Thsier Fighter: Most species are quite unfamiliar with Thsier hand-to-hand fighting. They use not only fists and feet, but also a strong tail and a skillful (though not overly damaging) bite. Due to the extra distractions of the swinging tail and snapping bite, a Thsier gains a -1 step bonus on all unarmed attacks against a non-Thsier. A non-Thsier who possesses the Culture broad skill and specializes in the Thsier with one of his specialty skills negates this bonus if he also possesses the Unarmed Attack broad skill (or Defensive Martial Arts).
Cold-blooded: Since they are cold-blooded, Thsier can survive much longer without food or water than most other species. They gain a -3 step bonus on all Survival skill checks in circumstances when food or water are scarce. However, if Thsier body temperature drops below 10 degrees Centigrade, they becomes torpid and suffer a +1 step penalty on all physical skill checks and a +2 step penalty on all action checks. For every 5 degrees beyond that, the penalties are cumulative.
Endurant: Thsier are hearty creatures. They
gain a -1 step bonus on all Constitution feat checks and Stamina-Endurance
skill checks. This benefit is cumulative with the Fortitude perk.
While hatred of the Bakorians lasted well into the Thsier information age, peace was maintained despite the Thsiers' economic and population troubles. Again, scholars attribute this to masterful diplomacy by the Bakorian emissaries. So much of the Thsier economy was based on warfare that there was a deep depression while industries shifted to other areas of focus. At the same time there was a boom in the Thsier population, due primarily to the lack of military losses. The economy changed in time, and, thanks to new trade with the Bakorians, began expanding. The population issue was a different story. Once Thsier population reached 4 billion, the government began to enforce a "fertility denial" program. Only one of every ten Thsier females is allowed to breed. They are selected at random from birth, and all others have their reproductive organs removed at that time. This pratice has continued to the present day, although modern medicine has provided methods to keep Thsier females infertile without invasive surgery.
The Thak: The only truly different subspecies of
Thsier are the Thak ("Redbacks" from their red-brown scales).
Having evolved in an extremely arid and desolate region, this breed of
Thsier has extreme benefits and penalties of being cold-blooded (double
all bonuses and penalties for the Cold-blooded special ability).
Furthermore, a full 5% of the Thak population are mutants--they have lighter,
thinner scales which only provide natural protection of 1 [LI] / 0 [HI]
/ 1 [En] (no dice rolled), but in return they receive d4 mutation points
and d4 drawback points (obviously penalties relating to heat or bonuses
relating to cold are not allowed, nor are any other mutations counter to
Thsier physiology). The effects of the advantageous mutations Dermal
Reinforcement, Dermal Armor, and Dermal Plating are all increased by an
additional +1 [LI] / +0 [HI] / +1 [En] due to their natural scales.
Mutant Thak are typically considered outcasts by Thsier society.
The Thsier of the modern era have built an incredible system of transportation and mass transit. While few settlements are exceptionally large, they are all connected by high-speed grav-trains which provide easy movement across all continents and, in many cases, even across the seas. The freedom of individual vehicles never apealed to the Thsier, so few were ever developed by the saurian species.
The Thsier also never developed an organized religion, and they hold
no belief in a divine ancient race. Nearly all of the
mythology of their past revolves around Thsier heroes and their achievements
during the "Physical Cleansing". An historic
earthquake might be recorded as the impact of a Thsier hero who had
fallen in battle, his body striking the ground in the frozen south with
enough force to shake the whole world. Today, the Thsier are less
warlike and have devoted their attention to artistic, technological, and
physical pursuits.
The Thsier "Government of One Thousand" is elected generally democratically. Each sthafith submits one individual to vote for the town every three Iersian years. That individual's vote is cast with weight equal to the population of his town, and the thousand candidates with the most support are chosen as the official representatives. With modern technology the process only takes two or three days. It is a well-ordered society, and the government's power is rarely questioned.
A standing military has long since passed its usefulness on Iersia,
but the Thsier continue to maintain a fairly significant armed force for
local and Terdalis-wide problems. Recent government debate has called
for an increase in military preparedness: the stardrive has opened
the door to the universe, and the Thsier want to be ready!