culture:maidenhands [Wandering Star Role Play]

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===== Maidenhand Culture =====
Being the byproduct of a war fought a long time ago with the winners and losers long faded into the annals of history, Maidenhands seek new purposes in life with their nanomachine-enhanced bodies. Their heritage gives them an inclination for violence and war, but they can reconfigure themselves to suit other roles.

Their hardiness and tactical mind lends themselves well to labour-oriented and management jobs. When the work's over and done, they party hard; Finding new ways to overcome their enhanced resistances or push themselves to the limits.

==== Morals ====
|"Work hard, rest well, play hard."|

Maidenhands have two families: Their immediate blood relatives, and their posse/squad. Once a Maidenhand achieves maturity, they leave their home and seek out a posse to roll with. This is thought to be a carryover of when young Maidenhands would be taken from their families and put into squads to fight, as a posse serves as a self-propelled family unit with no clear leader, but each member of the group making decisions and seeing who agrees.

Each person in the posse looks out for each other. Posses are generally between 10 and 20 people, but larger communes or 'hand tribes' of up to 80 are not unheard of. To outsiders, this looks and functions like a very large share house, and as such they prefer share accommodation. Particularly close families are known to share the same living space together, or at least live in the same neighbourhood for convenience's sake, forming a family posse together.

In general, Maidenhands value loyalty to each other or a cause, conviction, self-control, and combat prowess. They spurn the ideas of peace without assurance, idleness, and senseless carnage. Families and Posses treat outsiders and guests with courtesy, but caution that should they fracture their goodwill, the retribution will be swift.

Maidenhands who aren't part of a posse are usually called 'Fingers' or 'Pariah', either choosing to go their own way in life and work with whoever pays the bills, or being cast out of a posse for bad behaviour. Fingers are viewed with a friendly distance but usually urged to move on once they've concluded their business, while Pariah are shunned by their peers and pushed away.

==== Style ====
Maidenhands are better than their other human peers bodily, and they know it. When they're with clients or unfamiliar guests, they carry themselves as professionals, as they have a reputation as efficient soldiers and killers to maintain. However, in private or with friends, they are known as professional animals, usually the first to break out the beer kegs, compete with each other or exchange good natured banter.

=== Fashion ===
Older Maidenhands prefer drab colours, camouflages, and wearing uniforms. Practicality is key over looks or style for the elderly Maidenhand. Contemporary Maidenhand posses buck the trend, incorporating animal motifs into their clothing and uniforms. The chosen animal is dictated by their posse's tastes, making minor cosmetic changes to their ears and eyes to imitate the posse's mascot animal, within reason.

To this end, they are fond of animal skins or animal skin prints, leathers, feathers, and beads. Piercings and small amounts of face paint are also common. Popular animal motifs for posses include Dogs, Cats, Wolves, Big Cats, Lizards, Snakes, Fish, Birds, and more. They generally keep their hair shaved down, short, braided, or tied back to allow them to wear helmets and combat masks comfortably. Facial hair is also kept short to prevent interference with combat gear too.

Maidenhand fingers and pariah dress however they please, usually blending in with whoever's around.

=== Architecture & Aesthetics ===
Maidenhands have absolutely no qualms sharing their living space with fellow Maidenhands, whether they're the immediate family or a posse. As such, many Maidenhand-built homes are open spaced, with low walls which allow occupants to overhear things or toss items to each other, save for the bathrooms. This is thought to be a carryover of when early Maidenhands lived in barracks and laboratories with little privacy from each other or their handlers.

Furniture is often communal in design, with long tables, bench seating, and large couches suitable for seating a whole posse. It is also designed to be sturdy and modular; Easy to take apart, put back together, or extend. Generally, they are built from recycled woods, steel, or plastics.

==== Technology ====
Maidenhand technology is often practical in appearance and smooth to hold onto. Often, it will try and interface with the user symbiotically and assist them, using neural inputs and thought or gesture recognition.

=== Tech Focus ===
Being the products of war, Maidenhands are attracted to military technology such as guns, tanks, aerospace craft, bombs, battle suits, and more. In recent times though, they have become fans of biological technology, medicine, genetics, and body modifications since they've had time to look at themselves and see what they're made of. In particular, Maidenhands are known to make good medics, in addition to purpose-made soldiers.

=== Magic ===
|"You and your little hexes and glamours ain't fooling us."|

Since they are rendered artificial with their use of nanomachine technology, Maidenhands cannot harness magic at all. It is usually regarded as mere flash and sizzle by some Maidenhands, and they don't see the value in making pacts with weird things or reading books all day. Their resistance to mental magic also gives them a reputation as mage slayers. In spite of that, they do value the application of combat magic by friends from other species, and are known to have a token Hagblood or Rolaan friend to fill the gap.

=== Psionics ===
It is possible for a Maidenhand to be psionically sensitive, but it is uncommon to see a practising psionic due to the culture's focus on martial prowess over mental abilities. Maidenhand psionics mostly focus on self improvement, self diagnosis, danger sense, and clairvoyance, and rarely show external effects or interact with other people.

