Larry Niven

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1. #1Kzintiselective

   Keys: Kzinti · Secondary:

   The Kzinti (singular Kzin) are a species of felinoid aliens known for their bloodthirsty and warlike disposition. From approximately 2360 to 2618 AD humans in the Sol and Alpha Centauri systems fought several protracted interstellar wars with the Kzinti. Kzint tactics are somewhat cat-like in nature, with 'Scream and leap' being the primary mode of attack.

2. #2Kzinti Appearanceselective

   Keys: description, appearance, biology · Secondary: kzinti

   Kzinti and Humans have a similar biochemistry. Kzinti are larger than humans, standing eight feet (2.4 to 2.8 meters) tall and weighing 500 lbs (200kg). They have large membrane ears with fur on the outside of the ear and about half way up the ear itself, the skin appears pink; they can fold back flat against the head for protection during a fight. Their noses are black. They have a barrel-chested torso with a flexible spine, and large fangs and claws. They stand on two legs like humans, their feet have five toes, their hands end in three fingers and an opposable thumb. Both their hands and feet have retractable claws that are razor-sharp. These claws are nearly as effective as a w'tsai in dispatching prey and are often used in lieu of weapons when hunting non-sentient prey. The tails of Kzinti are naked and are similar to a rat's, giving rise to the derogatory moniker "rat-cat," used by humans. Kzinti are covered with a thick coat of long fur (except the ears, the tail, palms and soles) that comes in various combinations of orange, yellow, and black, with orange being the most common. The Kzinti adapted to a diet of raw meat. Cooked meat makes Kzinti physically ill, although they are able to consume some plant based matter despite their supposed inhibitions against it. Kzinti venous blood is orange while arterial blood is purple.

3. #3Kzinti Style of Dressselective

   Keys: clothing, outfit, dress · Secondary: kzinti

   Kzinti rarely wear any clothing except for a vest, which is worn for the pockets it provides rather than for warmth, style or modesty. Apart from this vest, Kzinti tend to prefer the covering of their own fur. There are exceptions to this norm, however. One example was the nobility of Hssin, who were known to not only wear clothes, but to dress rather foppishly when attending social events. Officers in the Kzinti Fifth Fleet wear uniforms in order to distinguish readily between classes and specializations. For instance, a Captain of the Fleet wears an elaborate satin uniform complete with an eight-pointed rank insignia that incorporates a real diamond.

4. #4Kzinti Early Historyselective

   Keys: past, history · Secondary: kzinti

   Kzinti evolved from a plains hunting cat on planet Kzin a slightly colder, drier planet than Earth. The Kzin civilization was in the midst of its medieval feudal period when the Jotok interstellar merchants looking for mercenaries landed and made stealthy First Contact. The Jotok taught the Kzinti how to use high technology, weapons and other devices including spacecraft, only to see the Kzinti rebel and the Jotok becoming slaves (or meal). They are the first on-going alien contact that humanity has met within the Known Space universe. The first contact with humanity ends the human golden era of peace.

5. #5Kzinti Cultureselective

   Keys: culture · Secondary: kzinti

   Kzinti society is extremely male-dominated and aggressive. Their empire is called the Patriarchy and is ruled by a single Kzintosh who is referred to only as the Patriarch, a hereditary title. All conquests by the Kzin are made in the name of the Patriarch although the religious institution of the Patriarchy also exerts a strong influence.

6. #6Kzinti Honorselective

   Keys: honor · Secondary: kzinti

   The Kzin call themselves 'Heroes' or the 'Heroic Race', their society places a very high value on 'acting Heroic' and behaving in a heroic fashion. The word Kzinti actually means Hero in the Kzin tongue. To Kzin society, 'heroic' means being honorable and having integrity. Honor being more important than profit, Kzin don't typically lie or bluff, promises are binding, and personal danger is never taken in consideration. This lack of subterfuge is evidenced in the favorite strategy of the Kzin Patriarch, commonly referred to as 'Scream and Leap.' The Kzin culture is so focused on the concept of retaining and gaining honor that it has been speculated that at some point in their history their genes were actually adapted to develop a greater tendency towards traits that were considered to be 'heroic.'

