Panhumans in the Concord

Much more than the Senatex, the PanHuman Concord is comprised of countless subspecies of panhumanity. Many simply evolved or were guided in subtle ways to better suit their surroundings, such as the Algoryn or Krasz, whilst others were deliberately geneered like the Boromites to better survive on a hostile planet, such as the Gyohn. Another group of panhuman species were the result of genetic experimentation by the less ethically scrupulous NuHu to produce a strain of panhumans who would fit a particular need, to be kept in perpetual servitude like the Vyess.  Worst of all, there were those panhuman species who were produced as a whim by the exiled, rogue or renegade NuHu – though not many such species survive, most becoming misgenic rejects. Whilst the Concord accepts genetic manipulation and engineering as any other technology, it frowns on the abuses of the past and occasionally still has to resort to ejecting unscrupulous experimenters – typically NuHu – from its ranks.

Indeed, anyone visiting a Freeborn trading hub would think the number of panhuman species to be countless.  This is not quite accurate as amongst some advanced cultures, rephenotyping to change the look of an individual is common, sometimes even adding scales or feathers and sometimes changing in tune with fashion! The Concord Combined Command (C3) accepts any panhuman within its ranks. Whilst most C3 panhumans look no different to humans of the 20th century, other than being fitter, healthier, more balanced and likely to have implants, there are some who are more likely to differ markedly from baseline panhumans. In their armour, of course, there is little to see but their heads and faces, and only occasionally build or size, but they are often employed to handle specialised roles.

The Senatex is tightly integrated with the Tsan Ra. Whilst they have as many panhuman species as the Concord, they are less likely to have such peoples serving in the military, their places taken instead by the warriors of the Tsan Ra and a differing military ethos. Nonetheless, species such as the Vyess, Gyohn and Hantale are occaisonally seen amongst their ranks.

We describe some of the PanHuman Concord’s more common species below. Others, such as the Krasz, already have their own entry in the Nexus, or are mentioned in conjunction with their specialist roles, such as the intelligence operatives of the Vyess who support NuHu.

Gyohn

Pronunciation: Guy-yown

The Gyohn’s blue-grey, haunted looks result from the a parasitical infection that altered their viral DNA during the long isolation of the Fourth Collapse. The original virus was probably a weapon from the collapse of the Xon Empire (3rd Age – Xon Times) that significantly weakened normal human resistance to dermatological infection and damage. After a few generations of isolation, it was discovered that the whole population was infected.

A first response was to boost the Gyohn’s healing abilities – which worked, but unfortunately led to a substantial increase in scar tissue. A longer-term response  to try and alter their skin back to human norms ran into problems when it was discovered that the original virus had replicated snippets of its DNA throughout the local genome, even replacing vital DNA components. Before the population could die out, an attempt was made to alter the virus itself to encourage, tougher, thicker skin at the expense of underlying body fat.

The Gyohn now live in a balance: they look horrifically gaunt, may lack certain ‘normal’ panhuman features, but are still susceptible to heavy or horrific scarring, very often the most exposed places such as hands and faces.

Sometimes referred to as ‘The Scarred’, the Gyohn now wear their deep, pale scars with pride: they may evoke revulsion in the more isolated panhumans. But theirs is a species that has been tested against the worst weapons of the Warring Ages.

Adam Murton has written a serialised short story, Fall from Grace to illustrate the hardiness of the Gyohn and the calculating intelligence and empathy of the Vyess.

Hantale

Like the Boromites, the Hantale (pronounced han-tah-ley) are remnants of the heavy genetic experimentation carried out in the First and Second Ages of Antares. It is believed their third eye is the results of experiments co-ordinated across multiple systems into broadening the human visual spectrum into the IR and UV bands, perhaps as a survival requirement against aerial foes with adaptive camouflage – a now-lost group of species that had spread over a broad number of Antares-connected worlds.

It is almost certain that the experimenters had no wish to affect the normal vision so the Hantale’s normal, binary eyesight is only slightly adapted into the wider spectrum. However, the third eye is a result of substantial specialist, chimeric genes to generate receptors from non-human species.

With the broad range of receptors on Seventh Age armour,  for all practical purposes the Hantale have the same statistics as other panhumans. Nonetheless, the sight of their pale skin and angry red flesh around the third, dark eye no longer attracts attention within the ranks of the IMTel nations.

We have a piece of flash fiction written by Adam Murton incorporating the Hantale: The Unseen Threat.

Comparison

The Concord panhumans can be comparred on the following. All the models are to scale on a 25mm base.

To vary your own Concord armies, Hantale, Vyess and Gyohn heads can be bought from the online store.