic. Duplicates of the planet Earth, entire races, the race maker.
Rishans were completely mad by conventional standards. Telepaths who contact accurate records of Rishan minds are damaged to one degree or another. Active Rishan Artifacts that telepathically contact people damage them - extreme cases leave the contactee incoherent and incapacitated. Others have their personalities and personal sense of priorities damaged and changed.
All attempts to collect and trace Rishan motivations through non-damaging sources seem futile. Rishan motivations as revealed by their artifacts is incoherent and random. Most Archaeologists insist that there are simply not enough Rishan artifacts to study.
The Rishans often seemed to consider challenges to ethical and moral codes vastly entertaining and this is the subjec of many of their entertainment artifacts.
The Rishans are known to have heavily favored the form of Humanity - the large number of human races scattered all over the galaxy can be laid at the feet of the Rishans - they transplanted and created Humans with wild abandon all over.
The Rishans also altered many races and proto races to create human like species.
Organization:
Unknown - occasionally mind bending.
Game Role:
A race of mad wizards who left bizarre and odd artifacts behind them. When a
GM needs a techno-magical macGuffin to give PCs a hard time, Boom, the Rishans
did it!
However the motivations and goals of the Rishans should be kept carefully vague,
mysterious and randomized.
Some speculate that the Rishans were the first Human race = that copies of the planet Earth (miri's world, Magna Roma, possibly Earth of the UFP) are actully ancient scans of their own home world - that their love of the human form is largely due to their own self obession and narcisism
PCs who get close to this point of view have been spending too much time around the Rishans are on the verge of going mad.
The Rishans have left. They went beyond the Rim. Gone Fishin. They ain't commin' back. Very useful to the GM as former guys.
World Role:
An Ancient race that left its mark on the galaxy, and was homicidally negligent
with its toys.
Location:
The Rishan roamed and lived all over the Galaxy. However their main worlds -
what they considered thier home territory seems to be a curved Cylinder 50 light
years wide and 10,000 light years long. This seems to relate to a similar ten
light year pole at the dead center of Rishan territory. Why the Rishans would
model their home range on this artifact is completely unknown.
Relative Influence:
Huge - Rishan interference colors all of history. Experts are only learning
this now.
Weird - the Rishans make life much odder, weirder and lend people across the galaxy nightmares each and every night.
Public or Secret? Public
Publicly Stated Goal:
"To remake space in our image - and then have it gigglingly fight for survival
- while coloring it pink - and gold plating all living antlers - To dominate
mint ice cream throughout time and space!" - from the preface to an early
Rishan starship log book, analogous to the "Strange new worlds" statement.
This is one of the more coherent statements.
Early Ane memories reveal that the Rishans were quite earnest, brave, daring and insistent on gold plating their horns, Often encrusting them with nice jewels. Ane who made telepathic contact with them to ask why didn't survive the experience for long.
Universal translators are reported to be absolutely useless in dealing with Rishans.
Relative Wealth:
Amazing - they could build stellar scale artifacts.
Group advantages:
The Rishans were a major empire - covering a huge span of the Galaxy and wielding
unrivalled power.
Special Abilities:
Insane techno-magic - their command of energy, minds and space was breath taking
and frightening.
Group disadvantages:
They fought wars amongst themselves, and with other people, for reasons no one
could fathom. When attacked they seemed to understanding and respond vigorously,
but peace negotiations were random and very frustrating.
Special disadvantages:
Completely incoherent. Major league Ga-Ga.
Languages:
Multiple - they can be translated word for word, but the meaning never seems
to survive.
Later Rishan Artifacts communicate telepathically with various levels of damage
to the recipients.
Mid to late era Rishan Artifacts are often sentient - and communicate and understand
conventional people. However such artifacts are usually set on protecting themselves
from unauthorized access or avoiding damage to primitive races.
Culture:
Loopy. Incoherent. Ga ga. A popular Rishan opera was one annoying, piecing note
that lasted for 107 hours.