7. #7Strakhselective

   Keys: strakh

   Strakh is a sort of currency or favor system since. For example if the patriarch gets meat from a sellers market stand the seller gains considerable strakh which will bring honor to the seller allowing him to get better customers which leads to more strakh, which gives the seller a higher status within the community.

8. #8Kzinti Femalesselective

   Keys: female, females · Secondary: Kzinti

   Once Kzin gained access to Jotoki genetic manipulation technology, they started manipulating themselves in order to bring out the most 'heroic' qualities and recede undesired ones. To this end, because females are not valued except as bearers of children, the male-dominated Kzin society bred (most of) their own females into sub-sapience. Kzinti females (s. Kzinrett, pl. Kzinretti) have a vocabulary of fewer than a hundred word/sounds and primarily instinct-driven behavior, and are treated as chattel by males (s. Kzintosh, pl. Kzintoshi). Kzinti society explains this by stating the Fanged God removed Kzinrrets' souls as punishment for an attempted rebellion against him shortly after he created Kzin. In reality it was a result of the Kzintosh's desire to maintain patriarchal dominance over Kzin society. However some tribes, long isolated from the Patriarchy, were spared the genetic modifications and still produce sentient females, as well as certain bloodlines, occasionally a Kzinrett will be born that has intelligence equal to or even superior to their male counterparts. Although such occurrences are rare, there seems to be a secret society of intelligent Kzinretti who play dumb while biding their time for a future when all Kzinretti can be restored to their normal state.

9. #9Kzinrettselective

   Keys: Kzinretti, Kzinrett

   Kzinrett are Kzinti females. Singular Kzinrett. Plural Kzinretti.

10. #10Kzintoshselective

    Keys: Kzintosh, Kzintoshi

    Kzintosh are Kzinti males. Singular Kzintosh. Plural Kzintoshi.

11. #11Kzinti Namingselective

    Keys: naming, name · Secondary: Kzinti

    Kzintoshi are born without names which they must earn through valorous deeds. They are known by their relation to their father when they are kittens. After maturity, they are known by their rank or occupation. A Kzin who has performed a great deed will be granted a partial name by a superior; a further, greater deed earns a full name, the second of which is the family name. Only Heroes who have earned a partial name are allowed to breed. The number and quality of the kzinretti in a Hero's harem are based on the name that Hero has attained, which is a representation of the Hero's honor. A Kzin's proper name, while hard to translate into human language, contains tightly coded signals that relay information about the Hero and his deeds to other Kzin. In rare instances, a sufficiently illustrious accomplishment will earn a nameless one a full name in one fell swoop.

    An example of a Kzin's naming transition would be:

    Birth description: Third-Son of Khral-Hrag
    Occupation description: Weapons-Technician
    Partial name: Frep-Technician
    Full name: Frep-Hrag
    

12. #12Kzinti Religionselective

    Keys: beliefs, belief, religion · Secondary: Kzinti

    The Kzin Patriarchy follows a unified religion, worshiping a deity known as The Fanged God. Their priesthood is comprised of all black members of the race, selected at birth. How seriously the individual Kzinti take their religion is uncertain, but it is evident that the priesthood and the belief in The Fanged God do have a large influence on Kzin society as a whole. In fact, according to the priesthood, it is The Fanged God who has promised that all other species will be subjugated by the Kzin. This doctrine is sited by the Kzin to justify their conquering and destruction of other cultures.

13. #13Kzinti Languageselective

    Keys: language · Secondary: Kzinti

    They speak in a hissing language called the Hero's Tongue, which in its written form resembles commas and periods. It is extremely difficult for Humans to learn, however the Kzinti show an affinity to learn alien languages.

