[Noise]

I've started a new campaign in which a GTVA fleet was on the wrong side of Capella when it went supernova.  They jumped to Gamma Draconis (just barely!), and thus the only possible way back to the GTVA is through Shivan territory.  It would be much appreciated if I could get some feed back on what people think Shivan culture would be like.  Like how the inhabit star systems, their background, how they construct warships, what kind of life form they are?  The list goes on.  Feel free to comment.

[Solatar]

We have almost no idea.

[Noise]

Be creative.

[diamondgeezer]

Most people fancy a sort of hive-like structure, but it'd be wrong to hold the Shivans akin to Terran insects just because of the vague physical similarities... Try reading up on the traits of the Tyranid fleets in 40K/BFG and borrow ideas from that. In any case, you'll need to do at least some resarch of your own

[Solatar]

If I make stuff up, teh community will get pissed at me.


We know they kill everything. Ask Carl, he's Shivan.

[diamondgeezer]

What ever happend to KF's OSFC?

[vyper]

Hmm, if u care about how Shivans reproduce (in my fiction anyway) check out the section on Shivan society at the Maelstrom website. (See link in sig)

[Noise]

I was thinking along the lines that the Shivan race itself is divided into several subcategories, workers, soldiers, breeders, etc.  Governing the whole Shivan race is a series of core conscious entities(?), whom ultimately answer to some highly evolved form of life that created them.  The, lets call them the Creators, were low physical abilities but high in mental, extremely xenophobic, and evil to their core.  They created the Shivans to fight their wars, thus eliminating their need to risk their valuable intellects.  What do you think?

[Black Wolf]

Well, no better or worse than any other idea I suppose - I think left the shivans deliberately vague because it made for the easiest enemies storywise - no need to think up motivations, specialized reactions, get inside their headz, etc. They always just kill kill kill because that's what shivans do.

[Eishtmo]

Avoid the topic of Shivan society completely.  Leave them a mysterious force.  The stranded group doesn't have to fight them all the time (the Shivans may not even care after initial contact), find new things to play with.  New friends, other races, leftover NTF, HoL, SOC, GTI, whatever.  The Shivans in this situation become the background noise, a constent annoyance of which you learn nothing.  Hell, you might even meet someone who claims to know, but they never get around to telling you the answers you want to know.  Mystery is what makes the Shivans interesting, let's not muddle it up with lots of wild speculation.

[Noise]

I've already had the NTF and the HoL play a part in this campaign.  I really didn't want to fully explain the Shivans throughout the course of the missions, just hint at several points.  I agree that the mystery surrounding them is what keeps us interested, but a trip into Shivan territory is going to reveal some secrets.