Arak’thari

The Arak’thari are a sentient arthropoidal species from the low-gravity world of Thren’vael in the Galaxa Universe. They are renowned as the greatest engineers and architectural artists in known space, revered for their gravity-defying megastructures and metallic weavings that fuse art with physics.

Standing roughly four feet tall but spanning twelve feet in width with their eight legs, the Arak’thari present a formidable yet graceful silhouette. Their front limbs function as versatile graspers, capable of both delicate manipulation and tremendous force, while their pedipalps act as highly sensitive, tool-like appendages.

Physiology

Arak’thari musculature allows them to manipulate dense alloys as if folding paper, giving rise to their characteristic method of *metal origami construction*. Their exoskeletons are composed of composite chitin infused with native metallic minerals, creating natural electrostatic stability in low gravity.

They possess a refined internal organ called the **Gravitic Loom**, enabling instinctual micro-control of gravitational fields. This biological adaptation grants them stability on floating terrain and is the source of their mastery in constructing gravity-defying architecture.

Society and Culture

Contrary to assumptions of hive behavior, the Arak’thari society is highly individualistic and entrepreneurial. Every citizen is measured by personal innovation and contribution. Older Arak’thari often preside over colossal construction firms that span star systems, their artistry woven into the skylines of countless worlds.

Their society prizes creative independence, innovation, and the transformation of labor into beauty. Though competitive, they are known as staunch **xenophiles**, offering their craftsmanship and mentorship to any species willing to appreciate their artistry.

Religion and Rites

The floating islands of Thren’vael are sacred sites known as **The Great Looms**. Each island contains an enormous gravitic core around which the Arak’thari build temple-workshops. To step upon a Loom without completing the Rites of the Loom—a complex ritual of balance, silence, and creation—is considered blasphemy punishable by death.

To the Arak’thari, creation itself is divine worship: art is prayer, architecture is transcendence, and gravity is the breath of the cosmos.

Philosophy and Sayings

Two central aphorisms define Arak’thari philosophy:

• “To reach the skies with art is but the beginning.”

Refers to the construction of the **First Skybridge**, a megastructure rising from Thren’vael’s surface into the void, marking their ascension into spacefaring civilization.

• “The ones from Elvara are watchmen at the gate who always welcome the needy.”

A proverb honoring their friendship with the Elvari, who aided them in navigating interstellar space despite lacking natural Astral, Magicka, or Teleka affinity.

Inter-Species Relations

• Elvari: Respected as allies and spiritual kin in artistry and culture.
• Valdian: Viewed as prideful and envious rivals; Valdians have long coveted Arak’thari methods of gravitational sculpture.
• Others: Many species find the Arak’thari’s visage unsettling but their genius irresistible, leading to widespread respect and lucrative interstellar contracts.

Technology

The Arak’thari’s architectural technology combines alloy weaving, gravitic resonance, and magneto-fluidics. Their signature creations—such as the First Skybridge, the Ecliptic Web of Thren’vael, and the Orbitborn Cathedra—are considered universal wonders.

Their tools are often worn rather than held: pedipalp-mounted gravitic emitters, fine manipulators, and metallurgical threaders form a seamless extension of their bodies.

Mythic Origins

Legend speaks that the Arak’thari first learned gravity’s secrets when an ancient artisan wove a sculpture so vast that the world itself bent beneath it. Rather than collapse, Thren’vael lifted its mountains into the air, birthing the floating islands. This event, the **Rising of the Loom**, marks the genesis of their civilization.

Trivia

• Alcoholic compounds are toxic to Arak’thari biology.
• Hallucinogenic spices cause intense visionary trances, leading to an internal cultural ban on “spice artistry.”
• Many interstellar stations employ Arak’thari firms to stabilize orbital cities.
• Their structures often hum with harmonic resonance, said to “sing to gravity itself.”