14. #14Kzinti Technologyselective

    Keys: technology · Secondary: Kzinti

    Kzinti control and utilize a wide array of technologies, most of which have been captured from conquered species, notably the Jotoki. Within Kzin society, those who make a living by pursuing scientific interests are looked down on and treated with suspicion. As being a warrior is considered the highest value, there is a dearth of capable Kzin scientists available in the Patriarchy. Because of this, the Kzinti rely heavily on their Jotoki slaves to maintain the technology that helps them keep order across the Patriarchy. With a few exceptions, there are not many Kzin who understand how the technologies they utilize actually work.

15. #15Kzinti Conquered Racesselective

    Keys: slaves, servants · Secondary: Kzinti

    Jotok

    Kdatlyno

16. #16Kzinselective

    Keys: Kzin

    The Kzin homeworld is called 'Kzin' by all other races save the Kzinti, who call it 'Homeworld' or 'Kzinhome' in the Hero's Tongue. It is the third planet orbiting the star 61 Ursae Majoris, has stronger surface gravity and both a longer day and year than Earth. It is also slightly colder, drier planet than Earth with more oxygen. It has two moons, the Hunter's Moon and the Traveler's Moon. The Patriarch rules from a large palace on the world.

17. #17Hero's Tongueselective

    Keys: Hero's Tongue

    The native language of Kzin. To most humans the speech sounds like a rapidly spit-out string of insults, replete with screams, snarls, growls, and atonal inflections. Quieter expressions range from sharp, barely-audible single syllables to low, muted, furry rumblings. It is very difficult for humans to learn, however Kzinti have been adaptive in learning other languages.

18. #18Jotokiselective

    Keys: Jotoki, Jotok

    The Jotoki (singular Jotok) are a semi-sentient species gifted in engineering and mechanics. Physically they bear a crude resemblance to a large, walking starfish. Each 'individual' is actually a collection of semi-autonomous 'limbs' that come together to form a single creature. A fully formed, five-limbed adult is referred to by the singular Jotok. The Jotoki are a Kzin slave-race, with most adult individuals either kept in game reserves, or enslaved to serve on Kzin star-ships and worlds.

19. #19Kdatlynoselective

    Keys: Kdatlyno

    Kdatlyno are sentient bipedal humanoids native to the planet Kdat. Kdatlyno are chiefly known for their touch sculpture, their sonar "vision" and for being a race subjugated by the Kzinti.

20. #20W'tsaiselective

    Keys: W'tsai

    The W'tsai is a one-handed bladed weapon utilized by the Kzin as their melee weapon of choice. Although Kzin Heroes prefer to kill with their own teeth and claws when possible, each still carries a w'tsai, usually in a hide-bound sheath, for emergencies and situations where claws will not suffice.

    Description Roughly resembling the Roman Gladius in shape, the average w'tsai is three to four feet in length. While this may seem long for a knife, when compared with the larger frame of the average Hero, the w'tsai is actually more of a counterpart to the human Bowie knife. A Hero's w'tsai typically scales to the size of the Hero himself, with larger Kzin carrying the largest knives. Heroes take great pride in their weapons, and every w'tsai is kept ready for use at a moment's notice. The edge of a w'tsai is nearly monomolecular, granting the blade the ability to slice easily through most materials.

21. #21Hssinselective

    Keys: Hssin

    Hssin is a Kzin colony world that orbits around the star R'hshssira (Innes star or LHS 40), considered to be on the front-line of the Kzin Patriarchy. Because R'hshssira is a red dwarf only about a third of the size of Sol, barely qualifying as a star at all, Hssin receives little light and even less warmth, making it unlivable without some sort of temperature control technology. The planet is described as being 'barren as a moon'. It does however possess a thin atmosphere comprised of noxious gas that is prone to break out in storms. Due to its unwelcoming atmosphere, extreme weather conditions, and icy, rock-strewn landscape, there is no known native life on Hssin. Even the hardy Kzin resort to atmosphere controlled suits and infrared goggles when travelling about on the surface of the planet. Despite all of these challenges, Hssin is still used as a forward military base of the Kzin Patriarchy.