Government:
Obscure - inscrutable, Probably mad. for most of Rishan history even while brutal
civil wars raged that cost billions of lives - Department of Agriculture agents,
ships and buildings had right of way and could issue orders relating to agriculture,
and all factions would do their best to enact these orders. In rare cases where
someone abused Dept of Agriculture authority or tried to disguise themselves
as agents of the Dept of Agriculture, thy were set upon with enormous violence
an cruelly tortured to death - possibly by heavily armored battleships maintained
by the Dept of Agriculture for that purpose, or by outraged combtants and civilians
or possibly some combination of everyone.
Economy:
Amazingly powerful - completely inchoeherent.
Once, a Rishan Approached Rigilian traders and offered a significant improvement in Warp Drive Technology in exhcange for a kind word. Literally.
Upon having kind words lavished on him, the Rishan Captain gave the Rigillians technical manuals for advanced warp drives. (Federation technology has since surpassed this technology)
As a gesture of gratitude, the Rigellians gave the Rishan captain a plaque with their kind word embossed on it.
The Rishan Captain reportedly committed Suicide from Sheer joy.
In suceeding centuries, Rishans claiming to be descendants of that captain, gave the Rigillians documents which turned out to be deeds to planets far out of range of even the fastest modern ships.
People:
The Rishans often appeared human, but other times could appear as anything and
everything.
Races:
It is unknown if the Rishan Empire contains people other than the original people.
If it did it's possible the Rishans altered subject people to be like them.
Military:
The Rishans had a very effective military... sometimes. Other times they didn't.
One of their more effective defense mechanisms was just to communicate with
potential attackers, telepathically. Any deep contact destroyed the contactee
- or the contactee became incoherent and joined the Rishans.
Relations:
The Rishans had limited trade relationships with the Rigellians and the Ane.
In the modern day there are no Rishans. However Rishan artifacts are considered
enormously dangerous and destructive.
Two modern races maintain something of a policy/relationship with the Rishans. The Tabooists were among the very last artifacts created by a Rishan before they all mysteriously left. The Tabooists were given the racial mission to safeguard left over Rishan Artifacts. Thousands of years later they developed warp drive technology an could begin their mission.
The Tabooists were originally placid and easy going herbivourous turtles on their home world - examples of the original species are honored as "Fortunate Ancestors"
The Tabooists work to recover and safeguard all Rishan Artifacts, and to protect all "junior" races by waning them away.
Tabooists are among the greatest experts on Rishan Archaeology, knowledge which they will share dolefully and worshippfully, both as revelation and dire warning.
Tabooists driven mad by Rishan artfacts are respected. Their ramblings are recorded. They are kept away from all weapons and sensitive energy and life support systems.
Those who favor them:
Rishans - clueless people who see the Rishans as routes to power for hidden
knowledge and yet do NOT comprehend the danger
The Tabooists consider the Rishans Gods.
The Kliges'chee also consider the Rishans Gods - but differently - there could well be a holy war if these two races actually compared notes in any detail.
Those opposed to them:
The Tabooists consider the Rishans Mad, careless, self absorbed Gods filled with capricious hubris.
The Ane support the Tabooists whole hog. Aneilogs especially so
Area of Operation:
The current frontier of the Federation - and a long,long way off to the left
and to the right
Headquarters Location:
Unknown Presumabley in the location of the 100 light year pole
Public Face:
Brave, blond haired, steely blue eyed, cleft chinned Whack jobs, venturing out
in to Deep space and spreading insanity where ever they went.
Notable Members:
Maro - an embodiement of a late era Rishans intention. Not seen for 15 years.
History of the Organization:
-80,000 BCE
The Rishans were active at this time
- 30,000 BCE
There was a Rishan Civil War which left both a standing Ion Storm of amazing
power, and a Derelict 30 Kilometer long battleship
The Rishans estabished the Bad Lands for reasons unknown
The Rishans created an area called "The Ghost Lands" now in the Klingon Empire - Ships disappear, strange ships appear, strange signals are heard and Klingons driven mad.
The Rishans leave - never to be seen again.
Fate of the Oganization:
After reaching a certain, mind boggling level of advancement - the Rishans all
left - No one know why or where. Those wll versed in Rishan history don't want
to know and hope they stay there.
Disclaimer: Paramount owns all things Trek. I claim original characters and situations in this material for me.