==== Agriculture ====
|"Here we have a potato big enough to clobber someone with! Just think of how many chips we can make with it!"|

Maidenhands are renowned for their research into resequencing the genetics of plants. To this end, they are at the cutting edge of agricultural technology and plants. Amongst their innovations are giant fruits, year-round yielding crops, plant components of terraforming jobs, and advanced large-scale hydroponics.

If it comes out of the ground, it can be grown or adapted to be grown anywhere a Maidenhand pleases eventually. In posse houses, it is not uncommon to have a house hydroponic bank, or a back yard to grow whatever the posse prefers to eat. Sometimes, even the front yard will be converted to farming space too, taking advantage of all the space possible to grow.

=== Horticulture ===
With their research into agriculture, Maidenhands are also fond of gardening, landscaping, and horticulture. A Maidenhand-centric suburb has large sections of grass on the sidewalks, with trees growing in them, and other aesthetically pleasing plants. Larger buildings often have gardens on the roof, or grasses and ivy growing in patches on the side. Often, these plants will yield fruit, and passers-by are invited to take some if they feel hungry, otherwise it is harvested later.

=== Fauna ===
Maidenhands posses are known to keep pets. Their common role is to as the posse's mascot, and their owners will find ways to train them to fight if possible. Even if they cannot fight, the companionship and unconditional love is appreciated above all else. When it comes to animals for meat, wool, or milk, they leave the responsibility to others.

=== Cooking ===
Maidenhand cooking involves cooking large quantities with few different ingredients which can deliver a consistent flavour every time, while delivering all the major food groups. They have some trouble wrapping their head around the idea of cooking only enough for a single person, so you don't see many Maidenhands as chefs for restaurants, but you will find them cooking at cafeterias. Fingers and Pariahs usually cook enough to last a week in one cooking session, freezing the remainder and thawing it out as need be, or otherwise preserving it.

Drinks wise, Maidenhands like their drinks strong to overcome their natural immunity to poisons. They prefer heavy spirits, fruit liqueurs, and meads for light drinking. Non-Maidenhands are advised not to drink Maidenhand-made alcohol in large quantities, though Greasehearts are considered worthy contenders - even if they do pass out eventually.

==== Religion ====
|"And SHE with her many sons and daughters born of war shall fight the dying of the light." - Final line of the //Twilight of the Maidenhand//|

Maidenhands describe a fifty foot tall, white haired, white eyed, and six armed goddess of war being responsible for their creation and subsequent deployment into a great battle years and years ago. This Goddess sets the example of how a Maidenhand should live, conduct themselves to the world, and revel when their work is over.

This Goddess of War has no given name, and is said to be a furious and terrible person, vanquishing those who would do her subjects wrong without mercy. It is often believed that the spirits of dead Maidenhands will fight alongside the Goddess of War in a galaxy-shattering battle when the universe ends.

The Goddess of War is believed to be an afterimage of whoever created the Maidenhand race originally, with some fanciful alterations in regards to size and number of limbs as time went by and the memory of this person became hazy, and related records were lost.

Maidenhand religion is orally recorded, with few written pieces save for the core tenets of how a Maidenhand should live, and details of the battle to take place at the end of the universe.

==== Traditions ====
With a military background embedded in them, a strong sense of tradition comes naturally to Maidenhands. They are known for their discipline in work - and their revelry in play.

=== Handmoot ===
|"Witness Akechi Brandt, for he has wandered alone as a finger for too long! Tonight we welcome him into the Grove Street posse as a sworn Brother! Can I get a whooaargh?" - Polian Takahara of Grove Street, Master of Ceremonies\\ "//WHOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAARGH!//" - Lots and lots of Maidenhand partygoers|

Once a year at the height of summer in their local system, Maidenhand Posses living close to each other come together and throw an enormous party around a bonfire outdoors. Each posse brings their own food, drink, and entertainment to share; Ranging from feats of strength and dexterity, to extreme sports, to competitive video games. In this friendly competition, ties between friendly posses are built upon. Multiple parties can be spotted across a city, and sometimes parties merge into even bigger parties if public space allows.

During a Handmoot, stray Fingers may be invited to join a posse should they find present company pleasing and a posse likes them, and Pariahs may declare that they have atoned for their previous misdeeds and rejoin their posse, provided they have credible witnesses to their redemption. Often, the revelry leads to some injuries or the occasional brawl, so long as nobody is seriously injured or a weapon isn't drawn((with exceptions for foam training weapons)) it is permissible. Members of other races are welcome to come and join in on the fun and share a meal, provided they can keep up with the Maidenhand appetite for fun.

=== Birth and Death ===
With the arrival of a child, the father and mother's respective posses are invited to act as cousins for the new arrival, and to assist the child with the developing stages of their life. A child's mother and father have the final say in what their child will do, but the posse is open to making suggestions.

Deceased Maidenhands are buried or cremated with their weapons, so they have something to keep fighting with in the afterlife, should they encounter war there too. At funerals, the deceased's battles, achievements, and contribution to their families and posses are read to those gathered to mourn, so they can be remembered for their victories in life.