22. #22Patriarchyselective

    Keys: Patriarchy · Secondary: Kzinti

    The Patriarchy is the ruling government of the Kzin. It is a monarchy or empire of sorts, as the title of Patriarch is handed down within a particular family lineage. A single Patriarch rules over the Kzin. Details of this particular Kzin are few and far between, even his full name is never given and it is unknown how long he has sat on the throne. It is known however, that he comes from the Riit House. The Riit family has ruled the Kzinti even before they conquered the Jotoki and gained access to spaceflight technology. At least some male members of the Riit line, are born with a red marking on there chest that is distinctive amongst the Kzinti. Apparently, this marking gave the Kzintosh who was born with it special status not attributed to Kzinti outside of the Riit family, or even those within the family who were born without the marking.

23. #23Known Spaceselective

    Keys: Known Space

    Known Space is a volume of interstellar space explored by humans and their alien neighbors. Known Space is about 80 light years in diameter and contains Human Space. This area is an irregularly shaped "bubble" about 60 light-years across.

24. #24Wrath'Gur Fe'linaselective

    Keys: Wrath'Gur Fe'lina

    Wrath'Gur Fe'lina translates roughly into human languages as The Angry Cat. This space frigate of the Kzinti Patriarchy supports a complement of 30 Kzinti warriors and a Jotoki slave contingent of 150. The warriors man monitoring and weapons systems and maintain watches at all times for combat readiness. The slaves maintain and run all other systems. The frigate has an H shaped configuration with ships drives in the rear section and weapons systems in the forward section. The frigate has sub light drives for maneuvering and traveling within solar systems and supra light drives for traveling from solar system to solar system. The frigate is armed with directed energy weapons, nuclear torpedos and miniature black hole bombs.

25. #25Earthselective

    Keys: Earth

    Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only planet in the solar system known to harbor life. Earth is a water world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all of Earth's water is contained in its global ocean, covering 70.8% of Earth's crust. The remaining 29.2% of Earth's crust is land, most of which is located in the form of continental landmasses within Earth's land hemisphere. Most of Earth's land is somewhat humid and covered by vegetation, while large sheets of ice at Earth's polar deserts retain more water than Earth's groundwater, lakes, rivers and atmospheric water combined. Earth's crust consists of slowly moving tectonic plates, which interact to produce mountain ranges, volcanoes, and earthquakes. Earth has a liquid outer core that generates a magnetosphere capable of deflecting most of the destructive solar winds and cosmic radiation.

26. #26Marsselective

    Keys: Mars

    Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. The surface of Mars is orange-red because it is covered in iron(III) oxide dust, giving it the nickname "the Red Planet" by humans. It is classified as a terrestrial planet and is the second smallest of the Solar System's planets with a diameter of 6,779 km (4,212 mi). In terms of orbital motion, a Martian solar day (sol) is equal to 24.5 hours and a Martian solar year is equal to 1.88 Earth years (687 Earth days). Mars has two natural satellites that are small and irregular in shape: Phobos and Deimos.

27. #27Humansselective

    Keys: humans, earthlings, homo sapiens

    Humans (Homo sapiens) or modern humans are the most common and widespread species of primate, and the last surviving species of the genus Homo. They are great apes characterized by their hairlessness, bipedalism, and high intelligence. Humans have large brains, enabling more advanced cognitive skills that enable them to thrive and adapt in varied environments, develop highly complex tools, and form complex social structures and civilizations. Humans are highly social, with individual humans tending to belong to a multi-layered network of cooperating, distinct, or even competing social groups – from families and peer groups to corporations and political states. As such, social interactions between humans have established a wide variety of values, social norms, languages, and traditions (collectively termed institutions), each of which bolsters human society. Humans are also highly curious: the desire to understand and influence phenomena has motivated humanity's development of science, technology, philosophy, mythology, religion, and other frameworks of knowledge; humans also study themselves through such domains as anthropology, social science, history, psychology, and medicine.

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